Tunnel Vision

Tunnel Vision- Justin Timberlake

Saturday morning I woke up and immediately got dressed. I volunteered to watch Amber and Will's kid while they finished up their back to school shopping. Amber and Will were going to drop them off. I wanted to do something special with them, but the only thing I could think of that an 8, 6 and 3 year old could enjoy outside the house in this 100° degree heat was Chuck E Cheese or swimming. Will vetoed swimming. He didn't think I could handle 3 kids by myself. So Chuck E Cheese it was. I texted Ethan to see if he and EJ wanted to join us.

Me- Hey I'm taking Amber's kids on a back to school blow out at Chuck E Cheese. Wanna join us?

Ethan: Chuck E Cheese is going to be packed with kids.

I didn't think about that.

Me- I don't have that many options. It's so freaking hot. Will doesn't trust me with them at the pool.

Ethan- Let's take them to a splash park. Text me Will's number.

Me- Ok

Obviously, Ethan was able to convince Will, cause when Amber and Will showed up, the kids were already dressed in swimming gear. They gave me the run down on sunblock and hydration. I just let them talk even though I knew everything they were telling me. Ahh parents. No one knew their child better, not even someone who majored in how the body works.

Thankfully, Ethan showed up a little after them. I was shocked that he didn't have EJ.

"He's with his mom this weekend." Ethan explained when I asked, as he put the kids car seats in the backseat of his truck.

"Oh. You didn't have to hang with me. I thought it was your weekend with him." I said.

"It was." Ethan said, offering no other details.

 We said goodbye to Will and Amber and loaded the kids in the car. The girls were chatting incessantly among themselves while Robbie stared out the window.

Ethan drove to Carrollton. It was quiet, which wasn't that surprising. Ethan wasn't a chatty person. I was the one that had to fill the silence with talking, but his demeanor was different. He just seemed... off.

"Everything ok?" I asked.

"Yes." He looked in the backseat at the kids. "We'll talk later."

"Don't we always." I joked.

He just shook his head.

We arrived at a small, community splash park. There were kids running around, shooting water guns, sliding down the small slide, sitting underneath a plastic water wave, and playing in the other water spraying items. We found an empty bench on the side of the park. It was next to a little bridge where the water collected and drained. Robbie sat in the water and splashed around while the girls ran off to explore.

Ethan kept an eye on the girls while I played with Robbie.

"Megan is moving in with her boyfriend." Ethan said out of nowhere.

"Oh Wow. When?" I asked, sitting Robbie in my lap so I could observe Ethan. He said it like he was telling me the weather, but I could tell it was bothering him.

"Next weekend. That's why Megan wanted to switch. We told EJ together last night." Ethan answered.

"How did he take it?" I asked.

"Fine. Like it was no big deal. I guess it's not to him because Dave is moving in. I don't know if he understand what it means."

"What does it mean?" Ethan looked at me puzzled. "I mean, to you?"

"I don't know." Ethan replied, honestly. And I knew that what was bothering him the most. The uncertainty of the future.

"Do you like Dave?"

"I don't have anything against him. He doesn't interfere with Megan's and my parenting. He makes Megan happy. Which I know how difficult that is." Ethan smirked.

"I think that's most important. Megan being happy is the best thing he can do for EJ."

"True." Ethan nodded.

Robbie was squirming and whining on my lap, so I put him down to play. I turned to Ethan.

"So what's bothering you the most?" I asked.

"It's not really bothering me. I don't like the idea of me not being around and EJ turning to Dave for anything." Ethan explained.

"That's probably already happened Ethan."

"I realize that, but it'll be different now." Ethan said.

"How so?"

"Cause now they're living together. If they get married, that will make him step dad." Ethan admitted.

"Ethan, you can't be questioning your place in his life. You're his dad. He looks just like you. He has your name. Most importantly,  that boy adores you.  It doesn't matter who comes into his life. No one can take that from you." I said.

"I know. I just never imagined  I would have to deal with sharing my kid with another family." He shook his head.

"I know you didn't imagine having EJ so soon, but life happens. Sometimes it works out better than we plan."

When he didn't respond, I continued.

"I admire your ambition and how focused you are on your goals and what you want, but if you spend all your time planning every little aspect of the future, how can you enjoy right now?" I asked him, before getting up to follow Robbie as he walked around.

