#jake2

I'm a bad girlfriend for not nagging him for a life choice that is up to him because it's his life? 

That totally makes a ton of sense. 

Jake hated everything about what was going on between he and Clare recently. Ever since he kissed her things had been a bit on the awkward side, almost seeming to never veer to normalcy. It drove him crazy feeling like he had to be different around her now, apathetic to the situation and act as if he hadn't liked the intimate contact as much as he really did. The truth was, he hadn't stopped thinking about it once. He desperately wanted to do it again and again, but he knew that would be unacceptable. There was no way he could put her through that, especially after she just broke up with Eli and they were family now. Yet, he was making his way downstairs at the moment, following the smell of soup coming from the kitchen as he mentally debated whether he should tell her or not. Before he could come to a solid conclusion, he saw her stirring the pot and stopped dead in his tracks, that overwhelming feeling of wanting to hold her in his arms encompassing her again. Suppressing such madness, he instead took a seat at the counter and watched her work, waiting patiently for the food to be finished.

Clare felt awkward and it was half her fault but now it was definitely Jake's. He'd brought the kiss back up when she had been working for days to not bring it up, to work past it. Of course, bringing it up, she'd avoided; but thinking about it? No, that was something that was a constant on her brain, playing over and over in her head until she had to take a deep breath and do anything to force herself to let it go. But it came back each time and there was no denying that the kiss under the mistletoe and opened it up even more and she just wanted to pull him in again but she knew better. It was not allowed and it would make things worse. If possible. She sighed as she stirred the soup she'd made and glanced toward the stairs. Jake was on his way down for soup and now she had to force herself to be around him after successfully avoiding him for days. In person, at least. Shaking her head, she grabbed a spoon and dipped it in before taking it from the heat only to blow on it a few times to avoid burning her tongue. Tasting it, she decided it was definitely done and laid the used spoon in the sink before pouring some into the two separate bread bowls. Her mom was out doing fundraiser stuff, Glen was working. So dinner for two and she had to do it without grabbing him by the shirt and kissing him or giving away her secret. Picking up the plates, she turned to the table and nearly jumped at seeing Jake there. "How long have you been there?" She asked, setting his plate in front of him and hers down in front of an empty chair. Hurrying into the kitchen, she grabbed two bottles of water, two spoons and napkins and walked back in, splitting the items up between them. "Hi." Clare said as she sat down in her chair and sat back, simply waiting for her soup to cool down.

Jake had been looking down at his hands, playing with his fingers mindlessly, when he heard her voice. “Not long,” he replied, barely above a whisper as she placed his plate down. “Thanks,” he muttered, a little louder this time so that she could actually hear him. When she finally sat down across from him and greeted him, he forced a smile and said the one-syllable word back. Unsure what else to say, he looked at her a moment more before looking down at his soup. Not even thinking to let it cool, despite the steam that was billowing from it, Jake brought a spoonful of soup to his lips and ate it, immediately dropping the spoon and cursing to himself as he fanned his mouth. “God, that's hot,” he complained, trying to do anything he could to ease the pain. He reached for his water and drank it quickly, but it didn't do much to get rid of the sting that remained. Once he settled down finally, he looked over at her shyly. “Sorry,” he apologized. “The soup's really good though,” he told her honestly, though he cast a glare at the bowl that took part in harming his mouth.

Clare watched him, her eyebrows pulling together as she squinted in confusion. Something was up, obviously and she wondered if he was about to tell her that talking was no longer an option. She'd messed up by kissing him back and showing that she wanted it. Was that why it was so awkward? She was sure that was it and he was going to avoid her now or forever be like this. Clare opened her mouth to warn him that it was hot, despite the obviousness of it, but he already had the spoon in his mouth before he dropped it and she winced. "Well, yeah," She said lightly, frowning, wishing she could do something to help him. "It's okay. I should've warned you." Though his compliment on the soup made her smile slightly. "Thanks, Jake." For the life of her, she couldn't remember a way to cure a burnt tongue. It was quiet and she kept her eyes on him as he glared at his bowl of soup and she looked away. Reaching for her own spoon, she blew on it lightly and ate it, her mind buzzing. What could she say? How could she form an apology to make this all stop? Which way could she stop having feelings for him because she knew now it was just never going to happen. It was really over. The thought alone made her feel like she wanted to cry but instead, she took a bite of her bread and avoided his eyes.

