Grace wakes up to the bright light of the sun shining in her eyes and the sound of the birds chirping loudly through the open window. She groans loudly, after everything that happened the day before, she couldn't find it in herself to get ready for school just yet, so she decides to stay in bed for a few more minutes in peace.
Finding the will to move, she sits up on her bed and reaches for her phone, messaging Justin to see if he was okay after being dragged out of class by Mr. Porter. Grace rolls her eyes as she sees that Justin has read the message but hasn't bothered in replying.
She grabs her headphones that are on her bedside table, before pulling out the Walkman that she hid under her pillow.
She stares at the tape for a few moments, mentally preparing herself for the new secrets that might unfold. She can't help but think that the next tape might be about Clay, or even worse, about her. Why else would the tapes be addressed to her too?
She closes her eyes, frustrated by her thoughts and presses play on the tape player before she can back out.
"Welcome back. So glad you're still listening. Are you having fun?"
Grace rolls her eyes, finding it quite cruel how Hannah is tormenting people with these tapes. But then she backtracks on her thoughts, they did torment Hannah first. Karma is a bitch.
"You must be wondering who's next, and why. Is it you? What did you do? How did you end up on these tapes? Maybe you did something cruel. Or maybe you just watched it happen. Maybe you didn't even realise you were being cruel. Maybe you didn't do anything at all. And maybe you should have. Too late. I think you know exactly what you did. And after these tapes, you'll never forget it. I know I won't. Oh, and, uh, by the way... I'm still dead."
A couple of hours later, after getting some more much needed sleep, Grace wakes up again, to a knock on her wooden door. She grumbles quietly and checks the time. Six thirty am. This is the earliest she's ever woken up before. She usually gets up at seven.
"Grace? There's breakfast downstairs." Is all her mom says to her as she then leaves the room.
Her mom wasn't the same with her as she was with Clay, Grace noticed. She didn't know why, she had never done anything for her to act a certain way, it just was. Clay, was her mom's pride and joy. Grace, was just the second child.
She tried not to let that bother her, but it was hard when she mostly becomes unnoticed around her family. She wants to be seen. And she wants to be loved. But the only love she's ever felt was off of her twin once in a blue moon.
Grace then squints her eyes in confusion at her mother's earlier words. Breakfast? They never had breakfast together as a family. So, why now?
She finally decides to leave her warm and comfortable bed and grabs her towel and sanitary products. She exits her bedroom and shuts the wooden door behind her, heading towards the bathroom. She enters the bathroom and places the towel on the toilet seat before turning the shower on, waiting for the water to heat up.
When finally heated, she steps into the shower and lets out a breath of satisfaction at the warmth of her body due to the temperature of the water from her shower head.
"Friendship. It's complicated. But, don't worry. You won't go through this alone. That's not fun. Trust me. I've been there. Now, it won't always be easy. It might even hurt a bit. Or a bit more than a bit. That depends on you. But fear not, we'll get through this. Step by step, tape by tape. You and me. Together. And don't forget... there are others."
She grabs her coconut scented shampoo and squirts a reasonable amount onto her hand. She then messages it into her scalp, cleaning her hair effectively. Once thoroughly washed out with the water, she then grabs her conditioner with the same scent and applies it to the ends.
After her hair is clean, she grabs her apple scented body wash and uses a loafer to rub it all over her body, getting rid of the dirt and smell. She shaves her body with her purple razor and then rinses off all of the body wash.
When she steps out of the shower, she grabs her white towel and wraps it around her body, leaving the bathroom to finish getting ready in her bedroom. She picks out her clothes which is a pair of blue jeans, a plain white top and a black jacket over the top, paired with some black boots. Simple but cute.
She brushes her hair out of her face and lets it air dry. She re-enters the bathroom to brush her teeth and then packs her school bag. She's never been skilful at makeup, so she doesn't even bother trying to attempt.
After she's all good and ready, she leaves her room and sees that Clay has also finished and is making his way down the stairs.
They both enter the kitchen to see their mother cooking food while their dad is sat at the small round table, drinking his coffee and reading on his iPad.
