Foes & Cons by Carrie Aarons (i am malala young readers edition .txt) 📗

side. You’re going to achieve every dream you have. And this sucks right now, I know it does. But it’s going to make you fight that much harder for what you want. It’s going to make you a better architect. I love you. Please, let’s not make the same mistake we did. I’m not leaving. And you’re not pushing me away.”

The silence grows, stretching until there are tears in my throat. I’m terrified that he’s going to end us on my next breath. I’m shaking at the thought that Sawyer is about to tell me to leave, that he doesn’t want to do this together.

After what feels like decades, I feel his fingers lace through mine, and I feel the air I was holding release from my lungs. In the next moment, he’s flipping over and wrapping himself around me, burying his face in my hair and pulling me into the embrace.

We stay that way for a while, not talking about the pain he’s feeling, but just being a comfort to each other. There may be no solution for now, and Sawyer might not be ready to talk, but I’m here for him. He’s letting me in.

That is leaps and bounds above the way we’ve treated each other in the past. And I know now that we’re going to be solid for a long time to come. No matter what dragons we face, we’re going to slay them together.

38

Sawyer

After college acceptances get delivered and everyone starts declaring their choices, the rest of senior year flies by in a millisecond.

Before I know it, we’re heading into the weekend before graduation. On Monday, we’ll put on our caps and gowns, walk onto the Chester High School football field, and say goodbye to our hometown for a while.

It’s bittersweet, but now that we all know where we’re going to land for our next chapter, it feels about time to wrap this one up. Well, that, and my friends and I can’t wait for the last summer months of freedom before real life sets in.

Getting wait-listed for the architecture program at Brockden has been a tough pill to swallow. Although I sent in my deposit to become a general studies student in the fall, and even though it means Blair and I will be attending the same college, it isn’t with the excitement I always envisioned.

But with each passing day I’m taking it a little better, and it helps that I have Blair to both give me pep talks and distract me. After all, she pointed out that we’ll have a lot of alone time in our dorm rooms, and that has been a big thing to look forward to.

In the end, the senior class won Spirit Night, and the crowd went wild for mine and Blair’s botched tango. The night was bittersweet, since it was our last, but it was a celebration of everything our class had accomplished in our four years here.

Prom was fun; the dance itself was more a formality than anything. I ended up winning prom king, while Hailey won prom queen. But I went rogue and refused to do the king and queen dance, instead sweeping Blair onto the floor and pressing my cheek to hers as “Yellow” by Coldplay hummed over the floor. The rest of the weekend was the stuff memories are made of. We partied, did way too many stupid things with our friends, and spent a majority of the time in our room doing things only teenagers can do in a parent-free house.

And now graduation is upon us. In two days, Nate will stand up in front of the senior class and give his speech as our president. Then, Blair will follow, because as of last week, she was crowned our valedictorian.

There are about fifty kids in Matt’s basement, all in varying stages of drunkenness. Everyone has been cheersing all night, and there is talk of wrangling up some old textbooks and burning them in the fire pit in his backyard.

I’m sitting on the couch, a beer in my hand and my girlfriend in my lap. With an open mouth, I trace kisses up and down Blair’s bare shoulder, toying with the spaghetti strap that’s barely being held up there.

“I can’t believe we’re graduating.” Laura pouts into her red Solo cup. “High school has been such a blast.”

“Speak for yourself.” Blair snorts.

“No, she’s right. Have I peaked? Will I ever be this cool again?” Glavin ponders.

Matt smacks him in the shoulder. “Dude, you’re going to play D-one soccer, I think you’ll do just fine.”

My best friend grins. “Yeah, you’re right. If anything, college will just be more of this.”

He sweeps his hand around to acknowledge the party that’s about to turn up a notch, you can feel it.

“Was it really that bad?” I whisper into my girl’s ear.

She shrugs, then smiles. “For a time. But it had a hell of an ending.”

“We found our way back to each other. That’s what matters.” I kiss her earlobe and feel a shiver run across her skin.

“You keep doing that and we will have to leave this party.” But she leans in closer.

I’m growing hard where her ass connects with my groin, and I think she might be right.

“Stop eye-fucking each other and dance with me.” Laura pulls Blair up by the arms as a DJ Khaled and Drake song bumps through the speakers.

They throw their arms above their heads, Blair’s hips swaying to the music. My eyes track her movements and I feel all the blood in my body rush south of my waist. God damn, she’s so sexy. Since we got together, I have my hands or mouth on her in some form every day and it’s never enough.

I’m about to stalk her like she’s the prey to my predator, when my best friend jumps up on the couch a la Tom Cruise.

“Let’s play seven minutes in heaven!” Glav cries out, and a couple people wander over out of curiosity.

“If you wanted to kiss