Beautiful Together (3 page)

Hell, I
drowned
in it.

Everyone cheered for Mason as we walked in. It was incredible. I felt like royalty, like the dance was just for
us
.

Streamers and colored banners and flashing DJ lights. The pulsing thump of the music and the roar of laughter as we all sang along. The hot, sweaty crowd, dancing the night away, celebrating a homecoming victory in the best way possible.

Sometimes we danced with our friends, and sometimes we danced alone, soaking up the excitement together. And when John Mayer's "Daughters" came on, I almost melted into a puddle on the floor.

"May I have this dance,
madam
?" he asked.

"Of course," I shouted, jumping into his arms.

Mason was gorgeous, with sandy-blond hair and striking blue eyes, wide shoulders and an impressive, highly-toned physique, one of the hottest guys in the whole school. His cheeks got rosy-red whenever he laughed, and his smile was utterly infectious.

And now I was slow-dancing with him. Even though we were in a crowd, it was just
us
in that beautiful moment, a moment I wished would never end.

It was such an incredible, magical night, like something out of a John Hughes movie from the eighties. I didn't even know it was
possible
to have that much fun. We laughed and danced and wandered around the school, eventually sneaking into the gym and goofing around in the dark on the wrestling mats.

I didn't want the night to end. It was just...
too
good. Youth, excitement, romance...

We danced the night away, feeling totally free. My mom hadn't really approved of me going at all, but despite her firm beliefs, she was rather passive about enforcing them. And that night, I was especially thankful for that fact.

I was there, enjoying one of the greatest nights of my life. It was perfect.

Jesse never showed up. I blocked him out of my mind because I didn't want to worry. I didn't want that situation to spoil the night. And it didn't.

He took off after the game without telling anyone where he was going, driving into the night in the raggedy red truck that his father gave him for his sixteenth birthday. Whatever. Things would be back to normal next week, like nothing happened at all.

I was certain of that.

After the dance, Mason drove us to an empty parking lot overlooking the hills on the other side of town. He shut off his old Corvette
and left on the radio.

"That was great. Did you have fun tonight?" he asked, gazing over at me.

"I did," I said. "I'm really glad we did this." There was such a warm, fuzzy feeling in my belly the whole time. I hadn't ever felt anything like it before. While Mason wasn't my first crush, he certainly felt like the first one who actually mattered.

"I like you, Naomi," he said. "I always kind of thought you and Jesse were a thing so I never said anything. But I always wanted to. You're... really cool and cute."

I shook my head in disbelief, missing his compliments entirely. "
Jesse and me
? No way. We're just best friends. I've known him my whole life." The idea of dating Jesse seemed so odd and foreign.

"Me too," Mason said. "It's funny how things change, isn't it?"

I nodded. "Yeah, I guess so. Did you ever ask him about me? Or say anything about how you felt?"

Mason stared off into the night, the headlights of passing cars glinting in his eyes. "I did once, but he was in a bad mood. So I dropped it and just asked you out instead."

I took a sip from my water and leaned back in the seat, pressing my head against the headrest. "Well, thanks for asking me," I finally said. "It's been really fun."

He smiled. "I'm just glad you said yes!"

I laughed in disbelief. "Did you really think I was gonna say no to the hot quarterback?"

He shrugged. "I don't know. You could have. I
wanted
you to say yes, but you're definitely allowed to say no. It doesn't matter that I'm the quarterback."

I gazed back at him, appreciative of his honesty. "Well, I did what I wanted, Mason. And I'm happy."

We both fell silent after that, sitting quietly, comfortably. I didn't feel like I needed to say anything.

Mason glanced down at the clock on the old cassette radio. It was a few minutes after midnight. "When do you need to be back?"

"By one at the latest. My mom is already going to be mad, but I'm definitely not ready to leave yet."

Mason nodded. "Well, let's sit in the back until then. It's more comfortable."

I followed along, not sure where things were going. While I certainly had ideas, none of them were concrete or reliable. We climbed out of our respective sides of the car and pulled the seats forward. And then we quickly jumped back in and yanked the doors shut, our bodies now one row closer to the oft-ignored
NO LOITERING AFTER DARK
sign behind us.

Yes, we ignored it too.

