Page 52 of Flaunt
She looks at the phone, then back up at me. “Might be worth it.”
“Stop it,” I say, shaking my head. “You’re too little to be looking at men like Banks.”
“Even his name is hot.”
“Help me gather this stuff and take it to my car,” I say. “Stop thinking about bad boys who are way too old for you.”
“Of course, he’s a bad boy. Darn it, Sara. He’s perfect.”
I burst out laughing again. “I’m never letting you around him. His ego can’t handle it.”
I grab the towels and toiletries. Bethany gathers the clothes I pulled out of the boxes.
“What’s your deal with this guy?” she asks. “Are you friends? More than friends? Are you engaging in activities that could lead to reproduction?”
My jaw drops. “Where do you get this stuff?”
“Health class.” She opens the back door of my car. “That’s how the teacher talks about sex. She makes it so weird. Like, just saysex. We all know what it is. Half my class has done it.”
“Have you?”
She sighs. “No.” She hands me the clothes. “I haven’t met the right guy yet.”
“I’m not making light of your teenage romances, but I assure you that you won’t meet the right guy for many years, and if someone tries to convince you that they are the right guy—he’sreallynot the right guy.”
I shut my door, and we start the walk back to the garage.
“But how do you know?” she asks. “How do you know a guy is the right guy?”
Didn’t see this coming.
I try to remember who I talked to about this kind of stuff because it definitely wasn’t Sabrina. She would lose her cool. It would destroy her image of the perfect little family, and she would avoid that at all costs.
Gretchen.I smile.I talked to Ashley’s mom about this. Now I need to be this person for my sister.
I slow my thoughts and try to come up with an honest but also safe response.
The first words that come to my brain arehotandbig dick energy. I pause.That’s not the right response, and I could probably learn a lesson from that.
My second thought is that you should have chemistry with the guy. But that’s not really appropriate or clear for a fourteen-year-old.
I think about the men I’ve slept with over the years.Which ones of them, if any, would I want my little sister sleeping with when she’s of age?
My pace slows, and a chill snakes up my spine.None of them.
“Have you talked to your mother about this?” I ask.
“I mean, sort of.” She frowns. “She just tells me I’ll know when the time is right and then moves on. That’s super not helpful.”
We sit on totes of my stuff and look at each other. I don’t know what to say or what is my place to say at all. I definitely don’t want to step on Sabrina’s toes. But I have to say something so Bethany knows she can talk to me.
“Look, when you’re ready to have sex, call me,” I say. “And if you’re in the throes of passion—”
She giggles.
“You should still stop and call me.” I smile at her. “Sex can be wild and wonderful with the right person. But it can be a whole lot of headaches and hurt with the wrong one. So when you get to the place where you’re considering it, let me know. We’ll go have manicures and pizza and talk it out. Okay?”
Her face lights up. “You’re seriously the best big sister in the world.”
