A First, My Friend's Sister Ch. 02

I held Jeanie's hand to help her into the limo. As she brushed by me, again I caught the scent of her perfume and it made my knees go weak. She was absolutely radiant tonight; everything about her was perfect. Her olive skin gleamed, her smile warm and tender, her hair held up elegantly with defiant little strands hanging down, her scent sweet and alluring. I knew I had a difficult evening ahead of me, pretending I wasn't attracted to this vision of pure beauty.

In the limo we waved to the parents and finally drove away to the dance. The atmosphere in the limo was festive; everyone was in a great mood and looking forward to the evening. I wondered what the guys might be thinking. Was this their evening? Would they finally get lucky tonight? Or had they already reached that point in their respective relationships? I wondered what their pressure level was. Hey, whether they had gotten there with their girls yet or not, I knew damn well they wanted to tonight. I watched them, trying to read their reactions and their demeanor. It was too early to tell, I decided.

As for myself, I knew there would be none of that for me tonight. Jeanie was gorgeous, breathtakingly so. And I absolutely thought the world of her. But there could be no touching her. Her brother was my best friend and I'd made a promise. So no matter how enticing the thought of touching this beautiful little creature beside me might be; it simply wasn't going to happen.

At some point during the ride, Jeanie reached down and held my hand in hers. I looked down at our entwined hands, then up at her, but she just smiled radiantly. How could I say no to that? So I squeezed her hand tightly and enjoyed the ride.

We all joked and laughed as we made our way to the event hall where the prom was being held. Even Dan Reindorf, the total douchebag himself, managed to just laugh and have a good time without being too much of a dick.

We arrived at the hall and I helped Jeanie out of the limo. She held my hand as we entered the place, and it dawned on me suddenly how natural and good that felt. I liked holding her hand. And I must say, it felt great to be next to such a beautiful, wonderful girl. I'd had a couple girlfriends in high school, but during my year at college I had no one really serious in my life. Sure there were girls, but nothing meaningful or lasting. So there was something very warm and comforting about having Jeanie holding my hand, smiling proudly beside me. I'm the one who should be proud, I thought. This girl is amazing and I'm here with her.

Jeanie laughed and hugged her friends as they all arrived and began mingling. She introduced me to everyone, almost as though she was showing me off. It was really sweet of her. Some of her friends I knew from school, but others I hadn't really met before. We all had a good time laughing and joking.

In the event hall dinner was served and a slideshow featuring a bunch of pictures of members of Jeanie's graduating class were shown. It was a fun time seeing pictures of some people I knew, and I was amazed at how many pictures Jeanie was in. She and Missy were really popular and they were friends with pretty much everyone. At one point Jeanie leaned over to me and said, "Missy is totally going to be Prom Queen. Everyone loves her."

"Everyone loves you too, you know," I responded, touching her softly on her arm.

She pressed her hand onto mine. "Oh, you're so sweet, Jim," she gushed. "But I'm happy for her. She should win. Look at her; she's gorgeous."

She nodded across the table at Missy. Jeanie was right, Missy was a gorgeous girl. She had long blond hair and blue eyes. She was tall and statuesque, yet curved and shapely, certainly a vision to behold with her full breasts and hourglass figure. I wondered if it made Jeanie just a little uptight having Missy as a best friend.

Jeanie was shorter than Missy, her breasts not as voluptuous and her curves maybe not quite as defined. But where Missy had a slender, statuesque, model kind of form, Jeanie had a more lean, athletic form. And that was the difference between the two girls. Missy was a cheerleader while Jeanie was an athlete. Jeanie played soccer and ran cross country, and Missy was captain of the football and basketball cheerleading squads. There was nothing wrong with either, but I still wondered if deep down it bothered Jeanie somehow. That Missy had the classic feminine form while Jeanie had a different kind of physique.

"Yeah, she is gorgeous, Francesca," I said, using her real name to be sure I caught her attention and so that she knew I was being serious. "But you're pretty breathtaking yourself. I can barely even talk to you tonight, you look so amazing." I pulled her hand to my lips and kissed it.

She smiled and laughed. "You're the best prom date ever, James," she said.

"And you're just about the best friend Missy could ever ask for, so you've also got that going for you."

"Thanks Jim," she laughed, "now I won't have to be so envious when she's named Queen later."

"Well, you're allowed to be a little envious; I mean, I think you deserve to be Queen."

