So I made this in a total rush (a big time rush lol) so it might be kinda very sucky so please be gentle with it. I know it's not as amazing as last year's present with Kendall and Katelyn and the whole picture Kathy tweeted, BUT it is cute in its own way. Very much AU and slightly OOC. Anyways, Happy Valentine's Day everyone! -xoxo Tak
p.s. VOTE BIG TIME RUSH FOR FAVE MUSIC GROUP AND CARLOS PENA FOR FAVE TV ACTOR MALE FOR THE KCA'S! DO IT NOW!
"I swear you do this every year!" Carlos exclaimed at Kendall for his total apathy over the matter at hand. It was Valentine's Day and three-fourths of the band Big Time Rush was excited. Kendall wasn't into it. He found the day to be not only a waste of time and money, but a waste of affection and sincerity. Every year was the same. There was always a girl, someone he cared for truly, that he'd ask to be his Valentine, and then the next day, she'd tell him that it was only for the day. He'd get flustered and angry and would swear to never celebrate that awful day again, but would go back on that swear the day before because, again, there was always a girl.
But not this year. No siree. He was not going to give in. Why? Because there was no girl this time. Nope, not even one. He claimed it was because his subconscious knew that the horrid day was near, but in all honesty, it was because he was lacking in the female attracting department. The problem was more him than them. Most girls knew him from the band rather than as the boy, and frankly, he wanted to be noticed as the boy and not from the band.
"I don't care Carlos, I mean it this year." Kendall defended.
"At least come out with us for some drinks?" Logan appealed.
"With you and your dates? No thank you." Kendall replied. "Besides, even if I come, you'll ditch me after a few drinks so you can be with your girls."
"Yeah I'm not even going to argue with that." James responded honestly.
"Well then you better not complain about it!" Logan scolded Kendall, who rolled his eyes.
"I won't. I'll do something by myself." He asserted. The others let him alone, wanting to get ready for their dates tonight.
As Kendall lie on the couch, bored beyond belief, he tried to watch some T.V. but all that was on was mushy, romantic crap that just reminded him further of his loneliness. He wasn't going to complain though. He was going to do something about it. He got up and went to take a shower. He was going to go out for a drink, somewhere far from where his friends were and where he knew that romance would not follow.
He got dressed in his usual attire: plaid button-down shirt, worn-out jeans, matching vans, and a light hoodie for the slight but odd chill in the Los Angeles air. He grabbed his wallet and took a cab to a swanky but low-key bar in western L.A. It was a very obscure place, mostly meant to attract the more poetic, hipster-like crowds. A crowd Kendall knew wasn't into the mainstream holiday celebrations.
The place was one of Kendall's favorites. He had discovered it after driving around L.A. in his first few months of arriving with the guys. It was like a secret clubhouse for him. He never told anyone about it, fearing his small sanctuary could become infested with unwanted visitors. He would go there ever so often, usually when he had gone through something rough like a major fight with the guys or a heavy break up. He hadn't visited though in months, so felt nice to be back.
He went to sit at his regular stool but discovered a beautiful blonde girl sitting there with a dirty blue drink in her hand, flirting with the bartender. He was curious as to whom she was as well as why she was in his seat. Most people knew that stool to be Kendall's. Since there were very few people that came, they all knew each other well, so it was odd for him to see this newcomer.
He took a seat, three stools down from her. The bartender, a dark skinned guy in his late twenties that went by the name of Zeke, came over to get Kendall's order.
"Hey there K-Man, haven't seen you in a while." Zeke pointed out. "What can I getcha?"
"Scotch and coke, but make it a double." Kendall ordered.
"You got it! So what draws you in today?" He asks as he gets Kendall his drink.
"You know the same old same old." Kendall replied vaguely.
"Fight or flight?"
"Flight."
"The guys or a girl?" Zeke handed him the first glass.
"A mix of both but mostly my own loneliness." Kendall said, taking the drink.
Zeke chuckled. "Lemme guess, Valentines Day Blues?"
Kendall groaned. "Let's not mention it."
Zeke laughed again. Kendall took a gulp of his drink.
