Bella and the Summer Fling

by Amy Sparling

  “He doesn’t get to control your life,” I say as I pull into her driveway.

  Bella looks so nervous she seems like she’s about to crack apart into a million pieces. I reach over and cover her trembling hand with mine. “It’s okay, babe. It’ll all be okay.”

  Her front door swings open. Brent stands in the doorway wearing sweatpants and a tank top that reminds me exactly how huge he’s gotten over the last year of bodybuilding. I’m not exactly a small guy, but I worry who would in a fight right now.

  But I can’t think like that. I won’t fight Bella’s brother, no matter how much he might hate me.

  “Thanks for today,” Bella says, throwing open her door. “I really had a blast. Sorry it got ruined at the end.” She jumps out of my truck and walks quickly her up driveway.

  I leave the truck running, but I put the engine in park and I step outside.

  Brent folds his arms across his chest and glares at me.

  “Sorry I kept her out so late,” I say. “We just lost track of time.”

  Bella spins around, eyes wide and terrified. “You should go,” she whisper-yells.

  “I thought I told you to stay away from my sister,” Brent says, taking two steps closer to me. He’s still far enough away to not be a threat, but I can see his muscles flex as he tightens his jaw and his hands clench into fists.

  “Bella is old enough to make her own choices.”

  Brent sneers. “Sure she is. When the choice isn’t you.”

  Bella rushes up to her brother and puts a hand on his chest. “Brent, just go inside. I’m home now. Drop it, okay?”

  He ignores his sister’s pleas, looking past her to glare at me. “Get off my lawn. If I see you again, I’ll call the police.”

  I spin my truck keys around my finger. “I hate to break it to you, but the police can’t do anything if no laws are being broken.”

  Maybe I shouldn’t be sarcastic right now, but I can’t help myself.

  “I’ll call you later,” Bella tells me. Her eyes are pleading with me. “Please just go.”

  “She won’t be calling you later,” Brent says. “Your days of playing my sister are over.”

  “I’m not playing anyone.” Now I’m pissed. I slam my truck door closed. “You need to get over your grudges and realize that Bella is an adult now. I’ve already apologized to you about the past. If you can’t accept it and get over it, that’s your problem. Not mine. And not Bella’s.”

  I must have knocked all the words out of Brent because he doesn’t say anything over the next few seconds. Bella grabs his arm and tugs him toward the door. “Let’s go,” she says, her voice more authoritative than ever. Usually she’s all sweet and placating when talking to her brother. Brent finally relents and he follows her inside. The door closes behind them and I’m left standing in her driveway, wondering if I’ll ever get to come over here again.

  Probably not.

  I don’t know why it was so important to me to get Brent’s forgiveness and approval. It shouldn’t matter. He hates me and he always will. After this summer, Bella will move on. I bet the next guy she dates will have a lot easier time winning over her brother’s approval. He’d probably rather have her date a stick figure drawn on a piece of paper before me.

  With a sigh, I turn back to my truck and I drive back home to my mom’s house. Things really are different for guys than girls, because when I get back home just after midnight, no one is staying awake looking for me. I unlock the front door and slip inside quietly, making my way down to my temporary bedroom. This crappy little bed is going to be harder to sleep on tonight after I got a taste of my own bed today. It’ll be even worse without Bella lying next to me.

  Just before I close my eyes and go to sleep, my phone beeps.

  Bella: I’m really sorry for tonight.

  Me: You don’t have anything to apologize for.

  17

  Bella

  “What is your problem?” I yell as soon as the front door closes behind us, putting a much needed solid wall between Brent and Liam. “This has nothing to do with you!”

  Brent’s nostrils flare. “It has everything to do with me when our mom calls me freaking out about you. We didn’t know where you were or what you were doing.”

  “Mom knew I was at Comicpalooza,” I say. “I was perfectly safe.”

  Mom’s bedroom door creaks open down the hall. Brent and I turn to look at her. I brace for another verbal lashing, but Mom just looks at me through tired eyes. It’s after midnight and she looks exhausted, her hair piled into a messy bun on top of her head. “I’m glad you’re home safely,” she says. Her gaze turns to Brent. “Son, you’re making this worse than it is.”

