I was a little disappointed with the amount of reviews the past few times, but that's not to discredit those of you who did review. So thanks for those! I'm just becoming unmotivated, that's all.

Chapter Six: Skeptics and True Believers

"I'm here Jack, because you won't ever call me back or let me know what's happening in your life," the man said with a slight smirk.

Jack begrudgingly opened the door, signaling for the man to walk in.

"I haven't been here since you moved in, it's looking good," he observed.

Suddenly he took notice in Kate, a confused look appearing.

"Kate, this is my dad. Dad, Kate," Jack said almost unwillingly, after Kate had nudged him.

"Christian," his father furthered, offering his hand out to Kate. She shook it, taking in his firm grip and the way he seemingly wouldn't look into her eyes.

"So, uhh, you just flew all the way over here on a whim?" Jack asked, crossing his arms in front of his chest.

Christian paced around a little, then laughed nervously. "Well, it's good to know I'm welcome," he said sarcastically, then explained further. "Jack, don't act like this. I have a medical conference in Manhattan for the next few days. I called you several times," he emphasized, "to tell you that, but you would never call me back."

Jack looked up to meet his father's eyes. "Okay," he simply replied.

"Okay? What else did you expect me to do other than show up here? I don't get to see you very often Jack, you've made sure of that, but when I'm on this side of the country, I want to see you," he pointed out, his hands on his hips.

"Yeah, you're right," Jack admitted, although not quickly. A few awkward moments of silence passed.

"So, uh, who is this lovely young lady over here?" he asked. "All I know is that your name is Kate," he tried to joke.

Kate shifted on her feet, and laughed nervously.

"Kate's my friend," Jack answered for her. She shot him a look that could kill. "We're dating," he quickly added.

"Ahh," Christian smiled. "I was thinking it was something along those lines. "Your mother will be happy to hear that."

"I'm not dating Kate because it will make you and mom happy, dad," Jack defended himself.

"Relax, Jack. Believe it or not I'm not here to badger you about your personal life. I'm just here to pay a visit, see how school is going."

"How long are you going to be in town?" he tried to ask casually.

"Oh, I won't be in your hair for long. The conference is three days and it starts Monday, so I'll be out of here sometime Wednesday night."

Sensing that Jack wasn't comfortable with him around, especially around Kate, he made a move to the door. "Well, I'm pretty tired from the flight. Do you have any plans for dinner?" he questioned. "I'd love to catch up."

Jack looked over to Kate, questioning her with his eyes. "Go ahead," she whispered so only the two of them could here.

"No, I don't actually. Want to meet back here around 6 or so and we'll pick somewhere to go?" Jack asked.

Christian nodded, twisting the doorknob. "Sure thing, son. And bring Kate too," he smiled. "I'll see you two later," he said with a wave, and left.

Jack let out an audible breath of air when his dad exited.

"So. That was your dad."

"Yeah," he replied simply, then the two looked at each other and burst out laughing.

"That was so awkward," Jack chuckled. "Told you that you just had to meet him to understand how our relationship is," he stated, guiding her over to the couch, his hand on her lower back.

"It didn't really seem like there was that much drama between the two of you. After you got over the surprise, anyway," she pointed out, rubbing her hand over his knee.

He turned his body a bit to face hers, looking into her eyes. "Yeah, I mean, all in all we don't have that many problems. Our personalities just kind of clash, and I'm more like him than I want to admit."

"Yeah, I know the feeling," she said vaguely, smiling slightly at him.

"I think since I left for college our relationship has been better. In high school things got pretty rough, but spending some time apart has helped, definitely," he nodded.

She sunk into him, both of them relaxing back into the couch, her head lying on his chest squarely, her body in between his legs.

"Well," she started, "I'm glad that things between the two of you aren't as grim as you made them sound."

His fingers danced over the skin on her arms, both of their breathing slowing.

"I'm going to fall asleep on you if you keep this up," Kate giggled, turning so she could wrap her arms around his waist and snuggle further into his chest.

"Why did you tell your dad that we were just friends at first?" she questioned suddenly, lifting her head up to look at him.

His eyes darted around, then he sighed. "I just get really protective of people I care about. Especially around my dad," he tried to explain, and then found himself a little flustered.

They both became suddenly shy at his answer, and she just smiled at him. "I guess that's acceptable," she teased, leaning in and giving him a quick kiss.

"We've got, what, four hours before we have to be back here? Let's go do something," he suggested, intertwining his hands with hers at their sides.

"Yeah? Like what?"

He chuckled in her ear, his breath hitting her there. She was quickly discovering it was one of her weak spots when it came to Jack.

"I don't know," he teased. "You're the one who keeps telling me to do more things on impulse," he laughed.

