Kiss Me

“Yeah.”

“Oh.” He runs his hand through his hair and sighs big. “Well, I don’t know what we’d do. Don’t you kind of have to be in that situation to decide?”

“What do you mean?”

“How old we are at the time. If you wanted to keep it. If you didn’t. If you wanted to have it. If you didn’t, all that. I think it’s easy to say, I’d have it, or I’d get rid of it, or I’d keep it, or I’d give it up for adoption, but then if you were actually in the situation, I would think even if you pla

“Like, what do you mean?”

“Keatie, I don’t want a baby now. I doubt you want a baby now. But if you were pregnant, right now, I think I’d have a really hard time giving it up.”

And I’m pretty sure that with those words I just fell a little bit in love with him.

No. Think with your head, Keatyn. That is not romantic. He’s just reassuring you because he likes having sex with you.

I lean over and kiss him. “I’m sorry I freaked you out. The reason my period wasn’t normal, why it was shorter, is because I went on the pill.”

His face lights up. “Really? So we won’t have to use condoms anymore?”

“Doubling up the protection is a good thing. Plus, I mean, have you been, like, tested?”

“I’m clean, Keatie. Are you?”

“Yeah.”

He leans over, kisses me deeply, and then drives us to di

We eat a whole bunch of tacos. I’m still amazed when I sit down with a group of boys just how much they can eat.

After di

Dallas is like, "Dude, you only dated for a week."

"Longest week of my life."

And I’m like, "Why's that?"

"Do you know how much work girls are?"

"Uh, I guess not?"

"She wanted me to sit around all night texting her. No offense, but I just had di

Ace says, “I hate high maintenance chicks.”

Bryce agrees. “They’re all high maintenance.”

Riley, who is still laughing, says, "If they would just understand it’s hard to text when you're saving the world from obliviation.”

All the guys laugh.

“Dude,” Tyrese says, “my kill ratio is better than all of yours.”

“No way,” Dallas says. “Mine is the best. You got totally owned when you played me. Now, Ace, he sucks.”

And thus ensues a verbal war of who is better at killing fake things with a fake gun.

I totally do not get the video game draw. Brooklyn used to get high with his friends after surfing, then they would chill, which meant they sat around in his game room on the floor pillows and played video games. Brooklyn has a sweet game room: low couches, beanbags, and pillows. But the big draw was four separate Xboxes, which allowed them all to get on Xbox LIVE and play each other.

Even Tommy would play with them occasionally. Tommy told me video games reach the primal depths of men. Their need to kill and provide. Since now they just make money to provide, video games give them the opportunity to release this natural desire. Of course, then all Brooklyn’s friends started talking about other ways to release their natural desires and Tommy sent me home.

I whisper to Dawes, "Am I high maintenance?"

"Naw, you're cool. I’m not really listening to them though. All I can think about is doing it without one. I never have—have you?”

I shake my head no, as Ace says to them, “Although, ya know, texting a girl is pretty much considered foreplay these days. Don't you want some!?"

Parker and Bryce both get big eyes, shake their heads, and say, “Not worth the hassle."

Riley goes, “Dallas, you've been awful quiet on this subject."

Dawson has been holding my hand under the table. He picks my hand up and puts in on his crotch to show me exactly how much he’s been thinking about it. He’s sitting here with a boner!

I laugh out loud.

Riley looks at me. “You know about this?”

I have no idea really what they’re even talking about. Something about girls. I just nod my head yes.

Riley grabs Dallas’ phone and sets it in front of me. "Look at this!" Riley scrolls though the list of the eight girls that he's currently talking to.

"Dallas! You're talking to all these girls?"

Dallas grins. “Well, you know, just keeping my options open."

And Riley says, “Dawes, you never play COD with us anymore.”

“I’d much rather hang with Keatie than play COD with you douches.”

“Yeah, cuz we won’t put our hands where hers is. Well, Bryce might. I’m pretty sure he’s gay.”

I try to move my hand, but Dawson covers it with his napkin and makes it stays put.

Bryce says, “I used to be gay with Dawes, but he ditched me for Kiki.”

Dawson laughs.

Then Bryce says, “Keatyn, you gotta set me up with a hottie, but she has to be a low maintenance girl like you.”

“I’m not sure being low maintenance is a good thing.”

“Sure it is.”

“I’m not sure it’s a good thing,” I say again. “Maybe girls just want to know they’re worth a little effort. Think of the effort you put into beating a video game or into memorizing all your football plays. Is it too much to ask for just some of that same attention?”

Ace has been listening to me very closely. I forget how smart he is when I look at him. He totally looks like a dumb jock. “That’s a good point, Keatyn.”

Riley looks thoughtful and nods his head in agreement. I watch him take out his phone and send a sweet text to Ariela.

The boys go on and on discussing sex versus video games.

Dawson whispers in my ear, “Let’s get out of here.” He throws some money down on the table and grabs my hand as we stand up. “We’re go

I wave at everyone. “Bye. See ya.”

Riley goes, “What kind of errands, exactly?”

Dawson flips him off.

Take them off.

9pm

It's dark outside now. When we get to Dawson's car, he starts kissing me. He has my back against his car door, and he's kissing me fast and with a lot of tongue. Deep, plunging kisses that make me grab the back of his neck and pull him in tighter.

He runs his hand up my dress, grabs ahold of my panties, and pulls them quickly down to my knees.

"Take them off,” he tells me.

Normally I don't like to be told what to do, or given commands, but I do it, no questions asked.

"Right here?"

He goes, “Mhmm.”

"Dawson! No! There are people around!"

He leans into me, his weight pressing into my chest. His breathing is ragged. “This is what I have been thinking about all through di

“We might scratch it,” I tease him.

He grabs my ass, picks me up off the ground, and pulls my legs around his waist so I can feel just how worked up he is. “I wouldn't care,” he says.

He wouldn't care if he got a scratch? This is a guy that just parked two blocks from the restaurant and takes up two parking spots, so he doesn't get a door ding. He wipes his car off with cloth diapers. And the day the school’s sprinklers turned on it and it got all water spotted, I thought he was going to have a coronary.

But the way he's got his body pushed up against me, I know he’s not playing around. "You better get us somewhere more private then."