Chapter Text
Josh rolled out of bed, nearly stepping on his backpack as he did. He wasn’t excited to see it there, and all it meant was that summer was ending and Sophomore year was about to start. The most exciting part about it was that Chris would finally be back in the same school as him. He remembered being held back in kindergarten. Bet those fuckers were shocked when he skipped the seventh grade. Right back where he belonged.
But Chris, his best friend, had been in his sister’s grade. Though it had been awkward alternating years of being in Beth or Hannah’s class- because for some reason the school thought the twins needed to be separated- he was glad he finally got to be properly ahead of them.
It was still hot. September had a bad reputation of being a cold month, but it was still AC weather.
Looking at the clock, he groaned, realizing that in only a few days, he’d have to wake up at least two and a half hours earlier. Every. Day. His stomached rumbled and he stretched the sleep out of him before scratching his bare chest. It usually took him a few minutes of lollygagging before he could function.
But finally, he made his way into the kitchen and went straight for the orange juice in the fridge. As he chugged the juice from the bottle, he realized he could hear a sound from behind him. It wasn’t the usual sounds he’d heard, this one was like running water or something.
He turned to see an unfamiliar girl standing next to the coffee machine, bent over and intently watching it pour. Other than the blessedly clear view of her ass, he couldn’t see much of her, just blonde hair tied back in a ponytail. She was in a graphic tee, some band he didn’t recognize with tour dates listed down the back, and baggy blue pajama pants that had patterned hamburgers all over them.
No amount of staring at this girl could help him figure out if she was real. There was no real reason that she should be, but that was a pretty weird outfit for him to conjure up, and his mind could go to some strange as hell places.
His parents weren’t home, they were helping with the overbooked event at the lodge. Beth and Hannah didn’t seem to be around. There was no one to verify that she was really there. Hell, might as well go with it, then.
Raising an eyebrow, he kept his eyes on her and slammed the refrigerator door shut.
“Shit!” she practically screamed, knocking into the table with the coffee machine.
Her brown eyes immediately went from Josh’s face to his shirtless chest. He watched her turn beat red and stare up at the ceiling to compose herself before she finally met his eyes again.
He cracked a smile, still unsure if this beautiful girl was a reward of perfection from his imagination, or fate, taunting him in his own house. He leaned forward on the island counter and set the juice aside. Though he didn’t have jock-sized muscles, gym was a requirement so he wasn’t as scrawny as he had once been, and for this moment only, he was grateful they forced him to climb ropes. He could see the girl staring again, and he moved his head to cut off her line of sight.
“Are you here to steal that?” he asked, gesturing to the coffee maker.
“What?” she asked turning. With a nervous chuckle, she started to feel more comfortable. It showed in her eyes, which were able to hold his without wandering. “Oh, no. Sorry, I’m Samantha. Sam.” She held out her hand, and Josh looked at it. Who shakes hands?
But her smile and warmth had him grabbing her hand back. “I’m…”
“Josh!” Hannah yelled, racing into the kitchen. “What are you doing?”
He let go of Sam’s hand, just in case Hannah couldn’t see her… in case she was only real to him. Instead, he gestured to the juice with his head as Hannah rounded the corner. “Want some? I might have backwashed into it, I don’t really know.”
“You’re disgusting, Josh. Sam, I’m so sorry. This is my brother, Josh.”
Beth walked in and gave him a once-over. “No one wants to see you half naked, Josh. Put a shirt on.”
“Morning, Bethy.”
She rolled her eyes and took a seat at the island. She turned to Sam. “You drink coffee?”
Sam glanced over at Josh, who was loudly pulling on a zip-up sweatshirt from the pile of washed laundry in the hamper beside the table. “Not often. My parents don’t really want me to, but I’ve been staying up late to try to enjoy the end of summer.”
“What exactly do you do so late at night, Sammy?” Josh asked with a mischievous grin.
She glared at him, and Hannah stepped forward, trying to usher Josh from the room, but he stayed where he stood leaning against the counter.
“Josh, stop! You’re going to scare off our first high school friend. We only met her at orientation. You’re going to give us a bad reputation.”
“Don’t worry, Hannah,” Sam said, strolling confidently up to Josh. She looked him squarely in the eyes, no signs of timidness like she’d shown earlier. It had taken her a minute, but she was more confident than she appeared. “I’m not easily rattled. Especially not by little boys.” She reached around Josh, pushing him aside as she did, and grabbed the sugar. She grinned cheekily and went back to her coffee without another word.
Josh watched her walk away with a pleased smile on his face. He looked at Beth and nodded in approval of their new friend. He liked her. And there would be no denying it.
Quick A/N: This is my first time writing one shots, so I'll start small. This is my first ever post on AO3, so here's hoping it all goes smoothly! I'm not even sure if this is formatted right. Is this thing on!? I guess we'll see next time!