"Can I walk you home?" Jesse asked as he and Jen stepped out of Coach Gibbon's truck.
"Sure, we'll go the whole ten minutes." Jen said sarcastically. Jesse laughed then draped the edge of his blanket over her shoulders.
"Shut up smart ass or else I'll have to toss you in another freezing cold pond." He replied smiling. Jen rolled her eyes and made some attempt at keeping herself from smiling.
"You know what… It wasn't my fault that I fell…the ice did it…" she began.
"Oh sure I'm sure the ice is totally responsible for your graceful and random slipping, cracking, and then falling through a gross algae infested pond then pulling me in along with you. I really picked a winner huh?" He said teasingly. Jen poked him in the side.
" Jesse don't even get me started on you…and how you fell off the side of my house and knocked yourself unconscious all because you wanted to see me coming out of the shower…how classy…" she retorted. Jesse sighed and pulled her in closer to him.
"Jen. Love of my life. I was not trying to catch a glimpse and/or cop a feel…I came to apologize to you for being an ass remember?" he said slyly. Jen looked up at him skeptically.
"Oh please. I know you way too well to believe a minute of your bullshitting. So spare me." She said as they reached the front of her house. Jesse wrapped his arms around her and pushed her back against the door. He leaned in and kissed her hard on the lips then pulled away smiling.
"Believe me now?" he whispered.
"Jess…my mom is coming." She said through clenched teeth. Jesse continued to kiss his way down her neck.
"Jesss…" she groaned. The both of them were interrupted by the slight cracking then opening of the door behind them. Jen struggled to regain her balance while Jesse stood upright in the doorway with his hand outstretched to greet Jen's mother.
"Oh hello Jesse! Its nice to see you again. Would you like to come in? We're making hot chocolate." Her mom said excitedly. Jen shot a half annoyed look at Jesse then continued her way into the house.
"Sure! I'd love some hot chocolate right about now." He said smirking just as he caught Jen's eye. She glared at him then turned and ran into the kitchen.
"I call the marshmallows!" she shouted while grabbing the two Jets marshmallow packets and stuffing them under her sweatshirt. Jesse immediately ran over and seized the opportunity to grope his girlfriend. He wrapped his arms around her waist and lifted her off the ground.
"I got the biggest marshmallow in the house!" he said laughing while she giggled and wriggled her way out of his grasp.
"Alright you two I think I'll take charge of the hot and the chocolate and you two can settle down on the couch and fight for the marshmallows." Her mom said as she put the kettle on. Jesse carried Jen over to the sofa and set her down on the furthest end to ensure that he would have his usual maximum amount of leg room. Jen pushed his feet on the floor and moved over next to him with the remote in hand.
"Aw man. I wanted to choose. A new episode of The Wire is on in two minutes and we're going to miss it." He whined while reaching for the controller. Jen held it up above his head while simultaneously changing the channel to The OC. Jesse threw a marshmallow at the television.
"Please no. Turn it off. I refuse to watch….hey is that Mischa Barton? Nicee…" he remarked. Jen changed the channel.
"On second thought maybe we'll watch Cartoons" she teased. Jen's mother approached the two of them and placed their drinks on the living room table.
"Thank you!" Jesse said cheerfully as he took a cup from her
. "Enjoy and be careful its quite warm." She replied while regarding both Jen and Jesse's matching outfits. Setting aside her curiosity she sat down and looked at her daughter who was under a rather extensive pile of unfamiliar brown woolen blankets and shivering despite the fact that she had been inside a warm house for nearly twenty minutes. She glanced over a Jesse whose nose and ears were unnaturally red and who also seemed on the verge of catching some form of cold.
"Jennifer, is there a reason why the two of you are wearing matching gym uniforms and foreign blankets?" she inquired. The both of them looked up at her and smiled.
"Well…you see…" Jen began. Jesse interrupted her.
"We fell into the school pond…earlier…" he continued.
"Jesse it…" he stopped her once again.
"…was my fault… I had just come back from hockey practice and we thought we'd go skating for a few minutes on the pond which ended up being a stupid decision on my part because I should have known the ice wouldn't hold the both of us and we fell in…Coach Gibbons helped us out and we went to the nurse's office and she checked us for any problems. We're both alright but please keep an eye on Jen…I don't want her getting sick or anything because of me…I'm sorry about what I did…I should have made the mature decision and never have let her step onto the ice with me…" he said sincerely. Jen turned at looked at him in surprise; she'd expected him to come up with some crazy spur of the moment excuse as he usually did but instead he had taken responsibility for her even though she knew she was truly at fault for the skating incident. She reached over and rested her hand overtop of his then looked up at her mother.
