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SHE NEEDS HIM

chapter eight, FLORENCE PUGH JUST POSTED!

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   MATT STURNIOLO WALKED THROUGH THE DOOR, HAND-IN-HAND WITH THE BITCHY BRUNETTE. Just as he went to announce his presence, Anastasia screamed excitedly.

"What the fuck, Stacy?" Chris groaned, holding his ears. Stacy immediately apologized by leaning her head on his shoulder but then turned her phone's volume up.

Nicolas shushed Chris, leaning over to watch the sequence of recently uploaded stories.

"Florence Pugh just posted!" Anastasia grinned, shushing Matt who greeted the three.

"It's cooking with Flo, bitches!" The flawless British blonde's voice was heard through the speakers. Layla scoffed, wondering why Stacy was treating 'her Matty' like that, Matt on the other hand had no problem with Anastasia shushing him as he was used to this behaviour whenever Florence posted a 'Cooking with Flo' story.

He laughed to himself, taking a seat beside Chris and watching how awestruck his girl best friend was as she watched the British actress chop up a cucumber.

"Why are you so—" Layla began.

"Shh!"

The blue-eyed girl huffed in annoyance turning to Matthew to see if he would give her attention, however, the boy paid absolutely no attention to her and only watched Stacy with a small smile.

Layla rolled her eyes, pulling out her phone and loudly scrolling through TikTok. Anastasia bunched up a bit of the blanket she and Nick were huddled under.

"Hey, do you think you could turn that down?" She asked nicely, pausing the story to turn and look over at Layla.

"No," Layla rudely replied, continuing to scroll through TikTok.

Anastasia glared at Matthew as if to say: do something! Matt furrowed his eyebrows, not wanting to upset Layla but also not wanting to upset Stacy.

"Just ignore it, Ana," he sighed, avoiding her eyes and looking elsewhere. Matthew would never admit it but he was slowly getting tired of Layla continuously being rude, arrogant and self-centered. He knew it was okay to love yourself but the amount of love Layla had for herself was rather concerning.

Stacy opened her mouth to say something but held back and just raised her volume louder watching how aggravated Layla began to get.

Nicolas held in a laugh and continued to watch Florence cook. Layla yelled in anger, catching all four friends off guard. Chris, Nick and Stacy made eye contact but immediately looked away, containing their giggles.

"Woah, you good?" Matt asked, also not knowing whether to scold the three for laughing or to console her.

Layla immediately burst into tears, flailing her arms and wrapping herself in Matthew's arms. Overdramatic was a very light explanation of how the girl was acting right now.

Christopher turned to Matt who was very awkwardly consoling Layla which made him break into a fit of laughter. Layla looked up at the three who were rolling on the floor and hitting each other in laughter, she pouted and cried more.

"Guys," Matt deadpanned, giving the three a look so that they could leave the living room and go laugh hysterically in Chris's room.

Without hesitation, Stacy bolted up the stairs into Christopher's room, collapsing on his bed and laughing awfully loud.

Chris and Nick followed, piling on top of Stacy (whilst knocking the air out of her) and began to silently wheeze and roll around, unable to contain themselves.

Several minutes later, Matt walked through the door finding the trio finally calmed down. He leaned on the door frame, scanning each of their faces silently.

Stacy anxiously waited for him to say something.

"Ana?" Matt began. "Could I talk to you? Privately," he added, seeing both his brothers try to tag along.

Okay, this was definitely not what Anastasia wanted him to say. She stood up quietly, Stacy felt as if the world fell quiet and she didn't know whether she should panic or keep calm.

Matt walked down the hallway and into his room, waiting patiently for Anastasia to follow. Stacy looked back at Nick and Chris who had their eyebrows furrowed in curiosity.

As she entered the room, Matt slammed the door shut. It wasn't much of an aggressive slam, it was more of a 'I'm-about-to-yell-at-you' slam.

"Why are you such a bitch to her?" He immediately got to the point, tired of waiting around.

Anastasia's eyes widened at his question, unsure what demon had possessed him because this surely was not her best friend.

"I'm not," Stacy answered simply.

"Have you seen the way you treat her?"

Stacy shook her head, unfazed by how upset he seemed to grow. She looked him in the eyes, hoping this was all some sort of joke and he never actually cared about Layla.