"Nah, that's ok," she replied, "she should be. And besides, I have one thing she sure doesn't."

"What's that?" I asked.

She leaned into my ear. "My prom date is a lot hotter than hers," she whispered seductively.

"Yeah, there's no denying that," I smiled, squeezing her hand.

Jeanie smiled back at me and we continued to watch the slideshow. I hoped I made her feel better about the Prom Queen situation. Jeanie was friends with some beautiful people. I guess that was the drawback of being popular. I looked over at her friend Beth. Even she was strikingly pretty. An inch or two taller than Jeanie, she had very fair skin with freckles, and her slightly reddish hair hung pin-straight down her milky white back. Her green eyes sparkled and her smile was sweet and unassuming. Even her breasts were full and her dress billowed out with their roundness.

I hoped Jeanie didn't think less of herself because she had such pretty friends. I mean, yes her friends had beauty, but so did she. And Jeanie was a beautiful person both inside and out, so she deserved to feel special. I decided then and there that that would be my mission for the evening. I was going to make Jeanie feel special, and give her an evening she would never forget. No more than that; one that she would cherish.

I smiled at her and squeezed her hand. She smiled too and squeezed back. And throughout dinner everyone at our table had a great time joking back and forth. Then, when dinner ended, it came time to dance.

I hit the floor with the girls, but of course Dan had to be an ass and refused to dance. Even Mark, who seemed to be a pretty quiet and shy guy, came out and danced with Beth. I was sure to use every ridiculous and funny move I had in my repertory during the fun, fast songs. But when the slow songs came I turned off the goofball routine and danced with Jeanie. It was wonderful holding her so close. Not too close, of course, there were teachers around to make sure it didn't get too intimate. But close enough to feel her warmth and smell her sweetness. We talked lowly, staring into each other's eyes.

"I'm having so much fun tonight, Jim, thank you."

"Don't thank me, I'm having fun too."

"You make me feel special," she said softly.

"Well, you are special so I'm glad," I replied. When I said this, she rested her head on my shoulder. It was good to hear her say that. It looked like I was succeeding in my mission. When the song ended I didn't want to let her go, but we parted reluctantly.

"Do... you want something to drink?" I asked awkwardly before the next song started.

"Sure," she replied.

"Ok," I said quickly and before I knew what I was doing I leaned in and kissed her cheek, then broke away suddenly, realizing what I'd done.

"You gotta stop," I thought to myself as I walked away. "It's Jeanie, man, you cannot do shit like that." I chastised myself in my head while I grabbed a few glasses of punch. I brought them back to the table for the others to share. Jeanie was sitting there chatting with Beth. I gave them two drinks. On the other side of the table I could tell Missy was trying to get Dan to dance. She was standing over him, hands on hips, looking disappointed. It was another slow song, but since he hadn't danced all night I figured she wasn't going to have any luck. Suddenly I hatched a plan. I leaned down and interrupted Jeanie and Beth's conversation.

"Hey, sorry to interrupt," I said to Jeanie matter-of-factly, "I'm having a great time tonight."

"I am too," she replied somewhat surprised.

"I just want you to know that. You're the best date ever, so just... just trust me on this, ok?"

"Ok, I trust you. But with what?"

"Just watch."

I stood up and walked around the table. As I approached Missy, I could clearly see a look of disappointment undeniably etched on her face. But she smiled as I stepped up to her.

Without a beat of hesitation I said to her, "Missy, would you do me the honor of a dance?" I held my hand out to her. Then I turned to Dan and asked respectfully, "Dan, you wouldn't mind one dance, would you?" Dan looked up at me bewildered but before he could say anything, Missy grabbed my hand.

"I would love to, Jim," she said authoritatively.

"Great," I said, smiling at her. Then I turned to Dan and nodded slightly before I escorted Missy onto the dance floor. Once there, I held her to me and spun her gently around so she wasn't facing Dan.

"Hey, forgive me for this, but I noticed you hadn't gotten a single dance tonight and..."

"Don't," she cut me off. "Please... don't even apologize. I am so grateful right now. Let's just enjoy our dance, ok?"

"Ok," I smiled. Missy and I danced slowly, but I held her respectfully at a distance. I noticed over her shoulder that Jeanie was watching us. She was definitely smiling and I was relieved by that. She understood what I had done and that it wasn't meant to be a reflection on her. I gave her a little smile back when I made eye contact with her.

