Between busy schedules and seven jobs, the famous double date had taken them two weeks to organize.
Not that Kay necessarily minded, since she was doing this to force Angie out of her denial square. As far as she was concerned, she saw Jimmy almost every day, talked to him about cars, school and how they could even start looking for Kyle once the summer came.
It pained her a little to realize how much she liked Jimmy, and that in any other circumstance, she'd probably be head over heals for him. Because he was so kind and calm and smart. And hot, definitely hot, especially when he took engines apart.
After a while, she even started wondering if she would've broken up with Donnie for him, if he could've helped her out of her nightmare of a relationship the way Kyle had. These thoughts were not free of guilt, especially when she realized he would have.
But on the other hand, she missed Kyle's fire, his lack of predictability and the way he managed to face everything with a smile on his face. Maybe even losing her. The thought made her shiver, so she decided not to think about it. After all, he'd promised her forever and that was not going to change. No matter what, her feelings didn't change. She loved Kyle and missed him so much, it sometimes felt like her soul was shattering.
To get out of that destructive mindset, she decided to focus on more pleasant things. Like going on this double date, meeting Tom and pushing him and Angie together with Jimmy's help. So she got dressed up in skinny jeans, an off the shoulder top and high heals and met Angie downstairs so that they'd go together.
"You look very pretty," Angie said once they got in the car and drove off.
"So do you," Kay said automatically even if she didn't seem to have put any effort into it. Though Kay was well aware Angie didn't really have any fancy clothes and they weren't the same size so she could hardly lend her some.
Angie huffed. "Yeah, right." She ran her hand through her black waves, unconsciously trying to make herself more presentable.
"You're beautiful any way."
Angie turned to her surprised, her dark green eyes wide. For a moment, she seemed to consider whether Kay was lying to her, but she probably remembered there was absolutely no reason for that. She relaxed and just smiled.
Kay squinted at her. "Did Tom ever tell you you were beautiful?"
Angie gave a breezy laugh. "He said I wouldn't make a career as model."
Kay almost stomped the breaks. He did not say that to Angie, the asshole.
"But he said I'm beautiful to him," she whispered. "Just the way I am. With all my flaws."
Kay bit on her lower lip, unsure how to take that. She guessed it depended a lot on how he'd said it, the context. She was suddenly tempted to ask if he'd used the word objectively. Before she could decide, they reached the tiny bistro they'd agreed upon for their date. She parked the car and could see Angie was already excited.
She understood why when she noticed someone waiting for them next to the door. Kay did a doubletake. She knew it wasn't Jimmy. She knew it wasn't Kyle either. And yet the guy who was rolling a skateboard under one foot and was obviously Tom somehow reminded Kay of both of them. His hair was jes black, just like Jimmy's, he wore sunglasses, and he seemed to be about the same height since he was taller than her wearing heels. But there was something about him that looked so familiar, as if she'd seen him before somewhere.
Angie bounced right up to him. "Are we late?"
"Nope," he said, picking up his skateboar and leaning towards her. He wrapped and arm around her waist and gave her a kiss on the cheek, but it was soft and lingering, somehow looking more intimate than a kiss on the mouth.
Angie's smile was so goofy, Kay felt like she was definitely intruding. And she realized two things. The first was that Angie had been right and Tom was indeed incredibly hot, but that was to be expected given his brother. The second was that the chemistry between them was crazy.
"Hi, Kay," Tom said, focusing on her.
"Um, hi."
He was so familiar seeing as they'd never met before, but Angie had probably bored him with her problems before. Maybe even Jimmy. She hoped even Jimmy. Ugh, what the hell was wrong with her?
"Nice to finally officially meet you."
He also had a really nice voice, a bit smoother than Jimmy's, though Kay liked the raspy quality. Kyle had that, too. Why was she comparing all of them again? And why did this situation feel so familiar?
"Nice to finally officially meet you, too."
"I don't know what Angie told you about me, but half of it is not true. The more questionable part is."
Angie slapped his shoulder. "I didn't say anything bad about it."
Tom just tightened his hold around her waist and grinned at her.
Ugh, get a room.
She was blissfully distracted from them when Jimmy showed up, hands in the pockets of his black jeans, looking way too glamorous wearing a simple t-shirt.
"Hi," he said, smiling at her. When she turned to Angie and Tom, he scrunched his nose. "Ugh, get a room."
"Brothers shouldn't fight," Tom said, his voice joyful. "But I will punch you in the face."
Jimmy narrowed his eyes at his brother, an amused smile on his lips. "You couldn't even touch me."
"Don't flaunt your MMA skills."
"You have MMA skills?" Kay asked, taken aback.
"What?" Tom asked, the devious grin spreading on his face. "You never threw your best card into the game?"
"My best card?" Jimmy asked with a huff. "Violence is my best card?"
"No, that would be your hot ass, but you know what I mean. Fighters are the shit."
Kay wasn't sure if to laugh, cringe or just stare like a moron. So she just did the last as Tom and Jimmy continued to tease each other.
"Kay doesn't care about that stuff. She likes my car fixing skills." And he winked at her.
Holy shit, she really needed to stop hanging out with incredible hot people. Angie seemed to be feeling the same way because she rolled her eyes.
"Honestly, what are you two even fighting over? There's two of us and we're already on a date."
"No, we're not." Tom suddenly turned serious and the world seemed a little less fun. He brought one hand behind his back and pulled out a small red rose. "Now we are."
Angie took it, looking ready to faint with delight, but when she lifted her eyes to him, she looked less than impressed. "Finally?"