  “How?” Brent says, throwing his arms up. “You’re the one who called me in a panic because Bella wasn’t answering her phone.”

  “That was earlier,” Mom says softly. “Then we heard from her, and she’s fine. You really should calm down. All your yelling woke me up and I have work in the morning.”

  “Tell her she can’t see him again,” Brent says.

  Mom lifts an eyebrow. “Who?”

  “Liam Mosely. That’s who she was with tonight. Tell her she can’t see him.”

  Mom glances at me, and if I wasn’t so angry at my brother, I might laugh at the expression she makes. “Seriously, Brent? You’re acting like a child.”

  “Me?” Brent says, practically spitting the word. “I’m the only one here who actually cares about my sister’s wellbeing.”

  “I trust Bella to make good choices in the company she keeps.” Mom turns a pointed stare at Brent. “And you should too. Goodnight.”

  She disappears back into her bedroom, closing the door behind her. I know Brent still has a million things to yell at me about, but I’m not going to give him the chance. I run to my room – literally run – and quickly close the door. Sure, I’d like a shower, and maybe a snack since I barely ate my dinner, but I’m not risking it. I don’t want to talk to my overbearing brother right now.

  “This isn’t over!” Brent calls out before he retreats to his own room.

  I sit on my bed and glance at the wall that separates his bedroom from mine. When we were kids, it always brought me comfort to know that my brother was just on the other side of the wall. At Dad’s apartment, we shared a bunk bed, and he was always just on the bunk below me. It used to be comforting to know my big brother was there, keeping me safe. A person I could run to no matter what happened, and he would be there for me. But times have changed.

  He still sees me as a little kid he has to protect from the world. He refuses to believe that I could grow up, too, and that I could make my own choices and live my own life. Sometimes I wish he wouldn’t come back from college at all.

  I change into some pajamas and get into bed. I wish I could brush my teeth, but I absolutely refuse to go into the hallway before I know for sure that Brent is asleep. I’ll wake up later on and do it. Right now, I’m avoiding him like the plague.

  As soon as my head hits my pillow, I think about Liam. The day started out so wonderful, filled with new and exciting experiences and one ultra-romantic make out in his real bedroom. Then my brother had to ruin all of it. It’s my fault, too. I should have checked my phone. I should have texted my mom and let her know I was okay. It’s not like me to forget about my phone for hours at a time, but that’s what happens when I’m around Liam. He makes me so happy, it’s like the rest of the world doesn’t exist. I guess that’s what he meant about that metaphorical bubble he talks about. When we’re in our bubble, it’s just him and me and the rest of the world doesn’t matter.

  Now that bubble is officially gone, along with the last remaining days of summer.

  I send him a text and his reply is almost immediate. I wonder if he was looking at his phone, thinking about me too?

  Me: I’m really sorry for tonight.

  Liam: You don’t have anything to apologize for.

  I want to keep the conversation go
ing, but I know it’d be smarter to end it. Tonight’s date is over. The summer is almost over. This summer fling is almost over.

  Is this what all summer flings feel like? Like it’s this perfect, happy thing that has an expiration date, but you can’t just accept the date and move on. You have to hold onto it with all that you have, relishing in every moment, making memories that will seal themselves to your heart and never let you go.

  Summer flings are supposed to be fun. That’s how they’re always talked about. Movies are made about them. Songs are sung about them. A fun, quick, summer fling. Instead it feels horrible. Like Liam and I are stuck in this desperate attempt to have as much fun as possible before the hands of time come and sweep it all away with the changing seasons.

  I thought I knew how this would go. I thought I could have one of these so-called fun summer flings and then throw it all away at the end of summer. But I’m too attached. I like him too much. I’ve had too much fun. Too much happiness. Too many good memories. Liam is a part of me now. He’s become so much more than just a silly fake boyfriend.

