one love, two mouths ▿ abels

Chapter 4- Rita's Diner

One Love, Two Mouths  -A Zachary Abels story

Chapter 4- Rita’s Diner

‘&’

                Kendall tightly wrapped a towel around her waist and stepped out of the shower, the steam flooding out as soon as she opened the shower doors. The mirror was fogged and she swiped her hand across it, removing a portion of the liquid film.

                She then realized she hadn’t brought any clothes in with her, and was immediately frustrated with herself because her clothes were in her room. But who else was in her room?

Zach.

She slowly stepped down the hallway, hoping Zach wouldn’t try to seduce her once again due to the fact that she was already half-naked in front of him, but when she opened the door, her bed was empty.  Zach’s clothes were gone and he was nowhere to be seen.

Tears started to prick at the corners of her eyes. She shouldn’t be surprised that Zach was gone as soon as everything was slowly coming back together. He ruined it for the second time, and there won’t be a third. Kendall was done with him. Done with his messy hair, nose ring, and calloused guitar hands. She was done with his soothing words and his deep seductive voice whispering things in her ear. She was done with him. She didn’t want him anymore. If he didn’t want her, why should she be the one fighting for the relationship?

She slowly fell to her knees and cried. She thought things were going to be different. She thought they would actually try to work things out and be how they once were. She wanted her happiness back, and Zach was the key.

Jensen stormed into her sister’s room upon hearing her heart wrenching sobs. She looked around and immediately noticed something was missing- someone was missing.

“That bastard!” Jensen yelled as she grabbed Kendall and cradled her little sister in her lap, seeing Kendall like this broke Jensen’s heart, and it made her want to break Zach’s face.

“H-He just left while I was in the shower. No note, n-nothing.” Kendall hiccupped.

Jensen stroked her wet hair. “Shh, baby it’s okay. I told you he was a dick.”

Kendall sobbed harder. “You don’t have to tell me that because I a-already k-know.”

It had been 2 weeks since that intimate night between Kendall and Zach. According to Jesse and the other band mates, they haven’t seen or heard from Zach since that night, either. Kendall was somewhat relived he was gone; he had caused nothing but heartache for her and now that his presence no longer lingers in her bed, she can start on the road to recovery. To jump start her mission, Kendall had a date tonight with a nice guy named Austin. She had met him at the mall when she almost dumped her food court remnants on his shoes. After she dumped her food, they both went out for coffee and learned that they had a lot in common.

Maybe going on this date tonight was just what she needed. She needed something casual and normal in her life. Austin didn’t necessarily need to be considered a romantic interest. It would be nice for once to have a friend who doesn’t know Zach or know her past.

After 2 hours of preparation, Kendall was ready. She was dressed in causal skinny jeans and a sweater. It was just a simple date to a local dinner in town; nothing too fancy. She was relieved when he told her that was where they were going to go. She didn’t feel like dressing up, it would mean she would probably feel attracted to Austin in a tux and she felt the need to keep her hormones under control.

A knock was heard at the door and Kendall grabbed her purse and ran to answer it. She opened the door to reveal Austin as assumed. He was dressed in skinny khakis and a flannel button up. His hair was tousled and he held the biggest grin across his face.

“Hey,” he said. He grabbed her hand and walked her to the car.

He was such a gentleman, and she wasn’t accustomed to the affectionate gestures. Whenever she went out with Zach, they always ended up going to some bar and he hardly ever grabbed her hand, let alone knocked on the door. Austin opened the door and she gave him a smile as she slid into the passenger seat and buckled her seat belt.

“Where are we going, if I may ask?” Kendall asked as he got into the car and started it. The engine came to life as he gave her a smile and pulled out of the driveway.

“I thought maybe I’d like to take you to one of my favorite places to eat, nothing too fancy,” he winked as they drove along, no other words being exchanged besides the hum of the radio.

It wasn’t long until they pulled into the parking lot of a diner. Kendall smiled as she closed the door behind her. It was perfect, not too busy and it was very small and tucked away. Zach would never take her anywhere like this. She cringed and tried to shake her head clear of the thoughts of him. She wasn’t here with Zach, she was here with Austin.

But you’d rather it be Zach, wouldn’t you?

Her subconscious had a one track mind and didn’t want to picture Kendall with anyone but Zach. She hated it.

Austin grabbed her hand and they walked into the diner. She was surprised with the sudden gesture but went along with it none the less. As the door closed behind them, the lady behind the counter looked up and smiled.

“Austin! So glad to see you’re back!” She smiled as she set down two menus in front of the stools.

“It’s only been a week, Rita,” Austin smiled as he sat down in one stool and Kendall settled herself in another.

“Well still. Are you going to introduce your friend?” Rita said as she raised an eyebrow at her. Kendall smiled back as Austin put his hand on her back.

“This is Kendall. We met at the mall when she spilt food on me.”

Kendall flushed as soon as the words came out of his mouth. It was an accident.

Rita laughed at her reaction. “Well, I’ll start you kids on drinks. Austin I know you want coke, so what would the pretty lady like?” She smirked.

“I’ll have a coke also. Thank you.”

                Austin and Kendall made small talk over the rest of dinner. He talked to her about what she wanted to do when she got older, what she liked, what she didn’t like, and basically everything under the sun. She felt comfortable around him- she felt safe.          

                Much to her dismay, it came to that time when he had to take her back home. She didn’t want this night to end. Tonight had been one of her good nights. One of her nights she didn’t spend crying herself to sleep or eating her weight in chips. The drive home was filled with laughs and singing along to the radio obnoxiously loud.

                They pulled into the driveway and Kendall sighed as Austin unlocked the doors. He walked her up to the front door and as she approached the door, she turned around to face him.

“Thanks for tonight,” she smiled. “tonight has been one of the best nights in a long time.”

“Anytime. We should really do this again.”

Austin put his hands on her waist and pulled her close as he cupped her cheek. He was going to kiss her, and oh boy did she want to kiss him back. His lips were so close, he smelt like mint and it was intoxicating.

“You have got to be fucking kidding me.”

Austin let go of her and turned around to address where the voice came from. A dark figure stood in the drive way, and slowly began to walk up to the front porch lights. Kendall’s heart stopped.

“Zach,” she gasped.