#monty imagine

[13-reasons-ideas]

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. 

#can't go back #Can’t Go Back #jessica davis #clay jensen #montgomery de la cruz #monty x oc #monty x reader #monty de la cruz #monty imagine #13 reasons why #13rw #13 rw #Thirteen Reasons Why #fan fiction #fanfiction #fanfic writing #fanfic #writing #writer #creative writing #Justin Foley

[severedegg]

theyre like the cop and jake from subway surfing

#i promise hes not crushing his head #hes perfectly fine and its actually enrichment for him #proshitters fuck off btw #2 versions because im. very iffy about how the colours look because computer shitty #fnaf #fnaf security breach #security breach fanart #fnaf fanart #fnaf sb #fnaf monty #montgomery gator #glamrock monty #fnaf gregory #gregory fnaf #gregory security breach #i imagine that monty is near-sighted and needs his glasses to see properly #or that his eyes are just light sensitive #ignore that hes a robot n those things could probably be fixed with a good technician/replacement parts #UNLESS he hates technicians or adults getting too close to him which would be interesting #anyway #theyre so brother coded to me its so goofy #its like a non toxic version of michael and evan (c.c) #idk why ive been drawing these two lately theyre not even close to my favs i just like their brotherly bond ig lol #my art #security breach #fnaf sb fanart #five nights at freddys #five nights at freddy's #fivenightsatfreddysfanart

[spectr3inl0ve]

bruce wayne and his controversially young gf but jason jokingly calls bruce 'cradle robber' and unknowingly makes him upset!!! bruce and reader uncomfortably laugh it off while babs scolds jason!! like poor brucie genuinely is enamoured by reader but is filled w sm guilt over the age gap and jason isn't helping :((

#°○☆spectr3inl0ve #send me asks abt cradle robber!bruce wayne i promise to actually answer them 🤞 #cradle robber!bruce wayne #monty loves dc #bruce wayne #bruce wayne x reader #bruce wayne x y/n #jason todd #babs gordon #barbara gordon #bruce wayne smut #bruce wayne headcanon #batman x reader #batman headcanon #dick grayson x reader #bruce wayne imagine #dick grayson headcanon #jason todd x reader smut #jason todd x reader

[jklpopcorn]

The food is burning.

#fnaf #five nights at freddy's #fnaf sb #security breach #freddy #glamrock freddy #gregory #vanessa #comic #my art #I want to see my found family! If nobody's gonna do it then it's gonna be me!! #also i like how each panel became better and better quality lol #honestly the last two panels were bonuses #ruin spoilers #fnaf spoilers #and i have not looked at anybody's reference here we die like monty #imagine you adopted a kid and the little mf starts drawing u being torn to shreds

[neonlazycat]

"I don't need another body"....."what would I change it to?" "Another variant of sun but its blue?"

BLUE U SAY? >:D

BLUE?!

SOLAR BLUE FUTURE CANON ? (I'm delusional)

#MEAHAHHHAHAAHHA #but i know its never gonna happen so yah #im going crazy cuz imagine if solars new body would be blue #you get it sonce hes a nice eclipse and his colours are inverted #sun and moon show #sams eclipse #sams solar #monty gator and foxy show #mgafs #the sun and moon show #tsams eclipse #tsams #tsams solar

[froog-water]

i just think they are neat. very cool yes. one might even say, swag

#wdym its near canonical that monty got bonnie? #wdym im delusional #wdym i need to take my pills #anyway #in my head i like to imagine that monty and bonnie are friends #good friends even #maybe they even hold hands #who knows #my fart #fnaf shitpost #fnaf fanart #fnaf memes #five nights at freddys fanart #fnaf security breach #fnaf monty #montgomery gator #fnaf glamrock bonnie #fnaf glamrock animatronics #glamrock monty

[anjellaufeyson]

I could treat you better - Bellamy Blake

Time stamp: 1:38

My boyfriend was lovely–his friend wasn’t. Bellamy Blake was the rudest man I’ve ever come across; I only tolerated him for my boyfriend. 

Murphy kissed me before he got pulled away for work, he was doing guard watch. I sighed, why couldn’t Bellamy do this? He always had Murphy doing everything for him, and I’m sick of it. Whenever Muphy comes back to our tent he’s exhausted or too tired to even spend time with me. I left my tent and walked inside Bellamy’s, he was shirtless and a girl was lying on his bed. I immediately left with a disgusted look on my face. 

Soon he came out searching for me, “What do you want, princess?” 

I palmed my face while we strolled together through Arkadia, “I’d prefer if you wouldn’t call me that, Blake. Especially since some people say that when they’re together.” 

He tilted his head, his eyes gazing into mine, he glanced down with a bit of a smile, “Right, whatever you say, princess.” 

The need to correct and argue with him was there but I ignored it for the sake of Murphy. “okay–can you please stop keeping my boyfriend working late? I’m aware of how things are, like it or not I’m one of the smart ones and I think he’s being overworked and–”

Bellamy’s face showed confusion in itself, “Murphy gets off at the same time as everyone else. I work the late nights, I’m who stays up all night, every night.” 

I stopped moving, trying to process my indecision and incoming sense of betrayal. “Wait, you haven’t been keeping Murphy late or hanging out with him late?” 

He shook his head and crossed his arms, his muscles clenching to his tight shirt. His veins popping out. My eyes tore away, my emotions were my only focus. “No, I don’t think anyone has. We’ve been on a lockdown since Clarke went missing.” 

My brain racked everything Murphy’s ever told me since he began ‘working’ late. I thought of the girl I assumed he had a relationship with but when I questioned him, he brushed me off. Out of anger, I took off leaving Bellamy, who ended up following behind me calling for my name. I moved the tent side and immediately saw Murphy and the girl kissing. They stopped once they noticed me and how distraught I looked. 

I backed up and accidentally bumped into Bellamy’s chest, I didn’t cry. I felt like I should cry, my body begged to cry, but when you did here–it made you seem weak. And I’d never want Murphy to see me cry even though my heart did in return. I turned and tried to shield myself with Bellamy’s chest, but hesitantly he put his arms around me. Trying to comfort me but I knew we both detested each other. He never liked me with Murphy for a reason I am unaware of, and I just never liked him. He brushed his hand up and down my back, almost in circular motions. 

