Betty Graham stood beside Jack, her arms wrapped around herself as she held onto the openings of the flannel she was wearing. They stood in the kitchen area of the sold Fisher house, the defeat evident and devastatingly clear on everyone's faces as Jeremiah finally broke the silence.

"Okay. So, I know things aren't going so great right now but it's always the darkest before the dawn, right?" He tried to instill some hope but it was hard when the house was already sold, Betty closing her eyes as she leaned against the countertop. Jack was standing to her left, his elbow touching her as he actually did wrack his brain for some kind of solution to Conrad and Jeremiah's big problem.

"Yeah, not this time." Conrad said, Betty's eyes reopening as she looked to Conrad who looked more sad and defeated than anyone else.

"Have you guys tried contesting the sale?" Jack was the one to speak, a deep sigh coming from his mouth as he turned his head to look at the thorn in his side.

"Considering the house was just sold today...no we haven't tried that. And it won't work. Technically we have no real case. But thanks for the reminder just how shitty this whole thing is, man." Conrad said, his condescending and arrogant tone making Betty's eyes widen as she looked at him. Jack let out a short chuckle and shrugged deciding he no longer wanted to help. Betty wanted to reach across the counter and smack Conrad upside the head, the girl wondering why he couldn't just stop bitching.

"Um...I'm—I'm sorry. I tried to get her to call off the deal." Skye said as they entered, Conrad attention quickly shifting to his cousin.

"It's not on you, Skye." Betty actually appreciated the fact that Conrad didn't blame Skye, her heart softening a little at the fact he was actually right and not mean to them.

"I know, but she's my mom, so I would get if you guys were angry with me too. I just can't deal with her right now." Skye said, Jeremiah reaching for them and pulling his cousin in for a side hug.

"Hey no one's mad at you, Skye."

"We can't control our parents. Don't feel bad." Betty said, trying to uplift them because she knew they felt shitty.

"So what? We just go home now?" Steven said, the boy leaning against the countertop in the other side of Betty, his frown so deeply embedded in his face she wondered if it hurt.

"Yeah. It's over." Conrad said, Belly quickly stopping him.

"No! Our-our last memory here can't be this. Everyone miserable and defeated. I mean, this place deserves a better goodbye than that." Betty liked the way Belly was thinking, and she was right. This home held a special place in most of their hearts, and it wasn't fair to leave it like this.

"Like what?" Conrad said, his eyes on the countertop as he realized she actually made a bit of sense. Out of the corner of his eye he could see Jacks arm sliding around Betty's waist, the boy quickly looking the other way as his fist clenched on the countertop.

"My mom came to the beach house with Susannah for the first time after her dad died. And it was supposed to be just the two of them but Susannah hated how empty the house felt so she decided to throw a huge party. Everyone was dancing and drinking and they went swimming at midnight. And Susannah said it was like Gatsby or something. So I say we throw a party too!"

"I'm in." Jeremiah said, starting a chain reaction of people nodding and agreeing. Jack didn't say anything, he wasn't in any way a part of this other than the fact that the girl he had on his arm was deeply intertwined, his eyes going to her as she also agreed and nodded her head. He adored her smile when it lit up her face and then he watched as her eyes shifted directly to Conrad, the sneaky feeling of jealousy piercing him. He could see it, now that he knew what they were he could tell, and he wasn't sure how he hadn't seen it before.

Knowing that Conrad had gotten accepted to an Ivy for the purpose of following Betty to college because he loved her so much wasn't something Jack could easily forget. It was alarming to him how tense things were between the two of them in only the little bit of time he'd seen them around each other. They knew each other like the backs of their hands and he wasn't the biggest fan of that. But he also knew she was with him, she chose him, and that he needed to trust that.

"You in?" Steven asked Conrad, Betty's eyes going to him as Jacks went to hers. He could see it there, the look he'd wanted from her since the moment they met...but he chose to ignore it—knowing that it was for the better if he did.

"I think it's exactly what my mom would have wanted. She'd love it."

"Great. Okay. Everybody, shower, power nap, and then I'm putting you to work." Belly said, Betty saluting her pulling Jack out of the house. Steven watched as the couple left and then he looked to Conrad who was still standing there, his face falling as he spoke.

"You good?" Steven asked, Conrad pulling a water from the fridge.

"Yeah." Conrad said, attempting to walk past Steven. But the boy didn't let him, his head shaking as he spoke again.

"Oh. Okay, wait, wait, wait, wait. For real though. Look, I know you've got a lot in your plate. Alright, the house, Stanford—"

"I already told you I'm not going to Stanford, man." Conrad interrupted him, Steven quick to pick back up.

"I'm just saying—I'm all for you embracing your zen—"

"Embracing my zen?"

"Yeah."

"Where'd you get that? Is that one of your girl Taylor's mantras?" Conrad said, deflecting.

"Taylor's not my girl." Steven said, shaking his head slightly as Conrad spoke again.

"That's not what it looked like last night." Steven was surprised by how well he steered the conversation away from himself, the boy still moving to talk back.

"Oh well, I see what you're doing. But, yes, Taylor does have some good therapy in her back pocket despite her questionable sources. Zen could be a good look for you." Steven said, Conrad giving him a look like he sounded a bit crazy.

"Whatever you say." He once again tried to escape Steven, the boy pushing him back to where he was and shaking his head.

"Okay. Can I finish?"

"I feel like you're going to keep talking whether or not I want you to anyways so go ahead." The serious look that Steven gave him fully gave away what came next, Conrad wanting to sigh as Steven spoke.

