Some things you never grow out of, but may learn to love more…
Rugrat /All grown up
Hey people, how are you guys? I'm hoping a lot better now that I have finally updated. Man, its been such a long time since I updated.
This chapter is dedicated to my two best friends Kitaro and Tekken4life, you guys just give me a reason to keep going. LOVE MUCH!
It is also dedicated to all my reviewers, thank you for sparing a few minutes of your time to give me feedback. YOU GUYS ROCK!
Yougotburned, Acosta perez jose Ramiro, xExpectoxPatronumx, fast track, High Queen Susan the Gentle, Misty, ThomasandTUGSfan, WhiteAsukalover, BrittanyMiller1000, ray313ray, Alyssa, Erra Fawkes 13, and other anonymous reviewers…
Now onwards to Chapter 10!
Chapter 10: There's a first…
Disclaimer: I do not own Rugrat/ All Grown up or any of their characters
Finster's Home
Suzie slowly climbed the stairs with a small package in her hand. She reached Kimi's room and frowned at the closed door. Kimi had been home for close to two hours and hadn't come out of her room. That could only spell one thing. The high-strung Japanese woman was upset about something. And Suzie was pretty sure she knew about what. She knocked on the door. "Kimi, may I come in?"
Kimi grunted something that didn't sound remotely English, Suzie rolled her eyes then smiled. "You know, I'm taking that as a yes." She strolled in, just barely and froze. Her eyes widened. "My god, what the hell happened here?"
The room looked like it had been hit with a freaken tornado. It had articles of clothing scattered everywhere. Man, she didn't even know Kimi had possessed so many clothes. You could barely find the floor. She was pretty sure that this place use to have a bed too, somewhere. She toed off a shirt as she entered deeper in to the pit of Kimi's attire. She just hoped Chuck knew how much she loved him in case she didn't return. Her eyes wandered the room, searching. "Kimi, where are you?"
Suzie witnessed a pile of clothes shifting were she assumed the bed was. Then an arm shot up followed by a muffled out response. Suzie rolled her eyes as she approached the bed and grabbed the arm and pulled Kimi out of the pile. "Thank god, I thought you were dead in here."
"I might as well be." Kimi moped.
Suzie just shook her head and gave Kimi a sympathetic smile. "Oh honey, what were you trying to accomplish with this?" She gestured to the mess they were devoured by. That's if you could even call it a mess. There was definitely a stronger word.
Kimi glanced over her room and winced, more at the fact that she would have to clean it up eventually. Damn Tommy Pickles! Then she looked sheepishly at Suzie. "Um, spring cleaning?"
Suzie clucked her tongue. "You know Kimi, for a smart girl, I'm pretty sure you got the concept all wrong there. It usually involves cleaning and not creating a chaotic mess."
Kimi rolled her eyes. "Har-har, very funny." Suzie just let out a furtive smirk. Then Kimi glared at her. "Don't give me that look."
"And what look might that be, Kimi?" Suzie arched a brow, suppressing the smile that wanted to break out.
Kimi pointed at Suzie's face. "That look. This has nothing to do with Tommy." She denied.
Suzie smiled and spoke in a humoring tone. "Of course not, sweetie."
"Oh no, not that tone too." Kimi pouted.
This time Suzie laughed. She wondered if Kimi knew how sick she was actually making herself over one date. "What tone?"
"The one that says; Kimi, I'm agreeing with you because you've gone absolutely insane!" Kimi let out exasperated.
"And what does the state of this bedroom say?" Suzie countered.
"It, it says I have nothing to wear!" Kimi let out resigned. There was no point in lying to Suzie, she practically knew her better than she knew herself. "God, Suz, why did I agree to going out with him? And why do I care so much?"
Suzie smiled slightly amused. "Firstly, because even though you claim it's for work purposes, you really want to and secondly, you care because he is Tommy."
