Chapter 1
"Baby, can you handle this?! Baby, can you handle this?! I don't think you can handle this?!" sang Brady into her lipstick tube along with her booming stereo. "I don't think you're ready for this, cause my body too bootylicious for ya babe." She sang as she twirled around in her room and looked at her reflection in the mirror, smiling at the new outfit she'd gotten yesterday. Her dancing immediately ceased when she saw a pair of eyes staring in at her through her cracked open door.
She smiled slyly and pretended to not be affected by the person, pretending like she'd just stopped to finish her make-up. Brady leaned in close to the mirror as she applied her light pink lipstick in a think, even layer across her lips.
"Ummm.Brady.are you going to invite me in, or will I just have to stand out here like a peeping tom all day?" came a deep voice from behind the door. "I don't know James.I haven't decided yet." Said Brady nonchalantly as she brushed blusher across her pale cheeks. "Pretty please?" said James. Brady turned and rolled her eyes when she saw his pearly white teeth as he smiled through the slightly ajar door. "Oh alright!" she said as she shook her head. The door creaked open and in walked James, dressed in cargo shorts and a hunter green button up shirt. He ran his hands through his short blonde hair as he walked over to her and kissed her cheek. "So what are we getting all dressed up for?" he asked raising an eyebrow. "That's none of your business James."said Brady as she put the finishing touches on her make-up.
"Oh no! Tell me this isn't for Michael?" said James in an 'oh my god no!' sort of tone. "Like I said, it isn't any of your concern!" snapped Brady defensively. "Oh God! It is for him!" said James, bringing his hand to his forehead in disgust. "I don't understand, what do you see in him? He's a toddler for heaven's sake!" exclaimed James. "He's only 2 years younger than us James!" said Brady as she walked to the jewelry box on her dresser and pulled out the bracelet James had given her for her sixteenth birthday, the words 'Friends till the end, love, James' inscribed on the little name plate attached to the thin silver chain.
"That's fourteen Brady! FOURTEEN!" said James. "So what? My father is three years older than my mother." said Brady cooly. "That' different!" said James. "How?" shot back Brady. James' face turned complex as he tried to come up with a logical reason as to why Brady shouldn't date Michael. "See.there's nothing different or wrong about it!" said Brady triumphantly. James rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah, yeah." He muttered. Brady laughed and kissed his cheek, "Wish me luck, tonight might be the night when he asks me to be his!" she squealed. "Can't wait." Said James as he followed his best friend of the past ten years out of her room and watched her lock her door and strut off down the hallway, the new, pink leather mini skirt she was wearing swishing with each step she took. James shook his head and turned to continue in the other direction back to his room.
Chapter 2
Brady knocked softly on the door to Michael's room, and then waited for a moment before the door finally eased open and Michael stood before her. Brady couldn't help but smile as his soft blue eyes came in contact with her dark brown ones and he stepped back, motioning for her to come in. "Thanks.." said Brady. She walked in and looked around, smiling even wider when she saw the small table placed in the middle of his room, with two candles lit in the middle of it and two steaming plates of spaghetti sitting opposite each other on the surface.
"Wow, this is nice.." she whispered. "Yeah? Sorta had some help from my sister." Said Michael shyly, referring to his twin sister Meryl. "Sit down.." he said quietly, pulling out a chair for Brady. "Thanks." Said Brady for the second time in less than two minutes as she took a seat and watched Michael do the same across from her.
They were both silent for the longest time, quietly eating their food and sipping the soda in the long stemmed glasses. "Brady?" said Michael suddenly, after taking a long drink from his glass and setting it back down on the table with a clunk.
"Yes?" said Brady eagerly. "Well.ummm.there's something I wanted to talk about." said Michael nervously, shifting in his chair. "Yes?" said Brady again, leaning forward a bit in her chair. "Well,"started Michael again, "We've been dating for a few months now, and I was just wondering.should we make it official?" he asked, biting his lip as he waited for her to reply. A grin broke out across Brady's face as she spoke "Are you asking me to be your girlfriend Michael?" she asked. "Only if you're going to say yes." Said Michael with a small smile.
"Yes!" said Brady as she stood up and walked around the table towards him. He stood too, and even though he was two years Brady's junior, he still towered over her by a good six inches or so. Brady brought her hands up around his neck in a hug and leaned up on her tip toes to lightly brush her lips across his, inviting him to a deeper kiss.
They stood like that for the longest time, the only thoughts in their heads about each other. That is until Brady heard a little jingle and felt James' bracelet slide down her forearm a little. As she glanced at it she couldn't help wonder where her blond friend was at the moment, what he was doing. She glanced over at the watch on her other hand and gave a silent gasp as she pulled out of Michael's embrace. "What's wrong?" asked Michael confused. "Nothing! It's just really late, doesn't your mother usually come check up on you around midnight?" asked Brady.
Michael frowned, "Yeah." he mumbled. Brady took a step forward and kissed his cheek. "Thanks for dinner, I'll see you tomorrow ok?" she said. "Sure.." said Michael, forcing a smile to his face as he pulled her to him for a quick kiss goodnight. "Night!" said Brady as she exited his room. "Good night Brady." called Michael after her as he watched her bounce down the hallway.
Chapter 3
James sat on the couch that took up a wall in his room, strumming his guitar to mimic one of his favorites by Bowling For Soup as he sang along. "And when she walks, all the wind blows and the angels sing,
but she doesn't notice me.." KNOCK KNOCK.
James' heard the loud knock on his door and immediately stopped playing. He sighed and got up, letting his guitar rest on the soft cushions of the couch as he walked to answer the door. He slowly opened it, jumping back as Brady barged in excitedly. "Oh.my.gosh!" she said as she turned around to face him in the middle of the room. "What happened?" asked James with a yawn as he padded over to her, his black, silky pajama pants moving with the steps he took. "You seem shorter." He said as he looked down upon her. Brady giggled, "No, you just grew another foot!" she said. "But anyways, guess what happened?!" she said with excitement.
