Just a Friendly Feeling

Summary: When he had hired her to work at his café, if he had known just what he was getting into, he just might have reconsidered hiring her…

Pairing: Carl/Katie

A/N: Truthfully, I haven't made many attempts before to write romance, and quite frankly, I don't think I've mastered the art of this particular branch of writing…but I'm working on it, and I'm actually fairly pleased how this story came out. And as for the pairing, well… for me, while I can see why Ellen and Carl are pared up in Magical Melody, I really can see appeal in having Carl and Katie paired up… and not to mention the fact that Ellen isn't exactly my favorite character…(she's bit too goody-goody if you ask me) Anyway, enjoy :)

Edit: I've changed the summary, and the title because I wasn't pleased with them :)

Katie was the most hotheaded, pushy girl Carl had ever had the pleasure of meeting. When he had hired her to work at his café, if he had known just what he was getting into, he just might have reconsidered hiring her… but it was far to late to be thinking about that. He had hired her, and now he was stuck with her. Carl was too nice to fire her, and besides, he was almost positive—considering Katie's stubbornness—that even if he did "let her go" (to put it kindly), he doubted she would actually leave. She'd probably continue with business as usual, ignoring the fact that she was supposedly fired, and just wait it out until Carl gave up and hired her once more.

Carl sighed; Katie could be such a headache at times, but truly, he was thankful for her help. Alone, Carl wouldn't have been able to run the Calloway Café nearly as efficiently as he did now. With Katie around, it took a bit of the burden off his shoulders so he had time to experiment with new dishes, and to just simply relax. So all in all, having Katie around wasn't too bad for the most part. Most of the time, Carl really did appreciate Katie's presence, but sometimes, Katie was just more trouble then she was worth… like right now for instance.

"Oh yeah? Want to take it outside blondie?!"

"Blondie?! O.k., that's it…!"

Carl sighed; it was times like this that made him really wish that he had chosen a nice, quiet girl for a waitress at his café.

"Let me at her! Let go of me Joe! I've got to teach that bimbo a lesson!" Katie roared, flailing wildly as Joe held onto Katie firmly to prevent the girl from damaging Gwen, who was just as enraged as Katie, and behind held back by Bob.

"Let her come Joe!" Gwen hissed, egging Katie on, "I've got a lesson or two to teach her too. Come on Bob, just let me go…"

Carl groaned; he just knew this wouldn't end well, and he had just finished cleaning, so he would not put up with having a catfight in his café. "Bob, bring Gwen home, would you?" Carl asked quietly, receiving a nod from the blacksmith's grandson before he dragged the struggling blonde out of the café. Carl then turned to Joe and gave the carpentering boy a small smile. "Its o.k. Joe; you can let her go now."

With a hesitant nod, Joe released Katie. At once, the girl made for the door, but Carl's voice made her stop, "Please don't Katie." He begged, "I don't want you to go fight her. Do you even remember what she did that made you so mad?"

"Of course I do!" Katie snapped, "What do you take me for?"

Both boys in the room simply sad nothing until Joe nervously told the two that he should "probably be heading home", because "Woody would be wondering where he was" before he made a quick exit. Now alone, Carl sighed, and guided Katie over to a chair, and sat down across from her before asking, "Well?"

"Well what?" she replied hotly, obviously still lingering on her argument with Gwen.

"What did Gwen do that got you so mad?" he asked, already having the inkling of an idea in mind.

"She said-!" Katie paused, blinking, and then bit her lip in concentration as if thinking, "Well, she… she said… she-she…" Katie trailed off lamely, gazing at the wall embarrassedly, "I-I… I can't remember." She admitted, her cheeks flushing in humiliation.

In spite of himself, Carl smiled slightly; it was just as he had thought. Katie was just so predictable: stubborn, brash, hotheaded, and always one to rush head first into everything without thought. She was a woman who took action; it was so different from his "think before you act" frame of mind, but sometimes, her confidence was strangely comforting, and helpful. Carl himself wasn't a confident, social person, and as a business owner, self-assurance, and sociability were two key factors one had to have mastery of… but with Katie around, he didn't need those qualities at all; she was confident, and social enough for the both of them. And so Carl had to admit that Katie was a key player in the success of Calloway Café so far.