"I know that it's probably really hard to see her with someone else. Nobody was expecting that guy to show up. And I know something happened yesterday because of all that shit after the boardwalk so I just want to know if you're okay. Because I know with her it's—"

"It's what?" Conrad asked, his eyes wide as he swallowed hard and waited for what Stevens analysis of their relationship would be.

"It means more.  You...listen man you said it yourself—it'll never be over between you too. And I believe it fully and I know that you do too because even after the fact that she has a boyfriend and he showed up you  still waited for her reaction to Bellys idea and you still wanted to tell her first thing about the house. "

"Yeah well...there's no point. She told me last night that she really gave up.  I lost her. And there's nothing I can do to change that now." Conrad sounded beyond defeated, Stevens face falling as he heard him. To Steven, he'd always assumed that Betty and Conrad would end up together. When he heard about Belly and Conrad, he was too confused to even process it correctly, for him it had always and would always be Betty for Conrad.

"You really believe that man?"

"I do. I fucked up. I fucked up so many times actually that I'm surprised she wasn't done with me sooner." Conrad said, thinking of how he'd treated her for so long.

"Okay well what did she say? Like is she done done or just like done?"

"She's done. She said I was mean, and she was tired, and she gave up. And she called her boyfriend because I fucked up and now he's here and that's just...it's just perfect." Conrad said, Steven shaking his head at the words coming out of his mouth. They stood there for a moment before Steven shook his head, his lips parting to speak as he shrugged his shoulders.

"No."

"No?" Conrad asked, confused as to what he meant.

"No I don't accept that and I don't believe her.  No. And tonight is the perfect opportunity for you to win her back. A party." Conrad would be lying if he said he wasn't slightly intrigued by what Steven had to say, his head shaking as he began to sing his tune of self pity and defeat. Steven stopped him though, his eyes brightening with mischief as he found the perfect plan. "Don't even start saying no. I have the perfect plan."

:::

"He does not like me huh?" Jack said as Betty closed the door behind them, his head slightly shaking as he looked back at her. She let out a sigh, shrugging her shoulders and gesturing towards him.

"Do you like him?"

"Not at all." Jack replied, Betty's point being proven as she nodded her head and gave him an obvious look.

"Exactly." She said, putting her keys down on the table by the door. She made her way towards the stairs and waved for him to follow, Jack watching after her with a curious expression. He followed her up the stairs, the boy actually a bit excited to go to her bedroom—where he assumed they were going— his interest in what she's like and what her personality really is making him want to know. When she pushed the door open he wasn't surprised by the pinkish glow of the room, a soft pastel that he thought fit her perfectly. It was a big room, her bed against the left wall, a dresser against the right and a vanity that was absolutely covered in all kinds of things. She walked inside and he followed, the girl throwing herself onto the bed. He looked around and noticed that there were posters, his smile growing when he saw the contrast of her movie taste and how surprised he was that she had the poster of some old western pasted on the back of her door.

There were a few pictures around, most of her brothers and her and what he assumed was her dad. And he walked over to the vanity, his smile still in tact and as he peeked into her life before he was in it. He looked over the makeup on the table, the hairbrush, his eyes falling on the corner of something stick out from under a makeup bag. He tugged the small corner and his smile fell, the Polaroid picture being one of her and Conrad, blissfully happy smiles and the familiarity of love being written all over it. He turned it over and of course it had writing on it, his stomach dropping when he read it.

Always yours, Connie

He was almost sure he believed that.

Jack knew what he was getting into when he showed up here. He knew that Conrad would be here, he knew that they had been together, but he felt like everything was a nod to their past now. Every little look and missed glance held more meaning , and he felt paranoid. He'd come knowing that he would have to fight. He came to win.

"Come lay down baby." Betty said from behind him, pulling Jack from his thoughts. He sat the picture down, his smile returning at the sound of her voice calling his name. He loved her. He loved her more than anyone he'd ever loved before...he hoped she was feeling something of the same thing. He crawled onto the bed with her, laying beside her and gladly taking her into his arms. She smiled as he pulled them together, their chests colliding as they laid there in the sunlight that bathed the room. Jack looked to the window, wondering if he should draw a curtain but he was caught off guard by something else...the view from her window. Her window gazed directly into a window on the neighbors house. And while he wasn't sure whose window it was, he had a sneaking suspicion and that paranoia that he couldn't shake. "What are you thinking about?"

Her fingers brushed over the side of his face, her finger tracing his cheekbone and her eyes heavy as she took the sight of him in. Her fingers settled in his hair and it was then that he realized his stress was all because of Conrad, not because of Betty. He really was paranoid. He would need ti get that under control.

"I'm just thinking about how much everything in this room suits you." She let out a tiny laugh, her head nodding slightly as her eyes never wavered from the sight of him. She did love him. She knew she did. She loved him because he was the antithesis of what she knew love to be, and she liked the soft love he offered, instead of the painful and endlessly exhausting one she had always known. She loved Jack.

"I'm gonna sleep a little bit...but I want you to hold me." She said, Jack nodding his head as he tried to shut off his mind. To shut out the terrible thoughts that plagued him. He was unfamiliar with these feelings because he was always so sure about himself, but Conrad was a worthy opponent, he didn't know what tricks he had up his sleeve.

"Okay." He said, focusing in on her and her alone. They  laid there for a few moments before her lips parted, her eyes not opening but her voice soft and tired.

"Promise to be on your best behavior?" She whispered, the corner of Jacks lips lifting as he realized all the reasons he needed her in his life. All the reasons he was  even there.

"I promise." She nodded, and they'd both promised...now was the real test of who could actually keep it.