Char (8 page)

I laugh. “Not happening. And stop looking at my panties. It’s kind of gross.”

“Whatever.” He closes the drawer, and comes to lay beside me on my bed. “It didn’t take much to get you in bed.”

I roll on my side, and face him. “I used to spend the night with my best friend, Aaron, practically every night since we were five years old. And we have never had sex. Getting me into bed won’t be the problem.”

“But I am not your best friend,” he says. “I want to be your friend, but I want to be a lot more than
just
a friend.”

“Why? You hardly know me. I could be a complete bitch.”

“I already know your a bitch. No. You’re not a bitch. It’s just a front. You’re out of your element here. And while part of you wants to hop on a plane and go home, the other part of you already likes it here.”

He’s good. And he’s right. I don’t want him to be right. Because I don’t want to like it here. And part of me does. Maybe I need this change. It has been kind of nice not having my mom hound me.

“Have you ever wished you could live another life?” I ask him.

“Can’t say that I have.”

“Well, I have. One where my parents aren’t divorced, and we are a normal family. One where my sisters aren’t famous, and one where my life isn’t totally screwed up,” I tell him. And I don’t know
why
I’m telling him. Maybe it’s because he reminds me of Aaron. And I miss Aaron.

“Normal is overrated.”

“We don’t have to be normal. Maybe just toned down a bit,” I say. “Sometimes I hate
being Candice York’s little sister. Actually, not just sometimes. All the time. It’s embarrassing, and I can’t even tell my mom. She wants me to be just like Candice. She’s disappointed that I’m not. She is probably happy to be rid of me.”

“Maybe being here with your dad will be a good thing.”

“Doubtful. He just wanted me here so he could control me. I go from my mom controlling me to my dad controlling me.” But at least he supports what I want and isn’t trying to push me to be a model.

“My dad is pretty controlling too, but I realized it isn’t that he wants to control me. He wants what is best for me. He just has a really bad way of showing it. Your dad is probably like mine.”

“No. My dad is cruel. He accused me of having sex with my best friend. I’m not, nor have I ever. But when I told him he didn’t believe me. The only reason he doesn’t like Aaron is because he has two dads. His real mom didn’t want him, so he was adopted by a gay couple, and they love him. And best of all they love each other. Which is why I spent so much time at their house. I felt…
normal
when I was there. Which sounds weird. Trust me, I know.
 
But it’s true.”

“Things will get better,” he says. “As you get older, your relationship with you parents will change. Right now they’re just being overprotective because they’re about to lose control. You’re about to turn eighteen. Plus you’re the baby of the family, which makes it that much worse.”

“He has hardly been apart of my life. Why does he get to decide now that he suddenly does care?”

“Maybe he’s always cared. Maybe he’s just never showed it before.”

Maybe. But probably not. “He threatened my mom, which is the only reason why I’m here. If he cares, he has a funny way of showing it.”

“Guys aren’t really that great at showing their feelings.”

I start to protest. Because Aaron has always
been open about his feelings. But then I remember — he has gay dads. His dads always taught him that it was okay to show emotions. Being emotional isn’t a weakness. Most guys aren’t like that.

“What about you, Tristan? Are you good at showing your emotions?”

“Nope,” he answers honestly. “I’m almost as bad as my dad. But at least I realize it. I plan on doing something about it. Dad will never change.”

The heavy conversation that we are having now is a little depressing. So I decide to change the subject. “I’ve decided that New York isn’t going to be so bad.”

“What makes you say that?”

“You. You’re alright. You’re not the stuck up douche bag I thought you were.”

He laughs. “I’m not sure if that’s a compliment or not. But I’ll take it.”

Inviting Tristan over — BEST. IDEA. EVER.

THURSDAY, AUGUST 1

10am

Moving on.

Tristan ended up staying until about two in the morning. We talked, but that’s it. He didn’t try to kiss me, or have sex with me. Which was kind of nice. But it also made me miss Aaron. So when I wake up, I decide to call Aaron to see how he is doing.

“Hello,” a very sleepy voice answers.

“Aaron! Hey!” Yep. I totally forgot about the time difference. But it’s six. Which means he should be up for his early morning work out.

“Char?”

