(Darry's POV)

With our busy schedules, it was more than a week later before our second date, but Kate and I continued to talk on the phone every night, which was usually the highlight of my day. During those conversations, it felt like I was talking to an old friend that I had known for years rather than a girl that I hardly talked to in high school and only had been on one date with. There was just something about Kate that made me feel at ease, and I hated hanging up the phone every night.

Kate and I agreed to have dinner at the diner that she works at after she was done with her shift. It worked out pretty well because by the time I drove there right after work, she only had to work for another half an hour. I sat down on a barstool at the end of the counter as I waited for her to be done working. Every time she had a spare moment, she came over to me and asked if I needed anything. Besides water, I told her I wasn't going to have anything until we could have dinner together.

I looked around and noticed that the place was pretty busy, especially considering it was past the typical time for people to eat dinner. There were only two tables and a few barstools still open. From the previous time I had been there, I knew the food was amazing, so I couldn't be too surprised that there weren't many open seats. The diner was open 24/7, and I had a feeling there was probably always at least a few customers there, no matter the time of day.

"Okay Connie, I'm off!" Kate shouted towards the kitchen as she took her apron off and hung it up on a hook behind the register. "I'm sticking around for dinner!"

I heard a lady's voice shout back. "Alright, hon! I'll be out there in a few minutes!"

Kate walked up to me, smiling the whole way. She has such a pretty smile. "Do you want to sit here, or at a table?" she asked.

I raised an eyebrow. "Is there even a table open?" I asked jokingly.

As she walked around the counter, she looked around, surveying the whole place. "You have a point. Let's just stay here." With the decision made, she plopped down onto the seat next to me and smiled again. "How was work?"

"Same old, same old. Nothing exciting," I said, then I added some details, trying to prevent myself from sounding extremely boring. "I was on a roof most of the day, then I went to the warehouse and did some bookkeeping for a couple hours."

"You say that like it's nothing," she said, giving me a small smirk.

I shrugged. "It's how a lot of my days go. Now that there isn't as much sunlight during the day, I'm roofing less, so I have to get more hours at the warehouse to make up for it." Normally I don't like to discuss my jobs or the financial stress that I'm constantly under, but Kate already knew about my situation and how I had to provide for my brothers, and it didn't seem like she judged me because of it. She actually seemed interested.

"That makes sense, but you shouldn't act like working all day every day is nothing," she said. The tone of her voice almost sounded like she was gently reprimanding me, and there was maybe a hint of concern too, which confused me. "You work hard, and there's no shame in telling it like it is."

"It's just something I have to do. I'm kind of used to it now," I said, trying to convince her that she didn't need to be worried about me.

Kate looked directly at me, almost analytically, but I couldn't find it in me to worry about being under her scrutiny; she was too sweet and caring for me to be worried about what she might be thinking. As I looked into her mesmerizing eyes, I saw that in addition to the rings of brown around her pupils, there were gold flakes sprinkled throughout the seas of green. I could get lost in those eyes if she'd let me.

"I understand. It's really admirable, what you're doing for the boys and all," she finally said. "How are they?"

The compliment was unexpected, but it made me feel good. Although I didn't necessarily need anyone to tell me I was doing good by my brothers and now Johnny, it was still nice to hear it. Maybe I really am doing some things right. Even though she had said nice things about my work and all, I was thankful that the conversation had deviated away from me.

"They're good. Soda's still working at the DX with Steve, and Pony's already studying for this semester's finals, even though it isn't even Thanksgiving yet." I wasn't sure if Pony was studying because I was still being too hard on him, or if he actually wanted to do well in his classes. Either way, I was glad he was starting to get back on track with school after everything that happened in September.

Kate kept smiling, and I felt myself being swallowed up by her eyes again. "From everything you've told me, I think Ponyboy will do just fine on those tests next month. He sounds smart and resilient."

I grinned and nodded. "Yeah, he is. I think after… everything, he just doesn't want to fall behind again." After mentioning my brothers, I felt obligated to include the third teenager that lived under my care. "And Johnny's doing better too. He might even be able to get out of the chair and just use crutches by the new year."

That news made Kate beam brightly, which was enduring because as far as I knew, she didn't really know Johnny. "That's amazing! I've been hoping he would get better ever since I heard…" she trailed off, apparently feeling uncomfortable speaking about what happened during that awful week a couple months prior. "I really hope he keeps getting better."

