Gray walks towards me, taking two steps at a time, his hands stuffed into his pockets. "The guys are-"

He stops mid-sentence and mid-track when he sights my face, his smile crashing down. His eyes dart to his phone in my hands and back to my face. "I-"

"You're leaving?" I scoff, letting his phone fall back to the table. The school had given him an early admission scholarship. I was angry about him leaving and I was angry that he never told me.

"Kelch, listen," Gray stutters, taking slow steps towards me. I stumble backward, maintaining the distance between us.

"You're not even going to be here for graduation. How could you!" My voice is louder than I expected it to be, but I didn't care because I was furious and hurt.

A crowd starts to form around us, the prying eyes of our friends stuck on us.

"Why didn't you ever tell me? Do I mean that little to you!" I bite down on my lips to stop myself from crying. Gray looked broken, or at least I thought he did. I couldn't tell much through my blurry eyes.

"Kelch, I can explain," he reaches his hand out to me, but I move further away.

"I don't even care," I scoff bitterly. "Leave! Luca was better than you anyway."

Immediately the last sentence left my lips, I regretted it. The crestfallen look on Gray's face shattered me, yet I didn't take my words back. I just ran.

~~~~~~~~~~

I'm in one of the rooms in the beach house, crying my eyes out. I hated myself for feeling this way and how I had spoken to him. But my pride and disappointment remained at large.

A small knock is heard at the door, followed by Gray's voice. "Kelch, can I please talk to you?"

I keep my head buried in between my thighs, hiccuping between my tears. "No. Leave me alone."

Why did I keep saying things I didn't mean? I wanted him near, but I feared if I let him in, I would beg him to stay. I didn't want to be the reason he stayed.

"I'm not leaving, Kelch. I didn't accept it. I swear."

"Just leave me alone!"

"I was always going to tell you about it. I just never found the right time with everything going on."

I stand from the ground and stomp towards the door, jerking it open. "It's best you leave," I frown, squaring my shoulders, looking past his face.

"Kelch, please. Let's-"

"God! Could you be any more annoying?" I yell, fisting my hands dramatically. I move to walk away from him, but Gray stops me by placing his arms over my chest.

"I'll leave," he stares at the ground before turning to walk away. I scoff and walk back into the room, slamming the door.

Just as I'm about to plop my ass on the bed, another knock appears on my door.

"You've got to be kidding me," This time, I stand with more ferocity, stomping towards the door. Whenever I felt anger, I just wanted to be left alone. His apologies will not help me feel better. They only made me feel worse because deep down, I knew he had nothing to apologize for, and I had no right to be angry.

"What don't you-"

"Shut the fuck up," Zyair glares the moment I open the door, cutting me off. He wheels himself into the room, accidentally going over my left foot.

I roll my eyes and shut the door with a bang. "If you're here to talk about Gray-"

"I'm here to talk about you, dumbass. Thought you left this shitty behavior in 2020."

"I said I'm not mad!"

"No shit," Zyair snaps. "We both know you're not. You're only trying to hurt his feelings because you're sad. But Gray doesn't deserve that from you."

His words strike a chord in me because I knew he was right. I wasn't just sad. I also felt betrayed. We were all supposed to graduate together and go on a vacation somewhere before college. I always thought I'd have enough time to prepare myself for when we have to part, but this was way too soon.

"Why does he have to leave in two weeks?" I whine, my sights becoming blurry again.

"What does it matter? We are all going to leave sooner or later. But him leaving sooner would get him a full-ride scholarship, including room and board. Would you feel okay if he turned that down because of you?"

When he puts it that way, it makes me sound like a selfish-ass girlfriend.

"It won't be because of me," I murmur, staring at the ground, fiddling with my fingers.

"Every decision Gray has made in the last three years situated around you. He always put you first and still does. This morning, I had to put up a great fight to convince him not to reject the scholarship, but he still wanted to talk to you about it before he made his decision."

Now, I understand why Gray was so fidgety this morning. I wipe the tear away from my eyes. "If your mission was to make me feel like a jerk, then you've succeeded," I say.

"Good," Zyair taps on the arm of his wheelchair. "Because you're certainly acting like one."

Burying my head into my arms, I sigh, pulling at my hair frustratedly. Gray had done a lot for me and had always been there for me. I couldn't believe I had let him down this way.

"College isn't going to change a thing between the both of you. Gray is forever going to be obsessed with you, that I know. He had always been in love with you since the third grade," Zyair says, and I feel his hands rest on my shoulders.

"I met him in the right grade. You don't have to lie," I chuckle with a sniff.

"You met him in the eighth grade. He met you in the third grade."

I frown, confusion etched on my face. Zyair enjoys being vague, and I was ready to pry further to understand what he meant. Right now, I needed to find Gray and apologize.

"Have you ever considered becoming a therapist?" I joke, standing to my feet as Zyair headed for the door.

"No! I might have to beat some parents to death if I do," He shakes his head as we walked out the door.

We meet Ashley, Aaron, and Elliot at the parlor. "Where's Gray?" I ask, searching for him with my eyes.

"He took his mum and siblings to a hotel nearby. Your parents and a few decided it would be too late to head back to the city now," Ashley responds, a concerned look on her face.

I nod my head, and she moves closer to whisper in my ear. "I heard about Gray. Are you okay?" a feeling of guilt and sadness spread across her face.

"Yes. I'm fine."

