deep love | 2

surprise encounter

a/n 

sorry for the late update!

just like the last chapter, this is what happened as joe and j were driving to nellie's. (continuation from 'is it because i'm a celebrity?') 

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enjoy!

Joe's pov 

I immediately feel bad for making J feel bad and apologise about playing Mandy- but I try to console myself: I didn't mean to do it. I'm lost in my thoughts when we pull up to Nellie's. It's about 2 p.m., and even from inside my car, I can see the crowded restaurant, and I smile. 

Nellie's is my dad's proudest achievement- and one of his biggest dreams. 

"Come on, let's go" J says, getting out of the car and taking her wallet. "Do your parents know about the band?" She asks quietly, and I suck in a breathe. I'd totally forgotten to tell them. "Unless they saw the band's Instagram, no, they don't know." I admit, and I feel J's grip on my hand tighten a little, as we walk hand in hand towards the entrance.  

"Joe!" I hear my dad's voice, loud and clear, as J and I push open the doors, greeted by the strong air-conditioning. "Hey dad" I force a smile- he probably hasn't heard the news yet. "Can we talk?" I notice his expression change to worry almost immediately, and he nods and J and I follow him into a smaller room that's part of the restaurant. 

"Where's mom?" I ask, sitting down on one of the leather sofas. "She's busy in the kitchen, do you want me to get her?" He asks, standing up already. I nod gratefully. When he's gone, I turn to J. I can already feel my heart in my throat. "He's gonna be so disappointed in us." I tell her, my hands starting to feel sweaty. 

"No he's not, he wants the best for you." She puts an arm around me, and almost instantly, I feel a little better. 

"Hey Kev! Alena, I like your dress!" I feel my eyes widen in shock as I hear my dad calling my older brother's name from outside the room. "Why didn't you come with Joe?" He asks. Kevin must feel the same way because I hear a pause before he asks, "Joe's here?" 

I can almost see my dad's confused expression as he nods. 

A few seconds later the door swings open, revealing my confused parents, along with Kev, Dani and the two girls. 

"Joe?" Kevin asks, his jaw dropping open. He closes it and looks in confusion from me to J and then back to me again. "Why are you here?" He asks, Dani mirroring his expression. "We're having lunch here." I tell him, smiling a little as J adds, "And then the SPCA!" Alena lets out an ear-piercing squeal and jumps up and down. "Daddy! Can we go? Can we go? Pleaseeeee" She begs, grinning from ear to ear. 

"Uh..." Kevin glances at Dani, trying to come up with a response. It's obvious to me that he doesn't want to go, but he doesn't have an explanation for his daughter. "Well, ask uncle Joe and aunt J if you can go! You don't want to ruin their date!" Dani tells her daughter, who looks at us, eyes bright and hopeful. 

"Sure!" I force out, knowing I wouldn't be able to say no to her. Alena grins and lunges at me, grabbing my legs and squeezing tight. "Uncle Joe's the best!" She exclaims, and I smile back at her, despite my growing worry of having to spend more time with Kevin. I wasn't mad at him, but I wasn't particularly ready to spend time with him, especially since the band had just broken up. I wanted to spend time with J, and only J. 

I sigh in defeat, not really hearing my parents talking in the back ground. 

"So" Kevin's voice breaks my chain of thought. "You're here for lunch?" I smile and nod. "I needed to get away from... everything." Kevin nods and sighs. "Me too, we wanted to bring the girls out for lunch."

"Have you told mom and dad?" I ask him quietly, and he shakes his head. "I can't bring myself to tell them. Let's tell them over lunch." 

A couple minutes later, the 8 of us, including our parents, are seated inside one of the private family booths, with a closing door for privacy.  

"What's up guys? You seem pretty quiet today! Where's Nick?" My mom asks, smiling as one of the waitresses brings a platter of steaming food to the table. Kevin glances at me quickly, and I nod. We can't keep this a secret forever. 

"Nick had a talk with us, and he decided it was best for us to stop working together as a band." There's a moment of silence before my mom gasps. "You're breaking up? The band's breaking up?" Kevin doesn't dare to meet her gaze, and neither do I. "I didn't want this to happen- Nick did." I say quietly, glancing at my dad to see his reaction. He's just as shocked as my mom, but he doesn't say anything.  

A moment later, my dad stands up, his chair scraping the floor loudly as he stands. "I'm going back to the kitchen." He declares, leaving the room without another word. Mom looks like she's about to call after her husband, but she decides against it as she hears the door slam. She winces, and pauses before turning to us. 

"So Nick broke up the band?" She asks again, as though she can't believe it. "Yeah, he kind of mentioned it during the whole April Fools thing, but I didn't know he actually meant it. Nick, Leia, J and I have all been staying at Kev's house for some time to sort things out- I don't think it's working though." I confess, trying to keep my breathing even as I try to read my mom's expression. 

She seems disappointed, sad and almost angry at Nick. She doesn't say much, and I know the mood is ruined. We eat in silence, and 30 minutes later, when the waitress comes back to clear the dishes, my mom sighs and looks from Kevin to me, and back to Kevin. "You two should sit down and talk with your brother again. I can't tell you what to do with your careers, but I hope you know that you should be brothers first."  

"Are you disappointed in us?" Kevin asks, and I immediately tense up. I'd been wondering the same thing the whole day, but I couldn't bring myself to ask the question. "Disappointed in you?" My mom repeats, taken aback. "No, honey, of course I'm not. I hope you all can be happy and maintain a good relationship with each other- that's the most important. You know that, right?" Kevin starts to give a reply, but I blurt out another question that's been on my mind. 

"What about dad? He gave everything he had to help us succeed- he was criticised by all his former colleagues, and he was fired, and this is what he gets in return." I don't even notice the single tear dripping down my cheek until I feel J squeezing my waist- something she always does whenever I cry.

"Joseph...." My mom uses my full name for the first time in such a long while, and I can see she's struggling for words. "No, he's not disappointed. Shocked is more like it. But give him time, he'll be alright soon." She says, standing up and hugging me close to her. I breathe in deeply and wrap my arms around her, immediately feeling like a kid again. "Thanks mom" I say sheepishly, blinking hard to get rid of my tears. "No problem. I love you- always remember that." She replies, making me squeeze her tight again.