Since Ten (A Short Story)

"Hi, this is Sam and I have a secret to tell. A secret that I wouldn't let my best friend know. Ever! I think..." she paused for a while and just stared at the camera to gather her thoughts and prepare herself on what she was about to say, "I think I'm beginning to fall for my best friend."

There, she said it! She can finally get it off of her chest. It's been a month since she started feeling all mushy around him; it was totally weird. She tried to stop it but it just keeps getting bigger and bigger and it's making her crazy that she needed to let it out. She cannot tell him about this, of course. No. Not ever. She's too lazy to pick up a pen and write it in a paper like a diary so she decided to just record herself.

She then sighed and switched off her digital camera.

"Sammie?"

She turned around and saw Cody rushing toward her. "Yeah? What do you nee—" she asked, but she was cut off by a hug from her best friend. "Hey, what are you doing? Let go." Sam couldn't help but laugh. Finally, Cody unwrapped his arms from Sam's shoulders.

"What? I missed you," he smiled at her. And there it went again. She could feel her belly being wild because of his infamous gummy smile. "Didn't you miss me? Huh, Sammie?"

"How could I miss you? You were only gone for hours. It's not like you'd be gone for a long time." Sam crossed her arms, trying not to show any emotions that she's been hiding.

Cody clutched his chest, as though Sam's statement hurt him. "Ow. You are so harsh, Sammie."

Sam just smirked at his comment and kept her things in her bag, including her camera. She doesn't want him to be curious on why her camera's out, does she?

"Well, anyway..." Cody grabbed a chair and sat backwards, facing Sam. "Do you remember Olivia?"

Sam stopped at what she was doing for a moment, and looked up at him. "The girl from your Biology class? Yes, I know her but we barely know each other. What about her?"

"I asked her out," Cody proudly told her. "We'll be having a date tonight."

Sam couldn't process what she just heard. Cody... just asked someone out? It wasn't the first time he went out with someone but it surely was the first time she got upset by his announcement about a date.

"What about our movie marathon tonight?" she reminded him. "You promised me we'll watch Harry Potter series the entire night."

"Oh right," Cody slapped his forehead. "I totally forgot. I'm sorry, Sammie." He looked at her wistfully.

Sam got disappointed. He actually forgot their movie marathon? He never bailed on her before, especially during a movie night.

"Let me just call Olivia. I'll tell her I can't make it tonight." Cody was about to get his phone out of his pocket when Sam stopped her.

"No, it's alright. Just go."

"But I—"

"Coco..." she smiled at him. "It's alright. It's been months since you last dated a girl and you're always with me so I think it's time for you to have fun by yourself."

Cody just stared at her, scanning her expression. "Are you sure?"

Sam rolled her eyes. "It's cool, Coco. We can have our movie marathon tomorrow night."

He smiled at her and hugged her tight. "Thank you, Sammie! I promise I'll make it up to you. I'll buy whatever food that you want."

Sam knocked on his back. "You'd better be."

Weeks had passed, Cody has now more time with Olivia than with Sam. Obviously, Sam couldn't blame him for she was the one who told Cody to have fun without her. She just couldn't believe that Cody would actually do it. She was hurt, of course, but she knew she couldn't do anything about it. It's not like they're dating; she clearly understood that she's just his best buddy.