Lucas Carter is struggling to find his place after moving to Seacrest and enrolling in Seacrest High.
As he settles in with a new group of friends, Lucas becomes caught in a complicated love triangle with Tyler, a closeted jock, and Alec, a my...
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That night, I lay restless, unable to shake off what had happened in the bathroom with Nick and Lucas. It felt like all the control I had over my anger drained from my body, leaving me more than ready to beat Nick's ass to a bloody pulp. But something held me back-he held me back.
Feeling like there was no point in even trying to fall asleep, I dragged myself out of bed and trudged downstairs to the kitchen for a drink. As I grabbed the cold steel handle of the refrigerator door, my eyes traced over the note my parents had left, pinned up with a piece of tape.
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I sighed, used to the solitude by now. It seemed like they were always away on business, leaving me to fend for myself, but I couldn't complain-I preferred it that way. The once familiar kitchen was now a staging ground for our leave, with cardboard boxes piled high, filled with things packed for big our move at the end of the year.
I opened the refrigerator door and pulled out a bottle of orange juice, taking a swig before putting it back on the shelf. I lingered in the kitchen, reluctant to return to my room. Thoughts swirled in my mind, replaying the bathroom scene, how quickly I ran to defend Lucas, how badly I wanted to hurt Nick, how much it reminded me of my past. My mind raced with a whirlwind of thoughts as I headed to the elevator and descended to the gym. I needed an outlet, a release, so I approached one of the punching bags and unleashed a flurry of blows, letting my anger out as my mind drifted back and forth.
The bag of sand became Nick, and my mind became distant, straying back to what had followed the incident after school.
I waited in the boys' locker room, leaning against one of the cold metal lockers, the kind that always felt like ice no matter how warm it was outside. The place was eerily quiet, the only sound was the low hum of the fluorescent lights flickering above me. I knew Nick would show up eventually-he always did. Even on days without practice, he'd swing by here to grab his things before heading home.
