Best Friend's Baby

by Mia Carson

  “I'll take a beer, too,” Tyler said after fishing his ID out and handing it over as I did mine. The adults didn't need to be carded, and I couldn't tell if that was a blessing or a curse for them. I stuck my tongue out at Ali, the only person at the table still too young to order her own booze. She glared at me.

  “I'll let you have a sip of mine,” I said in a stage whisper, “but only if you promise not to tell your parents.” Her parents chuckled, and Ali rolled her eyes.

  “I'm going to hold you to that,” she said.

  “Be my guest,” I replied.

  “You're an ass,” Ali said, but she had trouble keeping a smile off her face. She grinned at me over her menu. I threw her a wink and turned my attention back to mine. There was way too much to choose from, which I had expected. Probably because I was so hungry, everything looked good. I settled on a regular sirloin with a baked potato as a side and folded my menu. Julie and Tyler had decided, too, but Dave and Ali were still looking when the waiter came back around with our drinks.

  “You guys need some more time?” he asked.

  “Nope, I'm good,” Dave said. “Ali?”

  Ali looked slightly panicked, but she nodded. “Yeah, I'm good.”

  The waiter started with her and went around the table. I thought I would be the only person who got steak, but Dave chose a different cut. Tyler and Julie had chicken, and Ali had pasta. There would definitely be a variety of leftovers at the end of the night. It had been a while since I'd been to a steakhouse, but from what I could remember, their portions were pretty big. Most times, I could clear off what was on my plate, but I didn't want to be sluggish for bowling later that night, which would most definitely happen if I ate my weight in food.

  My beer had been conveniently cracked open for me. I lifted the bottle and held it towards Tyler, who clinked the neck of his softly against mine and grinned. Just like when we were kids, banging our cups of soda together in imitation of the adults. Some things never changed. I glanced at Ali, who watched us.

  “You know, I would clink you as well, but...You don't have an actual drink.” Tyler laughed.

  “And you're still an ass,” Ali said, but she was still smiling. I knew she didn't mean it. Well, maybe she meant it a little. Okay, she probably did, but all in good faith. “When are we going bowling?” she asked. “If it's another round of midnight bullshit, then you and Tyler can go on your own because I'm not suffering through you laughing at me for screwing up again.”

  “I would never laugh at you!” I said, feigning offence. “Tyler would.” He punched my arm.

  “You would so laugh,” he said. “Don't even try to deny it.”

  I ignored him. “You know you love midnight bowling, Ali,” I said. “It's only the weirdest, best thing in the world for three friends to do. You live for it.”

  “Only when it's with you two dweebs,” Ali said.

  Our dinner was delivered quickly despite the number of people in the restaurant, and everyone became too busy eating to talk. I ate until I started to feel on the edge of full and left the rest of my meal on my plate to take back to the house for lunch the next day. There was enough conversation around us that the lack of it at our table didn't really seem to bother anyone. I certainly felt as at home around the Campbells as I always had. Tyler and I had grown really close as kids, and they had treated me like a second son. I would always be grateful to them for the times when they were there and my family was not.

  Ali and her mom were the only two who completely finished their food. Tyler and Dave either elected to hold on to some leftovers or realized they had more on their plates than they could reasonably eat without their stomachs exploding. I felt better that I wasn’t the only one holding onto food for the next day. The waiter returned, asked if anyone was interested in dessert, and handed Dave the bill when everyone passed. I had my wallet out before he'd even opened it, counting out what my steak and drink had cost. Dave saw and waved his hand at the money I offered him.

  “Don't worry about it, Mason,” he said. “It's our treat.”

  “I don't mind,” I said, but I knew the argument had already been lost. I only really debated the issue because not doing so was rude.

  I put my money away and let Dave handle the bill. I would make it up to him later, one way or another. I had the entire summer to show my gratitude and make sure they didn't regret letting me stay in their house. This new job would certainly help. It wasn't really glamorous, just something to give me a bit of buffer money before I went back to school, but I was thankful to Gina for snagging it for me. I was lucky, too, that there was a need for a temp employee at her office. I'd probably be bored stiff doing data entry all day, but at least the pay was decent, and it was only a few days a week, which left plenty of time to hang with Tyler and Ali.