"Despite what this amazing boy sitting next to me will tell you…Mom, it was my idea to go skating…I wasn't thinking and I just wanted to have a little fun. So if both of us end up taking sick days this week you can blame me…I'm sorry." She said quietly. Jesse glanced over at her and briefly smiled at her similar to the way he did the first time she'd made him back on their first night on the Boardwalk in LA. She blushed as she also recognized the subtle smile Jesse was giving her. Her mother looked at the two of them and smiled to herself, realizing that maybe she and her husband had made the right decision by letting this seemingly wonderful relationship continue. She stood up and collected the now three empty coffee mugs from the table and started towards the kitchen.
"It's quite alright you two but try and be more careful. I wouldn't want anything to happen to either of you. Besides…liability cases are always messy to deal with." She said in her Harvard law graduate tone. Jen rolled her eyes.
"Haha very funny mom." She said feeling half embarrassed by her mother's attempt at a joke.
"No, she's right. I don't want anything to happen to you." Jesse said as he leaned in and kissed her forehead. Jen leaned back against his chest and gazed up at him.
Her mother, who was now fully aware that she had become a third wheel quietly said a quick goodnight and made her way up the stairs. Jesse and Jen lay there with one another for a few moments without saying a word, the both of them enjoying one another's company. Before Jesse was able to speak Jen leaned her head back against his chest and pulled him into a gentle kiss. He shifted his weight underneath her so that he could lie next to her. She turned around so that the both of them were facing each other. She giggled at the feel of Jesse tickling her feet the tips of his socks. She reached up and placed her hands on the sides of his face as though she were framing him in a Polaroid photograph and kissed him to capture the moment. He smiled at her warmly, his eyes dimly lit by the bluish grey light that illuminated from the television behind them, then traced the outline of her lips with his fingers. Jen watched as his eyes grew tired of baring the weight of staying open and slowly began to close with each movement. She turned back around to face the television and he wrapped his arms around her waist and held her close to him as he began to fall asleep. She too began to close her eyes and fall in love with the secure sensation of Jesse sleeping next to her. He rested his head on the arch of her shoulder and kissed her once more before falling asleep.
A half an hour later, Jen's mother was disturbed by the sound of someone loudly knocking at her door. She quickly glanced over at the clock which read 12:30 and slipped into a pair of Ugg slippers and headed downstairs. She passed Jen and Jesse who were fast asleep on the couch and quickly made her way over to answer the door. She opened the door and found Jesse's father standing at her doorstep.
"Hello Allison, I'm sorry to bother you so late, but I was wondering if you had seen…" Jesse's father stopped mid sentence as soon as he saw his son sleeping on the coach. He stepped past Jen's mother and into the living room.
"Jesse!" he scolded as he approached him. Jen and Jesse both sat up and groggily looked around the room.
"…Dad…what…what are you doing here?" Jesse asked half consciously. His father glared at him.
"I could ask you the same question. Get up. We're leaving. I had no idea where you were all evening. I was about to send for the police. Now get up. We'll discuss this at home." He ordered. Jesse sat upright and stared up at his father.
"Look, I'm sorry I didn't call you earlier but my car broke down and I had Coach Gibbons give me a ride home." He began, knowing full well that his father was in no mood to listen to anything he had to say.
"Gave you a ride home? I've been home since 7:00 and neither your mother nor I had any idea of where you were. You didn't call, you didn't tell either of us when we should expect you home. You were irresponsible and not only that but you run off to this girl's house after I strictly forbade you to do so…" he said furiously.
Jesse sat in front of his father completely helpless and unwilling to argue with him in front of Jen. He hated when his Dad would berate and degrade him in front of his friends like this. He was embarrassed at his cowardice and mandatory resolve. He wanted to leave the room or give his father some smart ass response just to shut him up, but he couldn't, he had learned too well that this was neither the place nor the time to do that, so he sat and listened like the obedient little boy his father would always see him as.
"Get your stuff and say goodbye to your playmate here because this is the last time you're going to be seeing her for quite a while. We'll discuss your punishment at home. Start walking." His father instructed while pointing at the door. Jen watched Jesse slowly make his way out the door and just as he stepped outside she thought she saw him wiping away tears from his eyes so his father wouldn't see. Just before he closed the door he turned around red eyed and whispered a quick "I love you" before returning back into his fathers house.