"Hey, Mom, I'm going out," I tell my mother who is sitting in the living room watching TV with her boyfriend, Charlie.

Her and Charlie have been together for almost a year now, and I really like him. I'm not the kind of girl who cuts him out and tells my Mom not to date him just because he's not my Dad. He makes her happy and that's all I had been wishing for my Mom for years.

"Where are you going?"

"To a movie with Mason."

She gasps, pausing the TV, "Mason? Really? That's amazing, Marnie! Why did you not tell me this before?"

Yeah, my Moms kinda a fangirl of my life.

I shrug, "I've been busy."

Busy thinking about Zeke Blakely.

God, why can't he just stop doing whatever he's doing that's making me go insane.

"Well have fun, honey, and don't be home too late."

"I won't," I begin walking away and shout bye to Charlie and my Mom and they shout it back, then I go outside to where Mason's waiting for me in his Mercedes.

Like the many kids at my school, his parents are rich as frick.

"Hey," he smiles as I get inside the car and fasten my seatbelt. "You excited?"

"Yeah," I half lie.

We were going to see a romance movie, and honestly I'm more of the action kind of girl.

Mason said that the other movies showing were shit, and I agreed even though I didn't agree, so here we are.

When the movie is over, Mason and I decide to get ice cream and sit on a stone wall that looks over the beach.

The sky was sparking with stars as we sat there, so close to each other, me with my mint-chocolate ice cream and him with vanilla.

"Okay, so, bad choice of movie," he says and we laugh.

"Yes, definitely. I mean, could it get anymore cliché?"

"That's what I was thinking."

What I've learned about Mason is that he's so kind, and genuine. He payed for my movie ticket and ice cream no matter how many times I said no. He distracted me then payed for it, which I was mad about but let it go and thanked him about one hundred times.

We talked for a while, then walked along the beach, holding hands.

Mason was nothing like i'd thought he was. There was so much about him that interested me. He also seemed so happy, so positive. And I think that's a good thing for me. I need more positivity in my life.

And Mason is just that.

+++

It was now Monday, and I was siting in history class, about to die from boredom.

There's something about history that's just so... uninteresting. Maybe it's my teacher, but every time the lecture starts, I feel like I'm going to fall asleep.

When the bell rings, I pack up my stuff and am about to make my way to the cafeteria when someone taps my shoulder.

I turn around and am met with the queen-bee aka bitchiest girl in school aka most popular girl in school aka Aubrey Winters.

She had perfect hair, large perfect eyes, big lips, and the most perfect body.

But she was a bitch. Which trumped all of that.

"Hey, its Marnie right?" She smiles sweetly.

How does she know my name?

"Yeah..."

"Were you were on a date with Mason Saturday night?"

Ah, of course. The jealous ex girlfriend act is coming into play. What have I got myself into?

"How did you know about that?" I ask, glancing at the door, desperate to get as far from her as I can.

"Word spreads fast around here," she giggles, "So it's true?"

I want to lie and say no, but I can't because obviously she already knows I did.

"Yes."

"Wow, he totally downgraded," she mutters.

"Excuse me?"

She looks at me and laughs, "Listen, babe, you should stay away from him. Me and him are gonna be back on pretty soon, so as soon as we work this out you'll be dumped."

Excuse you?

"Fine, whatever," I decide to cut this conversation short because frankly being near her gives me the shivers, and i'm hungry.

"Good, wouldn't want you getting hurt," I hear her say as I leave the classroom.

Walking into the cafeteria, the first thing I see is Zeke, sitting at Zoey and I's usual table.

My eyes go straight to him, as if there's a spotlight on him and it's the first thing I notice out of all these people.

He's sitting with Zoey and Cole, with a wide toothy smile on his face.

My favourite laugh.

The one where his eyes crinkle, his perfect teeth show, and he looks so much younger. He looks so precious.

Today he's wearing a V-neck, showing off his muscular arms, and on his head sits a backwards cap, pulling back his hair.

