CHAPTER SIX:

"addy is dead because of you"

both of the harmon girls went their separate ways to their rooms. esme to hers and violet to her own.

once esme got in her room there was a tapping on her window. she walked over to it she opened her window to see tate. he whispered basement while motioning.

she walked downstairs after telling violet. "tate?" she called out quietly, "hey." he said walking up to her with a smile. she sighed in relief seeing him.

the two walked up to each other, they pulled each other into a hug. "oh, it's been insane here. first, the cops were outside. then some freak started banging on the door, screaming about money." she said, tate then pulled away lightly holding her arms. "hey, hey. shit like that does tend to go down on halloween. probably just asshole kids. it's fine now. i'm here." he said looking in eyes.

she smiled at him softly. he then pulled a black rose out. "i got this for you. i know how you don't like normal things." tate said earning a smile from esme. "you're the first boy to ever give me a flower." she said reviewing a chuckle from tate.

"thank you. i love it." she said grabbing the rose. "you ready to go on our date?" tate asked calmly, "yeah." esme replied softly.

🪞

esme called vivien because violet texted her to. "esme, where are you?" vivien asked. "i'm just hanging with friends." esme said looking over at tate. "we told you girls not to leave." vivien commented worried.

"i'm sorry. i should've called you earlier. is this the part where you make me come home?" she questioned, "are you safe?" vivien asked, "i swear." esme promised, "are you having fun?"

"yeah."

"what happened with the guy who was banging on the door?"

"it was just some kids. i think they were playing a prank. they went away."

"i want you home in an hour, same goes for vi."

"okay. alright. bye." esme said while tate pounced on her neck playfully. "who was that?" tate asked with a smile. "vivien." esme answered back, "oh." he said softly leaning in. his lips pressed against hers.

the two were now laying horizontally on each other now. tate was ontop of esme, "i want to." she said reaching down touching him on his stuff. "oh, no." he said pulling his face away from hers. "sorry." he apologized, esme laid her head on the sand, "i thought—" she started to get cut off by tate. "i just— esme, i swear. i want to be with you so badly. and that's never happened with me, with a girl." tate said kindly.

esme furrowed her eyebrows, "are you gay?" she asked, tate looked at her deadpanned for a second, "no. i just—" he stopped getting off of her. "maybe it's those meds your uncle gave me. they do that, you know." he stated as she rose up. "i'm gonna go." she said going to stand up.

"no, no. no, ez. i'm not ready to go. not yet." he begged. esme sighed before sitting back down. he put his arm around her shoulder, she leaned into him while he held her hand. "i used to come here.." he paused for a second, "when the world closed in and got so small i couldn't breathe.." he said softly before pausing again, "i'd look out at the ocean and i'd think.. yo, douche bag." he said with a chuckle. "high school counts for jack shit." he paused once again, esme stared at the waves, listening to his calming voice. "kurt cobain, quentin tarantino, brando, de niro, pachino." he said looking at esme towards the end of the sentence, "all high school dropouts." he said with a smile, esme smiled at him back, "i.. hated high school. so i'd come here, and i'd look out at this vast, limitless expanse. and it's like, that's your life, man. you can do anything. you can be anything. screw high school. that's— that's just a blip in your timeline. don't get stuck there." he said softly, esme looked over at him mesmerized, she could tell she was falling in love. but she wasn't good with love, because one wrong move they'd make, she'd push herself away. he looked back at her. and after a few seconds of eye contact she laid her head on his shoulder again.

but the sound of sticks breaking caught her attention. she turned her head to see a group of teenagers coming over the hill. "there's someone here." she said looking over at tate shifting slightly, "nice costumes. what are you, the dead breakfast club?" she asked as they approached the two.

"you know, there's a whole lot of beach, guys." tate said calmly. "good job, tate. you finally came out of hiding." the guy in the jock jacket said. "we've been waiting for years for you to show your face. but you like mommy's little safe house, don't you?" he continued.

"i don't know you." tate spoke up, "i'm actually surprised you have the balls to show your face around here." a girl in a cheerleader uniform said. "yeah. maybe you should have worn a mask." another girl said coming up on his left side. "i'm not really into halloween." he said with a chuckle.

"but this year's different, right?" the girl asked, "you have a date. how cute is that?" she said turning her attention to esme, "leave her alone." tate said sternly before standing up. "we don't want her. we want you." the jock spoke up again.

esme looked around confused. "how about we drown him?" the one girl who brung up esme said, "no, we should shoot him right between the eyes." the jock stated. esme stood up with a sarcastic smile on her face, "ha-ha. halloween pranks." she said to the jock. "will somebody please erase this bitch." the girl from earlier said catching esmes attention.

"yeah. why does he get a girlfriend? i don't have a girlfriend. do you have a girlfriend?" a guy with blood on his face asked another guy who couldn't talk. he shook his head no, "kyle you?" he asked the jock. "nope. i haven't had sex in a long time." the jock said looking directly at esme. "come on. let's go." tate said grabbing her hand, "this beach sucks. someone should pick up the trash." tate said frustrated. the two walked off back to the house.

🪞

after esme and tate got in her room she locked the door. "are you seriously gonna act like nothing happened at the beach?" she asked upset, "they totally knew you, tate." esme stated walking closer to her, "but i don't know them." tate replied blankly, "then why do they hate you?" esme asked yet another question.

tate squinted his eyes in confusion, "th-they're just hugh school assholes. i mean the worlds full of 'em. it's popular kids who get off on being mean and cruel." he said looking down at his hands as he leaned against her dresser. "i thought you understood that." he said softly looking up at her. "tate, i can tell you're totally freaked out." she stated, but she heard hallie barking which snapped her out of the conversation.

esme looked at her window, back at tate the two walked over to her window peering down at the teenagers from the beach. "it's them. they followed us here?" esme asked backing away from the window, tate backed up and looked at her his mouth gaped, "this is bullishit." esme stated angrily, she looked around until she spotted a pair of scissors.

once esme reach the door she opened it, to see the group standing in front of her. closing the door the jock spoke up, "oh, great. he sends his little girlfriend out."

