Secret Admirers

Part One

Ben Boykewich, to put it simply, was bored.

He put in an extra shift today at the butcher shop because of the busy afternoon rush and his homework for the next week was already completed. His hand already cradled his remote control and the soft glow of the television illuminated him and the dark leather couch in the den.

For a moment, he seriously considered calling Henry and Alice, but on a warm Saturday night, he figured they were engaged in more…pleasurable activities. He groaned at the train of thought his mind fell on and hit his head on the back of his couch, looking up at the ceiling until his cell phone rang out in the darkness. Without looking, he picked it up from his lap and answered, "Hello."

A warm chuckle greeted him, "Hello yourself."

Ben suddenly sat up straight, positioning the phone closer to his ear. "Adrian," He said, breathing life into the name, "W-What made you call me?"

She smiles on the other side of the line, twirling his car keys around her painted red index finger, "Hmmm." She hummed in contemplation for a moment, "Wanted to call you." She says honestly. "Why? Do I need a reason to want to talk to you?" The majorette sits up from her position on her comforter, smirking lightly as she asked the question.

"No," Ben says, answering with a smile. "Then again, you always have a reason for doing the things you do."

The Latina scoffs over the phone and Ben's grin grows wider and knowingly. "Not always," She disagreed indignantly in jest. With a shake of her head and a roll of her darkened toffee eyes, she said, "I just have a question for you."

Ben stills, but decides to play along, "And what's that?"

Adrian murmurs thickly with a blossoming smile, her accent catching on the words:

"How do you feel about being kidnapped?"

-

Ben stood outside on the sidewalk adjacent to his house, rubbing the goose bumps off of his arms from the breeze. He sighed because leave it to Adrian to have him stand outside his house around midnight like a total creeper. "I've never been kidnapped," He says. "I've never had to think about it."

Ben shook his head; how big of an idiot was he? Should he have been surprised when Adrian said in that customarily sultry voice of hers, "You wanna be?"

In hindsight, he was practically asking for it!

His lips were tugged into a frown on one side, hoping a neighbor didn't look outside their door and call the cops, mistaking him for a robber or something. Ben shifted his weight onto his other foot, looking up when bright headlights came into view. He noticed her drive up to the curb slowly, so not to disturb his neighbors or his father and Betty. It just occurred to him that his dad would probably kill him if he knew since this was after curfew; maybe it wasn't such a good idea.

He stepped into the cherry red convertible as soon as it pulled up, strapping himself in. As soon as he was settled in, they sped off, Adrian behind the wheel as they peeled out of the cul-de-sac.

Ben looked over, heart pounding in his ears and noticed the genuine smile gracing Adrian's face. It's then that he thinks that no matter how much trouble he may get into for doing this in the morning, it'll be worth it.

"So, where are we going?" Ben asks when they finally reach a stoplight after a while.

Adrian glances over, the red stoplight from overhead giving her a gentle, fiery halo. "I figure that if I dump your body at the coast, no one will find it." She smirks; eyes alight when the light turns green.

The wind brushes against them quickly again in the rushing vehicle, and Ben sighs, "I want an epitaph."

Adrian frowns. "But that'll take too long," She complains. "There's no use in kidnapping you if I make you a grave."

"Of course there is," Ben refutes. He swallows before making his point, Adam's apple bobbing. "I mean, imagine all of the ransom money you could get if you leave me alive a little longer, not to mention the countless nameless men thrown off that coast.

If you make me a grave, at least my father will know where I am. It'll ensure people that it was me you kidnapped."

"They'll already know you were kidnapped when they see you're not home," Adrian pointed out. "Only, they'll know it was me who did it if I leave you a grave, but nice try," She grinned softly. "Maybe I will keep you around, a while longer."

They sat in a comfortable silence for about twenty more minutes until Ben asks Adrian where they're going again. She rolls her toffee pecan eyes, "It's a surprise, okay?" She groans out. Ben protests that he was never a big fan of surprises, but when she tells him to just shut up and enjoy the ride; he says nothing more after that.

Instead, he looks at the scenery passing them by and knows that they're really close to the beach by now. The aroma of the sea and sand fill his nostrils until he spots the multicolored lights of a carnival on the horizon by the coast in the pitch darkness. He looks over and Adrian's donning a smile as they pull into the overfilled parking lot, finding a spot near the front as someone was leaving.

