“So, you two never talked about things afterward?”
“Nope. School finished, I left town for the summer, worried things would be awkward between us once school started again, but it surprisingly wasn’t. I think we had always kinda had a thing for one another, but we never acted on it until that night.”
“So, you’ve only slept with Trey then? I don’t think one time constitutes as going around the block.”
“Oh, honey, who said it was only one time?” She lets out an uninhibited hysterical laugh, “If you only knew.” Her eyes almost entirely roll back in her head as she reminisces about the night.
I interrupt her daydream because she has to know the truth about her and Trey’s relationship; if I was her, I’d want to know. “Liv, Brice never had a chance to talk to Trey about asking you out. He did it all on his own.” Her head snaps forward and her eyes open wide.
“You mean—” her fingers fly to cover her mouth, “he actually chose me?”
I nod in excitement for her, watching her sky-blue eyes brim with happy tears as she pulls me tightly.
“Pres, you don’t know what you’ve done for me! There are absolutely no words.” She envelopes me in a hug as I feel her body quiver a few times due to happy tears before pulling back from me.
“So, you’re really a virgin? She says questioningly.
“Yea.”
“Wow. I though you and Brice had…well, you know. I mean I’ve seen you two together, and sometimes I feel as if I need a cold shower afterward.”
“Trust me, the feeling’s mutual. Earlier I asked Brice if he could stay the night and he said no. He said he was starting to have a hard time resisting me. I know he doesn’t want to pressure me into anything, but I think I’m finally ready. I love him Liv, and not just the sweet, surface-level kind of love, but genuine, deep down, gut-wrenching, totally belonging to another person kind of love. I’m willing to give up my dream school to be with him, it doesn’t matter where he goes, I want to be there for him.”
“Wow. You’ve wanted South Carolina for like forever, right?”
“Yea. This isn’t just some short-lived high school romance. I think I can see forever with him Liv. I want forever with him. And on the way home this afternoon I heard Trey telling him he wouldn’t mind taking you out tonight so we could have some alone time.”
“Ahh. Now I understand why you don’t feel good?
She waggles her brows in a goofy way, and I feel myself blush as she air quotes the word ‘feel’.
“I don’t know. But Brice turned him down. So, as it currently stands, as much as I would love to put on these pajamas and stay in, we’re all going out.”
“Oh no, you’re not! You leave Brice to me; Trey and I will go out, and you two can have a night alone. Now get your cute little butt in the bathroom and get changed.”
I do as I’m told as she continues to talk to me through the open door.
“Listen, speaking from experience,” she giggles, “God, I’ve always wanted to say that.” We both laugh, and she comes in to help me touch up my hair and make-up, “Your first time can be a little awkward—or so they say.”
“Huh. I always pictured Trey as the unskilled type.”
“God, no! The boy knew what he was doing.” She blushes as she playfully hits my shoulder.
“Does it hurt as bad as people say it does?”
“I’m not gonna lie; it’s not the most comfortable thing at first, more of, like a dull sting, but the pain eventually gives way to euphoria, and it’s so much better than you could ever imagine. Brice loves you Pres, he would never hurt you. Just go slow and relax; enjoy it.”
I smile at Liv’s description, and at the way she knows Robert would never do anything to hurt me intentionally.
“Do you have anything? I mean, in case something does happen tonight?”
“Liv, I highly doubt I need to worry about anything happening. Mom and my grandparents are here, and I’m not really planning on anything happening.”
“They have to go to bed eventually Presley, and I wasn’t planning on my first time being in the back seat of a truck, but it happened; here take these.”
She throws a handful of condoms at me as I try to swat them away in a fit of laughter.
“My God, woman! Do you always carry these many condoms with you? How often are you having sex?”
“I’m not! That’s the sad part! My mother is overly cautious and apparently thinks I’m a whore. We never really had the sex talk, I just woke up one day with a box on my bathroom counter and ever since then, they show up like clockwork on the first and fifteenth of very month.” She shrugs and chuckles. “I like to think my donations to planned parenthood are helping to keep the world a safer place.” She laughs again, and I look at all the tiny square wrappers littering my bed and floor.
“I highly doubt we’ll need all these, Liv.”
“Trust me, I’ve seen you two—you’re gonna need ALL of them.”
She smiles at me as we hear the truck pull up the drive and two doors close with a thud.
Shit. Liv and I look at each other and quickly gather the little foil squares thrown around the bedroom, shoving them into my nightstand before I crawl into bed. She fixes up my hair one last time.
“You look hot, girl. Now show that man of yours what he’s missing.”
I roll my eyes at her.
“I still can't believe how cool your mothers are about you two.”
“Says the girl whose mother is constantly buying her condoms.”
She rolls her eyes at me as I crawl under the covers. “How do I look?”
“Super cute and adorable. Not too eager looking.”
Just then Trey calls down the hall for us, Liv reaches for the door handle but stops before opening it. “Hey Pres. Have fun tonight,” she waggles her brows, “and don’t put any pressure on yourself. If it happens I want all the details, and if it doesn’t, well, then you can save your boring story, I don’t want to hear any of it.”
I scoff.
“I’ll be back at midnight. Leave the front door unlocked and I’ll let myself in.”
I nod and blow her a kiss.
“And Pres, I’m really glad we’re friends.” She walks out of my bedroom.
I’m vaguely able to hear her conversation with the boys, but I pick up on the important parts.
“Where’s Presley?”
“She doesn’t feel well. You stay here with her and Trey and I will go out. Night Brice. Let’s go Trey.”
The screen door slams, and I can only imagine the two guys looking back and forth between each other.
“Looks like I need your keys man.”
I hear a jingling of what I can only assume are keys, and then Robert’s voice, “If you wreck it you’re a dead man.”
*****
Alright Princess, what are you up too? She was fine two hours ago. I know she’s not really sick.
Mrs. D rounds the corner, “Hey Robert. You and Presley staying in tonight?”
I nod, “Yea, looks like it. Liv said she wasn’t feeling well.”
“Okay, well I’ll throw together a batch of chicken soup for dinner then; hopefully she’ll feel better soon.”