X-X-X-X-X ::: Chapter 5: I'm Wet
"Alright, Miley's in place. Nick, you good to go?" Liv whispered. She was crouched down in the middle of the Jonas' hallway, dressed in black leggings, a black underarmour shirt, and plain black flats.
"Olivia, you don't have to whisper." Nick said from where he was standing next to her. "Joe and Kevin are both gone."
"Shh! You're ruining the effect!" she said quietly. "After all, I'm helping you with your revenge - you could at least go along with it!"
"Alright, fine." Nick sighed, now whispering as well.
"I still can't believe they-"
"Stop. I never want to think about that day of my life again."
"Sounds fair enough. Ok, you start in Kevin's room - Joe's is all mine." Liv said, smirking evilly. Nick nodded, adding in a few random (and meaningless) hand signals, just for "the effect" before going into Kevin's room. Liv, after checking both ways, ran across the hall and into Joe's room, setting the plan into action...
An hour or so later, the two schemers heard the front door open and a small group of people enter.
"Thanks again for helping me, you guys - Nick's gonna love his Valentine's gift!" Miley was saying to Joe and Kevin.
"It was no problem, Miley. Really." Kevin said. Joe nodded enthusiastically (he was on good terms with Miley today).
"Hey, guys!" Nick said, coming downstairs. Liv was hidden somewhere - Nick didn't even quite know where. "How was the...whatever you all were doing?"
"It was great!" Miley said, greeting him with a kiss on the cheek. "You know, you get your brothers to focus, and they can be a great help."
"Hey, I was focused the whole time." Kevin pointed out.
"Oh, right. Well, Kevin's always a good help, but you get Joe to focus, and he can be a good help too!" Miley corrected. Joe's brow furrowed.
"Was that a compliment?" he asked, confused.
"Relatively speaking, Joe, yes." Kevin said, patting his brother's shoulder. Joe shrugged, moving on to get a snack out of the kitchen.
"Hey Joe, you wanna go get that new CD out of your room? I want to show it to Miley." Nick said innocently.
"You can go get it yourself." Joe said shortly.
"Yea, but you know how cranky you can get when I mess up your 'system,' and I don't want to deal with that today." Nick insisted.
"I do not get 'cranky'!"
"Joe, you can get a little cranky." Kevin pointed out. Joe sighed.
"Fine. I'll go get the flippin' CD." he said, walking up the stairs to his room. Once he was almost out of earshot, Nick slapped his hand to his forehead.
"Wait, Kevin, I think I might have left it in your room." he said.
"Ok, I'll go check then, I guess." Kevin said, looking at him oddly. He followed Joe up the stairs, leaving Miley and Nick alone.
"Oh, you guys ROCK!" Liv whispered excitedly, jumping out from behind the couch and giving them high fives. "Now, we sit and wait..."
Exactly five seconds later, a loud "WHAT?!" and a girlish scream were heard from the upstairs. Joe had made it to his room just as Kevin made it to his. The two boys had walked in to find everything, save their beds and dressers, turned completely upside down. Books, CD's, even empty cups and plates were all upside down. Joe's glow-in-the-dark Elvis night light was even plugged in upside down. He screamed a girlish scream at the same time that Kevin yelled "WHAT?!" very, very loudly. They both sprinted into the hall, meeting each other in the middle.
"Is it all-?" Joe started.
"Everything's-" Kevin tried to say.
"But how did he-?"
"He didn't have time-"
"All by himself-?"
"He had to have help-"
"But Miley-"
"Outside source-"
The both stopped, gasped, and uttered the same word: "Olivia!"
They then turned and ran down the stairs, back to the entrance hallway, where Nick, Miley, and Liv were waiting patiently. Upon seeing them, all three began laughing.
"You!" Joe said, pointing at her.
"My room's upside down!" Kevin said.
"Guess you aren't in Kansas anymore. (1)" Liv said, stifling her giggles.
"MY ROOM'S UPSIDE DOWN!" Kevin yelled, but he and Joe were both close to laughter - after all, they're rooms were upside down, and you can't help but laugh at that.
"She did have an accomplice." Nick confessed, holding up his hand.
"Or two." Miley said, also stepping forward.
"You were both in on this?!" Kevin said.
"And to think I FOCUSED for you!" Joe said, slanting his eyes at Miley.
