Sunday night is always movie night with Vale, but with everything that's happened, I'm a little nervous about going over to his house. At first, I think maybe if I just pretend like I have something else going on and that I forgot all about it he'll buy it and we can postpone. But he texts me around 2pm asking me if I'm still coming over tonight, and I don't have the heart to say no. Besides, ditching out like that will just make things even worse than they already are. The sooner we can get our friendship back to normal, the better everything will be. So I text him back yes, and he promises to pick a movie we'll both enjoy if I bring the snacks.

I leave my house at five to make a trip to the store, and I buy a couple boxes of Reese's Pieces, some popcorn, gummy worms, donuts, soda, and anything else I think he might like. Once I'm done at the store, I head straight to his house. Immediately I notice his dad's car is gone, and I remember that Victor's working in the kitchen tonight, so he'll be gone until at least nine. My heart starts racing, but I try to brush it off. This is Vale. We've been alone together a million times. This won't be any different than any other night.

When I reach his door, I consider knocking. But that's stupid. I never knock. Be as normal as possible. That's the goal for the night. Return to normalcy. So I open the front door and walk inside, shutting the door behind me. Usually he's in the living room when I get here, but I don't see him anywhere. "Vale?" I call out, poking my head down the hall to see if I hear anything from his bedroom.

"Down here!" He yells back from the basement, and I carry the snacks down the stairs. I find him sitting on the floor in the basement, plugging in a TV and a Roku. It takes me a second to realize it's his TV from his bedroom. Ah, so we won't be watching anything in his room tonight. Okay, fair enough. Not quite normal, but at least I'm here. "Hey," he says, smiling nervously when he sees me come down the stairs. Then his eyes light up at the bags of snacks in my hands. "Awesome! I'm starving!"

"Hope you're starving for junk," I reply as he gets to his feet, and I hand him the bags to sift through. "Because that's all there is. I thought about buying some carrots and hummus, but I thought that might kill you, so I opted for the gummy worms instead."

His smile widens as he pulls the bag of sour gummy worms out of the grocery store bag. "Good call," he says, and he winks at me. My stomach flips, and I inwardly curse myself. Stop it. This is normal. This is normal. This is normal. "Ah yes, you got donuts. You're the best."

"Yeah, yeah," I reply, rolling my eyes. "I bought popcorn too, so get to popping!" He pulls the popcorn out of the bag, gives me a salute, and runs up the stairs. A minute later, I hear the sound of the microwave as he starts cooking the popcorn. I search around the room and see the old couch that used to be in the living room before his dad replaced it last year with a nice new couch. Not sure what else to do, I take a seat and wait for him to return. He comes running back down the stairs three minutes later, a huge green bowl filled with popcorn in his hands. I waste no time in dumping a box of Reese's Pieces in the bowl, and just like that, my favorite movie treat is ready.

"It's my turn to pick," he says, as he grabs the remote and starts sifting through movies on his Roku. He's still standing, and I try not to think too much of it. "I know you're not into the superhero thing, so I thought we could watch a favorite. How does Who Framed Roger Rabbit sound?" I smile and give a quick nod of my head. That's been our favorite movie since we were nine years old and saw it for the first time. Since then, we've seen it about a million more times, but it never gets old. Perfect pick for normalcy. He puts the movie on, and then sets the remote on the side table before taking a seat on the couch next to me.

And this is where things start to shift from normal to... well... not normal. He's not his usual relaxed self. His fingers keep fidgeting with a loose string on his jeans, and I can tell that he's being very careful not to touch me. Our fingers are inches apart, and yet I feel this strange current flowing between us. I'm staring at the movie, but I'm barely breathing. My heart is pounding again, and it feels like I've just run a marathon. He shifts a little in his seat, and his fingers grow closer to mine. The current gets stronger. I distract myself by shoving a small handful of popcorn into my mouth, but just as I go to reach for another bite, he reaches in too. Total cliché moment, but our fingers finally touch. His eyes meet mine, and mine stay locked on his.

"Okay, this is ridiculous," he says, pulling his hand away from the bowl and running them through his curly hair. "What the hell is going on with us lately? It was just a fucking kiss, right? A dare, for Christ's sake. Not a big deal."

I give him an awkward chuckle. "I know! But since then we've been totally out of sync. I mean, just sitting with you here...." I trail off, because I don't think I have to finish the sentence. I think he already knows.

He sighs heavily and then looks back up at me again. "Gen, I haven't been able to stop thinking about it. Kissing you, I mean. I keep reliving that moment again and again like a crazy person. And I've been thinking about it, so just hear me out, okay?" I nod my head, unsure of where he's going. He takes another breath and says, "I think we should do it again."

Total opposite of normal. He's staring straight into my eyes now, and I've never noticed all those flecks of yellow in his. I always thought they were light brown, but now I'm thinking maybe they're hazel. It takes me a moment, but then I shake my head and say, "I'm not sure that's such a good idea, Vale. The last time really messed with me. With us."

