"I can't believe you showed girls your...," I start but refuse to finish my sentence and instead point to Johnny's crotch.

"Say it," he dares me and I shake my head.

"Nope. You will always have a wee-wee to me," I respond with a laugh, making him grin.

"I can assure you, it's no longer a wee-wee," he says with a wink and I shake my head at him.

"I don't want to know that, Johnny. You and I have known each other since we were practically babies," I say and he arches his eyebrow. "Okay, that may be a bit of an exaggeration but you know what I mean."

"And now we're adults and I have a pe-" he starts and I quickly cover his mouth with my hand.

"Stop right there, mister. I know the name of the male anatomy, but I don't want to hear it from you of all people, so zip it," I tell him, making him chuckle. "Now if you promise not to say it, I will remove my hand. Do you promise?" I ask him and he nods.

I slowly lower my hand from his mouth and he stays quiet. "Good. Now let's move on from your manhood," I tell him just as he yells, "penis." I reach out to smack him on the arm, but he quickly jumps out of the driver's seat, leaving me no choice but to follow after him.

"Too slow," he taunts me as he walks around to the passenger side but stays out of reach.

"You got lucky this time, but next time you won't be so lucky."

"Is that a threat?"

"It's a promise," I tell him and walk past him, bumping his arm with my shoulder.

"Oh, I see how it is," he responds clearly amused.

"Don't test me because you will regret it, Mr. Hardy," I threaten him as I look him dead in the eyes, but he knows as well as I do that it's all in good fun.

"You can call me Mr. Hardy in the classroom, but outside I'm just Johnny to you."

"Perhaps I'll sit in on one of your classes just so I can call you Mr. Hardy," I tell him with a wink and he smiles.

"You're always welcome to visit me. You can even be my assistant for the day if you want to go all out."

"I'd much rather make you nervous in front of your students. I bet none of your students have ever seen the shy and nervous, Mr. Hardy."

"That's it. I rescind your invitation," he tells me with a chortle and I gasp.

"How dare you!" I respond, placing my hand over my heart. "I am hurt. Deeply hurt."

"You really need to brush up on your acting skills," he insults me with a chuckle.

"As if you are any better."

"Hey at least I took drama classes in high school," he reminds me.

"You still suck though."

"And I can't even deny it," he admits with a shrug. "It was fun though. Acting just wasn't my forte. Do you ever wish you could go back to high school?"

"Hell no! I hated high school," I admit truthfully. "Being bullied on a daily basis was awful. I never want to go back to that."

"About that...," he stammers. "I'm sorry I was never there to stand up for you," he tells me, stopping me in my tracks.

"You have nothing to apologize for. You had your own group of friends and I had mine. At school, we were just neighbors"

"We were not just neighbors. We were friends. We are friends," he reiterates. "And I should have been there for you."

"It's not your fault. I never told you. You have nothing to feel sorry for."

"I wish you had told me. Things could have been different."

"How?! You couldn't have done anything, Johnny. Our classmates were relentless assholes. If you tried to defend me they would have dragged you down with me."

"I don't care. At least I would have been there for you like a friend should be."

"Forget it. It doesn't matter now. It's all in the past," I remind him and walk around him towards the restaurant but he grabs my arm and pulls me back to face him.

"I can't forget when I know it hurt you. You are one of the few people I care about, and knowing that I wasn't there for you when you needed me most, eats at me every single fucking day. I feel like the biggest piece of shit for not being there for you, but I want to be there for you now."

"Thank you, Johnny. I appreciate it but like I said, you have nothing to be sorry for. It's not your fault, so please don't feel guilty. I know you would have defended me if you could, but that's all in the past now. Let's focus on the present and just catch up. I could really use a good laugh after the rough day I've had," I admit. "I just really need to unwind and I need a friend to help me. Do you want to be that friend? I can really use a friend right now."

"I would be honored but I hope this is only the first of many times we hang out now that I'm back. I really want us to reconnect and be the good friends we used to be, like the good old days when we would hang out after school and do homework together."

"I'd like that too," I admit with a smile.