Murphy’s voice appeared from behind me but I didn’t dare to look back because I felt so vulnerable, I knew I would cry. “I need to talk with her, I can explain!”

Bellamy stepped in, holding me closer. His voice was demanding, his tone was deep, “Murphy, you should go. Now. If she wants to talk to you, she’ll do it later.” 

I could hear Murphy protesting before easily giving up, he didn’t care to try. I pushed away from Bellamy who almost looked shocked at how quickly I switched up. 

We had to go on a mission, and I found myself in a difficult position. A hand covered my mouth and once I realized I didn’t know the person whose hand it was I began to get a bit scared. I tried to fight them off but couldn’t–it had to be a grounder. 

The grounder pulled a sword on me and dug into my back, but not enough to hurt me but it pierced the skin. He pushed me onto my knees where my friends were–including Bellamy. The whole hunting group was in. Murphy seemed nervous. I guess I should be too, especially since it’s my life on the line. 

“Who’s valuable to her?”

What an odd fucking question–is this supposed to be leverage? Might as well let me die. 

Bellamy not even a second later stepped forward, “She’s with me, that’s my girlfriend.” He spoke so truthfully that even everyone we knew was aware he was lying through his teeth. 

“What are you willing to give me in turn for her life?” 

His eyes almost turned vulnerable, his words coming off as pathetic as his tone came off as pleads. “What do you want?” 

The grounder moved the sword which caused me to wince, “I want Wanheda.” Everyone shared a confused glance, who is that? “Give her to me and I won’t kill her.” 

“Take me instead, she has a better chance of getting through to Wanheda than me.” What is he doing? He’s going to get himself killed–I’m aware he can handle himself but this is almost suicidal. The grounder pushed me into Bellamy’s arms. He squeezed my hand for the quickest second and moved to the grounder who hit him immediately. 

I wanted to help him but I didn’t know how to, Bellamy could’ve attacked but stayed down, taking another punch with ease. I stepped forward but he put his hand up, “Don’t,” he demanded while blood ran down his cheek. 

Why was he willing to do this for me? We’ll never find her, I mouthed. He did a tiny nod. They need you, I mouthed once more. He got kicked in his ribs and I knew I lost his attention but while the grounder was distracted I quickly stole Murphy’s gun and shot the grounder. My aim was good, but I hated shooting, killing wasn’t something I wanted to do. But I had to–for him. 

Without processing what I did I went to Bellamy’s side. I hated his stupidity and I hated how he saved my life. “I hate you,” I said as I helped him up. He spit out blood, “I know,” he said while wincing from getting up too quickly. 

While Bellamy was getting medical from Abby, I was talking with Octavia and Jasper. Murphy approached grabbing my arm, “Were you and Bellamy seeing each other behind my back?”

His breath reeks of Monty’s moonshine, “Are you serious? You’ve been cheating on me, Murphy?”

“Were you yes or no?” 

Before I could say anything Bellamy put his arm around my waist. His hands slipped around my stomach. Holding me tight but just to keep himself steady from behind. “Yes,” he said in a raspy voice, still clearly in pain. I couldn’t turn my head, I’d be too close to his face. He groaned a bit in pain but still managed to keep his posture strong and himself looking composed. Bellamy pulled me in closer to him and that got a bit of a reaction from Murphy. 

“Fuck you both,” he said as he stormed off. Everyone else decided to leave us alone, I was going to Bellamy back to medic. There was a zero percent chance he was let out yet. 

He stopped me from walking, his tight and bloody shirt doing him every bit of justice. His hands took control so easily, “Why’d you do it,” I asked. 

His fingers traced along my neck, “Save you? Or help you?”

“Both,” I spoke breathlessly. His eyes were fixated on my lips and I wondered if Abby gave him painkillers or something for this type of behavior. 

Bellamy stared down at me, tension felt like it was rising, and the heat was radiating off our bodies. He kept one hand on my waist, holding me. His right hand pulled my hair to the side he leaned in, “because we both know I could treat you better,” he whispered into my ear.

#bellamy blake #oneshot #octavia blake #the 100 #bellamy blake x reader #bellamy blake imagine #enemies to lovers #fake dating #abby griffin #john murphy #jasper jordan #monty green #bob morley #Spotify

[chknbzkt]

My god it’s finally done 💀 WOOOO

Damn I missed the whole month but I still got something for Mermay and beyond! Eclipse’s updated design (I may decide to tweak it a tad further but I had to get across how Not Normal this Mer is compared to the other abyssal horror of the Down Below)

More info under the read more

It’s a mix between an oarfish, gulper eel, viperfish, someee barracuda and god knows what else, Eclipse’s existence is unnatural and Wrong even considering the origins of Mer in general throughout history.

Let’s just say Willy Old Boy had a hand in things, by accident mind, but a happy accident in his case. And even long after the world has exploded, Eclipse’s involvement in tragic goings on years past is about to resurface in ways it really rather wouldn’t.

Poor guy has a real storm coming 🐰

On the end, we have a WIP of one of Monty’s first encounters with The Siren that Screams for the Storm. Fast spreading rumors about a behemoth of a monster migrating in the direction of Monty’s shanty town (the location of someone he treasures who can’t simply leave) saw Monty saddling up with Moon in tow to try and find it and stop it, or at least change its direction.

They had no idea what the hell they were getting into how do you even begin to fight this 😭

#strange tides au #fnaf mermay #mermay 2023 #fnaf au #dca fandom #dca au #bzkt barf #my art #art #artistsontumblr #digitalart #beeg feesh meet Beeger Feesh #just imagine Moon in front of Monty gawking at That #not just gawking #Craning Their Neck back #thank god Monty’s pants are already wet 💀

[crow-n-tell]

I had a lot of trouble with this lil guy. Weird lil music men aren't easy to shift over when their body's are so... Weird. Still, here! Hermit Crab Music Men!

If you wanna see what went on in my mind for this come right this way...

So a lil info about these boys! These lil music men have adapted to live in the safe shallows, as well as some undersea areas if need be - having two different palettes which match... you've probably guessed by the additions of orange in the music mans usual pastels

Acid mushrooms! I realized as I was trying to get it all sorted that they are a nearly identical color scheme so it worked out that their colors are a little wacky. Not that real life crabs aren't a bit audacious in their colorings too. Actually the deep sea version of this guy is based off a purple crab called the Palawan Purple Crab who comes from the Philippines.