"Michael finally asked you to be his?" guessed James. "Yes!" said Brady as she took a step towards James and hugged him. James didn't hesitate to wrap her in a warm hug himself. "I guess I should be congratulating you then eh?" he said. "If you must!" said Brady with a cheeky smile. James rolled his eyes, "Well congratulations Ms. Brady, you finally got the man of your dreams. Sure he may be still in diapers and sucking on a pacifier, but- " Brady cut him off "Yeah, I'm happy for me too!" she said as she shook her head.
The two pulled out of their hug and Brady perched herself on the edge of James' bed. "What time is it?" asked James. Brady looked down at her watch, "Only one." She said. "ONLY one?" said James with a shake of his head. "Oh don't make me go James! I'm wide awake and I just changed into my PJ's before I came here, can't we just stay up and.talk?" asked Brady. "How about a movie?" said James in reply. "Meet The Parents?" asked Brady. "If that's what you want to watch." said James. "Of course it is! That movie is wicked!" said Brady as she scooted back onto James' made up bed, leaning against the pillows that were stacked high against the headboard.
James yawned again and plopped the movie into the VCR as he flipped on the TV that sat on a stand directly in front of his bed. He pushed play and walked to the side of his bed. He sat down, edging up against the pillows next to Brady. "Cold?" he said when he saw her shiver and pull her knees up to her chin as she rubbed her bare arms with the tank top she was wearing. "Just a little bit, but I'll be ok." She said as she let herself fall back against the fluffy pillows, and breathe in the scent of James' Curve cologne, now laying flat across the length of his bed.
James reached to the end of his bed to retrieve his big, folded, black fleece blanket. He spread it out across them and watched Brady's petite form disappear under it, only her shoulders, neck and head showing now. James did the same and snuggled up under it.
"James?" said Brady about half way through the movie in which they'd been watching in silence for the past 45 minutes or so. "Yeah?" said James. "You're a great friend." Said Brady as she leaned over and kissed his cheek, bringing a small smile to his face. "Ya think?" he replied. "Of course, I mean, any other guy would have probably tried to put a move on me by now if I were in their bed wearing next to nothing." Said Brady. "Yeah? Well I'm not any other guy." Said James softly as he glanced over into her identical to his, dark brown eyes.
"I know." said Brady as she yawned and rolled over closer to him, resting her head on his shoulder and soon letting her eyes drift shut. James sighed and moved his arm around her as he shifted in the bed, her head now sliding to rest in the crook of his arm.
Chapter 4
Brady awoke the next mourning to the birds chirping outside of James' window and sunlight streaming in across both of them. When she'd finally fully awoken she looked at where she was, which was flat on her back, with James' arm draped across her torso as he slept peacefully on his stomach. She smiled at his face, it just looked so relaxed and serene. She moved a little under his arm and his eyes slowly opened. He saw her smiling at him and instantly returned it with his own warm grin.
"Mourning sleepy head!" said Brady as they both sat up in the bed. James stretched his arms out and ran his fingers through his messy blond hair that was going in every which direction now. "Mourning Brady." He said with a big yawn as he swung his legs over the side of his bed and slipped into his boots and put his black, terrycloth robe on. "What time is it?" he asked.
"7:20." Said Brady as she stood up on the other side of the bed. "Hungry?" asked James. "Starved!" said Brady as she waited for him to walk a little further and they both exited his room, James tying the robe around his body. "Aren't you freezing?" he asked as they walked down the hallway towards the café. "Yeah, mind if we stop off at my room for a robe?" asked Brady. "Not at all.." said James as they walked a little further and stopped off at Brady's room, where she retrieved her hot pink terry cloth robe and wrapped it around herself, tying it in the front before she came back out into the hallway with him and they continued on to the café.
A few minutes later, Brady and James strode in through the café entrance, side by side. Brady scanned the café and smiled when her eyes fell upon Michael, who looked a bit startled to see her walk into the café with James, and in such little clothing. But he smiled back nonetheless and motioned her towards the booth he was sitting at along the wall by him self.
Without so much as a thought about James, or even a glance back at him, she rushed off towards Michael, and slid into it beside him, allowing his arm to casually drape down over her shoulders. James stood in the same spot for a long moment, just watching as Brady and Michael held hands; and every couple of seconds, how Brady would smile up at him and kiss his cheek.
"James! Come eat some breakfast!" came a firm voice from a table near by. James turned to see his mother and father seated side by side at a table, his father's arm resting across the back of his mother's chair. "I'm coming Mom!" said James as he took one last glance at Brady and shook his head before walking slowly to the table where Amber and Jay, his parents, sat. "What's the matter son?" asked Jay. "Nothing.." muttered James, not really knowing for sure what was making him feel so down. "He just needs some good breakfast is all love!" said Amber as she pushed a plate full of bacon and eggs to in front of where James had sat down.
"Thanks mom." Said James. "Sure hunny!" said Amber enthusiastically, but noticing the sad tone to her son's voice and raising an eyebrow in concern towards Jay, who was looking back at her, the same look of worry in his eyes.
Chapter 5
*Later that day*
Brady sat on her bed, filing her nails and humming along to her stereo, which was now blasting Kelly Clarkson's "Miss Independent". She looked up when she heard a knock at her door. "Come in!" she said, expecting it to be Michael, but her expression turning a bit disappointed when James appeared in her doorway. "Hey Brady." He said casually. "Hello James." Said Brady as she went back to filing her nails and heard the door click into place as he walked in and closed it behind him. "So what's up?" asked Brady as she set her nail file aside on her night stand and stood up from her bed to turn her stereo's volume down.