"She looks lovely tonight, doesn't she?" Missy asked, noticing that Jeanie was watching us.

"Yes, she really does," I replied.

"She likes you a lot, you know. Good god, it's like the sun rises and sets on Jim Stillman with that girl," Missy joked.

"Oh, come on."

"It's true."

"Well, she's an amazing person; I really care about her," I said.

"Good. You're right, you know, she is amazing."

"I know."

"And she's right too, Jim. You're a pretty amazing guy yourself."

The song was drawing to a close. Missy and I separated and we smiled into each other's eyes. I opened my mouth to say something, not sure what I should say. But Missy saved me the trouble.

"Thank you for this," she said, taking both my hands in hers. She gave me a small nod.

"My pleasure," I replied, then led her back to our table. I felt Dan's eyes on me but at that point I didn't give a shit. He was acting like a jackass and I'd called him on it. He had a beautiful girlfriend and it was time for him to treat her well.

I made my way around the table and sat next to Jeanie. "You know that was just..." I began, but she interrupted me.

"That was really nice of you," she whispered. "But just don't get any ideas," she added quickly, raising her finger to me.

I raised both hands in a pose of innocence. "You're the only one who's giving me any ideas, Giana, and I assure you they're all very bad ones," I retorted.

She smiled wickedly and leaned into me. I put my arm around her and squeezed her. Good lord, I thought, how am I going to get out of tonight without being bad? My mind flickered to what she'd told me earlier. No underwear. I held her tightly against me, imagining what was beneath that dress. Nothing. Just a thin piece of fabric between me and that glorious little body. Truly nasty thoughts began flowing in my head, but abruptly they were interrupted by an announcement over the PA system.

Apparently it was time to announce the Prom King and Queen. To no one's surprise, Missy was announced as Queen. Jeanie was genuinely excited and jumped up to hug Missy. Then a moment later, they announced Dan as King. There were several guffaws in the crowd, probably from the people Dan picked on, but for the most part people applauded respectfully.

And now Dan had no choice but to finally dance with Missy. He did so, albeit somewhat begrudgingly from the looks of it, and the couple had their dance in the limelight. Missy was beaming with happiness, while Dan looked a bit miserable. What an ass, I thought. She's such a genuinely nice, happy person. Why did he need to be such a jerk?

After their song had ended the DJ played a few more dance numbers to bring the evening to its peak. Jeanie and I and all her friends hit the dance floor and had a blast. I even danced with my sister, Jocelyn, a bit. I had kept my distance from her throughout most of the night because I didn't want her to think I was trying to cramp her style. I respected her and her friends so I wasn't about ruining their fun.

Jocelyn's reaction seemed somewhat cool a few days earlier when I had first told her that I was going to the prom with Jeanie. She scrunched her eyes a bit, and shook her head. When I asked her if it was a problem she had just said no but that it was a little weird. I guess I couldn't have disagreed with that assessment. But once I had assured her that I wasn't going to hurt Jeanie and that I wasn't going to be hanging around Joss and her friends all night she softened. So I had taken my time in approaching her all evening, keeping a respectful distance.

But once we were all having a good time Joss didn't seem to mind. We all danced and laughed and had fun. Then finally, it was time for the final song.

I pulled Jeanie close to me and whispered in her ear, "Well, this is it. Did you have a good time tonight?"

She stared caringly into my eyes. "I did. I don't want it to end."

I gave her an understanding smile and hugged her. As the song ended she kissed me gently on the cheek. "Thank you," she whispered. I took her hands in mine and squeezed them.

Afterward, everyone gathered in the entrance foyer to say goodbye. After several minutes, our three couples made our way to the limo. We all piled in and Dan was the first to ask, "Ok, what now?"

Missy replied, "You boys just relax and get comfy, the girls have it all planned out." Then she turned and handed our driver, Steve, a slip of paper with directions. "Take us there, Steve!" she shouted.

"My pleasure," Steve replied. "You kids just enjoy the ride." Then he rolled up the dividing window.

"Ok, now that we're alone," said Missy, "I have some good news." She began rummaging through a rather large bag she'd brought with her and left in the back of the limo. From it, she pulled out a bottle of champagne and announced, "It's party time!"