Jake shook his head when she blamed herself. “Not your fault, I just need to stop being such an idiot,” he said quietly, though he meant that for more than just the soup. He blamed his mishap on the thoughts that clouded his mind. The thoughts about her that he couldn't shake no matter what. Again the two were cast into silence, the accidental burning of the tongue forgotten for the moments that passed. Deeming it safe to eat his soup again, Jake took a few bites, glancing up at her every now and then, expecting her to say words that never actually came. Jake knew that he should say something to break the awkward ice between them, but just what needed to be said he wasn't sure. “So... how have your classes been?” he finally asked, knowing it was a lame question, but figuring that it could at least act as a conversation starter that could segue into something further.

Clare continued to eat, although slowly due to the temperature of the soup but it was nice and warmed her up. She was a bit surprised at the question, it was a conversation placer of sorts, or so it felt. Putting her spoon down, she took another bite of her bread and took a sip of her water. "They're okay. You know, piling on the work like crazy. What about yours?" Sighing softly, she looked down and wondered if it was always going to be like this now and she just knew that she couldn't handle it. Clare gently pushed her bowl away and sat up again, her eyes turning from the table top to him. Looking him over, she took a deep breath and turned completely toward him. "Jake, I..." The words stopped, hanging there in the air and she bit her lower lip. She couldn't say it. Jake, I can't do this. Instead, she spotted a dribble of drop of soup on his chin and took her napkin. "You have soup on your chin," She explained, wiping her napkin gently across his chin and smiled. "There. All gone."

Jake nodded in understanding. “Yeah, try being a senior. It gets worse,” he admitted with a huff, trying not to think about the massive amount of homework waiting for him in his room. It was getting closer to midterms, so all of his teachers were piling on the homework they would need to get done in time. When she looked down he did as well, mentally cursing himself for not picking a strong enough starter. He had honestly tried to, since he didn't want the awkwardness to settle between them as it already had. As he tried to come up with something to say in order to fix the situation he played with his food, swirling the spoon around in the bread bowl. When she spoke, Jake looked up at her hopefully, not even sure what she was going to say, but glad at least words would have been spoken. Though he quickly frowned again when she stopped. He wasn't sure why, but when she reached over he blushed slightly, keeping his eyes on hers the whole time. It was such a natural reaction for her, he knew that. She was always taking care of him in some way and it was pleasing to know that the kiss didn't strip her of that. Even once the action was over he stared at her in a bit of disbelief. “Thanks,” he said with a smile, feeling the awkwardness between them chip away just slightly.

Clare nodded a few times, smiling again. "No problem." Clare dropped her hand to the table and scrunched her nose. "I sort of dread becoming a senior." She shrugged and picked her spoon back up, going back to slowly eating. She enjoyed soup, it was warm and filled her up. She only hoped everybody felt the same way because she hadn't know what to make for dinner when her mom texted her and asked her to do so. It was still there, nagging at her, the feeling of awkward and not being able to do this but she didn't know how to bring it up and shatter what was left of their ever fragile relationship. "Are you excited for Christmas?" She asked, doing her best to focus on the slow conversation and keep herself from wrecking things even further. "More cookies, more food... presents, your dad, my mom. Christmas carols, ho ho ho..." She rambled, stirring her soup absently.

“Well luckily for you I'll have gone through it all already and can give you some pointers. Must be good to have an older person living in the house,” he teased, though he purposely didn't say the word that he really was to her; brother. He just couldn't bring himself to, not after the other day and the thoughts that followed it. Looking down, he finished off his soup and the bread, pushing the plate away and patting his belly. At her question he couldn't help but mumble quietly to himself, “More mistletoe.” It was more of a longing than anything else and he was afraid that problems would arise if he said it loud enough for her to hear. So instead he replied with, “Well, I don't know... Christmas was never really my thing. But for your sake, I'll pretend. Are you done with that?” he asked, gesturing to the remains of her soup that she simply seemed to be playing with. Standing, he took his own plate and hers and cleared them from the table. When he came back he stood by her awkwardly for a moment. “Do you...want to watch a Christmas movie?” he offered, shifting on his feet as he tried to salvage the rest of the night for her.

