JULIE's POV

"...and I ordered this cobb salad because it has lean meats, which are good protein, plus eggs, lentils, avocado, bean sprouts, and tofu. It's super healthy and super delicious," my uncle, Antonio, informs me from across the restaurant table.

"Okay," I simply reply while admiring the nice spread of food and the lively atmosphere of the local restaurant he reserved a spot for us to meet at. My stomach was grumbling, but not because of my nerves. The intense urge to pile food into my mouth at every hour of the day seemed to grow as each week passed - along with my tiny belly.

"And I figured we could share the plates of grilled salmon and shrimp with brown rice. By the way, salmon, shrimp, tuna, and cod are some of the best seafood options low in mercury so they're safe to eat during pregnancy," Antonio says, sounding like a walking encyclopedia.

"Wow. You know a lot about this," I reply with a small chuckle.

He grins, showing the dimples on his tan cheeks. "I kinda just googled everything ahead of time. I've never really dealt with any pregnant women before so this is kind of new to me. And I've never had a kid so I'm sort of clueless, but I wanted to be as much help as I could for you."

"That's alright. Thank you. It all looks delicious," I say while glancing around at the tasty looking dishes before me.

"Let's dig in."

After a few initial bites of food, we start some lighthearted conversation.

"So... you've never had kids?"

"Nope. It never seemed like the right time to have them. Plus I would've wanted to be married before having them and I've never been married."

"Oh, really? I didn't know that," I reply.

"Yep," Antonio nods his head. "My last relationship was great, but we wanted different things. I don't think she was ready for marriage. She was such a businesswoman and it didn't feel like she was truly ready to settle down, start a family, the whole deal."

I nod my head while taking a bite of the salad. "Hm. Do you think you'll have kids now that you're married?"

Antonio smiles. "Me and Martha have talked about it in the past; we even considered adoption. But I think we're content with co-parenting one teenager for now."

"I see..." I nod while trying to imagine how he co-parents Sam. It's still surreal that she's even related to my family.

Antonio's expression becomes a bit more serious. "I've heard from my brother about your pregnancy, but I wanted to hear how you're processing all of this directly from your mouth. Are you planning on having your baby?"

I release a sigh and put my fork down. I nod my head. "I am. And I don't care what my parents say about it. This baby deserves a chance at life just like anyone else."

Antonio releases a deep sigh himself, nodding his head and looking at me with his eyebrows furrowed. "That's a big decision for someone your age. I couldn't imagine being in your shoes."

"Well, it's my decision to make, no one else's," I reply a little more harshly than intended. I felt a discomfort in my chest as the conversation with my parents from a few weeks ago resurfaced in my mind. They weren't supportive of my situation at all. It's hard enough dealing with this alone and trying to understand my body, but it's worse knowing that I don't have any familial support. "Is this why my parents wanted me to have lunch with you? So you can try to persuade me not to have this baby? Because if so, I swear I'll leave right now--" I say while standing to my feet.

"No, no, no! That's not it at all! Okay?" Antonio says, appearing worried that he might've offended me, putting his hands forward while trying to calm me down. "I've been wanting to talk to you since I learned you and your parents moved to New York. I just never found the right time to do so."

I chew on the interior of my cheek and sit back down in my chair, glancing outside the restaurant's window.

"I'm not here to convince you to do anything. I'm here because I want to get to know my niece. I'm here to listen to whatever you feel comfortable telling me about, and I'll support whatever decision you make because that's what family's about," Antonio says with an assuring grin.

I sigh, feeling guilty for suddenly blowing up on him for no reason, and a tear falls down my cheek. I grab a napkin from the table and lightly dab my eyes. "I'm sorry... I didn't mean to accuse you of bad intentions--"

"Don't worry about it. You're going through a lot right now. I don't fault you for protecting yourself."

I nod and swallow the lump in my throat. This is the first time having a conversation with my uncle, and so far, he seems like a good guy. Even though I'm scared and emotional, it feels like I can put my trust in him.

