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Fallon

“F un class, eh? I think I could get into the whole science thing.” Kelly bumped my shoulder with hers, wiggling her eyebrows as she popped the last of her chocolate in her mouth.

Shooting her a knowing look, I said, “Shane, huh?”

“Ugh! I’m in love!” She threw up her arms with her long, layered brown hair flowing with the wind. “Next week will be the best week of my life.”

My best friend, a through and through skater girl. She always wore edgy makeup, a graphic tee, and always carried a board with her wherever she went. She also loved to post 2013 era style photos to her social media. I loved her endlessly.

We became the best of friends at thirteen, and we fell into an effortless yin and yang of operations. She became my sister when she was there for me while my mother was at the end of her battle and eventually passed.

Then, when I turned eighteen, I found my mother left me a huge fucking inheritance in secret on top of her wishes to have me take over her company by the time I turned twenty-one. We were always well off, but my mother–bless her–hid the fact that we were some of the wealthiest people in the nation from me.

She left me a note.

I know that you know we had money. More than enough to be comfortable, but I never wanted you to be spoiled rotten. You have made me proud to be your mom, you have such a good head on your shoulders. I just hope I’ve prepared you enough for the life that lies ahead of you now.

All my love,

Mom

When my eighteenth hit, a lawyer handed me a few documents to sign and a check for multi-millions of dollars. I knew next to nothing when I was passed to my next of kin, Slyvia.

Slyvia, my aunt, hated my mother with a passion. She was always concerned with herself, her boyfriend of the hour, money, and not me. When I was legal, I was asked to leave–which wasn’t a shock since she refused to acknowledge me when she wasn’t trying to hit me.

Wishing she was better, I lamented the heavy neglect that turned into full abuse whenever she drank. And she drank–often. Her life was “too important” to get screwed up by her somewhat estranged sister’s kid. She often told me what she really thought of my mom. It wasn’t fun.

Kelly was my rock through it all, when she could be. I had a tight leash. Thank God we moved in with each other the day my check hit the bank. Without her, I may as well have died.

“So,” I started, looking at her with appreciation for her just being her. “Want to see what shopping we can do?”

She pointed behind me. “Looks like we might have some company for it.”

Garrett, my maybe-boyfriend, appeared behind me, putting his hands around my waist and planting a kiss on my neck. “Company for what?”

I giggled, his kiss tickling me a bit. “Shopping! But! First, we need to check our schedules and map out our in-person classes to find the best spots to scope for your mafia.”

She waved a hand at me. “I say we hit the shops. We already have one here with us.” She looked at Garrett, holding up her board. “Just know, I will take your girl on my sick board if you break her heart.”

He nodded, smiling. “Noted. Also, mafia?”

“One,” I started. “I don’t think we can both fit on that board. Two,” I looked to Garrett, “she’s building a mafia-style cult. Keep up, babe.”

“We’ll make do,” Kelly huffed, linking her arm with mine as Garrett dragged along behind me. She held up her lilac-colored penny board like it was a threat as we went.

Stomping along ahead of us, Kelly found where her English class would be. We had one class together since she hadn’t officially declared her major, making her options for classes more open than mine. My classes were based around the core credits for a bachelor’s in Exercise Science.

I was taking a physical education class–explorative exercise. We would be taken through a host of movement types. There would be dancing, skating, swimming, tennis, and any other activity that fit the scope of the class.

The sports science building was jaw dropping. There was a lab dedicated to metabolic research and testing. The pod–where one could get the most accurate body fat data was at the top of the list to check out. Ever since the pod came out, underwater submersion data was tossed to the side.

Unsure of where I wanted to go with my degree, I picked it because it was the topic that interested me the most at the time. I’d spent a lot of my life choosing sports for hobbies, and my mother encouraged me to follow my heart in all things. Remembering the times we had, my heart ached at the thought of her not being able to share in this next era of my life.

Whatever you choose to do, follow your heart and you’ll know the path is right.

“Now that we’ve explored,” I started, pulling myself out of my thoughts, “we should get off campus and do self-care in the form of shopping.”

Kelly looked far too happy to go check out new shit to buy. “Walk or car? Or board?” She winked at Garrett.

“Seems like a good day to walk before the weather starts cooling off too much,” he nudged me, pulling my hand into his.

A twenty-minute walk from the most southern part of campus, the shopping center of Willow Bay looked like something out of a movie. Over the summer, they expanded the center into even more territory, and looked like more and more shops would be open soon.

There was major money in one spot, why wouldn’t they expand?

It also wasn’t just a shopping center. It was a place to show and flaunt wealth.

That, and grab really good food.

Walking into the grand entrance, we were enveloped in the atmosphere of crisp, green money and heavy metal credit cards. The marble floors glistened with warm light radiating from the crystal chandeliers. Light music played overhead as we walked through with the occasional light chatter of patrons or clinks of glasses in a nearby cafe.

The centerpiece of the complex was a large water display. It was as if someone teleported the world’s most ambient waterfall indoors–water fell from the ceiling, cascading down a rock formation. The light sound of water rushing coupled with the elite looking clientele completed the luxury vibe. I felt like I didn’t belong here, but my bank account said otherwise.

