Keep on Going

Upon arriving to their apartment, Kacey spent the majority of her day cooped up in her room. She was more than nervous about the party tonight and even more nervous about Kennedy picking her up. Pacing the floor of her room, she fretted over what to wear. Kennedy already mentioned he wanted her to dress girly. That made her even more nervous as she was afraid of what kind of ‘girly’ clothing he wanted her to wear.

She stopped her pacing when she realized that it didn’t matter what he thought. She wasn’t trying to impress him. She had already established that she was trying to move on past her feelings for Kennedy. At least to the point where she wasn’t going to let her feelings towards him control her. She still had a mission to prove to him that real love was out there.

Abby stopped by Kacey’s door and saw her pacing around her room. “You uh, stressin’ about tonight much?” she chuckled.

“What? No,” she scoffed.

“It’s alright if you are,” Abby smiled. “You are allowed to be nervous about a date.”

“It’s not a date…”

“Please. He’s picking you up to escort you to a party. It’s a date.”

“Whatever. So what if I’m nervous?”

“Like I said, it’s okay. It is allowed,” Abby laughed.

“I just don’t know what to wear. He told me not to wear jeans because he missed the girly girl…” Kacey mused.

“Like you would wear jeans anyway,” Abby challenged.

“I might’ve,” she started, “if I found out he wasn’t so fond of the girly girl look,” she mumbled.

“Aww c’mon Kace, don’t tell me you would ever change for a guy…”

“Don’t say it--”

“Don’t go changing, to try and please me,” Abby sang.

“I hate you.”

“You love it. Now c’mon. Let’s get your cute butt ready. He’s gonna be here in a couple hours and you haven’t gotten dressed yet. We need to give you a full hair and makeup.”

“You make it sound like I’m not able to impress him on my own.”

“That’s not what I meant and you know it. Quit being so self conscious. Where’s that confident I’m-gonna-prove-that-true-love-exists Kacey? I miss her.”

Kacey sighed. “She’s still here, but she picks and chooses when to come,” she pouted.

“Aww, c’mere,” Abby cooed as she walked across the room to embrace her friend. “I know my confident best friend is in there somewhere.”

Kacey nodded and released herself from Abby’s grip as she made her way over to her closet to find an outfit.

Abby moved to sit on her bed while she looked. “So, what are you thinking of wearing?”

Kacey shrugged, “Dunno yet. A dress maybe?”

“Let’s think of this a different way. What’s the first outfit that popped in your mind when you were invited to the party?”

“My navy blue lace dress with white wedges,” she replied without thought.

Abby laughed, “Alright then, wear that!”

“But what if Kennedy doesn’t like it?”

“Stop worrying about whether or not he’ll like it. He seems to like you just fine the way you are. I don’t think you’ll have to worry about that,” she chuckled.

“I suppose you’re right,” she mused. Kacey shuffled through her closet in search for the blue dress. She pulled it off the hanger and quickly made her way to the bathroom to change. She reappeared into her room a couple minutes later and did a small twirl. “Thoughts?”

“Girl, you look like a babe and he’d be an idiot not to make a move.”

Kacey smiled wide as she went to put on her shoes.

“So how did you want to do your hair?”

“Hmm, I’m not sure yet. Something fun and flirty, yet simple. I feel that’s what vibe this dress gives…”

“I’ve got the perfect hairstyle in mind. Let’s go!” Abby dragged Kacey to the bathroom, sitting her on the toilet seat. Abby shuffled through the supplies under the sink to find a straightener. “Okay Kace, when was the last time you washed your hair?”

“Um, yesterday morning. Why?”

“Perfect. Just trust me.” Abby went to work on her hair. Kacey had no idea what Abby was doing to her hair, but she completely trusted Abby’s judgement. Abby had a furrowed look on her brows as she stuck her tongue out slightly as she worked on Kacey’s hair. After a bit, Abby smiled in satisfaction.

