Chapter One: That Lovin' Feelin'

Piper's POV

Music thumps in the background as I watch dozens of my supposed high school friends grind up on each other in an attempt to look sexy. Everyone on the dance floor is plastered from a combination of liquor, beer and, most likely, weed. But, tonight, I don't let the sweaty, sticky people dancing bother me. If they want to dance like that, so be it. We did just graduate high school after all.

However, I still prefer to stand on the sidelines with a red cup in my hand instead of dancing all up on some drunk guy with a goal of conquering me in the back of his mind. As I watch my friend from the tennis team dance all over her boyfriend, someone bumps into me, causing my beer to slosh out of the sides of my cup.

When I turn to yell at the drunk idiot who made me spill beer on my Toms, I am taken aback by the shit-eating grin of my best friend for the last four years of high school. With long black locks tipped with blue and secretary glasses perched on her nose, I take in the sight of my gorgeous friend. I've always wondered why she never had a boyfriend with the looks she has.

"Alex," I murmur under my breath, trying to suppress the grin that is now forcing its way onto my face. "You had to make me spill my beer, didn't you?"

In response, Alex saddles up next to me closer, grabbing the cup from my hand and proceeding to walk away. I almost yell after her—obviously I want my beer back—but I let her do whatever it is she is out to do. I've learned her ways by now.

My mind is wandering while Alex is gone. I'm presuming she is going to return to where I am soon, so I don't dare move a step. I let the music drum into my soul, sending waves of bass up my spine and forcing my body to react by swaying. This song is one of my favorite oldies.

You never close your eyes anymore when I kiss your lips.

And there's no tenderness like before in your fingertips.

You're trying hard not to show it,

But baby, baby I know.

You lost that lovin' feelin'

Whoa, that lovin' feelin'

You lost that lovin' feelin'

Now it's gone, gone, gone, whoa.

I wonder silently who chose to play that song. It really isn't an anthem from our time in high school—rather it is a song people only sing after watching "Top Gun." But I'm glad that it's playing right now, even though a lot of people on the dance floor are pissed since they can't really grind on another to it. The fact that my peers think the only dancing you can do is grind makes me quite sad. There is so much more to dancing than rubbing your ass on someone.

My thoughts are suddenly interrupted by Alex, who has returned with a fresh beer in her hands. And this beer is in a can. I smile at the fact that she grabbed something in a can since a can makes it harder to spill beer on yourself.

"I love this song. It reminds me of 'Top Gun.' What a fucking classic movie. Let's watch it this summer," Alex tells me as she hands me the beer can with a glint in her eye.

I sigh, thinking about the implications of this summer. It's the last summer before we both head off to college. Alex, despite her insistence that she can't afford it, is going to attend the community college in the area while I head off to Smith per my parent's request.

"What are you thinking about, Pipes? You know I can always tell when you're thinking about something important. That, and you haven't answered me in the last minute," Alex says as she nudges my right shoulder with her left shoulder. For some reason, I feel a tingling sensation in my shoulder after hers touches mine. I shake it off, blaming the feeling on the alcohol coursing through my veins.

"I know I am supposed to be overjoyed at graduating high school. And I am supposed to be super excited for college, too, but all I can think about is not seeing you every day anymore. You're my best friend," I say, my voice barely audible above the bumping music.

The look on Alex's face when I say that makes my heart sink into my chest. I watch as the corner of her eyes fill up with tears. This is the first time I have ever seen her cry. But she doesn't make a big deal of it. Instead, she lets the tears silently run down her face as she pulls me into a bone crushing hug, with her arms wrapped around the top of my body while my arms wrap around her stomach. I bury my head into her shoulder as she nuzzles her head into my neck. I realize when I slowly pull away how intimate that hug actually was.

"Hey, I have a surprise for you," Alex whispers in my ear after the hug.

She knows how I love surprises—her being at this party is one of the best surprise all year. Every time I attend, in her words, "a yuppie party in some rich kid's parent's basement," she gives me shit for going. No matter how hard she tries to be a bad ass around everyone else, though, to me, Alex is a softie. And I know she would do anything for me or for her mom. We're family to her. That's why she's here tonight.

"You didn't have to do anything for me," I try to convincingly protest, although I know Alex can see right through me. She knows I am thrilled at the prospect of a surprise or a gift. I wish I would have gotten her something for tonight. I have something planned to give her later. Regret runs through my body.

"Don't be upset that you didn't get me anything, either. You becoming friends with me my freshman year is a gift enough. I'm not sure what I would've done in high school without you, kid. I mean it. This is just my way to repay you," Alex mumbles.

I've never heard her talk like this before. She isn't putting on a show like she normally does. She's acting like the real Alex Vause. The girl underneath the skin. The girl that is my best friend.

Alex takes me by my wrist and starts to weave through the throngs of people on the overcrowded dance floor. I let her lead me to wherever it is she is heading without a single word. As we make our through the house, I bump into a few friends from old classes and clubs. I say my hellos quickly because Alex never once stops the entire time she pulls me along.

