"Dude, are you alright?" Jordan pats at my shoulder and I snap out of my thoughts to look at him.

"Yeah, how long is he going to take?" I ask, frustrated because we have already been waiting at the porch for over five minutes now.

"Don't be a dick." He hisses at me but I shrug.

Evan and Sawyer finally step out and I give both of them nods, which they return. The annoyance has been simmering down that I feel around that guy because it's obvious that he apologised for what happened, and we have a team to run together even though we lost the last week's game again to Forneys.

"Are you going to play or stare at your boyfriend while we do that?" Evan teases his brother, taking in the adjoined hands of Sawyer and Jordan as we move to the outside basket in his yard.

"Asshole." Sawyer tells him and Evan smirks before he looks at me, giving me a small smile.

"Is Breanna coming?" Jordan asks, catching my attention as I hope that another name comes up with hers.

"She'll be a little late but she wanted to come hang out. Luke as well." Evan tells him and I sigh when no one mentions what I was craving to hear.

"Are you guys gonna play or chit chat?" Ryan asks, joining in as Sam follows behind him, earning a glare from Evan and me both because I might have forgiven him, but I still dislike the guy for bad-mouthing her.

We start the game, dividing into threes with Evan and I on the separate teams. I lead by two points when my eyes go the house next door and I notice the familiar face, making me freeze in my tracks.

"Chris, what the fuck!" Sawyer curses, taking the ball out of my hand but Evan frowns when he looks at me.

He follows my gaze and pretty much mirrors my expression when he notices her on the porch. I don't even think about it but my feet are already moving as I cross over to the next house and stop in the driveway from where I can see her clearly.

One month.

It has actually been over a month since she showed up at my door with tear stained cheeks and left without even giving me a chance to say anything in return. When she said she was leaving, I couldn't figure out what she meant but when I went to see her that night, no one opened the door.

So, obviously, I went over at Evan's but he seemed just as confused. He called up Scott who told us that she would be gone for the holidays, but holidays weren't for another week when she left.

And she was supposed to come back two weeks ago, that's how long the school has been opened but there was no trace of her. That doesn't mean my eyes didn't always had a look out for her presence.

I am so lost in my thoughts that I don't notice how different she looks. Her long hair aren't tied up, they are let down and she has a new haircut. Her long hair are gone that fell till her waist and now she has bangs falling on forehead.

She's wearing a dress. A fucking dress.

The sound of her laughter snaps me out of the trance and I shake my head before I realise the other person's presence besides her. The guy looks awfully familiar as he smirks and she swats at his shoulder, smiling, and making jealousy burst inside my chest.

Who the fuck is that?

"Adrianna!" I hear a squeaky voice behind me before Breanna sprints from my side to the porch, with her arms open as she engulfs her best friend into a hug.

"Bri!" She laughs, her voice travelling over with her laughter.

I feel like an outsider standing here until I feel someone else's presence besides me. I look at Evan and unlike me, he's smiling, he doesn't look surprised to see her, he looks incredibly happy as he approaches her.

"An." He says and her bambi like big green eyes turn to him with joy.

"Ev, holy shit!" She laughs and wraps her arms around him, "I fucking missed your ugly face."

"You mean you missed my absolutely sexy looks." He teases before letting go of her.

"Please, you both FaceTime more than anyone I know and that's fucking annoying." The guy says and I squint my eyes to have a better look at him.

Holy fuck.

The realisation dawns upon me. It's William. The Forney William. What the hell is he doing here, with her and why does he have one arm around her shoulder?

Wait, did he just say Adrianna and Evan FaceTimed? The asshole failed to mentioned that during his apology.

It's like she realises my presence because her eyes move to exactly where I am standing, widening in shock as she looks at me for the first time in a month and I try not to let that feeling clench through me but when the familiar feeling takes over my chest, I know it's a lost cause.

William notices my presence as well because he smirks and as if to annoy me, steps even closer to her and presses a kiss on her cheek as he smirks at me right after.

She pushes him away, "Will, stop!" She laughs, finally looking away from me at him.

Will?

Why am I the only one that seems surprised by this? Because Evan just looks so happy to see her, as does Breanna. I scowl as I continue to stare before Jordan comes by my side and pats on my back.

"You going to talk to her, or what?" He asks but I feel too surprised to even respond to him.

"What the fuck is that asshole doing with her?" I ask him and he shrugs.

"We wouldn't figure out until we talk, right?" He says, pushing me towards the porch and I hesitantly walk towards them.

She doesn't meet my eye but she looks at Jordan and smiles at him. He gives her a small smile before walking to her and wrapping his arms around her.

"I am sorry I was a dick to you." He says and I feel guilty because she thought she lost Jordan, when he was only looking out for me in the whole situation.

"All's forgiven and forgotten." She smiles at him and his eyes move to William.

"What's he doing here?" He asks and the amusement that plays on both William and her face annoys the shit out of me.

I look at the way Chris is glaring at William, even though he's trying to be subtle about it. I am sure he's assuming the worst right now, but I can't help but be amused by this whole situation.

"Uh," I begin but before I can continue, Daniel steps on the porch with my heavy bag.

