Duet [Kiara]

[Gabriel James]

"Why do I do what?" Gabe asked with a raised eyebrow as Kiara's hand reached across his lap to pet the cat, for a moment not even thinking the way he consumed his muffins was remotely strange or questionable. "Oh the muffin thing!" Gabe said, suddenly realizing what the blonde had meant. "I dunno," Gabe started with a shrug, holding the muffin top in his hand and analyzing it, though in reality he was analyzing himself.

"I just like the tops better," Gabe finally said, taking a bite out of the stump again. After chewing and swallowing he added, "So I save the best for last." It was a very valid question - though something Gabriel hadn't really thought about before.

So when Kiara offered to play her little game, Gabe was intrigued. She had already asked him one question that made him learn a bit about himself - something he hadn't even realized or questioned. "That could be fun," Gabe said, popping another bit of muffin in his mouth, taking a moment to think of a good question since Kiara had offered him to go first. He scratched his head as he thought, shaking out his curls a bit.

"Uh..." he murmured, as he thought, deciding to keep it simple for now. "Where did you learn to cook and bake like this? I mean... Everett bakes really well too so I'm assuming it runs in the family or something," Gabe asked. He liked hearing about put-together families. The kind where kids learned to make cookies with the grandma and learned to play catch with their dad.

[Deleted]

Despite the confusion on Gabe’s part, he soon enough connected the dots himself. Kiara might have been about to point out what was so weird about his actions, but clearly that was not needed anymore. “That makes sense,” she mused with a subtle hint of sarcasm to her voice. It kind of didn’t, but neither did her preference for orange m&ms which tasted way better in her opinion. It was done so in a teasing manner as well, not having the intention to offend the man.

Plopping a couple more pieces of muffin into her mouth, eyes remained focused on Gabriel while he mulled on a question. It ended up being a simple one, even though Ki did end up expanding her answer more than needed. “My grandmother often baked and cooked things with me. Or mom during the holidays. I used to think Santa was fat because of all the cookies and cake we made for him.” A soft chuckle joined that memory. “And when Ev was old enough, he would always let me help him when he was making something in the kitchen. I also became a pro at doing the dishes during that time.” Laughing, Ki momentarily smoothed a hand over the couch cushion to pile up the crumbles that had already gathered there.

Those flashbacks led to the question she wanted to ask him. “How about you? Do you have many siblings? Or just McKenna’s mother?” The blonde hadn’t seen her father during the Skype session, so she simply made an assumption at that point. It wasn’t a complicated question, she figured, and it was something you often asked when making new friends. Gabe had never given her insight in his family, so it seemed like a good moment to ask.

[Gabriel James]

"Don't make fun of my muffin consumption tactics," Gabe joked before Kiara answered his question, having picked up on the sarcasm in her voice. He smiled though, knowing she was joking. He was not going to let her just get away with poking fun at his habits though, he needed to put up some defenses.

Gabriel smiled fondly as Kiara answered, eyes lighting up a bit with nostalgia. "Well kudos to grandma for helping create two great muffin-makers," Gabe said, finishing the stump of his muffin, and then grabbing the top which he had set aside - saving the best for last, as always.

Gabe's smile faded - though only very slightly - when Kiara asked her question. "Oh, no, Jen's not my sister," Gabe started with a small shake of his head, realizing that it was probably an assumption that Kiara had made the day they Skyped McKenna. He ripped a small piece of muffin off of the large top he held in his hand, rolling it between his fingers as he spoke. "No, I have two brothers though. Noah is Ken's dad. I think he was working when we spoke to her... And I have another brother Isaac," Gabriel explained, wondering if there was much more to say about the matter, since frankly he wasn't even really sure where Isaac was these days.

"They're both over 10 years older than me, though," Gabe explained. "Noah is 35 and Isaac's 38. So I don't have as many... fond, childhood memories as you probably have with Everett," Gabe explained in the most gentle way as he could, doing his best to not let on that he really did have a difficult family life and childhood. Not so much for Kiara, but for himself. Gabe did everything he could to convince himself that his family was normal, and that his relationship with his parents and brothers was just a side effect of him being an 'artist'. He popped the bit of muffin he'd be holding onto into his mouth.

Gabe turned the table again before any questions could be asked - after all, it wasn't Kiara's turn anymore! "What got you into singing and music?" Gabriel asked, mouth still slightly full of muffin - having thrown manners to the wind at about 11pm (so there was no hope now).

[Deleted]

Kiara listened intensely when Gabriel replied. Eyes were fixated on his face and while notice was being taken of the slight change on there, no questions were asked. In fact, she simply attributed it to mistaking Jen for his sister. Either way, when the man’s explanation progressed, other questions came to mind. She knew it was not her turn to ask those though, so instead nods gave away that attention was being paid and eventually a gentle statement was made as well. “I would think being the little brother would mean getting spoiled and all the attention.” She didn’t want it to sound like she was fishing for more information. She just was not sure why Gabe wouldn’t have as many happy childhood memories as her and Everett.

