Another Summer | C.F

ˏˋ°•*⁀➷ ADDISON ˏˋ°•*⁀➷

I spent the rest of the day getting ready. Not only that, I also talked to the girls and avoided Nicole, but that's another topic.

Anyway, when my hair and makeup were ready, I put on my dress and finished helping Belly get ready. She truly looks beautiful. She tied all her hair in a bun, while I left mine half up, half down.

Our makeup is basically the same. It's not like I know a lot about makeup. Once everything was ready, it was time to get in line to walk through an altar.

I don't even know what that is. It's silly, but I'm doing this for Susannah.

First, it was Belly, and then me.

A woman spoke: "Jeremiah Fisher escorting Isabel Conklin." They kept talking about how much she collected in all the activities for charity. But right now, I'm only thinking of him. Conrad.

He is in front of me, looking at me.

"Conrad Fisher escorting Addison Conklin."

I take a deep breath, give one step forward, and then another. I give more until I'm in front of him. Just a few inches separate us. He smiles at me and gives me his arm.

I take it, and we both walk for the photo session. After some photos, we walk to our table. I give my mom the flowers I'm supposed to and everything I practiced during the summer.

Then I walk back to where I was supposed to be.

After everyone was present, the escorts danced. It was really funny seeing all the weird faces Conrad made. We all clap and dance. And the night I thought would be a nightmare became one of the best.

Then there was time for the ball. I remember some years ago I used to practice dancing with Conrad. It was a joke. I used to tell him that he would never dance with me. And he wanted to prove me wrong, and at the end, I accepted that I didn't know how to dance, and he taught me.

But this part, apart from the rehearsals, it's going to be our first time serious.

"You look beautiful," he whispered while grabbing my hand and putting the other on my lower back.

"Thanks. And you look hot. The suit looks good on you."

He just laughed before the music started. We started facing slowly, following the routine.

"Remember when we used to dance?" He asked.

"Yeah, you weren't a good dancer."

"Shut up. I actually taught you, you dumbass."

"Yeah, I know. That's why I don't know how to dance."

"Right now, you are dancing and doing it pretty well."

"Nah, I don't think so. Maybe we don't know how to dance, so we look good in each other's eyes."

"Maybe."

"Maybe," I smiled, but I could feel something wrong. "Are you okay?"

"My mom is showing signs of the sickness. She now sleeps more, and she can't do fast movements."

"Sorry."

"It's not your fault."

"Sorry for not being here before."

"Once again, it's not your fault."

"But I knew something was wrong."

"But I didn't want to tell you the truth."

"Even when I didn't know it, you were one of my best friends, and now you are my boyfriend. I should be there for you."

When I finished talking, the music stopped. The dance was over. I didn't even know how I managed to dance without paying attention, but I think I nailed it.

Conrad responded by kissing me once the music was over, surprising me. But, even then, I managed to respond by wrapping my arms around his shoulders. We then parted ways and went to our respective places. Susannah was in the bathroom, and I had no idea where Jere was. Belly sat talking to Mom about the dance, expressing her concerns that she might mess it up. Dad was just listening to the conversation while drinking wine.

As Conrad grabbed my hand under the table, I sat next to him. When Belly stopped talking, I asked her, "Where's Jere?"

"He's outside. He needed to check something," Belly replied.

"Okay," I said, sitting up straight in my chair and resting my head on Conrad's shoulder.

Using my thumb, I made circles in Conrad's hand, knowing that he was worried about Susannah and wanting to distract him. He kept looking at the door where the bathroom was, checking if she was okay.

Jere and Susannah arrived almost at the same time. Susannah sat next to Mom, but Jere didn't sit; he walked over to Conrad.

"I need to talk to you," Jere said to Conrad.

Conrad's hand tensed between my fingers. He stood up, and I let go of his hand so they could talk. However, Conrad didn't move. He grabbed my hand again, and I stood up, looking at him.

"Alone, please," Jere said.

"No, she is coming," Conrad replied, and Jere nodded before walking away from the table. Conrad started following him, and I did the same. Once Jere stopped, I walked towards him and hugged him.

"Jere, are you okay?" I asked.

He hugged me back and said, "No."

"What's wrong?" I asked, concerned.

He moved away from me and looked at Conrad, who was behind me. I walked over to stand next to him, and once again, I grabbed his hand.

"Conrad," Jere began, but Conrad interrupted him.

"I know."

"No, you don't get it," Jere said.

"I know," Conrad said again, and I realized that they were talking about Susannah.

"Add's move," Jere told me. I didn't know why, but I obeyed. I took a step away from Conrad, and without thinking, Jere punched Conrad in the face. Conrad tried to stop him, but not from punching him; it seemed like Conrad liked to be punched, as if he felt guilty and deserved to be hit.

"Both of you, stop!" Susannah yelled.

They stopped, and I was actually shocked. I had never seen Jere punch anyone before.

They got up, and Susannah said, "What's going on?"

"Mom, we know," Jere said.

"We both know," Conrad added.

"Know what?" Belly asked as she started walking towards Jere, and I walked towards Conrad, taking his face in my hands to see if he was hurt. But it was too soon to know.

"Did you know?" Jere asked, and I turned to see that he was looking at me, knowing that I knew.

"No, I didn't tell her," Conrad said. I looked at him, hopefully. I couldn't ruin my relationship with Jere. It was too important to me, and Con knew that.

"Let her speak," Jere said.

"No, I actually don't know what you guys are talking about. If I didn't ask, it's because I was shocked by everything that's happening." I felt awful for lying to Jere.

"Yeah, sorry for assuming you knew." He walked back to where Belly was and hugged her.

Susannah spoke for the first time since realizing her sons knew her secret. "Let's go home," she said.

I walked next to Con, grabbing his hand. "Thanks."

"For what?" he asked.

"For lying to Jere. I feel awful, but I can't lose him."

"Don't worry, I know how important he is to you."

On our way home, Belly, Jere, Steven, Mom, and Susannah went in one car, and Con and I in another, mostly because Susannah didn't want Jere and Con near each other until she talked to them.