For the longest time I've wondered what kind of history Jesse Kinsella had in Bluebell so with this story (I honestly don't know how long I'll make it but regardless) I hope to create a little history between him and one of my favorite characters. And ugh I really wish they had done this one the show cause honestly how pretty would they have been?! Anyways hopefully you all enjoy this and let me know if you like it and to continue. This is unbeta'd so all mistakes are mine. :) Also please listen to the song below, it totally inspired this whole thing and it's adorable. [set during S1E18 Bachelorettes and Bullets]
I haven't seen you in ages
Sometimes I find myself wondering where you are
For me you'll always be eighteen and beautiful
And dancing away with my heart
Dancing Away With My Heart by Lady Antebellum
"Here we are." Jesse said as he pulled up in front of the all too familiar home of the Breeland family. It still looked the same as when he left years ago, well-kept and the brightest white house on the block with a plush garden of flowers. However, an obnoxiously large white van with a pink half angel and half devil creature was plastered along the side. He frowned as it seemed completely out of the ordinary for the Lemon Breeland he had grown up knowing.
"Thanks, this will only take a minute, I promise!" Zoe called over her shoulder as she popped out of the truck. Jesse watched the small brunette as she walked quickly from his vehicle to the porch that wrapped itself around the home. He noticed a group of young women gathered at the bottom of the steps of the porch.
With a sigh he turned the key and the soft rumbling of the engine came to an end, he casually stepped out of his truck and walked towards the group of women. They were all chatting amongst themselves excitedly and he couldn't help but wonder what the occasion was all about. He assumed some kind of girls getaway weekend, a bachelorette party or perhaps a birthday celebration. Whatever it was, they were all clearly excited about it. All of them with the exception of the youngest one, with blonde curls, who struck an alarming resemblance to Lemon Breeland herself. His instincts told him it was Magnolia Breeland all grown up. He remembered her as a small young girl with chubby cheeks and missing baby teeth. Taking in how grown up she was made him realize just how long he had actually been away from the little town of Bluebell.
Lemon's miniature twin seemed to be getting a good talking to by a brunette just a tad taller than her with short rich brown curls. He could tell she was getting a talking to because Magnolia and her sister had the same pissed off face, he recalled being on the receiving end of it plenty of times in his teenage past. It concerned him that there were now two Breeland women wreaking havoc in Bluebell instead of just the one he had grown up with.
"You starin' at somethin'?" He snapped himself out of his reverie to realize he was now on the receiving end of the stare that Magnolia had not only perfected but had somehow managed to make more terrifying than Lemon herself. It was then that all attention had turned to him, all sets of eyes but the brunette giving Magnolia a piece of her mind had turned to settle on him. "Are you hard of hearing or just plain stupid?"
"Magnolia Breeland! Manners." The brunette insisted before twirling around to apologize. Her brown eyes widened at the sight of him, and her mouth hung open slightly but not enough to let anyone else know that she was speechless. "Jesse." She muttered quietly but loud enough for him to know she had acknowledged him.
"Anna Beth." He said with a smile, taking in her appearance. She was just how he remembered her from all those years ago. Porcelain skin, rich dark curls, lively brown eyes and a smile that could blind someone. Her style was the only thing that had changed over the years but it had merely sophisticated since he had last seen her. She was the spitting image of the gorgeous southern girl that he and other soldiers from the area had spoken about so much while in the military.
Magnolia cleared her throat, wordlessly asking someone to fill her in on who this party crasher was and why he was there when it was supposed to a girls only weekend.
Anna Beth forced a smile before she pulled Magnolia next to her as they took a few steps closer to Jesse. "Magnolia this is Jesse Kinsella, Wade's older brother. You were quite young when he left I don't—"
"You're the one who always brought me candy at daddy's office." Magnolia burst out into a bright smile as Jesse released a small laugh and nodded. "You were there an awful lot." Her eyes narrowed at him skeptically.
"Guilty as charged." He mused as he recalled her curly blonde pig tails and small innocent smile from all those years ago. "Let's just say I got into a lot of fights back then…not the case anymore." Jesse insisted as Magnolia nodded accepting his answer.
"Well thanks, Daddy always appreciated a wired five year old in the office." She giggled that distinct feminine Breeland giggle that told him Brick loved anything but. The astonishing resemblance between Magnolia and Lemon was almost too much for him to compute at that current moment. Especially with Anna Beth standing in front of him, looking perfect as always and reminders of his past coming back to him all at once. Magnolia then stepped forward and planted an innocent kiss on his cheek before heading towards the bus with several other of the women.
He stoically stood in the same spot, his eyes never leaving the brunette in front of him. "She's nicer yet somehow scarier than her sister."
"She's fourteen ya know. A little young for ya." Anna Beth quipped, with a faint curve of her lips. Jesse stifled a laugh knowing she was giving him a hard time.
