Only You

Kevin and I met two years ago working at a youth center summer camp. All the camp counselors worked in groups of two with a group of eight to ten campers. Were paired up for the entire summer with the same group of kids and that’s how our friendship started. Kevin and Sarah had the same English class their first semester and Sarah had a crush on Kevin. She knew we had worked together therefore, I set them up on a blind date and that was the start of them getting together. What I didn’t expect was, for me to be in the middle of their relationship.  

“Let me guess, they’re arguing again?” Kevin’s cousin asked.

“Yup, and I don’t plan on getting involved this time Jamie. They need to learn to keep me out of their relationship.”

“Well, I mean you allowed them to get comfortable with you being their little therapist,” Jamie replies making quotation marks in the air. 

I sighed. We were all supposed to just have fun at the beach but, I guess that’s not happening since, their fighting again. We later heard the bedroom door upstairs close with a huge bang. A few seconds later Sarah stormed into the kitchen where Jamie and I was sitting around.

“Does this bathing suit look too sexy?”, Sarah asked placing her hands on her hip.

“No,” Jamie and I both replied in unison.

“Well, Kevin said, “he doesn’t want me to wear it-

“Nope, not my problem. I don’t want to hear anymore. I will see you all in the car when you get this cleared up.” Jamie picked up her car keys from off the kitchen table and went out the backyard door to her car.

“Sarah I will grab your things, wait in the car with Jamie for now.”

I had gone upstairs to talk to Kevin about the fight.

I knocked on the door. “Kevin are you still coming? Your Jamie and Sarah are waiting in the car.”

“I don’t want to go anymore. She pissed me off. I rather stay home,” Kevin said opening the door.

“How about I keep you some company. We can take a walk at the park and talk about it.”

I let the girls leave while, I stayed behind with Kevin. I sat on the couch after making some lemonade for us. Kevin always admired the way I made my lemonade. He would always ask me to make him a pitcher even when it wasn’t spring or summer.

“I don’t think I want to be with Sarah anymore,” he stated after taking his first sip of lemonade through his colorful plastic straw. “All we do is argue, then she goes and does whatever she wants without considering my feelings. The real reason I didn’t want her to wear the bathing suit is, that’s the same one she wore when I found out my grandfather had passed away.”

I placed my hand on one of his shoulders rubbing it gently. I remember that day, he had gone out drinking that night and woke up the next morning in a cemetery with the police and emergency medics all over him. His pulse was extremely faint and they were about to pronounce him dead before he opened his eyes.

Apparently one of the drinks he had was spiked with cocaine. The police never found out who did it but, Kevin was placed in a mental hospital for a few weeks under, his parents order.

“Yes, she looks amazing in it but, she knows I was close to my grandfather. I was staring right at her when I got the phone call. Looking at that bathing suit hurts me especially after what happen after. The clothes I wore that day, I don’t even wear. It’s still hard for me to look at them. But if I tell her that all she would do is tell me to grow up or get over it.”

“I’m sorry but, you can’t hold back. Tell her exactly how you feel. Grab your things. We’re heading to the beach,” I stated, standing up with my arms crossed.

We arrived at the beach at two in the afternoon, it was hotter than a sauna. The beach was full of people, people were everywhere. We eventually found Sarah who was laundering in crowd with a group of guys.

“Do you see this?” Is she seriously flirting with other dudes?” Kevin said pointing out Jamie in the crowd.

I couldn’t tell him that Sarah was kind of a flirt at times. She passed our first semester by flirting with every professor she had. Sarah was my friend but, she definitely didn’t deserve to be with Kevin. Kevin was calm and laid back while, Sarah was a party hard, popular, attention seeking girl who, at times had a big heart. I had to admit Sarah was gorgeous, long blond her with green eyes. She almost always ate healthy so she had a small frame. I’m not surprise that guys were surrounding her, that kind of thing always happen to her and she loved every bit of the it.

As we approached Sarah didn’t notice Kevin and I. I had tapped her shoulder to get her attention. She pulled us to the side from the three guys who looked about five years older or more older than her.

“Who were those guys?” Kevin asked angrily.

“Some friends from my college.” Sarah said twisting her hair around her finger.

I noticed she only did that when she was lying.

“You sure?”, Kevin questioned cutting his eyes at her. 

I had walked toward Jamie two give them their space to talk. Jamie had her music punk music playing out loud reading a book under her green polka dot beach umbrella. She looked beautiful in her red two-piece bikini, I couldn’t stop staring at her.

“Hey. We made it.”

“Oh cool. I thought you weren’t going to show up. Now, that your here can you apply some more sun screen on my back?”, she stated putting her book down and turning over on her back.

“Sure,” I said placing my things down.

Her skin was very soft and smooth like a new born baby. I notice she had a tattoo of a rose in the upper middle of her back near her neck.

“That’s a lovely tattoo, you have there.”

“Thanks, I got that about a month ago maybe.”

