You, Me & You

Willow lies on her back in her boyfriend’s bedroom. It’s dark. She always goes numb when he gets like this. He gets over horny and she may be too but she’s not ready. So she just lays there and lets him have his way; to a certain extent, of course. She could always tell when a little fooling around is enough and when he wants more. Today he wants more.
“Nick, haven’t you ever heard of ‘No means no’?”
“I’ve heard of ‘No means yes because girls like to play hard to get’.”
“I’m not playing anything. I’m not ready and you know this. I told you I’d tell you when I am.”
“And when will that be, Will?”
“I don’t know. It’ll probably come sooner if you stop pressuring me.”
“I’m not pressuring you!”
“Oh, really? What do you call what you’re doing right now?”
“Persuasion.”
She rolls her eyes and pushes him off of her.
“Willow, come on. Your top’s off. Your bra’s off and you’ve already had something down there. It won’t be so bad if it’s the real thing.”
“Says you.”
“How about this? I stop arguing with you all time. I just take what I can get from you and then go finish up with some other girl? How does that sound to you?”
He moves toward his light. When the light comes on her eyes adjust quickly. He picks up her shirt and bra and throws them at her. She just looks at him. His sharp light blue eyes say it all. He’s not kidding.
“Get dressed and get out before I’m forced to rape you by mistake.”
She puts her clothes on and walks out the door he’s opened for her. The door slams on her back. She stands there for a second feeling like an idiot. She looks down the hall and her best friend, Scarlet, is standing in her bedroom doorway. Willow sighs and goes to her friend’s room where Scarlet slams her door in response to Nick.
Willow fall across her bed.
“I don’t know why you put up with him,” she says.
Willow stuffs her face in the pillow that’s reserved for her when she slept over.
“He’s not good for you. He treats you like crap. Nick is my brother, yes, but he’ll bounce back from you. You’re my best friend. You will not bounce back so easily.”
“So why are you trying to convince me to leave him?” I ask.
“Because the sooner you do, the sooner you bounce back. This is the last week of school. Find you a summer fling to help you move on.”
“But I don’t wanna move on from him. I--”
“Don’t say it. Dear God, don’t say it. Keep that to yourself because, and this is just a heads up, the day I hear those words come out of your mouth in reference to my brother…I’m going to slap you; really hard.”
“Thanks?”
“New subject. What’s going on at your house?”
“Oh, did I not tell you?”
“Your hot brother is--”
“Gross. I don’t wanna…” she trails off, erasing mental images. “No don’t say that. Bryce is mediocre looking at best.”
“If you say so. But what haven’t you told me?”
“Santiago, his best friend who got shipped off to boarding school is moving in with us.”
“When?”
Scarlet tilts her head to the right and her naturally red hair falls over her face where she brushes it back.
“Tomorrow.”
“Santiago: the Latino boy with the amazing body. Now he’s out of high school so I can’t imagine how much hotter he’s gotten. And you get to live with him!” she shrieks.
“He gets to live with me,” Willow corrects her.
“Who cares? He may be your summer fling cure for Nick.”
“No. He’s nineteen and I’m only--”
“Seventeen. That’s only two years, sweetheart.”
“You know I hate when you call me that.”
“Willow, just think about it and call me when he gets there. I’ll rush right over.”
She nods, picks up her backpack and leaves Scarlet’s house.

Santiago leaned against the side of Dakota’s car absentmindedly handing him the tools he called for.
“So we share the basement. There are two bedrooms down there. I get the bigger one, of course. It’s my house,” Dakota laughed.
“Whatever, dude. And it’s your parents’ house. But who cares? I’m just glad to be out of boarding school,” Santiago replied. “I don’t think I’ve ever worked so hard in my life. Graduating early was the best thing for me.”
“But the girls, though, right? They were wearing those uniforms and…doing things.”
Santiago stood and looked at his friend. They had both grown substantially since they’d last seen each other. Dakota was about six foot two now; he was more toned and sure of himself than he’d been their sophomore year. His skin, however, was just as light as ever. And his hair was just as curly as well. This was the first day back and he’d missed Dakota. He never thought it’d hurt to be away from another guy so much but they’d been tight since they were kids. Dakota was his brother.
He slapped Dakota on the back. “The girls were alright. I just wanted out.”
“Congratulations.”
He turned his attention back to the engine until he heard a car pulling into the driveway blasting some pop song loudly. A black 1964 Mercury Comet convertible with red leather seats stopped next to them. The girl sitting in the driver’s seat had fair skin with brown hair that surrounded her face and stopped at her chin. She reached over to grab something out of the passenger side then turned to get out. She made eye contact with him revealing the family eye color of chestnut brown.
“Hey, Kota.”
He looked up briefly from the engine to acknowledge his little sister, “What’s up, Will.”
“Who’s your friend?” she asked looking at Santiago.
“Don’t be stupid. It’s Santi.”
Her eyes widened slightly then narrow immediately.
“Hi, Santiago. Welcome back.”
“Hi, Willow.”
“You know what? Where are you coming from?” Dakota questioned, suddenly interested.
“None of your business.”
“I hope that’s not sass for Nick’s house,” she mocked. “I don’t speak sass.”
“You speak it fluently.”
“Whatever,” she scoffed. “I was over at Kelly’s,” she finished, walking away.
Dakota shook his head and went back to the car.
“Sometimes I’d like to ring her neck, I swear.”
Santiago watched her walk away, committing the sway of her hips to memory. He and Dakota weren’t the only ones who had grown up.