Kathy was not disappointed. The moment she and Kelly entered the cafe, she spotted Joey and Kyle taking up a table for four as if expecting them.

Kyle had his books out and was working on a project, but Joey rested his head on his pile of closed manuals, looking just as dejected as Kelly. So maybe he wasn't subtly trying to shake her off, which made Kathy feel a lot better.

Kelly didn't bother to look around and kept staring at her boots. Heaving a deep sigh and preparing for what she had to do, Kathy squared her shoulders, pasted a smile on her face, and headed for the boys' table. Whatever it took, she wanted to see Kelly smiling again.

"Hi, guys," she said on the most cheerful tone she could muster.

Both Joey and Kyle looked up. Joey's face lightened up as he noticed them, mild surprise in his hazel eyes. Kyle, on the other hand looked relieved and, unless Kathy was imagining it, grateful.

"Hey," he said. "We meet again."

Kathy nodded and turned to Kelly who was staring at Joey as if he were an oasis in the desert. "Would you mind if we joined you?"

"Of course not." Joey knocked over half his books as he rushed to make room for Kelly who nearly threw herself next to him.

Trying hard not to burst into fits of hysterical laughter, Kathy took her seat across from Kyle and put down her books. She threw him a fleeting glimpse, but he was watching the table with a look of resignation on his face.

"Three, two, one..." he whispered.

"I can't do it!" Joey said, throwing his hands in the air.

"Me neither," Kelly said, tears streaming down her face.

And under Kathy's shocked gaze, Joey wrapped his arms around Kelly, pulled her into his lap, and kissed her like he hadn't seen her in ages. Kelly sunk both hands in his hair and kissed him back.

"Wanna take our work to the bar?" Kyle asked, already gathering his books.

"Yes, please." Kathy tore her eyes from the making out couple and followed Kyle across the room and to the bar.

They sat next to each other and for a moment, Kathy was afraid of what Cecily might say if she saw them, but almost instantly dismissed the thought. Why should she care what Cecily thought? Kathy had a boyfriend, and she and Kyle weren't even friends. More like forced acquaintances, there because their best friends were eating each other's faces off.

"Glad you showed up," Kyle said, stacking his books in front of him, but not opening anything. "For a minute there I thought you wouldn't and I'd have to stare at Joey's lovestruck face and listen to his pathetic sighing."

"Wait, you were here waiting for us?"

"Yeah. I'd figured Kelly would show up again."

"She wouldn't have. It was my idea to come exactly because I thought Joey might look for her here."

"He wouldn't have. I practically dragged him--" Kyle broke off and stared at Kathy.

All things considered, he had gorgeous eyes, she had to give him that. She'd never seen that shade of dark blue before. Then, out of nowhere, he started laughing. Kathy jumped. She'd never heard him laughing like this. It was a rich, honest sound which made her want to join him even if she wasn't in on the joke.

"Those sneaky bastards," Kyle said. "They got us. I can practically see the rose petals and confetti around them spelling out a giant 'fuck you'."

Kathy glanced over her shoulder towards their friends, but they were still busy making out. What startled her was that the crude language hadn't bothered her. When Donnie used the f-word, she felt like cringing, but it somehow didn't bother her when Kyle said it. Maybe it was became Donnie did it out of anger, or that they'd known each other so long, cursing felt unnatural.

"What?" Kyle asked, and Kathy turned back to him. "What did I do this time?"

"I have no idea what you mean."

He narrowed his eyes at her. "You're a very poor liar. And you made that disapproval face."

"Oh." She hadn't been aware she had a disapproval face. She needed to work on that. "It's nothing, really. You just used the f-word."

Her dumb affirmation seemed to intrigue him. He probably hadn't heard something as lame in a very long time.

"I'm sorry. I won't do it again."

His answer shocked her silly. What kind if ex-con was he? "No, it's okay..."

"You call it the f-word. You're obviously uncomfortable with it, so I won't use it anymore. It was a slip anyway."

"Do you swear a lot?"

"Only when it's funny. Or when I stub my toe against furniture at night or something similarly annoying." He smiled as he said the last part and Kathy found herself smiling back. "You should smile more often. It really makes you glow."

Kathy stared for a second, then turned away, her cheeks burning. Was he flirting with her? He'd said it in a matter-of-fact voice, as if presenting her with a simple observation. Maybe it was, maybe she was reading too much into it. But no one had ever told her she glowed when she smiled. No, damn it, think of something else.

"So..." she said, trying to pretend that he hadn't said anything. "What did you mean when you said Joey and Kelly got us?"

"Don't you see how simple yet brilliant their plan was? Act all moody and sad to get us to suggest coming here. This way, they can sit there and make out and we wouldn't be able to bitch about it because it was our idea to come here in the first place," Kyle explained. "Is it okay if I say bitch?" he asked as an afterthought.

