Meant To Be Ch. 01

"Listen, I think you're forgetting that I was captain of the dive team in school."

"I didn't forget. I just know that I'm better. Besides, that was four years ago. Now, put up or shut up," Kelsey giggled.

"You've got a big mouth, Bradford," Nathan replied with a glare. He tested the end of the diving board by hopping on it a couple times before walking back to the stair.

"You ready to judge, Cameron?" Nathan looked at his younger brother, who was prepared to judge the impromptu diving contest.

"Yep. Ready!" Cameron kicked his feet in the warm pool, waiting for Nathan to dive in so he could rate the jump.

"Loser washes the winner's car, right?" Nathan asked with a grin.

"Deal. Now go! I'm getting cold!" Kelsey rubbed her wet arms, desperate to get back in the heated pool.

The summer had just started and the weather was finally getting warm enough to open the pool in the Lowe's backyard. Kelsey had been swimming here since she was a toddler. The Bradford's and the Lowe's were longtime friends and neighbors. Their oldest children, Kelsey and Nathan, were the same age and had graduated together 4 years earlier. Nathan decided to skip college and started working for his father's successful construction company right out of high school. He lived in a small apartment with some friends nearby, but everyone always spent their summers in the Lowe's backyard oasis. Swimming and family barbeques were commonplace during the summer months. On more than one occasion growing up, Kelsey and Nathan had fallen asleep watching movies or laying in the backyard together. Their parents didn't think a thing of it, as the two of them had a very obvious friendship.

After high school, Kelsey went to a 4 year college, about an hour away from home. She came home for all holidays and celebrations, always spending time with Nathan and their families. She had just graduated with a degree in photography and was set to start working with a local photographer at the end of the summer. In the meantime, she worked part time as a barista at a local coffee shop, and tried to enjoy her final summer of freedom before she moved into her own place and tried to kick start her career in photography.

"Alright. You better go find the sponges, Kels. My truck is awfully dirty," he teased.

"Shut up or I'm going to shove you in!"

Nathan laughed and shook his head. He took a deep breath and focused on the long, white diving board in front of him. He exhaled, ran and jumped, his long, toned body arching perfectly in the air. His hands were clasped gracefully in front of him and he slipped into the warm pool with an almost undetectable splash.

Kelsey groaned. It was the perfect dive, dammit.

Cameron started hollering, proud of his older brother's near flawless dive. Nathan resurfaced, wiping the warm beads of water off of his chiseled face. He rubbed his eyes and looked at Cameron.

"Well? What do you say, bro?" he asked, treading water.

Cameron nodded his head and looked at Kelsey. "Sorry, Kels. That was at least a 9 in my book!"

Kelsey sighed and walked to the diving board, stepping onto it and testing the spring. She hadn't dived since the previous summer and suddenly, their annual diving challenge seemed like a bad idea.

"Why don't we just forget the bet and call it a day," Kelsey grinned hopefully.

"Nope. No way. A deal's a deal." Nathan shook his head and smiled at Kelsey. He dunked his mouth and nose underwater, a cocky grin still evident on his face, due to the crinkling around his eyes. His ice blue gaze was nearly the same shade as the sparkling water. Kelsey groaned and walked down the length of the board, getting a feel for its flexibility. She sighed heavily and walked back to the starting point.

"Ready?" yelled Cameron.

Kelsey nodded and took a deep breath. She ran to the end of the board and bounced, trying to get as much height in her jump as possible before arching her back in the air and slipping into the water. As soon as her body left the clanging board, she knew that Nathan's dive had been much cleaner.

Kelsey glided through the water, then kicked her legs and brought herself to the surface. Her face came out of the water and she rubbed her eyes. When she opened them, she looked at Cameron hopefully. The young teenager was hiding his face in his hands.

"Oh, come on! It wasn't that bad!" exclaimed Kelsey. She laughed and looked at Nathan. He ducked under the water, not wanting to tell her that it wasn't exactly her best dive ever. He came up out of the water several feet away, laughing.

"Fine! Fine. I can be a gracious loser. Congrats, Nate. You win...again," she said as she swam towards him, extending her delicate hand for a friendly shake. Nathan looked at her cautiously, then extended his hand. Kelsey seized the opportunity and splashed both hands at Nathan, forcing a wave of water into his face.

"Hey! You brat!" He laughed and dove to catch her.

