SOMETHING IN COOPER MADE him wonder if he had been rude to jeremiah simply because he didn't feel worthy of him and he needed him to back off before he developed some type of actual feelings for the younger boy. it also could've been the fact that he was high and wasn't thinking straight. either way, he got out of bed the next day in hopes of spending time with conrad to get his mind off everything that had been going on. the eldest fisher boy hadn't been around much since he was helping the guy with his book (cooper really needed to learn his name).
as he entered the kitchen he noticed that no one was around; he could see steven and jeremiah sitting at the edge of the pool with their feet dipped in, but no sign of belly, the two moms, nor conrad. after shooting his best friend a text he found out that conrad had gone out for an early morning boat ride and the girls were at the country club for some debutante stuff.
cooper decided to text allie and see if she was free, but she was busy with her family today. she invited him to join, but he declined, deciding to go back up to his room and get changed. after putting on swim trunks and a shirt he draped a towel over his shoulder and pocketed his phone and airpods before he made his way out the back door, where the steven and jeremiah sat. he gave steven a small wave before heading towards the side gate to head down by the beach.
"where are you going?" steven asked.
"crazy." cooper responded. he didn't mean to sound like a dick towards the conklin boy, but when he looked at jeremiah his mood instantly turned sour.
the curly haired boy piped up, "aren't you already there?"
cooper narrowed his eyes at him before tilting his head slightly with a smirk, "yeah, you drove me."
jeremiah rolled his eyes before looking back down at the water. the smirk fell from cooper's face and a frown formed. he glanced over at steven again, realizing he had been caught changing facial expressions rather quickly. the blonde shook his head lightly before heading towards the beach. he hated that jeremiah messed with his head so much.
as he walked along the beach he dropped down into an empty spot in the sand, laying his towel out. he covered his eyes with his arm and let the music from his phone play into the airpods he put in his ears. he tried distracting himself with the music, but the thoughts in his head were still louder. he really hated when that happened. he laid on the beach for what felt like hours before a shadow cast over him, blocking the sun.
as he opened his eyes he was surprised to see belly standing there with a towel in her hand and her bathing suit on. he took one of his earbud out before she spoke. "is it alright if i join you?"
"yeah, sure." cooper sat up on his elbows and watched as the girl laid out her towel next to him and sat on it.
"how long have you been out here?" the girl asked as she slipped her sunglasses up onto her head to show cooper she was giving him her undivided attention.
cooper looked at his phone and hummed, "three hours." he hadn't realized it had actually been that long.
"i can tell." belly laughed. "did you forget sunscreen?" she poked at his exposed side. "you're redder than a tomato."
the boy growned, "i did forget."
"you better aloe up later, my guy, because that is going to be painful." she smiled at him before leaning over to reach into the bag cooper hasn't noticed she brought. she pulled out sunscreen and held it towards him. "want me to put some on your back?"
"sure." cooper sat up and turned his back to the girl, letting her apply the sunscreen. once she was finished he put some on his arms, legs and torso while belly did the same, then he assisted her with her back as well. when the two laid back down cooper offered one of his earbuds to the girl and she graciously took it, content with the music that cooper had playing.
the two laid there for about an hour more before heading back towards the house. belly ordered cooper to take a cold shower and then said she'd help him apply aloe all over so he wouldn't be in too much pain once the sunburn set in. when he climbed out of said shower he looked at himself in the mirror, frowning at how red his skin looked. he cursed under his breath as he slipped on a pair of shorts before making his way down the hall to belly's room. as he stood in the doorway he noticed jeremiah sitting on her bed while she folded some clothes by her dresser.
belly noticed cooper before jeremiah did and a smile spread on her face. "all ready?" jeremiah turned to see who she was talking to and the blond boy watched as jeremiah's eyes raked down his half naked body. cooper ignored his staring and nodded at the girl. "i'll do it in your room. let me just finish putting these clothes away."
cooper only nodded before making his way to his room. he sat on the edge of the bed and looked at his phone, seeing that conrad was going to be around that night and said they should attend a party. cooper agreed, deciding that he needed a night away from the house, but mostly away from jeremiah.
the conklin girl walked in a few minutes later and helped him apply aloe to the places he couldn't reach. as she went to leave she stopped in the doorway and spun back around, looking at cooper as he slipped a shirt over his head. "can i ask you a question?"
cooper reached for his phone on the bed. "well, you just did, but you can ask another one." he joked.
belly playfully rolled her eyes, "ha ha." she shook her head and there was a pause before she spoke again. "i don't want to overstep, but is everything okay between you and jeremiah?" cooper only stared at her. "you guys seemed like you were trying to get along and now jeremiah is back to saying unpleasant things about you." she shook her head, "which i probably shouldn't have told you because that's not my business to share, but–"
"what is he saying?" cooper asked. his voice sounded as if he were practically demanding her to tell him, but it didn't come off rude.
"–just things about you getting conrad hooked on weed and how you're an asshole because "you're the way that you are". i'm not entirely sure what he meant by that, but he stopped saying negative things just a few days ago and now it's like a switch was flipped and he's back to despising you."
cooper sat on the edge of the bed and looked out the window for a moment while belly still stood in the doorway. "i'm sorry that i got conrad into smoking, but it's not my responsibility to tell him to stop. that's a decision he has to make on his own. i have my own reasons for smoking and if he doesn't like that then that's his problem, not mine. i'm the way that i am, belly, because i come from a really fucked up past and jeremiah doesn't know that. i'm not perfect, nor will i ever be, but people cope in different ways and unfortunately this is the way i choose to cope. maybe one day i'll find a different coping mechanism, but that day isn't today, nor will it be tomorrow, i'm sure. if jeremiah has an issue with who i am, then that's on him."
belly nodded in understanding. "thank you for sharing that with me." she gave cooper a small smile before leaving the room, only to see jeremiah lingering outside the doorway out of sight. she offered him a sad look before grabbing his hand, leading him away from the older boy's room.
NOT THIS COMING OUT OF NOWHERE FOR YOU AND I BOTH !
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