"You weren't really joking on the breakfast thing." Grace comments as she looks around the room. Her mother ignores her comment, just as most days, making the girl bite her lip in sadness.
"Eggs will be ready in a minute. You can both dig into the french toast." Lainie says excitingly as she continues to work on the eggs.
Grace sits down next to her father at the table, who doesn't even acknowledge her presence. She grabs a plate and grabs two pieces of french toast from the stack. She begins silently chewing on one piece.
Clay, on the other hand, takes a mug from the cabinet and goes over to the coffee machine.
"Do you want some cream with that?" Lainie asks Clay politely when she sees him pouring a cup of black coffee into the mug.
Clay shakes his head politely. "It's alright."
He takes a seat next to his sister and begins to drink his beverage. Their dad finally removes his eyes from the iPad to Clay. "You don't drink coffee." He observes him suspiciously.
"I don't eat breakfast either, so..." Grace finds herself smiling at her brother's witty remark.
When Lainie finishes cooking the eggs she places them on the table before sitting down. "It's been almost two weeks since we sat for dinner together as a family. I am nothing if not a realist, so I am proposing that we have family breakfast every day instead." She tells them excitedly.
"How early do we have to get up?" Grace questions quickly. She values her sleep more than anything, it's her favourite part of her day.
"Yeah, how early did you have to get up? Yesterday?" Clay adds on jokingly. Matt smiles in his seat discreetly.
"We won't do the full spread everyday, but it's nice to start off right. So, how did your project end up last night, Clay? With Tony?" Lainie asks.
"Fine."
"For history, right?"
"Yeah, it's, um, it's this oral history project, about like, students who came before us and stuff." He lies before narrowing his eyes in a glare when he finds his Aderall prescription on the table in front of him.
Their parent's had got Clay on medication for his anxiety. They never really bothered for Grace because she always tried to act as if everything was perfectly fine, even when she wasn't most days. She feels like she's slowly drowning.
"I'm going to leave for school." Grace announces before grabbing her back and walking out of the door, leaving everyone else to argue.
"See, I can guarantee that one of the reasons your still listening is that you really want to know... who are the others? Who else is responsible for my death? Well, you're going to learn soon enough. And, of course, they're going to learn about you, too. If they haven't already. What? Feeling paranoid? On edge? Yeah. High school does that to a person. You never really know who you can trust. And who you can't. So keep your wits about you. It's all part of the game. But remember, it's not a game. Not at all."
***
Clay let Grace know that he tried to find Justin in gym class to find out about his tape, but he couldn't find him. Grace was genuinely concerned for the boy, she could tell that the stress was getting too much for him, but she didn't know how to help him.
The twins enter their English class and sit down in their assigned seats which were coincidentally next to each other.
A few minutes go before the teacher starts the lesson, Justin's girlfriend, Jessica Davis, struts into their class angrily and rushes up to Zach and Marcus, two of Justin's friends.
"Okay, enough small talk. It's time to meet the star of Tape one, Side B. So, without further ado, let me introduce my former friend. Step up, Jessica Davis. You're next."
"Hey. Where the hell is Justin?" She demands the answer off of both boys, who stare at her with open mouths, trying to find a good excuse.
Grace and Jessica have never got along. She didn't know what it was, but Grace was sure that Jessica has always hated her, even before Justin and Jess even started dating. Maybe it was because of her friendship with Hannah, or her crush on her boyfriend that was kind of obvious to everyone apart from the boy, but it was clear that Jessica had it out for Grace. Which was fine, because Grace always disliked Jessica too.
"I don't know, Jess." Zach sighs tiredly.
"You don't know?"
"He's probably just skipping first, sleeping in." Zach responds uneasily. He looks at Marcus for help, but the dark skinned boy looks away.
"Coward." Grace thinks.
"Did he ride with you guys today?" She questions snappily. When Zach shakes his head, she becomes even more impatient. "So, where is he? Did you see him last night?"
