Chelsea had to struggle to make up the work she missed by going to the sleepover, but she didn't really mind. Sure, Lanna and Julia were a bit… much… but essentially they were good people. Chelsea was just glad that she was finally starting to make friends in town. It'd been pretty lonely up on her ranch with only the animals for company. And of course, it was nice to be able to talk over her confusing feelings with people other than Denny and Vaughn… she wouldn't want them to get the wrong idea. Not to mention how awkward and embarrassing a conversation like that would be!
She wandered down the road, lost in thought. So lost, in fact, that she wandered straight into Vaughn, knocking her forehead into his chin as she slammed against his chest.
"Ack!" Vaughn grunted in surprise. Chelsea scrambled backward, lost her balance, and fell hard onto the ground.
"Ooouch," she moaned, rubbing her forehead, "Sorry Vaughn. Didn't see you there."
"S'alright," he shrugged, holding out a hand. Chelsea took it and he hoisted her to her feet.
"What are you doing out here?" Chelsea asked brightly. It was unusual to see Vaughn out and about. He was so dedicated to his animals he hardly ever left the barn.
"I finished work early and went for a walk," he explained. He looked down at his hands, then back to Chelsea. "Hey, you think- Maybe…-"
"Vaughnie!" interrupted a bubbly voice from down the road. Chelsea and Vaughn turned to see miles of blonde hair flouncing toward them. It was Lanna, bouncing up the path.
Vaughn ground his teeth in aggravation. "Don't call me that," he told Lanna.
She seemed taken aback. "B-b-but… Vaughnie's so dreamy! Plain old Vaughn isn't enough for a dreamy person like you!" She put a hand on her hip and turned toward Chelsea with a mischievous grin. "You think Vaughnie is dreamy, don't you Chelsea?"
"W-what?!" Chelsea screeched. Did Lanna mean the name or the person? Either way Chelsea would answer wrong. If she said no, than Vaughn might think that she didn't like him. If she said yes he'd be annoyed that she'd taken Lanna's side. Chelsea tugged anxiously on her ear. "Ah… um, uh… J-just don't call him that!" she burst out, her cheeks flaming red.
Lanna's eyes widened in shock. "But he's so dreamy!" she exclaimed. She clearly expected Chelsea to have backed her up. Chelsea shook her head slightly. Lanna's expression turned angry. "Fine! I can take a hint." She stormed off in the direction of Julia's house. Crap. Chelsea was never going to hear the end of this.
While Chelsea stared after the blonde in apprehension, Vaughn breathed a sigh of relief. "Thanks, Chelsea. I'm not really a people person… I can't go yelling at her. But I hate it when she calls me that!"
Chelsea laughed nervously. "Haha yeah…" Vaughn followed her gaze and his lips curved downward.
"Oh, did I make trouble for you?" Vaughn backtracked, "I'm sorry, you didn't have to-"
"It's nothing Vaughn," Chelsea waved him off, "Really." He didn't seem to believe her, but he didn't say anything else. They stood together awkwardly.
"Hey… um… weren't you gonna ask me something when Lanna showed up?" Chelsea recollected. Vaughn froze, then slowly brought his hat down over his face until his face was completely hidden.
"Um… well…" he began, blushing furiously, "It… it doesn't matter."
Chelsea cocked her head sideways in confusion. "Oh? Well then, I'll ah… I'll be going…" She began to brush past him when he grabbed her wrist. Chelsea's heart stopped.
"…Wait," he told her, squeezing tightly. Chelsea turned. "Walk with me," he invited her cautiously. He looked up at her from under the brim of his hat. There was something in his eyes… she just couldn't say no…
"Alright," Chelsea accepted with a smile.
They shuffled along with Chelsea trailing slightly behind. After a beat Vaughn realized he was still holding onto Chelsea's hand and he dropped it so fast she could have sworn she burned him. Chelsea snatched her hand back, blushing. She was thankful for the slight afternoon breeze that cooled her cheeks. The summer was quickly transforming into autumn. The trees were tinged with gold and the heat had finally dipped to 70 F. It was a beautiful day for a walk. She just wished that atmosphere were lighter.