"Nothing, just wanted to see if you wanted to go to the beach, it's a nice day out and I felt like a walk. So, you up for it?" said James, his chocolate eyes glistening in the dim light that illuminated Brady's room. "Well.I don't mean to be distant from you James, but I don't think Michael would like me spending a whole lot of alone time with you." said Brady as she dropped her gaze to the ground. "What did he say about me?" asked James, a little upset that this guy was keeping him from spending time with Brady. What gave him the right to say who she could spend time with all of a sudden? "It doesn't matter what he said James."said Brady.
"Obviously it does, or you wouldn't be all antsy about going on a simple walk with me, your best friend." Said James, his voice rising a little bit. "What's wrong with you? You've been acting all different lately, all you do is rag on me about Michael! Don't I deserve to be happy?!" spat back Brady, her facial muscles tensing up as the anger began to rise in her.
"Of course you deserve to be happy.I just.no, nevermind." said James, he took one last look at her, their eyes meeting, and holding each other's gazes before James shook his head and walked quietly out of her room, without any good byes.
Brady fell back on her bed, and suddenly she was overcome with a great sadness; one that she couldn't explain, one that tore at her heart. She lay there like that for the longest time, not caring that she was destroying her hair that she'd just fixed; only thoughts of James. "Why do I care so much about spending time with him, even if my boyfriend doesn't approve?" she said out loud to herself.
"Spending time with who?" came a voice from her doorway. Brady shot up, "Michael." she said, spotting him leaning against the frame of her door. "How long have you been there?" she asked nervously. "Long enough." he replied, "So who's this him you care so much about spending time with?" asked Michael again. "It doesn't matter." said Brady as James' image floated into her mind. "It isn't James is it Brady? I thought we agreed that it'd be better for us if you didn't spend so much time with him." Said Michael as he sat on the edge of the bed next to Brady's stretched out form. Brady sat up, crossing her arms in front of her as she thought for a minute, "I can't just cut him out of my life Michael, he's my best friend." Said Brady firmly.
"I'm not asking you to cut him out of your life Brady, just cut down the time you spend with him." Said Michael. Brady bit her lip as she thought about what James had said only minutes ago, about his last words, wondering what he was going to say there at the end but had decided not to. "Brady? Hello?!" said Michael as he waved his hand in front of her face, annoyed by her lack of attention on him. "Oh.sorry." Said Brady, snapping out of her daydreams.
"You were thinking about him weren't you?" said Michael a little upset with her. "No.I wasn't" lied Brady as she looked away, falling into more thoughts about James. Michael saw her drift back off into her own little world so he got up and walked out of the room, slamming the door behind him. The noise of the door startled Brady out of her thoughts again and she bolted up on her bed, frowning when she saw that Michael had left. "Now what have I done?" she said to herself. "And what is this feeling taking over me?" she mumbled with a sigh as she fell back against her bed again.
Chapter 6
James stormed into his room, slamming the door and kicking the side of his bed in anger when he walked in. "Who does that guy think he is?!" said James to himself. "Why is Brady letting him treat her like this?! Little twerp." muttered James. He heatedly picked up his guitar from it's place in the corner of his room and started to play, and sing to calm his nerves. "One thing, I don't know why, It doesn't even matter how hard you try-" James started to sing, but was interrupted by a light knock on his door. He grew nervous as he set his guitar aside and walked to the door, hoping it wasn't Brady, for he really just couldn't face her right now.
He slowly opened the door, and was surprised to see Michael's twin sister Meryl standing before him. "Meryl! What are you doing here?" he asked confused. "Umm.I was just.just.wondering if you wanted to.have some coffee with me?" finished Meryl, ditching her idea to ask him to dinner and instead replacing it with a more friendly kind of rendezvous. James looked at her questionably for a moment, trying to decide if she was anything like her brother, whom he now hated with a passion. "Right now?" he finally said. "Yeah." mumbled Meryl. "Ok, sure, just let me get a shirt on," said James, as he turned to find the shirt he'd shed between picking up his guitar and singing. But not before he saw Meryl's eyes scan down his well chiseled upper half and her cheeks redden a bit as they got back to his face and noticed him watching her. James smiled and turned back into his room, grabbing the New York Yankees T-shirt Brady had given him a while back and slipping it on over his cargo jeans, ruffling his hair as he did this.
"Ready." Said James as he exited his room, closing the door behind him but forgetting to lock it. Little did he know that Michael stood in the shadows only a few feet away from his door; and as soon as James and Meryl had strode off down the hallway in the opposite direction and were a good distance away, he stepped forward and brought his hand to James' doorknob, turning it and entering the already lit up room. "Alright blondie, I'll take Brady's mind off you in a jiff, you just wait and see." Said Michael to himself, his expression growing even more revengeful when spotting a picture of James and Brady slow dancing at her sweet sixteen birthday party, hanging over the bed, on the wall.
Meanwhile, James and Meryl were now standing in the kitchen area of the café, James talking to her as she put on a pot of coffee to brew. "So what's the deal with you and Brady?" blurted out Meryl suddenly, but instantly wishing she hadn't brought it up. "What do you mean? Me and Brady are best friends.nothing more." said James softly as a frown appeared on his face. "So you're not an item?" said Meryl, the joy inside her growing at his words. "No.we're not.." said James, barely able to get the words to come out of his mouth.
Meanwhile Brady strode into the café, smelling the aroma of a fresh pot of coffee and knowing that nothing would make her feel better right now than a nice steaming cup of the liquid. She pushed through the small door to the kitchen, expecting to see her mother or father; but was a little taken aback when she saw Meryl standing there, pouring two big mugs full, and James standing to the side of her.
Brady turned, thinking she could make a quick escape without him seeing her. But was stopped by his voice. "Brady?" came James' confused voice. Brady turned, sweeping her dark hair from her face as she looked back at him. "Oh.hi.I smelt coffee, and you know me, can never turn down a good cup of the stuff." said Brady trailing off. Meryl took a step in front of James, as to ward Brady of her property and handed him a cup. "Here you are James!" she said sweetly. "Thanks.." mumbled James, still not taking his eyes from Brady's form a few feet away.