She looks at Marcus for an answer but he shrugs with a clueless expression. "Yeah." Zach lies. "Yeah, he was at practice."
"Then why won't he answer my calls or texts?"
Grace doesn't know how Justin could even put up with the girl. She was so irritably annoying.
Marcus decides to step in and calm to anxious girl down. "I'm sure, he'll be there."
This earns him a scoff in return. "Oh, you're sure. Thanks Marcus." She nods at him sarcastically before lowering her voice. "Mr. Porter wants to see me now. He left a call slip in my homeroom."
"Miss Davis." The English teacher interferes. "Don't you have a class to get to?"
Jessica nods and turns back to the boys. "Tell him I need to talk to him. Now." She whispers to Zach. She then meets the eyes of both Clay and Grace, who have been staring at her. "What are you listening to, Grace, Clay?"
"Back off, Jessica." Grace practically spits as she finds the confidence build up in her.
Jessica rolls her eyes before leaving the room. Grace sighs in relief and slumps down in her chair, trying to focus as the lesson starts.
***
After English, Clay and Grace leave the classroom together, both already mentally drained from the lesson. Grace wants to bring up Justin, but refrains herself from doing so. She knows that Clay does not like him and won't hesitate to tell Mr. Porter the truth of what happened between him and Hannah.
"Don't you think it's weird that mom is doing the whole breakfast thing? We've never done it before, so why start now?" Grace rambles as they walk down the hall to their next class.
"Yeah, I don't—"
Clay is interrupted by a female voice shouting out at them. "Hey, Clay, Grace!" Sheri calls out excitedly.
Grace and Sheri were never too close, but they often smiled as they pass each other in the halls and had brief conversations. Grace never had a problem with the girl. From what she could see, Sherri was sweet.
"Hey, Sheri." Grace greets her with a warm smile.
"How is everything?" She questions the Jensen's as she falls into step with them. Sheri was one of the good ones, Grace noticed. She wasn't selfish or rude like her cheer mates, she was kind and would help out anyone if they needed it.
Clay decides to answer for the both of them. "Everything is everything."
Sheri nods at his answer. "I saw you and Coach Patrick this morning, Clay. What a jerk, right?"
Grace couldn't really speak on that. She doesn't do cheerleading, so she's never in the gym for longer than she has to and in her history class, he just sits on his ass the whole lesson sleeping. She doesn't mind him much, he seems quite cool in her opinion.
"Well, kind of...I..." Clay starts to say but cuts himself off, earning a weird look from Grace.
"You we're looking for Justin?" Sheri asks.
Grace speaks up instantly. "Have you seen him?" She questions, hoping that Sheri doesn't notice how eager she sounds.
"No, but Jessica's a bit freaked because she's his cheer escort to the assembly, and she missed the morning run-through looking for him." She begins to explain. "This is her first event with the squad, and her roundoffs are a bit shaky, so..."
"Well, that's worrisome." Clay comments sarcastically but Sheri doesn't seem to pick up on the sarcasm.
"It's practically the end of the world." Grace adds.
"Right. Why were you looking for him?" She asks.
Grace and Clay share a worried glance, wondering what to say to her. There's no way that they could tell her about the tapes, but they both don't want to blatantly lie to the girl either.
"No reason." Grace responds with a smile. "Clay has a homework project with him and needed to talk to him about the details."
"Clay, are you sure you're okay?" Sheri enquires in concern. Grace doesn't know where the sudden worry comes from and just watches as she places a small hand on her twin's arm.
"I'm trying to be." Clay answers honestly.
"Yeah. You know, I miss her, too." Sheri replies with a sympathetic smile.
Grace decides to interfere before Clay blurts out the truth. "Sorry, Sheri, but we really should be going to Geometry, we'll see you later."
Earning a smile from Sheri, Grace then pulls Clay's arm away from her and drags him down the hall.
"That was weird, right?" Clay asks her.
"Yes, that was definitely weird." She frowns.
