The Second Time's the Charm

Chapter Two

8 Years Later

"Katie, stop drooling and pay attention to me. This is serious here." Michelle, my best girl friend, was over stressing about what to wear to some party that she was dragging me to. It was summer break which meant that she was going to try and find some summer fling. Michelle quickly befriended me when I started school in Edenton. We had clicked from the start, sharing an interest in the beach and music. If it wasn't snowing or cold out, Michelle and I were at the beach together.

"Shut up! I'm not drooling. This cute dog was walking by. You know how much I love dogs." I told her. Which wasn't completely a lie. I did love dogs. I quickly looked out the window and took one last look at Justin warming up for a run, shirtless. "Why are you stressing so much about what you wear, if you only plan for it to come off at some point." I said flopping onto my bed watching her hold different pieces of clothing up to herself. We were both about to turn 16 and she was determined to lose her virginity. She thought that it would make her more mature and help her go through the rest of high school avoiding awkward relationships.

"I want to make sure I look good to catch some guys' interest. We can't all be perfect and pine after our brother's best friends. You know that you'll either end up with Sam or Justin. Which personally I think will be Sam. Sam is totally in love with you, Justin is just a dick." She said, turning to look at me. I never stressed about what to wear so I was already dressed and ready. I had chosen a simple white tank top with a sparkly pattern along the neckline and peachy colored shorts. Since we were always at the beach I was almost always tan, so these colors made my tan skin stand out. I never wore much makeup besides mascara and just pulled my dirty blonde hair into a braid that rested to the side. Michelle was beautiful without even having to try so hard, whereas I didn't care what I looked like. I never really thought twice about what I wore, I put on what I wanted and just went about my life. Michelle had dark brown hair with blonde streaks throughout from being in the sun and some she added in. She had gorgeous blue eyes that I was always jealous of. She was curvy in a way that all girls wished they were. I was always skinny and flat chested for the longest time, but the summer I turned 14 I had spouted my own curves.

"Mich, I told you Sam is just my guy best friend. He doesn't have any feelings for me. I could never like him that way, he's like a brother to me in a way. Justin is just..." I trailed off looking out the window as he ran past my house and towards the beach. Justin was planning to finish college and then go into the military. My dad had advised that he should do college first then he'll have a better chance at ranking up faster. Justin started training for the physical aspect once he graduated high school a month before. I knew he'd never feel the same way about me, someone four years younger and far from his type.

"He's a dick, Katie. He sleeps with girls then just ghosts them. Sam is crazy about you, I can tell by the way he looks at you. One day you'll see it." She said grabbing a yellow sundress and going into my bathroom. I knew Justin would never like me, but I had never felt that way towards Sam. He was my best friend. I could talk to him for hours. We always confided in each other. He had helped me through a lot. Michelle came out in the yellow sundress and her dark hard pulled into a messy bun. She looked gorgeous.

"You look amazing, Mich. Seriously." I told her. She knew she was pretty. Many boys have told her and girls hated her because of it.

"Well I'll never be beautiful like you. And you never seem to know just how beautiful you are. But I work with what I have." I sat up and pushed her. She always told me she hated how beautiful I was because I never flaunted it like her. We were both confident girls, but she was confident in a different way. I just felt no need to not be happy in my body or life. "You know it's true. Now let's go before it gets too crowded." She said grabbing her purse and walking out of my room. I rolled my eyes and followed. I put my phone in my pocket and grabbed a sweatshirt before following her. Even if it was hot during the day it always got chilly at night, especially on the beach.