BACK TO YOU

two. beautiful faces

▬ LENNOX SANG ALONG TO Alec Benjamin's Oh My God as she took a few shirts from hangers and tossed them onto her bed, next to her duffle bag. She laughed a little when she grabbed the light pink shirt in the section of the closet she reserved for shirts she had borrowed from the Fisher boys. It had a little butterfly on the chest.

She tossed it onto her bed and made a note to give it back to its original owner. She tossed a few more clothes on the ever growing pile, most she had taken from Jeremiah but she stopped when she came across a dark blue shirt. 

A sad smile crossed her face, her chest tightening, as she traced her fingers over the white letters: Cousins Rowing. And for a second, she was out by the pool behind her family's beach house the summer before.

Lennox smiled as she laid on the lounge chair next to the pool at her family's beach house. Her phone was connected to the Bluetooth speakers and Imagine Dragons played through the air as she hummed along.

"Hey." Conrad mumbled, laying on top of the girl, keeping most of his weight off of her with his elbows as his lips met her collarbone, water dripping from the ends of his hair. The smell of saltwater and sunblock swirled around her. "We gotta be back at the house soon, mom's planning a big dinner." 

"I don't wanna go." She shook her head, wrapping her arms around his neck, wanting him close. "We should stay here. Just you and me. It's nice." 

It was the longest they had spent time alone all summer. Usually Jeremiah was around and Steven wasn't too far behind him and if it wasn't them, it was Belly. 

Lennox loved Belly like a sister, but they didn't really have the same interests. Well, that's not completely true. Lennox knew for a fact that she and Belly shared one interest: Conrad Fisher. It's one reason, the biggest reason, the two had decided to keep their… undefined relationship a secret from everyone. 

"Jere misses you," he mused, pressing a kiss to her neck. 

"He sees me every day." 

"True," He hummed. "Mom really wants you there." 

The girl groaned, tugging the boy closer to her and he let more of his weight rest against her. "I can't say no to your mom. How does she do that?" 

"I don't know," he chuckled, shaking his head. Then he pressed his lips against hers before he pushed himself up. "Come on, let's go." He held his hand out and she took it, letting him pull her to feet. 

"We should do this more often," she reached up and wrapped them around his shoulders. 

"What will people think?" He asked jokingly, his hands on her hips as he tugged her body against his.

"Who cares?" She shrugged, stretching onto her toes to press her lips against his before she pulled away from him and grabbed his shirt from the table. 

"I think that's mine," he chuckled, an amused look in his eyes as she pulled it over her head. And his amusement only grew when it nearly engulfed her whole, dropping down to her thighs.

"Now it's mine." She grinned over her shoulder, before she made her way into the house and he smiled as he followed after her.

She quickly shook her head and tossed the garment onto the bed with the rest of her clothes. She had every intention of giving it back to the boy.

She made her way over to the bed and started shoving her clothes into her bag, caring little about folding them. Once she was done she zipped it up and put the strap over her shoulder.

She glanced around the room once more, her stuff still took up the walls and the shelves. Her vintage camera collection sat proudly on the bookshelf with a few photos she had taken over the years. 

Her books sat in several piles just below the window. Her hair products were scattered on her vanity along with her favorite necklaces and bracelets. 

Her chest tightened. She knew that this would be one of the last times she saw this room intact. She swallowed hard, blinking away her tears and with a deep breath she made her way out of her room.

She sighed a little as she looked around the house as she made her way to the front door. All of her family photos had been taken down, the furniture had been replaced, the walls repainted. It didn't feel like her home anymore. Everything that made it hers was gone.

And that fact made her stomach twist and her breath catch. She stopped and pressed her hand against the wall, taking deep breaths as she tried to push her rising panic back down. 

After a few minutes, she shook her arms out before opening her eyes. With another glance around the living room, and another  ache forming in her chest, she made her way out the door, closing it behind her.

She shook her head as she slid into her car – an orange 1964 VW bug – and tossed her bag into the passenger seat and started it up. She stopped at the end of the driveway only long enough to get out and kick the for sale sign that was planted in the yard over, then she got back in the car and drove away.

>>>>> • <<<<<

▬ "IDIOTS." Lennox mumbled, a smile on her face as she watched Steven and Jeremiah laugh at something on the former's phone. Everyone was gathered around the table for dinner, but the girl only poked at her food. Doing everything in her power to ignore the boy that sat to her right.

It had all felt so nice, comfortable even… all except for the fact that she could feel his eyes on her.

But she was gonna fake it.

"Steven, I swear to God, if you look at the phone one more time I'm putting it in the screen basket." Laurel told her son only to get a look of disbelief from him. 

"It's just, we wanna see your beautiful faces." Susannah added.

"And aren't they just the cutest?" Lennox hummed as she playfully poked Jeremiah's cheek and he scrunched his nose up at her. 

"Can dinner be a screen free zone?" Susannah asked, "You know, like the olden days?"

But the boy didn't put his phone away. 

"Steven," Jeremiah looked over at his best friend before grabbing the phone and tossing it to the other side of the room. 

"Dude, are you kidding me?" 

"Boom! Nailed it!" The blue-eyed boy cheered as he flexed. 

"Okay, okay, okay, we get it. You've been working out." 

"Oh, you're just jealous because Jere has a better body than you." Belly told her brother, getting a laugh from Lennox. 

"She's not wrong." Lennox mumbled, gripped Jeremiah's bicep and he flexed, making the girl laugh. Conrad took a breath as he watched the two, then he moved his eyes to his plate, he too only poked at his food.

