TWO

The drive to Harris' house was silent. Sarah had no idea what she had gotten herself into. She was still reeling from their kiss, unable to shake the sensation of Harris' lips on her. She kept glancing over at Harris, studying his face. He was completely unselfconscious. In fact, he was grinning, almost laughing, looking straight ahead.

As they turned onto the street, Sarah couldn't help noticing that he lived in a nice neighborhood. The homes themselves were all large and well maintained, some with multiple garages, others with separate garage doors. The houses had huge yards full of perfectly trimmed bushes and flowers. There were also trees lining the road, most of them tall, with branches reaching up into the sky. Most of the cars that passed them were big ones, SUVs or pickups or even motorcycles.

Harris parked the car in his driveway. Without asking Sarah, he reached over and opened the door for her, giving her another blinding smile. She felt her cheeks flush again. As she got out of the car, she glanced over at him, standing beside her.

“Thank you,” she mumbled.

“Not a problem,” he replied, offering her a hand. “Shall we?”

Together, they walked up the drive to the front door, where Harris knocked, his fist landing on the wood loudly. After a minute or two, it opened. A girl, probably around sixteen, stood there. “Hi, Harris,” she said cheerfully. She had long, golden brown hair and dark blue eyes. Her grin widened when she saw Sarah. “Who’s your friend?”

“This is Sarah. Sarah, this is my sister.”

“Nice to meet you, Sarah,” the girl said, extending a hand toward Sarah.  Sarah stared at it for several seconds, surprised. Then she finally shook it. “You’re very pretty.”

Sarah blushed again. She liked to think she was fairly plain, but she knew she wasn't. “Thanks. You’re beautiful yourself.” Her eyes swept up and down the girl’s figure and she smiled. If only everyone could look that good.

“Thanks,” the girl murmured, seeming pleased. “Come on in." 

Amanda stepped aside to allow them entrance into her home. She led them to the kitchen, which was spacious and white, with granite counter tops and stainless steel appliances.   “Would you like some tea?” she asked. "Or coffee?"

"Tea sounds great," Harris answered, giving Amanda a grateful smile.  He watched as she poured them each a cup.

"So, Sarah," Amanda continued. "Why don't you tell me what brought you here today?"

Sarah gulped, unsure how much she should share with Amanda. “I… Well…” She sighed. What could she say? She glanced at Harris who was watching her curiously, offering her a reassuring nod and a comforting smile. She took a deep breath and decided to be honest. 

She took another deep breath before turning her attention to Amanda once again.  “Actually, it’s about Harris and I…” She trailed off when the brunette looked startled, staring at her.

“About the both of you?” Amanda’s tone sounded surprised.  She quickly covered her mouth with a hand, her cheeks turning pink. “Oh my god, did I hear you right? Are you guys...? Oh, my God. That’s… wow!” She giggled.

Both girls were blushing furiously and neither of them knew what to say. Harris cleared his throat nervously. “Well, we, uh, kinda started dating today, this afternoon actually, so yeah...” 

He grinned sheepishly and Sarah felt herself relax, feeling relieved.

Amanda giggled even louder.

"Ooh, so you're now boyfriend and girlfriend?" Amanda teased.

Sarah and Harris smiled awkwardly, not sure what to make of Amanda's comments.

Harris shrugged. “Basically, I guess.” 

"That's wonderful!" Amanda exclaimed, smiling broadly. "I hope that you will make each other happy." 

She turned her attention to Sarah. "And Sarah, please be good to my brother, otherwise I will have to kick your butt. And if he misbehaves with you, then I will kick his butt instead," Amanda said, looking at Harris with a smirk.

Sarah grinned. "Okay, I will." 

"Okay, well I'll leave you both alone. I have to finish off the rest of my homework. See ya," she called as she exited the kitchen. 

As she heard Amanda running up the stairs, Sarah breathed a sigh of relief. "Well, that's certainly wasn't awkward," she said sarcastically.

"Yeah, well," Harris said, scratching the back of his neck, "she's just protective. I wouldn't worry too much about her though." 

"But she seems nice though. I think we could grow to be friends."

"I'm hoping that will be the case, too."