“Did you finish my hair?” Kacey asked hesitantly.

“Yes, and you look like a babe. If you don’t mind, I’ll go ahead and do your makeup and you’ll be set to go by the time lover boy gets here.”

Kacey rolled her eyes at Abby’s nickname for Kennedy but went along with it anyway.

“Alright babe, I’ve finished. Take a look and see what you think.”

Kacey hesitantly got up and slowly turned towards the mirror hanging over the sink next to her. As soon as she saw her reflection, her eyes went wide and her jaw dropped slightly. Abby had managed to give her hair tousled curls; a technique Kacey had yet to master. As for the makeup, Abby went with a more natural look, but played up Kacey’s best facial feature; her eyes. She went a bit dark on the eyeshadow to add drama, but kept it natural looking enough that she didn’t look overdone.

Kacey ran a hand lightly through her curls as she continued to look at her reflection.

“So...do you like it?” Abby asked nervously as she bit the nail on her thumb.

“Abby, this is amazing! Thank you!” Kacey turned to embrace her friend.

There was a knock on the door shortly after and Kacey looked at Abby nervously.

“How did he know where we lived? I don’t remember ever giving him our address?”

Abby grinned, “You can thank me for that. I may or may not have texted John with our address so he could casually pass it along to Kennedy.”

Kacey’s eyes grew to twice their size as she playfully hit Abby on the shoulder. “You’re unbelievable.”

“Yeah, but you love me anyway. Now go answer the door because you don’t wanna keep lover boy waiting too long,” Abby winked.

Kacey rolled her eyes as she made her way to her room to quick put on her shoes. Maybe tonight she’d actually be the same height as Kennedy. It’s not that she was short, but he was quite tall, at least compared to her 5’8” stature. Tonight she would probably be eye level with him which seemed ideal to her.

Abby came to Kacey’s doorway and walked in, dragging her out by her arm. “You’re taking forever! Go answer the damn door!” Abby laughed. She shoved Kacey to the door as she opened it and hid behind it so Kennedy would only see Kacey standing there.

“Wow, uh, hi Kacey,” Kennedy said, his smile widening as he took in her appearance. Kennedy couldn’t shake how nervous he suddenly was around her. She looked amazing and as a guy he definitely took notice.

She meekly smiled and gave him a small wave as she tucked a small piece of hair behind her ear. “Uh, hey Kennedy.” She couldn’t stop her rapid heartbeat as she took in his appearance. Of course he looked nothing short of amazing like he always did; always able to pull of simplicity with such class. His skinny jeans, patterned button-down shirt, and suspenders had her mind in a haze.

“So I see my girly girl has come back,” he winked with a smirk.

“She never went away,” she mumbled with a smile.

“Shall we?” he offered his elbow out for her to take.

She nodded and wrapped her arm around his as he lead her out the door.

“We’ll be back later, don’t wait up Abby,” Kennedy yelled over his shoulder as Kacey closed the door.

As they walked to his car, she prayed he couldn’t feel how fast her heart was beating or hear her erratic breathing. His presence was intoxicating and she found herself getting more and more distracted the more she was around him.

Kennedy was both mentally hitting himself and patting himself on the back. He couldn’t believe how easily he found himself giving in to her. However he couldn’t deny just how much he enjoyed their closeness. He liked the way her arm wound around his as if he could protect her. Which for him, was exactly what he wanted to do; protect her. He just hoped he get clear his head while at the party so he wouldn’t make any stupid decisions.

They arrived at his car and he opened her door before guiding her into her seat before closing her door behind her. He made his way around the front of the car and hopped into the driver’s seat. He started the car and the sounds of Third Eye Blind’s self-titled album blared through the speakers. The guitar riffs for “How’s It Going To Be” sounding, and he found himself quickly turning down the volume. He had forgotten that album was still playing when he got out of the car. He was a tad embarrassed to say the least.

