Chapter 3
“Holy shit, girl,” Rya says as she halts in her steps and stares me up and down. “You look hot. Zayn is getting lucky tonight.” She moves her brows up and down.
“Ow.” I yelp after she slaps me on the ass, making my light brown curls bounce from the sudden shock.
If there is one thing I love about Rya, it’s that she always makes me feel good about myself.
She’s one of those girls that gives the best compliments.
Every girl needs a friend that boosts their confidence up.
Especially on the days you need it the most.
“I do look hot,” I say to myself as I stare at my reflection in the mirror, my brown eyes staring back at me.
I was nervous the black dress wouldn’t look good.
But damn, it hugs my curves just right. I situate the boob tape to get the V-cut to not fall open and reveal everything for the entire world.
“Ezra’s getting some tonight, too. Look at you,” I say, grabbing her hand and twirling her around, her long blonde hair flowing with her.
She stops with both hands on her hips and a seductive glare.
She’s wearing a black mini dress too. But hers has three twisted cut outs starting from the bottom of her stomach all the way to her breasts, showing her under-boob and the top of her boobs.
To celebrate all of us turning thirty we wanted to do a bigger celebration this year. We’ve been friends for twenty-two years. Ever since that day at the river, we’ve all been inseparable.
Unexpectedly, our friendship developed romantically.
“Rya, I have something to tell you?” I say, twisting my hands around the steering wheel, nervous at her reaction.
Pink flowers bloom on the trees, swaying outside.
The beautiful sight helps the twist in my stomach as I drive us to school.
I’ve always loved this time of year when the flowers start to bloom, and the seasonal depression begins to fade.
“What is it?” she asks as she looks at her reflection in the visor mirror and coats her lashes with mascara.
Ever since we turned sixteen and started to drive, we take turns picking each other up for school.
We had to stop picking up the boys because they stay up way too late playing video games and can never wake up on time.
They were causing us to be late, and we were sick of getting in trouble because of them.
“I’m starting to get feelings for Ezra,” I say with my teeth clenched tight.
We’re almost done with our senior year of high school, and this year I struggled so much.
I’m not the type of person who likes school.
I’m a hands-on learner, so it makes it hard to sit and listen to a lecture all day.
I don’t even remember what most of the lectures are about because I always end up daydreaming about nonsense.
And now I’m expected to go to college and know what I want to do for the rest of my life.
I’m only eighteen. I’m way too young to know what I want to do.
“What!” she says, eyes wide. “Shit.”
“What?” I ask, side-eyeing her.
“I got mascara on my eyelid.” She licks her finger and rubs the mascara off. “When did this start?”
Shrugging my shoulders, I say, “We’ve been spending so much time together, just the two of us, since he’s been helping me with my homework. And I don’t know...They just started developing.”
Ezra has always been the one that helps the most. Always giving his time to others.
He’s the most thoughtful person I know. When he found out I was struggling, he came over every day and helped me with my homework.
We’ve been doing our homework together for the past six months.
I’ve never had alone time with him before—well, not like this.
And since we’ve been together so much, feelings have developed.
I never expected to develop anything like that toward him.
One day I saw him as my best friend, and the next I was seeing him as more than that.
I’m worried he’ll laugh at the idea of us since we’ve been friends since we were kids.
What if he sees me as a sister? He’s going to think I’m gross for seeing him as more.
That’s what scares me. What if we try the whole dating thing and it ends up not working?
Can we become best friends again as if nothing romantic has happened?
I’m scared of losing him as my best friend.
She puts her mascara away and gets out her pink, sparkly lip gloss from her bag. The one she dies without. “Have you told him?”
I shake my head. “No. I’m too scared.”
“Scared of what?” She smacks her lips together.
“I guess rejection. We’ve been best friends since we’re kids. What if he thinks it’s weird? Is it weird?” I ask, looking over at her after I park my car. Students rush out of the parking lot, their backpacks bouncing with each step as they walk toward school.
