18 Lies, Lies, Lies

It was a hot summer night on Lantau Island and the humidity was lingering in the air.

As Sam stood in the woods with Delilah, he felt a drop of sweat roll down the side of his cheek. This sweat was not from the heat, but from the nervousness in the atmosphere. His best friend had just caught him kissing her crush. How was he supposed to explain himself?

"Listen to me, Dels, I..."

However, before he managed to say much, Delilah interrupted. "Is this why you've never been interested in any girls? And is this why you were blushing in the kitchen earlier?" she asked.

Sam swallowed back his words and stuttered a little, "Wh-What do you mean?! N-no! It's not what you think." Judging by her underlying tone, he had a feeling he knew what she was thinking.

Delilah grabbed her best friend's hand. With a comforting look in her eyes, she said softly, "It's OK. You don't have to hide anymore. I know you're gay and I think it's completely normal. Now I don't have to feel awkward around you anymore."

Sam looked at the young teenage girl and furrowed his brows. Indeed, she had misunderstood. But, temporarily dismissing the fact that she thought he was gay, another word caught his attention. "Awkward?" When and why did she feel awkward around him?

Delilah nodded. "Yes...I mean, you're a guy and I'm a girl...and we're no longer little kids in primary school. There are some things that I can't talk to you about and I can't do with you," Delilah replied.

Sam thought about Delilah's reply and slowly realized that she was right. He had noticed Delilah and Tiffany whispering in secret and doing things without him recently, and the truth was, he had felt a little left out. Now that Delilah mentioned it, he realized it was because he was a guy.

While he was deep in thought, Delilah suddenly grinned and asked, "So...how did it feel?"

Sam looked at the girl in confusion, "How did what feel?"

Delilah hooked her arm around Sam's arm excitedly. "How did your first kiss feel?" she asked.

Sam raised his eyebrows in surprise when he heard this question. "Aren't you mad at me? I just kissed your crush."

The young girl flicked her hair back confidently, "Come on, Sammy, 'chicks over dicks'. I would always choose my girlfriends over a guy. Besides, if he's not interested in girls, then I don't stand a chance anyway. There's plenty of other fish in the sea."

As Delilah clung to his arm, Sam could feel her smooth skin rub against his. Even though they had been best friends since the fifth grade, she had never been this affectionate with him. But now that she treated him like a 'girlfriend', everything immediately changed like the flip of a switch.

Sam frowned guiltily. He wanted to enjoy this affection for a little longer, but the truth was, his friend had misunderstood.

Earlier, inside that cabin, he was actually getting ready to go to sleep when Zac suddenly approached his bed and sat down beside him.

With a soft smile, the tall basketball captain said, "Thank you for today. I really enjoyed the spaghetti bolognese that you made. I also noticed that you used fresh tomatoes and herbs; it was very thoughtful."

Sam smiled back casually and patted Zac on the shoulder, "I didn't do much. It was mainly Delilah. You should go thank her. She would be really happy."

However, Zac shook his head, pointed to a red stain on Sam's shirt, and said, "You got that from chopping the tomatoes, didn't you? You don't have to be modest. I know what you did for me and I'm really moved by it."

Zac stared straight into Sam's eyes and Sam noticed that he seemed to be hesitating about something.

But, a moment later, Zac shuffled closer to Sam and tugged on his shirt. "To be honest, we've been teammates for a long time and I've always wanted to get to know you better. I was actually afraid of what people would say, but after today, I've realized how you feel about me and I can't hold back my feelings either," he confessed bravely, "Since you've already taken the first step, I shouldn't let other people get in our way."

Sam raised an eyebrow in confusion. What was this guy talking about?

But just as he was about to question the guy, he heard him say softly, "I like you too." Before he knew it, he felt something soft press firmly against his lips. Opening his eyes wide in surprise, Sam saw Zac's closed eyes right in front of him!

Zac was...kissing him!

That was when Sam noticed a shadow in the window and saw Delilah...looking straight at them!

As a light breeze swept through the woods and eased the humidity, Sam glanced down at his best friend and knew he couldn't lie to her.

"Dels...that kiss...it was..."

But while Sam was struggling to get his words out properly, Delilah suddenly stepped in front of him and said, "Kiss me..."

"Kiss me the way that you kissed Zac..."

Sam stared at the girl in surprise and his heart began to race. What did she just say? Why did she tell him to kiss her?

Delilah lifted herself up on her tiptoes, closed her eyes, and pouted her lips. "As your best friend, I will do whatever I can to help you. Kiss me and I'll tell you if you're any good."

Sam held his breath and looked at the beautiful, fair-skinned girl in front of him. Her long hair fluttered in the wind, her eyelashes were long and alluring, her lips looked soft and juicy, and her body...

[When did her body start looking like this?]

For a 15-year-old boy who was going through puberty, this scene was like a dream come true. How could he say no?

Thus, Sam took a deep breath, gave up to temptation, and surrendered his lips to the girl.

The moment that he felt her lips, he no longer felt guilty that he allowed their misunderstanding to continue. It was completely worth it. Her lips were softer than he imagined and they were addictive like a drug. Every time the girl thought the kiss was over and wanted to move away, he would wrap his arms around her waist and pull her back for more.

However, he had no idea, at that time, that this one moment of weakness would lead to 10 years of lies... Lies that he did not know how to turn back from...