"Now come on, you know she's rude to me and I only give back what I receive," Anastasia shrugged, not knowing why he was so wound up about the blue-eyed girls' scene earlier. "Unless someone gives me something I really want, then—"

"Anastasia!" Matt frustratedly yelled.

Stacy immediately silenced herself, anxiety began to flood through her body more than it already had been.

"Weren't you all for that 'girls support girls' movement? What the fuck happened to that?!"

The girl stayed quiet, staring at her feet. This had been the first time in months that he had yelled at her and not apologized almost instantly.

"Hello, I'm talking to you!" His voice began to raise.

"She's a fucking bitch, Matt," Anastasia stared at him in shock at how he was acting.

He angrily ran a hand down his face. He personally didn't want to be talking to Stacy like this but he promised Layla he would (she was currently in the other room listening). Not only was he frustrated with her stubbornness, he was frustrated with himself for even yelling at her for this.

"She's been nothing but nice to you!"

"No she has not," Stacy scoffed, now standing up so she felt a little less intimidated by Matt.

By now, Anastasia Paton's heart was pounding violently in her chest, throat, and head, and was also dropping to her feet. She didn't know if it was the fact that her best friend was siding with a literal asshole or if she was angry that he was yelling at her alone without his brothers, who were just as responsible for their laughing fit earlier. Her nose began to sting, signalling tears were brewing, Stacy fiercely sniffled in an attempt to hide her now burning eyes. She bunched up her pink linen pants in both fists, looking around the plain room and trying to distract herself. This wasn't like Chris's room where she could look in one direction and immediately zone out on a picture, this was more of a hospital wall where you really had to try to find an object to zone out on.

"Anastasia, you're being fucking stubborn!" He shouted angrily.

Nick and Chris heard their brother's second sudden outburst from three doors down and slowly made their way towards his room so they could eavesdrop better.

"I'm being stubborn? Come on, Matt. She's brainwashed you!" Stacy chuckled sourly.

In a way, Matt could understand where she was coming from but refused to agree with her.

"All you need to do is apologize to Layla and I won't be yelling," Matt grumbled, taking a step closer to the girl.

Stacy stepped back, afraid of whoever was in the boy's body at this moment. "No," she stubbornly shook her head.

"Holy shit!" Matt yelled, his voice going up a few octaves.

Anastasia felt her hands begin to shake in fear, there was no way she could ever be afraid of one of her best friends. Right?

"Just talk to—"

"No, Matt! What makes you think I'm going to apologize to a bitch who has been nothing but awful to me? You're fucking stupid if you think I'd actually do that," Stacy finally snapped.

Matt was taken aback by her attitude but this only annoyed him and pushed him to argue back.

"You're a fucking bitch, Stacy. What the fuck is wrong with you?" Matt shouted. Anastasia knew he carelessly said the first thing that came to mind but was shocked at how he was treating her.

Matthew's face softened quickly, processing what he had said. Taking a step closer to Anastasia, he went to grab her shaking hand. Stacy's lip began to quiver but she bit down on it, hoping to prevent the tears that were also threatening to spill.

She pulled her hand away as his hand brushed with hers and stormed out of his room, slamming the bedroom door right on his face. As she stepped outside she was met with the worried faces of Christopher and Nicolas.

"I'm fine," she sighed, shoving their hands away from her.

"Stace—" Chris began.

Anastasia shook her head, wiping away the multiple tears that had begun to fall. "Family first, right?" She whispered, pointing to the door where Matt was slowly walking out.

The two frowned at her statement but nodded understandingly. Just as Matt had walked over to where she and his two triplet brothers stood, Stacy hastily spun around and made a dash for the front door.

Matthew began to follow but was held back by both Chris and Nick.

"She definitely does not want to see you for a while, kid," Nick sighed sadly, rubbing Matt's back.

Matthew leaned his head on Chris's shoulder in defeat, worried for Stacy and her mental health.

Anastasia shoved open the door, ignoring her siblings' worried glances as she ran up the stairs and shook with sobs in her bed. She had no idea what had come over Matt but she sure as hell did not want to see nor talk to him any time soon, he had hurt her enough to last a week of avoidance.

After about three hours (of sleeping and panicking), Stacy began to calm her breaths after sipping slowly on water. She wiped her still stinging eyes and peeled the sheets off of her shivering body and threw on a hoodie without looking at it. The moment it hugged her body she recognised the scent, which came as a comfort to her even though she was currently upset with the hoodie's owner.

