Every Summer After | Steven Conklin x OC |

Three

"Can't she just like, look at a picture or something?" Jere asked. Our mom wanted to start the paintings today, and my brothers were not happy.
Steven came up behind me and watched over my shoulder.
"Okay, get out!" I said with a laugh.
"What?" He said. I shoved him away.
"She needs to see you in the flesh to capture your essence while you're still young and full of hope." Laurel said. "Her words."
"Well," I started. "Conrad does not have hope, actually. He's hopeless. But, my hangover smoothie . . . it cures all."
"Can you please just hurry up!" Conrad yelled from his position on the couch.
"Just go back to bed, alright." I said. "And Steven, seriously, get out."
He laughed. "Oh come on."
"It's a very delicate science, and you hanging over my shoulder isn't helping."
"Okay, okay okay." He said, holding his hands up in surrender.
"She hasn't painted you since you were little," Laurel said. "I think I'd be nice to have the portraits for when your older."
"Old? No." Steven said. "When I'm older, I'm sure there'll be, like, holograms or something I can watch of myself, you know?"
Laurel rolled her eyes. "Just sit for your portraits. I don't see Conrad complaining."
"Yeah, well," I said pouring the smoothie into a glass. "He'll complain when he's conscious."
I handed Conrad the glass and he mumbled a thank you.
"Okay, Kendal, if you don't hurry your ass up we're going to be late for our first day." Jere said.
"Oh shut it, we'll be fine." I replied.
"I'm going to get so many tips. Those old country club boomers won't know what hit 'em!" Steven said.
"Oh my god, Steven." I said, and Laurel rolled her eyes.
Belly came downstairs with Susannah.
"Morning Bells," Jere said. "Cereal?"
"Yeah, hit me." She replied.
"Oh my god!" Susannah said. "Belly's going to be a debutante!"
Belly laughed. "It's really not that big of a deal."
"Belly, like my sister, Belly?" Steven said. "Like, that thing right there?"
"Shut up cretin." Belly replied.
"Okay, this is going to be so much fun. Just you wait. There'a the tea, the auction, the ball, of course, the rehearsal. I got to right this down!" Susannah gasped. "We need to go shopping!"
"That sounds, expensive." Laurel said.
"Oh don't worry, it's on me." Susannah said dismissively. "Now, which one of you is going to be Belly's escort to the ball?"
"Not me." Conrad said, and I rolled my eyes. "I went last year."
"Yeah, and I swore of balls." Jere said. Steven laughed, and Jere rolled his eyes. "The dances, dude."
"Um, I'm not going with either of you. I'm going to find my own date." Belly said.
I high-fived her. "Here's to not needing a man."
"Oh c'mon Kendal, you love us." Jere said.
I shrugged. "Sometimes."
"Anyways, Wikipedia says debutante balls require instruction in morals and social etiquette." Susannah said.
"Yeah, she could use some etiquette." Steven said, and I swatted him on the shoulder.
"Okay!" Jere said. "As fun as this was, we really have to get going."
I grabbed Jere's car keys off the counter.
"Oh, so not happening." Jere said, and I ran out the door before he could tackle me.
I got in the drivers seat and shut the door.
Jere glared at me as he reluctantly got in the passenger seat, and Steven sat behind him.
"If you so much as get a scratch on my car, I will personally murder you." Jere said seriously.
I smiled sweetly. "Don't worry, Jere Bear. I'm a great driver."
"That's highly questionable," he mumbled, and I started the car.
It was about a ten minute drive down the coast to the club. When we got there, Steven went inside, while me and Jere walked around back to the pool.
"So what's going on with you and Steven?"
I snorted. "What? Where's that coming from?"
"I saw him come out of your room last night," He said with pointed look.
"We didn't do anything." I started. "But . . . I don't know. What I do know, is that things are different between us this summer." I wasn't lying. I wasn't exactly sure what was happening between me and Steven.
"Well, If something is happening," he started. "I approve."
I gaped at him. That was not what I was expecting.
He shrugged. "Better him than some random guy you met at a party."
We reach the pool, and I went into the girls changing room and put on my red lifeguard shorts and white bikini top.
I checked in with my manager, and took my first shift. Honestly, it was a super easy job. I got to sit and tan all day. Barely anyone drowned.
After a few hours, I took my lunch break and went to find Jere. He was sitting on a chair.
"Hey," I said. "How was your shift?"
He sighed. "Had to jumped in and stop a kid from drowning his brother, but otherwise pretty uneventful."
