Ethan had been so sweet to me. Naturally, we were both shy of confiding in Sarah that we were dating – it seemed too risky, her being my best friend and his sister. I didn't want her to get jealous of our relationship, or feel left out.
We had discussed this before, 'what if' I dated her brother. I had, of course, promised her I would never do such a thing – besides, I was obsessed with Marcus, and there was no way I would give up my dreams of 'us'. But she had told me that she was scared to let me date Ethan, and that she didn't want us to be together – because it would limit our friendship. I didn't quite understand at the time, but now I did – if I went to say hey to her, I'd want to say hey to him, and his kisses were addictive, so just 'hey' would have to take a while...
Ethan and I agreed to keep our relationship under wraps for now – not to hide that we were together, but simply to make sure we would last before we opened up to everyone.
We had been doing the typical 'couple' things – movies, dinner, beach; we even studied together as it neared close to tests and assignments. It helped that I was doing similar subjects to those he did; and gave us a viable excuse to give to Claudia – who was doing a Math degree, which wouldn't help my Politics at all.
I had been avoiding Marcus too, or more correctly, he was avoiding me. I had never turned him away before, and I knew that my feelings for Ethan were serious because of that. Before, I had spent 6 years loving him from a distance, always being pushed to the 'best friend's little sister's friend' role. But now that I had refused his advances – something my 12-year-old self would have never believed – he was confused, and didn't know how to react. I don't think he ever liked me, not even when he came to my house; but he missed being adored by me.
Ethan and I laughed together as Marcus whined to Ethan about the change in me – he had explored every reason from me being a lesbian to having found a 'sugar daddy' and not needing 'young hot men' like him. I could see Marcus's confused rants were annoying Ethan, and more than once Ethan had had to call me to laugh it over with me before he punched his best friend in my defence. But overall – we were happy together, and it was only getting better.
*
"Claudia! Babe, where are you?" Ethan screamed up the stairs at me, trying to hurry me up.
"Calm down man! Seriously, Ethan, I wish you would just tell me what you're planning!" I called back, struggling into my favourite v-neck shirt as I brushed my hair and checked my makeup for smudges.
"You look beautiful, you always do, now hurry up!"
"Not supportive! Well, thanks, but shut up!"
Our banter up and down the stairs had Mum in hysterics – she always thought we'd end up together, and her favourite phrase at the moment was 'I told you so'.
"She'll be ready when she's ready Ethan, there's no point rushing her. Trust me – I've tried."
Hearing the beginning of one of her stories, I sprinted down the stairs, pulling my long hair up into a high ponytail and pulling my shirt straight.
"I'm here, I'm here! Don't start with a story Mum, please!" I panted, grabbing his hand and pulling him out the door before she could embarrass me further.
"Me? Embarrass you? Don't you remember..." Her voice trailed off as I slammed the door behind us, eager for Ethan to miss whatever story she would be spurting off.
The car shook with Ethan's laughter as I climbed in beside him, and looked around.
"Um, Ethan? It's summer – why is there a blanket in the car?"
"Don't worry honey, let's just get out of here before your Mum finishes that story."
With a nod of agreement that had him laughing again, he drove off to Kings Park – the huge park that had enough discreet corners that it was well known as a couple's retreat.
The drive was mostly quiet – his hand resting on my thigh except when he needed to change the gear, Illy playing in the background. I loved our car rides, they were often quiet and relaxed, we didn't need to talk to feel close.
Arriving at Kings Park, Ethan gave me several bags to carry, and grabbed several more.
"What on earth-" I tried to ask again, but he cut me off.
"Not yet, you'll find out in a moment. Come on babe," he started walking, leaving me to follow after him.
We clearly arrived at a place he was comfortable with, and he threw the blanket down on the ground.
"Oh, it's a picnic!" I giggled, before throwing the bags down and jumping into his arms.
"This is so sweet, thank you!"
He chuckled and just hugged me tight. Wriggling out of his embrace, I started to open the bags, to discover what was inside.
I was shocked at how well Ethan knew me, how he knew all my likes and dislikes in food.
He'd brought cold meat and salad – no tomato, plenty of capsicum and olives, and a herb salad. The fruit salad had no banana, but more melon and grapes than I think I'd ever seen before. And, best of all, he had two massive slices of my favourite cakes – Black Forest, and Carrot cake. After he'd set it up how he liked it, he pulled out two pillows from the last bag, and lay down on them.
"Where am I going to go?" I asked, pretending to be put out.
"On me," he smiled, pulling me down so we were spooning.
"Careful, babe, I'm in a skirt!" I cautioned him, worried that I'd just flashed everyone with my short skirt.
"I know," he growled, his voice vibrating in my ear. I shivered, feeling his erection against my thigh.
