Driven to Distraction

“Aren’t you glad you have me in your life?” Kelsi grinned smugly as she came into my room.

I laughed and closed the door. “I suppose so,” I teased.

She laughed and walked straight to my closet. “Do you know where he’s taking you?”

“We’re going out to dinner. I don’t know where,” I told her.

She nodded her head and skimmed through my clothes. “You know … this feels like déjà vu.”

I sat down on my bed. “Like we’re right back in high school?”

“Exactly,” she said before turning around and crossing her arms over her chest. “Ketely, you know that I love you and John, and I know that I’m the one who you pushed you to stop the wedding, but I don’t want this to be just like high school. It took you four, almost five years, to mend the wounds he caused. I want you to be happy, and if John is what makes you happy, then by all means, be with him – not that I would stop you either way. But … just be careful this time, okay?”

I stood up and pulled her into a hug. “I promise I will. I love you, Kels.”

She smiled and gave me a squeeze. “I love you, too, K. Now, let’s find something that’ll make John realize what a gorgeous woman he has.”

I laughed and let her continue to rummage through my clothes. It took her only ten minutes to pull out a deep green dress, one that would surely hug my curves and stopped just at the knees.

“I think this’ll do,” she said, throwing it at me. “Now, do you need me to help you with shoes, too, or can you manage that?” she teased.

I stuck my tongue out at her and threw the dress on my bed. “I can pick out the shoes.”

“Great. I’ll plug in the curler,” she said, going to my bathroom.

I quickly discarded the tee shirt and shorts I was wearing and slipped into the dress. It fit a little more tightly than it had when I wore it last, but it looked good and I smiled before going into the bathroom, taking a seat on the lid of the toilet to let Kelsi work on my hair.

“So you never told me, how did your dad and Danny take it when you told them you're back with John?” she asked, wrapping a piece of my hair around the iron.

I snorted. “They weren’t happy obviously, but after some explaining, they accepted it. They don’t really like it, but they accept it and for now, that’s good enough.”

She nodded her head. “It’s a step.”

“Yeah,” I yawned, closing my eyes as she sprayed hair spray onto the curl.

We continued to make small talk as she did the rest of my hair. Once she was done, she gave it one last spray before unplugging the curler and putting it away.

She glanced at the clock on her phone. “I’m supposed to meet Kennedy for dinner, myself. Do you need anything else?”

I shook my head. “You go have fun.”

She smiled. “I’ll try. Love you, K.”

“Love you, too, Kels,” I told her before she left.

I lined my eyes with black eyeliner and coated my lashes with mascara, deciding it would be too hot to wear foundation and powder. I picked out a pair of gold heels and placed them on my feet before spraying on some perfume. I glanced in the mirror and took in a deep breath.

“You’re twenty-two, Ketely; you shouldn’t be this nervous to go on a date,” I told myself.

“Talking to yourself, sis?” Danny laughed, appearing in my doorway.

I felt my cheeks warm. “No.”

He rolled his eyes, a smirk on his face. “Sure. John’s downstairs and if I were you, I’d get down there before dad starts in on him. Or worse, me.”

“I’m going, I’m going.”

“You look beautiful by the way, K.”

I smiled and placed a kiss on his cheek. “Thanks, Danny.”

“No problem.”

We walked downstairs and sure enough, John was sitting on the couch, looking as uncomfortable as could be. My father was staring him down, and I stifled back a laugh.

“We can go, John.”

He smiled in relief and stood up. “You look beautiful, Key.”

“Thank you,” I blushed. I turned to my dad, giving him a hug and a kiss on the cheek. “I’ll see you later, dad.”

“Bye, K. Be careful,” he said, giving me a look.

“I will,” I assured him before John and I stepped outside. I couldn’t help but to laugh when I saw John’s white pickup truck in front of the house. “I can’t believe you still have this monstrosity.”

He smirked as he opened the passenger door for me. “Her name is Rosie, Key.”

I rolled my eyes. “I forgot,” I said, slipping inside.

“I’m sure,” he chuckled before closing the door and going around to the driver’s side. Once he was in, he started the engine and we took off. “You know, I really thought your dad was going to kill me once he opened the door and saw me.”

“Can you blame him?”

“Not really …”

I grabbed his right hand, giving the back of it a kiss. “He’ll learn to love you.”

He gave a nervous laugh. “I hope so.”

We made small talk on the way to the restaurant, which ended up being a rather expensive one and I was glad that I had dressed appropriately. During dinner, John told me a few stories from his years of touring and I was nearly in tears by the time we finished eating.

“ … That was basically when Rat Boy was created,” John finished, opening my door once again.

“Pat never ceases to amaze me,” I laughed, sliding in.

“He gets a kick out of making you as uncomfortable as possible,” he assured before closing the door and walking over to the driver’s side. “Someone once asked us if he was … slow,” he told me, starting the ignition.

I busted out laughing again. “Oh God. I feel so bad for you and the guys.”

“You should,” he laughed, merging onto the road. When our laughter died down, he grabbed my hand, giving it a small squeeze. “Do you feel like going straight home?”

“Not particularly. Why?” I asked, arching my brows.

“I wanted to show you something,” he said.