We initially remained separate, leaning back and staring out through the front window, idly chatting, passing juicy gossip back and forth like we were taking swigs from a bottle of wine in a brown paper bag.

I started to get cold, but I tried to hide it, not wanting to disrupt the perfect silence of the night by asking him to start the car. Mason seemed to pick up on my discomfort almost immediately.

"Are you cold?" he asked.

"A little chilly," I confessed. "But you don't have to—"

"Here," he said, promptly handing me his varsity jacket. "I'm too hot anyway."

"Thank you," I said quietly. But instead of taking the jacket, I instinctively slid toward where he held it and just sort of fit myself into the comfortable space in front, leaning against him.

He wrapped the jacket around my body and kept his warm, strong arm there, holding me close. I rested my head on his chest. Not long after, he was stroking my hair, and I began to lose myself.

I felt tingly from top to bottom, and when I finally tilted my head to gaze up into his eyes, he kissed me, and it was like the kiss spilled all the way through my entire body. The deep and powerful sensation rushed through me with an overwhelming undercurrent of care and concern and want. Goose bumps rippled along my icy flesh in delicate waves.

When I kissed back, I couldn't stop. I had always wondered what people did when they kissed, where they put their hands and feet, what they did for variety so it didn't get boring.

Was that something to worry about? I knew that sex in movies was not very realistic, but what about passionate kissing?

I mean, the sex was usually simulated, but the kissing was real, and so did that mean I had to—

My heart beat out of control, urged on by my hyperactive imagination. We kissed and kissed without stopping, shifting our tongues back and forth, breathing into each other, speaking beautiful, silent phrases that only we understood. Every natural movement helped to quiet the tumult of my neurotic thoughts until they were tinier than whispers a mile away.

I put one arm around his lower back and one on the nape of his neck, passively exploring and massaging during the tender interplay of our lips. He cradled me gently, lovingly, and it showed just how comforting strength could be.

Eventually, he pushed me flat against the seat and climbed between my legs, legs that I willingly spread to accommodate him. I could feel how hard he was, but me being a sixteen year old virgin, I didn't know a whole lot about
that
.

You know, did he
have
to have sex if that happened? Would he be mad if we didn't? Also, my mom liked to talk about how sinful pre-marital sex was, but if it felt anything like
this
, I knew I probably wouldn't be able to resist...

Even though it was only our first real date, I was already thinking like that. It was odd. A little wild and crazy. A little
rebellious
...

But it never came up. We made out until my head was fuzzy and sublime and I was swimming in a sea of unbelievable feelings. The whole thing felt physically incredible from start to finish, and nothing I had worried about was a problem at all. It was totally automatic, guided by feeling, just as it should be.

He drove me home and then kissed me goodnight. "Can we do this again soon?" he asked.

"Of course," I said.

We awkwardly paused for a minute, and then kissed one last time. "Okay, see you, Mason," I said, stroking his hand.

"Bye, Naomi. Thanks for such an awesome night."

I crept inside, thankful that my mom wasn't waiting for me. After a quick stop in the bathroom to get ready for bed, I fell into a beautiful slumber.

It was the beginning of something new—but I had no idea where it would take me.

3

Things got really confusing
really
fast after that—but not with Mason.

The Monday after the dance, I snuck up on Jesse, surprising him at his locker. I had gotten out of class early and actually had time to make it to the other side of the school.

He was legitimately startled by my appearance, dropping his textbooks all over the floor. "Shit," he mumbled under his breath. It was as if I had interrupted some intensely private personal moment. I felt horrible.

"Jesse, I'm so sorry," I said. I squatted down and helped him pick up the fallen educational tools.

His cheeks were flushed red with embarrassment, even though none of the passing students seemed to notice or care about what had happened. He stared back at me with huge, subdued pupils as he restacked the books on the top shelf of his locker. "It's okay."

"Do you have a minute?" I asked.

"I don't have long," he said tersely. He looked unhappy, but he was probably just tired. Mondays were never easy after the weekend.

"What happened to you on Friday? Nobody knew where you went. We were—"

"I felt sick after the game. I didn't want to go out." His eyes focused on everything except for me.

"I'm sorry," I said. "I wish you could have been there. We had such a good time. Mason and I."