Clare smiled. "Oh yeah, I will be bugging you next year for help." She rolled her eyes and looked away only to quickly look back at him as he mumbled. She didn't catch what he said though, and instead of asking, she let it go. Smiling again, she nodded as he asked if she was done with her soup and took it away. It was over, their little adventure into the awkward after kissing and she should be happy but instead she was a bit saddened by it. She never liked ending her time with Jake and this was no different. "Thanks," She called lightly but realized he was standing back beside her and she stood up, confused. "What? Really?' The smile turned to a grin and she laughed softly. He was offering to watch a Christmas movie with her. Sure, he'd just admitted to pretending but she was just happy. She'd get to spend more time with him and he was offering something she loved; Christmas. "Yes, yes and thousand times more yes." She said, her voice filled with excitement and without thinking, she grabbed his hand and tugged him in the direction of the living room. It was there, though, that she realized what she'd done and laughed softly. Letting go of his hand, she reached for the remote and turned the television on before plopping onto the couch and flipping through until she spotted Rudolph. Clare glanced up at Jake and smiled, patting the spot next to her.

Jake couldn't help but laugh himself as she questioned him. “Really, he assured her, shuffling on his feet as he waited for her to either reject his offer or accept it. It wouldn't have been his favorite thing to do that night, but if it meant spending more time with her and possibly working things out, or at least working past the weirdness, he was all for it. Again he found himself laughing at her acceptance, though it quickly ceased as he felt the familiar touch of her hand in his. Biting his lip he refrained from pointing it out or taking his away, instead reveling in the moment of madness. Once in the living room he hoped to himself that maybe she'd forget the whole night and let him inconspicuously hold it, but such was not his luck. Taking his assigned seat next to her, Jake looked at the screen to see what she had picked. Seeing Rudolf, he frowned, but quickly wiped it off his face with a glance at her. The act was all for her and though he had already confessed that, he didn't want to ruin it by making it even more apparent. “Is this your favorite holiday movie?”

Clare watched it for a few moments, taking it in before she nodding a couple of times. "Well, one of them. I like all of them way too much. Which I guess is pretty silly, I know." Clare tore her eyes from the screen and looked over at him, smiling. "We really don't have to watch. I know this isn't your favorite. The tree, the lights, the... well, maybe the cookies, the Christmas carols, the shows, the mistletoe," she added, ducking her head and looking away from him. That had slipped out by accident but now it was in the air and indirectly bringing up the night they'd kissed. If she closed her eyes, she could still feel the press of his against hers and she realized just how much she'd missed him since their break up. She knew it was bad, she should be mourning Eli like he probably was Katie, but that had been long over for her before she even knew it. And being cheated on certainly helped her get over things rather quickly. Not that it was the greatest feeling in the world, of course, but she'd been honest that day she and Jake decorated. Why be sad? Clare glanced at him, almost shyly and took a deep breath, unsure of what to really say now.

Jake smiled to himself as she began to gush slightly about Christmas movies. It was how he got about his action movies, so he could relate, even if it was a different genre. “No, that's not silly,” he assured her, sharing her look and smile for a moment as she continued on. At the mention of mistletoe Jake's eyebrow rose. Her reaction confirmed something that he had been wondering; it was on her mind like it was on his. If it hadn't been she wouldn't have acted so shyly about the little slip up and would have instead continued on with her sentence. Of course he still wasn't sure how it was on her mind, if it was the same as his or in a negative way, regretting what had happened. When her eyes met his again he simply stared at her, swallowing the lump in his throat. The next few words were out of his mouth on their own before he could even stop them. “I don't know... the mistletoe was kind of my favorite.” Realizing what he had said, Jake bit his lip and turned back to the movie, debating moving from the spot before he say, or do, something else to embarrass them both again.

Clare went back to watching the movie as he had but then she paused, repeating his words and she felt her eyes widen before she turned back to Jake. Had he really just said that? He had and now she didn't exactly know what that meant. Had it just been a nice little memory? But he'd been acting so awkward about it. Did it mean that he'd spent time thinking about that kiss, going back over it and touching his fingertips to his lips as she had been with hers? Clare reached for the remote and shut the movie off, her brain buzzing and flying with all sorts of things but she couldn't catch one and stick with it. "Yeah?" She felt shy, her cheeks turning a bit pink and she looked away. "I... I can say the same," Clare murmured before she could take the words and rearrange them into something different. She'd taken a leap and she wasn't sure where it would land her but she figured she'd already screwed up enough by now, what was a few more words to add to that death sentence?