Kelsey squealed and tried to swim away, but Nathan quickly caught her, dunking her head under the tepid water. She came up coughing and laughing.

"I only use special soap and wax on my baby, so when should I have it all ready for you?" Nathan grinned, spitting a fountain of water into the air.

Kelsey rolled her eyes. "I work tonight. Tomorrow. I'll wash your damn truck tomorrow."

"That's what you get for challenging the best, Kels. Maybe next year," he said with a shrug.

Suddenly, Nathan's cell phone started to vibrate on the patio table. He swam to the side and pushed himself up on the concrete edge. Kelsey watched as he lifted himself out of the pool, water pouring down off of his body, the weight of the water pulling his navy blue trunks down just a little lower on his narrow hips. She shook her head and dipped back into the pool, swimming to the stairs while Nathan checked his text message.

As she pulled herself up the ladder, she squeezed the excess water out of her long brown hair. She realized that her dive caused her small, pale pink bikini to shift out of place. Keeping her back to Nathan, she readjusted the cups around her full, perky breasts. She had never been shy around him, but now that they were adults, they were both more aware of things, such as being wet and half naked around each other all summer long. Nathan was gorgeous and it hadn't been until the end of high school when Kelsey started to look at him in a differently. He was her best friend, so it was hard to see him as anything but that, but occasionaly she would look at him and see him for what he was: a handsome, hardworking, hilarious man. She found her thoughts about Nathan becoming more and more intimate over the past couple of years. But usually, when she caught herself thinking of him like this, it wasn't long before reality brought her back to Earth.

And just then, reality had sent a text message.

"Ugh. Dammit," Nathan mumbled as he set his phone down and wrapped a towel around his tan waist. Construction work didn't just keep him busy, it kept him tan and toned. His body quickly went from that of a boy to a man, just in the first summer out of high school. Now, almost 4 years later, Nathan's body was a chiseled work of art. Kelsey tried not to focus on it as she walked up next to him and grabbed a towel of her own.

"What's wrong?"

"Oh...nothing. That was Amy. She's been bugging me all week to take her to this new club," he mumbled.

Kelsey couldn't help but laugh. "A club. You?"

He laughed. "I know. Not my scene at all. She's desperate to go check it out, though," he said as he rolled his eyes.

She laid the towel out on a lounge chair and sat down, laying back against the reclined seat. For a moment, she thought she saw Nathan checking her out as she bent over, but she quickly dismissed the idea.

"So, where is this club?" Kelsey asked, amused.

"Over in Union. It's not far, but she's wanting me to get all dressed up and shit," he groaned.

"Well, that certainly sounds like Amy's idea of fun. Who knows. Maybe you'll enjoy yourself." Kelsey shrugged, trying to sound positive.

Truth be told, she hadn't always been a big fan of Amy's. Nathan had dated her on and off since their Senior year. To her, it seemed like Amy never really appreciated her best friend. As if she never really saw what an awesome guy he was. Amy loved attention and demanded that she be treated like a princess. She was always quick to pout and whine when she didn't get her way. Her irritation towards Amy had grown significantly over the years, and it was becoming impossible to hide. Kelsey never really understood what Nathan saw in her, except for one thing:

Amy Buckley was gorgeous.

She was a real, honest to God knockout. Amy had long, blonde hair and huge breasts. She had stunning green eyes and a body to die for. Just thinking of Amy made her cringe at the pangs of jealousy that naturally began to surface.

Kelsey knew that she was beautiful, too, but she didn't think that her looks even compared to Amy's. Kelsey was shorter, with dark hair and chocolate brown eyes. Her body was in fantastic shape, but not quite as curvy as Amy's. Kelsey was more 'girl next door' and Amy was definitely more 'bombshell'.

Kelsey glanced down at her body and sighed.

"What's wrong?" Nathan asked.

Kelsey shook her head. "Nothing. So, when are you leaving to go back to your place? I've got to leave so I can get ready for work."

"I'm going to take off soon, I think. I'm glad you stopped by. First swim of the summer. Too bad you still can't dive," he said with a grin.

Kelsey nodded. "Yep. Hopefully the first of many. I will beat your dive, Nate. Just you wait and see."

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever. You say that every summer."