Their colors are more so for other crabs of their species to recognize them, or so I've read, but in this particular scenario it suits our lil music man as a sort of camouflage too.

Aside from it being a sort of camouflage, it also gives you insight into these lil guys diet. Most of what (I really need to come up with a name for these guys, but all I keep thinking of is crab rangboom. like crab rangoon? but a sound pun.) they eat are poisonous, which has directly affected how predators view them. Yea see, there are certain families of crabs which are toxic only because they are eating things that should not be eaten.

So music men don't have a lot of predators, other than those who have natural immunities to things like that... ahem, moon.

I imagine that the crabs closer to the surface tend to a little smaller than knee high for an average height human, where as deeper sea versions of them are a lot bigger... Like... I DONT KNOW, Leviathan big? After all these are just lil guys, lets not forget about the big music man!

Next topic is... oh yeah!

Seismic communication is basically communication through vibrations. Not just through the water, actually it's used by spiders which we can all sort of agree is what the OG music boys are. Spiders use seismic communication when it comes to their webs in particular, able to sense through vibrations in their web if they've captured prey.

Similarly a lot of sea creatures use vibrations as means of communication. Not only in the way spiders do, but sensing out prey; but by avoiding predators or talking to each other. Crabs in particular use all three, but in terms of communication to one another its been noted they will rub their legs together like crickets to talk to other crabs.

For our lil crabby boys, their claws are fashioned sort of like the the original music man has. Hollowed out in the center, they are able to click their lil crab claws together to make sounds and vibrations which distress and confuse their prey long enough to snatch em up and eat em.

Of course they also have the very on brand to SB behavior of just being a literal face hugger if they come out of the shell.

m...mmmmm..... no... noo....ooo.......

I guess the only thing left to mention is his lil

Barnacles!

I struggled with how i'd give this lil guy a top hat. Then. I remember how WEIRD barnacles are. You see a lot of barnacles that look a lil something like this:

But they come in many variations!

And I hate all of them! they are great for designs, helpful in this case, but I get nauseous when looking at them and I can't even begin to understand why.

Sorry if my adhd really popped out on this one, I am actually holding back some of the mostly irrelevant information about colors and uh, other stuff.

#my art #fnaf sb #hermit crab music man #kracken!moon #tiding over #honestly this one is easy but I keep imagining #for like the other animatronics #I could see Freddy as something like a selkie #Monty is just a gator #chica… #sea bird………….? #roxy #oh god I don’t even #… I #uh #pi #p… piranha????????? #I DONT KNOW

[hd-junglebook]

Neutral

Part 2

word count - 3,446

The five of you stood at the side of the cliff, your hearts pounding with anticipation as Finn gripped the rope tightly in his hand, ready to swing across the gap. Finn prepared to make his leap, Jasper piped up, his voice filled with determination. "Wait, guys. Let me do it. I've got this."

There was a moment of stunned silence as his words sunk in. Clarke glanced at him, concern etched across her features. "Jasper, are you sure? It's a long way across." But Jasper was already stepping forward, a defiant gleam in his eyes. "Clarke. Trust me, I can do this."

The rest of you exchanged uncertain glances, but Finn nodded in agreement. "Let him try. We don't have much time."

With a collective cheer, you urged Jasper on as he gripped the rope and launched himself into the air. For a moment, he sailed across the gap with grace, his movements fluid and confident. As Jasper neared the other side, a spear soared through the air straight into his chest, sending him careening off course.

With a sickening thud, he collided with the rock behind him, the impact knocking the wind out of him.

"Jasper!" Clarke cried out in horror, rushing forward to help him. The rest of you watched in shock, the reality of the situation sinking in. You were not alone in these woods.

Finn took charge, his voice urgent as he scanned the surrounding area. "We need to move. Now. Whatever hit Jasper could still be out there."

You stood in stunned silence by yourself, gears turning in your head at the lack of choices you seemed to have in this moment. Clarkes voice waking you back up from your daze. You crouch down out of sight of whatever was out there.

The woods seemed darker and more foreboding now, every rustle of leaves and snap of twigs sending shivers down your spine. You looked back at Jaspers figure once more pinned to the rock, catching sight of Monty out in the open.

"Well, this is just fantastic. I always wanted to be stuck in a survival situation with a bunch of amateurs." You whisper to yourself, scanning the woods around you before lunging towards Monty, dragging him by his ear back to the group.

"We are so screwed," Octavia insisted, her eyes darting from tree to tree as if searching for any sign of their missing friend.

Out of nowhere, Jasper's chilling scream pierced through the stillness of the forest, sending a shiver down your spine and causing your blood to run cold. Panic surged through you, your mind racing with fear and uncertainty.

"Clarke, Jasper. He's alive," you gasped out, your voice trembling with a mix of relief and dread.

But Clarke was already moving, her determination unwavering as she raced ahead, heedless of Finn's warning. "Clarke, wait. Wait! Wait," Finn called out desperately, but she didn't stop.

Monty's voice trembled with fear as he scanned the surrounding trees, removing himself from you side to stand at the cliffs edge once more. "No. Where is he?" he asked, his voice barely above a whisper, his eyes wide with horror.

"They took him," Clarke replied, her tone heavy with sorrow and rage. The realization hit you like a punch to the gut, feeling paralyzed as you crouched in the depths of the forest, knowing that Jasper was now in the hands of whatever lurked in the woods.

---

The four of you sprinted through the dense undergrowth, the branches seemed to claw at your skin, leaving scratches in their wake. You reached out, grabbing Octavia's arm with clammy hands, pulling her along with you as you dodged and weaved through the obstacles in your path.

Glancing over your shoulder, you noticed Monty and Clarke lagging behind, their breath coming in ragged gasps. "Come on, guys! We're almost there!" you shouted back, urging them to pick up the pace. The forest around you seemed to darken, the sunlight filtering through the canopy overhead seems to diminish with each passing step.

light struggled to penetrate the thick trees behind you, casting long shadows that stretch across the forest floor like fingers reaching out to pull you deeper into the gloom with every step you took towards the safety of the camp.

The distant flicker of the campfire beckoned through the thick brush, you could almost feel the warmth of the flames against your skin, driving you forward despite the burning ache in your legs. Each step was a struggle, your muscles screaming in protest from the relentless exertion of running from Mount Weather.