Kacey smiled as she heard the familiar song. As soon as she saw Kennedy reach to turn it down, she reached instinctively for his hand to stop him. “Don’t!” Her entire body tingled from the simple, small touch of his hand. “I mean, I like this song, hell this entire album actually. I haven’t listened to it in years. You don’t have to turn it off,” she muttered.

Kennedy looked at her in surprise and wondered if she was even real. “You like Third Eye Blind?” he asked incredulously.

“Like them? I was part of their fan club as a kid,” she laughed a bit embarrassed at her confession. “One of the best days of my life was when my dad took me to see them when I was a kid. To this day it’s still one of the greatest shows I’ve ever been to.”

“Thier headlining tour in Scottsdale?”

She turned and looked at him wide-eyed. “Yes. The show in ‘98?”

“Oh my god we went to the same show,” he chuckled.

She smirked as she turned to look out the window. Maybe there was hope for him after all.

The rest of the ride to the party was silent, save for them softly singing along to the CD playing. Kacey couldn’t wipe the grin off her face the entire drive.

Kennedy pulled up to the house and parked. “Well, this is us.”

She turned to face him, her eyes sparkling with excitement, “Let’s go.”

Kennedy got out of the car and quickly jogged around to the other side of the car to open up her door before she could get out. He offered his hand to help her out of his car and once again offered his elbow as he led her towards the house.

“So whose house is this?” she questioned as they approached it.

“John, Tim, and Moose’s,” he stated.

“Moose? What in the hell kind of name is that?”

He laughed, “That’s not his real name obviously.”

“Then what is his real name?”

“Max,” he stated simply.

“Then why not call him that? Sounds a lot better than Moose…” she mused.

He just shook his head with a smile as he approached the front door and opened it.

Kacey was once again overwhelmed with the amount of people crowded in this small house. However, it wasn’t nearly as crowded as it had been the last time she attended a party.

“Hey, I’m gonna go grab us some drinks. Will you be alright here?” Kennedy asked.

“Yeah, I’ll be fine.”

“What do you want?”

“Jack and coke,” she muttered.

“Alright, I’ll be back soon, don’t get into any trouble while I’m gone,” he winked with a smile.

She rolled her eyes as she looked around. The house was crowded, but not uncomfortably so. There were a few faces she recognized; most of them belonging to the members of Kennedy’s band.

“Yo, K.B!”

Kacey looked around and saw Jared waving enthusiastically at her from the other side of the living room. She looked over and saw Garrett, Pat, and John standing with him. With a smile, she made her way through the crowd towards them.

“Wait, K.B? I thought her name was Claire…” Pat trailed off.

“I blame you,” Garrett groaned as he glared at John.

“Wait, so what is your name? I’m so confused,” Pat said.

Kacey laughed. “My name is Kacey.”

“Then why does John keep calling you Claire? I don’t get it.”

“Because Patrick, the first night I saw her, she accused me of looking like John Bender.”

“From The Breakfast Club?” Pat asked.

“Yeah dude,” John chuckled.

“Whatever,” he mumbled as he walked off.

Garrett glared at John again, smacking him against the back of his head before heading off towards the kitchen to get a beer.

“So glad you could make it tonight Princess. I see you even dressed the part,” John teased.

Kacey just flipped him off.

John’s face lit up as he was about to once again quote The Breakfast Club.

“Don’t even think about it,” Kacey cut him off before he had a chance to say anything.

“Wouldn’t dream of it Princess,” he laughed as he ruffled her hair before making his way around the living room socializing.

“Well, despite what these dudes seem to act like, I am genuinely glad you could make it,” Jared said.

“Well thanks, I appreciate it,” she chuckled. “So K.B? Is that your nickname for me?”

“I thought I’d give it a try. Everyone has their own nickname. Figured since you were part of the group you needed one, too. Though no matter what we come up with, I’m afraid John will perpetually call you Claire.”

“Poor Pat,” she laughed.