She shuts off the car and he gets out after her, still stunned. "A carnival?" Ben asks as they head to the gate, "Why a carnival?"

Adrian shrugs, dressed simply in jeans and a t-shirt. Ben himself is sporting a button down with jeans as well. "Why not?" She inquires lightly, the playful lights surrounding the area giving her lips an alluring sheen from the gloss. "You didn't have a problem when I said I'd haul your ass off the Bay until your remains dried up on Alcatraz."

"That's because I'm not brave enough to do it myself," Ben mutters under his breath, mainly because it's true.

"What?"

"Nothing," The sophomore sighs, running a hand through his cut brown hair.

Adrian shakes her head with a smirk, "You're a weird one, Ben. You know that?"

"So I've heard," He reasoned. "Then again, you're the one hanging out with me."

Adrian swats his arm firmly and Ben winces, grabbing the appendage as his friend steps up to one of the booths with stools in a row, winking over her shoulder as she sits down and grabs one of the standing guns. "C'mon Boykewich," She yells out, beckoning him over.

Ben chuckles from the side, "No thanks." He said, gesturing with his hands.

She grins at him then, swiveling in her stool, "You know you wanna."

Ben sighs dramatically. "Actually, my hand-eye coordination is slim to none," He says, walking over. "You'd probably win anyways."

Adrian fixed him with a confident smirk and batted eyes. "Ben, you wouldn't be able to beat me if you were Annie Oakley," She grinned widely at her own bravado and Ben sat down in the stool next to her, not even bothering to tell her that she didn't even need to ask; he would've done it anyways.

The man running the booth returned, pleased to find customers waiting for him, and Ben took out his wallet and separated the appropriate amount of money from a wad of cash out on the counter. Adrian gaped at him when she saw the amount he had, "You do realize we're in California?"

Ben looked at her quizzically, eyebrows furrowed. "Yeah…Why?"

"You could get hurt carrying that much cash around like that," She mumbled out. Adrian looked away from him quickly then, but the concern that shone in her eyes didn't pass him unnoticed.

"On your marks!…" The man running the booth announced, making Ben turn to face the target. He would dwell on what that meant later; right now, he had to at least try to win, right? "Get set! Go!"

Instantly Ben and Adrian pressed their triggers, releasing a spray of water at the target. The balloons they were attached to began to quickly fill up and Ben focused his aim at the small black hole, realizing that his balloon soon began to surpass the size of Adrian's. I could actually win this, he thought, keeping his finger on the trigger. Ben was so focused on the task that he didn't even realize Adrian lean over, until her soft full lips were set on his cheek. Blood began to rush to his face and he heard the sneaky majorette laugh in his ear.

It wasn't until the clang of the bells going off and the repetitive "Winner!" ringing in his ear did he realize that Adrian had won, and he took his finger off of his gun's trigger.

Adrian jumped down from her stool and Ben shook his head, cheeks still flaming. "You cheated," He said factually.

Adrian gets a chocolate brown plush puppy from the vendor and she's all smiles as she says, "All's fair in love and war."

Ben shakes his head at her antics and her arm slips through his. He looks down at the gesture but Adrian's looking away at all of the other games and rides, anticipating with her dark shimmering eyes which one to do next. Ben properly links her arm with his by tightening his grip. Looking at her, so guardedly excited the way she is, he can't ask her what her intention was for bring him here. Not yet, anyways. She looks younger somehow without her usual cover of makeup and with the way her face is lit up, you would think she hasn't been to a carnival.

"So, where to next?" He leans down to whisper in her ear.

"It's not a secret if I tell you," She whispered just as seriously, which wasn't very serious at all. But she has this ever so familiar glint in her darkened toffee eyes that promises fun and mischief, so he just chuckles, ready to go along for the ride.

They go on The Hurler next, waiting along the side of the machine walls until they're strapped in, and then they're spun in every direction imaginable. Adrian's squealing and laughing next to him and when he feels himself becoming queasy, her manicured hand is already slipping in his and soon the ride is over and she's pulling him somewhere else. And it finally hits him. He's just a teenage boy and she's just a teenage girl, and they're friends but they've practically clung onto each other all night. And if they're doing this, then what are Ricky and Amy doing without them?

It's not a date, he thinks. He has to keep reminding himself of that constantly.