The fact that Kate seemed to care about anyone from our gang was touching, but what she said next took me aback. "What about you? How are you, Darry?"

"I'm…" several words crossed my mind, but something was preventing me from saying anything. Alright. Fine. Good. Great. I looked into her hypnotic eyes, and it was like I lost the ability to speak. Glory, she sure is beautiful.

"Darry? You okay?" Kate asked, worry evident in her voice again.

"Yeah, I'm okay," I settled with. You don't have to be worried about me.

Kate didn't seem to like my answer, but before she could reply, a dark-skinned woman with curly black hair approached us, standing on the other side of the counter.

"Well hello there," the woman said with a smile, her teeth practically glowing in contrast to her skin tone. "You must be Darry."

"Yes ma'am," I said with a curt nod. Then I gave Kate a quick glance, raising an eyebrow at her, silently asking her how the woman knew my name.

"Sooo you know how you said you've mentioned me to your friends?" Kate asked. When I nodded, she cringed, but had a small smile on her face. "Well I might've done the same thing. Darry, this is Connie. She owns the diner."

I turned to look at the woman, and I extended my hand towards her like my dad always taught me to do. "Nice to meet you, ma'am."

The woman hesitated for a second, almost looking surprised by my gesture, but she quickly shook my hand. Then she scolded me with a warm smile. "Oh don't be callin' me ma'am, darlin'. I might be old, but I ain't that old. And I'm not one for formalities anyway. You can just call me Connie."

I nodded and retracted my hand, biting my tongue so I didn't call her ma'am again.

"Now what'll you two be having?" Connie asked us.

"I'll have my usual," Kate said without hesitating. I was curious what her usual order entailed, but I'd find out sooner rather than later.

"And for you, sweetie?" Connie asked me.

"I'll have a cheeseburger and fries please," I said as politely as I could. I was famished after working all day, and it took all my willpower not to order three of them.

Connie's eyes studied me for a moment, then she gave me a knowing grin. "A strong man like you needs more food than that. You wanna make that a double?"

"Oh, that- that's alright," I stuttered. "I'll just have the single." Kate had said she wanted to pay for dinner, but I wasn't going to let that happen, so I had to be mindful of how much money I spent on myself.

Connie briefly looked over at Kate before returning her sights onto me. "Okay, hon. I'll bring the food out as soon as it's ready." With that, Connie turned and left, giving Kate a wink before disappearing from view.

"She's like a second mother to me," Kate said before I could ask her about the suspicious wink from the diner owner. I looked at her, and she had a fond smile on her face as she continued to stare at the spot Connie had disappeared to. "I started working here when I was a teenager, and she's treated me like a daughter since day one. She was there for me during some of the worst times of my life." By the time the words left her mouth, she had a far-away expression on her face.

I instantly knew there was a deep meaning and probably a painful story behind her words, but it was only our second date, so I didn't want to push her to explain and make her uncomfortable. Still, I wanted to leave the conversation open in case she decided to talk about it. "Yeah?"

She nodded, and when she turned to face me again, she blinked, and her distant look was immediately wiped from her face. "She had a husband, and a son, but they're both gone. Her employees are her friends and family."

I nodded. "She must be a tough woman. I know what it's like to lose your family… it's not easy to keep going," I said. I didn't mean for the last part to be said out loud, but there was no turning back once the words were out in the open.

Kate's face dropped a little, and she put her hand on top of mine that rested on the countertop. Her skin was soft and warm. Comforting. "I know you're probably tired of hearing this, but I really am sorry for your loss. I can't even imagine what you've all gone through in the past year."

I nodded a little and replied automatically. "Thanks."

She retracted her hand, and I instantly missed the warmth. "I'm sorry. You're probably sick of people saying that, but it wasn't like that obligatory thing people always say; I really did mean it."

She seemed honestly sorry, and I wished she didn't feel that way. All she was trying to do was show some empathy. There's nothing wrong with that.

"It's fine," I said with a wave of my hand and an attempt of a smile. "It's been almost a year since our parents, so it's not as fresh or as painful anymore." That was mostly true, but after trying to force the pain away for months, I assumed it would never really go away. Still, it had been long enough that I figured I should be able to talk about it without feeling like crawling into a dark hole somewhere so nobody could see me breaking down.

She nodded, and gave me a sad smile. "I don't think the pain ever goes away entirely. I know what it's like to lose a parent, but I can't pretend to know what you've been through. I didn't lose both parents and suddenly need to figure out life in a day." I felt my face scrunch up into a look of confusion. She lost a parent? I didn't know that. Before I could ask her anything, she kept talking. "If you don't mind me asking… what were your parents like?"

