SOUNDTRACK: "Pumped Up Kicks" - Foster the People

Kate rolled over as the sunshine hit her face. She sighed and looked at her phone on the night stand. November 15, 2015. She was officially sixteen years old. She groaned as she stretched her arms over her head, causing Vedder to look up from his place on the floor. The smell of cooking food had drifted under her door and her stomach grumbled. Vedder followed her out of her room and into the kitchen. Jared was presiding over the stove, cooking something.

"Good morning," he said. "You're up early."

"Vedder wanted out," she said simply, opening the door and letting the dog outside.

"I made pancakes," he offered, showing her a plate full of them. "They're vegan, but I don't think you can tell the difference." He carried a plate into the dining room and motioned for her to sit. "How many do you want?"

"Oh - uh - a couple is fine," Kate answered, sitting.

He slid a few of the thin pancakes onto her plate and returned to the kitchen. She picked up her fork and took several bites, surprised at how good they tasted.

"You like 'em?" he asked with a smile. "I thought I'd do something special for your birthday."

She nodded and kept eating as Jared turned off the stove and sat down next to her at the table with his own plate. "They're good. Why don't you make these more often?" she asked.

He opened his mouth to respond, but noise in the hallway got his attention.

"Jared? Are you cooking?" a tall, thin blonde appeared in the doorway, wearing one of Jared's shirts and little else. Her hair was tousled and it was very evident she had spent the night. "Oh," she stopped when she saw Kate in the dining room. "You said we were alone."

Kate stopped, mid-bite, and looked at Jared in disbelief, her appetite suddenly gone.

"Allie, I thought you had left," he stammered, standing up and walking over to the girl.

Kate looked between the two of them and shook her head. "Unbelievable," she muttered, throwing her fork onto her plate and storming out of the dining room and out of the house.

Jared looked between the girl and the space Kate had just occupied, torn between who he should address first. He settled on the problem in the room. "Alright. Look, you gotta go," he said, bundling her back toward his room. "Just - just go, okay? It was nice to see you. Thanks for calling me. But you've gotta go."

The model protested, but Jared didn't wait to hear it. He rushed out of the house and into the back yard, hoping to find Kate on the patio. She wasn't there. He ran up the steps to the gate and jogged down the driveway, well-aware that he was barefoot and not wearing a shirt. He caught sight of her at the top of the hill and ran after her.

"KATE!" he shouted. "Stop!"

She slowed down and stopped next to a flamingo-shaped mail box at the end of a long driveway. "What?!" she shouted back. "You gonna feed me some lie about how you forgot or didn't think I'd care?!"

Jared finally caught up to her and doubled over as he tried to catch his breath. "Jesus fucking Christ you're fast!" he exclaimed between gasps for air. "Look, Allie was only in town for the weekend. I thought she had left when I got up."

"Great. So you figured you'd get a fuck in before making my breakfast?" she snarled. When she said it like that, Jared felt his stomach start to roll. "When exactly did your friend arrive? Before or after I went to bed?" She crossed her arms. "You know, I'm actually really impressed that you managed to perform with your sixteen year old daughter in the next fucking room!"

"Will you keep your voice down!" he growled, looking around. It was still early, but he didn't want her drawing attention to them. He took a deep breath. "I can see how upset you are," he started. "Let's go back to the house and talk about it, okay?"

"Will Hoe of the Week be gone?" she asked.

He paused. "I will make sure she's gone," he replied through gritted teeth. "Can we go back inside, please?" he asked.

Kate nodded and followed him down the hill and back to the house. She waited on the patio while Jared put the girl in a car, her breakfast resting precariously on the edge of her stomach. Ten minutes later, Jared walked out to her and sat down. He sighed before speaking.

"I'm sorry," he started. "I should not have had her over. I wasn't thinking and I made a mistake."

"Sure, whatever," Kate answered.

"No, Kate. I mean it. I made a mistake. It was a bad call on my part. I won't let it happen again," he insisted.

She sighed. "I don't care about the women. It's that you brought her in here on my birthday, like I'm not special to you or anything. Like it's not a day I'm supposed to be celebrated on. Like it's just another weekend and she's just another one of your fucks."

He cringed at her words. "Please stop saying that, okay?"

"Casual sex doesn't bother me Jared. You're a single forty-two year old man. I'm not stupidly thinking you're up in the house alone living a vow of celibacy," Kate snapped. "All I'm asking is for you to use a little bit more sense."

Without another word, she pushed away from the table and walked into the house with Vedder following her. All Jared could do was remind her that Connie and Shannon were coming over later in the afternoon for dinner. He waited for several minutes before walking into the house after her and starting to clean up the kitchen. Kate had left her plate on the table, untouched. He dumped the food into the trash and leaned heavily against the counter, frustrated with Kate, but mostly angry with himself that he even made the choice to begin with.