Meryl turned to face Brady, "I think my brother is looking for you Brady, you might want to find him." She said in the same sweet tone. Brady shifted her gaze to Meryl, the look on her face turning cold, "I've already spoken with Michael Meryl." She said in a bone chilling tone.
"Oh.well.James and I were just going to have some coffee.but you're welcome to join us if you like." Said Meryl. Brady looked at the two, and with a slight shake of her head, she turned to leave. "Maybe some other time." she muttered as she exited. James didn't know what had come over him but soon found his feet pounding against the ground after he'd sat the mug down, and was now running to catch up with Brady.
"Brady!" he said, catching up to her at the café entrance. Brady stiffened but slowly turned to face him. "He doesn't deserve you ya know." Blurted out James.biting his lip when he'd realized what he said. Brady looked at him for a long moment, no emotions showing on her face for the longest time. But suddenly she smiled and took a step forward, wrapping her arms around his neck. "You're so good to me James.I don't know what I'd do without you." she said as a couple tears streamed down her face. James eagerly wrapped her in his own arms and hugged her back, even feeling a bit disappointed when she pulled away. "Now, I'm not going to break up with my boyfriend just cause you think he's younger than me, but I will do one thing." said Brady, a grin spreading over her face. "And what's that?" asked James. "Spend the night in your room tonight." said Brady, and with that, and a wink, she walked on off out of the café in search of Michael now.
Chapter 7
Michael crept around James' room, picking through his stuff for something that he himself might use against James. As he searched the room, when kneeling down on the ground to peek under James' bed, he spotted a big, rectangular shoe box. He reached under the bed to pull it out from under the bed and read the label taped to the top, which read 'Brady'. His curiosity and drive to find something bad on James compelled him to open the box. But for some reason, he was entirely unimpressed with his first glance, for the box was packed to the brim with letters, notes and pictures, all of Brady, drawn by Brady, or written by her. "Wow.this guy's obsessed with her." muttered Michael to him self as he pulled one of the letters from atop of the pile in the box, dated a week ago, and unfolded it to read.
James, I feel numb with love, from my head to my feet. I never thought I could feel this way about a guy. Everytime I see Michael, my heart starts to race and my stomach does summer salts. So what do you think? Is it love? I hope so! Do you think he loves me back? Should I just ask him out myself? Am I asking too many questions? Oh well, at least I know I'll always have you to lean on James, and I just want to thank you for that; you've been such a wonderful friend to me for so many years, I don't know what I'd do without you. Well, I'm getting a wee bit tired now, since I'm writing this so late, so I'll leave you with a simple I love you, and I hope you find the same kind of happiness that I have one day, any girl would be lucky to have you James.
All my love, Brady
Michael didn't quite know what to think of the letter; was it good, or bad? He carefully folded it and replaced it in the box before reaching in for another one. But just as he was about to unfold and read it, he heard the doorknob to James' room turn. So he did what came to mind first, and dived under the bed, sighing with relief that his body could even fit in the small space. He watched the door open and Brady's petite body fill a little of the room in the doorway. "That's odd.James left his light on.and door un locked." She said to herself.
Michael started to panic; for one, how the he.ll was he going to get out of this room now, and second of all, he thought he'd told Brady not to spend time with James! He watched her glance around for a moment before falling back onto James' bed and letting out a big sigh. "I wonder when he'll be back." Mumbled Brady to herself as she gazed up at the ceiling and was surprised to see a picture of herself and James when they were really young, around six, holding hands and jumping off into the pool outside of the mall, taped to it. She smiled as the memories invaded her thoughts. "Knock, knock!" came a deep voice from the doorway. Michael felt the bed move as Brady shot up on the bed. "James!" she exclaimed, beaming as the tall, blonde boy walked in towards her, his face going a bit confused at her being in his room, and in such high spirits!
"Hi Brady." Said James, a little nervously, wondering what she had planned for the evening. "Hello!" said Brady as she hopped up off the bed and came at him with a big hug, startling James for only a moment before he hugged her back. "Well someone's in a good mood." Noted James. "Aren't I always?" said Brady with a mischievous smile. James raised an eyebrow and shook his head as he still held her in his arms. "This is one long hug!" said Brady as she winked at him. "Ya think?" said James, not removing his arms from around her. "What would Michael say if he saw us?" asked James. "Hmm.he wouldn't be too happy, that's for sure." Replied Brady. "But we're just friends, so what's Michael got to worry about?" said Brady, gazing up into James' dark brown eyes, that were replicas of her own.
From under the bed, Michael gritted his teeth and pushed himself slowly out from under the bed when the two had their backs turned and slid without a sound across the floor and safely out the still open door. When far enough away from the door, he stood and let out a sigh of relief. As he looked up while standing, he gasped a little in surprise as he saw Meryl standing before him. "Looks like you barely got out.." she said with a smirk. "Yeah, no thanks to you! You were supposed to keep him distracted genius!" hissed Michael. "I tried! But as soon as your little tramp in there walked in-" started Meryl. "Don't you call her that!" said Michael as he shot his sister an angry look.
Meryl rolled her eyes before continuing, "ANYWAYS, like I was saying, Brady walked into the café, and just when I thought I'd caught him, all his attention was focused on her. It was like I wasn't ever there! Then he ran after the girl! So don't get mad at me Michael, I couldn't just say 'Hey James, can you wait a few minutes until my brother is done snooping around in your room?'" said Meryl with another roll of her eyes before popping the stick of Winterfresh gum she was chewing.
"Ugh! What good are you?!" said Michael in a strained hiss as he threw up his hands and stormed off down the hallway. "Geeze.what's his problem! Is it my fault he thinks his so called girlfriend is having a fling with blondie? I mean, even if she were, I wouldn't say I blame her." said Meryl to herself, and with a smile, she strutted off down the hallway.
