Hero lifted an eyebrow, his eyes following Mrs. Thompson. "Look me in the eye and tell me that woman isn't fine."

"She really is pretty," Josie said, smiling over at Hero.

I, on the other hand, was scoping the halls for Cordelia.

"Hey, one o'clock," Josie said, nudging my arm.

I finally saw Cordelia, surrounded by her theater friends. I let out a sigh, pushing through everyone else in the halls to get to her.

"You really couldn't answer my texts?" I asked, standing in front of her.

She looked up at me, pursing her lips together.

"That's kind of toxic," one of her friends whispered, making me look over at her.

"I'd put up with it if my boyfriend looked like that," her other friend whispered, making my eyebrows go into a deep furrow.

Cordelia grabbed my arm and led me away from them, looking up at me. "What is your problem?"

"Are you serious?" I deadpanned, looking down at her.

"I just needed some time," she softly said, looking up at me.

"That would've been nice to know."

"See, I can't have a conversation with you when you're acting like this," she said, shaking her head.

"Acting like what?" I asked, my eyebrows in a furrow.

"Like this," she said, "like you can't breathe without me. Like we can't have five seconds away from each other."

I bit down on the inside of my cheek to suppress what I could've said. I shook my head and chuckled. "Okay, Cordelia."

"What did I do that was so wrong in the first place?" She asked.

"You knew what you were doing," I said, stopping in the middle of the hall.

"Henry, if you're really that mad at me because we didn't have sex, then maybe you should go find someone else. Really."

"We have been together for a year," I said, but she cut me off by grabbing my arm.

"Not in the middle of the hallway," she said, pushing me inside an empty classroom.

I sat on a desk, watching as she paced around the room.

"You knew," I calmly said, my eyes meeting hers.

"Oh, my God, Henry," she laughed, rubbing her hands down her face, "I pulled you on top of me. Literally. That is all that happened."

"I'm seventeen, Cordelia!" I yelled, "I'm an immature boy when it comes to that. I can admit that."

"Obviously," she harshly said, nodding.

"And you know what?" I asked, hopping off of the desk, "I'm horny. A lot of the time."

"This is not a conversation we need to be having," she said, shaking her head.

"How?" I asked, shrugging, "we've been together a year. Do you not trust me? Am I doing something wrong? Am I going about it the wrong way?"

"Yes," she said, "you absolutely are. You want sex to fulfill a physical desire. You don't want sex to get-"

"Woah," I said, shaking my head, "you don't know what I want."

"No, I do," she said, nodding, "you want sex because you're horny, a lot of the time. According to you."

"I was talking out of my ass, Cordelia," I muttered, "okay, I have a reason to feel the way that I do about it."

"Yeah, and what's your reason? The fact that Hero hooks up with every being with a vagina that he can? It's not a competition."

"No, Cordelia," I said, "my reason is that we've been together for a year. If you don't trust me by now, I don't know what to tell you."

"Maybe it's not that I don't trust you, maybe it's just that I don't want that from you," she adamantly said, and in turn, the most awkward silence I'd ever been in surrounded me.

I nodded, jutting my bottom lip out as I stood up. "Okay."

"Henry-"

Without another word, I walked out of the classroom, and left her behind.

~*~

"Hey," I greeted, nodding at Dad.

He looked at the girl behind me. "Hi."

"Hey," she said, waving, "I'm Amelia, we're studying for chem."

"Right," he said, not sounding very convinced.

I rolled my eyes and jogged upstairs, making her follow closely behind. I opened my door and closed it behind us, throwing my bag on my bed.

"Don't introduce yourself to my dad," I said, shaking my head as I pulled my shirt off.

"Sorry," she softly said, looking up at me.

I sat on the edge of my bed and grabbed her hips, pulling her close. She bit down on her lip and gently rested her hands on my shoulders, watching as I lifted her shirt.

I threw her shirt to the side and pressed kisses to her skin, trailing my hands up her sides.

"Hey," she softly said, making me look up at her.

