Chapter Twenty-One: All.The.Tears.Inside.Are.Raindrops[PART TWO]

    Meanwhile, we were watching our movie. But not in peace. For some odd reason, the 10 of us were the only people in that theater...Lucky, I guess...But that fact seemed to give some unsaid "OK" for the guys to act like complete idiots. Running up and down or dancing in the aisles, chucking popcorn and candy at us, you name it. Why had we gone out for the movie again? We all looked at Chin from time to time. She'd just innocently shrugand turned her attention back to the screen.

(back at the house)
    "Yes...I'd like to order one broccoli beef, one orange chicken, one fried rice and order of pot-stickers please," Jenny said into the phone in the kitchen. They both were hungry and had decided on Chinese food once they had returned from the video store.
    "EGG ROLLS! DON'T FORGET EGG ROLLS!" she heard Brian yell from the kitchen. She smiled.
    "Oh, and one order of Egg rolls, please..."Yeah, thanks." Jenny hung up the phone. "They said we can pick it up in about half an hour." She walked into the kitchen and looked around..  "Brian?" No response. She went back to the family room. "Brian... I'm not in the mood to play games, mister...Brian, come on," she called, turning the corner into the hallway. All of a sudden, she felt an arm around her waist and a hand over her mouth.
    "Do not speak a word. I am a secret agent from planet Ziffrondoonagi," Brian said in a robot-like voice. "I have come to study the organisms called humans. You are my first specimen. I will have to take you back to the ship to run experiments--"
    "Let me go, mister," she cut him off. "You're such a moron," she laughed. "You scared the living crap out of me."
    "Yeah, well, that's why you love me," he whispered in her ear while letting her go.
    Jenny was caught off guard. Had one of us told him something? Is that why they all left the two of them there? He noticed the confused look on her face.
    "It was a joke," he reassured her.
    "Yeah. You just scared me... What should we watch first?" Jenny asked, plopping on the couch.
    "MINE first!" he declared, sitting on her.
    "UGH!...Fine!...You weigh a ton!" she complained, trying to push him off. He got up and grinned at her as he walked over to the VCR.
    "I do try and keep my weight up. All that Mickey D's on tour. Thank AJ." He smiled as he put in the tape.
    Hours later, once they had returned from picking up their food, and were on their second movie, Brian was still bouncing off the walls. Jenny kept telling him to calm down.
    "Calm down...calm down...WHOO! Do I know what that means?" he joked, getting up to grab a pillow from one of the vacant couches.
    "How many times did they actually drop you on your head as a child? I mean seriously, now."
    "Aww, you don't mean that," he said, sitting back down next to her. "You know I'm fun. You gotta admit. That's why you love me," he grinned. There it was again. Why did he keep saying that? "Jenny. Hey, missy..." Brian waved his hand in front of her face.
    "Hmmm?"
    "Gimmie the remote, wouldja?"
    "Oh, yeah... Here."
    "What's wrong?" he asked, sounding worried.
    "It's nothing. I just...nothing. Don't worry about it," Jenny sighed. When she didn't say anything more, Brian decided not to push it. Maybe she had had enough crying for one night. He hoped she still wasn't dwelling over her dream, or whatever it was. He also hoped he had succeeded thus far in trying to make her laugh and forget her troubles. That's the only thing he knew he could do for sure...
    He focused his attention to the movie.
    Jenny was still thinking when the movie was over.
    "Let's take a break before we watch the other movie. My stomach is empty," Brian commented., getting up.
    "Didn't you finish off all the fried rice already?"
    "Well sorrrry for having a bottomless pit of a stomach. I thought we'd already discussed that fact countless times in the past."
    "Argh. Whatever. Who--how did we get on this topic any way?"
    "You were being a dope and didn't understand I could still be hungry. I mean, obviously!"
    "Shut up, mister. I swear," she giggiled, "You are the biggest dork and you're my best friend. What does that say about me?" she grinned, pushing past him to take her plate in the kitchen sink. When they got back to the couch, Brian stole the remote from Jenny's hands and started the next movie. She made a face and pushed him off the couch...but he pulled her down with him.
    "That hurt. I should really get you back," he said, still laying on the floor.
    "I'm not in the mood to be tickled right now."
    "Actually, I hadn't thought of that, but it's a good idea," he said with a sly grin.
    "Brian, if you do, I will make it so you'll be unable to have children...and don't think I'm kidding."
    "Who's the dork now?" he laughed, putting his hands under his head. "No one's stopping you from getting up. You're the one who's on top of me,"  he grinned. She realized he was right and tried to hide the fact that she was blushing all of a sudden. "Aw, my wittle missy is embawassed! That's so cute."

 
    "Reminder: Never take me to the Cheesecake Factory ever again." I pulled Kevin's shirt collar with a threatening voice. We had gone there for dinner after our movie. He grinned.
     "Why not?" He straightened himself back up and took another bite of his dessert, looking at me.
     "This place is deadly," I sighed, eyeing my plate; the dessert was probably twice the size of my stomach. We were all sitting in a massive booth, Kevin and I were on one end, Chin and AJ were facing us, on the other. Nick, Julie, Hannah, Lance, Cathy, and Howie, were all squished inside.
     "KAT!" Hannah screeched when Cathy's elbow knocked over a glass of water. Lance tried to cover her mouth - we were in a restaurant, after all.
     "SORRY!" Cathy laughed back, while Howie frantically tried to grab all our napkins to soak up the water.
     "We can never have a normal dinner out can we?" Chin asked AJ, observing the rest of us.
     "Why would we want to?" he grinned.

