Jack woke up poorly rested because the couch in the Crawford's living room was too short and not big enough for him. He ended up sleeping on the floor and his back let him know it was a bad idea. Still, he was grateful for this act of kindness from them. He and Kim got ready for school and her dad had the most fierce scowl when he saw the bike. He grilled Jack on his driving record and only relaxed when Jack shown him that he already had two helmets for them both. Kim grumbled about the third degree, but Jack reassured her it was nothing compared to the chat he had with her dad when they had their second date.

"He is your dad. I think it's in a job description to distrust young men who come courting his daughter." Jack said and Kim only looked at him pointedly and he caught himself almost rolling his eyes. Yes, he knew he essentially described his own father's motivations. But, Mr. Crawford may have been vigilant, but he didn't set out to threaten or actively undermine him. Unlike his own father.

School was a little unusual. Lindsay wasn't there and Donna was holding the court among the cheerleaders and hanger-ons by herself. Girls gave Jack cautious looks and generally tried to avoid getting caught looking at him or Kim. His teammates gave him curt nods and in general there was a bubble of space around them and their usual group.

It was Jerry and Grace, who explained things. Apparently, his put down of Lindsay (I was never tempted by you) was overheard and over shared much to his dismay. She was too embarrassed to show her face right now and, because Donna and Lindsay were friends and generally disliked by everyone who wasn't in the cheer squad, that line was used a lot, even in relation to Donna.

Then there was the wild conjectures, which Jack admittedly expected, about Jack fighting his own cousin over Kim. Added to the almost forgotten fight with Randy, the whole thing gave Kim the reputation of a heartbreaker and him - of the super jealous boyfriend with black belt skills. That part he didn't mind if it meant that people would leave them alone.

Their afternoon was less stressful: Kim went to the GreenBean and Jack to the dojo. Not that he stayed there long: he had worked on the plan for the aftercare and ended up pouring over the websites for the relevant regulatory information and ended up going to the city administration for forms and license applications. He had what he felt like a productive day and when he picked Kim up, he was feeling good about the project. Kim listened to him ramble and laughed at his enthusiasm. She even offered her help with any admin work they might need. They were at her place again and she asked him if he needed to stay another night.

"I have to figure out a more permanent solution for this whole lodging situation. I can couch surf for a bit, but it's hardly a solution."

"You sure you don't want to go back to your parent's? I think they are worried. I mean, I know they are." She said with surety.

"Oh? Did my mom come to see you?" He had suspected that.

"She did. She is worried, but thinks you need some space, so she came to me."

"Mike is right: GreenBean should have some plaque for all the Brewers that come through."

"I don't mind some of them. You can stay here a little longer, although I am not sure how long you can stand that couch..."

"Just couple of days. A week max and I'll figure something out. I know there are rentals I can use."

Kim was about to say something, but Jack was done with the conversation for now. He did not want to think about his parents right then.

He was still mulling over the truths revealed by his parents. He mostly was reeling from the realization of just how much his father loved him. He recalled some of what his mom said: the games and stories that he made up when Jack was little. Then his grandfather died and everything changed. Although, Jack was still very young and his memories were hazy at best. For the longest time he lived thinking that his father was a cold and calculating man; his mom - a long suffering, but ultimately inert person; and his grandfather - a legendary figure of greatness and wisdom. Now he was faced with the new reality that his father felt emotions very deeply and his reactions were just as intense and serious. His mother was not inert, but rather guilt ridden and was stuck with his father out of love for himself and obvious feelings she still had for his father. And Grandpa... Well, he was still legendary, but the man was not without his faults, considering that he let his own favoritism spoil the relationship of the two cousins.

Of all this, the most shocking was probably the knowledge of his father's complex character and motivations. He honestly disagreed with a lot of it, but he thought he could understand some. Still, both of them were stubborn and Jack wanted to cool off before he could even think about talking to his father again. And, of course, if his father continued to harass Kim, then all bets were off.