Jared chortled, “Yeah, poor guy. He’s brilliant when it comes to music. Common sense stuff? Not so much.”

Kacey smiled as she playfully pushed his shoulder, “Aww, be nice!”

“Yeah, yeah,” he laughed. “Well, I’m gonna say hi to the rest of the guys. Make yourself at home. Sorry John is such a sucky host; making me pick up his slack,” he joked. “But in all seriousness, make yourself comfortable. Feel free to look around and whatnot.”

“Thanks Jared,” she smiled.

He left and she looked towards the kitchen to see where Kennedy was. She couldn’t find him. She shrugged and decided to look around the house. What harm could that do? She was wandering around the house, making her way from the living room towards the small hallway. There was a small step going down from the living room to the hallway that she didn’t see. She started to fall face-first towards the ground, but an unfamiliar pair of arms caught her fall.

“You alright there?” he chuckled a bit.

Kacey quickly looked up at him and instantly blushed. He was gorgeous with his tousled brown hair. She found herself getting lost in his bright blue eyes as he peered down at her, still expecting an answer from her. “Oh, uh, yeah, I’m fine,” she mumbled. She removed herself from his grasp, standing upright, and brushing off her dress.

“I’m Ben,” he introduced, extending his hand towards her.

She smiled, “Kacey.”

They shook hands, their grip lasting a bit longer than what was deemed normal.

“Kace?”

Kacey turned around and saw Kennedy with a quirked eyebrow, standing behind her holding two cups. “Oh hey Kennedy, I was just--”

“You know her Ken? This pretty lady here just stumbled down the stairs, and luckily I was there to catch her or she would’ve damaged that gorgeous face,” he smiled warmly.

Kacey blushed at his words, unbelieving he was being so bold.

“Uh, yeah, lucky you were here,” Kennedy replied cautiously. “Uh, here’s your drink Kace,” he said as he handed her her cup.

“Thanks Ken,” she muttered with a smile.

“So I see you’ve met Ben then?” Kennedy directed towards Kacey, completely ignoring Ben’s presence.

“Obviously dude,” he chuckled, “I just said I ran into her. Well, technically she ran into me,” he laughed.

Kennedy just glared at him, “Right...well, c’mon Kace, I wanna show you around.” He offered his elbow again.

Kacey was about to take it, but Ben interjected. “Dude, it’s your guy’s party. I’ll help out. Seriously, go have fun mingling with the guys. I’ll be honored to play tour guide to this gorgeous girl,” he smiled down at her.

Kacey couldn’t stop the blush filling her cheeks as she giggled at Ben’s words. He was a charmer that’s for sure. “Um, you don’t mind Kennedy, do you?” she hesitantly asked.

“Uh, no, go ahead,” he replied, giving her a tight-lipped smile.

“Don’t worry man, I’ll bring her back in one piece,” Ben chuckled.

Kacey felt a little bad about leaving Kennedy there, but he wasn’t exactly acting like he was interested in her; at least in the sense she hoped he was. Ben on the other hand, almost declared his interest in her. She admired his boldness and willingness to go after what he wanted.

Ben walked her around, occasionally introducing her to his friends that were at the party. As she expected, they were all nice enough.

Kennedy watched the two go around the house, mingling with everyone as he stood against the wall of the living room.

“Girlfriend got ya down?” John asked as he joined Kennedy against the wall.

“What? No,” he scoffed.

“Are you sure? Because jealousy isn’t a good color on ya Ken.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“You honestly expect me to believe that the fact that Ben is showing Claire around isn’t pissing you off?” John challenged.

“Why would it piss me off?” he asked annoyed, turning towards John.

John just gave him a knowing glare. “You know why.”

“No John, I don’t. Why can’t you get it through your thick skull that I’m not interested in Kacey?! She’s fun to be around, sure, but that’s it! Leave it alone dude!”

“Woah, calm your tits man. Geez. Get more beer, it makes you less bitchy.” John then moved off the wall and made his way back towards their friends.

