25. Montana
twenty-five
Montana
When we return to my apartment, we decide to stay up for a bit. We get comfortable on the couch and I put on a popular Netflix show called Love Is Blind . Sitting on the couch with my girls, we're watching the show while eating Autumn's favorite snack: mango with chamoy sauce. It's a really good combination.
We decide that we want to get tattoos. Right now, so we grab a ride-share and go see Axel. We all decide to get “ good girl ” tattooed on our hip bones .
“Axel! Thank you so much for fitting us in so late. We know what we want and where and it's not going to take long at all.”
“Are y'all drunk?”
“Nope,” Autumn squeaks out.
“A little,” Marley snitches, holding her thumb and index finger close together.
I tsk, “Snitches get stitches.” I giggle.
“No, we just had a couple drinks and sang karaoke. But we’re not drunk.”
“Fuck. Fine, fill out the forms and I'll get set up.”
“Yay, thank you!” I'm giddy.
Autumn looks like she's going to pass out, but Marley is excited.
“Fuck, are you sure we should do this, Monti?” Autumn whispers.
“Yes! Yes, we should.” I giggle.
“Okay, girlfriend, let's go,” she says with hesitation.
“Alright, let's do the damn thing,” Marley claps. .
“Okay, but I'm going first.” Autumn nods.
“Hell, yeah! Axel, we’re ready my dude!”
We walk over and Autumn lays down. She pulls her tights down and she's left in only a lacy thong. I see Axel swallow hard.
“Alright, you sure you want it right here?”
“Absolutely.”
“If Rocky comes in here and tries to kick my ass…”
“He won't. I won’t let him,” I reassure him.
“He better not,” he grumbles.
We can’t help but to laugh at him, he’s so nervous, it’s adorable.
“Done. Who’s next?” he says as he finishes Autumns tattoo, and she goes to look in the mirror.
I lay on the bed after he changed the plastic and I shimmy out of my jeans so he can do mine next. Once finished, I check it out in the mirror.
“Alright, trouble, you’re next.” He smirks at Marley.
“They’re perfect! Will you take a picture of us?”
“Sure. So, I gotta know, why good girl?”
“Because in smut books, we love it when the main male character says, “Are you my good girl?” I reply with a smirk.
He nods and laughs.
I'm sure he thinks we’re crazy for getting that, but it’s something we can look back on and say we were in an era of the ‘good girls.’
I hand him my phone so he can take the picture for us, wishing I had brought my Polaroid along. We grab another ride-share and head back to my place.
We all take showers and jump into my fluffy bed for sleep.
Tonight was so much fun. I always have fun with Rocky, but tonight with all of our friends was amazing.
Things are finally looking up. I need to tell him who I really am. Tomorrow, and hopefully he understands why I wanted to wait so long. You know when you meet someone, and you just click with them? I moved here on a whim with a broken heart thinking things wouldn’t ever look up, and they have. I have never felt like this for someone. Not even Dylan and I’d been with him since high school. I don’t doubt that it was love, but it wasn’t the kind of love that you see in movies or read in romance books. Rocky is someone I can see myself with and have a future with.
I need him to understand why I didn’t want to tell him. I’m not ashamed of him. But, if he were to lose out on an NFL team he really wanted because of who he’s in a relationship with, it would crush me. I don’t want to hold him back. I would follow him to California. Shit, I would follow him anywhere.
I never asked to be who I am, but I was given two of the most amazing parents who happen to own a football team.
They’re supposed to be here. They weren’t supposed to get hit by a drunk driver. Sometimes life just sucks.
I had to pick up my crown, dust that shit off and become the woman they wanted me to be a lot faster than we planned.
I grab my phone to text Rocky because I need to tell him.
Me: I need to talk to you about something.