"Say Z, who's that blonde in my regular spot? I've never seen her before." He changed the subject.
"Oh Jo?" Kendall nodded. "She's a newbie in town. Well not in town but in this part of the area. She started coming here around September I think, shortly after you stopped coming."
"What's her story?" Kendall inquired.
"Similar to yours except she's been not as sullen when she's here." He jested. Kendall gave him a sarcastic laugh, but was intrigued.
"Why is that?" Kendall asked.
"Well some say she doesn't believe in love, others say she loves too much."
"What do you say?"
"I say she's looking for it." Zeke walks away to attend to Jo, who has called him over.
Kendall watches her talk to Zeke like he was her oldest friend. She was breathtakingly beautiful in his opinion. She had smooth, wavy hair that flowed down midway her back. Her face wasn't perfect, but the imperfections made her stand out more in a beautiful sense. Her eyebrows were thick and her nose seemed slightly crooked, but Kendall couldn't help to find her gorgeous.
She was dressed in a tight, maroon dress that hugged her body in a flattering manner, but wasn't revealing. She wore a graceful smile and her eyes felt as if they were resting from a long and tiresome search. Her laugh was melodious and soothing to Kendall's ears. He liked her appearance and manner, but didn't know if he should approach her.
"Don't do it K-Man." Zeke refrained, reading Kendall's mind.
"Do what?" Kendall said innocently.
"You know damn well what. She's just gonna hurt you." Zeke told him.
"How would you even know?" Kendall argued.
"She's not that type of girl. She looks all daisies and roses, but she's more of a thorn bush." Zeke explained. "Besides, you'll be going back on your personal pact."
Kendall grumbled. Zeke was right about that last part for sure, but Kendall couldn't help but want to get to know her still. He took another gulp of his scotch.
"At least let me introduce myself and inform her she's in my spot." Kendall bargained.
"Suit yourself." Zeke filled up Kendall's empty glass.
Kendall waited and watched for a while before emptying the glass's contents and making his way over to her.
"You must be K-man." She said, not turning away from her drink.
Kendall stopped in his tracks. "How did you-"
"Zeke talked about you a few times. I assumed by the sulky face and 'fuck this holiday' attitude that you came in with." She told him. She took a final sip of her drink and turned to face him. The first things he took notice of were her eyes. They were brown like chocolate but warm like coffee. They held more of her story than she would ever reveal. He liked that.
"I'm Jo by the way." She introduced, but didn't offer her hand to shake. Kendall was at a loss for words, struggling to get his own introduction out. Jo chuckled at him. "Take your time."
"The names Kendal and you're definitely new because you're in my spot." He said coolly, gaining back his confidence. He was surprised at how she presented herself, not expecting it from someone who looked so innocent.
"I don't see your name on it." She shot back equally cool.
"Don't need to label the things that are mine because most people already know that they are." He replied.
"As much as that didn't make sense, you can have it, I'm about to leave anyways." She told him, putting money down on the table and getting up. She stood directly in front of Kendall, close enough for him to inspect her whole. She wasn't too tall and wasn't too short. She also wasn't too skinny or too chubby. She seemed to be pretty perfect in his opinion.
"Why?" Kendall asked, letting go of his arrogant manner.
"Well I don't want to be around someone who's possessive over a bar stool." She joked, catching his tone shift.
He scoffed into a smile. "I think we both got off on the wrong hand."
"I guess, but maybe I wanted to." She played.
"Well I didn't, and I'd like to apologize for that."
"What if I don't accept?" She questioned.
"How about I buy you a drink so we're even?" He offered. He wanted her to stay. She was different. Very different, and he didn't know why he liked it.
"Hmmmm…" She bemused. "One drink."
He smirked at her and she smirked back.
Before either Kendall or Jo knew it, they were down three drinks and five shots each. Jo would have left after the first drink if it weren't for the way Kendall held his gaze on her. His eyes were green, extremely green. They were the best eyes she had ever come across. They were bottle green with specs of sea foam blue and a honey colored ring in the middle around the pupil. She found them mesmerizing every time he looked at her. They kept pleading her to stay longer, and she obeyed, though she had no real reason to.
