CHAPTER THREE

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mark🧸 added

stassie😜
lola🤍

to umich bitches〽️

stassie😜
mark

mark🧸
Yes?

stassie😜
why did you put us in this gc

lola🤍
i feel icky being around these
people🤢

luke
That's not very nice...

eddie :)
Yeah why would you even say that

stassie😜
for being hockey players
you guys are weak😱😱😱

lola🤍
mark

mark🧸
Yes???????

lola🤍
why did you add us to this gc

mark🧸
Idk I thought we could hangout

mark🧸
Or shit like that

mark🧸
Yeah Idk

stassie😜
oh so you answer her and not me⁉️

eddie :)
Mans practically begged to
put you guys in

mark🧸
Stfu you were practically
riding my dick asking if
we could add them

stassie😜
and the truth comes out!

lola🤍
interesting

duke👑
Holy shit you guys are blowing
up my phone

luke
And I'm blowing up this
toilet rn🔥🔥🔥🔥

lola🤍
oh..

stassie😜
okay so,,,

mark🧸
Luke Hughes ladies and gentlemen!

duke👑
Round of applause Luke, that
was really something!

luke
Can we not go to IHop next time

luke
Please

luke
I don't think my stomach can
handle pancakes

eddie :)
Which bathroom are you in?

luke
I'm in the only fucking bathroom upstairs dumbass

luke
Why you wondering tho

eddie :)
Idk I was gonna come and give
you some emotional support or
something

stassie😜
hey lo?

lola🤍
yeah?

stassie😜
what's the uv

lola🤍
checking....

lola🤍
9!

lola🤍
are we tanning?

stassie😜
obviously 🙄

stassie😜 has left the conversation

lola🤍 has left the conversation

eddie :)
Why'd they leave?

mark🧸
100% to be dramatic

mark🧸
You'll get used to it

duke👑
Awh... I miss them already

luke
Bro it's been 3 hours... since
we last saw them...

duke👑
Ik but Stassie's rlly pretty 😔

duke👑
#dhmu

duke👑
#ButStassiecan

mark🧸
#Notfshecant

eddie :)
So are we adding them back
or not😭😭

mark🧸
Yes hold on

mark🧸
I kinda wanna go bother them

eddie :)
You mean you wanna go see
Lola in a bikini

duke👑
SHIIIIIIIIIIT

duke👑
Bro he got uuuuu

mark🧸
...he literally doesn't but go off!

luke
Bro where would they even
go tanning on campus?

mark🧸
They always find a way to tan

eddie :)
The courtyard outside their
dorm?

mark🧸
Yeah probably

luke
Meeting outside the freshman
dorms?

mark🧸
Yeah, meet in 10?

eddie :)
🫡

duke👑
🫡

luke
🫡

mackie
🫡

mark🧸
Mackie where tf have u been😭😭

mackie
...sleeping

mark🧸 added stassie😜 to the conversation

mark🧸 added lola🤍 to the conversation

stassiegreen posted a story!

edwards.73 liked your story!

lola.thompson posted a story!

markestapa liked your story!

ANASTASIA COULDN'T HELP but wince at the ear-deafening squeal that Lola let out from next to her.

Currently, the girls were sprawled out on the lawn of the courtyard, which was just in front of the freshman dormitories. And to their surprise, they weren't the only ones who were taking advantage of the last, precious moments of summer. There were groups of, mostly girls, placed sporadically around the lush landscape of the campus. Which, ultimately made Anastasia and Lola feel better and more secure in their actions.

They were laid on their backs, having just flipped over from their stomachs. Anastasia turned her head, squinting her eyes as she opened them, "Jesus, Lo, what the fuck was that for?" She chuckled, seeing her best friend practically vibrating out of what could only appear to be excitement. "He liked my story!"

Anastasia let out a long, dramatic sigh, propped herself up on her elbows as she let her head relax back, closing her eyes once more. It's not that she was jealous or annoyed about hearing Lola's crush on Mark, it was that a fact that neither of them did anything about it. Sure, Mark hasn't Stassie told her that he likes Lola but she could tell. It was all in the body language.

"Why don't you just make a move already?" Anastasia questioned, which she already knew the response it would harbor from her friend; "'Cause I don't even know if he likes me, Stassie!" She opened her eyes, bringing her head up to look next to her, to see that Lola was now sat up on her knees, almost as if she was too engrossed in the conversation they were having to just relax. But, Anastasia remained on her back, only this time laying flat against the towel, and locking her hands behind her head. "How many times have I told you that he definitely, for certain, swear on my momma and all that is holy, likes you?"

Lola stared at the girl laying down with furrowed eyebrows, hey sunglasses that were atop her head pushing back her long curls. "What the fuck did you just say to me?" Lola questioned, and Anastasia could hear the shuffling of her finally laying down along side her. "I don't even know, Lo," she sighed, loving the feeling of the warm, golden sun soaking into her skin, making her body warm and buzzy.

She was still a little on edge from seeing Ethan just a few hours earlier, but she tried not to dwell on the past. She thinks she's doing a good job deflecting him...

Anastasia doesn't know if he likes her or not. Anastasia doesn't know if she likes him or not. Anastasia doesn't know how her freshman year at college is going to end up. But one thing Anastasia does know is that Ethan Edwards looks damn good in a baseball cap.

