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Author side-note: I really can't remember if I mentioned Nico's eye color, but let's just say they're hazel! If anyone knows otherwise, I'd owe you one! I keep forgetting to keep track of these things. Lol, sorry.

Nico ↑

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I made my way up the steps of the bleachers, where Mae was sitting alone and staring out onto the field. The cheerleaders were far off, practicing routines.

I sighed, taking a seat next to her and analyzing her. She was in a baby blue hoodie that had sleeves longer than her arms, baggy jeans, and sneakers. Her hair was tied back into a lazy ponytail, and she seemed tired.

"You didn't have to quit, you know," I told her as the wind tousled our hair. Without looking at me, she nodded.

"I guess I'm just sick of it all. I dunno; I'll find a club to join or something. I do like fashion." She shrugged her shoulders and sighed. "How are you?"

"That question has gotten complicated lately."

"Do you really think I did it?" she gazed at me, furrowing her eyebrows.

"Mae, you and Kari are my best friends. Obviously, I don't want to think either of you told Corbyn about my mother. I just... I don't wanna accuse you guys falsely. Until I find out the truth, I'm not putting the blame on anybody but him."

"He set this up, you know that right? I mean, it's like he wanted you to hate me for this. Why else would he give me my spot back the same day that your secret gets out?"

"Okay, but you said he asked you for one of my deepest secrets."

"Yes, and in response, I slapped him."

"I'd give anything to have seen that." We both chuckled and she shook her head.

"I never told him, Jaden. Or anyone."

My eyes scanned her face, trying to find any ounce of deceit. I blinked, looking back out on the field. "What happened with Tiana? I remember you mentioned there was some drama with her."

"She made out with someone and I got jealous. It's stupid now that I think of it. It's not like we're officially dating."

"Have you two talked about it?"

"Not really, no. Has she talked to you?"

"A little. In theater today; she just told me to keep my head up concerning the whole situation with my mom. You guys should talk. Maybe she has an explanation. Listen, I have to head home. I've got something I need to do."

Mae nodded and smiled softly. "Okay. Be safe."

**

I pulled open the drawer of my nightstand and picked up the mayor's card that I'd laid atop the sheets of music. I walked over to my window and stood by it, studying the card between my fingers.

Why was I overthinking this?

I sighed, taking my phone from my pocket and dialing the number from the card. My heartbeat even sped up as the call went through.

"Hello. This is Janine, personal assistant to Mayor Kenneth Starr. What can I do for you?"

"Hi um... I-I'm wondering if it's possible to speak to the mayor directly?"

"And who might be calling?"

"My name's Jaden. I go to school with Corbyn Starr. It's important."

"Oh." She seemed a bit surprised. "Right, well, give me one second."

I was put on hold, so I walked to my bed and sat down on it. Nearly a minute later, the line was picked up again, but this time answered by a man.

"This is Mr. Starr." His voice was deep and full of authority, and I even straightened my posture at the sound of it.

"Hello, I'm Jaden, a student at Whitewater High."

"I'm told you have information regarding my son?"

My fingers played with the sheet on my bed. "I do. It's about what he did to me."

"Did he... did he hurt you?" The way he emphasized the word 'hurt' made it seem that he'd seen it coming.

"Yes, he did."

"Well, I'm sorry to hear that. I do try to... keep my son in line. Would you tell me how he offended you, in detail, so that I can take care of this situation however I can?"

I took a breath. "I-I had this secret that was very, very personal to me. My mom, she's... an addict." I closed my eyes, trying not to cry. "I'm struggling to cope with it but when I walked into school yesterday, the news is everywhere. It's even on social media where Corbyn posted it for the entire school to hate on me." I shook my head, feeling warm tears roll down my cheeks. "It's not the same anymore. I can't trust anyone and I hate showing my face at school. But I don't have a choice, and it's all because of him."

"Mm, I understand, and I do sincerely apologize for the pain this must be causing you. Have you talked to anyone about this beside me?"

"I'm gonna tell my dad."

"Good. Please do so as soon as possible. And I'm going to write down your number, if it's okay with you. That way, I can check on you and if there's anything you need--"

"I just needed you to know."

"Of course, thank you. I can have my assistant give you some resources that could help you cope with all of the stress my son has caused."

I wiped my face with the back of my sleeve and sniffed, gripping my phone tighter. "I think... what'll help me cope, Mr. Starr, is if Corbyn learns a lesson from this." I swallowed. "He's terrorized me, my friends, and other kids long enough. Out of respect, I decided it's best to talk to you instead of a teacher so that you'd handle it your way. Besides, even the teachers fear him. Thanks for your time, Mr. Starr. Please have a wonderful rest of your day." I sniffed again, ending our call.

I bit my lip and suppressed a sob because I didn't want my father to hear me. I didn't even know how to tell him. How was he dealing with all of this? From the looks of it, better than me. I'd always been the closest to Mom, so my sisters also seemed less affected by her leaving for the second time.

I drew my knees up to my chest and logged onto my instagram account, which had been bombarded by nothing but hate. I was practically a joke, having been tagged and mentioned by many users. It seemed to be getting worse, and people were going as far as mocking the way I looked as well. I went to my settings and switched my account to private, deciding that if this didn't blow over soon, I'd have to delete it entirely.

