Page 11 of Another Love, Another Time

Auggie’s team and mine it to the state championship this year.

It was a last-minute planned trip since neither of us knew if our teams would make it.

Neither of our dads was able to get off work, so it’s just the moms and the kids.

Aunt Jess was able to find a house to rent for the weekend close to where we are playing. All the hotels were booked.

The house we are staying in is one of the nicest places we have ever stayed.

It has three bedrooms, so Logan, Serena, Auggie, and I are in one room with bunk beds.

Brock is sleeping on the pull-out couch in the living room, and Aunt Connie is sharing a room with Ellie.

My mom and Aunt Jess are in the same room.

When everyone went to sleep, Auggie snuck into my bunk.

We are both lying on our backs, talking about how our games went today, what we could have done better, and what we need to do to get better.

Auggie is quiet for a minute, and then he rolls over to his side.

“Hey, River, have you had any boys ask you out yet?”

I roll over on my side to face him. “Yeah, a few have. Why?”

“What did you tell them?”

“‘No!’ What the heck would I do with a boyfriend?”

He laughs. “You would hold their hand, go to the movies, kiss them.”

Is that what he has been doing? I suddenly don’t feel so good. Does he have a girlfriend? Has he been kissing girls? I always thought we would be each other’s first kiss.

“Riv?” he asks after I don’t say anything.

“Do you have a girlfriend?” I blurt. “I know you have girls asking you out. Have you kissed them?”

“Calm down, Riv. I don’t have a girlfriend, and I haven’t kissed anyone.” I let out the breath I’ve been holding.

“Would you like to kiss? Me, I mean?” I wet my lips, and I close my eyes, but after a second, I peek for his reaction.

“You want to kiss? Me? With tongue?” he asks.

I shrug. “Why not? I’ve always wanted you to be my first kiss.”

He rolls over to his side and props himself up on his elbow, “Sure, let’s do it.”

I mirror him, rolling on my side. I swipe my tongue across my bottom lip to wet it again. My mouth has suddenly gone dry. Oh gosh, why did I suggest this? Are my lips chapped?

Auggie starts to lean forward, and I meet him halfway.

As soon as our lips connect, I feel the butterflies.

His arms wrap around my waist, and he pulls me closer, so we are chest to chest. His lips are soft and full.

I really hope he’s feeling the same thing.

Softly, I feel his tongue caress my lips like he’s asking permission to enter.

I willingly open my mouth as he explores.

His tongue feels awkward but nice. I can feel his tongue graze the roof of my mouth, and it tickles.

I giggle a little. We both pull apart, and we are both grinning.

“How was that?” he asks shyly.

“It was good, really good.”

“It was, wasn’t it? I’m glad that your first kiss was with me.”

“Yeah.”

“Yeah,” he responds.

I’m silent for a minute deciding if I should say what I’m currently thinking.

We’ve both been through sex ed, so I know what sex is.

I have friends who are sexually active. During class, they always tell us that if we are going to have sex, it needs to be with someone we care about, and they need to care about you.

When I think about that person, I always think of Auggie.

“Auggie, I want you to be all of my firsts when I’m ready.

I can’t imagine them being with anyone but you.

I’m not ready, but I trust you. Some of my friends have started having sex.

I’m not ready for that, but I really want you to be the first person I have sex with.

” I hold my breath and wait for him to respond.

He’s silent for a minute, and I think he’s going to say “no.” Maybe what I’ve always felt with him is not right, but he says, “Me too. I want you to be my first, too.”

I can breathe again. With this confession, I push on.

I have been thinking about something else for a long time, and since we are talking about firsts, it makes me think about one of the books I recently read.

In it, best friends promised to go to prom together.

I’m not into that kind of thing, but I would be if Auggie goes with me.

“Hey, Aug, I know it’s a long time from now, but for our senior year, would you be my date to prom?”

“Man, River. You are asking a lot out of me tonight.” I can tell he’s kidding. “What if you have a boyfriend by then?”

“I won’t, but if I do, I’ll just tell him I already have a date.”

“I’ll be your date, but on one condition.”

“Okay,” I reply, dragging it out.

“You have to go to my prom with me, too. If you agree, then we have a deal.”

I repeat his question back to him, “What if you have a girlfriend by then?

He smirks. “I won’t, but if I do, I’ll just tell her I can’t go with her because I already have a date.”