You pushed Octavia forward through the trees, finally reaching the group, you were met with a scene that sent a chill down your spine. Murphy and Wells were engaged in a vicious knife fight, their faces contorted with anger and desperation.

Clarke stepped in front of you, her voice sharp with urgency. "Wells! Let him go!" she yelled, pushing herself through the crowd to intervene.

“Alright enough you two!” Bellamy growled as he pushed Murphy away from Wells. Meeting Clarkes angry glare before Octavia caught his attention.

He moved with determined strides, parting the sea of bodies like a ship cutting through choppy waters., his expression darkening with concern and anger. "Octavia, are you all right?" he demanded, his piercing gaze locked onto you, unwavering and intense. "You let her get hurt out there? Where's the food you were so spent on getting?”

You bristled at his accusatory tone, your sarcasm dripping like venom. "Oh, sorry, Bellamy, I was too busy dodging spears and saving Octavia to remember to pack you a picnic basket," you shot back, your frustration boiling over. "But you seem to have everything under control, as usual."

Bellamy's jaw clenched, his gaze hardening even further as he took a step closer to you. "Don't play games with me, y/n," he growled, his voice low and dangerous.

Finn stumbled forward, gasping for breath. "We... we didn't make it to Mount Weather," he managed to get out between labored breaths.

Clarke stepped forward, her voice cutting through the tension like a knife. "We were attacked," she announced, her gaze sweeping over the assembled group of delinquents. "They were waiting for us, lying in ambush."Her words hung heavy in the air, a chilling reminder of the dangers that lurked in the woods beyond their camp. The group exchanged worried glances.

Clarke's gaze softened as she addressed her friends, her voice sincere. "Everything we thought we knew about the ground is wrong," she continued, her eyes meeting each of theirs in turn. "There are people here, survivors. The good news is, that means we can survive. Radiation won't kill us."

"Yeah, the bad news is the Grounders will," Finn admitted, his eyes reflecting the gravity of their situation.

Wells limped towards the group, grimacing in pain as his voice broke through the tension, his concern evident as he inquired about Jasper's whereabouts. "Where's the kid with the goggles?" he asked, his gaze darting around the group anxiously.

Clarke stepped forward, her expression grim as she delivered the devastating news. "Jasper was hit. They took him," she revealed anxiously. "Where is your wristband?" she demanded, turning her attention back to Wells, her eyes searching his face for answers.

Wells hesitated for a moment before responding, his voice heavy with regret. "Ask him," he replied, gesturing towards Murphy with a solemn expression.

Clarke's frustration was obvious as she processed the information. "How many?" she hissed, her voice barely above a whisper as she awaited Murphy's response.

Murphy's reply was chilling in its simplicity. "Twenty-four and counting," he admitted, his tone sinister as he confirmed the number.

Clarke's frustration boiled over, her words laced with anger. "You idiots," she spat, her voice filled with bitter disappointment. "Life support on the Ark is failing. That's why they brought us down here," she scolded, her words a reminder of the harsh reality they faced.

"Don't listen to her. She's one of the privileged. If they come down, she'll have it good," Bellamy shouted, rallying the crowd with his impassioned words. "We can take care of ourselves. That wristband on your arm? It makes you a prisoner," he declared, his tone defiant as he challenged Clarke's authority as he faced her.

"I say you're not criminals! You're fighters, survivors! The Grounders should worry about us!" His words resonated with the crowd, drawing them back to his side as they echoed their agreement.

You shook your head in disappointment at the shortsightedness of it all, the frustration evident in your expression as you watched the crowd rally behind Bellamy's reckless rhetoric.

Monty pulled you and Clarke towards him, his faced scrunched in discomfort. "What do we do now?" he asked, his eyes darting between Clarke and Bellamy as he sought your guidance.

Clarke's response was firm and resolute, her gaze unwavering as she addressed him. "Now we go after Jasper," she declared.

---

You and Clarke worked quickly to patch up Wells, the urgency of the situation lending speed to your movements as you devised a plan to rescue Jasper. Clarke and Finn's heated exchange filled the air behind you, their voices clashing in disagreement.

Finn remained steadfast in his belief that venturing back into the woods would only lead to disaster. "I'm not going anywhere, and neither should any of you. That spear was thrown with pinpoint accuracy from 300 feet," he argued back.

Clarke's frustration bubbled to the surface as she refused to entertain the idea of leaving Jasper behind. "So what, we let Jasper die? That's not gonna happen, Spacewalker." she retorted, every word seasoned with accusation.

Finn stood his ground, his expression desperate as he countered Clarke's resolve. "It's not an adventure, Clarke, it's a suicide mission," he countered.

"Clarke, we could use Bellamy," you suggested, your voice tinged with reluctance. "He has a weapon. As annoying as he is, we need all the help we can get."

Walking over to Octavia, you handed her a bottle of water, offering her a small smile of reassurance before looking over her leg once more. Clarke approached Bellamy then, her voice commanding as she addressed him. "I hear you have a gun.” Bellamy reply came without hesitation, lifting his shirt slightly to reveal the weapon strapped to his waist.

As he did, you couldn't help but notice the defined contours of his abdomen, the muscles taut and well-defined. Caught momentarily in the act of admiring, you quickly averted your gaze, but not before Bellamy's eyes flicked up, catching you in the act.

A smirk tugged at the corner of his lips as he noticed your fleeting glance. "Like what you see?" he quipped, his tone teasing.

You rolled your eyes, unable to resist a sarcastic retort. "Please, Bellamy, don't flatter yourself. I was just wondering if that thing is even loaded," you shot back, your tone laced with playful sarcasm.

Clarke nodded in agreement. “That’s good. Follow me," she instructed, her words leaving no room for argument.

You fell into step beside her, Bellamy shot you both a questioning look, his brow furrowed in confusion. "And why would I do that?" he asked, his voice edged with skepticism. The two you halting in your walking.

You couldn't resist the urge to challenge him back, his self-righteous attitude grating your nerves for the second time today, "Oh, I don't know, Bellamy. Maybe because you're not as brave as you like to pretend," you retorted, your tone dripping with sarcasm.

Bellamy's expression hardened, and he stepped closer to you, mirroring your stance, his gaze intense. For a moment, you almost step back at his closeness, but you refused to back down. "Careful, sweetheart. You don't want to find out just how wrong you are," he warned.

