Love the One You're With (9/16)
Previous Chapter
Scotty knew that, by helping out Sarah and Paige, he would run into Kevin eventually. He didn’t think it would be the very first time he went over there. Therefore, he was totally relaxed as he followed Sarah into the kitchen while she thanked him profusely.
"Don’t worry about it. I think it’s going to be - "
"Scotty!"
He stopped talking and turned to the man by the counter. Kevin looked...good. He looked as shocked as Scotty felt, but he looked good. His hair was just long enough for a few curls to form, and he obviously had been going to the gym. His tie was loose, with the top buttons of his shirt undone, and it required all of Scotty’s willpower not to walk over there and suck on the hollow of his throat.
"Kevin!" He glanced at Sarah, who maintained a - probably false - innocent expression.
At that moment, Sarah’s phone rang and she quickly excused herself, walking out of the room. For the first time in what felt like forever, Kevin and Scotty were together and alone. Scotty had no idea what to say.
Kevin was clearly just as flabbergasted. "Hi. H-how are you?" he stuttered.
"I’m good," Scotty managed. After a moment of silence, he added, "Sarah asked me to...it’s nice to see you."
Kevin suddenly smiled, and Scotty lost his breath.
"You too."
They stared at each other. Scotty could feel a blush rising up his neck, but he didn’t care. Kevin was right there in front of him, and he seemed happy to see Scotty. Scotty had almost forgotten how much just the sound of Kevin’s voice could affect him.
Kevin shook himself slightly, looked down at his briefcase and began to play with the handle in what Scotty recognized was extreme nervousness. "Look - " Kevin began but was interrupted by the sudden ringing of his cell phone. He jumped, pulling it out of his pocket and turning it off with only a quick glance at the screen.
"You don’t have to answer that?" Scotty asked, then immediately wanted to kick himself. He didn’t want Kevin to answer his phone; he wanted him to say whatever he had been planning.
Kevin shook his head. "It’s not important," he said, and Scotty smiled at the implication that - whoever it was - Scotty mattered more. "Look," Kevin continued. "I know you have to do Sarah’s thing right now, but maybe...maybe we could have coffee or something sometime."
"What about Jason?" Scotty asked before he could stop himself.
There was a pause before Kevin said, "We broke up a while ago." Blood rushed through Scotty, filling his ears with a roaring sensation, and he thought he was going to pass out.
But what shocked him even more was when he opened his mouth and said, as if he were possessed, "I don’t think that would be a good idea." What?!, he thought.
Kevin hesitated. "I know that things ended weirdly between us the last time - "
And Scotty realized that his impulse to turn Kevin down had been right. Not only was he happily involved with someone else, but he also couldn’t risk himself with Kevin again.
"Weirdly doesn’t begin to describe it," he interrupted. "We’ve tried to have some kind of relationship twice now and failed spectacularly both times. I don’t know if I can go through that again."
Scotty wasn’t sure if he had accidentally given something away in his response, but Kevin, who up until then had seemed as thrown as Scotty was, suddenly found something inside himself and turned on the charisma. "Maybe the third time’s the charm," he said with a grin.
The grin was infectious. Scotty tried to suppress a smile, but he had a feeling he didn’t succeed. "Three strikes and you’re out, Kevin."
Kevin looked adorably perplexed for a second. "But that means we still have one more try at bat."
"You realize I know nothing about sports." Scotty couldn’t hide his laugh that time.
Kevin picked up his briefcase and looked at Scotty again. "Just consider it. I’ve...I’ve missed you."
Scotty stared back at him. He should know better, he should turn him down right now, he should remind Kevin he only had himself to blame if he missed Scotty. But all he could say was "you’re not good for me, Kevin Walker." It didn’t sound at all dismissive. It sounded...flirtatious.
"Is that a no?" Kevin asked.
Scotty spared a brief guilty thought for Mark. "No," he said slowly.
Kevin smiled brilliantly. "Is that a yes?"
Scotty took a deep breath and bit his lower lip. "That’s a maybe."
