𝚃𝚘𝚛𝚗- ᑕ0ᗰᑭᒪᗴ丅ᗴ

ch 4: tristan

So far, without Bunni, my freshman year in high school has sucked.

We're at different schools now, so the only time I get to see her is when she's hanging out at my house with Nate after school.

I've also tried to get more involved with stuff at school.

As Karl O'Connell's son, people on campus knew me before I even got there, and I was getting a lot of attention-- mostly from the school's female population.

Like today-- I'm at my house working on an English project with my partner, Julie.

She's funny and actually really cool, but she won't stop staring at me or brushing her arm against mine.

The only time I'm ever this close to a girl, it's always Bunni-- this... this feels different.

Julie's kinda cute, I guess-- but she's no Bunni.

Bunni's... perfect.

I guess I had zoned out and wasn't paying attention, because the next thing I knew, Julie was leaning in with her eyes closed.

I had never kissed a girl on the lips and I was so nervous at that moment that I froze-- giving Julie the opportunity to attach her lips to mine.

After a second or so, my mind and body finally caught up to each other, and I had to admit...

The kiss wasn't terrible.

Julie hopped off her stool at the kitchen island to stand in front of me, placing her hands on my shoulders as she stood on her tiptoes.

What was probably only about fifteen seconds felt like an eternity when I heard someone clearing their throat behind me.

I pulled away from Julie and turned to see my mom, standing with a hand on her hip and a raised eyebrow.

Nate was standing behind Mom rolling his eyes.

Sunny was standing next to Nate, and I instantly recognized the look on her face.

Her mouth was wide open and her eyes were big and wide; it was the familiar look she made when she was about to cry.

My mom caught my attention when she finally spoke, but I still had my eyes on Sunny, who had slowly begun to back away.

"Umm, Tris, don't you think it's time we got your friend home? It's almost dinnertime."

✨

I hated dinner that night. Besides the fact that my mom was lecturing me about being careful and considerate of 'these high school girls'-- Sunny was sitting right across from me, not even bothering to look up from her pasta.

After finally getting Julie back home, me and Mom returned to the house. I went straight for Bunny's room, wanting to make sure she didn't completely hate me, but I was surprised to find it empty.

After a moment of thinking it over, I sighed to myself, realizing she was probably avoiding me by hiding out in Nate's room.

So now, here she was, sitting across from me at the dinner table while my mom continued on with her rant.

"Honestly, Tristan. I thought I could trust you by yourself for a few hours after school. Had I known you'd be making out in the kitchen with some random girl--"

"Mom, it wasn't like that!"

Sunny flinched in her seat, before quietly asking my mom if she could finish her dinner in her room.

"Of course, Sweetheart. Your mom should be here soon, but you can go on upstairs to finish eating."

I hung my head when Sunny basically ran out of the dining room, with Nate following like always.

Suddenly alone at the table with my mom, I wanted to run to my room as well, but I knew I was stuck.

"Like I was saying..."

🖤