"Please. Take a sip of your water. Let's eat. We don't have to talk about anything right now if you don't want to..." Antonio assured me as he continued eating as if nothing happened.

I chuckled slightly as my tears finally stopped. "You're nothing like my dad..."

"I'll take that as a compliment."

"Oh, believe me. It is."

"Eh... he can't be that bad though, can he? I'm sure however he acts is just his way of trying to protect his little girl from danger."

"He's not very open-minded and he has strict views about how people should live their lives. Which is why I felt like I couldn't tell him or my mom about being pregnant." I pause before continuing. "But I want to have this baby. I'm thinking of putting them up for adoption."

"Adoption? That's great!" Antonio's face lights up.

"But I'm nervous. There's too many things to consider..."

"Okay. Like what?" Antonio asks with an inquisitive look on his patient face.

"First of all, what am I gonna do about university? I've already forfeited Julliard auditions, and if I have this baby in the fall, there's no way I'd be able to go to school. My body has to have time to heal so I wouldn't be able to go to class anyway. By then, the spring semester auditions would've passed so I'd have to wait a whole 'nother year before attending the school. I'd be a whole year behind!"

"Okay. You'll be a year behind, so what?"

I look at him with a dropped jaw. "You know... I'll just be behind everyone. If I wait a year, everyone will be 18 and I'll be 19, almost 20..." I blink at him with anxious eyes but his relaxed expression goes unchanged. He chuckles.

"And what's so bad about that? Life doesn't stop at age 18 or 19 or even 30. You can go to school at any age. There are plenty of 40-somethings in college earning their degree like everybody else. It's not something to be ashamed of."

"Okay..." I respond.

"What else you got?" Antonio asks.

"Well... even though I think it's the right decision, a part of me feels a bit guilty for giving up my baby. It's like... I wanna live my life, but I know I can't do that with a kid at my age. But then I feel bad because I don't want my baby growing up wondering why their mom didn't want them. I don't want them to feel like I gave up on them, you know?"

"But you can't control how this child might feel about being adopted. All you can control is what you do right now in the present, not the future. As you grow older, maybe your child will want to have a healthy relationship with you when they're grown... but that's hearsay. Regardless, you should feel proud of the fact that you gave them the best love that you could by taking care of your body and your spirit. That you willingly allowed another family to love them and give them the best lifestyle. That's putting their needs first, and that's not selfish at all. You're not giving up on this baby -- you're giving them a life!" Antonio exclaims with a joyous, persuasive voice.

I nod my head and exhale. He was making a lot of good points even though I continue to overthink everything. "When you put it that way... wow. I guess I never thought of it like that."

Antonio takes a sip of his water before saying, "Let me ask you something. What do you want to do after high school? What brings you the most joy?"

"That's easy. Dance," I reply without hesitation.

"Great!"

"But I also wanna try acting, too. Juilliard has a great theater program that I'm interested in enrolling in..."

"Even better. So do that. Don't think about all the little details and just go for it."

"But the baby--"

"The baby will be safe and healthy under God's will, but we're talking about you right now. Honestly, do you feel comfortable personally raising a child right now in your life?" Antonio asks, and deep down, I already know the answer. As much as I will fight to make sure this baby has a chance at life, I know that I am in over my head with major responsibilities. We're talking basic food, a home, stable income; plus, babies need a lot of time and attention. I'm afraid that I won't be able to take care of a kid with just little ole me.

"No..."

"Then that's your choice. You've already made the courageous decision to continue your pregnancy... which I can imagine is frightening... but you can also make the decision to have a healthy delivery and offer this child to some capable, responsible adults who are ready and willing to make those commitments to raise a child."

I nod my head as my brain becomes a little less foggy. Just as I feel some more tears about to fall, Antonio places a warm hand over my own that's resting on the table.

"You're making the right decision, and there's no shame in doing what's best for you at this moment in time..." he says with a caring grin.

"Thank you..." I wipe my eyes with a napkin while grinning back at him.

