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13-reasons-ideas · 1 year

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Can’t Go Back Part 24

A/N: Guess who’s back! Thank you for sticking with me. It’s been a rough several months and I think things are finally getting to a point where I can focus on my hobbies again. As always, feedback is appreciated and Character Q&As are open. Much Love -Em

I had finished the last book on my To Read shelf by mid-May. Hopping off my bed, I went over to my bookshelf. There was only one shelf of space left. The stack to shelve had gotten a tad out of hand. Sighing to myself, I sat down to start reorganizing. I pulled the books from H to Z down to fit the new additions to my collection in. My dad poked his head in when the stack fell over.

“Everything okay in here?” I was surrounded by books. Dad tried not to laugh as he took the scene in. Grabbing books, I turned back to the shelf.

“Perfect. Totally meant to sit in a sea of books this afternoon.”

“Sure. You have fun with that. I have to head into the office for a while. Tell your mother I probably won’t be home for dinner.”

“Will do.” I nodded, not turning my attention back to him.

Monty texted me shortly after I had finished the M’s. What are you up to today?

Organizing my bookshelf. I finished my TBR so now they go in the permanent collection.

Only my girlfriend would make a permanent book collection and a separate section for books that aren’t done.

Hey! Lots of people do this.

Yes honey.

What are you up to today?

Trying to study for my last History test. It’s very boring.

I’m sure it is. If you’re free Saturday, how about a get out of studying free card?

Oh? What did you have in mind Doll? I rolled my eyes and grinned. Of course he thought I meant something dirty.

Cool your jets Monty. I was going to see if you wanted to go to the bookstore with me?

I can make that happen. What time?

I think Clay and I are getting lunch to go over our study guide for the Math final. I could do like 1?

Sounds good. Do you want me to meet you at the bookstore?

Sure. I go to the B&N at the Everglade.

It’s a date.

I smiled and went back to my books.

When it was done, I snapped a picture and sent it to Justin. I finished my TBR! You know what that means?

Oh no. More books?

More books!

Do I have to come with you?

No. The parents gave me a limit of 10 books this time.

Only 10?

I have points saved up. And 10 is a perfectly reasonable amount of new books.

For you? Yes. For normal people? No.

Oh shhh, or I’ll make you come with me.

Okay, okay. It’s reasonable lol. I texted Monty a picture of my bookshelf too. He responded with a laughing emoji.

Teachers were beginning to wrap up final units and hand out study guides for finals. Justin was still mad about summer school so he kept up his not giving a shit attitude. I rolled my eyes whenever he sighed or complained about finals. And I stopped offering to help him. If he wanted to do more work in summer school, that was fine by me. It gave me more time to spend with Monty.

On Saturday, I met Clay at Rosie’s and we both got milkshakes. I wasn’t very hungry, and I didn’t want burger breath later. “So Clay, how’s Hannah doing?”

“I don’t know. We have hung out a few times, and I see her at work, but I don’t think we have hung out hung out.”

“You still haven’t asked her out?”

“I mean, we went to Jeff’s place not together, but we were both there, and I feel like maybe we connected?”

“Connected?”

“Well, we were doing… stuff… and we talked.” My eyes widened.

“Clay Jensen did you do drugs in Jeff’s basement?”

“Maybe?” I was stunned.

“Well, I’ll be damned. Clay Jensen, having fun. I never thought I’d see the day.”

“Ha ha.” He joked.

“I’m kidding! But seriously. Take the risk Clay.”

“I’ll think about it. Can we look at this study guide now?” I sighed and pulled it out of my bag. We both shuddered. This is not going to be a pretty exam.

By the time Clay and I called it an afternoon, it was 12:30. That gave me just enough time to get to the city. We packed our notes and headed outside. “Man, I really need a car.” Clay sighed, unlocking his bike.

“Your parents said no?”

“I have a bike.” He waved towards the bike.

“That you do. I would offer you a ride, but I’m headed into the city for the afternoon.”

“No worries, Addy.” He smiled. We waved goodbye and I watched as he biked down the street. I started my car and texted Monty. Leaving Rosie’s now. Might be a little late. Drive safe.

Sounds good, drive safe Doll.

I stopped at Starbucks when I got to the mall and got an iced coffee to sip while I browse and a coffee for Montgomery. He was waiting outside Barnes & Noble for me. “Hey handsome. Fancy seeing you here.” I winked as I walked up to him.

“Hey gorgeous. What can I say, thought it would be a good way to find a girl. You know what they say about the readers.”

“I have a feeling I do.” I laughed and handed him his coffee. “Something to do with being high strung, overachievers with daddy issues?”

“Somethin’ like that.” Monty took my hand and let me lead him into the bookstore. I decided I would keep my ten-book limit to myself. I knew how many points I had, and I still had birthday money left from last year.

He chuckled as I practically dragged him towards the YA section. I didn’t stop to look at the romance displays or the cookbooks or the journals. I was on a mission. There were books to buy. I sipped my coffee as I browsed. As usual, I made my way up and down the aisles quickly once to see if anything immediately caught my eye. A couple of books did, so I grabbed them to look over after I was done my power walk. “I don’t know if I’ve ever seen you move that fast.”

“Ass.” I laughed as I read over the synopsizes of the two books. Neither of them was my cup of tea in the end, so I decided to put them back. I could feel Montgomery watching me as I looked at the shelves. “What?” I asked as I pulled a book down and skimmed the back.

“Nothin’. You’re just cute is all.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah. And those shorts are very nice.” I blushed and smiled softly.

“Thanks.” I handed him the book.

“Oh, I see. You needed someone to carry the books.”

“Well, who else would I have asked, when I have my strong, athletic boyfriend to follow me around the store?” He only laughed in response. I grabbed a few more books as I sipped at my coffee. Once in a while, I would notice him watching me and turn to smile at him.

There were six books in Monty’s hands before he finished his coffee. “I’m going to throw this out. Try to leave some books for the next person, okay Bookworm?”

“I’ll try. No promises though.” I mused. By the time he came back, I had three more books. I looked up when I heard him laugh. I grinned at him and held out the books. He took them, tucked them under his arm, and stepped towards me. My brow furrowed and he reached to tuck my hair behind my ear, trailing his hand down to cup the back of my neck, and pull me towards him to kiss me. I kissed him back softly. It was nice to be able to kiss in public. I liked our little bubble. It felt like we were the only two people in the world. He pulled away first.

We continued to peruse the store for a while and stole kisses and glances along the way. Monty slid his hand in my back pocket as we walked. I grabbed another couple of books and sighed. “What’s up?”

“I guess that’s enough books for a little while.”

“For a little while? Addison. There’s like,” he paused to count, “sixteen books here.”

“Yeah. And that isn’t even all of what is on my TBR still. And it’s buy one get one half off all books.” I shrugged.

“Jesus. Crazy woman.” He muttered softly and kissed the side of my head. I sighed and turned to head for the till. After discounts, points, and birthday money, my total was twenty-five dollars.

“Now to figure out how to sneak the extra six books into the house.” I muttered as we left.

“The extra what whats?”

“Uh… nothing.” I smiled sheepishly. He shook his head playfully. “Oh, hey. Pretzels. Split one?”

“Nice change of subject. Sure. Pretzel sounds good.” He rubbed my hand as he held it. This is nice.

In late June, just as finals week was hitting its peak, tragedy struck our little group of jocks. The boys were at Bryce’s trying to blow off some steam. I was trying to be nice to him and make an effort for Justin, so I tagged along. The way his family approached and flaunted their money always took me by surprise. I wasn’t oblivious. I knew my family had more money than most. More than I liked to consider or admit. But it was never flashed around the way it was with the Walkers. I came from old money on my dad’s side, like his mom. But unlike him, I wasn’t exposed to it on a daily basis. The concept of a twice a week maid was enough to widen my eyes. The only time my family had a maid come was when Gran was coming to stay with us, or we were hosting Christmas back when all my grandparents lived state-side, so a very deep clean was needed. The fact that they had a chef come in once a week to meal prep for them was… almost incomprehensible. The only time I met a chef was when I found a hair in my food when my family went out one night.

I had been to his house before of course. I was friends with Justin. We shared custody of him most weeks. Even still, I found myself hanging back and watching the boys socialize. Or I was trying to at least. Bryce thrusting a bottle of water in my hand startled me. I jumped slightly. “Thanks.” I muttered.

“Don’t mention it.” He chuckled. He settled himself next to me and leaned back against the counter.

“Hi.”

“Hi. You know that they will talk to you, right? They know you.”

“I know.”

“Okay. I’ll talk to you then.” Great. Just what I want.

“Sure Bryce.”

“How are finals treating you?”

“I cried before my honours English final yesterday.”

“I almost forgot about my math final.”

“So, we are basically in the same boat.”

“Basically. You had bio and history today?”

“Yeah.”

“How were they?”

“I think I did fairly okay. Can you imagine what my mum would do if I bombed the history final?” He stared off into space with me and shivered.

“I would say something nice about you at your funeral.”

“Thanks Walker. Killing me does seem like a lot of hassle for that though. Like it seems like it would just inconvenience them. Maybe locked in my room to study until I’m forty?”

“True. I would text you news updates. Keep you updated in all things Bryce and the boys.”

“Prefect. Make isolation at least a little bit bearable.” He was actually kind of nice sometimes. Maybe. If I squinted.

“Yeah. My dad would have freaked if I missed my math final.”

“How could you take over the family business if you fail tenth grade math Bryce?”

“No idea. Not like he doesn’t pay someone to do all that math for him. Speaking of, he wanted me to ask you if your dad is taking on any new clients now that tax season is winding down?”

“I don’t know. I don’t think he is, but I can get him to email your dad.” I don’t think he’s going to take your dad on.

“I’ll let him know.”

“Where are you off to this summer?”

“I think we are summering in Fiji?”

“Because California isn’t summer-y enough?”

“Mom thinks the sun feels different. More sunny. I tan better in tropical environments.”

“Sure, you do.”

“What are your family’s plans?”

“We have our annual family trip to Boston at the end of July into the first week of August. Dad pushed his vacation time this year.”

“Doesn’t he own the company?”

“Yeah. But his associate wanted to take vacation in mid-July. She’s taking her kids to Disney World.”

“Again, doesn’t he own the company?”

“Again, yes. Why?”

“Shouldn’t he get first pick?”

“Well, our vacation basically costs us airfare, food, and spending money. Hers and everyone else’s costs a lot more. And requires more planning. So, he lets them have first pick and takes whatever’s left for the most part. Because of that, people are more willing to pick fairly.”

“Interesting.”

“Are you two going to come outside or not?” Justin called from the back yard. Bryce and I looked up and found the house empty. All the boys had moved to the back. We shrugged and joined them. I needed to pass the sniff test so I didn’t dare go in the pool house. Anders and Dylan were in the pool house enjoying Bryce’s stash. It was already nearing eighty degrees in the daytime. We were in for a hot summer. Justin pulled off his shirt, dropped his pants, and jumped in the pool. Shaking my head, I followed Bryce outside.

I sat on the edge of the pool and dipped my feet in the water. Monty was trying to be discreet and swim backwards towards me. He stopped just shy of me and shared a look with Zach. I pretended not to notice. It looked like I was busy watching Justin goof off with Bryce and Garrison. I was watching my boyfriend out of the corner of my eye though. I felt a wave close to my foot. “Montgomery. If you touch my foot, I’m not responsible for what happens to your face.” His hand stopped and his eyes widened. Justin laughed and called from across the pool.