***
"Mom!" Sarah spoke quietly into the phone as she answered it. "Perfect timing! Scotty just got here."
"How’s it going?"
"I don’t know, I don’t know. They both looked like they had been hit by a train, but I don’t hear any shouting, at least."
"Good as can be expected, then."
"If this doesn’t work, Kevin is going to kill us," Sarah informed her mother.
"It’s going to work, I know it. Kevin was so happy those months Scotty was living with him, and based on what you said he told you, and what I saw at the symphony...it’s going to work."
"I hope you’re right."
The front door opened as Paige and Cooper ran inside, dropping their backpacks by the door.
"Hi Mom!" Cooper yelled as he pounded up the stairs.
"Mom!" Paige ran up to her, excited about the plans to work on her bakery. "Is he here?"
Sarah covered the mouthpiece of the phone. "He’s in the kitchen, but - " Paige started to hurry towards the kitchen and Sarah reached out an arm, grabbing her daughter around the waist.
"Hold on!"
"Mom! I want to work on my project!"
"Just hold - " Sarah stopped talking as Kevin walked into the living room. She let go of Paige, who ran past him.
"Hi, Uncle Kevin!"
He watched her leave the room, surprised at her easy dismissal of him. "Hi," he called after her before turning to Sarah.
"Mom, I have to go," Sarah said quickly and hung up the phone.
Kevin shook his head at her, eyes narrowed into slits. "You’re impossible," he hissed.
"What? Paige needs some recipes for her school project."
"Everybody in this family can cook, except Kitty," he argued quietly. "You had to call in a guy I - "
"A guy you what?" she asked with a smile, but Kevin refused to finish his sentence. "Besides, what do you care? You’re on a man-fast, remember?"
Kevin scoffed at her in annoyance, but Sarah noticed he couldn’t hide a small smile as he left without another word.
***
Sarah walked back into the kitchen a little nervously. She knew she had ambushed Scotty, which was hardly fair since he had so kindly agreed to help out Paige. But she knew that Scotty was too polite to call her on it. More importantly, she also knew that Scotty wasn’t an idiot - he wouldn’t have volunteered if some part of him hadn’t wanted to see Kevin again.
Sarah could admit that she was biased in Scotty’s favor. She had been a catalyst in their relationship way back in the beginning, so he had always been her favorite. And seeing them together at Kitty’s wedding only reinforced her belief that, even if they were unwilling to admit it, they cared a great deal for each other. Furthermore, Kevin may not have realized it, but when he described his ideal relationship, Sarah recognized it as the connection she had seen between the two men.
After Nora suggested contacting Scotty, she had told her mother about her conversation with Kevin. Nora then told her more details about her encounter with Scotty at the symphony, how he had seemed so nervous but extremely curious as he asked after Kevin. How he had ever-so-slightly, maybe even unconsciously, pulled back from his boyfriend in what could only have been an attempt to downplay their relationship - even as he tried to flaunt it - in case it got back to Kevin.
Nora and Sarah agreed that there were clearly unresolved emotions there, on the part of both men. They had developed a plan to bring them back into contact with each other, and see what happened. Sarah knew they were playing with fire, but she wanted her brother to be happy. And the last time she had seen him truly happy was when Scotty was in his life.
So, when she walked back into the kitchen, she watched Scotty carefully, gauging his reaction. Paige sat at a stool, and Scotty leaned on the counter next to her. They were flipping through a binder filled with Scotty’s hand-written recipes.
"Oh, that looks good!"
Scotty nodded. "It’s fantastic," he said as he wrote something down on a piece of paper. From where she was standing, Sarah couldn’t read what he had written, but it looked like Scotty and Paige had found several recipes so far.
"What have you got?" Sarah asked as she sat down on one of the stools.
Scotty glanced up. He didn’t look angry with her, Sarah was relieved to see. She couldn’t tell what exactly he thought about seeing Kevin again, but at least he didn’t seem upset.
"Cheesecake."
"You can make healthy cheesecake?" Sarah asked hopefully.
"Yep," Scotty replied with a laugh.