As Katie muttered embarrassed apologies, Carl mused that though Katie had her down points, and while sometimes, yes, she really was a handful, overall, he wouldn't trade her company and help for anything in the world.

"Is it really Fall again?" Carl mused, "Have I truly know Katie for a year?"

Indeed, the trees once more were preparing themselves for winter, and their leaves were changing from their usual green to reds, oranges, and yellows. It was weird, Carl thought, to think that Katie had only been in his life for one year; it felt so much longer then that. Was it truly possible for so much to have been crammed into one single year? Carl thought back to his first full year with Katie and shook his head.

It had only been one year, but so much had happened: New businesses had moved in, new faces had appeared in the valley, old shops had expanded, new friendships were made, his own business flourished, and the new farmer girl in the valley (Jill was her name) had gotten Jamie—a man more anti-social then anyone Carl had ever met—to open up a little more to those around him for one; in fact, when Ellen had come in the other day, she had told him that their was a rumor going around that the two might get married.

Carl gulped: marriage. It was a weird train of thought for him; it was something he thought of very little, because he just couldn't see himself married to anyone. After all, he was too quiet, too sweet, too agreeable, and he looked like a little kid almost with his young, immature face. Girls in the valley seemed to go for the "cool" type, and he most certainly wasn't cool. Many a time Carl would listen to Ellen, Gwen, or Nina chatter on about what local guys with only slight interest; after all, he knew that they weren't talking about him, seeing as he didn't really have any of the traits girls looked for in a guy. So why listen to them giggle over Dan or Kurt, or Bob, or whoever had caught their eye that particular week? But when Katie gossiped with the others, he couldn't help but listen in; he wondered sometimes what her idea of an ideal guy was, and often felt almost… disappointed when her particular interests coincided with all the other girls. It was weird, because whenever he heard Gwen babble on about just how gorgeous Dan's eyes were, he didn't feel his chest tighten as it did when Katie reiterated the very same point. Carl didn't understand, and a part of him told him that it was best that he didn't. He told himself not to worry about it, because that constriction in his stomach most certainly wasn't jealously; he was merely protective of Katie because she was a valuable co-worker, and friend.

Yes, friends; that's what they were. That was what one year together had made them. It had been inevitable really, considering they spent nearly every hour of every day with each other. Over time, they had come to an understanding of the other's personality, and grown used to the eccentricities of the each other, and had in fact picked up a few of the other's habits. Carl had grown accustomed to Katie's presence, and to her oddities, mindless babble, and to her usual mood-swings. So all in all, it wasn't unusual that he be protective of Katie, because they were friends now, right? And wasn't it true that friends were protective of their friends? So the pang in his heart whenever Katie talked about the other boys in the valley was natural; it just had to be! He just wanted her to be happy, and he just wanted her to end up with a guy who would treat her right, and that was all…Right?

Carl hadn't been expecting anything for his birthday really; or nothing fancy anyway. Many of the town folks and regulars to the café brought in ingredients for food and gave him a bright smile and a sincere "Happy Birthday", but that was to be expected; many gave him presents simply out of formality, and friends gave him nice, useful gifts that were practical, but without a great deal of sentimental value. But Carl had expected that, and wasn't offended in the least. He had suspected to have a nice, quite, predictable birthday, and he was sure that he would pass the day simply going on with business as usual…

…But Katie would have no such thing. She had vanished without a word in the early morning, and had shown up at noon, and had closed shop without his consent, shooed all the customers away, and had dragged him to the Blue Bar where he discovered that not only would she not allow him to have a normal, plain birthday, but that he simply had to have a party too; She insisted that it wouldn't be a proper birthday without one. And so knowing that Katie wouldn't give in unless she had her way, Carl gave in and let her have her way. In the end, even though he insisted that he would have been fine just spending his birthday working at the café, his smile was just a bit bigger that night, and his eyes were just a bit brighter…but that was because he was so honored that almost the entire town had shown up that evening at the bar to celebrate his birthday, and not because Katie had been by his side the entire night, dragging him this way and that to make sure he did all the necessary "birthday things" (such as eating cake, and playing every party game in the book). Yes, the reason he was so happy was because of the party, and most certainly not because Katie had been holding his hand the entire time while dragging him around the party; no, that hadn't been the reason at all…

…but nonetheless, Carl resolved that he would do something really special for Katie's birthday.

