☾ ⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ

°•. ┊ Delicate┊.•°
✧ ˚ ━ that meteor strike, act one

CHAPTER TWELVE — tape 6, side b

✧

Now

I wake up on the floor, surrounded by pillows and with one of Kenzie's feet pressing against my throat. I shove it off of me and sit up. I assess the damage we did on Mack's living room and smile at the state of everyone, before rising to my feet. I remove my phone from the charger and wrap a blanket tightly around my body, before exiting the house and sitting on the front steps once more. I unlock my phone and notice several texts from multiple people; Zach is the most prominent one. I click on Justin's contact and call him.

Where the hell have you been?

I told you. Mack's. And I think I know what you got up to last night. Jess showed up. You finally told her?

Yeah and not in the way I should have. How's she doing?

She's asleep. Probably that last decent night's sleep she'll be getting for a while. But she'll be okay. Eventually.

Zach got subpoenaed to testify. So did I.

Well, I probably did too, but I'm not home, so we'll find out later. Look, J, did you need something? Cause if not I-

I need to see you. Please.

Let me get home. I'll call you. Just don't do anything stupid, okay?

Yeah, yeah. I love you.

I love you too, J. Bye.

I hang up the phone and wrap my arms around my knees, resting my head on top of them. I rest there a moment, before lifting myself up and heading back inside. I start picking up what I can, waking up Sage in the process, and forcing her to help me. It doesn't take the two of us that much longer to clean up and by the time we're done, everyone's up. I drop Sage and Jess at their houses and on the way home, the conversation is bleak. "Hey, so Zach told me he got subpoenaed. Do you think that you got one too?"

"Probably." I state, absentmindedly tapping my fingers on the steering wheel. "I'm not worried. I didn't do anything. I'm only going to be able to help the Baker's case against the school. Which I will do happily." I smile over at my sister and she returns the gesture. We spend the short remainder of the ride in silence; only the quiet sound of the radio can be heard. As I pull into the driveway, I notice the garage door is open, and I know damn well that I closed it before we left. Putting the car in park, the two of us hop out, and walk cautiously through the open garage and into the house. I make sure to grab the bat from the corner behind the door and hold it in a ready position, checking every corner, before turning it. Just as I'm ready to let my guard down, a noise comes from the kitchen, causing Abbie, who is clutching my shoulder as though her life depends on it, to jump. I kick open the door and swing at the figure in my sights, but they dodge it.

"Woah! Woah! Hey, kiddo, it's only me. Relax." Our dad shouts, raising his hands up in surrender. I release a breath of relief, dropping the bat to my side, and running my free hand through my hair. My sister runs into his arms, engulfing him into a hug. "Hey, sweetheart. I missed you. I missed both of you." I lean the object in my hands against the wall and follow Abbie's previous actions, joining the pair. Of course I missed my dad. But in all honesty, this shit is much easier to deal with when there isn't a parent breathing down your neck. Like Clay's parents. I know for a fact that Mrs. Jensen is losing her mind at all the crazy events that he's been involved in lately. Yes, caring and present parents are a gem and make life better, I guess. But personally, I enjoy the lack of questions and the freedom. All of that aside, I'm happy to see him. Plus, this insanity should be over soon. We all pull away and his attention turns to me. "So, a deputy showed up at the door about an hour ago and delivered this. Everything alright?" He hands me the envelope with the subpoena inside and I give him a shrug.

"It's fine. If I can help get the school to admit their negligence in terms of bullying within the student body, then that's what matters." I breathe, giving the two of them a tight-lipped smile. "I've got nothing to hide. And Hannah's parents deserve answers. Hannah deserves justice. Although, she also deserves to rest in peace, which I feel won't happen in the midst of all of this. Anyways, how was the world? Any good stories?" The three of us take the next few hours catching up, and eating the pancakes my dad was in the process of making, before I nearly took his head off with a baseball bat. After eating, he ushers us upstairs to get ready for school. That task takes me all of five minutes; I change into a different pair of sweats, toss on a tank top, add one of Justin's zip-ups over it, and throw on a pair of old converse. I brush my hair and put some mascara on, to look a little less dead. I check my phone for any word from Justin; nothing. I got so caught up with my dad being back that I completely forgot to call him, but clearly I'm not the only one. I grab my bag and run down the stairs, realizing that first period is almost over. Abbie is close behind me, the two of us shouting a quick 'goodbye' to our dad, and returning to the car. Our current car ride is the same as the last; quiet. Abbie is applying some light makeup, so I'm driving as carefully as I can. It helps that we live in a rich suburban wet dream of a town, so the roads are really smooth. We walk in just as the bell rings and the hall is full of students. Kenzie approaches us almost instantly.

"So many fucking people got subpoenaed to testify for this Hannah Baker thing." She says, in a hushed tone. "Even faculty."

"Which faculty members?" I ask, as the three of us walk down the hall slowly.

"Uh, Principal Bolan, Vice Principal Childs, and Mr. Porter."

"Shit. Bolan and Porter make a lot of sense, but Childs? I mean, I guess since she does the most in terms of student punishment, but still, never had a problem with her." I think out loud. "She always did her job. Unlike the other two." Abbie opens her mouth to say something, but is stopped when Monty and Tyler start in on one another. It's not the day for this. As Montgomery has Tyler pinned to the wall, Bryce approaches the pair and tells the De La Cruz boy to back off. Walker then turns to Tyler in an attempt to see if he's okay, which only makes the Down boy snap; rightfully so. Unfortunately, once Tyler walks away from him, Bryce's attention is on me. Fuck.

