Something about that statement sets me off. I hate that Aaron thinks he’s already got me all figured out, pinning me down as the uptight perfectionist. I might get a little too wrapped up in school sometimes, but I do know how to let loose. The only reason Aaron’s never seen that is because I’m always too busy compensating for his complete lack offocus.
“I can be fun!” I protest. “Justwatch.”
I start jumping around, jerking to the beat of the imaginary music coming out of my headphones. I hold my hands up over my head and twirl around a few times. Everything still feels excruciatingly awkward, and I stop moving when I hear Aaron let out a burst oflaughter.
I face him with my hands on my hips. “Why aren’t you taking anypictures?”
“Because you lookridiculous.”
“Of course I look ridiculous,” I retort, feeling my cheeks burn. “I’m jumping around in my underwear while you take my photo. This whole situation is ridiculous. How wouldyoufeel if you were the one half naked rightnow?”
The corner of Aaron’s mouth pulls up. “Pretty good,actually.”
“Prove it,” I say, crossing my arms. “Strip.Now.”
He balks a bit. “What?”
“Strip. If I have to be in my underwear right now, so should you. It’s onlyfair.”
He hesitates for a minute, caught off guard, and then it’s like his Douche-O-Meter recharges itself and all his swagger comes rushing back. He removes his camera from his neck with agrin.
“If you wanted to see me naked, Dominguez, all you had to do wasask.”
He keeps his gaze locked to mine and reaches for his belt. I try to look unimpressed, but something in the air between us has thickened, the weight of it spreading a flush across my skin. He drops his jeans to the floor and steps out of them. I fight to keep my eyes fixed on his even though all they seem to want to do right now is movelower.
This is Aaron Penn, for god’s sake. Yes, he’s hot, but you’ve seen plenty of hot guys in their underwearbefore.
He pulls his shirt up over his head, and I take the second that it blocks me from his view to rake my eyes over his chest. He seems to work out as hard as I do, the muscles of his stomach brought into sharp definition as he lifts his arms above his head. I catch a sight of the tattoo I remember him showing the girls in the cafeteria. The design looks geometric, a circle made up of curved triangles, and I wonder what itmeans.
I flick my attention down to his navy boxers and see the outline of his cock straining against the fabric. I can tell he’s already gettinghard.
Typical, I think.Perv.
“Like what yousee?”
I look up to find him standing there in just his boxers and beanie, watching my everymove.
“You clearly do.” I gesture in the direction of his boner and swear I see him getharder.
He tugs his hat back a bit and shrugs, completely unashamed. “Do you feel less awkwardnow?”
If anything, I feel way more awkward now that we’re both next to naked and I’m forced to acknowledge that the sight of Aaron Penn getting hard for me is making my thighsclench.
“Yes,” I answer, “much less awkward, now that we’re on equal footing. Youready?”
He picks up his camera and I start my weird silent dance routine again, avoiding any eye contact with Aaron. I hear the camera click a few times before it stops and I look over to find him watching me with a criticalexpression.
“What is it thistime?”
“You’re too nervous,” he tells me. “Your whole body is stiff. We need this to be...natural.”
He holds up a finger as if he’s just had an idea, and then saunters over to the desk to grab his phone. I watch as he swipes his finger over the screen a few times before the opening chords of ‘You Shook Me All Night Long’ fill theroom.
I can’t help the smile that spreads across my face. The song sweeps me away to long car rides with my dad, windows rolled down, the wind whipping through the wild mane of hair I had even as akid.
“Is AC/DC okay?” Aaron asks. “I can put something elseon.”
I shake my head and laugh. “I was raised on AC/DC. My dad made sure I knew that you don’t turn AC/DC off; you only turn themup.”