Especially when Adrian makes a beeline for the cotton candy stand, and she stumbles on the concrete. Ben does what comes naturally and holds her by her arms before she falls, but then everyone is still passing them by and they're the only ones standing still on the walk. Her curls frame her face when she straightens herself and her lips are slightly parted and he thinks that the different multi-colored lights hitting her face give her an innocence. A beauty, really. And he'd be blind to think that she wasn't beautiful, but that's not an adjective that you give your friends either.

Her small hand lands feather light on his chest and he could feel the heat of it permeating through the linen of his shirt. Ben inadvertently leans closer, not really aware of his movements, and Adrian's hooded eyes are darting from his eyes to his lips and back again.

And then she flashes an embarrassed smile, and the moment's over, "Thanks, Ben."

It takes him a moment to register that she even spoke, and he suddenly becomes aware that his hands are wrapped around the small of her waist. Weren't they on her biceps before? And her hand is on his chest, basically ceasing the proximity even though the distance between them is closed because their bodies are already touching and he unhands her slowly, equally embarrassed. "No problem."

It's not a date, so why does he feel like he was ditched when she walks to the cotton candy stand without him?

He ambles on behind her as she's reaching for her pink treat, and he already has his wallet out to pay. He takes a blue cotton candy stick for himself as well and they walked down the boardwalk side-by-side. Since it was already so late, most of the crowd had dispersed and Adrian walks toward the side, leaning on a rail looking out to the dark ocean waters and tearing pieces off her cotton candy pensively. He stands next to her and does the same patiently because he knows her well enough to know that she has something on her mind, but he doesn't want to rush her into speaking.

"Hey, Ben?" She says softly, still looking far out past the horizon.

"Yeah?"

She pauses a moment, before looking at him. "Do you think that Amy and Ricky went out, doing things like this while you were gone last summer?"

Ben's brow worries, "I don't see how they could've, since you were here."

It's quiet after that, waves crashing against rocks. Then, "Ricky and I…didn't really hang out last summer." Adrian looks down at her cotton candy, still picking it off. "I hated you, you know. For leaving."

"You told me," Ben agrees quietly. He's sure that the past tense means that she doesn't hate him anymore because you can't hate someone enough to be their friend, and surely not enough to kidnap them in the middle of the night. Or maybe she's just doing what he used to do, and she's keeping her enemies closer, but how would he be her enemy?

"We cheated on each other," She continues. "I don't know why we do it, but with me it's like…it's like I can't let it go when he does it. And the more he does it, the less I trust him, and when we last broke up with each other, I told him that I couldn't take it because how could he love me and do that?" She rambles on unthinkingly, Ben listening intently. She abruptly turns to Ben and he's shocked that her normally stony eyed gaze is glassy. "Do you think its wrong, us being together?"

He knows that, by 'us' she means her and Ricky. And he knows that they love each other, even if Ricky won't admit it and even if Adrian still can't trust him. But if she, someone who always fought for what she believed in even if it was wrong, could be doubting herself about loving Ricky, then was it right for him to doubt loving Amy? And even if you loved someone, could it be that just because you loved them, it didn't always mean you were meant to be with each other?

Ben hesitated in answering because if he said 'yes', he'd be betraying Ricky, who he could actually say was his friend. And if he said 'no', then he'd be betraying her. And he loves Amy, he really does, but he doesn't understand how he could betray her readily, and not Adrian. He doesn't want to delve into that because that's not something he should be thinking about.

"I think," He says slowly, "that not being with Ricky isn't the answer. I think that maybe you should…do what I did."

A smirk blossoms on her face, "And what was that? Go to Bologna and have 'fun'?"

She laughs and he shakes his head once again. "That's not what I meant," He says dryly.

Adrian bites her lower lip to stop from smiling, and fails. "I know."

"Maybe you just need some time to yourself, and maybe that time doesn't involve Ricky. In fact, I think that you should spend some time away from Ricky, at least for a while because you can't really love someone if you don't love yourself first and you're not loving yourself by letting him cheat on you." Ben took a breath; it was risky for him to tell her that, but he was her friend first and if she called him it had to be for a reason.

He wouldn't have been surprised if she had slapped him, or yelled at him, or even ditched him and left him there to fend for himself. If anything, he might've thought he deserved it, but then she looks at him and wraps her arms around his midsection, cheek on his chest and tears on his shirt and he so alarmed that he stand stock still for a moment before numbly stroking her back.

