Chapter two
Snooping
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Sitting at the dinner table was awkward to say the least. Conrad and Bonnie had both blitz through over half of the bottle of vodka in 20 minutes.
Both teenagers were trying their hardest to look sober in front of their parents. They were sat next to each other with their mouths shut and eyes on the plates in front of them.
"Steven, I swear to god if you look at that phone one more time, I'm putting it in the screen basket." Laurel says, glaring at Jeremiah and Steven whose eyes were glued to something on Steven's phone.
"It's just, we want to see your beautiful faces." Susannah smiles at the pair. "Can dinner be a screen-free zone? You know, like the olden days."
"Steven!" Jeremiah says, snatching the phone out of his hands with a clutter of the dishes on the table, causing Bonnie to jump slightly. He lines up the shot and throws Steven's phone into the basket on the side.
"Dude, are you kidding me?" Steven groans.
"Boom! Nailed it." Jeremiah grins in triumph.
"Ok, ok, ok. We get it, you've been working out." Steven snaps, nodding his head.
"Oh! You're just jealous that Jere has a better body than you." Belly laughs.
"Uh, no, actually, it's all about the lean look now." Steven says, rolling his eyes. "Otherwise, you can't wear tailored suits." He adds, making everyone moms laugh.
"Sure, sure."
"Tailored suits." Conrad scoffs, his voice slightly slurred.
"When are you leaving for training camp, man?" Steven asks Conrad causing Bonnie to look up at him.
Conrad looks at Steven, his smile dropping as he looks down again.
"Uh, he quit football." Jeremiah says.
"Wh..." Steven's words trail off.
"You quit?" Bonie asks, her voice being heard for the first time that night. She looks at him with a confused look.
"Uh... Yeah." Conrad looks away from the girl, shame taking over his face.
"Are you kidding me, man? I'd- I'd kill to play college ball." Steven says, looking at the boy with a slight frown.
"He can always change his mind." Susannah says, smiling at her son from across the table.
"I'm not gonna change my mind." Conrad says quickly, staring at her. "I was just gonna sit on the bench all season anyways."
"Well, if you're not playing football anymore, what are you gonna do all summer?" Laurel asks.
"Oh, dude, you can work at the club." Steven suggests, "yeah, with me and Jere." He laughs.
"Yeah!"
"I'm not gonna work at the club." Conrad says, quickly shutting down the idea.
"Wait. You guys are working this summer?" Belly asks, frowning.
"Yeah, I'm lifeguarding, and Steven's working at the snack shop." Jeremiah smiles at the girl.
"Oh. What about you Bonnie?" Belly quickly asks, looking at the girl who is playing with her food.
"Uh... no, I'm-" Bonnie's cut off by her mom talking.
"I got you a job at a coffee shop just down the road." Sophie smiles. "You're working there on weekends." She adds.
"Um, no thanks, mom." Bonnie frowns, shaking her head. "I'm not going to waste my time in a café." She says, glaring at the women.
"It'll be good for you. Get you out of the house." Sophie says, "I'm not taking no for an answer." She says a look all kids know and fear on her face.
"Well, no. I'm not doing it and you can't force me too." Bonnie simply shrugs, looking back down.
"Bonnie."
"Mom."
"Look, we'll talk about this later." Sophie sighs, looking at her daughter, knowing her stubbornness.
"Sure." Bonnie smiles sarcastically.
"Oh! Girls, I almost forgot." Susannah says, jumping out of her seat, to grab something in hope of cooling down the tension. "I have a surprise for you!" She smiles, holding up two envelopes with their names written on the front.
Laurel and Sophie scoff slightly as Susannah hands the envelopes to the girls. "So, this is why you had to stop by the country club." Laurel says.
"What, uh, wh- wh- what is that?" Steven asks, looking at his sister with a curious face.
"I wrangled our girls an invitation to be debutantes!" Susannah cheers.
Bonnie looks down at the note with a look of sadness. She didn't want to let down Susannah, but there was no way she could do this. Last summer she would've taken the opportunity in a heartbeat, but now... not so much.
"Is that the thing where the girls where white dresses and curtsy?" Belly asks.
"It's when a girl comes of age and is presented to society."
"Presented to society? Beck, come on." Sophie says.