Jamie and I knew each other for almost a year now. I first met her at the funeral for Kevin’s grandfather. She was pretty nonchalant, at times I couldn’t tell what she was thinking. She was a mystery which made me want to know more about who she was. As I was putting the tanning lotion on her I heard a bunch of shouting. Jamie and I knew who it was already. We both stood up just in time to witness Sarah smacking Kevin across his face. His baseball cap fell from off his head.

“Give me a break.” I shouted.

Jamie went after Kevin who hurried away with his head down.

Sarah walked straight to me with fury in her eyes.

“Kevin broke up with me. He’s just mad he can’t handle a girl like me.”

I stood silent. If only she knew, I had already saw this coming.

Later on that night I had stopped over at Kevin’s house to see how he was doing. When I arrive Kevin was asleep but his cousin let me in.

“Hey, how is he?”, I said placing the pillow behind my back on the couch.

“He’s fine. Just need some time and space. I remember my first heartbreak,” Jamie said spinning her car keys around her index finger.

“How did that go for you?”

“It was pretty bad. I slashed the tires of the car and broke the windows. I did it a hour after I receive the let’s break up text messages but, it was for the best. I was in love and that person didn’t want love, they just wanted fun. I already had invested so much emotions and feelings so that really did damage to my heart. I finally understood somewhat of what my mom felt.”

“How is your mom by the way?”

“She is still seeing a therapist but, she’s doing a lot better these days. I visit her still. Sometimes Kevin comes with me. I was just about to take a late night drive. There this spot I drive to just to drink and think. Would you like to join?”

“Sure it’s summer break. Let’s go have fun.”

Jamie was the smoothest driver I’ve ever driven with before. I watched as her brunette hair blew out the car window on the highway as her amber eyes stayed on the road. She looked like a model in one of those commercials. She was stunning. She slowed the car down as we got to the pier. There were was an abundance of people out and mostly couples. A few old timers were sitting around having drinks amongst one  another. We found a empty bench and sat near the water as the moon shine it’s board way stage light on the ocean.

I blushed for a second when Jamie looked at me. She was beautiful, The perfect Mona Lisa.

“So how are you going to remain friends with Sarah and Kevin?”

“Wow. I never thought about that yet.”

“I’m happy their not together anymore.” We can all finally have some peace when we go out now.”

“Sarah, is just a little rough around the edges at times.”

“Rough around the edges my ass. She was definitely a bitch,” Jamie stated as she took a sip of her Coors light beer.

I watched as she took off her cardigan taking in the view. “I love it here. Looking out into the water at night is therapeutic.”

After hanging out with Jamie at the pier for a few hours she drove me home.  

“You can stay over tonight, my parents think it’s the best thing for you to do. They rather you stay over since it’s late, they don’t feel very comfortable with you being a female driving alone at night,” I said opening the car door letting myself out.

Jamie stayed. She met my parents for the first time and seen the inside of my house. I gave her a little tour and she was impressed.

“Wow you have a fire place. That’s so cool. You guys must love sitting there in the winter time.”

“Yup we sure do.”

We sat on the couch that was right in front of the fire place and the flat screen tv that was mounted on the wall. I let Jamie pick a movie she wanted to watch so, she choose The Notebook, a typical girl’s choice.

“This was the movie I was watching alone when I received the text from my ex girlfriend that she wanted to leave me.”

“She?” I said turning around facing Jamie as we sat next to each other on the couch.

“Oh, I thought I told you, I only date girls.”

My heart started pounding. She licked her lips after saying that or, was I just imagining that.

“Well, her lost. Your doing great things. Your about to be a college grad next year and start heading towards your dreams.”

Jamie placed her hand on my left thigh. “Thank you. I really needed to heard that.” 

I sat my hand on top of hers.

“Do you like this movie so far?”

“Yea it’s beautiful, just like you, I slipped out and said.

“Really,” she giggled.

I didn’t hold back anymore I had to come out and say it. “Yes, your very beautiful. You have a great personality. I learned a lot from talking to you today. I want us to have more days like tonight.

“Thank you,” she said with a red face.

We stared at each other in silence for a few seconds. I have never felt this way about another girl before. I felt my face get hot as Jamie leaned in closer to me. I could smell the peppermint on her lips from her chewing gum. I let her lips embrace mine.

“Have you ever kissed a girl before?” she asked.  

“No, I haven’t,” I responded looking down from embarrassment.  

“Don’t be shy or feel ashamed.”

“It’s not that, I trying to wrap my head about how I feel about you. I cant believe I have feelings for you and I tried to suppress them for the last couple of months. But I can no longer do that anymore. Every time I see your face everything around me is on pause and I wish time could move slower so I could stare at you a little longer. Sorry, I’m sorry, I’m saying too much”-

“No, keep going. I want to know how you truly feel about me.

I hesitated before I made the next statement.

“I think I’m in love with you.”