Cherry Pie

“Say something, please?”

“I already did,” she snaps, her back still turned to me. She glances over her shoulder at me, her eyes narrowed. “Homewrecker.”

The word hangs there for one second, and then, almost as if we’ve rehearsed it, the both of us suddenly just dissolve into giggles. And it’s like a dam giving way—the tension shattering as we both howl in laughter, rolling on the floor of the treehouse.

“I don’t know why I keep saying that!” Amy cries through peals of laughter.

“No! No, say it!” I giggle back. “Dude, call me whatever you want.”

My laughter starts to fade, and I gasp for air, panting as I roll back upright and look at her. I chew at my lip.

“Call me whatever you want, Ames,” I say quietly. “I deserve it.”

She titters out one more laugh before she takes a heaving breath and curls her legs under her to sit up right. She scowls, pursing her lips.

“No, you don’t.”

“I do. C’mon, Amy, I—”

“You said you love him?”

I swallow, nodding slowly. She looks away, her fingers twisting together in her lap.

“How did it—” she makes a face and shakes her head. “No, forget I asked. I don’t want to know.”

Which is good, because as much as I want to come clean with her, I am not delving into the whole thing about secret clubs and me putting my freaking virginity up for auction.

“It just happened, I don’t know,” I say quietly.

Amy nods, her hands still twisting together.

“He does seem really happy.”

“Amy, it’s only been a few days, and I swear, I never like, planned for this to happ—”

“But it did.” She holds my gaze. Not angry, not smiling, just neutral.

“It did, yeah.”

She takes a deep breath, blowing air through her lips.

“Yeah but, he’s really happy. Happy like I haven’t seen him in a while. That shadow he’s always got hanging over his eyes is gone.” She eyes me. “Look, if this is a fling for you—”

“It’s not.”

“If it is, though, I don’t know if I can—”

“It’s not,” I say icily, my pulse pounding as my eyes lock with hers.

I swallow the heat from my face, and Amy’s lips twist as she slowly nods.

“Better not be,” she mutters. “You hurt my dad and I swear…”

“Not going to happen.”

She nods, and slowly, that grin peeks at the corners of her lips.

“Okay, this is weird.”

I groan. “I know, and I’m so—”

“Kendall, don’t apologize.”

I bark a brittle laugh. “I really think I should.”

“No, you shouldn’t. Not for loving—” she frowns. “Not for liking my dad like that.”

“Loving,” I say quietly. And slowly, she grins.

“Goddamnit, Kendall,” she mutters, getting to her feet and stomping over to me. She plops down in front of me and takes my hands in hers as she takes a big breath.

“I think we’re going to be okay.”

“We’d better be,” I say quietly. “Ames, if we’re not, I swear, this whole thing is over, today.”

“Bullshit,” she grins. “A, I’d never ask you to do that.”

“You wouldn’t have to.”

She rolls her eyes. “And B, we really are going to be okay, you know.” She smiles wryly at me. “Jesus Christ I can’t believe I’m about to say even say this but are you guys gonna…” she makes a face. “Are you going to get married?”

I blush scarlet, looking away.

“Jesus, Amy, I don’t know.”

“Oh my God you totally are.”

I couldn’t stop the grin that spreads across my face even if I tried. And I do.

Amy hoots out a laugh. “Oh God that’s so weird. No, it’s not bad weird, just weird.” She snorts. “I am not calling you mom, or stepmom, or any of that shit, okay?”

I make a fake, pantomiming sticking a finger in my throat. “Yeah, please don’t.”

“And let’s be clear, you’re never disciplining me, or calling me out on curfew or any of that shit. Got it?”

“I wouldn’t dream of it. Would you even listen if I tried to?”

Amy gives me a look. “Take a wild guess.”

I grin, squeezing her hand.

“And I swear to God,” she mutters. “If I ever hear you and my dad boning, I’m going to throw the fuck up and move to Antarctica.”

I groan, burying my face in my hands.

“What if we never go there, conversationally. Like, ever.”

Amy throw her hands in the air “A-fucking-men to that.”

We look at each other, we both grin, and suddenly, we’ve got our arms around each other, hugging each other as hard as any hug has ever hugged.

“I love you, you know,” I whisper fiercely into her shoulder.

“I love you too, you homewrecking ho,” she giggles back.

I laugh. “Hey!”

Amy snorts, hugging me harder.

“Kidding. You’re not a ho. Just a homewrecker.”

I roll my eyes. “Don’t make me lower your curfew, young lady.”

The both of us crack up again, hugging each other as we cry with laughter.

“We’re gonna be okay,” Amy says fiercely through the giggles, hugging me close.