"Both of you suck!" He tells William and I, "I mean, what the hell? I had to carry that over from seven houses down where your car stopped working!" He accuses William.

I can't hold in my laughter and neither can he as we stare at Daniel's sweaty face in this cold weather, "Aww, Dan, what are you gonna do about it? Complain to Momma?" William teases him.

Daniel glares at him before turning to me, "God, I have two most pathetic siblings." He announces and I laugh.

"Wait, what?" Chris asks, his eyes widening before he looks between the three of us. "He's your —?" He stares at William who smirks, not even hiding how much he's enjoying this.

"And let me guess, that would be Jay, I mean, Chris." Daniel says, looking at Chris's confused expression.

"I told you his reaction would be priceless." William tells me and I roll my eyes.

"Are you saying?" Jordan frowns at me and I nod.

"That he's my half-brother? Unfortunately, yes." I pinch William's side, earning a glare from him before I turn to Daniel, "And that's Dan, his twin. I am their elder sister." I mention the last part, making both of them groan.

"By ten months! It doesn't give you any authority over us." William tells me and I give him a look.

"Will, we talked about this. I am an adult, you're not." I shush him up and he squints his eyes at me to give me the deadliest look.

"He's the youngest of all, sorry about his manners." Daniel smiles at everyone, "I am Daniel Reed, by the way. Nice to meet you guys."

"You're elder to me by five minutes, Dan! Shut the fuck up."

It annoys the shit out of William that he's actually the youngest out of us, but Dan and I make sure to remind him again and again, at least once in a day.

I tsk at them, "Children. Now baby brothers, get my luggage back in the house." I turn the doorknob since I have already unlocked the door before.

"Don't ever call me that again." William repeats his threat for the thousandth time in the last month and I roll my eyes at him.

When both of them step inside, the rest of the four turn to me, but I don't miss the way Chris looks at me, and god, I missed his face. I missed everyone, but I talked to almost everyone, but never him. I even gave Jordan a call last week to talk because I knew he couldn't reach me since I changed my number.

"So, you weren't kidding when you said you get along with that guy." Evan says and I cannot hide away my smile as I look at his face.

God, it was a torture not spending holidays with him which I have been doing my whole life. "He's not bad, he's actually amazing. He just has that annoying asshole aura about him, and I was annoyed out of my damn mind when I saw his face after I reached there but not even a day later, we were talking and getting along. Daniel is much easier to get along with, though." I tell him and he nods, moving to wrap his arms around me.

"Welcome home, and you're not allowed to leave ever again." He says and I smile, nodding.

"Never again." I promise him.

"Talk to him, he's been a fucking mess." He whispers and I swallow, giving him a small smile before he moves inside the house.

Breanna squeals again, coming to hug me, "God, I am going to abduct you for a week." She laughs and I do the same.

"Love you, Bri." I tell her and she winks, and nods her head in Chris's direction before moving inside.

Jordan is the last person who just gives me a smile before he goes in the house, leaving Chris and I alone to talk, something I had been dreading since I made the decision of coming back home.

"Hey." I look at him and he continues to stare at me for two minutes, without speaking anything.

"Come on, I am not doing this over here." He says and I frown.

"What?" I ask but he just starts walking down the porch, through the driveway and across the street and I follow him.

When I catch up with him, he's unlocking his house and I step in, realising that this is much more privacy than I thought we would be requiring. Chris moves upstairs to his bedroom and I quietly follow behind him and he stands by his side while I stand by the door.

"You gonna sit?" He asks and I shrug, noticing how nothing about his room has changed in a month yet it looks like I'm here for the first time as my nerves start to grow.

I move to his desk and sit down on the chair by it's side and he sighs, sitting on the edge of his bed, facing me.

"Why?" He asks and I frown, "Why did you leave?"

Because I had to. I didn't realise how important it was for me to leave this town, that situation until I called up my father from my house phone. My phone had been shattered into pieces, but when I called up my father being a mess, I told him I want to go away from here. And he asked if I would like to stay with Cassandra over the winter break, because she had already proposed that.

I didn't even think twice about it before saying yes, and in an hour, she picked me up from my place with just a bag of clothes I stuffed in.

Meeting William there came as a shock, but he already knew who I was. Cassandra had told both him and Daniel about me a few months ago, before she even met me. I think that's why he ever approached me. And I had met Daniel at a school party before, where he had come just to see this girl his mother told him about was his half sister.

We actually talked at that party, but I didn't remember it until he brought it up. It was when Chris got shitfaced after his fight with Caitlyn. Yup, that very party.

As for my relations with my mother, we are much closer than I thought was ever possible. She has a loving husband, and as much as I hated Damien in my head, he's actually really kind and was willing to help me feel at home even though William, Daniel and I argued so much.

But I feel like I should have connected the dots myself. Cassandra Reed. William Reed. It was too obvious, right there — I was just lost in my own world.

A world where my feelings were so fucking messed up. When Evan kissed me the day I left, something about it felt so wrong, and it felt wrong to both of us, which is why he left before taking things forward. It wasn't the right thing to do. Even he knew what I felt for Chris was much more than I ever felt for him.