Kelsey smiled and stood up. She grabbed her cutoff shorts and slipped them up her smooth legs, leaving them unfastened, with just a hint of her pink bikini bottoms peaking out over the zipper. She slipped her feet into her flip flops and picked up her tank top.

"I'll be over tomorrow to wash your truck," she said with equal parts glare and grin.

"Yeah, you will," he replied cockily, lacing his fingers behind his head. His toned abdomen twitched in the sunlight. Kelsey pretended not to notice as she started to walk to the gate that connected their parent's backyards.

"Have fun at the club, Nate!" she teased, knowing that he was dreading the scene. She stepped through the tall gate and latched it behind her. She walked into her house and immediately went to the bathroom to shower and change for work.

Kelsey peeled off her wet bikini and threw it into the laundry basket. She started the shower and let the steam fill the stall before stepping in and closing the glass door. She still had plenty of time before her shift started at the coffee shop, so she took her time and let the hot water pound against her neck and back. She closed her eyes and dipped her hair back into the stream, letting her long brown locks cascade down her back, rinsing away the faint scent of chlorine.

She filled her bath sponge with a sweet smelling soap and started to lather her body. Her mind started to wander as she leisurely soaped up in the steamy glass shower stall. She thought about work and how she always hated working on Friday nights because it was so slow and uneventful. She rubbed her sponge across her neck and chest, before dropping it down between her breasts. She glanced down her body, the water dripping heavily down her chin and lips.

Her breasts weren't as big as Amy's. They were full and perky, but she only wore a small C-cup. Amy was easily a D or larger. One thing that Kelsey did love about her breasts were her nipples. They were large and sensitive. With one simple brush of the sponge, her nipples immediately started to stiffen. She squirted soap directly onto her chest and let it slide down the firm slopes of her breasts. She rubbed her loofa into the soap, causing a thick layer of bubbles to spread across her warm skin. Her hands quickly dropped between her legs, washing her thighs and her, now sensitive, pussy lips.

Kelsey groaned and leaned her head back against the glass wall. She knew that her parents were both still at work, and being an only child, she had no concern that anyone would hear her. Kelsey dropped the sponge and let her fingers explore. She rubbed her middle finger back and forth against the slit of her pussy, feeling the shower water and her own sticky lubricant dripping down her lips. Her left hand immediately came up to grip her taut nipple. Kelsey groaned as the sensations started to swell within her.

Without realizing it, her mind started to drift back to Nathan. She thought about his toned back and his well-developed chest. She thought about his lips and the new, rough stubble that he had started growing on his handsome face. Nathan was looking more and more like a man and less like a boy every time she saw him, and Kelsey definitely liked what she saw.

She eased her middle finger into her pussy as she squeezed her nipple in her opposite hand. The hot water of the shower poured down her flesh as she worked her pleasure spots deliberately. Bit by bit, Kelsey started to work herself up to an orgasm. She pushed a second finger into her self, then jerked them out and started massaging fast strokes against her exposed clit. Her round hips jutted out against her hand and her eyes pinched shut as she imagined Nathan's hard body pressed against hers. She wondered what it would feel like if his rough, calloused hands were the ones that were bringing her to a climax. She shook violently, clenching her toned stomach as the quivering orgasm pulsed through her. She tightened her grip on her nipple before finally releasing it, wishing it had been Nathan's fingers all over her.

She exhaled noisily and opened her eyes. Her long, wet eyelashes clung to each other. She pushed herself off the wall and finished washing her hyper-sensitive body. Her body jerked involuntarily as she washed away the stickiness from her pussy. She groaned as she shut off the water, not wanting to admit to herself that she'd just let herself masturbate to the image of her lifelong best friend.

Although, it certainly hadn't been the first time.

>>>>><<<<<

"Hellooo? Kelsey? Are you in there?"

Kelsey shook her head to bring herself back to the present moment. She looked up at her coworker apologetically.

"I'm sorry, what did you say?"

"I asked what you were doing after work." Alison said with a laugh. She leaned down onto her elbows over the counter next to Kelsey as they stared out into the empty coffee shop.

"Oh, nothing. I'm just going to go home, I think."

"A few of us are going to this new club tonight, over in Union. It's called 449. Want to go?"

Kelsey couldn't help but giggle. It had to be the same club that Nathan and Amy were going to.

"I don't know. Clubs really aren't my thing, Alison." Kelsey shook her head.

