Lightweight

“Patrick Kane!” I shouted at the top of my lungs, storming into the living room. Pat was currently sitting in his pajamas on the couch with a bag of chips and a soda laid out in front of him and a controller in hand playing Xbox. He almost didn’t realize me standing there until I cleared my throat several times. He jumped at the sound and when he turned around he looked like a deer in headlights.

“Good morning, sunshine! What are you doing up so early?” His attention went back to the game and I rolled my eyes, “Pat, our parents are going to be here in a couple of hours, do you think you want to help me clean up a little bit and get ready to go pick them up?”

He thought about it for a moment before he shook his head, his attention never leaving the TV. I huffed and stood right in front of him, blocking his view. When the action didn’t seem to phase him, I grabbed the headset from his head and grabbed the controller, “Hi, whoever this is Patrick currently can’t continue playing with you, he has other business to attend to” I moved a couple of the buttons around, pressing every single combination I scored and got Pat the game winning goal, “You lose! Bye!” I turned off the TV and turned around to see Pat leaning back with his arms crossed and a smirk on his face.

“You give half the guys I play with a run for their money, you know that? By the way, you just beat the Captain. I’m going to be hearing this at every team practice for the rest of my life”

I rolled my eyes and threw the controller onto the couch, “Whatever, he’ll survive” I plopped down next to him and leaned my head on his shoulder, “I’m exhausted, and the house isn’t even clean yet”

“You shouldn’t have cleaned the house a week ago, Mia” He laughed, “You have a ton of hockey players frequently in and out of this house, you knew it was bound to happen” He ruffled my hair and I lifted my head back up in attempts to fix it, “So, Tazer told me about your bet”

“It’s a stupid bet” I rolled my eyes and blew a piece of hair out of my face, “I don’t even remember how that bet conversation even started. Just make sure you don’t play your absolute best tonight, Pat. I would love to see him squirm about losing this bet and having to wear a Sabres jersey for the next week”

He shook his head, “I swear, you two are more immature than our whole locker room combined” He thought for a moment before he spoke again, “You know, come to think of it, I’ve never seen him so....not serious before. He’s actually having a little bit of fun with this. I think the last bet he made with someone was Seabs and in the end, Tazer made him do 100 suicides”

“Well luckily for me, I’m not on his hockey team, and the fact that I can’t stand up straight on a pair of skates also helps my case” I rolled my eyes, “The worst he could do is make me wear his jersey for a whole entire week, and most of the days I’m in work anyway. Anna would not be pleased with one of her employees showing up in something as unfashionable as a hockey jersey”

Patrick, who I’m sure wasn’t even listening to half the words I was saying just shook his head, “All I’m saying Mia, is that you’re in for a rude awakening. You’re dealing with the most serious person in the world, he loves a challenge and he’s always up for one. I wouldn’t be surprised if he got a hat trick tonight just in spite” He frowned when my comment processed in his head, “You think I’m unfashionable, Mia? That hurts, I hope you know I have designer suits sitting in my closet” He put a hand over his heart and I rolled my eyes.

Before I could respond, I was interrupted by my cell phone vibrating. I rolled my eyes and pulled it out of my pocket, pressing the ‘answer’ button, “Hello?”

“Hi, Mia, sweetie, it’s Mom” My eyes widened as I checked the time on the TV, “We just arrived at the airport, are you and Patrick here yet?”

Patrick noticed my expression and motioned for me to put the phone on speaker so he could hear, “Um, Mom, I thought you guys weren’t coming in for a couple of more hours”

“Didn’t you get my e-mail?” I cursed myself in my head for not checking those hundreds of e-mails I had sitting in my inbox, I didn’t think they were that important.

“Mom, I’m going to call you back, I’m stuck in traffic right now, I’ll be there in a half hour okay? Love you!” I hung up the phone before she could say anything else and delay me from getting there sooner. “Now what are we supposed to do?”

Pat jumped off the couch, and grabbed a sweatshirt from the closet, “I’m going to pick them up, you stay here and clean the house, get everything done that you need to get done, I’ll try and stall them as much as I can”

I groaned, “Why do I have to clean the house? I did it already last week, and then you and your friends came and make a mess out of it. Why don’t you do it?”

