Page 37 of Faking Forever 1
“We expose her is my point. You have your one up now.”
I can’t believe he’s actually invested in my girl drama.
“Nobody would ever believe us. We need hard evidence—”
I glance at him.
“You’re missing a spot.” he interrupts my sentence.
Suddenly, he reaches his veiny hand over mine, firmly grasping my fingers. At the same time, I can feel his body pressing against my back, his head appearing next to mine, now gifting my ears with his gruff voice. His actions let me know of authoritative morals before I could do anything.
“Why don’t you let me,” he says.
He took my other hand, placing it on the comb. Now, both of his arms were around me, and his chest was pressed against my back while he moved our bodies in a pushing motion. I had forgotten all about the wax now and was more focused on his arms—every detail of all the traditional ink designs on them.
He smells so good, too. I never want him to let me go. I could stay like this forever. I could feel safe like this forever.
“I tried to do it myself. I always do it wrong…” I whisper.
“Without me? Since when do you wax yourownboard?” he says, squeezing my hands.
I could feel my heart flutter, choking me up.
“Since I don’t know if I’ll always have you around to do it.”
He hums softly in my ear.
“Well, sometimes it mightnotwork. You don’t stop, though.
Just keep going. Like this.” he continues, moving his lips closer to my neck, slowing us down.
I feel them brush against my bare skin.
“Yeah…” I slowly close my eyes, leaning into his touch.
“Y’know, for a second, I thought you were gonna say you 86
BAD IDEA
let someone else do this instead of me,” he whispers as one of his hands begins to trail up my arm.
“And if I did?” I play along.
“Then I would just have to admit that I’d be pissed at the guy who took my place.” his hand reaches my jaw, lifting my head to look at him.
When I do, I realize how close we are now. Our faces were just as close as they were at the party. Licking his lips, he slips his bottom one between his teeth, parting his lips to say something. I could say something, too, but I don’t want to.
I’m not sure how much I’m willing to risk, but surely it must be a lot if I want him to do what I think he will.
His eyes scatter around my face like he’s speechless. I could’ve sworn we were alone by how my heart was pumping. He had me so profoundly delved in that I forgot we were in a public setting. I couldn’t be more annoyed with that dumb doorbell than I am at this moment. A young guy comes in, startling us both with the jingle. Josh backs away from me as if he were committing a crime, leaving my body cold and empty without his presence.
My heart had reached the feeling like it was on the verge of exploding. I hold a hand over my chest, feeling out of breath.
“Hey, can I rent a board?” the kid says.
I stay frozen.
“Yeah, man, for sure.” I hear Josh respond, walking past me, gliding his hand along my waist as he does.
