Personal Goals
Chapter 12
*Vic’s POV*
I was completely ecstatic over the how well Kellin took the whole Jess thing. I was terrified that he would freak out and never want anything to do with me ever again, but I guess I didn’t give him enough credit. He was great. He was totally accepting and I couldn’t have been happier.
The next day I had Jess until the nighttime, when Jenna would pick her up after work. The way I had rearranged my schedule, I had cut Kellin’s sessions that fell on weekends and I swapped this other lady’s session with Mrs. Smith’s session, so that she was the only one I would have to see. I knew what our sessions entailed, and I knew she would be more than okay with me bringing Jess along. I had her resting in her car seat carrier as I sat near the treadmill Mrs. Smith was on.
“She is just the cutest thing,” Mrs. Smith said, shaking her head. “I bet you’re happy about this new arrangement.”
“Oh, you know it,” I said, smiling. I mean, I had no reason to not be happy. I was able to lift this burden of a secret off of my shoulders by coming clean to Kellin, and on top of that I was able to work out my schedule so that I would get to see my daughter more often. Things were really looking up. “Remember the 18-year old I told you about last time?”
“What about him?” she asked, interested.
“Well, we’re in a relationship now and . . . I told him about Jess. Well, I wasn’t planning on it, but he found out and he didn’t freak out like I thought he would,” I explained.
“How did he find out?”
“Jenna,” I grumbled. “She showed up yesterday when he was over and dropped off Jess without warning. I really had no choice but to tell him.”
“It must have been a sign,” she said, smiling. I nodded as I reached over to pull Jess out of her carrier after she started to squirm. She wasn’t too into sitting still. I held her on my knee, lightly bouncing her as she settled down.
“What a pretty little girl,” Mrs. Smith cooed as Jess turned to look up at her. She seemed more interested by the treadmill than in the lady walking on it, though.
After Mrs. Smith’s session, I took Jess home so that I could put her down for a nap. The rest of the day was sort of a lazy day, just lounging around the apartment. I spent part of my time playing with Jess or reading to her. I knew she had absolutely zero interest in what I was reading her, and that she was too young to understand. I had been reading all of these things on the internet about how reading to her would make her smarter. I had no idea how accurate that was, but I didn’t want to risk it. I wanted Jess to be smart. I wanted her to have everything in the world.
Jenna was arriving all too soon, though. I mean, she was right on time, but I didn’t want Jess to go. I made sure her things that she needed were packed up and scooped her up into my arms before taking her downstairs. When I got down there, though, I found Jenna leaning against the hood of her car, a cigarette between her fingers. I groaned and stopped right where I was.
“Put it down right now,” I commanded, a little loudly. I refused to take Jess anywhere near her while she was holding on of those things. Did she seriously not know how horrible this was?
“Oh, relax,” she said, dropping the butt to the ground and stepping on it. I waited for the puff of smoke she’d blown to fade away before cautiously stepping closer. Jenna took her from me, putting her in her car seat before snatching the overnight bag away from me.
I stepped back onto the sidewalk and watched sadly as they drove away. It just wasn’t fair. I was clearly the more responsible one.
*Kellin’s POV*
Once I knew that Vic was a parent, I found myself getting a little paranoid. I didn’t want him to think I was just some annoying kid. I wanted him to think I was mature, too.
Speaking of which, there was a whole other issue: Vic didn’t know I wasn’t eighteen yet. I mean, my birthday was less than a month away, so I decided to not tell him until then. It wouldn’t matter once I was actually of age, right? Maybe if I made myself seem more mature, he wouldn’t even think to question it.
“Dude, what the fuck are you wearing?” Justin asked, laughing at my get up as I picked him up from school. I looked down. I didn’t think I looked bad. I wore a button-down shirt with the sleeves rolled up, a pair of tan pants, and Toms. I was trying to look nicer than my typical t-shirts and ripped jeans. Vic wasn’t even going to see me while I was at school, but I was determined to be taken seriously.