Pat hobbled around trying to get his shoes on, “Mia, I can barely clean my own room, you think I can clean my whole entire house?” He ran over and gave me a quick kiss on the top of my head before running out the door, “Good luck! Love you!”

I let out a sigh, and pushed myself off the couch dragging my feet to get the cleaning supplies. I knew if I didn’t get up now, it never would and my mom and Mrs. Kane would be left cleaning the mess, and me and Patrick are adults now, we can fend for ourselves.

I was mopping the kitchen floor and blasting music while dancing around like a complete fool when I heard the doorbell ring, I immediately panicked and thought it was Patrick with our parents. I immediately cursed the way I looked and tried my best at smoothing out my hair and clothes before I put the mop aside and answered the door. My heart dropped to my stomach and I breathed a sigh of relief when I realized it was just Jonathan.

“What are you doing here?” I asked, suddenly 10 times more insecure about my appearance, it probably came off a little rude but I was frustrated with all the cleaning I had to get to.

“Is Kaner here?” He asked, rubbing the back of his neck. It seems like we were always stuck in the situation of Pat not being around, and we were forced to spend time together until he gets back.

“Um no” I laughed, “He actually went to go pick up our parents, it turns out that their flights came in a little earlier than expected, he left about a half hour ago, he should be back soon” After our little hangout the other night, our conversation felt more awkward and a little uncomfortable, like we never had that time together. I was suddenly nervous and didn’t know what to say and neither did he. I couldn’t be like this though, he was my date, I had to be friends with him and keep a stable not awkward relationship going. We were civil, and we were friends, just because he was going to be my date for one night did not change anything.

I realized he was still standing outside and I quickly came back to reality, “Sorry, um, you can come in” I closed the door behind him and he walked into the kitchen, “It sounds like a party is going on in here, but yet there’s a mop, what are you doing? Having a party for one?”

I ran a hand through my hair, and grabbed the mop from his hand, “Haha” I rolled my eyes and he smirked, “You know, if this whole hockey career doesn’t work out for you, you could be a comedian. Anyway, Since I have men currently in and out of my house, and my parents are coming and I don’t want my mom trying to clean up my messes, or Patrick’s mom cleaning his, it’s now my job” He looked at me with a knowing glance and I threw my hands in the air, “Okay, so our job. But he’s not here so I have no choice!”

“Do you want some help? You might get it done faster with two people, plus you can go get ready quicker” He offered and went to reach for the mop.

“I couldn’t ask you to do that Jon, really it’s fine, I’m almost done and then I can go shower and get ready” He shook his head and pulled the mop out of my hands, “Trust me, I’m left to clean my place by myself, I know how to clean, It’s the least I can do for being part of the guys that made the house a mess again after you cleaned it”

I smiled and had the urge to hug him and give him a kiss on the cheek but I held myself back and settled on a comment instead, “I’m sorry, but are you telling me I look absolutely horrible and I need to go shower and put some decent clothes on?”

He blushed and looked down at my sweatpants and Sabres T-shirt, “N-no” He stammered for a second and quickly regained his composure, “But I can’t have you a mess when you’re wearing my jersey after I win our little bet, any chance I could burn that shirt?”

I rolled my eyes, “What makes you so sure you’re going to win? You could completely blow this game, and no actually, I was thinking of wearing it to your next game”

His jaw dropped, “What happened to ‘If I showed up to your game in a Sabres jersey, Blackhawk fans would skin me alive?’”

“This is a shirt, Jonathan, not a jersey. They’re two totally different things” He shook his head and I laughed, “Besides, I’m sure there will be some fans there, I’ll just go sit with them and be sure not to cheer for you guys”

He ignored my comment, “Mia, are you going to get ready or what?” Jonathan Toews was in my house, offering to finish mopping up my kitchen while I go and get ready for my parents to arrive with Patrick, I wasn’t even sure what was going on between us at this point. I realized I was just standing there in front of him not saying anything so I just smiled and ran upstairs before I made a complete fool out of myself.