"Anytime. You're not in this alone, okay?"

I nod my head as a small giggle slips out of my shaky voice. "Okay..."

"I'm sorry I made you cry."

"No, it's okay..." I giggle while sniffing. Antonio hands me some extra napkins.

"The waiter probably thinks we hate the food... 'oh my gosh, the salmon was so overcooked that one of the customers cried because it was so unedible'," Antonio jokes in a really bad Valley Girl voice.

I laugh at his silliness and cover my face. "Oh my gosh..."

"Ah... let's eat up. No more serious talks. Okay? And remind me to order you some gelato before we leave, too. It's incredible here," Antonio says in an upbeat mood, taking the attention away from my tears.

"Okay..." I smile.

***

SAM's POV

It's the last month of school. Can you believe it? Everything is moving so fast! Last month, I signed with the UCLA Bruins basketball team and this month I will be graduating from high school. In less than four weeks, I will be walking across the stage in my cap and gown and singing SAYONARA to Wesley High School! It's been a good run but I'm ready to go!

Graduation isn't the only hot topic buzzing around campus. Everyone is also raving about Prom in two weeks. Only the juniors and seniors are invited to the exclusive high school dance, which will be like the ultimate celebration before the school year ends. I'm scheduled to meet up with Becca and Julie this week to go dress shopping which should be interesting to say the least. Me and Julie still don't talk like that outside of school, so this is one of those opportunities to "grow closer" and "bond as cousins" like Becca keeps harassing me about.

Anyway, today, I am hanging out with Diggy! We agreed to chill at his place during the afternoon while his parents were out running errands. When I arrived at his house, I was greeted by a very hyper Miley, his younger sister, who was making herself a sandwich while his younger brother, Russy, was in the TV room playing video games. After I gave Miley a huge bear hug, we walked upstairs to his bedroom and I immediately plopped down on his bed, releasing a euphoric sigh. Diggy takes a seat next to me on the bed and grins.

"I wanna order some tacos today. I'm feeling spicy..." I say while pulling up the food delivery app on my cell phone.

"Sure. Whatever you want, my dad says we can order it. His treat," Diggy replies while looking around his room for his hairbrush, finding it on his cluttered desk and brushing his hair waves.

"Bet! Imma add some churros too. You feel like nachos?" I ask while glancing at him standing near his desk.

"That's cool with me." There's a pause before he asks, "So... how have you been?"

"I've been good," I reply with a chuckle. "Why are you asking like we haven't just seen each other yesterday at school?"

"I know," he grins, "But it's been a while since just the two of us hung out like this. It feels new."

I nod my head while placing the delivery order on my app. "Mhm... okay! Placed the order. It should be here in 30 minutes." I proudly put my phone down and smile over at Diggy who's checking himself out in his mirror.

"Cool."

"Cool. So... since you asked me, what have you been up to since yesterday?"

"Nothing. Just homework and final papers."

"Ugh. Tell me about it. They really lay it on thick during the end of the year. But I'm so ready to graduate so I can be free of homework and finally get a decent break!" I groan while leaning back against Diggy's pillows.

"Until it picks back up again in college..." He says as he finally finishes brushing his hair and sits next to me on the bed.

"Man, don't ruin my dream state. I'm only thinking about good things after graduation."

"My bad. But you know you'll have to come back down to reality in three months--"

"Shush! Don't wanna hear it!" I say while playfully plugging my ears and closing my eyes.

"Okay," he chuckles. "Are you going to prom?"

I open my eyes and grin at him. "Yes. Are you?"

He shrugs. "I figured since it's the last dance of my high school career, why not? Do a little dance, make a little noise, eat some food, chat with the homies-- it should be fun." Diggy holds his bottom lip between his teeth and leans back against the pillows, scratching his thigh through his red basketball shorts. Since it's getting warmer outside, he's been sporting his shorts a lot more. I, on the other hand, still love a good baggy tee and sweatpants no matter the weather.