Jake's mind was clouded with all different thoughts and feelings at the moment. His heart was beating rapidly inside his chest, though on the outside he tried to look calm and collected. He couldn't believe that he had just confessed that. But beyond that, he couldn't believe that she had just agreed with him. His suspicions were confirmed in a way, the kiss was on her mind like he thought just a second ago and it didn't seem like that was a bad thing. Looking away from her he tried to focus on something else, but since she had shut off the movie there was nothing to look at. Eventually he turned back to her and nodded, not sure what to follow up with. “And I mean yeah, the cookies were excellent too,” he added in for measure, his eyes locked on hers as his body seemed to move forward on its own. “But it definitely didn't compare to the... the, you know,” he whispered, brows furrowing as his brain decided not to work on him, not allowing him to even comprehend what to do now.

Clare rolled her eyes, snorting softly as he added in that the cookies were excellent. But then he added to that, too, his body moving forward and she took it in, watching him. "To the mistletoe?" Clare asked lightly. She knew what she wanted, but didn't know what it meant for him. She was afraid. Kissing him again could really mess things up but Jake wasn't moving, he wasn't walking away and he didn't seem to really mind the kiss under the mistletoe. Clare licked her lips nervously and looked into his eyes. He was already looking, she realized and it sent a stutter through her chest. She moved slowly, as if warning him with her eyes and giving him time to move. Clare didn't know what she was doing and by this point, her brain had shut off and she was just going with whatever it was that she wanted and it was only confirmed when she brushed her lips over his softly. It was short lived, though, as she opened her eyes and glanced at him, as if checking to see how he was taking this. She was frozen now, even though she wanted to close the distance again and the other part of her was screaming at her to run.

Jake couldn't respond to her attempt to finish his sentence at the moment. His mind was too preoccupied by the way she seemed to be leaning forward as well, not making any attempt to escape him. Letting out a slow breath, he didn't move, not wanting to be the one to initiate anything this time. If she really wanted to go through with it he wouldn't mind and, although he knew it wouldn't be a good thing, would happily go along and kiss her right back. “Yeah, that,” he finally confirmed dumbly a second before their lips met. During the short contact his mind was screaming to him to wrap his arms around her, hold her tight so that she could never leave and kiss her until he couldn't any longer, but instead his body remained motionless, unable to function. When she pulled away he filled his cheeks up with air and slowly let it out, counting the seconds quietly as he watched her, giving her a moment to slap him or run away like a repeat of the other day. Seeing that she wasn't moving, he brought his hand up to her cheek and brushed it with his thumb gently. Shaking his head he let out a small laugh and confessed, “It wasn't the mistletoe.” He figured she could interpret that as she liked as he leaned forward and kissed her once again, only this time much longer than the last.

Clare closed her eyes as he brushed his thumb against her cheek and then his laugh, mixed with his words, it left her spinning and the kiss only added. She was dizzy, but she slowly wrapped her arms around him. She was lost, falling even deeper into a rabbit hole and she didn't know if this was good or bad but it at least felt right and that was all that mattered to her in that moment. Clare didn't even think as their lips moved together and she didn't understand how she'd went so long without this sort of contact. She'd had to but now she knew that she was in trouble. Would she even be able to go back to the perfectly crafted deal they'd had going on before the mistletoe? She was sure that she wouldn't be able to and it was that thought that pulled away, gasping for air and turning away just for a moment, her cheeks stained with the familiar red that Jake left her there. She glanced back at him, allowing the tiniest smile but soon after she shook her head. "It wasn't?" She asked, blinking at him. "Me either. I know what that means for me, but... you?" Clare took a moment, pausing as she tried to gather her thoughts but all she could feel was the tingle the kiss left, she shiver his thumb brought on and the way it lingered.

Jake pulled away from her even though he desperately didn't want to. Kissing her again was almost magical to him and he didn't want to not get that opportunity ever again. But nonetheless he let her pull away, looking away as she did so as he tried to finally collect his lost thoughts. Hearing her voice he turned back to her and nodded slowly. At her next question he swallowed the lump in his throat before attempting to answer her. “It means that I've been wanting to do that for awhile, Clare,” he started, looking away a moment as his hand dropped from her face, taking her hand instead. “I-I mean... I don't know. It's hard to say because I'm going to sound so dumb, but dammit, Clare, I regretted every moment without you and, fuck, I couldn't not do it any longer. I'm sorry if I've ruined yet another one of your nights, but...” sighing, he shook his head, trying to think when something hit him. “But you...you didn't stop me. You never did,” he pointed out, not in an accusing way, but in a way that made it clear he wanted a few answers himself.

