The Kissing Challenge Read online

  "Hey everyone. Today, we're trying a hot alien look. It's going to be out of this world."

  "Nice," Captain snickered, and I nudged him with my elbow.

  "Let's go!" I said.

  And then I got started.

  I didn't talk much in my videos. Typically, I'd overlay the voiceover instructions and put a link to a few of my other vids in the description. For this look, I used a lot of metallic silver, grays, blues and purples. I wasn't going for E.T. at all. This was all sleek, sharp lines and dreamy colors. Captain's cheeks looked like blades, his skin highlighted and contoured. I added color to his eyelids and the space around his eyes to make it even more dramatic. If this were a photo shoot or something, they'd probably want to use contacts to complete the picture. But Captain didn't need them. By the time I was done, his eyes shone bright, the natural light gray turned to quicksilver.

  Stepping back, I allowed him to see himself for the first time.

  "Wow, Anne," he said, sounding impressed. "Good job."

  I shrugged. "I had an awesome subject."

  Captain's silver eyes shot to mine, and he grinned. "Was that a compliment?"

  "Come on," I said and nudged his shoulder. "You know you're gorgeous. With or without the makeup. Girls must tell you that all the time."

  "Means more when you say it," he said.

  "Eh, hot aliens are a dime a dozen. But I think you'll do."

  He was definitely, hands down the hottest alien I'd ever seen. I couldn't give him too many compliments, though, especially if I was planning to kiss him later.

  "I can't believe how amazing this looks," he said, reaching up to touch his skin. "It's like foil or something, but also still skin."

  I batted his hand away. "I still need to get footage of the completed look," I said. "Think you can stop admiring yourself for that long?"

  Captain sat back and shot me a wink. "It'll be hard. But I'll try."

  "Just be serious."

  And he was. Captain let me get close-up after close-up and pan around him all while he looked stoically straight ahead. His dark brown hair, that strong jaw, those eyes…ugh. If there was a hotter alien in the galaxy, I hadn't met him. That was for sure.

  "Done yet?" he asked.

  I nodded. "Yep, that was perfect. Thank you, Cap. I'm sure you'll get flack from the guys, but I appreciate it more than I can say."

  "Anything for you," he said.

  My whole body warmed at that. I didn't think he knew, but Captain said things all the time that turned my insides to mush. After I'd gotten my shots of the alien, I stopped the video and started another. I wanted to be ready for the kiss. But would I ever really be ready? I wondered. My hands shook as I replaced the phone, so it could capture the moment.

  "Here." I passed Captain a cleansing towelette, trying my best not to drop it. "So you can remove the makeup."

  "Wait," he said and held up his phone, pulling me to his side. "Let's take a picture really fast. We have to document your awesome work."

  "But you look so good, and I—"

  He cut off my protests. "Anne, just let me get this photo of us. Okay?"

  The hot alien and me, I thought as I smiled for the camera. I loved it when Cap did stuff like this. Just insisted on a picture without my having to initiate it. These were the times when I knew our friendship meant just as much to him as it did to me. Also, considering I was about to try and kiss him, a photo didn't seem like a big ask.

  I waited until Captain had wiped his face clean. Part of the reason was because I was stalling. What would he do? Would he run as fast as he could in the other direction? I knew the answer already. Captain never ran from anything. But what would I do if he pushed me away? I wasn't sure. Probably die of embarrassment—or drown in a puddle of my own tears. The odds were fifty-fifty.

  But the other reason I waited was because…I didn't want to kiss a hot alien.

  I wanted to kiss my best friend.

  Captain finished scrubbing, pulled the towelette away from his face and smiled. There he was.

  "Um, there's kind of something else I wanted to try," I said hesitantly.

  "Okay," he said and chucked the cloth into the trash. "I'm game. What did you have in mind?"

  Oh gosh, it was now or never.

  "All you have to do is look into the camera," I said, walking closer. "I'll do the rest."

  "No problem," Captain said. "So just straight into the camera?"