I opened my mouth, but froze. Not only was the realization that Kate had lost a parent still being processed in my mind, but I had no idea where to start when given the task of talking about my parents.

"I'm sorry, that- that was rude of me," she said, suddenly averting her eyes and picking at her nails like I'd seen Pony do so many times when he got nervous. "Sometimes it helps to talk about it, but you don't have to-"

"No, it's fine. Really," I said, finally finding the ability to speak again. I reached to hold her hands like she did with me, and she stopped fidgeting with them. When she looked back up at me, her eyes were widened a little. Was she worried that I'd be mad or something? Does she not want me to touch her? I released my hold on her hands to ease her concern, and I placed mine flat on the countertop. "My parents were great. Out of everyone in the gang, my brothers and I were the only ones with two good parents that were still in a good marriage. I think that's why our house became a sort of haven for everyone else in the gang. They took care of all of us, even the guys that weren't technically their kids."

Kate nodded as I spoke, as if she was encouraging me to keep talking. I obliged.

"My mom's name was Margaret, but she almost always went by Maggie. She was kind and loving, even though she was strict with her rules. One of them was if she noticed that we were hurt and she asked what happened, we weren't allowed to lie to her. Sometimes she'd help patch one of us up and not say anything, but if she asked and we lied, she'd holler at us so loud that people in Canada could probably hear her," I said, not able to stop myself from laughing a little. "Even Dally followed her rules. She was the only one that he'd listen to."

Kate smiled fondly, and she waited a moment before speaking softly. "What about your dad?"

"He… he was my coach, my role model, and my best friend," I admitted, feeling like I was getting punched in the stomach. I had nothing but fond memories of my dad, and yet, reliving them was painful. "Everyone said I looked like his twin or something, which was funny because I was named after him too, but his personality was more like my brother Sodapop than me. I guess Dad was sort of a wild child back in the day, and even with us kids, he was still pretty rowdy. He was only tough when he needed to be, and all of the guys loved him like he was their father."

"They both sound amazing." Kate allowed a few more quiet seconds to pass by before she covered my hands with hers again, filling them with warmth that matched the look in her eyes. "Thank you for telling me all of that. I know it's not easy, but whenever you want to talk about them, I'll always listen."

How did I get so lucky to go on a second date with this wonderful woman?

"Thank you," I said with a small smile and nod, forcing any and all emotions down. "Can I ask about your…?" I trailed off, not knowing how to word the question. Which one of your parents died?

"My dad," she finished for me. "Of course. His name was David, and he was the best dad I could ask for. He was nice, smart, and funny. He always made sure to spend time with me after he got home from work; most of the time we played catch with a baseball or something until the sun went down. On weekends, we'd go to movies, the rodeo, or anywhere else that sounded fun. My mom said I spent so much time with my dad, I gained his sense of humor and a little bit of his cockiness, but I know my stubbornness is definitely from her."

I grinned at that, but I stayed quiet so she could keep talking.

"My dad died from a stroke when I was nine. It happened out of the blue, without any warning. My mom and I were both devastated, and she was never the same. I guess neither of us are. Then, when I was ten, she remarried," she said, her expression changing to sadness with something else mixed in. Anger? Grief?

I couldn't imagine seeing one parent die, then the other starting a new life with someone else. At least I had the small comfort of knowing that my parents loved each other more than anything, and neither of them had to live without the other.

"What about your step-dad? What's he like?" I asked, hoping to get the upsetting expression off her face.

My question had the opposite effect than what I wanted.

A strange look crossed Kate's face, then she shifted uncomfortably in her seat. She took her hands away again and started continuously opening and closing them. I instantly knew that I had overstepped, and the guilt was already starting to weigh me down. "I'm sorry, Kate. You don't have to tell me anything."

Kate looked up at me intensely and shook her head. "No, I'll tell you. It's only fair since you told me about your folks."

I opened my mouth to reiterate that she didn't have to share anything that she didn't want to, but she reached forward and gripped my forearm, giving it a small squeeze. "It's okay, Darry. I want to tell you."

I felt guilty about the role I played in having her talk about something that obviously bothered her, but being as stubborn as she is, she started talking before I could say anything else.

