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     Grace wasn't dumb, she knew Elliot was still doing drugs even after he swore he wasn't.  She could tell by the stupid look on his face.  Plus, she saw him sitting next to Rue Bennett by the campfire outside at New Year's and she knew that didn't mean anything good.

     "Hey Grace," he tried greeting her in the hallway as she was walking to her locker.

     "Get lost," Grace bit, walking past him.  She wasn't necessarily excited for the new school year, she knew a lot of the other girls went over and beyond with their makeup and outfits, but Grace was more of the if it ain't broken don't fix it type of girl.  Every morning was the same for her, as long as she had a good breakfast and had her hair out of her face.  She liked to do braids, and she also liked to do a winged eyeliner every day.  It was her routine and she liked it.

     Elliot didn't fit into that routine, not anymore.

     "Ah, you don't mean that," he skipped a little to catch up to her.

     Grace stopped in her tracks and turned to face him.  "What do you want, rugrat?"

     "Excellent word choice."

     Grace rolled her eyes and kept going, determined to get to her locker.  "You look more and more like a meerkat every day."

     "Harsh," he said as they approached Rue and Jules.  Rue and Grace had become unlikely friends in recent years due to their lockers being placed next to each others.  It wasn't necessarily a strong concrete friendship, more so built upon groaning at the same time when the bell rang.  Truth was, they still didn't know each other that well.  "What's goin' on?"

     The blonde girl, who Grace had come to learn was Rue's official unofficial significant other, spoke first at the sight of Elliot and Grace.  "Hi.  Hi."

     "Nothin'..." Rue replied cooly.

     "I'm Jules."

     "Sorry, this is Jules," Rue corrected herself.

     "Hey, I'm Elliot.  Nice to meet you."

     "Sorry, introductions are, usually, very, um, overwhelming and... debilitating for me... at least," Rue cleared her throat.

     Grace looked back and forth between the three, pressing her lips together before finally speaking up.  "Well I'm Grace, and that's actually my locker."

     "Oh," Rue said, stepping out of the way for Grace.

     "Uh, so, how do you know Elliot?" Jules continued.

     "We met on New Year's," Elliot said since Rue was taking her sweet ass time.

     The curly-haired girl chuckled, and if Grace thought about it twice, she'd sense that she was nervous.  "Oh shit, yeah.  That was it, New Year's.  That's... That's where we met.  Jules is my girlfriend."

     "Wow... I didn't know you were, um..."

     "In a relationship?"

     "I think he was gonna say into girls," Grace cut in.

     Elliot looked between Jules and Grace with a shaky breath.  "Yeah."

     Jules was the first to break out of this God-awful awkward encounter.  "Um... it was nice to meet you, and I'll see you later, Rue."

     "Nice to meet you," Elliot said.

     "I love you.  Bye," Rue said as Jules stormed off, into the girls' bathroom.

     "Hey, Cass."

     "Hey, Jules."

     Since winter formal, Cassie had gone through a low-grade depression.  Mostly Lexi and their mother pushed for her to start getting back on her own two feet, but it seemed like that wasn't happening anytime soon, which Eliana caught onto quickly.

     Eliana, Maddy and Cassie were swimming a couple of nights ago when Cassie started acting weird.  "I was reading this article on abstinence, and how not having sex is like its own spiritual journey."  Eliana nodded (even if she was hella confused) and Maddy encouraged her with a solid 'Right'.  "The writer compared it to how monks take their vows of silence, and I really feel like that's my journey next year."

     "Bitch, I don't believe a word you're saying," Maddy deadpanned.

     "Why?"

     "Because you love to be loved."

     "How do I fix that?"

     "I don't know, when you wanna say yes, you just say no."

     Eliana nodded.  "I don't mean to be the character who's only around to agree with the strong leading female," she winked at Maddy.  "But that's some solid advice."

     Maddy and Eliana resumed their friendship right where they picked off, and Eliana was grateful for no love lost between the two.  She'd even been hanging out at the house Maddy was babysitting at when Maddy was there.  She basked in the sun while her legs swayed in the water by the poolside with her large white sunglasses and black one-piece swimsuit while Maddy called Cassie on the phone.

     "Nate sent me the most beautiful text message this morning."

     "Really?  What he say?"  And let it be known that not only was Eliana one thousand and one percent against this idea again, but she was sure Maddy wouldn't go back to him this time.  "That's so sweet."

     "Yeah, I know he's a horrible person, but I'm kind of torn," Maddy said. 

     "Boo," Eliana stuck a thumb upside down Maddy's way, to which Maddy just rolled her eyes.  "You're boring us with talking about that gremlin."  The 'us' that Eliana was referring to would be the kid Maddy was supposed to be watching, Eliana's new friend Theo.

     "When are you getting off the phone?"

     "Why do you care?" Maddy retorted.

     "Because I wanna talk to you," Theo whined.  How could you say no to that?

     "Hey, Cass, I'm gonna go hang out with my best friend Theo and I'll call you later.  Okay. Okay, bye."

     When Theo was out of earshot, Eliana leaned over to her friend as they watched him play in the pool.  She had her naturally curly hair tied up in a sloppy messy bun.  "Is it bad that I want one of those?"

     Maddy shook her head. "Uh uh. We are not going there."

     Bringing us back to the present day.

     "I feel like I would look so sexy pregnant," Maddy eyed herself in the mirror of the girls' bathroom, rubbing her hands over her stomach as she stuck it out, trying to imagine what it would be like. 

     "Maddy, please do not get pregnant."

     "I wouldn't wear any of those nasty maternity clothes.  I would just be me... plus pregnant.  Eliana agrees," Maddy turned to face Eliana, who was taking a picture of herself in the mirror by her.

     "Nuh-uh, do not go there," Eliana said.

     "Remember when I got pregnant?" BB spoke up.

     "Yes, and it would be nothing like that," Maddy retorted.

     BB sighed.  "Well, speakin' of baby daddies, I've seen the photo that Ethan posted of the two of you," BB turned to Kat, who was standing in the back quietly.  "It's cute as fuck."

     "Yeah, Kat, stop flaunting your healthy, non-abusive, wonderful relationship. It's actually triggering. 

     "She totally sucks for having an unproblematic relationship," Eliana added.  "We should kick her out of the group," Eliana winked at Kat in the mirror, who she swore blushed a tad bit at the action.

     "Yeah, he's, um... He's really sweet," Kat nodded.

     "Sounds like.  Lemme know when they restock guys like him on Amazon."

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