“She isn’t wrong dude. She kicked me in the face when I was trying to bug her one time.”

“I wasn’t going to….” Monty trailed off.

“Sure, you weren’t.” I shook my head and moved to stand up. I pulled my tank top over my head. The shorts I was wearing were fine to go in the water.

Seeing as we had to keep up appearances, I couldn’t very well ask Monty to tighten the tie on my bikini top. That would be too much. The boys would question that. Joking around and talking to each other in a group was okay. Touching was not. “Hey Justin, do you mind?” I gestured to my back, not looking at the pool.

“He’s a little busy.” Bryce said. I could hear splashing behind me.

“Zach?”

“Sure.” He climbed out of the pool and untied the bottom strings. He pulled them tighter in a knot and doubled the bow. “Good?”

“Yeah.” I turned around. “Thanks.” Bryce whistled. Gross.

“Why are you keeping her all to yourself again?” He asked Justin. I flipped him off. Why am I being nice to you again?

“I’m not. It’s Addison. Even if I was, I don’t share Bryce.” He seemed to shut the conversation down. Only I could pick up on the stern undertone in his voice. Just as quickly as it came, it was gone, and they were back to goofing off again.

I slipped in the pool and noticing Justin was distracted, I swam over to him and jumped on his back. I may have accidentally splashed Monty in my jumping. I snuck a peek at him and he was rolling his eyes and laughing. “Chicken?” Justin asked. His hands went to my thighs unconsciously.

“No. You dropped me last time. Though it would be entertaining trying to watch the rest of you lift each other.”

“We’re strong.” The boys around me protested. They all made a show of flexing.

“Yes, yes. You’re all strong and hot. With superior athletic abilities. Go you.” I laughed.

“Ha! I told you she thinks I’m hot.” Bryce pointed at Justin.

“It doesn’t count if you’re objectively attractive Walker. I also think the blond guy from the Percy Jackson movie is hot. Because he is objectively attractive.”

“Objectively attractive?”

“You’re lucky you’re rich.” I muttered. Justin choked. “You’re a very pretty man Bryce Walker.”

“Do we get called pretty too Addison?” Monty asked.

“If you don’t call me by my full name again then sure Monty. You are also pretty. Foley, I swear if you drop me, you’re sleeping on the floor tonight.” His hand tightened around my thigh.

The group of us hung out for a while. At some point Scott joined us. Even though we weren’t friends per say, he was still nice to me when I was around. He swam over to my corner of the pool. “I’m supposed to ask you if you think I’m pretty?”

“Scott. If you don’t know you’re pretty, I don’t know what to say to you.”

“Alright then. Why was I supposed to ask?”

“I acknowledged Bryce is objectively attractive and the children felt left out.”

“I see. Why are you hiding in a corner?”

“Hiding from Justin. He’s trying to get me to play chicken. But I don’t feel like getting dropped again.”

“And why does he think you’d get to play with anyone else?”

“I think the attempt would be very entertaining actually.” There was a ringing over by the table.

“Someone’s phone is ringing.” I called. The ringing stopped and started again immediately. Zach looked up. It was his phone.

“It’s probably his mommy calling to tell him he has to come home before it gets dark.” Bryce teased. The boys laughed. I even chuckled a little to myself. Oh, how bad I would feel about that chuckle in a few hours. Zach splashed him. By the time the phone began its second round of ringing again, Zach was out of the pool and grabbing it. He was smiling when he answered it.

“Hey Mom. I’m com-.” It was quiet. “Yeah, I’ll be right home.” He hung up and quickly pulled on his pants, over his wet swim trucks. He threw on his shirt and practically sprinted back in the house. He didn’t say a word to any of us as he left.

“What’s going on with him?” Bryce said. We all stared after him.

A few hours after I got home, I got a text from Bryce. Justin got the same text. Zach’s dad died. Justin and I sat and looked at each other at the table, shocked. We sat there for a solid ten minutes, trying to absorb the information we had been given. I was sure our friends were in the same position. How did you respond to something like that? None of us had ever lost a parent. Sure, I had lost a couple of grandparents. I probably wasn’t the only one. But they’re sort of expected to die. They’re old. They’ve lived. Our parents weren’t old. Not old enough to die yet anyway. I picked my phone back up and texted Zach the only thing I could think to say. He would hear the words a lot in the next few months. I am so sorry. I knew he wouldn’t answer.

Zach wasn’t at school for the rest of the week. Not that he should have been. He had been excused from all of his other exams. Because of course he should have been. I didn’t see him until I was walking home from a date with Monty over the weekend. He was just… walking around town. He didn’t see me at first. When he noticed me standing up the street, he waved a little. I waved back and slowly walked over to him. Even though Zach Dempsey and I weren’t really friends, we were friendly. That’s why it didn’t feel weird when the only thing my brain said to do, was hug him. He didn’t cry. He didn’t say anything. He just hugged me back. We didn’t talk about that random, silent hug on the street again. Not for a long time at least. We simply nodded as we parted ways. He walked one way and I walked the other.

July changed a lot of things. Bryce left town with his family a few days after Zach’s dad’s funeral. Seth was back in town too. That meant Justin spent most of the first couple of weeks of July at my house. He was right. My parents were not happy about him doing summer school. As his not-mom my mum had a strict ‘no fun until homework is done and checked’ rule. At first, I spent my time with Monty during school hours. We weren’t really sure what the summer meant for our relationship. Those first few dates, we mostly talked about that.

“Well, I don’t want to not see you.” Monty said, between kisses in the backseat of my car. We had parked at a secluded clearing overlooking the river.

“I don’t want to not see you either. It’s going to be hard though.”

“Don’t talk about hard right now Doll. Please.” I pulled away and looked at him wide-eyed. “You don’t strike me as a public sex kind of girl. And I don’t want to get a public indecency charge.”

“Yeah. I’m not.” I sat up. “Justin being at my place complicates things.”

“Oh, I know.” He ground out as he adjusted his jeans. I could tell my cheeks were flushed.

“We knew we couldn’t see each other every day.”

“But it’s not easy not seeing you.”

“I know it’s not.”

“Why does this have to be so hard?” He sat back.

“I don’t know.” Neither of us were ready nor willing to have the ‘tell other people’ talk. Even though it had been almost a year. And probably needed to happen.

“Seeing each other while school is in, isn’t such a bad thing, is it?”

“No.”

“And I do have other friends. I could say I’m going to the city with Alex or something. Give us some more time?”

“That’s true.”

I sighed and ran my hand through my hair. “I could take you to the bookstore.” He blinked at me. “What?”

“The bookstore?”

“It’s air conditioned.” I shrugged and climbed into his lap. His hands instinctively found their way to my hips.

“You just need someone to carry your books again.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.” I smirked.

There was something different about Justin since he started summer school. I couldn’t put my finger on it. He was… distracted. I noticed he spent more time on his phone after homework than paying attention to what we were doing. Which was fine when it was show re-runs or my mom’s pick for movie night. But when you’re trying to play Ticket to Ride with a guy, it’s much easier when they are paying attention. “Hey. Earth to Justin. Hello?”

“Huh?” He looked up from his phone.

“It’s been your turn for the past five minutes.”

“Shit, sorry.” He looked at his cards and the map. Picking up a red and a pink from the pile, he settled back in his chair. Interesting. I frowned at the board, trying to figure out what he was doing. I came back with nothing. His phone buzzed again. I glanced at it. So did he. Then my phone buzzed. He glanced at it. So, did I. It was like we were waiting to see who would grab their phone first. After a few beats, his hand went to his phone. He smirked a little and put it down. I didn’t check mine.

I came home from a date with Monty a little late on Thursday. It was nearing five when I walked in the door, after I fixed my hair. I dropped my purse and stopped dead in my tracks. Justin had company. Company in the form of Jessica Davis. Who was currently sitting in his lap. On my couch. Making out with him. On my couch. They had their hands up each other’s shirts. On my couch. I cleared my throat. Jessica pulled away and turned towards me. “Oh, hey Addy.” She greeted, like this was normal.

“Hey Addy. You’re… just getting home?” His speech was slowed. Are you shitting me?

“Yeah. What’s going on?”

“Your parents said I could have a friend over after class.”

“Okay.” I blinked. She was still perched in his lap. I glanced at the clock. “I suggest you fix your shirts because they should be home soon. And I don’t think they want to see, uh, this.” I motioned in their general direction. Jessica laughed and climbed off Justin.

“Oh, don’t be such a priss, Addison.”

“I’m not being a priss. I just wasn’t expecting to come home to people making out on my couch.” She rolled her eyes. “Great to see you too. Hey, Justin. Can I steal you for a sec?” I waved upstairs. “There’s snacks in the cupboard, Jess.”

Justin followed me upstairs, trying not to giggle at, assumingly, the fact that he didn’t get caught by my parents. I shut the door when we got to my room. “What the fuck Justin?”

“What?” He shrugged.

“What do you mean what?”

“What?”

“Making out with a girl on our couch?” He was trying to avoid eye contact. My parents are going to kill him.

“No one was home. It’s not a big deal.”

“How long has this been going on?”

“I don’t know, a couple weeks?” I blinked at him. He was still trying to look away from me. I grabbed his face and made him look at me.

“Are you fucking high right now?”

“No? What? Why would you ask that?” His eyes were bloodshot. He was acting very much like Justin when Justin has been indulging in Bryce’s stash.

“Don’t lie to me Justin Foley. You know my parent’s rules. Do you want them to freak out?”

“Oh, come on Addison. It was a little weed. It’s not that big of a deal.” I sighed heavily.

“You know what, whatever. You obviously don’t care. So, I suggest you tell your girlfriend to leave or figure out a way to sober up before they get home. And if that fails, tell her to leave, and come hide in here until you’re sober enough to face them.” I grabbed a book off my shelf and went back downstairs. I nodded at Jessica, who had made herself some crackers and dip. Sitting at the table, I texted Monty.

Justin and Jessica? Did you know about this? He responded a couple of minutes later.

No? Actually?

Yeah. They were making out on my couch when I got home. And to make things even more awkward and complicated, they’re both high.

I mean, to be fair, weed isn’t really that bad.

Yeah. I know. But that’s not the point. My parents are going to freak. Now is really not the time to be pissing them off.

Oh crap. You guys leave for Boston soon, don’t you?

Next week. And if Justin can’t keep his shit together… I left the unspoken implication hang in cyberspace. Are you really just going to ignore the fact that they were on the couch?

I was hoping to just ignore that fact.

Our make out spots are becoming fewer and further between.

We could just stay in your bed, Doll.

But the couch has the TV. So we can not watch a movie without worrying about my laptop falling.

“Who you texting so much?” Jessica asked, trying to peer at my phone.

“Friend from Boston.” I said, locking my phone.

“Oh, friend from Boston, you say? Is he cute?”

“I guess? His girlfriend probably thinks so.”

“Oh. Not a secret long distance lover then?”

“No. And we grew up together. It would be weird.” I slipped my phone in my pocket and grabbed some cereal. We both looked up when my parents got home. I took that as my cue to go get Justin. I practically kicked him downstairs so he could go entertain his girlfriend with my parents and I could have some time to process how I missed it. Probably the same way he has missed me having a boyfriend for… almost a year.

