Chapter 62: Best friend shouldn’t know how I taste
MAYA’S POV
I woke up sweaty and flushed. My chest was heaving heavily as a result of the dream I had just woken up from. I turned to my side and saw that it was empty. I was about to dash out to look for Evan when I saw a letter on my bedside table.
/Chipmunk I woke up early and went for practice. Tnx for last night xoxo./
I sighed in relief and dropped back onto the bed, bouncing a little from the impact. I had the weirdest dream. I was kissing Evan like really kissing him. It was hot and steamy as hell but it was wrong, so wrong.
I shook my head, sat up and checked my phone. It was 7:08, shit I was late for school. I dash into the bathroom and started getting ready for a very long educational day.
I was halfway to my English Literature class with iced coffee in hand, oversized sunglasses shielding my slightly red eyes from judgment, when they appeared in my front.
Like a very blonde wall of heavily made up Barbie’s. The Bennett Triplets.
“Hi, Maya,” the middle one said sweetly, drawing out my name like it had too many syllables. “We were just talking about you.”
“Lucky me,” I muttered, taking a sip of coffee and braced myself for the trouble that Evan had put me in. “What’s up, Barbie?”
Triplet number one crossed her arms. “We heard Evan broke things off with all three of us.”
"He was with you? I thought it was just rumors." I feigned ignorance.
Triplet number two stepped closer. “ He was with us alright, at the same time, Maya.”
Triplet number three didn’t speak. She just glared, giving me a mascara filled death stare.
I raised an eyebrow. “Okay. But why are you telling me this? He’s not my boyfriend or my child.”
“But he’s your best friend, right?” the first one said, tilting her head. “The one he’s constantly with? Constantly texting? Constantly defending like you’re some helpless little pet?”
Triplet number two chimed in. “He only went after us because we looked like you, Maya. Did you know that?”
Now that made me blink in disbelief. “ You say what?” i said flatly.
“Oh, come on,” the third one finally spoke, her voice sharp as a dagger. “The blonde hair, the same mouth, the same nose. He even said it once, that he had a type. We didn’t realize the type was you until now.”
I scoffed. “You’re overreacting.”
Triplet number one smirked. “Are we?”
“I’ve known Dean since pre school,” i snapped. “We’ve shared toothbrushes, hospital bracelets, and once, regrettably, a rash cream. He’s not into me like that. He’s never been into me like that.”
They looked at each other knowingly, like a cult sharing a vision.
“Keep telling yourself that,” the second one purred. “But let’s be real here, how long can a guy look at his ‘best friend’ and not eventually want a taste?”
That statement made my heart jump in my chest.
And just like that, a very real, very uninvited image flashed in my mind. The dream I had last night.
Evan's hands were on my hips while his mouth was planting kisses on my neck. My breathless moan and his lips coming down and claiming mine like he meant it. Like I was the only girl in the world. Except it wasn’t real, It was a dream.
Or… at least, I kept telling myself it had to be.
I shoved the thought aside and buried it deep. I tried to will my face not to flush.
“I’m not the reason Evan broke up with you,” I tried to say calmly. “If anything, you are.”
“Ouch,” Triplet number three said. “Big words from a girl who’s clearly lying to herself.”
And then..
“Hey!”
Evan's voice sliced through the tension like a sword wrapped in plastic. He strolled up casually in a tight white tee, sunglasses, and a slight smirk, looking like someone who absolutely ruined a girl's emotional stability last night and slept great after.
“Leave her alone,” he said to the girls, standing just slightly in front of me.
“Oh, look,” Triplet number one said, her smile syrupy. “Here comes the hero.”
Triplet number two folded her arms. “Tell me, Evan, is she really worth it?”
Triplet number three didn’t wait for an answer. “You’re fucking your best friend now, aren’t you?”
Evan didn't flinch, but I did.
Evan stepped closer, his eyes trained on them, steady. “We’re done. Go mess with someone else’s head, or maybe each other’s since you’re good at sharing.”
The triplets left in synchronized high-heeled fury, muttering things like “loser” and “mid at best,” even though everyone knew Evan was objectively hot enough to model cologne ads shirtless in black-and-white.
I turned to him the second they were gone. “That was unnecessary.”
“They were harassing you.”
“I could handle it.”
“You didn’t look like you wanted to.”
I opened my mouth but then closed it again.
He looked down at me with concern. “You okay?”
“I’m fine,” I lied. Because no, I wasn't okay.
I couldn’t stop thinking about what they said. About the way my stomach had fluttered the second Evan arrived. About how I didn’t even deny the accusation, we had done worse than kiss in that dream. A dream that felt too damn real.
Evan shifted closer. “They were wrong, you know.”
“About what?”
He hesitated. “You being just my best friend.”
My heart paused, but I quickly laughed it off. “We’re not doing this, Evan.”
He raised an eyebrow. “Doing what?”
“This weird... vibe thing. You broke up with the hottest set of triplets on campus, and now everyone thinks we’re banging.”
“Well,” he said, smirking. “We could.”
I shoved him lightly. “Evan!”
But the smile didn’t leave my lips, or his.