I'm going to skip ahead in time a bit from Chapter 2, though I will revisit some things that happened in between later on. I just felt like this was the next big confession to get off my chest, partially due to the fact that even my amazing boyfriend from these previous chapters still has no idea this occurred. Now I get to finally let out a secret that has weighed on my consciousness for far too many years now.
It was the summer after my junior year of college. My boyfriend and I were taking summer classes and enjoying our summer away from home. That is, until we had a major fight. As so happens with relationships, there are ups and downs. Right before the 4th of July holiday we had a big fight and decided to take a break. In hindsight it was a stupid fight but I was upset and needed to get some air. I loaded my car and headed home to be with friends and family for the holiday.
I made it into town a few hours later and had dinner with my family. On the drive in I had vented on the phone with one of my oldest friends who insisted that we have wine, candy, and a movie that night. A good old fashioned sleepover would be good for the soul. After dinner I packed a small bag and made the ever-familiar trip over to her house.
For the first half hour it was the usual pleasantries with her kind parents whom I adore. Even her slightly annoying younger brother was nice. Sitting around talking and laughing helped to remove my mind from the stresses of summer classes and the "break" I was on with my boyfriend. The mood was light and I was so happy to be home.
Shortly my friend, we'll call her Laurie, insisted that we get the movie started before it was too late. Heading down the hall we ducked into the last door on her left, the bedroom that held countless sleepovers from our childhood. Hopping onto the bed we started to flip through her DVD collection which was our lifeblood back before modern streaming. Landing on our go-to RomCom, we pushed play and opened her hidden bottle of wine.
Although we were in college, neither set of our traditional parents were ok with us drinking. What happened at college wasn't broadcast and at home we still weren't 21. It seemed silly that as the adult we were we still had to hide our sips of wine in her childhood bedroom. How impatient we were to grow up.
The movie played and we quoted our favorite lines without thinking. The wine went down fast as she pried into my seemingly failing love-life. (Mind you, this "break" was over within a week's time). The only interruption to our fun evening was the constant vibration of her cell phone. Text after text with her longtime boyfriend streamed in and out of the room. Smirking, she looked over at me, "James is coming by."
"Are your parents cool with that?" I asked almost hoping to stall the effort as not to ruin girl's night.
Her eyes twinkled, "Of course they aren't. Even after how long we've dated he's still not allowed in here with the door shut."
"I'm guessing that doesn't stop you?" I winked at her. Her face told the full story.
Shortly, another text went off and Laurie jumped up grinning and ran to her window. The old ranch house had twist open windows that helped facility entry. James shimmied through the small opening and into the room.
I always liked James though I didn't really see what Laurie saw in him. He wasn't super attractive, very nerdy, and a bit boring. I think he amplified her strengths though and allowed her to be an assertive, sexy badass when she wouldn't otherwise be. She was, by all means, a very attractive person, but was often overlooked with her nerdy style and lack of confidence. He helped bring out the best in her and I think that's why they worked so well.
They also worked well because she was a total nympho. Being the quieter Catholic girl that I was, I found myself constantly blushing at the things she would tell me. The things she had done over the years. The thoughts she entertained. I think he let her be a confident freak and she loved having that control.
The movie continued to play though we were paying no attention to it. We were quietly talking and joking, being extra careful not to giveaway the third attendee to this sleepover. The extra person also made the wine disappear faster and we had to open the reserve bottle hidden deep in her closet.
We talked about all kinds of things and of course Laurie kept bringing some sexual undertones to the chat and I would attempt to deflect. Credit began rolling on the movie so we swapped out for another DVD to keep the background noise going. We drank more wine. Soon, we all ended up cuddled under a blanket on her bed.