The Summer of Us

fourteen

I stared at the ceiling as I had woken up really early. It was about seven in the morning and as much as I wanted to cure my boredom, I didn't feel like getting up. Brennan was still sleeping as it was evident because of all the snoring that has been going on for the last hour. I wanted to jump down and put something over his mouth but he'd wake up by just the sound of my footstep.

My phone was dead and the charger was all the way at the outlet near Brennan and to my surprise, he was already using it. I couldn't fall back asleep no matter how hard I tried and all I could think about was my kiss with Brennan. He after all was my first kiss, believe it or not, and I'm pretty positive that I was his as well. Everyone thought if I could beat up a guy, I'd never get a boyfriend or whatever but that's the only time I sound pathetic.

Brennan however, everyone associated him with a puppy because he rarely talked and when he did, he was sweet and kind. Nobody would think he'd hang out with someone like me but Brennan and I were a tag team. He had the grades and the brains while I had the mouth and the fighting skills. You'd think it'd be the other way around but that's just how it works.

I heard a yawn escape Brennan's mouth and soon he shifted around. The sound of blankets ruffling pretty much signaled that he was awake. I hung upside down from the top bunk and stared at Brennan.

"Oh my god Annie!" He yelped out of fear. I must've scared him really badly because he was not ready for it. He pushed back against the wall and was now breathing heavily. I quietly laughed as he was still a little shook from when I scared him. "You couldn't have lightly tapped me or said something like 'hey Brennan get up'?"

"Sorry I like being interesting and admit it, I scared you good," I smiled slyly. I pushed myself right back up to normal to be sitting right side up. Climbing down, I made sure I was careful to not make a loud sound. My dad was probably still sleeping off a hangover since the man drinks beer at least every other night, or reading a newspaper. "Now are you going to wake up or are you going to have to make this difficult?"

"You never let me sleep," He grumbled as he turned on his right side, facing the wall and away from me. I grabbed onto his arm and started pulling him out of bed, well I tried, but he didn't budge. I rolled my eyes and let him be, now starting to walk out of the room and downstairs. It was still pretty early and I needed to do something interesting so I wouldn't be spending my whole morning staring at the ceiling.

I wanted to go to the beach because I hadn't been there once except for the time at the bonfire. I hadn't even gone in the water at all. I now was realizing how much time I spent on the boardwalk than an actual vacation from what I had perceived this visit as from the beginning. It wasn't really a vacation since my dad was there and he is the reason why someone would want to get away from home. The man is that bad.

My phone buzzed which caused a loud echo throughout the hallway. As I slowly slipped it out of my back pocket, I saw a text from Johnny. He was asking if I wanted to hang out with him by the pier and I didn't want to say no. Yet again, I didn't want to stir up more trouble than there already was with Brennan and I definitely did not need that again. Johnny was just a friend and friends hang out with each other because that was what a friend did.

Sliding down the stairs, I quietly tip toed out of the house. I swept the piece of hair out of my face and opened the door, a loud creak accompanying me. Ignoring the loud sound, I twisted the doorknob and pushed myself out the door. I sauntered over to the pier where the dark haired boy was standing. He gazed out to the ocean to see clear blue waves of water crash into the wooden columns that held the pier up. His usual bright white smile was evident on his face as I eventually stood next to him.

"Enjoying the view?" I asked faintly, trying not to disturb the peace. He turned to me while nodding with his same smile across his face. I wondered why he wasn't with Alex since the two were inseparable and attached at the hip. Johnny's smile faltered and he took a deep breath. I didn't see why he looked sad for a second and I hoped something wasn't wrong. "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, things are fine I guess," He sighed, turning back to watch the waves crash to shore. Confused on why he seemed depressed, I opened my mouth to speak but quickly closed it as he cut me off. "I'd thought I'd come here to talk to you. It's about Alex and I kinda like her, you know? I feel like we've gone through the same thing but I'll just say it right now. I like you a lot Annie, well I used to but I don't know if I still do. I know you're dating Brennan but Alex is special to me and I'm afraid to tell her how I feel without shattering our friendship."

As he went on, I listened to his every word. He kept rambling about how he felt and how confused he was and the first thing I did was embrace him into a hug. He stopped talking and hugged me back for a minute then we stopped. "What was that for?" He questioned, a little puzzled.

"To get you to stop rambling," I giggled slightly. His lips tugged into the same smile he always had, but this time it was bigger and happier. "I know exactly how you feel and sometimes all you need is a hug. I don't look like the type at all to give hugs but hey, you're my friend and you needed it. Johnny, you're a great person and I hope you know that. You make me happy and I'm so unbelievably thankful that I have you as my friend."

"Thanks Annie," Johnny replied. He combed back his hair with his hand and I looked into his sepia colored eyes. "And I'm glad to have you as a friend because one, you're so sweet and two, you can beat up like anyone. Seriously though, where did you learn how to fight like that? Is there a YouTube video that I can watch or?"

"No," I chuckled softly. "I have an older brother and ever since I was little I guess I tried to look tough in front of him. He would always playfully try to fight me and that's how I learned. But hey, I'm not holding you back from those YouTube videos though."

"Lucky you," Johnny shifted his feet. "I have one younger sister that plays with barbies and stuff and then I have an older one but she's off at college. I swear every day when I walk past my sister's room, I hear these random Shopkins videos going on. My mom pampers her so badly, it's not even funny. Plus she's only eight."

"I have a younger sister too," I scrunched my nose. "She's thirteen and she's boy crazy. She either forces my mom to buy her makeup or she steals them from her. She has musical.ly and it's so cringeworthy. I wish you could see them." It felt good to talk about these things with Johnny. My sister was a nuisance and Johnny could relate.

"Oh my gosh. My sister does that too!" Johnny guffawed. "It's so funny because she tries to be like that one blonde girl and when she moves that camera, she fails every time."

"Come on Johnny, you have to give her some credit. Not everyone can be as talented as her. It takes a lot to be like that," I mocked while Johnny sniggered loudly. He continued to laugh until a mysterious voice interrupted our conversation.

"Am I interrupting something?" I quickly glanced over to the person standing there. They crossed their arms and my heart dropped.

It was Alex.

–
probs one of my worst chapters but oh well.
- meg