After quickly changing into a comfortable yet appropriate outfit which didn’t consist of any Sabres gear that Jon hated and applying some makeup I ran downstairs and noticed that the kitchen was completely spotless. I smiled to myself, what kind of guy would offer to clean up a kitchen because he was part of the group of idiots who made a mess out of it? Jonathan Toews, that’s the kind of guy. “Jon?” I called out.

“In here!” I heard him yell from the living room. As I got closer, I heard the faint sound of an Xbox controller clicking, and Jon groaning and making comments to himself. I stood in the doorway and laughed at him try to make a goal with his player in the game and failed. He jumped at the sound, and turned around blushing, “You beat me this morning, so I wanted to just brush up on my skills, but it doesn’t look like I’m doing very well”

I laughed and sat down next to him, grabbing the other controller from the table in front of us, “I’ll play you, so maybe you can redeem yourself from before, you know, losing to a girl and all”

“I didn’t lose to a girl!” He puffed out his chest and when he noticed the glare on my face, he looked defeated, “Okay, so I lost to Patrick who didn’t make the game winning goal”

“Therefore, you lost to a girl” I shook my head and began choosing my team to play against Jonathan’s choice, “It’s okay Jonny, I won’t tell anyone, it’ll be our little secret. I just hope you know I officially have blackmail on you”

He didn’t see this as a threat and chuckled, “I hope you know that Kaner has been your friend longer than he’s been mine, and I could easily have blackmail on you in 5 seconds. Any embarrassing baby pictures you don’t want anyone to know about, Mia?”

I rolled my eyes and ignored his comment an the grin on his face, “Shut up and play the game, Toews. You’re about to get your ass kicked by a girl again”

________________________

To say we were competitive was an understatement. We were jumping on the couch every time we made a good play or scored, and cursing every time the other scored or we made a stupid play. Either way, this was probably the most fun I’ve ever had playing video games or any kind of game, even as a kid with Patrick which usually consisted of me playing goalie and him making shots impossible for me to block resulting in a couple of nice bruises. Now that I think about it, maybe this was the most fun I’ve ever had with a guy I wasn’t dating.

We were so into the game, we didn’t even hear the door open, or Patrick standing behind us clearing his throat. We both jumped and turned around, “Dammit, Patrick Kane! Don’t you ever knock? Or call for that matter to let me know you’re on your way home?”

He shrugged, “I didn’t think it was that important. And knock? Mia, this is my house too, and I have a key, I don’t think I need to knock” I threw a pillow which he quickly caught in his hands and threw back on the couch, “What are you doing here, Jon?”

“Looking for you, and since you weren’t here I was the next best choice” I answered, “Where’s our parents?”

“Outside, I wanted to come ask you to help me carry in their luggage, but now that Tazer’s here, he could help I guess” Jon stood up and followed Patrick outside to the car while I turned the TV off and put the controllers back in their rightful spot. I followed the boys outside and smiled when I saw my parents being introduced to Jonathan and my mom giving him a hug which he gladly returned.

“Hi Mom, hi Dad!” I smiled and ran to them, hugging them both. My dad gave me a kiss on the forehead and ruffled my hair, “How are you, princess?”

“I’m great Dad, how are you? How was your flight? I hope Patrick wasn’t too annoying on the way back and bored you with the countless stories” Pat stuck out his tongue and I mimicked his actions causing our parents to laugh, “Some things never change. Our flight was great” I smiled and nodded and walked over to Mr. and Mrs. Kane.

“Oh, Mia, you get more and more beautiful every time we see you” Mrs. Kane smiled and gave me a big hug causing me to blush as I hugged her back, “Thank you, Mrs. Kane. Your son is a pleasure to be living with, I don’t know what I’d do without him” His dad laughed and gave me a quick hug, “Thanks for keeping him in line, Mia. I don’t know what he’d do without you”

“I’d be perfectly fine, I’ve lived by myself before, it’s not much of a difference really. Except the house always smells girly, and it’s always clean and stocked with actual food instead of me ordering take out every night” I shook my head and grabbed a couple of bags to bring inside.

