Disclaimer: Sadly, this all belongs to a man named Josh. Oh, and Frank Sinatra (along with Billie Holiday) sang the song Just Friends. All songs quoted are by Frank Sinatra.
And your cheeks so soft,
There is nothing for me but to love you,
"Can you come over? It's an emergency," Marissa pulled on her shirt. Something was missing.
"Sure," Ryan replied, grabbing his keys off the counter. "I'll be there in a minute."
He opened the door of his dorm room and shut it, not bothering with the locks. It wasn't like he had anything valuable to steal anyways. Ryan ran down the hall, hearing loud music coming from his friend Tom's room. Tom couldn't study or do his homework without the music blaring.
Ryan ran down three flights of steps and out the door. He turned left and was soon in front of the girls' dorm. He held open the door for two freshmen girls and then ran up two flights of stairs to Marissa's room. Pounding furiously on the door, Ryan wondered what kind of emergency Marissa had.
She opened the door a minute later—but Ryan's heart was already pounding. What if something had happened to her?
"Hey," Marissa smiled warmly, and Ryan felt the familiar rush of heat to his cheeks, as he often did in her presence. Ryan looked around. He didn't smell anything burning, so that was a good sign. Marissa had managed to burn popcorn in the microwave more than a few times.
"Are you okay? What's the big emergency?" Ryan asked.
Marissa walked back into her dorm room, and Ryan followed, leaving the door ajar. He followed her into her bedroom—Marissa had lucked out and her name had been drawn for a suite. Sure, she had to share with three girls instead of one guy, like Ryan, but there were three bedrooms, a living room, small kitchen, and two bathrooms. It was almost like an apartment, except it was in a large dorm.
"I don't know what's missing from my outfit," Marissa said finally. She pulled at her top, a nervous habit Ryan had noticed years ago.
"That was the big emergency?" Ryan asked dubiously. He'd run over to Marissa's because she needed fashion advice? He felt kind of special; after all, not many girls could rely on their boyfriends for fashion advice. Well…ex-boyfriend. But that was besides the point. They were best friends now, and Ryan had quite the eye for style.
"Ryan," Marissa said, tugging on her shirt, a black lace halter. "I can't figure it out."
Ryan sighed. "Turn around," he instructed the girl, who was already looking perfect. She complied, and Ryan couldn't help but notice how much of a figure she'd attained over the last three years. Marissa was still outrageously skinny, but she had curves now; a butt, and the hint of hips.
"Well?" Marissa asked hopefully. Ryan had never failed her before. He always insisted that she looked flawless, but still ended up finding the missing piece of the puzzle, rather, the missing accessory.
She had on a bright pink flounce skirt with a black lace bow tied around the hips. "Where's that crystal heart necklace you have?" Ryan asked, walking over to Marissa's dresser and opening her jewelry box. "Here," he handed her the clear pink heart on the pink yarn ribbon. Marissa turned around and lifted her hair up.
"Put it on," she said. Ryan put the necklace around her neck and tied it first in a double knot, then a bow. The yarn hung down her back a little, and the heart was up close against her neck. Marissa studied herself in the mirror. "It's perfect," she said finally. "I'd forgotten about this necklace."
Marissa unexpectedly threw her arms around Ryan, catching him off guard. Her cheek was smooth and soft against Ryan's face, reminding him of his need to shave. For a second Ryan stood there, breathing in her sweet, vanilla scent. Then he came to his senses, patted her back as a friend would, and unwillingly pulled his body from her embrace.
"Have fun," Ryan told Marissa, realizing she was going on a date. She was going on a date. A date.
"Thanks?" Marissa seemed surprised that Ryan had brought it up. They never really talked about each others' dating. Marissa had always thought Ryan to be more uncomfortable with the whole situation than she was. And she was pretty uncomfortable talking about it, so that really said something.
"I—uh, I should go," Ryan smiled a little. "I wouldn't want to keep you from your date."
"Yeah," Marissa replied, somewhat sadly. Ryan was just…so sweet. She didn't want him to leave. He was her best friend and knew her better than her best friend for life, Summer. And he looked scruffy, which meant scrumptious. Marissa wanted to capture his scent in a jar so she could smell it whenever she was feeling lonely. Of course she couldn't. Although she'd never tell anyone, Marissa had a bottle of Ryan's cologne in her underwear drawer, but somehow it never smelled quite as good as he did.
"Call me tomorrow. I want to know how your date goes," Ryan forced himself to say. The words were cold and strange on Ryan's tongue. They'd discussed almost everything; secrets were nonexistent in their relationship. Except for the dating topic. Ryan and Marissa never, ever discussed their dating situations.
"I will," Marissa promised. If she'd gone on a date with Ryan, she wouldn't have to call him tomorrow. What was she thinking? She and Ryan were just friends, nothing more.