Emily opened the front door at six o'clock on Friday. All she saw was pink. Hot pink feathers consuming the upper half of her best friend. She stared at the massive fluff ball in bewilderment.
"Hello there," called out Nathan from behind the fluff.
"What are you doing?" she asked, completely shocked.
He walked into the house, almost tumbling on the step up. She had to rush to him, pulling him into a hug and guiding him toward the inside of the house, which saved him from falling back onto the cement porch.
"Well, I thought if your mom sees me as this sort of gay, I might as well give her a show."
From the tone of his voice, she could tell that he was grinning.
"But now she'll be even more convinced," she replied in exasperation.
His hands moved around, trying to remove the feathers blocking his face. Emily reached out and helped him part the feathers so he could look at her. When his face was clear, he held a blank expression.
"Frankly, I don't give a damn about what your mother thinks. And you shouldn't either. She treats you like shit anyway."
"Language," she warned.
His eyes widened and he pointed at her.
"See. She's already turning you into her minion," he remarked.
She crossed her arms.
"You know I don't like cursing. That's not her influence," she pouted.
He sighed, raising his fingers to his face, attempting to pull the irritating feathers away.
"You're right. I'm sorry. But really, you need to stand up for yourself. She can't control your life."
Emily sighed.
"She can, actually, and she already does," the hope sunk in her deep brown eyes.
Nathan huffed.
"Well, enough of that. Let's party!"
He jumped up and down, shimmying his shoulders a bit as he let the feathered scarves tumble down his body. Emily watched his thin and lightly muscled form dance. She giggled at his playful demeanor.
"Okay, okay," she smiled, taking his hands in hers and dancing with him.
They picked up the hot pink feathered scarves and danced the conga to her bedroom.
It was Saturday night, the sky dazzled orange and pink, illuminating around the sun. The light shined in from Emily's first floor bedroom window. She sat with Nathan on her bed.
They were holding pillows and staring at each other, waiting anxiously for the other to make the first move. Nathan snuck up behind her earlier and found her tickle spot. As she was rolling on the floor gasping with laughter, she reached behind his knee and wiggled her fingers on his tickle spot.
Now they sat there, ready to fight back in case another ticklefest ensued. The pillows became quality protection to combat the chilly, wriggly fingers.
"So," Nathan started, hoping to distract her.
"So," she replied.
They grinned at each other, both quickly forgetting the tickle fight as they became swept away in conversation.
"Oh, wait. You told me at school that you had a few romantic trysts. Elaborate," Emily urged, poking Nathan's slightly exposed tummy.
They were laying on the bed, smiling at each other. The sky had now turned a dark blue. Only Emily's bedroom lamps lit the room.
"Um... about that," Nathan paused, his smile transforming into a cringe.
Just then, a loud ping sounded against her window. Their heads swiftly turned toward the sound. Nathan sat up, Emily quickly following suit.
"What was that?" Emily asked, eyes widened to saucers.
Nathan didn't respond, getting off the bed and cautiously walking to the window. Another ping rang throughout her room.
Emily watched as Nathan's lips changed from a frown to a grin as he looked out the window. He shook his head slowly, laughing under his breath. He looked over at Emily. She anxiously sat there, waiting for him to say something. His lips opened to speak.
"Your boyfriend's here," Nathan declared, humor lacing his tone.
"What?" Emily gasped, getting up and rushing to the window.
She cupped her hands above her eyes and peered out. Through the dark, she could make out a figure. She unlocked the latch and opened the window.
"Aiden?" she called out.
Another rock flew past her. She dodged the flying pebble.
"What're you doing? Trying to kill her?" Nathan shouted to Aiden.
"Emily?" a voice spoke. "God, I'm sorry babe. I didn't know it was you."
Nathan pushed Emily aside. She huffed as her body gently knocked against the wall.
"So what, you were going to hit me?"
Nathan was prepared for a fight.
"No, sorry man. Couldn't see that she opened the window."
A huff sounded from Nathan.
"Whatever," he pouted.
Emily pushed him out of the way, standing in front of the window again.
"What are you doing here, Aiden?" Emily asked sweetly, smiling down at him.
She heard him laugh.
"Well, I was trying to do the whole Romeo and Juliet thing. Thought I'd sweep you away for the night."
Emily blushed, putting a hand over her heart at the kind gesture.
"That... sounds amazing," she breathed out. "But... I can't. I'm grounded."
Nathan groaned in the background.
"Emily, live a little. You can't let her control your life. Plus, she's not even here," he reasoned.
"She's not?" Aiden asked.
Nathan walked up next to Emily, looking out the window.
"No. She's at a conference or something," he told Aiden.
"Yeah... and she'll be back tomorrow," Emily sighed in hopelessness.
"You'll bring her back by then, right?" Nathan questioned.
Aiden walked closer to the window, standing under Emily and staring into her beautiful, worry-filled eyes.
"Yes, she'll be back tomorrow," he smiled sweetly at her. "What do you say, Emily?"
She could feel a warmth pooling in the pit of her stomach, part from the nervousness of breaking the rules, part from Aiden's closeness. She missed him.
"Okay, let's do this," she said with a strength in her voice, making up her mind. Her mother couldn't control her forever.
She turned back to Nathan.
"Don't worry about me, I'll hang out here," Nathan spoke, as if knowing what she was going to ask.
"Are you sure?" she asked, worried.
"Yes, I'm sure," he took her hands in his. "Go have fun. I'll watch God's Own Country or something. Maybe I'll make some popcorn," he pondered.
"Isn't that movie full of gay sex?" Aiden asked.
Nathan grinned.
"Yeah. It's wicked," he said, mocking Ron Weasley's accent from their Harry Potter Marathon the night before.
Aiden grinned back.
"Okay then," he laughed. "Shall we get going?" he asked Emily.
Before Emily replied, she pulled Nathan into a quick hug.
"Enjoy your movie," she told him.
"You know I will," he smirked.
She laughed.
"Alright," she grinned at Nathan before turning to Aiden. "Let's go."
She stuck the upper half of her body out of the window. Aiden held his hands out, wrapping his fingers around her waist before lifting her up and out of the room. He pulled her into him and she curled into his body. He held her like that for a good minute, internally rejoicing at the feeling of her in his arms. He missed her deeply.
"Okay, you lovebirds. Go on, let me watch my men in peace," Nathan called out, shooing them away with his hands.
Emily sighed, glancing up at Aiden, who stared endearingly into her eyes. He reluctantly lowered her onto her feet.
She felt the grass brush against her bare toes, before landing fully on the mushy ground. Nathan threw her flipflops out the window and she graciously put them on.
Aiden took her hand and they walked in silence toward the front of the house. She looked back at Nathan one last time.
"Bye," she shouted.
She watched his figure silhouetted at the window. His hand lifted and he waved back at her.
They walked around the back of her house, passing the small orange tree. Walking up to the street, they stopped at his motorcycle. Aiden faced her.
"Nice pajamas. They're so cute." he paused, smiling. "You're so cute."
Emily glanced down at her crisp white tank top and fuzzy pink pajama pants. They were decorated with bunnies.
"Thank you," she blushed.
Aiden gazed at her with the kindest eyes. He leaned down, giving her a quick peck on the lips.
"Let's go," he said, moving to the motorcycle and straddling the seat. He put the key in the ignition and twisted his wrist, turning on the engine. The hum echoed through the quiet street.
She walked over, straddling the cushiony seat behind him. She didn't know where they were going, but the mystery thrilled her. She wrapped her arms around him, resting her warm cheek against his back as he drove off into the night.