  I checked the time on my phone. Ali wasn't really the midnight bowling kind of person. She would go with Tyler and me, but she'd have more fun if we were home by midnight rather than just getting somewhere. By the time we got back to the house, we'd have plenty of time to get to the bowling alley in town and have a couple games. Besides, I was tired anyway, and Tyler probably had work in the morning.

  Boxes were brought for everyone's food, and we packed up and left. I managed to slip a tip onto the table without Dave noticing. There, my contribution for the night, for dinner at least. I would probably pay for bowling, too, since it was my idea. The family and I filed out of the restaurant, holding boxes of food in our hands. Dinner had subdued our cheerful banter, and on the drive back to the house, I muffled several yawns. I must have been more tired than I originally thought. I hoped I would have enough energy for a good game. If Ali beat me, I would never hear the end of it.

  I twisted so I could include her when I asked, “Do you guys want to head out when we get back, or do you wanna wait?”

  “Might as well just go,” Ali said. “The sooner we get there, the more chances I'll have to beat your ass into the ground.”

  I laughed around Tyler's agreement. That settled, I turned back around. When we arrived at the house, it was pretty much an instant transition from one car to the next. Dave and Julie took the food and gave us the generic 'be careful, have fun, don't be out too late' warning and headed inside. We all piled into my car and headed to the bowling alley located off the major shopping mall where the movie theatre and big chain grocery store were. The building was new compared to the shops around it. It had opened about ten years ago and was still going strong. I was pretty sure an official bowling league played in it a couple times a month. It had been ages since I had gone, though, and I was pretty rusty, not that I had ever been that great to begin with. Ali would probably have no trouble beating me.

  I took care of the fee for shoe rentals and balls, which lightened my wallet a bit. The three of us carried our shoes to an empty lane and left our things there before going to pick out the right balls. The bowling alley was loud, even though it was kind of late in the day. But it was summertime, and school was a distant memory. Everyone was bored and needed something to do.

  I sat on the chair in the middle by the little computer and set the game up while Ali put her shoes on and Tyler slid around the polished floor on his, arms flailing as he tried to keep his balance. Ali rolled her eyes at him. I thought it was a stupid idea, but I would laugh when he fell on his face. Which he probably would, as evidenced when he lost his balance and had to stumble about like an idiot so he didn't end up hitting the hard wood.

  “Hey, jackass,” I said. “Come take your turn so we can get this game started.”

  Tyler gave me the finger and grabbed his ball from the return rack. I leaned against the tiny chair at the computer table and watched him roll his ball down the lane. It listed to the side and took out the three side pins. The second roll knocked out the group in the middle, but there were still two pins left standing.

  “Pretty good start, I'd say,” he commented, coming back to claim a seat.

&n
bsp; I was up next. I did the same as Tyler had, although different pins were standing. Ali, of course, rolled a gutter ball. Both Tyler and I broke into laughter.

  “Do you want us to get bumpers?” Tyler teased.

  Ali smacked his arm. “I'm just warming up, okay?”

  “Oh, okay… Yeah, sure,” Tyler said, nodding his head. “Of course.”

  Ali stuck out her tongue at him and grabbed her ball for her second roll. It wobbled on the edge of the lane but curved enough to knock down three pins at the end. Ali flipped both of us off as she returned to her seat and crossed her arms over her chest. The first round went pretty quick. Ali lost, of course. She managed to rack up a few points, but it was really more of a competition between Tyler and me, and he only won by a few points. I reset the game board, and we started again. This time, I took pity on Ali and tried to help her on her turn. I slipped up behind her to fix her posture.

  “It's not that hard,” I told her, adjusting her grip on the ball and how she held her arm. One hand on the side of her elbow, I guided her arm back. “You gotta let the ball kind of fall off your fingers rather than try to throw it. It's a bit awkward because your body wants to hold onto it, but you'll get the hang of it the more you practice.”

  “Like this?” Ali asked.

