For as long as I could remember, Sienna Marquez had been a part of my life--woven into my childhood like a favorite song stuck on repeat. Our parents were friends before we were even born, which meant we never had a choice in the matter. We were a package deal, an inseparable force of mischief and scraped knees. Summers were spent chasing each other through sprinklers, winters bundled up in forts we built from couch cushions and stolen blankets. She was my partner in crime, my closest friend.
Just before high school, she was gone. One day we were racing bikes, the next, I was standing in her driveway as she climbed into the backseat of her family's SUV, pressing her palm against the glass in a silent goodbye. We promised to stay in touch, and for a while, we did. Late-night texts, endless social media tags, the occasional video call that always ended in laughter. But as time passed, life got in the way. Messages became less frequent, updates turned into quick likes on each other's posts, and before I knew it, years had slipped by without a real conversation.
That was about to change.
This year, for spring break, Sienna was coming to visit me. For the first time in what felt like forever, we'd be in the same place again, no screens, no distance--just us. And I couldn't wait.
Sienna was a sophomore now at Baylor, thriving in a college life I could only imagine. I had taken a gap year after high school, unsure of what I wanted to do next, but it felt like everything had aligned with her visit. While she was off at college, I was still figuring things out, and the idea of reconnecting with her was exactly what I needed to break up the monotony.
My parents were all over it, of course. They teased me endlessly about Sienna coming to stay with us, making playful comments about how she was "finally coming back to see her old crush" or asking if they needed to make the guest room into a "romantic suite." I rolled my eyes every time, but deep down, it didn't bother me. It was just their way of poking fun.
The thing was, it had never been like that with Sienna and me. We were like siblings--inseparable in that way that didn't cross the line into anything more. Sure, she had always been pretty, but I never saw her like that. She was family in my eyes, someone I could laugh with, argue with, and, at times, even annoy--the kind of bond that ran deeper than any flirtation. But I knew my parents didn't quite understand the dynamic. They liked to joke around, but that was all it ever was--jokes.
I was looking forward to spending time with her again, like old times. I couldn't wait to see if we'd fall right back into our usual rhythm or if things would feel different.
When Sienna showed up at my door, I was caught completely off guard. I'd seen her pictures over the years, sure--but seeing her in person? That was something else entirely.
She wasn't the same girl who used to race me on our bikes, dirt streaked on her cheeks, laughing breathlessly as she barely won. No--this version of Sienna moved differently. Confident, self-assured. Like she knew exactly how to take up space. The curves that had once been unnoticed were now impossible to ignore, her toned frame stretching out the fabric of her tank top in ways that made my brain stall for half a second too long.
Damn.
I swallowed hard, forcing myself to snap out of it. This was Sienna--my best friend. Not some girl I had just met at a party. But for a second, just a fleeting moment, I felt my breath catch in my throat.
Then she grinned at me, that same wide, mischievous smile I'd known since we were kids, and all the years melted away.
"You just gonna stand there and stare, or are you actually gonna hug me?" she teased, tilting her head.
That was all it took. In an instant, I was laughing, pulling her into a tight hug, and just like that, it was as if no time had passed at all. The awkwardness disappeared, and I had my best friend back--staying with me for the whole week.
As Sienna settled in, we fell right into our usual rhythm--playful jabs, sarcastic comments, the kind of banter that only comes from knowing someone for years.
"Did you actually pack, or did you just throw random crap in your suitcase and hope for the best?" I teased as she unzipped her bag.
She smirked, tossing a hoodie at my face. "Please, I'm a college student. Organized chaos is a lifestyle."
"Yeah? And where's your underwear?" I asked more of a joke then a real question.
"Wouldn't you like to know," she shot back, winking before turning back to her suitcase.
Before I could respond, my parents joined us, eager to catch up. Of course, it didn't take long for them to start digging up the past.
"Oh, do you remember when Sienna convinced you to dress up as a fairy for Halloween?" my mom said, her eyes twinkling.
Sienna gasped dramatically. "Excuse me, that was an iconic duo costume--warrior fairy and her trusty sidekick."
"Yeah, except I was the sidekick," I muttered, shaking my head as they all laughed.