“Oh my God. Have I been gone so long that you forgot the sound of your
best friend’s
voice?”

“Never,” he says. “But you did wake me up.”

“You usually get up at five,” I say. “Did you decide to skip your early morning work out?”

“Yeah, kind of…”

I hear a muffled voice in the background. A girl. “Oh I get it now. You finally took my advice and got laid.”

“Shut up,” he jokes. “So how is New York City treating you?”

“New York is surprisingly good. Even my dad has been a bit less douche-like. It’s been nice,” I tell him. “I even met some people that I will be going to school with. And I made a new friend.”

“I’m okay with you having a new friend, but make sure this new friend knows I’m the
best
friend,” he says.

I laugh. “I told him all about you last night, and he won’t be replacing you. I promise.”

“Him?”

“His name is Tristan. He’s a sophomore at Columbia and I will be going to school with his little brother. I met him at a party last night,” I say. “By the way, New York parties are even lamer than we expected. Anyway, he introduced me to some people I’ll be going to school with, then we ditched the party. I brought him to my house to piss off my dad, but it turns out I actually got his approval.”

“That seems unfair. We’ve been best friends since we were five, and your dad
still
doesn’t approve of me. How come he got the stamp of approval?”

“I have a feeling it has something to do with his zip code, his college of choice, and his father. His dad owns some big company — Becker Industries — or something like that. But don’t worry, Tristan isn’t your average New Yorker. I think you’ll like him. Are you still coming up for Labor Day?”

“Absolutely. I can’t wait to see you. But I have to go. I’m pretty sure there is about to be a round two.”

“Ew! Remember to wrap it before you tap it.”

He laughs. “Trust me, I will. This ones a little crazy.”

“Later,” I say.

“Bye.”

I hang up the phone, and fall back onto my bed. I wonder for a moment if I should feel jealous that Aaron was with another girl, but I’m not. It would be stupid to be jealous, because he’s my best friend. I definitely don’t see him as anything more, but part of me is sad because it feels like we are both moving on. I’ve been here two days, and already I have a new friend… and he’s already found somebody to share his bed with.

My phone vibrates, and I look to see a text from Aaron.

Aaron:
You will always be my favorite girl. She’s just a filler until you finally realize that you’re in love with me.

Me:
LOL. I do love you. Always.

Aaron:
Just remember that. And do me a favor. Don’t fall in love with Tristan.

I don’t know how to respond. I read his message about ten times. But I can’t reply. I want to tell him that I won’t. Because I
won’t
. But for some reason, I can’t type the words. My phone vibrates again. This time, it’s a text from Tristan.

Tristan:
Will be in front of your place in 10 minutes. We are getting breakfast, and you are spending the WHOLE DAY with me. Be prepared.

Me:
What if I say no?

Tristan:
You won’t. 9 minutes.

I look down at my pajamas and run to my closet. I’ve got nine minutes to look cute. Or at least look like I didn’t just wake up.

11am

Filler girl.

I get dressed, brush my teeth, and fix my hair in record time. Twelve minutes later, I am sitting in Tristan’s limo. Not bad. I’ve never gotten ready so quickly before.

“You’re late.”

“You can’t expect a girl to get ready in ten minutes,” I say, scooting beside him.

“Well you certainly managed just fine. You’re very pretty.”

Pretty? No girl wants to be
pretty
. I want to be
hot
. Or
sexy
. “Um, thanks.”

“So today, we are going to be tourists. What is it that you want to see?”

I think about his question. “Jersey Shore.”

“Jersey Shore is still pretty messed up from the hurricane that hit,” he tells me. “We could go to the empire state building?”

“Meh. Seen one big building, you’ve see them all.”

He laughs. “Well, we could go see the Statue of Liberty.”

“I did that when I was a kid.” One of the times I
actually
visited my dad he took Chloe, Candice, and I. Then he got called into the office, so we had to go back home. That was when I realized that my dad didn’t care about me or my sisters.

“Times square?” he asks.

“Yes! But lets go at night.”

“Okay. Let’s start with breakfast, and we’ll go from there.”

The limo stops in front of a cafe, and the driver opens the door for us. We get out and walk inside. On the inside, it looks more like a ball room than a restaurant. The ceilings are tall, and matching chandeliers hang down from each section.

