"We've officially graduated from this shithole!" Jordan exclaims, high-fiving me.

I laugh at him, only able to nod because I literally cannot comprehend the fact that high school is over for me; in two months time, I'm starting university in a whole new country, flipping to an entirely new chapter of my life.

"Language, Jordan," Jordan's mom scolds from where she's standing behind him, and he just rolls her eyes at her, ignoring the comment.

We had only just walked out of our graduation ceremony, then finishing taking pictures before gathering all together to chat for a little longer.

Our senior trip was just last week, but it feels long gone. It was a lot of fun, seeing as we all flew to Toronto and ended up staying in a hotel, meaning that Bryce bribed Jasmine to spend the night in Jordan's room so that him and I could stay together.

I feel bad for the girls staying in the room beside us. We found many, many ways to keep ourselves busy all night.

"Is everybody down to go grab something to eat at the diner down the street? It's kind of our last chance to all be together because Bryce is moving in a couple days for some dumb reason," Jordan than suggests, and everyone's response is positive.

Bryce mopes about how he though just him and I could go hang out, but I promise him that we'll make time before he leaves in two days.

We all say goodbye to our parents, everyone figuring out who's driving who before we all climb into different vehicles with promise of all meeting up at the same spot.

Because Leo drove himself, Bryce and I are able to take his truck alone. It's really hard for me to let go of Bryce's hand when I have to, and he turns to kiss me on the forehead, promising that it'll all be okay.

I'm already so emotional about him leaving; I have absolutely no clue how I'm going to handle myself on the day that he actually leaves on.

I'm sure that I'll be a sobbing mess when we say goodbye, and he's probably going to have to pry my hands off from around his body so that he doesn't miss his flight.

I finally let go of Bryce's hand, opening up the car door so that I can climb inside. I shut the door and buckle my seatbelt silently, biting down hard on the inside of my cheek to try and stop myself from saying something desperate and whiny.

I can't bring myself to talk for the duration of the short car ride in fear of bursting out into tears the moment that I do.

Bryce keeps his hand on my thigh the whole drive, but he has to let go when we pull into the parking lot of the diner.

My heart feels heavy as I step out of the car, immediately folding my arms tight against my chest. I have chills running down my back despite the warm 24° temperature today, and I can feel my bottom lip quivering as I try desperately to stop the tears from falling down my cheeks.

Before I know it, Bryce is standing in front of me. He pulls me into a tight hug, and I wrap my arms around his waist straight away, letting my head rest against his chest for a moment.

"Let's save all the crying and general sadness for Sunday when I go. I want to enjoy our time together," Bryce says pulling away to stare at me.

I nod helplessly to him, trying to mentally piece together the right thing to say right now, but not able to figure it out fast enough as I hear Ryan ask, "Where are Lexi and Bryce?" from where he's standing a few parking spots away from us.

"Over there, talking about their feelings or something," Jordan responds flatly, and Bryce suddenly spins around, away from me but towards them.

"Fuck you!" he calls out, taking my hand in his and guiding me away from the car and towards where everyone else has gathered by the diner's front door.

A mother and her young child walk past us, and judging by the way that the mother is glaring at Bryce, now using both hands to cover her kid's ears, I can only assume that she must have just heard the curse word that Bryce had yelled out.

When Bryce sees her staring as she hurries her child away, he doesn't respond to her, instead just pursing his lips together as he continues to walk me away.

"Traumatising children. Smooth," I comment, and Bryce chuckles, snaking his arm around my waist.

Him, Ryan, Jordan, and I join everyone else on the front step, entering the quaint restaurant and waiting to get seated.

The hostess ends up placing us at the huge table at the back, and we all take our seats. Everyone else is still chatting with one another, but Bryce and I are completely silent as we stare down at where our hands are connected under the table.

Bryce gives mine a squeeze, and I squeeze him back before leaning down to rest my cheek on his shoulder.

He places a kiss to the top of my head, then reaching down to pull my chair closer to his.

He engages in some sort of conversation about soccer with my brother, but I'm still not thinking straight as I stare blankly down at the dark wood of the table.