"Good. Now let's feed you before you starve to death. I'm guessing it has been a while since you last ate."

"What makes you think that?" I ask him and right as I ask, my stomach growls. "Oh," I respond embarrassed.

"Let's go," he tells me with a laugh and leads the way towards the entrance of the restaurant.

"I can't believe you brought me here of all places," I say, hardly recognizing the restaurant from the outside.

"Why?"

"I don't know. I just figured you'd take me to a fast food joint, not the restaurant you brought me to the day you got your license years ago. I still remember how happy you were that day. You had the biggest grin on your face. You were so proud and I was so damn happy for you because I knew how much it meant to you."

"I was pretty proud that day."

"Pretty proud is an understatement. You were more like super freaking proud," I say with a smile.

"Yeah, I guess I was," he admits embarrassed. "Now enough about me. You're going to make me blush," he responds, making me laugh.

"Fine but I can't promise I won't tease you throughout dinner."

"Fair enough." He pulls open the front door and holds it open for me. I give my thanks and step inside, breathing in the delicious smell of fried food.

"It smells just like I remember," I comment as he steps up beside me.

"Wait until you taste the food. It's even better than it used to be."

"Table for two?" the hostess asks us and we nod. "Right this way." She leads us to a table in the back where there are fewer patrons. "Is this fine?"

"It's perfect," Johnny reassures her.

"Great. Your waitress will be right with you," she informs us and we both give her our thanks before she walks away.

"This place was always one of my favorites," I tell him as we wait for our waitress.

"It's always been one of my favorite restaurants too."

"Why?" I ask him curiously.

"Because this place holds a lot of great memories with a very special girl I know," he tells me with a wink.

"Is that so? And who is that girl you speak of?"

"Just some girl I know who lived a few doors down from me when I lived with my parents."

"She doesn't sound all that special."

"She is. More than you could ever know," he responds so seriously I almost believe him.

"Oh shut up, Johnny."

"I mean it," he tells me just as the waitress walks up to our table.

"Hello! I hope I'm not interrupting anything important."

"Not at all," I reassure her since Johnny decides to stay quiet.

"Great. I'm your waitress tonight. My name is Wendy. If you need anything throughout your meal, please feel free to call me over," she informs us and I simply nod. "Here are your menus," she says, handing us each a menu. "I'll be back in a few minutes to get your drink order, but there's absolutely no rush. Take your time."

"What are you drinking?" I ask him and he shrugs his shoulders. "Well, I don't know about you, but I'm getting a strawberry lemonade."

"I guess I'll go with that too."

"Oh, he talks," I tease, making him smirk.

"I do. I just wasn't feeling very talkative since someone doesn't believe me."

"Well, I'm sorry, Mr. Hardy. I did not mean to get your tighty-whities in a twist."

"It would be hard to twist something I don't wear," he retorts with a smug grin.

"You mean...," I start to ask but can't even bring myself to ask what I want.

"What?"

"Are you going commando right now?" I whisper, not wanting anyone else to hear when really no one could hear anyways. They are all too far away to listen in.

"Yes, I am," he tells me with a wink.

"Oh my God," I respond and cover my cheeks with my menu, knowing full well they are beet red.

"Surprised?" he asks with a chuckle.

"You can say that again," I respond still feeling shocked from his admission. "I can't believe you're not wearing anything underneath your pants," I whisper, feeling suddenly hot. It's not like I'm the one going sans underwear, but it makes me feel embarrassed to know something only an intimate partner should know about Johnny. Not me, a friend, who is reconnecting with him for the first time in years.

"You should try it sometime," he suggests as he leans forward. "It feels pretty great," he adds with a wink before leaning back against his chair.

"I'm good," I shift my gaze to my menu, wanting to break eye contact.

"What are you hiding behind that menu?" he asks me and starts to pull the menu down and away from my face. I panic and hit his hand with the menu, so he won't see the raging blush that covers my cheeks.

"Ouch! What was that for?" he asks with a laugh.

"For being nosy."

"Hey, you asked for it."

