Total pages in book: 74
Estimated words: 72060 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 360(@200wpm)___ 288(@250wpm)___ 240(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 72060 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 360(@200wpm)___ 288(@250wpm)___ 240(@300wpm)
I return to the topic. “I mean, if I had a boyfriend all through high school, I wouldn’t still be a virgin,” I point out, and Dex nearly chokes on his popcorn.
“Bruh, are you okay?” I hand him his soda, and he takes a long sip.
“Wrong pipe,” he replies when he can finally talk again.
By the final preview, our popcorn is nearly gone. I make my way back to the lobby for refills on our sodas, and then we get lost in the movie. Our forearms are side by side on the armrest, and I have the urge to reach for his hand. But I resist. It’s enough that I came up with this additional date idea to begin with, let alone thinking way too much about what Dex looks like naked.
I’m more than certain I have a huge-ass crush on my best friend, and I’m probably in for a world of hurt when all this ends. But I can’t seem to stop myself from wanting to hang out with him and pretend we’re on our fourth date.
Once the movie ends, we stand and stretch. “That was better than I thought it would be.”
“Yeah?” he asks, and I nod. “Guess this means we’re having a Godzilla movie marathon.”
“I changed my mind. It was awful.”
He laughs as we walk out together.
“What do you have planned for us now?”
He tugs on my hand, and we start down the street. Two blocks later, we’re in front of our destination. “Miniature golf?”
“Alice in Wonderland themed.” He smiles like the Cheshire Cat.
“This is lit,” I remark as he leads me inside the Putt-Putt place. Thoughtful too. Dex obviously remembers me telling him I read this book so many times as a kid that it fell apart at the seams. It was my mom’s copy from childhood, and I was immediately enchanted. To the point that I asked for Mad Hatter bedsheets that were surprisingly hard to find and settled for stickers and a poster with one of my favorite quotes: “The secret, Alice, is to surround yourself with people who make your heart smile. It’s then, only then, that you’ll find Wonderland.”
We stand in front of the first hole, marveling at the gigantic White Rabbit hovering above us in all its glory. “Is it true that Lewis Carroll was consuming copious amounts of absinthe when he wrote Through the Looking Glass?”
“Who knows.” I take my shot, which ends up stuck behind a bumper. “Would you be at all surprised?”
“Nope.” When Dex’s ball ends up in the small pond, I laugh, glad he’s as inept as me. “Damn it.”
As he fishes the ball out with his club, I say, “Maybe we should aim for highest score instead of lowest.”
“Deal.” He clinks his club against mine.
I line up to take a shot. “Whose idea was it anyway to make up a game where you aim to shoot a ball into a hole?”
Dex stares at me. “You do realize what you just said, right?”
“Wh—oh God.” Dex laughs when I lob the ball way too hard.
We move from the White Rabbit to the Mad Hatter and then to the tea party, which follows along with the book. I’m having more fun checking out the colorful displays in this place than worrying about our scores.
Plus, there’s still that thing I’ve wanted to talk to Dex about since the movie theater. Maybe it’s time to just spit it out. “So I’ve been thinking…that I don’t want to be a virgin anymore.”
Mid-swing, Dex misses the ball completely.
“Okay, sure, that’s obvious.” He scrutinizes me. “What exactly are you saying?”
“I was thinking that since I’ve been getting more experience with you anyway…” My pulse patters in my veins. “That maybe you should be the one to take my virginity.”
Dex’s eyes widen, and he steps away from the next hole, allowing another group to get ahead of us. “Don’t you think it should be someone you feel special about?”
I can’t look him in the eye. “I feel special about you.”
“Damn, Austin, what are you thinking?” His breathing is getting so labored that I’m regretting bringing it up.
“You know what? I should’ve never mentioned it.”
“No, it’s okay.” Dex seems to snap out of whatever shocked state he’s in. “Maybe you should practice more with Dildo Baggins.”
“Already have.” I lower my voice. “It’s not the same, and you know it.”
He traces a hand over his face. “You’re killing me here.”
“We already proved that our friendship can hold up through all this pretending and practicing…” I glance over his shoulder to be sure the group moved on. “So why not help a virgin out?”
“I…” He shakes his head. “I’ll think about it. Let’s just get through the rest of this game.”
The last hole is the garden scene, and by then, I’m ready to be rid of this neon-pink ball. Dex is obviously taken aback by discussing my virginity, but he also seems upset, which is confusing. Did I offend him in some way? Haven’t we been touching and kissing under the guise of fake dating? How is this any different?