After the initial shock of Tessa's attack, I pushed her shoulders to get her mouth off mine.

Unwrapping her legs from around my waist, I set her on the ground in front of me.

"What the hell was that, Tessa? You know that I'm with Nicole. Have you lost your damn mind?"

Tessa at least had the decency to cast her eyes to the floor as her cheeks flushed with embarrassment.

She whispered, "I'm sorry."

I run my hands through my hair in frustration.

"I have to go."

Pushing her out of my way, I rush to my car and race back to Nicole's house to tell her what happened with Tessa.

Thank goodness the lights are still on in Nicole's bedroom.

I pull my car up to the front of the house, taking a deep breath before making my way up the front porch steps and knocking on the door. A surprised Mrs. Myers opens the door.

"William, is everything okay?" she asks, her forehead creasing with concern.

"Everything's fine," I lie. "Can I please talk to Nicole? I promise it won't take long."

"Of course," she replies, opening the door wider to let me through.

Wasting no time, I rush up the stairs to Nicole's room. Her door is open, and she's looking at her phone tucked under her covers.

"Babe?" I say quietly.

Her doe eyes look up as her brows raise, stunned by seeing me.

She jumped out of bed. "William, is everything okay?"

"She kissed me," I blurted out.

Nicole stopped in her tracks. "I'm sorry, what?"

"Tessa, fucking kissed me." I quickly add, "Her dad was there; I made him leave, and she jumped in my arms and kissed me."

Nicole shakes her head in disbelief, so I continue, "Baby, I promise I pushed her off me as soon as it happened and came right back here to tell you."

I reach for her, but she knocks my hand away, and my heart stops.

"I need a minute," she says as she steps away.

It's not easy letting her have her moment, but it's what she needs, so I give it to her and wait.

"What did you feel?"

Nicole's voice was so quiet; I almost missed what she said. Without hesitation, I stepped towards her wrapping my arms around her and pulling her into my chest.

My mouth went directly to her ear. "I felt disgusted and couldn't push her away fast enough. Your lips are the only ones I want pressing against mine, Nicole. Yours and only yours."

She returned my hug, and her body relaxed against me, putting me more at ease. Feeling wetness through my shirt, I kiss the top of her head.

"Please don't cry," I pleaded. "Tessa's not worth a single tear from your beautiful eyes."

"That's not why I'm crying," Nicole whispers into my chest.

"Then why?" I ask, confused by her comment.

She tilts her face, looking at me with sparkling eyes, and her mouth curves into the loveliest smile. "You," she quietly answered.

Baffled, I responded, "Me?"

"Yes, you. William, you're beyond any expectation I would have ever imagined finding in a man your age. You're gentle, caring for those around you, and loyal to a fault. You make me feel special and appreciated.

That you would come to me and tell me what Tessa did says so much about your character. Honestly, my heart beats for only you, and to know that you feel the same way, brings me to happy tears."

After placing my hands on the side of her pink cheeks and removing the wetness with the pad of my thumbs, I pull her lips to mine to kiss away the taste of Tessa, replacing it with the sweetness of Nicole's. The kiss is slow and passionate, with our tongues wrapped around each other, conveying our love without words.

As much as I didn't want this kiss to end, it was getting late, so we pulled apart to catch our breaths and placed our foreheads together.

"I promised your mom that I wouldn't stay long." My voice came out low and husky.

"I love you, William."

"I love you, too, Nicole."

Things have been incredible with William and me.

Graduation is around the corner. I'm excited about college but don't want to leave William. He'll be staying local at Centerville Business School, and I'll be an hour away at Downingtown University. I plan to come home every weekend.

We'll make the best of this summer and try to see each other as much as possible!

We have graduation practice this afternoon, and the gang plans on meeting up in the courtyard before heading to practice.

Everyone's there, including Tessa. We have steered clear of each other since the kissing incident. She never had the courtesy of apologizing to me. After the football season was over, she made the basketball senior cheerleading squad which made her more bearable. Her friends still give her a lot of shit for how she treated me. I never retaliated because I knew her family situation. While that doesn't give her the right to disrespect me, I understand because I have everything she wants, a loving family and a wonderful boyfriend.

William walks over, wraps me in his arms, squeezes me, and kisses my forehead. My skin tingles. The way William touches me will never get old.

"Hey, Babe."

"Hey."

"We're all talking about heading to the lake after practice. Are you in?" Chris informs me as he approaches.

"Absolutely," I answer instantly.

