Between Friends by Amanda Cowen Page B

the
night.
    “ Are you crazy?” I laugh
and push away from him, “What do you think you’re
doing?”
    Ben yanks my arm and pulls me into his
chest. He places his chin on my head and holds me in his arms, “I
wanted to be alone with you.”
    His words form a tiny
prickle behind my knees. He slides his hands down my back, and
slips one hand to entwine in my fingers. He kisses the top of my
head and tugs me in the opposite direction to lead us down to the
pool area.
    The water is still and
glistens from the lights reflected in the pool. Ben kicks off his
sandals, rolls up his pants, and sticks his feet in the water. He
waves me over to sit beside him and I do. I slip off my sandals and
plunk my feet into the cool calm waters.
    The first thing Ben
says is, “Would you rather be able to talk with animals or be able
to speak all foreign languages?”
    I of course laugh at
his ability to come up with ridiculous things on the spot,
“Obviously I would rather be able to talk with animals. You know
how much I love them.”
    “ Yeah, but if you
could speak all languages, you could eavesdrop on all the
foreigners conversations” He tries to argue.
    “ Yeah, but when does
that ever happen?” I say.
    “ Well, you could
travel the world and communicate wherever you went.” Ben says
matter-of-factly.
    “ Well, whenever I get
around to doing that, I’ll let you know.”
    “ Can I come with you
when you do?” He innocently asks.
    I roll my eyes “Trust
me, if I ever find myself booking a trip around the world you’ll be
the first person I tell.”
    “Alright, I’m gonna
hold that to you Megs.” Ben says and gives me a wink.
    “Okay, my turn. Would
you rather be able to fly or read minds?” I ask swirling my feet
around in the water.
    “That’s easy. Read minds. Hands
down.” Ben lets out a low chuckle.
    “Really? I thought because of
your strange obsession with Superman you would have picked fly.” I
laugh and give him a playful nudge.
    “You are never going to let me
live that down are you?” he laughs.
    “Anyone who has Superman bed
sheets until their junior year of high school, should be teased.
The only reason you even got rid of them was because I made fun of
you for having them.” I remind him.
    “Umm, at least I am
not the one who still has an extensive collection of Beanie Babies
hidden in a box in their closet.” He bites his lip and waits for my
reaction. How the hell does he know about that box?
    “I do not!” I lie.
    Ben narrows his eyes at me, “Did
you forget who helped you move into your condo last
year?”
    “You looked through my boxes?” I
laugh, slapping him across his rock solid bicep.
    Ben innocently shrugs, “There was
some pink bear poking through the top, I couldn’t
resist.”
    We both burst out laughing. This
is the Ben I love. This is my best friend.
    Ben smiles and picks
up my hand up from the cement edge of the pool. He puts it up to
his lips, gently kisses it and places it back onto my lap. He lifts
his eyes to meet mine and slowly moves away. He leans back and
peels off his shirt, then tosses it onto the deck of the
pool.
    “ What are you doing?”
I shout in a hushed whisper. Ben places his index finger over my
lips and silences me. He slides off his pants and dips into the
water wearing nothing but his underwear.
    “ Enough of this game.
Are you coming in?” He asks, amused by my look of
horror.
    “ We’re not allowed to
go in the pool past eleven. It’s against the rules.” I
say.
    Ben tilts his head to
the side, blinking his dark framed lashes in my direction. I cross
my arms and legs, refusing to join him. I turn my head to the side,
“I am not coming in there. We are going to get caught.”
    But Ben doesn’t seem
to understand the word no, and doesn’t ever take rejection lightly.
He glides over in my direction and places his arms on either side
of my dangling legs, “If you don’t come in yourself, I am going to
yank you in fully clothed.”
    “ No