Beside her, Lola let out the most annoyed groan that she thinks she could've mustered, making her lift her head up and look at her friend, "What was that about?" She questioned, leaned her weight on her right elbow while her left hand went up and pulled her sunglasses down the bridge of her nose, furrowing her eyebrows at her friend.

Lola nodded her head in front of them, and Anastasia let out a much louder groan than Lola's previous one.

Mark, Ethan, Mackie, Duke, and Luke were walking towards them; they all wore an array of t-shirts and shorts– except Mark and Ethan, their bare torsos soaking up the bright summer sun. And both Lola and Anastasia couldn't help but admire the sight that was in front of them. Although they tried to mask their attraction with annoyance. Something Anastasia has just recently become a master at.

"Oh my God, why are you guys here?" Lola groaned, straining her head up to look at Mark who now stood next to her towel. He crouched down next to her and stole the sunglasses that were atop her head, and placed them on the bridge of his nose. "We thought we would keep you ladies company," he shrugged.

Anastasia's gaze remained straight forward, watching Luke and Mackie play catch with a foam football, while Duke just laid down in a starfish position in front of them, closing his eyes and enjoying the feeling of the sun on his skin. She was trying so, so, hard to ignore the shirtless figure that was in her peripherals. He too had now crouched down next to her, only this time he extended his legs out in front of him and leaned back on his hands. "Yeah, you guys seemed lonely." Ethan said from her side, making Anastasia roll her eyes in annoyance. Bullshit.

She had now sat up, leaning back on her hands and her knees propped up, trying to ignore the fact that their pinkies were only mere millimeters apart. A fluttering hear spread throughout her body at just the sheer thought, that their hands were so close together. But she doesn't dare act on it.

"That's such bullshit, you guys just came here to annoy us." Lola snorted from her other side. Listen, Lola may have a thing for Mark but don't think that just because she likes him he can't get on her nerves. He is by far the number one person that can annoy her the quickest. And that's probably why she loved him so much.

And Anastasia just knows that even if it weren't for the heat of the sun, Lola's cheeks would be flushed a bright pink; due to Mark's teasing, and the fact that both him and Ethan were shirtless on either side of them.

Ethan shrugged, "No, we actually just wanted to tan too," Anastasia finally turned her head to look at the man who sat next to her on the towel. In all his handsome glory; his brown hair hidden by a backwards baseball cap, and his thighs covered by some Adidas shorts. Suddenly, she forgot just exactly why she hasn't hooked up with him yet, or why she was being so stand off-ish towards him. Because Goddamn, was he fucking hot.

Oh wait, Mark's rule.

That's right.

She let her eyes drift down to his chest, his collarbones decorated with a dainty gold chain. Anastasia thought that she might just die in that moment. She couldn't help but try and squeeze her thighs together at the sight. She moved her eyes back up to meet his, which had a hint of smugness in them. He caught her checking him out.

Fuck.

But she played it off. She was a stubborn woman, after all. "Mhm sure you guys did. You know what I think the last time we hung out with Mark before this was at the pool, yeah." Anastasia turned her head to look at Mark who was still sat next to Lola, a small smirk tugged at the corner of her plump lips. "Yeah, and you got fucking burnt to a crisp." Lola finished her thought.

Beside her, Ethan let out a small laugh at the girl's antics. And Anastasia had to suppress a her breathing from speeding up at the sound. "What can I say, I'm a changed man." He shrugged, slinging an arm around Lola's bare shoulders and pulled her into him, his free hand coming up and tickling her side, making her erupt in a fit of giggles.

A loving smile graced Anastasia's lips at the sight of her two love sick best friends. A small nudge of her shoulder made her turn her attention back to the shirtless man who sat next to her. His tongue darted out to wet his lips, "You don't mind us being out here, right?" His voice was lowered, and his eyes somewhat softened as they looked at hers. Anastasia, let her gaze roam over his face, before she reached up and grabbed the hat from his head and placed in on hers, before she leaned back on her hands once more. "I don't know, let me think about it."

Ethan could've sworn he was going to melt then and there. He couldn't help but chuckle; at her behavior, at how down fucking bad he was for her. When she reached up to grab his hat, only to place it on her own. Good God he thought he was going to explode. Both with anticipation and the brush of her fingers along his ear when she reached up.

Who would've thought that he was going to be chasing after a freshman, after one of his athletic trainers for crying out loud. But he didn't care. Stassie didn't crack like the other girls did, she was like a diamond, in his eyes.

And this feeling of infatuation only intensified the longer he was around her.

"Stassie, you wanna come play football with us?" Luke questioned as he and Mackie stood before them. "I don't want to! Can't we just lay here and I don't know, tan? That's why we joined them right?" Duke practically wined from his place on the grass in front of them. Anastasia let out a small giggle at Duke's behavior. Luke and Mackie looked at each other for a moment before shrugging their shoulders and mumbling an agreement. They laid down on both sides of Duke, allowing all seven of them to finally enjoy the last ticking seconds of summer.

AUTHOR'S NOTE

thank you all so much for the love on this book!!

i hope i'm writing this good & their tension

AND does it make sense that like they like basically snapped/texted for like 8 months and now stassie's treating him like shit bc of mark
WAIT I HOPE THAT MAKES SENSE

anyways i love you all