It started as a joke, as most things with Ellie did. She was lying on your bed, her legs kicked up against the wall, her favorite beat-up hoodie pulled over her head. You were sitting cross-legged on the floor, the laptop in front of you long forgotten as the conversation shifted to relationships—or, more specifically, your lack of one.
“I can’t believe you’ve had two relationships, and I haven’t even been kissed,” you said, throwing a pillow at her. She caught it with a dramatic grunt, smirking like the smug idiot she was.
“What can I say? People can’t resist me,” Ellie replied, brushing her knuckles against her chest like she was the hottest thing alive.
You rolled your eyes so hard you thought they might fall out of your skull. “You’re so full of it.”
“Full of charm,” she countered, grinning.
But the grin faded when you didn’t say anything for a moment, staring down at your lap instead. Ellie noticed, propping herself up on her elbows to study you.
“Hey,” she started, her voice softer now. “You good?”
You hesitated, chewing on your bottom lip before blurting out the thought that had been simmering in your head for the past few minutes. “You could teach me.”
“Teach you what?”
“How to, you know... kiss.”
Her jaw actually dropped, and for a moment, you thought she was going to laugh. But she didn’t. Instead, she blinked at you like you’d just asked her to solve world hunger.
“Wait, are you serious?”
“Never mind. Forget I said anything,” you said quickly, heat rushing to your face.
“No, no, no. Hang on,” Ellie said, sitting up completely now. “You’re telling me you want me to teach you how to kiss because I’ve dated two people?”
“Well... yeah,” you mumbled, avoiding her gaze.
She was quiet for a moment, and then: “You really think I’m qualified for that?”
You shot her a look. “Ellie, you’re the only person I know who’s been in a relationship. Twice.”
“Fair point,” she muttered, scratching the back of her neck. She still looked like she couldn’t believe what was happening. “Okay, so, uh... how do we do this?”
You gave her a flat look. “You’re the one with the experience. Shouldn’t you know?”
“Right, right,” she said, nodding like she was about to present a PowerPoint on the subject. She leaned forward a little, her expression awkwardly serious. “Okay, so... uh, close your eyes, I guess?”
“This is so weird,” you muttered but did as she said, squeezing your eyes shut and waiting.
You felt her shift closer, the bed creaking beneath her. Then, after a beat, her lips brushed yours—soft, hesitant, and barely there. It was over almost as quickly as it started, and when you opened your eyes, Ellie was already pulling back, her ears a suspicious shade of red.
Ellie sat back, rubbing the back of her neck and looking anywhere but at you. “Well, there you go. First kiss—check. You’re welcome.”
You frowned, feeling the heat of embarrassment crawl up your neck. “That wasn’t... I mean, it barely counted.”
She gawked at you. “What do you mean it barely counted? You said you wanted to learn, and I taught you!”
“That wasn’t teaching, Ellie. That was, like... the demo version,” you retorted, crossing your arms.
Ellie groaned, dropping her head into her hands. “Are you kidding me right now? You want a full-on tutorial?”
“I want a proper kiss,” you said firmly, though your voice wavered just slightly. “You’re supposed to show me how to do it right, aren’t you? I mean, how am I supposed to learn from that?”
She looked at you, her eyebrows raised like you’d just asked her to climb Mount Everest. “Do you even hear yourself right now?”
“Yes, I do,” you shot back, though the flush on your cheeks was betraying your confidence.
Ellie groaned again, flopping back onto the bed. “This is the weirdest thing you’ve ever asked me to do, and that’s saying something.”
“Ellie, come on,” you insisted, tugging on her sleeve. “Please? Just... one more time? A proper kiss.”
She let out a long, dramatic sigh, tilting her head back to stare at the ceiling. “Fine. But if this ruins our friendship, it’s on you.”
“It won’t ruin anything,” you said quickly, though a tiny voice in the back of your head wondered if that was true.
Ellie sat up again, her face pink but determined. “Alright. Sit here,” she said, patting the bed next to her.
You hesitated for a moment before climbing up and sitting cross-legged across from her. The air between you felt heavier now, charged with an energy that hadn’t been there before.
“Okay,” Ellie said, clearing her throat. “This time, no half-assing it. Got it?”
“Got it,” you replied, your voice barely above a whisper.
She leaned in again, slower this time, giving you plenty of chances to back out. But you didn’t. Her hand found its way to your cheek, her thumb brushing against your skin in a way that made your breath hitch. When her lips met yours, it wasn’t hesitant like before. It was soft but certain, warm but not overwhelming.
This time, it wasn’t over so quickly. Ellie tilted her head slightly, her movements careful and unhurried, as if she was trying to make sure you understood each step. When she finally pulled back, her face was redder than you’d ever seen it, and she couldn’t quite meet your eyes.
“Happy now?” she mumbled, her voice almost gruff.
You nodded, your heart still racing. “That... yeah. That was good. Proper.”
“Good,” she said quickly, standing up and pacing the room like she needed to burn off some of the awkward energy. “Glad we got that out of the way.”
You watched her, biting back a smile. “You know, for a self-proclaimed charmer, you’re awfully flustered.”
She shot you a glare, though it lacked any real heat. “Shut up.”
Ellie had been pacing the room after the kiss, her hands stuffed into her hoodie pocket, muttering to herself about how "this was so weird" and "friends don’t do this kind of stuff." You had stayed on the bed, still trying to process what just happened, your fingers absentmindedly fidgeting with the hem of your shirt.
Eventually, her pacing stopped, and she leaned back against the wall, her head thudding softly against it as she exhaled a long breath. “Okay, so... that was... something,” she muttered, glancing at you.
You looked up at her, and suddenly, her eyes locked with yours. Neither of you said anything, but the room seemed to shrink, the air thickening with something unsaid.
Her gaze was steady, and before you knew it, she was pushing off the wall and crossing the short distance between you. The tension that had been simmering finally snapped as she leaned in, her lips finding yours in a kiss that wasn’t hesitant or experimental this time. It was deliberate, almost urgent, like something she couldn’t hold back anymore.
Your breath hitched in surprise, but you didn’t pull away. Instead, you leaned into her, your hands clutching the fabric of her hoodie as if you needed something to hold on to. The kiss was different—less about teaching and more about... feeling.
When she finally pulled back, her forehead rested against yours, and her breath came in soft, uneven puffs. “Sorry,” she mumbled, her voice barely audible. “I... I don’t know why I did that.”
You swallowed, your chest tight. “Don’t be sorry.”
Ellie leaned back slightly to look at you, her expression conflicted. “This was supposed to be a lesson, not... whatever that was.”
You didn’t know what to say, your mind still spinning from the kiss. But instead of answering, you reached out, your fingers curling around her wrist. “Ellie...”
Her name on your lips seemed to ground her, and for a moment, she just looked at you, her green eyes searching your face like she was trying to figure something out. Then she sighed, a soft, almost defeated sound, and flopped onto the bed beside you, her hand brushing yours.
“Well,” she said, breaking the silence with a dry chuckle, “you’re officially not bad at kissing now.”
You laughed despite yourself, the tension easing just a little. But even as the two of you fell back into your usual banter, a part of you couldn’t shake the feeling that something between you had changed—and that maybe, just maybe, Ellie felt it too.