Abby and Jess had been friends for what seemed like forever. They told each other everything-things they'd never tell anybody else. They were the picture perfect example of best friends. Well, almost everything. There was one thing Abby never discussed with Jess, and that was the encounter she'd had with Jess's father.
It was only a few weeks back--Abby was spending the night and woke up with a split lip from the El NiΓ±o. She got up and went to the kitchen to get a glass of water. When she got to the bottom of the steps she saw that the kitchen light was already on and could hear Jess's father rummaging around in the fridge. She realized that all she had on were boxer shorts and a little cami and wasn't sure if she should go put her bra and underwear on first...it wasn't like he'd never seen her in pajamas before; she'd been over to Jess's house hundreds of times. But she wasn't seven anymore, she was almost nineteen.
In the middle of her train of thought she snapped back to the present when her lip split again. It hurt too badly for her to wait any longer so she pushed her questions aside and walked into the kitchen, trying to keep as little of herself exposed as possible. When Jess's dad heard her he turned around and gasped.
"Jesus, Abby! Your lip is bleeding!"
She'd only felt it split, but she never passed a mirror to see the extent of the damage. When she heard this, she freaked out just as much as he had. She ran over to the cabinet to get a glass, but all of the cups that belonged on the lower shelf were gone and she was having a hard time reaching the ones on the top shelf. That is when it happened. Jess's dad came up behind her to grab the glass, but he didn't bother saying anything or waiting for her to step aside. Instead, he pressed right up behind her and she could feel him through his thin night pants on her backside. He grabbed the cup and brought it down questionably slow and she could swear he grazed her chest on purpose as he handed her the glass.
She got the water and went back upstairs, her mind swimming. She replayed the incident again and again in her mind, the story getting slightly warped in her mind with each new theory. After all, they were both a little shocked...it was 1:00a.m., and she was bleeding...maybe he was just trying to help.
One strange thing she noticed was that she wasn't grossed out by the possibility that Jess's dad had made a move on her, she was more flattered. After all, he was fairly good looking for a man his age, and not many boys her own age talked to her. Besides that, she knew how well he had treated Jess her whole life, giving her everything she needed, always coming to their soccer games, never abandoning her like her mother had. And so what if she was attracted to her best friend's father?
These thoughts continued well through the night and over the next few weeks. Then, her thoughts came to a halt when she heard the car honk outside. She'd been waiting two weeks and it was finally happening! She was going to a cabin in the mountains that Jess's father rented out for the three of them for a week of skiing, building snowmen, and forgetting the outside world. Abby grabbed her knit hat and hugged her mom goodbye. Then, she lugged her bag out the front door where she was met by Jess's dad. She couldn't help but crack a huge smile at the sight of him, finding it amusing that he had no idea where her mind had been only minutes before. He grabbed her bag and threw it in the trunk with the rest of their things. Less than a minute later they were on the road.