ʟᴏᴠɪɴɢ ᴛʜᴇ ᴇɴᴇᴍʏ - ʙ.ʀ ғᴀɴғɪᴄ

13 | ᴘᴏᴏʟ

•June 24, 2021•

I walked downstairs and saw Benny and Luke sitting on the couch chatting about something.

They both turned to me, Benny quickly standing up, his cheeks flushed a bright shade of red.

"Um, you ready?" he asked.

I nodded. He sent me a nervous smile. I looked at Luke. "I'll try to be back before Dad gets home."

Luke shrugged. "Don't worry about it, Em. Have fun."

I smiled at him. "Thank you."

I followed Benny towards the door, glancing back at Luke once more. He had a smirk on his face which confused me.

I raised one eyebrow and mouthed "What?". He just shrugged once more and waved us off.

I rolled my eyes. He's such a blockhead sometimes.

Benny was quiet most of the walk which was odd. Usually, he had a lot to talk about which I enjoyed. But this silence was weird and awkward.

"So," I piped up. "Are the boys meeting us there?"

Benny nodded but didn't look at me. "Yup."

"What's his deal?" I sassed in my head. "Did I say something wrong? Did Luke say something?"

"Hey, you okay?" I asked. "You usually aren't this quiet."

He sent me a quick glance. "Oh, um, yeah. I'm just kinda pissed at Maddie for posting that. And I'm just confused right now."

I looked down at my feet and then back ahead. "About what?"

I felt his eyes burn into my head. I looked up at him. He opened his mouth to speak but hesitated.

"It's nothing. Don't worry about it."

"You can talk to me, Benny," I reassured. "I'm here for you."

His eyes sparkled in the sunlight. "It's just...well, I like this girl but I don't think she likes me back."

I felt my heartbeat speed up. "Oh...what's she like?"

A small smile painted his lips as he stared down at me. "She's beautiful. And she's really kind, and caring, and just perfect in general."

I swallowed. "Um, can I ask who it is?"

Please say it's me. Please.

He sucked in a sharp breath through his teeth. "You don't know her."

Damn it.

I tried to hide my frown. Whoever he liked, I bet she was perfect for him anyway.

I smirked. "Well, if I don't know her then why can't you tell me?"

"Because you'll stalk her down and tell her that I like her."

I gasped. "I would never! Please?"

He shook his head. "Absolutely not."

I groaned while he chuckled lightly. "I'll find out eventually."

"Mhm. I'm so sure you will." he patted my shoulder.

The community pool came into view and I saw all the boys standing by the entrance. They were indistinctly arguing about something.

"What do you think they're arguing about now?" I whispered to Benny.

"Probably something dumb as usual."

We both let out a small snicker. We walked up to them and they all went silent when they saw me.