I pull into In-n-Out where Kenna chose to eat. She lifts from my lap to look up at the menu, my skin cooling from her loss of touch. Minutes later we pull into an empty parking lot near the restaurant and I put my truck in park.
"So what did you wanna talk about." Kenna says giggling, stuffing her mouth with fries.
"You barely know me and I barely know you. So who are you Kenny, what's your story?"
"I feel like you know me enough. I practically trauma dump on you every time I see you. Sorry about earlier by the way. And the time before that, and the time-" I cut off her rambling by bursting out laughing.
"I don't get what's so funny Wesley Carter." She says in response to my uncontrollable laugh. I open my eyes to make sure she was joking and she starts giggling.
"We should do this more," I say looking at her. I probably look like a creep, but I just cant help it. She's so pretty.
"I don't know Wes, I-"
"Just two friends hanging out. Nothing more, okay?" Her face goes from a slight frown to a sweet soft smile almost instantly.
It feels like we've been sitting here a lifetime but I don't mind. I glance at the time on my trucks screen. 6:12 pm. I look back at Kenna to see her frowning at her phone.
"What's wrong, something happen?"
"No. No its nothing sorry." She replies with the fakest smile I have probably ever witnessed. Putting her phone into the cup holder in between us I quickly grab it.
"Wes stop." She says laughing reaching over my lap to try and grab it. My left hand is holding onto the phone while my right is holding the side of her head to make sure she doesn't hit it on anything.
I look down at her phone pretending to read notifications when really her screen is blank.
"Give it back Wes." Kenna prompts, her giggles out of control. She is practically in my lap now- her face inches from mine trying to reach her phone. She turns her face towards me still giggling, I can almost feel her eyelashes on my face and one small movement our lips would be touching.
"Hi Kenny."
"Hi Wes."
"What's your password?"
"Ask nicely." Kenna replies stealing the smirk right off my face and putting it on her own. She stares so deeply into my eyes and I swear for a second she can see my soul. She leans in closer and my breath staggers.
"Gotcha!" Kennedy says snatching her phone back out of my hand but not moving from off my lap. Her back is towards me and all I can see and smell is her long pretty brown hair, which smells like coconut and paradise if you were wondering.
I look over her shoulder and once I see her phone unlock I quickly grab it back.
"Gotcha back." I saw leaning down into her ears. Kenna starts laughing again clearly not even caring I have her phone. I put my number in her phone and add my contact.
"Your boyfriend doesn't mind you're with me?" I ask handing back her phone. She turns sideways so she can get a better look at me and cocks her head looking confused.
"I don't have a boyfriend Wesley. Where did you hear that from?"
"The guy who walked in with you at the shop." I answer. Hoping he is just her brother or some friend.
Who cares if it's her boyfriend Wes. You're just friends. You don't like her. At all. Not one bit. Yeah okay bud.
It takes Kenna a second to process but when she does she starts dying laughing again. Making me let out a small laugh but taking it back right away because, what's funny?
"That's Noah Cruz my best friend since like ever-"
Great. Guy best friend that never ends well.
"He's into guys Wes, not that it would matter though right?" Kenna replies giggling and leaning back into my ear. The girl is always giggling but I freaking love it. I would listen to her laugh for the rest of my life if I could.
My body untenses at the words and I look at her smiling.
"Where do you wanna go Kenny?"
"Well there is a party being thrown at my house in about an hour." Kenna replies getting off my lap and sitting back in her seat, buckling the seatbelt. Good ,she wants to stay with me.
"Ah, a party on a Monday, aren't you full of surprises Ms. Calvin." I reply making her laugh again.
We talk, laugh, and make jokes all the way back to her house. She tells me how much she loves mini M&M's but hates the red ones. She loves tulips because her Dad used to buy them for her when she first started surfing, and her dream place to go to is Sunset Cliffs in SD. And a bunch of other random facts about her. Which just makes me like her even more.
I made mental notes of all of it.
I pull into the driveway of her house, sprinting out of the truck opening Kenna's door before she can even unbuckle her seatbelt.
"Thanks Wes." Kenna says giggling taking my hand as I help her out. There are a bunch of cars parked outside of her house, assuming people are already here for the party Kenna mentioned earlier.
I help Kenna grab her surf bag and water bottle but she hesitates to walk closer to the house.
"Everything okay, Kenny?"
"I only have my bathing suit on underneath this and my t shirt is kinda short." Kenna replies instantly, barely bringing her voice above a whisper. I forgot she left straight from her surf meet and now I feel bad.
I grab the grey Carter's Surf Shop hoodie from the backseat and hand it to her. Kenna slips it on without hesitation and it looks like a dress on her. I love it. My bandana is still tied on her right ankle which I haven't asked about because I'm scared that if I do she'll take it off.
I sling her backpack around my left shoulder and place my hand on her lower back signaling us to go inside.
As we walk through the door, which was already unlocked, she removes my hand from her back and intertwines our fingers, ignoring the party and leading me upstairs.
"I wanna change just don't let anyone come in okay?" Kenna says standing in the doorway, looking around on each side of my making sure nobody else is around.
"Yes ma'am." I reply instantly. She closes the door and a few minutes later I hear footsteps coming up the stairs. A girl and a guy laughing and trembling- clearly wasted. They both look oddly familiar even in the dim hallway light.
The girl is brunette and somewhat tall and the guy next to her with dirty blonde hair, scruff on his face, and decently tall. I've got at least 5 inches on him though. Before I can read more into their appearances, Kenna comes back out of her room smiling up at me, seeing I haven't moved from where she told me to stay.
She has a white knit off the shoulder sweater and black distressed shorts. She still has my bandana tied around her ankle. Which by the way, no- I am definitely not bringing up because it looks better on her than it ever did me.
A frown covers my face once I realize she has my hoodie in her hand pushing it towards me. I grab it in my right hand and close her door behind us with my left, signaling her to start the walk back down stairs. As she walks back down the long hallway I quickly open up her bedroom door again, and toss the sweatshirt back on her bed.
"Come on Wesley." Kenna says coming back towards me and pulling me by my t shirt down the hallway, clearly not seeing or noticing the sweatshirt that is no longer in my hands.
"Okay Kenna." I respond smiling, letting her tug me all the way back down stairs.