by Teegan Loy
“What did we do?” she whined.
“Tequila. We did tequila. You’re an evil person, Stefanie Ensrud.”
“I hear music,” she said.
“Oh god, if Jamie brought Simon home, I reserve the right to freak out. Did you know I walked in on some girl sucking him off at our final party on campus? The last thing I need to see is Simon getting him off. God, my ankle hurts, and it feels like my tongue grew fur. Can you look?” I opened my mouth and Stef plugged her nose.
“You stink.”
“I think you turned me into a zombie, and what you smell is my flesh rotting. This is your fault.”
I poked her in the arm and she swatted at me, which turned into a slapping fight. “Wait a minute. Bacon.” She rolled off me.
“Bacon?”
“I think I smell bacon.” She slowly sat up and swung her legs over the side of the bed. “Oh shit. Did my head fall off?”
“Nope, still attached.”
“That’s too bad.”
She stood, stretching her back and grunting as she slipped on a pair of my shorts. When she opened the door, the smell of pancakes and bacon filled the air. I prepared myself to see Jamie and Simon hanging on each other, but only Jamie was standing in front of the stove. I glanced down the hallway but saw no signs of Simon.
“Good morning,” Jamie said in a cheerful voice that made me wince. “Hope you’re hungry. I have orange juice, coffee, or beer.”
Stef paled when he held out a beer. “Do you want me to puke? I’ll stick with coffee.”
Jamie shrugged and went back to stacking the pancakes on a plate. “Some people like the hair of the dog.”
“I have no desire to drink dog hair.” She accepted a plate and grabbed the syrup.
“How’s your ankle?” Jamie asked me.
“Meh. The hangover is worse.” I sat next to Stef and watched as she poured me a cup of coffee, then added some sugar and cream to the dark brew.
“Thanks.”
She eked out a grimace meant to be a smile and stirred her coffee. “Jamie, what happened last night?”
“You two got ripped, and I was charged with getting you home.”
Stef scratched her nose, then shoveled a giant forkful of pancakes into her mouth. “Mmmm.”
“What do you remember?” Jamie asked.
“Not much,” we both answered.
“Jinx. One, two—” I elbowed her.
“Oof.” She punched me and once again we poked and slapped each other until Jamie scolded us.
We quieted down, but not before she kicked me under the table again and returned to shoveling food into her mouth.
The meal helped everyone feel better, and even though I lost out and had to do the dishes, at least the heavy metal band in my head had packed up and moved to another venue. My ankle was still swollen, so I had to keep sitting down. Jamie and Stef talked about the upcoming summer, planning a few parties when she’d be able to come home.
“Well, boys, it’s been real, but Carrie is expecting me, and I need to shower before I go over there. The woman has a nose like a bloodhound, and I don’t want to spend the afternoon telling her I can’t remember most of last night. Then I need to nap.”
“Come over tonight for dinner around seven,” Jamie said. “I think we’ll just hang out today.”
“Sure. Anything you want me to bring?”
“Just your smiling face,” Jamie said.
With breakfast complete and the dishes cleaned and put away, Stef trudged home, leaving me alone with Jamie. I iced my ankle again while he set up his gaming station so he could kill me over and over again. I didn’t ask about last night and Jamie didn’t offer any details. I was happy Simon had disappeared though.
Right before dinner, Stef dragged me outside and, with hands on her hips, asked several questions about the night at the bar.
“You made me drink way too much.” I snapped.
“So, you don’t remember anything?”
“Bits and pieces.”
She flopped on the deck chair and flipped her ponytail off her shoulder. “I’m just going to say it out loud again. You’re in love with Jamie.”
I spluttered and felt my legs weaken. I collapsed next to her, knocking into her chair and almost sending both of us sprawling.
“I hoped that conversation was me hallucinating,” I said.
“And have you thought about it?”
“When was I supposed to think about it? We drank our weight in booze.”