The day before we left for Boston, Justin and I were running around like mad men. I had plans with Monty and Justin had plans with Jessica tonight, so I didn’t want to be too long packing. Unfortunately, neither of us could find anything we wanted to bring. It was going to be nice so I wanted to bring some dresses. We had a few things planned, but like with our other trips, there would be plenty of time to lounge around the house.

“Have you seen my pink and green dress?”

“The one with the stripes? No. Have you seen my blue shirt?”

“I think mum put it in the wash.”

“Okay.” Justin went down the hall to the bathroom. “Has anyone seen my shampoo?” He called.

“It’s in here.” My dad called from their room. I was busy ripping apart my closet. I groaned in frustration.

“You know, it’s just Boston. We go every year.”

“I know Justin. I just like to be prepared for every eventuality.”

“Yeah. Wait… are you trying to impress Adrian?” Justin laughed. I turned and he was leaning against the doorframe.

“No. Absolutely not. Besides, he has a girlfriend.” A girlfriend I happen to like.

“If you say so.” He smirked. I rolled my eyes and flipped him off as he went back to packing his bag. I gave up on my closet and decided to tackle our toiletries. I wasn’t too concerned with travel sizes because it was all going in my checked luggage.

“Decide what book you’re taking with you Addy?”

“Don’t you mean books, plural? It is a 6-hour flight after all.” He laughed.

“Okay, okay. Books?”

“I’m happy you asked.” I grinned as I pulled out the Barnes & Noble bag from under my bed. His jaw dropped. I shrugged.

“Your parents are going to freak.”

“They know I went book shopping.”

After a very long day of packing, Justin left to go meet Jessica. I texted Monty to let him know I would be leaving in about fifteen minutes. “I’m going to hang out with Alex and Clay for a bit.” I told my parents.

“Just remember we leave early tomorrow for the airport Addison.” My dad said, not looking up from his list. My mom was emptying the fridge.

“I will.”

When I got to the cliffside where we agreed to meet, Monty was waiting for me. I couldn’t help myself. I ran and held onto him like it was the last time I would ever see him. “You’re only leaving for two weeks Addison.” He grunted at the impact.

“I’m going to miss you.”

“I’ll miss you too.” He kissed the top of my head. We stood like that for a few more minutes before finally separating. I took his hand and led him up the trail. It was good for both of us to be walking the trails. He was starting summer training with the boys while we were gone, and I was going to be sitting for around 8 hours straight tomorrow. Provided our flight wasn’t delayed, of course. It was just starting to get dark, and I stopped along the way to take in the town’s skyline in the evening dusk. Monty rested his chin on top of my head, and I sighed, leaning back into him. It was so peaceful. I looked up and him and noticed a small bruise forming on his jaw. Not wanting to start a fight right before I left for two weeks, I pretended I hadn’t seen it. I smiled sadly to myself still. I wish he would just talk to me about it.

After a few hours, wandering around and soaking in the last time we would have for a couple of weeks, which feels like an eternity when you’re 16, we knew it was time to say goodbye. When we got to the parking lot, he made me turn around at his Jeep. I furrowed my brow. Before I could ask, he twirled his finger in the air. I clamped my mouth closed and turned. He rummaged around for a minute. “What are you doing?”

“You’ll see. Just wait a minute.” I huffed. He chuckled. “Ah.” He muttered. He tapped me on the shoulder. I turned. He held out a small Barnes and Noble bag. I was taken aback. I wasn’t expecting anything. I pointed at the bag and then at me.

“F-for me?”

“It’s not much so don’t start.” He smiled, shyly.

“Okay.” I took the bag.

“I can’t wrap stuff worth shit, so the bag is as good as you’re going to get.” I laughed and shrugged. It was a fair enough explanation. I opened the bag and pulled out a spiralbound notebook. The cover was pink with the titles of all the classics on it. I smiled. “You won’t be here for your birthday, and I know your notebook is getting full so….” Monty trailed off.

“Thank you. This is really sweet.” I flipped it open and gasped. On the first page, he had drawn a book like on the cover, and titled it The Next Classic and written Hawthorne at the bottom where the author’s last name sometimes appears.

“Happy birthday, Addison.”