“Tristan Becker,” he tells the hostess.

Really? We had to have reservations for
breakfast
? I look at the time on my phone and see that it’s actually closer to lunch time. Still, who makes breakfast or lunch reservations?

“Right this way, Mr. Becker.”

We follow the hostess to a room in the back… A private room. Really? He does know this isn’t a date, right? Maybe I should clarify.

“My dad owns the building,” Tristan tells me as the hostess leaves. “They always go out of the way to make us feel like royalty.”

Oh right. Becker Industries. I wonder what else they own.

After we order breakfast, I excuse myself to go to the bathroom. I got ready in such a rush that I didn’t have time to go before I left the house. The bathroom is… immaculate. Probably one of the cleanest public restrooms I’ve ever been in.

When I get back to the table, Tristan has my phone in his hand.

“Your phone keeps going off.” He hands it to me.

I look through the texts. They’re all from Aaron.

Aaron:
I’m not at all liking your silence.

Aaron:
Please, just text me back. And tell me that you’re definitely NOT going to fall in love with him.

Aaron:
Okay, seriously? Now I’m freaking out. I’m about to get on a fucking plane and fly to NYC.

Oh right. I forgot to text him back this morning. Crap. I look up at Tristan. “Did you read any of that?”

“Just the part where he told you not to fall in love with me, and you didn’t reply,” he says. “I might have also read something about him flying to New York if you didn’t reply.”

Right. Of course.

“I take it Aaron is your ex-boyfriend?”

“What? No way. He’s been my best-friend since I was five. In fact, I was dating somebody else for the past year. I broke up with him a few days ago when I found him cheating on me. Aaron doesn’t like me like that.”

“Sounds like he does.”

“No way,” I say. “I called him this morning, and he was totally in bed with another girl.”

“Right. The
filler
girl.”

“He always talks like that with me. He’s definitely not in love with me. He’s my best friend, and nothing more. I promise.” As the words leave my mouth, my phone starts vibrating. Aaron is actually calling me.

“Are you going to get that?”

I sigh, and answer it. “Aaron, what’s up? I’m busy.”

“Oh my God. Are you with Tristan?” Aaron asks. I can hear the disgust in his voice.

“Yes. I am with Tristan. What’s the big deal? I thought you were having round two with that girl…”

He laughs. “Actually, that was more like round four. But whatever. I kicked her out after I banged her.”

“You’re a jerk.”

“Whatever,” he says. “But seriously, why are you hanging out with Mr. Columbia?”

“Because
Mr. Columbia
is my friend. Get over it. I’m hanging up now.”

“Wait!” He says. “Just promise you won’t fall in love with him.”

“I don’t feel like I should promise you anything. You do know I just caught my boyfriend of one year cheating on me like five days ago, right? I’m not falling in love with anybody right now. I’m hanging out. With a friend. And I’m being rude. So I’m hanging up.”

I end the call, and look up at Tristan. He looks amused.

“Sorry. Aaron is… overprotective.” Overprotective. Crazy. And extremely annoying sometimes. “But he’s my best friend. So yeah, I deal with it. Maybe you can meet him on Labor Day. He’s coming to visit. I was thinking about going to my dad’s house in Hamptons.”

“My dad has a house there too. Actually, it’s right next to your dad’s house on the beach.”

I’ve been to my dad’s house a few times. It’s a nice house, and it’s big. But the house next to it is like enormous. Bigger than a lot of hotels I’ve stayed at. “Um… You live in that museum?”

“My dad likes to show off,” he says.

“Your dad must be loaded.”

Tristan looks uncomfortable, so he changes the subject. “So since you wanted to go to Jersey Shore, I was thinking we could go to Coney Island instead. It was affected by the storm, but they’ve cleaned it up, and repaired most of it.”

“Sure. Coney Island sounds fun.” I haven’t been to Coney Island before. Dad promised to take us when I was a kid, but then he ditched us… as always.

As we eat breakfast, the topic definitely goes to a lighter subject and my mind goes to Aaron. I don’t know what is up with him, but I really hope he stops acting so crazy. We’ve been friends for a long time, and I really hope he doesn’t have more than just friendly feelings for me. I don’t want to throw away our friendship. Ever.