"That's the sweetest thing anyone's ever said to me," Her voice is thick with emotion when she says this.

And he just holds her, nimble hands running through her thick, dark locks. They stand like that for a while, embracing each other's warmth as it gets a bit colder and just listening the waves before she pulls away, swiping her wrist over her cheeks. Her eyes are still slightly puffy and red but she gives him a face splitting smile and he breathes in relief. The carnival is no more than a skeleton crew now; there are only a few people walking around and most of the vendors have closed but a few of the rides are still up.

Now if it were his choice –and if it were a date- he would've at least wanted to go on the Ferris wheel, at least once. But this –once again- is not a date, and Adrian's been eyeing the big ride at the very end of the carnival all night. So she drags Ben by his hand up to the enormous ride before he can even protest and the words 'Ring of Fire' flash in yellow and red neon lights.

She runs up and Ben slowly follows behind, wondering how he could talk his way out of this, but he has to crouch down just to het in the same compartment Adrian is in, and since they're curled in, his larger frame is just so close to her smaller one. The cab is swaying before the ride starts and Adrian's forehead is nearly touching his, "You're not scared, are you?"

"Of course not," He says tightly. "It's three of my favorite things; enclosed spaces, high, and fast."

She laughs at his joke, "It's not that bad."

He's trying not to be too close to her, so he shifts back, only to discover there's no where left to shift, and since his legs are open, she's practically in his lap. There are three distinct clicks and then they're off. This is the last ride of the night, so everyone else filling up the other cabs are whooping and Ben shuts his eyes. A whoosh of air hits his face, and he feels Adrian grab his hand off his knee softly. He opens his eyes and she's staring into his and they round the first turn, laughing at the rattle of their cab.

They're on their fourth spin when Ben overcomes his vertigo and the adrenaline is rushing so quickly through his veins that he feels like he's on a permanent high long after the ride is over. Adrian sneaks out of the cab first and Ben stumbles out. The world feels like it's tilted on its axis, somehow, but he can't put his finger on why that would be.

Adrian keeps leading him out and soon, they're at the beach, and Ben can taste the sea salt on his tongue. "It's getting late, Adrian," He says needlessly.

She rolls her eyes with a scoff, "It's already been late, Ben." Adrian toes the tide, squealing when it feels too cold at first. He could barely see the outline of her silhouette since it's so dark, and there's only a small crescent moon in the sky.

He thinks this entire situation is surreal; it almost reminds him of how it was in Bologna. Fun, carefree, no Amy. He doesn't want to think like that, but it's true. And he figures that with the way things are going, he's just not thinking straight –like usual- but he likes this, being out with his friend after hours. It's spontaneous and it's an amazing night to be out. He decides to toe the tide as well and it's a bit chilly at first, but he gets used to it, sinking his foot in the wet sand. He's not paying that much attention to anything else, so when he gets splashed in the face, it startles him at first, until Adrian's laughter fills his ears and it's on like Donkey Kong.

Ben runs after Adrian who's determined to get away, but his longer legs catch up to her quickly and he grabs her midsection from behind, tickling her into submission. She's laughing so hard she can't breathe and Adrian jabs Ben in the stomach with her index finger to try to stop him. He loses his footing and he topples over in front of her. They're in the tide and it's wet and cold, but Adrian's eyes are still twinkling and she just feels so warm and right underneath him the way she is. He's trying not to put all of his weight on her and get up quickly because they're both sticky with sand and they have to go home soon, but her hand tangles with the hair at the nape of his neck and her shirt somehow rode up during the fall, so his shirt is the only thing preventing his skin from touching hers.

"So, was this your attempt to get me on my back?" Adrian asks softly.

Ben's pretty sure his face is heating up, but the cloak of night reveals nothing. "Noooo…" He draws out. "It's not; it's really not. I mean, we discussed that us having sex just wouldn't happen, and that I would fail. I would definitely fail, right?" He rambles, shivering from the rush of the water. He should be getting up, but he isn't.

"Definitely," Adrian whispers. Something's different, he realizes quickly. Everything's becoming hazy and it's so dark out that nothing even seems real anymore. So maybe he just imagines staring at Adrian's full sweet lips one moment, and having them kiss his the next. It takes him two seconds before he starts to respond because he has to be dreaming this, he has to. Because this would never, not in a million years, happen. And certainly not with Adrian Lee.