  I kept my hand on her elbow and guided her through the fall, putting my other on her hip to keep it from rotating and throwing off her aim. The ball rolled smoothly down the lane and knocked straight down the middle of the pin set. The heavy pins tumbled down and were swept into the back. Ali pumped a fist into the air and cheered, pushing me away from her.

  My heel slipped on the waxy floor, but I managed to stay upright, my body burning where it had been in contact with hers. I cleared my throat and rubbed the back of my neck, very much aware of the tightness in my groin and stomach. I let her take the second shot on her own. She missed both pins still standing, but it didn't put a damper on her smile. It was the best throw she had all game, and it did look like she was getting better. Tyler and I still absolutely crushed her. She didn't seem to care at that point, though. All it had taken was one good round for her mood to stay positive. I was glad for that. She could be a sore loser if she wasn't feeling great, especially when she was tired.

  I refused to step in and help her again, choosing to keep my hands to myself, even if my thoughts weren't as innocent. I all but sat on my hands. It would have been cheating to keep helping her, I told myself, and Tyler would tease us mercilessly for it. It was better to just keep to myself and try to kick his ass.

  Eventually, the energy started to die down and the alley grew less crowded. We had played a good few rounds, none of which Ali had won, and I could feel myself starting to tire. When I suggested we leave after finishing our current game, no one objected. There were a few points when I felt Ali looking at me, but if I caught her she either smiled or flashed a funny face at me. I couldn't get a read off her, and I would be lying if I said it didn’t bother me. Ali had always been that way. I didn't know what it was about her, but she was naturally good at keeping her cards close to her chest. Unlike Tyler, who was as easy to read as a picture book.

  The game finished with me in the lead, giving me three games to Tyler's two. He flipped me off in jest. We returned our balls, changed out our shoes, and headed back to the car.

  “Shotgun!” Ali called when we were just barely out the door.

  “You can't call shotgun without having seen the car!” Tyler shouted after her.

  “Suck it, Tyler!” Ali shouted back.

  “She did lose,” I said to Tyler. “The least you can do is let her sit in the front.”

  Tyler made an annoyed noise in the back of his throat and rolled his eyes in a way very similar to his sister, but Ali was already in the car and he didn't have much choice. He fell asleep in the back seat after about five minutes. It was early still, but that dinner plus the energy he had spent jumping around like an ass during the game had tuckered him out. Ali looked half there, too. I rubbed at my lightly burning eyes and yawned. It had been a good day. I was glad to be back.

  ALLISON

  I slept late the next day. Tyler woke me up as he headed out to work around seven-thirty, but I fell asleep pretty quickly after that. It was a lazy Saturday in summer, and I was not getting out of bed before ten. Maybe even eleven. I had nothing to do, nowhere to be, and full run of the house until Tyler got home and took the TV from me. I was comfy with my blankets piled on top of me, and I really didn't want to move.

  When I did finally wake up, I stayed in bed, dozing lightly and stretching. My room was next to the guest room, and I could hear movement from the other side of the wall. My body grew restless, even though my mind would have been content to stay in the same place, so I got up and stretched my arms above my head until I started to feel dizzy. I grabbed my pyjama bottoms from where I had chucked them the night before and tugged them on. I padded down the hall to the bathroom to brush my teeth and hair before anyone saw me. Definitely my hair. I had major bedhead. Tufts of blonde stuck up all over the place, and I always got knots behind my ears.

  Looking less like a train wreck and sans morning breath, I headed to Mason's room and knocked on the door.

  “One sec!” he called. I heard a quiet thump before he opened the door and gave me a groggy smile. His hair stuck up at all angles, just like mine before, and he was shirtless. How had I failed to realize how absolutely ripped he was? I’d seen him without his shirt before. Had he been working out? Had I just been completely blind? All I knew for sure was that, suddenly, I was staring, and it was super awkward.

  Mason cleared his throat. “What's up?”

  “I…uh,” I blinked and forced my gaze up to meet his. “I heard you moving around and wondered if you wanted any help getting your stuff unpacked?”

