Between Friends (9 page)

“
No Ben, when you stormed
off last night after dinner –“

“
Megan stop,” Ben cuts me
off, grabs my hand and squeezes it, “I wasn’t that
drunk.”

“
What are you talking
about? It doesn’t matter if you were drunk or not, how you acted
was –“

“
Megan, I’m not talking
about last night.” Ben whispers and pulls me closer. His warm
breath tickles the nape of my neck and sends chills up my spine. I
take a huge gulp, fully comprehending exactly what he is getting
at, when he adds, “I don’t regret what happened between us, and if
I could rewind time and do it again, I would.”

I feel myself being sucked
into his gaze, losing control of every inhibition. But I snap out
of it, and I remind myself he is my best friend and this
thing
between us could
ruin everything. I nervously look away and remove my hand from his.
While one part of me is mortified he admitted to not being that
drunk, the other part of me is celebrating a small triumph. I’m
relieved to know I am not the only one confused over this whole
ordeal. There is a small part of me that is secretly pleased he has
been suffering and fretting over everything too.

But, before I can even respond, the
bus comes to a complete halt. The tour guide’s voice booms over the
intercom and announces our arrival. Ben and I hold an intense gaze
for a few moments, before Jessica leans over our seat, “Are you two
ready to zip line or what?”

****

Good God. The hike up the volcano is
exhausting. Beads of sweat pour down Matthew’s face as he wipes
them away with the back of his shirt. We are all geared up and
ready to go, helmets, ropes and all. Jessica is leading our group
using her beginner Spanish to communicate with our tour guide who
can clearly speak the English language. She keeps on looking back
at the rest of us hung-over-good-for-nothing friends of hers, but
continues to beam smiles of pure excitement. I feel Ben graze up
behind me, and it takes me a second to remember to breathe. He
brushes his body against my backside and drapes his arm around my
shoulders.

“
Are you scared?” he asks
giving me a tiny grin.

His voice sends chills all over my
body, “I’m more scared of throwing up right now than I am to soar
hundreds of feet in the air and dangle by a rope over the jungle.”
I say and feel butterflies saunter around in my stomach. I am not
sure if it is just nerves or Ben’s touch, but I release myself from
his grip just to be sure.

Ben laughs, and Eric hikes up beside
us, “Well you better hope you aren’t behind me, because I am sure I
am going to spew.”

“
That’s disgusting!”
Stephanie shouts from in front of us.

“
Well it’s true!” Eric
shouts back to her, “You can all thank Jessica and Michael for that
when it happens.”

Jessica turns around and gives Eric
the finger, as we all laugh our way up to the zip-lining
platform.

The instructor goes over
safety protocol and gives us some demonstrations, but I barely pay
attention. Ben keeps on looking over at me and it is making me
really uncomfortable. But for some reason,
I stare back unable to shake away my sudden fascination with
his lips. His dark brown eyes gleam in my direction, and
his smile is so infectious, I can’t help but blush
and smile back. When the instructor asks us who is going to go
first, I pull my eyes out of my Ben tunnel vision and see Jessica
immediately shoot up her hand, jump up and down and shout, “Me, Me,
Me!”

No one argues with her and
the rest of us fight for who follows. Finally Michael volunteers to
go next, once Jessica gives him a dirty look. Eric suggests the
rest of us decide over a proper game of rock paper scissors. He
insists this will surely settle the dilemma. But the instructor
quickly becomes annoyed, and pulls Stephanie and Michelle
in line, then yanks me, to have Matthew and Eric
follow, leaving Ben for last.

“
Matt can I trade with
you?” Ben asks adjusting his helmet.

“
Sure man.” Matthew says
and walks in behind Eric. I watch Ben stroll up behind me and give
me a wink. I turn around and blush hoping no one saw that. But when
I hear Jessica screaming and the buzzing of the zip-line, I know
everyone is too occupied with fear to notice such an odd gesture
from Ben to me.

