Fighting Fire - s.k.

Chapter Ten

"So," Jake muttered before slightly splashing his hand in the water, fingers lightly moving beside his pool float, "Except for me punching Sam in the face and having a pretty brutal fight, did you have a good birthday?"

Stevie laughed, turning her head to glance at him. The patio light and the moon were the only light sources they had while they floated around on pool floaties together after returning from the bar. It was a nice quiet time alone just the two of them, decompressing from the night's events.

She nodded, "Yeah, it was a good birthday. Thank you for coming out here to surprise me."

Jake laughed lightly, "Of course. There were enough surprises to go around."

Stevie studied Jake's face for a moment. He looked up at the sky and focused on the stars above them. She smiled and took a deep breath before she reached out to him, lightly grabbing his floating hand. Jake turned his head and locked eyes with her.

"I'm really sorry about how all of that went down," Stevie admitted, "I know I should have handled it better."

Jake's lips twitched up into a small smile and he sighed too, "I know, Stevie. I should have handled it better too. It's just hard to wrap my head around all of it."

"I get it," Stevie let Jake's hand go and continued to float along, "It's weird and uncharted territory. I stress about it a lot."

"How so?" he questioned.

"Is it going to screw up the dynamics I already have with all of you? What if it ends badly and hanging out just won't be the same again? It's all a little risky in the grand scheme of keeping our younger years sacred."

Jake laughed lightly and he nodded, "Yeah, I get that. Things have already changed though, haven't they? It's not really a matter of if any more than it's a matter of when."

Stevie rolled her eyes and glared at Jake, "Wow, way to make me feel better."

He laughed a little harder this time, making Stevie chuckle too and Jake shrugged, "I mean, come on! You guys have already crossed the lines and boundaries of your friendship! You might as well ride it out and see what happens."

Stevie sighed dramatically and took her turn to look up at the stars, pondering what he had said, but Jake continued.

"One thing will always remain constant though," Jake smiled, "Whatever happens between you and Sam is your business. I might not fully understand whatever it is that's going on between you, but you'll never get rid of me, Steve."

Stevie smiled and looked at Jake again with wide eyes, "Good! I'd have to completely reconstruct my life if you were somehow no longer in it."

Jake chuckled and he sighed, closing his eyes, "That's too much work and getting a tattoo removed hurts a lot from what I've heard."

Stevie laughed again, joining him in closing her own eyes and letting the silence fall between them. She felt safe and secure floating beside him. It was once again, Stevie and Jake against the rest of the world and she really couldn't ask for a different reality.

She wanted Sam, she knew that full well, but she knew that giving into it and diving head first into a relationship with him was risky. She couldn't be sure how all of it would pan out if she did decide to have a relationship with him. If Jake really meant what he said and things with Sam blew up in her face, she was happy enough to keep Jake in the aftermath.

The sound of the sliding glass door broke Stevie out of her day dreams and she looked to see Sam sneaking his way outside and Jake followed her line of sight to him too, groaning with a smile.