Clare couldn't help the way her whole entire being reacted to the words. She was sure if he listened, he'd hear her heart for she could certainly feel it going wild inside of her chest and she took a deep breath. She didn't know what to say, and she was too afraid to open her mouth to reply right away so instead, she squeezed his hand gently and did what she could to collect herself. This was sending her for a loop, because Jake had made such a show about calling her his sister, and saying that snuggling her would be weird but yet, he couldn't do it any longer and she couldn't but she was having trouble wrapping her mind around it. "You didn't ruin my night. Nor did you the other night. I... I ran away because you were standing there and you just reacted like it was... horrible and I got scared." Clare stopped and looked at him, her eyes finding his. "I never stopped you because... I've wanted to do that for a while, too. Breaking up didn't mean that the feelings stopped. It's never left, it's never went away, it's why I had to break things off with... I just thought I'd eventually get over you and it. It never happened." She said, looking away again, gnawing softly on her lower lip; completely nervous.

Jake closed his eyes, letting out a slight breath of relief at her words. So he hadn't been a horrible person to her after all, it seemed. What she had felt that night was just like what he had; scared and unsure. "I'm sorry, I just didn't know what to do and I didn't want to make things worse..." he muttered after she spoke. Placing his other hand over hers as well he shook his head, breathing deeply as he tried to make sense of it all since it was all still quite confusing. How they had both hidden these things from the other, Jake wasn't sure. It made him laugh a little, the two being so clueless to the other's feelings. He felt a little crazy, continuous laughter escaping from him as she looked nervous, but he couldn't help it. "All this time... All this time we've hidden these things from each other and made the other go crazy. Can you believe that?" he questioned, shaking his head in disbelief. "I just can't freaking believe this..."

Clare was confused as he laughed but she chuckled as he finally spoke, letting her in on his little joke. "It's a bit laughable," She admitted and shook her head, smiling at him. She couldn't believe it, either. He still had feelings for her though, and that made her happy and she was too busy trying to let that sink in to even try to connect dots and look for things she might've missed. It didn't matter, his hand was in hers and that was what mattered. She wanted to know what it all meant now. Their kissing, the closeness she felt and their confessions but she didn't ask. Instead, she relaxed against the couch and glanced at him, smiling and squeezing his hand gently. "I can't, either." Clare stopped, the smile on her lips making it hard to speak for a moment. "But I... I'm happy to hear it?" She said, but knew it came out in a question; simply because she was still scared of what Jake thought about all of it.

“It makes me happy too,” he assured her, smiling at her question in a way to make her never doubt it again. He had been living all this time trying to keep his feelings under wraps, but now he could express them. That is, as long as no one was around. The two of them had done it in the past, so he didn't think it would be all that hard, but it would definitely be annoying, only being allowed to show any sort of affection behind everyone's backs. Shaking those thoughts out of his head, Jake reminded himself that this was supposed to be a happy moment. So carefully he slipped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her close, grabbing the remote to put the movie back on, at least for a little background music.

Clare smiled as he moved his arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer. The television came back on and she recognized the song instantly but she didn't sing along like she normally would. She was way too aware of his arm, of her hip pressed against his side and the tingling on her lips still. The movie continued and while her body relaxed against him, she couldn't seem to shut her brain off. It went on and on and on and she waited for the commercial before turning to Jake and smiling. She was glad to know that they were on the same page but it left her wondering what exactly it meant. Clare took a deep breathe. "Jake? What does, uh... this mean then? I'm just... confused, I guess." She admitted, squinting slightly.

Jake watched the movie intently, conscious of every point her body leaned against his. He didn't mind it at all, instead cherishing it for the few moments it lasted. When she spoke up, Jake turned his head to face her, huffing at her words. "Huh. I...I don't know, to be honest. I mean we can't just be together, you know, because of all the problems that would cause. But I don't want to be nothing... I honestly don't think there's a title for what we would be? We just...are?" he tried to explain, though his brows furrowed as he had a hard time understanding it himself.