"Where are we going?" I ask once we are outside. In retrospect, asking that question was idiotic since we are outside. Obviously we aren't going anywhere but here. There's nowhere else to go unless we are leaving the party.

"You're so dumb sometimes, Pipes," Alex tells me. I hint a double meaning behind the phrase but I don't press her any further.

Alex motions for me to follow her a little bit more. My eyes have adjusted slowly to the darkness outside, and, once they adjust fully, I understand where Alex is taking me. Between two small trees is a hammock. I smile because Alex remembered how much I love these things. Whenever I see one, I always jump on it and swing ferociously back and forth.

I run ahead and hop on first before Alex can even say a word to me. I hear her raspy laugh behind me. I swear I can feel the shake of her head as way. I lay down on it as I wait for my best friend to climb on next. Finally, I feel the weight of the hammock shift as Alex wrestles her way onto the rickety ropes. She lays down right next to me, balancing out the hammock.

Her body is pressed up against mine, and I am comforted in the fact that we can silently lay next to each other on a hammock without feeling uncomfortable or awkward. For a couple of minutes, we don't say a word or move an inch. We just close our eyes and take in the night air. It's a wonderful feeling, knowing your best friend is right next to you no matter what.

"So about this surprise…" I trail off, my voice a whisper in the night.

Alex turns her head so that she can look me in the eyes. I notice something underneath her usual glint and grin, and I try to think of exactly what it is she is trying to convey in the look she's giving me. I stare back anyway, waiting for her response.

"Look up," Alex instructs swiftly. She takes my hand in hers, positioning my hand so that only my pointer finger is straight. Her hand is soft and warm as she clasps onto the back of my hand, and I swear I can feel the blood pumping through her veins, her heart thumping wildly.

"You see that star? It's next to the Big Dipper. It's not very big," she says, moving my hand with hers so that my pointer finger is directly aiming at the star she is talking about.

I nod my head and whisper out a quiet 'yes' before Alex releases her grip and returns her hand back to crossing over her chest. She pauses for a second, not wanting to break the beautiful bubble we are in. My best friend is something else.

"That's our star," she explains. And my heart soars. "It's our friendship star."

When she says the word friendship, I detect a hint of sadness behind her voice, but I attribute it to the fact that we only have three more months together before we enter a world in which we never will exit. Adulthood—with all its responsibilities and opportunities and privileges. It means that we will not be able to feign innocence. We will not be able to see each other all the time.

"You blew my grad gift for you out of the water," I say shyly, feeling somewhat embarrassed at the mediocre gift I made for her. I planned on giving it to her before we went to school in August, but I may give it to her sooner now. It's a scrapbook. I know it is a cliché, but I think Alex will appreciate it. She loves that sentimental stuff, even if she won't admit it out loud.

"Don't even say that," Alex says.

We still haven't moved an inch, and I feel the heat from her body. Her arms are now down by her sides, as are mine, and I gasp a little as I feel her take her hand and intertwine it with one of mine. She doesn't say anything or squeeze my hand or do anything else. She just continues to breathe deeply and to look up at our star.

"I love you," Alex proclaims. When I hear the words come out of her mouth, I think of all the other times she's said those words to me. Never before have the sounded or felt the way they do now. It's…different.

"I love you, too," I pause. "You're like the sister I never had. You're my best friend."

I feel Alex clench and then retract her hand from mine. And I silently wonder what I said wrong. Alex is like my sister. And she definitely is my best friend. I can't imagine high school without her. She changed me.

"That's all I am to you? A friend?" The way Alex says it makes it sound like she is defeated. Like I said the wrong thing and she wants me to take it back. Then it all clicks. It's like a montage appears in my head, flashing back to all the times we've spent together:

"How come you've never had a boyfriend?" I ask Alex. "Every boy thinks you're incredibly hot and irresistible. I wish boys thought that about me."

Alex only shrugs.

"I guess I don't care too much about boys."

…

I'm sitting on Alex's bed in her tiny room with navy blue walls. Alex is sitting opposite of me, a pencil in her mouth and headphones over her ears. I'm reading a book for fun while she does homework. As I read, it feels as if someone is staring at me. The look burns. When I look up, I notice Alex avert her gaze quickly, a blush forming on her cheeks.

I go back to reading, thinking nothing of it.

…

"Hey, I have something to tell you," I say as my heart beats wildly in my chest.

"Yeah, what is it, Pipes?" Alex scoots closer to me.

"I had sex with David last night. And it was amazing."

"That's fantastic," Alex drawls out, a look of anger running across her face. "Hope you don't get pregnant."

"That's all you have to say? Why can't you ever be happy for me and David?" I exclaim, wondering why she always acts this way when I bring up David.

"Because he doesn't deserve you, and he never will."

"You love me…" I mumble.

"Yeah, I do."

And with that, I feel the weight of the hammock become uneven as Alex stumbles off it, stuffing her hands in her pocket and fast walking back to the house. I watch as she chugs the rest of her beer, discards it and slips through the sliding door.

That's the last time I see her for ten years.

A/N: Loosely based off the movie "Just Friends." Let me know what ya think.