12. Josh

Hallie is being weirder than usual, and I’m pretty drunk, so that’s a keen observation on my part, but the girl is acting like she has never been in close quarters with anyone before, let alone me. We practically grew up together, and living next door to one another meant there were plenty of family vacations and camping trips we had to endure. So the fact she is being all skittish just because we have to share a room is very amusing for me. I continue to undress while she acts like every piece of furniture in my room offends her, and then I move to start setting up a bed on the floor for myself.

“I know you are a master of many talents, Tink, but sleeping standing up isn’t one of them, just make yourself at home,” I try to coax her into relaxing a little, but all she does is scoff.

“Just make yourself at home,” she mocks. “Joshua, do you have any idea the level of effort that goes into my sleeping routine every single night?” I roll my eyes at her words, because again we practically grew up with one another, of course I know. “I don’t have any pajamas, I don’t have Percy, a fan, my sleeping mask, my ear defenders, how the hell am I supposed to just make myself at home?”

Swallowing my laugh, I move to my dresser and pull out one of my spare jerseys and toss it on the bed, before retrieving my phone and pulling up a fan noise that lasts almost ten hours. “Okay, two out of five eliminated, which is the best I can do for you right now, I’ll do better next time,” I tell her, making a mental note to be more prepared from our impromptu sleepovers in the future.

“Next time,” she laughs without humor. “Next time you can come and stay in my room where I have everything I need,” she snaps, clearly stressed, and I am already missing her sunshine smile, so I can’t help but tease her.

“Inviting me for sleepovers already, wife? My body must be better than I thought.”

She drops onto my bed and leans down, pulling up her dress, to reveal a pair of sparkling heels that she begins to unbuckle. “It’s like you think I won’t dick punch you on our wedding night,” she grumbles, totally serious as she struggles with her shoes.

I drop down on one knee before her and unbuckle both shoes with ease, eyeing the length of her smooth calf, as I reply, “I mean, now you mention it, my dick does need some attention.”

Her eyes snap to mine and I swear I see a flare of interest there before she masks it with a scowl, “I’m sure the hoards of girls that would give it some are going to be weeping in their beds this week when they find out it’s no longer on the market.”

Rising back to my full height I flash her a mischievous grin. “Hmm, note to self, my wife is jealous and feisty, I like it.” I turn my back and head into the bathroom to give her some privacy, but not before the back of my head is smacked with a pillow.

“Next time it will be a brick, asshole,” she curses at my back, and I hide my laugh on the other side of the bathroom door.

Then I take my time brushing my teeth, and changing into some shorts, until I am sure she has had enough time to get out of her dress and ready for bed. Then I give her five more minutes for good measure until I am almost certain she must be done by now. Yet when I venture back into my room she practically dives away from the mirror that hangs on the door to the bathroom, almost giving me a heart attack.

“Everything okay?” I ask, flicking my gaze up and down to see she is very much changed into my jersey, and that the dress I bought her is hanging neatly on my closet door.

“No, Joshua, everything is not okay,” she grits out through her teeth, gesturing to her jersey clad form. “Look at me.” I already am, so all I do is widen my stare in confusion to try to figure out what the hell is wrong with her. “I’m wearing your jersey,” she confirms, and I have to smile.

“Hallie, I know you don’t have a very high opinion of me most of the time, but contrary to what you might think I’m actually quite smart. I gave you my jersey to wear, I now see with my eyes that you are wearing it, therefore, confirming you’re wearing it seems a little pointless. What is the problem?”

Another pillow is thrown at my head.

“I am wearing your jersey,” she snaps again, as I pick up her weapon of choice and toss it back onto the bed.

“So? You wear my jersey all the time,” I shrug, not seeing what her point is. “In fact, you have bugged me every single year since I have known you to make sure I always order extra jerseys, just so I can give them to you, so again, what is the problem?”

“I’m wearing your jersey and nothing else,” she whispers, looking down at her bare legs as her fingers pull against the hem that reaches her mid thigh. “Yes I wear it all the time, but it’s usually with pants,” she adds in exasperation.

I open my mouth to respond, but the visual she just painted has me pausing a little. I’m wearing your jersey and nothing else. Damn. That’s not the first time I’ve heard something like that, but it’s definitely the first time I’ve cared. I mean I’m not blind, I know she is hot as fuck, I have just never allowed myself to look at her like that. She’s my little sister’s best friend, she’s my friend, but right now as she stands in nothing but my jersey, the thoughts I am having about her are far from fucking friendly.