"Y'all really were good help, though." Miley said meekly. Joe's face brightened.
"Ah, I'm just kidding." he said, waving it off. He then turned on Liv. "You, on the other hand..."
"I'm thinking this means war, Joe." Kevin said.
"I'm going to have to agree, Kevin." Joe replied, looking at his brother.
"Oh, no." Liv said, shaking her finger. "You guys started it by not letting me in on that prank on Nick, which would have been better. You wouldn't have scarred the kid for life by-"
"DON'T SPEAK OF IT!" Nick burst out suddenly. It took a great deal of soothing and mollifying from Miley before he was calm again.
"You turned our rooms upside down!" Kevin said.
"We're even." Liv said, suddenly looking into their eyes intensely.
"Ooooh no," Joe said. "your Jedi mind tricks will not work on us. (2)"
"Blast, I knew I should've stayed and finished my training instead of going after Solo and Leia. (3)" Liv said, snapping her fingers.
"ANYWAY," Kevin interrupted. "I guess we can be even."
"Pinkie swear on it." Liv said, holding her pinkies out to each of them. Joe and Kevin both rolled their eyes as they linked their pinkies with hers. "There, all better."
"Yea. So who's going to help us turn our rooms right side up?" Kevin asked with an expectant look on his face.
"Yea, Miley and I have plans..." Nick said suspiciously.
"Yea, and I think we're already late..." Miley agreed, and they turned and practically ran out of the room. Kevin looked to Joe and Liv.
"Don't look at me," Joe said. "I have my own room to deal with." They both turned to Liv.
"What?" she asked. "You think I'm going to help undo my masterpiece? I don't think so."
Kevin sighed dramatically. "Fine," he said sorrowfully. "I suppose I'll just go up to my room and start by myself..."
"Alright, peace out brother." Joe said.
"See ya later, alligator." Liv added before the pair also ran off, leaving Kevin by himself.
"I need a girlfriend..." he muttered to himself before meandering back upstairs to his room.
Meanwhile, Miley and Nick wandered off (probably back to Miley's house), and Joe and Liv just collapsed in the soft grass of the Jonas' front yard.
"I have to admit," Joe said after a moment. "that was a pretty good prank."
"Well thanks!" Liv said with a smile. "It took me a while to come up with it."
"You do realize that we aren't even though, right?" he said, turning his head to look at her. She looked back.
"We're totally even." she said, laughing.
"We are not! I had to keep a top secret secret, but you, you..." Joe said, waving his hands, trying to figure out what he meant.
"Were vengeful yet creative and beautiful?" Liv offered.
"I suppose that'll cover it." Joe said, nodding in agreement. Liv stared at him for a moment, then suddenly smiled as if she had a secret. "What?"
She lifted her hand, and moved as if she were going to just lay it on him. However, she tapped his shoulder lightly and rolled away, crying "Tag! You're it!" and running out of arm's reach.
"For shiz?" he said. "It's on now!" He scrambled to his feet and began chasing after Liv, who had sprinted away when he started to move. She took a quick turn around a tree, making Joe slip on the grass as he tried to change directions.
"Run run, as fast as you can!" she said, scampering off in a different direction.
"Girl, when I catch up to you, you're...you're..." Joe was once again at a loss for words. Liv smiled at him from the other side of the yard at the top of the hill, and began twirling around. Joe took this distraction to run as fast as he could towards her. She tried to take off, but was the second victim of the slick grass and fell flat on her stomach. Joe, trying to stop all of the sudden, fell down as well, and began rolling down the hill.
"As...you...wish...(4)" he yelled. Liv, laughing at the reference, threw herself down the hill after him, both of them rolling at incredible speeds until the ground levelled out.
"That's quite a fall." Liv said, trying to catch her breath.
"Indeed." Joe said, lying a few feet from her. "Let's do it again!" he exclaimed, scrambling to his feet again.
"I'll just wait for you here." she said tiredly, still laying on the ground. He looked at her, concerned.
"You ok?" he asked, furrowing his brow. She gave a bright smile.
"Yea, I'm perfectly alright, just getting a bit burnt out from school and volleyball and all...plus, it's hard work conniving and turning two people's rooms upside down." she explained. "But it's all good - we're basically halfway through February, which means we're almost to Spring Break!"
