The Town of Winchester

I’m woken up by the feeling of Chris kissing my forehead and gently nuzzling me awake.

“Kay, we’re going to head back now. I’m having a small party tonight in lieu of us winning the tournament last weekend.” Chris gets up and looks to all of us. “Will you guys come?”

“Of course! I always want to support you guys! I know Kay would love to come, right Kay?” Gaby says extatically and looks at me to answer, as if I had a choice to decline.

“Yeah, definitely. Gaby, can I come over and get ready at your place and we can head over together?”

“Sure thing!”

We pick up our things and it’s as if we were never there. The beach is returned back to its natural state and we make our way back to jeep. The hot feeling of the sand nuzzles in between my toes and warms my whole body, giving me a sense of secure warmth. We all climb back into the jeep in the same manner we did when we left. Chris starts the engine and throws it in reverse, and we’re off. With the wind breezing through my hair I lick my lips and taste the salty air, and in this moment, I know exactly who I am. I glance over to Gaby and notice her hair mimicking the motion of mine and allowing the breeze to control its movement, and she looks stunning. She didn’t need makeup, jewelry, or her hair done in a fancy way, she looked the most stunning when she was just raw and real.

We pull into Gaby’s driveway and Chris puts the car in park.

“Alright girls, we will see you both later! Come by around 6 so we can hangout before everyone else shows up.” Chris says as he turns around and leans into me for a kiss. I kiss him quickly and hop out.

“Don’t look too beautiful tonight Gaby, I don’t want all the other guys checking you out! Just messing around, love you babe.” Brett says as Gaby runs over to the passenger side and throws her arms around his neck and kisses him passionately.

“Love you too, babe. See you later!” She waves as she takes my arm and pulls me towards her front door. The sound of the jeep trails off and the boys are gone. Gaby flings the door open and yells for her parents, who are in the living room. We join them on the couch as they are watching television, and conversation ensues.

“What did you girls do today?” Gaby’s father asks.

Gaby’s father, David, had two sides to him. There was one side that was a generous, kind hearted, and understanding. This was the side that everyone knew and loved. On the flip side to this, he had another side that wasn’t so kind. The other side of him was a strict, hard-handed man, that only came out when Gaby’s mother brought it out. Granted, we all have control over our actions and what we say and do, but her mother had a hold on him that was as tight as a python’s grip, and she knew it. Gaby’s mother was a small, tradition, saree wearing Indian woman who ruled the household. You didn’t want to cross her, because you’d be sorry if you did. Before meeting Gaby’s mother, I never understood why she was so timid to break the rules she had set for her. Most of the rules and boundaries were completely and utterly outrageous, but after that very first introduction, I never wondered that again. A part of my heart was heavy and felt for Gaby. I knew what an amazing and genuine person she was, always trying overly hard in school and making high honors, never doing anything she shouldn’t, and always making it home before dark, and her parents never gave her credit for any of it. It’s like they were so occupied with her being perfect that they only focused on the negatives and never the positives. I could tell, as the years went on, that Gaby was becoming sick of it and I surely didn’t blame her.

“Just went to the beach with some friends. It was such a hot day that Kay and I didn’t want to miss the opportunity for a swim.” Gaby responded.

That was the extent of the conversation, as Gaby started to get up and make her way towards the stairs.

“Kay and I are going to shower and get ready, then we are heading over to Chris’s house to do homework.” Gaby says as we are already halfway up the stairs. I know why we waited until she was already almost upstairs to say this, so that she could act like she didn’t hear her parents bombard her with questions.

Gaby takes the shower first and I relax on her bed. Before I know it, I’m woken up by the feeling of my body bouncing in the air.

“Your turn! Your such an old lady. Going to bed so early. You better wake up and get ready for the party tonight!”

“I just needed a little power nap; I’m roaring and ready to go now. A nice cold shower will be the icing on the cake, and I’ll be ready to roll.” I respond, still half out of it.