"I know it sounds silly, but I swear it's fun. Girls come from all over New England to Cousins just to be a part of it." Susannah smiles encouragingly at the girls. She looks at Bonnie who is evidently uncomfortable. "You'll make so many new friends." She smiles at the girl who just looks away.
"I cannot believe you are still holding on to this archaic dream." Laurel says, getting up from her spot and walking into the kitchen.
"No, it used to be about finding a husband, but now it's about networking. they teach you leadership skills, like how to market yourself, and it benefits charity. It's um, like a bat mitzvah." Susannah smiles.
"Right." Sophie laughs softly at her friend before patting her arm.
"It is not like a bat mitzvah." Laurel laughs, walking into the room with another bottle of champagne. "There is nothing religious about a debutante ball."
"The whole deb scene is bullshit." Conrad says, adding his two-cents in. "It's for sheep."
"Yeah." Jeremiah agrees.
"No, it's not." Susannah says, watching Belly look down when Jerimiah agrees. "It's when a girl is coming out, it's a formal recognition she's reached maturity."
Steven laughs, midway through a spoon full. "Oh, sorry. I'm sorry. Mature?"
"Yes."
"Belly?"
"Yeah."
"I mean, I can understand Bonnie but... like a couple months ago Belly had a cat funeral. You made us all wear black." Steven says.
"Shut up, Steven. I saw you crying in your room." Belly snaps.
"Wait, Mochi died? Dang, I'm sorry, Bells." Jeremiah says, bringing a light blush to the girl's face.
"Girls." Susannah intervenes. "Don't you want to get all dressed up?" She says, smiling at the pair.
"It's just not Belly's kind of thing." Laurel says. "She's our feral little alley cat."
"Yeah, and since Bonnie doesn't want to work, surely she can't play dress up." Sophie says, looking at her daughter from across the table again.
"I'll think about." Belly says, smiling at Susannah.
"Good! Bonnie?" Susannah smiles brightly.
"Uh, same." Bonnie says with a tight-lipped smile.
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"So, are you coming to the bonfire?" Conrad asks, sitting beside Bonnie at the pool. She had originally sat there just to get some fresh air and feel the cold water on her feet, but she was happy with Conrad here.
"Uh, maybe. Depends on if I can be assed, really." She says, not looking at him for longer than a second.
"What's up with you?" He asks, pulling a joint out of his pocket.
"Long car ride." She says simply, not noticing the joint or him putting it in his mouth. She only realized once he lit it.
She looked at him, disappointment and sadness taking over her. "You do drugs?" She asks, studying the way he takes a hit.
"It's just weed." He shrugs.
"It's still drugs." She responds back to him.
"Ok? I do drugs. I don't do it a lot though. Just to take the edge off." He says as if it was the usual for him to do drugs.
"Right. 'Just to take the edge off.' " She nods, feeling overwhelmed. She stands up and looks down at him. "I'm gonna head inside." She nods.
"What's got you angry?" Conrad asks, watching the girl walk away.
"I'm not angry." She says, passing two loud Jeremiah and Steven on her way up stairs.
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She knew she shouldn't be doing this. She knew that, yet she was still doing it. She didn't believe when Conrad said he only did drugs occasionally. It's bullshit. No one does drugs 'occasionally'.
She was currently snooping in his room, searching through his drawers to find any dangerous substances that she can throw in his face and destroy.
She's keeping him safe. That's what's running through her head when she finds condoms hidden under his socks.
Under the bed. Holy shit. That's where both of them would hide candy when they were little. Now they hid drugs and alcohol.
She gets on her hands and knees, swoops her head down and sees a small medicine tin.
Found it.
She pulls it out and opens it, revealing a stash of 5 joints inside. She scoffs, tears filling her eyes at the sight.
She's not going to let him end up dead. Hell no.
"Shit!" She yells, grabbing them and darting out of his room to go see him at the bonfire.
"Bonnie! Where are you going sweetheart?" Susannah asks, watching the girl open the front door.
"To see a friend. I'll be back soon." She says, not waiting for as response as she leaves.
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Walking up to the beach, the glow of the fire reflected on everybody's faces. It created an angelic feel and look to the beach.
But that was far from how Bonnie felt. She was angry, betrayed and fucking terrified. Why would he lie to her? Why would he feel the need to do drugs?
She storms towards the main crowd, looking for Conrad with the blunts still crumpled in her hand.