She narrows her eyes at me. “Why would it be weird? So many love stories start out with them being friends.” She shrugs her shoulders. “It’s bound to happen,” she says with her head low.
“Wait…Do you have feelings for one of them?”
She bites down on her lip and shakes her head. She raises her head and smiles at me. But the smile seems fake, like she’s hiding something behind it. “No.”
I squint my eyes at her reaction. “Are you sure?”
“Yup. How about I talk to Ezra for you and get a feel of what he thinks?”
“You would do that for me?”
“Of course,” she says, grabbing her bag, and we head toward the school.
After weeks have gone by and Rya still hadn’t asked Ezra about us, I started losing hope of us ever becoming anything more. Rya said she never could find the right time to talk to him about it.
It’s now the day of our graduation. One guy from our senior class, Jordan, is throwing a party at his parents’ lake house in Bear Lake, Idaho.
Three hours away from our hometown in Utah.
After our class all walked, we drove straight to Idaho.
We’re all spending the weekend here. We all told our parents that his parents were going to be here to chaperone.
But they’re the type of parents that lets their kids do anything as long as they go to school and get good grades. So, no one is here watching us.
The weekend was crazy. I’ve only slept a couple of hours each night. We drank until we passed out and woke up and did it all over again. This is our last night here.
I’m walking around the house trying to find my friends. The sun is rising, and I haven’t slept yet. The guys made us girls promise we wouldn’t go to sleep alone. They’re worried about us getting taken advantage of since pretty much everyone here is drunk.
As I’m going door to door looking for them, I hear sounds coming from the last room in the hallway.
I crack the door open and see a side view of Rya on top of Ezra, riding him like there is no tomorrow, or that her best friend didn’t just spill her guts to her.
My heart sinks out of my chest as I catch my breath. I quietly close the door.
Is this what she was hiding behind that smile of hers?
She liked him all along. Why didn’t she tell me?
I could tell something was off when I told her.
Is this why she never talked to him for me?
I was crazy to think Ezra and I could be a thing.
Small tears fall from my eyes as I wrap my arms around myself, not wanting to be alone.
There are still so many people up dancing and drinking.
Where’s Zayn?
“Vi.”
The moment I hear his voice, the weight on my chest lifts. “Zayn,” I say and walk over to him on the couch. Two other girls are sitting next to him, giggling. I squish my way between them and sit next to him.
He eyes me with concern. “What’s wrong?”
I shake my head and lay my head on his shoulder. He wraps his arm around me and pulls me in closer. “Violet, what’s wrong?”
“I don’t want to talk about it. Can we just go to bed?”
We get up from the couch and head for the basement.
There are rooms on the top floor and in the basement.
The middle floor is where the kitchen and living room are.
Where everyone parties. We go room to room, finding an empty room.
The last room we look at is empty and a twin bed sits in the corner.
I slide under the covers first, my back toward him.
He gets in behind me and wraps one of his arms around me, pulling me in tighter.
So many thoughts are running through my mind.
When did Rya start liking Ezra?
When did Ezra start liking Rya?
Everything feels so weird now. Even with Zayn so close to me. We’ve always had sleep overs but have never been this close to each other.
The room is silent besides the music in the background.
Zayn slides his hand down to my hip and pulls me closer toward him.
I gasp slightly as I feel his hard arousal against my ass.
I’m unsure of what to do. Do I pull away?
I stare at the wall in front of me as my mind runs wild.
I’ve never thought about Zayn and I being intimate.
His hand glides slowly down to my center, resting there as if he’s waiting for my permission. I’ve known him since we were kids. But tonight, something unspoken pulses between us, a weight I don’t fully understand.
“Is this okay?” he says, his voice low and husky, a seductive tone I’ve never heard from him before.
I nod. His hand presses more firmly, and my body responds to him.
A soft gasp escapes my lips as warmth floods through my center.
