Oh Baby, I'm a Fool For You

"Okay, are you ready?" I asked Ben. We stood on the corner of my block in the dark, holding our suitcases.
Ben laughed and took my hands off his chest, which were smoothing down his black button down shirt. "Relax, Kaya. It'll be fine."
I was taking Ben to stay at my house for one week during our break. I was really nervous; I'd only ever brought back one guy before, and it didn't end well. "I'm nervous," I mumbled. "Veronica... She... She's enthusiastic. You'll probably like Jonah though."
"It'll be fine, I promise. Let's go, it's freezing," he complained.
"It's only forty degrees," I said nonchalantly.
He shook his head. "Whatever you eskimo. Let's go!"
I laughed and we picked up our suitcases, walking down the sidewalk until we got to the middle of the block. The house was an old two story house with a single dormer on the second floor. There was an outdoor porch in the very front. The light blue siding was only slightly visible against the dark sky.
"Okay," I breathed as we lugged our bags onto the porch. "Ready?"
"Yes," he said, laughing.
I took a deep breath and opened the door.
"SURPRISE!"
I nearly jumped out of my skin. There was a big banner saying, "Welcome Home!" in the living room, and it was filled with people. Some faces were familiar, others, not so much.
"Hey!" I called to the group of people. Veronica came running to me and picked me up off the ground in a tight hug. "We missed you so much! I missed you!" she yelled over the music that was playing. She pulled back, and for the first time in months, I saw my sister. Her deep brown hair was pulled into a high ponytail, her big blue eyes were surrounded in eyeliner, and the deep violet of her sweater contrasted her fair, pale skin.
"I missed you too! Did you put all of this together?"
"Yeah, mostly. You know who helped though?"
"Who?"
"Zeke."
I coughed, my eyes watering. "My ex-boyfriend planned this?"
She tilted her head to the side. "I thought you broke up on good terms."
I ignored her, looking around frantically. His face was nowhere in the crowd.
"Who's the hottie?" she whispered.
I turned around and smiled.
Ben was standing in the doorway awkwardly, leaning against his suitcase.
"Come here!" I called to him, extending my hand.
He smiled back at me and came forward to take my hand.
"Veronica," I started, "this is Ben. Ben, Veronica."
"Ah," she said, prolonging the note. "You're the famous Ben I've been hearing about," she said, raising her eyebrows suggestively.
"Nice to finally meet you," he said with a grin.
"Hey!" someone yelled from the small group. "Stop hogging Ky!"
"I'll be back," I guaranteed Ben, and gave his hand one last squeeze before I retreated into the sea of twenty people. I was bombarded with hugs and kisses and was asked constantly for a story about the movie or some information about Ben. There were only a few people that I actually knew; the rest were friends of Veronica's, since she's a social butterfly.
"Kaya."
An hour later, I spun around at the sound of my name.
He was six and a half feet tall, muscular all over, but not in a gross way. His skin had a light tan. His hair was blond, pushed to the side across his forehead, slightly falling into his peridot eyes.
"Zeke," I breathed.
He stepped forward.
I flinched back.
"Is that any way to greet an old friend?" he taunted lightly. He grasped my shoulder tightly and kissed my cheek, lingering for far too long. "Especially after what I put together for you."
"What are you doing here?" I asked quietly, my eyes darting around, hoping for any kind of interference.
"I'm welcoming you home," he said bluntly, not releasing my shoulder.
"I thought I told you not to come around here anymore," I whispered, feeling smaller and smaller by the second.
He laughed, clearly amused by my fear. "How could I stay away?" he asked rhetorically. "I love you." There was nothing romantic about the statement; it was full of teasing and spite.
Prying his hand off my shoulder, I stumbled backwards. "You are not welcome here," I said shakily, and ran away, hiding behind people. I wish I could say that I hated him, but I couldn't. Even after what he put me through... I shook my head and found Ben sitting in the kitchen, sipping on a soda. Righting myself, I went up behind him, locking my hands in front of him.
"Hello love," he murmured, twisting around to put his arm around my shoulders. "What's wrong?" he asked when he saw my face.
"Just saw an unpleasant face is all," I told him. "What are you doing in here by yourself?" I asked, squeezing him.
"Veronica had to run upstairs, something about Jonas?"
I laughed and shook my head. "It's Jonah, and I can't believe I forgot about him!" I squeaked. "Come on," I said, taking his hand and leading him out of the kitchen.
Zeke stepped in front of us, causing me to bump into his chest. "There you are, baby," he said, raising his hand to my face.
"Don't!" I exclaimed, slapping his hand away.
"Ky?" Ben asked softly.
"Go away!" I ordered weakly, trembling slightly.
"Come on, we have to talk," he demanded, reaching for me again.
"Hey!" Ben said sternly, moving in front of me. "She said to go away."" His voice was dark, unfamiliar.
"And who the hell are you, governor?" Zeke replied, ending with a British accent.
"She said to go away." He raised his hand, pointing to the door. "So get out."
Zeke tried to lean around Ben to look at me, but Ben moved in front of his eye-line again.
"Out."
"Kaya, you'll-"
"Out!" Ben ordered, his voice booming.
It took a few seconds, but eventually Zeke turned on his heel and stormed out.
Ben turned around and looked down at me. "Who was that?"
"No one," I said softly, thoroughly embarrassed, and tried to get around him.
Ben caught me around my waist. "Ky."
"Later, okay?" I looked up at him and went on my tip toes to kiss his jaw. "I promise."
He nodded in agreement, his mouth in a thin, taught line.
I took his hand, squeezed it, and led him up the stairs. We reached Jonah's door, where he was whining from his bed.
"But mommy," he whined loudly, "I wanna see Kaya!" He was standing up, bracing himself against Veronica's forearms.
"In the morning," she said softly, "it's way past your bedtime."
His clock read one in the morning. "But I miss her!" he exclaimed, stomping his feet.
I walked in the room, a soft smile making it's way across my face. "Hey buddy," I said quietly.
"Kaya!" he yelled, and launched himself into my arms. "I missed you sooo much!" he squealed, squeezing my neck with all his might.
I laughed and patted his back. "I missed you too. I think you need to go to bed now."
"But you just got home!" he told me. "Hey, who is that?"
I turned around, holding him against me. "This," I said, taking a step forward, "is my friend Ben."
"My name is Jonah!" he yelled, poking himself in the chest.
Ben came to us and smiled down at my nephew. "It's nice to meet you, Jonah," he said gently.
"Hey," I said, "you need to go to sleep," I told him.
"But-"
"Nope!" I exclaimed, cutting him off. "We'll play in the morning, I promise."
"Promise?" Jonah said meekly, and held up his hand, his pinky sticking out.
Laughing, I linked my pinky with his. "I promise."
"Okay," he said, finally submitting.
Veronica took him from my arms and put him back in his bed. "Good night, sweetheart," she said with a smile, and kissed his forehead.
"G'night mommy, night Kaya, night Ben!" he squealed, then turned on his side.
"Let's go," Veronica said softly, herding us out of the room. She shut the door and turned to us. "I think it's time to break up the party. He needs his sleep."
"Yeah," I agreed. "I'll go send people home." Turning to Ben, I added, "My room is the last door on the right. You can wait in there for me."
"Hey!" my sister interrupted. "If you guys are going to do anything in bed, keep it down will you?"
"Veronica!" I squeaked, my face flushing red in embarrassment.
Ben simply laughed. "We'll try to keep quiet."
"Ben!"
"See you soon," he told me, and kissed my cheek before making his way to my room.