"Mm," I nod. "Are you gonna go with anyone?"

"I was thinking of taking Julie... would that be weird?" He asks while raising an eyebrow.

"Um... a little, but it's your life. Take whoever you want," I reply with feigning support. Honestly, I wouldn't want him to take Julie for obvious reasons but if that's who makes him happy, then whatever.

"There's no one else that I'd want to take so... at least no one who is available..." Diggy replies while looking me in the eyes.

"You could always go alone," I suggest.

"Nah, that's lame. It's the last dance of the year; I gotta go big or go home!"

I shrug. "Hm... okay. If you gotta go big, you could always take that big ego of yours..."

"Shut up. Who are you going with? Wait, lemme guess... Jake?" He says pretending to be shocked with his expression. I roll my eyes.

"Obviously. You don't even have to ask," I chuckle while playing with the tear at the end of my t-shirt.

"I figured you would since y'all married now or whatever..."

"What are you talking about?" This time I raise my eyebrow at his nonsense.

"He put a ring on it..." Diggy blinks at me.

"Ha. Ha. Very funny. It's a promise ring, not a wedding ring."

"Same thing, right?" He replies in a smart-alecy tone. "I mean, it's a flashy little ring. It kinda seems serious." He shrugs while watching my reaction. I drop my jaw as I stutter to find the right response; my eyebrows knit together.

"No... I mean-- it's just a couple thing. It's a thing that couples do. You'd know that if you were in one..." 

"Ouch. Excuse me," Diggy replies with a sassy neck roll which causes me to laugh. "Can I be honest though?"

"What?" I reply while seeing his lighthearted expression change to a serious one.

"...I've never seen you so infatuated with a dude before. Honestly, when you two started dating this semester, it caught me off guard..."

I snicker lightly, a bit surprised at his revelation. "Really? Why? 'Cause we're such a hot couple?"

He chuckles and says, "I mean, y'all do look good together..."

"Oh. I was half joking, but I'll take that compliment," I flip my hair over my shoulder.

"You just started acting like best friends, and there was a time when it seemed like you shared more with him than you have with me." His big, brown eyes look hurt.

"Well... Jake has sorta become one of my best friends. When we had our little fallout, he had my back. I could tell him anything and he was always supportive."

Diggy nods, the hurt look in his eyes never fading. "I respect that. I guess I was a little jelly too..."

"What?! Jealous? How?" I ask, genuinely surprised.

"I guess seeing you get so close with another dude made me realize how important our friendship was. Good days or bad days, we've always been there for each other since we were in diapers. It kinda sucked to feel like what we have - our friendship - coulda disappeared..."

I nod my head. "Wow... I mean... I was mad at you, no lie. You got under my skin really good this year," I chuckle softly, "...but... I don't know if I could confidently say that we would've never found our way back to each other. I mean, you're my day one and that's never gonna change."

"That's what I'm saying!" Diggy replies, showing a friendly smile. "You know, despite what happened between us, I just feel so thankful that we're back on the same track again."

I nod my head and feel the air between us become lighter. I turn my body toward him and grin, leaning in playfully. "Me too, Dig. I'm glad you finally got your head out of your butt and realized that you can't live without me..."

"Why you always gotta make everything about you?"

I flip my hair over my shoulder as our eyes maintain contact. "I mean, I'm the main character in this thang called life, so..." I shrug while trying to act all cute.

"Oh! Word?" His eyebrows reach the ceiling.

"To ya mama!"

We both bust out in laughter for a few seconds.

"You're so crazy... I love that about you..." Diggy says in a lower, somewhat seductive tone as his eyes stare into mine like he's in some kind of trance. He bites his bottom lip which somehow makes me twitch. "You're never afraid to be yourself... I dig that..." He adds as his hooded eyes linger over my face for longer than expected, and I unintentionally feel my stomach do flips. Why is he looking at me like this? I feel speechless and my throat feels dry. Diggy seems to lean in closer to me with a teasing grin, which makes me feel a little warm. That's weird. I've never felt like this before, not with Diggy. As the unexpected tension between us grows, my eyes glance down at his lips for a second before I lean away from him.