There he was, sitting on a log next to the fire, making out with a girl. So casual and relaxed. Acting as if he wasn't poisoning his body.
It made her slightly jealous to see a girl with him that wasn't her. A part of her wanted to be that girl. The carefree, gorgeous girl wrapped in Conrad's arms.
"Conrad!" She yelled, stopping in front of him.
He looks up at her, confused and worried as to why she was angry. "Bonnie?" he asks, standing up and pulling away from the girl he was kissing.
"What are these?" She asks, holding her hand out with the joints.
"What- did you go through my room?" He asks, looking up from her hand.
"Does it fucking matter?" She seethes.
"Uh, yeah!" Conrad yells, "Give them back!" He demands, reaching for them.
She pulls her hand away from him, more tears forming as she watches him attempt to grab them. "No! No, you're not getting them back." She says, throwing the joints into the sand.
"What the hell! Bonnie!" Conrad yells, clearly angry with her impulsive actions.
"I'm not going to sit back and watch you kill yourself!" She yells, not noticing Jeremiah or Steven come rushing over to them.
"Jesus! What's up your ass?" Conrad yells, getting in Bonnie's face.
Sorry that I don't want you to die!" Bonnie scoffs, yelling in his face.
"Wow, guys. What's going on?" Jeremiah says, standing in between the two of them.
"Your brother does drugs. Did you know that, Jere?" Bonnie says, her anger only rising when Conrad's glare grows more intense.
"It's just weed Bonnie!" Conrad snaps, his loud voice gaining the attention of some party goers.
"Yeah, you say that now!" She shouts, tears forming.
"Guys! How about we talk about this later on? When no one else is listening?" Steven says, looking around.
"Yeah, good idea." Conrad scoffs, looking at Bonnie.
"Listen to me, Conrad." Bonnie says, trying not to cry. "I care about you. Ok? I know I don't say it, but I do. Doing drugs is dangerous!" She says, trying to get him to listen.
"It's just weed." He repeats himself.
"No, it's not." Bonnie says sadly at him.
"Come on, Bonnie. I'll introduce you to some of my friends." Jeremiah says.
"No. No, I don't care about friends, right now." Bonnie says. "I'm not done talking to him."
"Well, I'm done talking to you." Conrad says, walking off with the girl.
Bonnie scoffs, a tear falling down her cheek as she watches him leave. "He doesn't care." She says, shaking her head.
"Bonnie." Steven says softly, grabbing her shoulder.
"I'm just gonna sit away from here. Let me know when you're leaving. I'll come with." She smiles sadly. She didn't try to make it look real. To try and convince Jeremiah and Steven she was fine as she walked off.
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She had been sitting by the ocean for what felt like hours. In reality it had only been twenty minutes, but still.
She looked back at the party, her blond hair waving in the wind. Conrad and the girl had resumed their make out session and it was gross to watch. She watched with jealousy. Why can't she just move on from March and live a normal happy life?
She sighs and turns back around to watch the waves crashing against sand.
"Hey." A voice says from behind her, causing her to jump slightly. She turns around, watching a boy her age standing their smiling at her.
"Hi." She speaks.
He was tall, with dark black hair and piercing brown eyes. Dressed in board shorts and a graphic tee, he had a charming radiance about him. "I'm Dean." He says, smiling at the girl. "Can I sit?" He asks.
"Uh, sure." She says, turning back around to the water.
He smiles again, sitting right next to her, causing their legs to brush lightly. "Uh, did you know that the saying 'We've only discovered 5% of the ocean is false?" He says, his voice bubbly.
"No. I didn't." She says. He drew her in, something about his innocence and bubbly personality made her feel comfortable.
"Yeah." He smiles again. "What's your name?" He asks softly.
"Bonnie." She smiles at him.
"Lovely name for a lovely girl." Dean winces as the words leave his mouth. "That was bad. Sorry." He laughs, his face lighting up when she laughs with him instead of at him.
"It's ok." She smiles, "You tried."
"I- I did." He agrees, stuttering only slightly. "So, is it your first time in Cousins?" He asks.
"No, I've been coming here since I was born." She explains. "One of my mom's best friends owns a house here, so us and her other best friend come here every summer to catch up." She smiles.
"It must get chaotic. With everyone in one house."
"Yeah. Definitely." She scoffs.
"So, um... that boy..." Dean starts, "Is he like, your boyfriend or whatever?"
