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prologue
Age7
Mommy got a new job after Grammy died, and she’s making me go to Latchkey, a summer program to babysit kids. I know no one here. I colored by myself all morning and sat alone when it was time for lunch. I picked a table at the back of the lunchroom and opened my lunch box. Mommy packed me a PB&J sandwich and a pizza lunch kit. I love jelly anything, but as I take a bite of my sandwich, I notice a boy at the end of the table not eating.
Why doesn't he have a lunch? Did his mommy forget him? That’s sad.
I sat next to him and shared my lunch. It’s okay. I’m too nervous, so my tummy isn’t growling. He smiled at me and said his name was Parker. That day, we colored together, and I made a friend. A best friend. We spent all summer together with Ryan, too.
They go to school together. I asked Mommy if I could go to their school, but she said no. I don't know why she said no. It would be fun to have them be my friends all year long.
One day we sat under a tree because it was the only shade on the playground. It was so hot outside. It seemed all they did was either have us inside to eat, or we were always outside. It was too hot to be outside, I thought. Parker said that he was going to grow up to be a doctor like his uncle. He often talked about his uncle. I guess they are very close. I wish I had an uncle. Ryan said that he was going to be a millionaire and own his own Fortune 500 company. Whatever that means. I said I was going to be a pop princess, but when they told me to sing, I choked. I can’t sing. I give concerts to my stuffed animals, mouthing words to my hairbrush.
Age 8
I was so excited to spend another summer with Ryan and Parker that my mom had to nearly strap me down in a chair to get breakfast in me before dropping me off at Latchkey.
We had so much fun together last year that when I saw them, I ran up and tackled them to the ground. I got in trouble for it, but it was worth it. Since we are all eight this year, we can go with the older kids to the swimming pool. I don’t know how to swim, so I had to stay in the shallow end, but Ryan stayed with me even though he’s a great swimmer. Parker went off the diving board and accidentally hit his head coming up and had to go to the emergency room. I begged my mom to go and see him, but she wouldn’t let me. She said she was too busy and that I would have to wait to see him at Latchkey when he got back. I stayed up all night working on a card for him, and I brought it with me every day until he came back and gave it to him. He gave me a huge hug. Ryan and I held hands during movie time. No one saw us, but it was nice. I don’t know what it means, but I think he likes me. He is really cute.
Age 9
Ryan and I are officially boyfriend and girlfriend. We made it official over Christmas break during the school year. It turns out our moms work at the same bank, and this year, we were our parents' dates for a Christmas work party. We hung out all night, and he even kissed me under the mistletoe. Parker, Ryan, and I will always be best friends. There is no doubt in my mind that we will all stay friends forever, but one day I will marry Ryan.
Age 10
Jason Fooglemyer is the WORST! All year in school, he picked on me for no other reason than he could. Now he is at summer Latchkey with all of us, making me miserable! Ryan only comes on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays as his parents cannot afford a whole week. Parker is still here though. Today is a Thursday, so Jason has been calling me names all day. Like a knight in shining armor, Parker went right up to Jason and pushed him off the monkey bars. He yelled at him to leave me alone, or he would break his face. I don’t know what it was, but after Parker did that for me, I stopped seeing him as just my best friend but maybe as more.
Later that summer…
I HATE MY MOM! She’s been dating this icky guy for almost a year, and he proposed. They packed up my room and everything because he wants us to move in with him four counties over, practically on the other side of the state! She wouldn’t even let me say goodbye to Parker and Ryan. The worst part is he has a son who is a little bit older than me but hates me, and now I have to live with him.
one
abigail
Ihavebeenwaitingfor this day ever since my mom told me we were moving back home to Eastgate; right after she dropped the bomb, she caught Mark, my stepfather, cheating on her with his new office assistant. It was no surprise to me. He and his son Levi have been the bane of my existence ever since my mom married the asshole eight years ago. That’s how long it’s been since I’ve been back home. Eight long god-awful fucking years of torment and cruelty.
I look at myself in the mirror and wipe the single tear away as it falls from my eye. I will not cry anymore over what he did to me. I will continue to shove it down and bury it. I will be the strong, bad bitch I had to become. Today’s the day I am going to see them again. I take a deep breath as I sit on my bed and pull my black combat boots over my feet. As I stand up, grab my bag, and mentally prepare to go to school, my mind wanders back to when we were younger, all those hot summer days we spent together as kids.
Here I am, standing in front of Eastgate High School. It’s my senior year, and I know they will be here. Even after moving away, I kept up with them. They were always into sports, so it was no surprise to me when Mark was reading the newspaper one day and their names crossed his lips.Those boys are going straight to the pros.Since then, I saved every football newspaper clipping with their names and hid the scrapbook I made under my bed. I take another deep breath as I open the doors and let it out as I see the sign pointing toward the main office. I make my way over to pick up my locker information and class schedule. It’s a few weeks into the new school year, so I’m coming in a bit late to the game.
After the office, I head to the school library to pick up my books and then stop at my locker to put them away. I tuck a fallen strand of hair behind my ear and look down at my class schedule. It’s second period before I’ve finished getting my shit together, so I make my way to English with Mr. Tate in room 402. The class has already started, and I knock on the closed door. Through the tiny door window, Mr. Tate stops talking and puts the book he was reading down on the stool behind him, walks over, and opens the door. With one brow raised, he looks me up and down, then asks, “How can I help you?”
“Hi, Mr. Tate. I’m your new student, Abigail Burns.”
“Oh yes, how’s it going? There’s a spot in the back row ready for you. Sit tight after class, and I can give you the notes for the past few weeks so you can catch up. Just observe today. I won’t embarrass you and have you introduce yourself to the class; I’m sure you will be doing that enough today, so just mosey back there and take your seat.” He finishes with a smile and then extends his arm for me to enter the room.
The moment I step forward, I freeze.
Sitting right there in the second row is Ryan Masters and Parker Stevens. They don’t even notice me as they talk to each other and another sexy guy in the same row of seats. I can instantly tell they are the kings of the school because every girl in the room has their eyes on them, holding on to every word they’re saying.
Even when sitting, I can guess that Ryan is now five foot eleven, with scruffy, dirty blonde hair and a chiseled jawline. He’s wearing a tight navy-blue V-neck t-shirt that shows off every muscle in his arms. He’s not jacked, but you can tell he works out daily, if not morning, noon, and night. He's not looking at me, so I can't see his eyes, but I bet they’re still crystal blue.
Parker is right next to him. I’m guessing he's somewhere near six feet. He was always tall, even when we were kids. His black hair is perfectly quaffed and goes down into a tight fade. With his father being ex-military, it’s to be expected. He’s in a black muscle-t, and his arms, those arms… they were jacked. I weigh around two-hundred and twenty-five pounds, and just looking at them, I know he could easily lift me and toss me across the room.
The other guy who is talking to them must be Colin. I have read that these three are unstoppable on the field. Colin has red hair and piercing hazel eyes. He’s about the same build as Ryan, maybe just a bit smaller, but when he stretches backward to flirt with the girl behind him, his shirt rises just a little, and the guy has washboard abs. It should be a sin to look that good. What the hell is in the water that these three are drinking?
As I make my way toward my seat, I pass by a few girls who stare at my guys. They practically salivate out of their mouths, twisting their hair in curls around their fingers and never taking their eyes off them. I come across a guy who looks up from the book he is reading and gives me a tight smile. His thick, black-rimmed glasses scream book nerd, but once I pass him, I see that he is just some pervert hiding his phone behind the book, watching half-naked girls on TikTok dancing to the latest trend.