"Okay... um..." I awkwardly chuckle.

"DIGGY! RUSSY WON'T LET ME PLAY VIDEO GAMES WITH HIM!"

A high-pitched yell from downstairs made both of us jump in our seats. Diggy snaps out of whatever state he was in and releases a tired sigh while slowly standing to his feet.

"Uh-oh. Let me go see what this is about..." Diggy says.

"I'll go with you. I gotta get some more water," I say as I follow him out of the bedroom, still feeling my stomach churn from the way Diggy was staring at me. Maybe he was just being weird. I don't know with that boy. 

As we enter the kitchen, we hear more whining coming from Diggy's little sister, who we find wrestling Russy on the living room couch as he tries to keep his game controller away from her.

"Hey! Hey! Hey!" Diggy yells in big brother mode. "What are y'all doin'? Miley, get off of Russy."

Miley's entire face is full of wrinkles as she climbs off her Russy with a pout. "Hmph. He wouldn't let me play the game with him."

"Because she had dirty hands and I didn't want food to get all over the controller!" Russy exclaims in a loud voice while sitting up straight and fixing his appearance.

"I washed my hands!" Miley whines while glaring at Russy.

"No, you didn't. I can see peanut butter and cheese dust on your fingertips right now," Russy points out, which causes me to hide my chuckle. He be looking at them details. Russy is only a few years younger than us, but ever since we were kids, he has always been a neat freak. He hated any dirty appearances and sometimes went to the extreme just to keep things clean.

"Alright. Miley, go wash your hands again and dry them good, then you can play with Russy," Diggy says as Miley obediently walks past us and into the kitchen to wash her hands. "Y'all needa keep the noise down, alright? You all good?"

"Yeah... I'd be better if she wasn't so dramatic. She freakin' kicked me in the leg," Russy complains with an irritated look.

"Just threaten her with telling dad then she'll behave," Diggy suggests, knowing that Miley is not about to get in trouble with her father. Russy shakes his head.

"Also, if you hear the doorbell, it's our food delivery. Don't worry about answering the door; we'll get it," I inform Russy.

"You guys ordered food? Can I get some?" He asks as his scowl disappears and is replaced by a hopeful grin.

"I only ordered for two people... sorry," I say to him, but I'm not really sorry.

"Didn't you eat earlier?" Diggy asks his brother.

"Yeah. But I could do for a little snack too..." Russy says with desperation in his voice.

"Are you guys talking about snacks? I'm hungry, too!" Miley pouts as she walks back into the living room with cleaner hands. She stares up at me, her little tummy poking out from her pink shirt. She was adorable when she wanted to be. I smile and squish her chubby cheeks between my right hand while grabbing her chin.

"You literally just ate. You shouldn't be hungry," Diggy says to his little sister with a dropped jaw.

"She fat," Russy says while shaking his head.

"No, I'm not! The correct term is fluffy..." Miley bites back while sticking her tongue out at her brother.

"Haha! Yeah, right..." Russy replies.

"I want something sweet..." Miley says, ignoring her brother's comment.

"We got cookies in the cabinet--" Diggy begins before he's cut off by his sister.

"Sam, could you make me some brownies?" Miley asks while looking up at me with her big, innocent eyes.

"Some brownies?" I ask with a slight chuckle. I already know I'm gonna be pulled into doing something I didn't sign up to do, but it's okay because it's Miley. She got me wrapped around her little brown finger. "What kind of brownies?" As I ask this, I hear Russy scoff from the side.

Miley's face lights up. "Mm..." She thinks for a few seconds, tapping her finger on her chin before responding. "Mm... chocolate chips and marshmallows and Oreo cookies!"

"Woah! That's a big order. Are you sure you want all of that in your brownies?"

"If it's too much, you can always have Diggy help you make them," Miley suggests while pointing at her oldest brother. I glance at Diggy, who looks comically defeated, then glance back down at Miley.