“You sure you want to be dragged into all this?” I looked to Garrett.

He asked me out on occasional dates and showed interest, but we never made anything official. I was gob smacked when a football player asked me out while we were on campus prepping our schedules before part of the campus closed over summer break.

We passed by after football practice had ended and he ran up to me, asking me out for coffee and my phone number. His brown curly hair was dripping sweat, his lightly tanned face had black stains all over, and he looked a mess. His brown eyes were full of excitement as he handed me his phone. Nonetheless, I agreed to a date. Then another. And a few more after that.

But, we weren’t official. We hadn’t even slept together.

“What?” He had a coy smile on his face. “And miss watching you trying on clothes?”

“Ew,” Kelly faked a gag. “I need some coffee first.”

In the cafe, she ordered some blended version of coffee that said more ‘coffee flavored milkshake’ than coffee. I ordered my standard iced americano with a packet of sucralose. Garrett copied my order.

“So, I was thinking...” Kelly trailed off.

“Oh no,” I said.

“Oh yes. You need new clothes, and Garrett can be the judge of how hot you look–after my opinion of course. Sophomore year is going to look great on you.”

Garrett looked at me excitedly, giving me a naughty smirk at the thought of me out of my clothes.

Nope, not going there. I don’t sleep around like that. Especially if I’m not an official girlfriend.

I sighed. “What are these new clothes even for?”

She grinned, a diabolical look in her eyes. “Parties and parties .”

“What about rushing?”

She clicked her tongue at me. “I don’t want to rush. Can we hold off on that?”

“You’re rushing? Which house?” Garrett butted in.

The look in Kelly’s eyes said nowhere, but I said, “I have no idea. The options are wide open.”

Kelly took a long sip of her drink, eying the stores we walked past. Luxury boutiques. Name brand stores. “Before we chat more about girls’ clubs, I get to pick your outfit for the back-to-school bash.”

I knew she was going to put me in something far too skimpy, but I obliged her anyway. “Only if you come with me to at least one event.”

We entered what felt like seven stores in one; a massive luxury clothing store. The clothes ranged from casual to met gala worthy. How she could pick out anything in here was beyond me. It was a bit unnerving.

But she grew up in wealth, knowing more about the nepo baby life than I did. Sometimes, I trusted her far too much with that side of things.

Lobbing clothes at me instantly, I was shocked at how quickly she was picking things out. “How about this one? Oh! And this one. Here, try these two for good measure. And... this one.”

Garrett had to start helping me catch the clothes she was throwing at me, laughing as we tried to catch them all. He was pretty to look at, and sometimes I wondered what he wanted from me. His brilliant smile directed at me said he was happy to be here–maybe it was my anxiety again.

Taking some of the clothes to the fitting room–a closet with a curtain–I felt like some of these felt the same look-wise. Trying them on, stepping out and spinning for my audience, and repeating, I decided I liked the fifth outfit.

I slipped into the classic little black dress that seemed to subtly glisten under the lights. The material felt like butter on my skin and accentuated my figure. The dress had a plunging neckline with delicate straps and left enough to the imagination that I didn’t feel completely naked.

Stepping out, Kelly and Garrett’s jaws dropped to the floor. “Wow,” they said in unison.

Trying not to blush, I tucked a strand of hair behind my ear. “I do kind of like this one.”

“Cynthia!” Kelly called. “We’ll take this one and this whole pile, thank you.”

Garrett couldn’t take his eyes off of me even after I changed back into my normal attire–a basic cream cashmere sweater tucked into my navy pleated skirt.

We found a Japanese steakhouse to sit and eat lunch at with our shopping bags safely with the concierge. The one thing I could get behind with being rich was the fact that I could have any service available to me, like someone watching your bags while you eat lunch.

It was still weird that I had that kind of fuck you money.

Hopefully, I didn’t screw up and make my mom mad at me from heaven.

“I think my look is complete,” I said in between bites.

“Now you’re ready to look hot at parties with your arm candy over there,” she giggled, kicking me under the table.

Kelly was from a silently wealthy type of family. They stayed out of the news–out of the press. Her dad paid for everything she ever needed but never gave her too much. Her father thought that holding her by a tight leash and restricting funds would tamper her wild side down, but she wasn’t wild–she was a social butterfly. It was mostly about how she dressed; he punished her for being too “alternative” in her fashion choices.

His loss. She was never going to dress like the norm.

Picking up her phone from the table, she squealed. “It’s Shane! I’m going to go meet him. I’ll see you at home? I’ll be there to help bring the bags in–swear!” She saluted me and ran out of the restaurant.

“You two are cute,” Garrett said, poking my arm.

I tried not to blush. “Thanks.”

“So, I wanted to know... would you be my date to the next baseball game?” He scooted into the seat Kelly left empty, moving his food with him.

I wanted to, but I worried that he was going to try to have sex with me. It made me nervous to do it for the first time but maybe getting it over with this semester would help me with coming out of my shell. He was a kind, attractive guy who seemed genuinely interested in me, and I couldn’t imagine it would be all bad.