Carl truthfully had never in his life planned a party of any sort before, because he had never really liked them all that much; they were far too noisy and loud. But here he was, planning to throw a party, and he hadn't a clue as to what to do, so he did all he could do: he went to the experts.

Eve and Duke had been quick to agree to help him decorate the café for the party, and had actually even promised to deal with inviting everyone in town and helping him keep it a secret from Katie; Ellen had even offered to keep Katie busy in the morning of the 29th of Fall to give them time to set up. Everyone was willing to lend a helping hand that all Carl had to worry about was preparing the food.

Carl had always been good at cooking, and he cooked for the café everyday…but for some reason, this was different; he was cooking something for Katie's birthday, and he wanted to make it extra special for some reason. And so he worked diligently on making the perfect cake for Katie as his present to her whenever the girl was out, and by the 29th, he had managed to pull it off; hoping she would like his gift, he decorated with Duke and Eve, and hoped for the best.

To say that Katie had been surprised was an understatement; she seemed utterly flabbergasted that Carl of all people had planned a surprise party for her…but she was nonetheless pleased; so pleased in fact, that she had run and pulled Carl into a rather choking embrace and babbling a long string of thank you's, before excitedly fussing over the gifts that everyone had brought her. Carl smiled at seeing Katie's bright smile as she opened yet another present, and chattered excitedly with Gwen and Ellen; he was glad that he party had made her so happy. All he wanted now was for her to like the present he had made her.

When Carl brought out the cake at long last however, he discovered that all his worrying had been unfounded, if the delighted look on the brunette's face was anything to judge by. Katie cut a huge chunk of the cake off, and happily took a bite. The girl closed her eyes and smiled, savoring the fruit of Carl's efforts before her eyes opened once more look at Carl. She flashed him a big smile and told him nonchalantly "good cooking was an attractive trait in a man," and that it was "always something a girl looked for in a potential husband." Carl felt his face heat up as he muttered a quiet "you're welcome" before Katie turned away towards the other party guests once more.

It was good to know that he had traits that girls found desirable… but he got the strangest feeling that he would have cared less if any other girl had told him that… for some reason, something inside of him insisted that the reason he was glad that cooking was a desirable trait for a potential husband to have, was not because girls in general thought so, but rather that Katie thought so.

Katie looked away from Gwen who she had been talking to flash Carl a bright smile, causing his heart to flutter wildly, and somehow… he could no longer attribute the tightness in his chest to being a simple friendly feeling any longer.

How come years seemed to fly by so quickly these days? How it been two years with Katie in his life already? How had winter, spring, and summer come and gone so quickly? Carl didn't know, but nonetheless, the year had come and gone already, and he found that autumn had come to the Valley once more, and so much had changed again… and marriage, this year, was a topic much closer to his heart, and to home then it had been a year before.

Jill and Jamie, and Nina and Basil were married now, and Gwen and Bob were expecting a child. It was odd really, how in merely two years so much had changed. He had so many friends now, and he was more confident and social (even if only a little bit more so), and then there was the little matter of his feelings towards Katie…

Upon meeting her, he thought she was a bit odd, and most defiantly a hand full, and while those opinions of her hadn't changed, he had grown used to these traits, and had actually grown to like all the parts of her personality that most people might have considered to be less then desirable… but then again, he wasn't "most people". Over the past two years, he had grown so used to her company, and he could almost say for certain that maybe, just maybe he lov-…no, no, he couldn't let himself say it, even to himself, lest he let himself believe that his feelings would be returned. But Katie had never show much interest in him; well, in that way anyhow. Sure, she always fussed over him when he got sick, and gave him a fierce talking to when he worked himself too hard, had told him on several occasions that any girl would be crazy not to be interested in him, and had grown absolutely furious when Eve had called him "cute"…but that was all completely friendly attention, right? He couldn't let himself hope that it could be more.