"Baby, can you handle this?! Baby, can you handle this?! I don't think you can handle this?!" sang Brady into her lipstick tube along with her booming stereo. "I don't think you're ready for this, cause my body too bootylicious for ya babe." She sang as she twirled around in her room and looked at her reflection in the mirror, smiling at the new outfit she'd gotten yesterday. Her dancing immediately ceased when she saw a pair of eyes staring in at her through her cracked open door.
She smiled slyly and pretended to not be affected by the person, pretending like she'd just stopped to finish her make-up. Brady leaned in close to the mirror as she applied her light pink lipstick in a think, even layer across her lips.
"Ummm.Brady.are you going to invite me in, or will I just have to stand out here like a peeping tom all day?" came a deep voice from behind the door. "I don't know James.I haven't decided yet." Said Brady nonchalantly as she brushed blusher across her pale cheeks. "Pretty please?" said James. Brady turned and rolled her eyes when she saw his pearly white teeth as he smiled through the slightly ajar door. "Oh alright!" she said as she shook her head. The door creaked open and in walked James, dressed in cargo shorts and a hunter green button up shirt. He ran his hands through his short blonde hair as he walked over to her and kissed her cheek. "So what are we getting all dressed up for?" he asked raising an eyebrow. "That's none of your business James."said Brady as she put the finishing touches on her make-up.
"Oh no! Tell me this isn't for Michael?" said James in an 'oh my god no!' sort of tone. "Like I said, it isn't any of your concern!" snapped Brady defensively. "Oh God! It is for him!" said James, bringing his hand to his forehead in disgust. "I don't understand, what do you see in him? He's a toddler for heaven's sake!" exclaimed James. "He's only 2 years younger than us James!" said Brady as she walked to the jewelry box on her dresser and pulled out the bracelet James had given her for her sixteenth birthday, the words 'Friends till the end, love, James' inscribed on the little name plate attached to the thin silver chain.
"That's fourteen Brady! FOURTEEN!" said James. "So what? My father is three years older than my mother." said Brady cooly. "That' different!" said James. "How?" shot back Brady. James' face turned complex as he tried to come up with a logical reason as to why Brady shouldn't date Michael. "See.there's nothing different or wrong about it!" said Brady triumphantly. James rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah, yeah." He muttered. Brady laughed and kissed his cheek, "Wish me luck, tonight might be the night when he asks me to be his!" she squealed. "Can't wait." Said James as he followed his best friend of the past ten years out of her room and watched her lock her door and strut off down the hallway, the new, pink leather mini skirt she was wearing swishing with each step she took. James shook his head and turned to continue in the other direction back to his room.
Chapter 2
Brady knocked softly on the door to Michael's room, and then waited for a moment before the door finally eased open and Michael stood before her. Brady couldn't help but smile as his soft blue eyes came in contact with her dark brown ones and he stepped back, motioning for her to come in. "Thanks.." said Brady. She walked in and looked around, smiling even wider when she saw the small table placed in the middle of his room, with two candles lit in the middle of it and two steaming plates of spaghetti sitting opposite each other on the surface.
"Wow, this is nice.." she whispered. "Yeah? Sorta had some help from my sister." Said Michael shyly, referring to his twin sister Meryl. "Sit down.." he said quietly, pulling out a chair for Brady. "Thanks." Said Brady for the second time in less than two minutes as she took a seat and watched Michael do the same across from her.
They were both silent for the longest time, quietly eating their food and sipping the soda in the long stemmed glasses. "Brady?" said Michael suddenly, after taking a long drink from his glass and setting it back down on the table with a clunk.
"Yes?" said Brady eagerly. "Well.ummm.there's something I wanted to talk about." said Michael nervously, shifting in his chair. "Yes?" said Brady again, leaning forward a bit in her chair. "Well,"started Michael again, "We've been dating for a few months now, and I was just wondering.should we make it official?" he asked, biting his lip as he waited for her to reply. A grin broke out across Brady's face as she spoke "Are you asking me to be your girlfriend Michael?" she asked. "Only if you're going to say yes." Said Michael with a small smile.
"Yes!" said Brady as she stood up and walked around the table towards him. He stood too, and even though he was two years Brady's junior, he still towered over her by a good six inches or so. Brady brought her hands up around his neck in a hug and leaned up on her tip toes to lightly brush her lips across his, inviting him to a deeper kiss.
They stood like that for the longest time, the only thoughts in their heads about each other. That is until Brady heard a little jingle and felt James' bracelet slide down her forearm a little. As she glanced at it she couldn't help wonder where her blond friend was at the moment, what he was doing. She glanced over at the watch on her other hand and gave a silent gasp as she pulled out of Michael's embrace. "What's wrong?" asked Michael confused. "Nothing! It's just really late, doesn't your mother usually come check up on you around midnight?" asked Brady.
Michael frowned, "Yeah." he mumbled. Brady took a step forward and kissed his cheek. "Thanks for dinner, I'll see you tomorrow ok?" she said. "Sure.." said Michael, forcing a smile to his face as he pulled her to him for a quick kiss goodnight. "Night!" said Brady as she exited his room. "Good night Brady." called Michael after her as he watched her bounce down the hallway.
Chapter 3
James sat on the couch that took up a wall in his room, strumming his guitar to mimic one of his favorites by Bowling For Soup as he sang along. "And when she walks, all the wind blows and the angels sing,
but she doesn't notice me.." KNOCK KNOCK.
James' heard the loud knock on his door and immediately stopped playing. He sighed and got up, letting his guitar rest on the soft cushions of the couch as he walked to answer the door. He slowly opened it, jumping back as Brady barged in excitedly. "Oh.my.gosh!" she said as she turned around to face him in the middle of the room. "What happened?" asked James with a yawn as he padded over to her, his black, silky pajama pants moving with the steps he took. "You seem shorter." He said as he looked down upon her. Brady giggled, "No, you just grew another foot!" she said. "But anyways, guess what happened?!" she said with excitement.