🎻🎻🎻

~Corbyn~

"My mom's gonna murder me for stealing all these leftovers," I said to Nico as I organized all the food into his small fridge. "Ugh, you need more water. I've got a 32-pack in my car; you can have it. Your trailer's full of beer cans."

I turned to see him partially lying on his bed, one leg crossed over the other, and a smirk on his face. I squinted. "What?"

He shrugged, placing his arms behind his head. "Do you cook? You should cook for me."

I gestured to his refrigerator. "I practically just stocked you up, now you want me to cook?"

"What can I say? I'm a hungry man."

I made my way to his bed and fell onto it, grunting at the lumpiness of the thin mattress. "Shit. How does your back not ache on this?"

"Oh, it does," he assured, looking downward at me. I shifted my head so I could look up at him.

"Maybe your place needs an upgrade. We could go shopping if you want?"

"No," he refused. "I fend for myself. You caught me off guard that other day, when you gave me that money. I didn't wanna accept it."

"I was just trying to help."

"Why?"

I sighed, placing my hands over my stomach. "Look, is it so bad to receive help from somebody who's in a position to give it? When it comes to material things, I have it all. But... between us both, I don't want any of it."

"If you're suggesting we switch places, I'm down. Your mom makes some great food, and don't you guys have like maids and shit?"

I rolled my eyes. "Trust me. Living in that mansion sucks. It's huge; it's... lonely."

"Oh god."

"What?" I slowly smiled.

"Please tell me you don't have feelings. I detest sharing feelings."

"Would you rather me be a blank, robotic human being?" My expression was amused. "I usually reserve that one for school."

"Speaking of school..." he moved into a more comfortable position, laying next to me and supporting his head in his palm. "Can we talk about rehearsals today? What was that?"

I arched an eyebrow for him to clarify.

"The original date of opening night was November fifth. It's been pushed back to the eighteenth, which just happens to be the same day of Jaden's recital."

Oh great. Here we go again. "Are we really bringing him up? He's the last person I wanna think about."

"Could you at least tell me why? I thought we agreed you'd leave him alone."

"We didn't agree on anything, Nico," I reminded, lifting my head up. "And if you think this was me targeting him, it's not."

"You picked a song that's difficult to sing. You pushed back the date so you'd act in his stead. Sue me if I don't believe you're trying to hurt him all over again."

"Jesus Christ," I said in disbelief. "I'm not doing this. I came to hang out with you not get interrogated." I sat up, starting to leave.

"Hey. Alright, wait." He took me by the hand but I snatched it away, clearly upset.

"No, you said it yourself! You don't wanna get into feelings, so goodbye--"

"Fuck what I said, Corbyn. If you need to talk about... deep shit, then that's what we'll do. Okay? I want you to stay."

I folded my arms, staring into his hazel eyes. My gaze soon fell to his neck, then down to the floor. I didn't want to trust him, but... I did. To an extent. And even that was rare. "Look, I know how it looks. But I did it for my dad. That's the truth." I sighed, sitting back down on his bed with my face downcast.

"I had it all planned, you know?" I continued. "I told Tiana to write the story, then I'd be in the school's very first gay play with the boy I loved. My dad's never seen me act, but this one's gonna be huge. I figured he'd show up for it. Then Jaden got the role... and, eventually, my boyfriend."

Nico slowly nodded in understanding. "So all this time... you were just jealous of him? That's it?"

"Are you kidding me?" I looked at him. "He's fucking perfect. Even you think so."

"Let me guess. When you found out about his mom, you were glad that he had at least one flaw in his life. Something to prove he wasn't better than you."

"Pretty much."

"That's fucked up."

I hit his chest. "I get it! Listen. I want my dad to see me act and sing my ass off. I'm good at it. He thinks that I'm... he.... I just want to show him that I can do something. I have to prove him wrong. So, when Jaden is at his recital, I can act in his place. It's just for one night."

"Why do you think you need his validation or stamp of approval?"

My eyebrows furrowed. "Because, Nico. People need shit like that from their parents, okay? And what about you, huh? What did you mean when you said yours were gone?"

"That... I don't talk about it. Listen, I understand why you did what you did, but I'm an honest person. Letting Jaden's secret out was shitty. You could've told him what you just told me."

"It doesn't matter anymore. He hates me; we've established that already. Can we just move on?"

"Yeah. Sure. I was actually thinking we could... run through our lines for the play."

I leaned back on his bed. "We already did; we're all caught up."

He pursed his lips. "Okay but we could get ahead. Maybe practice the kissing scene? I mean... just a suggestion." He shrugged one shoulder and smirked at me.

I bit my lip, trying not to smile but failing. "Right. Practice," I doubted.

"Hey, the heart wants what it wants."

"You kiss me and then what?"

He leaned forward, slipping his fingers through my hair to cradle my head. "I dunno. Let's find out." He hesitated for a second so I put my hand behind his neck, tugging him the rest of the way until our lips met.

🎗🎗🎗🎗🎗

Hi :) so I wanna do this thing where I pick people from the comments or followers and dedicate a chapter to them. I really appreciate all of your support. thanks. also, it won't just be this story. luv u.

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