The Clique

Brighton is gone.
And nothing feels the same.

Derek Waters is trying to survive the aftermath of a loss that refuses to make sense. Grief does not come clean. It does not come quietly. And it does not care that the person everyone is mourning is the same one who nearly destroyed him.

In the days following a funeral that exposes old wounds and buried truths, Derek and the Clique are forced to confront the kind of trauma that does not fade once the crowd leaves. Anger and guilt exist side by side. Relief feels wrong. Silence weighs heavier than words. And moving forward feels like betrayal.

As Derek attempts to find stability through baseball, school, and the people who refuse to let him disappear, he begins to understand that healing is not about closure. It is about endurance. About learning how to carry the weight without letting it consume you. About accepting that some relationships will never be repaired, some questions will never be answered, and some losses will always leave a mark.

The Clique: Still Here is a raw, emotionally honest story about grief, trauma, and the complicated reality of loving someone who caused harm. It explores what it means to keep going when everything feels fractured and how sometimes the bravest thing you can do is admit that you are still here.