Resolved to keep all that turmoil at bay, he leaned over and kissed her like he wanted to. He was always aware of her and even his family drama didn't diminish this connection. In fact, it got stronger since yesterday's events. He would not be able to fully explain, but Kim's unwavering support and acceptance - first when faced with his father's threats and then faced with his own dramatic change in circumstances - had made his feelings for her stronger. She was a recent fixture in his life, but since yesterday she became the most constant.


Whatever happened with Mr. Brewer, he didn't seem to go through with his threat to get her fired. She spent the next week expecting him to show up with his sneer and cutting words, but the revelations of that day must have kept him at bay and she finally relaxed. She already sent her findings to the founder and, though she thought it was tremendously important, there wasn't any sign of him receiving the information.

Jack found a place to stay in the most unexpected of circumstances. He took his bike to Jerry's cousin and somehow ended up renting a small place above the garage that was so basic that Kim actually wondered if Jack could handle it. He didn't mind, it seemed. In fact, he was ecstatic to have a place of his own, where he simply paid cash and could go month to month. He was also busy with the dojo expansion plan, running to and from the dojo and putting Rudy's office to much use. She was pleased to see him so involved, but, for her part, Kim hoped he would reconcile with his father for Zoe's sake if nothing else. Jack's mom now visited Kim every time she had a shift and was eager for any scrap of information about her wayward son.

More interesting was the visit from Kai. It was already three weeks since the fateful conversation at the Brewer residence. When he showed up Mike was ready to tell him off, but Kim was not about to give the owner more reasons to think she was too much trouble, just shook her head. Kai appeared subdued and thoughtful, skipping the cappuccino and asking instead for cafe americano. When she passed him the cup, he looked at her wrist and then left with a small nod. He sat with his giant cup and waited until there was a lull in customers and approached her at the counter.

"So, listen, I heard from Frank and Brody that there were some rumors about us. Is that true?"

She just shrugged in response. "There were some pictures from the last time we spoke." She finally said.

His face had an uncomfortable look, "Ah... I actually wanted to apologize... For grabbing you like that. I hope I didn't hurt you?"

Kim was kind of speechless at the moment. Was Kai actually saying sorry for something? Why?

"Why?" She said intelligently. And then clarified, "You want to get to Jack and you said it yourself that you'd use me to do so... So why the apology?"

"Kim, you should know that even the worst of bad boys have an honor code of their own. Not hurting girls is in mine. I mean, physically." He looked sincere enough that she was willing to believe that.

"OK. Apologies accepted." Still, he lingered and Kim suspected he only apologized to get some 'in' with her.

"Thank you... I also heard that Jack left his home. Is that true?" He was acting casual, but his expression was keen, eyes trained on her face.

She sighed. It really was useless to try to keep anything secret in this town, wasn't it? "Yes." Was all she said unwilling to give more information than absolutely necessary.

"Do you... Do you know why?"

She only raised her eyebrows at him, communicating silently that she would not answer this question. "That is not for me to tell and you know it."

"Right. Of course. You won't." He was silent again weighing options in his head. Then he looked at her pointedly, "I re-read Romeo and Juliet recently. For such a violent tale, it is a good illustration of how beholden teens are to their hormones. Defy parents because they perceive themselves to be in love... Do you think they acted foolish? After all, the family is important. You said it yourself, love thy family, warts and all..."

Kim almost got the whiplash from this sudden pivot and then caught on what he was saying or rather asking indirectly. Clever man.

"I always thought that when family members fight it is rarely about the actual official reason. There are so many underlying currents and issues, that the fight works on many levels. Romeo and Juliet were protesting lack of choices and the overbearing control of their parents. It would seem that being born into a certain legacy did not quite suit them. Too bad sometimes inheritance comes with history, both negative and positive." She may have stressed the words legacy and inheritance a little.

He looked thoughtful again. "I see. Perhaps you are right: some fight are clashes between fundamentally different people."

He left soon after that and Kim thought that the number of feuds happening around her was truly too much.

Her own feud with Lindsay and Donna entered the weirdest stage. Somehow, after Jack's return from the competition and the whole scene in the hallway, both girls got the message not to directly engage Kim or even gossip about her. She saw them with usual crowd, but girls avoided looking at her. She would say she was pleased except her skeptical mind kept conjuring images of some revenge scheme. And she was right. Though she wasn't bothered in the coffeehouse anymore, she swore that someone was interfering with her school life. Like, there were missing pages in her school books, her homework and even unexplained stains and holes on her stuff that she kept in the locker. She mentioned it once to the janitors, but there was nothing to be done, unless she could catch someone at it.

