⋆·˚ ༘ * DEAR READER
"never take advice from someone who's falling apart
never take advice from someone who's falling apart.
(you should find another.)"
Juliette sat on the backyard porch, staring blankly at the dock ahead. The door opening and closing behind her made her head turn, her brows furrowing as her father cleared his throat. She turned her head back, staring at the ground.
"Juliette." Liam cleared his throat, sitting beside his daughter. "I'm sorry I hit you. I crossed a line."
"No, no." She shook her head, the copper taste filling her mouth as she chewed on her lip. "I should have never said that. I didn't mean it. I don't wish it was you."
Liam's brows came together as he folded his hands. "I know you think that I never cared for your mother, Jules. You have to believe me when I say that's not true. I did love her but I wasn't in love with her."
"So, why were you with her?" Juliette asked, intrigued.
"Because of you." Liam shrugged. "We didn't wanna raise you in a broken home. We wanted you to know we loved you. When she died..." He breathed out. "When she died, all I felt was regret. There's so many things I wish I told her."
Juliette's lips turned to the floor, her stomach building with guilt. "I'm sorry. I didn't know."
"We wanted it to be that way." Liam nodded, sniffing. "I'm sorry I wasn't there for you. Susannah, too."
"It's okay." Juliette swallowed, her lips in a flat line. "I'm sorry I've been lying. But this house...I don't want to loose it." Her eyes began to water, her palm laying against the concrete steps. "You have to do something."
Liam hummed, his fingers holding his chin in thought. "Conrad told me about the house. Look, Adam is hard-headed. We all know that. But we can try."
Juliette nodded with a small smile. "So, are we, like, fine?"
"Yes, sweetheart." Liam chuckled, his hand rubbing the blondes back as he hugged her softly, his lips pressing to the side of her head before he helped her up.
Juliette opened the door to the house, stepping inside, her eyes lingering on the Fishers boys sat around the counter with everyone else.
Liam stood beside Laurel, the two sharing a look before turning to the teenagers.
"We owe you all an apology. You guys have been there for each other, and we haven't, and we're deeply sorry for that." Laurel expressed, a frown on her thin lips.
"We've all made mistakes, mom." Belly shrugged, attempting to comfort her mother from a distance.
Laurel sighed lowly, frustrated. "Well, my biggest one is trusting that Beck and Julia had come to an agreement about the beach house before she passed.
It's probably too late to change things, but I'd like to try. I'll talk to Julia, see if I can't change her mind."
"Thank you, Mom." Belly beamed. Jeremiah leaning over to hug her, thanking her as well.
"Before my mom gets here, though, we should probably try and make this place look less... shitty." Skye suggested with a small brow raise, glancing around the wrecked house.
Juliette hummed in agreement, scooting out from behind the island along with the rest of the teenagers. She began to throw away the cups, shoving them into the garbage.
Her bag was halfway full when the front door opened, Aunt Julia's gasp making her freeze. Her feet her the floor as Juliette sped, grabbing Belly's back.
"Oh, we have a... visitor." Juliette chuckled, the two girls watching Julia gawk at the mess.
"Is that blood?" She asked, wide-eyed.
Skye gulped, holding the sponge as they looked between the stain and their mother. "It's Cherry Kool-Aid and Goldschläger... I think. Um, you're... early."
Aunt Julia continued to walk through the home, jaw-dropped. "What happened to this place? It's a disaster!"
Laurel wiped her sweaty hands on the back of her pants, flashing a smile at Susannah's sister as she entered the kitchen. "Hey, Julia. Thanks for coming."
The teenagers peered around the archway, listening.
"Uh, Skye didn't give me much of a choice, so..." Julia sighed lowly, setting her bag down.
"Can we have a chat while the kids clean up?" Laurel asked. Julia nodded. The two women heading outside, towards the docks.
Minutes later, the two returned. Everyone on edge as they stared, hearts pounding.
Julia clasped her hands together. "I've... decided to pull out of the sale."
Juliette's lips parted, a small laugh leaving her lips in disbelief. "Yes!" She smiled largely, watching the corners of Conrad's mouth tilt up.
"Let's not celebrate yet." Laurel swallowed, their cheers dying down. "We still need to convince your
dad to buy the house from Julia."
"Look, I'm gonna try my best to talk some sense into Adam." Liam nodded, his lips in a flat line. "But I can't make any promises. We all know how stubborn he can be."
Conrad hummed. "Yeah, thank you. It means a lot, Liam." He brushed paused Juliette, holding his garbage bag.
Juliette thanked her father, too. She grabbed her own black bag before exiting from the side of the house. Conrad tilting his head up at the sound of the door shutting, he smiled softly, holding up the lid of the trash can.
He helped her throw in the slightly-heavy bag. Juliette huffed as it dropped into the can, swiping her hands together. She beamed at him, biting her bottom lip. "You know, I'm scared to jinx it but I'm feeling confident. I mean, our dads have always been close and I feel like with the help of Laurel...we can get somewhere."
Conrad nodded. "Yeah, definitely. Your dad has always been good at giving him some father lessons, huh?"
"Sometimes." Juliette shrugged, her smile fading. "Neither of them are father of the year but..." She sighed. "They're trying. I'm really happy I called him."
"Thank you for doing that." Conrad said genuinely, his hand grazing her elbow. "It feels good to have him here."
She nodded, pulling her bottom lip into her mouth. "Hey, can I tell you something?"
"Anything." Conrad replied quickly, a desperate tone in his voice.
"I called my mom last night." She blurted, watching his face fall. "I've never done that before. I saw my recent calls this morning. I think I even left her a voicemail."
Conrad frowned slightly, his brows pulling together. "Oh, uh, that is weird. I mean grief comes in waves. And plus, alcohol doesn't help. It was probably, like, an instinct."
"Yeah, you're right." Juliette nodded, a lump in her throat as she stared up at him.
"Can we talk about last night?" Conrad asked after seconds of silence, his lips in a flat line as he shifted his feet.
Juliette exhaled, recalling the night before. Her heart pinged as she bobbed her head. "It was definitely a night, bit blurry." She paused. "But, of course. We should."
Conrad's face became light red, the shame in his eyes. "You were right. Everything you said was true. I should have never left things like that...I should have never left you like that. I just thought you were better off."
"Connie, you were going through so much." Juliette furrowed her brows, an accepting look taking over her features. "I just wish you would've let me in."
"I know. I wish I did too. But, me going through things is no excuse." Conrad swore, shaking his head, frustrated. "I just keep thinking about that night in December. I never want you to regret what we did."
Juliette's lips parted, her heart picking up pace. She reached for his cold hands, taking them in hers. "Connie, I would never. I wanted it to be with you. I'm happy it was. Obviously it hurts to think about us, especially memories like those."
"I don't regret anything we did together." He breathed, his thumb lying over-top her knuckle, squeezing tightly.
"Neither do I." Juliette grinned softly at him. "I was so in love with you, Con. And I know you loved me, too. I mean, my heart will always beat for you."
Conrad gulped, breaking their intense eye contact. "I'll never forgive myself for hurting you. I wish I could change it, like, to go back in time and fix it."
"Me too." She nodded. "I don't want to hurt each other anymore."
"I know." Conrad nodded, too. "I don't want to put you through that again." His breaths became slower. "Friends?"
The corners of her lips lifted higher. "Friends."
She wrapped her arms around his neck, his chin resting on the top of his shoulder as her eyes shut. His hands snaking around her waist and upper back, holding her tightly against his chest.
"I don't want to loose you, Connie." She muttered.
Conrad held her, his eyes batting. "You won't."
authors note<3
my babies.