She glared at him in mockery. "Haha."

Jack sat up a little, taking Kate with him. "There's tons to do in Manhattan, let's just go."

"Okay, but you have to let me go back to my apartment and change first, buddy," she stated, grabbing his hand.

Grabbing his wallet from his room, he nodded. "Fair enough."

They stopped by Kate's apartment, and Jack saw exactly what she meant about Heather and her boyfriend. They were draped half naked across the couch, unable to keep their hands off of each other, even in the event of company. Jack sat in the armchair across from them, feeling extremely awkward while waiting for Kate to immerge from her bedroom.

He finally couldn't take it anymore and excused himself from the room, approaching what he could only assume was Kate's room. The door was slightly ajar, so he assumed it was safe and entered after giving a knock of warning.

"God, I see what-" he started, but stopped when he realized he'd walked in on her changing.

She smiled a little, more embarrassed for Jack than herself. Kate pulled the shirt over her head, noticing that he was now standing in the hall, pacing.

"I'm sorry, Kate," he called from outside, his back facing her.

She walked to the door and opened further. "It's fine, Jack. Relax. No big deal," she teased. "You can turn around now," she added, laughing.

She could see the blush on his face. "Sorry, it's just that Heather and that guy are practically having sex on the couch out there," he chuckled.

"Now you know why I came over," Kate deadpanned, wrapping her arms around him, pulling their bodies together in the process.

"Where do you want to go?" she mumbled against his chest.

"Let's just walk, at the very least we'll get some fresh air," he commented. They walked in silence for awhile, hand in hand, Jack replaying the mental image of a topless Kate in his mind. He couldn't help it.

Kate grinned when she saw a playground ahead. She practically sprinted off, dragging Jack with her. She plopped down on the swing, breathless, her cheeks flushed with effort. He laughed at her enthusiasm; still finding it great how much Kate loved being a kid.

"Don't just stand there. Give me a push," she teased, laughing when he got behind her, pushing her until she was swinging as high as she could.

He took a seat on another swing beside her, pumping his legs until he was flying as high as she was.

"I don't know if I'll ever understand your penchant for acting like a child," he taunted.

"I'll never understand why you have to question it so much!" She threw her head back and closed her eyes, loving the feeling of the wind running over her.

As Jack looked at her, he got an overwhelming feeling inside that Kate would change him as a person, no matter how long or short they ended up being together. He could already feel alteration in his life, slowly but surely, things that maybe no one else could point out but he could already feel.

He thought it was a bit selfish to consider Kate in that light, but it was true. Jack only hoped that he was any type of positive influence on her. There was no way that any of his previous girlfriends would've thought of playing on a swing set, no way that any of them would think of it as being fun. And he wouldn't have either, truth be told. He was set in his structured ways, stuck in a life that he didn't know was so predictable.

They continued their afternoon together, stopping back over at Kate's so she could change for dinner. Luckily, this time Heather and her boyfriend weren't there, so Jack could sit in the living room in peace while Kate got ready. He flipped on the TV, prepared to wait awhile. He chuckled to himself, thinking that girls took forever to get ready.

About twenty minutes later Kate reappeared, stopping in front of him with one leg bent, her hands on her hips. She was wearing a tight fitting black dress that stopped a few inches above the knee. Her hair was down in loose curls and she was wearing more makeup than Jack had ever seen, but it still managed to look natural, simply enhancing her already beautiful features. She was the picture of femininity, her creamy skin a stunning contrast to the black of the dress.

"You like?" she asked him after he didn't say anything for a few seconds. She did a little twirl, the dress gathering around her legs.

"Of course. You look beautiful Kate," he said sincerely, holding her chin on the underside with his fingertips. He brought his mouth to hers slowly, enveloping it in a strong, yet sweet kiss. Her tongue found his, meshing together in a delicate dance that managed to be different every time.

She sighed into his mouth as his hands ran through her hair, relaxing her completely. Kate kicked herself mentally when she realized what she'd done. It's something she'd read in the cheesy romance novels her best friend in high school was so into. She'd always laughed at those situations, thinking that the point of them was to fantasize something that would never really happen, to satisfy that part of the mind that always wanted something to be better than it could.

Experimentally she bit his bottom lip lightly then soothed it with her tongue. She smiled against him when she felt his breath draw in quickly and blow back out on her wet mouth. Their lips fell together again, and Jack sucked on her bottom lip lightly, then pulled away suddenly.

"Kate, we've gotta go or we're going to be late," he said, flustered. They made the short walk back to Jack's house, where Christian was already waiting, seated in the living room with Luke.

"Oh, sorry we're late dad," Jack apologized as the pair entered.

