6. Chapter 6
Ithrow my cap in the air and cheer with the rest of Springbrook Highs graduating class. My emotions have been warring all day, swinging from relief to dread. My high school days, which haven’t been fantastic, are over. At the same time, I know big changes are coming, and that scares me. After scrambling to find my cap again, Cole swings me into his arms.
“Congratulations, baby, we did it!” he says before kissing me quickly. Then we’re surrounded by our families.
My mom hugs me tight, and my dad hands me a bouquet of roses. “We’re so proud of you,” she says with tears running down her face. As an only child, I was their only shot at this, and I’m glad I could make it happen.
Next, I’m pulled into Stacy Thorne’s arms and passed to Violet, Cole’s older sister. My parents move on to congratulate Cole. When the family surrounding us starts to dissipate, Emma and Olivia run up, squealing.
“Are you going to Carter’s party tonight?” Emma asks.
“We’ll both be there.”
The parents get us together for pictures, and it’s a whirlwind of faces and hugs and celebration.
“Foster, get in here. I need a picture of you, too,” Stacy calls out.
I turn to see his tall frame approaching and smile. I haven’t talked to or seen him much in the last few months. Cole and I haven’t revisited our conversation about the relationship dynamic I had proposed. I’m good with that and never pushed him on it.
Foster gives me a short hug before taking his pictures with Cole, but it’s enough to send my body into hyper-awareness. Talking myself into letting my feelings go is easier when there’s no touching. But when either of the guys touches me, I lose all my determination. Hence why I’ve avoided him and Talon completely.
I break away as more families and students converge. A lot of them are Cole’s teammates. I stare across the field, and a dark head of hair catches my eye. Talon stands off to his fathers side, looking miserable at having to be here. I give him a small wave, and he winks at me, making butterflies in my stomach.
Someone clears their throat behind me, making me break eye contact and turn around. Violet, Cole’s older sister, stands there. She looks at Talon hungrily, “That guy is so gorgeous. We almost hooked up senior year. I might have to give him another try.” I forgot they were in the same grade. Her words spark jealousy in me, but I must shake it off. I can’t care if he hooks up with someone else.
After the chaos of families, friends and so many pictures, I finally have a minute to breathe with just Cole.
He pulls me in his arms and gives me a kiss.
“The end of an era, and now we move on to the next step of our lives,” he says.
I roll my eyes at him, “You sound like a dad.”
He chuckles, “No way. You ready for it?”
“No, you?”
“Sometimes I think I am. Other times I don’t want anything to change.”
I nod. I didn’t want so many things to change, either. We had been inseparable our whole lives, and now that would all be different. I have to remind myself that he’ll only be a couple of hours’ drive away.
Cole looks down at me with a smile. “Yes,” he says, confusing me.
“Yes, what?”
“I’ve been looking into the whole poly relationship you were talking about. I think I can handle it.”
“Really?” I practically shout before calming myself down. I didn’t expect to ever have that come up between us again.
“Yeah, I get it better now. Love isn’t finite, and you have more than enough to go around. I have one small concern.”
“What’s that?”
“You don’t want me to…with either of them, do you?”
A laugh burst out of me, “No, not at all. Unless you’d want to.”
He shakes his head, “Nope, not my thing. I have no problem with it, but I’m only into you.”
I go up on my toes and give him a loving, lingering kiss. “Thank you,” I say against his lips. This amazing man has given me a gift.
This might be the first time I’ve ever been happy at a high school. When I walk into the large yard of Carter Peters’ house on Cole’s arm, its packed with my classmates. As usual, he gets stolen away quickly. I encourage him to socialize while I find something to drink and a quiet spot to contemplate the train wreck of a family dinner we’d just had.
Walking away from the cooler with a beer in my hand, I hear my name and turn to join Emma and Olivia.
“How did dinner go?” Emma asks me when I get close.
“Not great. Our families ambushed us. They want to know our plans for taking our relationship to the next level.”
“That sounds dreadful. You deserve something stronger than that,” she points to the beer in my hand.
“Who would want to get engaged before they go to college? Cole would be a fool to do that.” Olivia asks, and I roll my eyes at her.
“Neither of us wants that. We know we’re too young, but our parents were all married by twenty. It’s hard for them to realize, even though we love each other, we aren’t ready for that step,” I say and take a drink.
A warm arm wraps around my waist from behind, “Sorry, ladies, I need to take her away for a second. I’ll bring her back soon.”
I look back at Foster gratefully, then follow him to a quiet, more secluded part of the yard.