“
Wait for me on the other
side?” He whispers in my ear as Michelle is hoisted onto the
platform.

I nod acknowledging his request and
take a deep gulp before the instructor yells and points to me, “You
Muchacha. You’re next.”

****

When we get back to the resort, we
trudge off the bus one by one. Jessica still remains her bubbly
self, and suggests we have a quick rest before our dinner
reservations tonight. Everyone agrees and we begin to chat about
what an amazing day we had, thanks to both Jessica and Michael.
Jessica beams and says that they were honored to have done
something so nice for us since we travelled so far and did so much
in preparation of the wedding. Eric gives Jessica a quick squeeze,
thanks her, and says she is the best event planner ever. I see
Jessica’s eyes go a bit bleak before she makes a point of saying,
“Well, I was one of the best party planners in the Chicago,
Illinois area.”

Michael lovingly pinches her cheek and
says, “Not anymore”

Jessica immediately shoots him an icy
stare, but composes herself and says out loud for all of us to
hear, “That’s right. Now I am just your unofficial medical office
secretary that works out of our empty mansion.”

Oh no, here we go. I really hope I
don’t have to intervene in this fight. Michael opens his mouth to
say something, but quickly slams it shut. After all the years they
have been together, he knows better than to pursue a fight with
Jessica, especially in public. She is relentless and doesn’t care
who is around.

A few months ago, when we were
shopping on Block 37 of State Street for wedding favors for their
guests, I was subject to a public fiasco. Jessica forced Michael to
come along, and insisted he had to do something in preparation of
the wedding (because she claimed she had done everything). She also
said his input was required, because she didn’t want his mother
criticizing another one of her decisions. We shopped around from
store to store, searching for the perfect gift. But after three
long hours with no prospects in sight, Michael made the mistake of
rolling his eyes when Jessica debated at Barnes and Noble over a
book of love poems versus a bedazzled picture frame.

As soon as she caught a glimpse of his
disinterest, she went off the rails. She called him inconsiderate
and complained he had no interest in the wedding. She reminded him
she waited just over ten years for him to put a ring on her finger,
and stayed with him while he studied to become a Doctor, so his
mother could brag to all her well-to-do friends about how wonderful
her son was. All the while, people were walking by watching the
dramatic spectacle unraveling in the gift section of the world’s
largest bookstore.

So it is almost a relief when Michael
just apologizes and tells her she’s right and he was the one who
was out of line (which is hardly the case). Suddenly Jessica’s pout
disappears and her eyes widen with glee. I follow her gaze, and I
am shocked to see Steven standing a few feet away in the lobby. He
smiles at me, walks in my direction and hands me a bouquet of
tropical flowers. I blush, and thank him to hear Jessica squealing
from behind me.

Stephanie and Michelle both chime in
with, “Aww” as Jessica squeezes my arm then gives me a
wink.

I immediately feel my stomach clench
when Ben curiously appears beside me. He puts his arm around my
shoulders, sarcasm dripping from his voice, “Aww, flowers...how
original.”

I toss my hair off my face and
sheepishly smile, “Yes Ben, they are beautiful. Thank you
Steven.”

“
I didn’t know you were
that serious?” Ben mocks, looking from me to Steven.

Goose bumps rise all over my arms, and
I can feel the blood boiling under my skin. I become humiliated and
enraged with Ben’s snarky and condescending comments. Steven
remains poised and shakes it off with an awkward chuckle, “Serious
or not, I thought all women loved flowers.”

I give Ben a dirty look and break free
from his hold then smile at Steven, “Well I am a woman, and I do
love flowers”

“
Since when?” Ben laughs
narrowing his eyes at me.

“
Actually,” Steven shifts
his weight and turns quite defensive “This was my attempt to
persuade your friend Megan to have dinner with me
tonight.”