Ethan got up to follow us.

An hour later, we got the kids dried off. I took the girls to get changed in the bathroom and Ethan took Robbie.

We then took the kids to McDonald's. Amber called during our lunch. They were finished and came to McDonald's to meet us. Afterwards, we split up and Ethan took me home.

"Thanks for listening Lily. I appreciate it."

"Anytime Ethan." I smiled, getting ready to leave his car.

"Is it serious with that guy?" He asked, before I got out.

"Huh?" I responded, turning to him.

"You and that guy, Forrest, is it serious?" He asked.

"No! He's just a friend. I'm friends with him and his fiancee." I said.

Before he could say anything else, I took a deep breath. "I am dating though. Jake. I'm dating Jake." I confessed.

I couldn't read his facial expression. Really, he didn't have a reaction. He just nodded. After a tense moment, I got out the car.

"Thanks Ethan." I said, before closing the door.

"Anytime Lily." He replied, looking thoughtful again. I walked to my door before I was tempted to ask anymore questions.

When I went inside, I showered and hopped back in bed. I woke up a couple hours later. I got up and saw that I had missed calls and texts. I had a call from Trevor, Jake and my cousin Bianca. I called Bianca and went through my texts.

Jake- Call me when you get this

Rocky- Double date or nah?

Amber- The kids are worn out! Thanks again Lily.

Bianca didn't want anything. She was just calling to check in. After I spoke to her, I called my aunt Patricia to check in with her. After that, I called Jake.

"So we're double dating tonight?" I asked when he picked up.

"Up to you. I've been trying to call you to see if you wanted to." He said.

"I see that. I was asleep. I watched Amber's kids this morning.  We went out to a splash park. Between the heat and chasing after a 3 year old, I was exhausted, but I'm up now." I explained.

"No big deal. Let me give Brandon a call so we can set it up."

"Ok. What should I wear?"

"I think we're going old school. Dinner and a movie. So anything sexy." He replied.

I smiled. "Will do."

I texted Rocky back.

Me- Double Date night! So excited! Who's picking the movie? Is Ninja Turtles in the running?

Rocky- Yes! Brandon is buying the tickets as we speak. Just let the guys think we don't wanna see the Ninja Turtles Movie. So we can plan the next outing.

Me-Will do!

I got up and changed into a floral pleated skirt with a fitted white scooped neck tank. I threw on a white, thin, oversized cardigan. My red booties completed the outfit. My hair was wavy from letting it air dry after my shower, so I used some coconut styling milk  that Jasmine recommended to me to define the waves and de-tangle it. I spent majority of my time on my make-up. I watched a YouTube video on a soft rosy pink and taupe make-up tutorial. There was a knock on my door as worked on applying a cat eye with my eye liner.

"Come in!" I called.

Sammy came in wearing her Dave and Buster's uniform.

"Hey. How was work?" I asked.

"Long. You have plans tonight?"

"I do. Movies with Rocky, Brandon and Jake."

"Cool. I got invited to a party by one of the honey B's. Supposed to be Maverick players there."

"That sounds fun." I said, concentrating on not fucking up my eye.

Sammy held out her hand for my liner. She did a cat eye on both of my eyes in a minute.

"That looks really good." She commented.

"Thanks." I smiled. I wished her a goodnight before I grabbed my overnight  bag and drove to Jake's apartment. He was going to drive us to the Cinema Movie Grill.

When he answered the door, he looked me over and smiled.

"Glad to see you followed my instructions. You look amazing." Jake said.

"Thank you." I said, leaning in to give him a kiss. "You look amazing too."



When we arrived at the movie theater, Rocky and Brandon were already there. They bought the tickets already. Jake frowned at the seats they got. They were a few rows back from the screen.

"Yeah. This is all they had with 4 together. I called as soon as I knew we were all coming." Brandon said, sending me a look.

"Hey. Don't blame her. I told you to just buy the tickets. Why wouldn't she want to see a childish movie about mutant turtles?" Rocky said, sarcastically.

"Hey. This was our childhood. You don't see me hating on horror shows or whatever scary shit your parents showed you to turn you into the person you are today." Jake joked.

"It was a reality show called Houston 24/7. Just look out the window." Rocky quipped.

I laughed at them.

"Still doesn't explain why it took you so long to respond." Brandon commented to me.