"To be honest I don't think I could handle a Breeland." He held up his hands defensively as if he was being accused of something. "I swear they got a bit a crazy in 'em" They both laughed at the statement that every member of Bluebell knew was a little bit true.
"How ya been AB?" He recalled the last time he had actually physically seen her was six years ago at the University of Alabama versus Auburn University pre-playoffs football game. He was running back for University of Alabama and she was a cheerleader for Auburn University. They had made eye contact several times throughout the game but Jesse knew his place when he saw her blow a kiss to the second line wide receiver and business major, Jake Nass.
"It's been a while." He continued and stuffed his hands in his jacket pockets as she fumbled with the buttons on her jacket. His eyes caught sight of the gold band that showcased a small diamond on her left hand, he knew the answer before she even had to tell him. He wouldn't have expected a woman like her to still be single and on the market, any man in his right mind would be stupid not to do all they could to make her happy and call her their wife.
"Good, just great." She insisted a little too forcefully. She hoped that he hadn't picked up on it because the last thing she wanted to tell him was that her husband of five years had straight up left her for a waitress in Baton Rouge merely a month ago. The embarrassment would be too horrendous to bare. "Six years, two months and eight days to be exact."
Jesse was surprised that she had it right down to the day of how long it had been since they had last seen one another. "If you say so. I can't believe you remember that long ago."
"I only remember because Jake proposed to me that night." She mumbled almost embarrassed to even admit it because whenever the truth came out she would surely sound stupid for remembering that day when it clearly meant nothing to Jake himself. At the time though, it had truly been one of the happiest moments of her life and now here she was a still married but technically single woman and no one to confide it for fear of the judgement and gossip that came with living in a small town. However, it wasn't just Jake's proposal that made that day, she had been happy to see Jesse but it hurt at the same time. She had heard throughout town that he joined the military not long after that day.
"I'm happy it worked out for ya. You deserve it, I'm sure Jake's a great guy." Jesse spoke blindly, he had never really met Jake Nass but had heard things of him during their college years but nothing really since. He had tried to make Bluebell his past once he finished school and joined the military, though he was still not sure if that was the right choice he made all those years ago, leaving everything he loved behind. His hometown, friends, family, but most of all her...
Anna Beth looked up at the sparkling disco ball that hung from the gymnasium ceiling, absently swaying along with the soft melodic music. Her classmates covered the dance floor, most of the girls decked out in red or pink as to go along with the Valentine's Sweetheart dance theme and the boys in a simple dress shirt and pants. However, Wade Kinsella had chosen his signature Levi's, boots and a white button up just to be different than everyone else. He was currently 'dancing' with Keri Lynn Warner, but from the looks of it they'd be moving to his truck within the next couple of minutes because their mouths hadn't left each others in the past three songs.
"You just gonna stand there all night AB lookin like that?" Anna Beth looked to her left and saw Jesse Kinsella looking much more put together than his younger counter part. However, what they lacked in similar sense of style, they more than made up for with their Kinsella charm and that deadly sly grin of theirs. The latter of which was directed her way and she couldn't help but bask in the giddiness it brought. "Where's your date?" He asked when he was close enough to speak to her without raising his voice to be heard over the music.
"He wasn't feelin' right so he left early." Anna Beth said simply with a small smile. She hadn't been that sad about his departure, she had only really said yes because the person she had initially wanted to go with hadn't asked her.
"Lemme guess, Jonah Breeland?" He nudged her shoulder playfully teasing.
"Why does everyone think I should go out with Jonah?" She shook her head, unable to understand why everyone insisted she and Jonah Breeland go out on a date. Even her best friend and Jonah's cousin, Lemon kept pressing her as to why nothing had ever come of their innocent flirting from years past.
"Well whoever he is, he's missin' out and I plan on takin' full advantage of it." Jesse held out his hand for her to take. Anna Beth mulled it over in her head or pretended to at least, she didn't want him to think she was just sitting around waiting for him to ask her to dance. With a smile Anna Beth slipped her small hand into his and let him guide her to an open spot on the dance floor.
He circled one arm around her lower back, pulling her so close to his body that Anna Beth swore she could feel his heartbeat perfectly. She certainly felt hers accelerate with just the mere proximity to Jesse.
"You look stunnin' tonight by the way." He spoke softly, dipping his head closer to her ear. His breath tickled the exposed skin of her neck due to the up do that her mother had put her dark hair into. However, Anna Beth had the privilege of getting to choose her dress which was a deep rich red color that hugged her body but revealed nothing more than a modest amount of leg and the faintest amount of cleavage. Her father wanted her to wear a sweater to fully cover the upper portion but she somehow won the argument and managed to get away with just a jacket.
"Thank you," Anna Beth felt a slight blush creep on her cheeks but hoped the pink blush she had applied would mask it. Getting a compliment from an older boy always made a girl feel good but the fact that it was Jesse just made it all the more meaningful. "You look great yourself. Wade however…" She began with a nod towards the make out session that was taking place next to the stage.