"Yeah, don't censor yourself in front of me," Kathy said, waving him away. "But why don't they just meet without us?"

"I don't know. Chaperones?" Kyle shrugged. "They should grow out of that unhealthy obsession anyway. It's like they can't survive a few minutes without each other."

Even if she'd practically thought the same thing, it bothered Kathy to hear it out of his mouth. It sort of felt like a stab at how much time she'd spent with Donnie lately, and even if Kyle didn't know and most probably didn't care, it was still annoying.

"Not a big fan of love, are you?"

"Not a big fan of obsessions, no. Love has nothing to do with it," he answered simply.

"So you don't think Joey and Kelly are in love?" Kathy asked. And if he said Joey didn't love her best friend, she was dragging Kelly out right now.

"Oh, they obviously are. Joey's gone down the road of no return. And by the look on her face, so has Kelly. But that doesn't mean they have to lose their independence and be in each other's faces all the time."

Okay, she was obviously imagining it, but it felt like he just took another stab at her and Donnie. "Not all couples are like you and Cecily, you know? Some people actually like spending time together."

The moment the sentence was out, Kathy slapped her hand over her mouth. She'd attacked his relationship, completely unprovoked. That was it. Cecily was going to publicly embarrass her in some cruel way.

"Cecily and I aren't relevant in this context," Kyle answered as though Kathy had merely presented a pertinent argument.

Drop it. Don't ask about it. Change the subject. "Why not?" her big fat mouth asked instead.

"Because we were discussing love. Cecily and I are not in love."

Kathy's jaw hit the bar. "But she's your girlfriend."

Kyle nodded. "We do like each other, but it stops there."

That sounded awful. "But she's still here even after you were... um, away."

Kyle raised an eyebrow and thankfully seemed amused rather than annoyed by her butting in. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Oh crap, she needed to deflect and fast. "I think it means she really cares for you and--"

"No, no. Why did you say away so weirdly?"

She had no idea how to answer that without getting into a really uncomfortable conversation, so she just shrugged. Kyle watched her for another second, then sighed.

"We're still in a relationship. The fact that we're not in love doesn't mean we're not faithful to each other or that there are no feelings there."

Kathy chewed on her lower lip thinking about how nice Cecily was when Kyle was around and how happy she looked. She definitely had the puppy in love look on her face. "Are you sure she's not in love with you?"

He hesitated, and for a moment, she thought he'd change the subject. "Yes," he finally said. "We've always been honest about our relationship. If anything changes, we talk about it."

Kathy didn't buy that. She was almost one hundred percent sure Cecily wouldn't tell Kyle she was in love with him because she was afraid to lose him. Or maybe she really wasn't and faked all the happiness to make people jealous. But either way, Kathy couldn't understand why someone would settle for anything less than the real thing.

"What?" he asked as though sensing she had something else on her mind.

"I was just wondering why you would want such a relationship, because it keeps you from going out there and finding your true love..."

She almost slapped herself. She did not just spill out all that fairy tale true love crap. Sure, she sorta believed in soulmates because she'd found hers, but not all people were that lucky.

Kyle pursed his lips, obviously trying not to laugh at her. She bristled.

"Or are you one of those people who don't believe in love?"

"Oh, I believe in love and I believe in destiny. I'm sure I'll end up falling in love, and I'm sure that when I do, I'll play for keeps."

"And what if you don't find your soulmate?" She still felt like cringing, but the word didn't seem that embarrassing.

Kyle let out a laugh. "Then I'll probably end up a forty-year-old bachelor like Max. He's my uncle, the one I live with," he added, seeing the confusion on her face.

"You don't live with your family?" she asked before she could help herself.

Why did she keep butting into his personal life? She didn't care. Except she felt a morbid fascination over everything concerning him. She prayed they weren't dead, or she'd feel horrible.

"Kay, seriously, where have you been for the past years?" he asked, amused.

Kathy bit her lip and looked away. It was the second time he called her Kay, and while she liked the nickname, it was too intimate given their current relationship.

"Hey, I didn't mean it like that," Kyle said on a soft tone, obviously thinking he'd offended her in some way. Probably because she'd zoned out like a moron. "It's just that it was a huge subject for gossip in our freshman year..." He stopped and scratched his head. "Oh, wait, you're one year younger. I keep forgetting I skipped a year of school."

How could he keep forgetting that? It must've been one of the worst experiences in his life.

"Was it hard for you?" she whispered. "Being away?"

He frowned slightly as if considering the question. "Yeah, it got pretty lonely, but at least I had the rest of the band with me."

Her mouth dropped open. "What? You were all there?" She couldn't believe that Joey had been in jail as well and Kelly was dating him.

