A week had passed since the Sturniolo and Manson dinner party, and Addie was anxiously waiting for Nick to come home from school. She was finally telling him about her crush on Chris. Alahna had been on her ass all week to tell him, and Addie couldn't blame her.
Alahna probably wanted to talk to him about it but wanted to respect Addie's secret at the same time. Addie was sitting on her front porch, when she finally saw the minivan turn onto the street.
As they passed to enter their driveway, Chris was clearly leaning onto the center console staring her down. Addie rolled her eyes at the boy, praying that he just goes inside his house and doesn't bother her.
Ever since the dinner party, they hadn't been getting along. Either Chris is taking cheap shots at Addie, or Addie is making some sort of joke at Chris' expense, everytime they see each other. Nick and Matt were tired of it to say the least.
"Hey!" Nick greeted with a grin, leaving his school bag in the van, walking towards Addie.
"Wait, do we have plans with Addie?" Chris asked, as he climbed out of the passenger's seat, his own bag hanging loosely on his shoulder. Addie couldn't help but to immediately notice how good Chris looked today. He was wearing blue jeans, white air forces, and a gray Ralph Lauren zip up hoodie. Such a simple fit with a hard hit, as always.
Addie let out a huff, cursing herself for still being attracted to Chris, even after all of these years.
Nick scoffed, "No, I have plans with Ads, go home." He immediately shooed his brother, wanting to keep him away from Addie and vice versa. Chris' jaw dropped in immediate offense, turning towards Matt for backup.
Matt rolls his eyes, turning away from the group to head inside. Chris pouted, watching Matt walk away. "I wanna hang out with you guys." He grinned, walking closer to Nick and Addie.
Addie frowned, standing up. "Go home, Chris." This was her time with Nick, she didn't need Chris ruining it.
"What's with the attitude Adeline?" He questioned, a smirk appearing on his lips as he watched Addie roll her eyes at the use of her full name.
"Go home, Christopher Owen." She huffs back, grabbing Nick's hand and dragging him inside her house.
"Fuck." Chris muttered, watching the door close behind Nick. He sighed, spinning on his heels to head into his own house.
"Oh Matthew!" Chris yelled into the empty home, strolling into the kitchen, where Matt happened to be. He was leaning against the counter next to the fridge, a half eaten pop tart hanging out of his mouth.
"What, Chris?" Matt sighed, biting off another piece of pastry.
"I'm bored and Nick and Addie were being so rude to me bro, you really couldn't have had my back out there?" Chris replied sassily, sitting down at the island.
Matt rolled his eyes, "Chris, all you and Addie do is fight or complain. No one wants to hear that, you need to knock it off for real." He responded, watching Chris' face twist in confusion.
"Me?" Chris yelled, pointing at himself with an outrageous look on his face. "She's the one who-"
"I'm gonna stop you right there, buddy." Matt cut off his brother, coming around the island to sit down next to him. "You started this whole thing with Addie, I know she hurt you but you need to let it go. She was fucking thirteen bro, she can't suddenly turn back time to save your guys' friendship." Matt explained, as Chris thought long and hard on what to say.
"She didn't just ruin the friendship, Matt." Chris muttered, growing quiet and closed off. Matt was extremely thrown off, not expecting Chris to suddenly give up on an argument.
"What do you mean?" Matt questioned, as he watched his brother go through all five stages of grief in twenty seconds.
Chris ran a hand through his hair, pulling it slightly at the ends. "I was in love with her, Matt."
"I was in love with Chris." Addie finally told Nick. She could feel the weight lift from her shoulders, as Nick gasped and smacked Addie's shoulder.
"Shut up!" He yelled, throwing his hand over his mouth.
Addie looked at him, confused. "What?" She asked, not sure why he was reacting the way he was. She expected him to ask questions, not tell her to shut up.
"It was so obvious, back then, I just didn't know it at the time." He replied, thinking back on their friendship.
"Can't be too obvious if Chris never knew, kids dumber than a box of rocks." Addie scoffed, folding her arms across her chest.
"Wait, do you still..." Nick trailed off, making Addie bring her hands to her face as she felt heat rise in them. "Oh my god you do!" Nick screamed, leaning forward to shake the poor girl in excitement.
Knowing that Chris' feelings were possibly returned had him jittery with excitement.
"No! I don't Nick, really." Addie yelled back at him, "Do I think he's attractive? Yeah, but do I love him? Jury is still out on that one." She sighed, forcing Nick to let go of her. He grinned in response, opening his mouth to say something but was cut off from the sound of Addie's front door opening and slamming shut.
"Uh, what was that?" Nick quietly asked Addie, who looked just as scared as he did.
Addie winced, pulling her phone out to check the time. It was only 3:39 pm, so her parents couldn't be home. She quietly explained that to Nick, who was starting to truly panic.
"What the fuck do we do? Should we call 911? Call Matt and Chris? Addie what if-" Addie immediately put her hand over Nick's mouth, as she could faintly hear footsteps on her stairs. She ushered Nick to stay quiet, pointing to the closet.
Oh how badly Nick wanted to make a joke about not wanting to go back into the closet.
The duo quickly moved into the tight space, shutting the door quietly. Addie held her breath as Nick sent texts to Matt and Chris, asking what they should do. Immediately, Matt and Chris say they're on the way, partially calming Nick down.
Addie's door creaks open slowly, now being able to hear breathing as they approach the closet door. Addie watched in horror as the knob to the closet began to slowly twist, only to stop seconds later due to shouting from downstairs.
"Nick?!"
"Addie?"
authors note .ᐟ
any guess' on who's in addie's house? 🫢
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girl next door ☆ c. sturniolo
Fanfiction"Whatever happened to the girl next door? She's all grown up, she don't come home anymore..." Adeline Manson had grown up in Boston up until she was 13 years old, when her family suddenly moved across the country for her father's work. Adeline...