I nodded my head and he rubbed the back of my hand with his thumb, bringing me nothing but comfort. A few moments later, we were pulling into the driveway of a brick townhouse.

“Whose house is this?” I questioned.

“Mine. Well … Jared and I live here, but he’s staying at his cousin’s tonight,” he told me.

“You never told me you moved out.”

“Well I couldn’t live at my parents’ house forever, K,” he laughed, hopping down from the truck.

I did the same and followed him to the door, into the house. The inside was that of a typical bachelor pad; scarcely decorated, Maxim posters hanging on the walls, and it even had a boy smell.

“It’s nice … could do with a bit of decorating, though,” I smiled, going into the living room.

He laughed. “Yeah, well we’re never really home long enough to get that part done.”

I stood beside a poster of a beautiful model clad in only a black bikini. “Typical men.”

“Typical men,” he mocked, coming to stand beside me.

I pushed his shoulder playfully. “I don’t sound like that.”

He smirked. “You kind of do.”

“You’re such a jackass.”

“I’m your jackass,” he winked.

I laughed and wrapped my arms around him. “Unfortunately,” I teased. I watched his eyes fall to my lips, lingering there. “Kiss me, idiot.”

He wasted no time in pressing his lips against mines. It was sweet and innocent at first, and it was like I was kissing John for the first time all over again. His tongue traced my bottom lip and I granted him entrance, allowing our tongues to explore each other’s mouths. My hands weaved into his hair and his hands gripped the back of my waist, pushing me against the wall.

Eventually, the kissing became rough and passionate, and I realized just then how much I missed being with John; how much I missed his kisses and being pressed against his body. His lips traveled down to my neck and I tilted my head, giving him more access. I couldn’t suppress my moans and I could tell he was enjoying that.

“John,” I breathed heavily.

“Hmm,” he hummed against my skin.

“Show me how much you love me,” I stated, biting down on my bottom lip.

He pulled away and looked into my eyes, almost as if he were looking for any sign of hesitation. “Are you sure, Key?” I nodded my head and he picked me up, walking us to his bedroom. He kicked the door shut with his foot and laid me down on the bed, hovering on top of me.

His lips connected with mines once more and his hands began pushing the bottom of my dress upward. His fingers on my thighs sent my mind into a frenzy and I moaned as they gripped my bottom. My hands slipped underneath his shirt and I pulled it over his head, making our lips part for a second. I ran my fingers down his chest, noting that it seemed much more toned than it had all those years ago.

He moved his lips back down to my neck and I took the opportunity to play with his ear, running my tongue softly over the skin. He shuddered a bit and I smirked as I lightly nipped at his lobe. John was never one who liked to be outdone, though, and he bit down on my shoulder whilst his thumbs hooked the top of my underwear, grazing the skin just below my navel, causing me to moan.

I reached for his belt buckle, unfastening it. Whilst he slipped out of his jeans, I pulled my dress over my head, tossing it onto the floor, leaving me in my bra and underwear. He sat up for a moment, taking in the full breasts and curves that I hadn’t had back in high school. I took the moment to unhook the clasps of my bra, chucking in onto the floor as well. His eyes widened and I giggled as he eagerly closed the distance between us, his lips attacking my chest. His tongue traced circles in the valley between my breasts and his hands fervently went to pull down my underwear; his boxers came off a moment later.

Although a part of me felt slightly insecure, I didn’t have much time to worry about my body as John kept whispering about how beautiful I was as his mouth explored every inch of my skin. His hands quickly ran over my hot flesh and I gasped before feeling his hands grip the back of my knees, pulling me closer to him.

“I love you,” he told me before pushing into me, molding our bodies perfectly together.

_______________________________________________________________

John continued to lie on top of me, his chin resting at the top of my chest. I had my hands in his hair and we both struggled to catch our breaths.

“Ketely, I need to ask you something,” he said, once we had both stopped panting.

“What is it?” I asked, staring up at the ceiling, my mind still in a bit of a haze.

“I just need you to listen before you freak out, okay?”

I looked down at him, my heart beginning to race. “Okay,” I breathed.

He scooted up, his face now above mine. “I love you more than I could ever put into words, Ketely. I love being able to hold you in my arms and know that you’re mine. I went just about five years without that feeling and it was the worst years of my life. I’ll never know what I did right to have you, but I’m willing to spend every day of the rest of my life trying to deserve you.” I felt my breath hitch in my throat, tears pooling my eyes. He grabbed my hands and held them between us, his forehead pressing against mine. “I look at you and I see my beginning and my end, Key.” He let go of my hands, reaching over me to the drawer in his nightstand. He pulled out a black velvet box and I couldn’t hold the tears in anymore, they began flooding down my face. “Marry me, Ketely Jewel Morrison?”

I clamped my hands over my mouth as he opened the box, revealing a beautiful medium sized diamond on a silver band. My heart was swelling so much that I thought it might burst out of my chest at any moment. I grabbed the back of John’s head, pulling him close to me. “Yes. Yes, yes, yes, I’d love to marry you!” I told him before pressing my lips to his.

He chuckled against my mouth and slipped the band onto my finger, pulling away from my lips to kiss the back of my left hand. “I’m forever your jackass now, Morrison.”

I laughed and pulled him back to me. “You’re such a charmer, O’Callaghan.”