“Oh.” I smiled. My eyes had started to tear up. This was the sweetest gift anyone had ever given me. I closed the gap between us and kissed him. He pulled me closer to him and I deepened the kiss just a little. Not too much, just enough to make him remember me while I was gone.I had finished the last book on my To Read shelf by mid-May. Hopping off my bed, I went over to my bookshelf. There was only one shelf of space left. The stack to shelve had gotten a tad out of hand. Sighing to myself, I sat down to start reorganizing. I pulled the books from H to Z down to fit the new additions to my collection in. My dad poked his head in when the stack fell over. “Everything okay in here?” I was surrounded by books. Dad tried not to laugh as he took the scene in. Grabbing books, I turned back to the shelf.“Perfect. Totally meant to sit in a sea of books this afternoon.” “Sure. You have fun with that. I have to head into the office for a while. Tell your mother I probably won’t be home for dinner.” “Will do.” I nodded, not turning my attention back to him. Monty texted me shortly after I had finished the M’s. What are you up to today? Organizing my bookshelf. I finished my TBR so now they go in the permanent collection. Only my girlfriend would make a permanent book collection and a separate section for books that aren’t done. Hey! Lots of people do this. Yes honey. What are you up to today? Trying to study for my last History test. It’s very boring. I’m sure it is. If you’re free Saturday, how about a get out of studying free card? Oh? What did you have in mind Doll? I rolled my eyes and grinned. Of course he thought I meant something dirty. Cool your jets Monty. I was going to see if you wanted to go to the bookstore with me?I can make that happen. What time? I think Clay and I are getting lunch to go over our study guide for the Math final. I could do like 1?Sounds good. Do you want me to meet you at the bookstore? Sure. I go to the B&N at the Everglade. It’s a date. I smiled and went back to my books. When it was done, I snapped a picture and sent it to Justin. I finished my TBR! You know what that means?Oh no. More books? More books! Do I have to come with you?No. The parents gave me a limit of 10 books this time. Only 10?I have points saved up. And 10 is a perfectly reasonable amount of new books. For you? Yes. For normal people? No. Oh shhh, or I’ll make you come with me. Okay, okay. It’s reasonable lol. I texted Monty a picture of my bookshelf too. He responded with a laughing emoji. Teachers were beginning to wrap up final units and hand out study guides for finals. Justin was still mad about summer school so he kept up his not giving a shit attitude. I rolled my eyes whenever he sighed or complained about finals. And I stopped offering to help him. If he wanted to do more work in summer school, that was fine by me. It gave me more time to spend with Monty. On Saturday, I met Clay at Rosie’s and we both got milkshakes. I wasn’t very hungry, and I didn’t want burger breath later. “So Clay, how’s Hannah doing?” “I don’t know. We have hung out a few times, and I see her at work, but I don’t think we have hung out hung out.” “You still haven’t asked her out?” “I mean, we went to Jeff’s place not together, but we were both there, and I feel like maybe we connected?” “Connected?” “Well, we were doing… stuff… and we talked.” My eyes widened. “Clay Jensen did you do drugs in Jeff’s basement?” “Maybe?” I was stunned. “Well, I’ll be damned. Clay Jensen, having fun. I never thought I’d see the day.”“Ha ha.” He joked. “I’m kidding! But seriously. Take the risk Clay.” “I’ll think about it. Can we look at this study guide now?” I sighed and pulled it out of my bag. We both shuddered. This is not going to be a pretty exam.By the time Clay and I called it an afternoon, it was 12:30. That gave me just enough time to get to the city. We packed our notes and headed outside. “Man, I really need a car.” Clay sighed, unlocking his bike. “Your parents said no?” “I have a bike.” He waved towards the bike. “That you do. I would offer you a ride, but I’m headed into the city for the afternoon.” “No worries, Addy.” He smiled. We waved goodbye and I watched as he biked down the street. I started my car and texted Monty. Leaving Rosie’s now. Might be a little late. Drive safe. Sounds good, drive safe Doll. I stopped at Starbucks when I got to the mall and got an iced coffee to sip while I browse and a coffee for Montgomery. He was waiting outside Barnes & Noble for me. “Hey handsome. Fancy seeing you here.” I winked as I walked up to him.“Hey gorgeous. What can I say, thought it would be a good way to find a girl. You know what they say about the readers.” “I have a feeling I do.” I laughed and handed him his coffee. “Something to do with being high strung, overachievers with daddy issues?” “Somethin’ like that.” Monty took my hand and let me lead him into the bookstore. I decided I would keep my ten-book limit to myself. I knew how many points I had, and I still had birthday money left from last year. He chuckled as I practically dragged him towards the YA section. I didn’t stop to look at the romance displays or the cookbooks or the journals. I was on a mission. There were books to buy. I sipped my coffee as I browsed. As usual, I made my way up and down the aisles quickly once to see if anything immediately caught my eye. A couple of books did, so I grabbed them to look over after I was done my power walk. “I don’t know if I’ve ever seen you move that fast.” “Ass.” I laughed as I read over the synopsizes of the two books. Neither of them was my cup of tea in the end, so I decided to put them back. I could feel Montgomery watching me as I looked at the shelves. “What?” I asked as I pulled a book down and skimmed the back. “Nothin’. You’re just cute is all.” “Oh?” “Yeah. And those shorts are very nice.” I blushed and smiled softly. “Thanks.” I handed him the book. “Oh, I see. You needed someone to carry the books.”“Well, who else would I have asked, when I have my strong, athletic boyfriend to follow me around the store?” He only laughed in response. I grabbed a few more books as I sipped at my coffee. Once in a while, I would notice him watching me and turn to smile at him. There were six books in Monty’s hands before he finished his coffee. “I’m going to throw this out. Try to leave some books for the next person, okay Bookworm?” “I’ll try. No promises though.” I mused. By the time he came back, I had three more books. I looked up when I heard him laugh. I grinned at him and held out the books. He took them, tucked them under his arm, and stepped towards me. My brow furrowed and he reached to tuck my hair behind my ear, trailing his hand down to cup the back of my neck, and pull me towards him to kiss me. I kissed him back softly. It was nice to be able to kiss in public. I liked our little bubble. It felt like we were the only two people in the world. He pulled away first. We continued to peruse the store for a while and stole kisses and glances along the way. Monty slid his hand in my back pocket as we walked. I grabbed another couple of books and sighed. “What’s up?” “I guess that’s enough books for a little while.” “For a little while? Addison. There’s like,” he paused to count, “sixteen books here.” “Yeah. And that isn’t even all of what is on my TBR still. And it’s buy one get one half off all books.” I shrugged. “Jesus. Crazy woman.” He muttered softly and kissed the side of my head. I sighed and turned to head for the till. After discounts, points, and birthday money, my total was twenty-five dollars. “Now to figure out how to sneak the extra six books into the house.” I muttered as we left. “The extra what whats?” “Uh… nothing.” I smiled sheepishly. He shook his head playfully. “Oh, hey. Pretzels. Split one?” “Nice change of subject. Sure. Pretzel sounds good.” He rubbed my hand as he held it. This is nice. In late June, just as finals week was hitting its peak, tragedy struck our little group of jocks. The boys were at Bryce’s trying to blow off some steam. I was trying to be nice to him and make an effort for Justin, so I tagged along. The way his family approached and flaunted their money always took me by surprise. I wasn’t oblivious. I knew my family had more money than most. More than I liked to consider or admit. But it was never flashed around the way it was with the Walkers. I came from old money on my dad’s side, like his mom. But unlike him, I wasn’t exposed to it on a daily basis. The concept of a twice a week maid was enough to widen my eyes. The only time my family had a maid come was when Gran was coming to stay with us, or we were hosting Christmas back when all my grandparents lived state-side, so a very deep clean was needed. The fact that they had a chef come in once a week to meal prep for them was… almost incomprehensible. The only time I met a chef was when I found a hair in my food when my family went out one night. I had been to his house before of course. I was friends with Justin. We shared custody of him most weeks. Even still, I found myself hanging back and watching the boys socialize. Or I was trying to at least. Bryce thrusting a bottle of water in my hand startled me. I jumped slightly. “Thanks.” I muttered. “Don’t mention it.” He chuckled. He settled himself next to me and leaned back against the counter. “Hi.” “Hi. You know that they will talk to you, right? They know you.” “I know.” “Okay. I’ll talk to you then.” Great. Just what I want. “Sure Bryce.” “How are finals treating you?” “I cried before my honours English final yesterday.” “I almost forgot about my math final.” “So, we are basically in the same boat.” “Basically. You had bio and history today?” “Yeah.” “How were they?” “I think I did fairly okay. Can you imagine what my mum would do if I bombed the history final?” He stared off into space with me and shivered. “I would say something nice about you at your funeral.” “Thanks Walker. Killing me does seem like a lot of hassle for that though. Like it seems like it would just inconvenience them. Maybe locked in my room to study until I’m forty?” “True. I would text you news updates. Keep you updated in all things Bryce and the boys.” “Prefect. Make isolation at least a little bit bearable.” He was actually kind of nice sometimes. Maybe. If I squinted.“Yeah. My dad would have freaked if I missed my math final.” “How could you take over the family business if you fail tenth grade math Bryce?” “No idea. Not like he doesn’t pay someone to do all that math for him. Speaking of, he wanted me to ask you if your dad is taking on any new clients now that tax season is winding down?” “I don’t know. I don’t think he is, but I can get him to email your dad.” I don’t think he’s going to take your dad on. “I’ll let him know.” “Where are you off to this summer?” “I think we are summering in Fiji?” “Because California isn’t summer-y enough?” “Mom thinks the sun feels different. More sunny. I tan better in tropical environments.” “Sure, you do.”“What are your family’s plans?” “We have our annual family trip to Boston at the end of July into the first week of August. Dad pushed his vacation time this year.” “Doesn’t he own the company?” “Yeah. But his associate wanted to take vacation in mid-July. She’s taking her kids to Disney World.” “Again, doesn’t he own the company?”“Again, yes. Why?” “Shouldn’t he get first pick?” “Well, our vacation basically costs us airfare, food, and spending money. Hers and everyone else’s costs a lot more. And requires more planning. So, he lets them have first pick and takes whatever’s left for the most part. Because of that, people are more willing to pick fairly.” “Interesting.”“Are you two going to come outside or not?” Justin called from the back yard. Bryce and I looked up and found the house empty. All the boys had moved to the back. We shrugged and joined them. I needed to pass the sniff test so I didn’t dare go in the pool house. Anders and Dylan were in the pool house enjoying Bryce’s stash. It was already nearing eighty degrees in the daytime. We were in for a hot summer. Justin pulled off his shirt, dropped his pants, and jumped in the pool. Shaking my head, I followed Bryce outside. I sat on the edge of the pool and dipped my feet in the water. Monty was trying to be discreet and swim backwards towards me. He stopped just shy of me and shared a look with Zach. I pretended not to notice. It looked like I was busy watching Justin goof off with Bryce and Garrison. I was watching my boyfriend out of the corner of my eye though. I felt a wave close to my foot. “Montgomery. If you touch my foot, I’m not responsible for what happens to your face.” His hand stopped and his eyes widened. Justin laughed and called from across the pool. “She isn’t wrong dude. She kicked me in the face when I was trying to bug her one time.” “I wasn’t going to….” Monty trailed off. “Sure, you weren’t.” I shook my head and moved to stand up. I pulled my tank top over my head. The shorts I was wearing were fine to go in the water. Seeing as we had to keep up appearances, I couldn’t very well ask Monty to tighten the tie on my bikini top. That would be too much. The boys would question that. Joking around and talking to each other in a group was okay. Touching was not. “Hey Justin, do you mind?” I gestured to my back, not looking at the pool. “He’s a little busy.” Bryce said. I could hear splashing behind me. “Zach?” “Sure.” He climbed out of the pool and untied the bottom strings. He pulled them tighter in a knot and doubled the bow. “Good?” “Yeah.” I turned around. “Thanks.” Bryce whistled. Gross.“Why are you keeping her all to yourself again?” He asked Justin. I flipped him off. Why am I being nice to you again? “I’m not. It’s Addison. Even if I was, I don’t share Bryce.” He seemed to shut the conversation down. Only I could pick up on the stern undertone in his voice. Just as quickly as it came, it was gone, and they were back to goofing off again. I slipped in the pool and noticing Justin was distracted, I swam over to him and jumped on his back. I may have accidentally splashed Monty in my jumping. I snuck a peek at him and he was rolling his eyes and laughing. “Chicken?” Justin asked. His hands went to my thighs unconsciously. “No. You dropped me last time. Though it would be entertaining trying to watch the rest of you lift each other.” “We’re strong.” The boys around me protested. They all made a show of flexing. “Yes, yes. You’re all strong and hot. With superior athletic abilities. Go you.” I laughed. “Ha! I told you she thinks I’m hot.” Bryce pointed at Justin. “It doesn’t count if you’re objectively attractive Walker. I also think the blond guy from the Percy Jackson movie is hot. Because he is objectively attractive.” “Objectively attractive?” “You’re lucky you’re rich.” I muttered. Justin choked. “You’re a very pretty man Bryce Walker.” “Do we get called pretty too Addison?” Monty asked.“If you don’t call me by my full name again then sure Monty. You are also pretty. Foley, I swear if you drop me, you’re sleeping on the floor tonight.” His hand tightened around my thigh. The group of us hung out for a while. At some point Scott joined us. Even though we weren’t friends per say, he was still nice to me when I was around. He swam over to my corner of the pool. “I’m supposed to ask you if you think I’m pretty?” “Scott. If you don’t know you’re pretty, I don’t know what to say to you.” “Alright then. Why was I supposed to ask?” “I acknowledged Bryce is objectively attractive and the children felt left out.” “I see. Why are you hiding in a corner?” “Hiding from Justin. He’s trying to get me to play chicken. But I don’t feel like getting dropped again.” “And why does he think you’d get to play with anyone else?” “I think the attempt would be very entertaining actually.” There was a ringing over by the table. “Someone’s phone is ringing.” I called. The ringing stopped and started again immediately. Zach looked up. It was his phone. “It’s probably his mommy calling to tell him he has to come home before it gets dark.” Bryce teased. The boys laughed. I even chuckled a little to myself. Oh, how bad I would feel about that chuckle in a few hours. Zach splashed him. By the time the phone began its second round of ringing again, Zach was out of the pool and grabbing it. He was smiling when he answered it. “Hey Mom. I’m com-.” It was quiet. “Yeah, I’ll be right home.” He hung up and quickly pulled on his pants, over his wet swim trucks. He threw on his shirt and practically sprinted back in the house. He didn’t say a word to any of us as he left.“What’s going on with him?” Bryce said. We all stared after him. A few hours after I got home, I got a text from Bryce. Justin got the same text. Zach’s dad died. Justin and I sat and looked at each other at the table, shocked. We sat there for a solid ten minutes, trying to absorb the information we had been given. I was sure our friends were in the same position. How did you respond to something like that? None of us had ever lost a parent. Sure, I had lost a couple of grandparents. I probably wasn’t the only one. But they’re sort of expected to die. They’re old. They’ve lived. Our parents weren’t old. Not old enough to die yet anyway. I picked my phone back up and texted Zach the only thing I could think to say. He would hear the words a lot in the next few months. I am so sorry. I knew he wouldn’t answer. Zach wasn’t at school for the rest of the week. Not that he should have been. He had been excused from all of his other exams. Because of course he should have been. I didn’t see him until I was walking home from a date with Monty over the weekend. He was just… walking around town. He didn’t see me at first. When he noticed me standing up the street, he waved a little. I waved back and slowly walked over to him. Even though Zach Dempsey and I weren’t really friends, we were friendly. That’s why it didn’t feel weird when the only thing my brain said to do, was hug him. He didn’t cry. He didn’t say anything. He just hugged me back. We didn’t talk about that random, silent hug on the street again. Not for a long time at least. We simply nodded as we parted ways. He walked one way and I walked the other. July changed a lot of things. Bryce left town with his family a few days after Zach’s dad’s funeral. Seth was back in town too. That meant Justin spent most of the first couple of weeks of July at my house. He was right. My parents were not happy about him doing summer school. As his not-mom my mum had a strict ‘no fun until homework is done and checked’ rule. At first, I spent my time with Monty during school hours. We weren’t really sure what the summer meant for our relationship. Those first few dates, we mostly talked about that. “Well, I don’t want to not see you.” Monty said, between kisses in the backseat of my car. We had parked at a secluded clearing overlooking the river. “I don’t want to not see you either. It’s going to be hard though.” “Don’t talk about hard right now Doll. Please.” I pulled away and looked at him wide-eyed. “You don’t strike me as a public sex kind of girl. And I don’t want to get a public indecency charge.” “Yeah. I’m not.” I sat up. “Justin being at my place complicates things.” “Oh, I know.” He ground out as he adjusted his jeans. I could tell my cheeks were flushed. “We knew we couldn’t see each other every day.” “But it’s not easy not seeing you.” “I know it’s not.” “Why does this have to be so hard?” He sat back. “I don’t know.” Neither of us were ready nor willing to have the ‘tell other people’ talk. Even though it had been almost a year. And probably needed to happen. “Seeing each other while school is in, isn’t such a bad thing, is it?” “No.” “And I do have other friends. I could say I’m going to the city with Alex or something. Give us some more time?” “That’s true.” I sighed and ran my hand through my hair. “I could take you to the bookstore.” He blinked at me. “What?” “The bookstore?” “It’s air conditioned.” I shrugged and climbed into his lap. His hands instinctively found their way to my hips. “You just need someone to carry your books again.” “I have no idea what you’re talking about.” I smirked. There was something different about Justin since he started summer school. I couldn’t put my finger on it. He was… distracted. I noticed he spent more time on his phone after homework than paying attention to what we were doing. Which was fine when it was show re-runs or my mom’s pick for movie night. But when you’re trying to play Ticket to Ride with a guy, it’s much easier when they are paying attention. “Hey. Earth to Justin. Hello?”“Huh?” He looked up from his phone. “It’s been your turn for the past five minutes.” “Shit, sorry.” He looked at his cards and the map. Picking up a red and a pink from the pile, he settled back in his chair. Interesting. I frowned at the board, trying to figure out what he was doing. I came back with nothing. His phone buzzed again. I glanced at it. So did he. Then my phone buzzed. He glanced at it. So, did I. It was like we were waiting to see who would grab their phone first. After a few beats, his hand went to his phone. He smirked a little and put it down. I didn’t check mine. I came home from a date with Monty a little late on Thursday. It was nearing five when I walked in the door, after I fixed my hair. I dropped my purse and stopped dead in my tracks. Justin had company. Company in the form of Jessica Davis. Who was currently sitting in his lap. On my couch. Making out with him. On my couch. They had their hands up each other’s shirts. On my couch. I cleared my throat. Jessica pulled away and turned towards me. “Oh, hey Addy.” She greeted, like this was normal. “Hey Addy. You’re… just getting home?” His speech was slowed. Are you shitting me? “Yeah. What’s going on?” “Your parents said I could have a friend over after class.” “Okay.” I blinked. She was still perched in his lap. I glanced at the clock. “I suggest you fix your shirts because they should be home soon. And I don’t think they want to see, uh, this.” I motioned in their general direction. Jessica laughed and climbed off Justin. “Oh, don’t be such a priss, Addison.” “I’m not being a priss. I just wasn’t expecting to come home to people making out on my couch.” She rolled her eyes. “Great to see you too. Hey, Justin. Can I steal you for a sec?” I waved upstairs. “There’s snacks in the cupboard, Jess.” Justin followed me upstairs, trying not to giggle at, assumingly, the fact that he didn’t get caught by my parents. I shut the door when we got to my room. “What the fuck Justin?” “What?” He shrugged. “What do you mean what?” “What?” “Making out with a girl on our couch?” He was trying to avoid eye contact. My parents are going to kill him. “No one was home. It’s not a big deal.” “How long has this been going on?” “I don’t know, a couple weeks?” I blinked at him. He was still trying to look away from me. I grabbed his face and made him look at me. “Are you fucking high right now?” “No? What? Why would you ask that?” His eyes were bloodshot. He was acting very much like Justin when Justin has been indulging in Bryce’s stash. “Don’t lie to me Justin Foley. You know my parent’s rules. Do you want them to freak out?” “Oh, come on Addison. It was a little weed. It’s not that big of a deal.” I sighed heavily. “You know what, whatever. You obviously don’t care. So, I suggest you tell your girlfriend to leave or figure out a way to sober up before they get home. And if that fails, tell her to leave, and come hide in here until you’re sober enough to face them.” I grabbed a book off my shelf and went back downstairs. I nodded at Jessica, who had made herself some crackers and dip. Sitting at the table, I texted Monty. Justin and Jessica? Did you know about this? He responded a couple of minutes later. No? Actually?Yeah. They were making out on my couch when I got home. And to make things even more awkward and complicated, they’re both high. I mean, to be fair, weed isn’t really that bad. Yeah. I know. But that’s not the point. My parents are going to freak. Now is really not the time to be pissing them off. Oh crap. You guys leave for Boston soon, don’t you? Next week. And if Justin can’t keep his shit together… I left the unspoken implication hang in cyberspace. Are you really just going to ignore the fact that they were on the couch?I was hoping to just ignore that fact. Our make out spots are becoming fewer and further between. We could just stay in your bed, Doll. But the couch has the TV. So we can not watch a movie without worrying about my laptop falling. “Who you texting so much?” Jessica asked, trying to peer at my phone. “Friend from Boston.” I said, locking my phone. “Oh, friend from Boston, you say? Is he cute?”“I guess? His girlfriend probably thinks so.” “Oh. Not a secret long distance lover then?”“No. And we grew up together. It would be weird.” I slipped my phone in my pocket and grabbed some cereal. We both looked up when my parents got home. I took that as my cue to go get Justin. I practically kicked him downstairs so he could go entertain his girlfriend with my parents and I could have some time to process how I missed it. Probably the same way he has missed me having a boyfriend for… almost a year. The day before we left for Boston, Justin and I were running around like mad men. I had plans with Monty and Justin had plans with Jessica tonight, so I didn’t want to be too long packing. Unfortunately, neither of us could find anything we wanted to bring. It was going to be nice so I wanted to bring some dresses. We had a few things planned, but like with our other trips, there would be plenty of time to lounge around the house. “Have you seen my pink and green dress?” “The one with the stripes? No. Have you seen my blue shirt?”“I think mum put it in the wash.” “Okay.” Justin went down the hall to the bathroom. “Has anyone seen my shampoo?” He called. “It’s in here.” My dad called from their room. I was busy ripping apart my closet. I groaned in frustration. “You know, it’s just Boston. We go every year.” “I know Justin. I just like to be prepared for every eventuality.” “Yeah. Wait… are you trying to impress Adrian?” Justin laughed. I turned and he was leaning against the doorframe. “No. Absolutely not. Besides, he has a girlfriend.” A girlfriend I happen to like. “If you say so.” He smirked. I rolled my eyes and flipped him off as he went back to packing his bag. I gave up on my closet and decided to tackle our toiletries. I wasn’t too concerned with travel sizes because it was all going in my checked luggage. “Decide what book you’re taking with you Addy?” “Don’t you mean books, plural? It is a 6-hour flight after all.” He laughed. “Okay, okay. Books?” “I’m happy you asked.” I grinned as I pulled out the Barnes & Noble bag from under my bed. His jaw dropped. I shrugged. “Your parents are going to freak.” “They know I went book shopping.” After a very long day of packing, Justin left to go meet Jessica. I texted Monty to let him know I would be leaving in about fifteen minutes. “I’m going to hang out with Alex and Clay for a bit.” I told my parents. “Just remember we leave early tomorrow for the airport Addison.” My dad said, not looking up from his list. My mom was emptying the fridge. “I will.” When I got to the cliffside where we agreed to meet, Monty was waiting for me. I couldn’t help myself. I ran and held onto him like it was the last time I would ever see him. “You’re only leaving for two weeks Addison.” He grunted at the impact. “I’m going to miss you.” “I’ll miss you too.” He kissed the top of my head. We stood like that for a few more minutes before finally separating. I took his hand and led him up the trail. It was good for both of us to be walking the trails. He was starting summer training with the boys while we were gone, and I was going to be sitting for around 8 hours straight tomorrow. Provided our flight wasn’t delayed, of course. It was just starting to get dark, and I stopped along the way to take in the town’s skyline in the evening dusk. Monty rested his chin on top of my head, and I sighed, leaning back into him. It was so peaceful. I looked up and him and noticed a small bruise forming on his jaw. Not wanting to start a fight right before I left for two weeks, I pretended I hadn’t seen it. I smiled sadly to myself still. I wish he would just talk to me about it. After a few hours, wandering around and soaking in the last time we would have for a couple of weeks, which feels like an eternity when you’re 16, we knew it was time to say goodbye. When we got to the parking lot, he made me turn around at his Jeep. I furrowed my brow. Before I could ask, he twirled his finger in the air. I clamped my mouth closed and turned. He rummaged around for a minute. “What are you doing?” “You’ll see. Just wait a minute.” I huffed. He chuckled. “Ah.” He muttered. He tapped me on the shoulder. I turned. He held out a small Barnes and Noble bag. I was taken aback. I wasn’t expecting anything. I pointed at the bag and then at me. “F-for me?” “It’s not much so don’t start.” He smiled, shyly. “Okay.” I took the bag. “I can’t wrap stuff worth shit, so the bag is as good as you’re going to get.” I laughed and shrugged. It was a fair enough explanation. I opened the bag and pulled out a spiralbound notebook. The cover was pink with the titles of all the classics on it. I smiled. “You won’t be here for your birthday, and I know your notebook is getting full so….” Monty trailed off. “Thank you. This is really sweet.” I flipped it open and gasped. On the first page, he had drawn a book like on the cover, and titled it The Next Classic and written Hawthorne at the bottom where the author’s last name sometimes appears. “Happy birthday, Addison.” “Oh.” I smiled. My eyes had started to tear up. This was the sweetest gift anyone had ever given me. I closed the gap between us and kissed him. He pulled me closer to him and I deepened the kiss just a little. Not too much, just enough to make him remember me while I was gone.

