“Being with you makes me forget all the rest.”
I smiled. I was happy to hear how sincere he was, but I felt bitter as I realized that maybe Will and I weren’t that compatible. Sometimes he was a little too exuberant with his impulses, given the nature of our relationship. We could say things to each other, but not with the right timing. It was like we were doing an out-of-step dance, and as much as I tried to adjust my rhythm to the music, I always ended up missing a beat.
“I spent years hiding from everyone because of my problems. Since you came here, I feel stronger. I’m less afraid.”
“James and Jackson have always been there for you, right?”
“They’re my best friends, but they don’t have your sensitivity, June. I can’t talk with them like I talk with you. I can’t talk with anyone like I can talk with you.”
There was that bittersweet feeling again. Gratitude mixed with the need to pump the brakes on his excessive ways of expressing his feelings.
“I’m here, Will. And if I can help you overcome your fear, I’d be happy to do so.”
We sealed our words with a long hug, then walked out of his bedroom hand in hand.
“Are you sure?”
“Yeah.” He sighed, smiling.
“Oh, but I don’t have a swimsuit.”
“Let’s go find one in my parents’ closet.”
William led me to his parents’ big bedroom. The lights on the ceiling turned on automatically. Will opened a drawer and grabbed a pair of white shorts. We noticed a leather purse with a black bikini sticking out.
“Whose is that?” I asked.
“I don’t know.”
“It’s my change of swimsuit!”
William and I jumped when Tiffany’s curly head emerged from a hidden corner in the closet. She had one arm covering her naked breasts.
“That’s mine. You can borrow it if you want.” Tiffany pointed at the suit in her purse.
My eyes darted past her to where a bikini clad girl with blond pigtails stood behind her.
“Okay, thank you.”
“I’ll get out so you can change,” said Will, before leaving the closet. Tiffany pulled the curtain, followed by a symphony of making out sounds and giggles.
Of course I wasn’t going to change here.
I went into William’s empty room and took off my T-shirt and bra, and put the triangle bikini top on. I didn’t even think about putting on the bottom. It was too small.
“Ah, you’re here.”
As soon as I clasped the top, Will came in the room wearing his swimsuit too.
He gazed at my shorts before saying anything.
“I can ask Tiff or the girls if they have a bottom you can wear.”
“No, Will.” I instinctively refused. He frowned.
“But we can’t swim together like that.” How could I explain it to him? “They wear dental floss on their butts, and I—”
I’m fat. Besides, I’d need to get a full wax and have fewer scars on my inner thigh to wear one of those.
