All Carrie Beff really wanted, was a kiss in the rain. She would easily admit that it was kind of cheesy, but it wasn't her fault. Her parents had shared their first kiss in the rain; her cousins had their kisses in the rain, even Mina had admitted to kissing her new boyfriend in the rain as their first kiss. Carrie felt completely trapped. How could she possibly break this sacred tradition? She told her band one day, hoping to get their take on the whole thing.
"Its not fair. Why can't I just have a romantic kiss in the rain because I want to, not because everyone else in my family has done it?"
Her friend, Kim Kagami, simply shrugged.
"You can't let that get you down Carrie. Its up to you how you fall in love, none else"
"I know Kim. But, there's something magical to me about a kiss in the rain. All I want is to be held by someone who really cares for me. Someone who holds me tight and would never let me go. That's what I really want"
Unbeknownst to Carrie, a certain red-haired bassist was busy taking mental notes as his band mates talked. Larry Nepp had had a crush on Carrie for as long as he could remember, and it really hurt him to see her in this love crisis. All he really wanted was to do as she described and finally tell her how he felt. And yet, his fear of her rejection was too great for him to handle. All he could do right now, was to sit and listen with sorrow.
"So, what are you going to do?" Kim's sister, Konnie, asked.
Carrie shrugged.
"I don't know. I guess, for right now, I'll focus on the band. I don't want my own selfish dreams get in the way of our success. My romantic kiss in the rain will just have to come later. Now come on, lets practice"
And so Carrie waited, her ultimate focus completely on her band. It went well for a while, and The Newmans soon became one of the most popular bands in town. But then, something happened. More specifically, Todd happened.
"Who the heck is Todd!?" Larry shouted.
Carrie rolled her eyes and hugged the arm of the boy next to her.
"He's my new boyfriend. Todd, meet the band"
Todd waved, a gesture only responded to by the twins. In all honesty, Todd wasn't a half bad looking guy. He had a nice patch of shaggy black hair that went perfectly with his bright green eyes. He stood at least an inch taller than Carrie, and wore a gray shirt and kaki shorts. Larry personally thought he looked terrible.
"So, Todd. How did you two meet?" Kim asked, breaking the awkward silence that had spread through the room.
"I was just walking in the park one day, minding my own business, when I suddenly heard an angelic voice cut through the warm spring air. I followed it until my eyes rested upon the most beautiful strands of blue hair I had ever seen. I knew in that moment I had to have her. So, working up my courage, I asked her to go on a date, and she said yes"
Carrie giggled.
"That's not how I remember it. When you walked over, your face looked like a nervous wreck. It took you at least a minute of stuttering before I finally understood what you said. You were so cute when you did it, I couldn't help but say yes"
Larry wasn't sure, but he thought he heard his heart smash into a million pieces.
"What about the band?" he demanded.
"I think we all deserve a break from all those gigs. Look at you, your face totally looks stressed," Carrie observed.
Todd and Carrie continued to date through the end of the month. To her disappointment, the month went without even an ounce of rain. Todd always asked if he could kiss her, but she continued to shoot him down. She was determined to have that first kiss in the rain and nothing Todd said could persuade her otherwise. Todd said that he understood after every rejection, but Carrie had begun to notice that he was looking more and more annoyed everyday. Then, finally, a storm front began blowing into town.
"Lets go to a movie" Carrie pleaded to her boyfriend.
Todd agreed, and the couple soon found themselves standing in line with dark gray clouds blowing above them.
"Looks like its gonna come down hard" Todd observed.
Carrie nodded, a smile creeping across her face.
"That's what I'm hoping for" she whispered.
Todd and Carrie soon entered the theatre, their eyes suddenly opening in surprise. Larry, Kim, and Konnie seemed to have decided to come to the same movie on the same night. Todd looked annoyed, but Carrie waved at them ecstatically.
"I'm just going to talk with my band for a little bit" she said.
