Seasons Change

22.

Truth be told, I had wondered that myself, but Luke had been pretty adamant that he wanted to stay with me. I had just figured it had something to do with the rivalry between him and Dylan. They were friendly enough, but I couldn't imagine them spending an entire week together, trying to constantly outdo each other. It would be miserable for both of them.

"Dad, in case you haven't noticed, Dylan and Luke have a pretty...intense...competitive relationship. I'm not sure they could survive rooming together for a week without killing each other."

Dad grimaced, probably realizing that I was right. "That still doesn't explain why you're getting home so much later than Dylan and Avery."

I frowned. "I didn't realize that I needed to be in such a hurry. I spent this morning packing up my clothes, and then Luke and I stopped for lunch on the way home. We weren't particularly hurrying, but we weren't doing anything you wouldn't approve of either."

Dad sighed. "Look, it's not that I don't want to trust you, but you know why you waiting to have sex is such a big deal to me."

I nodded. "I know, I know." He had gotten my mom pregnant their senior year of high school, and he had missed out on the normal college experience because of it. He had married her and taken a full time job while in college to provide for us, and had given up his chance at playing pro football.

"You've told me the story hundreds of times, and I get it," I assured him. "I'm not having sex with anyone. I'm waiting until I'm sure I'm ready. I'm not in any hurry to grow up."

Dad's face softened. "I just don't like the idea of you having sex with anyone. Ever. You're still my little girl."

I laughed awkwardly, really uncomfortable having the sex talk with my dad. Still, it was better than him yelling at me. "I'm actually a legal adult, and most people my age are having sex. Someday, when I meet a guy I'm sure about, I will too, and you have to deal with that. But, I promise, I will be careful, use protection, and wait until I'm completely sure."

Avery rolled her eyes at our intimate moment, storming out of the room, apparently irritated that her plan hadn't gotten me into more trouble. I glared at her retreating backside. It served her right for trying to meddle in my life. No way was Avery going to come between me and my father, no matter how hard she tried.
_________

Avery's next attack came later that afternoon, when Kelsey stopped by to see if I wanted to hang out. As soon as Kelsey stepped through the door, Avery pounced, trying to poison my friendship with Kelsey with her evil words.

"Avery, this is my friend, Kelsey," I said, making the appropriate introductions. "Kelsey, this is my step-sister, Avery." I omitted the evil part, because it was rude to call her evil to her face, and spending any amount of time with Avery would make the evil part self-evident.

"Kelsey," Avery cooed, a diabolical smile crossing her face, and I knew she was about to try to cause drama between me and my friend. "You're Dylan's sister, right?"

Kelsey nodded. "Yes, why?" she asked suspiciously.

"What do you think of your best friend being hopelessly in love with your brother?"

I felt all of the blood drain out of my face at Avery's words. That wasn't true. I wasn't in love with Dylan. And besides, Kelsey wouldn't be mad at me if I did like him, right? She would understand.

Kelsey's face looked odd, as though she wasn't sure whether to grimace or laugh. "Why do you say that?" she asked. "As far as I know, they're just friends."

Avery smirked at me. "Well, as far as Dylan is concerned, they're just friends. But Lilly has deeper feelings for him. It's painfully obvious. She was so jealous when Dylan started dating me. It was pathetic, really. She even tried convincing me that Dylan was her boyfriend, which of course was a complete lie."

My face was turning crimson red, which probably didn't help my case with Kelsey, but really, having one of the moments I was least proud of aired in front of my best friend was mortifying.

"It's not like that," I said defensively. "Dylan and I really are just friends. I was upset that he was dating you, not that he was dating in general."

Avery just clicked her tongue, grinning at me. "I think you're protesting too much," she called in a sing-song voice, practically skipping away.

To my relief, once Avery was out of earshot, Kelsey turned to me, wincing. "Geesh. You really weren't kidding. That girl is a piece of work."

"Tell me about it," I grumbled. "I have no idea how I'm going to spend the rest of my break with her. She had my dad convinced that Luke and I got home later than she and Dylan did because we were having sex in my dorm room."

Kelsey choked on a laugh, turning a strange shade of red. "You weren't, were you?" she asked.

I punched her lightly on the arm. "Of course not," I insisted. "Gosh, you should know me better than that. Besides, Luke and I aren't dating. At least, I don't think we are."

Kelsey rolled her eyes at me. "How are you not sure?"

Shrugging, I said, "We haven't really talked about it. We've been hanging out a lot, but I'm not really sure what that means. Maybe he likes me and wants to start dating again, or maybe he just wants to be friends."

"Well, has he kissed you?"

"We kissed," I admitted, and Kelsey smirked.

"Did you like it?" 

"It was fine," I told her.

"Oh, it was fine? What a glowing recommendation."

I rolled my eyes. "I practically threw myself at him because I saw Dylan and Avery together and wanted to make them jealous."

Kelsey smirked at me. "Why would my brother and Avery be jealous of you kissing Luke? Are you sure you weren't the one who was jealous?"

I threw my hands up in the air, growling in exasperation, because she was right. It had been an impulsive thing to do, and it really hadn't made much sense. "I didn't want Avery to think I was a pathetic loser, okay?"

Kelsey winked at me. "It's okay, I get it. You were trying to make my brother jealous."

"No, I wasn't," I insisted, although honestly, I was no longer completely sure what my intentions had been.

Kelsey smiled. "Just think, if you and Dylan ever got together, we could be sisters for real. Wouldn't that be amazing?"

"Eh, it would be alright," I teased. "I'm not sure putting up with Dylan would be worth it, though."

"Oh, I agree. He's a total idiot. But just so you know, if you and Dylan did want to get together, I wouldn't be totally opposed to it," she said, wiggling her eyebrows suggestively.

"Can we just drop this subject?" I asked. "It's getting weird."

Kelsey and I spent the rest of the night chatting about school, boys, and all of the drama surrounding Avery, and I had to admit, it was incredibly nice to have girl talk with my best friend. For her part, Avery was strangely quiet. I knew that it was probably a short-lived peace. It had only been one day, and already, Avery had tried to undermine my relationship with my father and with Kelsey. I was certain that whatever Avery was planning, I hadn't seen the worst of it yet.

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