RhondaWeasley.com

Title: Benny’s Love
Rating: PG13
Summary: Benny confronts his feelings for his friend’s girlfriend.
Notes:
Warning(s):
Disclaimer:  This is a work of fiction. Not intended to represent any real persons, places, events, or things. This story is copyright Dawn Kelley and all rights to these characters belong to me.

Benny combed back his blond hair. His hair never coperated. No matter what he did, kept it short or let it grow long, it just didn’t behave. Maybe he should shave it off, but what if he had a weird shaped head. Harold had assured him he would get some tonight, but he wanted to assure that by looking good. He was sick of being a virgin. Harold knew everything about girls, so if he said Stacy was going to give it up she probably was. Afterall, the number of girls Harold had seduced could fill the grand canyon.

“You don’t actually think you look good,” his tweleve year old sister said from the doorway. “Nobody wears those stupid shirts no more.”

“Get out of here Tina,” Benny yelled.

“Get out of here Tina,” Tina mocked.

The doorbell rang and she ran downstairs. She was grinning ear to ear when she saw it was Harold.

“What’s up little lady?”

“Hi Harold,” Tina said in admiration.

“Your brother here?”

“Yeah, he’s attempting to look cute.”

Harold laughed and gave the girl an affectionate pat. Benny came down the stairs in a different shirt.

“Dad, I’m gone,” Benny shouted into the living room as he slipped out the door. He was glad his mother wasn’t here to give him twenty questions.

“Ben, I’m telling you tonight’s your night,” Harold asserted.

“How can you be so sure, Stacy always blows me off. The only time she’ll go out with me is if your around.”

“By the end of the night, believe me I won’t be in sight.”

“How do you know tonight’s going to be any different?”

“I know Stace, I was with her before.”

When they arrived at Harold’s house, Kim and Stacy were waiting for them outside. Neither of the girl’s fathers wanted them anywhere near Harold. Each had told there parents they were going over the other’s house (they’d also left the house in plain clothes and carried the sexy outfits they now wore in large bags). Both girls said ‘hi’ to Harold together, obviously competing for his eye.

Kim eventually turned to Benny and said, “How you doing Benny?”

“Okay,” Benny answered as he watched Stacy flirt with Harold.

Harold was so lucky he had Kim. the girl was beautiful. How anyone ever mixed her up with her twin sister he didn’t know. Yeah, they were technically identical, but there was just this something else about Kim’s energy that made her more beautiful. He couldn’t figure out why Harold needed any other girl.

In truth, Kim was the vision in his dreams. Yeah, Stacy fit the criteria of a beatiful girl too. She had blond hair, blue eyes, nice figure, all those things that people ususally associate with beatiful. But she just couldn’t hold a candle to Kim .

The couples immediatly went and curled up on the couch together. Harold clicked on the movie they were set up to pretend to watch. However, Harold was groping Kim before the end of the openning credits.

Benny was cautious about Stacy, so he didn’t try to keep speed with Harold. 

The movie had barely started when Harold and Kim were deep into making out. Stacy tried to pretend she wasn’t, like him, glancing over at them. Watching from the sidelines Benny grew more nervouse.

Well it was now or never, Benny thought. He laid his arm behind Stacy. She didn’t move it as she had before. He then let his hand creep over her shoulder and she looked at him like everything was cool. She even smiled. So he moved in for the kiss. That quick she pushed him away.

“I can’t do this, no matter what Harold say. I’m sorry Benny, but your just, just–” Stacy shook her head, “Ugh.”

She got up and left the house. Benny glanced over at Harold and Kim. Had they even noticed? They were still stuck to each other’s faces, so they proably hadn’t. Benny got up and left the couch. The movement of two bodies from the space must have been enough to grab Harold’s attention.

“Hey what happened to Stace?” Harold asked.

“She left, awhile ago.”

“You that bad a kisser man?” Harold joked

“I wouldn’t know,” Benny replied bitterly. “My lips never touched hers.”

“What you do then?”

“Nothing.”

