Jess to the rescue

With her eyes shut tight, Mackenzie waited for the boy to crouch down low enough to see her hiding beneath the table. Sadly, the gasp of a person suddenly discovering the sight of her naked body was a sound she was becoming all too accustomed to. But, instead of the expected sound of surprise, Mackenzie heard a different sound instead.

"Hey!" Jess's voice yelled from somewhere nearby. "I thought you guys said you were staying down in the basement!"

Mackenzie's eyes shot open in surprise. It was Jess! Mackenzie watched as the bending legs froze in place at the sudden disturbance. Then, they slowly rose back to a standing position. Maybe she was saved after all!

"Calm down Jess," Josh said from the other side of the table. "We just came up to get our food."

"Well hurry it up!" Jess said, her tone adamant. But her gaze was far less focused. Her eyes seemed to be darting around the kitchen, as if looking for something. "You've already done more than enough to ruin a perfectly good Girl's Night!"

Josh's eyes drifted down to the pair of shorts his sister seemed to be nervously clutching.

"What, you mean simply by coming through the front door?" Tony retorted. "It's hardly our fault that Mackenzie was just standing there!"

And that's when it clicked for Josh. Who took the food the from the deliveryman and set it on the table? Who seemingly left some clothing behind in their wake? And who was now presumably hiding somewhere, with Jess desperately hoping to find them before someone else did? Well, who else but Mackenzie of course. That meant she was hiding somewhere nearby, most likely nude, or at least very nearly so. This could be a great opportunity for Jess, but only if he could let her successfully swoop in and save the day.

"Let alone our fault that she dropped her own tow-" Tony was continuing his tirade, but was interrupted by Josh.

"Ah, whatever!" Josh said in a loud and angry tone. "Forget her guys. Come on, let's go!"

"But she-" Tony tried to begin again, but Josh was already physically shoving his loudmouthed friend back towards the basement door.

"I said let's GO!" he urged, trying to simply sound fed up with Jess. "Lee! Kyle! You too!"

The other two boys gave each other a slightly befuddled glance before shrugging and carrying their own pizza-covered plates downstairs as well.

As Josh herded the last of them through the doorway, he reached out to close the door behind him. Just before it closed, he and Jess briefly caught each other's eyes. And for just a moment, Jess could have sworn her brother winked at her. But then the door was hastily shut and the moment had passed. Had she imagined that? Surely she must have.

Jess waited in the relative silence of the kitchen for a few long moments before hesitantly whispering, "Mackenzie? Are you around here somewhere?"

"Jess!" Mackenzie happily whispered before crawling out from under the table. She stood up from the table, and rushed into a hug with Jess. "You're a literal lifesaver! Those guys were totally just about to discover me!"

Jess wasn't exactly surprised to find that Mackenzie was, indeed, nude. She had suspected as much when she'd discovered the ruined tank top and discarded shorts by the front door. But it was still a bit of a shock seeing her friend in all her naked glory. Again. For what felt like the fiftieth time that year. Despite the shock, Jess hugged her friend back. And she squeezed tight. She could feel the tips of Mackenzie's breasts softly pressing into her own t-shirt. And, for just a moment, Jess wished her own shirt wasn't there. Her mind snapped back to their awkward naked encounter earlier that evening. The feeling of bare skin on bare skin. Nothing at all interrupting the electricity between their two bodies...

"I owe you one!" Mackenzie emphatically said as she relaxed her grip and pulled back slightly, though her arms were still cradled around her dark-haired friend. "Seriously. If you ever need a favor, just name it."

"Um, well," Jess stammered. Her heart was pounding now. She was really standing there in Mackenzie's arms! This wonderful, beautiful girl was gently cradling her, and it felt delightful! Not to mention, Mackenzie had backed up enough that... well... certain things had become visible again. Jess swallowed, trying to steel her resolve. "Can I, uh, tell you something then?"

"Sure," Mackenzie couldn't help but giggle a little. "You can tell me anything, Jess."

"Well..." Jess began, suddenly feeling like she could barely speak as she looked into the angelic face of her crush, "I, um, just..."

Mackenzie raised an eyebrow, but kept the same beautiful smile plastered on her face.

"I just wanted to tell you..." she tried again, but quickly lost her steam, "that I, uh.... that I..."

Mackenzie nodded encouragingly, but her smile seemed a bit more **** now.

"It's just that..." Jess's mouth felt the driest it had ever been in her life. "I just want you to know... that I..."

"Jess," Mackenzie cut in. "I'll listen to whatever it is you want to tell me. I really will! But could I maybe... put some clothes on first?"

Jess suddenly remembered that they were both standing in the middle of her kitchen, and that Mackenzie was still quite naked. Jess hurriedly let go of her friend, only realizing now that she was likely keeping Mackenzie from pulling away during her awkward mumbling with her grip.

"I'm so sorry!" Jess blurted out. "Of course, of course! You can, uh, go borrow whatever you want from my room. I'll pick up the, um, the clothes."

"Thanks," Mackenzie said with a blush before she hastily walked out of the kitchen. She felt like it would have been silly trying to cover herself in front of just Jess, especially after just hugging her in such a state, but couldn't help but feel a bit embarrassed nonetheless. At the bottom of the stairs, Mackenzie turned back to face her best friend and slightly awkwardly said, "I'll, um, see you back upstairs!"

Jess simply nodded. Then, after watching Mackenzie demurely hustle up the steps, she got to work pulling the ruined shirt free from the front door.

Behind the basement door, Josh sighed. He had been listening intently to the two girls' conversation. And it looked like his work for the night was far from over.