Emily Sanders
I laid across my bed, mindlessly looking through a magazine while I talked to one of my friends, Bethany on the phone. I was closest to her when it came to our group of friends. We could talk about anything, but when it came to the other girls, we just didn’t understand each other like Bethany and I did.

“So are you still mad at Nicole after she told David you liked him at school today?” Bethany asked over the phone.

I rolled my eyes even though she couldn’t see and sighed. “Yeah, kind of. I don’t know why she would do that. I don’t even like the guy. She only thinks I do because I said hi to him in the hall yesterday.” I said, remembering when he had smiled and waved back.

Okay, maybe I did have a small crush on the guy, but it wasn’t anything that I would want anyone to know about. I just found him cute, and that was it, nothing more. Now I can't even say hello to him without getting a weird look, now that he thought I liked him, and it was all because of Nicole. Some friend…

“Well you out of all people know how she can be.” Bethany mentioned, reminding me all too well that she’s done this to me many times before, always ruining possible friendships I would have towards a guy.

That’s why I never told any of them who I liked, they would always tell Nicole, who would in return stick her nose in everything and ruin it all for me. Bethany was different though. I could tell her anything and she would be the last to judge and always kept her secrets, but there was still one thing she didn’t know about me, nor did anyone.

That secret was going to stay well kept and I could only pray none of them ever found out, not that it was bad or anything, but I know they would all agree to disagree about it. Enough said…

Suddenly there was a beeping sound coming from the phone. I checked it, seeing that there was an incoming call. I put the phone back to my ear. “Hey Beth,” I said, using her nickname. “I'm going to have to talk to you later. I think one of the other girls is trying to call.”

She sighed. “Okay, talk to you later, but don’t think I’ll forget about this David and Nicole thing.” She said, making a sound of disapproval at what she assumed was my attempt to change the subject.

The beeping sound continued. “Okay, okay. Talk to you later, bye.” She said her goodbyes and we hung up.

I switched over to the other call. “Hello?”

“Emily, is that you?” The familiar voice asked from the other end.

I quickly sat up, accidentally knocking the magazine onto my wood floor, making a smacking sound. “Jimmy?” I asked, not quite so sure.

“Yeah, it’s me. What was that sound?” He asked. I looked down at it on the floor.

“Oh, it’s nothing.” I said, hastily trying to think of something to say. “What’s up?” Really, what’s up was all that I could think of?

He chuckled at the lame attempt. “I was wondering if Matt was still home.” It figures he wasn’t calling to talk to me. Instead the call was for my older brother.

Jimmy was one out of Matt’s best friends. They all were one year older than the girls and I, but that of course didn’t stop them from liking some of the guys.

I wasn’t the only one out of my friends to have a brother who was friends with Jimmy. Andrea had a brother named Zack. They were both really cool but yet they were nothing alike. She was a lot more immature than Zack had ever been when we all grew up together, but she had always been that way, and I'm sure it was never going to change.

He was more of the shy, sweet and funny type when all she could ever do was be sarcastic and crack perverted jokes all of the time. She reminded me a lot of Matt’s friend Brian.

Brian acted the same way, but at times, he was nice. He kind of hated Nicole, or so he’s told me, and they always butted heads and argued. He also shared the stubbornness she had, but that just caused more problems between the two of them.

Matt and I would always have to be the ones to step in and break up the arguing. Truly, I think the only reason Brian does fight with Nicole is that he likes her, but it was just a theory.

I know she didn’t return the feelings because I found out she liked Matt from my friend Rebecca. I thought it was very disgusting for her to like him, but there was nothing I could do about who she liked or didn’t like.

I sighed. “Yeah, he’s home. I'll go get him.” I said, getting out of bed.

“Is there something wrong?” He asked.

Jimmy was always the one able to tell if I was feeling down or even upset. He could just hear the tone in my voice or see the look on my face and would know instantly. Matt and my friends grew up together, so we knew each other all too well.

I smiled slightly. “I'm fine, thanks for asking, Jimbo.”

He laughed at my nickname for him. “Any time, Em.”

“Just a second,” I told him to hold and opened my bedroom door, going down the hall next door to Matt’s room.

I knocked though I'm sure he barely heard it with his loud music blasting in his room. “What?” I heard him growl from the other side.

“Phone!” That was all that it took for him to swing open the door, grab it out of my hand and slam the door in my face.

“What’s up your ass?” I shouted. I was glad my parents weren’t home to hear that.

“Go away!” He shouted back, turning down the volume on the stereo to a bearable level so he could talk to Jimmy.

Damn I needed a cell phone so I didn’t have to share the house phone with anyone else.

I felt like something was up. Matt was normally kind to me. He was a good brother, and an even better friend, who was always there for me when I needed him, so when he acted like that, it really surprised me. I wondered if he was hiding something.

I knocked on the door again. “Matt? Will you please let me in?” I asked through the door.

Usually he and I talked a lot and were never afraid to admit anything to each other. This was odd of him to be acting this way.