You squared your shoulders, meeting his gaze with equal intensity. "Try me," you mocked, your voice steady despite the butterflies fluttering in your stomach. You walked away with Clarke, leaving Bellamy behind. You could almost feel the weight of his gaze boring into your back as you moved further away. A silent challenge lingering in the air.

---

Your focus, alongside Clarke's, remained on locating Jasper, the urgency tangible in every stride as the group trudged through the dense undergrowth. Bellamy's voice, sharp and cutting, sliced through the otherwise oppressive silence.

"Hey, hold up. What's the rush? You don't survive a spear through the heart." His words halted the group in their tracks, prompting a momentary pause in the relentless pursuit. Wells attempted to interject, his voice a soft plea for reason, "We have to find him, Bellamy,” but Murphy's abrupt intrusion blocked his path.

"We heard him scream when they moved him. We have to find him now." You voiced, restraining yourself from punching Bellamy in the face.

The exchange between you and Clarke, a tense back-and-forth of explanations and rebuttals, seemed destined to continue until Bellamy interrupted, his tone brusque and impatient. "As soon as you take those wristbands off, we can go."

“Over my dead body, Blake,” you huffed, finding his insistence infuriating. Bellamy was quick to put on a self-satisfied expression at your remark. Suddenly, Finn materialized out of the shadows, his unexpected presence bringing an abrupt halt to the argument.

"Clarke's right. We need to keep moving. We're not leaving anyone behind."

Clarke spared you one last glance, mouthing a simple ‘sorry’ before walking away with Finn taking the lead of the group. Once they dispersed, you found yourself beside Wells, Bellamy, and Murphy not far behind. Seeking solace in conversation, you struck up a dialogue with him, hoping to find some semblance of normalcy. Every step felt heavy, the worry for Jasper gnawing at your insides.

The sound of a low groan reverberated through the trees, causing both you and Clarke to snap into action. Without a second thought, you both bolted towards the source of the noise. pushing through tangled foliage and dodging gnarled roots. You finally stumbled upon Jasper, his figure slumped against a rock.

Your heart twisted at the sight of him, “Jasper!” you screamed, looking over his battered and bloodied form. Jasper's wounds were covered, a makeshift bandage hastily applied by unknown hands. Jasper groaned aloud once more, relief flooded through you at the realization that he was alive.

Before you could reach him, the ground beneath your feet gave way, the earth crumbling beneath you in a sudden collapse. Clarke's scream pierced the air as she watched you disappear into the darkness below.

She stumbled backward, her eyes wide with fear, before collapsing to the ground herself. The rest of the group rushed to her side, their shouts of concern blending with the chaos of the moment.

In the midst of the commotion, Bellamy's strong grip closed around your arm, your heart leaped into your throat, you locked eyes with Bellamy just as you were about to plummet into the unknown depths below.

For a fleeting moment, there was something indecipherable in his expression, a hint of uncertainty perhaps, but it vanished as quickly as it had appeared.

Before you could dwell on it further, you realized his attention was drawn to the wristband on your arm, and Bellamy's gaze flickered down to it for just a moment. Anger flared within you at the implication, and you snapped, "Let go, Bellamy!"

He hesitated, his grip on your arm tightening as if contemplating his next move. Panic overwhelmed you as you teetered on the edge of the pit, "I know you want to let go, Bellamy. Just do it already!" you snapped.

Bellamy's expression remained inscrutable, his gaze flickering briefly to your wristband before meeting yours again. Then, as if coming to a decision, he released you, allowing you to slip further into the spiked pit below.

Just as you were about to plummet into the abyss, Murphy's strong hand closed around your arm. The rest of the group rushed to your aid, their shouts of concern mingling with the chaos of the moment as they worked together to pull you back to safety.

With a collective effort, they hoisted you up from the brink, your heart pounding in your chest as you collapsed onto solid ground once more. Relief washed over you in a dizzying wave, but as you shot a glare at Bellamy, his gaze still lingering on you with an intensity you couldn't quite decipher.

---

Murphy and Finn rushed forward to help Jasper, you stayed back, still trying to steady your breathing after the near fall. The others scrambled to their feet, scanning the forest for any signs of danger. your eyes landed on Bellamy's gun lying on the ground nearby.

Before you could think twice, a low growl echoed through the trees, sending shivers down your spine. Your gaze shot back to the source of the sound just in time to see a sleek panther emerge from the brush, its predatory eyes fixed on Bellamy.

“Bellamy!” Clarke shouted. “Get the gun now!”

Bellamy reached in his waistband, feeling around for his gun coming up short. A look of confusion passed over his face as the panther crept closer to him. For a split second, you hesitated, your anger and resentment towards Bellamy flashing through your mind. ‘he doesn’t deserve to live.’  You thought. But against your better judgment, you lunged forward, grabbing the gun and aiming at the panther.

You fired off a shot, the sound echoing through the forest as the bullet found its mark. The panther let out a fierce roar before getting ready to strike again. You straightened your aim, stepping closer before firing another round. The panther collapsing to the ground with a loud, its threat neutralized.

Breathless and shaken, Bellamy turned to face you with an eyebrow raised. "Guess I owe you one," he replied, his tone laced with sarcasm.

---

“They're back!”

The gates of the camp swung open, allowing everyone to stream back through the camp, you found yourself lingering behind, lost in the tumult of your own thoughts. Memories of your mother, her accusing words, and the weight of her disappointment flooded your mind.

You recalled the countless times she had blamed you for her circumstances, her voice echoing in your head like a haunting refrain. The sharp sting of her words, the relentless yelling, and the coldness in her eyes all played vividly in your memory.

"You coming?" Bellamy's voice broke through your reverie, pulling you back to the present.

You glanced up, meeting his gaze briefly before looking away. "Yeah, I'll catch up," you replied tersely, your tone betraying the turmoil within. Your legs guided you without a second though, taking your place on a log settled by the fire, surrounded by the other delinquents. You let the warmth of the flames ease the tension in your shoulders.

Harper and Miller's banter provided a welcome distraction, their jokes and laughter cutting through the heavy atmosphere that hung over the camp. You found yourself drawn into their playful exchange, a small smile tugging at the corners of your lips as you listened to their witty repartee.

