Pat informed us that our neighbors, Oliver and his crew, would be at a restaurant on the water five minutes from here. That gave Anna the bright idea of going ahead with our "date" idea. We were both excited, because aside from the fake dating, we were becoming pretty close friends. It's been a wild week and a half and was filled with us getting to know each other better. There were some kisses, but only when we caught Oliver walking down the beach, or at our volleyball game on Tuesday. Other than that, we refrained from what happened in the bathroom that night.

Anna barges into the room in her usual fashion. In her hands she's holding two boxes of hair dye.

"What are you doing with those?" I ask her, glancing up from my book.

"Well, I know you said you missed having red hair, so I found this really cool shade. I thought maybe we could get all dolled up for our date. I also think I have the perfect dress for you too."

"You don't have to-"

"Hey, we're friends right?"

I nod.

"Friends let friends borrow dresses and dye their hair."

She rushes over to the bed and kneels. She presses the two boxes together like she's begging me to do this with her. Her bottom lip jets out and she bats her wide beautiful dark eyes at me. I shut the book I'm reading, place it on the bed, then lean over on my stomach and face her.

"Okay."

"Really? Oh-my-god. We get to do a make-over montage."

I laugh. Her smile is radiant. I love how her face reddens a little because of her excitement. She plants a small quick kiss on my cheek, then backs away and waits for me. I get to my feet and follow her into the bathroom. I've never dyed my hair on my own before, so she goes through the steps with her hair first. Her choice is a sandy blonde, a little lighter than what her hair is now. It gives a perfect summer vibe. While her hair is sitting in the dye, she starts mine, gently applying the dye to my hair.

When her timer goes off I grab the detachable shower head and rinse out her hair. The tub water turns a weird light tan color as it washes down the drain. I run my gloved hands through her long drenched hair to make sure it's good, as I do her entire body relaxes and she releases a light moan. I pull away because my entire body feels like it's filled with pins and needles at her enjoying my touch.

My timer goes off shortly after and now it's her turn. I flip my hair over into the tub and kneel.

"This is going to look beautiful on you," she says, as she runs her fingers through my hair. Even with the gloves it still feels good.

I shiver, and I hope she doesn't notice. She takes her time getting all the red dye out. When we're all done we check ourselves in the long mirror on the back of the bathroom door. We stand with our bodies touching. We are both in towels, underneath we have our undergarments.

"Perfect. Can I do your makeup?"

I allow her to do that, and then when our hair is dry we get ourselves dressed. She holds up the dress she had in mine for me. The forest green is gorgeous. It's way shorter than I'm used to, and being a short girl, I'm not so sure it would fit me. Anna's legs are a bit longer than mine, and a dress like that is perfect for her, but I'm skeptical of it being fine for me.

I remove the towel from my body. She turns to dig through the closet, where she's made herself at home by hanging all of her clothes. I slip the dress on and adjust the off the shoulder part. She spins and her jaw drops. She grabs a pair of beige sandals and crosses the room, circling me like a shark. I take the shoes from her and slip them on while she's still taking me in.

"I'm sorry. You're just really beautiful."

"Thank you."

"I'm sorry," she says again. Her entire face, including the tops of her breasts, turn a shade of red.

We finish getting ready and while she gets her beautiful floral sundress on that compliments her new sandy hair, she's quiet.

Sally drives us, everyone follows along, but we are going to get a separate table and attempt to get one close to Oliver. I'm not sure why I'm going through with all of this, it's not like I expect him to come crawling back, but I still go along with it anyway.

The restaurant is absolutely beautiful. A wooden deck overlooks the beach, and with the setting sun the scene is filled with romance. Without hesitation Anna takes my hand and we head through the place together. We don't sit far from the others. Pat keeps looking over every few minutes to check on me. I give him a thumbs up. As he turns Oliver and his team walk in. The girl who had kissed him is nowhere to be seen, so this should be interesting.