I leaned back on my palms, lifting an eyebrow. "What?"

"Don't be soft with me," she said, "I-I don't like soft."

"Amelia Grey doesn't like soft? That's out of character for you."

She smiled a small smile and I stood up, my body pressed against hers. She looked down, clearing her throat.

"Now, Amelia," I said, grabbing her face, "you're going to have to look at me."

She looked up at me, her bottom lip between her teeth. I stroked her cheek, leaning down a bit to reach her height.

"I like eye contact," I said, "so if you can't even look at me when I'm just standing against you, maybe we shouldn't do this."

"No," she softly said, shaking her head, "no, we should. We should do this."

"I just don't know that you're ready," I said, lifting one side of her skirt.

"I'm ready," she gulped, closing her eyes, "I promise."

I smiled down at her. "Good girl."

She looked up at me, her lips parted. She simply nodded, earning a chuckle from me.

I spun her around and pushed her against my wall, making her let out a quiet squeal. I slapped my hand over her mouth, holding her close. "You're going to have to shut the fuck up."

She nodded, bracing her palms against the wall. I knelt down and lifted her skirt, pushing her body down a bit and placing her skirt in the curve of her back. I pressed kisses to her thighs, wrapping my hands around them.

"Hero," she whispered, looking down at me.

I shot her a glance before pushing her legs apart, pressing a kiss to her most sensitive spot through her underwear.

I used my pointer finger to trail up the inside of her thigh and to her bud, softly brushing my fingertip against her. She let out a sigh, which turned into a few heavier breaths. "Hero."

"Patience," I whispered, pulling her underwear down her legs.

"S-sorry they're not the cutest," she said, looking back at me.

I stood up, looking down at her bare backside. "I really don't pay attention to the cuteness of underwear."

"Really?" She asked.

I kept my eyes locked on her as I leaned over to my nightstand, grabbing a condom. I grabbed the band of my sweatpants but she turned around, looking up at me.

"Can I?" She asked, her eyes locked on mine.

I knitted my brows together and watched as she sunk to her knees, gripping the band of my sweatpants. I lifted a brow and watched as she pressed kisses to my length through my underwear, her eyes locked on mine.

I smiled as she pushed my underwear down, her eyes still locked on mine as she wrapped her lips around my stiffening length.

"Hey," I softly said, raking my hands through her hair, "word for the future, spit on it, sweetheart."

She nodded, using the tip I'd given her. I cleared my throat and braced my hands against my wall, closing my eyes.

I knew she was simply teasing me, so I didn't relax into the situation too much. I allowed another minute or so of her using her mouth on me before I pulled her up by her hair.

I spun her around and wrapped my hand around her neck, sheathing my length with the condom before slipping inside her.

"Hero," she sighed, her hands slipping down the wall.

I leaned my head back and clenched my jaw, bracing my hand against her backside. I grabbed her hair and roughly pulled her back to me, my lips against her jaw.

"Are you a slut?" I asked, wrapping my hand around her neck.

"Yes," she moaned, a little louder than she needed to. I covered her mouth with my hand, my hips meeting her backside at a punishingly fast pace.

"Look at me," I demanded, holding her face at an angle so she could see me.

She nodded, the sounds of her whimpers stifled by my hand.

I used my free hand to rub her bud, keeping my eyes locked on hers. I watched tears cloud her eyes and I tilted my head over with a smile.

"Hero!" She yelled, and not even my hand could silence that. She fell against the wall and I climaxed, our breaths heavy and loud.

I pulled out of her and cleared my throat, rubbing the back of my neck. I walked into my bathroom and grabbed her a towel, discarding my condom while doing so.

"Here," I said, throwing her a towel. She smiled, looking up at me.

I used my thumb to wipe the line of mascara off of her cheek, kneeling down to grab her underwear. I held them out to her, grabbing my sweatpants.

"U-uh, so are we actually studying?" She asked, stepping into her underwear.

"Uh, no," I said, "I have no reason to study."

