Soulmates: Writing on Skin [Seaycee AU]

Thirty-one

Kaycee always had difficulty being open and honest with her friends in regards to crushes and potential boyfriends. With this being said, it didn't surprise her that as Sean coasted down the relatively busy streets of Eastern, Los Angeles on the way to Bailey's, her stomach was churning with unease.

Bailey was having a small get together, solely because everyone's schedule's aligned enough to do so. It was rare to see all of her friends in one place, and as excited as she truly was to see everyone, she knew there would be a lot of questions that she wasn't necessarily excited to answer. When did you get your letters? Are you and Sean official? How did he ask? She hated questions.

She also wasn't entirely sure if everyone knew. Tahani obviously knew, she even knew before Kaycee did. She'd told Bailey, as well as Charlize. Sean had told Josh and Julian, who told Chloe. And Ken probably heard through the grapevine. It seems as though all of the bases had been covered. One less problem, I suppose.

She slouched in the passenger seat, crossing her arms over her chest. She knew her and Sean would be a large subject of conversation from previous experiences. Just last week in a private class with Tricia, she barely allowed either of them a second to breathe before she jumped down their throats. In a class with Brian a few days ago, he made the two of them stay behind to talk to them about everything. Kaycee wasn't necessarily ready to be under a microscope yet again.

Sean, on the other hand, sat quietly in the driver's seat, tapping his fingers on the steering wheel along to the music that way playing. Everything about him radiated calm. She'd be lying if she said it didn't bother her; how easily he went with the flow, how the incessant questions didn't seem to bother him. They were complete opposites in that regard.

"Someone once told me to take a picture, and that it lasts longer." Sean blurted, his famous dimple appearing as he smirked.

Kaycee slouched even further down in the passenger seat. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"You're boring holes into the side of my head with your death glare." He retorted, turning his head away from the roads for a split second to glance at her. "Did I do something that I'm not aware of? I've been told that that's a common occurrence in relationships-"

Kaycee punched his right arm. "First of all, I'm going to pretend you didn't just imply that I'm irrational. And secondly, I'm just not looking forward to being the subject of conversation all day."

"I didn't mean to imply that you were being irrational, so let's end that part of the conversation before I get my ass beat." Sean mumbled, his face contorting into a mock frown. "And I'm sure it won't be as big of a deal as you think."

Kaycee sighed, "Do you not remember Tricia? And Brian? How they wouldn't let us leave until we retold the entire story like, nine times?"

"Nine times?" Sean shook his head, his eyes twinkling as he held back laughter. "And they're our mentors, I'm sure it'll be different with our friends."

"You're just saying that to shut me up." Kaycee grumbled, turning her head toward the passenger window.

Sean placed a hand on Kaycee's knee. "Partially, yeah. I know you worry about being the center of attention, but think of it this way: everyone that we're going to see today, with the exception of Chloe and Julian haven't been through this before. Wouldn't you have liked to hear someone else's experience before going through it yourself?"

Kaycee turned her head back so she was looking at Sean. "I've heard my parents' story."

"That's different." Sean kept his hand on Kaycee's knee as he maneuvered his way through one of the densest cities. "I heard Serris' story, but I would've much rather heard one of my close friend's stories as well. I don't know, maybe that's just me."