"My step-dad's name is Victor. We… we don't get along. He's the reason I moved out as soon as I was out of high school," she said ominously. She took a couple deep breaths before continuing. "Ever since the first time I met him, I knew he wasn't a great guy. He's nothing like my dad was. I had no idea why my mother married him, and it made me angry. Now that I'm older, I think she was just lonely and heartbroken, so she probably felt like she needed someone in her life to fill the void that was left after my dad died. I just wish it wasn't Victor."

She was quiet for a moment as she looked down at the counter with that distant look back on her face. After taking a shuddering breath, she added one more thing. "I love my mom, and I miss her a lot– I haven't seen her since I moved out– but I can't go back to her house if he's there. I just can't. He's an awful man."

My blood ran cold. I've heard stories about men that weren't considered to be good guys, and I personally knew some people that were probably in that category too, but the reasons could because of anything between yelling a lot to more severe reasons. I didn't want to imagine what Victor did to Kate, but my mind was already spinning with horrible possibilities.

Again, Kate was looking into my soul with her magical green orbs, and she spoke before I had the guts to. "I know what you're thinking, Darry. I'd be wondering too. I just… I'd rather not talk about it anymore. At least not today. I promise I'll tell you more some other time. Is that okay?"

I nodded immediately, then I covered her hand that was grasping my arm and gave it a reassuring squeeze. "Of course. You don't have to say anything you don't want to. Thank you for sharing that with me."

She grinned back at me. "You too. But from now on, the rest of this date will be fun. No more sad stuff, alright?"

"Yeah, alright," I agreed. I was grateful that Kate was comfortable with not only me sharing things about my parents, but she shared some stuff too. However, I was more than a little relieved that we could move onto lighter topics.

"Okay kids, here's your food," Connie said, suddenly reappearing with two plates of food. The plate put in front of Kate had a BLT with chips, and mine had a double cheeseburger with fries. I was about to tell Connie that I had just ordered a single, but she was already onto me. "I'm not about to let you starve after workin' all day, honey."

As much as I wanted to tell Connie I would be fine with a single, something told me she wasn't the type of woman to argue with. Just from the short amount of time I knew her, I could tell she was someone who takes care of others, maybe especially when they didn't ask for it.

I gave her a grateful smile in return. "Thank you, m- Connie." Remember Darry, she doesn't want to be called ma'am.

She smiled brightly, and I didn't know if it was because I called her by her name like she had instructed, or because I didn't bother arguing with her. Kate stood up and excused herself, saying she wanted to wash her hands before eating. The moment she was out of sight, Connie addressed me again.

"You treatin' Kate okay?" Connie asked me, arching her eyebrow.

I nodded quickly, a little surprised by the abruptness of her question. "Yes, I- I think so," I said, fumbling my words. I felt like I was under a microscope as she looked at me. I had met several of my girlfriends' dads before, but somehow, I was even more nervous about Connie staring at me than any of those interactions.

"Good, because if I find out your aren't, you and I are gonna have a problem," she said, her tone sounding drastically different than before. Not only was she someone that cared for others, but it was obvious that she was especially protective of the people she cared about. She and I have that in common.

"I promise, I only have good intentions. I really like her, and I would never do something to hurt her," I said honestly, not really thinking about what I was telling someone that was practically a stranger. She might be a stranger to me, but is she really a stranger if Kate said she's almost like another mother to her?

Connie studied me for a moment, then a big smile swept across her face and her tone returned to normal. "I know, sweetheart. I could tell from the moment I saw you two sittin' here. I just needed to make sure we're on the same page is all."

Relief flooded my body. Then as her words sunk in, I raised my eyebrows. "You could tell just by looking at me?"

"Honey, when you've been around as long as I have, you get real good at reading people," she said with a smug look on her face as she put her hands on her hips. "And from everything Kate's said about you, I couldn't imagine you being anything but good to her."

I felt my skin heat up a little, and I took a sip of my water to try to cool down.

Connie was still grinning at me, but then her eyes moved to look at something towards the bathrooms, and her grin fell slightly. I turned my head to see what she was looking at, and I could see Kate and the back of some blonde guy's head near the women's bathroom. The blonde guy was standing in front of her, blocking her path back to her seat. Just by looking at her body language, I could tell she was annoyed and wanted to get away from him, but he must've not figured it out. I stood up, about to go tell the guy to leave her alone, but a hand on my arm stopped me from moving. I looked back at Connie, who was giving me a knowing smirk.

"It's sweet that you want to help her, but she can handle it," she said confidently.

