Kim's POV
About an hour after I got back to my house, Jared texted me, asking me if I wanted to come over. I smiled, and told him yes, and that I would be over shortly. I told my parents that I was leaving, threw on a long sleeved shirt, some jeans, boots, and a little bit of makeup, and left. Jared and I only lived about 5 minutes away from each other, so I arrived there shortly.
I walked into his house (we never knocked; we'd been visiting each other like this for years) and heard his voice coming from his little sisters room. As soon as Keane saw me, her arms stretched out in my direction, and she said, "Kimmy! Kimmy! Me!" In Keane-talk, that meant "Kimmy, hold me!". I obligingly took her into my arms, and smiled at her. I then looked up, and saw Jared staring at me. "What?" I asked, "Haven't you seen a girl handle a baby before?" "Yes," he said, "But you look so…natural." His comment both surprised and confused me. I wish that he was easier to read.
An hour or so later, Keane was asleep, and Jared and I were watching a movie on the couch. We were in our usual position, with him laying behind me, with his arm draped over my stomach. Most people would call this a couple-like position, but it was just how we were. I looked behind me, and noticed that Jared had fallen asleep. He was so cute. His face was so peaceful, like he had no worries. I turned around, so I was facing him, and just looked at him. Yes, this would be considered creepy. But he was asleep. I started thinking about my feelings for him, and I eventually started saying them out loud.
"I wish you knew. I wish you knew how I felt about you. Your friendship means the world to me, and I don't want to ruin it. But…it's worth a shot. I would hate to look back, years from now, and regret not telling you my feelings. Jared, I love you, but…I just don't know how to tell you."
I heard my phone ring from the kitchen, and even though I hated to move from my position, I was afraid that it was my mom or dad trying to contact me. I got up, grabbed my phone, and saw my best friend Lea's name on the screen. I opened the message, which read:
"Kimber-butt! I miss you. I don't care what you're doing tomorrow, we're doing something. Love, Lea."
I quickly reply, saying that, yes, I would love to hang out tomorrow. After I sent it, I heard Jared,
"Kim? Where are you?"
"In the kitchen," I replied.
"Why are you in there?" he asked.
"Isn't that where a woman belongs?" I said as I walked back into the living room. I sat down next to him, and he rolled his eyes, and sprawled out on the couch, knocking me onto the ground.
"Awesome, Jared. Just awesome. I'm going to have a bruise tomorrow."
"Wow, someone's being a little overdramatic tod-" I cut him off by shoving him in the arm. Once again, my phone started ringing. I ran to answer it, and this time it was my mom, telling me that I need to go home because dinner was almost ready. I said bye to Jared, promising to text him later. As soon as I walked in my door, I checked my phone, finding a message from Jared, saying,
"Just making sure you got home okay…you know, with the long commute and everything ;)"
I rolled my eyes, and quickly typed out a funny, quirky reply, making sure that it was evident that I was joking. As much as I loved Jared, he sometimes had a hard time taking a joke. But love has its obstacles. Obstacles that I was more than willing to cross.