"Sure babe, go ahead. I'm just gonna use the bathroom for a sec, alright?"
Carrie nodded and walked to her friends, talking rapidly about how happy she had been in the past month. Larry did not join in on the conversation however, and began glaring at Todd with Malice. The past month had been horrible for him. His fear had blocked him, and now, Carrie was in the arms of someone else. He hated Todd with a burning passion, yet, silently thanked him for making her happy. Her happiness was all that mattered to Larry, and he was determined to make that continue to happen.
"Whoa", Carrie suddenly said, "All this thinking about rain has gone right through me. I'm gonna head to the bathroom:
The twins nodded as their friend dashed to the restroom. Larry watched her go, and sighed. Maybe Carrie and Todd were meant to be. Maybe he really did deserve that rainy day kiss with Carrie.
"Hey, is that Carrie?" Konnie asked.
Larry was broken out of his thoughts to see a sorrow stricken Carrie suddenly run past them. Without thinking, Larry ran after her.
"Care! Care, wait up" he called to her.
Carrie ignored his call and continued running, until she finally raced outside. Larry followed her, and used an extra burst of speed to catch up to her on the street corner.
"Care. Carrie, what's wrong?" he tried asking.
The blue haired guitarist merely shook her head and began to cry. Larry sighed, and wrapped his arms around her.
"What's wrong?" he asked softly
"T-Todd" she managed to choke out.
"Todd? What happened?"
"He kissed another girl Larry. I saw him by the restrooms, locking lips with some trampy blonde haired girl. I thought he like me Larry. Am I that terrible?" she sobbed.
Larry felt his anger flare up. He was about to go show Todd what it meant to hurt his best friend, when he felt Carrie begin to grip him tighter.
"I know what you're thinking. Please don't, it's not worth it" she pleaded.
Larry growled, but allowed her to keep him at bay. He felt something hit the top of his head, and began to realize that it was starting to rain.
"I guess I was just delusional", Carrie suddenly said, "I actually thought that someone cared for me. Maybe I'm just stupid. I don't deserve to be loved by someone else. I don't deserve a romantic kiss in the rain"
Larry hugged her closer to his chest. He gently placed his hand on her face.
"That's bull crap and you know it" he smiled.
Carrie's eyes rose to meet his, her facing suddenly beginning to feel very red.
"Carrie, you're the most beautiful girl that I have ever meet, and any guy would be lucky to have you. You have an awesome personality, a caring nature, and you have the biggest heart in the world. What idiot couldn't see how special you are?" Larry continued, his hand never leaving his friends face.
"You, you really thin so?"
He nodded,
"Of course I do. Maybe Todd wasn't you special kiss in the rain. That doesn't mean your prince charming isn't out there though"
Carrie smiled, her heart starting to beat rapidly.
"Or maybe…" she said, leaning in closer, "He was right here the whole time"
"Wha…"
Carrie silenced him, her lips suddenly connecting with his. The rain had now picked up, and was coming down harder than ever. The two friends didn't seem to notice however, as Larry kissed her back with all the passion he could muster. And there, under the rain and in the arms of her best friend, Carrie was happy. She had finally gotten her kiss in the rain, and nothing could possibly be better.
When the new couple finally came back, their clothes completely soaked, they looked up in surprise. Hanging from the giant concession stand sign was Todd. And, he was hanging from his underwear.
"Help Me," he pleaded.
"Oh, I don't think so Todd" Kim suddenly appeared,
"You see, when you break our best friends heart, things don't go so well. So now you have all the time in the world to hang out, and think about what you did wrong," Konnie grinned evilly.
The Newmans shared a good laugh, and walked into the movie.
Todd sighed and stared down at the floor.
"Well, crap"
Authors Note: I hope you guys liked my first one-shot. Lenny's name has been changed to Larry in order to match up with the show more accurately, and because I really like the name Larry.
Thanks For Reading!