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cybernetictoxins · 10 days

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Not sure if this is even in demand anymore but here is a Montgomery x Justin fic worth the read, promise.

#montgomery de la cruz #justin foley #thirteen reasons why #rarepair #pining #Montgomery de la Cruz x Justin foley

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sophiewritesworld · 2 years

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MASTERLIST

SUPERNATURAL:

Dean Winchester

13 REASONS WHY:

Montgomery de la Cruz

Jeff Atkins

Zach Dempsey

STRANGER THINGS

Eddie Munson

#masterlist #supernatural #13 reasons why #Stranger things #Supernatural imagine #13 reasons why imagine #stranger things imagine #dean winchester #montgomery de la cruz #jeff atkins #zach dempsey #eddie munson #jeff x reader #montgomery de la cruz x reader #eddie munson x female reader

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alexstandoll · 10 months

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bodybag.

“. . . it was a circus inside Monty and it's all because of Alex.”

read → part ii: i don't think you understand the effect you have on me

#13rw #13rwedit #13 reasons why #alex standall #montgomery de la cruz #alex x monty #zach dempsey #justin foley #*writings #*multichapter #*moodboard #*malex #*malex:bodybag #*13rw #*2023 #finally after centuries i had the motivation to make a promotional post for part ii.#part iii next but i'm gonna be posting the next part laterrrr or this weekend.

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13rsystories · 4 months

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The night that changed everything.| Montgomery de la Cruz x y/n part 2.

Warnings: swearing, smut, mention of drugs and alcohol.

You grabbed your clothes and put them back over your bikini feeling Monty’s eyes still on you, you felt bad for leaving him like that so you couldn’t bare facing him instead you walked to the pool house where all your friends were hoping they didn’t see you but deep down you know they did.

“I’m surprised you’re not drinking much y/n” Jess said out of the blue

“Oh uh I’m trying to get drunk slowly” you said with a soft voice.

Before you knew it a drink was given to you as if to say “you look like you needed it” and to be honest I really did after what just happened between Monty and I.. or should I say what didn’t happen instead. I feel bad gosh I feel horrible for leaving him there but I was scared and telling him I was a virgin didn’t help at all. I finished my drink instantly grabbing another.

“What happened to getting drunk slowly” Jess asked with a smile

“Changed my mind I guess” I laughed

“Yo y/n, would you like a special gummy?” Bryce asked with a smirk

“Is “special” code for weed?, If so yes please”

Bryce handed me a gummy and I instantly ate it looking at everyone else taking one as well, at that moment I had just noticed Monty had come back inside and well he was still staring at me, not in a “I hate you for leaving me with a boner” type of way but in a “I want to talk to you” type way and to be honest I wanted to talk to him too, so I did what I never thought I would and got the courage to walk to him grab his hand and took him somewhere private.

“Uhh if you’re gonna make out with me then leave ag-“

I cut him off “Is it true you have a crush on me?”

“Wait who to-“

I cut him off again “Is it true Monty?” This time I looked into his eyes

“Yes” was all he could say because as soon as he answered I kissed him, it was a soft kiss not a rough one like before.

“Do you like me y/n?” The question alone made me blush a little

“Maybeee” I spat out

“It’s a yes or no.” He seemed serious

“Fine, yes I like you.” Then suddenly I was off the ground.

Monty picked me up and I wrapped my legs around his waist he kissed me roughly and carried me to an area of where nobody could see us and he started kissing down my neck biting and sucking as he went down, I grabbed his hair with my hands and started playing with it as I tilted my head to the side to give Monty better access to my neck.