With the top of the muffin eaten, the blonde folded the paper cup against around the bottom part of much as possible and then leaned forward to place it down on the coffee table, exchanging it for the glass of coke that stood on there as well. Sipping, it made her mouth less dry. In turn it made it easier to reply to what he wanted to know. A soft laugh started it off. “Also my grandmother.” Kiara’s smile softened and an almost dreamy look settled on her face, thinking back to the good old times. “She was a semi-known actress on Broadway, so I guess it just ran in the family. I remember how all her pictures intrigued me though, and her playing the piano...” The chuckle that followed was weak, almost sad. “She taught me as soon as I could muster enough focus to sit still. I must have been around four or so. And that interest pretty much developed into playing the guitar and singing over the years.”

The glass was absentmindedly being twirled around between both hands before it ended up next to the half-eaten banana muffin once more. Soon after Kiara shifted to lean her shoulder into the back cushion, just like she had done that one day when Gabriel was sick. “She passed away when I was thirteen.” That detail might have been abundant, but the girl wanted to add it.

“Either wayyyyy, you mentioned LA last time. Why did you come back to a town like Pilot Ridge?” At first she had the intention to ask why he had gone to that big city, but she might not receive an answer to the current question then. By asking it like this, perhaps Gabe would also give away what his plans had been in LA.

[Gabriel James]

"Yeah you might think that," Gabe said in response to Kiara - so fast that it was hardly noticeable that he was disagreeing. He bit his tongue though, and let the moment pass, making way for Kiara to answer and then ask her question. He was sure that Kiara didn't want to hear him complain about his brothers.

"Your grandmother seems pretty awesome," Gabe said with a smile and a nod, wishing he had that sort of support and encouragement when he was young. His parents had all but forced violin on him when he was 4, but when Gabe found how much he really loved music, he took it unpon himself to learn as many instruments as possible - even though it was against his parents wishes to learn guitar or drums. Gabe's face fell a bit when Kiara added that last note. "I'm sorry to hear that," he said with a small, supportive smile, and a hand placed on Kiara's knee soothingly if only for a moment.

Gabriel never knew his grandparents. His dad's parents passed before he was born, and his mother's parents still lived in the Philippines, assuming they were still alive. But Gabriel knew the pain behind losing someone, and even after years the pain could still be there.

Then came his question, and he was glad that it focused a little less on family. "Good question, I'm still not 100% sure I know the answer," Gabe admitted with a chuckle, but looked within himself for some sort of explanation as he took another bite from the muffin top. "I went out there to work on my music and things were going good. But... I started hating myself. Hating the way I was getting around things... using my ability in ways I wish I hadn't... to get producers to like me and stuff... And basically I guess I just wanted to get away for a bit and find myself again before I give it another go. I applied to work at Hammel and got the job so here I am," Gabe explained shortly, not to hide anything, but the story could become very long winded if he wanted it to. "Plus it's a hell of a lot closer to McKenna which is a huge plus," Gabriel added, finishing off his muffin.

"Have you ever traveled out of Vermont?" Gabe asked curiously, actually having forgot about the game - but now just wondering if Kiara had ever experienced a big city like LA and what it can do to a person. He knew Ev hadn't really gotten out, so he was curious. It was just conveniently his turn to ask a question as well.

[Deleted]

The supportive gesture of his hand on her knee was very much appreciated. It might have barely lasted a couple of counts, but Kiara managed to place her own on top for a second, giving it a squeeze as if to wordlessly express her gratitude. What was positive about this game was that it allowed for them to hop from one question to the other, from one topic to more positive ones. Of course there was also the risk for it to go down in the opposite order, but right now them seemed to be doing just fine.

Once more many questions were ready to be asked, but it were ones that would fish for details. It was becoming obvious that those which spanned a wider answer were more interesting. The things Gabe was telling her now… Ki was positive it might not be brought up in a normal conversation. “Makes sense,” she decided – without the hint of sarcasm this time around. “Sometimes you just need to get away from it all.” Like she could use, except that moving somewhere else wouldn’t work. Travelling might, and the girl got a chance to bring that up when Gabe asked about her having any travelling experiences out of Vermont.

“Not really,” the blonde chuckled softly. “I go home sometimes, but that’s about it.” She paused for a second, gazing down at slender fingers as they fumbled with the cords of the pajama pants. “Perhaps I’m afraid of what’s out there, you know? Things don’t work out around here; why would they in an even bigger and more confusing place?” With a tiny shrug, she made a bow with the cords – multiple times, always undoing it before restarting again.