  And now we have to break up and go on with our lives, and I’m supposed to act like it doesn’t matter and like it’s totally fine. Yeah, well, it’s not fine. Not at all.

  I wake up the next morning feeling exactly as awful as I did last night. Therefore, I decide to call in reinforcements. I’ve tried handling this heartache on my own all summer, but it just won’t work. I show up at Kylie’s house with a fresh batch of chocolate chip cookies and a tub of vanilla ice cream.

  “You’re lucky my brothers are at a friend’s house today or they’d eat all of that before we got a chance,” she says, laughing as she lets me into her house. “So what’s up?”

  All I did was text her half an hour ago saying I’m coming over. It was too much to say via text, but now that I’m here, it feels like too much to say in person, too. I gnaw on my lip and look around her empty living room. Kylie’s parents are both elementary school teachers, so they’re always home during the summer breaks.

  “Are we alone?” I ask quietly.

  “Yep,” she says, heading into the kitchen. “My parents are visiting my Uncle Steve. They’ll probably be there all day.” She opens a cabinet. “Do we want bowls or should we just two-spoon it?”

  “Two-spoon it,” I say, setting the ice cream on her kitchen table and pulling off the lid. “This is an eat-straight-from-the-carton situation.”

  Kylie’s brow furrows. “Uh oh.”

  She hands me a spoon and then reaches for a cookie. “Tell me all about it. What’s up?”

  I watch her while she scoops out ice cream and piles it on one cookie, then tops it with another cookie, making an ice cream sandwich. She hands it to me and then starts making one for herself.

  I take a bite, trying to draw this out as long as possible. It’s never fun admitting that you’re a bad friend. Or a liar. And I’ve been both.

  “Well?” Kylie says.

  I sigh. “You know how you’ve sometimes been a bad friend?”

  “Um, rude,” Kylie says. “Did you bring ice cream and cookies just to insult me?”

  I shake my head. “No. Sorry. I just… I want you to remember that you’ve sometimes been crappy too, that way you won’t hate me when I tell you how crappy I’ve been.”

  Her eyes widen and she leans forward a bit. Ice cream melts from her cookie sandwich and she licks it off. “Details, Bella! What happened? What did you do? You brought ice cream and cookies so I’m thinking it was pretty bad…”

  My teeth wear into my bottom lip. I know I just need to say it. Kylie is my best friend. She can handle that I’ve been lying to her… I think. But I can’t stand the thought of her getting mad at me as much as my brother is. I can’t deal with having both of them hate me right now.

  I draw in a deep breath. “I’ve been lying to you all summer. About Liam.”

  I’ve been bracing for her to get mad at me, but her reaction is totally unexpected. Her lips slide into a wide grin, and her eyes sparkle mischievously. “Really?” she says, giving me a coy look that makes me feel dirty. “You two have been hooking up! I knew it!”

  “No!” I say, sounding as scandalized as I feel. “We haven’t hooked up!”

  Kylie gives me a look that plainly says she doesn’t believe me, and my cheeks burn hot with embarrassment.

  I stare at my ice cream spoon. “Well… I guess it depends on your definition of hooking up.”

  Kylie gasps, putting a hand to her heart. “You kissed him! I knew it!” She takes a huge bite of her cookie sandwich and then leans forward, talking with her mouth full. “Tell me every detail. All of them. Leave nothing out. Is he a great kisser? Tell me all of it!”

  I laugh. “I really thought you’d be mad about this.”

  “Why?” she says. “I don’t have a crush on the guy… you do.”

  “Yeah, but I’ve been keeping it a secret. Actually, it’s worse than that. I lied to you about it.”

  She shrugs off my concern. “It’s fine, Bells. You’re allowed to have secret crushes. You’re not as open about that sort of thing as I am.”

  “I’m glad you’re not mad, but I had to tell you about it today because—” Even after spending all morning rehearsing this talk in my mind, I’m still too embarrassed to say it out loud.

  “What’s wrong?” Kylie says. She straightens. “Did he hurt you?”