"Finally," he said, and it seemed to seal something between them.
"Let's go inside," Jimmy whispered to her, putting his hand on her back.
Kay let him lead her in, her mind whirling. She missed that so much. The beginning of a relationship, the thrill. She missed herself and Kyle hanging out at the Café. She missed rolling their eyes at Joey and Kelly, pretending they didn't like babysitting them when Kay was looking forward to those hours in which she had an excuse to be with Kyle.
She didn't even notice when they reached their table, the fact that she ended up on the bench next to Jimmy while Angie and Tom sat across from them. Tom stretched his arm over the back of the seat as if he just wanted to relax, but Kay could tell he was doing his best to not outright squeeze Angie against him. Next to him, Angie was cradling her rose, glancing at it as if it were the most precious thing she'd ever seen. Her body was angled towards his, even if they weren't touching.
"I don't think they need our help to get together," Jimmy whispered to her.
Kay just nodded and looked up at him. He seemed amused by the whole thing. The same Jimmy she'd come to know over the weeks. There was no desire there, no lingering nostalgia for better times. How could he be free from love like that? How when she felt she was breaking under the weight of it? Tears pooled in the corners of her eyes.
Jimmy frowned the slightest bit. "Are you okay?"
She nodded, swallowing her tears.
"We don't have to do this."
She knew that and it gave her the strength to stay there.
"Kay?" Angie asked.
She and Tom were also now staring at her and Kay felt like an idiot. She wanted to laugh, wave their worries away.
"Shit," Jimmy mumbled. He turned to her and wrapped her in his arms.
It was too much. She just started bawling right there and then, not caring who saw her, what everyone thought. Jimmy's hold both helped and broke her. Helped because he was a friend, broke her because he wasn't Kyle and she missed him so much. And it wasn't fair. Not towards Jimmy, not towards Tom and Angie who had so much beauty before them.
"What did you do?" Tom asked.
"Kay?" Angie asked.
"It's alright, Kay," Jimmy whispered to her. "It's okay to hurt. It's okay to miss him. It's okay to love him."
"You shouldn't do this," she said between tears. "This is unfair to you. I'm wasting your time."
"I don't have anywhere else to be," he answered, his voice just as soft.
Tom let out a low whistle. "Damn, that's bad."
Kay raised her eyes to him, but stayed in the hug. "Ya think?"
"We're sorry, Kay," Angie said, her eyes brimming with tears. "We really didn't want to push you."
"You didn't push me," she said. "I made a friend, I--" She turned to Jimmy and her words died in her throat. The intensity of his gaze sent shivers down her spine and she once again felt like cursing the universe for throwing two amazing guys at her when she could only love one.
"That's right," he said. "You made a friend and you need friends." He turned to his brother and glared at him. "So shut your insensitive mouth."
Tom raised his hands in surrender. "Look, I don't want to butt in between you two, but maybe you shouldn't."
"You're a bit slow. We're already not," Jimmy pointed out.
"What do you mean?" Kay asked instead.
"That you don't need this," Tom said. "That we're idiots. Honestly, Kay, if you love Kyle so much... I mean a love like that has to be worth fighting for. So there's no reason to let him go."
Angie looked to him, shocked.
"I bet he's looking for you, too," he continued. "Don't give up."
Kay nodded, wiping her eyes. She felt the sudden need to hug Tom, but the table was in the way. Jimmy let her go, but kept an arm around her shoulders.
"We're here for you," he said and there was definite truth in his words.
"Yes, we are," Tom agreed. It gained him a hug from Angie and Kay was glad at least someone was hugging him.
Even if in Angie's case it was obviously not friendly. His arm went around her and he kissed the side of her face.
"Thanks," Kay said, wiping her eyes. "That does make me feel better. This, knowing I can come to you an talk whenever I need to--" Her voice trailed off as Jimmy winced. "What's going on?"
"I wanted to tell you guys. Remember that event company I mentioned working for? They grabbed a gig for a string of concerts in the area from some up and coming pop princess, and they need me. I'll be going to Phoenix for about a week before coming back here for the Tucson concerts."
"Really?" Tom asked. "What about your other jobs?"
"Putting them on hold. This pays enough to cover what I made from them."
"Huh. Don't they need a DJ?"
"What about school?" Angie asked, her voice a little panicky.
Tom grinned at her. "Don't worry, beautiful, I'm not going anywhere."
Angie blushed and Kay would've laughed if the news of Jimmy being gone didn't unsettle her so much. But she had to be okay without him. Hell, it was only a week and if it paid well... She knew he needed the money. He and Tom both did.
"That sounds exciting," she said.
Jimmy just shrugged. "I'm not really into these celebrity gigs. They tend to be horrid people. But I'll just be minding my own business and doing my job."
"I loved going to concerts." And she was going to stop right there before she'd start crying again.
So for the rest of the date, they made small talk and teased each other. It was better that way. And even if she and Jimmy weren't dating, it was still the best double date she'd ever been on.
By the end of it, she was convinced that Jimmy had been right. Tom and Angie didn't need them. They were falling in love on their own.
🌗🌗🌗
Now what pop princess could Jimmy be going out to help? 🤔 sure this doesn't mean anything.
And poor, poor Kay. She's so happy/confused/unhappy. She needed the people in her corner, but she also needs Kyle. Who's maybe closer than she thinks.
Also, fair warning, I'll be switching up PoVs because hell yeah, let's build up one more romance, shall we?
Three romances are better than one.
Wanna give you guys a huge thank you for bringing this story over the 1k mark in less than a week from when it was published. Love your support ❤️