"I was sleeping. Besides, It's date etiquette to ask a girl out way before the day of. I coulda had plans." I smiled at Jake.

"Yeah? Like another date?" Brandon asked.

I furrowed my eyebrows at him.

"Ethan mentioned he saw you on a date Thursday afternoon." Brandon threw out there. I didn't even flinch. Not even when Jake eyed me suspiciously.

"Yeah, he saw me at lunch with Forrest. I cleared that up by telling him Jake and I are dating. No drama by the way." I informed him.

Rocky gave Brandon a look that said 'don't you feel stupid'.

Jake just looked at me. "En Serio?"

"En Serio." I smiled.

"Hey Brandon, lets go to the bar." Jake said, leaving no room for argument.

Awkward. I looked at the menu.

Rocky turned to me.

"So you know your boyfriend is giving mine the business right now right?" Rocky commented.

I chuckled, relieved it's not weird between us.

"He's not my boyfriend yet, but when he is, y'all can't be our couple." I informed her.

"Good. Peyton and Chris are our couple anyway. " Rocky replied.

"Sounds lame."

Rocky laughed. "Speaking of lame, you handed that so calmly. I was waiting on you to go off."

"Nope. Had enough of that for the week. Besides, I've learned that the only people that need to understand our relationship are me and Jake."

"So mature. What happened to my headstrong, stubborn, crazy friend?"

"Love. Apparently it's my Achilles heel." I smiled.

Rocky's eyes widen and she looked over my shoulder. I turned to see that Jake and Brandon returned. I smiled at them, willing my face to stop flushing.

If he heard me, Jake didn't let on. We ordered dinner and enjoyed the movie. Afterwards, on the way to our cars, Brandon pulled me aside to talk.

"Jake wants me to apologize. So I'm sorry I was wrong about the date, but I'm not going to apologize for looking out for him. I feel like it wasn't that long ago you wanted to be with Ethan. Now it's Jake. But I'm glad there's no drama."

"Ok. Just like you don't feel the need to apologize, I don't feel the need to defend our relationship. As far as looking out for him, I understand that he's your brother, but Ethan chose not to be with me. It wasn't the other way around." I corrected him.

Brandon shook his head. "I wasn't talking about looking out for Ethan."

Before I could ask why Jake needed looking out for, he walked off to join Rocky. I met Jake by his car.

I pushed it out of my mind when I went back to Jake's apartment. He took me straight to his bedroom. Jake was always in control. I really didn't mind. Everything he did was for our mutual pleasure. Seducing me was always his main agenda and I loved that.

But that night, he was different. He laid me down on the bed, fully dressed, and positioned himself on top of me. He kissed me and I hugged him close to me, before he trailed kisses down my neck. He pulled my tank and bra down so he could explore my breasts with his mouth. I moaned when he sucked on my nipples.

When I ground my pelvis into his, he sat up, kneeling on the bed, pulling me up with him. After removing my tank and bra, he gathered me into his arms. I gasped as he hoisted me up. I wrapped my arms and legs around him. I know how strong he is, but it took me by surprise when he lifted me.

He kissed me, passionately. I just held on to him, rubbing my half naked body into his fully clothed body; trying to relieve the tension building inside me. I moaned as his hands gripped my butt under my skirt with both hands.

"Estoy loco por ti. Pienso en ti todo el tiempo. Solo puedo pensar en ti." He groaned in my ear between kisses.

I moaned at his confession. Between his words, kisses, and hands all over me, I was desperate for him.

"I'm always thinking about you too. Get naked and I'll show you." I replied, panting, running my fingers through his hair.

He smiled and kissed me one more time, before placing me back on the bed. He undressed quickly and joined me on the bed. I removed my skirt and panties. I grabbed a condom and kissed down his chest and abs. He moaned when I kissed the head of his penis, swirling my tongue around the tip. I sucked on him until he was hard and ready. I put a condom on him, then straddled him.

I rocked my hips over his, so that he rubbed against my clitoris.

"Ohhhhh..." I breathed, loving the sensation of him rubbing against me. So I kept grinding against him.

"Carino..." He said, impatiently reaching between us to position himself inside me.

"Jake!" I cried out, as I sank on top of him, pushing him all the way inside of me.