She changed the locks and when that didn't help, she resolved to keep her things in Jacks or Julie's locker. Her experiment proved that she was the target and that whoever was behind it was afraid of pissing off Jack. First and last time she put her things in Julie's locker, the other girl's book got an ink stain and Kim swore to never use her friend's locker. Julie's face was the picture of abject horror and only Milton's calm hand prevented a full blown hysteria. From then on, Kim only used Jack's locker.

He was supposed to pick her up today, so she tried to leave a little earlier to meet him outside the shop: she was worried that Mike would run his mouth again and get Jack riled up over Kai. She left to put away the apron and pick up her backpack and when she came back she realized she was too late. Jack was there talking to Mike, who was telling all about Kim's literary conversation and expressing a great deal of surprise that that 'psycho' read anything and also dismay that reading classics might give him ideas about revenge.

Jack's face was closed off again and she sighed inwardly. She thought that given the revelation about inheritance, Jack would be more understanding about Kai. But, time and again, Jack proved that he was overprotective when it came to her and Kai's insistence on talking to her caused Jack endless concern. He held off confronting Kai, because he did not cross path with his cousin, but who knew what his restless mind would conjure?


When he brought Kim home, he followed her in and she kept stealing sideways glances at him. He would not lie: he was unsettled. Somehow, in the wake of all the family truth-telling extravaganza, he almost forgot about Kai. Well, not really. He knew now Kai's reasons for disliking him. What he forgot about was Kai's continued presence in Kim's life. Jack was not sure about Kai and his attitudes about Kim. And now he was even more concerned. Somehow it bothered him that Kai and Kim could have this conversations about books and exchange snappy opinions about them. If he were completely honest, he was jealous too.

He was still musing over it, when, abruptly turning around, Kim backed him into the wall and lifted herself for a swift kiss, which he deepened immediately, taking chance to steal her breath away.

She pulled back with a sigh, "Just so you know. Kai apologized for grabbing me. Apparently he has some scruples. And he knows about you leaving your parents' place. He used Romeo and Juliette so that we can discuss the possible reasons for such a drastic act. I may have told him that you were unpleasantly shocked to learn about the inheritance." As usual, when it came to Kai, Kim was talking fast as if to diffuse the situation.

"I am with Mike on this. I am still amazed that Kai reads and classical literature to boot. Also, I am kind of worried now that he likes you..." At Kim's wide-eyed look he continued, "Personally, I have not heard that he even talks to girls other than to get in their pants. The fact that he constantly engages you in all this repartee and literary discussion tells me that he thinks you are better or at least different from other..."

She did not let him finish by kissing him again. "I don't think he is into me like that. And even if he was, I am not interested. Truly, I think he maybe lonely too. When I told you my theory about Kai's possible issues that he's hiding, I did not imagine such old fashioned reasons: the patriarch with favorites among his progeny and an inheritance squabble... It's all very much like English novels about first born heir and the spare and old family with secrets. Do you think his father is just as distant as yours?"

"You do read a lot, don't you? Is it always classical literature? Regency romance and such?"

"Oh, I read pretty much everything. There is plenty of modern books that are pretty amazing. I like romance stories, sure, but I also like sci-fi and fantasy. Sometimes a verse of poetry sticks with me for a long time..."

"I know one poem that stuck with me too." He leaned in again, his mouth brushing her ear. He may not be as well-read as his cousin, but he knew this would be a welcome surprise. He read the book because Carolyn recommended it and he blushed through some of it, but this particular sonnet was different...

"I crave your mouth, your voice, your hair..." He whispered and her head tilted to the side, the arch of it delicate and graceful. He kissed along it to the clavicle and back up to the eager sweet mouth. She moaned quietly and he slipped the tongue deeply into her mouth and eagerly explored the warmth there.*

"Silent and starving, I prowl through the streets..." She shivered and he hugged her closer and walked them to the couch, where he sat with her in his lap, hungry hands pulling her close and gliding under the top to touch that soft skin.