"So what? Just come out for a little while! It's Friday night. We close at 9pm. What else are you going to do? Go home and play with your camera?" Alison bumped her hip against Kelsey's. Kelsey laughed.

"Probably. Is that sad?"

"A little. You're 22. Go have some fun. This is your last summer to have fun before you have to start acting all responsible and shit," Alison said with a look of mock horror on her face.

Kelsey thought about it. Going out occasionally was alright, and Alison was always a lot of fun to be around. She thought she might even bump into Nathan there, and she could give him a hard time for how out of place and uncomfortable he looked in a club.

"Alright. I'll go. I'll just run home and change, then meet you at your place around 10pm."

Alison clapped her hands excitedly. "Oh, good! You'll have fun, I promise!"

Kelsey knew it would be fine, but honestly, the idea of just seeing Nathan was enough for her to get excited about going.

>>>>><<<<<<

After doing their closing routines, Alison and Kelsey locked up the coffee shop and headed home. Kelsey pulled into the driveway and shut off her car. She stepped out into the warm evening air and walked into the house.

"Kels? That you?" Her dad yelled from the kitchen as she closed the front door.

"Yeah! It's me. I'm just going to get ready. I'm headed over to Union for a little while!"

"Come here for a second!" her Mom yelled. Kelsey sighed. Her parents were incredible. They never gave her a hard time and always gave her space, but now that she had been to college and was older, Kelsey couldn't wait to find her own place. Living at home with Mom and Dad was fine for Christmas break during school and all, but it was time to leave the nest.

Kelsey smiled as she walked into the large kitchen.

"What's up?" she asked.

Her Mom smiled from across the kitchen island. "Hey sweetie. I just wanted to remind you that we're having a barbeque at the Lowe's tomorrow night. You have tomorrow off, right?" she asked.

Kelsey nodded. "Yeah. I don't work again until Monday."

"Great. I know that Dave, Nancy and the boys have all missed you. They ask about you almost every day when you're gone," her father said with a smile.

"I saw your suit in the laundry. Did you get to swim today?"

Kelsey nodded again, ready for the inquisition to be over.

"Yeah. Nate, Cam and I were out there for a couple hours earlier."

"Ok, well, I'll let you get ready. What time do you think you'll be home?"

"I'm not sure, really. Probably not that late."

"Alright, well, have fun. Love you, sweetie."

"Ok. Love you guys, too. Let me know if you need help with anything for the barbeque tomorrow, Mom."

Kelsey tapped the kitchen island and walked upstairs to her bedroom, shutting the door behind her. She quickly stripped out of her clothes and took a very brief shower to wash the coffee smell off of her skin. She rummaged through her closet, looking for something club-appropriate.

She decided on a tight pair of black jeans and heels and a subtle, white lace tank top that buttoned up the front. She put on just a little bit of eye makeup and some lipgloss, pouting her lips in the mirror, and wishing that they were fuller, like Amy's. She shrugged at her reflection and sprayed a little perfume on her neck. She grabbed her purse and her phone and headed downstairs to her car.

As she sat in the driver's seat, her phone vibrated in her lap. She glanced down to check her messages.

Nathan: I'm bored out of my mind here.

Kelsey laughed out loud and typed a reply.

Kelsey: Good news...I'm actually headed to 449, myself. Alison invited me.

Nathan: Seriously?! Thank God. Amy's off doing her thing. I'm sitting here drinking alone like a dumbass.

Kelsey: I'm leaving my house now, headed to Alison's, then we'll be there. I'll look for you.

Nathan: You have no idea how happy I am to know that you're coming.

Kelsey's heart leapt into her throat, but she quickly pushed the feelings of excitement away. She sighed as she started the engine of her car. These newfound feelings that she was having towards Nathan were starting to bother her. It's not like anything would ever come of it. Nathan was her best friend, and besides, he was dating someone else.

Kelsey slumped her shoulders as she made the quick drive to Alison's apartment. Kelsey sent her a text, letting her know that she was outside waiting. Shortly after, Alison and her roomate came out and got in the car.

"I'm so glad you're coming with us, Kelsey!" Alison squealed.

"Thanks for asking me to come. This should be more fun than sitting at my parent's house all night." Kelsey giggled.

"It will, I promise. 449 just opened a couple weeks ago. I hear that it's where all the good looking guys go right now," she said excitedly. "You're not dating anyone, are you?"