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"Are you serious?" River exclaims

"Yeah, it went about as terribly as it could've possibly gone." Dakota sighs

"Okay, did she think that throwing you under the bus was just gonna clear her?"

"Probably." Liz mutters

"Out of every possible outcome I had, that wasn't one of them."

"I don't think anybody was expecting that to happen." Conrad says

"Holy shit." River says plopping down on the couch next to Dakota, "I'm sorry, Liz."

"It's fine." She says

Dakota looks over to Conrad, "You guys gonna stay here for a while, then?"

"Probably." Conrad says looking around the summer house, "Liz still has a few days off, so."

"Well, if you guys need literally anything at all, we're right here." River says, "I will drive the hour a hundred times if I have to."

"She'll make me drive the hour is what she meant, but yeah." Dakota nods

Conrad smiles, "Thanks."

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It had been about two weeks since Susannah's dedication. Conrad and Liz spent majority of that time to themselves in Cousins. Aside from Dakota and River, Megan had been the only person Liz spoke to. She and Conrad had gotten a few texts from Jeremiah and even a few from Steven, but had ignored them for the most part.

Liz didn't know what to do. While she had expected her dad to overreact to the news like he always had, she didn't expect him to blow up the way he did. She could only imagine how he would react once he found out about her pregnancy.

Conrad could feel the stress rolling off of her in waves and had done his absolute best to keep her calm and take some stress off of her shoulders. And she appreciated it, but he knew this without her having to say much.

Liz came down the steps slowly. She knew Conrad would have been gone on his run as he had told her not too long ago. As she entered the kitchen, the last thing she expected to see was Jeremiah and Belly.

"Liz." Jeremiah says, "Hi."

"Um, hi?" She says, "I didn't expect to see you guys."

"We, uh, came in late last night." He says, "Wanted to start getting some wedding planning done."

Liz nods, "Right, your wedding."

"Yeah." Belly says, "Conrad said you guys stayed here to relax a little before you had to go back to work."

"Yeah, I needed a second after my dad exploded on me." Liz says. Belly's face falls as the room goes quiet. Liz raises her brows before turning toward the fridge. She opens it and grabs a water before heading back upstairs.

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About an hour had passed before the door to Liz's room opened. She looked up from her place on her bed as Conrad walked in, "Hey."

"Hey." She says as he walks over to his suitcase, "A heads up would've been nice."

Conrad winces, "I thought I'd be back before you went down."

"Mm-mm." She hums shaking her head

"I'm sorry." He says, "Jere wants to go surfing and talk about some stuff. He's upset that I've been ignoring him."

"You should probably go then."

Conrad steps closer to her, "You want me to stay? Because I will. He and I can talk another time."

"No." She says shaking her head, "No, just because Belly and I have some issues, doesn't mean you two should. Go surf with him."

"You sure?"

"Positive."

"Okay." He nods before kissing her forehead. Liz lets out a small sigh as he leaves the room.

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After a while of sitting alone, Liz made her way downstairs again. She stepped into the kitchen fully prepared to be met with Belly. As the girl looked up at her, Liz couldn't feel anything, but disappointment flow through her. Belly sat upright as Liz stood by the counter.

Her mouth opened and shut as she tried to come up with a way to talk to her. Liz turned back around with an apple and a knife in her hand. As she set it on the counter, Belly tucked her hair behind her ear.

"Can we talk?" Belly asks. Liz stays silent as she chopped her apple, "Listen, I understand that you're upset with me. And I didn't mean to just throw you under the bus like that. I just- my mom and Adam and even your mom were so upset and I just couldn't understand why."

"So, your first thought was to blurt out the one thing that I told you I hadn't told anyone yet?" She asks, "Are you serious, Belly?"

"I'm sorry."

"Are you?" Liz scoffs, "Because it's been two weeks and this is the first time I'm hearing you say it."

"I have a lot going on, okay? I'm planning the wedding and working and trying to get my mom to come around. Sorry that talking to you wasn't the very first thing on my mind."

"Oh, please, Belly. No matter what I have always been there to support you. Ever since we were kids you've been like a little sister to me. When you were at the deb ball I made sure Conrad was there so you weren't embarrassed. When we were trying to save the house, I was there for you. When you were alone after Steven's accident, I hopped on the first flight to get there to support you."

"And you're here now not supporting my decision to marry Jere." Belly says, "I was hoping you'd understand and be there when no one else would. You know that Susannah would've wanted this. For us to be happy."

"God, I am so sick of hearing you say that." Liz says, "Stop using her as some ploy to make everyone feel bad for disagreeing with you. It's so disingenuous. And no, I don't support the stupid decision to marry somebody who cheated on you. Not once, but twice. No matter if it's Jeremiah or not."

Belly scoffs, "Seriously?"

