And Now the Tables Do Turn

When I woke up to my alarm buzzing the next morning, Josh was still asleep, curled against me. I silenced my phone, and yawned, staying put in bed.

Josh's forehead was against the curve of my neck. I adjusted myself a bit and cradled his head, raking my fingers through his sleep-matted hair. He stirred a bit, but his eyes stayed shut. I stayed like that for a while longer before forcing myself to get out of bed and shower.

After my shower, Josh was still asleep, now sprawled out on his stomach. I smiled at the sight and packed my things quickly. I kissed the top of his head before heading out the door.

I stopped at a gas station to get coffee before I headed into work. Work was insanely busy and I was on my feet constantly. Time past quickly and my shift was over before I knew it.

I was on my way home when Josh reminded me that he would be picking my up in an hour. I got home and changed into something casual as he had told me too. I put on more make-up and pulled up the top half of my hair, securing it back with a ribbon.

Josh knocked as I was brushing my teeth in the bathroom. I spit out my mouthful of tooth paste and wiped my mouth before going to answer the door. I opened the door and he stepped in, smiling widely.

"Hey, beautiful," he said, kissing my forehead quickly as he looked me over. I took a quick moment to look at him. He had combed his hair, which was unusual.

"Can I at least get a hint as to where we're going?" I asked, tossing some things into my handbag.

"In the car, yes," he answered, opening my refrigerator and pulling out a bottle of water. I rolled my eyes. "Are you ready?"

I nodded, pushing my bangs out of my eyes. I slid my phone into my pocket and put my bag on my shoulder. It the door, Josh paused to lean down and kiss me. I pulled away, giving him a skeptical look. He only smiled.

We got out to his car and he opened my door for me, closing it once I was seated. He hurried around to the driver's side and got in, starting up the car. He reached around to the backseat, grabbing a plastic bag. He opened the sunroof and tossed something at me from out of the plastic bag. Dark chocolate M&Ms.

"Wha-" I started to asked, glancing from the bag in my lap to him.

"They're your favorite, right?" he asked, eyebrows raised. He backed out of the parking spot and took off before I could protest.

"Yeah," I said, clicking my tongue. "Where the hell are we going?"

"I'll tell you soon enough," he assured me. "Eat the candy and relax."

He didn't have to tell me twice. I ripped open the packet and poured out a handful.

After driving in a comfortable silence for half an hour, Josh cleared his throat. I looked over at him.

"You gonna ask me again where we're going?" he asked, glancing over at me before returning his attention back to the road.

"Only if you're actually going to tell me this time," I said, pursing my lips.

Josh laughed, "I will, Spence."

"Fine, where are we going?"

"Promise not to hurt me?" he asked, teasing me.

I sucked my teeth, irritation bubbling in my stomach. "Yes."

"It's my uncle's birthday and we're having a bonfire at my parent's house," he said, taking quick glances at me as he spoke to gauge my reaction.

"God dammit," I said, turning my head to stare out the window. "You could've fucking warned me that you were taking me to meet your fucking family! So much for not being a couple."

"Spencer, I'm not doing this to be couply, trust me. Consider it doing me a favor. My mom said that the next time I come to a family event single, she's going to set me up with a daughter of a friend who's 'somehow managed to stay single,' meaning she's a dumpy twenty-five year old whose hair is already graying."

As irritated as I was, I couldn't help but grin. "What do I get out of this?" I questioned, trying to keep an edge to my voice.

"Well, there will be plenty of food and booze. Em and Ken will be there. My grandma's a riot. Oh, and I'm going to rock your world tonight," he said, throwing me a wink.

I giggled, pressing my hand to my mouth. "Is that so?"

"You should know that it is by now," Josh informed me, smiling over at me. "So you're not mad?"

"Not completely. I'm a bit pissed that I didn't get a warning, but in all honesty, I'm a bit intrigued."

"I'm glad," he said, nodding once. He moved his hand over to lace his fingers through mine. He lifted my hand to his lips and kissed the back of my hand. "Thank you."

We arrived at his parent's a few minutes later. The house was on the small side, a bit outside the city. Cars filled the long driveway and we parked at the end of it. Josh turned off the engine. We exited the car and started up the driveway. He put an arm around my shoulders and pulled me to him, kissing my temple.

We entered the house and chaos erupted. People swarmed on us. Once the initial hype of our arrival, the people dispersed. Josh introduced me to his parents, calling me his friend much to my relief.

Finally, we were able to walk away. We got plates of food and found Kennedy and Em at a table by themselves.

"About damn time you guys decided to show," Em yelled, raising her eyebrows at us as we set down our plates.

"Hush," I told her, pushing my bangs out of my eyes. Josh pulled my chair out for me and I was a bit surprised. "I worked until five, so it's not like we took our sweet time getting here."

Josh put a hand on my shoulder, still standing. "Do you want a beer or anything, babe?"

"Yeah, just grab me whatever," I told him, looking over my shoulder with a quick smile. Before he walked away, he leaned down and kissed the top of my head and I forced back a grimace.