Just then, Steven tackled Jere from behind. We both turned around, and I burst out laughing.
"What?" Steven asked, looking between us.
"Oh, you fucked up." Jere said.
"How could I have already fucked up?" Steven asked.
"No one's going to want to hook up with you after they see you in a hair net." Jere said seriously. "You should have lifeguarded with us," I said, trying not to laugh. "Hardly anyone drowns."
Steven smiled and took off the hairnet, making his hair fluff up. "Yeah well, I'll take the hair net if it means I don't have to live with my mom freshman year." He pulled out his wallet and flipped through all the money he made.
"Okay," I said. "Fair enough."
Jere stood up and put an arm around me and Steven's shoulders. "Take it in, guys. This is all ours."
"You see her?" Jere asked pointing. "I hooked up with her. "And him, the lifeguard. And the guy in the blue, and—"
"Jere!" I said. "I don't need to know that. God. Blek."
The boys laughed.
"Never kissed her though, I bet." Steven said, and Jere shook his head.
I patted him on the back. "Keep it that way. Shayla is beautiful, don't get me wrong. But you don't want to get sucked in. Trust me, if she asks you to be her escort, and you say yes, it's going to blow up your whole summer."
"Hey, girls in sundresses are my kryptonite, but I'd never let one talk me into being an escort. I mean, girls like that are cool in theory, but . . . they can't be a deb forever, you know?" Steven said, and Jere nodded.
"Yo, Steven. We need extra hands at the deb tea. Pay is double. Come on." Steven saluted us and ran off, fumbling to put his hair net back on.
"Guess you found the key to his heart." Jere said.
"Oh shut it." I said. "I can't start wearing sundresses now or he'll know."
"Trust me," Jere said. "He's not that smart."
"We'll see."
I went back to my shift. The rest of the day flew by fast. When we got home, the boys immediately started playing video games, and I sat on the couch and watched.
Belly came down the stairs.
"Oh my gosh, Bells you look amazing. What's the occasion?" I asked.
"Uh, I have a date." She said with a smile.
"What's his name?" I said.
"His name is Cam," she said.
"Wait, Cam from the seventh grade convention thing?" She had called that night and told me all
about him.
"Yeah, that's him." She said.
Jere got up from the couch. "You . . . Look . . . Hot."
"Yeah, fine, just abandon the game completely, Jere." Conrad said.
"Hey, hey, hey, stop flirting with my sister." Steven said, turning around.
"Hey, if I can't flirt with your sister, you can't flirt with mine." Jere said pointedly.
Steven opted to shut his mouth and turned back around, his face flushed.
"Aww," Belly said, messing up his hair. "Is someone embarrassed?"
"Shut up, Belly. You too Jere."
An hour later, the boys shut off the game, and we all sat on the couch.
"Now what?" Jere asked.
"Can we go somewhere?" I said.
Jere laughed. "Yeah, where?"
"We could go buy weed from that guy with the rainbow dash tattoo?" Conrad suggested.
"Conrad, absolutely not." I said.
"He got arrested last summer anyway," Jere said.
"Oh shit really?"
"Yeah," Jere sighed.
"We could get coffee?" I suggested. "There's a new place right down the road—"
"Okay, boring." Conrad interrupted. "There has to be something else we can do."
"Well, we could go to the drive in." Jere suggested.
"Dude, gross," Steven said. "I don't want to go watch my sister hook up with a guy in the back seat of a minivan."
"Yo, actually . . . Let's go to the drive in." Conrad said.
"Wait, like, like really?" Jere asked.
"Guys no," I said, and they all turned to me. "We can't do that to her. It's her first date."
"It'll be fine, Kendal. We won't bother her." Jere said.
"Jere, no." I said. "We can't. I refuse."
"Think about it this way," he said, standing up. "Either you come with us, and be the responsible one, or we go alone and most likely end up doing something stupid."
I sighed. "You are a terrible person."
Jere clapped. "I'm gonna take that as a yes."
"Let's go!"
"Alright, bro."
"Jere, you're driving."
They all stood up and stared at me, and I just sat there. "This is a bad idea."
Steven took my hands and pulled me up. "Get up. Come on. Yep. Let's go."
I groaned. He pulled me out to the car. I got in the passenger seat with Jere while Steven and Conrad sat in the back.

~

Jere pulled up right next to Cam's car and I groaned. Belly noticed us immediately.