I moaned as he sucked on my sweet spot then before I knew it he started unzipping my dress so I jumped down and pulled it over my head for him, Mesmerised by my body I caught Monty staring at me smirking.

“You are so beautiful princess” He said in a deep voice

I blushed at his words then pulled him back towards me to kiss him, I tugged at his shirt signalling that I wanted it off and of course he got the idea and took it off pulling away from the kiss for a few seconds before kissing me again this time my mouth opened allowing our tongues to dance and fight for dominance, I moved my hand down his beautiful body and began pulling his pants off, keep in mind they were his swim pants so it was pretty easy. He hissed at the feeling of your hand briefly touching his hardened length.

“You’re the biggest tease Y/L/N”

I giggled and gave him an innocent look “Me? Nah uh”

He rolled his eyes playfully and pulled his boxers off making you blush at the sight of his length you then copied his actions and pulled down your bikini bottom noticing him watch his eyes full of nothing but love as he admired your body.

“Are you sure you still want to do this?” He asked comforting you as he remembered what you told him earlier in the night

“Yes. I wouldn’t want to do this with anyone else.” You gave him a smile and nod

“Okay, if you ever want to stop or it hurts just tell me.”

You nodded again as he lifted you up and against the wall, he lined himself up with your entrance and slowly inserted his length inside you waiting to make sure you were okay then he started thrusting slowly, tears ran down your face from the pain but every time he stopped you nodded to say “keep going”

“Fuck princess you’re so tight” He groaned into your ear

“Faster.” You moaned out

He did as you said and started thrusting faster, you moaned a little too loudly which forced Monty to cover your mouth as you were still at the party and couldn’t risk getting caught.

After a little while longer his thrusts got sloppy and you had already finished allowing him to ride out his high and finish inside of you, he finally finished and pulled out of your entrance both of you breathing heavily and sweat dripping down your faces he kissed you once more but it was a soft peck instead of a heavy make out session, you dropped down from him and you both got dressed again before going back to the others.

#13 reasons why #monty de la cruz #fanfic

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k-renee · 1 year

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this thing i wrote

topic : sad shit about jeff (and monty, i guess) dying

pairing : jeff atkins x poc!fem reader

a/n:: this is like 80% accurate and there's like ONE made up character. the brother of reader, essentially. sorry it's shit <3

jeff atkins had always been my best friend. since the day i met him. the day he died. the day i watched them lower him into the ground. always.

my twin brother andre and i had moved in next door to him and his parents. my mom had forced me and and dre to go outside until they were done unpacking, which wouldn't be for hours. so we sat on the porch, bored out of our tiny little kid minds.

then jeff came out.

he had skin a little lighter than his brown hair, but it was the summer, so he was darker. we all were. he had diamonds in his ears—and he was lying to us about it cuz they were actually rhinestones, now that i remember—and i thought he was so cool for that. i mean, dre and i both had our ears pierced, but it was different because dre only had one ear done, and my earrings were all kawaii and had faces and shit.

but for real, i think the coolest, craziest, most...exotic—if you will—thing about jeff was his eyes. one minute they were blue, the next they were green. it just beat me and dre's plain dark brown eyes that were so dark you couldn't see the irises.

anyway.

he asked us to play baseball with him in his backyard, since he only had one player. himself. i honestly believe he's the reason why i sometimes feel bad for only children.

so we did. and jeff was damn good at it. i don't even know why he asked us to play like he was up for a challenge, because he beat us easily, even though he was outnumbered.

but after that, it was history. we all went to school together. we grew up together. we spent all of our summers together. and over time, one more kid came around.

montgomery de la cruz.

and monty, he was an asshole. a stupid, insane asshole who was like two years younger than us only because he was held back. he was almost a spawn of satan. but he was our friend. we all changed together, no matter how bad of a person one of us (monty) was.

then high school came around. that…that changed everything.

those were the summers that i literally turned pretty. i started to sprout and grow into a woman, and monty and dre and jeff were all there to see it (kinda weird if i think about it now). and everyone noticed. everyone. but i didn't care, because the most important one, that was jeff.

and i was always in love with jeff, i knew that. andre knew that. hell, maybe jeff knew. but the summer before freshman year was when it really mattered. when i really felt it. he’d always have given me some stupid weird fluttering in my stomach everytime he smiled or laughed, but that summer—it was butterflies.

eventually, we started dating. “going out”, essentially. and it was great. i didn't need to argue with him because we agreed on everything and we always had since the beginning of time. i didn't need to be too scared to tell him stuff because he already knew everything. that is—or was—my favorite part about our relationship.

and then just like that, he was gone.

one hour jeff and andre were dragging me to a party. we were having fun. jeff had one drink. dre and i shared three cans of diet coke. jeff went on a beer run i told him not to go on.

the next hour, clay was calling my brother in hysterics.

i was screaming for monty and zach to drive us to the hospital. my nose was bleeding because of my blood pressure, and i had an ice pack on it on our way, but it didn't do anything because i was crying so hard. we got to the hospital. his parents were there. the doctors looked at me. looked at us. looked at our colored faces with no sympathy and told us jeff was already dead. lifeless, in a hospital bed. they didn't even bother cleaning him up. just brought him in and didn't do a damn thing to help save him.

and they all made up this fucking story that he had been drinking and driving. he was drunk, and that's why he died. he crashed on his own, and it was his own fault his life was over.

but that wasn't it. and i learned that two years after he died. i believed this false narrative everyone had made up, and i hate myself for it. i knew him better than anyone, and when i should've been there for him when all people were doing was talking shit, i wasn't. i let them talk because i believed their bullshit.

every day i think of how they put up posters that discouraged underage drinking right after jeff died. how drinking and driving would get you killed. were they not aware or sensitive about my feelings? our feelings?

jeff and i had plans. me, dre, and him were graduating that year. jeff got his full baseball scholarship at some college and i got into an hbcu on a 95% scholarship. dre was gonna get into something, we knew it. we had faith even though his grades weren't too great. we were all gonna visit each other and call everyday. and then jeff was gone. he fucking crashed into another car and it was all over. everything he'd worked for had all gone to shit because he fucking died.

and i hate myself for putting him in that position. letting him leave in the first place. going to that party with him in the first place.

then years later, monty was killed after he was sent to prison.

i'm not gonna say that monty didn't deserve everything that came at him. i can't deny that monty was a terrible person. i can't deny that he was a monster. because he was.

but it's hard to admit that when you grew up with the monster. when you were a close friend of the monster. when you loved the monster.

nothing romantic, but i loved monty. we all did. not because of how sick he was—he absolutely needed help—but because we knew him. those who need help get thrown in prison and are locked away from the help they deserve. the other, worse monsters, like bryce walker, don't get put in prison. walker did ten times worse than monty and only got a measly community service sentence. monty couldn't get half of what he needed because he was—let's face it—darker and poorer than bryce was.

and that monster died too.

maybe bryce's family feels the same way that i do about monty. they hurt so many people, including me. but i can't say–no one can say–if they truly deserved it.

the funny thing is that monty and bryce were friends. so i really don't know if they both deserved it or if they both didn't. and maybe you think they have more in common than i let on. maybe you think that they were both monsters that used people for their own satisfaction, for their own pleasure, and they ultimately paid the price with their lives. and maybe that's true.

but who fucking knows. we're not god out here, but nobody here is an angel.

jeff wasn't perfect, i know. but he was trying. he tried. we all were. we all do. he just wanted to cheer up anybody who he thought was unhappy. he wanted to help people. he wanted to have fun.

and that's all he wanted. he wasn't selfish. he wasn't a drunk bastard alcoholic. he wasn't a jock who was a jerk like scott. he wasn't a somewhat-okay guy who had a good heart somewhere like zach. he wasn't a monster that used people for his own benefit like monty and bryce.

jeff was an angel. to me. to his family, to everybody. and he deserved better. he deserved more than that.

#13rw #13 reasons why #jeff atkins #jeff atkins x reader #13 reasons season 2

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xony · 5 months

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Scrapbook para el Reto 2 del Guadalupe - Reinas 2023, que organiza Libros B4 Tipos.

Mi tbr de este año es:

[ ] Lectura conjunta de Librosb4tipos: Herland - Charlotte Perkins Gilman

[ ] Autora ganadora del Premio de Literatura Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz: Nadie me verá llorar - Cristina Rivera Garza

[X] Libro de alguna autora mencionada en una película, serie o canción: Ethan Frome - Edith Wharton

[ ] Autora que te ha inspirado a crear: Aquí no es Miami - Fernanda Melchor

[ ] Antología escrita y antologada por mujeres: Tribu de Lectoras - Librosb4Tipos

[ ] Título pendiente de otro Guadalupe Reinas: Cuentos Completos - Leonora Carrington

[ ] Autora que no faltaría en tu mundo utópico: Anne of Windy Poplars - L.M. Montgomery

[ ] El séptimo libro o publicación de una autora: The Waves - Virginia Woolf

[ ] Alternativas de organización política y económica: Governing the Commons: The Evolution of Institutions for Collective Action - Elinor Ostrom

[ ] Lectura sobre la naturaleza: Under a White Sky: The Nature of the Future - Elizabeth Kolbert

#guadalupereinas2023 #librosb4tipos #guadalupe reinas #tbr

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lilxberry · 3 years

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I need you - Montgomery ‘Monty’ De La Cruz*

Requested By: @anabelleoriley

Hey it’s me again sorry I’ve been m.i.a recently I only saw this now. I was thinking along the lines of Monty & (female reader) maintaining a friendship that’s been going on since they were little, part of their unofficial agreement was that they’d never cross that line you know that thin between friends and Fwb … until they did cross one night in a tent during a camping the school was having, Things were super awkward the next day especially when he’d avoid her at every chance he got she felt really stupid and embarrassed thinking that she wasn’t good enough so she did what she always did which was flirt with guys just to boost her self-esteem a little (also she’s a natural flirt always has been) Monty got jealous/pissed so he confronted her… long story short they kissed & made up but also became official. I’d like the tent part to be smutty but the rest is in your hands sorry for the LOONG description i have a problem limiting my explanations lol 🙈.

Warnings: There’s some serious amount of swearing in this lmao. SMUT. Bryce (ugh). Jealousy. Zach being ooc? (Idk, it kinda warrants a warning simply because this ain’t our usual sweet Zacharcy, yanno?). I think that’s it but please let me know.

Words: 2,599

Pairings: Montgomery ‘Monty’ De La Cruz x reader (female reader)

(A/N: The ending is kinda abrupt but I always feel like when I get to the end of a fic, the writing goes down hill lmao.)

(A/N 2: Italics are flashbacks to the camping trip.)

________________

God, why did you do that?

Why did you both do that?

It was so, so stupid.

Everything was perfectly fine, then you both went and fucked it all up.

Fucking friendship.

Fucking camping trip.

Fucking Monty.

Of course, he’d fucking ignore you. Why wouldn’t he? Were you that fucking stupid?

_______________

“C’mon, Y/N/N,” Monty started, his arm slung over your shoulder as you sit beside one another on the bus ride to the camping ground. “Once everyone’s sleeping, Bryce’ll be climbing in some girls tent.”

You sigh and with a roll of your eyes, you look towards your friend of who knows how long with a deadpan expression. “Not the point, Monts.”