Ben crosses his arms in front of his
chest. He looks at me with his mouth slightly open, waiting for my
response. I stumble through a bunch of noises that sound like a
whole lot of nothing. Steven starts to look quite uncomfortable,
and Ben basks in his own arrogance. This angers me, and reminds me
this is the one quality about Ben that drives me insane. He can be
very intimidating. Sometimes I wonder if part of his realtor
success is due to the fact that no one can seem to ever say no to
him when he turns on his ego.

“
I would be happy to go to
dinner with you.” I finally blurt out.

“
So you’re just going to
ditch all of us and our reservations for tonight?” Ben raises his
eyebrows.

“
That’s right.” I say
giving him a dirty look.

“
Ben! Who cares?” Jessica
squeals, “Megan, you know we won’t be offended if you have a change
of plans. Besides, you two can meet us after dinner for drinks.”
She blows me a kiss and walks away.

Ben rolls his eyes and looks directly
at Steven, “Just so you know, she likes vodka waters. It’s a sure
way to seal the deal.”

My eyes widen in shock at Ben and his
complete disrespect. I give him a cold hard stare, feeling
absolutely done with him. How could he be so rude? Ben doesn’t
flinch from my telepathic waves of anger. Instead he twists his
baseball cap backwards, and shoves his hands in his pockets. He
wishes us a good night and storms through the lobby.

My heart is wrenched in two different
directions. How could I possibly say no to Steven after he has so
nicely put forth the effort to greet me and bring me a beautiful
bouquet of flowers? Ben has no right to act or treat Steven or me
like that. I look at Steven so handsomely dressed in a crisply
pressed short-sleeved button up Lacoste shirt and smile. Steven
isn’t the kind of guy who would lash out so immaturely like Ben
just did. Steven is a refined taste, a real man.

“
Can you give me about
thirty minutes?” I laugh and point to my yoga shorts and sweaty
tank top. Steven smiles and says that’s not a problem, and he will
meet me at my villa by six thirty.

****

My dinner with Steven is
wonderfully pleasant. It is exactly like a first date should be.
Just like he pulled out the chair for his mother, he does the same
for me at the restaurant. This simple gesture earns him double
boyfriend bonus points in my books. He even comments on my outfit;
a cute
striped knit dress I fancied up
with silver-tone jewelry and pair of black pumps. He says I look
gorgeous and that I have great style. Honestly, he is too nice for
words.

Steven even suggests he do
the ordering. He takes my menu when the waiter comes, and selects
our drinks, appetizers, and main course. But what really impresses
me is that he doesn’t order me a vodka and water like Ben suggested
(and I know Steven heard him say it). Instead, he orders us a
bottle of white Riesling wine. I silently laugh to myself, because
Ben hates Riesling wine and insists it’s way too sweet. So when I
take my first gulp, I feel like I am somehow getting back at him
for enjoying his most hated choice of wine.

By the time our meals come,
our conversation has never seen a dull moment. It is easy and fluid
and I think we have a great vibe. He even opens up so much, to tell
me the reason for his divorce; his wife came out and admitted she
was a lesbian. I nearly choke on my garlic shrimp when he tells me,
but he laughs and says that is the reaction he usually gets from
people. I apologize and take a sip of wine, but Steven says it’s
not a big deal. He insists they are still good friends and that
there aren’t any hard feelings between them.

I feel relieved knowing his
circumstance, because it only confirms he is a great guy. I mean,
for a guy to have no hard feelings towards his ex-wife turned
lesbian is quite an accomplishment.

Once our main courses hit the table,
Steven comes out of nowhere and calmly asks, “What’s your
relationship with Ben?”

I let out a really awkward chuckle and
play with the food on my plate, “He is just my friend.
Why?”

Steven looks at me, studying my
expression, “He seems quite possessive over you.”

“
Well, that’s just how Ben
is.” I stupidly smile, (thinking that is 100% NOT how Ben ever is).
Steven’s eyes continue to carefully assess my demeanor, “Why do you
ask?”

“
Well is something going on
between you two? The way he acted in the lobby was a strange way
for just a friend to act. That’s all.” Steven shrugs.