{WATTYS 2021/2022 SHORTLIST}{Editor's Pick} {Featured Story}
This is a FREE STORY with Paid Bonus Content.
One girl. Two boys. An impossible choice.
Stella LaFever, a theatre student from California, can't wait to spend a summer in Newport, Rhode I...
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Chapter Song: Fearless by Taylor Swift
Spencer offered me the crook of his arm after closing the bedroom door behind us. I tried to focus on my breath as we walked down the hallway.
Spencer's parents were seated beside each other on the cream colored sectional, reading pages from a newspaper. The resemblance between Spencer and his father was uncanny. The only noticeable difference between the two were streaks of gray and laugh lines—which his dad wore well.
His mother had a delicate frame and ribbons of dark hair, and when she looked up from the paper and saw us standing side by side, arm in arm, her hand floated to her mouth. His father took off rimless glasses and set them on his lap.
My grip on Spencer's arm tightened.
No one was talking. I had no idea what to do or say. We were all staring at each other.
A glassy sheen formed in his mother's eyes before she was walking across the living room and standing directly in front of us. His father at her shoulder.
"Mom. Dad," Spencer said in a steady voice. "This is Stella." He glanced at me before saying, "My girlfriend."
His mother gasped. His father clapped Spencer on the shoulder. They were both looking at me like I was a daydream or a figment of their imagination. All wide eyes and surprised lips.
I held out my hand. "It's so nice to meet you, Mr. and Mrs. Fredericksen."
"My dear, please call me Chantal. And you have no idea how happy I am to meet you."
Then his mother's delicate arms were around me, wrapping in a hug so tight it put Leona's to shame.
His father hugged me with the same enthusiasm, pulling me into a warm embrace that made my own eyes go a little glassy. "And you can call me Tom. Or dad," he said with a wink.
Spencer and I shared a look, and his mother sighed into her palm. "You two are so beautiful together. Stella, I can't wait to introduce you to everyone at Easton's wedding."
I stopped breathing. Easton's wedding?
His mother didn't seem to notice my shock. She just kept talking as we walked towards the breakfast table. "I've already asked Ji Woo to add your name to our table. Spencer, she was over the moon to hear you've finally met the right girl. Apparently, West is still as hopeless as ever." She frowned. "I wish he'd find someone special to take to his brother's wedding. Stella, have you met Spencer's friend West?"