"Ang, have you heard from Justin?" The boy asks, my friend and sister taking a  step forward, so he has to remain a good distance away from me. I reply with a simple no, instinctively wrapping my arms around my body, as a small form of comfort. "Some shit went down last night and he won't call me back. I want to know what I did and why he can't talk to me about it. So, if you see him, just tell him to call me. I'll see you ladies around." The boy saunters off down the hall to our right and my arms fall to my sides. I pull my phone from my back pocket and text Justin, realizing that not hearing from him is more concerning than I initially thought. The warning bell sounds and I break out into a run, my class being on the opposite side of the building and on the second floor. I run up the stairs, two at a time, and crash right into someone, taking us both to the ground. It's just one of those fucking days. I remove my face from the linoleum tiles and roll over, sitting up a bit to discover that I didn't collide with anyone important. Just Scott. A small laugh escapes my lips, as the Reed boy just lays there, seemingly accepting the situation. Apparently, everyone is having a bad day.

"Something funny, Monroe?"

"Yup." I state, breathlessly; emphasizing the 'p' sound. "What's not funny is being late to my next class, so I'd help you, but I don't want to. See ya, Scotty." I rise to my feet continuing at my previous pace towards my classroom, getting there just under the wire. I doze off a little periodically through that class, my attention not really necessary, and it quickly comes to a close. The rest of the day is the same, teachers talking, me pretending to listen, while not caring about it at all. As my second to last class comes to a close, I check my phone, while exiting the room, finding a message from Tony, telling me to meet him in the main hall. I do just that and the two of us walk to the art wing, entering a dark room to find Clay. Creepy. Tony teases him, by mentioning that a hoodie isn't his best disguise. "What's going on?"

"The last tape." Jensen huffs, as Tony sets his bag on the desk between us. "Did you bring it?" Padilla unzips his backpack and hands him a different tape player, seems unnecessary, but okay.

"As requested." Tony states and Clay returns his Walkman. "Mind telling me why the switch?"

"I'm sorry." Jensen says. "I'm not at liberty to discuss it." Since when the hell is he an attorney of the law?

"Because if we know the reason, then we'll try to stop you from doing something stupid?" I question, earning a slight glare from the hoodie bound boy in front of me. Which leads me to believe that the answer to my question is yes. Tony argues that they agreed to do this together, which Clay combats by throwing Tony's promise to do whatever we have to when he reaches the end of the tapes. "Are you done with them? Completely?"

"Almost." This leads Tony to ask him whether or not he plans on passing them forward. "Look, we all know Hannah wanted them to get to number 13, but if I give them to number 12, that's the end of it. Just give me a day. I have a plan."

"Clay." I call out, causing him to turn around.

"Do you guys trust me?" The two of us share a look, before we respond.

"Yeah." We speak simultaneously. What the hell is he planning? My phone lights up and it's Justin, finally responding to my text. "Listen, T, I gotta go. Keep me posted, yeah?" I don't wait for a response and exit the building, deciding to skip last period all together. I text Abbie and tell her to get a ride from Kenzie. Justin's text tells me that he's in Alex's neighborhood just walking around, so I tell him to stay put. I drive there and it takes me a few minutes, but I finally see him a few feet ahead and slow down a bit. "Hey there, sexy. Want a ride? I don't bite." I tease, as I stop fully, allowing him to get in.

"You're such a dumbass."

"Yeah, but that's just part of my charm." A smile is present on my features, when I turn to him. I take in his expression; he clearly hasn't slept much if at all and isn't having a good day. "Wow, so everyone's in a shitty mood today, huh?" He gives me a soft and ingenuine smile, until I pull away from the curb and just start driving. An old One Direction song starts playing and I begin to hum along absentmindedly. Justin reaches over and intertwines his hand with mine, pressing a soft kiss to the back of my hand, and then resting our connected arms on the center console. As our drive continues, I realize that I don't exactly have a destination in mind. We can't go to my house, my dad's home. Justin's place gives me the creeps. And I don't have the energy to deal with other people, so Monet's is out as well. Somehow we end up at Lover's Lookout. I put the car in park, staring at the sky, and relishing in the silence. The two of us get out and sit on the hood of the car. "I miss it."

"Miss what?"

"When life wasn't so fucked up." I answer, picking at the polish on my nails. "I mean, it's always been sort of fucked up, but this year has truly been kicking my ass. I don't exactly remember a simpler time, yet I fucking yearn for it. I want to be able to breathe again, J."

"Me too, Ang." He breathes, eyes focused on the view in front of us. "You ever think about leaving? You know, just get on a bus or take your car and go. Not looking back."

"I guess, in a fleeting thought, never thoroughly considered it though. Why?"

"No reason." The conversation ends there and the two of us watch the sun set below the horizon. After another hour of us sitting there, I drive him home, and return to my house. I enter to find my sister and my dad watching reruns of ??,  greeting them.

"Hey, you hungry? We ordered from that Thai place you like." Abbie says, her eyes never leaving the screen. I respond with a low 'okay' and grab my food from the counter, before heading up to my room. I don't realize how hungry I am, until I take that first bite of Pad Thai, and end up housing it quickly. I open my laptop and pull up Netflix; turning on Supernatural and turning off the lights. After a couple episodes, I start to doze off, until I get a text from Clay.

Got him.

Confusion falls over me and I start typing out a response, but delete all of it. I decide that I'll get answers tomorrow, so I turn my sound off and put my phone on the charger. I shut my computer, shove it to the end of my bed, and let sleep wash over me.

[word count: 2458]

lexi's letters; one more chapter until season one is finally finished!! i'm more excited for season's three and four than anything. season two is lowkey going to be a struggle to write bc it was a struggle to watch lol it was really slow and was definitely a filler season to push the story forward, so the last two could exist.