"Asi es Cariño. Eres mía." He said, gruffly. One hand moved to tease and caress my breasts. The other moved to rub my clitoris. I continued to ride him as pleasure tore through my body during my climax.

He rolled me over, and lifted my legs so that they rested on his shoulders. He kissed my ankles, before pushing back inside of me. He thrust into me until he came too. He collapsed beside me. After throwing away the condom, he wrapped his arm around me. I rested my head on his chest and fell asleep.



I woke up the next morning to kisses on my neck and fingers tracing my spine.

"Lily?" Jake said, waking me,

"Hmmm?" I answered.

"I gotta go to my building. There was a false fire alarm. My guards need help resetting the panels. Do you wanna stay here?" Jake asked?

"What time is it?" I asked.

"9:30. It might take me a couple hours." Jake answered.

I sat up, rubbing my eyes.

"No. I better go." I said, stretching.

I got up, took a quick shower and got dressed.

We kissed goodbye and I headed home. I called Jenna on the way.

"Good morning Lily." She said, happily.

"Hey Jenna. How are you?"

"I'm good. Are you trying to get in touch with Cam? Cause he's out golfing." She replied.

"No. I actually wanted to talk to you. I need your advice. About Trevor." I said.

"Come on over. I'm cooking dinner right now. We can talk and cook and you can join us." Jenna commanded.

I agreed and headed to their apartment instead.



"So I don't know what to do. I wanted your advice because you're on the outside of the situation. Everyone else is kinda biased." I explained to Jenna.

We already had dinner going. It was their Sunday tradition. Jenna cooked a huge dinner early on Sunday. After Cam came back from golfing, they spent the day lounging and eating. We made baked chicken, potatoes, glazed carrots, spinach and rolls. When I commented on how much food she made, she informed me that sometimes his friends join them. Including Trevor.

I then explained to her the whole situation with Trevor. She listened, offering no advice. Just asking me to explain or clarify how I felt about certain things, like how Trevor treated Sammy. Honestly, I was torn. I hated that Sammy got hurt, but she knew what she was doing when she started fooling around with Trevor. It wasn't cool for him to call her a slut, but Sammy should understand name calling out of anger. She called me a immature brat Tuesday.

"So have you decided you want to maintain a friendship with Trevor?" Jenna asked when I finished.

"I want to. I just don't know how to forgive him."

"Either you do or you don't." Jenna said.

"It's not that simple for me. I don't know how to just forget and move on like it didn't happen." I stated.

"Forgiveness is not about forgetting or excusing behaviors. It has nothing to do with Trevor. Forgiveness is all about you. It's letting go of resentment, anger, or in your case, disappointment." Jenna said.

I thought about it. "Ok. Regardless of what happens, I forgive Trevor. I don't want hold grudges. But I would like to be friends with him too. I just don't know how to fix us."

"You and Trevor have to talk it out."

"I feel like we've had talks before. I end up right back here." I shook my head.

"This time, you have to set boundaries. Don't expect him to just change overnight. But if he can show that he's willing to respect boundaries, then change will come over time." Jenna explained.

I nodded. "Ok. Thanks."

She looked at her phone. "They should be finishing up soon. Should I tell Trevor not to come?"

"No. Let him come. At least over here you can be a mediator. Or referee." I said.

Jenna smiled and called Cam. She let him know I was here. And to make sure Trevor knew I wanted him to come over.

We had finish setting the table when I heard the front door open.

My brother came into the kitchen first. He smiled at both of us.

"Hey sis. Nice to see you."

"Nice to be seen." I said, smiling at him briefly.

My eyes were trained on Trevor. He gave Jenna a little smile and wave, but his eyes were locked on me too. I was sure he was trying to read my mood. I was doing the same to him.

He looked the same. Same blue eyes. Same handsome face. Although I wasn't used to the serious expression etched of his face.

"So are we gonna eat? Talk? Or just have a staring contest?" Cam asked after a moment.

Jenna smiled at Cam. Trevor looked at him.

"Thanks Cam. Real helpful." Trevor said.

"I win." I told Trevor.

"Won what?" He said, confused.

"The starring contest." I smiled.

Trevor finally grinned.

"Why don't we eat?" Jenna suggested, looking at me.

I nodded. We then went to the table and had the most awkward meal of my life.


Spanish to English

*Correct in Comments if necessary!*

I'm crazy about you. I think about you all the time. I only think of you.