Had it really been that long since they had seen each other? Jess was genuinely surprised by the news, but the rock on her friend's finger told no lies.
"Holy shit Beth, that's fucking huge. And gorgeous. Where did you find this guy?"
Maybe there was a tinge of jealousy - it wasn't exactly a secret to anyone that Jess herself fantasized about getting married, settling down. But really, she was happy for Beth. The truth was that if anyone in their friend group deserved this, it was Beth.
"I want in on the planning. And I better be in the wedding party."
It wasn’t uncommon for Chris to find himself at the Washington’s house in the summer holidays. With his mother always working at the hospital and an abundance of company with the Josh’s family, he practically lived at their home during the summer. Chris had always felt like he belonged with the other kids, even if he was about ten shades paler and half a foot taller than the rest of them but at fourteen, he didn’t care or notice. Josh, Beth and Hannah were almost like his siblings, ones he always wanted but never had the chance to get.
The Washington’s themselves were always busy and they left the four children to their own devices. It was a particularly hot day when they found their selves in town at the local pool, cooling off in the water. Chris was six layers deep in sun screen as he watched Josh flirt with any pretty girl that walked by. Hannah and Beth had gone to buy them ice cream and he was thinking that the day couldn’t get any better, even if he woke up in the morning brighter than a tomato.
The raised voice of a girl caught his attention and when he glanced over at the shop, Chris saw Hannah on the ground and Beth yelling at some older boys. It was difficult to see what was going on so while Josh was busy, he made his way over. The closer he got, the angrier he became. Hannah’s glasses were on the ground, snapped into two pieces while the older boys laughed off Beth’s threats.
“What the fuck is going on?” He asked once in ear shot, stopping to rest a hand on Hannah’s shoulder. The elder of the twins was clearly distraught and even more so because she couldn’t see. Chris knew that pain and had often been on the bad end of bullying that had cost him more than one pair of glasses in his day.
“They- they broke my g-glasses.” Hannah stuttered as she tried to regain her breath but tears still fell freely. This was obviously what had gotten Beth so angry and Chris suddenly was too.
“You think it’s funny to pick on a girl? What is wrong with you? Go pick on someone your own size, assholes.” Chris said, moving to stand by Beth’s side. It was brave but it was also stupid. The boys were sixteen at least and even though he was tall for his age, they were taller and bigger than he was. Uglier too, but he thought it best not to mention that part.
“Oh yeah, poindexter? What are you going to do about it?” The taller bully leered at him before turning his attention back to Beth, clearly convinced that he wasn’t going to do anything about it. But he was sorely mistaken ( a pun that he was planning on making later) because Chris had been rough housing with Josh for years and knew how to fight dirty.
He landed an knee to the first bully’s stomach before he elbowed the second on the nose. The upper hand was quickly lost because there was two of them after all. His glasses were the first thing to go as a fist found his nose and then another found his stomach. He was on his knees, wheezing for breath when more yelps of pain cried out above him.
After a few moments of yelling and then more fighting, Chris’s glasses were held out to him and slipped back onto his face. Blinking a few times, Chris’s vision settled again and he looked around at the carnage before him. Both bullies were on the ground, one clutching his crotch and the other his nose with blood streaming down his fingers. His initial thought was it had to be Josh but he was running over to check on his sisters.
Then he saw Beth, still seething with rage as she glowered at the boys, her fists curled at her sides. Never had he been more in awe of her than he was in that moment. Beth had never been the violent type but she was protective, still he found himself staring at her in amazement until she finally met his eyes. The tension and anger seemed to ease out of her shoulders until she smiled shyly.
“You’re so bad ass!” He said in awe, his smile widening for a moment before pain shot through his nose. A string of curses spilled from his lips as he clutched it, trying to ease the pain. By then the lifeguard had arrived and was asking them all to leave. They scurried to grab their towels and bags before running back through town and to the Washington home.
It was hours later that they were preparing popcorn for movie night that Beth and Chris found themselves alone. They watched the microwave as the bag popped in the heat and sat in comfortable silence.
“Thank you.” Beth said, catching his attention.
“For what?” Chris’s expression changed into one of confusion. The popcorn was theirs so it couldn’t have been that.
“For sticking up for Hannah.” Chris quickly tried to brush it off. He hadn’t done much other than get his ass kicked but Beth would have nothing of it.
“You stuck up for her and that’s what matters, so thank you.” She said, leaning up to press a kiss to his cheek. The microwave beeped as it counted down to zero but the distraction wasn’t enough to cover the blush that seeped into his cheeks.
Beth was kind enough not to point it out but as she took the bag of popcorn from the microwave and poured it into a bowl, she seemed to be wearing the same silly grin that he was.
As soon as the door is open, he’s talking a mile a minute, entirely
unaware that it isn’t Josh at the door because in his arms he is
holding a stack of board games that he can’t see around.
“Bro! You’re not gonna believe what I found! You remember that
shitty horror game Atmosfear with the video? Well I found more
than that! I found out there was three expansions as well and this
thrift shop in town had ALL four! Wait, you have a video player
don’t you?”