"Hey…" she asked uncertainly, "Where are we going?"
Vaughn shrugged, waving abstractly. "Where the day takes us." Chelsea perked up. Who knew Vaughn could be poetic?
They passed by Mirabelle's and Chen's store, and meandered down the path. Without really meaning to, they had ended up at Kirk's boat.
"You two want to go somewhere?" the sailor asked brightly from the bow of his small, motored craft.
Chelsea turned to Vaughn. "I dunno do we?" she inquired. In way of answer, Vaughn stepped carefully into the boat and held out a hand to help her do the same.
"Where are you kids off to?" Kirk asked. Chelsea smirked and nudged Vaughn.
"Where the day takes us!" she announced happily. Vaughn's lips raised into a ghost of a smile. Kirk raised an eyebrow. "Surprise us!" Chelsea finished. Kirk nodded kindly and backed the boat out of the harbor.
"Young love…" he sighed. Vaughn and Chelsea blanched.
"We're not- I don't- It's not like that!" they yelled in unison. Then they looked at each other and retreated far back into their respective seats.
"What do mean 'young love' anyway?!" Chelsea huffed at Kirk, "You can't be more than 30!" Vaughn pulled his hat down over his face. Kirk just chuckled.
Luckily for all parties involved the boat ride was short. Chelsea and Vaughn scrambled off the boat and practically ran up the dock. Kirk waved jovially as they made their escape, still murmuring to himself, "Young love…"
Only when they were out of sight of the dock did the pair finally look around them. They were in an open field, the grass bowing gracefully in the wind. Amidst the emptiness there stood an ancient stone carving at the head of the land. It was worn and rugged looking, yet somehow still majestic. They were on Meadow Island.
Vaughn plopped himself down under one of the trees that made up the border, and motioned for Chelsea to do the same. She attempted to follow, but slipped on a damp patch of grass and fell on top of Vaughn instead.
"Yikes, sorry!" Chelsea exclaimed. Once she managed to relocate all her limbs, she pulled herself up. In the process her lips brushed over his.
"Ahhh!" she shrieked, throwing herself backward, "Sorry! Ah, I'm such a klutz today! Sorry!"
Chelsea was so red she thought she might explode. "Yeah… well, it's alright," Vaughn murmured abashedly, avoiding her gaze. Chelsea bit her lower lip and looked away.
Suddenly Vaughn's gaze was piercing. Chelsea still wasn't looking at him but she felt the force of his intense study. What the heck? She said she was sorry, and he said it was alright… Well, it clearly wasn't alright, but he hadn't seemed pissed off so what-?
Vaughn took a deep breath, grabbed Chelsea's shoulders and caught her lips in one swift move. Her heart stopped briefly, but when it resumed beating it was going so fast she thought she might die anyway. His mouth had been rough and demanding initially, probably because Vaughn had been so quick, but it softened as he slowly pulled away. When he looked at her, he seemed just as surprised as she felt.
"Haha… I don't know why I did that…" Vaughn laughed nervously. They were both scarlet. "Um… why don't we go home now?" he suggested, tipping his hat back.
Chelsea was speechless, so she just nodded. Without another word they rode the boat back and went off their separate ways, both wondering exactly what the kiss had been about.
Yay Chelsea's first kiss! You may thank my friend for pushing me to move the romance along, though she might be upset that it wasn't Denny... Ah well can't please everyone.
Sorry I haven't updated in a while I've been busy trying to organize a fundraiser for my Gold Award for breast cancer patients... yeah, it's complicated. Anyway, it's pretty important so even I, the master of procrastination, wasn't able to avoid doing it for long. Plus it's for a good cause.
And thank you so much for your reviews and following and favoriting (is that even a word?) *touched* *manga shiny eyes* I love you people...
Next chapter: Denny finds out about the kiss and all hell breaks loose! (I think. Nothing's set in stone till I write it, of course!) Don't go anywhere folks, this is just the commercial break! (Come on, laugh at my lame joke. You know you want to)