“Fuck off, or you can walk,” I snapped, defensively. I didn’t mean it, but I wasn’t about to let him tease me.
“Seriously though, why are you all dressed up?” he asked as I started driving towards school. “Who are you dressing up for, I should say.”
“Vic,” I said, between gritted teeth. Sometimes I hated how transparent I was to Justin. There was literally no hiding anything to him.
“Dude, he’s not even going to be at school.”
“I know, I’m just- just go with it, okay?” I sighed. He shrugged before changing the subject.
As I walked into school with Justin towards our usual group of friends, I noticed something different right away. Or, well, someone different.
“Are you okay?” Justin whispered. I just looked down and made a beeline for my locker as fucking Matty chatted away to my friends. What the hell! I hadn’t seen or talked to Matty since we stopped hooking up and he decides to just pop back into my life? I guess it wasn’t that much of a surprise, since we did go to the same school. It still pissed me off, though.
The bell rang and Justin said goodbye to me as I stood there, trying to get my books organized before I could get to class. I went to shut my locker when someone suddenly shut it for me. I looked up, surprised to see Matty looming over me. My stomach lurched, and I didn’t know what to do or say.
“You look nice, Kellin,” he said, smiling one of his charming smiles. I looked away. I wasn’t going to let him try to get to me, especially when I didn’t know what he was playing at.
“What do you want?” I asked, as straight forward as I possibly could be.
“I just wanted to give you this,” he said, quickly slipping a folded piece of paper into my shirt pocket. I tensed, not wanting him to touch me. I was determined to not mess up this chance at a committed relationship, not in the slightest.
“What the-“
“I got a new number, I thought you should know. I was thinking we could go back to what we had, you know, granted that you can keep your mom away this time,” he chuckled.
“No,” I said, quickly, removing the paper from my pocket and shoving it back at him. “I’m not interested.”
“You will be,” he said, seemingly unaffected by my blatant rejection. I watched as he shrugged and walked away. I bit my lip, worried that this would cause more problems than I needed.
---
I made sure that I was fully clothed when Vic came over later that day. I had a normal workout outfit on, and I thought it looked pretty good. I hoped he thought I looked good, too.
“Kells, are you down here?” I heard him call as I sat in the basement.
“Yeah,” I called back, my heart flipping as I heard the sound of his footsteps coming down. He smiled when he saw me and I quickly stood up. I was ready to be compliant and actually listen to him for once.
“Hey,” he said, swooping in to kiss my lips. I relaxed against his touch, already loving the taste of his lips. He was such a good kisser. I stepped back from him and smiled, ready to impress him with my maturity.
“I’m ready to start,” I told him as his eyebrows went all the way up.
“Are you really? This is new- and you’re wearing clothes?” he teased. I rolled my eyes.
“I’m trying, okay?” I whined, as he started setting up the mats.
“I know, that’s why I’m confused,” he chuckled.
“I just thought you’d appreciate some cooperation for once,” I said, in a low voice. He looked up at me curiously.
“And why are you only coming to this conclusion now?” he wanted to know. He looked like he was being serious. I bit my lip as he let out an exasperated sigh. “I knew this was going to happen.”
“What?” I wanted to know. “Knew what was going to happen?”
“I knew you’d act differently around me once you found out about Jess. Dammit-“
“Wait, I’m just trying to make sure you still like me,” I admitted. He closed his mouth, studying me intently as it became apparent that we were not on the same page.
“Why wouldn’t I like you?” he wanted to know.
“Because I- because you’re a lot more mature than I am,” I sighed. He sat down on the mat and motioned for me to sit down next to him. Once I was down, he draped an arm around my shoulders, pulling me closer to him.
“Newsflash, I’ve always been more mature than you. And you know what?”
“What?”
“I still like you.” I smiled at that, as he let go of me and stood up. “And I’m thinking we should try something new today.”
“What might that be?” I asked, grinning up at him. I didn’t want to suggest it, but I was really hoping he was talking about sex.
