𝐣𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐬 / 𝐣𝐣 𝐦𝐚𝐲𝐛𝐚𝐧𝐤

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐋𝐮𝐜𝐤𝐲 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐚𝐬𝐬 | 𝟎𝟏

"Boat day?" he asks, a smirk plastered on his lips.

"Not quite." I look over at him and smile when I see the confused expression on his face. "Just you and me hanging out by the dock. I've gotta get changed, but I'll be out soon. Could you make some sandwiches real quick?"

"Uh, yeah." JJ smiles as he walks over to the fridge and pulls out peanut butter and jelly. As he grabs the bread, I head over to my room and listen to JJ talk quietly to himself while he makes the sandwiches.

After I close the door to my bedroom, I turn to my dresser and open my swimsuit drawer. Once I've dug through the many articles of clothing for about a minute, I finally find the suit I was thinking of. I quickly pull it on before throwing an oversized button down and a pair of shorts on.

While I pull my hair into a low bun, I open the door and am met by JJ, who's leaning on the door frame and somehow looking hotter than he had a few minutes ago.

"Ready?" I ask, once I finish my hair and let my arms fall back to my side. JJ's eyes do a quick once over of my body before he straightens.

"For you? Always." I role my eyes as JJ smiles, his hand reaching out for me. As his arms wrap around my waist, and he pulls me close to his chest, I let out a quiet gasp, surprised by his action. I can't tear my eyes away from his, but he apparently can. I see his gaze drop down to my lips for a split second before they return to my eyes again.

Although my heart is telling me to lean forward—to close my eyes—my mind tells me otherwise. It's the number one rule: no Pogue-on-Pogue macking. I can't break it.

Anyways, JJ probably just wants a quick hook up, and I just happen to be available.

Except I'm not. I'm not just some girl he can hook up with one day and then never see again for the rest of his life.

I'm his best friend.

Choosing to follow my head, I push my hands against JJ's chest, releasing his hold on me as I take a step back.

"We should get going. John B—he said something about stopping by Ms. Lana's later today," I say, my words coming out in short bursts as I try to catch my breath.

"Yeah. You're right." Although I try to look away, I still see the hurt look that comes over JJ's face for a split second.

No, he's not supposed to feel hurt. That was just friendly flirtation, right? He was just looking for someone to make out with. He doesn't actually feel anything deeper for me. Right?

"Thanks for making the sandwiches," I say as I walk into the kitchen and toss them into the cooler. JJ only gives me a simple nod—his eyes plastered to the floor, and his hands shoved into his pockets. After I close the lid, I lift the cooler up, gravity immediately making it heavy.

"Here, I can get that." I set the cooler down on the floor as JJ walks toward me, reaching his hand down for the cooler and bending down to lift it up. As he stands back up to his full height, he looks me straight in the eyes the entire time.

Stop it, stop it, stop it!

"JJ." His name slips past my lips without my consent. And with those two simple syllables, JJ reacts in the way my heart—not my head—secretly wants him to.

Within a few seconds, JJ drops the cooler onto the floor and places his hands on my hips, pulling me closer until there's nothing between us except the fabric of our shirts. I didn't mean for his name to slip past my lips in the way that it did. But it did. And now I have to deal with the results.

But for a second, I'm taken aback—frozen in place. My hands on his chest, I look up into JJ's deep blue eyes, and I see something that I've never seen before. Not in this way, at least.