Once he was out of earshot, Em made a face. "What the fuck is up with him?" she asked, dropping her fork to her plate, midway to her mouth. Kennedy laughed at her question.

"I have no idea. He picked me up and he was being super sweet and it was kind of freaking me out. He even remembered that Dark Chocolate M&Ms are my favorite and bought me a bag," I said, leaning in close to the midline of the table, closer to Em.

"Seriously?"

"Yeah, it was really weird," I said with a nod.

"I mean about Dark Chocolate M&Ms being your favorite."

"So, what does it matter?" I asked, frowning.

"Peanut Butter M&Ms are so much better," Em said with a groan.

"That is irrelevant, okay?" I hissed. "The main point here is that I've been fucking your brother for nearly a month, and now he brought me here to meet his fucking family and he's acting all lovey-dovey and couply and I have a fucking boyfriend!"

"Spence, you just said fucking three times in one sentence," Kennedy pointed out. I gave him a look and he retreated, turning back to his pasta salad.

"He's so fucking pussy whipped, it's ridiculous," Em said, rolling her eyes.

"Wait, who is: Kenny or Josh?" I questioned, unsure.

"Well, both, but I was specifically talking about my brother."

"I am not pussy whipped!" Kennedy argued.

Em gave him a sympathetic smile and patted his knee. "You are," she said, "But it's a good thing." She leaned forward and kissed him quickly just as Josh arrived back at the table, placing a bottle of beer in front of me before sitting down.

I glanced over at him and gave him an awkward smile that soon turned into a laugh as we locked eyes. The awkwardness died away as we ate until we nearly burst and chased the food down with alcohol.

By 9:30, I was plenty relaxed, even a bit tipsy. We had joined the rest of the party outside around the roaring bonfire. There hadn't been enough lawn chairs, so Josh had pulled me into his lap, much to my embarrassment. We sat there for a while and I kept to myself as Josh talked to his numerous relatives, only speaking when spoken to. His arms kept moving from being wrapped around my waist to my hips, and his lips would graze over my should occasionally. I was completely comfortable, leaned back against his chest. It had become quite cool, and his warmth was perfect.

Nearing 10:30, I managed to tear myself away from him, needing to use the bathroom.

"Where are you going?" he asked quietly, lacing his fingers through mine.

"Bathroom," I told him, smiling quickly.

"C'mon, I'll take you," Josh said, standing up as well. I looked down at my feet, smiling to myself. We walked back to the house in silence, my eyes feeling heavy. I leaned into him as we walked. "Are you cold?"

"Yeah," I said, nodding, my head against his shoulder. "You didn't tell me we would be outside, especially after dark, so it's not like I could dress for the occasion."

"You have a point." He chuckled quietly, opening the sliding glass door for me. It was warmer in the house but I still shivered when we walked in. "I have a hoodie in my car if you want it."

"That'd be nice," I said with a coy smile. He laughed once, pulling me to him and kissing me quickly. "Where's the bathroom?"

"Down the hall, last door on the right," he told me with a nod, squeezing my hand before letting me go.

I folded my arms over my chest and started down the hall. I pushed open the door to the bathroom and instantly shielded my eyes instantly and turned away.

"Are you guys fucking serious?!" I yelled, still shielding my eyes.

"No, we're just fucking, go away!" Em yelled back, groaning.

I didn't have to be told twice. I walked back to the kitchen just as Josh was returning with the hoodie. I pulled it on over my head and thanked him.

"Is there another bathroom somewhere?" I asked, my cheeks a bit pink.

"Yeah, downstairs, why?" he questioned, frowning.

"Uhm, I went to the bathroom down the hall and it's occupied by Em and Kennedy," I said, giggling a bit. He rolled his eyes.

"Come on, I'll show you where the bathroom is downstairs," he said, lacing his fingers through mine as we started towards the basement door. As we went down the stairs, we could hear a distinct pounding noise through the floor. I giggled, my cheeks flushing pink.

Josh showed me to the bathroom and when I came out, he had two beers in hand. He handed one to me and I took it with a smile, pushing the hair out of my face. He frowned when I shivered again.

"Are you still cold?" he questioned, taking a swig of his beer.

"A bit," I laughed, taking a drink of my own. He set his beer down and wrapped his arms around me. "That's not really helping much." He only hugged me tighter.

We stayed down in the basement for a while longer, taking our time as we drank our beers and made out a bit. Em found us after a while and dragged us back out to the fire. I took back my former seat on Josh's lap.

Around midnight, I started to nod off, Josh woke me up, say that he was going to start up the car and drive up to the house, then we could leave. I nodded and stood up so he could leave. I gladly took his seat again once he left the fire.

"You two make an adorable couple," one of his cousins told me as I yawned, leaning back in the chair.

"Oh, uhm, we're not a couple," I told her with a polite smile. She only nodded and smiled knowingly.

Josh was back a few minutes later and we said our goodbyes before leaving.

"Everybody really liked you," Josh said, breaking the silence in the car on the way back to my apartment.