"You know what? That sounds like a great idea! Diggy will be my sous chef," I say with an evil grin.

"Great! I'll be in here when they're ready," Miley smiles while skipping to the couch and sitting next to Russy.

"Oop. Okay. I guess we'll just be in the kitchen then..." I reply, amused at her bossiness. I guide Diggy into the kitchen, then walk around him to fill my water bottle with some tap from the sink. "Looks like we're baking brownies. Can you grab the ingredients?"

Diggy looks at me, resting his hands in his pockets. "I didn't agree to this."

"I didn't either... but it's Miley. I couldn't say no," I reply with a grin. "Now hurry up! We have about 20 minutes before the food gets here. They should be in the oven by then."

Diggy grunts and throws a tiny tantrum before walking to the cabinet and taking out the box of brownie mix along with the special ingredients. I take a drink of my water and then set it aside while clapping my hands and looking around the kitchen. "Where are your pans at?"

"Behind you. Bottom right cabinet," Diggy replies while setting the ingredients on the kitchen counter.

I easily find a square metal pan and some butter and grease every inch of the pan. "Hehe! Okay! I'm actually kinda excited to make this! It reminds me of when I used to bake with your mom as a kid... back when I thought cooking was fun. Now, I'd rather just eat."

Diggy smirks while opening the box of brownie mix and pouring the contents into a bowl. "Last time I remembered, you only made a huge mess while my mom did all the work."

"Yes. And you'll be just like your mom today... doing all the work," I reply. "Get the eggs, vegetable oil, and measuring cups. Chop, chop!"

"Who you talkin' to?" Diggy raises an eyebrow and sizes me up.

"You. My sous chef. These brownies aren't going to bake themselves!" I say while clapping my hands impatiently while reading over the instructions on the mix box.

"You're trippin'..." Diggy replies with a chuckle, but he follows my instructions anyway.

***

"Alright. Crack the eggs and I'll pour in the water and oil," I say as Diggy stands in front of the handheld electric mixer and bowl of dry mix.

"You crack the eggs. I ain't ya maid," he talks back.

"Fine," I reply with a roll of my neck. He pours in the liquid ingredients as I aggressively crack the first egg onto the table, which accidentally splatters yolk everywhere, including on Diggy's shorts. He jumps back and spots the stain.

"Yo! Watch what you're doing! What the heck?" He yells.

I giggle and scoop up the cracked egg into my hands, carrying it to the trash can. "Oops. Sorry..." I walk toward him with yolky hands and attempt to wipe it over his face, but he pushes my hands away and complains.

"Stop, Sam. Seriously... stop playing."

I wipe my hands with a towel and try again. I crack the eggs onto the table and pour them into the mixing bowl; a few shells drop inside but I scoop them out. "Alright. Now mix, peasant!"

Diggy struggles to find the right switch on the hand mixer then suddenly turns it on the highest speed, flinging some of the bowl's contents everywhere. I squeal and run to the opposite side of the kitchen. "What the heck? You're messier than I am!"

He quickly stops the mixer and glares at me. I slowly approach him and burst out laughing seeing his shirt and face covered in liquid spots, cocoa powder, and dark brown globs of brownie batter. There was a long streak of batter on his left cheek; I pointed to it while laughing.

"It's not funny..." is all he says.

I clear my throat and stop my giggles, getting back into character. "You're such an amateur. Why did I even hire you? Move. I got this." I push him aside and quickly start the blender. To my surprise, I also accidentally use the faster speed which causes more brown goo to splash onto Diggy's shirt causing him to back out of the way.

"Sam! Oh my God!" Diggy complains while staring down at his clothes in annoyance.

In between giggles, I try to comfort him. "It's fine... hahaha! It's just a little chocolate. You can change clothes later... hahaha!"

"Ain't nothin' funny," Diggy says. He dips his finger into the batter and pokes my cheek. Unfortunately, I was too slow to avoid his attack and I gasped.