"I met Jessica a couple of weeks into sophomore year. Apparently, we needed to be counselled. Do adults understand how friendship works? Mr. Porter was the replacement for Mrs. Antilly, who moved to another school district. Which, as it turns out, was very unfortunate. That's for another tape. This began the story of Monet's, the story of a friendship. It was a hot chocolate friendship, good for cold months, but maybe not perfect for all seasons."
***
Clay and Grace wait in the halls to speak to Jessica. Grace wasn't thrilled about this idea. To be frank, she hated it. But she knew that if she wanted some answers about the tapes and everything with Justin, they would have to talk to her.
When the girl finally comes through the door, Clay immediately walks over to her while Grace trails behind them, but making sure she's still able to hear their conversation.
"Why are you avoiding Mr. Porter?" Clay asks.
"I don't know what you're talking about." Jessica replies with a scoff, continuing to rush down the school stairs.
"You took off when you saw him. Does he know about the tapes?" Clay blurts out, Grace's eyes widen at his words.
Jessica spins around harshly. "Are you crazy? Shut your mouth." She warns quietly.
"We're just trying to find out the truth about everything." Grace speaks up, defending her brother. "You could just make it easier by telling us what we want to know instead of acting like an entitled bitch."
"Just listen then. Don't talk." Jessica snaps back at her, ignoring the girl's insult towards her.
"What happened to Justin? Why isn't he here?" Clay questions abruptly. It was clear to anyone that he was desperate for answers more than anyone else.
Jessica's eyes soften at the mention of Justin, causing Grace to swallow thickly in guilt. "I don't know. Mr. Porter pulled him in yesterday, and he walked out of Porter's office and out of school and vanished."
Grace's eyebrows furrow in concern. If no one has heard from him since yesterday, where the hell would be be?
"Is everything okay with you guys? You're together, right?" Clay questions. Grace gives him a confused glance, wondering why that had any meaning to the situation.
Jessica's guard automatically comes back up and she glares at Clay. "Yes, we're together, and we're fine, okay? Thank you, Clay." Jessica then goes to leave but stops and eyes the twins cautiously. "Just... don't believe everything you here."
And with that, the girl walks away and out the school doors, leaving Grace and Clay with more questions than they started with.
"For a while, we were the kind of friends you wish you had. We did disgusting things like... shop together. And compare what we bought. And talk about boys. And just like that... two became three. And, like, before you know it, you're best friends. There was nothing two hot chocolates and Alex's coffee drink du jour couldn't fix. You need friends. Even just hot chocolate friends. Especially when your life goes to shit. Day after day, drink after drink, we lifted our mugs and we lifted each other. In spite of our differences, we were what we each needed in that moment in time. Three drinks against the world. Two hot chocolates, and whatever the hell Alex was drinking. I'm not great at math, but here's one thing I learned for sure: one plus one plus one... is not a simple equation. Alex was the first to stop coming. He found some other friends. He traded up. We were still friendly in the halls, but that's it. Then it was down to Jess and me. But then, Jessica stopped coming too. We all went out separate ways. Or so I thought."
Flashback
Clay, Hannah and Grace are outside the Cresmont on their break, eating lunch. Hannah had a salad that she ordered from Mcdonald's, Grace had a McDonald's chicken wrap and Clay had bought a packet of skittles, ignoring Grace's remarks about it.
"That shit'll kill you, you know." Hannah comments at Clay, nodding her head at his skittles.
"She's right, Clay." Grace agrees while enjoying her food. "Have you seen how much sugar they put in those?"
"Hannah, you literally got a salad from McDonald's, the people who make the Big Mac." Clay defends and looks over to his sister. "And Grace, since when do you care about how much sugar we intake?"
"I don't really." She answers with a shrug.
"And are you fat shaming my salad?" Hannah gasps mockingly with a look of disbelief.
"You called my lunch a murderer." Clay responds and throws a handful of skittles at the two girls. Hannah chuckles at his antics and Grace being Grace, catches them in her mouth, happily chewing them.
After a few moments of silence, Grace notices Hannah looking as if something is on her mind. "Hannah, what's up?" She asks.