I push his shoulder back and say, “Deal.”

“You’ll want to practice that kiss again; I know what a perfectionist you are.”

I answer him by pressing my lips against his.

~~

We just got back to the house from another long day at the ball fields. Everyone is exhausted, including me. I just got off the phone with my dad, letting him know that we all won our games. He congratulated us.

After I hang up, I jump in the shower to wash all the dirt off me. Man, showers are one of my favorite things. My quads are really tight from squatting all day long. I may need to take some Aleve and rub some Tiger Balm into them.

I rinse the soap off my body, turn the water off, and grab my towel.

I pull on one of Auggie’s old shirts and a pair of pajama shorts.

In my bag, I find the bottle of Aleve, shake a couple of pills into my hand, and swallow them with some water.

I throw the bottle back in my bag and start digging through my bag again to find my jar of Tiger Balm.

Then, I carry the jar back into the room and sit down on the bed.

Selena went home today with someone from our team. She is going to stay the night with one of her friends. Logan fell asleep in the living room as soon as we got back, leaving Auggie and me in the room.

Auggie walks in. He had taken a shower in his mom’s bathroom. He looks down and sees the jar of Tiger Balm in my hand. “I’ll do you if you do me,” he says.

“Sure. It’s mainly my quads, but I wouldn’t mind some on my back.”

“Lie down on your stomach, and pull your shirt up.”

I lie on my stomach and lift my shirt up high on my back. He straddles my back. I can hear him open the jar, and then I can smell the Tiger Balm. Then, I feel his fingers start rubbing up and down my sore muscles.

I groan, “That feels so good.”

I feel him go still.

“Are you okay?” I ask.

Auggie shifts off me. “Uh, yeah. I’m just going to do your legs now.” Then, he starts rubbing the Tiger Balm on my legs.

We have done this before, but this feels different. Maybe it was the kiss that we exchanged yesterday. I have been thinking about it all day. I’m hoping we can kiss some more today, especially since we don’t have to worry about Logan or Selena waking up.

He finishes my second leg and taps my butt, letting me know it’s his turn.

I get up, and we change places. He pulls his shirt off over his head.

I see him adjust himself before he lies down on his stomach.

Then, I straddle him like he did me. I grab the jar of Tiger Balm and scoop some with my fingers.

I rub my palms around so it’s evenly coating my hands, and then I start to rub them up and down Auggie’s back.

I use my fingers to press into his skin.

He mimics the sounds that I was making just a few minutes before. I start at the top and slowly rub all the way down his back. I repeat that three more times. He has more muscles than other kids his age, with all the workouts he does to stay in shape for baseball.

Once I get done with his back, I move farther down his lower back.

I pick up the balm again and rub in some more.

I spread the balm out evenly on my hands again.

I rub up and down the muscles of his thighs, especially since he has been squatting all day.

Once I have it rubbed in, I use both hands on one thigh, massaging up and down, and then I switch to the other leg.

I move on to his calves. Once I’m done, I go into the bathroom and wash my hands.

Auggie follows me and washes his hands, too. By the time he’s done, I’m already back in my bed and lying on my side. He lies down next to me, and we stay in a comfortable silence until he breaks it.

“Riv?”

“Yeah?”

“I’ve noticed that your boobs have gotten bigger.” I see him smile, and for a second, I’m embarrassed. But then I remember how he looked at me earlier when I was just in my sports bra.

“They are.” I’m feeling brave, so I continue, “You want to touch them?”

“Really? You’d let me touch them?” he says, surprised.

“Why not? Just be gentle with them.” I start to get a little nervous.

Maybe he won’t like my boobs. Then, I feel his fingers run up my arms. He’s shaking a little.

He must be a little nervous, too. He gets to my shoulder, and he starts to run his fingers over the swell of my boobs.

He squeezes a bit, and my nipples pebble at his touch.

I just have his old T-shirt on, so he can see the imprint of my nipple through my shirt.

He runs his thumb over my nipple, and as he does it, I feel something move near my belly.

“Was that your penis?

“Yeah.” He seems a little embarrassed.

“Can I see it?” He hesitates for a minute, and then he rolls on his back and pulls his shorts down. I have heard my aunts and mom say penises are ugly when they don’t think I’m listening, but Auggie’s penis is… nice.

“Can I touch it?”

“Sure.”