Letting My Brother's Best Friend Take My V-Card

STORM JESS

The TV cast a dim glow over the apartment as I sat beside Laura, clutching the remote so tightly my fingers were numb. The news channel's monotonous voice was barely audible over the drumming of Laura's nails on the coffee table. Each tap echoed louder than the last counting down to the next breaking update.

We'd been watching the same footage for the last hour:

Blurry shots of rain-lashed skies

Wind-bending palm trees

Waterlogged streets swallowing entire neighborhoods

Luke's plane was somewhere out there-right in the heart of the storm. I swallowed the tightness in my throat and forced a reassuring smile.

"They're fine, Laura," I whispered, reaching over to still her hand. "They're probably rerouted, or they'll land somewhere safe until the weather clears up. It's just... just a delay."

Laura's eyes were wide, unblinking, locked on the screen. "A delay? Jess, look at that!" She pointed at the looping footage, her voice quivering. "They're saying this storm is... it's one of the worst in years. And-and they were heading right into it." My gut twisted at her words, and I took a shaky breath. I had to

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as much for myself as for her. "Planes deal with these things

the airport, Jess. They... they wouldn't tell me anything. Just kept saying they didn't have the information I was

tone level. "They'll call as soon as they know something,

at her phone as if it might magically light up with the news. "You're right,"

before. Yesterday, I almost threw a paintbrush at

what to say. My own fear was curling inside me like smoke, dark and toxic, threatening to choke me. But I couldn't fall apart. Not

"They'll be fine, okay? They'll walk through that door with a million stories about how they braved the storm, probably laughing at us for

at least it was something. "Josh would do that," she whispered, wiping her eyes. "He'd

clutching onto that image like a lifeline. Josh,

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off the storm like it was no big deal. And Luke... Luke, with that calm, unshakable look he always got when things went south. But the image slipped, replaced by the thought of him. somewhere out there, fighting for control in a jet being tossed by the storm. I took a shaky breath, feeling the tears I'd been holding back start

front of a soaked airfield, her raincoat plastered to her body by the relentless downpour. Behind her, airport personnel scurried about, their faces tense. "We're getting reports now that flights scheduled to land in Jakarta are being diverted due to the storm. Passengers on these flights are being redirected to safer locations along the coast. The airport has

being redirected. That's... that's a good thing." Laura's face crumpled as she

I

enough to give me a questioning look. "How can you

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stuttering. How did I