She asked Cam to get her a drink, and he left. Steven made kissing noises.
"What the hell are you guys doing here?" She hissed.
"Just catching the end of our favorite movie," Jere said.
"I'm sorry," I said. "I tried to stop them."
"You guys have to go!" She said.
"Oh, Belly relax," Steven said. "We were—we're just joking around."
"Steven I swear to god, if you don't leave right now I'm sending everyone in that car your Dramione fanfic."
We all started laughing.
"You wouldn't." He said.
"He spent a whole chapter talking about Dracos wand." Belly deadpanned.
"Bro," Conrad said. "Oh my god."
"What? Send that to me anyway." I said.
"No!" Steven yelled. "Absolutely not. Jere, drive."
"You know, don't be embarrassed Steven. Draco's hot." I said.
"I agree," Jere said.
"Okay seriously, I hate you guys. Drop it."
"Please leave." Belly said, desperately.
"Alright guys, let's go." I said.
"What?" Jere said.
"Wait really?" Steven said.
"Yes. Drive Jere," I said. When he made no move to start the car, I sighed. "Jere if you don't start driving in the next five seconds I will show everyone the video of you kissing a picture of Margot Robbie."
"Okay, that's it. Not happening." Jere said, immediately starting the car.
Sorry, I mouthed to Belly. She gave me a sad smile as Jere pulled out of the parking lot.
"What is it with girls and blackmail," Steven groaned.
I just smiled.
When we got back to the house, I had an idea.
"Hey, why don't we do a Harry Potter marathon?Like we used too. We can push the couch's together, and get our favorite snacks."
"Oh yeah," Jere said. "Let's do it."
"Me and Jere will go get the snacks." Conrad said, grabbing his keys.
Me and Steven pushed the two couch's together to make a space about the size of a king size bed.
Then we grabbed blankets and pillows.
I went into my room and changed into grey sweatpants and a black sweatshirt. When I came out, I almost ran into Steven.
He cleared his throat, looking me up and down.
"Hey. I just came to get the . . ." He trailed off.
A smile grew on my face. "The what?"
Before he could respond, Conrad yelled from downstairs. "We're back!"
Me and Steven headed down the stairs, neither of us saying a word.
Conrad chucked a bag of sweet tart ropes at me. "Your favorite."
"Thanks, Con." I said.
Jere put the first disc in. The boys all sat down on the couch.
I tilted my head at them. "Huh."
"Uhm, yeah. We were way smaller the last time we did this." Jere said.
I climbed up on to the couch next to Steven. "Scoot over."
"Why can't you just sit between us?" He asked.
"Because Jere is a total blanket hog. Just scoot over." I said. I totally could've sat between them, but some strange part of me just wanted to curl up next to Steven and stay there.
He rolled his eyes, but I could tell he wasn't actually mad. I always sat on the end when we were younger. But now that we weren't little anymore, we were all shoulder to shoulder.
We didn't have a blanket big enough to cover all of us, so it was me and Steven sharing one, and my brothers sharing the other.
"Conrad if you don't get your foot away from me I swear I'll—" Jere started.
"You'll what? You're basically on top of me!"
"I am not, asshole. Move over!"
"God Jere, get your legs off of me—" Steven said.
"Well if you would move over—"
"I can't unless you want me to crush your sister! Which I won't do, because I'm a gentleman. So you two better cuddle close and suck it up." Steven said, and I snorted.
"What are you laughing at?" Jere asked. "I'm sure you're loving the Steven cuddle time."
"Oh, you little—"
"Little? I'm older than you, you—"
The movie started, and we fell silent.
Steven sighed. "Just like old times."
That made me smile. He was right. When we were little, we were always arguing over spots on the couch, and sometimes it got so bad that our moms would make us all sit on different chairs. We all hated that, so we would eventually stop arguing and compromise.
Steven nudged me. "What are you smiling about?"
"Just reminiscing." I said.
When we were about halfway through the movie,
I turned over so I was leaning against Steven, my head on his shoulder. He smiled slightly and his arm went around my shoulders. If my brothers noticed, they didn't say anything.
We all made it through the first two movies, before Jere announced that Conrad had fallen asleep. I wasn't surprised. That kid could sleep all day if we let him.
An hour later, it was Jere that fell asleep. He was a big talker, but most of the time he fell asleep right away.
By the time we hit the fourth movie, I could hardly keep my eyes open. I was exhausted.
I told myself I would just close my eyes for a little bit, but I quickly drifted of to sleep.