"Michael finally asked you to be his?" guessed James. "Yes!" said Brady as she took a step towards James and hugged him. James didn't hesitate to wrap her in a warm hug himself. "I guess I should be congratulating you then eh?" he said. "If you must!" said Brady with a cheeky smile. James rolled his eyes, "Well congratulations Ms. Brady, you finally got the man of your dreams. Sure he may be still in diapers and sucking on a pacifier, but- " Brady cut him off "Yeah, I'm happy for me too!" she said as she shook her head.
The two pulled out of their hug and Brady perched herself on the edge of James' bed. "What time is it?" asked James. Brady looked down at her watch, "Only one." She said. "ONLY one?" said James with a shake of his head. "Oh don't make me go James! I'm wide awake and I just changed into my PJ's before I came here, can't we just stay up and.talk?" asked Brady. "How about a movie?" said James in reply. "Meet The Parents?" asked Brady. "If that's what you want to watch." said James. "Of course it is! That movie is wicked!" said Brady as she scooted back onto James' made up bed, leaning against the pillows that were stacked high against the headboard.
James yawned again and plopped the movie into the VCR as he flipped on the TV that sat on a stand directly in front of his bed. He pushed play and walked to the side of his bed. He sat down, edging up against the pillows next to Brady. "Cold?" he said when he saw her shiver and pull her knees up to her chin as she rubbed her bare arms with the tank top she was wearing. "Just a little bit, but I'll be ok." She said as she let herself fall back against the fluffy pillows, and breathe in the scent of James' Curve cologne, now laying flat across the length of his bed.
James reached to the end of his bed to retrieve his big, folded, black fleece blanket. He spread it out across them and watched Brady's petite form disappear under it, only her shoulders, neck and head showing now. James did the same and snuggled up under it.
"James?" said Brady about half way through the movie in which they'd been watching in silence for the past 45 minutes or so. "Yeah?" said James. "You're a great friend." Said Brady as she leaned over and kissed his cheek, bringing a small smile to his face. "Ya think?" he replied. "Of course, I mean, any other guy would have probably tried to put a move on me by now if I were in their bed wearing next to nothing." Said Brady. "Yeah? Well I'm not any other guy." Said James softly as he glanced over into her identical to his, dark brown eyes.
"I know." said Brady as she yawned and rolled over closer to him, resting her head on his shoulder and soon letting her eyes drift shut. James sighed and moved his arm around her as he shifted in the bed, her head now sliding to rest in the crook of his arm.
Chapter 4
Brady awoke the next mourning to the birds chirping outside of James' window and sunlight streaming in across both of them. When she'd finally fully awoken she looked at where she was, which was flat on her back, with James' arm draped across her torso as he slept peacefully on his stomach. She smiled at his face, it just looked so relaxed and serene. She moved a little under his arm and his eyes slowly opened. He saw her smiling at him and instantly returned it with his own warm grin.
"Mourning sleepy head!" said Brady as they both sat up in the bed. James stretched his arms out and ran his fingers through his messy blond hair that was going in every which direction now. "Mourning Brady." He said with a big yawn as he swung his legs over the side of his bed and slipped into his boots and put his black, terrycloth robe on. "What time is it?" he asked.
"7:20." Said Brady as she stood up on the other side of the bed. "Hungry?" asked James. "Starved!" said Brady as she waited for him to walk a little further and they both exited his room, James tying the robe around his body. "Aren't you freezing?" he asked as they walked down the hallway towards the café. "Yeah, mind if we stop off at my room for a robe?" asked Brady. "Not at all.." said James as they walked a little further and stopped off at Brady's room, where she retrieved her hot pink terry cloth robe and wrapped it around herself, tying it in the front before she came back out into the hallway with him and they continued on to the café.
A few minutes later, Brady and James strode in through the café entrance, side by side. Brady scanned the café and smiled when her eyes fell upon Michael, who looked a bit startled to see her walk into the café with James, and in such little clothing. But he smiled back nonetheless and motioned her towards the booth he was sitting at along the wall by him self.
Without so much as a thought about James, or even a glance back at him, she rushed off towards Michael, and slid into it beside him, allowing his arm to casually drape down over her shoulders. James stood in the same spot for a long moment, just watching as Brady and Michael held hands; and every couple of seconds, how Brady would smile up at him and kiss his cheek.
"James! Come eat some breakfast!" came a firm voice from a table near by. James turned to see his mother and father seated side by side at a table, his father's arm resting across the back of his mother's chair. "I'm coming Mom!" said James as he took one last glance at Brady and shook his head before walking slowly to the table where Amber and Jay, his parents, sat. "What's the matter son?" asked Jay. "Nothing.." muttered James, not really knowing for sure what was making him feel so down. "He just needs some good breakfast is all love!" said Amber as she pushed a plate full of bacon and eggs to in front of where James had sat down.
"Thanks mom." Said James. "Sure hunny!" said Amber enthusiastically, but noticing the sad tone to her son's voice and raising an eyebrow in concern towards Jay, who was looking back at her, the same look of worry in his eyes.
Chapter 5
*Later that day*
Brady sat on her bed, filing her nails and humming along to her stereo, which was now blasting Kelly Clarkson's "Miss Independent". She looked up when she heard a knock at her door. "Come in!" she said, expecting it to be Michael, but her expression turning a bit disappointed when James appeared in her doorway. "Hey Brady." He said casually. "Hello James." Said Brady as she went back to filing her nails and heard the door click into place as he walked in and closed it behind him. "So what's up?" asked Brady as she set her nail file aside on her night stand and stood up from her bed to turn her stereo's volume down.
