Brenda pulled up to her house and sat in the car for a minute. How had things gotten to be such a mess? Brandon, who had been working on his Mustang, walked toward her car. She sighed and got out. "Hey Brandon," she said, shutting the door and leaning back on it.
"Brenda," he said, walking up to her. He just looked at her a moment. "What's going on?"
She reached for him and put her arms around him, resting her head on his chest. Brandon put his arms around her and waited. "I'm just a mess, Brandon."
"Is this about Dylan and Kelly? And why is David Silver calling here all of the time?"
Brenda groaned and looked up at her brother. "It's a long, painful story."
"I've got time," he told her.
They walked back toward the house and Brenda told him everything. Brandon put a hand on her arm and stopped her. "You slept with David Silver?"
"Brandon, don't do that."
"Don't do what?"
"Don't act like there's something wrong with David."
Brandon thought about it. He still saw David as the little kid that tagged along with them, though David was now taller than Brandon and had a promising music career. "I'm sorry," he told Brenda sincerely. "It's just…a shock."
"It was to me too," she admitted. She told him about Dylan's visit and about his and Kelly's break up. She didn't mention Dylan hurting her; Brandon would react like David.
Brandon whistled. "That's some heavy stuff, Bren." He put his hands on her shoulders and looked into her eyes. "Is that why you're not taking care of yourself?"
"I was afraid I'd hurt Donna. I told her today." She took a deep breath. "She actually encouraged me to give David a chance." Brenda shook her head and looked at her brother in disbelief. "Can you believe that?"
"She knows your heart, Bren. You would never hurt her on purpose."
"I like to think that, too…but I did hurt her."
Brandon hesitated. "Dylan has been calling too."
Brenda nodded. "I know. Mom told me. I just don't think I can talk to him right now."
"I never thought I'd see the day Brenda Walsh would rather talk to David Silver than Dylan McKay," Brandon said, teasing her.
Brenda pushed him slightly. "Don't start with me, Brandon. I'm a very confused woman."
Brenda went up to her room and took a shower, hoping to clear her head. While she was dressing Cindy knocked on the door. "Brenda?"
Opening the door and towel drying her hair, Brenda said, "Yeah, mom?"
"David Silver is here, asking to see you…" Cindy said. She shrugged. "Should I tell him to come up?"
Brenda took a deep breath. "Sure," she said.
"Is there something going on with you and David, Brenda?" Cindy asked, curious.
"I don't know what's going on with anyone, Mom," Brenda answered truthfully.
Satisfied, Cindy nodded. "I'll send him up."
Brenda's heart sped up while she waited. Though she'd not talked to David, she'd thought about him constantly. She'd told Donna she thought about Dylan when she woke up and when she went to sleep and that was true. But when she was thinking about Dylan, she was also thinking about David.
"Brenda?" David asked, hesitating at the door. "Is it okay if I come in?"
Brenda walked to him and pulled him in the room, shutting the door. Holding his hand, Brenda remembered all of the things he could do to her with it and her entire body tingled. Without saying a word, she pushed him back against the door, wrapping her fingers in his hair and pulling his head down until their lips met.
David wrapped his arms around Brenda, pulling her close to him. Her skin was soft and slick from the lotion she used and her hair smelled like strawberries. Her mouth opened for him and his tongue delved inside. Forgetting where they were, David walked her back toward the bed and laid her down on it, stretching out on top of her. She wrapped her legs around his waist and he groaned.
His hands moved up her smooth legs, sending streaks of warmth through Brenda. She put her hand under his shirt, her fingers tracing the outline of his stomach muscles, then moving to his chest. Impatient, she pulled his shirt over his head and licked his nipple. David's hands stopped exploring her legs and moved up to clench her butt. "Brenda," he warned, whispering. "If you don't stop, I won't be able to."
"I don't want you to," she said softly.
"But your parents," he said.
She sighed. He was right. "I'm sorry, David. I guess I wasn't thinking."
Dylan looked down at her, then let go of her and rose up slowly. "You have no idea how much I wish I hadn't mentioned your parents."
Brenda laughed lightly and sat up. David leaned closer and kissed her softly, his lips caressing hers. Brenda pushed closer to him, deepening the kiss.
"Why haven't you called me back Bren?" David asked her, pulling back and looking into her eyes.
"I was afraid something like this would happen," she admitted.
Confused, David watched her face. "Something like this already happened," he reminded her.
Brenda nodded. "But I couldn't seem to stop myself. And I knew it would hurt Donna. So I ignored your phone calls and hoped that I would just never run into you anymore."
Though he didn't understand, David nodded. "And now?"
"I talked to Donna today," she told him, nodding when his eyes widened. "I told her that I slept with you."
David stood up and put his hand through his hair. "You should have said something to me. We could have talked to her together. This wasn't just you."
Brenda reached for him, holding his hand. "She's okay, David."
He looked at her. "Really?"
Brenda nodded. "It hurt her," she said, wincing. "But after I told her, she was actually trying to convince me that I should give you a chance."
"Really?" David said again, this time with a slight smile. "That sounds like her, though, doesn't it?" He sat back on the bed.
"She's my best friend," Brenda said. "I don't want to hurt her. But I honestly think she's moving on." She looked at David. "Are you? Really?"
David sighed, holding her hand. "I think so. She still means so much to me, and I want her to be happy…I just don't think she can be happy with me."
"That's sort of what she said, too. She's going to Texas for a while."
"What? Texas?"
Brenda laughed. "That's exactly what I said! But there's a design program there she's really interested in."
"I know about that. She's mentioned it several times." His smile widened. "She's really going to do it?" Brenda nodded. "That's great."
"I feel bad because I didn't know anything about it. I'm supposed to be her best friend and I've been so worried about my own issues I haven't even given much thought to hers," Brenda said, frowning.
"I didn't know she had applied. I'd just heard her talking about it." David leaned over and kissed her cheek. "And for the record, Bren, I think you're an amazing friend."
"Is that what we are, David? Friends?"
"It's what we have been," he told her. "Now I'm thinking it's not enough."
"So…what are we doing?"
David sighed. "I don't know. All I know is that I like the way I feel when I'm around you." He smiled at her lasciviously. "Almost as much as I like the way I feel when I'm inside you."
Brenda's breath caught in her chest. "Really," she murmured, moving on the bed until she straddled him. "And how much do you like that?" she said, rolling her hips against his, licking his lips.
David grabbed her butt and pushed her down on him as he rose up, and Brenda gasped. He smiled. "I think I've met my match," he said against her lips. "But then, so have you."
Brenda smiled. "We'll see," she said, slowly moving off of him. She gave him her hand and he stood. "We should probably go downstairs before my parents start wondering what we're doing up here."
Before she opened the door, he stopped her. "Brenda," he said seriously. "I meant it when I said I wanted to be with you. I'm not sure what you're looking for, but I'll take whatever you give me."
"I don't know what I'm looking for either," she said honestly. She leaned against the door. "David, if we're going to be together, even if it's not serious, I want to be the only one you're seeing."
David nodded. "I can do that," he said solemnly.
Brenda knew it would give away how vulnerable she actually was, but she had to ask. "Promise?" she said softly.
David looked into her eyes. "I promise," he said, bending down and kissing her.
Brenda nodded, deciding to believe him. Opening the door, she led him towards the back yard. It was time to tell her parents that she was officially "seeing" David Silver.