The hostess seats them a few tables over, and I try not to look, but he spots me right away. There's a longing stare in his eyes, and my heart breaks all over again. He opens his mouth, like he wants to say something to me, but instead, turns to his friends. Although, his chair is facing me.

"Are you ready?" Anna asks, leaning over. She moves our chairs close together.

We're sitting at a small circular table, meant for two. She rests her head against mine, and places her hand between my thighs. I tense, because the feeling makes my stomach tingle.

"What are you going to order?" she asks. "This place is so fancy."

I laugh. "I have no idea. I hope they have more than just lobster and fish," I say.

"Not much of a fish eater?"

"I love sushi, but I don't know something about cooked fish that doesn't sit well with me."

She smiles and opens up the menu. We use one and keep our heads close together while we look. She glances up and whispers, "he can't stop watching."

I swallow hard, it feels crazy to be doing this. I try not to look and keep my attention focused on the beautifully crafted menu with pictures.

"They have a chicken sandwich, barbecue chicken," she says.

I decide on that, and she gets the hamburger. Apparently she's not a fan of cooked fish either.

We chat while we wait for our food. Her hand stays in it's spot on my leg and her body continues to press up against mine. I'm feeling all sorts of crazy feelings, but I'm trying to keep them at bay.

"What was traveling the world like?" I ask.

"Amazing. So much freedom. My parents hated that I skipped college to travel, but I learned so much more by doing so. They paid for everything, and I got to discover what I want to be when I grow up."

I laugh. "And what do you want to be?"

"My favorite part of the whole trip was the animals. I went to so many different seminars and took trips to their zoo's, and took wildlife safaris. I want to work with animals. I've been researching schools and figuring everything out."

"Now that's the best way to learn what you want to do in life. Wish I would have thought of that."

"I thought you loved writing?"

Our waiter comes over with the food. He's young and when he notices her hand on my thigh he almost spills the soda all over the table. His hands shake as he sets down our food, and his voice is taut as he asks if there's anything we need. Anna waves him away, and then puts her full attention back on me.

"I love writing. I'm just trying to be realistic. My parents weren't too happy with my major choice. They told me I should do something that guarantees me a job. Who really knows what they want to be at eighteen? Sometimes I feel like they were right. I mean sure I could do freelance work, work at a publishing house, but writing a novel, and getting someone's attention to publish and believe in it, is so disheartening sometimes."

"You should take a vacation with me and get some perspective on the world. Maybe it will inspire you to write the next big novel. That, and we'd be able to spend more time together."

I glance over at her, as she spills some ketchup on her burger with the glass condiment bottle.

"Why do you look so shocked?" She puts the bottle back on the table. "I've had a lot of fun this past week, more than I have had in a while. Pat was probably my only friend in High School. Girls didn't like me much, because I was too forward, and boys just wanted one thing. You're my first real girl that's a Friend."

"I've had a lot of fun too. I was worried about how this summer would go. It sucked going into it knowing I'd be heartbroken, but here I am having an amazing time with you. You're making me forget everything, and I'm happy."

I squirm under her intense stare. "I think he's watching us," she whispers.

I glance over briefly, but he's not. I stare back and notice that her eyes are consumed by my lips. Without worrying about him staring I lean forward and press my lips to hers. Her hand returns to my thigh and I have to bite back the urge to let out a moan. I don't want to admit this feels more real than any kiss I had with Oliver. Her hand grazes my cheek and I lean into it. She pulls away and rests her forehead against mine. Our breathing falls in sync with each other. My eyes open to find her watching me.

"We should eat before our food gets cold," she whispers.

"Yup," I respond, but neither of us move.

"Is he still watching?" she asks.

I twist my head so that I can see him, and sure enough this time he actually is. It's only been a week, but this fake relationship is more real than anything I've ever felt before. For the rest of our date it's easy to ignore Oliver as I get swept up in conversation with Anna about her life, and she pays very close attention to my own.