"Can I ask you a super-needy, when-did-I-become-this-kind-of-girl question?"
Clay freezes up in his seat with his mouth agape, making Grace let out a small giggle.
Hannah also catches on and rolls her eyes, smiling subtly. "Oh, my God. Unfreeze. It's not about my period." She assures. "Grace, your brother really is an idiot."
"Don't I know it, I've lived with him for sixteen years." The Jensen girl sighs and ignores her brothers scoff.
"That is true, poor you." Hannah nods in agreement before sighing deeply. "Do you think I could ever be as pretty as Jessica Davis?"
Grace's eyes narrow in confusion at the girl, wondering how and why she even asked the question. Grace was always secretly jealous of Hannah. She had friends at one point. Alex, Jessica, Kat. She also had Justin before and she had parents who loved her unconditionally. While Grace had no one other than her twin brother. Even her parents hardly acknowledged her. It was actually quite comical.
She gives Clay a pointed look to answer the question. Clay stares at her weirdly for a few seconds, causing Hannah to hang her head low. "Great. Thanks. Got it." She says bluntly.
"No, it's just... I mean, yeah, Jessica's pretty and all, but you're special." Clay compliments awkwardly.
Hannah, clearly not seeing the hidden romantic meaning behind his words, looks at him unimpressed. "Special. Like retarded."
"He didn't mean it like that, Hannah. And I'm pretty sure we're not supposed to use that offensive word anymore." Grace explains, frustrated with her friend.
"Regardless... I saw you try to be kind... and, you know, fail." Hannah retaliates and begins to walk back inside.
"Wait, how did this conversation go so wrong, so fast?" Clay rushes out to stop her from entering the building.
"It's how you're socialised. I keep thinking you're some different kind of male. Clearly, there's no such thing." She takes a dig at him before leaving.
Grace places her hand on Clay's shoulder, seeing him so upset with himself. "It's not your fault, you know."
He sighs in response. "Yes, it is."
End of flashback
"It was fine, Jess. It was. You're the kind of girl that boys like to like, not spread rumours about. You're the nice girl, the kind that becomes a cheerleader."
Grace and Clay both enter the gymnasium along with other students for principal Bolan's assembly. They sit down on the bleachers and watch as the cheerleaders begin their long and energetic dance routine. Grace couldn't help but wish she was one of those girls, she had never been popular enough for it.
Once the dance was over, principal Bolan walks over to the podium. "Hey there, Liberty Tigers." He starts, talking into the microphone. "It's an exiting day at Liberty High. Our varsity basketball team is kicking off it's pre-season today, the first step on the road to returning to the state finals."
Hearing that, everyone in the crowd gets excited and cheers loudly. Everyone apart from the twins, who just sit there stiffly.
"By Liberty tradition, I'm happy to welcome to the podium the winner of this year's captain's award to introduce the varsity squad. Now, this season's winner is co-captain of the football team and the baseball team, and was called an "inspiration to his entire team, friend to all... a tough mother-bleep... and a true born leader," and I am delighted to bestow the Liberty High's Captain's award on Bryce Walker."
Claps are awarded to the boy from most people, it didn't come as a shock to anyone that he won. Being rich and one of the most popular boys in the school had its advantages.
He smiles at everyone and laughs into the microphone placed on the podium. "Thank you, thank you, thank you. Ah, it's an honour, and I'm proud to be a Liberty student athlete. Go Tigers!" He shouts, making another round of applause. "Now, this year's starting lineup Willem Barclay!"
The first cheerleader tumbles across the gym while the boy follows.
"Zach Dempsey!"
The dark haired boy follows the second cheerleader.
"Justin Foley!
The claps are very enthusiastic from Justin's name being called but the boy is nowhere to be found. Grace ignores her worry, refraining herself from calling the boy for the third time. If he was going to ignore her, she wasn't even going to try. She sees Bolan and the coach share a confused glance while Jess looks annoyed and storms out of the gym.
Clay then looks over to her. "I'm going to follow her."
