Flipped

Summer

the day of Ben's pool party

Tomika and I showed up to Ben's house five minutes early.

I was wearing denim skirt with buttons down the front and a white shirt. Tomika was wearing grey shorts that were cuffed at the bottom with a black t-shirt that had a panda on it. We both had our gifts in hand. I was too nervous to knock on the door, so Tomika did for me. The door swung open a mere 22 seconds later, I counted.

"Hey guys! C'mon on in." Ben said happily, and stepped aside for us to come in. Tomika motioned for me to go first so. I stepped in his house and instantly felt a wave of cool air, the air conditioning was on. I looked around his house, it was a nice sized home. It looked perfect for Ben and his family.

As soon as we were in, he shut the front door behind us and gave us each a hug. As he hugged me I said, "Happy Birthday!" The hug gave me a fluttery feeling inside.

"Thank you!" He said and pulled out of the hug. He hugged Tomika, who also said happy birthday, which he thanked her for as well.

"Where do we put these?" I asked, motioning to the gift bag in my hand.

"That's so nice of you guys to get me something! Here, I take them for you." He smiled. I handed him my gift and Tomika hers. He walked out of the room and came back seconds later. There was a knock at the door. Ben opened it to reveal Zack-- and Freddy. I gave him a small smile and the boys wished Ben a happy birthday and handed him their gifts. Ben came back seconds later.

"So, you guys can go wait outside while we wait for Lawrence, Katie, and the others."

"Others?" I asked.

"I thought it was just going to be us?" Zack added.

"That's what I originally wanted, but y mom said that I had to invite more people. So I just invited the rest of the class. That's ok with you guys, right?"

"Of course." I said.

"It's you're birthday bro, don't let us dictate your party." Zack smiled.

"Thanks guys for understanding, guys. Here, let me show you to the backyard." he said. He motioned for us to follow him and after walking through a hallway and then towards a living room. There was a sliding glass door in the back of the room letting in lots of natural light. He opened it and we walked outside to be welcomed by a big blue pool. It had a diving board at one end and a slide in between each end of the pool. The patio had a glass outdoor table surrounded by four metal chairs. In the middle of the table was a big umbrella to shield you from the sun. Several lounge chairs surrounded the patio and the edge of the pool.

"You guys take a seat, I'm going to go wait by the door." Ben said, I smiled and sat at one of the chairs. Since it was long lounge chair, Tomika sat next to me on the same one since I was sitting sideways and in the middle of the chair, my feet touching the ground. Zack and Freddy mimicked Tomika and I and sat across from us in the same way. It was an awkward moment, the air was tense.

"So, how was your weekend?" Tomika asked.

"It's been good..." Zack trailed off. All of a sudden a Katie burst out from the sliding glass door, sliding it shut a little too hard behind her. She motioned for Zack to scoot over. She popped a squat right next to him.

"Hey guys! Where's Lawrence?" She asked.

"Not here yet, I guess yet." Zack said. Some more kids from our class filed into the backyard.

Finally, after twenty minutes, everyone was here.

"Alright, thanks for coming. I'm just letting you guys know that food is ready inside." Ben said.

Everyone immediately started standing up and shuffling inside to get food. There Was pizza and salad and other types of good food to eat. I piled a little bit of everything onto my plate. I went outside and reclaimed my spot near my friends, who were already sitting and eating. I sat down when heard a crinkling in my pocket.

The note I had written for Ben. I had to go put it with my gift. Ben needed to read it. I walked inside and found the gifts in living room. I set the piece of folded paper near my gift and made sure that it wasn't too visible.

It was vitally important that Ben read the note. It confessed my feelings for him. The note was important because I told Ben that I liked him in it.

I breathed deeply and walked back outside. My heart was racing and my hands shaking. This note could change everything. I sat back down and put my food plate in my lap.

"Where did you go?" Tomika asked. Freddy had just sat down across from me. He eyed me suspiciously and looked away. I ate some food and set my plate back down. I really wanted to talk to Ben. I whispered Tomika my plans, and she gave me thumbs up and passed the message along to Katie, who gave and almost silent squeal. Ben was standing halfway down the pool, on the edge, I walked over to him.

"Hi."I said, nervously.

"Hey, are you having fun?" he asked, he put his hand on my elbow and that sent shivers up my spine.

I managed to relax a bit, "Yeah! this is a fun party! When are we gonna go swimming?"

"Probably when everyone's done eating, but I'm not going to stop you if you want go now." he gave a boyish smile.

I laughed, "I think I'm good for right now." I looked into Ben's eyes. They were a soft blue. I smiled brightly. I could tell he was looking in my eyes.

"You know, Summer, I-" He started to lean in. I knew we were going to kiss. I leaned in as well, and our lips were millimeters apart when I felt myself falling.

I went underwater. And I came back up. I thought Ben had pushed me, but I looked to my right to see that he was wet too.

"What the-" he started. Both of our heads turned to the side of the pool where none other than Freddy Jones was standing. I don't he realized what he had just done.

I gave him a look of disgust.

"I-" he started. Ben got out of the pool and then offered me a hand and pulled me out. I moved my wet hair out of my face.

"What is wrong with you man?" Ben asked angrily. Freddy just stood there.

"You should leave." I said. I was on the verge of tears. Freddy ruined my life again by messing up my moment with Ben. What was his deal?"

Ben nodded in agreement with me. "Please, just go." Ben said.

Freddy looked us both in the yes for a second before saying, "Fine." he turned around and walked out. People gave him dirty looks as he exited. I sighed and Ben put his arm around me.

I turned to face him. "I'm going to go grab my towel." I said.

"Yeah, I'm sorry that happened." He said.

"Me too."