"Diggy! Don't! You're gonna mess up my face!" I whine while wiping the chocolate off with my hand.

"Your face is already messed up."

I scrunch my nose and charge toward him with the chocolate on my fingertips, aiming for his face! He flashes a cheeky smile and runs around the table out of reach. "You're a freaking child, bro..." I say.

"How you gonna be mad at me when you started it?"

"It was an accident!" I lie while focusing back to the project at hand. We were having a bit too much fun and the food would be here in a few minutes. "Hurry up. Come on. Add the marshmallows and stuff..." I say while grabbing a handful of chocolate chips and sprinkling them on the batter.

Diggy cautiously approaches me, but once he realizes it's not a trap, he grabs the bag of marshmallows and sprinkles the sweet treat into the batter. We both finish it off by crumbling some Oreo cookies on top and less than two minutes later, the batter is in the oven ready to be baked for 36 minutes.

"Alright. Clean up this mess. I'll be upstairs," I say while washing my hands in the sink.

"I think you should clean the kitchen since you made 90% of the mess," Diggy retorts back. I look his way and cut my eyes at him.

"Aye. Who's the H.B.I.C. and who's the assistant?" I say, referring to myself as the head BEEP in charge!

"Who's house is this?" He replies with his hands on his hips.

"Yours, which means you should clean it. Bye!" I say while grabbing my water bottle and bolting out of the kitchen and up the stairs.

"Hey! Get back here!" Diggy calls but he can eat my dust. Hehehe.

***

Back in Diggy's bedroom, I'm chilling on the floor checking out the latest social media news on my cell phone. I checked my food delivery app and it showed that the tacos would be here in less than five minutes. Perfect timing. Suddenly, Diggy barges through the doorway and stands over me with an annoyed frown. I look up at him and smile.

"What's up? You all finished?"

"You're a kid, you know that?" He replies. "You coulda helped clean the countertop. It wasn't even that hard."

"Great. I'm glad you got it done since it was so easy."

"You're such a brat... but that's what I like about you," his expression quickly changes to a calm smile, which freaks me out.

"Hm?"

"I feel like you deserve a hug. Come here. Let me share all this love," Diggy adds while falling to his knees with his arms outstretched and moving toward me, and I realize that he's jokingly trying to attack me with his brownie batter-splattered shirt.

I press my hand to his chest, which I notice feels impressively muscular, and push him away while leaning away from him in disgust. "Stop! I'll punch you in the face!"

He sucks his teeth and backs away from me, grunting to stand up. "No, you won't," he says while walking to his closet and looking for a clean shirt to wear. He slips his arms inside of his sleeve holes and takes his shirt off over his head. I was a bit taken aback at his action as my eyes glued themselves to his muscular back, traveling from his shoulder blades to the curve of his lower back. I didn't mean to stare, but he was just... there. For some odd reason, my eyes are naturally gravitated towards his half-naked form and a part of me feels excited. But why? It's not like I haven't seen his back before during sports or whatever. And we've had plenty of pool parties and beach vacations over the last decade. It's nothing unique to see... so why was I feeling like this? Why am I interested? Ew. No. Never. He's my best friend, and he's just changing his shirt. Get a grip, Sam.

Once he finds another t-shirt, he slips it over his head and turns around to face me. He sits on the end of his bed, dangling his feet beside me. I clear my throat and look down at my phone screen pretending I wasn't just staring just now.

"How long until the food arrives?" He asks.

"It should be here, like, any minute."

He sighs. "All of that baking got my appetite up..."

*BEEP BEEP*

I got two text message notifications from my phone. I look and see that they're from Jake.

JAKE: Hey. After work tomorrow, you wanna have dinner with my mom and family? She's gonna cook a big meal and wants to see you again. She's not the only one ;)

JAKE: What do you say? Are you free?

My cheeks heat up as I type my reply back.

ME: I'm always free for you... :)

JAKE: Good. I'll see you then, baby.