“I think we should do it in the sauna.”
I was completely ecstatic over the how well Kellin took the whole Jess thing. I was terrified that he would freak out and never want anything to do with me ever again, but I guess I didn’t give him enough credit. He was great. He was totally accepting and I couldn’t have been happier.
The next day I had Jess until the nighttime, when Jenna would pick her up after work. The way I had rearranged my schedule, I had cut Kellin’s sessions that fell on weekends and I swapped this other lady’s session with Mrs. Smith’s session, so that she was the only one I would have to see. I knew what our sessions entailed, and I knew she would be more than okay with me bringing Jess along. I had her resting in her car seat carrier as I sat near the treadmill Mrs. Smith was on.
“She is just the cutest thing,” Mrs. Smith said, shaking her head. “I bet you’re happy about this new arrangement.”
“Oh, you know it,” I said, smiling. I mean, I had no reason to not be happy. I was able to lift this burden of a secret off of my shoulders by coming clean to Kellin, and on top of that I was able to work out my schedule so that I would get to see my daughter more often. Things were really looking up. “Remember the 18-year old I told you about last time?”
“What about him?” she asked, interested.
“Well, we’re in a relationship now and . . . I told him about Jess. Well, I wasn’t planning on it, but he found out and he didn’t freak out like I thought he would,” I explained.
“How did he find out?”
“Jenna,” I grumbled. “She showed up yesterday when he was over and dropped off Jess without warning. I really had no choice but to tell him.”
“It must have been a sign,” she said, smiling. I nodded as I reached over to pull Jess out of her carrier after she started to squirm. She wasn’t too into sitting still. I held her on my knee, lightly bouncing her as she settled down.
“What a pretty little girl,” Mrs. Smith cooed as Jess turned to look up at her. She seemed more interested by the treadmill than in the lady walking on it, though.
After Mrs. Smith’s session, I took Jess home so that I could put her down for a nap. The rest of the day was sort of a lazy day, just lounging around the apartment. I spent part of my time playing with Jess or reading to her. I knew she had absolutely zero interest in what I was reading her, and that she was too young to understand. I had been reading all of these things on the internet about how reading to her would make her smarter. I had no idea how accurate that was, but I didn’t want to risk it. I wanted Jess to be smart. I wanted her to have everything in the world.
Jenna was arriving all too soon, though. I mean, she was right on time, but I didn’t want Jess to go. I made sure her things that she needed were packed up and scooped her up into my arms before taking her downstairs. When I got down there, though, I found Jenna leaning against the hood of her car, a cigarette between her fingers. I groaned and stopped right where I was.
“Put it down right now,” I commanded, a little loudly. I refused to take Jess anywhere near her while she was holding on of those things. Did she seriously not know how horrible this was?
“Oh, relax,” she said, dropping the butt to the ground and stepping on it. I waited for the puff of smoke she’d blown to fade away before cautiously stepping closer. Jenna took her from me, putting her in her car seat before snatching the overnight bag away from me.
I stepped back onto the sidewalk and watched sadly as they drove away. It just wasn’t fair. I was clearly the more responsible one.
*Kellin’s POV*
Once I knew that Vic was a parent, I found myself getting a little paranoid. I didn’t want him to think I was just some annoying kid. I wanted him to think I was mature, too.
Speaking of which, there was a whole other issue: Vic didn’t know I wasn’t eighteen yet. I mean, my birthday was less than a month away, so I decided to not tell him until then. It wouldn’t matter once I was actually of age, right? Maybe if I made myself seem more mature, he wouldn’t even think to question it.
“Dude, what the fuck are you wearing?” Justin asked, laughing at my get up as I picked him up from school. I looked down. I didn’t think I looked bad. I wore a button-down shirt with the sleeves rolled up, a pair of tan pants, and Toms. I was trying to look nicer than my typical t-shirts and ripped jeans. Vic wasn’t even going to see me while I was at school, but I was determined to be taken seriously.