His eyes meet mine, and his smile fades for a moment before appearing back again, bigger than ever.

My heart races as I walk over to them and sit next to Zoey, across from the two boys.

"Marnie, finally!" Zoey squeals, "You need to tell me about the date now!"

I had been avoiding this all day. I told Zoey when she called on Sunday that i'd tell her at school, but today I keep saying I'll tell her later.

"Later," I say for the millionth time.

"No! You need to tell me now!"

"Yeah, Marnie! I can't stand the suspense anymore!" Cole says in a high pitched tone.

Zeke just eats his sandwich while looking at his phone, his beautiful smile gone.

"We just saw a movie, it was bad, then we got ice cream and walked a little and talked and it was fun, okay?" I hope that's all I need to tell her, but knowing my best friend, she'll want every tiny detail.

"You gotta give me more than that! What did you talk about?"

"I don't know, just stuff."

"Did you kiss?"

"Yes oh em gee, did you?" Cole says in the girly tone, "Was it a french kiss? Did y'all get wild and fuck in his car?"

For some reason my eyes go to Zeke, who's looking at me now.

"No, we didn't kiss."

"But you fucked?"

"No, Cole!"

He raises his hands in surrender. "Just asking. Us girls gotta keep up with the goss."

I look at Zeke again, he's back to staring at his phone, uninterested in our conversation. Cole mumbles something to him and he smiles a little, making my heart flutter.

"Why is Aubrey looking at you like you stole her lipgloss?" Zoey asks.

I turn my attention to where Aubreys sitting with her friends. Just as our eyes meet she looks away and flicks her long blonde locks.

"She was warning me to stay away from Mason. Apparently they're gonna get back together."

Zoey scoffs, "Please, Mason sees that bitch for who she really is."

"She's hot though," Zeke comments, "Nice legs."

Zoey glares at him, "I thought you had higher standards than that."

Cole snorts and looks at Zeke, "Oh trust me, he doesn't."

Zeke gives him a warning stare as if they're having some kind of mind conversation.

Isaac shows up and sits beside me, his hair ruffled more than usual and his lips dry.

"Damn, someone got a quicky," Cole says.

Isaac just shakes his head slightly and looks around the room.

Later that week, Cole, Zeke, Isaac and I were in Zeke's house, playing Fifa. Zeke and I were winning again.

"We make a good team, nerd," Zeke says, putting his arm around me.

"We'd be even better if you weren't holding me back, asshole," I push his arm off of me and he pretends to be hurt.

"Yo, Marns, you coming to my party tomorrow?" Cole asks.

"You're having a party?"

"Yeah, my parents are going away for the weekend."

"Well, I don't know... Did you ask Zoey?"

He nods, "She's in."

"In what?" Maggie asks as she comes into the room and sits on the couch arm, resting her hand on Isaac's shoulder.

He visibly stiffens and looks at Zeke for a moment, then stares at the floor.

What's up with him?

Maggie has her hair in a ponytail, looking flawless as usual.

"My party," Cole says, "You're coming right?"

"Of course, how could I miss one of your parties?" She smiles.

"I'm going to the bathroom," Isaac states, standing up and walking out.

"So why don't you know if you're coming?" Cole asks me.

I shrug, "Id rather be in bed watching TV than be surrounded by horny drunk teenagers."

Zeke shakes his head, "You obviously do not understand the fun of parties."

"See you guys later," Maggie says and walks out.

No one seems to notice and Zeke continues, "You are coming and you are going to have a good time."

"Your idea of good time is a lot different from mine, Zeke."

"You had fun last week though."

"But that's different. You'll probably make me get drunk and sleep with you."

He rolls his eyes, "Nerd, don't flatter yourself. I don't want to sleep with you."

Cole groans, "Ugh, where the fuck is Isaac? I hate being alone with you guys."

"So you'll come?" Zeke asks, ignoring Cole.

"No."