His gaze turned suspicious. "Well, yeah. What was I supposed to do without them?"

"What exactly did you do?" The question was out before she could stop it.

There was a pause before he asked, "What do you think I did?"

Crap, she didn't want to guess. But he obviously expected an answer so she took a shot in the dark. "I'm thinking something light. Drug related or maybe weapons?"

Kyle looked shocked for a second, then pursed is lips as if trying not to laugh. "Where was I?"

"How am I supposed to know which jail you were in?"

Time seem to freeze for a second as her dumb words hung in midair between them. Then Kyle knocked his head back and started laughing so hard, Kathy expected him to fall off his chair.

It took him a moment to regain his composure and turn to her again, his face the definition of seriousness. "No, you're right. It was awful. Had to sleep with one eye open and work out non-stop to get bigger than the other guys. Best thing though is that I learned how to make a shank."

She just stared, unable to compute his words.

He grinned at her. "Wanna see my prison tattoos?"

"Um..."

"Kay, seriously?" He laughed again, and a nervous giggle escaped her as well. "I was never in jail."

Her giggle turned into an angry cough as air went down the wrong way. She hit her fist against her chest, trying to remember how to breathe properly.

"You weren't? Then where were you?"

"On tour with the band."

"Oh, so away actually meant..." Now it seemed so obvious and she'd never felt dumber in her life.

"Yep. Out traveling. We toured half of Asia. But it's nice to know I make a believable convict. No wonder you were so tense around me."

Kathy nodded absently, even if she couldn't believe how stupid she'd been. How could she jump to conclusions right that? She was so clueless.

"I'm really sorry, I just--" She had no idea how to end that sentence.

"That's okay. This was actually hilarious."

"For you who didn't just die of embarrassment."

"You're mouthy for a ghost."

He was teasing her. Instead of getting mad and turning his back on her, he was playing around. The ease with which he accepted and rolled with everything fascinated her. She wished she could be more like that.

"So, um, you live with your uncle?"

"Yeah. My family's up in Chicago," Kyle said matter-of-factly.

That would explain his lack of a Texas drawl. She didn't have one either, but she'd grown up in Arizona. Her family as well as Donnie's had moved to Texas five years ago when their fathers, who worked together, came over to open a new office for their company. Donnie had started talking with a drawl after the first two years and she'd gotten used to it. But it felt refreshing to not hear it for a while.

"You're thinking that I don't have a drawl, aren't you?" Kyle said, scaring her half to death.

"What are you, a damn mind reader?" she asked, slapping his shoulder.

He laughed, but didn't try to avoid her strike. It was like hitting a freaking wall anyway. As she aimed another hit at him, he caught her wrist in midair. His grips was gentle and his skin incredibly hot.

"You hit like a girl," he said with a grin.

"News flash," she said, yanking free. "Despite any rumors you might have heard, I am a girl."

"That doesn't mean you can't be a badass girl who hits like a man."

"What is this? Act like a lady, hit like a man?"

Kyle started laughing again and Kathy stared at him. She couldn't believe it. "You got the reference."

"I don't live under a rock, Kay. I should visit you under yours. See what it's like."

Kathy knew she must have been blushing, but this wasn't right. She was having too much fun with him. With the confirmation that he wasn't a dangerous thug, it became harder and harder to find reasons not to talk to him. He was fun and he made her feel as if she was fun as well.

"Hey, you guys ready to go?" Kelly asked.

She and Joey had finally ended their make out session and seemed ready to head home. Kathy felt weirdly grateful and disappointed at the same time.

"Yeah, we're ready," Kyle answered, hopping off the stool.

Kathy gathered her books, thinking how she'd have to finish her homework at home for once. Good thing they could go before Donnie finished practice. She had no intention to bring him into her new study group.

"See you around, ladies," Joey said with a theatrical bow.

"Bye Kelly, bye Kay," Kyle said, and after the two girls waved, the boys were out.

"It's so cute that he calls you Kay," Kelly said with a giggle. "I like it. I think it fits you better than Kathy."

Kathy elbowed her in the ribs. "What was that about? Why can't you and Joey just meet without dragging me and Kyle along?"

"What are you talking about?" Kelly asked, rubbing her side. "It was your idea to come here."

Kathy rolled her eyes and marched out of the cafe. Maybe Kyle was right. Maybe it was worth learning to hit like a man.

🧩🧩🧩

Hi everyone!

So, the first real conversation between Kathy and Kyle. What do you think? Do you dislike Kyle for the way he views his relationship with Cecily?

Also, yes, she finally figured out that there was no jail involved. I liked that confusion way too much and I'm going to miss it 😅

Song: the type of mushy love songs playing at the cafe

Thanks for reading. Don't forget to vote and comment, or I will hunt you down. ;)