"Yes." Liz says, "It's not my fault that you're making a mistake and now you're grasping at straws to find a reason to justify why you're getting married to him. I know that Conrad loves me and that he would never hurt me in the way Jeremiah hurt you and you know that and it kills you. That's why you were so quick to throw me under the bus and have everyone jump down my back."

Belly chuckles, "Wow. You think I'm jealous of you?"

"I know you are." Liz nods, "You always have been, remember?"

"Fuck you, Liz." Belly spits before storming outside

Liz watches as the door slams shut behind her. Leaving her in silence.

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"It's ridiculous."

"It's ridiculous."

"Oh, my God, he... Wait, how did he say it again?"

"He was like, "Well, when you think about it, it's just kind of ridiculous. It's ridiculous." Like, oh, oh, one second, Connie. Let me think about it. It's just ridiculous."

"It's ridiculous. Aah! Aah!"

"And they want everyone to believe they're ready to get married?" Liz says as she stares up at the ceiling

"I don't think it even matters to them anymore." Conrad mutters as he stares down at his computer. Liz looks over toward his desk, "They're gonna go through with it no matter what it seems like."

"Hmm." Liz hums, "Did you book your flight back?"

"Are you sure you don't want to come back with me? Or that I shouldn't stay?" He asks spinning around in his chair

"I think that you got the job closest to doing what you really wanna do. That should be priority number one."

"No, you're priority number one. You always have been."

Liz stands from the bed and takes a few steps toward him before sitting in his lap. He wraps one arm around her waist and the other lays across her lap, "River wants to spend some more time together anyway, so, I'll be okay."

"I don't wanna leave you by yourself." He mutters

"I won't be by myself." She shrugs, "If Belly and Jeremiah wanna plan their wedding, they can do that. Jeremiah won't be here majority of the time anyway."

The two go quiet for a few seconds before he tightens his hold on her, "As soon as I can get time off, I'll come back down here."

"I know you will." She chuckles. He smiles before he spins them around toward the desk. He sighs before clicking to confirm his flight. Liz wraps her arms around his shoulders and pulls him closer before lying her cheek on his head. He rubs her hip comfortingly before he places a kiss to her collarbone.

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The next morning Liz found herself in the bathroom. Her eyes glued to her phone as she reread the text her father sent her over and over again.

Elizabeth, I've spoken with your mom. I'm not sure why you and Conrad didn't tell me you guys were getting married or why you believed I would be okay with this. You're making a mistake and anyone around you who says otherwise, is just as naive as you are. As far as I'm concerned, I want no part in any of this. Until you can come to me and talk to me like an adult, I don't want to speak with you.

Her eyes welled up with tears before they began streaming down her face. It quickly became uncontrollable as sobs escaped her lips. Time seemed to pass quicker than she imagined as she wiped her face and picked her phone up to check, "Shit."

She stood up, turned the sink on and wiped her face with cold water. She then grabbed a towel to dry herself before stepping out of the bathroom. She sniffled before she entered her room. She looked around and her heart dropped when she didn't see Conrad's suitcase.

She stepped back into the hallway before rushing down the stairs, "Connie?"

"Connie?" She says again as she enters the kitchen. The boy looks up from his place at the sink, "Hey."

"Hey." He says as he places a bowl down

"I thought you left already."

"No." He says shaking his head, "I told Jere I'd be his co-best man."

Liz frowns, "Co-best man?"

"Yeah. Um... I don't think I could let Steven plan a bachelor party on his own." He says making her chuckle. He smiles, "Lives could be lost. End up in jail. I don't want to die yet."

Liz smiles as she shakes her head, "And if Dakota's there, it would be a shit show."

"Yeah." He chuckles before his smile falls, "He, uh, actually called me a little while ago."

"What for?"

"He got a text from your dad." He says placing the towel down, "He wanted me to check on you."

Liz looks down as she clears her throat, "Yeah, I got a text from him. He's basically disowning me for the time being."

"I'm sorry." He says stepping around the counter

"It's not your fault. I knew how he was going to react."

"Still. That doesn't mean he should treat you like that."

Liz looks up as he stands in front of her. She shrugs while pursing her lips, "I've just always had this version of him in my head that I've had since I was a little girl. I have to accept that he's not like that anymore. It hurts, but as long as my mom is happy for us, that's all that really matters to me."

He pulls her closer and wraps his arms around her shoulders. She sighs as she lays her cheek on his chest. Her brows furrow as she looks at the table, "Are those cookies?"

Conrad chuckles as she looks up at him, "Yeah, I went out to get them while you were in the bathroom."

"They sell those here?" She says pulling away and walking over to the table

"Yeah." He says slowly following her, "They had a lot in the store, so."

"Holy shit." She mutters before turning to him, "Thank you."

"You don't need to thank me."

She grabs his hand before kissing him softly, "I love you."

"I love you, too." He says mirroring her smile

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