The door opened again. He stood in front of me in a way that made me feel like he was hiding something behind himself. “Not right now, Emily. I gotta talk to Jimmy right now.” He said, holding the phone against his chest so Jimmy couldn’t hear.

I raised my eyebrow at him. I stood on my tippy toes, trying to look over his shoulder inside his room. He quickly shut the door to where I could only see half of his body.

“What do you think you’re doing?” He asked as I realized I wouldn’t be able to see anything and stood normally.

“What are you doing, Matt?” I asked suspiciously, my eyebrow still raised.

His brow furrowed. “It doesn’t matter. Now what do you want?” He said, trying to hide the venom.

I sighed and gave up. “Nothing, but I'm going to need the phone soon to call Bethany back.” I said over my shoulder as I walked back down the hall, heading for the stairs.

“Yeah, I'll make it quick.” He said with a hint of sarcasm in his voice.

I rolled my eyes and went down stairs, heading for the kitchen to grab a snack. I wondered what was going on with him. I hated seeing him like this. It made me feel uncomfortable.

I opened the fridge and peered inside, trying to decide what I wanted to eat. All I really saw was some apple juice and left over casserole from last night, and I definitely wasn’t eating any more of that. My mom wasn’t a bad cook or anything, but man did I hate her casseroles.

That’s when I noticed the small pickle jar hidden in the back. I reached for those, taking the whole jar with me into the living room. My mouth watered as I opened the lid and grabbed one out. I was just about to take my first bite when there was a knock on the front door. I growled under my breath, taking the pickle with me as I answered the door.

I swung it open, seeing both Andrea and Zack standing on the front porch through the screen door. Andrea smiled when she saw me and let herself in, grabbing me in a tight hug, almost dropping my pickle.

She made a face when she saw me holding it. I laughed and took a bite, smiling at the amazing flavor. “You’re so gross.” She grimaced.

“No, you’re just gross.” Zack mocked and entered the house. I closed the door behind him and finished my pickle.

“Where’s-” Zack began.

“He’s in his room. He was just talking to Jimmy.” I said before he could continue.

“Oh, Jimmy’s here? It’s about time I return him the favor for when he spilt my drink all over me, the jackass.” Andrea mumbled, smiling at the thought of revenge.

“No, he’s on the phone.” I laughed when her face grew disappointed.

Zack turned, about to go upstairs. “Wait up, Baker. Are you just going to go without saying hello?” I asked with my arms wide open for a hug.

He turned around and smiled, coming up to me and entering the embrace. “Of course not, I've got to say hi to my favorite sis.”

“Hey!” Andrea shouted. Zack smirked and we both laughed.

“See you later,” He said before going upstairs to find Matt.

“Later.” I shouted back and took my seat on the couch.

Andrea came running over and sat next to me, grabbing a throw pillow and clutching it to her chest. She looked at me as though she had some big secret to tell and she just couldn’t hold it in any longer.

I laughed. “What? What are you hiding?”

She kept shifting back and forth in her seat. “I know something you don’t.”

I sighed, going for another pickle. She made that same disgusted face at me. “And what exactly is this thing I don’t know?”

She looked around as if she were afraid someone was listening from upstairs. “Not here. Let’s go to your room. I'll tell you in there.”

Before I could protest, she took my empty hand and dragged me up the stairs and into my room, shutting the door behind her. I plopped down on my bed, realizing the magazine was still on the floor. I picked it up and put it on my nightstand as she sat next to me.

“So what’s going-”

“Do you know that guy Michael in our history class?” She asked quickly, slurring her words.
I slowly nodded. “Yeah and…?”

“Zack has him in science, and he said that Michael told him he thinks your cute!” She squealed, jumping up in down in her spot, shaking me back and forth.

“Okay, okay, calm down.” I said, grabbing her by her shoulders to keep her still. “So what? I don’t even like Michael. I've hated that guy ever since that time he stole my favorite pen.”

She rolled her eyes. “Oh please, that was like, in the 6th grade. Get over it! Besides, it’s about time you got a boyfriend. You and I both know that you hate being single. Admit it, you think he’s cute. You should totally ask him out. I'm sure he’ll say yes.” She said, wagging her eyebrows up and down.

I gave her a look that said, ‘yeah right’. “I don’t think so. That guy is a jerk, and there is no way I'm asking anybody out. I don’t think I would have the guts to do it, anyway. I'm not you, or Nicole.” I added.

She cocked an eyebrow. “Do I have to ask him for you?” She said, giving me that look I knew all too well. She would do it without hesitation, believe me.

I glared at her, shaking my head. “Don’t even think about it Andy.” I said, using her nickname.

“Well if you don’t hurry up and ask someone out, I'm just going to have to pick some random guy and tell them that you like them. Maybe then, they’ll ask you out.” She said, looking very serious.

My eyes grew wide. “You wouldn’t dare.” Next thing I knew she got up and headed for the door.
I stood as fast as I could. “Wait, where are you going?”