It takes some effort to force my stare back to hers, and I clear my throat as I say, “Well if you’re asking for my opinion, I much prefer this look on you.”

She groans at my response, moving toward the mirror to check out where the hem reaches again.

“I was not asking for your opinion, asshole, but maybe some pants?”

This time I can’t hold in my laugh. “Hallie, you’re like 5ft barely nothing, do you really think I’m gonna have pants that fit you?” I shake my head as I crouch down and ready myself to sleep on the floor. “Just get in bed and stop being ridiculous.” I move to turn off the light, leaving the room in just the glow of the lamp on my nightstand, before lying down.

Her stomps back to the bed shake the floor, and I smirk as I sink down into my sheets, knowing she won’t let this go. “Easy for you to say, your body is fantastic,” she grumbles, throwing herself into my bed with a huff.

“Glad to know my new wife is so attracted to me,” I muse, relishing the way she once again curses my name. “And trust me, Hals, if anyone else was lucky enough to see those legs, I’m sure they’d be thinking the same bad thoughts I am.”

I swear she doesn’t realize how gorgeous she is sometimes. Hence the campus-wide no touching rule that includes her and Madeline. Maddie because she was my sister, and Hallie because she was, well, my Hallie. None of the assholes here are good enough for her, even more so now she’s my wife.

“Only if you are thinking that I should wrap them up in some pants.” she laughs, and I can hear her getting comfy, so I try to do the same.

“You could definitely wrap them somewhere,” I reply without thinking, and the silence that follows is deafening, and I ruffle around in my sheets. “Sorry, that came out by default, I forgot you weren’t a random hot girl for a second there.”

She scoffs again, “Man whore.”

“Brat,” I toss back, not bothering to correct her statement considering I haven’t slept with anyone since the beginning of the year, and enjoying our back and forth too much to care. It reminds me of when we were kids, before I pushed her away, now here I am pulling her in even tighter than before.

“Asshole.” She won’t stop.

“Drama queen.” I can’t stop.

“Nice abs,” she coos sweetly, switching tactics just like she always used to do, trying to catch me off guard, and I laugh.

“Yeah, and nice legs,” I reply instantly, shuffling around trying once again to get comfy.

“Oh my god if I have to listen to you move around one more time I am going to scream,” she snaps, sitting up to glare at me. “Just get in the bed.”

My entire body freezes. “You want me to get in the bed with you?” I confirm, almost sure I misheard her. We’ve shared a room before, but never a bed.

“Yes, I cannot listen to you fidgeting all night, not when things are already dire for me right now, so just get up here,” she demands.

Well, who am I to disobey my wife?

I stretch out my limbs before grabbing my pillows and making my way over to the free side of the bed she has left space on. It’s weird to see someone in my bed, even her, mostly because I never have girls in my bed, ever. Once you let them in your bed it’s hard for you to get them to leave, so I just don’t do it with any girl. But Hallie isn’t any girl, not before today, and definitely not now she’s mine.

Slowly climbing into bed beside her I am immediately assaulted by her scent, and have to force myself to not make any sort of joke. Especially when I feel her stiffening as I lay down beside her. It has me wondering if she has ever shared a bed with someone before.

Only once I’m settled does she reach out to my nightstand and turn out my light, the soft hum of the fan noise from my phone, the only company surrounding us. Other than that and the sound of our breathing it’s silent, and it’s in that silence that I think about the magnitude of what we did today. We got married. I married her. I am someone’s husband, she is my wife.

“Josh,” she whispers into the dark. “Can I ask you something?” She’s so quiet that once she stops speaking I could almost pretend she isn’t here, yet I can feel her everywhere. Which is strange since we aren’t even touching.

“You can ask me anything,” I tell her the same thing I’ve told her since she was nine, and prepare for one of her unusual questions or topics.

“Well, it’s two things really.”

I bite back a smile even though she can’t see me as I reply, “I’m sure I can manage both.”

“Why didn’t you tell me that you went to see my parents?” Her question shouldn’t surprise me, but it does. I know she’s close to her parents, and I knew at some point she would tell them herself and that it would be the truth. When I don’t reply right away she adds, “And why did you go and see them? Why did you ask for my dad’s permission?”

“That’s three questions,” I remark, and three seconds later a pillow is bashed into my stomach. “Okay, okay, relax,” I huff, tossing the pillow to the floor and thinking carefully about my answer before I respond. “I guess I had so much on my mind that I forgot to tell you. It didn’t feel important to me that you know, but I knew it was important for me to go. You have great parents, Hals, they are smart, kind, supportive, and have always been there for you no matter what. I see what you have with them and I know it’s a gold mine, what every child should have, and not enough do. I went to see them because I respect them, and I respect their daughter, and I didn’t want them hearing about it from anyone else. And I asked your dad’s permission because despite this being fake, my caring for you is very real. You’re important to me, you’re my family, and I needed him to know that no matter what I have your back, always.”