“If you’re going to give it another go… will you give up the life you have now? I mean, exchange the nature and peace for the life of a party? For all those cute girls? At least if LA is like the way they portray it on television and through other channels… Was it worth it?” Kiara couldn’t judge. She had never been there before. Yet for some reason it felt difficult to imagine Gabe there. Music, yes, but not in such setting.

[Gabriel James]

"Man," Gabe said with a small chuckle as Kiara asked her next question, "You're really good at asking the hard hitting questions. The ones that make you think." He scratched his head, messing up his hair which had grown out a little since school ended. "Not that I mind!" he added quickly, making sure she knew that she wasn't digging to deep or crossing any lines - they were just subjects Gabe didn't spend much time dwelling on.

After a moment, and a sigh, Gabe finally answered. "I'm honestly not sure," he said, rubbing the back of his neck. "I mean... I would definitely do it differently, if I were to go back to LA. I would have to," he explained, "But will I?" He shrugged, honestly having not a clue what he wanted to do or where he wanted to go at this point.

"I think I'll stay here for a bit. Re-ground myself. Write. Be near McKenna..." he didn't want to add 'while I can'.... "The problem is... I still want it. I still want to make an album. I want the world to hear me. I want... I want everything LA has to offer without being consumed by it. Which is so incredibly difficult. Until you've got your feet wet, you pretty much have to marry the city and the life in order to get what you want. Then maybe you can leave... but..." Gabe sighed and laughed at himself, realizing that he was rambling and probably not making much sense.

"Let's leave it at... if there was a way for me to achieve these dreams I have swirling around up here," Gabe said making swirly lines with his fingertips around his head, "While staying here... or in the area or whatever... I would. I'm just not sure that's possible. Maybe I'll try New York next but... we'll see." He hoped the answer made sense...

"Speaking of dreams..." Gabriel said, deciding quickly on his next question. "What are your biggest dreams? Or smallest? Any dreams really, I'm not picky," Gabe said, leaning his elbow on the arm of the couch, and setting his cheek on his fist, supporting his head as he looked over at Kiara.

[Gabriel James]

"Man," Gabe said with a small chuckle as Kiara asked her next question, "You're really good at asking the hard hitting questions. The ones that make you think." He scratched his head, messing up his hair which had grown out a little since school ended. "Not that I mind!" he added quickly, making sure she knew that she wasn't digging to deep or crossing any lines - they were just subjects Gabe didn't spend much time dwelling on.

After a moment, and a sigh, Gabe finally answered. "I'm honestly not sure," he said, rubbing the back of his neck. "I mean... I would definitely do it differently, if I were to go back to LA. I would have to," he explained, "But will I?" He shrugged, honestly having not a clue what he wanted to do or where he wanted to go at this point.

"I think I'll stay here for a bit. Re-ground myself. Write. Be near McKenna..." he didn't want to add 'while I can'.... "The problem is... I still want it. I still want to make an album. I want the world to hear me. I want... I want everything LA has to offer without being consumed by it. Which is so incredibly difficult. Until you've got your feet wet, you pretty much have to marry the city and the life in order to get what you want. Then maybe you can leave... but..." Gabe sighed and laughed at himself, realizing that he was rambling and probably not making much sense.

"Let's leave it at... if there was a way for me to achieve these dreams I have swirling around up here," Gabe said making swirly lines with his fingertips around his head, "While staying here... or in the area or whatever... I would. I'm just not sure that's possible. Maybe I'll try New York next but... we'll see." He hoped the answer made sense...

"Speaking of dreams..." Gabriel said, deciding quickly on his next question. "What are your biggest dreams? Or smallest? Any dreams really, I'm not picky," Gabe said, leaning his elbow on the arm of the couch, and setting his cheek on his fist, supporting his head as he looked over at Kiara.

[Deleted]

Soft laughter erupted and blue eyes finally shot up again. Kiara’s smile was visible, but so was the fact that it diminished some when Gabriel began to ramble. The big cities… It had looked pretty awesome on television, but he made it sound like a vicious trap. In turn that made the girl realize that she did not have the personality nor the guts to venture out there. Perhaps if she had someone to keep both feet firmly on the ground, sure, yet it did not sound as tempting anymore after having heard this response.

“And you would have been willing to give that up…” For her. For a baby. By the way Gabe spoke about it and the way he described the difficulty of it all, she could tell it was something he really wanted. Therefore the statement had come out in such whispered manner. And maybe it made her selfish right now, but part of her was growing fond of him… and felt sad at the thought of him ever leaving. Maybe that said a lot about her though; about her lack of accurate plans for the future.

