Page 1 of Never Yours

prologue

. . .

Caleb

Please read Content Warnings & Author Note prior to reading.

Ifucking hate prom.

You rent a tux that would blind you under UV lights, show up at your date’s house to be berated by her father, take her to dinner—your parents paying for said dinner—and you wind up at a sweaty gym or banquet hall, grinding your cock against a girl you invited out of pity… because you were too chicken shit to ask the one girl you wanted to take.

Fucking. Joke.

As predicted, my date, Lindsay, is dancing with her friends, leaving me to sulk in the corner; like Pop did in his emo phase. I don’t dance, so it’s a blessing in disguise. At least eight girls have tried to drag me over for a glorified dry hump, but my answer remains no.

Through it all, I can’t take my eyes off Ingrid. She’s huddled on the other side of the room, reading a fantasy book I read last year, leaving me with two options:

Approach with caution, and word-vomit every detail I can remember from the book.

Become a fucking statue and allow paralysis to overcome me.

Both options end in failure, leaving me to admire her from my standard-issue, plastic chair.

“Hey, fuckface,” Travis teases, pulling my attention from Ingrid.

Without skipping a beat, I ask with a cocked eyebrow, “Where’s Tara?”

“Probably recovering from me fucking her in the locker room shower.” Travis shrugs as I cough a laugh. “What? She was begging for it!” When I don’t respond, he asks, “When are you going to ask her?”

“Who?” I follow his line of sight, falling on Ingrid, so I insist, “It’s not like that. She’s my sister’s friend.” She isn’t just Cassidy’s best friend, she’s mine, too; the one person who gets me.

Being only eleven months younger than my sister, we’ve been in the same grade throughout school. I’d never date one of her friends—if it didn’t work out, my relationship with Cass would never be the same. We found out the hard way when she dated one of mine two years ago.

Ingrid is different. It wouldn’t just ruin my friendship with Ingrid, it would destroy Cassidy.

“Fuck that,” he laughs. “It’s about time you were devirginized.”

“What?” I sputter.

“Get your dick wet. You’re shipping out in a month, you don’t want to leave with your V-card.” Travis glances over his shoulder and chuckles, spotting Tara giving him a come-hither glare. “Looks like she’s ready for round two.”

I roll my eyes as he rushes in her direction. He’s already packed and ready to leave for the fire academy a few towns over and is determined to get laid as much as possible before he leaves. I suppose I should consider one night of no-strings-attached, too… if I could manage to tear my eyes away from Ingrid. With my luck, I’d call out the wrong name with someone else as I come. I don’t want anyone else, I want her.

I know Ingrid’s off-limits, and we’ll never be more than friends, but what if this is my shot, my one chance to be with her?

About to make my way to Ingrid and risk everything, I only take three steps before I stop in my tracks. She stands, clapping her book together and stuffing it into her tote, which doesn’t match her dress.

“Asshole,” I’m able to make out from lip-reading.

I glance to the dance floor that’s holding her attention and find her date lip-locked with… Lindsay? Why Ingrid said ‘yes’ to the captain of the varsity football team in the first place is beyond me; they have nothing in common. Then again, I have nothing in common with Lindsay and asked her. With a deep sigh, I continue to walk over to Ingrid. She doesn’t appear to need consoling, but I’ve always been there for her—her person. Just as she’s always been mine.

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