Look Closer

"You guys did what?" Angie exclaimed, earning the attention of the people trying to enjoy their breakfast at the tables around them.

"For the love of God, not you too," Chelley said, putting her face in her hands.

A confused look spread across Angie's face, "What's that supposed to mean?" she asked.

"Jack wants to stay married. Cassie said we should stay married. Alex didn't really say anything, but I'm pretty sure he feels the same way. Now you-"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa" Angie said, holding her hand up, "Staying married is a terrible idea. They're big bags of crazy if they think otherwise. There's no way in hell Jack is ready for that kind of commitment."

"That's what I said!" Chelley exclaimed, "But he got all butt hurt and tried to tell me that he's not immature and I'm the one who doesn't understand life."

Jack looked up from his menu and cleared his throat, "Hey, ladies, you know I'm sitting right here, don't you? I can hear everything you're saying."

"Does this look like a face that cares?" Angie asked.

He sighed, "How is it that both of you can be so sure that I'm not ready for marriage?" he asked.

Angie laughed, "Seriously Jack? You act like a five year old most of the time. You don't have any idea what you're going to do in the future, God forbid your band ever becomes irrelevant. You don't have the slightest clue about managing your money. You waste it on shit that is not only unnecessary but absolutely ridiculous. And most importantly, you think that a drunken sham of a Vegas marriage to someone you really don't know very well is a good idea," she said, "That's how I know you're not even in the vicinity of being close to ready for marriage."

Cassie's ears perked up, "I think it's a good idea," she said with a shrug, her eyes never leaving the menu in front of her.

"Well, we already know you're not right in the head," Angie said.

"Can we talk about something else?" Alex chimed in. "For fuck's sake. It's only been like an hour since any of us found out and I'm already sick to death of hearing about it. No one is ever really ready for marriage, anyway."

"How do you figure?" Angie inquired.

"When are we ever really ready for anything? First dates, first kisses, first sex, first time falling in love, falling in love at all, new jobs, losing someone we care about, meeting someone we will care about, moving to a new house, new town, new state, getting a pet, or even just leaving the house in the morning. You never know what's going to happen. Ever. But you know what? We take a leap of faith and hope for the best. Sometimes it's more like a skip, and sometimes it feels like you're trying to jump across and ocean. But we do it. Every day. Because what other choice to we really have?" he said, "So if Jack wants to stay married, that's a leap he's willing to take. Only problem is, you can't force someone else to jump with you. Now can we all please shut the fuck up about this. Thanks."

The table fell silent and everyone looked over their menus. The tension grew thick around them before slowly beginning to dissipate as Alex's words sunk in to everyone's thoughts.

"Why doesn't this place just have fucking bacon and eggs?" Jack said after what seemed like hours of silence.

Cassie looked up from her menu, "I'm sure you can order it even if it's not on the menu," she said.

With a nod, he fell silent again. Chelley peeked at him over her menu. There was no doubt that she was attracted to him, and in a different way than she had been attracted to Alex. With Alex, it had been mostly physical, which was extremely out of character for her. But with Jack, it was more than that. She liked spending time with him and getting to know him. And from the very beginning, he had been able to make her laugh. Even when he delivered the news about Alex and Cassie to her, he had been able to get her to crack a smile afterward.

When he looked up, she quickly averted her eyes, hoping he hadn't noticed. In a way, she felt like a child for doing that. But how could she sit there and say that she didn't want to be married to him, yet watch every twitch of his facial expressions and think about all the things she liked about him. It didn't make sense.

After breakfast, everyone expressed interest in going to the casino. Everyone except Chelley, that is.

"I'm not old enough to gamble," she objected.

They all looked back and forth at each other, the sudden realization that this trip had not been well thought out hitting each one of them. Finally, Jack spoke up.

"I'll stay with you," he said quietly, "We'll go find something else to do."

"Really?" Chelley asked, her eyebrows raised.

"Yeah, sure. Why not? In spite of everything that's happened in the last fifteen hours, we're still friends, right?" he asked.

She nodded, "Yes. We're still friends," she said.

"Then let's go," he said.

"Are you sure?"

Jack looked at Chelley, "I'm the one who invited you and it would be real dick move if I just left you by yourself. And besides, I like hanging out with you," he said, "So yeah, I'm sure. Now let's blow this popsicle stand."

With a smile gracing her face, Chelley fell in step next to Jack and they took off in the direction opposite where their friends were going. Neither really knew where they were going. It was going to be a day of exploring.

At first, they walked in silence, each taking in their surroundings. And soon enough, any tension that was left between the two had melted away and they struck up comfortable conversation.

They found plenty of things to keep themselves busy, wandering in and out of hotels, shops, and museums all day. Jack paid for lunch, after much argument with Chelley. And when they were tired of walking around, they sat down and people watched.

The day passed by quickly and before either knew it, they were on their way back to meet up with their friends for dinner. They walked slowly, keeping conversation light and fun and talking about the fun things they'd seen. But regardless of the topic of conversation, each had one thought running through their mind.

Maybe Alex was right.