Jamie poked his head out the back door. “Dinner’s ready.”
Stef leaped out of her chair and followed Jamie inside, leaving me outside with my thoughts. Remnants of our bar conversation floated through my head. As I remembered watching Simon with Jamie, my emotions threatened to explode out of me. I could barely process the idea of being in love with Jamie. Maybe Stef was fucking with my head. I needed to take some time to test her theory, and when I proved her wrong, I could shove it back in her face. She was probably way off base.
3
Well-Adjusted People
We spent the next few days hanging out with Stef until she had to pack her bags and head back to work. The good thing was our conversation about my apparent love for Jamie was on the back burner where it belonged. Instead, we played in the water, skied, and lay on the dock listening to Stef talk about her internship.
My luck ran out when she was packing her car and she brought up the love talk again. I rolled my eyes, but she snarled at me, forcing me to promise to call if anything changed.
“Nothing is changing,” I said. “You’re crazy.”
“Talk to Carrie and Barbie. They back me.”
“You’re discussing my personal life with Mrs. Jorgenson and Mrs. Benson?”
“Will you please call them Carrie and Barbie? It’s weird.”
“Mrs. Jorgenson yelled at me for using her first name.”
“You were six years old.”
“Old habits,” I said and pinched her arm.
Her phone beeped and her eyes widened. “I have to go.” She kissed me on the cheek and jogged to her car.
“I’ll be back in a couple of weeks. Think about what we talked about,” she shouted before she revved the engine and tore down the road.
How could I forget what we talked about? I actually wished I could go back and bleach the entire conversation from my brain. The best way to deal with things that made me uncomfortable was to ignore the situation. If I pretended it didn’t exist, maybe it would go away. I wasn’t going to waste my time staring at Jamie and dissecting every reaction I had to the stupidest things.
“Kellen, get your ass in here,” Jamie shouted.
And just like that, things were normal again. Jamie was my roommate and best friend. No romantic love was involved in the relationship. It was only platonic.
We acted like thirteen-year-old boys, talking about nothing, taking the boat out on the lake, eating junk food, and playing video games late into the night. When we were tired, we crawled to our own beds and passed out. Unless extreme torture was used, I’d never admit to Stef I may have jerked off a couple times to relieve the tension created by being in close proximity to Jamie.
On the sixth day, Mrs. Jorgenson and Mrs. Benson busted me mooning Jamie. Agnes broke her leash and ran at me, barking her head off as I tried to pull up my pants. With all the commotion, I slipped off the dock and fell into the lake.
Before I climbed out of the water, I managed to yank up my underwear. Mrs. Benson and Mrs. Jorgenson were howling with laughter. Jamie had collected Agnes, and as he handed the leash off, he burst out laughing as well.
I slapped my wet pants on the dock and stomped up the hill to the cabin. I made sure to slam the door with a flourish.
Later that day, Mrs. Jorgenson and Mrs. Benson cornered me and scolded me for almost causing them to have a heart attack, and now they wouldn’t quit talking about my cute butt, and that wasn’t something I wanted to discuss over coffee.
/> “Jamie was being a jerk and needed an eyeful.”
“You do have a lovely backside, but if you want to parade around naked, maybe it should be within the confines of your own cabin.” Mrs. Jorgenson nudged me and leaned in close. “Jamie seemed to enjoy the view.”
My face heated, and Mrs. Benson stuck her nose into the conversation and added her two cents on the state of my ass. I’d finally had enough and threatened them with lightning strikes and a few plagues if either said one more word.
Mrs. Jorgenson winked and waited for Agnes to begin their walk. Barbie whispered something and both ladies giggled loudly. When Jamie came outside, he called me stupid names like moony and sweet cheeks, which basically added fuel to the already blazing fire.
A loud crack of thunder announced the arrival of a summer downpour and saved me from more teasing. Mrs. Jorgenson and Mrs. Benson hurried by us, getting soaked by the heavenly water.