"I did not need to know you go commando," I whisper-yell and he just laughs harder.

"What's the big deal? It's not like I'm walking around naked."

"You may as well be. The only thing that is separating your...well you know what from the rest of the world is that layer of denim."

"And? You act as if it's going to murder someone or something. You're perfectly safe, I promise you."

"Okay, I might be overreacting just a tad, but don't come near me with that thing," I tell him, making him belly laugh.

"I'm going to hug you at the end of the night whether you like it or night."

"Fine but your crotch can't come anywhere near me."

"If I hadn't told you, you never would have known."

"True but now I know and I don't want to be thinking of you and your package when I hug you, so keep a safe distance."

"Fine," he tells me with a grin and goes back to looking at his menu. I go back to looking at mine and am just looking through the appetizers when the waitress approaches us again.

"Do you both know what you want to drink or should I come back?"

"I'll have a strawberry lemonade," I tell her and Johnny asks for the same.

"Two strawberry lemonades coming right up," she tells us with a smile and walks away, giving us a chance to look over the menu some more.

"I'm kind of craving a bacon cheeseburger," Johnny pipes up.

"That actually sounds pretty amazing. Add some BBQ sauce to it and I'm sold."

"They actually have one with BBQ sauce. You should order it."

"I think I will and instead of regular fries I'll ask for sweet potato fries."

"I'm going to ask just for a regular bacon cheeseburger and a side of seasoned fries," he comments

"That sounds really good too, but I love me some BBQ sauce."

"I do too but today I think I'm just going to go with good old ketchup."

"You can never go wrong with ketchup."

"No, you can't."

"Here are your two strawberry lemonades," the waitress says as she places our drinks in front of us. "Are you two ready to order now or do you need more time?"

"We're ready." Johnny answers. "You go first," he insists and I quickly list off what I want before handing her my menu. Johnny orders next and gives her his menu before she walks away, leaving us alone again to talk.

"What's your fondest memory?" Johnny asks me out of the blue, catching me off guard.

"Here?"

"It doesn't have to be here. It can be anywhere, at any time in your life."

"Hmm, that's honestly a tough question. Do you have an answer for that?"

"I asked you first."

"Well I have many fond memories, but some of my recent ones would be with...," I start but I shake my head, not wanting to talk about Nate with Johnny. "I'd rather not talk about it. Not right now.," I answer honestly and he nods.

"Don't worry. I understand."

"Do you really? Have you ever been in love?"

"I have. Just once," he admits.

"With who?" I ask curiously. He never mentioned anything to me about liking any girl, much less loving one. I wonder who it could be.

"A girl. Or I should say, woman. She's no longer just a girl."

"That doesn't give me much to go off of. Do I know her?"

"More than you realize."

"Is she our age or younger?"

"Our age."

"Does she know you love her?"

"No, I never told her, and that's one of my biggest regrets."

"Why didn't you ever tell her?" I ask curiously.

"I was scared she didn't feel the same way about me. I feared she would reject me."

"Johnny, you're a great guy. I'm sure she would have at least liked you back."

"I'm not so sure," he admits with a shrug.

"If you could tell her now, would you?"

"Maybe," he tells me with a small smile.

"I hope you see her again so you can confess your feelings to her."

"You really mean that?"

"I do," I admit. I only want the best for Johnny, and would love nothing more than for him to run into his one true love again.

"Well, I hope when I see her next, I have the courage to tell her what I never told her before."

"Just do it. The worse she can do is say no."

"And that is what I fear most. I don't know if I could take her rejection."

"If she says no, I will feed you lots of chocolates, ice cream and booze and I will watch sappy rom-coms with you to make you feel better."

"Is that the remedy to rejection?"

"Something like that," I tell him with a smile.

"I'll keep that in mind in case she rejects me."

"I'm sure she won't, but if she does, I'll be there for you. I promise." I reassure him with a wink and change the subject, wanting to reminisce about the good old days when we were both so innocent and did not have to adult. I miss those days. Well, at least when I wasn't in school, because I hated life in school, but at home, life was grand. I really enjoyed being at home where no one judged me. Hanging out with Johnny was just the cherry on top. He was always so much fun to be with.