"Nothing, just wanted to see if you wanted to go to the beach, it's a nice day out and I felt like a walk. So, you up for it?" said James, his chocolate eyes glistening in the dim light that illuminated Brady's room. "Well.I don't mean to be distant from you James, but I don't think Michael would like me spending a whole lot of alone time with you." said Brady as she dropped her gaze to the ground. "What did he say about me?" asked James, a little upset that this guy was keeping him from spending time with Brady. What gave him the right to say who she could spend time with all of a sudden? "It doesn't matter what he said James."said Brady.
"Obviously it does, or you wouldn't be all antsy about going on a simple walk with me, your best friend." Said James, his voice rising a little bit. "What's wrong with you? You've been acting all different lately, all you do is rag on me about Michael! Don't I deserve to be happy?!" spat back Brady, her facial muscles tensing up as the anger began to rise in her.
"Of course you deserve to be happy.I just.no, nevermind." said James, he took one last look at her, their eyes meeting, and holding each other's gazes before James shook his head and walked quietly out of her room, without any good byes.
Brady fell back on her bed, and suddenly she was overcome with a great sadness; one that she couldn't explain, one that tore at her heart. She lay there like that for the longest time, not caring that she was destroying her hair that she'd just fixed; only thoughts of James. "Why do I care so much about spending time with him, even if my boyfriend doesn't approve?" she said out loud to herself.
"Spending time with who?" came a voice from her doorway. Brady shot up, "Michael." she said, spotting him leaning against the frame of her door. "How long have you been there?" she asked nervously. "Long enough." he replied, "So who's this him you care so much about spending time with?" asked Michael again. "It doesn't matter." said Brady as James' image floated into her mind. "It isn't James is it Brady? I thought we agreed that it'd be better for us if you didn't spend so much time with him." Said Michael as he sat on the edge of the bed next to Brady's stretched out form. Brady sat up, crossing her arms in front of her as she thought for a minute, "I can't just cut him out of my life Michael, he's my best friend." Said Brady firmly.
"I'm not asking you to cut him out of your life Brady, just cut down the time you spend with him." Said Michael. Brady bit her lip as she thought about what James had said only minutes ago, about his last words, wondering what he was going to say there at the end but had decided not to. "Brady? Hello?!" said Michael as he waved his hand in front of her face, annoyed by her lack of attention on him. "Oh.sorry." Said Brady, snapping out of her daydreams.
"You were thinking about him weren't you?" said Michael a little upset with her. "No.I wasn't" lied Brady as she looked away, falling into more thoughts about James. Michael saw her drift back off into her own little world so he got up and walked out of the room, slamming the door behind him. The noise of the door startled Brady out of her thoughts again and she bolted up on her bed, frowning when she saw that Michael had left. "Now what have I done?" she said to herself. "And what is this feeling taking over me?" she mumbled with a sigh as she fell back against her bed again.
Chapter 6
James stormed into his room, slamming the door and kicking the side of his bed in anger when he walked in. "Who does that guy think he is?!" said James to himself. "Why is Brady letting him treat her like this?! Little twerp." muttered James. He heatedly picked up his guitar from it's place in the corner of his room and started to play, and sing to calm his nerves. "One thing, I don't know why, It doesn't even matter how hard you try-" James started to sing, but was interrupted by a light knock on his door. He grew nervous as he set his guitar aside and walked to the door, hoping it wasn't Brady, for he really just couldn't face her right now.
He slowly opened the door, and was surprised to see Michael's twin sister Meryl standing before him. "Meryl! What are you doing here?" he asked confused. "Umm.I was just.just.wondering if you wanted to.have some coffee with me?" finished Meryl, ditching her idea to ask him to dinner and instead replacing it with a more friendly kind of rendezvous. James looked at her questionably for a moment, trying to decide if she was anything like her brother, whom he now hated with a passion. "Right now?" he finally said. "Yeah." mumbled Meryl. "Ok, sure, just let me get a shirt on," said James, as he turned to find the shirt he'd shed between picking up his guitar and singing. But not before he saw Meryl's eyes scan down his well chiseled upper half and her cheeks redden a bit as they got back to his face and noticed him watching her. James smiled and turned back into his room, grabbing the New York Yankees T-shirt Brady had given him a while back and slipping it on over his cargo jeans, ruffling his hair as he did this.
"Ready." Said James as he exited his room, closing the door behind him but forgetting to lock it. Little did he know that Michael stood in the shadows only a few feet away from his door; and as soon as James and Meryl had strode off down the hallway in the opposite direction and were a good distance away, he stepped forward and brought his hand to James' doorknob, turning it and entering the already lit up room. "Alright blondie, I'll take Brady's mind off you in a jiff, you just wait and see." Said Michael to himself, his expression growing even more revengeful when spotting a picture of James and Brady slow dancing at her sweet sixteen birthday party, hanging over the bed, on the wall.
Meanwhile, James and Meryl were now standing in the kitchen area of the café, James talking to her as she put on a pot of coffee to brew. "So what's the deal with you and Brady?" blurted out Meryl suddenly, but instantly wishing she hadn't brought it up. "What do you mean? Me and Brady are best friends.nothing more." said James softly as a frown appeared on his face. "So you're not an item?" said Meryl, the joy inside her growing at his words. "No.we're not.." said James, barely able to get the words to come out of his mouth.
Meanwhile Brady strode into the café, smelling the aroma of a fresh pot of coffee and knowing that nothing would make her feel better right now than a nice steaming cup of the liquid. She pushed through the small door to the kitchen, expecting to see her mother or father; but was a little taken aback when she saw Meryl standing there, pouring two big mugs full, and James standing to the side of her.
Brady turned, thinking she could make a quick escape without him seeing her. But was stopped by his voice. "Brady?" came James' confused voice. Brady turned, sweeping her dark hair from her face as she looked back at him. "Oh.hi.I smelt coffee, and you know me, can never turn down a good cup of the stuff." said Brady trailing off. Meryl took a step in front of James, as to ward Brady of her property and handed him a cup. "Here you are James!" she said sweetly. "Thanks.." mumbled James, still not taking his eyes from Brady's form a few feet away.