~~~~~~~~~~

I wait outside until Gray arrives. Yes, I literally stood on the front porch for hours until I see his car pull up the driveway.

I already had a million things planned in my head to say to him when he gets back, but one look at his face and everything scurries off before I had a chance to grab onto one.

He gets down from his car, confusion, and surprise written all over his face. "Aren't you freezing?" He runs over to me and pulls me into the house before I could say anything.

Aaron, Elliot, and Zyair are the only ones left in the house by the time we walk in. They had their eyes trained on the television, watching love island- well, Ashley and Elliot forced the other two, but all the same.

Aaron and Zyair look at us at the same time, while Ashley and Elliot didn't acknowledge our presence.

"You guys let her stay outside when it's this cold?" Gray asks, glaring at Aaron and Zyair.

"I don't remember you paying me to babysit your girlfriend," Zyair replies with a snort.

I tug at Gray's shirt shyly, still embarrassed by my previous actions. "Can I talk to you in private?"

Gray nods and follows me up the stairs. We get into the room and shut the door behind us. I take a deep breath before turning to face Gray.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have reacted that way. I'm very happy for you, and I should have congratulated you instead of acting like an entitled bitch," I apologize, playing with my fingernails. I keep my head down as I couldn't bring myself to stare at Gray's face.

"Kelch," he calls softly, raising my head to his with his index finger, an intense gaze in his eyes. "I'm not going."

"No, you have to. I can't bear to see you turn it down. It was selfish of me not to see what a big opportunity this is for you. If anyone deserves a full-ride football scholarship, it's you. Everything I said-"

He cuts me off by grabbing my face with his hands, and before I know it, his tongue is in my mouth. At first, he kisses me softly as it takes me a few seconds to adjust. Gradually he increases the intensity of the kiss, with me clinging onto his arms for support. His tenacious tongue explores my mouth, leaving traces of peppermint and alcohol taste.

My heart keeps thumping, and I can barely think straight with the wild tremor along my nerves, invoking multiple sensations within me- the throbbing between my legs being the most persistent.

I pull away to catch my breath, allowing my lips to hover above his so that every time I breathe out, they touch. "Did you drink?"

Gray lifts me off my feet and holds me up by positioning his hands on my ass. "You." he kisses my lips and takes a step forward. "Talk." another kiss. "Too much."