She’s quiet for so long that I almost think she has fallen asleep, until she eventually replies, “Do you really have an off limits rule on me around campus?”

Now that’s something I am definitely not answering, no good will come of me admitting that, or giving her my reasons why. I like my dick unpunched and still attached to me, thank you very much. “That’s too many questions, go to sleep,” I snap out into the dark, and I can practically feel her smile.

“Oh my god you do, don’t you?” she accuses happily, bashing me with yet another pillow. Where the fuck does she keep geeting them from? “Damn, people better be careful around me, apparently my husband is a psycho.”

I laugh as I toss the pillow on her head as I reply, “Yeah so you better tell all your boyfriends to back off.”

She pulls the pillow into her arms and turns onto her side to stare at me. Even in the dark I can feel her looking at me as she laughs, “All my boyfriends? The only boyfriend I’ve ever had went running to the hills as soon as we graduated with no reason why, so I think you’re safe there.”

I’m not sure she means to sound wounded by it, but she does. “Are you talking about Joey?” I ask, remembering that prick”s name more than I care to admit.

“Or Jockstrap Jerkoff as he is more affectionately known in my house,” she tosses back, and I can just imagine all the other names her and Maddie must have called him over the years.

“Yeah that suits him to a tea,” I can’t help but snort, thinking about the couple of encounters I had to endure with him.

Hallie is silent for a few seconds before she whispers, “I didn’t realize you really knew him.”

Fuck. Busted.

I aim my response to be as casual as possible. “We may have spoken once or twice.”

Another pillow right in the head.

“What did you do?” she yells, hitting me with the pillow three more times before I grab hold of it to stop her.

“Fucking hell, will you stop with the pillows, and what makes you think I did something?” My voice is that of pure innocence, but she still scoffs a laugh, and I just know she is rolling her eyes.

“Because it’s you. You always do something. Remember when your cousin Jason tried to kiss me at that party, and you broke his nose? Or when that guy from your class was taking pictures of Maddie and me in our swimsuits, and you drowned him in the pool? And don’t even get me started on that creepy guy who used to work for your dad, he ended up in the hospital, you could have killed him,” she rants, listing off only some of my conquests, and I smirk into the dark as I recall them.

“Barely, I only gave him a few crushed up pills in his drink, it’s not my fault he shit himself so bad,” I toss back, low key wishing I’d have done a lot worse. “That’s what he gets for being a fucking pervert, you were fifteen, besides your dad thought it was hilarious.”

“What did you do to Joey?” she grits, not sounding as amused by the storytelling as I am.

“Nothing.”

“Joshua.”

“Nothing, I swear.”

“Remember the second rule on our contract?” she fumes, reminding me of the little agreement we signed on her notepad.

“No lying,” I huff out, knowing she isn’t going to let this go until I tell the truth. “Fine, I broke his arm.”

“Josh!”

“What? He fucking deserved it, Tink. You should have heard the fucking shit he was saying about you, about what you guys got up to. I couldn’t stand hearing it, so yeah, I broke his arm and told him to stay the hell away from you. You’re welcome.”

I hear her quick intake of breath and I know I’ve fucked up somewhere, I just don’t know where. “He told people stuff?” she finally mutters into the dark.

My brain instantly goes on the offense and blocks out all the bragging about how tight and untouched she was, as I grit my teeth. “Yeah, of course he did, he was an asshole.”

More silence lingers, and I wish I could see her face right now so I could gauge how she is taking all of this. “And you did that for me?” she asks, almost sounding shocked. I don’t know why, I’ve always had her back.

“I’d do anything for you, Hals, you know that,” I tell her truthfully.

“Thank you.” Her voice cracks a little on her words, and all I want to do is pull her into my arms and make her feel better, but I know how she is about physical touch, and I’m sure just laying in the same bed as me is difficult for her to manage.

“You’re welcome, now stop talking about your boyfriends, I thought we already covered that your new husband is a psycho,” I joke, aiming to lift the mood, and finally she laughs, turning away from me.

“Goodnight, Mr. Peters,” she sighs into the dark, as I stare up at the ceiling, still not believing we are here right now.

Yet still I smile as I reply, “Goodnight, Mrs. Peters.”