I looked back towards Kate, and I noticed that she had changed her posture to seem more confident and intimidating. "She's tough," I said out loud, reiterating what the guys have all said about her.

"She's had to be," Connie said quietly and painfully before she took her hand off my arm. I knew there was more to her statement, but that would be a story for another time.

I could see Kate say something, then she nodded her head in my direction. When the blonde guy turned to look, it took all of two seconds for him to spot me. I casually flexed my muscles without making it obvious that's what I was doing, and his smirk fell from his face. I didn't even try to fight back a grin. The guy said something to Kate before he quickly proceeded to leave the diner.

As Kate walked back towards me, I relaxed and sat back down.

"She can handle herself," Connie said quietly so Kate wouldn't hear. "But that doesn't mean she couldn't use a little help sometimes."

I nodded my head, but kept my eyes on Kate. The second she took her seat next to me, I put my hand on her shoulder. "Everything alright?"

"Everything's fine. Don't worry Darry, I can take care of myself," she said with a smirk. "Plus, it helps that my date has big muscles to scare off other guys."

I grinned. I was always proud of my muscles, but I was even prouder at that moment.

"Alright you two, enjoy your dinner," Connie said before she turned to leave. Then, as if she just remembered something, she said one more thing to us. "Dinner's on the house tonight, and don't you argue with me on that young man," she said, pointing her finger at me.

I wanted to tell her I could pay, but she walked away before I could say anything. Then when I heard Kate chuckling next to me, I couldn't help but laugh with her. "Am I ever going to pay for my entire meal here?"

Kate took a bite out of her sandwich and shrugged. "Now that you've met Connie, I doubt it."

After we each ate a few bites, I spoke up. "You know… it would be nice to have one date where other guys don't hit on you," I said, only partially joking. "I wasn't kidding about maybe needing to throw a few punches to keep other guys away."

Kate looked at me, her eyes bigger than normal. It was apparent that I said something wrong, so I was quick to backtrack.

"I'm just kidding around," I said lamely. "Sorry, I'm a little out of practice of dating and everything. I'm sure I'll say lots of dumb things."

She gave me a small smile and shook her head as she swallowed some food. "You're doing just fine, Darry," Kate said, putting a hand on my upper arm. Every time she touched my skin, it felt like electricity was coursing through me, and it intensified after every instance. It didn't seem like she knew she had that effect on me, and I hoped to keep it that way. "I'm out of practice too. I haven't dated much since high school, and even then, I hardly went out with anyone."

That piqued my interest. Kate was a beautiful girl, smart as a whip, and really sweet. The fact that she didn't date much was surprising since she could've gone out with anybody she wanted. "Really? Can I ask why?"

She averted her eyes and I saw a hint of red appear on her cheeks. "Oh, you know, life gets busy…" she trailed off. Then she removed her hand from my arm to move a stray piece of hair behind her ear as her gaze moved down to look at the food on her plate. "And it's not like there were a lot of guys that wanted to date me."

"That's not true," I said suddenly without meaning to.

Her head snapped back to look at me. "What?"

Good job Darry, way to open your big mouth. Now you have to tell her.

"You're real pretty, Kate. Prettiest girl I know. You've always been nice and got along with everyone, and you're really smart too. Who wouldn't want to date you?" I was rambling, and I couldn't stop. "I mean, you already had that one guy bugging you tonight, and Dal at the drive-in..." I trailed off, trying to ignore the jealous and protective feelings I felt when other guys talked to Kate.

Kate opened and closed her mouth a few times as she tried to figure out what to say. Her blush became an even deeper shade of red, which I thought was kind of cute. "Well what about you, huh? How could you be out of practice if girls line up to go out with you?"

I barked out a laugh, which seemed to make Kate shrink a little in embarrassment. I quieted down and forced what I hoped was a comforting smile onto my face. "I haven't dated since school either, and I wouldn't say girls ever lined up to date me."

"Oh yeah?" Kate said, quirking her eyebrows. She didn't look embarrassed anymore, but instead, she looked almost cocky. "What about Jennifer? Or Beth? Or-"

"Okay okay, I dated a few girls when I was younger," I quickly admitted before she could list every girl I had ever gone out with. "They were nice and all, but things just never worked out. There was just something missing, I guess. Well, at least for me there was… they all had their own reasons why they broke up with me."

She grinned a little at that. "I can't imagine what their reasons were. Too smart? Too good-looking? Sounds like they're the ones with issues, not you," she said.

