ADDICTED [BoyxBoy]

Epilogue

     Liam Slater

When my eyes fluttered open the next morning and after the sun momentarily blinded me, I realized Max was gone.

The space next to me still had the imprint of his body, but he was nowhere to be seen. My gaze lazily scanned the room, searching for Max's clothing and his backpack, but they, like him, had disappeared. Then my eyes landed on the alarm clock on my bedside dresser, only to see that it was 8:30. Max's bus was supposed to pick him up at nine.

I shot out of bed, nearly tripping over my own feet in the process, and stumbled to the floor. Frantically searching for my clothes and my cell phone at the same time without much success, I let out an irritated groan. I had already proved I was a horrible person when I missed his birthday party. I couldn't miss the opportunity to say goodbye to him.

When I finally got dressed, I snatched my crutches from against the nearby wall and rushed to the bedroom door. Before I could slip outside, though, I caught a glimpse of a medium sized canvas propped against the door. It took me a while to realize what it was — a panting of Max and me. Our facial features were done to a tee, from Max's big, chocolate brown eyes to the tiny freckles dotting my nose. Aside from the way he pleasured me last night, my boyfriend was really, really, talented.

I pushed the painting aside and ran out of the bedroom and down the stairs, as fast as my crutches would let me. "Mom! Mom!" I called out as I rounded the corner to stroll into the kitchen. Sure enough, she was sitting in the breakfast nook with a bible in hand and wide trimmed glances sitting at the tip of her nose. "Mom! I need you to drive me to Max's house."

She lifted her head to look at me. "Why?"

"He's leaving and I didn't say goodbye." My attention shot to the grandfather clock in the main foyer. "It's 8:40. I only have twenty minutes, ma. I have to say goodbye."

Her shoulders fell as she released a heavy sigh. "Get the car started," she instructed as she returned her attention to the bible. "I'll be there in a moment."

A string of thank yous fell from my mouth as I circled around the kitchen island to grab her car keys and hurried out of the door. My legs were extra speedy today, allowing for a swift descent down the driveway. I climbed into my mom's Nissan in record time and twisted the key into the ignition to get it started. I sat rather impatiently as I waited for my mother to join me.

When she finally did, which was nearly five minutes later, I urged her to drive. She might have been okay with taking her sweet time, but I certainly wasn't. Especially after last night's events, I couldn't let Max leave without saying goodbye. Somehow, my mother didn't seem to understand that.

Thankfully, she stepped on the gas as soon as she backed out of the driveway. I would've never expected my mom, of all people, to be okay with my homosexuality but I was really glad that she was. It meant I didn't have to keep Max a secret. I could love and cherish him openly without having to to hide behind closed doors. Thank God for that.

When we arrived at Max's place, it was five minutes to nine. The bus was already parked outside his place and he was standing in his driveway with his bags clumsily clutched in his hands as he talked to his parents. As soon as the car came to a stop, I didn't waste any time in scrambling out of the passenger seat and making my way to him. I was so desperate to see him that I didn't even grab my crutches and ended up limping the whole way.

Max's chocolate brown eyes lit up with bewilderment when he saw me. "Liam!" he called out. "What? What are you doing here?"

I didn't answer his question, not directly; instead, I threw my arms around him and pulled him into a tight hug. "You didn't tell me you were leaving," I accused him. "You had me freaking out!"

He buried his face in the crook of my neck and hummed softly. "I didn't want to wake you."

I rolled my eyes. "And you thought that was a good idea, how?"

He pulled away from the hug and stared at me with his deep brown eyes dancing with energy. He looked at me for a pretty long while, something that felt like eternity, and when he finally opened his mouth to respond, he was. interrupted by the bus' horn. His attention flicked to the bus parked along the curb and he reluctantly brought his gaze to mine again.

"That's my cue," he said with a soft, sad voice."

"I love the painting you left me," I blurted out once I realized that these were my last moments with him. "You really deserve to go to this art camp. I bet you're better than everyone else there."

The corners of his lips twisted into a small smile. "Thanks."

"You promise to call me?" I asked with a raised brow. "And text me? And send me pictures of all of your beautiful work?"

Max nodded. "I promise."

I gave him a nod of gratitude, but fell silent. My gaze drifted to the ground and I teetered back and forth on my heels, not knowing what else to say. Surely, the bus driver would quickly become annoyed with us, but I still couldn't find the right words to say in this very moment.

Max seemed to notice my discomfort, because his hands snaked down the length of my arms to grab onto my hands. He gave them a tight squeeze and bit down on his bottom lip. "I love you, Liam, and I want to thank you for being the best first boyfriend ever."

That made me smile. "I love you, too. I want to thank you for helping me get over Scotty."

He smiled back. "No problem."

In the heat of the moment, I pressed my lips firmly on his. He relaxed into the kiss shortly after, letting his arms wrap around my neck to bring us closer. I grabbed onto tufts of his short hair, then slowly worked my hand to the back of his neck, needing to taste more of him. Our mouths fused together, tongues dancing, lips uniting. I kissed him with a fervor that I had never experienced with anyone else before him.

Sure, I loved Scotty. He was my first love and he would always have a place in my heart.

But Max was real.

Max was here.

Max was now.

Max was my everything.

- fin -

a/n: Finally, this story is over! I know I took huge breaks during the latter half of this book, but that's mostly because I didn't know exactly how I wanted to end it! But ta da! Now I can mark this book as complete and focus on the next book, BTR! Make sure to add Breaking the Rules to your reading lists because I will be starting it soon and if you haven't already, read the first chapter that's already posted!

Just for future reference, the order of the KB series goes as follows..

- Kissing Booth

- Addicted

- Breaking the Rules

- The Only Exception (TBA)

I also want to notify you guys of a new malexmale book that I've been writing called DARK PRINCE. The story takes place in hell and features a whole lot of hunky eye candy, so I'd really like for you guys to check that out.

Until next time,
Lara <3