He raised an eyebrow up and smirked cockily. “Oh yeah? And what is the point, exactly?”

“The point is, I don’t want to deal with your annoying ass in a confined tent, moving and kicking and snoring.”

Monty tuts and leans back into his seat, never removing his arm and in fact bringing you in closer to him. “So, you’re just gonne let me sleep all on my own in a tent when I could get murdered at any moment? It’s safer in pairs.”

“Then bring it up with your tent buddy that’s gonna abandon you for some pussy that’s most probably not even worth it.”

He snorted and eyed you playfully. “And who’s pussy do you deem ‘worth it’? Yours?” he teases.

“Obviously,” you remark with a roll of your eyes. “But I wouldn’t touch Bryce with a 10 foot pole while wearing a hazmat suit.”

“I HEARD THAT!” The oh-so familiar voice of Bryce calls from two seats behind, making both you and Monty laugh loudly.

_______________

Needless to say, you gave in to Monty and his constant fucking nagging, because “he’s just so persuasive”.

Now you’re beating yourself up for listening to fucking Monty and going along with his fucking stupid fucking plan.

Now you’re stuck between a constant want of smacking the shit out of him and having him close and right by your side again.

_______________

“I hope you’re fucking happy, asshole,” you retort as you climb in through the tent flap to join Monty in his tent now that everyone’s asleep and Bryce is tapping some ass that’s probably to desperate to actually realise that it’s BRYCE they’ve agreed to sleep with.

“Not so loud, babe. You tryna give us up?”

“God, I hate it when you call me that.” You mimicked dry heaving to really accentuate how disgusting you thought the word was. “It reminds me of all your sad attempts at losing your virginity.”

“Woah. I’m wounded, BABE.”

You snort and make your way to lay beside Monty, back against whatever cushioned the ground, eyes staring at the tent’s ceiling with boredom. You felt your side get nudged and you turn your head to face the brunette laying beside you, a crooked grin on his face.

“I knew you couldn’t resist me.”

“Oh god.” You groan and close your eyes, turning your head away from him before looking at him incredulously. “Really?”

“Oh c’mon. That was funny.”

“Shut up. Can’t we just like, I dunno, go sleep or something?”

He pushes your shoulder in a playful manner. “Pssh. You wanna sleep? When you have like the hottest fucking guy right next to you? In a tent? Where no one can see?” Monty raises himself to lay on his side, his head propped up by his hand. “So you’re really gonna deny this opportune moment to fuck?”

You make a sound, a mixture between a groan and a whine, all whilst bringing your arm up to cover your face. “C’mon, Monts. We even talked about this before. We set ground rules when we got old enough. We weren’t gonna cross that line.”

“Why are you so scared, huh? It’s not like it’s gonna change anything. We’re still gonna be best friends, we’re still gonna care about each other and never leave each other’s sides. The only thing different is that we’ve just relieved some stress, baby.”

You remove your arm from over your face, chancing a quick peek at Monty. “That’s not the point.”

“Plus, I doubt I’d even sleep with you if I was bored out of my skull,” you playfully added to lighten the mood. Yet, it did nothing to ease the tension that somehow formed between the two of you.

Monty crawled his way to hover over you, moving to settle between your legs which had parted in an almost natural reaction. His face was level with yours, his arms either side of your head, holding himself up above you. “Well,” he started, a smirk forming on his face. He leans closer as he whispers. “You certainly look very bored, Miss Y/L/N.”

You release a slow breath as you look up at him, and you felt your resolve crumble almost instantly.

“Why do I let you talk me into everything?”

_______________

The avoidance of you Monty has been so determined to follow through with has annoyed you to no end; acting as if it had never happened, as if you were never apart of his life.

You were beyond fucking pissed.

The entirety of the camping trip after that night had been hell. Monty avoiding you at all costs. The rest of the trip allowed you to wallow in self pity and to consume yourself in self-deprecating, self-esteem lowering thoughts.

But now it’s a new week, a new weekend to be exact, a party at the Walker residence.

A new level of confidence installed within you.

God, who needs Mongomery De La fucking Cruz?

With a smirk, you see Zach stood at the kitchen island beside Justin, both with red solo cups in their hands filled with beer, both smiling and laughing and certainly having a good time. If it weren’t for the fact that they had broken up recently, you would easily see Jessica right by Justins’ side with her own drink, more of a vodka concoction in her cup.

Swaying your hips, you close in on the two, eyes set on Zach, your cup in your own hand although empty. Zach spots you just before you reach the duo and smiles at you, Justin following his friends’ eyes, his own gaze landing on you.

“Hey, Y/N/N,” he greets, all while you and Zach continue to look each other up and down.

“Hey Foley.” You spare him a quick glance only for your eyes to fall on to Zach once more quickly, the corner of your mouth quirking upwards. “Zach.”

“Looking good, Y/N/N,” Zach comments, his smirk hidden behind the rim of his cup that he follows with a sip.

“Not too bad yourself, Dempsey,” your smirk mirroring his own.

“Can I get you a drink?”

“Sure.” You pass him your cup and move to lean against the kitchen counter beside him as turns to refill your cup, handing it to you slowly, allowing his fingers to brush against yours.

“Thanks.” You take a sip yet neither of your eyes leaves each other, and even when Justin cleared his throat and excused himself with a chuckle, you both continued the eye contact.

Zachs’ eyes leave yours for a moment to glance where warm bodies danced around and with each other before looking back down at you. “Wanna dance?”

You take another sip before taking a hold of his hand and pulling him towards the living room, walking backwards, your bottom lip caught between your teeth.

You twirled in his hold once you reached the masses of sweating, drunk, dancing people and spun yourself into him, your back against his front, the two of you already swaying and moving against each other, your hips rotating against his.

You hook one arm around the back of his neck whilst you bring your cup back up to your lips, taking a generous sip of whatever alcohol Zach had poured you.

You feel his hot breath again your neck and the shell of your ear and his murmured, husked words sends a pleasant tingle shooting through you.

“You really look good, baby.”

_______________

“You look so good, baby,” Monty breathed, his hips rocking into yours at a sensual pace, his cock dragging deliciously against your tight walls.

Your chest heaves against his as breathy moans escape you, your nails raking down his back, drawing red marks against his tanned skin, the muscles beneath your fingertips flexing with each thrust.

He ravages your neck with his mouth, biting and sucking deep marks on to your flesh, a loud pornographic moan that’s muffled by his hand coming from you in response to his hot touch.

“You look so pretty on my cock, fuck.” His pace fastens, your tits bouncing at the increase of speed.

Monty wraps his arms around you securely before flipping you both, his dick still deep inside you. “Ride me, princess.”

You do as your told, swivelling and rocking your hips, rotating them, bouncing up and down on his length, anything to chase your orgasm while bringing him closer to his own, palms planted against his chest, nails slightly biting at his flesh.

“Monty, fuck-“ A thin layer of sweat coats both your bodies, the inside of the tent now feeling stuffy and warm and just reeks of the stench of sex. You never understood how something, or someone could smell like sex, but now it all suddenly makes sense to you.

You feel a familiar tightening in your abdomen, twisting and turning and tightening and then- it snaps. Your body pauses its movements and quivers and Monty decided to fuck you through it while chasing his own.

He flips you both back over and fucks into you with a desperate want, a need. He brings one hand down to toy with your clit at his thrusts are fast and sloppy, uncoordinated. His mouth is on yours, muffling your sweet orgasmic moans, his tongue invading past your lips and swirling around your own.

A few more pumps and thrusts and he’s there with you, in a euphoric state as his climax comes round. His hips still, occasionally jerking as he releases into the condom wrapped around his dick.

Monty’s sweaty body collapses on top of yours and you both lay there in a sweaty, panting heap in the centre of the two-man tent, clothes, haphazardly thrown at all sides of the space.

_______________

His jaw is clenched and the girl under his arm sat beside him on his friends’ couch is completely forgotten; she was boring anyways.

His eyes are solely on you and Dempsey, watching you move against him as if you have any right. But you do.

Montgomery De La Cruz had no fucking claim on you.

And he knows that. Very much so.

The girl tries to regain his attention but it’s a lost cause, simply shrugging her off and removing his arm from around her shoulders, leaning forward in his seat, his forearms resting on his jean clad knees, tonguing his bottom lip in anger and jealousy.

He watches tensely as you turn in Zach’s’ hold and raise yourself up on to your tiptoes to whisper into his ear before sauntering away and out of sight and like fuck would Montgomery not go after you.

He’s quick to move out of his seat, standing and following you out of the room and towards the kitchen, to which he enters and finds you pouring yourself another drink. Monty rolls his shoulder before walking up and standing right behind you, leaning over slightly, and speaking into your ear with an indifferent tone.

“We need to talk.”

He waits for you to lower the bottle before grasping your wrist and pulling out of the kitchen and in the direction to the stairs to find somewhere private.

As pissed as you are, you put no effort in to fight him.

Once up the stairs and satisfied with the empty room he stumbled upon, he pushes you inside and makes sure to close and lock the door before spinning to face you, who took it upon yourself to sit on the bed in the centre of the room.

“What the fuck was that?” he exclaimed, throwing his arm behind him and gesturing to the door.

You continue to act nonchalant, staying silent, gazing into the liquid inside your cup, swirling it around in your hand.

“Hello?” He sounds annoyed and you scoffed. Of course, he has the audacity to be annoyed at you ignoring him.

“So now you want to talk? I thought it was okay to ignore each other like what you’ve been doing to me since that fucking camping trip,” you spat, still refusing to make eye contact with him. “Why did you ignore me? Huh? Better be a good fucking reason.”

“Get a fucking grip, Y/N. grow up.” He scoffed angrily and ran his hand down the length of his face before looking at you. “Answer my fucking question. The fuck was that? What the fuck were you doing with Dempsey?”

“Why are you so fucking concerned, Monty?” You stood in anger. “Go back to cosying up with that blonde, yeah?”

“Oh fuck off, she means nothing.”

“Why doesn’t that shock me?” You laugh but there was no humour behind it. “Are you going to give me an actual fucking explanation why you’ve avoided me or not? Because I think I deserve a fucking answer.”

You begin to pace. “Do you know how that shit made me feel? Do you even have the slightest fucking idea how much that hurt?” Your voice began to break, your eyes were building up with tears, but you refused to give up now. “You hurt me, Monty. You really fucking hurt me. You said nothing would change, that we’d still right by each other’s side yet you left, you fucking left, and it hurt.”

A few tears had escaped by now, slowly rolling down your cheeks. You suck in a shaky breath and you finally look him in the eye. “So please, just give me a fucking explanation.”

Moments passed by and nothing came from Monty, not a single word. It was a response you didn’t like one bit. “Fine.” You cleared your throat and made your way to walk past him.

Just as you brush past his side, you feel his large hand on your wrist, pulling and turning you to face him and before you knew it, his lips were on your in needy kiss.

Monty removed his lips from yours and exhaled shakily as he moved to rest his forehead against yours. “I thought I fucked it, that I fucked it all up like always,” he whispered. “That’s why avoided you. I couldn’t fucking lose you like that. I never wanted to hurt you like that, I fucking swear.”

“And you didn’t think avoiding me would fuck it, either? Jesus, Monty. You’re a fucking idiot sometimes, y’know that?”

