“Where’d you go? I don’t like this. What if we get lost?”
“Then it’ll be so worth it.” He walks back my way to come get me. Once he knows I see him, he turns around again. “This way.”
I follow him through the trees and reach another ledge. This one has a much better view than the grassy patch we just found. I take in the water below us, glistening in the afternoon sun. “You can see the whole lake from here. Where are we?”
“I think we are on the south side of the lake.” He points off toward a cell tower. “We camped near there two summers ago.”
I take it all in. This is incredible. This has to be the highest point on the lake. “It’s too bad you didn’t take Angie here. It would’ve been so romantic.”
He nods. “Yeah, it is.” I note his use of the present tense. I’m analyzing every word he says right now. “Do you think we can get down to the water from here? It’s calling my name. It’s so damn hot out.” He begins fanning himself.
“We did just climb up a giant hill.”
He starts scoping out the drop-off. “Oh yeah, we can totally get down there. Come on! It’ll be fun.”
Again, I don’t know why, but I follow him.
It’s easier to go down than it was to come up here. We have to scoot down on our butts a bit, but we make it to the water in just a couple of minutes.
Andrew immediately pulls his shirt off at the bottom and kicks off his shoes.
“What’re you doing?” I blink my eyes in shock.
“What does it look like I’m doing?”
I look him up and down. “It looks like you’ve gone temporarily insane.”
“Ha ha.” He deadpans. “Are you coming?”
I shrug. “I think there’s a flaw in your genius spontaneity plan. I don’t have a swimsuit.”
The smile on his face is immediately erased as the realization hits him. I can practically see the wheels turning in his head. “We didn’t come all the way down here not to swim. I have a solution if you’re up for it.”
“Sure.” I eye him skeptically.
“A ‘sure’ is binding under these circumstances.” He mutters quickly.
“Wha—”
Before I can get off another question, Andrew launches into his solution. “You can just skinny dip. I’ll do it with you if it makes you feel better!” He takes a look at the skepticism on my face. “There’s no one here to see; the closest house is at least a half mile away.”
“The nearest house may be far enough, but there’s still another person awfully close by.”
“Where?” Andrew begins looking out at the water for a boat or a swimmer.
I throw my hands out in front of me to gesture to him. “You, silly!”
“Oh, come on, Em! I won’t look. You know that. You’d do it with Rebecca, right? What’s the difference? You and I have been friends for just as long.”
I note his use of the word ‘friends.’ This boy couldn’t be more confusing, remarking on how I’m naïve to think we are just friends but then labeling us as friends fifteen minutes later.
“There’s a huge difference, and you know it.”
“Well, I’m going in. Feel free to join me if you’d like, or don’t.” He slips his thumbs into the waistband of his shorts, turning around. “I suggest you don’t look.” I don’t even have to see his face to know he’s baring that cheeky grin of his.
I quickly turn away and hear the sound of shorts drop, followed by pounding footsteps and a splash as heleaps into the water. I turn back to inspect the scene and find both his shorts and briefs sitting on the rock in front of me. He must’ve jumped off from there instead of climbing the rest of the way down to the sand, which surely would be a hard task without clothes for protection.
He treads water for a bit and then leans back a little with his hands behind his head. All I can see are his shoulders and bare chest, nothing I haven’t seen before. “The water feels fantastic! Hurry up and get in!”