Meryl turned to face Brady, "I think my brother is looking for you Brady, you might want to find him." She said in the same sweet tone. Brady shifted her gaze to Meryl, the look on her face turning cold, "I've already spoken with Michael Meryl." She said in a bone chilling tone.
"Oh.well.James and I were just going to have some coffee.but you're welcome to join us if you like." Said Meryl. Brady looked at the two, and with a slight shake of her head, she turned to leave. "Maybe some other time." she muttered as she exited. James didn't know what had come over him but soon found his feet pounding against the ground after he'd sat the mug down, and was now running to catch up with Brady.
"Brady!" he said, catching up to her at the café entrance. Brady stiffened but slowly turned to face him. "He doesn't deserve you ya know." Blurted out James.biting his lip when he'd realized what he said. Brady looked at him for a long moment, no emotions showing on her face for the longest time. But suddenly she smiled and took a step forward, wrapping her arms around his neck. "You're so good to me James.I don't know what I'd do without you." she said as a couple tears streamed down her face. James eagerly wrapped her in his own arms and hugged her back, even feeling a bit disappointed when she pulled away. "Now, I'm not going to break up with my boyfriend just cause you think he's younger than me, but I will do one thing." said Brady, a grin spreading over her face. "And what's that?" asked James. "Spend the night in your room tonight." said Brady, and with that, and a wink, she walked on off out of the café in search of Michael now.
Chapter 7
Michael crept around James' room, picking through his stuff for something that he himself might use against James. As he searched the room, when kneeling down on the ground to peek under James' bed, he spotted a big, rectangular shoe box. He reached under the bed to pull it out from under the bed and read the label taped to the top, which read 'Brady'. His curiosity and drive to find something bad on James compelled him to open the box. But for some reason, he was entirely unimpressed with his first glance, for the box was packed to the brim with letters, notes and pictures, all of Brady, drawn by Brady, or written by her. "Wow.this guy's obsessed with her." muttered Michael to him self as he pulled one of the letters from atop of the pile in the box, dated a week ago, and unfolded it to read.
James, I feel numb with love, from my head to my feet. I never thought I could feel this way about a guy. Everytime I see Michael, my heart starts to race and my stomach does summer salts. So what do you think? Is it love? I hope so! Do you think he loves me back? Should I just ask him out myself? Am I asking too many questions? Oh well, at least I know I'll always have you to lean on James, and I just want to thank you for that; you've been such a wonderful friend to me for so many years, I don't know what I'd do without you. Well, I'm getting a wee bit tired now, since I'm writing this so late, so I'll leave you with a simple I love you, and I hope you find the same kind of happiness that I have one day, any girl would be lucky to have you James.
All my love, Brady
Michael didn't quite know what to think of the letter; was it good, or bad? He carefully folded it and replaced it in the box before reaching in for another one. But just as he was about to unfold and read it, he heard the doorknob to James' room turn. So he did what came to mind first, and dived under the bed, sighing with relief that his body could even fit in the small space. He watched the door open and Brady's petite body fill a little of the room in the doorway. "That's odd.James left his light on.and door un locked." She said to herself.
Michael started to panic; for one, how the he.ll was he going to get out of this room now, and second of all, he thought he'd told Brady not to spend time with James! He watched her glance around for a moment before falling back onto James' bed and letting out a big sigh. "I wonder when he'll be back." Mumbled Brady to herself as she gazed up at the ceiling and was surprised to see a picture of herself and James when they were really young, around six, holding hands and jumping off into the pool outside of the mall, taped to it. She smiled as the memories invaded her thoughts. "Knock, knock!" came a deep voice from the doorway. Michael felt the bed move as Brady shot up on the bed. "James!" she exclaimed, beaming as the tall, blonde boy walked in towards her, his face going a bit confused at her being in his room, and in such high spirits!
"Hi Brady." Said James, a little nervously, wondering what she had planned for the evening. "Hello!" said Brady as she hopped up off the bed and came at him with a big hug, startling James for only a moment before he hugged her back. "Well someone's in a good mood." Noted James. "Aren't I always?" said Brady with a mischievous smile. James raised an eyebrow and shook his head as he still held her in his arms. "This is one long hug!" said Brady as she winked at him. "Ya think?" said James, not removing his arms from around her. "What would Michael say if he saw us?" asked James. "Hmm.he wouldn't be too happy, that's for sure." Replied Brady. "But we're just friends, so what's Michael got to worry about?" said Brady, gazing up into James' dark brown eyes, that were replicas of her own.
From under the bed, Michael gritted his teeth and pushed himself slowly out from under the bed when the two had their backs turned and slid without a sound across the floor and safely out the still open door. When far enough away from the door, he stood and let out a sigh of relief. As he looked up while standing, he gasped a little in surprise as he saw Meryl standing before him. "Looks like you barely got out.." she said with a smirk. "Yeah, no thanks to you! You were supposed to keep him distracted genius!" hissed Michael. "I tried! But as soon as your little tramp in there walked in-" started Meryl. "Don't you call her that!" said Michael as he shot his sister an angry look.
Meryl rolled her eyes before continuing, "ANYWAYS, like I was saying, Brady walked into the café, and just when I thought I'd caught him, all his attention was focused on her. It was like I wasn't ever there! Then he ran after the girl! So don't get mad at me Michael, I couldn't just say 'Hey James, can you wait a few minutes until my brother is done snooping around in your room?'" said Meryl with another roll of her eyes before popping the stick of Winterfresh gum she was chewing.
"Ugh! What good are you?!" said Michael in a strained hiss as he threw up his hands and stormed off down the hallway. "Geeze.what's his problem! Is it my fault he thinks his so called girlfriend is having a fling with blondie? I mean, even if she were, I wouldn't say I blame her." said Meryl to herself, and with a smile, she strutted off down the hallway.