about girlfriends and boyfriends, hated their parents and their siblings, and didn’t do anything without the other knowing.
Jake was very protective of her and always got very upset when a guy hurt her—he always wanted to kick their ass or get in their face for not seeing what a great catch Tiana was.
And the opposite was also true of Tiana.
She got extremely pissed off and each time told Jake, “I’m gonna kick that bitches ass the next time I see her—hurting my JJ like that.” Jake always found her reaction so funny that many times she thought he was pretending just to get a rise out of her.
Every once in awhile when one or the other was sharing something emotional an accidental, passionate kiss would happen and the excuse for either of them was always I’m sorry, you just looked so sad that I wanted to kiss you. I cannot stand to see you in so much pain . Each time this happened the guilty party promised the vulnerable person they would never cross that line again. Of course as kids and young adults go, promises are meant to be broken when a friend is in need.
The years passed, Jake graduated before her and went off to college to become a school teacher. By the time she graduated high school he was nearly finished and working on an internship with a local elementary school about 10 miles from where they grew up. He had his own apartment which Tiana visited often. Many girls he dated were not fond of Tiana because of the close relationship her and Jake shared. Some would get in her face and say some pretty awful things—Jake didn’t tolerate any racist bullshit from anyone; especially about Tiana.
Many of his relationships ended because of her; sometimes she felt pretty awful about this but most of the time she was silently overjoyed because that meant he would have more time to spend with her. She dated also but never anything serious. The guys never liked Jake either because they saw him as a threat and never understood how a girl and a boy could be such good friends. Especially when the situation involved a white man and an African American Woman but Tiana would never give up her JJ for anyone. If any guy was going to come into her life then he needed to understand the special bond that she shared with Jake.
After graduation Tiana went to journalism school; she had gone to work with her father many times over the summers to hang out. She talked to the reporters about stories they were writing, poked around, and dabbled in research to help some of the reporters out. In the end she realized that she would really like to become a journalist. She finished with her schooling and worked for her father’s paper for a few years before she decided to branch out and freelance.
As they grew older Tiana often had confused feelings about Jake. She found herself admiring him when he wasn’t looking. She would look at his profile and scan her eyes down his face to his neck and wonder what it would be like to kiss him and touch him that way. She would shake that feeling off because they had always promised each other that they would only be friends, but she was so curious and he was so attractive. He knew her so well, understood her every emotion and was so tender when she needed it the most. They professed their love for each other all the time, as friends, but she started to question that more and more. She wondered if Jake ever felt those feelings for her.
Tiana knew that if they ever got together then they would probably be the perfect couple but there was so much that made the situation complicated. Risking her special friendship was enough as it is but the interracial aspect would not go down well with her family and friends no matter how happy they were together.
Jake was deliciously handsome. His piercing green eyes could cut right through a person and his smile made all the girls drool with desire. His skin glowed in the summer with a deep tan that went so well with his light brown hair. When