Promise Me Forever

Joe looked up at the ceiling, as the timer went off for the tenth time that night. He had talked to almost a dozen different women within the space of twenty minutes, and none of them, he was interested in. It felt like, every woman he talked to that night, had exactly the same characteristics and personality as the previous one.

He needed a change.

“Speed-daters, tonight, we’re going to try something new,” the person in charge of this date speeding service announced from the front of the room.

“Finally,” he heard Kourtney grumbled to herself from a few tables away.

Joe felt himself grinning. He could tell by her tone that Kourtney was not having a good night either.

Suddenly everyone stopped talking and had their fullest attention to the person up the front.

“In this bowl, the men are going to put their car keys in here, and the women will take a lucky dip. Ladies, whoever you choose will be the guy you’ll go on a date with.”

The room suddenly filled up with loud chatter in excitement as the men stepped forward, pulling their car keys out of their pockets and dropping them into the transparent glass bowl on the bench.

Joe slowly stood up and dragged himself over to the lucky-dip bowl, hoping that none of the girls he talked to in the last twenty minutes would pick his keys. His keys didn’t look that great though, he drove a Mustang, and there was a key ring – baseball bat – attached to his car keys.

Joe walked over to the side, where the other men were and waited, and hoped. He didn’t exactly want the majority of the women in the room, since they were kind of old looking. He preferred someone a couple years younger or his age like-

“You looking for a date tonight?” a voice came, interrupting his thoughts.

Joe looked down through his nose and smiled at the person who had just spoken. She was tall, nicely tanned and dark brown hair with dark coloured eyes, mysterious looking andbreath taking attractive. She looked about his age, if not, then a couple years younger.

“And who may you be?” he smiled down at the girl.

The woman grinned. “Lacey,” she introduced, stretching out an arm. “Lacey Peters.”

Joe shook it. “Well, Lacey, it’s a pleasure to meet you,” he said. “I’m Joe. Joe Jonas, and yes, I am looking for a date tonight.”

Lacey let out a giggle, making a smile spread across Joe’s face. Her laugh was gentle, happy and cute in the non-annoying way, and he liked it.

“Would you happen to be doing anything tonight, Miss Peters?” Joe grinned.

“Well, I do have this lucky-dip to go to,” she flirted. “There are so many car keys to choose from…”

“Mine’s the one attached to the baseball bat,” he hinted.

Lacey was about to say something back, but before she could, another girl with long, light brown hair stepped in front of Joe, looking slightly worried, like she didn’t realize Joe was in a conversation.

“Kourtney,” he said. “Are you okay?”

She nodded. “Joe, your keys are the one with the baseball bat, right?” she asked desperately.

“Uh, yes,” he answered.

“So, if I pick the baseball bat, that means I get to go on a date with you right?”

“I guess so-”

“Not unless if I pick the baseball bat first,” Lacey interjected.

Kourtney turned around, looking at the dark brown haired girl, as if she had just seen her for the first time.

“And you are?” Kourtney snapped.

“Lacey.”

“That’s great to know,” she said, before turning back to Joe.

But before Lacey could open her mouth to retort back to Kourtney, the person up the front called out her name. Lacey quickly made her way up to the front, leaving Kourtney and Joe together.

“What’s wrong with you, Kourt?” Joe said suddenly and angrily, as soon as Lacey was out of earshot.

“You mean what’s wrong with you, Joe?” she mocked. “Can’t you see?! She’s a god damn whore – you know, she probably only likes you ‘cause you have money.”

Joe raised an eyebrow. “And how do you know that?”

Kourtney opened her mouth, and closed it. She didn’t know. “I-I-I,” she stuttered. “She’s going to take all your money when she has you wrapped around her finger.”

“I don’t know what’s wrong with you tonight, Kourtney,” Joe said impulsively. “Usually, you’re never like this when I’m around girls.” He paused for a moment and let out a sigh. “Look, I think I might really like Lacey, okay?”

“Like or love?”

“Just drop it, Kourtney!” Joe snapped. “You’re acting like a five year old! I wish you’d act your age more often!”

“You hypocrite-”

“No, drop it, Kourtney,” he cut her off, alarmingly. “I mean it!”

Kourtney could feel the tears building up. Never in their twenty-two year friendship with Joe, had he ever used that tone on her, or made her cry. He was always the one there for her. He was always on her side, cheering her up when she was down, and vice versa.

“I’m… I’m your best friend, Joe,” she said weakly, attempting to reason.

“Get over your self, Kourtney. You’re nothing but a whiny bitch!”

Kourtney’s jaw dropped. It had felt like what Joe had just said to her, cracked her heart and splintered into a million billion tiny pieces.

Joe looked down at Kourtney one last time before turning his back on her to leave her and possibly lose her.

He walked up to Lacey who was patiently waiting for him with his car keys, pretending the argument between he and his best friend never happened. But deep down inside, Joe Jonas knew very well that, the words he used on Kourtney tonight, was going to slowly kill her.