Casey went back into the house and laughed when she saw her sisters trying to act nonchalant.
"Oh, hey Case." Ashleigh peered over her book. "What did Cappie want?"
Casey rolled her eyes jokingly. "Very funny Ash. I know you guys heard all of it."
Pretty soon all of the girls were gathered around, ready to gossip.
"We did. And we think you should go." Ashleigh said matter-of-factly.
"Really?" Casey asked. She was still on the fence.
"Yes. It's Cappie. You love him, even if you aren't really getting along right now." Rebecca added.
"For a grown up but stupid reason I might add." Ashleigh added.
Laura jumped into the conversation. "And Don Giovanni's is the best Italian restaurant in Cyprus! Clearly Cappie is planning something big."
Betsy also added her opinion. "And even if it's the worst date ever, it's a free meal at a fancy restaurant!"
Casey took in all of the girls' advice and realized they were right. When Cappie planned things, it was because it was important to him. The least she could do was give him a chance. And like Betsy said, even if it sucked at least it was a free meal. She took out her phone and texted Cappie.
Dinner sounds great. See you tomorrow.
Cappie texted back with a simple: :)
"Thanks for coming, Case. This really means a lot." Cappie said as they gave the waiter their menus after ordering.
"I can tell. You certainly put a lot of thought into it. And how did you even get a reservation? Don Giovanni's usually books up weeks before Valentine's Day."
Cappie smiled. "Let's just say the manager owed me a favor. You look really nice tonight by the way."
Casey smiled back. "So do you. Is that a new shirt?"
"You like it? I figured an important night deserved some new attire." Cappie smiled.
Casey took a sip of her wine. "Important huh. Why don't you tell me what makes it so important. Considering you used to hate this particular holiday."
Cappie took a sip of his drink. "Yeah, but that's because I never had a good enough reason to celebrate it. Now I have all the reason in the world to tell you how much I love you and appreciate you. Plus, my mom made me realize some things about my life-"
Casey interrupted. "Wait, your mom? When did you talk to her?!"
"My folks were in town a few days ago. They fell absolutely in love with this little man." Cappie stroked his son's cheek. "I would've told you, but it kind of caught me off guard, and they only really stayed long enough to tell me they were getting divorced."
Casey's mouth dropped. "I'm so sorry Cap. I know how hard that must have been."
Cappie continued. "It is, but I kind of get it at the same time. And then my dad left and mom and I talked for a while and she made me realize that the stability I was looking for doesn't have to come from being in the same place, it's being with the same people. And right now, the most stable thing in my life is you and little Kevin over here."
"Cap." Casey sighed a little, knowing exactly where this conversation was headed.
"Will you let me finish." Cappie said. "I'm not trying to propose or anything, god no...at least not yet. I just wanted to tell you that I chose a major and that I have a meeting with my new advisor on Monday. But I sort of figured it out and if my math is correct, I should be able to graduate in December."
Casey was a little taken back. This was not where she thought the conversation was headed.
"That's so great Cappie and I'm really proud of you, but a December graduation doesn't really solve our problem. I'm graduating in May and I may not get into CRU law."
"But what if you do?" Cappie interrupted.
"It's my turn to finish. If I don't that means I'll be going out of state for law school. That gives us two options, neither of which end well. First option, I go to school out of state and you stay here and you don't see Kevin for a whole semester until you graduate. Second option, you transfer to whatever school I'm going to for that last semester."
"And what is wrong with that?" Cappie asked.
"Because I'm just worried that if that school has a Kappa Tau house, you'll end up there and we'll be in the same situation we are here with you not wanting to leave."
"Case, no other KT house will ever compare to this one. I can guarantee it. And besides, it would only be for a semester. I wouldn't have enough time to truly bond with the brothers the way I have here." Cappie explained. "And there is still a pretty good chance that you will get into CRU law because now that I've chosen my path Karmic Synergy will lead the way, and it hasn't failed me yet. But if it worries you that much, we can stop talking about it and just enjoy the rest of our night. Then once you find out if you got in, we can talk about our future then."
Casey nodded and rolled her eyes jokingly. "When did you become the calm sensible one?"
Cappie laughed a little. "Funny enough I asked my mom the same thing when she talked about her plans for going off-grid in Maine."
The two continued talking about Cappie's mom and her new homestead while they finished their meals. Casey was happy to be on a real date with the man she loved again. Their future might be up in the air, but for tonight things were the way they should be.
Cappie put Kevin in his baby carrier and brought him out to Casey's car. The two stood in front of her car for a few moments, still enjoying each other's company.
"I had a great time tonight, Cappie. Thank you." Casey said.
"Me too. It was nice. Thank you for indulging me a little." Cappie replied. He put Kevin in Casey's car. "You should probably get this little man home since it's way past his bedtime."
Casey giggled a little when she saw her son dead asleep in his carrier. "Oh, I will. Thanks again for a great night. And for being a pretty awesome dad."
She stood up on her tippy toes and kissed Cappie's cheek quick before getting into her car to head back to the ZBZ house. Cappie stood there for a few minutes with a big dumb grin across his face. It wasn't much, but that kiss had to mean he was one step closer to getting his family back, right?