  I nodded, bending so I was at his level. If he'd been standing, I would've had to go on my tippy-toes for sure. And even then, I might not have been able to reach. Captain was like a giant in comparison to my shorter frame.

  "Should I go full-on smolder?" he joked. "Or just tamp it down to half?"

  "Whichever one. I'm sure they both look good on you."

  I leaned in, my mouth only inches away from his face—when Captain suddenly turned his head. He looked surprised to find me so close. His smile faded into something more intense as he stared into my eyes.

  And I froze.

  "Anne?" he asked after a moment.

  I couldn't help it. The hitch in his deep voice, the way he was looking at me, everything about him was a reminder. This was Captain. My Captain. I had loved him for years, and I just had to know. After searching Captain's face for any sign of reluctance and finding none, I did what I'd always dreamed of doing.

  Slowly, oh so slowly, I closed the gap between us, giving him plenty of time to pull away if he wanted to.

  But he didn't.

  My lips captured his in a kiss I would remember for as long as I lived. Captain's mouth was surprisingly soft. I went back again and again for more. Each time that same electricity flowed from where our lips touched to every part of my body. It was impossible to tell how long it lasted.

  Finally, after an eternity, I gave him one last kiss and pulled away, realizing at some point Captain had moved his hand to my cheek. His big hand cupped my face with the utmost gentleness, like he was holding something precious. My eyes opened, and as he looked at me, the weight of what I'd just done came crashing down.

  "Oh my God," I gasped.

  His hand fell away as I straightened.

  "Um, I uh…need to go."

  "Anne—"

  "Bye, Cap," I said, grabbing my phone and hightailing it out of there. Yes, it was my house. And yes, I had left Captain sitting in my bedroom. But I had to go, drive around, be away from him, do something. Captain could let himself out.

  Did I regret the kiss? No, and I never would.

  Could I bear to see the questions in Captain's eyes and stay to answer them? Also no. That took some kind of courage, and after that kiss, I was all out.

  So, I ran. I knew I wouldn't be able to avoid him for long. We were best friends after all. But I needed a little time and some space. Oh yes, and if I replayed that video over and over again while I was at it, well…I guess that could just be considered research.

  Gah, I could not believe I'd actually kissed my best friend.

  CHAPTER 3

  I hadn't responded to any of Captain's texts.

  Not that he'd sent many. There were only three. None of which I knew how to answer.

  Captain: Hey Anne, are you okay?

  Captain: I think we should talk.

  Captain: What was all that about?

  Ugh. I could only imagine what Captain was thinking. First, I kissed him—and it was good. Oh so very good. And then, without any explanation, I ran like there were angry bulls chasing me. Why, you ask? Because I was scared to find out what he'd thought of the kiss, what it meant to him.

  On the other hand, I couldn't stop wondering what was going on in his mind.

  Sometimes I frustrated myself to no end.

  It was Monday, and I'd hunkered down in the library to continue my avoidance of my best friend. I'd been dodging him all weekend and today at school—which wasn't too hard since he was a year older, but still. If Captain wanted to find me, I knew he would. Until then, I'd lay lo
w. The library was my haven, and the awesome thing was, the books never judged.

  Gemma had found me not twenty minutes ago.

  "Oh my," she said, fanning herself as she watched the video. "That kiss was fire. I've already replayed it like five times."

  "I know." I sighed.

  The video was pretty freaking addictive.

  "Why haven't you posted it yet?" she asked as she watched again.

  I gave a shrug. It wasn't like I was ashamed. Actually, I hadn't posted because the more I watched the video, the more personal it felt. The memory of that kiss, the way Captain's lips had moved with mine, how it was our first and probably last kiss ever, everything about the moment was intimate. I'd been inspired by the challenge, but now, I kind of wanted to keep the kiss for just Captain and me. I didn't know if I could explain that to Gemma.

  "It just feels personal," I said. "Plus, I kind of chickened out on posting. You know how it goes."

  That was the other reason. Social media could be a terrible thing. I didn't want anyone's crappy commentary on our kiss. It was pure and completely ours.

