It was a sweltering summer day and we all were laying on our backs on the trampoline in Krystal's backyard. The sounds of summer played in the background: dogs barking in the distance, the sounds of sprinklers ticking, and the familiar song of an ice cream truck driving down the street. After a quick round of rock, paper, scissors, Sulli runs into the house and out the front door to buy us ice cream. 

"It's so hot right now." Luna said, for the hundredth time. We all agreed. This is how I remember them: pushed together,  our bodies so close we can feel each others body heat, every breath is shared, we know everything about each other. Even things I thought I wasn't sure of. They all know it before I did. Like how Krystal knew I was beginning to like her without me having to say anything. I think, back then, maybe she liked me too. That's why she set me up with her brother's friend. That's all we talked about that summer. Sulli came back with the ice cream and distributed them among us. Krystal, who was laying beside me, got a cherry popcicle. Mine was lime. We laid there silently for awhile, watching the bright, yellow ball move a cross the clear, summer sky. Sulli kept complaining about her skirt sticking to her sweaty legs and Victoria began talking about a boy she met at the frozen yogurt place yesterday. Luna was humming along to the song that was streaming outside from the neighbors open window.

In that way, a bundle of sunlight now pushes in my direction. 

The two of you are still right there, but I find myself praying that we can meet again. 

There must be something wrong with me.

The lyrics went something like that. 

"Did you kiss that boy yet, Amber?" Krystal asked, not taking her eyes off the clear blue sky. The other girls turned to look at me, their eyes wide and curious. 

"No." I said. Sulli clicked her tongue like some kind of reprimand. 

"You should do it soon, you know." Victoria said,  reaching her hands up into the air. "Boys are kind of impatient about these things." 

"He doesn't seem like that type, right? What was the shirt he was wearing yesterday?" Luna said, laughing. 

"Czecho No Republic." I mummbled.

"What's that?"

"They're a band, I think." 

"Has he tried anything?" Sulli asked. I shook my head but she couldn't see me. She shot up and glared at me.

"He has?" Everyone was staring at me again. 

"No, no. We barely started holding hands." Victoria and Luna rolled there eyes as Sulli squeezed back in between them. 

"Do you like him?" Krystal asked. It was a simple question but in that moment, I wasn't ready to answer it. It made my heart skip because Krystal never pretended to be interested in anything the boy and I did. She usually acted like he didn't exist. 

"I knew it." Victoria said after my silence. "I knew you didn't really like him." 

"I should've bet money on that." Luna said. 

"I do like him." I said. And I did. "I just don't know...I don't know how to....I don't know how to do all of this stuff." My face had become even more red there under the pressure of my friends which was hotter than the sun blazing down. 

"What stuff?" Sulli asked. 

"Holding hands and going on dates and...kissing."

"Kissing isnt so bad, Amber." Victoria said. 

"Easy for you to say." Sulli said. "You've had lots of experience." 

"What's that supposed to mean!" Victoria shouts, dramatically. Sulli and Luna only laugh. 

"You still haven't had your first kiss?" Krystal asked. I shake my head. Why did she seem surprised? Like I wouldn't have told them if I'd been kissing someone. 

"Well, there's the issue." Luna said, sitting up. "All you need is practice. You should try kissing your hand or a teddy or something." 

"That's disgusting." Sulli said, still laughing. 

"Hey, it's the only way. Unless you kiss someone else first as practice. I don't know if that'll work now that she already has a boyfriend." 

"What do you mean?" Victoria said. 

"Like, she can't kiss another boy as practice for her boyfriend." They all agree. 

"I don't think practice will help. I just don't think I'm ready." I said, fanning my face with my hands. Maybe I was ready. Deep inside, I was ready to kiss someone. Just not a boy. Not yet.

"Do you want to kiss him?" Krystal asked. I shrugged. "Do you want to kiss anyone?" I nodded. I'll never forget the look in her eyes in that moment. They looked so dark, yet all the suns light was reflecting in them, it was almost too much to look at. I think peoples eyes can say a lot. Sometimes more than the mouth can say. I think then, her eyes were saying here's one, okay? Just one and we'll forget about it. 

Krystal turned over towards me slightly and ran her thumb across my lower lip. 

"Practice." She said, inches from mine. Her lips tasted like the cherry popsicle she'd eaten a few minutes ago. That's all I remember. When she pulled away, I opened my eyes to see the other girls staring down at us. 

"Oh my god, you erts!" I yelled, covering my face with my hands. Krystal hopped off the trampoline and went into her house to answer the ringing phone. The other girls followed in after her, the afternoon sun becoming too much to handle. I stayed outside for awhile,  wondering what had just happened. I still don't know but even though it was small, it was a moment that defined that year. A hot day in July. The day I fell in love with my best friend.