Loose Ends

Chapter 53

One week later found Ricky dressed in a suit and looking in the bathroom mirror adjusting his tie one last time. He gave his reflection one more glance before heading to the fridge to retrieve Amy's corsage. As he did so his cellphone buzzed with a new text. He saw that it was from Justin: I'm here. Ricky quickly grabbed the corsage, locked the door and headed down to meet Justin. He climbed in the back and took the middle seat next to Jesse. The boys acknowledged each other with head nods and then Justin drove to Madison's house. Madison's step mother opened the door when Justin rang the bell.

"Come on in boys. They'll be down in a minute." Jesse and Ricky followed Justin into the living room and they all had a seat on the couch while Madison's stepmom picked up her camera from the coffee table and leaned against the wall to fiddle with the settings. A couple of minutes later the boys stood up as they heard footsteps coming down the stairs. The girls rounded the corner and the boys' mouths dropped. Their amazement turned to confusion a split second later as there was a flash from the camera, followed by four very amused giggles. "Yep. Definitely stunned and speechless," Madison's step mother said. The girls took several steps closer to their respective boyfriends as the boys were still frozen on the spot, each eyeing their girlfriend up and down. Madison did a little twirl for Justin.

"You like?" she asked with a smile. Justin simply nodded, unable to form a complete sentence. While Justin was busy eyeballing his girlfriend, Jesse kept opening and closing his mouth as though he were trying to say something but no sound was coming out. Lauren giggled at the adorably cute flustered expression on her boyfriend's face.

"I take it that means you like my dress," she stated, glancing down at her dress and then back at Jesse just in time to see him nodding vigorously. Ricky was waging an internal battle. Part of him wanted to call a cab and take Amy back to his apartment to kiss every inch of her exposed skin he could see and the other just wanted to stare at the beautiful young woman in front of him until the day he died. He was looking so intently at Amy that she began to blush and broke eye contact. Ricky reacted without thinking. He walked towards her, took her in his arms and kissed her, knowing she'd have to look at him again once he broke the kiss. And when he pulled back she did just that.

"You're beautiful," he told her sincerely, causing her to smile. Madison's stepmom cleared her throat.

"Okay you love birds. Let me get some good shots of you all so you can make your dinner reservation." The boys quickly placed the corsages they had with them on their girlfriends' wrists and then eagerly stood behind them, wrapping their arms around their girl's waist while the camera clicked several times. Several pictures were then snapped of each couple individually and then a couple of the just the guys and then just the girls. "Alright you guys. Have fun. But not too much fun," she said pointedly, looking at all the teens.

"Mom!" Madison said with embarrassment as the little group headed out the door. Once they reached the minivan, Justin opened the passenger door for Madison while Jesse opened the sliding door. Amy climbed into the back while Lauren took a seat in the middle row by the window. Jesse waited until Ricky had climbed in and then he slid into the seat next to Lauren as he shut the door. Once everyone was buckled in Justin backed out of the driveway and headed to Olive Garden. The ride was silent, Jesse and Ricky focused on staring at their girlfriends while Justin forced himself to stay focused on driving. The girls simply smiled and looked out of their respective windows, pleased they had managed to render their boyfriends speechless.

Once Justin parked at the restaurant everyone filed out. Justin put his arm around Madison's waist as they walked towards the front door while Lauren simply wrapped one of hers around Jesse's. Ricky opted to hold Amy's hand and intertwine their fingers. Justin held the door for everyone once they reached it and Jesse went up to the hostess stand to let them know they had a reservation. They were immediately taken to their table and the boys pulled out the girls' chairs for them like gentlemen, each being rewarded by a thankful smile. Their waiter took their drink orders and the girls began browsing their menus while the boys pretended to. Amy felt Ricky's stare and blushed.