“Hey Kim, check him out for me.”

“What?” Kim said with a giggle.

“Kiss him and if he cool you can tell Stacy.”

Kim rolled her eyes at him.

“Are you serious?”

“It’s just a kiss. Who can report on it to their best friend better than another girl.”

Reluctantly, Kim got up from the couch and approached Benny. He was nervous and twisted his hands nervously.

“Benny, your like a little kid,” Kim said, with a giggle.

She leaned in and her lips touch his and sheer nervousness made him tense up. Kim’s lips played expertly over his, but he was so tense he couldn’t move or react. There was no chance this was ever going to happen again and he couldn’t even enjoy it. Kim broke contact.

“Can’t tell a thing he’s too tense,” Kim said to Harold. 

“I’m going home,” Benny annouced.

Benny ran out the door.

Benny walked home with his head drooped in shame. He should have known things would turn out like this. He was just what his sister always said he was, a big loser.

Why did it come so easy to Harold? He knew girls liked bad boys. Also, according to Tina, he was “soooo hot.” Luckily, Tina was to young to date. Still, it seemed like coolness was born to Harold. Even when they were little boys, he was the center of attention. No one was better at being a boy than Harold. He was a master at annoying girls, thought of the best games, was the best fighter, and was always better than the rest of the guys at sports (he was asked to join numerouse teams and refused). And when he hit puberty, he instictivly knew how to flip annoying all the girls into getting all the girls. girls.

In pre-puberty Benny had done what the rest of the boys would never do, told Harold how cool he was. Then he asked him how he could be that cool. Harold told him to change his name. He said the beginning of cool was a cool name. It had worked for Nelson, who’s middle name was Kirk. Harold decided Kirk sounded cooler than Nelson and almost everyone now called by his middle name.

Taking Harold’s advice, he picked a name. It had seemed cool in his head. But it wasn’t the name, it was the situation surrounding the name that soured his school career. He’d been so happy when he walked into class, ten minutes late, wearing new shades, ready to be crowned cool.

“Benito’s in the house,” he had shouted as he came through the door.

“Well, Benito better get in his seat,” the teacher had said pulling off the shades.

And the whole class, made up mostly by his friends, had laughed. They had laughed and laughed and laughed. He’d hope the class would be the end of it, but the whole day they teased him with the phrase “Benito’s in the house.” He thought he was off the hook the next day, all seemed forgotten and it wasn’t heard again for awhile. Kids usually forget. Unfortunately, it was only pushed to the back of there minds. Any mistake he made from that day on was ragged on using the name “Benito” or the phrase “Benito’s in the house”, followed by laughs. He’d talked to Harold who said, “Maybe some people are meant to be clowns.” It seemed like ever since he told him he was cool, Harold had been cocky about it.

He walked through the door and heard Tina laughing in the living room with her friend Erika. Tina saw him and said, “Hey, look, geek boy’s home.”

He wanted to offer a rebuttal, but he didn’t really have it in him. The night had not turned out as expected and he didn’t feel like having his usual argument with a twelve year old.

The next day at school, the day moved slow. It was becoming obvious that he was going to be “Benito the geek” his whole high school career. And he didn’t even have intelligence to back it up. Despite his actions last night, Kim had smiled at him this morning and waved. Of course the guy she only cared about in their group was Harold. Man, he’d give anything to hold that girl just once.

Benny had misgivings about lunch. Harold was a bragger and he had a habit of occupying lunch time guy talk with the story the previous night’s date. And Benny didn’t need to hear how victorious last night’s activities had been for him.

When Benny arrived in the cafeteria he found Harold arguing with Kirk and the other jocks about something. Maybe a diversion conversation would keep him from doweling on last night’s events, he thought as he fell into the lunch line.

“Hey hot lips,” a voice said from behind him. Benny turned around and saw Kim and her identical twin, Karen, standing behind him.

“Hey girls,” he replied with a smile.

“Ben, I just want to say that it’s wrong what, excuse my langauge, that bastard Harold and that bitch Stacy did to you last night,” Karen quickly chimed in. “and my sister too.”