Next Chapter
Main Page
Scotty knew that, by helping out Sarah and Paige, he would run into Kevin eventually. He didn’t think it would be the very first time he went over there. Therefore, he was totally relaxed as he followed Sarah into the kitchen while she thanked him profusely.
"Don’t worry about it. I think it’s going to be - "
"Scotty!"
He stopped talking and turned to the man by the counter. Kevin looked...good. He looked as shocked as Scotty felt, but he looked good. His hair was just long enough for a few curls to form, and he obviously had been going to the gym. His tie was loose, with the top buttons of his shirt undone, and it required all of Scotty’s willpower not to walk over there and suck on the hollow of his throat.
"Kevin!" He glanced at Sarah, who maintained a - probably false - innocent expression.
At that moment, Sarah’s phone rang and she quickly excused herself, walking out of the room. For the first time in what felt like forever, Kevin and Scotty were together and alone. Scotty had no idea what to say.
Kevin was clearly just as flabbergasted. "Hi. H-how are you?" he stuttered.
"I’m good," Scotty managed. After a moment of silence, he added, "Sarah asked me to...it’s nice to see you."
Kevin suddenly smiled, and Scotty lost his breath.
"You too."
They stared at each other. Scotty could feel a blush rising up his neck, but he didn’t care. Kevin was right there in front of him, and he seemed happy to see Scotty. Scotty had almost forgotten how much just the sound of Kevin’s voice could affect him.
Kevin shook himself slightly, looked down at his briefcase and began to play with the handle in what Scotty recognized was extreme nervousness. "Look - " Kevin began but was interrupted by the sudden ringing of his cell phone. He jumped, pulling it out of his pocket and turning it off with only a quick glance at the screen.
"You don’t have to answer that?" Scotty asked, then immediately wanted to kick himself. He didn’t want Kevin to answer his phone; he wanted him to say whatever he had been planning.
Kevin shook his head. "It’s not important," he said, and Scotty smiled at the implication that - whoever it was - Scotty mattered more. "Look," Kevin continued. "I know you have to do Sarah’s thing right now, but maybe...maybe we could have coffee or something sometime."
"What about Jason?" Scotty asked before he could stop himself.
There was a pause before Kevin said, "We broke up a while ago." Blood rushed through Scotty, filling his ears with a roaring sensation, and he thought he was going to pass out.
But what shocked him even more was when he opened his mouth and said, as if he were possessed, "I don’t think that would be a good idea." What?!, he thought.
Kevin hesitated. "I know that things ended weirdly between us the last time - "
And Scotty realized that his impulse to turn Kevin down had been right. Not only was he happily involved with someone else, but he also couldn’t risk himself with Kevin again.
"Weirdly doesn’t begin to describe it," he interrupted. "We’ve tried to have some kind of relationship twice now and failed spectacularly both times. I don’t know if I can go through that again."
Scotty wasn’t sure if he had accidentally given something away in his response, but Kevin, who up until then had seemed as thrown as Scotty was, suddenly found something inside himself and turned on the charisma. "Maybe the third time’s the charm," he said with a grin.
The grin was infectious. Scotty tried to suppress a smile, but he had a feeling he didn’t succeed. "Three strikes and you’re out, Kevin."
Kevin looked adorably perplexed for a second. "But that means we still have one more try at bat."
"You realize I know nothing about sports." Scotty couldn’t hide his laugh that time.
Kevin picked up his briefcase and looked at Scotty again. "Just consider it. I’ve...I’ve missed you."
Scotty stared back at him. He should know better, he should turn him down right now, he should remind Kevin he only had himself to blame if he missed Scotty. But all he could say was "you’re not good for me, Kevin Walker." It didn’t sound at all dismissive. It sounded...flirtatious.
"Is that a no?" Kevin asked.
Scotty spared a brief guilty thought for Mark. "No," he said slowly.
Kevin smiled brilliantly. "Is that a yes?"
Scotty took a deep breath and bit his lower lip. "That’s a maybe."