A waitress comes by to take our drink orders, and I end up requesting a vanilla milkshake. Bryce tries to tease me about how bland my taste is as he chooses a strawberry milkshake, but as thankful as I am for him trying to lighten my mood, it doesn't quite work.

"We've never actually discussed where everyone is going for university. I guess we probably should," Jasmine cuts in, and everyone nods in agreement with her.

"Who wants to start?"

And so we all went down the line, listing off which school we're going to and what we plan on studying. It made me a little sad to realise how we're all doing such different things with our lives, and it's sad that I'm not going to see any of these people again for months after summer is over.

I think that being apart from my brother is going to be the hardest. I see him everyday, and he really is the best sibling that I ever could have asked for.

I know that he's glad that all my dreams are coming true, but it's still upsetting to know that he's staying here, able to see our parents whenever he pleases, while I'm all the way in a different country.

When the waitress drops off our drinks, I take a small sip of my milkshake before turning to look at Bryce.

I find that his eyes are already on me, and something compels him to bend down to kiss me right then and there.

"Once we're done here, will you come over to my place? My dad is out until late tonight," he says softly, and all I can do is nod at him.

When I look away from Bryce and towards the rest of the table, I find myself even more emotional.

Charlie and Jasmine are whispering things into each other's ears that no one else around us can hear.

I see Jasmine gently bite down on my brother's earlobe all of a sudden, causing his cheeks to go bright red as he turns to stare at her.

I decide to avert my gaze to Mateo, Ryan, and Daniel, hoping to avoid witnessing the start of my brother's next sexual conquest.

Daniel and Ryan seem to be in a heated argument which Mateo is trying to mediate. I can't hear what they're talking about, but it saddens me to know that I really probably won't see the three of them for awhile after I leave.

Moving on to the next person in the line, I'm back to Bryce, who's chatting with Jordan, and I find myself unable to look away from my boyfriend's handsome face.

His gaze is attentive as he watches Jordan speak, and I'm having a hard time listening to what either of them are saying because I can't stop staring.

"Lexi? You good?" Jordan cuts in, and I force my eyes away from Bryce to look towards him.

"Yep. I'm great. Sorry for interrupting your conversation," I apologise, and Bryce raises an eyebrow at me as if he doesn't believe me.

🌸🌸🌸

"So this is goodbye, huh?" Jordan asks Bryce, who shrugs at him.

We're the only three people left standing outside the diner, everyone else already bidding Bryce farewell and wishing him luck with Columbia.

The only people he looked at all affected to part ways with were Jasmine and Charlie, and I get it, I really do; our childhood group is officially splitting in half.

"Yeah. I'll be back for Christmas. We can probably meet up again then," Bryce suggests, and Jordan purses his lips together, nodding.

"I think I'm probably going to miss you, you know. I've known you for eight and a half months, but you make yourself very . . . known. Shit's going to be different without you around," Jordan says, and Bryce thinks for a moment.

And then they hug.

Bryce and Jordan, hugging.

After they pull apart, Bryce pats Jordan on the back before Jordan gives him one final wave, heading away from us and towards his car.

When Bryce turns back around to look at me, I give him a small smile before I reach to take his hand in mine.

"He's such a fucking idiot but I still like him for some reason," Bryce huffs, and all I can do is grin at him, tilting my head to the side as I stare up into his eyes.

"I know you do. Now let's go to your place and stop wasting time," I suggest.

🌸🌸🌸

"So, what do you want to do?" I ask Bryce stepping into his bedroom.

I head straight for his bed, taking a seat down on the edge as Bryce shuts the door behind us.

Although the blinds are down, some sunlight still peaks through, giving Bryce no reason to turn on the overhead light as he walks across the room, taking a seat behind me.

"I can think of many, many things that I'd love to do to you," Bryce whispers to me, his voice husky.

I swallow hard, unable to meet his eyes and instead looking towards the closet door.

There, I see an open suitcase filled to the brim with clothing. One of Bryce's guitars is in a case beside the bag, and his laptop is there too.

"You've already started packing?" I ask him, and he nods, following my gaze towards his things on the floor.