"I don't think that you should—" Grace starts but Clay already practically throws himself down the steps. She sighs and places her chin in her hand, continuing to watch the assembly. "What an idiot."
"When Jessica has something on her mind, she lets you know. And I knew what she wanted to talk about. Alex's list."
Grace remembers that list very well. It was the talk of the whole school. Luckily, she wasn't on it. But she remembers clearly how Hannah and Jessica stopped talking because of it.
"You see, that's just how it works in high school. Boys talk, girls listen... and everything gets messed up. Or at least that's how it was with us. Right, Jess? You needed it to be my fault... so it was my fault. Friendship, it's complicated. Losing a good friend is never easy... especially when you don't understand how you lost them in the first place. Like I said... it's complicated."
***
Grace walks out of the school doors slowly, she has nowhere to be. Clay was probably at home already, her parents were at work, she has nothing to do.
She watches curiously as Zach pulls up by the side of her with Marcus in the passenger seat. "Uh... hi?"
"Hey, Grace." Zach greets politely which she responds with a forced smile. "We're gonna go hang out at Bryce's. You should totally come with us."
Grace ponders for a moment. She knows that they just want to keep her on a leash so she doesn't spill about the tapes, but she knows that there is a high possibility that Justin is there and she seriously needs to talk to him about things.
She goes to answer but a voice calls out, interrupting her. "Grace, you alright?"
Grace nods over to him with a small smile. "Yeah, I'm fine, Tony." She assures before turning back to face the two boys. "Sure, I'll come with you."
She's met with two bright smiles and they gesture to the back seat. Grace let's out a nervous breath and grabs the handle of the car door to open it. She slides in, closing the door behind her, putting on her seatbelt and begins to look out of the window as Zach drives off and away from the school.
Fifteen minutes later, they pull up to an expensive house, Grace looks at the building in awe. Everyone knows that Bryce's family is extremely wealthy.
"So, is there a reason why you asked me to join you both?" She questions the two boys, already knowing the answer.
"Not really." Marcus lies.
She nods, getting out of the car and follows the boys up the steps to Bryce's house. Zach knocks on the door and waits for an answer.
Bryce eventually opens it and smirks at the younger girl. "Hey, Grace! It's good to see you."
"You too, Bryce." She lies with a nod.
He looks to the boys, knowing why they were here. "Official word is he's not here." He says as he leads the three of them through the house.
"Yeah, well, Coach is looking for him now, too. He's fucking pissed that he missed the assembly." Zach counters loudly.
Bryce opens the back door and gestures to the extra building. "He's in the pool house. Stoned off his gourd, by the way.
Grace has noticed that Justin uses weed and alcohol to solve all of his problems. And that seems like all the time, nowadays.
"He's been here all day?" Marcus asks in disbelief.
"Yeah, since last night." Bryce answers. "What'd he do?"
Marcus looks at Zach suggestively but Zach shakes his head at the boy. "Who the fuck knows?" He shrugs.
Bryce nods and leaves the room, letting the others go into the pool house. Grace nervously chews on her lip the way there.
Marcus opens the door to reveal Justin playing video games, laying on the couch lazily while eating. There's a huge mess around him that he's made but it's clear that he doesn't care.
"Yo, man." Zack greets him. "You okay?"
Justin chuckles humourlessly without turning his head to face them, not even realising that Grace is there. "Fuck you, am I okay. What are you, my bitch now? Close the fricking door." He then turns his head and his eyes soften for a moment, seeing the Jensen girl. "Grace? What the hell are you doing here?"
The girl swallows thickly and anxiously responds. "I came to see you. No one has seen you at school, I was worried."
Grace waits for his reply but all he does is stare at her with an unknown expression.
Marcus looks at Zach with a confused look, he was sure that neither of them had ever had a conversation before, but oh how wrong he was.
"Hey, Jessica's looking for you. She looks bad." Marcus informs him, making Justin break away from the stare.
"Yeah, she has for a while." Justin remarks rudely with a shrug, turning back to the TV screen.
"You gonna talk to her?" Zach asks.
"And say what?"