"And everybody thought we were a couple," I responded, my voice a bit tight. Josh sighed.

The rest of the ride was quiet, and I even drifted off to sleep. When I woke up, we were back at my apartment and Josh had the passenger side door open for me.

"Good morning, sleeping beauty," he teased as I slid out of the car, drowsy.

"What time is it?" I asked, yawning loudly as he shut the door and we started the walk to my apartment.

"A little after one," he told me as I fumbled in my bag for my keys.

"Do you want to stay over?"

"Yeah, may as well." He shrugged as I unlocked my door and pushed it open. We went straight back to my bedroom, dragging our feet.

He closed the door behind him, his arms quickly looping around my waist. "Thank you for coming with me," he said, kissing me softly.

"No problem." I smiled, pulling away from him to drop my bag in my arm chair and to pull his sweatshirt off over my head. He caught up to me, kissing me again. "You're still tipsy," I told him, giggling.

"You seem to be a bit so as well," he laughed, his lips brushing over mine. His hands were already toying with the hem of my shirt, his fingers grazing over my skin.

I raised my arms for him and he waisted no time tugging my shirt off. His shirt came next before we pressed against each other. Josh's fingers danced over the bare skin of my midriff, raising goosebumps along my flesh. He smiled down at me, biting the corner of his bottom lip in such a way that I found myself pressing against him, completely unable to control my actions. I kissed him quickly before moving my lips from his down to his jaw and he groaned, his skin vibrating under my lips. He weaved a hand through my hair, pushing it out of my face as we kissed again.

The heat of his chest pressed against mine was driving me wild. He latched his thumbs through the belt loops on my shorts, holding my hips directly against his. I pressed both hands against the flat pane of his torso, moving them slowly up to his chest, and up along his shoulders. His head lulled back a bit as he let out a throaty groan. I smirked, bringing him back down to me.

His lips moved over mine down to my collar bone. I arched my back into his chest, gasping quietly. I slid a hand between us, tugging at his belt, loosening it. Finally, it came free and I undid the button of his jeans. He kicked them down effortlessly before undoing the button of my shorts and pushing them down my hips. He lifted me, my legs wrapping themselves around his narrow hips instinctively as he took blind steps towards my bed. He dropped me to the mattress carefully before climbing on top of me, straddling my hips.

I smiled, putting my hand on the back of his neck to bring him down to me.Leaning up a bit, I managed to move my lips down to his neck. I teased his skin, alternating between light kisses and a few occasional nibbles. With ease, I found his pulse point, below his ear, sucking on it gently. His response was to moan slowly, his pulse increasing a bit more. I smirked against his skin.

I arched my back and he undid the clasp of my bra before pulling the fabric away from my body and tossing it to the floor behind him. He leaned over me, kissing my jaw down to my neck. I fought back a moan as he toyed with the band of my panties.

"Spence," he murmured into the skin of neck. "I love you."

My eyes jolted open and the pleasure that had been coursing through my body was gone in an instant. I put a hand against his chest, pushing him off me as I sat up.

"You weren't supposed to say that!" I snapped at him, glaring at him.

"I-I'm sorry?" he said hesitantly. He reached his hand out to touch me and I jerked away again.

"No, no! That's not how this works," I told him, my voice having a definite edge to it. "If you were sorry, you wouldn't have even said it. You can't say that." I left the bed, quickly pulling my discarded shirt over my head to cover myself.

"What can I say? It just slipped out," he argued, sitting up on the edge of my bed.

"Well, you shouldn't have felt it anyway! We are not in a relationship, Josh. I am in a relationship with John; I love him!" I told him sternly.

"Then why the fuck are we even here?" he yelled, standing up. "If you're in a relationship with John, and if you say you love him, then why the fuck do you keep coming back to me? That's messed up, even for you."

"Shut the fuck up, you don't have any idea what you're talking about," I snapped at him, picking up his jeans, balling them up and throwing them at him as hard as I could.

"It's not that hard to comprehend, Spence. You're dating John and you're 'in love' with him, but for the last month, you've been fucking me every chance you get. You lie to him on a daily basis, I've heard you do it. You don't do that to a person you love. You're a sick person!" he yelled, putting on his jeans as quickly as he could.

"I'm sick? At least I'm not the one who's fucking my best friend's girlfriend, and just told her that I love her."

"Well, aren't you a hypocrite? It's like the pot calling the kettle black, slut. At least I'm not fucking my boyfriend's best friend."

"Get the fuck out of here, pig!" I screamed at him, throwing his shoes at him one at a time. "Stay the fuck away from me and my boyfriend!"

"Gladly," he said, staring me down as he picked his shirt up off the floor and walked out of the room. I held my breath until I heard my front door slam shut.

Once it did, I let out a sob, hot, angry tears falling from my eyes and cascading down my cheeks. I pushed the tears away angrily, pushing my hair out of my face. I walked to the bedroom door, which he had left open, and pushed it shut as hard as I could before sinking down to the floor, still sobbing.