The stories kept coming--our disastrous first time trying to bake cookies (which ended in a mini fire), Sienna breaking her arm after showing off on a trampoline, the time we got lost at a festival because we thought we were too cool to use a map. It was embarrassing, but I couldn't help but laugh along.
Eventually, my dad leaned back in his chair, stretching. "So, what's the plan for the week? Or are you two just winging it?"
I glanced at Sienna. We hadn't exactly mapped anything out beyond hanging out.
She shrugged, a playful glint in her eyes. "I say we play it by ear. That's when the best adventures happen."
I smirked. "As long as it doesn't end with me in another ridiculous costume, I'm good."
She shot me a smug look. "No promises."
It was the last week of March, which meant one very important thing--April Fools' Day was right around the corner. And if there was one thing I knew about Sienna, it was that she loved a good prank war.
Back when we were kids, she was ruthless. I'd find plastic wrap over the toilet seat, salt in my cereal, even a fake spider in my shoe that nearly gave me a heart attack. But I wasn't a defenseless kid anymore--I had a whole week to get the upper hand.
The day had been easy. Familiar. We visited old spots--the park where we used to race until our lungs burned, the basketball court where she beat me more times than I'd admit, the creek where she dared me to jump in, and I actually did. Being with her again felt like slipping into an old rhythm, like no time had passed at all.
That didn't mean I was letting her off the hook.
I started simple--just enough to catch her off guard. Before she went to bed, I swapped out her lotion with a self-warming one. Nothing immediate, nothing dramatic. Just a slow build, a creeping heat that would settle over her skin before she even realized what was happening.
It was late when I heard her door open.
"What did you do?" Her voice was low, suspicious.
I looked up from my phone just as she stepped into my doorway. Barefoot. Loose shorts that sat low on her hips. My hoodie drowning her frame.
She rubbed her hands along her arms, shifting slightly like she couldn't get comfortable. "It's my legs," she muttered. "They're... I don't know. It's warm. Everywhere."
I smirked, leaning back against my pillows. "Weird."
She frowned, then exhaled through her nose, running her hands along her thighs again. Slow. Pressing into the skin, fingers curling slightly as if trying to ease the sensation.
My throat went dry.
It was subtle at first, the way my focus slipped from her words to the movement of her hands. The way her fingers traced over smooth skin, pressing, kneading, the hem of her shorts hiking up just a little too high.
My imagination betrayed me. For just a second--one brief, fleeting second--I wasn't thinking about the prank anymore.
I imagined my fingers, pushing past the hem of her shorts. Sliding against her, feeling her tense beneath my touch.
I blinked hard, forcing myself to snap out of it, to look away.
And she noticed.Her eyes flicking up to mine, sharp and knowing.
Then--a slow smirk.
"You okay over there?" Her voice was different now. Lighter. Teasing.
I forced a breath, shook my head like I could clear it. "Fine."
Her smirk deepened. "Uh-huh."
The next day, we met up with some old friends--Luke, James, and Stephanie.
Sienna hadn't seen them or really talked to them since she moved. I was the only one she'd stayed in touch with, the only connection she had left to the group.
Luke had changed the most, or maybe just leaned harder into what was always there. He'd grown into a full-fledged fuckboy, smooth with women, cocky as hell, and completely unapologetic about it. He walked like the world belonged to him, flashing a smirk at every passing girl like he was waiting for one to fall into his lap.
James and Stephanie were the opposite--solid, steady, serious. They'd been together for years now, and I wasn't surprised. Even in high school, there had been something inevitable about them. Stephanie was gorgeous--always had been--and yeah, I'd had a crush on her back then. Hard not to. But it had never been real. Not in the way that mattered. We'd grown up too close, raised almost like siblings, and anything more than friendship would have just felt off.
Sienna, though--she fit back in like she'd never left. She laughed with the group, swapping old stories, filling in the gaps of the years she'd missed.
"...so, college parties are wild," she was saying, shaking her head. "I walked into a frat house once and there was just... a guy sitting in a bathtub full of Jell-O. Naked."
Stephanie cringed. "Nooo."