The only downside to our friendship was that we had very different friends in school, but that never stopped Johnny from saying "hi" to me in the hallways or waving to me from a few doors down in our neighborhood. We always got along great. We just never hung out in school, because we hung out with very different crowds.

My friends were nerds, while his friends all looked like they belonged in a rock band. I did not fit in with them at all, but I'm glad we at least hung out when we could outside of school. We spent some great times together and I'm thankful I had him as a friend back then and that he still considers me a friend to this day. Not many friendships resist the test of time, but ours did, and I'm glad I can call him a friend today.

"Here are your burgers," the waitress tells us, putting a halt to our trip down memory lane. "The bottle of ketchup is on the table. Is there anything else I can get you? A side of ranch or anything like that?" she asks us and we shake our head. "Great if you need anything else just let me know." We both give her our thanks as someone calls her over to another table.

"This looks so good," I comment as I look over my mouth-watering burger and fries. "Let me take a picture of it before I take a bite."

"Are you going to post it on Instagram?"

"Maybe," I say with a grin.

"I don't see you as being one of those girls who post everything on Instagram."

"Excuse you. I'm not like all other girls if I post a picture of my food on Instagram. That's the dumbest generalization ever. Okay, well not ever, but you get my point."

"Loud and clear," he tells me with a grin. "I like how passionate you get about this."

"Of course I do. You just basically said I'm like all other girls when I'm not. I'm just me."

"That you are," he tells me with a smile.

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing, really. I just agree that you're not like other girls. You're different. Special," he adds, making me blush.

"Thanks," I respond embarrassed before taking a few pictures of my food. I look through them and make sure I have at least one good one before going back to my camera. As soon as Johnny lifts his burger to his lips I snap a picture of him taking his first bite. "Got you."

He smiles and shakes his head and continues eating as I put my phone down and take a bite of my own burger. It's so good, I close my eyes and moan.

"Do you like it?" Johnny asks me as I savor my first bite.

"I don't like it. I love it. It's so freaking good!" I respond enthusiastically and take another bite, making him laugh.

"I'm glad you like it."

"Is everything good here?" The waitress asks us as I chew my bite of food. I just give her a thumbs up since my mouth is still full and Johnny nods. "Good. If you need anything, just let me know." We both nod and she leaves.

"I can't believe I've been missing out on this place."

"When was the last time you came?" he asks me curiously.

"Hmmm, I'm pretty sure the last time I came here was with you. I think it was right before you moved to Nevada."

"Damn. That was forever ago."

"It really was but we're here now, so we can totally make up for all the lost time."

"I'd like that but I don't think tonight will be enough time to catch up. I'm sure a lot has happened in both our lives since we last saw each other."

"You can say that again," I respond with a huff.

"I'm guessing some not so good things happened to you."

"Something like that," I respond with a shrug, not wanting to get into it just yet. He does not need me spilling everything that happened with Nate right now. Tonight I just want to focus on catching up with him.

"I won't pry but I'm also not going to lie and say I'm not curious because I really am, but I can wait until you're ready to talk. We have all the time in the world to catch up."

"Now that's a straight out lie," I tell him as I chew on a fry.

"Okay. Maybe we don't have all the time in the world, but now that I'm back I don't plan on going anywhere anytime soon. I'm here to stay."

"Are you really planning on staying in California from now on?"

"Yes, I really missed my life here. California has always been my home. It was about time I came back."

"Well, I'm glad you're here to stay. I honestly missed you and am sad we lost touch."

"It happens but look on the bright side. Now we can hang out as often as you want. I'm not going anywhere. I promise."

"I'm glad," I tell him honestly and take another bite of my burger.

"Good because I don't plan on leaving you anytime soon," he tells me with a wink and goes back to eating his food.

We eat in comfortable silence and finish up our hamburgers and fries.

"That's one of the best burgers I've had in a long time," I tell him and he nods in agreement.