 
    "Jenny, please. Say something...anything...You're scaring me," Brian pleaded to the shaking body in his arms.  She tried to, but she couldn't. If she said anything more than she had before, it would be have to be more of the horrible truth...she was afraid of what it might lead to.
    She had fallen asleep during the second movie. How foolish she had been to think that her dreams would have vanished. They didn't. Why did they bother her so much? Here was Brian, being the angel that he was, and she still couldn't explain herself. She had just had one of the best evenings of her life with one of her best friends...why couldn't she live with that?
    She couldn't tell him; that was for sure. What if how she felt came flying out? What if he didn't care about her like she did about him? That possibility would cause too much pain. Pain she wasn't ready for. Pain she didn't think she would ever be ready for. But she had to say something. He was getting scared. Maybe he did care? No. That wasn't possible. At least not the way she wanted...needed him to.
    "Jenny? Please... " Brian's voice had gotten shaky. He couldn't take it any longer. Jenny had been silently crying in his arms and he was terrified. He thought whatever had disturbed her earlier had been solved, or at least dealt with in some way. They had had such a fun, normal evening. Why was she crying like this again? Why wouldn't she open up to him? Brian felt pain thrash at his heart.
    "Brian? " Jenny finally began to choke out.
    "Yes?" Brian sighed with relief.
    "Please..." Jenny struggled with words.
    "Please what? Anything--"
    "Please....don't let me go...don't leave me..." her voice cracked and that sound nearly broke Brian's already fragile heart. His grip on her tightened, as if he could protect her from harm if he just held her tight enough.
    "Never," he whispered. Minutes passed and it seemed like forever. Jenny was torn between being utterly happy in Brian's arms and feeling pain from not being able to hold him without knowing he didn't feel as deeply as she did.
    "I can't take it anymore..." Jenny whispered and she tried to squirm out of Brian's grasp, but he wouldn't let her.
    "Jenny? Jenny! What's wrong?" Brian's heart paused from how helpless he was feeling.
    "Please. Just...leave me alone!" Jenny broke free from Brian's hold on her and ran out of the room.
    "Jenny!" Brian called out.  He heard the front door slam. In a split second he found himself outside the house. He could see a figure running and he followed it. Only when he had run halfway down the street did he realize that it was raining. Hard.
    He couldn't stop caring now.
    In fact, he didn't plan on ever stopping.
    Jenny didn't know where she was going; she just had to get away. It was so frustrating not to be able to just feel one thing. She didn't even know what she wanted anymore.
    Sand squished between Jenny's toes and she looked down.
    The beach.
    She had run to the beach without even realizing it. She stopped and closed her eyes and let herself collapse in the damp sand.
    "That's what she said..." someone sang softly. Jenny didn't have to open her eyes to know who it was. He had followed her.
    "I thought I told you to leave me alone..." she whispered, her head in her hands, elbows resting on her knees, her eyes closed. She was afraid to look at him. His eyes. They were too much. It made her melt every time she looked in them. And right now, she couldn't melt. It wasn't a good time.
    "She told me..." Brian whispered as he sat beside Jenny.
    "She told you what?" Jenny asked, opening her eyes and staring out into the ocean as it was pelted by the rain.
    "She told me to not leave her...and I told her I would never," Brian stated softly, watching Jenny. She sighed. "In fact, I told her I'd be right here for her...always," he studied her. Still no response. "Jenny, talk to me. I need to know what's going on." Brian held his breath and tried to hold back from touching her.
    "I don't even know what's going on..." Jenny sighed again. She pulled her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around her legs, resting her chin on her knees. She didn't need to wipe away any tears; the rain washed them away for her.
    "Well, can you tell me why you asked me to not leave you...and then told me to leave you alone?" Brian asked. Jenny shook her head slowly and regretfully, trying to stop herself from crying again. Suddenly, Brian smiled. "Will you dance with me?" he asked Jenny. She turned to him and gave him a funny look.
    "What?"
    "You said you always wanted to dance in the rain. So I'm asking you if you'll dance with me," Brian repeated, getting up.
    "I said I wanted it to be with someone I love... more then friends, Brian." She looked down, watching the raindrops make imprints in the sand.
    Brian took a deep breath.
    It was now or never.
    He knelt down in front of Jenny.
    His curly bangs were wet and plastered to his head, and his clothes were clinging to him...but he didn't care.
    "Will you let me be that person, Jenny?  The one that you love?...more than friends?" he asked softly.
    Jenny felt like she forgot how to breathe.
    She looked up and saw Brian staring intently at her.
    Had he said what she thought she heard?
    "Wh...what?" she asked, regaining her breathing skills.
    "Jenny, will you let me be the one you dance with in the rain?" A smile played on his lips. He stared into her eyes, but she didn't say anything.
    She didn't have to.
    He knew her answer by looking into her eyes.
    How much he loved staring at those eyes...Eyes he could look into forever.
    He stood up again and held out his hand to her. She took it, still speechless, as he led her further down the beach. When he reached a spot he was satisfied with, he turned to her and smiled.
    "There are people that say what you wanna hear..." Brian began to sing Jenny's favorite song. He pulled her close and wrapped his warm arms around her tightly. She did the same and buried her face into his shirt. "Jenny? You okay?" he asked.
    "Yeah...I am," she breathed. She looked up and smiled at Brian. "By the way, mister...the answer was 'yes'..."
    He smiled back at her and brushed a strand of hair away from her face, so that he could see her eyes.
    "I know," he whispered and continued to sing.
    "Brian?" Jenny asked cutting him off.
    "Hmm?"
    "I love you," she whispered, resting her head on his shoulder.
    "Well you know what, missy?"
    "What?"
    "I love you too." Brian kissed the top of Jenny's head and started to sing a different song. The song he had sung earlier without thinking. "If I don't have you...to hold on to..."

Chapter Twenty-Two: If.I.Didn't.Have.You/End.Of.The.Road...?
.If.I.Don't.Have.You. Index
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