Practice feels like it's taking forever. We're all anxious for it to be over and party at the lake. William was assigned to grab the food and beverages from his store. I volunteered to go with him.

After practice finally ended and we picked up our caps and gowns, William and I headed to the store.

"I can't believe our senior year is almost over," he declared as his eyes flashed with sadness.

I bumped his shoulder and gave him a lopsided grin. "You made this year the best year ever. It was worth moving here, even if it was only to meet you."

He takes my hand, squeezes it, and brings it to his soft lips, kissing it. My heartbeat quickens.

"I couldn't agree with you more. I love you!"

"I love you, too!"

We get to the store, gather the items on the list, and head to the lake. Everyone is there waiting for us to arrive.

The gang yells, "FOOD!!!"

They start ripping into the bags of chips, Doritos, and tortilla chips.

"Jeez, you guys act like you haven't eaten in a month!" I say, laughing at their antics.

William grabs two sodas and walks over to me.

"Want to go for a walk?"

"Yes, please!"

He grabs my hand, and we head toward the pier. We sat at the end when we arrived, and he wrapped his arm around my waist.

"I love this spot. It's so beautiful."

"It sure is," he agrees.

I look over at William; he's looking at me, not the lake. I smiled, and he gifted me with a sexy smirk.

Laying my head on his shoulder, I snuggle in close. "You always know the right thing to say."

I let out a sigh before continuing.

"This summer is going to fly by. They always do, but this one is different. In the end, a new chapter of our lives starts."

William hugs me tighter. "Are you excited?" he asked.

"I am about going to college, not you being an hour away from me."

The corner of his lips turns down, and he gives me his best sad face. So adorable.

"It actually won't be too different. We don't see much of each other during the week because you work at the store. I'll be home every weekend, so it'll be like I never left."

I'm trying to convince myself more than William.

He lets out a breath. "The thought of you being an hour away drives me crazy."

"I know, me too."

His body slumps. "You know what? Let's talk about something else, it's three months away, and I'm beginning to feel depressed."

"We should head back. Our friends will lift our spirits," I recommend.

"Not before I do this."

He lifts my chin and kisses me tenderly; I take his face into my hands to pull him closer. My lips part, and he takes full advantage. His other hand reaches up my shirt and cups my breast over my bra. Our tongues intertwine slowly and seductively. He moves his hand under my bra and squeezes; I gasp, shuddering at his touch.

We hear movement behind us.

"Hey, kids!" Chris' voice sings out.

"Are we interrupting something?" Diana chimes in, grinning like the cat that caught the canary.

William pulls his hand out from under my shirt and responds to her, "Obviously."

"Your timing is impeccable," I say sarcastically.

They both shrug at us with amusement.

"We were innocently taking a walk around the lake. We tried to sneak by," Chris explained.

"Unfortunately for you, we failed miserably," Diana added.

We laugh.

I try to readjust myself discreetly. "That's okay; we were just talking about heading back."

When William stands up, he notices my situation and chuckles. I slap his leg, and he reaches down to help me. I take his hand, and he pulls me up effortlessly. We walk back to the gang with Chris and Diana.

The celebration lasts into the evening. I'll miss William and all the people I became fast friends with this year.

As the sun sets, the group slowly dissipates, leaving Chris, Diana, William, and me.

Chris sighs, "It's hard to believe that our high school years will soon be behind us."

"Are you still planning on being an electrician, Chris?" I inquire.

He pats William on the back. "Yep, staying local with my man William here."

Diana's eyes reflect her sadness. "It's going to take me seven years to become a physical therapist."

"Uggg! I'm not a fan of the four years it's going to take me to be a teacher," I grimace.

"Damn, Nicole! If you're not a fan for four years of college, it will be tough being a teacher. You do know that you're never leaving school." Chris points out.

I laugh, "I guess I'm not."

Diana crosses her arms. "I guess that I shouldn't complain about seven years."

"I'm going to miss this," I say, waving my hand around our small group.

"Yeah, we'll have to try to get together this summer," Diana interjects.

Chris shakes his head. "It will be tough; I start my apprenticeship next month."

Diana grabs Chris' hand, and she says, "Yeah, I'm not happy about that, but we're going to do our best to make time for each other."

I smile at her. "We're doing the same thing. Planning time for us into William's work schedule."

"Yeah, but you and William have been doing that since you met," she explained.

I can't deny this fact. "True."

I grin at William.

We talk into the evening before saying goodbye and going our separate ways, excited for graduation and what the future holds for each of us.

A/N: What did you think about William's reaction to Tessa? Would you handle it the way Nicole did or differently?