"Tell her to get her shit together." Marcus angrily spits out, clearly annoyed with the whole situation. "She's acting like a nut job. She's drawing attention to herself. And you."
Justin pauses and Grace watches as he does so cautiously. He just shrugs his shoulders with a smirk plastered on his face. "Not me. I ain't there."
Grace, finally getting tired of the silence, turns to Zach and Marcus. "Can you leave for a bit please, I really need to talk to Justin about something."
The two boys look at Justin for confirmation and he nods at them, silently telling them to leave the room for some privacy. Zach leaves the room silently and Marcus stops and stares at them before finally leaving too.
Grace hesitates but eventually sits beside him in the couch. "How've you been?" She asks since she hasn't properly seen him for a few days. She then starts to run her hands through his hair.
"Fine." He answers shortly but leans in closer, giving her easier access to continue her movements on his head. "Now, what are you really doing here?"
She gulps before finding her words. "I wasn't lying, I'm worried, you didn't go to school today. Also, I was wondering if you're going to tell Jess about this- us."
"Fuck no. Why would I?"
"I don't know, I guess I just thought you would tell her seeming as she is your girlfriend, Justin." Grace retaliates, taking her hand off of his head. "I feel guilty. And I can't officially be with you until I know that you and her are over. I actually do have some self respect, believe it or not."
Justin watches as she does this with a proud look in his face, seeing his girl stuck up for herself. He grabs her chin with his fingers gently and pulls her even closer to him, making Grace breathe in sharply at the close proximity. "What are you doing?" She breathes out.
Justin licks his lips in response, the tensions rising. "Nothing."
Grace hums and places her hand on his cheek, subtly caressing it. She knows in her mind that they shouldn't be doing this. She also hates the fact that Justin can make her react like this. Once touch from him and she's like putty in his hands, it annoys the hell out of her.
Justin looks at her pink lips and leans forward, so there's only little space between them. Grace can feel his minty breath on her lips and she leans closer to him in anticipation.
"We should—" Grace is harshly cut off my Justin's lips smashing onto hers. The girl gasps into his mouth and wraps her delicate arms around his tense shoulders, relaxing him.
Their lips move in sync, Grace nipping his bottom lip slightly making him go crazy. He grips her hips with his fingers roughly, but not tight enough to hurt her.
Because he would never want to hurt her.
Ever.
Justin's tongue battles with hers, him inevitably winning for the one hundredth time and Grace silently makes a mental note to write down her new years resolution to win at least once.
Justin slowly pulls away, releasing her bottom lip with a small popping noise. He begins to trace kisses from her lips, to her chin, and down to her neck sensually, and she grips his hair in her hand.
Before they can go further, the door is harshly pulled open, making the two teens jump away from each other. Justin and Grace internally glare at his friends when they enter but continue on as if nothing happened. Justin picks up the game console once again and continues playing his shooting game.
Zach and Marcus re-enter the room and look at the two suspiciously. Grace lips spread into a forced tight smile and she stands back up.
"I'll be going now." She announces, feeling embarrassed about almost getting caught. "I'll see you all at school, I guess."
She abruptly leaves the pool house and rushes her way home. It takes her around twenty five minutes to get home and when she finally reaches her front door, her feet are aching and she's out of breath. She curses at herself for being so unfit.
When she enters her house, she sees Clay sitting on the couch waiting for her. "Hey, why are you waiting on me?" She asks confused.
"Tony said he saw you get into a car with Zach and Marcus, what the hell, Grace!" Clay snaps.
Grace stutters on her words for a moment before finding an excuse. "I knew Justin would be there, Clay. I wanted to find out more about the tapes for us."
"And did you?"
"No. I didn't find out anything, he wouldn't give me answers. He practically slammed the door in my face." The second lie tastes bitter on her tongue. She figured she'd be used to it by now, lying to everyone. "We'll try find out more tomorrow."
And with that, Grace walks up the stairs, into her room, and collapses onto her bed, falling into a deep sleep.
______________________
Chapter 2 is done! Hope you like it, comment anything you want. <3