  I shake my head. “Not intentionally… you see… it was more than just a one time thing. We had a fling.”

  Kylie doesn’t look phased at all. “And?”

  I swallow. “It was a summer fling. We agreed to it at the start of summer because we both liked each other… we said we’d have fun and secretly date and then we’d end things when summer was over.”

  “So he didn’t do anything sleazy?” Kylie says. “I just want to make sure I don’t need to go key his truck or something.”

  I laugh and shake my head. “No, he’s been amazing. He even put up with Brent screaming at him last night.”

  “So what’s the problem?” she says. “If you feel bad that you kept it from me, don’t. It’s fine, Bella. I am glad you told me now though so we can gush about him. You still haven’t told me if he’s a good kisser.”

  “He’s a great kisser,” I say. “But the problem is… well…” I look up at my best friend and lay out my feelings more honestly than I ever have before. “I got too attached. I don’t want to let him go, but I have to. We agreed on it. Summer is over soon and we’ll be over too.”

  Tears flood into my eyes and I blink them away. Kylie stands up and walks over to me, her short black hair tickling my face as she squeezes me into a bear hug. “I’m sorry, Bells.”

  She pulls away after a moment and kneels down so that she’s eye level with me. “You know what you need to do, right?”

  I shake my head. A single tear rolls down my cheek.

  Kylie takes both of my hands in hers. “You gotta rip off the band-aid.”

  “Huh?”

  She gives me a sad grin. “Remember when we were in seventh grade I fell on the concrete during lunch and skinned up my knee real bad? The nurse put that huge bandage on it and I went home and my mom told me I had to take it off and clean the wound but I didn’t want to because it was going to hurt so bad. Remember that?”

  I nod, the memory resurfacing clearly in my mind. “I made you rip it off.”

  “Yep. You told me to just rip it off fast and easy so that it wouldn’t hurt as much.”

  “And that’s what I need to do with Liam,” I say, digging my spoon into the ice cream. I take a huge bite and the sudden cold makes my head hurt.

  “You’re right,” I say after the pain wears away and I’m reaching for another bite of sweet, cold, sugary heartbreak-healing ice cream. “This summer fling is the bandage on my heart. I just need to rip it off and not drag it out.”

  “Yep,” Kylie says, standing up and reaching for another cookie. “Trust me. It’s the best way
.”

  18

  Liam

  I’m making a turkey and cheddar sandwich when someone knocks on the door. My mom does a lot of online shopping, so deliveries are dropped off nearly every day. I ignore the knock, assuming it’s just another package for her.

  Then I hear my mom swing open the door and say, “Well hi there! How are you, sweetheart?”

  She only calls one non-family member by the name sweetheart. I set my knife down on top of my half-made sandwich and peek around the kitchen cabinets.

  Bella is here.

  “Liam, you have a guest,” Mom says as she sweeps past me. “Offer her a sandwich, okay?”

  “That’s okay, I’m not hungry,” Bella says. She smiles at me, but it’s broken. I guess she still feels awkward after last night.

  “Hey,” I say, giving her a quick hug. “You sure you don’t want a sandwich? My sandwich making skills are perfectly average. You won’t be disappointed, nor will you be overwhelmed.”

  Her broken smile heals a bit and she shakes her head. “No, thanks. But I’ll hang out with you while you eat.”

  “It won’t take long,” I say as I go back to assembling my sandwich.

  “Oh I know,” she says, taking a seat at the kitchen table. “You’re the fastest eater I’ve ever seen.”

  “I’m a growing man,” I say playfully.

  The conversation stays light because we both know my mom and Phil are in the other room and could be overhearing everything we say. I chomp down on my food and finish it in just a couple of minutes.

  “What’s up?” I say as I shove a handful of chips in my mouth. “Wanna go ride today?”

  She shakes her head. “Nah. I’m not really in the mood right now.”

  To anyone else, that might sound like a regular thing to say. But I know it’s not normal for Bella. She loves motocross. She loves the track. It’s how we met each other, after all. It’s how we spent most of our time together this summer.