“Fuck off, or you can walk,” I snapped, defensively. I didn’t mean it, but I wasn’t about to let him tease me.
“Seriously though, why are you all dressed up?” he asked as I started driving towards school. “Who are you dressing up for, I should say.”
“Vic,” I said, between gritted teeth. Sometimes I hated how transparent I was to Justin. There was literally no hiding anything to him.
“Dude, he’s not even going to be at school.”
“I know, I’m just- just go with it, okay?” I sighed. He shrugged before changing the subject.
As I walked into school with Justin towards our usual group of friends, I noticed something different right away. Or, well, someone different.
“Are you okay?” Justin whispered. I just looked down and made a beeline for my locker as fucking Matty chatted away to my friends. What the hell! I hadn’t seen or talked to Matty since we stopped hooking up and he decides to just pop back into my life? I guess it wasn’t that much of a surprise, since we did go to the same school. It still pissed me off, though.
The bell rang and Justin said goodbye to me as I stood there, trying to get my books organized before I could get to class. I went to shut my locker when someone suddenly shut it for me. I looked up, surprised to see Matty looming over me. My stomach lurched, and I didn’t know what to do or say.
“You look nice, Kellin,” he said, smiling one of his charming smiles. I looked away. I wasn’t going to let him try to get to me, especially when I didn’t know what he was playing at.
“What do you want?” I asked, as straight forward as I possibly could be.
“I just wanted to give you this,” he said, quickly slipping a folded piece of paper into my shirt pocket. I tensed, not wanting him to touch me. I was determined to not mess up this chance at a committed relationship, not in the slightest.
“What the-“
“I got a new number, I thought you should know. I was thinking we could go back to what we had, you know, granted that you can keep your mom away this time,” he chuckled.
“No,” I said, quickly, removing the paper from my pocket and shoving it back at him. “I’m not interested.”
“You will be,” he said, seemingly unaffected by my blatant rejection. I watched as he shrugged and walked away. I bit my lip, worried that this would cause more problems than I needed.
---
I made sure that I was fully clothed when Vic came over later that day. I had a normal workout outfit on, and I thought it looked pretty good. I hoped he thought I looked good, too.
“Kells, are you down here?” I heard him call as I sat in the basement.
“Yeah,” I called back, my heart flipping as I heard the sound of his footsteps coming down. He smiled when he saw me and I quickly stood up. I was ready to be compliant and actually listen to him for once.
“Hey,” he said, swooping in to kiss my lips. I relaxed against his touch, already loving the taste of his lips. He was such a good kisser. I stepped back from him and smiled, ready to impress him with my maturity.
“I’m ready to start,” I told him as his eyebrows went all the way up.
“Are you really? This is new- and you’re wearing clothes?” he teased. I rolled my eyes.
“I’m trying, okay?” I whined, as he started setting up the mats.
“I know, that’s why I’m confused,” he chuckled.
“I just thought you’d appreciate some cooperation for once,” I said, in a low voice. He looked up at me curiously.
“And why are you only coming to this conclusion now?” he wanted to know. He looked like he was being serious. I bit my lip as he let out an exasperated sigh. “I knew this was going to happen.”
“What?” I wanted to know. “Knew what was going to happen?”
“I knew you’d act differently around me once you found out about Jess. Dammit-“
“Wait, I’m just trying to make sure you still like me,” I admitted. He closed his mouth, studying me intently as it became apparent that we were not on the same page.
“Why wouldn’t I like you?” he wanted to know.
“Because I- because you’re a lot more mature than I am,” I sighed. He sat down on the mat and motioned for me to sit down next to him. Once I was down, he draped an arm around my shoulders, pulling me closer to him.
“Newsflash, I’ve always been more mature than you. And you know what?”
“What?”
“I still like you.” I smiled at that, as he let go of me and stood up. “And I’m thinking we should try something new today.”
“What might that be?” I asked, grinning up at him. I didn’t want to suggest it, but I was really hoping he was talking about sex.
“I think we should do it in the sauna.”