"Uh, no, it's actually all about the lean look now." Steven retorted. 

"If that's what you have to tell yourself." Lennox mumbled and Jeremiah chuckled as he draped his arm over the back of her chair.

"Otherwise you can't wear tailored suits," Steven continued. 

"Sure, sure." Jeremiah nodded as Belly and Lennox laughed, the older girl shaking Jeremiah's arm from her shoulders.

"Tailored suits," Conrad repeated teasingly, drawing everyone's attention to him. 

"When are you leaving for training camp, man?" Steven asked the oldest of the five kids and Conrad looked a little stunned by the question.

"Uh, he quit football."

"He quit a lot of things." Lennox muttered to herself, but the boy on her right had heard her and his eyes moved to her for a moment. 

She swallowed the bile that rose in her throat, and he watched as her throat worked, unable to look away from the girl. He hated himself for ruining her, usually, insanely wide smile, her cheerful disposition, and most of her heart.

He hated that he had broken her heart.

"Wait, really? You quit?" Steven asked.

The question pulled his attention from Lennox, his eyes focusing on Steven. "Mm-hmm."

"Are you kidding me, man? I'd kill to play college ball."

"He can always change his mind," Susannah stated.

"I'm not gonna change my mind. 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 asked softly.

"Oh, dude, you could work at the club with me and Jere." 

"Yeah." Jeremiah agreed with his best friend. 

"I'm not gonna work at the club." 

"Wait, you guys are working this summer?" Belly asked, looking over at the two. 

"Yeah, I'm lifeguarding and Steven's working at the snack shop." Jeremiah told her, fist bumping his best friend. "Tried to rope Lenny into it, but she said no." He gave the girl a pointed look. 

"Because I have plans." 

"Like what?" Her blue-eyed best friend asked, raising an eyebrow in her direction and she looked over at Susannah, who just smiled at her.

"It's a secret." She whispered and he rolled his eyes, thumping her ear then she punched his shoulder. 

"No violence." Laurel scolded lightly.

"Sorry." She mumbled, sinking in her chair a little. 

"Oh, Belly, I almost forgot." Susannah stated as she stood up and grabbed a white envelope off a never by table. "I have a surprise for you." 

"So, this is why you had to stop by the county club." Laurel mused and Susannah just smiled at her best friend. 

"What, uh, wh-wh-what is that?" Steven asked as Belly opened the envelope. 

"I wrangled Belly an invitation to be a debutante." Susannah smiled as the girl looked over the paper.

"So glad it's not me." Lennox grinned, leaning back in her chair. "I don't do puffy dresses." 

"But you'd look so cute." Jeremiah mumbled. "Like a cute, little marshmallow." 

Conrad watched the two, a heavy feeling in his gut. They had always been close, but seeing the way his brother easily flirted with her made his stomach churn.

"Yeah, no thanks." She shook her head before her eyes settled on Belly. "But you should totally do it, if you want." 

"Is that where the girls wear puffy dresses and curtsy?" 

"You would be correct." Lennox nodded. 

"No, it's when a girl comes of age and is presented to society." Susannah corrected, giving Lennox a pointed look. 

"Then she's auctioned off to the highest bidder." 

"Len," Susannah lightly scolded the girl. 

"What? It's archaic." 

"I agree." Laurel nodded and Lennox grinned, her shoulders back like she was proud of the simple fact that Laurel agreed with her. 

"It used to be about finding a husband," Susannah corrected. "-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."

"It's not like a bat mitzvah." Laurel chuckled, returning to the table with a bottle of wine. "There is nothing religious about a debutante ball." 

"Amen." Lennox hummed, getting a laugh from Steven and Jeremiah. 

"The whole deb scene is bullshit." Conrad stated. "It's for sheep." 

"Yeah." Steven nodded. 

"No, it's not." The blonde argued. "It's when a girl has a coming out, it's a formal recognition that she's reached maturity." She finished, getting a laugh from Steven, and Belly glared at her brother from across the table. 

"Oh, sorry. I'm sorry. Mature?" 

"Yes." 

"Belly?"

"Mm-hmm." 

"A couple months ago you had a cat funeral. You made us all wear black."

"Shut up, Steven. I saw you crying in your room."

"You called me crying," Lennox added. "Full hysterics." 

Steven just glared at the girl.

"Wait, Mochi died?" Jeremiah asked, getting a nod. "Dang. I'm sorry, Bells."

"Belly, don't you wanna get all dressed up?" Susannah asked. 

"It's just not Belly's kind of thing." Laurel piped in. "She's our feral little alley cat." She stated and the two younger boys chuckled, both getting smacked by Lennox. 

"Ow." They mumbled, rubbing the backs of their heads as the girl took her seat again. 

"I'll think about it," Belly nodded. 

"She'll think about it." Susannah mused, raising her wine glass to her lips. 

"I know I was dumping on it, but if it's something you wanna do I totally support you. I mean, you won't catch me in a marshmallow dress, but I got your back, Bell." 

"Thanks, Len." The younger girl smiled at her and she nodded. 

"Aww, Lenny, you're so sweet." Jeremiah wrapped his arm around her and pulled her closer to him only to have her try to shake him off.

"Get off of me, dork." She huffed, but he just held onto her tighter. She rolled her eyes, but accepted her fate as a smile tugged at her lips. She really did relish the affection.

❝ nova speaks ! ❞

this book is my current obsession  💕