He wasn't the typical guy she was accustomed to. He was all talk and no walk, in a good way. She couldn't believe he was real. He wasn't hitting on her and wasn't trying to get her to third base. He listened to her and genuinely seemed interested in what she had to say, even though she had insulted him a few times here and there. Why was he so interested anyways?
"Don't you have something else to do than to talk to strange women at bars?" She asked him jokingly.
"Well I wasn't expecting to see any women here, today being what it is." He told her. "I thought all girls had some sort of Valentine."
"How completely sexist of you!" She condemned playfully.
"Well most girls I know usually do." He defended.
"Now that you know me, you can never make a comment like that again." She said.
"Why don't you have a date?" He asked.
"I don't think that's any of your business." She replied. She wasn't mean but she didn't think it was right for him to ask anything personal like that.
"Sorry, I'm just curious. You seem like a really nice girl and anyone would be lucky to have you as their Valentine." He said sincerely.
There it was. That bump in the road that made her want to not only gag but bash his head into the table. His friendliness was now flirting, and she knew that everything was too good to be true.
"I have to go now." She told him, sliding off the seat and avoiding his eyes.
"Did I do something to offend you?" He asked, confused beyond belief.
She was hesitant. She was about to lie and say no, but she told him anyways. "Yes you did."
"Pardon?" He was lost.
"You flirted with me." She told him. "I thought this wasn't going to head that way, but you turned it around."
"Flirted? At what point?" He was in disbelief. "Besides, flirting isn't illegal nor unfriendly."
"Your last remark was far from friendly in my opinion." She stated.
"Well I didn't mean for it to be taken as a pick-up line." He argued. "Plus, why would I even want to flirt with you? You're pretty damn rude and have a lot to say for someone who likes to keep things quiet."
"Well you're too damn cocky and arrogant for someone who wants to be liked for his own self!" She yelled. She was fuming. He had no right to say that to her, even if they were true.
"Well you're a bitch!" He replied angrily. To think he was starting to like her company.
"And you're a dickwad!" She retorted. Her eyes burned with wrath, as did his, but when they locked gazes, something inside them stirred. They both huffed and turned away, unable to shake that feeling.
Kendall turned around back to face her. "I'm so-"
"Save it." She stopped. "Look, obviously I'm not the type of girl you keep thinking me to be, so you should really just forget about me and move on."
"I know you're not the girl that I thought you were, but you sure as hell aren't the one that you keep leading others on to be either." He argued.
"You don't know anything about me."
"I know that you're hiding from something by being here."
"How would you even know?" She inquired sharply.
"Because we all are." He answered calmly.
She turned back towards him, another snide comment ready to be shot, but she saw that his demeanor was softer and more caring. Who was this guy and why was he making her want to divulge all her secrets to him?
"I need to go," she said instead. She took her stuff and was about to walk when Kendall took her hand.
To be honest, he would have let her leave with a good riddance, but he didn't want to, despite how cheeky she was to him. She was annoying and discourteous and didn't seem to like him at all, but she wasn't fawning over him either, which was kind of what he wanted for the day. Why couldn't he just let her walk away like every other person in the bar?
"What are you doing? Why can't you just let me go?" She whined.
"I don't know!" He complained himself. "You're driving me insane, yet I'm liking it at the same time."
"I think you've had too much to drink." She suggested.
"Why won't you just be yourself for five seconds?" He asked, aggravated.
"This is me!" She exclaimed angrily.
"No it isn't. Your eyes give you away every time." He replied.
"Why do I matter to you any how? I'm just some chick you met at a bar to avoid your painfully tragic love life on Valentines Day." She said sarcastically.
"Well you're here too, avoiding something equally as tragic and painful, so you might as well tell me." He retaliated.
"Go away! God you are so agitating!" She fussed. "I really hate you right now."
"You only hate me because I'm right. You can't stand to see anyone being right other than yourself."
"So what? What's so wrong with that!?"
"You lose more than you gain." He answered.
She sat back down. She didn't want to be apart of this anymore, but she couldn't leave without getting her final say. She thought about what she could use to attack him one last time, but he touched her in the softest manner she had ever been touched, dissolving her anger.