She angrily shrugged the hood over her messy hair and trudged down the stairs, smiling awkwardly at her sister who sat at the kitchen island talking to one of her friends that was currently staying over.

"Hi, Jess," Stacy waved politely. The blonde sixteen-year-old gave a warm smile, returning the gesture.

Anastasia reached inside the fridge, pulling out an almond croissant. She placed it on an oven tray and placed it inside the heated oven, putting a timer on for ten minutes.

"Where's mom, V?" Felix Paton asked walking into the kitchen, dapping Jessica up while sitting beside his twin sister.

"Conference," Vada replied while reading something off of Jess' phone.

Felix frowned but nodded, walking towards his older sister and giving her a side hug. Stacy smiled softly, hugging him back. He was nearly as tall as her, which in a way scared her.

"Matt came round a little while ago. 'Said you guys had a fight?" Felix whispered to his sister, knowing his twin's friend had a big mouth.

"Oh," Anastasia sighed, nodding her head in confirmation of his question.

Felix smiled sadly up at his sister, rubbing her back in a comforting way. Something Stacy was eternally grateful for was her siblings. Her best friends.

"I told him you were sleeping and to come back later," Felix added, hearing a small gasp from Stacy. He winced at his obvious mistake, immediately feeling bad. "Shit, I'm sorry."

Anastasia smiled, forgiving the boy for his honest mistake. The oven began to beep and Stacy jumped in fright at the sudden loud noise. She opened it, using a mitten to get the croissant out of it.

Felix went to say something else but a knock at the door held him back. Stacy worriedly glanced at him, slowly and anxiously making her way towards the front door.

She turned the knob as slowly as she could, being met with the frowning face of Christopher Sturniolo. Stacy sighed in relief glad it wasn't the other brother.

"Shit, you look awful," Chris commented as he welcomed himself inside the toasty home.

"Fuck, thanks."

Chris giggled at her sarcasm but brought her in for a loving hug. Stacy adored Chris's hugs, he always knew when someone needed one (which was basically all the time with Stacy) and always knew how long to hold on for.

Around a minute later he began to loosen his grip on Stacy. The pair pulled apart, Chris noticed the tears that were slipping down the girl's cheeks and sighed.

"Stacy," he frowned, wiping her cheeks.

Anastasia shook her head, grabbing his hand and moving it away from her face. Christopher furrowed his eyebrows, shoving his hands in his pockets with a sad smile.

"How is he?" She softly asked as the two were now seated in the living room.

Chris chuckled. "Of course, you want to know how he is. The focus is on you right now, Stace," he smiled at her.

Stacy smiled, rolling her eyes. Chris cheered excitedly, happy she finally smiled.

"I'm..." Stacy began but trailed off, not even able to answer the question.

Chris pursed his lips with an understanding nod. He stood up and extended and arm to Anastasia who just stared at him in confusion.

"I want McDonald's," he innocently shrugged.

"I don't think I'm in a state to drive, Chris," Stacy sighed, feeling bad that she let him down.

Chris smiled kindly, still pulling her up and dragging her out to the porch of his own home. It took Stacy a moment before she realized why they were there.

"No, Chris..." She cautiously told him, scanning the street for the familiar minivan.

The boy jokingly pouted, he knew she didn't want to see or talk to his brother but he really wanted McDonald's and he wanted Stacy to get out of the house.

"You don't have to talk to him, I just want to shout you a McFlurry," he shrugged.

Stacy rolled her eyes, he knew exactly how to rope her into something she didn't want to do. Finally, Anastasia caved and Chris, without hesitation, yelled out to his brother to drive them.

The girl's name came as a shock to Matthew who was listening to his brother yelling out to him. There was no way she had already forgiven him. Chris had to have bribed her.

He sighed, picking up his keys and exiting the house to see Chris and Stacy sitting patiently on the front porch while scrolling through fan edits.

"Are we going, or?"

"Oh yes!" Chris squealed, clapping his hands together in excitement.

Nick was currently out at Alahna's house, mainly so he could see her puppy Obi again so there was no point in yelling out for him. The three jumped into the car in silence, the only noise heard being Chris's low humming of a Lil Skies song.

As they drove, Chris began to zone out in deep thought, leaving the currently broken pair to suffer in the awful silence. Stacy began to chew her cuticles, an anxious habit she picked up from her father when she was younger. Speaking of her father, it was Anastasia's father's birthday tomorrow and Stacy couldn't help but stress about what to do.

