Mchapter22

�What do you mean?� Justin questioned.

�Well, do you want to wait until you�re married, or when you�re in love?� Leah asked. �I�m just curious.�

�Um, I�m not really sure,� was all Justin could say. �I�ve never really thought about it.�

�Oh, ok,� Leah replied.

�Why�d you ask?� Justin questioned.

�Well, before, when I asked how long we were alone, you got nervous,� Leah observed aloud, and Justin blushed. �Hey, Justin,� Leah said, turning his head to face her, �it�s ok. Really. It doesn�t matter to me how experienced you are, I already told you that.� She smiled to make her point. �I want you to be comfortable around me. I can wait until you�re ready, ok?�

�Yeah,� Justin replied, �I just don�t want to disappoint you. I want to be good enough for you.�

�Sex has nothing to do with how good you are for me. Sex doesn�t matter. That�s not why I�m with you, ok?� Leah asked.

�Yes,� Justin agreed, pulling Leah close to him. He couldn�t believe how caring she was. He could see himself with her for a long time.

****

Josh picked up the phone and called Joey, waiting patiently for him to pick up. He smiled when he heard Joey�s voice.

�Hey Joe, it�s me,� Josh said, greeting his friend.

�Hey man! How are ya?� Joey asked.

�Great, you?� Josh answered.

�Same here. Remember how I told you that I think Kelly is the one for me?� Joey asked.

�Yeah,� Josh replied. �You didn�t find someone else, did you?�

�No, of course not, Josh! I�m going to ask her to marry me!� Joey exclaimed, obviously very excited.

�Wow, that�s great man. You sure you�re ready?� Josh questioned, concerned that it might not work out.

�I didn�t think I was before. I just thought this would be another fling, ya know? But Kelly is such a great girl, I really love her Josh,� Joey explained, and Josh could hear the admiration in his voice.

�That�s great Joey, I�m really happy for you,� Josh replied, truly happy for his friend. �When are you asking her?�

�Tonight,� Joey told Josh.

�Wow. Are you nervous?� Josh questioned.

�Yes, very. Hey, you want to come over later?� Joey asked.

�Oh, I can�t, Joe, I�m sorry. Two months ago today was when Lance and I met � I was hoping to do something with him tonight. I�m not even sure if he remembered. If he didn�t, and he�s busy, I�ll give you a call, ok?� Josh replied.

�Sure,� Joey agreed. �Well, I better get going. Have fun tonight with Lance.�

�I think I will,� Josh responded with a happy smile on his face. �And good luck with Kelly, man.�

�Thanks,� Joey replied. They said goodbye and then hung up the phone. Josh smiled as he thought of Joey and Kelly getting married. They were so great together. Joey, Kelly, Lance, and him had gone out one a few double dates, and Kelly was a lot of fun. She and Joey got along so well. And he was happy for his friend. Joey hadn�t been in love for a long time, so it was great that he finally found someone.

Josh smiled as his thoughts shifted to Lance. He decided he should call Lance and ask him to come over later that night. He wasn�t sure whether he should mention that it was the �anniversary� of the day they met or not. He figured he should, and risk being embarrassed over the phone, rather then waiting until Lance. �Please remember,� Josh begged in his head as he picked up the phone again.

�Hello?� he heard Lance�s voice answer.

�Hey babe,� Josh said softly.

�Josh, hey. How are ya?� Lance asked. Josh could hear the smile in his boyfriend�s voice.

�I�m great, how are you?� Josh responded.

�Good. So what�s up?� Lance questioned.

�Well, I was wondering if you wanted to come over later. It�s � well, it�s been exactly two months since we met � I�m not sure if you remembered or not � and I was thinking we could celebrate � or something,� Josh stuttered.

�Baby, of course I remembered. I will never forget that day. And yes, I�d love to come over and celebrate tonight,� Lance responded.

Josh breathed a sigh of relief and smiled. �I was so nervous that you�d forget or think I was weird for thinking it was important,� he told Lance.

�Of course not,� was all Lance said.

�Well, I�m glad. So, tonight. What time do you want to come over?� Josh asked.

�It doesn�t matter, whenever you�ll take me,� Lance replied.

�Anytime,� Josh responded.

Lance laughed a little before replying, �how about four?�

�Sure, that sounds great,� Josh said, smiling.

�I can�t wait,� Lance admitted.

�Me either,� Josh agreed.

�Well, I guess I�ll see you later then,� Lance stated.

�Yeah,� Josh said.

�Bye baby.�

�Bye.� Josh hung up the phone, unable to keep the smile off of his face. He couldn�t wait until later. He loved Lance so much, and loved the time they spent together. �Wait, did I just say love?� Josh asked himself. He loved Lance. �I love Lance,� Josh said aloud for the first time. He grinned as he realized that he now had two surprises for Lance. He just hoped that Lance liked both of them.

****

Justin and Leah sat on the couch in his living room, just cuddling for a long time. Leah could tell that Justin was more relaxed after their talk. Justin was relieved that Leah didn�t care about sex because he didn�t think he was ready yet.

�Leah?� Justin asked softly.

�Yeah, Justin?� Leah replied, moving in his arms so she could see his face. He looked nervous. �Why are you nervous again baby?�

�I was just wondering something, but it�s kind of personal. I, oh, never mind,� Justin stuttered.

�No, Justin, you can ask me anything,� Leah assured him, running her fingers through his curls.

�Ok. Well, I was just wondering if you�ve ever � if you�re a virgin or not,� Justin said, stumbling over his words.

�Yes,� Leah replied and noticed that Justin looked kind of surprised. �You look surprised, Justin.�

�Oh, um, sorry. Well, I just thought that,� He stuttered before taking a deep breath and speaking again. �Leah, you seem so confident and experienced, I just thought��

�It�s ok, Justin, I understand. But no, I haven�t had sex. I�ve been waiting for the right person. I may have done most of the other things there are to do, but I�m a virgin,� Leah explained.

�Ok,� Justin replied, breathing a sigh a relief. �I�m sorry I thought that you weren�t.�

�It�s ok, Justin, really,� Leah assured him. She leaned closer and placed a soft kiss on his lips. �Now you know the truth, and I hope you�ll be less nervous around me. I hate that I make you nervous.�

�No, Leah, it�s not you. It�s just, well, I�ve been teased by most of the other girls I�ve dated about being inexperienced, so I didn�t expect you to be any different. But you are. You are so different, so much better than all of them. I just wonder what I ever did to deserve you,� Justin told her.

�Oh Justin,� was all Leah said, hugging him tightly as his eyes filled with tears. �We�re good together, Justin, you�re so wonderful.