"So, did you hear about the guy who stole a calendar? He got twelve months!" Harper said, laughing to herself while Miller poked the fire next to you.

"Oh man, that's almost as bad as your last joke!" Miller responded, shaking his head at her bad attempts at jokes.

You chuckled along with them, appreciating the light-hearted moment amidst the chaos of your situation. You caught yourself watching Bellamy, your eyes hazily looking over at the line forming in front of him.

"Next!" Bellamy shouted, while Murphy continued to break off the wristbands of each delinquent in line. You watched as he worked efficiently, his movements brisk and purposeful as he conducted his trade.

"Food for wristbands. One at a time, let's keep it moving."

Despite your lingering resentment towards him, you couldn't help but admire his resourcefulness and determination to provide for the group.

But when Bellamy's gaze briefly met yours, you couldn't bring yourself to accept his offer of food, instead choosing to remain seated by the fire, surrounded by the company of your fellow delinquents.

Every now and then, a knowing glint danced in your eyes, a subtle acknowledgment of the secret you held close. While Bellamy spoke with confidence, there was a hint of unease in his demeanor, a flicker of uncertainty that betrayed his facade of bravado.

It was clear to you that he didn't realize you were privy to his secret, the truth behind his presence on the dropship, the lengths he went to in order to secure his spot among the delinquents.

#bellamy blake x reader #fluff #angst #the 100 fanfiction #masterlist #new writers on tumblr #octavia blake #the 100 series #abby griffin #bellamy blake #bellamy x reader #bellamy blake imagine #bellamy blake fanfiction #bellamy blake x oc #raven reyes #jasper jordan #monty green #john murphy #emori #bellamy blake smut #the 100 rewrite #the 100 #the 100 x reader #the 100 imagine #the 100 spoilers #the 100 clexa #the 100 cast #clarke griffin #commander lexa #grounders

[spaciebabie]

i doodled two of my favorite scenes from @sleepyjuniper's 6th chap of Visions

moon is like the perfect mix of Troll™ and Softie™ just the way i like him

letting the five year old tie up the murdurous shattered animatronic is a serious Good Parent moment he should get a medal n a pat on the back

june ik the "i believe in you" scene was serious but as i was reading it i was rought w/a vision (heh) of moon being kawaii anime desu and the clown shoes dont stop squeakin so-

#fnaf sb #fnaf #five nights at freddy’s #security breach #visions fic #moondrop #fnaf moon #fnaf gregory #june ive already yelled at you abt how much i love ur fic but also #im gonna keep yelling #yk being in the dca fandom ya see a lot of self insert fics n visions is a reak nice change of pace #i rlly love greg n n moons interactions in june's fic its so nice n paternal n good n makes my heart happie #uuuuu #imagining the monty scene in my head was v funnie as well #im just imagining him doing those stupid RARGAGRARAGRGRA noises he does in game while moon n geg have a Serious Bonding Moment n i- #SOFT MOON SOFT MOON SOFT MOON SOFT MOON #UGHRHGHRHGRHHHHRRRR #I WISH I WAS BETTER AT WORDS I WOULD YELL MORE OF THEM AT YOU #SHAKES VISIONS AROUND LIKE A BOBBLEHEAD #spacie scribbles

[thedragonqueensblog]

Justin Foley/// The Truth Hides

Anonymous request: Could you do where clay hasn’t found about the tapes that Hannah left and so the reader and her boyfriend Justin, Alex, Jessica, Zach, monet, are talking and making a plan to get ride of the tapes and clay (the reader was friends with Hannah and Clay but stopped when Hannah and Clay started dating Hannah knew that the reader like Clay but she still went and dated Clay and so the reader cut ties with them

A/n: I switched up a lot of stuff in case you get confused

Warnings: death, slut-shaming and plotting against someone, and cussing words

You were in the gym your boyfriend Justin and your friends you all were talking about the tapes that Hannah baker left your friends and you all were trying to find a way to get them before it exposed any of you

"I said let's take him for a ride and for a drink once he's so drunk we throw him in the canyon so it seems like it was a suicide." Justin says "Besides everyone is going to believe it, since everyone is going to be like he did it because he wasn't over Hannah since they were lovers.”

“Guys, let's talk about this at my house and I'll gather everyone so we can talk about the tapes. It's better to do it at my place so no one can listen to us.” Monty looks at everyone

"At your place? why not at school?" Alex asks not understanding

“Standall Are you hearing yourself? We can't have no one finding out about the tapes. I don't know Alex if you're actually dumb or you're pretending to be one.” Monty rolls his eyes at him

Alex was about to punch Monty but he was stopped by Justin and Zach "guys we can't fight each other, we're all in this together, we all need each other unless If you want to join Clay but he's not going to accept any of you if he does find out what we did to her."

“Alright I'll let this side, but next time Monty is being a bitch he's going to get it.” Alex fumed

"Yeah whatever." Justin waves Alex off

"You guys should get going already, cheerleading practice is about to start in 45 minutes." You looked down at your watch

"Can't you guys not have us for a little bit longer? besides Bae you're the captain and Jess is the co-captain." Justin tells you

"Justin we would but Jess and I have to make new roots." You kissed his cheek

“Baby can we stay? and watch you guys? " Alex asks Jessica

“Baby why don't you go to the store to buy snacks and drinks for the meeting besides Justin and Zach has practice too. " Jessica tells Alex and kissed him before he left

"Well babe see you later." Justin pulls you into a deep kiss Zach had it to pull Justin away from you since you both were making out "save it for the private room." Zach teases

"They ride us crazy.” You laugh

“Yes they do, but we love them even if they are crazy and sometimes dumb but we have love for them. " Jessica laughs too

“I was thinking, don't you think? It's a bit crazy what the guys want to do with the tapes and Clay?” You asked

“I don't think it's crazy we need to get rid of them.” Jessica answers your questions with a smile

"That's harsh." You respond as you begin to stretch out your arms and legs

“Hannah hurt you, remember? That she dated him. She knew that you loved him, but it didn't stop her from dating him.” Jessica reminds you of what Hannah did to you months before she die.

Flash back

"Hannah, I really love Clay and I'm afraid to tell him." You confessed to your best friend about your feelings for Clay.