  “Yeah, sure,” Mason said. “That'd be a big help, actually. I guess you never really realize how much stuff you have until you have to put it away, huh?” He chuckled and stepped aside to let me in the room. His suitcase was open on the bed. He grabbed a shirt out of it and quickly wriggled into it. I took that as a sign to start taking stuff out. It didn't look like he had much stuff to hang up, but I opened the closet and pulled some extra hangers out anyway, just in case.

  “You sleep okay?” I asked. “I always sleep weird when I'm away from home. I don't know why that is. Except, like, if I'm in a nice hotel room. There's just something about hotel rooms.”

  “Well, this is like home to me,” Mason replied, “so I slept fine. Thanks for asking, though.”

  “Right, totally. I'm glad.”

  “Did you have fun last night? I didn't get the chance to ask.”

  I rolled my eyes. “It was okay, I guess. Thanks for helping me, by the way.” Mason seemed a bit uncomfortable, and I wondered if it was because he had been pressed up against his best friend's sister.

  “No problem,” Mason said. “Everyone needs a little help sometimes.” He ran a hand through his hair, succeeding in making it look even messier. “So, uh, you got any plans for today? I don't have to do grocery shopping or anything like that now that I don't have to rent my own space, but there's still some stuff I wanna grab before I start working.”

  “What do you need?” I asked.

  “Well, I don't wanna eat all of your food, so I was gonna grab a couple things I like the best, and there was stuff I couldn't bring with me, and stuff I need extras of. Some razor blades, I'm almost out of shaving cream—you know, stuff like that. I figured while I was out I'd grab some lunch. So, I mean, if you wanna come, I'll pay for you. You can tell me what's been going on since we talked last.”

  “Sounds good to me,” I replied. “You know you don't have to make a separate shopping trip or anything. Just give my parents money, and I'm sure they'll be happy to pick up whatever you need.”

  “Yeah, I know,” Mason said, “but they're already letting me stay here. I don't wanna make them do more. Besides, I
gotta learn to do more stuff for myself, ya know? I'm gonna be living on my own eventually.”

  “Hey, whatever you want, Mase,” I said. “You give me free food, and I'll do just about anything.”

  Mason laughed. “That's good to know. Means I can rope you into all of my nefarious plots.”

  “Oh, God,” I groaned. “Now I wish I hadn't said anything.”

  “Don't worry,” Mason said with a roguish grin that accentuated the scar on his lip. “I won't take advantage of this new knowledge.” We continued unpacking until everything Mason had brought was out of the suitcase, even if they didn't quite have a home yet.

  “So,” I said, “just let me get a quick shower and I'll be ready to go.”

  “Sounds good,” Mason replied. “When is Tyler done? Should we go pick him up, too?”

  “Not until six,” I said. “He might have had his lunch already. You can make it up to him some other time.”

  Mason shrugged. “All right. I'll just finish up in here and meet you downstairs. Give me a shout when you're ready to head out.”

  “Yep,” I said, and left him to put a few final things away. Showers were a pretty quick thing for me, except when I had to shave, so I was in and out in about twenty minutes. Usually, I let my hair dry on its own, but the summer humidity would make it a frizzy mess if I left the house without blow-drying it first. Mason would just have to wait a bit longer to get his chores done. It was definitely too hot for jeans, so after I dried my hair and twisted it up into a bun, I grabbed a pair of shorts and a tank top and slipped my feet into flip-flops before heading downstairs. I could hear the TV on and voices coming from the kitchen—Mason's and my dad's.

  “Mase, I'm ready!” I called from the front door.

  “Okay!” he shouted back. I heard him say goodbye to my dad and the soft scuff of his shoes on the foyer carpet. He smiled at me. I opened the door to let him out first and followed him to his car.

  Our first stop was the grocery store. Pretty much everything on the list Mason showed me on his phone would be there, and the fewer stops, the better. Not that I cared being with Mason, of course, but it was hot as balls outside, and the more time I spent suffering in it, the more I wanted to veg out on the sofa with a fan blowing on me. I grabbed a hand basket from inside the door and followed Mason around as he went from aisle to aisle, looking from his phone to the signs hanging from the ceiling and back again. One by one, he tossed what he needed into the basket.