“What’s so urgent?” I ask him.
“I thought I’d save Olivia’s life. You looked like you were contemplating murder.”
I laugh, “It was touch and go there for a minute.”
“What did she say to have you so worked up?”
“Implied how stupid Cole would be to propose to me before going to college and sampling his many options.”
“That doesn’t sound like a very good friend. Wait, are you and Cole getting engaged?” Foster asks me with a worried look.
“Nope, but our parents are pushing. Maybe after college.” I look over the crowd to my friends, “Liv hasn’t been a great friend. She’s made it perfectly clear I’m not good enough for Cole and that she wants her shot at riding his dick.”
Foster chokes on a bit of the drink he had taken, making me giggle.
“Are you okay?” I ask him,
“Fine, I wasn’t expecting that to come out of your mouth.” He says while wiping the beer off of his chin with his sleeve.
“I’m not sweet and innocent all the time, you know,” I tease him and am rewarded by a raised brow.
“Oh really?” he asks, his voice lowering as he leans closer.
“Nope,” I say, popping the P. I look up and give him what I hope is a coy look, but I have no idea what I’m doing. Flirting has never been my thing because I’ve always had Cole.
Looking up into Foster’s dark eyes, I feel a tension build between us. I must be doing something right because he’s looking at me with pure want. I step in closer.
“Tell me to stop, or I’m going to kiss you,” Foster says.
“I’m not going to stop you,” I tell him a second before his lips touch mine.
He’s hesitant at first, his lips barely putting pressure on mine. I balance on my toes and push against him. He deepens the kiss, tongue licking and then nipping my bottom lip.
He pulls away, and I can see the remorse on his face. “I shouldn’t have done that. You’re dating my best friend.”
I place my fingers up against the lips that were just pressed to mine, “Don’t worry about it unless that kiss sucked. Cole knows, and he’s fine with it.”
He gives me a brilliant smile, “One, that was a phenomenal kiss, and I can’t wait to do it again. Two, what do you mean? Are you guys dating other people?”
“Approved other people, I suppose. Congrats, you made the list.”
“I’m honored, but how long of a list are we talking about?”
“Just you and Cole. And Talon Ward.”
“The coach’s son?”
“It’s a long story. Are you weirded out?”
He shrugs, “Not really. Dating around is normal, though I don’t think everyone is quite so open about it. I respect that.”
“Good. Foster?”
“Yes?”
“Can you kiss me again now?”
He does.
My body is excitedly humming as we hand over our tickets, go through security, and enter the park. No Left Turn is playing at an outdoor music festival this weekend, and I’ve talked Cole and Foster into joining me. I can’t believe we’re halfway through the summer, and I only have one more month with the guys. We’ve packed a lot into our time together. It’s been a little weird, but a lot of fun dating all three of them. Splitting my time and attention between them hasn’t been as much of an issue. Between all our separate lives, a natural schedule sorted itself. This is my first opportunity to get them all in one place.
I clutch Cole’s arm as we find a spot on the grass and lay down a blanket. Another band is playing, but no one is paying them much attention.
“What time do they go on?” Foster asks me after the three of us settle on the blanket.
“I think at two. Talon said their set is an hour long. Then we go to that gate over there to get backstage,” I point to the spot where he told me to meet him.
We sit in our spot and watch two more bands play before I hear a familiar chord. I spring up off my blanket as No Left Turn is brought out onstage. The crowd has swelled since we arrived, and they’re all on their feet.
Cole hauls me up onto his shoulders so that I can get a better view. I wave out to the guys, and Talon waves his sticks at me before giving a wink. Watching their set outdoors in the sun and surrounded by a couple of thousand people screaming their lyrics is exhilarating. Their talent is undeniable.
“So, what did you think?” I asked Cole and Foster after the band finished their set.
They both have big smiles on their faces.
“They’re good,” Cole says.
Foster shows me his phone, “Yeah, I downloaded some of their stuff already. I can’t believe they’re not under contract yet.”
We make our way to where Talon told me to meet. There he is, waiting with security to let us in.
“That was awesome,” I yell at him and wrap his naked, sweaty torso in a hug. I step away quickly, hoping to alleviate any awkwardness of the situation.
“You guys were great,” Cole says and holds his hand.
Talon shakes his hand, “Thank you.” He turns and greets Foster the same way. “Do you want to come into the green room? We’re celebrating. It’s kind of crazy in there, with bands coming in and out all day, but it’s a good time.”