"Girly just tell him don't be scared." Hannah tells you with a smile

"You're right, I'll tell him tomorrow morning." You beamed

"You go girl." Hannah cheered happily

You went to school with a smile looking in the hallways for Clay your smile turn into a sad one when you saw Hannah kissing him you held down your tears as you walked past them, ignoring them as they both called your name

In the bathroom, you start crying, you couldn't believe why your former best friend would do this to you.

"You know if you were friends with me I wouldn't do that to you." Jessica said coming behind you

You looked at her through the mirror "what are you talking about?"

“I know what Hannah did to you, she's a total bitch for doing this to you.” Jessica shakes her head “that's how sluts are always trying to steal the people that we love Hannah almost tried to steal my Alex but I was smarter than her."

“I thought the rumors about her were false since she doesn't look like the kind of person that would do this, but I was wrong about her.” You shake your head in disbelief

Jessica pats your back "trust me I also fell for her stupid ass acting she was all acting nice when I was thinking that she was a nice person but in reality she's two faced."

"I thought F.M.L was forever."

“It can't be forever, the betrayer will always break the promises and the forever. "Jessica tells you, "How do you feel about being friends with me? And my friends?"

"I accept." You smile

Jessica smiled and clapped, "Perfect, now come and hang out with our friends and me they're waiting for us at the gym."

“Jess told us what those two did to you, don't worry, Jessica's friends are ours friends, you're now one of us.” Justin says as he walks towards you.

"Maybe you can join cheerleading with me since the captain is leaving. You'll make the perfect captain and I'll be the co-captain if you let me." Jessica grinned

“Jessica you have done a lot for me, you deserve to be the captain more than me.” You beamed at her

“Aww, you're such a sweetheart Maybe after cheerleading practice you wanna go on a date with me? and watch a movie at the Crestmont I'll pay.” Justin flirts with a smirk on his fact

"It's a date then." You grinned

“If you guys end up dating, we can go on double dates.”Alex winks at both of you

"Baby don't worry starting tomorrow we're going to go on double dates with them." Jessica teases

"What about me?" Zach fakes wiping his tears off

"We can get you a dog." You tease as everyone nods and laughs

"Wow Justin, your girl broke my heart." Zach fakes crying again

"My girl is right, we can get you a dog." Justin laughs as he grabs your hand to kiss it

"Wow, I see how it is." Zach playful hits Justin on his shoulder

"Wow Y/n you look gorgeous I mean you're always gorgeous." Justin compliments you with a huge smile on his face

You smile, "thank you Justy, you're handsome.”

You both walked in the Crestmont holding hands with smiles on both of your faces Hannah and Clay turned and gave Justin and you confused stares "Y/N? Justin? What are you doing with him Y/N?"

"Jensen, I don't think it's any of your business." Justin growled

"Justin, it’s our business when it comes to Y/n she's our friend.” Hannah crossed her arms

Justin raised an eyebrow, "if she's your friend why? Didn't she tell the two of you? That she was going on a date with me?”

"Is it true? That you're on a date with him? Why didn't you tell us?" Hannah chided

"Hannah because it's not your business so worry about yourself." You fumed as justin rolled his eyes

"Y/n we're your friends I can't believe you didn't tell us about your date with that jock." Clay tells you angrily

“Guys, end of the conversation just gives us two tickets. If not, then I'm going to come over and complain to the manager.”

"For what movie?" Hannah asks trying to be nice since she doesn’t want to risk losing her job

"M/N." Justin smirks as he hands out the money to Hannah

"Enjoy." Hannah hands Justin the tickets as she gives you an disappointed look

"I can't believe Y/n would go on a date with Justin Foley. He's a player, he's going to end up playing her." Clay tells Hannah

"Why don't you mind your own business Jensen just because you're jealous doesn't mean you can hate on their relationship." Marcus comes to the defense of Justin and you

"Marcus it's none of your business so don't get in." Clay fumed

"Well it happens to be about my friends so it is my business." Marcus barks

"Why are you here for Marcus? You came here to bother us?” Hannah asked annoyed

"It's not your business why am I here." Marcus rolls his eyes at them “you two need to keep your mouth shut.”

"Marcus?, what's going on here?" Justin raised an eyebrow in confusion as he was watching Marcus arguing with Clay and Hannah

"Just here defending Y/n and you from these two." Marcus points at them "they're running their mouths."

Justin rolls his eyes in frustration "Didn't I tell you guys to mind your business."

"Didn't we tell you to stay away from Y/n." Clay bickered

"The only person that can say that is Y/n." Justin grinned in hope that you will choose him

“Y/N tell him.” Hannah smiles knowing you will choose them instead of Justin

"Actually, I want Clay and You to stay away from me." You tell them as Justin let out a smile

“What did we do for you to be acting like this? You were not like this.” Clay looked over at Justin and Marcus," see what you did, you changed her."

“Nobody can change me other than me.” You folded your arms angrily.

“Do as you please, but don't cry when your popular friends used you and Justin played you. " Hannah scowled as she left with a mad Clay

Hannah and Clay were walking in the hallways holding hands with smiles on their faces as everyone that was walking stop to look at them, some of them were whispering to each other the other ones were shaking their heads and continuing walking

“I thought we should take part in the Halloween costume competition that the school organizes for couples.” Hannah tells Clay happily

“We can if you want, so what should we dress up as?” Clay smiles

"I was thinking of Chucky and Tiffany.” Hannah cackled

"You want us to be the spooky couple?” a Clay can’t help but laugh at the idea of being the spooky couple in the competition

"Of course I bet we will win for having the best couple costume ever." Hannah grinned at the thought of winning

Justin and you and the rest of the school were at the gym for the Halloween costume competition as everyone was cheering for Justin and you as the two of you began to dry humping each other

“Ladies and gents, I think we have a winner!! Justin and Y/n as Sexy Punk rockers!!” Courtney announce happily on the microphone

Everyone got out from their seats to congratulate you both for the win

“It’s actually Sid Vicious and Nancy Spungen.” Clay whispers annoyed and rolling his eyes

End of it

“I know a way to get rid of Clay and those stupid tapes.” You smirked, trying to hide your worried face

Jesscia smiles, “what’s your plan?”

You smile back, “leave it to me.”

#13 reasons why #13 reasons why x reader #13 reasons imagine #justin foley #justin foley x reader #Justin foley x You #zach dempsey #jessica davis #alex standall #monty de la cruz #clay jensen

[venbetta]

"Reckless on the dance floor, are we?"