“Kim, What she talking about?” Benny said looking at her.

“Last night was part of a bet Ben,” Kim began. “You know Jay on the football team with Kirk, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Well, you know how he always trying to upstage Harold and he know how Stacy don’t like you like that. So Jay and him was arguing, and Jay was all like ‘You think your game so tight, I bet you ain’t got enough control that you can get Stacy to sleep with somebody else, somebody she don’t even like, like Ben.’ So Harold all like, ‘How you know my boy ain’t hit it already.’ So Jay start talking about how Stacy only go out with you so she can be near Harold and steal him from me or whatever, so Harold took the bet.”

Benny stood still a moment trying to process this story. “When was this?” Benny asked.

“It was a few weeks ago I think, but I just found out about it like last week. See, I caught Stacy in bed with Harold. When I got mad, Harold pulled me to the side and talked. He told me about the bet with Jay and how Stacy was gonna sleep with you, but only if she got some alone time with Harold.”

“So I’m just a pity case?” Benny questioned, hurt.

An angry Benny maneuvered his way out the line and escaped through the cafeteria doors. He couldn’t believe what he was in the middle of, but he wasn’t surprised. He was just sick of it, sick of himself. He was no one to his so-called friends. Except something to laugh at and bet on like some, some, some village idiot.

Benny found his way to the field and sat on bleachers. He wasn’t mad at them, only at himself. Considering what he had been after that night, he supposed he deserved the outcome. How long was he going to try to be Harold? He’d been trying so long, he didn’t know who Benny was anymore.

“Benny,” a voice said from behind him. He turned toward Kim’s familiar voice. “I am so sorry about the bet.”

“And kissing me?”

Kim walked up to him and sat down beside him.

“Yeah, I’m sorry for doing it cause Harold told me to. You see, he told Jay about that too. It was some sort of proof of his power.”

“And yet you stay with him.”

“I know he’s not a great guy, but he’s Harold. If I’m with Harold it’s like–”

“You’re somebody important for being with someone important, I know,” Benny finished. Kim looked at him surprised. “I feel it all the time. It’s like as long as I’m cool with Harold, as long as I stay a frriend of his in everyone else’s eyes, I’m somebody.”

 “I didn’t know you felt that way.”

“I didn’t know you felt the same way.”

Benny turned to Kim and they smiled at each other.

“I don’t know what Stacy’s problem is, you’re adorable in your own way,” Kim said to Benny, causing him to blush.

“Don’t play with me Kim.” Benny lowered his eyes.

“I’m not,” Kim said lifting Benny face to eye level. Kim came toward him and he didn’t know how to react. He felt his body tensing as it had the night before. Boy her lips were soft, his mind reflected as she leaned against him, and so was her body. Loosen up dummy, his mind said. Finally his body listened and let go of the tenseness that held him back. He allowed himself to touch the pretty girl in front of him and to match her kiss. Slowly he came into the warmest feeling in the world.

The school bell rang and their lips broke contact. Benny couldn’t beleive he’d just kissed a girl, Kim of all people, like that.

“If you had been that relaxed last night, I might have had to take you home,” Kim said ruffling Benny’s hair. “But that’s okay, your not a performer like Harold.”

“Harold,” Benny spat. He got up and started off the bleechers.

“Ben, I didn’t mean it like that,” Kim said. She ran after him. “I mean, it can be a good thing..”

Benny turned back toward her. She met up with him and took his hand.

“What are you doing right now?” Kim asked.

“Math class, I suppose.”

“You wanna cut math and go have some fun.”

“You just feel sorry for me. Plus, I ain’t trying to be Harold no more.”

“If I wanted Harold’s ignorant ass I’d go in there and find him. I want to hang with Benny.”

“Really?”

“Really silly, now do you want to cut out with me or not?”

“Oh I want to,” Benny said.

He didn’t know why fate was suddenly being so kind to him, but he was grateful. Of all the girls in school, he got Kim. Even if only for this one evening, it was a dream come true.