He slides his hand underneath my pants, his warm skin touching me like I’ve never been touched before.
I tilt my face toward him, our gazes meeting.
His eyes are dark as he leans over and clashes our lips together.
“What if this messes up our friendship?” I say, quietly.
He stays steady on my center. “It won’t.”
I look at him with doubt. His touch is light as he waits for my permission to continue. He leans in, searching for more of an answer. “It’s me. You can trust me. I’m not going to hurt you.”
I turn over onto my back as he lays himself between my legs.
The trust I have for him pulls us together.
Slowly, I let down my guard and wrap my hand around his neck, leading him to my lips.
His soft lips meet mine, our tongues clashing together.
The heat of our breath mingles in the air.
My fingers curl around his shirt, bringing him closer to me.
Our friendship blurs as the heat of our bodies tangles together.
He sits up and throws his shirt and pants off.
His penis springs before my eyes. I’ve seen it once before when we were in junior high.
I accidentally walked in on him changing.
The embarrassment we both felt made our faces turn bright red.
This time is different. He feels and looks like a grown man.
So much different from when he was in junior high.
I unbutton my pants and slide them off. He grabs hold of my thong and glides it down my legs.
I throw my shirt off and let my breasts hang free.
His eyes fill with deep hunger as he stares over my body.
He kisses me on the top of my vagina, then trails kisses to my lips.
His firm penis rests against my slit. He guides his way down my center, pausing and breaking our kiss before gazing down at me.
I nod slightly and spread my legs farther apart, giving him permission.
The tip of his penis spreads me, making me gasp, and my center pulses for him. He spreads me to his thickness, gently moving, slow. All the doubts I had have now drift away as we lay tangled in each other.
“Is this okay?” he murmurs.
I nod, barely breathing as our gazes melt into one another.
His lips find mine again, kissing me slower and deeper.
Arching myself into him, I feel his body pressing against me.
I let myself be vulnerable in a situation I never expected to happen.
My shallow breath quickens with each thrust. Every nerve in my body tightens as the heat builds deep inside me.
My orgasm finally crashes through my body, consuming me with feelings I’ve never had before.
I tremble beneath him as his groans grow heavier, louder.
He lays his forehead against mine as his orgasm comes crashing through him, shaking above me.
My heart pounds from the aftershock of what just happened.
Thumping echoes in my ears and leaves me feeling lightheaded.
Zayn rests his head against my chest as his breathing calms down.
The sweat of our bodies clings to each other as the heat of the moment lingers.
The silence between us feels heavy. Did we just ruin our friendship? Everything feels overwhelming.
The daylight comes as the exhaustion of the weekend pulls me under. Before I know it, I’m drifting off to sleep in the arms of my best friend.
“Everyone needs to get out. The cleaners are coming,” Jordan shouts through the house late in the afternoon.
Zayn intertwines his hand with mine as we walk ourselves upstairs. I wince from the light of the day hitting my throbbing head. I feel like a bus has run me over. I need at least a week of sleep to recover from this weekend.
“Vi.”
My heart drops at the sound of Rya’s voice.
I don’t know how to feel about anything right now.
Did she go behind my back on purpose? Zayn keeps his hand intertwined with mine as I look over my shoulder.
Rya and Ezra are walking down the stairs.
Rya's eyes are wide, and her mouth has fallen open as she stares, frozen in shock, at us holding hands. I give her a slight smile, and then I’m caught off guard by Ezra's expression.
His face is tight, his eyes fixed on the ground, like hurt is running through him.
I’m confused.
Is he hurt by me and Zayn?
He slept with Rya.
Does he think I don’t know?
Does Rya know I know?
We all get into the car and drive back home in silence.
Unspoken emotions and questions linger the entire way home.
Every so often, I glance around, but no one meets my gaze.
Each one of us is trapped in our own thoughts, not knowing what to say.
I try and shake the feeling off when we get home—but I know nothing will be the same.