A part of my insides squealed as he called me 'baby'. Ugh! Oh my gosh! Why does he make me feel all tingly inside just from a simple word? I smile to myself and bite my lip.

"What are you all giddy about?" Diggy asks.

I check my expression and shake my head. "Nothing..."

"Somebody's texting you. I wish you were that happy when you're talking to me..." He says, which throws me off guard. What does he mean by that?

I glance up at him and hide my phone in my lap. "I'm happy when I talk to you."

"Mm. But your face doesn't light up like it just did a few seconds ago..."

I bite my tongue and turn my attention back to my phone. "Why are you all up in my business anyway?"

"I mean, we're supposed to hang out today, but you're all up in your phone."

I furrow my eyebrows and glance up at him, trying to read his mind. "We are hanging out. Right now. In your room."

"But I would like all of your attention..." Diggy says in a serious but somewhat sultry tone.

"Tuh. Since when did you get so clingy?" I ask, confused by his comments.

"I just wanna spend time with my best friend, with no distractions," he reveals while swinging his feet. "Time is ticking and we may not get to hang like this too often in college."

I turn my body to face him while hugging my knees to my chest and frowning. "What are you talking about? We'll probably see each other every day in college. We'll probably get sick of each other before the second semester."

"'Probably' doesn't sound like a high enough possibility for me. You can't be sure how things are gonna go, especially once training season starts. We'll practically be slaves to the gym..." Diggy groans while fidgeting with his fingernails. "We'll only have time for basketball practice, classes, and sleep. We'll be busy with our own things and-- I just want to hang out like this with you as much as I can before that happens."

"Dig, where is all of this coming from? Why do you sound so negative? I thought you were excited about going to college?"

"I am! I just... started thinking realistic, I guess," he shrugs.

*BEEP BEEP*

I look down at my phone to see another text message from Jake.

JAKE: BTW, have I told you how much I love you today? Because I do. I can't wait to spend time with you tomorrow, and the next day, and the day after that...

I blush and roll my eyes. He's so annoyingly sweet. I giggle while telling him that I can't wait to see him either.

"That's Jake, isn't it?"

I quickly put my phone on the floor face down like I've committed a crime. "Maybe."

Diggy lays back on the bed and sighs. "Be honest with me, Sam. Do you see that lasting long? You and Jake?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean are you sure you wanna continue your relationship after graduation? He'll be 2,000 miles away from you. Jake's a good guy but... are you sure you wanna go through that?"

"Um... yes. We've talked about it already. It'll be a new experience, but I trust him. And I really like him. What's the issue?" I ask, feeling like he's digging into my personal life for no reason.

"I don't wanna see you get hurt... okay? College is about meeting a variety of people and trying new things. Do you really want to be tied down to one guy when you'd have a sea full of opportunities in LA?"

"Where are you going with this? Are you seriously trying to convince me that I shouldn't be with him? And trying to imply that I should dump him for some random college hook-up?"

He sits up and looks at me with a worried expression. "No! No! That's not what I was saying--"

"I like Jake, okay? And there's nothing you or anyone else can do to change my mind," I scoff as the food delivery app's alarm on my phone goes off. I stand to my feet. "You know, for someone who claims they're my best friend and they care about me, you're not very supportive."

"Sam. I support you. I just think you should be realistic about some things. You're gonna have so many opportunities in college, from new friendships to sports sponsorships. All I'm saying is I don't think you should let one person keep you from being happy and having a full college experience--" He explains while shrugging and raising his hands in the air.

"The only person keeping me from being happy right now is you. How 'bout that?"

*DING DONG*

The doorbell echoes through the house as I start to leave Diggy's bedroom, but not until I stop to add my last two cents to this crazy conversation. "How about you mind your own business and figure out the reality of keeping my relationship with Jake outta your mouth? Seriously."

"Sam--"

"Whatever this is - judgment or jealousy - it's not a good look on you," I add.

"I'm not judging you..."

I ignore his response and stomp my way down the stairs.