Her tongue slips in between his lips and she tastes amazing, like some exotic new fruit or maybe a fine wine from Nappa. It's sweet and dangerous and dizzying when he follows her lead. His hands slip underneath the sides of her wet shirt tentatively and her fingers are pressing down on his neck, keeping him closer to her and they're legs are tangled in each other in the surf. By the time Ben pulls away, Adrian's eyes are open, looking into his and her fingers thread from his neck to his cheeks.

"You're shivering," Adrian observes.

"Well, it's cold," Ben responds. His lips feel a little numb from the pressure and he feels like he's crumbling under her stare. Adrian traces her thumb over his lower lip and he feels his body shake again. She smiles.

"Let's get you warmed up, then."

And so many…bad things come to mind when she says that, but she makes the move to try to get up, and he stops her. "Wait…does that mean…that thing you said I would definitely fail at doing with you?"

Her smile becomes a smirk, and her eyebrow lifts: "Do you want it to mean that?"

She's still teasing him; she's still smiling and teasing him, even though he can't really see her face all that well. "I-I…" He stutters, and she laughs, pushing lightly against his chest with her hands. He knows that she must feel his heart pounding underneath his shirt and he moves away, allowing her to get up. It's only then that he notices how wet she really is because the lights of the carnival are still running strong and her shirt is clinging to her skin. She's wet with sand all over her back and in her hair, but she's sexy, looking back at him over his shoulder.

There, he thought it. His friend, who he just made out with on the beach, in the surf, way past midnight, is sexy.

He smiles; nothing in Bologna got even close to this, not even the afternoon lunch break make out session past the docks.

And certainly nothing he's done with Amy either.

He quickly falls in step with her and slings his arm over her shoulder. He's not sure why, but it begins to warm him up. Adrian looks up at him with one of those rare smiles, the one that truly reaches her bright eyes. "Do you regret this?"

"'This' meaning going out with you at all hours or 'this' meaning what just happened?" He wants to clarify.

She grins, "Surprise me."

"Then the answer is no, to both." Ben says lowly and he swears that Adrian's smile alone could light up the entire carnival. Which reminds him…

He steps in front of her and holds her by her shoulders. "Wait, there's one more thing we have to get before we go home," Ben says quickly, and Adrian cocks an eyebrow at him.

"And what's that?"

He looks around derisively at first, until he locates what he was looking for, "Be right back!" He calls quickly, leaving her near the gate. After a few minutes –where Adrian seriously considers ditching, not that she would- Ben returns with two large milkshakes.

"Seriously?" Adrian asks with a snicker. "Sweet tooth much?" Not that she's really complaining because milkshakes are one of her vices, just under sex.

Ben smiles, "Alice and Henry told me about these date shakes, they said they're really delicious."

Adrian's lower lip protrudes in a smile, swirling her straw through the vanilla mixture with raisin chucks swirled in. She knows what he's talking about, but she just can't resist. "But…this isn't a date, Ben." She's batting her eyes slowly, and his face falls.

"I know, I just…" He trails off, suddenly feeling stupid until Adrian takes the straw in-between her lips and slowly drinks her milkshake, looking up at him from underneath her lashes, and his train of thought is lost. She closes her eyes and moans quietly as she enjoys the sweet shake, cool on her tongue. But the moment ends, and she pecks him on the area next to his jaw.

"Thank you, and they're right, it is good." She's smiling under hooded eyes and long after they leave the carnival.

They're still a mess, all wet and sticky with sand, but it was worth it. She drives him home with the hood on and heat on at first to warm them up and his neighborhood is still as quiet as he left it.

"See you later, Ben," Adrian says, looking over. "And thanks."

Ben smiles, "No problem." He's not sure, what this all meant.

As if she read his mind, she says, "I'll call you tomorrow. Who knows, maybe I'll kidnap you again."

He laughs, "I look forward to that, then." Ben gets out of the car, and even as she speeds off, he can't help but think that it really was all worth it. With a smile, he heads back in his house, hoping to take a shower before going to bed.

TBC…

Based on the very cute fanon name, Secret Admirers, from the very genius Princess Pinky. Hoped you guys enjoyed, and I hope to hear from you!

DAC