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Stacey redid her lipstick one more time before placing it in her bag. Her dress was a hot red that reached mid-thigh. The v-neck was the best part about it; well, in Jordan's opinion. Stacey heard the knock on the door and knew it was time to go.
Homecoming was something she wasn't looking forward to. Yes, it was her senior year and last time going, but she couldn't help but remember what happened this time last year. Clayton telling Jordan about her secret and the altercation they almost had stuck with her. She has grown stronger both mentally and emotionally from that day, but god she'd be lying if she said his abusiveness hasn't completely left her mind. She also lost Jordan that day for a bit. It was as if she was ripped in half that night after he told her he wanted nothing to do with her and stormed out.
"Stacey!"
She was taken back to reality once Jane and Layla opened her door.
"You okay?" asked Layla.
Her and Jane went up to Stacey, each linking an arm with her.
Stacey swallowed her dark memories and nodded. "Yep. Just nervous, that's all."
"Well, the boys look great and they're waiting for us," said Jane, pulling her along.
The dates for homecoming were a bit more complicated this year. Jane and JJ were clearly going together. Layla and Asher decided to go as friends; both going through recent breakups. In the end, they would always be there for each other, even if they did date last year and it ended messy. Jordan and Stacey had vaguely mentioned going together, but they wanted to stick by their rule of waiting until after the homecoming football game to be official.
That didn't stop Jordan from making a big deal out of asking Stacey to homecoming.
He had Stacey come to the football field after school a couple of days ago. He had a football in his hands and some of his teammates stood on the side. Jordan threw the ball to Stacey and she caught it. The ball read:
Tackle Hoco with me?
She mentally cringed at the cheesy proposal, but she couldn't help how giddy she felt in that moment. She nodded a quick yes and the football team cheered loudly for them. Jordan came over and gave her the biggest hug.
"I would kiss you right now, but I remember our rule," he whispered in her ear.
She wanted to break the rules then and there, but knew it would be worth it after the game.
Now, she was walking down the hallway with her best friends at her side. She heard the boys chatting away by the front door. Deja vu from Vegas hit her as she made eye contact with Jordan. Layla and Jane went to the others.
"My god," Jordan whispered as he came up to her. He placed his hands on her waist. "I can't believe you're going to be all mine in a day."
Stacey blushed. She fixed his tie so it was centered. "I can't wait to brag to everyone at school how you're mine."
Jordan leaned down and for a second she thought he was going to break the rules, but he simply placed a kiss on her forehead.
"Okay guys let's go so we can see me win Homecoming King!" JJ cheered.
The others rolled their eyes and laughed, following him out to the limo. The car ride there was filled with laughter and singing to their favorite songs. Asher popped a bottle of apple cider (since no one wanted him to have a repeat of last year).
Once they arrived, many students were already filing into the gym. The outside was decorated in balloons and streamers, a red carpet leading in. Stacey linked arms with Jordan as he led them inside. He presented their tickets at the door. The music was echoing throughout the hallway as they got closer to the gym.
Stacey stopped right in her tracks when she recognized the familiar hallway. She would pass by it every day at school and she wouldn't think much of it. Now, that she's in the same setting, it triggered her memory.
Stacey didn't process Olivia and Asher's hookup as Clayton stormed down the stage and through the crowd, yanking Stacey away from Jordan and bringing her into the hallway.
Jordan followed after them. "Hey, man let her go! It was just one dance."
Clayton stopped and released Stacey. He looked between the two. "I think it's time we tell him Stacey. You broke the rules."
"Clay, please don't," Stacey goes in front of him and begs. "I was going to tell him tonight. Let me do it."
Clayton lightly pushed her out of the way so he has full eye contact with Jordan. "I'm sorry to bring this upon you Jordan, but Stacey's been hiding something from you for a very long time now."
Stacey starts to cry, feeling her anxiety rising. "Please don't do this!"
"What has she been hiding?" Jordan asks nervously. He knew it was real by the way Stacey was crying; this wasn't one of Clayton's games.
Clayton ignores her cries still. "Right when you two broke up–"
"Clayton!"
"She found out she was pregnant with your child. However–"
"Stop!" Stacey yelled at him. She looked at Jordan who wasn't even listening to her.
"However," Clayton continued, "she got the baby aborted and decided to never tell you. But she told me and Jane. Guess we're more important than you."
Jordan's face was emotionless and didn't change when Stacey's huge secret was revealed. The blonde was a mess though, waiting for his response. She pushed Clayton away and stood in front of Jordan, placing her hands on his shoulders. "Jordan, please listen to me, I'm sorry–"
"How could you keep that from me?" He finally says, his voice cracking a little. "After everything we went through, you decide to hide from me that we have a child, then you kill it?"
"I didn't know what to do–"
"Save it," Jordan stops her. He grabs her hands and takes them off of him. "I really thought you were the best person to ever come into my life. I don't want to hear your bullshit excuses. I'm done with you."
She excused herself quickly, rushing to the bathroom.
Her breathing became heavy and ragged as she gripped the sink and stared at herself in the mirror.
I'm fine. I'm fine. Clayton's dead. Jordan's here with you. You are happy with your life right now. No one's going to hurt you.
"Okay! I'm sorry if there's any girls in here! But I'm coming in!"
Stacey continued her steady breaths, counting in her head to focus, as Jordan walked in. He felt his heart drop when he saw how out of it she was. She had to be having an anxiety attack.
"Stacey...hey, look at me." Jordan placed his hands on her cheeks and made her look at him. "What's wrong?"
Stacey sniffled, trying to find her voice. "L-Last year. Homecoming. This hallway..."
Jordan knew what she was talking about almost immediately. That night had stuck with him for a bit. He found out that he could've had a kid that night and that Stacey lied to him. That was one of the roughest nights for him, but he knew she had rough too. He had heard from Jane that Clayton almost beat her to the ground after he left. If he just would've stayed for a couple of more seconds...
"Stacey listen to me, I'm here and we are way past what happened last year," he tried calming her down. "Clayton's dead. We're in love. Everything's different. I'm. Right. Here."
Stacey stared into his eyes, taking in every word he said. "Please don't leave me."
Jordan shook his head. "Never."
He took her in his arms and stroked her hair, but made sure not to ruin her curls. "We can leave if you want. I can call an Uber-"
"No," she shook her head. "I'm not going to let him ruin my last homecoming."
Jordan smiled proudly at her. "That's my girl. I'm ready to go out when you are."
After a couple of more minutes, Stacey pulled away from his hug and took his hand. "I'm ready."
The two then went back into the dance, just in time for JJ doing a backflip off the stage after he won king.
✧･ﾟ:*✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*✧
i love bringing memories back from book 1; they were such fetuses then!!
also, jordan is literally the best man ever🖐🏼