From the time Silas Paton had passed, Matthew, Christopher and Nicolas Sturniolo always accompanied Anastasia to the man's grave. They would stay, upon Stacy's request, for an hour or so to tell stories to the deceased man, then would leave back home so Anastasia could show him the new and improved pages of her 'Dad and I' scrapbook she had been creating since kindergarten — when Silas was still around.

"Woah that's long," Chris gaped at the drive-thru line, rolling his eyes as Stacy and Matt chuckled childishly. "I'll just go in and get it," he shrugged.

Stacy felt her heartbeat speed up at the thought of being left alone in a car with the person she least wanted to be stuck in a car with right now.

Matt nodded, unlocking the door after finding a parking space so his brother could dash in and come out with the food he promised to shout the pair.

The silence was deafening. Stacy felt like her head was being held underwater and there was no coming back up. Matt's ears were ringing, he could've sworn he was in outer space with how quiet the current atmosphere was.

Three minutes passed and Chris still wasn't back. The line inside must be just as bad as it was outside, Anastasia thought. The Paton girl shut off her phone, bored of scrolling through her Instagram feed.

"Must be a long line inside too," Matt commented, finally breaking the painful silence. He felt as if an entire nation had lifted off of his shoulders after debating with himself for five whole minutes.

Anastasia nodded her head with a short hum. She was never one to shut down conversations with people, especially Matt, but this time she made an exception for herself.

Matt sighed, knowing he at least tried. Another minute passed and Matthew decided that 'trying' wasn't good enough, he debated hard with himself if he should bring the next topic up, especially since Stacy was mad at him, though he did it anyway.

"It's his birthday tomorrow, isn't it?"

Anastasia glanced up, her eyes landing right on his. It was like a breath of fresh air from the drowning, though her head was pulling back under as she looked back at her hands.

"Yeah. It is," she quietly answered his question, not mustering up enough courage to look him in the eyes once again.

"Have you been working on the scrapbook?" Matt asked a second question.

Stacy nodded, still looking at her chipped nail polish and rings.

"Mhm, I just need to touch it up tonight."

Matt smiled even though she wasn't looking at him. He wondered if he should ask if she still wanted him there tomorrow morning. Of course, she did, right? A little hot-tempered fight can't stop her from breaking up a tradition.

"Do you, um..." Matt trailed off, losing his sudden spur of the moment courage that popped out of nowhere.

"Do I what?" Stacy asked, hopeful he would ask what she wanted him to ask.

Anastasia knew exactly what her answer was going to be. Obviously, it would be a yes, there was no way she was letting this silly grudge get in the way of an annual tradition. Throughout freshman year all the way to senior year, she knew Matthew privately paid her father's grave some visits. Whether he had a bad lacrosse game or even if he just needed to be alone and needed someone to listen, when Stacy was busy, he would always go to Silas.

"Do you still want me there tomorrow? At his grave, I mean," Matt softly asked, dropping his head at how stupid the question sounded out loud.

This time it was Stacy looking up and Matt looking at his fingers. Anastasia furrowed her eyebrows with a soft smile, upset to see how anxious he was for her answer.

"Of course I do, Matt. Yes, we're not exactly on the best terms after this morning but there's no way I'm not letting you see dad with me tomorrow," she chuckled softly, leaning back in the seat.

Matthew glanced up, locking his eyes on her own. This time neither of them broke eye contact. Matt whispered a 'thank you' to the girl as they kept eye contact. The staring competition was broken as Chris yanked open the door. Matt spun around like lightning while Stacy clocked her head to stare out of the window.

"Oreo McFlurry and fries for you, M'lady," the long-haired triplet joked, handing the McDonald's brown paper bag back to the girl. "And a root beer and fries for you, good sir," he added with a grin.

"Thank you, young sir," Matt joked back, trying to put on an English accent but failing miserably.

( 💟 ) MAL SPEAKS,

extra-long chapter for you lovely
people today!! this was 3k+ words
LMFAOO

i am currently eating lasagne and it
is thunder storming outside
#livingthelife 🙌🙌

anyway sorry for the late night
update (for the americans), i just
couldn't wait to publish today's
chapter!!

i have a math exam tomorrow morning,
i'm so nervous help.

anywho! i love u all so much, have an incredible
day!!! hugs & kisses!

mwah, mal <3