"Who?"
"The one you were fighting with. I assumed you are because he keeps looking over here to make sure I'm not killing you... or kissing you, I can't tell." Dean says, making Bonnie look over at Conrad to find him staring at her.
"No. I think he has a girlfriend." Bonnie says. "Besides, he's not my type." She shakes her head, trying to deny her attraction to him.
"Oh. Yeah, that's cool. So, uh... what is your type?" Dean asks, making her look at him with a smile.
"Oh, you know... Dark hair, dark eyes, bright smile..." She smirks at him as he nods his head.
"Yeah?" he smirks back, glancing at her lips.
"Yeah. What's your type?" She smirks, glancing down at his lips.
"Blonde hair, brown eyes, freckles... full lips." He leans in as he speaks, her doing the same, but just as they're about to kiss a loud yell makes Bonnie snap her head towards Conrad who's starting a fight.
"Just ignore him." She says, going to kiss him but stops when the yelling grows louder. She sighs, closing her eyes as she stands up, "I'll be right back." She promises.
She rushes towards Conrad and the guy he's yelling at. "Just give me the beer!" Conrad yells, pushing the guy back.
"Conrad, you're drunk." The girl he was making out with says, grabbing him.
"C'mon. Conrad, stop." Belly says from behind the guy.
"No, I'm fine! I paid for it you dick!" Conrad shouts, shoving the guy again.
"Dude! Relax, it's a beer!" The guy laughs, egging him on.
"Conrad. Stop." Bonnie says, walking up behind the other guy to get to him.
"No! Give me the beer!" Conrad shoves the guy a final time, resulting in his elbow flying into Belly's cheek.
"Jesus!" Bonnie cusses, running over to the girl on the ground.
"Belly!" Jeremiah says, rushing over as well.
Once ensuring she's ok, Bonnie turns around to Conrad to get him away from the situation but a flying fist from the other guy lands on her lip by accident. "Ow!" She yells, holding it.
"Bonnie!" Conrad says, stepping forward only to be punched.
"Jeez, are you ok?" Dean says, having run over.
"Yeah, just hurts." She says, dabbing her now bleeding lip.
"Cops!" A kid shouts, watching as the beach erupts into blue from the lights off the car.
"Come on!" Jeremiah says, leading the way to his car after breaking up the fight.
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"It was nice talking to you." Dean smiles at Bonnie as they stand against Jerimiah's car.
"Yeah." She smiles, "It was. At least for the five minutes it only ended up being for." She scoffs.
"I know how to get into a car!" Conrad groans from in the car.
"Uh, can I have your phone number?" Dean asks, scratching his head.
"Yeah." Bonnie smiles. "Sure." She types in the number into his phone and hand it back to him with a smile.
"Great. Thanks." He says.
"No worries." She smiles again. They both look at each other for a moment.
"Bonnie, c'mon." Jeremiah says, from the driver's seat.
"Yeah, ok." She rolls her eyes. "Um..." She watches as Dean leans in towards her and she does the same. They meet in the middle, their lips moving together. They pull apart smiling at one another in confidence.
"I'll see you tomorrow?" He asks, still smiling at her.
"Yeah. Text me." She says.
"Bye." He says, waving and walking in the other direction.
She gets into the car, slightly smiling but only slightly.
Jeremiah pulls onto the road and begins to drive off but breaks in the middle of the road. "Shit!" He curses, unbuckling and getting out. "I forgot Steven. I'll be right back, Bonnie." He runs off.
Belly had argued and argued with Jeremiah about going home with her new friend Cam. Eventually, he gave in, making sure her location was on the entire time.
A gentle hand reached out from behind her, grabbing a strand of her hair softly. "You're hair's so long. It looks like you haven't cut it since Christmas." Conrad smiles, twirling it around his finger.
Why was he acting like this now? So many questions were rolling through her head but one in particular took over her mind. Why was she enjoying this? Maybe Dean's a distraction. As horrible as it sounds, she knew that her and Dean aren't going to last. Just a summer fling.
But Conrad... maybe they were made for each other. Like two peas in a pod.
Bonnie lets out an uneasy breath as she watches him in the mirror. "Bonnie, I-" He's cut off by a voice no one likes.
"Have you kids been drinking, tonight?" An officer says, shining her torch into the car.
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Shitty ending but we move.
wc: 3084
(Unedited)