Jenny sat in the airplane, staring dully out of the window. She could see nothing but blue sky, and fluffy clouds below, but the sight didn't matter to her right now. She was still pissed off when she reminded herself just where she was heading for her holidays. It had all been her parents' idea, because they, selfish as they were, had decided to spend three weeks in Hawaii together, and not even considered leaving Jenny alone in the house for that time. No, apparently she couldn't be trusted, despite being 18 now, despite never having misbehaved in a way that showed she was imature. She respected her parents, she didn't smoke, only very rarely drank, and she was even still a virgin, for god's sake. Plus she wasn't stupid. What could possibly be so dangerous about her staying home alone? She brushed her long brown hair behin her ear angrily and sighed.
Then she remembered her dad talking to Tim Johnson. The two were old friends, from way back in high school, and Jenny faintly remembered the two families meeting up a few times when she had been a little child, maybe about seven or eight years old. The Johnsons had then moved to another state though, and there had rarely been any contact between the two families afterwards.
Tim's call had surprised Jenny's parents, but when he announced that a business trip would bring him back to the area, especially her dad was looking forward to seeing his old friend again.
Jenny had been washing dishes in the kitchen and overheard the two men's boring conversation about old times, and only really begun to listen when Tim said: "My goodness Richard, I hardly recognized Jenny when I saw her. She's grown up into quite a lovely young lady!"
"Well, when was the last time you saw her Tim?" her dad laughed. "She was eight, wasn't she? No wonder you don't recognize her!"
"Oh, don't remind me, time passes so fast these days..." Tim sighed. "But you're right, she was eight. Kevin was nine when we moved, and Steve was twelve. Those two have grown up too."
They drooled on about old times and growing up, and then Tim said: "You know, I think it might be a nice idea for Jenny to come and visit us some time, to meet up with my sons again. They might not even remember each other, isn't that a shame?"
Her dad agreed. "That's right, they always used to get along so well, didn't they? As a matter of fact, we're still trying to think of a place Jenny could stay while we're in Hawaii over the summer. What do you think, wouldn't that be a nice opportunity?"
That had been it. That evening, when Tim had left the house, Jenny had not been able to hold back anymore. "Dad! You're not really expecting me to go there, are you?"
Her dad had only arched his eyebrows up. "What are you talking about, Jenny?"
"The Johnsons!" she explained. "I like Tim and Shelly, but honestly, don't you remember Steve and Kevin never getting along with me? Donβt you remember how Steve pushed me around all the time, and how they nearly drowned me in their pool? They're so nasty!"
"Now now, Jenny!" her dad said. "As you have grown up, so have they, and I'm pretty sure nobody will be drowning you in a pool this summer."
He obviously found this funny, letting out a short laugh and turning to leave the kitchen. For him, the conversation was seemingly over.
Jenny tried to talk her parents out of sending her to the Johnsons quite a few times over the next few weeks, but to no avail. They simply wouldn't listen to her arguments of how mean Kevin and Steve had always been, or plain laugh at her because she was making such a fuss about visiting old friends.
And now, she was sitting in the airplane taking her closer to the most dreaded three weeks of her life. She doubted that the two boys would behave towards her just like they had as children, but she doubted they would act like good hosts for her. She was afraid that she might be bored out of her mind by the end of the three weeks.
Soon, the airplane was in the process of landing, while Jenny, with her eyes closed, tried to swallow the feeling of sickness she frequently had on airplanes during takeoff and landing. She was glad when it was over and the plane was rolling slowly towards its final destination on the small airport. Once it stood, people started to raise from their seats β naturally before it had been announced that they could β and get their baggage from the overhead compartments. Jenny had her small backpack on the empty seat next to hers, so there was no need for her to get up before the doors were actually open and they could get out. Finally though, the crowd started to move towards the exit, and Jenny raised from her seat to do the same.
When she had finally reached the actual terminal through the walkway, people were hugging and greeting each other everywhere around her, and she couldn't make out anyone of the Johnsons. She didn't know who had been sent to get her from the airport, and it didn't seem like anyone was here for her, unless...
She really had to look twice. Two boys were standing there, glancing in her direction and debating with each other. The older one looked like he could be 22, Steves age, and he had gorgeous brown eyes, short brown hair and just about the nicest body she had ever seen, as far as Jenny could judge from this distance. The tight shirt he was wearing really showed off his muscles. The younger one might be Kevin, he should be 19 by now, she remembered. He also had brown eyes, lighter hair than Steve, and he was a bit thinner and less muscular than his brother, although he still looked like he worked out a lot. He was a bit taller than his brother though.
Guessing they weren't sure whether it was her or not, she started to walk towards them with a shy smile on her face. When she was close, the boys started to smile as well.
"Jenny?" the older one asked.
"Yeah," she muttered back. Damnit! How could they have turned into such hunks in ten years? "Hi Steve," she breathed, then turning to the other one. "Hi Kevin!"
"Hi," he gave back. "How was the flight?"
"Nice," she nodded. "I mean, I always get sick and such, but apart from that it was alright."
"Great," Steve smiled. "Now, let's go get your bags, and we can talk in the car."
The three turned and walked towards the baggage claim, where they waited and chatted for a while. Jenny was still a bit stunned that the two guys who had given her hell when she was eight had turned out so well, and so polite apart from that. They made it sound like they were indeed happy to see her again, which surprised her and she swallowed a little hard. Maybe she had been too preoccupied... she definitely needed to re-think her attitude. When the baggage arrived, Steve and Kevin each grabbed a suitcase and they marched off with her towards the exit and to the car.
The house of the Johnson family was in a small, friendly looking community. When they stopped in the driveway, Steve went out of the driver's seat and opened the passenger door for Jenny before going to the back to get her suitcases out. Kevin helped, and together they entered the house.
"Mom!" Steve yelled. "We're back!"
Only a second later, Shelly Johnson emerged from what Jenny took to be the kitchen with a towel in her hands. She smiled happily when she saw her guest for the summer.
"Jenny! How nice to see you again! Tim warned me about you growing up so much, but I had to see it with my own eyes... goodness, you turned into quite a woman, don't you think boys?"
She'd forgotten about her overenthusiastic ways, Jenny realized, while Steve and Kevin gave an obligatory nod as answer to her question.
"I'll get you some lemonade, I remember you like that, or would you rather have a coke, now that you're so grown up? Oh, Jenny, it's so nice to have you here with us, we'll have an absolutely fabulous time, I should think!" Shelly turned to go back into the kitchen.