“You see what happens when you’re mean to me,” I said as I shook a fist at them.
“You’re evil,” they both shouted.
I raised my hands over my head. “I have control over the weather. Don’t forget it.”
Jamie grabbed my arm and pulled me inside. “C’mon, Mr. Weatherman, I’m ready to play.” He thrust a controller in my face.
“Fine, but I’m not really into being murdered tonight.”
“What are you into?” he asked, and for some reason, my stomach flipped upside down.
The intensity of his stare caught me off guard, and I lost my train of thought. He playfully punched my arm. “We don’t have to play if you don’t want to. I know I’m really good.”
“Oh, shut up,” I grunted.
The game quickly became heated, and when he was close to losing, Jamie started playing dirty. He knocked my hand and bumped me with his shoulder. When that didn’t work, he snuggled up to me and tweaked my nipple through my T-shirt.
The final straw was when he breathed in my ear, whispering how hot I looked, sending shivers down my spine. My poor character died a spectacular death.
“You cheat,” I said and shoved him away from me.
“Anything to win.” He smiled smugly and dropped his controller on the coffee table. “I’m going to bed. Nighty night, darling.”
I stayed seated, watching the swing of his hips as he sauntered to his room. My dick begged to follow him, but more than that, I realized I might be in over my head. Maybe I did love the bastard.
“Fuck.”
Although I’d never been in love before, the feelings blooming for Jamie somehow felt different from my past relationships. But in my defense, I’d have to be dead not to feel anything with him rubbing against my body.
After I was sure he was safely tucked in his bed, I staggered outside and stumbled down to the dock. Mosquitoes dive-bombed me in a hunger-driven flurry, so I turned toward the boathouse and climbed up the stairs that led to a huge room above where the boat was kept. My grandma and great-grandma had named the spot Peyton Place.
For the longest time, I thought someone named Peyton lived in the room when they weren’t around. It wasn’t until I was almost nine years old that I found out Peyton Place had been a soap opera based on a book they’d watched religiously in the 60s.
My parents used the place as extra space for people to sleep during family gatherings or when I had friends out to the lake. I opened the door and the stagnant smell of disuse assaulted my nose. I immediately opened the windows to let in some fresh air. A breeze blew off the lake and quickly refreshed the space.
Two double beds and a bunk bed with mismatched bedding filled the room. Against one wall was a large couch with a side table and a giant green lamp with a white, lacy shade that had yellowed with age. Stef used to put it on her head and wear it as a fancy hat. Next to that was a big square table where we put together puzzles and played games.
I collapsed on a bed and forced myself to focus on Jamie, thinking about the past four years and trying to draw some sort of conclusion. I lasted fifteen minutes before I dragged out my phone and called Stef.
During the conversation, I made the grave error of telling her about the mooning incident.
“Mrs. Jorgenson and Mrs. Benson saw your butt.” Stef giggled. “I bet they loved it.”
“Could we stay on topic here,” I snapped. “I’m having a crisis.”
“I’d be having a crisis too if I had two older women lusting after my ass.”
“Oh my god, shut up.”
“You’re no fun,” she pouted.
Another loud crack of thunder made me jump and squeak into the phone.
“Is it storming?”
“Not really. Just some thunder and sprinkles.”
“Where there’s thunder, there’s lightning. Remember how you used to think the lightning bolt was after you and the only way to get you to shut up was to let you go sit in the car inside the garage.”
“Is this bash Kellen hour? And I’m not hiding. I needed some space from Jamie. I hate that you put this thing into my head.”
“Quit obsessing over it. Just enjoy, and if the moment feels right, act.”
“Act?” My voice squeaked again.
“Do you remember anything from the tequila and Simon night at the bar?”
“Not really. Do you?”
She paused. “Maybe. I get weird flashes, but I can’t tell if it’s real or not.”
“Did I do something stupid?”