Shit, did that mean I’d have to tell him I was a virgin?

Putting my head on his shoulder, I tried to calm my nerves about putting myself more out in the open. “That sounds nice. We should go get food after the game, too.”

“I could be down for that,” he said, playing with a couple strands of my hair.

We ate comfortably until I realized I needed to get ready for the party and get my bags thrown into my room. “Looks like I should be getting back to prep for this banger party. Drive me home?”

After we met and I texted him, he replied immediately. I got the first crush butterflies–considering I’d never had a boyfriend before. We texted for a couple of days and scheduled our first official date, making me even more nervous about getting into my next era of life. We agreed on being non-exclusive for a while after I told him some of my hesitations about getting into a serious relationship in college. Everything was fine.

He was kind and patient, which felt out of the blue from what I’d heard about other boys.

But what did I know?

He opened my door for me when we arrived at my house and, as promised, Kelly came barreling out of the front door to help with the bags.

“How’s Shane?” I teased her.

“He’ll be at the party. I’m so excited for us to double date. Thanks for taking care of my girl, Garrett! See you later!”

We waved him off and started our haul into the house.

The house we lived in was a very cute, quaint home that I purchased just far enough from campus to feel some separation. It was walkable, and one of the smaller neighborhoods in the Willow Bay area. We had enough space per house that each lot had a bit of outdoor space–space I wanted to fill with a garden and natural pool.

Our neighborhood was an old one, it was here for longer than the school had been. The architecture was old and traditional, speaking to the careful craftsmanship of the Victorian era. I felt at peace here with the non-symmetrical homes, steep roofs, and elaborate wood trim.

That was, when there weren’t house parties on the street. It made sense later why the older couple was willing to sell at a lower asking price.

I looked over at the newest house party–a predominantly male one–to see a bunch of them acting like fools in the front yard with beer and no shirts. Two of them were wrestling each other outside and it wasn’t clear if it was a play fight or not.

“What the hell are they doing?” I couldn’t help but stare.

Kelly laughed. “Being a bunch of cavemen, obviously.”

The two separated and reset their stances to prepare to collide again. The transition from wrestling to a fist fight had me leaning towards a real fight. The first guy with short, cropped brown hair took the first swing–a gnarly right hook–at the shaggy blonde and connected with his jaw. The guys around them cheered and hollered, encouraging the fight.

My eyes widened. “Dude, they’re fighting for real.”

The blonde one stumbled back and tried to correct his stance. He approached and attempted a few swings before landing an uppercut to the brown-haired guy. That looked brutal.

“Yikes,” she replied, becoming engrossed like I was.

A dark, leather jacketed figure leaned over the porch railing, throwing something into the scuffle, a cigarette hanging from his lips. Under his jacket, he had no shirt on, and his body was covered in tattoos. He was clearly enjoying the chaos.

“What the heck is that one doing?” I pointed at him, trying not to stare.

She chuckled. “That one? Yeah, I can guarantee he’s the one who started the fight.”

I raised an eyebrow in a silent question.

Continuing, she said, “That’s Brent Vaughn. I’m only half surprised you don’t know him. Considering you didn’t come out of your hole last year, it makes sense.”

“Let me guess... he has a reputation of sorts.”

“Yup. Total jerk. Pretty ruthless one, too. Once at a party, he was confronted for sleeping with someone’s girlfriend–which he does often–and he pummeled the shit out of him for being confrontational. He’s the star of the baseball team–the dark star, that is.”

“Huh,” I said, picking up the last of the bags. “Some guys just love to be chaotic.”

I couldn’t help but look back at him on the porch, crossing my arms. He was laughing along with the fight with his friends. A deep and carefree laugh at the violence that made me wonder exactly how much chaos this guy liked. He flicked ash from his cigarette, pulling off ‘I’m a cool guy’ confidence.

He had barely any hair, exposing the tattoos that came up the side of his head and neck. It reminded me of a military boot camp buzz cut. Tattoos peeked out from everywhere, telling me this man was inked up to the max. I couldn’t tell how tall he was from here, but most people were taller than me standing at five foot six.

Kelly sighed, opening the door. “So sad that those good looks are wasted on the assholes.”

Before I stepped into the house, I turned to get one last look. Call me intrigued.

Brent’s gaze flicked over to me, locking eyes with mine and holding me in place. He brought the cigarette back to his lips to take a long drag, daring me to look away as his mouth leaked smoke and developed just enough of a smirk to let me know he caught me continuing to look at him. He raised an eyebrow and cocked his head, silently asking me what I was looking at.

I broke first and couldn’t tell if I was intrigued or terrified after a staring contest with him. Forcing myself to move quickly, I all but jumped into the house to slam the door.

Last one , I thought, peeking quickly before closing the door. He chucked his cigarette to the ground and pulled off his jacket, revealing a plethora of tattoos covering his entire upper body. He pulled that smirk back up and looked over to me, letting me know he was well aware of what I was doing.

“Want to start getting ready?” Kelly asked from deep in the house.

“Uh, yeah.”