My Best Friend's Ex

Libby Libby Libby

Later in the day, I helped Libby clean up the mess from the after-party.

“Libby, this was the best birthday I have ever had in my entire life.  I can’t believe I was so worried.  Everything went perfectly!  Thank you so much!”

“Alex, you know I love you and would do anything for you.   So your mom and I wanted to do something special for you. I know you hate surprises, and I’m always making you do things you don’t want to do, but I think everyone had a great time last night.” 

“Speaking of doing things that I don’t like to do, I want to ask you a favor.  A few people are going to Ben’s camp next weekend, and he invited us to join them.” When I mentioned camp, Libby instantly rolled her eyes.  “Yes, Libby, I know how much you hate the outdoors and bugs,” I said. “But Laurel and Jake are going to be there, and you know how obsessed Jake is with Laurel, so I would practically be left alone to talk to Ben, and you know how I am around guys.  I never know what to say when I’m put on the spot. I always try to say something funny but just end up sounding awkward. I need you to come with me, or I won’t have anyone to talk to.” 

Libby frowned. “Camping!” she said, cringing. “You know I can’t stand camping.”  

“We’ll be staying inside Ben’s cabin, not a tent.  It has air-conditioning, wifi, and satellite TV, so this is far from roughing it.”  

Libby bent over, picking up another empty can and tossing it into the garbage.  “Whatever. But what’s the big deal about going to camp next weekend?” 

“Well, I’ve wanted to go to Cook Forest all summer, so when I mentioned it to Ben, he told me he had a cabin near the Clarion River and that he and Jake were going up next weekend. That’s when he said we were welcome to join them.  He suggested asking Laurel because he knows Jake is crushing on her.  Laurel already said yes.  But I don’t want to be left alone with the lovebirds and their blossoming feelings for each other. Please, Libby!” I begged. “We’re going to go hiking, ride horses, and play mini-golf,” I said, wiggling my eyebrows at her.

“Okay, okay! I’ll go,” Libby said, scowling and shrugging her shoulders. “You better appreciate this.” 

I squealed with delight hugging her while jumping up and down.

Later that evening, I found myself sitting on my bed, staring at my phone.   I was only calling Ben to let him know our plan was in full action, but I was incredibly nervous.  I hadn’t called a boy since I used to invite Dean to come over and play. 

Alright, what can we talk about?  If I prepare topics before calling him, maybe that will make it less awkward. Let’s see we could talk about the weather, the local news, last night’s baseball game, national politics, why the chicken crossed the road… or the extreme lust I had for him. God, I was so bad at this! But I didn’t have time to continue wallowing in my self-doubt and nervousness, because the phone rang.

I peered down at my caller ID and saw the name, Flynn.  I began to panic. What should I say when I answer the phone?  Should I even answer the phone, or should I let it go to voicemail, so he texts me instead? Or should I pretend like I was busy and call him back in an hour, so he thinks I am in such high demand that I was out with other friends? By this time, the phone had rung at least four times, so it was going to go to voicemail at any second.  Alright, I won’t be any braver later, so let’s do this. I pulled the trigger and answered the phone.  Be cool. Be cool.   

“Hello, Oh s**t, f**k hold on,” I said while accidentally dropping the phone on the floor.

“Okay, Sorry. I’m here.”  Smooth dumbass. Real smooth.

“Hey, Alex,” Ben said. “I’m sorry for calling so late, but I was wondering if you had a chance to talk to Libby about camp next weekend.” 

“Oh, hey, Ben,” I said as casually as I could. “Don’t worry about the time; I was actually just going to call you, but I got busy with some things and forgot.”  (I figured I could at least make it seem like he wasn’t my top priority.)  “I did talk to Libby,” I continued. “And it’s a go.  We’ll all be there.  Libby offered to drive us in her car, but she said it might be a little cramped with all five of us.  So you might want to drive with Jake and Laurel, and Libby and I will ride together and follow you up. We aren’t familiar with the part of Cook Forest your camp is in.” 

“Alex, that’s fantastic! Thank you so much for doing this for me.  You are amazing.  I don’t know what I would do without your help.  I was thinking we could go hiking while we are there.  I’ll start a fire, and we can sit by the river and roast marshmallows and make smores. I know that sounds lame, but what do you think?” 

“Ben, that doesn’t sound lame at all; I think we’ll all enjoy ourselves. And I have a few ideas, too, about what we can do.  We can go mini-golfing, and there’s a place that has horseback riding. Libby loves horses.  She used to take lessons years ago.  She used to be so obsessed with horses, so I think she would enjoy the opportunity to ride again.” 

Ben and I continued to plan the various activities that we’d be doing.  We decided that horseback riding was a must, and the fire by the river would be the perfect moment for him to talk to Libby.  We even concocted a plan to somehow get him and Libby alone on the first night.  By the time we were done planning and scheming, an hour had already passed.  I had never been able to talk to a guy this easily for any amount of time in my entire teenage life.  Maybe it was the fact that I wasn’t talking about myself, but the conversation flowed effortlessly, and neither of us realized how long we had been on the phone. 

“Well, I’d better get going,” Ben said. “I have work in the morning.  You should stop by and see the new movie that’s out.  I can get you in for free.” 

“Oh Ben, sorry, but Libby isn’t going to be around tomorrow.  Her mom is dragging her to her grandmother’s house.”  

“Alex,” Ben said, sounding surprised “you do realize I meant you could just come, and I would happily get you in for free.  You are doing me a huge favor, so I owe you big time.” 

As I said goodbye to Ben, I realized I had successfully had a conversation with the boy I had been dreaming about for years.  The conversation hadn’t been awkward or punctuated with moments of uncomfortable silence. It had just flowed naturally. I hung up the phone and laid my head down on my pillow, feeling like I had just made one of the most significant accomplishments in my life.  Some people’s most notable achievements might be running a marathon, winning the Nobel Peace Prize, or graduating from college.  My biggest accomplishment was talking on the phone to a guy without puking. Maybe I would go to the movies tomorrow without Libby.  Ben and I were friends, right? And he did owe me.