He nods his head quickly. "I know, but that was different. I mean, think about it. You were a little tipsy that night. And there was all this pressure around us. Perform the dare or lose in front of Maddie. There was a point to prove. But if we did it now, there won't be any pressure. And then we'll know, you know? If we have those same feelings, those same... fireworks." So he did feel them too. A blush rises in my cheeks, and I want to look away from him, but his eyes are like magnets. "If we have them again, then we can go from there. But if we don't, then we can really forget about it and move on. Go back to being Gen and Vale. And we never have to tell anyone. It can stay between us."

I don't know if his theory makes sense or if I really want to kiss him again. But after thinking about it for a few seconds, I set the bowl of popcorn down on the floor beside us and say, "Okay. Yeah. I think you're right. Let's just do it. No one around to see. No pressure."

He gives me a tiny smile and turns his body to face mine. Oh my God. He's getting ready. "A quick kiss," he says, swallowing hard. "One more time. Just to see."

I turn to face him too. "Then we can get back to normal." I lick my lips in anticipation as he draws a little closer.

"Back to us," he whispers and he's just a few centimeters away. His lips are so close I can feel his breath tickling my chin. He pauses for a second, just like he did that night. And I can feel his hesitation. That maybe this isn't a good idea. Maybe this will make everything worse. I close my eyes, waiting with bated breath to see if he'll do it. Seconds later, I feel his lips on mine again. They're soft and warm, and the dance begins as he slowly deepens the kiss.

Last time there were fireworks. This time it's like a goddamn nuclear bomb has gone off inside of me. I snake my arms around him as he slides his fingers through my hair, twisting them in that same way. But this time there aren't any eyes on us. This time there's no one around to interrupt with a cough. No one around to stop us. And so the quick test kiss turns into so much more as he slides his body on top of mine and presses me into the couch. His lips never leave mine. Oh my God, he tastes so good. Like salt and chocolate and him. I pull him closer, silently begging him not to stop. And this time he doesn't. He's kissing me so hard, so deeply, that I feel like I'm going to explode.

The movie is still playing in the background, but I can't even think about it. He takes his lips off mine and moves down to my chin. My neck. It feels so good. But after a few minutes, I realize that I miss them on mine. So I grab his face and pull his lips back, pressing hard against them. I've never made out like this in my life. Never felt such strong, passionate feelings before. We stay like that on his old couch, exploring each other's mouths and getting hotter and hotter. His fingers slide up the back of my shirt, and my nails dig into his neck in a way that makes him groan against my mouth. Things are going too far. But I can't stop. It's like I'm not in control of my own body anymore. Like I'm someone else.

The front door opens upstairs, and we jump apart, completely breathless, as we hear his dad toss his keys onto the counter and call out Vale's name. We are completely out of breath, and his face is as red as mine feels. He takes a steady breath and then shouts back up at his dad that we're down here watching a movie. But the movie is almost over. And we didn't watch more than a few minutes of it. We hear Victor's footsteps as he comes down the stairs.

"Hey," he says, waving at both of us. We give him a friendly wave back. Maybe too friendly, but he doesn't seem to notice. "Sorry to interrupt your movie. I just forgot my wallet and had a minute to swing by and pick it up." He turns and looks at the movie, then smiles and says, "Don't you two ever get sick of this one?" We shake our heads, still not trusting ourselves to speak. "Okay, well I have to get back to the restaurant. But you guys have fun. And don't do anything I wouldn't do." We laugh awkwardly as he turns and runs up the stairs, and I am so thankful that he's too preoccupied with work to notice how disheveled and warm we look.

We wait until we hear his car back out of the driveway before we relax. Vale puts his head in his hands, and I see his chest is still heaving. "That was...." He says, but he can't finish. There are no real words to describe what that was.

I nod my head. "Yeah. I mean... I didn't feel anything. Did you?"

He laughs nervously and shakes his head in his hands. "Nope. Nothing."

The credits are rolling now, and I close my eyes, trying to compose myself. But I can't deny it anymore. I want to kiss him. If I could, I would go back to where we were five minutes ago, with his hands up my shirt and my fingernails digging into him. Blood rushes back up to my face as I think about all the delightful places that could have gone. But then I remember this is Vale. My best friend. My number one. The person who knows me maybe better than I know myself.

"Gen," he says, voicing my own thoughts aloud. He lifts his head up and looks directly into my eyes. "What are we going to do?"

Author's Note:
Yes, Vale. What ARE you going to do? What did you all think of that kiss? I know a lot of you kept asking for another moment between our two besties, so I couldn't wait to share this one with you. I think they're past the point of confused now. But seriously, what are they going to do?

Thank you all for the kind words over the last couple weeks. It's been crazy with me getting Covid. And then it spreading through the house like wildfire. But we're all finally almost over it. Thank goodness. I never want to get sick again. Hope you're all staying healthy. And thank you again for all the well wishes! They meant a lot to me! I'll be back soon with another chapter!
XOXO,
~Aly