“Depends on your definition of stupid.”
“Oh god, what?”
“You may have asked Jamie if he could ever like you? And you told Simon to get lost because it was roommate time.”
“Holy shit,” I mumbled. “What else?”
“That’s all I remember,” she said. “Did Jamie say anything?”
“No.”
“He’s probably waiting for you to make a move.”
“I’m not doing that. I can’t take the chance.”
“Yes, you can. You need a plan,” she said.
“A plan for what?”
“A plan to get your man.”
I spent the next forty-five minutes listening to Stef plot ways for me to get Jamie’s attention. She finally shut up when I agreed to talk to him tomorrow morning. The tension was going to send me over the edge. I had to get this over with or I’d be one giant ball of twisted nerves by the end of summer.
It was a beautiful day, perfect for me to test the “oh, my god, Kellen, you’re so in love with Jamie” theory. It made me feel awkward and unsure, but I managed to eat breakfast with him without freaking out. I don’t think I stared too much, but the conversation felt forced and uncomfortable.
Every time I thought about broaching the subject of being more than roommates, the words would stick in my throat. It was a big possibility Jamie wouldn’t be interested and the whole thing would blow up in my face. He might even leave.
With the sun shining brightly off the water, Jamie decided it was time to do some sunbathing. Much to my delight or chagrin, he stripped off his shirt and grabbed a towel, heading for the dock. I couldn’t help but stare. The sun loved him. It kissed and licked his skin, turning it a lovely shade of bronze and giving him those wonderful tan lines that drove everyone insane. Today I really noticed them. They teased and tormented me, making me want to rip off Jamie’s shorts and peer at all his parts untouched by the sun.
I was the opposite. The sun hated me. All it did was burn me and peel a layer of skin away to reveal an even lighter shade of pale.
Maybe the dock was the right place to have a conversation. I slathered on a ton of sunscreen that made me smell like a fucking coconut, grabbed my towel, and headed down to the dock, only to stop cold in my tracks when I saw a very pretty woman sharing Jamie’s towel.
Jamie waved when he saw me stumbling down the hill. I tried to suppress the frown I felt building, but it didn’t work. The woman dove into the lake and swam to a waiting boat just as I reached the dock.
“Where di
d she come from?” I tossed my towel in Jamie’s face and toyed with the idea of sprinting back to my room.
“She was skiing.”
He grabbed my ankle, so I plunked down next to him.
“Only you could meet someone when they’re water skiing. What the fuck did you do? Flash her your dick or something?”
Jamie grinned and winked at me.
“Oh god, you didn’t flash her, did you?”
What the hell would the neighbors think if Jamie was waving his dick around? I snorted and figured all the occupants would be over here, lining up to get a closer look. Mrs. Jorgenson and Mrs. Benson had already seen my ass, they didn’t need to see Jamie’s dick as well. I’d never hear the end of it.
“Jeesh, Kell, lighten up. No, I didn’t flash her. She wiped out by the dock and swam over to talk to me.”
“Of course she did.”
“She’s coming back to hang out with us,” Jamie said.
Us? I doubted she wanted me hanging around. I was almost positive this woman had other things on her mind.
I leaned back and wondered if this was a sign from a higher power telling me not to rock the boat. Being friends with Jamie had always been enough. Why change things up now? Why else would some random girl climb out of the lake just as I was coming down to tell Jamie I wanted to be more than friends?
“I’ll just make myself scarce. Wouldn’t want to interfere with the master at work,” I said.
“I’m not a master of anything. She stopped to talk to me and she seems like a nice woman. I was being polite.”
“It’s not a big deal.” I tried to keep the disappointment out of my voice.
“Was there something you wanted to do or talk about?” he asked.
“Nope. I shouldn’t be out in the sun anyway. I’m already turning red.”
“Whatever, Kell.” His blue eyes captured my attention as he reached out, dragging his finger across my cheek. “Sunscreen.”