***
"Mom!" Sarah spoke quietly into the phone as she answered it. "Perfect timing! Scotty just got here."
"How’s it going?"
"I don’t know, I don’t know. They both looked like they had been hit by a train, but I don’t hear any shouting, at least."
"Good as can be expected, then."
"If this doesn’t work, Kevin is going to kill us," Sarah informed her mother.
"It’s going to work, I know it. Kevin was so happy those months Scotty was living with him, and based on what you said he told you, and what I saw at the symphony...it’s going to work."
"I hope you’re right."
The front door opened as Paige and Cooper ran inside, dropping their backpacks by the door.
"Hi Mom!" Cooper yelled as he pounded up the stairs.
"Mom!" Paige ran up to her, excited about the plans to work on her bakery. "Is he here?"
Sarah covered the mouthpiece of the phone. "He’s in the kitchen, but - " Paige started to hurry towards the kitchen and Sarah reached out an arm, grabbing her daughter around the waist.
"Hold on!"
"Mom! I want to work on my project!"
"Just hold - " Sarah stopped talking as Kevin walked into the living room. She let go of Paige, who ran past him.
"Hi, Uncle Kevin!"
He watched her leave the room, surprised at her easy dismissal of him. "Hi," he called after her before turning to Sarah.
"Mom, I have to go," Sarah said quickly and hung up the phone.
Kevin shook his head at her, eyes narrowed into slits. "You’re impossible," he hissed.
"What? Paige needs some recipes for her school project."
"Everybody in this family can cook, except Kitty," he argued quietly. "You had to call in a guy I - "
"A guy you what?" she asked with a smile, but Kevin refused to finish his sentence. "Besides, what do you care? You’re on a man-fast, remember?"
Kevin scoffed at her in annoyance, but Sarah noticed he couldn’t hide a small smile as he left without another word.
***
Sarah walked back into the kitchen a little nervously. She knew she had ambushed Scotty, which was hardly fair since he had so kindly agreed to help out Paige. But she knew that Scotty was too polite to call her on it. More importantly, she also knew that Scotty wasn’t an idiot - he wouldn’t have volunteered if some part of him hadn’t wanted to see Kevin again.
Sarah could admit that she was biased in Scotty’s favor. She had been a catalyst in their relationship way back in the beginning, so he had always been her favorite. And seeing them together at Kitty’s wedding only reinforced her belief that, even if they were unwilling to admit it, they cared a great deal for each other. Furthermore, Kevin may not have realized it, but when he described his ideal relationship, Sarah recognized it as the connection she had seen between the two men.
After Nora suggested contacting Scotty, she had told her mother about her conversation with Kevin. Nora then told her more details about her encounter with Scotty at the symphony, how he had seemed so nervous but extremely curious as he asked after Kevin. How he had ever-so-slightly, maybe even unconsciously, pulled back from his boyfriend in what could only have been an attempt to downplay their relationship - even as he tried to flaunt it - in case it got back to Kevin.
Nora and Sarah agreed that there were clearly unresolved emotions there, on the part of both men. They had developed a plan to bring them back into contact with each other, and see what happened. Sarah knew they were playing with fire, but she wanted her brother to be happy. And the last time she had seen him truly happy was when Scotty was in his life.
So, when she walked back into the kitchen, she watched Scotty carefully, gauging his reaction. Paige sat at a stool, and Scotty leaned on the counter next to her. They were flipping through a binder filled with Scotty’s hand-written recipes.
"Oh, that looks good!"
Scotty nodded. "It’s fantastic," he said as he wrote something down on a piece of paper. From where she was standing, Sarah couldn’t read what he had written, but it looked like Scotty and Paige had found several recipes so far.
"What have you got?" Sarah asked as she sat down on one of the stools.
Scotty glanced up. He didn’t look angry with her, Sarah was relieved to see. She couldn’t tell what exactly he thought about seeing Kevin again, but at least he didn’t seem upset.
"Cheesecake."
"You can make healthy cheesecake?" Sarah asked hopefully.
"Yep," Scotty replied with a laugh.
Next Chapter
Main Page