Two hours later, Kate ran into him downstairs in the lower living room, playing his guitar and writing lyrics. He stopped when she came in, but didn't look up.

"Whose car is that in the driveway? The Corolla?" she asked.

"Yours," he answered, writing the rest of a lyric down. He put the pen down and returned to strumming on the guitar, humming the melody lightly.

She blinked. "What?"

He looked up at her and rested his arm on the guitar. "It's yours. I was gonna show it to you earlier, but I didn't get a chance. Happy birthday."

"You - you bought me a car?" she asked in shock.

"Isn't that what most kids get for their sixteenth birthday?" he asked.

"I don't -," she stammered. "It's a lot."

"Consider it my way of making things up to you," he said. "You know, for the move, and...everything." He stood up. "I thought it would be nice for you to be able to take yourself to and from school. Plus, with a car, you can get around the neighborhood a bit easier."

She looked at him carefully for a minute. The car was brand new. It felt an awful lot like a bribe to her. He looked back at her carefully. He was an actor, but he couldn't lie about this. It was a guilt-gift.

"I can't drive. I don't have my license," she answered.

"That's an easy fix," he replied. "Look, I just - I know you don't have many friends. I know you can't have them over to the house. I thought that having a car might give you a little bit more freedom and make you feel a little bit more relaxed here, okay?"

She nodded. "Sure. Thanks, I guess."

"When you're ready to get your learner's permit, let me know. I'll take you over and we can start practicing," he said.

She nodded and turned toward the stairs. If Jared wanted to buy her complacency, that was fine with her, though she really only wanted his attention. But it didn't fix anything, really. A car was a car, which meant she didn't have to be stuck in the house or the Compound or wherever with all the interns and Jared's employees. Later that afternoon, Connie and Shannon showed up with dinner.

"Happy birthday, sweetheart!" Connie said, hugging Kate as soon as she walked in. Kate felt like one of those stress balls you squeeze and the eyes pop out. "Here, take these," she told Jared, handing him several gift bags.

"Mom, what did you get her?" he asked, putting the bags on the coffee table in the living room.

"A few things. I've got fifteen years to make up for," the older woman said.

"There's more in the car," Shannon said under his breath. He put his bags down and gave Kate a warm hug. "Happy birthday, Kid."

"Thanks, Shan," she answered with a smile. She looked at the pile of gifts on the coffee table, feeling a little overwhelmed. "Do I have to open all of these now?" she asked.

"Of course not," Jared assured her. "But I'm starving. So let's have dinner."

"That's because you never eat," Connie chided him. "I got food from Ahimsa."

"What's that?" Kate asked.

"It's an awesome vegan place near her house," Shannon answered.

"Are you vegan?" Connie asked, unpacking things from the bag.

Kate shook her head. "Not really. But here I don't have much choice," she answered looking at Jared.

Connie nodded. "How has your day been? Did you two do anything fun this morning?"

Kate glanced at Jared. "Jared had a friend over, but that's it."

Jared cringed. He should have known she wouldn't let him get away with just an apology. "It was a quiet morning."

"I see," his mother said carefully. Shannon hid his smile behind a glass of water. "Jared, why don't you come help me with plates," Connie asked, gesturing to the kitchen.

He followed her into the other room and no sooner did he turn around than he felt his mother's hand swat the back of his head. "What the-ow!" he exclaimed.

"You know I've never cared about your love life before - I still don't - but, really?" she hissed. "Really? Around Kate?"

"I already apologized to her," he insisted, rubbing the back of his head.

"You better have!" Connie scolded. "It's her birthday for fuck's sake!"

"I know!" Jared replied. "I'm well aware. We went through it this morning, okay?"

Connie glared at him and collected several plates from the cabinet over his shoulder. He grumbled and followed her back into the dining room. Shannon and Kate had already sat down and were having a discussion.

"I'm serious. Drumming is a great stress reliever," Shannon told her. "Works perfect for me."

"That's exactly what I need - a teenager drumming all damn day," Jared remarked. Shannon stuck his tongue out but didn't say anything else. "We all good?" Jared asked before sitting.

"Whose car is in the driveway?" Shannon asked.

"Kate's," Jared answered. "That's my gift to her."

"I can't drive it yet, though," Kate answered. "No license."

"We can fix that," Connie said. "But aren't you worried about her driving in LA? Traffic is insane out here."

"Just to school and back," Jared clarified. "I need my intern back."

