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Abby wasn’t sure when it really began. Her and press always had a back-and-forth relationship, switching off who was in which position. But after the nightmare during the play when Norah and Maxine abandoned her, she began to pull a bit harder.
The first time it happened it was an accident, she swore. Press had stumbled upon her in the hallways, sitting on the floor and hating her life. He was easy to talk to in that moment, pretending like nothing had changed since the days they would lay next to each other in Brodie’s basement. She didn’t mean to flirt with him really, but he was the first one of her old friends to talk to her and she might’ve gotten carried away. Honestly, it was just a fluke that they ended up making out in a random closet in the school.
The second time, she found Press instead. She had last period with Maxine and endured a whole hour of pointed comments and glares, which Abby felt was truly unnecessary considering how hard she was trying to get back into Norah and Maxine’s good graces. Press happened to walk past the door right as she was fleeing, and it didn’t take much to get him into an empty classroom and start feeling something other than shame.
The third time, it was harder to justify to herself. Was it really an accident if she showed up exactly where he told her to be? She’d gotten a text in last period with the location of a notorious make-out spot in school and elected to go there rather than her empty house. If it was a choice between another afternoon all by herself and Press, she choose Press.
It wasn’t until after MANG made up that Abby began to see the pattern she’d put herself in. Anytime she felt sad or started thinking about how she looked, she would contact the same person. Press made her feel pretty and wanted, even if it was just for her body. Was there really something wrong with that?