  "Well, are you over that yet? Because this is beautiful."

  "I'm not sure I'll ever post," I said.

  "Oh don't be scared, Anne."

  "How can I not be? It's Captain, for goodness sake. I kissed him, Gemma. I actually kissed him. And then, I ran for the hills."

  She scrunched up her face. "Yeah, I guess you could've handled the aftermath better. But so what? You did it! Now, all you have to do is share the results."

  "But don't you get it? My well of courage has run dry." I laughed, holding out my hands. "I've got nothing left."

  "Lucky for you," Gemma said, "I do."

  The twinkle in her eyes made me nervous.

  "What do you mean?" I asked.

  "I decided to help you out," she said and handed me back my phone. "All I had to do was push a button. You can thank me later."

  "Wha—Gemma! Oh my gosh, tell me you didn't!"

  The librarian shot me a stern look to which I nodded a quick apology for my outburst. But come on! It'd been completely warranted. My eyes shot back to my phone. Without my knowledge, Gemma had pulled up my account and posted the video.

  Not only that, she'd done way more than "push a button." She'd cut the video down to a minute, even added in some text and background music.

  "When did you have time to do this?" I asked.

  "Just now," she said as if it was no big deal. "While you were stressing. You're welcome."

  I had no reply.

  The video was out. Sure, I could take it down, but everyone who followed my account would've already gotten a notification. And it looked like she'd posted it at least five minutes ago. It already had views—and they were growing as I watched. There was nothing I could do.

  "Gemma," I breathed. "I can't believe you did that."

  She gave me a look. "You were the one who did it, Anne. I just shared the thing."

  My eyes widened. "And then you added text about how I've been in love with Captain forever? Was that really necessary?"

  "But it's the truth, right?" she said, and I crossed my arms. "Most of the videos included something like that anyway. Remember how much fun you had watching those? Well now, you're giving that joy to someone else."

  Yeah, but those were probably fake.

  This was real. This was my life.

  "What if Captain sees it?" I asked.

  Gemma shrugged. "What if he does, Anne? Captain was in that kiss with you one hundred percent."

  "But—"

  "If you want to take it down, go for it," she said. "But if I were you, I'd leave it and see what happens. Feel good about putting a little more romance out in the world. Later, my friend."

  Gemma left me there to ponder.

  The comments were already coming in, and I couldn't help but read them. I'd been worried about people's words tarnishing the kiss. But most of them were surprisingly kind. I spent the rest of lunch amongst the books.

  But when I exited the library, Captain was outside waiting for me.

  "Hey," he said, pushing off the wall he'd been leaning against.

  "Hey, Captain," I said.

  Walking over to my side, he surprised me by reaching into my pocket. The move made me gasp. A second later he pulled out my phone and checked the screen.

  "Ah," he said. "So it is working. I was starting to wonder."

  I blushed as he handed me back the phone.

  "Anne, why are you ignoring me?"

  "I'm not," I said. "I was just…"

  "Hiding," he finished then let out a sigh. "You know you never have to hide from me. We can talk about anything."

  I nodded. "I know."

  "Just because we kissed"—my breath got caught in my throat as my gaze shot to his—"that doesn't mean we stopped being friends."

  "I know, Cap. I'm sorry."

  "About what?" he asked.

  So many things, I thought, but I didn't have a ready answer.

  Captain waited.

  "I just…I'm sorry about how it all went down," I finally said.

  "You mean the kiss? Or running away after?"

  Wow, he'd really called me out. "Well both, I guess. Mostly for surprising you and then bailing. It wasn't right of me."

  "That kiss was definitely a surprise," he murmured. "I didn't see it coming. Why did you do it anyway?"

  "It was a challenge," I said, grasping for a bit of the truth—just not the part I was desperate to keep hidden. "Kiss your best friend. It's a whole thing. There are a ton of videos out there."

  His eyebrows went up. "Oh yeah? That's interesting."

  I forced a laugh. "You know I have trouble backing down from a challenge."