They ate dinner, talking about different things. Connie was particularly interested in Kate's soccer game and Winterlake.

"It's like a college campus, Mom," Shannon said. "It's crazy."

"It is very nice," Kate said. "But it almost feels too...perfect. I don't know."

"That's because you've never been to a private school," Shannon laughed. "Especially not in Los Angeles."

"When are you playing again?" Connie asked. "I'd love to watch a game."

"Probably soon. The coach for the main team saw me play last weekend," Kate said. "They're talking about putting me on the main team."

"That's great news! Why didn't you tell me?" Jared asked her.

She shrugged. "You were in New York. And then you were busy," she answered.

Her words hung in the air between them for several seconds before Connie spoke

"Well when do you know if you're on the main team?" she asked.

"Not for a while. My coach just said they're keeping an eye on me and to keep doing what I'm doing," Kate replied. "But I don't think I'll make the main team before State. Probably next school year, though."

"What's the purpose of a reserve team anyways?" Shannon asked.

"The school has a sports requirement and it allows kids to fulfill it if they're too busy with other things to be on the main team," Kate said. "But mainly it allows younger students to develop and grow. Its also where injured players go to rehab and get back in shape."

"Sounds like they have a little factory going there," Connie remarked.

"Not really. Lots of professional teams have reserve teams that play in lower leagues. It's better for the athletes to not have different staff all the time, too," Jared said. Everyone looked at him in surprise. "What? I read."

"Alright! Presents!" Connie exclaimed, throwing her hands up in excitement.

"How come you were never this excited for our birthdays?" Shannon asked, standing and clearing several plates.

"It's different for grandchildren," she replied.

Twenty minutes later, Kate was elbow deep in brightly colored tissue paper, surrounded by empty gift bags and different gifts. So far she had gotten several articles of clothing and some art supplies. She finally reached the end placed an intricate wrought-iron picture frame on the coffee table.

"Joe made that for you," Connie offered. "He wishes he could be here."

Kate had learned that Joe was Connie's long-term partner. She hadn't met him yet, but from what Connie said about him, she knew she'd love him. He was an artist and seemed like he was Connie's perfect match.

"My turn," Shannon said. He reached into his pocket and produced an envelope. "Happy Birthday."

Kate took it and opened the paper flap. A card was inside and she pulled it out.

Two tickets to any musician or band you want to see.

Kate looked at Shannon in confusion. "What's this?"

"I didn't know what to get you, so this is the best I could come up with. Any artist you want to see, I'll make it happen," Shannon explained.

Kate smiled. "Any artist?"

Shannon realized what power he had just given her. "Yes," he said reluctantly. "Any artist."

"Alright," Kate said. "I'll let you know."

"I think that's about everything," Connie said, clapping her hands in her lap. "Did you like everything?"

Kate nodded. "Of course! Thank you so much!"

Shannon looked at his phone as a text came in. "I hate to eat and run, but I've gotta go," he said, responding to the text and standing.

"But we came in the same car," Connie objected.

"I'm sorry, Mom. I've gotta go," Shannon said.

Connie sighed and stood up, moving to start her goodbyes. "I guess that's my cue to leave," she said, embracing Kate. "I'm glad we got to celebrate with you. Have a good day at school tomorrow. Let me know when we can come see you play," she told Kate.

"I will. And thank you for everything," Kate responded.

"Bye, you," Connie hugged Jared. "I'll call you later about lunch, okay?"

Jared allowed her to kiss him and hug him tightly. "Absolutely. Love you." Shannon hugged Jared distractedly. "Bye, see you later. We've gotta talk about the new album."

Kate hung back while the three of them chatted briefly. She put tissue paper into one of the bags and grabbed her gifts, carrying them to her room and putting them on her bed. She heard the door close and car doors slam before an engine started. She was sitting on her bed, looking through one of the books Connie had given her, when Jared came in.

"Hey," he said. "Mind if I sit?" he asked. She didn't respond and he noted that she wasn't looking at him. "You okay?"

"I'm fine," she muttered.

The mood in the room had shifted and he picked up on it. For most of the evening, Kate had been happy and cheerful, but he did notice that she hadn't really looked at him.

"What's going on, Kate?" he asked. "Is it your mom? Do you miss her?"

"No. Stop asking," she groaned.

"I'm just trying to figure out what's going on. You were happy all night and now you're...not," he said.

She sighed heavily and looked at him. He could see the hurt in her eyes. "You're not the only one who can act, Jared," she hissed. "Did you really think you could fix everything with a car and an apology? Do you feel less guilty?"

And just like that, all the feelings of hope and relief that they'd moved past their differences disappeared. They were back to square one.