Her Name is Jessica
Jessica smiled wildly, her eyes bright with that type of mischief that one only saw in very close friends. Her dark curls bounced goofily. "Are we doing this or not?" she mused. The words seemed to come to her as naturally as breathing. Her voice was like a stream running against rocks, or the crashing of a waterfall. Her eyes seemed to focus more, pupils dilating. "What?"
"What?" I asked back.
She smiled again like she could tell exactly what I was thinking. "You look like you're undressing me with your eyes."
My face flushed cherry pink. "I'm putting more clothes on," my mouth snapped before I could think any better of it. Jessica's smile stretched. She rolled her eyes like she knew I was lying and took a few steps back before turning on her heel. "Where are we going?"
"Out, like I said," she hummed, not looking over her shoulder. Her curls hid her face. I followed after her like a lost puppy, the choker she'd given me for my birthday like a collar and the view of her in that leather jacket like the leash. She opened the door for me.
I bit my lip, looking away from her. The yard was dark and foggy, lit up by warm fairy lights hung up in the willow trees. I'd spent my life growing up with those trees; they were my mom's favorite. "What are we gonna do?"
"Have fun," Jessica said nonchalantly, avoiding my question once again. She skipped down the brick staircase in her leather boots with a tat tat tat. "Why? Don't tell me you're getting cold feet?"
I scoffed, rolling my eyes. She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, and suddenly I really wished that that had been my hand. Her freckles were darker in the evening lighting. "Am I at least dressed appropriately?" I asked.
Jessica looked me up and down, her dark green eyes taking in my loose t-shirt and short shorts. I was wearing chunky boots and white socks that reached above my knee. The limelight made me squirm. Jessica stepped forward, looping a manicured finger through a loop of the belt I'd cinched around my waist. "You look nice."
"But is it okay for where we're going?"
"Where do you think we're going?" she teased, stepping back and turning over her shoulder again. My eyes fell to her tight-fitting jeans for a moment before I realized what was happening and I looked back up at her thick hair. "Guess."
I followed after her, trying to keep up with her model legs. "I don't know; the shed?"
"Perhaps."
"The abandoned house?"
Jessica slowed down, slow enough for me to fall in step next to her at least, and suddenly I was very conscious that her hand and my hand were very close. Close enough to bump as we walked. "Honestly?" she admitted, "I just wanted to walk."
I scoffed, looking around at the dark street we walked through. What little sights it had to see the fog had covered up like a thick blanket. The street was black as night, and the brick was wet. "You wanted to walk in this?"
"With you." She didn't elaborate. Blood rushed to my face. Our pinkies bumped into each other. "It's quiet."
I nodded, eyeing the walls. "Is there gonna be anyone else?"
Jessica shook her head, sending her curls into a mess of bouncing springs. "Unless you want."
Our pinkies bumped again. I bit my lip, shrugging. My fingers found their way into my pockets, just barely. "That's alright. If you're sure you don't mind." I looked back up at her. She was staring at my neck.
"You have a mole," she noted. "It's cute."
I flushed, smacking a hand beneath my ear to cover it up. "Thanks."
Jessica grinned, eyes looking back up to the end of the street. "So I found this alleyway," she started. "It's super scary. Don't recommend it."
"And you want to go in," I interrupted her slowly.
Her green eyes fell back on me. It made me want to curl up in a ball on my bed and shove my face into a fluffy blanket. It made me want to yell. She pulled out a chapstick and smudged the vanilla flavor on her plump lips. "Relax: no one's going to be there to embarrass you. We'll be completely alone." The comment brought a much more devious smile to the corners of her unchapped lips as she snapped the chapstick's lid back on and shoved it into her pocket. I found myself red in the face as I imagined what Jessica could possibly want me, alone, in the dark for. But she kept her mouth shut on the subject after that, and we walked through the neighborhood in a comfortable silence towards our destination.