"So that's a yes?"

"No, Zeke. I'm not going."

+++

And here I am, standing in Cole's gigantic house surrounded by drunk people.

I didn't even know Cole's parents were rich. Usually if your rich at Long beach high then everyone knows it because they're stuck up and always brag about their cars and money, but Cole wasn't like that at all.

The house has posh decorations. In the hall where I'm standing, there is a large chandelier hanging from the ceiling and surrounding the walls are family photos in posh canvases, and glass tables with all sorts of vases.

I cringe at the thought of all these teenagers breaking stuff.

Cole's poor parents.

"Ready to have fun, nerd?"

I shake my head. "Can we leave now?"

Zoey and I came together, but she disappeared as soon as we came in the door. For the past five minutes I've been staring at everyone, feeling out of place, and now Zeke's here.

It gets better and better by the minute.

That was sarcasm, by the way.

"You just got here, now come on," Zeke takes my arm and pulls me to the middle of the large hallway. "Put your arms around my neck," he demands then does it for me, then his hands go to my waist. He pulls me closer to him and we start swaying side to side.

"Um... Zeke? Why are we slow dancing to a rock song?"

He smiles, "Because it's no fun to be like everyone else."

I think about how ridiculous we must look dancing like this in the middle of sweaty bodies jumping up and down, rocking out to the song.

"You're so weird," I tell him.

"Only for you."

Oh God.

My heart starts thumping in my chest, and then the frenzy takes over.

I breathe in his scent, watch every feature on his perfect face, and my stomach explodes with butterflies. My cheeks heat up and knees go weak again like they did at the cliffs.

Why does he do this to me?

"Zeke!" I am pulled out of my thoughts by a guy who comes over and tells Zeke something, but the music's too loud for me to hear.

"I'll be right back," Zeke says before letting me go and walking away.

I stand there – feeling out of place again – for a couple of minutes before deciding to go look for Zoey.

When I walk into the expensive looking living room, I spot Cole.

He's standing in the corner of the room, with his lips locked with Zoey's.

Oh my God.

I turn on my heel and head back out the door, I can't interrupt that.

Walking into the kitchen, I try to find a familiar face. When I see Maggie my body almost melts from relief.

She's sitting with Isaac on the barstools at the kitchen island.

"Hey," I say as I stand on the opposite side from them. "Have you seen Zeke?"

Maggie shakes her head no, "Have you checked the bedrooms?"

I scrunch up my nose, "No, and I don't want to."

"Wanna take shots with us?" Isaac asks.

"No thanks, I don't drink." I glance around the kitchen for Zeke but he's not there.

Where could he have gone?

"I'm just gonna go look for him," I tell them and start walking through the house.

There are so many rooms and hallways in this house, i'm worried I might get lost. When I go upstairs I manage to find an empty bathroom. Hoping it's clean, I go in and put the toilet lid down and sit.

I could just hide in here until Zoey is ready to go home. My plan works for about ten minutes before someone comes in.

A guy. A drunk guy.

He smirks when he sees me, "Hey beautiful."

No thanks.

I quickly stand up and rush out of the bathroom.

"Where you goin?" The guy slurs.

Why the hell did I agree to come to this stupid party?

Oh that's right. I didn't. That asshole Zeke made me and now he's disappeared.

Where the hell am I supposed to go now?

Just as I'm turning a corner in the hallway, my body collides with someone.

I look up, about to apologise, but stop when I see it's Mason.

Thank you God.

I pull him into a hug, "Mason! Thank God you're here."

"Are you okay?" He says, hugging me back.

I pull away, "Yeah, I just freaking hate parties."

He laughs, "Where's Zoey?"

"Probably making out with Cole."

He raises his eyebrows, "Really? You know he's probably just gonna use her as a one night stand, right?"

"He better not or i'll chop his balls off."

Mason laughs, "You're adorable when you get all feisty."

My cheeks heat up and I look away from

this cute guy. How does he like me? I don't understand.