"Speaking of," Joe said, laying back down next to her. She looked at him oddly. "February, not Spring Break." he explained. "Will you be my valentine?"
"Be your valentine?" she asked.
"Yes." Joe said, suddenly a little self conscious. "It's this tradition where people express the fact that they like each other." he said. Liv paused a moment, looking as if she were actually thinking.
"Well...I suppose so." she said slowly as Joe tried to figure out if she was serious or not. She suddenly gave him a warm smile. "Of course I'll be your valentine." she said, giving him a quick kiss. "What will we be doing?"
"Well, I hadn't quite gotten that far yet." Joe said, playing with her hair.
"That's fine, just let me know when and where." she said, closing her eyes and basking in the warm sun. Joe smiled in response, even if she didn't see it, and the two spent the rest of the afternoon lying in the sun.
A couple days later, Joe could be found pacing in the Jonas' house, deep in thought again. Goodness he thought a lot for this girl! It was three days until Valentine's, and he still had absolutely no idea what to do with Olivia. He had asked his mother, but she responded with "Well Joseph, honey, I don't know what girls would like nowadays, especially since you two have only been dating for a few weeks." So Joe was back to his pacing.
"Dude," Kevin said, coming inside from...outside. "What are you doing?"
"I don't know what to do for Olivia for Valentine's." Joe said shortly, still pacing. Kevin rolled his eyes.
"Did you ask Mom?" he asked.
"Yes. No help." Joe retorted.
"Then just call Miley - she'll help you out." Kevin tried again. Joe looked at him as if seeing him for the first time.
"Kevin, you're a genius! Goodness, I'm glad Mom kept you." he said, whipping out his phone. Kevin shook his head and smiled at his brother's antics.
"Just don't hurt yourself." Kevin said, walking towards his room. Joe wasn't listening - the phone was already ringing. He certainly hoped he wasn't interrupting Nick and Miley while they were making out or committing a federal offense or anything.
"Hey Joe." Miley answered, and he could practically hear the question in her voice. He heard Nick mutter something in the background, but it was unintelligible.
"Hey Miley." he said, momentarily forgetting why he was calling.
"...What's up?" she said after a moment in a tone that told Joe he needed to remember - fast.
"Miley, you're a girl!" he said, suddenly excited.
"Um, yea, last time I checked." she said, sounding like she was about to go into "angry Miley" mode.
"No, wait, I mean, you're a girl," Joe tried to smooth things over. "so you know what girls like and stuff. Valentine's Day is in like, three days and I have no idea what to do for Olivia - we've only been together for a few weeks..."
"Just take her to dinner. You can't lose with that." Miley said as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.
"Do I still get a gift for her?" he asked, making sure to cover all the bases.
"If you want. Nothing too big - just flowers or something." she said.
"Dinner and flowers? Got it." he said, writing it down on a receipt he found on the counter.
"Yea, that should be good." Miley said, trying to get him off the phone.
"Thanks a million, Miles. I really appreciate it." Joe said sincerely.
"No problem. Bye Joe." she said, hanging up before he could get distracted again. Joe looked at the back of the receipt, wondering why he thought he couldn't remember something as simple as dinner and flowers. But now he was faced with an entirely different problem - where were they going to dinner? And what flowers should he get her? Blast, dating was hard (and HA! it was dating this time!)! Suddenly, Mrs. Jonas walked in holding a couple bags of groceries.
"Mommy!" Joe said, jumping at her.
"What is it this time, Joseph?" she asked, setting the bags down and beginning to put the food away.
"Geez, harsh much." Joe said, eyeing her warily.
"I'm sorry, dear. What do you need?" she asked gently.
"Well, it's just...if I wanted to take a girl on a really romantic dinner, where would I take her? And if I were to buy said girl flowers, what kind would I buy?" he asked.
"Must you always speak like it's a hypothetical situation?" she sighed to herself. "Well, if you want to take Olivia to a nice place, try Teo's, on the beach - that's where your father takes me when he's being romantic. And as for flowers, roses ought to do nicely." she said.
"Thanks, mommy! You're the best!" Joe said, giving his mother a kiss on the cheek and running up to his room to finalize his plans.
A few days later, Joe and Liv could be found in a limo, on their way to the restaurant, dressed to the nine's.