After our parents were all settled in and moving to their respected rooms, us women gathered in the kitchen to cook dinner, and the guys moved to the couch to watch TV.

“Mrs. Kane, where are the girls?” I asked, just realizing now that Patrick’s sisters didn’t come with them, “Are they coming at all?”

She frowned, “No, they’re actually staying at a friends house, they have some things to do and didn’t want to be away from home, so they decided to just see Patrick when he comes home over Christmas. They all miss you though, especially Erica, she’s doing well though”

Erica was the closest Kane sister in age to me and Patrick, and whenever I needed girl time or me and Pat were fighting over something stupid, I went to her. She was my other best friend besides Patrick and I haven’t seen her in so long or spent some girl time with her and I missed it, it was refreshing to get away from the guys for a little while and spend some time with an old best friend.

“So Mia,” My mom started snapping me out of my thoughts, and I immediately knew what she was going to say, “Jonathan is really cute, you should go out with him. He seems like your type” Thank God it came out as almost a whisper that only us girls could hear her and no males were present, especially Jonathan, or even worse; Patrick.

“Mom,” I groaned, “I don’t want another relationship! And yes, maybe he is really cute, but that doesn’t mean anything. Cute means trouble, and trouble means heartbreak. Remember Jason? Really cute? Charmer? Total bullshitter?”

Both my mom, and Mrs. Kane cringed at the name. My mom knew him from all the late night crying sessions and bowls of ice cream I’d have with her, and Mrs. Kane knew him for the pure fact that her son wanted to kick his ass for what he did to me, “Mia, I know you got hurt, but it’s been such a long time, have you dated at all since you came to Chicago?”

When I shook my head Mrs. Kane put a hand on my shoulder, “Sweetie, if this means anything to you, I’ve met Jonathan many times, and he’s one of Patrick’s best friends besides you. He’s a very sweet boy, I don’t think he would ever harm a fly, and from what I understand, he hasn’t had the best relationship history either”

I held back the urge to roll my eyes. Everyone has told me the same story about him; that he was this really sweet and genuine guy who would never do anything wrong to anyone and treats girls he dates like princesses, even the bitchy ones. But that’s how it always starts out. In my experience, guys like the chase, and when they finally get the girl they stop being romantic and cute, and start acting like their true selves, which is never how they started out, it’s the complete opposite. Maybe I was overthinking everything, or maybe Jason messed with my heart so badly that I want to believe every guy was a total jerk. Whatever it was, I was not ready to date again and by the time I was actually ready, Jonathan would probably be married to some beautiful model or actress with kids and a nice house. Plus, we were just stabilizing a friendship, and I was not going to mess that up.

“I just wish everyone would stop saying that to me” When they gave me confused looks, I continued, “Ever since I’ve been to Chicago, everyone’s been telling me how great he is, blah blah blah, whatever. I’m even taking him to my friends wedding as my date”

“All I’m saying is that he’s very cute and sweet, and I think he would be good for you” My mom shrugged innocently, “Anyway, you don’t need to be dating anyone as long as you’re happy. How is work going by the way? Is it better than working for Nancy?”

“It has it’s ups and downs” I took a sip of my water, “Anna made a name for herself as the best, and I’m working for her which is kind of amazing. But at the same time it’s a lot more work and kind of stressful sometimes. But it’s rewarding, I really do love it. I live vicariously through other people’s love lives and relationships because mine is pathetic and I’m going to be single for the rest of my life. I hope Pat doesn’t me mind living here when he’s married and has tons of kids running around”

“You’ll make an excellent babysitter, and you’re not going to be alone forever” Pat spoke up coming into the kitchen and putting his arm around me, he gave me a quick kiss on the cheek which I pretended to be disgusted and wiped it off. His mom just laughed and shook her head, she was used to our antics by now. “Your little boyfriend is getting hungry in there, he wants to know when dinner’s going to be ready”

My mom’s eyes quickly shot up to look at us and give me a little smile, “Mia, you didn’t tell me you’re dating”

“Are you sure he’s not your boyfriend? And, I’m pretty sure if Jon was hungry he’d come in here and tell me that himself, so that makes me think you’re the one who’s hungry”

Patrick ignored my comment and just rolled his eyes, focusing on my mom, “She’s not dating, they’ve just been spending a lot of time together and even have a bet going on” I could’ve slapped that stupid grin off his face, he was so loud I’m pretty sure the whole neighborhood could hear him, which means Jon could probably hear our whole conversation unfolding.