Kimi stared at her and frowned. "You know, you are the worst best friend ever. Why do you always have to be the voice of truth and reason?"
"It's what I do." Suzie shrugged. "Plus if I was really the worst best friend ever would I come bearing gifts?"
Kimi's eyes widened and then were aimed at the little lilac package distrustfully. She never really trusted Suzie's gifts because they were always a little to girly for her liking. "What type of gift?"
"Open it, oh suspicious one." Suzie rolled her eyes and handed the bag over to Kimi. Kimi dug into it and pulled out the purple craft paper concealing the actual present. Then she plowed in deeper and pulled out a simple v-neck, dark purple cashmere top. Kimi felt the material between her fingers and turned to her best friend.
"It's perfect." Kimi almost whispered. Then she hugged Suzie tight.
"I take it, you like it." Suzie chuckled as she held on.
Kimi pulled back and beamed at her best friend. "Love it. How did you know?"
Suzie grinned. "It's what we, worst best friends tend to anticipate."
Kimi laughed. "Oh that title is totally revoked now, you definitely get the most spectacular psychic best friend ever."
Suzie giggled. "I definitely like that one better. Anyway you should get dressed, Tommy will be here in half an hour." She winked and departed from the jungle that was Kimi's room.
"Right…" Kimi said wryly to herself. This was stupid, she thought to herself. Why the hell was she so nervous? It wasn't as if she and Tommy hadn't gone out alone before. But those weren't exactly considered dates, right. This was their first official date. Damn! She was going to be sick. God, what's wrong with you, Kimi? She acted as if she hadn't been on a date before. Calm down, it's not like she hadn't kissed him. More than once, on non-intimate occasions. Her mind journeyed over to those acute moments. His unbelievably compliant lips on hers, his rough hands discovering parts of her feverish body, the texture of his hair beneath her hands. Her stomach clenched at the sinful thoughts. Hell, this is what he did to her when she simply thought about him. Imagine her going on an actual date with him. With all the intimacy implied. She groaned, "I'm so screwed!"
Tommy arrived a few minutes early at the Finster property. He rested his forehead on the steering wheel for a moment, closing his eyes. "Okay, Tommy, be cool, you can do this, it's just a date." He thought out loud. "Well sort of." He let out a half laugh, thinking of what he had planned for the evening. Maybe he should just cancel that and take her to an actual movie and dinner. You know the cliché but guaranteed to work dating dynamics. No, he couldn't back down now. She wouldn't hate it, would she? He honestly didn't know. This wasn't a friendly event. It was more than that. And he only had five dates to actually prove it. To win her over. He definitely had his work cut out for him. He glanced up at the digital clock on the dashboard. "Okay, show time, Tommy Pickles." He laughed at the irony of that statement as he got out of the car and headed for the door.
He rang the doorbell as he quickly did a last minute check on the freshness of his breath. Minty, he grinned. Then as the door opened his grin faded gradually. Chuck stood in front of him with a scrutinizing glare. He looked Tommy up and down. Tommy wore black jeans, a white cotton shirt covered by his trademark leather jacket. He looked good, a little too good, Chuck thought.
Chuck raised a brow. "Thomas."
Tommy suppressed the urge to laugh and mimicked Chuck's serious overtone. "Charles."
"Come in." Chuck offered.
"Don't mind if I do." Tommy responded following Chuck into the lounge. They both sat on opposing sides of the room. It was sort of humorous. Then the red head began rubbing his chin.
"So you and Kimi, hey?"
Tommy simply rolled his eyes. "Seriously Chuck? You're going to pretend like I'm a total stranger?"
"I don't know what you talking about." Chuck shrugged. "This is just standard procedure and since my dad isn't here, I have to take over."
Tommy laughed and humored his best friend who he assumed took his role as big brother a little too seriously. "Okay, well what do you want to know?"
Chuck stared at Tommy unsure what to ask. He wasn't really sure how it worked after the pre-intimidation stage. As he was thinking of a question to ask, Suzie stepped into the lounge a bright smile on her face.