"Seriously, Joe, where are we going?" Liv asked, trying to contain her smile and playing with the single red rose Joe had brought her.
"Secret!" Joe said. "But you'll like it...I think." he said the last part to himself quietly.
"If I call Kevin, will he know?" she tried.
"HA! I didn't tell Kevin!" he said, smiling at her. She pouted.
"Blast, you've foiled my plans again..." she said.
"I can't help it if I'm practically James Bond." Joe said, shaking his head.
"Yes, I suppose I did bring it upon myself..." she said, playing with the knee-length hem of the black skirt of her dress.
"Aw, now don't be like that." Joe said, even though he knew she was faking the sadness. Liv didn't say anything, just pouted more. "Fine, then you leave me no choice..." he said, leaning over and kissing her slowly. When he pulled away, Liv was smiling.
"Smooth." she said shortly.
"The name's Jonas. Joseph Jonas." he said, popping his collar. He then spotted the restaurant coming up. "Oh, look, we're here!" he said excitedly.
Liv turned to look out the window. "Teo's? How on earth did you...I can't believe...wow." she said, shocked that she was going to such a high-end restaurant.
"I've got the hookup." Joe said, giving her a smile as the limo pulled up to the door. "Ready?"
"As I'll ever be." she answered, still a little shocked. "I so should've worn heels..."
"You're fine." he said, offering his arm. She took it as the maitre d' led them to their table.
"Joe, this is really nice," she said, admiring the place. "Are you sure it's ok?"
"If it wasn't, would I have brought you here?" he asked, smiling. She gave a shy smile in return.
"I suppose not." she agreed with a nod. "So, what do you get here?" she asked, browsing the menu.
"No idea." Joe said, browsing as well. "I've never actually been here."
"I guess we'll have an adventure with it then." Liv said. "Hopefully it's good, I kind of forgot to have lunch."
"How can you of all people forget a meal?" Joe asked.
"I really don't know. I mean, I was cleaning the house, and mom needed help with stuff, then Tyler needed help with homework...and all of the sudden, I only had two hours until I had to meet you."
"It takes you two hours to get ready?" Joe asked incredulously.
"Oh please. Like it didn't take you forever to achieve that perfection." she said, gesturing to his hair.
"Actually, I have Kevin do it. He's quite handy sometimes." Joe said with a cheesy smile.
"Goodness, I may have to borrow him one day then."
"He charges by the hour - great rates too." he said. Liv laughed and was about to say something else when the waitor came to take their orders. They both tried something different and went back to their conversation, only to be shocked when the half-empty plates arrived some time later.
"It's like elf food." Liv said, staring at the food (or lack there of).
"Baby elf food." Joe agreed, also staring at his plate. He suddenly looked up at Liv. "This so isn't us. Want to jet?"
"Yes please." Liv agreed, grabbing her purse to pay. Joe held out his hand to stop her.
"Hey, I'll still pay." he said happily. Liv smiled.
"You sure?" she asked, raising her eyebrows. He laughed.
"We've been through this - would I say it if I wasn't sure?" he said, smiling at her. She gave him a half smile, shaking her head.
"Alright, go for it then." she gave in. After paying, the two practically ran out of the very grown-up restaurant and onto the boardwalk.
"So, what shall we do now?" Joe said, confidently slipping his hand into hers (well, he appeared confident, but he was actually a little hesitant). She quickly laced her fingers with his as they slowly wandered down the boardwalk.
"Well, there's a convenience store up there. You want to have a picnic on the beach?" she suggested.
"That sounds spectacular!" Joe said. They stopped in the store, buying a bunch of junk food before making their way down the beach, setting up shop in the middle of the sandy dunes. A few hundred feet away, a couple in their mid-twenties was sitting on a blanket, romantically feeding each other strawberries and sharing a bottle of champagne. Liv and Joe, however, were throwing cheese puffs at each other, trying to make in their mouths (one may have accidentally gone down Liv's dress, but it was not Joe's fault) and sharing a giant bottle of coke. The older couple soon got tired of their antics, and moved even further down the beach.
"Whoo! All alone now!" Liv said, giving Joe a high five.
"We make a pretty good team." Joe agreed.
"Yea - we should get jerseys. (5)" Liv added. She suddenly got up, dusting the sand off of her.