"a pair of scissors. you gonna make us some paper dolls?" the girl that tends to insult esme said sarcastically. "this is private property. i have every right to call the cops." esme stated walking up to the girl with the scissors pointed at her.

"go ahead. call them. you'll probably need them." the teen in the cheer uniform said with a smirk. "screw that. she deserves whatever happens to her." the jock said scanning her up and down. "yeah. she's like those lonely, fat chicks that marry guys on death row." the rude girl stated, "you're deeply, deeply disturbed."

esme looked around at the group, "you guys need to take your disgusting made-up faces and go home." she stated angrily, "made-up?" the jock asked, "now!" she firmly stated looking over at him.

"home? where is they? i'm an only child. after what happened, my parents split up, sold the house, moved away. no forwarding address. so i don't have a home." the cheerleader said standing in-front of esme angrily. "parents suck, but i can't fix it for you." she stated as the cheerleader sat down.

"can you fix this? can you give me back my scholarship to georgia tech? i'm supposed to be starting quarterback freshman year." the jock said pointing to the bullet hole on his forehead. "she doesn't care. she's in love, and she'll do anything for him, including giving him her virginity. tonight was the night, wasn't it?" the cheerleader stated hastily.

"none of your business." esme replied with the same hostile voice, "you stupid slut." the jock spoke up catching her attention. "she's worse than he is. she thinks it's okay what he did to us." he said walking around her, esme was getting angrily confused. "what did he do?" she shouted.

"she doesn't know." the cheerleader stated standing up in-front of her now, "about what?" she shouted even more confused, the guy with the messed up jaw tried talking but blood just spilled out of his mouth.

"it's okay." the cheerleader said kindly to him, "how have you not heard about westfield high?" the jock asked, "we just moved here." she replied with furrowed eyebrows, "pick up a yearbook, bitch." the girl that seemed to hate esme stated, "or read a newspaper." the cheerleader added, "we're kinda famous." the jock stated.

esme scoffed, "so you're popular, and you're pissed off i don't know who you are." she said with a fake smile. "let's put her down, out of her misery." the rude girl said getting closer to esme. "leave her alone!" tate shouted walking out. "finally. the prodigal son returns." the jock said, esme walked up to tate. "come on down, man. we've got some questions." one of the other guys spoke up, "go inside. i can handle this." tate demanded esme.

"i seriously doubt that." the cheerleader said through her teeth. "go inside!" tate shouted at esme now looking at her. "no. they want to hurt you." she said softly, "karmas a bitch, tate." the girl stated harshly, "you want to talk to me?" tate asked before pausing. "let's see how fast you can run." he said before racing off. the group ran after him.

esme grabbed her phone dialing 911, "hello. my boyfriends in trouble. there's a bunch of kids chasing him. i think they're gonna kill him." she said panting. but someone snuck up behind her turning her to face them. it was constance. "come with me to my house now." she stated firmly, esme looked at her with wide eyes, "leave me alone, you crazy bitch." esme said trying to shove her off.

"addy is dead because of you." constance said with venom in her tone dragging the girl to her house.

"constance, i'm so sorry." esme apologized while sitting at constance's dining table. constance smiled at the girls apology, "well, you did encourage her. that's true. but you were just trying to be kind, weren't you?" she asked pouring tea into a cup. "i was the one who sent her out into the world tonight. and it did what it will do. go ahead, drink your— drink your tea, honey." constance said handing the cup over to esme.

"can i have one of those?" esme asked looking at the cigarettes that were lying on the table. "oh, a cigarette? oh. certainly." she said holding up the pack to esme, esme slipped one out, "just don't let vivien know that i'm encouraging your vices." constance stated reaching over with her lighter, lighting the cigarette. she chuckled lightly at the young girl.

"you know, adelaide was a willful child. i suppose if she," constance started before pausing, "inherited anything from me, it was that. in truth, i think my little monster was more like me than any of my other children." she said with a smile.

"i didn't know you had other children." esme stated looking at constance with no expression. "tate is my son." constance stated, esme looked at her surprised, "what?" she stated. "he cannot know about this, esme. he cannot know," she paused for a second "that his sister had passed. not now. he doesn't.. react well to certain things. so you— you have to promise me." constance said while esme was looking down at the table taking all of this insane information in, but suddenly constance reach over and grabbed her wrist.

"i don't understand." esme stated quietly confused, "well, he's a sensitive boy. you've seen that. he— he's a young man with, too deep feelings, the soul of a poet, but none of the grit or steel that acts as a bulwark against this— these horrors of this world. the steel that has protected me, that adelaide has possessed. and that— that you have too." constance stated standing up to pick up a picture frame. esme looked up at her confused. constance sniffled looking down at the picture. "i, uh— i think—" she stammered with a chuckle, "that's why he's taken so with you. he craves your strength." she said wiping tears away before inching closer to esme with the picture. "look." she said with a chuckle, "maybe he misses his sister." constance stated showing esme the picture. esme grabbed the picture carefully, "but we must protect him, esme." constance said softly.

the picture was of addy and tate standing side by side his arm around her shoulder while leaning on a tree, both of them smiling.

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