"Hey Tommy, don't you look handsome." She walked over and gave him a hug as he stood up.
He grinned, thinking thank God. "Well, thank you." He leaned back and smiled at her. "But I'm nothing compared to you, beautiful. So when are you going to leave Chuck and marry me?" He teased.
Suzie simply giggled. "I don't know…" She pondered. "I'm sort of fond of him, can't I just keep him to play with when you busy?"
Tommy laughed. "Sure, anything for you, beautiful."
Chuck stood up and frowned. "Hey give me back my fiancé." Both Suzie and Tommy laughed. Suzie stepped into Chucks arms as Kimi treaded down the steps.
Tommy's eyes lit up face followed by the quirking of his lips into a subtle smirk. If he had two options of describing her between simple and beautiful, he wouldn't be able to choose. She looked simply beautiful, he thought with bewilderment. Was that a hint of makeup on her face? He was amused that she would go to the trouble for him. When he finally found his tongue he spoke. "Ready to go Finster?" He gestured his arm.
Kimi forced a smile on her face to hide the butterflies that were terrorizing her stomach. "As ever, as I'll ever be, Pickles." She placed her palm on his arm as they departed the Finster home.
Both Suzie and Chuck, arm in arm, watched as their best friends journeyed into unfamiliar territory. Suzie with a goofy grin on her face and Chuck with a bemused look on his. Then Chuck frowned. "I forgot to ask him, what were his intentions."
Suzie rolled her eyes then set a mischievous grin on her face. "Well, you know, we sort of have the entire house to ourselves. I dare you think about what my intentions are?"
Chuck saw the glint in Suzie's eyes forgetting entirely about the date. Then he gulped. "Should I be afraid?"
"Very…" Suzie chuckled, seductively as she shut the door behind them.
In the car
The drive was silent. Both of them unsure what to say. Kimi stared out of the window out into the night. It was just was one of those nights, where there was not a cloud in sight. Only the vast darkness coating the earth with the constellations winking at her. She smiled at the thought. They had been driving for close to a half hour now. She had no clue what he planned and where he planned to take her. And she was certainly not going to ask because that would mean her breaking the silence first. She wasn't sure she wanted to or how she would respond.
Tommy glanced over in Kimi's direction every thirty seconds. But it wasn't like he could help it, she just looked amazing. And the starry night and the silence just made her more enchanting. But as the silence dragged on the more nervous he became and the last thing he wanted was an awkward setting. He glanced over at her slightly keeping his focus on the road. He spoke, his voice low. "Don't you want to know where we going?"
She turned to face him, a smile ghosting around her lips. "Not really. Okay maybe a little."
He grinned. "Well, it's sort of a surprise."
She glared at him. "Then why did you ask?"
"Just wanted to know if you wanted to know." He smirked.
She rolled her eyes. "And how would it benefit you to know such information?"
"Well, at least I know that you interested."
She let out a half laugh. "Seriously? Well, as long as you not taking me anywhere to kill me and dispose of my body, I'm okay with not knowing."
Tommy chuckled. "Well, hold that thought." Then he met her eyes. "You look beautiful, Kimi."
Kimi suddenly feeling shy dropped their gaze. "Thank you." He felt amused by her reaction. And decided if anything this night would definitely be interesting.
They arrived at their destination. Kimi frowned as the engine of the car died down. She searched through her window and all she could see was a very rundown area and a school hall in front of her. Certainly he wouldn't bring her somewhere so dead, so remote as a first date venue. She turned to him when he pulled the keys out of the ignition. He walked around the car and opened her door. "Is there something wrong with the car?" She asked hoping.
His brows drew. "No, why?"
"Oh god, then you did bring me here to kill and dispose of my body." She said her face full of worry.
"Oh c'mon, we are going to be late." He chuckled and took her hand in his, they walked towards the hall.