The feeling of the cold water on my skin feels so refreshing. I can feel the saltwater and sand slipping down to the drain and off my skin. I’m not in the shower long, and I turn the knob and grab my towel. I head back into Gaby’s room to see she’s already putting her makeup on and getting ready. I enjoyed watching Gaby do her makeup. It was a literal art. Drawing on her eyebrows, brushing her cheeks with blush, and spicing up her lips with bright red lipstick was something to see. My “getting ready” required little to no effort and was done in about 10 minutes. Throwing my hair in a messy bun, slipping on my ripped jeans and short sleeved, cut off red flannel was all it took for me to be ready. Gaby, on the other hand, took about an hour and a half to get ready, but by golly she was finally ready! Finally. We both make our way downstairs and Gaby snags her keys off the rack and we head outside.

“Be back later, love you guys.” Gaby says as she continues out the door. The sound of her mother and fathers voice trail off as we continue. Gaby looks at me and shrugs.

“They’ll get over it.” She says as we both open our door and climb into the car.

Gaby pushes the start button and we’re off. Music blaring, windows down, singing at the top of our lungs down the street. The drive isn’t far, only about 15 minutes to Chris’s. We pull into a driveway full of cars. We were a tad late due to Gaby’s hour and a half makeup affair, but at least we made it.

“Finally! About time you show up! I thought you ditched us.” Chris says as he approaches the car and opens the door for me. I give him a quick peck on the cheek and he throws his arm around me.

“C’mon you guys, let’s party!” Brett says as he mimics Chris’s actions and kisses Gaby.

We all head inside to a relaxed, crowded living room. This is why I didn’t mind going to Brett’s parties, they were always low key and genuinely fun to go to because nobody was throwing up in the flowerpots by the end of it. Gaby and I are both about four drinks in and I realize I’m feeling really good right now. I’ve drank a little faster than usual, I think it’s because Chris is making me nervous. Chris has had a few drinks to and he’s pretty touchy feely with me. The more drinks I have, the less I mind it. I can tell Gaby is almost drunk because she’s dancing. That’s how I can always tell she’s just about drunk, when she’s dancing, or should I say when she’s trying to dance. It was always funny and cute though.

“Oh nice, you girls are just in time for spin the bottle! Make some room!” Chris yells and the crowd follows in excitement. A small space opens, and Gaby and I squeeze in. The thought crosses my mind that this is sort of a childish game and weird for a high school party, but what the hell, lets play.

“Alright Gaby, your up!” Brett yells.

Gaby spins the bottle hard and it spins…and spins…and spins… Before I gather what’s happened, I hear the crowd.

“Ooooooo, kiss, kiss, kiss, kiss!” They chant. I look down and nerves creep up my back and spread into my neck. I feel my face getting red and my skin getting hot. The bottles pointing at me. All the time that Gaby and have I spent together over the years was only friendship, never physical, never even a though of anything more. Should I do it? Would it be weird? Why do I even care? It’s just a kiss, not wedding vows.

“Well Kay, rules are rules.” Gaby says as she turns to me.

I feel her hand run behind my neck, sliding slightly through my hair, and we make eye contact. I don’t know why, but I am so nervous, I feel like my heart is a drum pounding in my chest. I look into her deep brown eyes and then down at her red lips, instinctively I bite my lip and she does the same. I lean into her and our lips connect. Her lips are soft like a blanket you would use in Autumn, her bottom lip is bigger than mine, so I bite it while she takes my top lip. I feel her grip tighten on the back of my neck and our tongues collide gently. I place my hand on her face and feel her jaw clench as I slowly pull away with her bottom lip still in my teeth. We open our eyes simultaneously and freeze. For a moment, it’s as if we’re the only two people in the room, and we’re lost in each other. The sound is drowned out and voices cut, it’s just us. What the hell did we just do… why do I want more… does she?