We all laughed. "Sorry, it'll be a little warm," Missy continued, "but I just think we have a lot to celebrate. Jeanie, Beth, you guys are my best friends and you've made high school the most amazing time I ever could have imagined. We're all going to graduate in a couple weeks and I just don't know how I ever would have made it through without you." The girls all began to gush while all three guys looked at each other simultaneously, snorted with laughter and rolled our eyes.

"No seriously," Missy chastised us, "I can't even ask for better friends than you guys. So I got this little gift for all of us." She handed the bottle to Dan who opened it. During the car ride we passed the bottle between us taking sips from it. Jeanie leaned against me and I draped my arm over her shoulder. I wondered where we were heading, but we were having such a great time I didn't really care. Even Dan had mellowed the hell out, maybe with some help from the champagne, and wasn't giving any attitude. Or maybe he was just anticipating getting some from his girlfriend, who was rapidly attaining a high level of tipsiness.

All three girls were beginning to get pretty giggly from the champagne. Beth had even begun stealing open-mouth kisses from Mark, making him visibly uncomfortable. I could tell he was eager to enjoy this attention, but very embarrassed having it happen in front of everyone.

Even Jeanie began nuzzling gently at my neck. It was quite alluring and really sexy, but I tried not to get too caught up in it. I'd made my promise, I reminded myself. But there was something about that moment. Jeanie nuzzling up against me, my arm around her shoulder... I felt a voice deep inside me say, "Oh fuck that stupid promise!"

But that was just the champagne talking, I reminded myself, so I stifled that train of thought immediately. Then I realized the car was slowing to a stop. It was dark out so I couldn't tell where we were. When it stopped, Missy opened the door and announced, "We're at Witherton Park. There are some nice trails to walk on and get some privacy at. It's a little after 11 now, we have the limo until 1, so we've all got an hour to do whatever. Have fun, you guys!" Then she grabbed Dan's hand abruptly and dragged him out of the limo.

Beth and Mark went next, leaving just Jeanie and I in the limo. She grinned at me sweetly yet mischievously. "Wanna take a walk with me, James Stillman?" she asked.

"Well, how do I know you won't take advantage of poor little old me out there in the woods all alone?" I teased.

"Well, how do you know you wouldn't love it?" she teased right back. It was just the answer I both wanted and dreaded to hear. But I knew deep down I couldn't resist her, so I gave the inevitable answer.

"I guess I'll just have to take that chance," I said, scooting to the door and stepping out. I took her hand and helped her out as well.

"You won't regret it," she laughed, brushing against me as she stood up out of the limo. I put my arm around her as we began to walk.

"You lead the way," I said, "it's your night after all.

"My night," she said, "I like that." Then she led me onto one of the hiking trails. Witherton Park was not a huge park, but it had a few hundred acres where you could walk and hike. "How about we go to Overlook Ridge?" Jeanie asked.

"Sounds great," I answered. Overlook Ridge was a spot up on a hill that overlooked our town and the river that ran through it. It was so the perfect ridiculous prom night cliché spot that it was actually quite fitting that we were going there. I held Jeanie close to make sure she didn't trip while walking in her heels. It certainly wasn't a difficult hike, but doing it in the dark, in heels, and tipsy, was a bit of a challenge. So I supported her as best I could. I even carried her the last few feet to the top. Luckily the moon shone brightly, and gave a nice little bit of lighting to make the walk a little easier.

Once on top of the ridge we sat down next to each other and enjoyed the view. "God, it's beautiful isn't it?" Jeanie remarked, gazing down on the lights of the town. I, however, was staring at her.

"Yes, very beautiful," I replied. She turned and noticed me gazing at her.

"Jim..." she began, wrapping both of her arms around my shoulders. "Tonight was such a wonderful time. It was all I dreamed it would be."

"I'm glad, Jeanie, I really am."

"I... just have one more... thing I've dreamed about," she said slowly, pausing for dramatic effect. Then very slowly, very deliberately, she began to lean into me. I knew this was the moment. She wanted to kiss me. And god knew how badly I was dying to kiss her. All night long I'd fantasized about pressing my mouth against her soft, pink lips, to feel how full and warm and wet they were. But that nagging voice sounded in my head. "You can't do this, man, you just can't."

"Jeanie," I said softly, halting her progress. "You are so amazing. You're so sweet, and you're so funny, and you're so beautiful. But... your brother... I just... I promised. I just can't."