"Late for what?"
"Well rumor has it there is a great show going on tonight." He grinned as he led her in. The place was scattered with people from the community. Most of them from unfortunate upbringings. This was a rundown neighborhood. But they all appeared close-knit. The conversations seemed intimate as if everyone knew everyone. Kimi took in all of this highly confused. Tommy stopped in front of this relatively large African American woman.
She beamed at him and spoke in her large motherly voice. "Thomas, I'm so glad you could make it."
He smirked at her. "You think I'd miss this? No way." Then he gestured to Kimi who still had a baffled look on her face. "This is my date, Kimi Finster."
"Ah, Miss Finster, how are you dear?" The large woman gathered Kimi in a friendly embrace.
Kimi couldn't help but smile. "Kimi's fine, Mrs.?"
The woman let out a deep chuckle. "It's Agnes dear, there's no need for formalities here, isn't that right Thomas."
Tommy smiled sheepishly. "Yes ma'am."
"Well then why don't I get Jordan to show you to your seats? Jordan?" She called the fifteen year old boy who walked over to them.
"Mama Agnes?" The teenager replied.
"Would you mind showing Thomas and his lovely date to their seats?"
"Okay, Mama Agnes." The boy shrugged. "Sup Tommy?"
"Sup Jordan?" Tommy fist bumped the teenager as if they were close friends. They started walking down the aisle towards their seats. The place seemed absolutely crowded with conversations being mixed around at different pitches.
"She really your date, man?" Jordan asked.
"Yeah why?"
"Well I think she's too pretty for you." The teenager grinned. Kimi overheard and couldn't help but grin.
"You are trying to make time with my date, Kid?" Tommy teased knowing the teenager hated being referred to as a kid.
"That's wacked man, I'm like fifteen, I ain't a kid." The teenager glared at Tommy.
"Not from where I'm standing, kid." Tommy grinned.
"That's coz you're old." Jordan grinned. Both Tommy and Kimi laughed at that. They reached their seats right in the front with reserve signs on them.
"Yeah yeah, get out of here wise ass. And tell Trev I said good luck." Tommy smiled.
"Ite man." The teenager nodded and left towards the stage.
Tommy turned to face Kimi, he grinned. "You can't say I'm cheap these are front row seats, most people would kill for them."
Kimi shook her head and laughed as she sat down on the plastic seat. She was still highly baffled at what was going on here. All she gathered so far was that there was a school production going on here. It was a very important community event. And for some odd reason they seemed to be familiar with Tommy. Not just Tommy the famous director but on a personal level. She sort of enjoyed the interaction between the teenage boy and Tommy. It was nice seeing a side of him she didn't know existed.
"So whoseTrev?" She asked him, trying to speak over the racket.
He let out a slow smile. "He is Jordan's brother and the lead in the play we're about to see."
"How do you know so much about this?" She asked as Mama Agnes walked up on stage.
"Shshsh… it's about to start." He hushed her as the rest of the hall died down.
Mama Agnes stood at the mike addressing the crowd. "Good evening everyone, I hope you are ready for tonight's entertainment most of our babies are about to perform." The crowd seemed to let out a cheer.
The large woman giggled. "Okay, okay but before we get straight to that I would just like to acknowledge a special angel in the hall tonight. Someone who has made all this possible, someone who has given our babies the urge to dream!" That achieved a bigger roar from the community. Mama Agnes continued but seemed a little choked up at this point. "Someone very like my baby, the late nineteen year old Nathan Leo Mitchell, who died before he ever really lived. But if he was alive today he would have been so proud to see this production, to see his community start dreaming again. To see his own personal friend take an interest in this dying community. Tommy Pickles, who had worked with these kids for three weeks now, in his own free time. God bless him and may he join us on the stage."