But I can never disrespect what I felt for Evan by saying it wasn't love, or that it was infatuation. It was love. He was the first guy I fell in love with, but he isn't the last. Chris is.

"It was necessary." I tell him and he frowns.

"Explain."

"Everything was messed up, and I needed time to myself before I could make any sense of my feelings," I breathe, "It was hard, but the realisation came itself."

He continues to scowl at me, "You were in contact with him." He says and I know he's talking about Evan.

"He's my best friend." I tell him and he gives me a look.

"Do you still love him?" He asks.

I shrug, "Always will."

I know my answer doesn't please him, but just because I fell out of love doesn't mean I would stop loving Evan. That would never happen. It's just a fine line between the two which only few understand and I hope he does too.

"Why did you never contact me? I tried your number so many before realising that you probably changed it." He says and I sigh.

It was so fucking hard, because I had picked up my phone million times during last one month when all I wanted to do was call him and hear his voice. But I couldn't. I needed to make sure that what I feel for him stays, that it isn't just rebound, that I am fair to myself.

"I had to, you know that." I say and he runs a hand through his hair, nodding.

"You never gave me a chance to respond to you." He complains and I smile a little.

"You were done with me, you still are. What was there to respond?" I ask.

He gives me a sharp look before standing from the bed and pacing back and forth in front of me, sending knots to my stomach.

"That's the fucking thing. You never gave me a chance, Claire. You just upped and left!" He says and I stand up.

"I am sorry, I thought I was doing the right thing." I tell him and he comes to a halt, standing in front of me.

"You weren't. But I do understand why you left, and it had to be done. But do you have any idea what a fucking torture it was not even knowing where you were? Especially because Evan wouldn't tell me a fucking thing." He grumbles and I smile a little.

"I was at Cassandra's." I tell him and he deadpans.

"You were supposed to come back two weeks ago. You missed two weeks of school."

I shake my head, "Damien has connections, I submitted all the assignments, homework and did every shit so it doesn't hurt my records."

"That much to stay away from me, huh?" He asks, and I give him a sad smile.

"That much so I could look you in the eyes and confidently tell you, without any doubts that I am in love with you." I whisper and he looks taken aback by my words.

I don't expect a response. I just wanted to get that off my chest because I promised myself I would do it. It's been more than a month since Chris and I broke up, so I don't expect him hung over me but I needed to confess, for my own sanity because I cannot carry another love confession over my shoulders for four years.

"Say that again." He says, his hand coming around my cheeks as he cups them and I search his face for his expressions.

"I am in love with you, Christopher Jay Jones." I whisper again and his grey orbs turn a little darker as he continues to stare at me.

"What did I tell you about saying my full name?" His voice is deep and husky, sending tingles through me as his mouth overs mine.

"What?" I ask, dazed as he hooks his hand around my neck.

"That you better be in my bed naked every time you say it." He says before kissing me, claiming my lips that have imagined every night what it would be like to kiss him again.

It's more overwhelming than I thought as my legs almost give out underneath me but he tugs his arm around waist before he lifts me and moves both of our bodies to bed, none of our lips leaving another as I try to show how much I really missed him and how crazily I am in love with him.

"Holy shit, Claire." His hand rubs on my inner thigh as my back meets the mattress and I love how his use of my middle name is enough to make heat rise inside my stomach.

"Chris." I whisper as he nibbles his teeth on my neck, probably leaving a mark that I would love to show off.

My hand fumbles with the elastic of his trousers which he takes off once he realises it's causing hinderance between us. I next tug on his shirt that comes off as well before his eyes meet mine and I have never seen so much certainty behind them.

"Dresses look perfect on you," he whisper as he pulls on the hem of my dress, "but this has to go."

He kisses my bare stomach after my dress is off and I arch my back at his touch that seems to be driving me crazy. "Fuck." I moan as he continues to travel south before taking off every piece of clothing from my body and then his.

His pierced tongue meets the most sensitive bundle of nerves on my body, and a loud moan racks through me, causing him to smirk proudly.

"Asshole." I mutter and he chuckles before coming up to kiss me and I take his hard self in my hand.

"Holy—" I cut him off as I kiss him but he still moans in my mouth, making me part.

I kiss his jaw before he reaches the side drawer for a condom and I travel my hands up his chest as I place a kiss on his shoulder, realising that his body looks even more toned than it did before.

When he rips out the rubber, he looks at me nervously, "Probably the worst moment to tell you, but I have never done this."

I frown, "What?"

"Uh, I have never.." he trails off, making me scowl as I continue to stare at his face in order for his words to make sense.

"You've never had sex?" I ask and he looks a little uncomfortable, "Okay, what was that shit you did with Caitlyn? Wasn't Stacey your first or something?" I ask, clearly confused with this whole situation.

"About that. It was different." He clears his throat and I push at his chest a little.

"What do you mean different?" I scowl.

"Claire, do you want me to go into details right now? I just wanted to tell you that I've never really.."

Oh.

Oh. Holy shit.

"You're a virgin." I gasp and he hides his face in my neck as a chuckle leaves through me. "Hey, Chris? Are you.. really?"

He lifts his face up, giving me a look, "If that's how you put it."