My back hits the walls as he presses his lips onto mine again. I wrap my arms and legs around him, intensifying the kiss. We both struggle to gain control of the kiss, laughing when no one wins. He bites down on my lower lips, sucking and dragging it softly.

"I'm going to miss this a lot," he murmurs against my lips, a small smile on his lips.

I let my eyes trail over his hazel-green eyes to his straight nose and red-swollen lips. Lowering my head, I kiss the top of his forehead. "It's not forever."

"Every moment without you feels like forever." My eyes trail down to his lips, and I kiss him again, holding on to his shoulders tightly. He kisses me back with the same intensity, his hands rising to my waist as he walks towards the bed. Slowly, he puts me down without breaking the kisses.

His tongue keeps exploring my mouth as his hands trail over my thigh before they stop just below my pants. A loud gasp escapes my lips as he inserts two fingers into me. He uses his free hands to hold my head in place before kissing me again.

He leaves my mouth and trails kisses down my neck. My dress proved to be an obstacle as Gray tries to take it off me, so I sit up straighter and pull the dress off, leaving me in my underwear.

As soon as the dress came off me, I regretted my decision as I watch Gray's eyes trail every single inch of curves and bumps, a lustful hungry look overtaking his gaze. "I can't believe I get to call you mine."

I bring my hands to cover the folds on my stomach that appears whenever I'm seated. Gray pries my hands open, maintaining eye contact. He bends and places a ticklish kiss on my tummy. "Mine does that too," he says with a small smile.

At this point, the throbbing need for some sort of contact between my legs increases, and I arch my back, suggesting my needs to him.

"Just relax," he says, trailing kisses down my waist, purposely skipping my privates and going to my inner thighs. "I'm going to do all the work tonight."

My head spins with unfamiliar sensations as Gray slides his tongue up and down my folds. He was a lot better than I remembered him to be. After our breakup, I hadn't been with anyone else sexually. I always felt insecure after he cheated because I thought I was the problem.

But now, I'm glad no one else had access to me that way. They could never make me feel how he makes me feel. A loud moan erupts from my throat as his tongue curved upwards, stroking the roof of my walls. We both knew he had uncovered my G-spot, and from the way he kept stroking, it was obvious he wasn't going to stop soon.

"Oh, fuck," I could barely whisper, holding onto the sheets as Gray's tongue darted in and out of me, sucking and licking all of my juices. My nipples harden, spiking like a bottle head as my legs twitched from the burning sensations in between my legs.

"Gray," I yell as he slips two fingers into me. His gentle strokes transform into aggressive thrusts as wet, sloshing noises come from between my legs. He goes ahead to give my clit a long lick, pulling, sucking, and biting on it.

A screaming erupts from my lips, and I thrust my hips forward to give him further access. I was close. Too close.

"You like that, babe?" He half-mumbles. I could only manage a small nod as my sight goes blank instantly. I grab onto the sheets for support as my body writhes and shakes, my legs close, my hips arch forward. Breathing becomes harder as the riptide of pleasure tears through my vibrating body.

Gray pulls me further into him, his strong hands keeping my legs open as his tongue skillfully runs over my folds, sustaining my climax. I could barely contain the sensation that ran through my body. My hands weakly try to push Gray's head away, but he doesn't bulge. Steadily, pumping his tongue in and out of me, he keeps playing with my clit, while his hands keep my quivering hips in place. My juices slowly flow over all over his mouth, and he keeps licking and teasing without missing a single drop.

Another wave of pleasure pounds through my body, and I feel a stray tear fall from one of my eyes as the intensity of the orgasm was too much to bear. "F-u-c-k," I stammered as he pulls away from my privates, licking his lips.

When I come back to my senses, I see Gray stand from the bed and head for the bathroom.

"Where are you going?" I whine from withdrawal.

"Tonight was about you, babe," he says and enters the bathroom.

If it was about me, then he should know I still needed him. And I wanted to please him. So I follow him into the bathroom.

••••••••••••••

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