She turned around with her hand on the doorknob. “To see if Matt’s done with the phone. I'm going to call Michael. Maybe he’ll say yes when I pretend to be you and ask him out.” She threatened. Damn, she always knew how to get her way.

She opened the door and started to walk out. “Wait, wait! Okay, just…get in here and shut the damn door.”I growled through clenched teeth.

“Are you going to ask Michael out, or should I?” She asked, still threatening to go and retrieve the phone.

“Get in here and I'll tell you, damn it!” I hissed. She smirked as she got her way and shut the door, coming back to my bed and sat down.

“I'll ask him out,” I told her. She started to say something. “But! You can't tell any of the girls about this. You know how they get. They’ll ruin the whole thing, especially Nicole, okay? Promise you won't say anything.”

She smiled slyly. “I promise.”

I gave her an unsure look. “You promise, what?” I asked, waiting for her to say the whole sentence. I knew how she was, and if I didn’t make her say the whole thing, she would use it against me somehow.

She rolled her eyes and sighed. “I promise I won't tell the other girls.”

I smiled, convinced. In the end I knew Michael was going to say no, but I would rather ask him than have Andrea do it for me. That was just way to immature. “Good. Now, what do you want to do?” I asked, bored out of my mind.

She stood and went to my dresser, opening the middle drawer. “What the hell are you doing?” I asked. She threw me one of my two pieces. “Swimming?” I asked, holding it up. I haven’t worn this one in a long time. It used to be my favorite. I wonder why I stopped wearing it.

She nodded. “Yep, but before we go down there, are you as hungry as I am?” She asked, turning around with my blue bathing suit in her hands. I guess she think to bring her own…again.

“What do you have in mind?” I asked.

She sat back down. “Let’s order a pizza.” She said, smiling widely.

I laughed. “Do you really think my parents are going to let me do that? And besides, how would we pay for it?”

Her smile grew. “With this,” She held up a wad of twenties.

My eyes grew wide. “Where the hell-”

“And don’t worry about your parents. You said they won't be home until past midnight, right?”

I nodded slowly, afraid of what she had plotted in her mind for tonight. She was just so sneaky, sometimes it scared me. “Yeah, they’re at their high school reunion. Why do you ask?”

Her smile became devious. “You should invite the rest of the girls over.” That was all she said before walking out with the bathing suit in her hand.

“Where are you going?” I asked after her from my bed.

“In the bathroom to go change.” She threw over her shoulder. “Go ahead and get dressed in your room. I'll meet you downstairs in the living room.”

“Okay, grab some towels!” I said before she could shut the door. I got up and shut mine, going to change.

I quickly changed into my bathing suit and put on a small dress to go over it. I put my hair up and slipped on my shoes. The bathroom door was open, so I guess Andrea was already waiting down stairs for me. I went over to Matt’s room and knocked on the door again. There was no answer. Now how was I supposed to call the girls if I couldn’t get to the phone? Where did he even go?

I headed down stairs, finding Andrea on the couch flipping through the television channels, waiting for me. She threw on what she was wearing earlier over her bathing suit and wore her converse.

I sat next to her. “Hey, I'm going to have to use your phone to call them. Matt’s gone and the phone is locked up in his room.”

She sighed and tossed me her phone. “Call Domino’s too. I'm fucking starving.” She said, holding her stomach as it growled.

I laughed. “How many pizzas?” I asked as I dialed the pizza place first. I figured that would be a lot faster of a call than talking to the girls.

“As many as a couple of twenties will get, I guess.” She sighed, handing me a couple of twenty-dollar bills.

It started to ring. I gave her a weird look. “Where did you get all of this money?” I asked.

She laughed. “Let's just say some people owed me a couple of favors, that and babysitting. You need a job girl.”

What kind of favors? Was my best friend a stripper or something? I shook the thought from my head and responded to the pizza guy who answered. “Yeah, I'll take four large pizzas please.” I said into the speaker. I figured the boys would want some too, and we could save the rest for tomorrow’s lunch since today was Friday, that is if the guys don’t eat all of it.

“What would you like on those?” The guy asked.

I moved the phone away to where I could ask Andrea. “What toppings do you want?”

She shrugged. “Two pepperonis, one cheese and the other…I guess Canadian bacon. That shit is good.” She said, rubbing her stomach and smiling.

I chuckled and repeated the order. I hung up after I gave my address and ended the call. “It’ll be here within 40 minutes.” I sighed.

She nodded and took back the phone. “I'll call the girls while you go and get me something to drink.” She ordered me as she dialed.

I gave her a look, but when she returned it, I just sighed. “What do you want?”

“A Pepsi would be nice, thank you.” She smiled.

I sighed and got both of us a can. I handed it to her and sat back down in defeat, opening it and taking a drink. She quickly dialed and pressed the phone to her ear.

Notes

Well, this is the first chapter of my once old, now new (if that makes any sense) story. I've never posted it anywhere, so who other than you guys would I share it with to be the first to read it? Tell what you guys think! Love you guys, thanks for reading!

~Elena Rose