Summer and May

Chapter Five: May

The sunset fell against the lake in the most incandescent way. The view from Summer's outstretched balcony was unbeatable. She liked to use this balcony for sunbathing and flipping through her favorite magazine, while I preferred to people watch or read a good book. Whenever we would do those things together, it would be silent on that balcony for hours.

I gazed at the blazing orange sun before scampering back into Summer's room, waiting for her to do my makeup. She had already dressed me in a baby pink halter top and a skirt, my medium-length hair fell in waves, and now she was putting something shimmery on my cheeks. I never minded getting dolled up, but only if Summer could do it for me. She was much better at being a girl than I was.

Brooks had alerted our friends from school about the party, and they promised to be the first ones to arrive. Summer worked overtime today to make this party go from non-existent to absolutely smashing. She didn't even put this much work into her graduation party, one she'd talked about for months. Her motivation must be Jeremy. I couldn't blame her.

Once the hair and makeup portion of our night concluded, Summer delegated duties while she secured the keg and set up drink stations around the pool, patio, and lakefront area. I made the inside look pretty, while she decked out the exterior. When the doorbell rang, I nearly jumped in anticipation. All of a sudden, I felt excited and nervous.

The French doors opened and there Brooks stood, one hand running through his buzzed hair, while the other held onto a thirty-rack.

"Hello, gorgeous." Brooks winked, kissing my cheek.

I pretended to roll my eyes. "You know I hate pet names. Get in here." I opened the door wider, hugging and waving to the rest of our friends. "Beer goes out back, boys. Look for Luke."

Brooks pawned off his Miller Light to one of his friends, then followed me back to the kitchen. "It wasn't a pet name. It was a compliment. Those are different." he smiled to himself, clearly in a flirty mood.

It was hard to shut Brooks down when he was this way. There was no doubt that he was good looking, smart, and kind. All the things a girl could ever want... except for me. The spark was never there between us, at least on my end. He knew this, after I told him at our junior prom. He took me as his date because no one else asked me, but for him, it meant something more. Our friendship changed after that, but not for the worse. He still shamelessly flirted from time to time, but he knew it wasn't going anywhere. Besides Summer, he was my best friend. I had no doubt that our friendship would continue when he attends college in California next year.

Without needing to ask, Brooks helped me arrange cups, plates, and napkins on the kitchen island. When it looked nearly perfect, he wrapped a muscular arm around my neck. I gripped onto it.

"You know Summer's just going to rearrange all of this, right?"

I nodded. "I'm sure she'll fix it up to the Summer Standard. Want a beer?" I headed towards the fridge.

"Yup. Let's go get a fire started, too."

I followed him outside, opening the door to a completely different environment. Music was thumping, the pool lights flashed, and more people had snuck around to the lakefront side. It was looking more like a party by the minute. Brooks and I worked to build a sizable fire in the five-foot wide fire pit, knocking down two beers in the process. Summer entertained guests, Luke worked the keg. Things fell right into place. I noticed the Golden Twins arrive, but saw no sign of Jeremy.

"Do you see him yet?" I asked, dodging a cannon-ball splash from Scott Feist.

Summer shook her head. "No, but I'm sure he'll come." she spoke and walked with so much confidence that I believed her. We trotted up the stairs to the balcony, where she kept her much more sophisticated drinks. She poured me something fizzy, leaning over the railing.

"To adventure," she held out her glass for a cheers. She smirked at herself, as if she could predict Jeremy's arrival to the minute. Her eyes focused like she was hunting for prey; Jeremy had arrived. Alone.

She pointed her glass out to where he weaved through the crowd. He wore a navy t-shirt and khaki shorts. Simple, and yet... so attractive. I swallowed the thought in hopes to stop staring at him.

"Now that," Summer took a sip, entranced by Jeremy. "is a man. He doesn't know a soul at this party, and he walks in, alone, looking like that. He's sexy without even trying to be. That is a confident man right there, May." she bit her lip and ruffled her hair.

I peered down at him again, against my better judgement. He seemed to steal my attention that way. No part of him looked anxious as he roamed through a crowd of strangers. I envied that about him, and the quiet confidence he seemed to carry.

I tapped Summer's arm, pulling her backwards. "He's going to notice we're staring."

"Of course," she mused. "I don't want to come off too available. Let's go talk to him, before someone else snatches him up." She sent a wink in my direction, traipsing downstairs.

Just as we descended the long staircase, there he was. He grinned up at us. When Summer passed him to greet him, his grin lingered as we caught eyes.

"Glad you came, Jeremy." Summer lilted. "And, alone." 

He ripped his glance from me, looking to his left, at Summer. "My cousins are here somewhere."

"The Golden Twins?" I quizzed. If they were family, why hadn't they brought Jeremy around town more often?

"Yeah," Jeremy spoke. Every word that moved around his lips sounded like honey to me. I can only imagine the effect they had on Summer. "So... nice house."

Summer smacked her lipgloss and smoothed out her dress. She looked like a Barbie doll; glowing, glamorous, and just downright beautiful. It was no wonder that she had the heart of just about everyone at school.

"Thanks, do you want a tour?" She wrapped her arm around his, not leaving him much of a choice. I suddenly felt out-of-place. Do I go with them, and follow them around this house that I've known my whole life?

"Jeremy, can I grab you a drink while Summer shows you around?" I asked.

I could have sworn that his eyes fell to my lips for a fraction of a second before he answered, but probably not. "Yeah, that sounds great. I'm not picky... I'll have whatever you're having." he smiled. That I could clearly see.

"May likes Coors, Busch, Miller... anything I refuse to drink. Pick your poison. Literally." Summer giggled at herself.

I shrugged. She wasn't wrong.

"I like all of those," he said softly. "whatever you're having, May."

Summer pulled him off towards her father's study, winking at me on the way. I hadn't noticed the weird fluttering in my stomach until they were both out of the room. I tried to ignore the pulling in my gut it gave me when he spoke my name.