Clare listened and ignored the ache when he said they just couldn't be together. She understood why, but she didn't know what that meant either. Unconsciously, she moved away, not completely but enough to turn her body toward his. "Just Jake and Clare?" Clare asked, looking down and moving to pull at a random string on her jeans and pulling it until she tugged it from the material and wrapped it around the tip of her finger nervously. "I'm not asking for a title, exactly, I get it. But I... can't just go into this - whatever it may be - blindly and. I don't want it to be a thing just for fun. I don't want it to be me and you and someone else, either." She swallowed the lump in her throat, thinking of how that was just unfair and she couldn't do that. "I guess what I'm asking, what I mean to you. What does this come up as to you, minus titles? Just fun or... I don't know." Clare shrugged and avoided looking at him and tried not to feel too dumb now.

Jake frowned at how unsure Clare sounded. He knew that he owed her a definite answer, but he just wasn't sure exactly what to tell her. One thing was for sure, though. This wasn't just for fun to him. Grabbing her hands in his again, he squeezed them gently and shook his head. "No, no, it's not for fun, I promise you. You're too special for that and I would never, ever put you through that again, Clare. You're my one and only, ok? This isn't fun, well you know what I mean, and there won't be any one else. Just you and me," he assured her, nodding his head to emphasize his point. "We're just going to have to be even more secretive than last time, you know. I mean... I really, really like you, so this is worth everything to me. I hope it's the same for you, but yeah... Don't think that you're just a girl I want to get with, because that's not what you are and that's not what you ever were."

Clare looked up as he grabbed her hands and squeezed them. She was relieved to hear that it wasn't just for fun and then she smiled when he said she was too special for that. Though, hearing that he said she was his one and only... well. Clare glanced away, smiling softly to herself before looking back over at him. She felt dumb for even thinking he'd want to be with someone else but she wasn't sure. She was still trying to wrap her head around everything and she was on this roller coaster with the speed set way too high. Maybe she needed to slow down and breathe. Doing that, she took a deep breath and leaned in to kiss his cheek softly. "It is the same for me. I don't... I don't want anybody else, Jake. There's just you." She murmured and squeezed his hands, her eyes staying on his despite being sort of a wreck over everything. "I think I can handle that. Just... us." She explained softly and smiled. "So kissing you, is that okay? Are there... rules? Or." Clare shrugged and laughed, laying her forehead against his shoulder to close her eyes and let him answer because she was making herself crazy.

Jake let out a breath of relief when she agreed to the 'terms.' He had no doubt that she would have, but hearing her say it out loud made him feel much better. When she kissed his cheek he smiled sweetly at her, nodding at every word she said. "Kissing me is definitely ok. And so is cuddling, going on dates and everything else that normal couples have to do. We just have to be a little...sneakier. So like if we go on a date we'll have to pretend to just be hanging out. Unless we go a bit from here. You get what I mean? But otherwise...no, I don't think there are any rules to it." As she put her head on his shoulder, Jake wrapped his arm around her and kissed the top of his head. Not too long before his mind had been going crazy, but now it seemed to calm down with the discussion of everything. Or maybe it was just her being there. She tended to do that to him sometimes without even realizing it.

Clare relaxed as he spoke and smiled, nodding a bit to show that she was listening. Letting everything sink in and settle, she simply enjoyed the feel of his arm around her and how close they were and how everything seemed to fall into place. It felt too easy, but she knew once they started sneaking around it would be harder. Clare chuckled softly and tilted her head to look up at him. "Definitely okay, hm?" She murmured and rested her hand against his neck gently as she leaned up only to kiss him softly. She'd missed him and wanted him to know that. Being away from him had felt wrong; pretending not to love him and being with Eli had been wrong, too. And she was glad that they were getting a chance to try this again. She knew because of their situation it was a bit tricky and she felt dread in her stomach as she wondered how it had stopped Jake last time and resulted in her breaking up with him. What if that happened again? Clare pulled back and returned to her spot on his shoulder, her face buried there as she tried not to freak out. "I get it." She finally said, sliding her arms around his middle and hugging him. "But it won't be like last time, right?" Clare honestly felt bad for asking so many questions but she didn't want to go into this thinking one thing only for her to wind up with a broken heart again simply because Jake couldn't do be with her because of their parents.

Jake grinned as she leaned up to kiss him, eagerly kissing her back for the brief seconds. He missed this, just sitting around with her and kissing as they please. It was a nice thing to fall back into after all that time they spent apart. When she went back to her previous position, Jake eased back into the couch until he was laying down with her body tucked into his side. He hugged her back in a strange, sideways hug. At her question he sighed and nodded. "No, not like last time at all," he promised, honestly hoping to keep that promise too. "That was the first time I ever really dated anyone, so I'd like to think I've improved as a boyfriend."