Twelve

Winter was Jeanie´s favorite season. She waited for it as children expect Christmas gifts. She always thought both facts were related. Anyway, it wasn´t a great season for her health because she was an allergic and sudden weather change caused her asthma. Krystal was visiting them and she could barely pay attention to her in the middle of her crisis.

- Are you ok? – Beth was worried.

- I´m fine – she lied.

- You´re not – Krystal understood – Let´s go and see a doctor – she insisted.

- Fine – Jeanie finally accepted – But I´m ok!

They went to the clinic around the corner and the nurse injected her intravenous medicine to control the crisis. It was awful, not because of the pain, which Jeanie was used to, but because Krystal fainted when she saw the blood coming up the syringe. They had to make her smell some alcohol and waited for her to recover to leave the clinic.

- Why didn´t you tell me? – Reid asked annoyed when he found out.

- You didn´t need to know! – Jeanie´s stubbornness was on its best moment.

- I did need to know! – he grumbled – What if something happens to you?

- Nothing happened to me! – she complained of his concern – I´m fine… and… You don´t need to worry about me! You´re not my dad!

- No, I´m not your dad, I´m your friend! And as you´re never busy when it´s about your friends, I should have been for you when you needed me. I wanted to be there for you.

- But you weren´t.

- Because you didn´t call!

- Meaning I didn´t need you.

- Are you always like this?

- Yes – Beth answered him from the door she had just opened.

- Why are you here? – Jeanie got upset.

- We´re both here – Krystal said coming out to the balcony.

- Why? – Jeanie repeated.

- We´re still worried about you. Remember you can´t get upset or you´ll have another crisis.

- What are they talking about? – Reid hesitated.

- People with asthma shouldn´t laugh to hard or cry or get upset when we´re on a crisis – Jeanie explained – That could makes us feel worst.

- Besides – Beth interrupted her – It´s cold out here. You should come inside.

- Don´t make me feel like a child! – Jeanie was starting to get mad – It´s cold inside also! There´s no electricity! Did you call the company?

- They´ll be here in fifteen minutes – Krystal comforted her – But they say the blackout will last a little longer, at least until they found what caused it and fix it. Beth invited me to stay over, just in case.

- You can stay at my place – Reid offered to Jeanie – I have electricity and heating; and you can take a hot shower. Someone told me asthma requires a lot of water, inside and outside.

- That´s someone is right, but I already took a shower before … - Jeanie hesitated for a second – Would you really do that for me?

- I would do almost anything for a friend.

- You´re so sweet!

- Will you go?

- I don´t know.

- Jeanie, please… - he asked – I don´t want you to have another crisis I find out late. We can prevent that if you stay at my place, where there are the best conditions! Until the company fixes the problem.

- What about my friends? – she looked at them hesitating.

- You´ll be better that here – Beth said pointing at the dark apartment.

- Are you sure you´ll be fine here on your own? – Jeanie got surprised.

- I´ll stay with her – Krystal reminded – Go ahead. I´ll use your bed – she smiled – Better than the couch.

- Fine – Jeanie agreed – If fixing the problem takes too long, I´ll go to your house – she said to Reid without being really convinced.

The guy from the company told them it was going to take almost the whole night to fix the damage, so Jeanie would need to go to Reid´s house. She was a little nervous about it. She liked him, but from that to trust someone you met a few months ago… Well, that was different. And it wasn´t easy at all for her.

- I won´t rape you – he tried to joke when saw her so serious.

- I´m not worry about that – she lied – I just don´t want to disturb you.

- I told you I would do almost anything for my friends. You´ll never disturb me.

- Thanks – Jeanie smiled – But… What about if I have a crisis on the middle of the night?

- I would take you to see a doctor.

- Would you?

- Yes.

Reid´s house wasn´t far from Jeanie´s apartment, so they decided to walk. It was a nice house. It had a cozy porch, the living room was not big, but it was comfortable and it was followed by a dining room with a small kitchen aside. Behind it, there was a bedroom with an internal bathroom. It also had a lateral garden and some strange closed hall at the other side. Reid explained her there were two more bedrooms, but they were never used.

- Where am I gonna sleep? – she asked scared of her own question.

- With me – he simply answered.

- Are you crazy? – she reacted they were both already seating on his bed.

- No.

- But… We´re just friends! And… It´s just that… It would be weird!

- What?

- To sleep on the same bed with someone who´s not my couple.

- Had you never slept with family or friends before?

- With family, yes, but they are family, it doesn´t count. And with friends, yes, once or twice, but always girls!

- Such a wonderful spectacle to see! – he joked.

- You´re an idiot – she smiled.

- I am – he smiled with that smile that rocked her world – But at least you´re laughing now. Come on, it´s better if I´m near you. If you suddenly feel bad, I´ll be right here! Nothing will happen… Nothing that you don´t want.

- I don´t want you to be bad with me.

- I won´t be – he looked at her eyes and she felt he was being honest.

- You´re so sweet – she reacted.

- I am – he said getting closer looking deeply into her eyes.

On a situation like that, Jeanie was supposed to be scared, but she wasn´t. She was actually excited, hoping for him to kiss her. She wanted to close her eyes and let herself go, but his glance was too strong. She was hypnotized on those green eyes that were slowly coming closer. She looked at them as if they were her only salvation. Then, the miracle happened: his lips touched hers. She found them soft, warm and wet; juicy lips, exactly how she liked them. She closed her eyes and abandoned herself to enjoy every second of that short kiss.

- I´m sorry! – he said as soon as he got away from her.

- Don´t be – she smiled – I liked it.

- This wasn´t supposed to happen. I´m sorry – he started talking quickly – But you were sending me signals… or maybe I misunderstood you because I haven´t been alone with another girl in the same room since a long time… But I love my ex.

- I know.

- But I don´t want to play with you.

- You´re not playing with me.

- Are you ok? – Reid hesitated.

- I am – she smiled.

- But I just kissed you!

- And I told you I liked it. What´s the matter? One kiss doesn´t make us a couple.

- No?

- Of course not! Look, we´re friends, you made me a favor letting me stay here and we kissed! Because, don´t get mad, my lips were there also!

- And… What should we do now?

- I really liked your lips – she smiled inviting him to continue.

It was the weirdest way Jeanie went ever to bed with someone, also the fastest, but she would never regret it. It was…

- You got asthma! – Reid was scared.

- I´ll be fine! – she smiled – It´s so cute that you´re worried about me.

- Yes, I´m worried! – he seemed out of himself – What should I do?

- Just give me a little bit of water and I´ll be fine. Not cold water – she explained.

- No! – he decided – We´ll go to see a doctor. Let´s go!

- I don´t need a doctor.

- But I need a doctor to see you!

- Yes, dad! – Jeanie complained.

- I´m not your dad!

- Lucky me! – she mocked – I couldn´t resist such annoying parent!

The doctor told them she was fine, only a little weary, but nothing that an aerosol or breathing exercises couldn´t solve. They went back to Reid´s house and went to sleep. Jeanie would always remember that night as the funniest night of her life.