"Bread does not nourish me, dawn disrupts me, all day..." His mind reminded him that they were in the living room and her dad might come in any second, but he found himself helpless with her straddling him and her skirt (!) riding high and his hands revelled in the feel of the silky skin of her thighs and back, just as he swooped in for another bruising kiss.

"I hunt for the liquid measure of your steps..." One hand gliding down the leg and back up to go higher and higher to cup her butt, feeling the goosebumps that rose in the wake and she arched with a moan, just as he pulled her over his erection (he was already so hard for her) and the feeling was incredible.

"I hunger for your sleek laugh..." He pulled back from her mouth now and placed open mouthed kisses on the exposed skin that her v-neck top showed, hearing her sigh as he ground her into him.

"Your hands the color of a savage harvest..." She moved them to card nimble fingers through his hair, the scratch of the small nails on his skin like fissures of liquid fire.

"I hunger for the pale stones of your fingernails..." she was shivering again and he went back for that spot on her neck that was extra sensitive, pulling the soft skin and biting a little, because he really was craven.

"I want to eat your skin like a whole almond..." She keened at that and one of her hands dropped to the side and she palmed his chest finding the nipple and grazing it with the thumb and even through the fabric of his shirt it was making him buck more under her, sending electric bolts all the way to his cock.

"I want to eat the sunbeam flaring on your lovely body.." his mouth travelled lower and he was kissing the tips of her breasts, one hand now aiding to push the fabric lower, until he saw the thin lacy bra and he wrapped lips around the hard little bud, instantly making the lace wet as he toyed with her.

"The sovereign nose of your arrogant face,..." His hand slid from where it was on her butt and inched forward and edged the trim of her panties along the juncture of leg and body, the other hand now teasing the nipple and Kim was panting and dropped her head on his shoulder.

"I want to eat the fleeting shade of your lashes...' her panties were already damp and he finally dragged the thumb over the center, Kim bucking and whimpering, and then slid the bold finger in to finally touch her. He was right, if her panties were damp, she was wet. Soft. Warm. His own need growing he grabbed her one hip and ground her on him, thrusting up and both of them moaned at that. She was looking at him with clouded eyes, cheeks flushed and so beautiful.

"And I pace around hungry, sniffing the twilight..." Two finger now moved down her pussy, barely touching the clit to bury themselves in her heat, thumb circling the precious nub and Kim was just helplessly mewling and biting the skin of his neck, making him nearly forget what he was doing.

"Hunting for you, for your hot heart,..." she was grinding into his hand, the pad of this thumb swiping again and again, giving her what she wanted. Giving him what he wanted. He could feel she was close, the small fluttering motions around his fingers and when he imagined how it'd feel on his cock, he practically purred into her neck, low and hungry.

"like a puma in the barrens of Quitratue..." She was close and he was no better, so he placed the thumb right under her clit, where there was a cleave of her folds and pushed up, just as he curled the fingers inside to stroke her and she cried out, arched her back, the coil finally breaking and he held onto her tightly as she came down from her high, the walls squeezing his fingers inside.

He himself let go, somehow seeing her so undone, made him wild. He pulled his fingers out to undo his pants and when his erection finally sprung free it was nearly purple and he simply ground into her again and again, the texture of the wet panties just the right amount of rough on him and he used both hands on her hips to bring her forcefully in contact with his aching cock, just as he thrust up into her, dreaming it would some day soon be him fully inside her. Recalling sensation of the silky vise of her pussy on his fingers was enough... With a final thrust and bruising hold on her hips, he let go, grunting something vaguely like Kim as the tension finally broke...

*Some years ago I read a Dramione fanfic, where the author was clearly an English major, because the whole fic was like an extended literature exposition. However, it had the most lovely chapter, where Draco seduces Hermione with a Pablo Neruda poem. This little exchange is inspired by that. This is also a Pablo Neruda sonnet and I thought it fits our Jack very well. Intense, craving, at times jealous, already deeply in love with Kim...