"I'm sure you did." His tone was really inauthentic, but I was way too excited to feel uncomfortable.

"We even
made out
," I whispered. "My first serious kiss! It was awesome."

"That's nice," he said, still conspicuously avoiding eye contact. "I'm
so
happy for you."

"What's wrong, Jesse?" I inquired aggressively. "I
need
to know what's up. You can tell me anything. Did something happen at home?"

"There's nothing wrong with me," he said haughtily.

"So are you saying it's
me
?" I snapped. I grew impatient fast. Jesse was someone I had always had a direct line of communication with, a line that withheld nothing. Now he was acting eerily combative and I didn't like it one bit.

"Not necessarily." He hastily closed his locker and leaned against it, facing me, arms crossed defensively over his chest.

"What the hell
are
you saying then?" I said, almost shouting. People were starting to notice us.

"I guess I don't know what I'm saying." His face grew so pallid after the harsh red I had seen earlier. "But I've gotta go. See you, Naomi."

I scoffed at him and shrugged my shoulders. "What the hell, Jesse? Seriously?"

He didn't look back as he disappeared down the hall.

***

I never could have predicted what happened in the next few weeks.

Things were great with Mason. We were hanging out a lot, even with his football practice and part-time job, which actually meant we were
making out
a lot.

Sometimes we would sneak out into the woods and mess around on a blanket, always having to pluck the twigs and leaves out of our hair like a couple of grooming monkeys before we returned to civilization. He had a secret spot, a little clearing in the forest, and he loved bringing me there.

"I like being out here with you," he always said. "I used to play out here with my older brother a long time ago. Now it's
our
place."

There was, coincidentally enough, a big graffiti-covered rock near the clearing, referred to as Make Out Rock by local couples. But we always avoided it because it seemed pretty gross.

We went out for ice cream at least once a week, and Mason always paid. He was an incredible gentleman, all the time, every day, and on top of that, he was a great guy. Sweet, attentive, caring. I was falling hard for him—and fast. I still hadn't even told my parents that we were dating, but I knew I would have to soon.

It was better for me to tell them directly than have them hear from somebody else.

"It'll be fine," he kept saying. "They won't be mad. It's not a big deal."

"You don't know that," I would whine. "You've never met my mom. You don't know how she can be."

"Well, you should take me to meet her then. And your dad."

It was crazy—he actually
wanted
to meet my parents.

All of this left me in a wonderful haze—except that my relationship with Jesse was deteriorating rapidly. He wasn't calling or texting back, wasn't even
trying
to hang out with me.

If I approached him at his locker, he would play dumb, sometimes pretending not to hear, other times just dismissing me by saying he had to go. It seriously hurt. And the fact that we didn't have any classes together made it feel like we were living on different planets.

The problem was, I was so blown away by Mason that I wasn't really trying all that hard to fix things. He was an overwhelmingly positive thing in my life, a thing that would have brought the old Jesse great joy. Why was everything so different now?

He wasn't talking to Mason either. It made me wonder if his parents were going through a divorce and he was just lashing out at the world.

I asked my parents at dinner one night, and the mere idea shocked them.

"The Evans? They're happily married," my dad, Brian, said. "I haven't heard a thing. They sure looked happy at church last week." He worked for the chamber of commerce, so he was definitely up to date on local gossip.

My mom, Carolyn, said the same. She hadn't heard anything at the insurance agency where she worked either.

A few days after asking my parents, Jesse showed up at
my
locker, something he rarely did, even when we were on good terms. "Naomi," he said quietly.

Surprised, I almost dropped my books on the floor just like what had happened with him. "Jesse, hey," I muttered. "What's up?"

His expression was vacant. "Listen, what do you think of me? Like what do you
really
think of me? I know I've been weird lately, but I need to know." He stood like a statue, towering over me, his books clutched across his chest.

I nervously bit my lip. The moment felt extra sensitive for obvious reasons, so I proceeded with caution, intending to be extra nice.

"I think you're a great guy and you've been my best friend for a long time. And I'm really thankful to have you as my friend. You've always been there for me." I paused for a second, giving him a chance to speak, but he didn't say anything. "And I don't want to lose you as a friend. I wish things would go back to how they were."