She nodded, chewing on her lip. "I'll see myself out. See you tomorrow-"

"How are you getting home?" I deadpanned.

"Right," she said, "y-you drove me here."

I stepped into my sweatpants and grabbed my shirt, slipping into it. "Come on."

I opened my room door, meeting Mom in the hallway.

"Hey," I greeted, smiling.

"Hi," she said, "where are you going?"

"Taking her home," I said, "we studied for our chem test tomorrow."

She nodded, smiling. "Okay, be careful."

"Yeah," I said, smiling when I realized I could get anything past Mom and Dad.

~*~

"Hi," I greeted, shooting Lena a small wave.

"Hi," she said, "Mom time."

I sat down at the table, letting out a sigh. She poured both of us a glass of wine, sliding mine across the table to me.

"You're not okay, Lex," she said, biting down on her lip.

"Yeah, you're right," I said, my eyes meeting hers.

I knew I looked a wreck- my hair was in a disheveled low bun, my makeup barely on, and my outfit was less than fashionable.

"What's going on?" She asked, resting her chin in her palm.

I rubbed my hands down my face. "I feel like everything's falling apart."

Lena was the best listener. Anytime I was going through it, she was always the best person to go to.

"Go on," she said, taking a sip of her wine.

I rested my chin in my palm and looked out of the window of the restaurant, blinking back tears. "I just don't even know who I am anymore, L."

"I know who you are," she said, reaching across the table for my hand, "you're this badass-"

"See, I'm not," I laughed out, wiping my cheek quickly, "I don't know where she went."

She bit down on her lip, leaning forward. "You didn't let me finish."

I nodded, urging her on.

"You're this badass mom," she said, "who has still managed to stay soft in this really cruel world. You're the woman who shaped me into the woman I am today."

I nodded, sniffling.

"I told Fred I needed time," I said, "I haven't spent a day away from him, emotionally, in twenty years, Lena."

She relaxed in her seat.

"And he is so mad at me," I said, my voice breaking.

"Lex, if you need time, you need time," she said, nodding, "simple as that."

"And I do," I said, sniffling, "I want to get better, and happier, but I never wanted to do that at the expense of his happiness."

She nodded. "Yeah, it's a hard game to play. Trust me, I know."

"And I'm not even growing for me," I said, shaking my head, "I'm growing for him. Because he deserves to see me happy again. Because the kids deserve to see me happy again."

"You're right," she said, nodding, "they need to see you at your best. But I can guarantee you that they'll accept you in any state you're in."

"I know Josie can tell," I said, "she knows something's up."

"You raised a smart woman," she said, taking a sip of her wine.

"I don't know how I'm going to tell them," I whispered, shaking my head as tears clouded my eyes again.

"Hey," she said, "Alexis, you will figure it out. You always do."

"He deserves better," I said, nodding as I bit down on my lip, "he really does. He deserves someone who-"

"Don't," she said, "don't even try that. He doesn't want anyone but you."

"He wanted that me," I said, "the woman that I was for thirty years."

"Have you given him a chance to want this woman?" She asked, earning my eyes.

I sighed, grabbing my glass of wine. "I just can't, Lena. I don't know what's going on. I genuinely don't. And you'd think a forty-seven year old woman wouldn't have that problem, but here she is."

She nodded. "I know. It's okay to not always have everything completely under control. With that being said, it's not worth it to self-destruct."

"Lena, he's so upset," I said, my bottom lip quivering, "I hurt him."

She bit down on her lip, silently urging me on.

"And I wish I could say I blame him, but I don't," I said, "I would hate me, too, if I was him. Hell yeah, I would."

"Lex," she softly said, "he doesn't hate you. He couldn't hate you, even if he wanted to. He's loved you for thirty years."

"I just wish it was different," I said, sniffling, "I do. Really. But I can't bring him down with me."

She reached across the table for my hand, smiling. "You'll get through it, you always do."

I bit down on my lip, looking down at our hands. I wished I could've believed her, but I wasn't even sure anymore.

~*~

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