“What kind of bet?” She asked him, her eyes twinkling a little bit. First my best friends, now my own mother, I honestly could never win. Thank God I was saved by the doorbell ringing, I ran to the door as fast as I could to get away from talking about the situation.

“Hey!” I was surprised when I saw Whitney standing there when I opened the door, “What are you doing here Whit? I thought you were going to stay with your parents. Is everything okay?”

She shrugged and hung up her jacket and purse, “My parents decided to have one of their elaborate vacations, they do one every year around this time, I guess they completely forgot about it, my mom just called me and told me. My flight was in 3 hours, I was all packed and going to head to the airport” I gave her a hug which she gladly returned with a weak smile, “I figured I’d stop by and hang out with you and Patrick”

“Actually, our parents are over” Whitney turned white as a ghost and nervously bit down on her lip, “Don’t worry, you’re going to be fine!”

“Mia! We’re not even dating yet, we’ve just been hanging out, he hasn’t asked me to be his girlfriend or anything. I can’t meet his parents now! I look like crap, I was just going on an airplane to go see my parents, and now I’m being thrown in to seeing my non-boyfriend’s parents! I just went from sad to extremely nervous” She whispered just in case anyone could hear us, I just shook my head and grabbed her by the hand to pull her into the kitchen.

“Mom, Mrs. Kane, I want you to meet someone” Pat looked up and his jaw almost dropped when he saw Whitney standing there in front of his mother. “This is my best friend and co-worker, Whitney. She’s Anna’s secretary and my assistant”

“It’s nice to meet you, Mrs. Conard and Mrs. Kane” She smiled shyly and waved, “Hi Patrick”

“H-Hey, Whitney. Um, good to see you” He rubbed the back of his neck and let out a deep breath, causing his mom to look back and forth between the two with a knowing smile on her face, “It’s lovely to meet you dear, I’m glad Mia’s made a girl friend out here, I know how hard it must be to deal with my son all the time”

My mom laughed and smiled, “It’s nice to meet you, Whitney. Are you staying for dinner?”

“If you don’t mind, Mrs. Conard. My parents actually cancelled on my going home plans last minute so I figured instead of being by myself, I’d come hang out with Mia” I knew part of her was waiting for Patrick to step up and say something to his mom, but I knew my best friend, and I knew he wasn’t very fond of introducing girls to his mom or talking to her about relationships. I knew it was hurting her, but I’d help her get through it later, or I’d force Patrick to talk to her.

“Of course sweetheart, it’s no problem. We made enough for everyone, Pat why don’t you go call the boys in. Dinner’s ready” He nodded and walked right past Whitney giving her a little smile which she ignored. I put my arm around her shoulder and led her into the dining room.

“What was that all about?” She asked with a frown on her face.

“I don’t really know, Whit. It’s Pat, he’s not really open when it comes to girls he’s dating or relationships for that matter. He’ll come around eventually, don’t worry, I promise” She sighed and nodded, and I knew I was going to have a serious talk with him after dinner.

Jon walked in and smiled at me which I returned and decided to take the other seat next to me, “Hey, Whitney. How are you?”

She turned to him and smiled, “Hey Jon, I’m okay I guess. How are you?”

“Starving” He laughed and when she didn’t respond he looked at me with a raised eyebrow and I shook my head and mouthed to him that we’ll talk later.

Tonight was going to be one hell of an interesting night

______________________________

“So, Jonathan. Patrick has told me that you and Mia have a little bet going on” I almost spit out my water and Jon almost turned as red as the tomato sauce in his plate.