I nudged her gently with my elbow. "Now you know what I'm trying to say about you."

She let out a quiet laugh, which was music to my ears. A rush of pride filled my entire body knowing that I made her sound like that. After a beat, she looked at me sheepishly, like she was about to admit something embarrassing. "You say all of these things like they're obvious or something, but I always thought I just blended in with everyone else. I didn't even think you'd recognize me when you came to the diner that day with some of the guys," Kate said quietly.

"Really?" I asked, shocked. How could I not recognize Kate Miller?

She shrugged. "You were a popular jock, and I was just some boring, average girl. I didn't think you really knew me in school, so I thought there was no way Darry Curtis would remember me years after we graduated."

The next words flew out of my mouth instantly. "You're anything but average."

Kate looked confused, and it blew my mind that she truly thought she was average in any way. It bothered me, actually.

"I told you I had talked about you to the gang… that wasn't just because you were some average girl in my class," I explained, trying to not make it seem like I thought she was dumb or anything. How could she think she's average? "Sure, the first thing I noticed was how beautiful you are, but then I learned how smart and funny you are too. You're always yourself instead of acting different to fit into a category or group of people, and I thought that was cool."

She wore an expression of shock, and when it was eventually wiped from her face, she grinned a little and nudged me with her elbow. "And you said you're out of practice... could've fooled me with all those sweet things you're saying."

We both laughed a little, then we continued talking in between taking bites of our food.

The topics of our conversation included our friends, where some of our high school classmates have ended up, and other typical small-talk topics. After talking about the heavy stuff like our dead parents, I figured both of us were happy to talk about almost anything. Even though we both had admitted to not dating much, it was pretty apparent that we enjoyed flirting back and forth. In fact, it felt natural to flirt with Kate. Is it even flirting if it's given and received so casually and easily?

After we finished dinner, Connie brought us two chocolate milkshakes. She didn't mention anything, but I wondered if she had heard about Kate giving the guys and me free shakes before. It was when I was almost finished with my shake that I came up with a plan for another date. If she's interested.

"You said you went to the rodeo with you dad?" I asked, a little suddenly.

Kate gave me a confused look, but nodded her head. "Yeah, all the time. Why?"

"Would you want to go this Saturday?" I asked. "I'm done with work at four, and it doesn't start until seven. I could pick you up."

She smiled brightly, and it was automatic for me to mirror her reaction even before she replied. "I'd love to! I haven't been there in ages." Then her excited expression changed into a sheepish grin. "Do you think we can go early to see the horses in the barn first? That's one of my favorite things to do there."

"Of course," I said without needing to think about it for a second. A moment later, I remembered that Dally would probably be in the barn before the rodeo, but I just had to hope we wouldn't have a repeat of what happened on our first date if we ran into him. Instead of voicing my concern, I acted like nothing was wrong. "I could pick you up at five, if that's okay?"

"That sounds perfect."

We walked out of the diner together to get to our vehicles. It was already dark outside, and I knew my brothers would both be home, waiting for me so I could tell them all about my date. I could picture them sitting on the couch, eagerly awaiting my return, and the thought almost made me smirk and roll my eyes.

"Where did you park?" I asked Kate.

We were walking side-by-side, and our hands were brushing against each other with every step. I tried not to make it seem like a big deal, but as cheesy and old-fashioned as it is, I wanted to feel her soft, warm hand in mine.

"Employees park around back," she said, turning her head in the direction she was planning on going. Before she had the chance to veer away from me and walk by herself, I took a risk and grabbed her hand, which caused her to look up at me with a quirked eyebrow and a small grin.

"I'll walk you to your car," I said as nicely as I could.

I waited for her to argue with me, to tell me she that could handle herself, but a wave of happiness rushed through me when she just nodded and said "Okay."

It took all of two minutes for us to walk around the diner and reach her car, but those two minutes were still nice. We walked in a comfortable silence, hand-in-hand. In reality, it probably wasn't too dangerous to walk to her car by herself, even in the dark, but it was the principle that I was more concerned about. I cared about Kate and I felt protective over her after only two dates. I had to make sure she was safe and taken care of, even though she was tough and didn't necessarily need protection.

When we got to her car, she turned around and gave me a warm smile. "Thank you, Darry." Then, before I could reply or anything, she tugged my arm a little, making me lean forward, and she gave me a kiss on the cheek. "I'll see you on Saturday."

I was pretty sure I was still blushing the entire way home.