  "I do," he said and gazed at me with that same intense expression he'd worn the other day right before the kiss. "But was that the only reason?"

  I nodded as the lie got stuck in my throat. "Yep. What other explanation could there be?"

  "Ah, I see." He paused to run a hand through his hair. "So you're not…in love with me or anything. Right?"

  I swear I nearly swallowed my tongue.

  "What makes you say that?" I stuttered.

  Captain rolled his shoulders back. "Well, I saw the video, and"—my eyes closed at that. Of course, he had seen it. Captain had been my very first follower, and I'd been his. Gah, I was going to murder Gemma—"it just made me wonder."

  He laughed as if to himself.

  "Though I doubted it was true," he said.

  My answering laugh sounded all wrong. "Why is that?"

  "I just think I would've known," Captain said. "I mean, we're best friends. We tell each other everything. Don't we?"

  I smiled, but I kind of felt like crying.

  "Plus, I have a hard time believing you'd put something like that out on social media. You're a private person, Anne."

  Forcing a laugh, I said, "You got me. It was Gemma who posted the video."

  Captain nodded. "That makes more sense."

  "Yeah," I said, shoving my hands into my pockets. "She just went ahead and shared it, didn't even ask me. She liked the kiss a lot."

  "I liked it, too," he said.

  "What?" I squeaked.

  Captain held out his phone and showed me where he'd hit the heart button. The video. He'd been referring to liking the video, not our kiss. That was good, right? Then nothing had to change between us. He was taking everything, our kiss and the video, in stride. I should've been happy about that…right?

  "So, you won the challenge then?" he asked.

  "You don't really win anything," I said. "But yeah, I guess so."

  "And I helped with that?"

  Seeing his grin, I gave him a smile. "Yeah, you did. Thanks, Cap. I owe you one."

  "I'm thinking I'm the one who owes you," he said. "Gemma tagged me and the band in that video. You wouldn't believe how many messages I'm getting."

  "Oh?" I said.

  "Yeah." Captain rolled
his eyes. "A lot are from girls asking for my number. One even wanted me to send her a shirtless pic, if you can believe that."

  My heart sank. I could believe it. I so could.

  "That's…nice," I said.

  "Eh, it's whatever. But who knows? Maybe it will bring more people out to our gig this week. You're still coming, right?"

  I nodded as Captain pulled me in for a hug.

  "Awesome," he said. "I always play better when I know you're there, Anne."

  I melted against him, wishing I never had to let him go.

  But I knew that was one wish I couldn't make come true.

  "I'm sorry for ignoring your messages," I said with my face pressed against his shoulder.

  "That's okay. I figured my amazing lips had put you into a kiss coma or something. Wanted to make sure you were okay."

  I pinched his side for that. "Jerk."

  "But one who can kiss," he said.

  "Yeah okay, I admit. It was good."

  "Just good?" he said.

  "Wonderful, stupendous, I'm so grateful to have had such a soul-searing first kiss. There," I said. "Are you happy?"

  "Very," he said, sounding smug.

  "Also, thanks for not freaking out," I added. "About the kiss thing."

  Captain gave a quiet laugh then pulled back.

  "No problem." He met my eyes and tossed me a wink. "If you ever want to do it again, just let me know."

  My jaw literally dropped. I could not believe he'd said that. Even if it was a joke—which it had to be—I thought about his last words and that wink in all of my classes. In fact, I was still thinking about it as I got into my car to drive home from school…and as I ate dinner…and when I was getting ready for bed…and when my head hit the pillow.

  My phone pinged with a text, and I checked the screen.

  Gemma: Saw that Captain liked the video! Yay!!! I guess it all worked out!

  She followed that up with a whole bunch of smiling emojis, a thumbs-up, and a heart.

  Me: I'm still mad at you for posting.

  Her reply came a second later.

  Gemma: Ah Anne, I love you. You know I was just doing it for the greater good.

  Me: And you couldn't have asked first???

  Gemma: But then you would've said no :(

  When I didn't respond, she sent another.