“Uh, yeah. It’s nothing really, it’s kind of stupid actually” When everyone around the table kept an eye on him as if waiting for him to continue he cleared his throat, “Well, we play the Sabres in a couple of days, so if we win the game, she has to walk around with my jersey everywhere she goes. And if we lose, I have to wear a Sabres jersey everywhere I go”

My dad laughed and patted him on the back, “You’re going to have to win this bet, kid. You can’t be walking around Chicago with a Sabres jersey on your back. People would start to wonder, and some would probably even skin you alive”

“Well sir, I don’t plan on losing” He looked over at me with a smirk on his face, and I tried to ignore the butterflies erupting in my stomach and stick my tongue out at him which he pretended to grab. I knew my mom was watching us so I just turned back to my food and tried to hide my face. Nothing gets past that woman.

“Mia, are you working on any big weddings coming up? I’m sure you’re pounded with work. You always were a workaholic”

“Yeah, actually. I’m planning a wedding for a friend of Jonathan’s. She’s actually become really close to me lately, and she even asked Whitney and I to be in her bridal party”

“That’s wonderful! Who’s going to be your date?” This was probably one of the most awkward dinner conversations I have ever had. I had my best friend on my right who was mad at her non-boyfriend for not telling his mom about her and acting like she’s basically no one, I have a guy on my left who’s one of my friends and also really attractive and I don’t even know what to think sometimes, I have Patrick who wants my mom to know everything so she can try to persuade me to date Jon or try to get my feelings for him out of me. I really didn’t need my best friend and my mom teaming up to play matchmaker.

“Jonathan’s going to be my date, actually” He took a long sip of his water so I obviously had to continue, “Um, she thought it’d be a lot easier and more convenient since Jon’s in the wedding as well and we’re friends. So, it would make it a lot less awkward if we were with someone we didn’t know”

My mom had a disappointed look on her face, but just smiled and nodded. I knew I wasn’t out of the woods yet, she tried forever to get information out of me with Jason, so I knew she was not going to give up on this. The rest of the dinner conversation flowed easily and mostly consisted of the Hawks season so far, other details about my job, and embarrassing childhood stories about me and Patrick.

After dinner was over, Whitney and I cleaned up the table while everyone else went into the living room to watch some TV. I knew Whitney was still upset so I grabbed Patrick off the couch and brought him into the room, “Okay, now, you two need to kiss and make up because this is really awkward. Whitney’s obviously upset, and don’t give me that shit, Pat, I know you are too. So let’s go, apologize so I can get back to being the third wheel” I paused for a minute, “I honestly can’t believe I just said that. Now, I’m going to go inside and sit down and when I come back, you two better be all made up and everything better be good”

I stormed out of the room and stayed close by until I hear them start to talk and decided it was my cue to get out of earshot. I walked into the living room and saw Jon sitting on the couch and everyone else gone. “Where is everyone?” I asked coming up behind him and putting my hands on the couch behind him to support myself.

He bent his head backwards to look up at me, “They actually all went to bed. They’re pretty tired from the flight and since everyone kind of disappeared, I figured I’d watch some TV until someone came back”

I nodded and jumped onto the couch to sit down next to him, “Thank you for dealing with everything tonight. You know about the whole date situation, and Patrick’s comments to my mom-”

“Comments? What comments?” He looked a little surprised that he was a topic of discussion and I just shook my head and felt like an idiot for even bringing it up and thinking he could hear from all the way in the living room.

“Nothing, actually don’t worry about it. It was stupid. But you know, the whole bet thing”

“Don’t even worry about it, I had no problem with it. They were going to start asking questions anyway when they saw you wearing my jersey” I shoved him lightly and laughed, “What? It’s true!”

“I can’t believe you still think you’re going to win. Oh God, please, they already think there’s something going on with us if they saw me in your jersey we might as well be married at that point” I blushed and Jon just laughed. Why the hell did I just say that? Mia, what the hell is wrong with you?

“They think something’s going on with us?”

“You know Patrick, he’s always saying stuff that’s not true” I rolled my eyes, “He made a comment calling you my boyfriend and I’m pretty sure my mom does not think you were just joking”

“Mia, that wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world” He blushed and I tried to hide the smile on my face, “I mean, there’s worse stuff, like losing game 7 in the Stanley Cup finals”

“Must every conversation you have with someone include a comment about hockey?” I just wanted to get off that topic of conversation, I didn’t even know how to continue it. The conversation died down for a little bit before I stood up.