He puts his hand under my chin and lifts my head up, then slowly starts to lean towards me.

Oh god is he going to-

He does.

Our lips touch gently, and he kisses me softly. I can taste the alcohol on him, and that must be why he's kissing me this way.

Oh Mason, always so sweet.

We had been hanging out for almost an hour, and were now sitting at the kitchen table, like last time at his party.

He checks his phone then sighs, "I need to go. My rides here. Do you want us to drop you at your house?"

"No, it's okay. I need to take Zoey home."

He frowns, "I feel bad leaving you here."

"It's fine, really. I'll go find Zoey right now."

"Okay," we both stand up and he kisses me on the cheek. "Text you later," he says before walking away.

Instead of walking though this house and looking for Zoey, I decide to go outside and get some air. Inside is getting way too stuffy and it reeks of alcohol.

The air of the dark night hits me as I step outside through the glass kitchen doors, making me wish I had brought a jacket. All I was wearing was jeans and a t-shirt.

I decided not to make an effort for this party, since it wasn't Mason's and Zoey wasn't forcing me to.

There aren't much people out here; just a couple making out, and two guys pretending that they're going to throw a girl in the pool.

To the right of the pool, I spot someone lying on the sun loungers.

Zeke.

I immediately walk over to him, for a second I think he's passed out, but he's not. He's staring at the sky with a cigarette held in his hand.

"Zeke? What the hell! Where did you go! I was looking for you everywhere-"

"Shhh," he holds a finger up to me, still staring at the sky.

That's when I realise he's totally out of it.

"Look," he points at the sky.

"What?"

"The sky."

"...What about it?"

"It's... Incredible," he whispers, "So many secrets. So much it's not telling us."

"Are you high?"

He doesn't answer, just continues staring up.

I take the cigarette from his hand and throw it on the ground.

"Hey! That wasn't nice."

"I need to get you home."

He shakes his head, "No."

"Yes. Come on, get up," I start pulling his arm until he sits up on the lounger.

"I can't."

"Why not?"

"Because I want to stay here. I'm tired."

"You can sleep in your bed, now stand up."

He starts shaking his head, looking at the ground.

"Zeke, get up now!" I shout, getting fed up with him.

He looks up at me, his bloodshot eyes widened. "Okay."

Wow, that was easy.

I help him up and put my arm around his waist, and his arm goes around my shoulders and I basically carry him into the house.

We walk into the living room, and I look for Zoey. Zeke can't walk in a straight line and almost makes me fall every time I take a step. Why is he so darn heavy?

I see Zoey sitting on the couch next to Cole and some over people.

"Zoe," I say as I drag Zeke over to them.

"What's wrong with him?" She stands up. I can tell she's a little drunk, but no where near as drunk as the asshole i'm holding onto.

"He's high. I'm gonna take him home. Do you want to come or should I come back for you?"

"You don't need to do all that, I can just stay here."

I look at Cole, worried my best friend might make some bad choices. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah, its finneee. Just go."

"Man, this music is amazing," Zeke says, looking at the ceiling as if that's where it's coming from.

Cole laughs, "You okay, dude?"

"Yeah i'm great bro, how you?"

Cole laughs again, "Amazing."

"Come on, let's go," I say to Zeke and start walking towards the door.

When we get outside, I look around for his car then take him to it.

"Give me your keys."

He shakes his head, "No way, no one drives my baby. I'll drive."

I laugh out loud, "There's no way you're driving. Give me the keys."

He groans and reaches into his pocket, and hands me the keys.

After helping him into the passenger seat and doing up his seatbelt for him, I get in the drivers side and figure out how to work his expensive car.

Once again, i'm elected the take the drunk person home position.

What a great night this has been.

So far...

+++

it's 2am rn and i have school tomorrow but i stayed up to update anyway. ugh i don't wanna go to schoooool 😫

teaser: zeke tells marnie some things he'll regret

- e