"Hey Carl, I'm back!" Katie announced upon entering the café with a little bag in her hand, "Hey, do you think we could close shop today?"

"How come?" Carl asked curiously, "Has something happened?"

"No silly!" she giggled, "but today's the two year anniversary for our café, and we've got to celebrate!"

Carl smiled; he had ceased correcting her when it came to calling the café "theirs" long ago; after all, Katie had been such a key player in the success of the café from the start that the café really was theirs and not his. "Alright then." Carl agreed with a sigh, "we'll close shop, but what do you have in mind?" he asked, putting out the "sorry we're closed" sign.

"Oh, several things." Katie replied enigmatically, "but first things first; I've got you something." And with flourish, Katie pulled a rather unexpected present from the bag she had brought in that caused Carl nearly to faint away on the spot.

"Katie…" he started slowly, his face turning unbelievably red, "That's… a blue feather."

"Thanks for stating the obvious Sherlock." She drawled sarcastically, "So now that we know you're eyesight is o.k., aren't you going to say something?"

"…Blue feathers are for proposing marriage." Carl told her, his heart fluttering madly in his chest, not quite believing what was happening.

Katie sighed and shook her head muttering "Men!" with a sigh. "Yes Carl, I'm perfectly aware of the purpose of a blue feather, now come on and say "o.k. Katie, I'll marry you!" already you twit!"

Carl stared blankly at her.

"Oh come on, don't give me that look! Just take the stupid feather! Do you have any idea how much this silly little thing costs. I did not simply spend a ridiculous amount of money on something to have to gape at me."

"…Are you…proposing to me?" Carl asked, unable to believe that this was all real.

"I believe we've already established that." Katie told him starting to sound as if she were getting inpatient, "Now would you just say "yes" already so we can get onto my plans?"

"Plans?" Carl asked blankly.

"Yes, plans!" she exclaimed, "I have a whole list of horribly sappy romantic things I want to do to celebrate the café's anniversary, and if you don't accept my proposal right now we won't get to doing any of them!"

At that moment, Carl was struck with the oddness of the scene, and how despite the fact that it was probably the most blunt marriage proposal he had ever heard, it was somehow right that things had played out how they did.

Marriage to Katie, Carl supposed, would probably be like his working relationship with her: she would be unpredictable, stubborn, argumentative, irritable, and sometimes, he might wonder why in the world he had let himself get involved with such a woman… but Katie didn't give up, and she wouldn't relent on the subject of marriage until he agreed, and besides… he had wanted this too anyway, so he did the only thing he could do.

He took that feather, and said yes.

"It's about time!" Katie huffed, "You're always stalling! Now, if we leave now we might be able to have a picnic," she explained, tugging him out of the café, her voice leaving no room for argument, "and then we'll steal the best spot in town to watch the sunset before anyone else can claim it…"

Yes, Carl mused as Katie babbled on about nonsensical things while forcibly pulling him to an unknown location for their "romantic picnic", Katie was pushy, stubborn, and hotheaded, and every bit an absolutely oddity of a girl… and yes, the two of them were almost opposites: her, loud and confident, and him, shy and quiet, but Carl supposed that was one of the reasons they got on so well; Katie was everything he wasn't, and Carl was everything Katie wouldn't be, and so in an odd sort of way, they were like two jigsaw pieces, and they simply fit together, and filled up the others empty space. Carl wasn't a romantic, and usually found such romantic metaphors to be rather silly, but in this case, there was no other way he could describe how, and why he felt the way he did about Katie…

…"but then again," Carl thought to himself as Katie blew up angrily in his face upon discovering that he hadn't been listening to her, "maybe I don't need a reason. All I need to know… is that I do."

Carl knew there would be good times, and bad, and that sometimes their personalities would clash, and that they would argue, and even though Carl wasn't sure how everything would turn out in the end… he had a feeling that everything would be o.k. Carl laughed; after all, if so many good things could happen, and if he could fall for such a crazy woman in only two years, he was sure that in the next few years, things could only get better. He could only wonder what would transpire by next fall… and for some reason, he couldn't wait to find out.

A/N: As usual, reviews are always loved, and I absolutely love getting them, so R&R :)

-pyrofreeze