Megan took a deep breath and then nodded slowly. “You’re a good friend, Ben.”
I smiled. “Thanks.”
And with one more deep breath, Megan got up and started walking over to Kaito, who seemed to panic for a half-second before steeling his spine and affecting a casual smile as the girl of his dreams approached. I smiled happily, hoping something came out of them.
Over to the side, I saw Kenny and Rachel chatting with Cassidy and her new boyfriend, Cameron Pearce, from one of the other High Schools in our city. This was our first real chance to meet him, and he seemed like a nice enough guy. Daniel, Elaine, Sung, and Stephanie were in another group. And Abbie and Allie were getting hit on by three guys I didn’t recognize. When they turned on their twin charm, they certainly could attract attention.
I leaned back against the wall, feeling it’s cool surface against my back as I surveyed the lobby before me. Even apart from my friends, various couples walked hand-in-hand, each of them enjoying the romance of a Friday night date.
I sighed. I missed Dawn.
I was driving down the residential road around 10mph, not in any rush. It was nighttime and there wasn’t a single active car around. My headlights illuminated a wide swath of street ahead of me as I crept along the asphalt, just feeling the lethargy of a lonely evening.
I missed Dawn. But almost more than that, I missed the companionship of having her by my side. Of having anyone by my side. It was lonely going out on a Friday night without anyone in the car with me. And as pleasurable as it was to have sex and experience thrilling orgasms with Brooke, it was no substitute for the satisfaction I felt having Dawn’s hand triple-squeezing mine.
In another minute I’d be home. Off to the left was Keira McNeil’s house. She’d come over to our place once to visit with my parents, having a glass of wine while catching up on all the things that had happened in the area while we were gone. On the right was Adrienne Dennis’ house. Even though she was so close I could probably hit her garage with a tennis ball if I threw it hard enough, I hadn’t seen Adrienne for the entire week.
On this night, I noticed a strange car in the driveway as I rolled up the street. It was a big, black Mercedes, the main headlights off but the tail and cornering lights still on in that way cars do when the engine is shut off but the key is still in the ignition with the lights activated. And just as I approached, the passenger door opened and I heard a woman’s voice yell, “I said NO.”
Adrienne practically fell out the door, her blouse unbuttoned in several places. She stumbled in her heels but managed to get to her feet, glaring heatedly back into the car.
I knew something wasn’t right and on instinct, I pulled over to the curb just past Adrienne’s house. By the time I got out my door and looked back, the driver’s door of the Mercedes was also open and a big, cocky teenager with dark hair in a faux-hawk was circling around the hood to the passenger side. “C’mon, baby. You tease me all night and leave me hanging at the last fucking gasp?”
“I said NO, Tyson,” Adrienne barked.
“Well, what if I don’t take ‘no’ for an answer?”
“HEY!” I yelled out while striding purposefully up the driveway. “The lady said ‘no’.”
“Who the fuck are you?” Tyson turned around and for a moment, my stride faltered. Adrienne’s date was four inches taller than me and outweighed me by at least forty pounds.
“Ben!” Adrienne called in relief.
I held my hands up in a non-threatening manner. The last thing I wanted to do was get into a fight with a much bigger guy, especially with a sprained right wrist. “I live across the street. It’s not normally my place to interfere, but I believe she said ‘no’.”
Tyson glared back and forth between me and Adrienne for a minute, Adrienne looking scared and clutching her arms over her chest. He seemed to evaluate that he could indeed take me if he really wanted to, but in the end he just shook his head in disgust and turned back to his car, slamming the passenger door closed. “Fuck you, bitch,” he spat at Adrienne and then circled back around to the driver’s side.
I moved straight up to Adrienne as Tyson got into the big Mercedes, shifted into reverse, and then backed away. By the time he peeled out with squealing tires, Adrienne had pressed herself against me in a hug while I patted her back comfortingly.
It took a minute, but she calmed herself down and visibly relaxed. I let go of the gorgeous girl and moved back until she was at arm’s length, softly asking, “You okay?”
Looking a little stunned but not in bad shape, Adrienne nodded and took a deep breath. “When will I learn to stay away from jerks like that?”
I shook my head wryly. “Sorry, can’t help you there.”
She sighed and managed to crack a smile. “Thanks for coming to my rescue, Ben. I probably could have talked him down, but you made it a lot easier.”
“Always glad to assist the damsel in distress,” I waved my arm theatrically.
She chuckled. “What are you doing here?”
“Oh, just coming back from the movies. Lucky timing, huh?”
Adrienne smiled and fixed her gaze right on me, that golden glow I’d loved so much lighting up her irises. “Yeah. Perfect timing.”
I released her from my grasp and the two of us then stood there awkwardly for a few moments, neither of us sure what to say. Post-breakup, Adrienne and I had always managed to be cordial with each other, but never quite comfortable. Every time I saw her I was reminded of how gorgeous she was, how vulnerable, and how I’d fucked everything up by sleeping with first Cassidy and then Donna. I looked at her remembering what I’d lost; and I think she looked at me remembering how she’d put her trust in me and I’d failed her.
Adrienne finally broke the silence by asking, “So how was camp?”
“Great, great.” I shrugged.
“Glad to be back?”
I sighed, thinking of Dawn, and looked down with a reluctant smile. “Not really.”
Adrienne looked questioningly at me and I decided to just tell her. “Well, I got pretty serious with a girl and I’m really missing her right now. It’s tough living five hundred miles apart.”
“Oh,” Adrienne raised her eyebrows and nodded knowingly.
I felt a little awkward. Talking about girls and romantic relationships would always be awkward with an ex-girlfriend and I’d probably just shoved my foot into my mouth. So immediately, I apologized, “Sorry. You probably don’t want to hear about that kind of thing.”
“No, no, it’s okay. We… we had our thing, Ben. We’ve both moved on,” she nodded slowly while biting her lip nervously at the same time, but her eyes became glassy as she lost herself in some thoughts.
Eager to change the subject, I asked, “So how have you been? Well, other than Tyson there.” I waved down the road where the black Mercedes had gone.
“Okay, I guess,” Adrienne shrugged. “I’m spending as much time as I can with my friends before they all leave. Candy’s at least staying in town at UCI. A couple of others are going to Fullerton. But most everyone else is fluttering off across the country. Mizu’s going all the way to Cornell.”
I nodded and again our conversation stalled. Adrienne took a deep breath and looked at me hesitantly once more before jerking her thumb towards her house. “Well, I’m going to head inside. Thanks again for coming to my rescue, Ben.”
“Anytime,” I bowed my head briefly before standing up straight.
Adrienne smiled and started to turn away, so I did the same. But she stopped and then looked back at me. “By the way…”