"Wade's a special breed in case you haven't noticed." Jesse laughed and Anna Beth giggled and nodded, acknowledging that she indeed had noticed his brother's way of standing out and being different than everyone else. "He wanted to wear plaid and wife beater, I basically had to force him to wear that white shirt." They shared a laugh as the lights dimmed lower and the disco ball became more prominent in the darkened room.
"Is it me or does that thing remind you of the moon?" Jesse stated, glancing out of the corner of his eye at the large mirrored ball.
"Kinda." She smiled at him but then it dawned on her that she was probably stealing him from his designated date. "Where's your date, Jesse? I wouldn't feel right stealin' you away from someone else."
"Well, Ms. Thibodaux believe it or not I came here solo." Anna Beth was somewhat surprised that Jesse Kinsella had no date. She knew girls in her grade that would have been thrilled to be his date so they could hang off his arm and laugh at every joke he made. The Kinsella brothers were a hot commodity in Bluebell.
"Really now?" She raised a perfectly arched eyebrow at him, unbelievably. "How did that happen?"
Jesse let his lips curve upwards before he looked down at her with the faintest hint of a smile on his lips. "Because the girl I wanted to ask already had a date, but thanks to the good lord above that chump left early." Anna Beth's breath caught in her throat at his admission. Jesse Kinsella wanted to take her? Her mind was blown but her heart was happy.
"You're lyin'" She gave him the best glare she could, after all her best friend was Lemon Breeland, Queen of the glares.
"If I'm lyin' would I do this?" Jesse moved a hand from her waist to just under her chin. He tilted her head upwards slightly so his lips could press gently against hers. It was soft and sweet and was not at all how she pictured a kiss from Jesse to be. He had a reputation and she had heard stories from various other girls in town but at this moment she didn't care what anyone else had told her. All she knew was that she was enjoying it and Jesse Kinsella had wanted to take her to the sweetheart dance all along.
The kiss lasted for several moments before Anna Beth pulled away as she remembered they were in a public place and it wouldn't be lady like of her to have a full on make out session in the middle of the high school gymnasium. Not to mention Reverend Mayfield was chaperoning and he just so happened to be her father's golfing buddy every other Saturday, the last thing she wanted was her father hearing about this.
"Believe me now?" He asked with a smirk, that signature Kinsella one that struck every girls heart at some point in their life. Her stomach did a mild flip and her heart raced, she knew this was her moment but she wouldn't trade it for anything in the world. All she was hoping for was for the music and that night to never end.
"I might need more convincing later." Anna Beth flashed him her own seductive smile which was met with a raised brow and wide white smile. Anna Beth pulled herself closer to Jesse, resting her head on his chest, now able to hear the beat of his heart perfectly. She swore that it was racing just as fast as hers and a satisfied smile graced her lips.
"That shouldn't be a problem." He said softly, resting his cheek on the top of her head, the lavender scent of her invading his senses completely. They swayed softly to the music until there wasn't anymore music to dance to.
"Yeah, he's just wonderful." Anna Beth plastered another faux smile on her face, but Jesse didn't seem to fall for this one like he had the last. She always hated how easily he was able to read her every movement or word. "What brings you to town?"
"Visiting." He said, even though he wasn't entirely sure why he had come back to Bluebell. He had been heading to North Carolina and somehow ended up in his sweet home of Bluebell, Alabama. Jesse had sat at the welcome sign for an hour, inwardly debating if he should or shouldn't but something had told him to. "Dad…Wade. Although that didn't go too well earlier." He scoffed at his earlier run-in with his estranged brother.
"Well when ya don't call or visit in years people start holdin' grudges." She stated matter of factually, her hands making their way to her hips and her lips pursed slightly. He could tell she was upset, whether it was to do with him and his sudden return he couldn't be sure but there was definitely something brewing beneath that beautiful exterior of hers.
"I've noticed." He muttered, first Wade giving him the cold shoulder and now Anna Beth. Jesse started to wonder just why he even bothered to stop in his hometown to begin with, he was starting to think he wasn't welcome anymore.
"Alright ladies, let's go." Lemon Breeland whirled past both him and Anna Beth like a tornado, the blonde southern belle was on a mission and it seemed like no one would stand in her way. The group of women huddled around Lemon as they were about to board the obnoxiously large bus. Anna Beth trailed behind slowly, casting one last glance back at him.
"Think we could reschedule this lunch date?" Zoe chirped from beside him with a soft yet sympathetic smile. He caught the hurt in Anna Beth's eyes quickly before she looked away and joined Lemon at the door of the bus. Jesse tore his eyes away from the brunette that haunted his past to the new one right beside him. He flashed Zoe a smile and muttered an affirmative response to the young brunette doctor.
"This is going to be an interesting bus ride." He muttered to no one but himself.