We all agree, and he puts his arm around my waist, showing that he isn’t going to hold back because of my other guys. He leads us all back to a tented area with fans, couches, televisions, and a buffet of finger foods.
“Help yourselves to anything you want. There’s a bar over there, too,” he motions to a corner of the room. He walks over, grabs two glasses of champagne, and brings one for me.
“What are we celebrating?” I ask him.
“We got an offer,” he exclaims with a blinding smile. I’m not used to seeing his face light up this bright.
“Like a record contract?”
“Yep. Its from a smaller studio, which is what we wanted. It’ll give us more control over the music.”
I throw myself in his arms, “That’s so great.”
“We leave next week for LA to start recording.”
My stomach drops, “Next week? Already?”
“They want to capitalize on our social media popularity. Todays videos are going to hype us up. We have a lot of songs written and ready to go.”
“How long will it take to record?” I ask.
“It depends. It could be weeks or months. Afterward, we’ll go on a US tour for a few months.”
I plaster on an excited smile, “I’m so happy for you, Talon. I’m glad you get to see your dreams come true.”
I keep smiling, but inside, I’m a mess. Talon is leaving me, and soon, so will Cole and Foster. I’m not ready to be left alone, but I can’t be selfish now and ruin these moments for any of them.
“How are you doing?” Emma asks me.
We lay on our loungers in her backyard, soaking up the sun before the summer weather disappears. This August heatwave has been brutal.
“I’m okay,” I answer her, looking up from my Kindle.
“Liar.”
I set down my device, “Fine, I’m not great. I refuse to be clingy and needy right now. I was dumb to think I could handle this.”
Talon left for California yesterday. He was practically skipping to the airport, and I haven’t heard from him since. Its down to just twelve days until Cole and Foster leave for college. I am unwell.
“You won’t be completely alone, you know? I’m here, and you’re going to the community college. You’ll meet new people. You can be friendly when you want to be.”
Her words make me feel guilty, “I know you’re here. I’m sorry to make you feel like you don’t count.”
“No worries, I get it. You caught feelings for three guys.”
I don’t bother denying it, “It sucks. This was all about enjoying life and all that shit, but this isn’t fun at all. I’ve always loved Cole and always will. It doesn’t matter what the future holds. These feelings for Foster crept up, but how could I resist? He’s just so easy. He has no expectations, and when we’re together, he’s completely present. From the first time I saw him, I knew Talon would be trouble. He’s so intense. Ugh, I’m losing my mind.”
Emma laughs at my dramatics. “You are not. It might be rough, but you will all figure it out. You’ll always have the memories and experiences from this summer to reflect on. No one can take that away from you. In ten years, when you’re married to whoever with a couple of kids running around, you can think back to your wild summer with a rockstar and two hockey players.”
I laugh with her, though it makes me a little sad to know that this quad relationship can’t last forever Having to say goodbye to either of them will be hard. I wish I could live in the moment a little while longer.
“Do you know what youre going to do?” Emma asks me after we’ve been silent for a little while.
“What do you mean?” I ask her.
“Have you thought about you at all? You talk a lot about their futures, but what about your own? You have a life outside of them, and focusing on that is how you get through it.”
“I’ve registered for the basic classes for my first semester. I’m hoping an epiphany will hit me sometime soon. What about you?” I turn my attention to her because, in my head, my future is just a blank space. I can’t see anything past the summer, and it’s frustrating.
“I’ve signed up for cosmetology school. My program starts in two weeks.”
I raise my eyebrows in shock, “Like for doing hair and stuff?”
“Yeah.”
It’s surprising but not wholly unexpected. Emma has always liked to experiment with her looks. She’s the one that helps all our friends get ready for any event. “I can see you being successful at that.”
“Thanks. Maybe you should get your degree, and we can go into business together.”
“I’m not great with numbers and money,” I tell her with a shrug, then decide to be honest. “I like to take pictures.”
“Like a photographer? I never knew that.”
This summer I took a lot of pictures. Once Talon saw some of my work, he asked me to shoot his band at some of their gigs. They used them for social media. Foster and I took drives outside of the city so I could get shots of nature. I’ve also tagged along with Cole to the rink to capture him doing what he loves. They all three embraced my interest.
“I’ve dabbled, but I’d like to get more serious about it. I love to capture people and their emotions.”
“I hope it works out for you.”
We enjoy the rest of the afternoon together and I almost forget the dread of what is coming in less than two weeks. But in the back of my mind, the fear and anxiety of the future won’t go away.