"I know you come here to escape. I do too. It's usually from the ones you love or loved." He said, hoping if he opened up, she would too.
"I don't want to discuss why I come here. I come because I want to leave those things behind. Far behind." She finally revealed. "But we can talk about anything else, as long as this is purely platonic."
"Fair." Kendall accepted.
"Just one last question," He began after they got to know each other better in the past three hours and a handful more drinks. "Why did you not want me to flirt with you?"
Jo giggled. The alcohol in her system was shutting her guards down, but she was doing her best to keep them up. The answer to Kendall's question was fairly easy; she didn't want to fall for him on the day she refused to celebrate. She always found it okay for her to flirt with others, but never okay for them to flirt back. She was easily sucked into the false pretenses that came with flirting, especially on romantic occasions. Though she wasn't going to tell Kendall that, considering it would just make him cockier than before.
"I just don't like guys coming on to me at bars, especially if I don't know them." She answered.
"But let's say I was to flirt with you now, and this was just a ordinary restaurant, would you let me?" He pondered.
"What are you trying to say?" She asked, knowing all too well that this was again too good to last the way it had.
"I don't really know." He lied. "Something to do with us not keeping things platonic."
"You're drunk." She laughed.
"And so are you." He said, grinning.
"Your point?" She replied.
"I'm not the only one who wants to flirt in this friendship." He answered.
"Definitely drunk." She chuckled. "It doesn't matter because when tonight ends, and we both part ways, this all won't matter and we'll just see each other as friends anyways."
"So you're saying that we can do anything tonight, no strings attached, and tomorrow we'll act like it never happened?" He knew this was far from what she meant, but he wanted to bug her and even get her to agree.
She paused for a moment, trying to understand what he just said. "Yes…I think."
"Good." He whispered. He took a moment to admire her. She wasn't as aloof as she had been when he first saw her. Her eyes were kinder and less secretive. A loose strand of her hair was covering her eyes. Kendall leaned in to tuck it behind her ear. Something in him told him to lean in closer and he did.
"What are you doing?" She giggled at the closeness.
"This." He leaned in further and kissed her. His hand went up to her chin and lifted for better leverage.
For that moment, everything seemed to be in place. Neither Jo nor Kendall was escaping anymore. It was as if everything that ever happened was building up to this moment. All of this was a strange sensation to them both. Never did they think they'd be kissing a stranger in an uncommon bar on Valentine's Day.
Jo couldn't control the new emotions inside her, letting them loose and flowing into the kiss. She parted her lips, allowing Kendall's tongue to intrude and explore her mouth. The kiss was becoming more and more pleasurable, and Jo couldn't help but moan audibly as their lips smacked.
Kendall smirked into it; very surprised Jo had accepted him in so fast and was enjoying it as much as him. He wasted no time in hitting all her sweet spots, her moans turning him wild. He wanted to take this somewhere more secluded and comfortable. Going to her place wouldn't be the gentlemanly thing to do, but going to his place would mean he went back on his pact.
When the need for air became too much of a necessity, they parted, breathing heavily.
"We can't do this." She told him half-heartedly.
"But we both want to." He whined.
"I'm not the type to do this." She told him.
"Neither am I, which makes it even more perfect." Kendall supported.
"I can't do it though." She stated.
"Why not?" He asked.
"There's something missing in this equation." She answered.
"What?" Kendall asked confused.
"Love." She replied innocently. For the first time in the night, her true self seemed to appear to him. He grinned because he liked it better than he liked her act.
He took her hand and kissed it gently. He had discovered her true self wasn't just searching for love, but searching for something that would last longer than a day. "We'll find it along the way."
She hesitated. She didn't want to trust him, but she liked him. He was a stranger with a heart of gold that did care about her. She liked his earnest ways and his sincere talks. She wanted to take a leap of faith and trust him more than ever.
"Okay." She said. He kissed her cheek and then her nose, then finally her lips once more. He squeezed her hand and then finally let her leave the bar, with him by her side.
To think, both of them wanted escape the day and the romance only to end up running into it, with heads clashing. Maybe it was an accident or maybe just fate, either way, it was changing them more than they ever anticipated.