"Where are you going?" Joe asked.
"Let's go in the ocean." Liv said, pointing to where the waves were crashing ashore.
"But it's...wet." Joe said, laughing. Her eyes sparkled mischeiviously in the moonlight.
"So? Take your shoes off and roll up your pants!" she said, putting her hands on her hips.
"C'mon, Liv..."
"No, you c'mon, Joe." she said, grabbing his hands and pulling him up and toward the sea.
"Ok, hold up." he said, pulling off his socks and shoes and trying to roll up the hems of his nice pants. Liv was good to go - she had slipped her flats off long ago, and her skirt only came down to her knees. She took his hand again, running to the spot where the water met the land and splashing around. Joe laughed at her joy, which seemed to be contagious.
"I love the water!" she said, kicking a splash at him. He retaliated, and soon they once again found themselves in a fight of some sort - this time, splashing. When both of them were quite damp, Joe decided to just overpower her, rushing forward and slinging her over his shoulder. She screamed, but was soon laughing.
"Haha! I've got you now!" Joe said.
"Joe, put me down!"
"Hmm...no."
"Joe! Down!" she said, hitting his back continuously. He laughed with her.
"Alright, alright - WHOA!" When he tried to put her down, they both lost their balance. Even though they desperately tried to regain it, they both fell down flat into the water, getting completely soaked.
Liv was the first to resurface, floundering and sputtering. Joe soon surfaced as well, shaking his head like a dog. They looked at each other, both sopping wet in the moonlit ocean, and began laughing incredibly hard. And there, by the light of the moon, Joe couldn't take it anymore - he swam over to Liv just as the tide was coming in, kissing her purposefully. She responded earnestly, holding onto his waist for stability as his fingers wove into her tangled, sea-soaked hair. They kissed until the tide came back in, the waves crashing into them and nearly knocking them over. Liv smiled brightly, splashing him one more time before wandering back onto the beach. They walked slowly, hand in hand, back to the spot where all their stuff was.
The limo was waiting by the time they made it back up to where the restaurant was, dripping with sea water and carrying shoes and such. Their conversation was idle on the way to take Liv back home, both of them just enjoying each other's company. It wasn't until they were dripping on her porch that they really spoke.
"This," Liv said quietly, "has been the best Valentine's date I have ever been on."
"I'm glad." Joe said equally as quietly. "Cause this has been my best Valentine's date too."
She smiled shyly again, looking down at the keys in her hands, which she was playing with.
"Oh, you've got-" Joe said, reaching toward her hair.
"What is it?" she asked, trying to see the area just next to her neck. Joe moved closer, gently pulling out a piece of seaweed that was tangled in her hair. She smiled softly and was about to make a statement about being a mermaid when Joe leaned in and kissed her softly. Liv responded slightly - and then the lights inside the house came on and the door open abruptly. Linda stood there, clad in her dressing gown with a suspecting smile on her face.
"Oh, uh, hi mom." Liv said nervously.
"Hi Mrs. Haddocks." Joe said, looking at the ground.
"Hello Joe. Olivia, I think it's time to say goodnight." Linda said, still smiling knowingly.
"'Night, Joe." Liv said, giving him a smile.
"'Night, Liv." Joe responded. "Call you later?"
"Yea, go for it." she said quietly, waving to him and slipping inside the house. Joe smiled brightly, allowed himself a short happy dance, and went back to the limo, preparing to bother Kevin and Nick for the rest of the night.
X-X-X-X-X
(1) - Everything must have been topsy-turvy when Dorothy landed in Oz, hence the "Wizard of Oz" reference.
(2) - In the saga "Star Wars," Jedi knights were able to control people's thoughts using only their minds and a fancy hand wave. (3) - In "Star Wars," Luke Skywalker leaves his training with Yoda unfinished in order to save Han Solo and Princess Leia from a painful fate.
(4) - From the amazing "Princess Bride." Buttercup pushes Westley down a hill, and he reveals his identity by uttering those three words - "As you wish"
(5) - Quote from the song "Must Have Done Something Right" by Relient K. It goes, "We should get jerseys, cause we make a good team. But yours would look better than mine, because you're out of my league."
thanks for all the love, everyone! as always, tell me what you think, or if there's anything you'd like to see! peace out!
XM