The crowd was filled with mixed emotions, some were cheering, some were applauding, some were crying. Kimi was unsure which one she wanted to do. It was such a heartfelt accolade that Tommy had received and she witnessed all the emotion in his face when he heard the praise. His eyes darkened and he was almost on the brink of tears. It was as if he was frozen. She squeezed his hand and brought him back. He turned and looked at her. Their eyes held, electricity passing through their gaze. As if she sensed he needed it, she smiled gesturing towards the stage. He nodded and rose, he walked towards the mike. She stared at him full of pride, thinking that perhaps she never really knew him as much as she thought she did. To think that he would be a part of this was so unreal. She had been involved in charity work but nothing like this. Her heart ached, seeing the sadness in his eyes when his friend was mentioned.
Now, he stood there waiting for the noise to die down. Then he lifted his head, his eyes glistened. "Thank you Mama Agnes. Good evening. As some of you know, my name is Tommy Pickles. I'm a movie director and I'm here to tell you something that I have learnt over the last three weeks. Let me just start by saying that Nathan wasn't just a dreamer, he was the angel. He made a very strong impact in my life and continues to do so. And I think most of all he would have wanted his home town to know that this community is not dying, it's evolving, it's growing. And if anything it was this community, these kids who got me dreaming again. They are so talented and I'm sure they would love to show you. So without further ado, let's get this show started." That brought out applause from the crowd.
Tommy returned to his seat. Then he faced Kimi who couldn't help but smile at him and took his hand in hers. He returned her smile as she leaned her head on his shoulder and set her attention on the stage. Kimi was so engrossed in the play. It was based on the short life of Nathan Leo Mitchell. Tommy had written it. The main character seemed so jovial and innocent. She fell in love with him instantly as she assumed so did the rest of the hall. He just seemed to make a lasting imprint on everyone he had contact with. He inspired people younger than him even people older than him. There was just so much to learn from such a happy soul. Then when they reenacted the car accident he had fallen victim to, she couldn't help but let her tears run freely.
Tommy watched her, his own tears threatening but not for the play. For the friend he couldn't help. The friend he couldn't save. But he held on, while the rest of the crowd mourned all over again. The curtains drew and the applause grew until it reached a standing ovation. Tommy thinking, this one is for you Nath.
In the car
Again the ride in the car was consumed by silence. Kimi was so taken with the experience she just had, she was unsure what to say to him. Unsure of who he was. Unsure of how she felt about him. This few hours had devoured her heart and she felt vulnerable. It didn't feel like the love she felt when she was a teenager, it was less brash. Was it even love? God, she wasn't sure she wanted the answer yet. It was obvious she still had a lot to learn about him. Plus how cocky would he get if he knew he won her over with just one date? One incredible date. The only date she could frankly deem great! She sighed and turned to face him.
"Trev was amazing." She simply stated.
He smiled. "He was. It was almost an accurate portrayal."
"Why didn't you share this with anyone before?"
"I wasn't sure I was going to, anyway."
"Then why did you, now?" She asked curiously.
"I…I don't know." He lied knowing that he was still unready for her to know the full truth about what happened in LA. He stopped the car outside of her house. They both just sat there for awhile staring at each other.
She smiled. "You know, Pickles…"
He returned her smile. "Yeah?"
"I had a really great time."
His eyes lit up slightly. "Really?"
She grinned. "Really." She leaned over and gently placed her lips on his. His eyes closed, embracing the softness of the light brush of her mouth with his. She pulled back, waited for him open his eyes and then smiled. "Goodnight Pickles." She jumped out of the car and headed inside her house, that smile still trapped on her face.
"Yeah, definitely a good night." He grinned to himself as he started the engine.
Man so that was only the first date, and Kimi is already half in love with him? Will he get her all the way? Or will the secret he keeps harboring finally catch up with him?
Hmmm… I wonder how Angelica and Phil are doing, don't you?
Well tell me what you think, please REVIEW! …even if it's anonymous.
You know you want to. ;)
REVIEW!