Christian glanced at his watch. "No worries Jack, I'm a bit early." Luke shot him a look, wanting desperately to escape the room and Jack took notice.

"Well I've just gotta get changed really quick, I'll be out in sec," he explained, apologizing to Kate with a glance.

She sat down awkwardly on the other end of the couch, as far away from Christian as she could manage.

"So how long have you and Jack been seeing each other?" he asked her, stirring the straw around in his drink.

Kate hesitated. "Oh, umm, a little over a month."

"Jack seems to like you," he pointed out.

"I would hope," she laughed nervously. Their conversation was broken and uncomfortable, neither having much in common or knowing enough about the other.

Finally they were on their way, Kate feeling self conscious when Jack insisted she sit in the passenger seat while Christian drove, Jack taking the back seat. They arrived at an upscale restaurant in the heart of Manhattan, far away from the student joints that were littered around the Columbia campus.

Jack pulled out her chair for her, scooting her in once she was seated. He sat by her, and Christian sat across from the two.

"Order whatever you want. My treat," he offered.

Kate smiled gratefully. "Thank you, Dr. Shephard."

He smiled back at her, surprisingly warm. "So I see Jack's told you that I'm a doctor then?"

She opened the menu, running over all of the unfamiliar titles that appeared. "Yeah, he did," she said, almost distracted. "But I don't know much else."

"Well, I'm sure you wouldn't find me that interesting. How did the two of you meet?" he asked, switching topics as the waiter took their drink orders.

"At a party," Jack said. And "At the tutor center," Kate said at the same time.

"Well, which is it?" Christian laughed.

"The tutor center," Jack took a deep breath. "Jack, I didn't know you tutored," he said, seemingly interested.

"Yeah. I don't. Kate does," he cringed.

She squeezed Jack's hand underneath the table. "He was just having a bit of a problem in biochem, so I helped him, and that's how we met," she smiled at him.

"Jack, why didn't you tell me you were having problems with school?" he asked, a bit worried.

"Because of this, how you're reacting. I didn't want to disappoint you," he said softly. Kate's heart melted at his honesty, even in front of his father.

"Jack, you've had an extremely successful academic career, and I'm proud of you for that. Last time I checked, premed wasn't an easy course load," he laughed. "I had some problems in a few of my classes too," he winked. "But I'm glad you're getting help."

Jack looked a bit surprised. "Well, I would've told you had I thought you'd react like that," he chuckled.

"So," Christian started. "What major are you Kate?"

She snapped out of her daze in realization that she was being brought back into the conversation. The night continued like that, Kate being almost grilled by Christian, but she could tell he was in protective parent mode, simply looking out for Jack's best interests again.

Although it was a bit uncomfortable at times, the night went surprisingly well. She saw first hand how much alike Jack and his father were, but Jack wasn't as rough around the edges as Christian seemed to be.

"What, Kate, you're not going to chime in on this?" Jack asked her with a smile. He'd definitely learned how opinionated Kate was. The two had been in some debate about end of life care and she hadn't been all that interested.

"I don't think it's as black and white as the two of you are making it out to be," she explained. "Even medicine, something so concrete, can't be explained in a few sentences."

Christian looked her over. "Fair enough," he finally said.

She'd seemed to earn his full respect, just from the simple manner of expressing her own opinion. Soon they were done with dinner and Christian drove them back to Jack's.

"Kate, do you need me to drop you off at your place?" he questioned nicely. Kate looked at Jack curiously.

"I'll drive her back, but thanks dad."

Christian shook Jack's hand and to Kate's surprise gave her a brief hug. "Thanks again for dinner," she said.

"I'll call you Jack, maybe we can get together a few more times while I'm still in town."

"Sure thing," he replied, closing the door after him.

"You did great tonight," he smiled, circling his arms around her waist. "Juliet never did well," he slipped up.

"Juliet? That was her name?"

He fumbled with his words. "Yeah," he finally said.

"Thank you for telling me about all of that, even if it's not something you're proud of," she said sincerely. "It really shows that you want to change."

Jack pulled her against him tightly and they held each other, eventually pulling their heads back a little and kissing. It deepened, as it usually did, as they explored each other's mouths. Kate had butterflies in her stomach as she felt his heated hand cover her breast, never breaking away from her mouth.

They groaned against each other, finding it harder each time to stop where they were.

"Do you want to stay over tonight?" he asked her breathily, pulling away and looking into her green eyes.

Kate stared into his brown orbs. They were warm and inviting, as she tried to think of a reason to say no. Jack had made her feel like no one else had.

"Yeah," she whispered against his mouth, as she fell into his body again, capturing her lips with his.

Ooh la la. Will they or won't they?