#i need to write a fic of these two omg #glamrock freddy #montgomery gator #fnaf security breach #freddy x monty #clip studio paint #i had fun drawing this #especially with the lighting #i imagine theyre in the west arcade •///• #the slow development of becoming a furry artist /hj #monteddy #glamswamp

[spectr3inl0ve]

i want to give jason todd a big fat kiss on the cheek while cupping his face.

your ears perk up at the sound of the door shutting, jason trudging down the hallway and into the living room. hes in a dark green tshirt and his tactical pants; jason prefers to leave his gear at a safehouse a few blocks away. looking up from your seat at the couch, you smile at him as you set your phone down. jason walks over to you with a slight limp. he lets out a groan when he sits, gesturing for you to move closer. you scootch over towards him and now your thigh is pressed against his. his eyes rake over your face as you stare wide eyed into his eyes. biting your lip, you lean forward on your knees and cup his face with your hands. jasons eyes slowly drag up to yours and you press a firm kiss to his cheek. when you retract your face from his, he looks somewhere to the side, grumbling about whatever. however, you do notice the faint blush creeping up his neck.

#°○☆spectr3inl0ve #monty loves dc #jason todd x reader #jason todd headcanon #jason todd fluff #jason todd imagine #jason todd x you

[shaydh]

We do not need more kiss animation in rpgs we need more fucked up little freaks

#shaydh blathers #idk I’m fine imagining the kisses in game cutscenes do nothing for me #I just want something to work with here #I thought about my beloved Xzar and Monty again

[cutielando]

Hey I noticed Monty DLC is one of the characters you write for that’s awesome!

I have a request Monty x fem reader

Y/n is the new girl in town when she meets Monty she’s intrigued by his mysterious but flirty bad boy nature their chemistry is unlike anything she’s ever experienced before not even with her boyfriend that she left behind when her family moved… However when they slept together y/n knew she sadly had to call off her long distance relationship with her boyfriend/childhood best friend she has to explore this thing with Monty.

INTOXICATED

my masterlist

Moving to Liberty High School had never been a part of your plan. You were supposed to finish school in your hometown and then go far away for college with your friends.

But there you were, standing in front of your new high school, backpack on your shoulder and all, ready as ever to be “the new girl.”

That was a total lie.

You were terrified.

You had heard so many bad things about the students at Liberty, how they acted towards new people and how mean they could be. And you weren’t ready for that.

Still, you put on a brave face and walked into that school with your chin held high, ready for anything that might be thrown your way.

"Hi there" a voice and a buff body made you stop in your tracks in the middle of the hall.

You looked up and gazed into the most gorgeous pair of eyes you'd ever seen, the boy looking at you with a smile.

"Um, hi" you wanted to punch yourself because of how awkward that sounded.

"Are you new? I haven't seen you around" he said, looking you up and down.

"Yeah, I just transferred, this is my first day" you explained, still mesmerized by the looks of the boy standing in front of you.

You shouldn’t be thinking like this, staring at some random dude from your new school like that when you had a lovely boyfriend back home. But you couldn’t help it. There was something about the way he spoke and the way he carried himself that you were just intrigued by.

“I’m Montgomery, but everyone around here calls me Monty” he outstretched his hand, taking yours in his and placing a kiss on it.

“I’m Y/N” your voice was faint, your gaze fixated on the way his lips felt on your skin and how good and wrong it felt at the same time.

“I guess I’ll be seeing you around then, Y/N” he winked and left before you could say anything, making sure he brushed his hand against yours in the process.

You let out a big breath you didn’t know you were holding in when you were sure he was out of earshot. You knew how wrong it was for you to be feeling like this because of a total stranger, you had a boyfriend who loved you who didn’t deserve you acting like this.

But you couldn’t help the way your body reacted to Montgomery.

♡♡♡♡♡

Weeks have passed and your infatuation with Monty only grew by the day. Your interactions with your boyfriend back at home becoming more and more rare.

You were spending more and more time with the handsome athlete, the chemistry and attraction between the two of you more and more evident as the days went by.

You were currently at a party with Monty and a few of your friends, letting off some steam from the busy week you'd had.

"How are you doing, my lovely companion?" Monty asked once he found you in the kitchen, refilling your drink.

"Feels so good to finally unwind. This week killed me" you groaned, smiling once your eyes met his.

"Did something happen back home?" he questioned, knowing you had been on rocky terms with your boyfriend for a while, just not knowing he was the cause of it.

"Nothing in particular, it just feels like I'm drifting further and further away from everything and everyone back at home" you explained, slightly leaning in to him.

He accepted your presence and wrapped an arm around your shoulders to bring you closer to his body.

"Can I help with anything?" his voice was soft, but still loud enough so you could hear him over the music.

"Distract me? Being here with you is already making me feel better" you said, not knowing the impact your words had on the athlete.

"Don't worry, I'm going to take care of you" he said before planting a kiss on your head.

By the end of the night, as you were tangled up under the sheets in your bedroom, your bodies pressed against each other and becoming one, you understood that this, right here, with Monty, is where you truly belonged, and every risk was worth exploring this new connection with him.

♡♡♡♡♡

Breaking up with your boyfriend had been far easier than you previously thought.

After the night of the party where you and Monty slept together, you talked and Monty promised to wait until you officially broke it off before starting anything. He was respectful towards your relationship, which was something you were really grateful for.

After the phone call, you called Monty to meet up, excited to tell him the news.

"Hey" Monty said as he stopped in front of you.

You had waited for him on a bench in your favorite park.

"Hi" you smiled and stood up, wrapping your arms around his neck and leaning up, capturing his lips with yours.

He froze in surprise for a second before he melted into the kiss, wrapping his arms around your waist to pull you closer.

"I gather you talked to him?" he asked, smirking once you finally pulled away to get some air.

"I did. I'm all yours, as long as you still want me" you whispered, caressing the small hairs at the back of his neck.

"I want you"

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#imagines #oneshots #fanfiction #character x reader #movies #one shot #13 reasons why #13 reasons imagine #monty de la cruz x reader #montgomery de la cruz #monty x y/n #clay jensen #justin foley imagines #jessica davies #liberty high school #alex standall #bryce walker #monty #de la cruz #monty de la cruz