Kennedy stood there, ruminating on John’s words. Was he jealous of Ben? He couldn’t be. He was only upset because he couldn’t be there to catch Kacey like he normally was. That was it. Nothing he couldn’t brush off and get over. However he couldn’t deny the fall in his stomach when he happened to look over just as Ben planted a small kiss on Kacey’s cheek a little too close to her mouth. The blush on her cheeks that previously only he had been able to give her, adorned her face as she smiled and waved to him as they parted ways.

Kacey kept her gaze down, the smile never leaving her face as she made her way through the crowd towards Kennedy.

Kennedy instantly straightened up his posture and pulled out his phone, trying to act like he hadn’t been watching her and Ben all night.

“Hey Kennedy,” she mumbled when she reached him.

He looked up from his phone. He couldn’t stop the wide grin from spreading across his face as he looked up at her. She never failed to have that effect on him. “Hey Kace, how was it?”

Her smile widened. “It was pretty good. Met a lot of your friends…”

“And Ben?” he hesitantly asked.

“Ben was...surprisingly sweet,” she blushed. Her hand instantly going to her face and touching the spot he had kissed her as she smiled. “He uh, gave me his number and asked me out on a date.”

Kennedy certainly wasn’t expecting that answer. “He uh, what?”

“He asked me on a date,” she laughed. “You do know what that is don’t you?” she teased.

“Of course I do,” he chuckled nervously. What was going on with him?

“Yeah, apparently he thinks I’m gorgeous and wants to take me out to dinner because I ‘intrigue him’ or something like that,” she chuckled. “I don’t know. I don’t think I’m that interesting, but we’ll see.”

“Right,” he replied, forcing a laugh. It sounded unnatural even to him, and he wondered how she didn’t catch onto it. Right, because she was caught up in her night with Ben. “Well, are you ready to head home?”

She looked up at him with a perplexed look before pulling out her phone. “Oh! I didn’t realize it was already so late! Ben and I talked all night and I didn’t even realize how quickly time passed,” she mused. “Uh yeah, let’s head back,” she smiled.

Kennedy begrudgingly offered his arm again as he escorted her out of the house and towards his car. The night might not have turned out the way he was planning, but it didn’t mean he’d neglect the manners he was raised to have.

They drove back in silence, the music not even being enough of a distraction for him. Kacey seemed content enough, for which he was grateful. However, it slightly unnerved and annoyed him that it wasn’t because of his presence that she was in such a state. He felt the divide starting to come between them again. That’s why when he parked in front of her apartment, he put a hand out to take a gentle grasp of her arm before she got out of the car.

She turned back towards him, curious to what he wanted.

“I’ll uh, walk you up,” he mumbled. That wasn’t what he was wanting to say, but he settled for it as it gave him more time to talk to Kacey. Maybe get a gauge on where her mind was as he was too nervous to mention anything in the car.

The pair leisurely made their way up to her room and stopped right in front of her door. They both awkwardly stood in front of her door, wondering if the other was going to say anything. Kennedy had his hands stuffed in his pockets and was rocking on his heels. Kacey had her hands clasped in front of her as she bounced on the toes of her shoes.

“So, are we ok?” Kennedy blurted out.

“What? Of course we are. Why wouldn’t we be?”

“I don’t know, I just uh, felt a bit distant from you tonight.”

“Trust me, I’m not going anywhere Brock,” she smirked. She then leaned in and gave him a small peck on his cheek. “Thanks for tonight. I had fun,” she whispered in his ear. She stepped away and unlocked her door, looking over her shoulder at Kennedy with a grin, before stepping over the threshold and locking the door behind her.

He stood there frozen in the hallway. This night had definitely been one surprise after another. The one thing every event had in common; Kacey. Not that these surprises were necessarily unwelcomed, but it left him more dazed and confused than he ever had been. Kacey Bland was a girl full of surprises and he just hoped he would be around to witness them all.