He wraps an arm around my shoulder, answering, "Yeah. I leave in nearly forty-eight hours now, so I guess it's about time. I'm a bit bitter that I can't take any of my recording equipment with me right now, but my dad agreed to help me figure out a way to ship everything over later."

"This summer is going to suck without you, Bryce," I say quietly, and he frowns at me as he takes my face between his fingers.

"Don't you dare ruin your summer thinking about me, Blossom. You go out and have fun. Moving to New York is going to be really tough, and you deserve to enjoy your time in your home city while you still can. I'll call you everyday, I promise, but I don't want you to get hung up thinking about us, baby girl," Bryce says to me, and all I can do is bite my lip.

I need him. This is my last chance before he leaves, and I feel like I have to take it while I still have it.

I reach for the bottom hem of his shirt, and his eyes go dark with understanding as he assists me in pulling it up over his head.

He tosses it onto the ground beside us, finally pressing his lips against mine.

His hands are soon on my back, unzipping my dress in a swift movement. I stand up, slipping the straps down past my shoulders and allowing for the fabric to fall to the floor. I kick the dress to the side, and Bryce is fast to grab me by the waist and throw me back down onto the bed.

I squeal at the suddenness of it all, reaching to unbuckle his belt before pulling it out from the loops of his pants, dropping it to the floor beside me.

He bites his lip at my eagerness, letting me trace my fingertips up and down his chest as he unzips his pants, yanking them down. He kicks them and his socks off, wearing just his boxer briefs as he climbs in between my legs.

I arch my back for him, and he somehow unclasps my bra using only one hand.

I can't even do that, and I wear a bra everyday.

His fingers then hook under the waistband of my underwear, pulling it down as I lift my hips up. He tosses those onto the floor to, pressing his mouth to mine for a hungry kiss.

I suddenly feel his fingers between my legs, causing me to let out a loud moan.

He grins against my lips before he pulls away from me, yanking his boxers down and pulling the drawer of his beside table open. He retrieves a condom, tearing the wrapper open before connecting our mouthes together again.

Bryce lifts my legs up all of a sudden, placing them over his shoulders. He grins down at me, loving the way that my mouth is wide open as I await what's about to happen next.

"You're so beautiful. So, so beautiful," Bryce compliments, tracing his fingers down from my face and all the way to the scars above my hip. His hand rests there for a minute, stroking the skin softly which just makes me groan out loud.

"You sure about this, baby?" Bryce asks as he always does, and I nod at him, giving him a reassuring smile.

I don't think he realises how much I appreciate the way that he constantly asks for content as much as I really do. After spending a night locked up and kidnapped, terrified of being violated and raped by adults three times my age, I think it's even more important to me than it would be to most people.

My thoughts are suddenly cut short and I have to gasp as our bodies connect in the most intimate way I could ever imagine as Bryce thrusts against me.

My legs have already begun to shake as I cry out Bryce's name, his hand slipping down between our bodies. He pushes my legs off his shoulders and I wrap them tight around his waist, my eyes falling shut.

I whimper, and Bryce lets out a loud, deep groan. He bends down to tangle his fingers in my hair, burying his face against the crook of my neck.

"Wha— what are you doing to me, Blossom?" Bryce asks gruffly, and my hands instinctually fly to his face, forcing him to look straight in to my eyes as we find our breaking point together.

I feel my legs tense around Bryce's waist, losing myself in him.

Bryce's body goes rigid too as he falls apart as well, calling out my name before he presses his forehead to the spot on the pillow beside my head, pulling away and laying down next to me.

I move back close to him, resting my head on his chest as he strokes my hair, both of us desperately trying to catch our breaths.

I can hear his heart beating loud and clear, and I know that my heart must be hammering away as well.

"I'm going to miss this a fuck ton," Bryce sighs, and I nod in agreement with him, still unable to speak after our moment together.

"I guess we'll just have to have phone sex, won't we?" he then asks me, and I feel my eyebrows shoot up.

"'Phone sex'? Huh? What do you mean?" I ask him, and he looks at me for a moment before his head falls straight back into the pillow, laughing like an absolute maniac.

"Trust me; you'll see," Bryce says with a mischievous smile on his face, and before I can prod him further on the matter, he presses his lips against mine.