"So that's
it
?" he asked sharply. "That's all you want?"

I was a little taken aback. "What more is there? How much closer can we get, Jesse?"

He seemed to ignore my response. "What about Mason?"

I closed my locker and turned back to Jesse. "I mean, he's great too. But it's different. He's my boyfriend."

"
Boyfriend
," he repeated mechanically, like he was seeing how the word felt in his mouth. "Yeah. I see."

I frowned at his response. "But I'm still closer to you, Jesse. I haven't known him as long as you. He's never gonna replace you, if that's what you're worried about." I thought hard for a second. "Wait, is this about that kiss in the basement?"

"
No
," he said tersely. "It's not." Just then, the bell rang. "Well, see you later, Naomi," he said, turning and walking away down the hall.

"Jesse!" I called after him. But he kept going anyway.

The whole encounter left me feeling extra weird and frazzled. I almost mentioned it to Mason, but I didn't.

The next night, as I lay in bed, this idea took root in my head, one that would have explained so much—maybe Jesse
was
jealous of Mason and me. Maybe
he
had wanted to date me all along.

I arrived at the idea after watching
Titanic
for the hundredth time and seeing the love triangle between Cal, Rose, and Jack. It seemed a little out there, but it was too crazy not to ask.

Maybe it explained the whole surprise basement kiss. Maybe it explained a lot of things. It wasn't what
I
wanted, but maybe he did.

I knew what I had to do.

But the next time I had a gap in my classes long enough to make it to his locker, I almost fainted when I got there—and it wasn't from running down the halls.

I marched toward him full of determination, ready to end the madness. I would dive right in and show him that I knew him better than anyone else. I would tell him that I had gotten too carried away in my blossoming relationship with Mason to even consider the possible conflict. I would tell him that I wanted things to work out for everyone.

But it never happened.

Pressed up against his locker—by his body weight, of course—was none other than Carla Voss, the local "beauty queen" who hated me more than any other girl in the school. They were intensely making out, full-on tonsil-hockey, and I unintentionally caught a glimpse of his hand on her butt.

It was like a sucker punch.

I felt nauseous and turned around just as Mr. Calworth, the science teacher, rushed over to break up their public display of affection.

"You can't do that in the halls!" I heard him shout. "Get moving or I'm taking you to the principal."

I heard the cackle of Jesse's laughter as I rounded the corner and fled, passing between the other students like a ghost. I was
really
thankful he hadn't noticed me.

When I met Mason after school by his car, I almost started sobbing.

"Oh God," I moaned, "it's so bad."

"What is?" he asked, holding me in his arms. I hadn't even given him a choice, just ran right up and jumped into that cradled position. "Is somebody in the hospital or something?"

"It's worse!" I mumbled. "Jesse is dating Carla Voss! Did you know about it?"

Mason suddenly let me go, resting his hands on my shoulders. His eyes were like fireballs. "Wait,
what
? Seriously? Maybe they just went on one date or—"

"They were making out in the hall!" I hissed.

"Whoa." He glanced away for a second, like he was trying to make sure nobody was listening in. "Yeah, I didn't hear anything. That's nuts. Why would he date
her
? He used to complain about how mean she was."

"I don't know," I said, battling his arms to press my head against his chest. "I watched him grab her butt. It was disgusting. Mr. Calworth had to separate them."

"Oh my God," Mason said, scrunching his eyebrows and shaking his head. "That's so weird. I guess they weren't lying when they told us as freshmen to 'expect the unexpected.'"

I nodded. This was
definitely
the unexpected. According to the rules of high school, they were officially a couple. It was time to change my opinions and my life.

After the discovery, Jesse and I stopped talking for good, and aside from one final attempt to reach him—a thwarted attempt, might I add, because Carla butt in and said he didn't want to talk to me—we were totally separated, torn apart by strange social circumstances. He even started bringing her to church, which always made me cower behind my dad whenever he looked in my direction.

Seeing her in those fancy, expensive dresses her mom bought her, all made up for the world to see... well, it definitely didn't help.

Whatever had caused the changes was bigger than I could possibly understand, so I gave up and let myself fall headfirst into my beautiful new world with Mason.