Fall from Love

an order. I look back to his car and then back to him. I’m starting to shiver from the cold seeping into my bones. I haven’t dressed for snowstorm conditions, but I feel guilty for even complaining; Carter only has a long-sleeve, thermal t-shirt on.
    “Okay, just give me a signal if you need my help or something.”
    He’s already put the jack under the car and is starting to take the tire off. “I will.” He glances up at me for a second and shakes his head, laughing. “Go, before you turn into an icicle.”
    Running back to his car, I jump inside, instantly feeling the warmth envelop me. I call and cancel the roadside assistance and then feel horrible as I sit there, watching him. It just doesn’t seem fair—me sitting in his warm car and him out there, in practically a white out, changing my tire. Though, even through the blanket of snow, I still have a pretty good view and I can’t help watching him, as well as enjoying the fact that I get to stare at him for a few minutes. I find myself staring at his arms and the way they flex with each turn of the tire iron. My eyes trail along the length of his body as he stands and runs back to the trunk to get the spare tire. Swallowing hard and licking my lips, I try to turn away, knowing I shouldn’t be looking at him like this, fantasizing like this. Friends don’t wonder what their friends would feel like with their clothes off, what they would taste like, or how their hands would feel rubbing over my— Holy shit, Holly. Snap out of it!
    Another minute or two passes and it looks like he’s almost done. The snow hasn’t eased up, if anything, I think it’s getting worse. He stands up again and rubs his hands down his jeans and black smears are left behind from where his hands just were.
    “Great, now I’m going to owe him a pair of jeans,” I say out loud to myself. When he turns back around, I get a great view of his ass and I find myself staring at it, wondering what it looks like underneath those jeans. Oh, God, seriously, Holly, you need to stop this.
    Just then, I hear a phone ringing. Looking down, I see Carter’s cell phone lying flat on the console, and the name Kelly flashes across his screen. My chest squeezes and, as hard as I try to fight it, a bit of jealousy hits me. I’m not even sure why, it could just be a friend. I am just a friend; there is no reason to be jealous. Friends also don’t stare and fantasize about what their friend’s ass looks like underneath a pair of jeans, either. Crap, I’m in trouble . For a long moment, I can’t take my eyes off the phone or the name on the screen.
    Finally, when it stops ringing and the name disappears, I look back up and see Carter run back and grab the flat tire he’s taken off my car. He throws it in my trunk and slams it shut when his phone starts ringing again. I glance down and see the same name, Kelly, flash across the screen. Maybe it’s just a friend, or someone from class, I think to myself. Still, a sharp pain stings me, knowing that it could also be his girlfriend... or someone he wants to be his girlfriend. With that thought, the small bit of jealousy I felt just moments ago has multiplied and is now consuming me. In all the nights we talked, he never told me about a girl he’s interested in. Friends talk about that kind of stuff, right?
    Carter finishes up and jogs over to me just as his phone stops ringing. I roll down the window and I know he’s trying to hide it, but he’s shivering cold.
    “I’m going to drive your car to the auto shop on Noel & Main. Do you know where it is?”
    “Um, yeah, I think so. Why don’t I just drive it? You’ve done more than enough.”
    He shakes his head and a shiver escapes him. “No, it’s not very safe to drive with just the donut on it, especially with this weather. I’ll drive it; you just follow me in my car, okay?”
    I swallow hard, feeling even more guilt wash through me. “Carter, I—”
    He starts to back away from me and smiles. “Just follow me.”
    Before I can protest anymore, he’s already jogging back over to my car.
    Oh, God, then it hits me. I look down to see a stick shift staring right at me and I have a bit of a panic attack. There are two things my dad insisted that I learn after I got my driver’s license; one, how to change a tire—it’s clear that didn’t go so well—and number two, how to drive a stick shift. I totally sucked at it and almost stripped the clutch on his truck, but after an