He chuckled and a small smile broke out on to your own face, too. “I really wanna try this with you. fuck, I wanna try this with you so bad but I understand if I’ve fucked any chance.”

“I wanna try this with you, too,” you whispered softly, eyes closing and hands finding his own. “But we need to do this slowly. I really don’t want to be hurt again, Monts.”

He nodded his head, his nose brushing against your own at the movement. “We’ll go at whatever damn speed you want Y/N/N.” his voice entirely sincere, not an ounce of falsity in it. “I just, I need you.”

_______________

I didn’t know what I was doing with this

Like usual lmao

Just, I hope you enjoy it

If you want to be added to a taglist lemme know

As always, constructive criticism and requests are welcomed and greatly appreciated :D

_______________

13 Reasons Why taglist:

(If I’ve forgotten you, please let me know. Otherwise, the taglist for this show is empty like I remember it to be.)

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buckyseddie · 2 years

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unexpected date gone right

pairings — montgomery de la cruz x fem!baker!reader, featuring bff!tyler down x bff!fem!baker!reader

summary — in which, she lets monty take her out on a date to stop the constant harassment she endures from him.

word count — 1.9k.

warnings — jealous!monty, angst, mentions of hannah’s death and how reader feels about it, fluff.

notes — i just want to make two things very clear. i wanna clarify i wrote this fic BEFORE i found out that monty was gay. i’m only leaving it up because people wanted it to stay up. and secondly, i, in no way, support what monty did to tyler. that was completely wrong, and i have certain morals, so i don’t excuse his actions. however, i do have a soft spot for villains, and i feel that he, sort of, redeemed himself a little bit. and i also feel that if he hadn’t been killed off, prison would’ve taught him a lot, and maybe have redeemed himself. so, i just wanted to make that clear. and, p.s., in this imagine, monty never did any of the tramatizing things, like what he did to tyler. gif and divider creds to owner!

p.s., feedback is very much encouraged and appreciated <3.

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“THANK YOU, TY. I’LL TALK to you later, buddy!” she exclaims with a bright smile as tyler hands her the previously fallen textbooks.

“of course.” he says, before pausing, causing her to turn around with a questioning stare.

“um, i wanted to th—thank you.” he stutters out, wearing an uncomfortable expression.

“thank me for what?” she asks, tilting her head to the side in confusion.

“for always being so nice to me… and for being my friend. i know that you know how i acted towards hannah before. but, unlike everyone else, you didn’t judge me on that and i really appreciate it.” he admits, wearing a shy smile.

“aw, of course, ty! you’re so much more than your past. you’re a great guy, and i know that people will realize that one day.” [y/n] says, before pulling him in for a comforting hug.

“thank you — for everything.” he mumbles into her hair, finally hugging her back.

as he hugs onto her for a few more seconds, he feels confused and uncomfortable, considering he’s never had someone genuinely care about him or hug him like this, other than his family.

“hey, get away from her, stalker!” a snarky voice abruptly yells, causing [y/n] to slowly pull away from her friend, trying to find the person with the very familiar voice.

“what, was hannah not enough? you gotta move onto another poor, innocent girl?” monty exclaims, eyes almost blazing in jealousy.

“i was just—” tyler starts, but monty interrupts him. “—no. you leave her alone, freak.” he says, pushing the poor kid against the lockers.

“montgomery! leave him alone. tyler is my friend. leave him the fuck alone, asshat.” [y/n] exclaims, clenching her fists to keep her anger at bay.

“but, he—” he starts, but she swiftly pushes his fists off of tyler’s shirt — this isn’t very hard, considering the second her hands touch his, he instantly lets go of tyler.

“no. he’s one of my best friends. and if anything, he’s like my brother. so, if you go as far as even looking in his direction, you’ll have me to deal with.” she spits out, grabbing tyler’s arm and pulling him behind her.

“tyler, go to class. i’ll see you later, alright?” she orders, turning to him as he nods.

he turns around and rushes down the hall.

“what the hell is your problem? could you be any more of a stereotypical, cliché, entitled jock-asshat?” she asks incredulously, turning to him and practically glaring in his direction.

“you know what? honestly, why should i be shocked? you’re friends with fucking bryce, after all.” she mumbles, rolling her eyes as she walks down the hall, hoping the boy will just leave her alone for once.

but, of course, he doesn’t leave her be.

i mean, why would he? he has been bothering and annoying the girl for months now.

why? [y/n] has no clue.

but, that’s probably just because she’s super clueless.

“hey! just because i’m friends with bryce doesn’t mean i’m anything like him.” he exclaims, falling into step beside her.

“yeah, okay. why else would you be following me around, and annoying the shit out of me? it’s kind of obvious that you either want to piss me off, or get into my pants — and neither will be happening, anytime soon.” she states, stopping finally, and turning towards him, crossing her arms across her chest.

she raises her eyebrows in question, challenging him to tell her she’s wrong.

he sighs, anxiously fidgeting with his fingers — something that’s very unlike monty.

“spit it out already! i have a very important class to get to, and i really don’t have time for your shit today.” she groans, rolling her eyes at his sudden shyness.

“i like you, alright!?” he exclaims as she gapes in shock, not expecting him to stoop so low, to play this type of game to manipulate her.

but, the problem is, he isn’t lying. far from it, actually.

“w—what?” [y/n] asks, throat tightening up.

groaning, he shuts his mouth completely, so frustrated that he admitted what he’s been hiding for months.

“well? are you going to explain why you think pretending to like me is gonna work out with your plan to get into my pants?” she asks, glaring at him.

she couldn’t explain why, but for some reason, she didn’t like that he was using the crush tactic as a way to get under her skin, and to get what he wants.

the real question she doesn’t have an answer to is, why does this affect her so much? why does she care?

“y—you think i’m pretending to like you? why the hell would i do that? are you really that judge-mental that you think you know who i am just because i’m friends with someone who’s terrible? zach’s friends with bryce, but he’s nothing like him — the same with scott!” he exclaims, finally unmasking his hurt expression.

[y/n] sighs, mentally smacking herself for how mean she was seconds ago.

sure, monty’s not the definition of an angel, but deep down, she knows that he’s not a totally terrible guy.

and he is right.

she doesn’t know him at all — she just knows the side he shows her, which probably is just a ploy to distract everyone from seeing who he really is.

and being judge-mental is never the answer, which deep down, she knows.

she just couldn’t help it with him, she wanted to hurt him for being so rude to tyler.

“look. i’m sorry, monty. i don’t know you, so i can’t assume you’re like bryce. but, can you really blame me? you portray yourself exactly like him, so i can’t help but believe that. and how is it that one of the boys that tormented my best friend for an entire year — until it drove her to kill herself — could ever like me? i can’t help but think it’s just a joke. and not to mention, you always joke around about getting into my pants.” she admits, sighing as she drags her fingers through her now tangled hair.

“i get that and you have every right to believe that. but, i would never lie about my feelings — especially, towards you. my sister has had her fair share of getting hurt and played by guys and i’ve promised her i’d never do what others did to her to another girl. it’s heartless and disgusting to hurt a girl that way when all she does is care for you.” he admits, looking anywhere but her eyes, his anxiety becoming clear as ever.

“okay.” she sighs, looking up at him expectantly.

“okay?” he asks, slightly confused at what she means.

“i believe you. i know your sister and as much as i hate admitting this, i know you’re a good brother to her by the way she talks about you. so, that has to mean you’re at least not completely terrible. so, meet me at rosie’s at seven, alright?” she states as he nods, eyes sparking in utter excitement, before she turns and walks down the hall.

—————

SHE REALLY DIDN’T UNDERSTAND WHY she told monty to meet her at rosie’s.

maybe, she was desperate for attention because guys never ever take her seriously.

or maybe she liked the antsy, nervous side of montgomery that she saw earlier in the day.

so, that’s why she found herself standing in front of her gigantic mirror inside her bedroom, wearing a cute, but casual outfit.

she wears an ocean blue cropped tank top with a jean jacket and a pair of light-wash skinny jeans. her hair sits down on her shoulders with small, innocent curls. and her makeup is natural; just some mascara and chapstick.

the whole point of her appearance that night, was to show monty that she isn’t going to change anything about herself, only for a guy.

when she does leave her house and arrive at rosie’s, monty is already sitting down at a table, tapping his fingers on the table anxiously.

“wow, you’re on time for once.” she states jokingly, trying to break how uncomfortable the silence is between the two of them as she sits down across from him.

“you know, this is the exact same place marcus harassed hannah. i’m not sure why i’d ask you to meet me at a place with such a bad memory…” she trails off, taking in a deep breath as she plays with her fidgety fingers on the table.

“i’m really sorry about that. a lot of the guys thought she was easy and marcus thought he could get her easily. he was a real dick that night.” he says, hesitantly landing his hands on top of hers, squeezing lightly.

[y/n] jumps in shock at the touch at first.

but, after a few more seconds, she relaxes, not being able to deny the comfort montgomery’s touch brings her.

“can i ask you a question?” she asks, looking at him this time.

“sure. what is it?” he asks, his nerves slowly unraveling as he lifts up one of his hands to run through his hair.

“why me?” she asks, her eyebrows furrowing, oddly becoming scared of the answer she will receive.

“what do you mean?” he asks confusedly.

“why do you like me? what’s so great about me that makes you like me? i can tell you right now, i’m not very interesting.” she admits.

“why do i like you? i like you, because you’re a good person, inside and out. you will do whatever you have to, to take care of your friends — to protect them. you never let anyone boss you around, or tell you what and who you are. and despite everything you’ve been through, you’re so kind and nice to everyone. you’re loyal and caring and you always put everyone’s lives and happiness above yours.” he says, sighing.

[y/n]’s quite shocked that he even knows any of that about her.

she tries to look for just one lying bone on him, but she comes up with none.

“h—how did you even know all that?” she asks, still shocked.

“i’m good at observing people and you’re an open book. you try to hide your real feelings, but it’s useless because you’re so simple to read.” he states, blushing a mad red color.

“o—oh…” she trails off, blushing hard, making her duck her head down, so that her hair covers her flaming cheeks.

“n—no one ever notices me… that’s why i was so convinced that you saying you liked me, was just a lie.” she mumbles, looking back up at him.

monty’s eyes widen in shock. “that’s not true. [y/n], everyone notices you.” he states, brows furrowing in confusion.

but, this little statement means little to nothing to her, considering everyone else never mattered to her.

she’d just wanted one person to notice her — at least, that is, before she saw how mean he was to others.

she finds herself becoming more comfortable around him and they began to talk about anything they could; things like her dealing with her sister’s death and the guilt that came with it, or monty’s issues at home with his father’s abusive behavior.

hours had passed by and soon enough, monty was walking [y/n] to her front door.

“i had a great time. maybe… we do it again, sometime?” she asks, leaning against the door.

“y—yeah, i’d like that.” he agrees, nodding as she lifts her body up off of the door and turns to turn the doorknob.

she pushes the door open and as soon as she’s in, she turns to the unbelievably, genuinely happy boy.

“okay, um,” she pauses, biting her bottom lip to hide her excited smile. “i’ll, uh, see you tomorrow at school, kay?” she asks as he nods.

“bye.” she gives a cute little wave, a few giggles leaving her lips, before she shuts the door.

although, she doesn’t see the genuinely soft and excited grin on the de la cruz boy’s face.

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