“You’re going to bed too?” He looked a little disappointed that I wasn’t sitting there with him anymore and I shook my head and grabbed his hand to pull him up.

“Actually, I put Whitney and Pat together to try and get them to come to some kind of agreement” I thought for a minute and laughed, “Or in their case, just make out and forgive each other” He looked confused, “Okay, so Whitney came here, I introduced her to our parents, Patrick basically acted like he didn’t know her and didn’t say anything except ‘Uh hey Whit’ and therefore she’s mad at him for not saying anything about her”

“Oh,” He nodded like it made sense to him, “Well Kaner’s an idiot, that really doesn’t surprise me. Should we go check on them?”

“One step ahead of you, Jon” I patted him on the back and motioned for him to follow me. We got into the doorway and I almost had to control my happiness. “Aw look at the happy couple who just made up!” I squealed breaking them away from their kiss and hug. Patrick just flipped us off and Whitney let him go and ran over to hug me.

“Thanks Mia!” I smiled and shrugged it off like it was no big deal. Pat gave her a confusing look as to ask why she was thanking me, “If it wasn’t for her, I’m pretty sure we still wouldn’t be talking” Pat just rolled his eyes and grabbed her hand, “Okay you two, we’re going to go upstairs and watch a movie and go to sleep”

“You do realize your mom’s up there, right?” I asked raising an eyebrow. A couple of hours ago, he couldn’t even talk to her with his mom standing right there, now he wants to be 2 doors down from his mom doing God knows what. I shuddered at the thought but proud of the fact that he made a complete 180. It was definitely a step in the right direction. They headed upstairs and that left Jon and I alone again for the second time that night.

“So, I guess I’m just going to head home now, since it’s getting late” He said awkwardly. I didn’t want him to go considering all he did for me today, the least I could do was save him a drive home.

“Um, you’re more than welcome to sleep here. The couch probably isn’t the most comfortable thing in the world, but it’s better than driving home late at night”

He smiled, “Are you sure? I don’t want to impose, or make your mom think that I proposed and something happened”

I laughed and went to go grab him some pillows and blankets from the closet, “Trust me, I’ll handle that. But after everything you did for me today, I should be letting you sleep in my bed, and serving you breakfast tomorrow morning”

He took the blanket and pillow from my hand and threw them onto the couch, “Letting me stay here is payback enough. Plus it’ll be sweet when I win that bet. That’s even more payback”

I rolled my eyes and went to turn off the light so he could get comfortable, “Um, I’ll just leave so you can get comfortable and get some sleep. Good night Jon, thank you for everything tonight, you’re a really good friend”

He nodded and smiled a little bit, “No problem. Goodnight Mia” I went to go walk up the stairs but he called me back to the living room and I rolled my eyes, “Do you need me to tuck you in and read you a bedtime story too?”

“No” He laughed, “I just wanted to tell you that if you ever needed anything, I’m always here. Whatever it is, you got it” I could tell he was being serious and a genuinely good guy and unlike that morning I couldn’t control my urge to hug him and give him a quick kiss on the cheek.

“You are seriously the best” He froze for a second but then relaxed into the hug and buried his face into my hair, I quickly let go and a blush started creeping up onto my cheeks. Thank God it was dark so he couldn’t see.

“You’re seriously the best for letting me stay here. You’re uh, a really great friend too” I could tell that word bothered him a little bit and I could only give a weak smile before I turned around and walked up the stairs to my room. I collapsed onto my bed and let out a huge sigh.

We’re friends. That’s all we are, really good friends, he even said it himself. I’m not looking for a relationship and he still has his crazy ex girlfriend out to get him if that’s the last thing she does. I didn’t want to complicate things any further since we just got to a friendship level, and I was not good with complicated things. No, I would just focus on my work, and Jonathan would focus on his hockey games. After this stupid bet was over, we probably wouldn’t even spend that much time together like we are now. Friends, that’s all we are.......so why did that word bother me so much coming from him?