Either way, her previous question led to him asking one Ki was less eager to answer. Not because she didn’t have dreams, but mostly because her main one had been shattered less than a year ago. Lit up features dropped some, despite her attempt to avoid it being clear to him. If he didn’t spot that, however, he surely could hear some sadness in her voice. Besides, her answer didn’t leave a lot up to imagination. “I, um… That kind of got shattered last year. I wanted to have a family, and that happened earlier than expected. But yeah.” Pursing lips lightly, Kiara figured it didn’t need any further explanation. And she didn’t really want to venture that topic again.

It’s why something else came to mind and the girl pushed herself up from the couch. “Hold on,” she said before bare feet carried her to the bedroom and back. In her hands was something that looked like a diary, decorated with doodles and random stickers. It got offered to Gabe while she still stood and the moment he took it, the blonde plopped down again.

“I guess those are my small dreams. My biggest right now is to just be happy. My fairy tale dream has been too shattered too many times, so I’ll just… do those one by one.” While saying that, fingertips briefly smoothed over the cover of the small notebook before opening it for Gabriel. He could freely go through it, but Ki opted to ask her question already while blue optics gazed over at him through eyelashes given her face was turned to the item in his hands.

“What’s your darkest, deepest secret?” She was becoming more daring… but if he really wanted to, he could call it quits.

[Gabriel James]

She wanted to have a family. That was something that hit Gabe in a strange way for a couple reasons. The more obvious of which was the little scare they had a while back. The other being the fact that Gabriel knew Kiara at least had Everett, and that wasfamily, after all. But Gabriel understood the desire - after all, he only had 2 dreams, and he already told Kiara about the one. And yes, he would have given it all up for the second dream - to be the dad his father never was to him.

He was about to comment, when Kiara shot up from her seat and scurried off to what Gabriel was able to assume was her bedroom. She returned with a small notebook in her hand, something like a journal or diary, and offered it to him. He took it after a moment hesitation (because who willingly offers up a diary), but when he finally took the book and opened the pages, he was able to see it was a list. A bucketlist. All things that Kiara wanted to do or accomplish. Some things were bigger, like get married, go to Australia and San Francisco and Disney. Others were smaller, like milk a cow and build a blanket fort (which honestly Gabe had a hard time believing the blonde hadn't accomplished in her 20 years).

"Wow," Gabe said with a chuckle, as his eyes scanned past 'milk a cow'. "This. Is quite the list, Lilien," he said with an approving nod, laughing agian at 'squeeze a teacher's butt'. "But I mean... I'm surprised you haven't more of these crossed off," he noted. "There's no reason you couldn't write yourself a letter tonight, you know," he said. "Or build a blanket fort. Or make candy pizza." He wondered what was stopping her... not so much on the small dreams. But the big ones. He tried not to take too much notice to the scribbled over 'Learn to trust men again', which seemed to have been rewritten shortly after. He assumed all that had something to do with Jackson.

Gabe turned to the next page when Kiara asked her question. Yet another thinker. But Gabe's mouth opened a bit quicker this time. "Uhm... I'm not exactly a deep or dark or secretive guy," he stated honestly with a laugh. "But... let's see," he said thinking, setting the bucket list aside for the time being. "I guess... I guess my biggest secret is that... out in LA I charmed a music producer in order to get my debut album. I was just starting recording when I backed out," he said, actually managing to connect some lines from a previous question in the process. "The guilt eventually got to me," he added with a dry laugh. "And I guess the worst part is I may have still gotten the deal if I didn't use my ability, but I panicked during the interview." He shrugged, hoping that it was enough. It wasn't all that dark. Or deep. But he hadn't told anyone about it. Anyone. Except Kiara.

"On a lighter note..." he started turning back to the book, a bit of disbelief lacing his voice, "What is this about you kissing a girl?"

[Deleted]

Wanting to have a family had been a long-term goal. It simply ended up happening faster than intended. It having been her biggest dream never meant that it had to be fulfilled first. The pregnancy scare that they had gone through didn’t even occur to her right now. If it had, however, she would have felt awkward. What if that desire might make it come across as if it were intentional? Of course that wasn’t the case though. Sure, she wouldn’t have freaked out had the test been positive, but it wouldn’t have been ideal. And she had Everett and her parents, but in her mind that did not count as a family of her own.

Anyway, her focus and hopeful eyes remained on Gabriel as he inspected the bucket list. She wanted to give him a happy ‘really?” when he seemed to be impressed, but of course a ‘but’ followed and that always ruined the moment. The excitement that never got a chance to show itself died down again before she mustered a little smile upon her lips. “Just… kind of didn’t need more in my life for a short moment of time.” She had been living the dream. Accomplishing the others had not been a priority anymore. “And it’s sort of pathetic or impossible to do some by myself.” With a little shrug, the blonde tugged feet onto the couch and hugged arms around her legs, resting her chin on the left knee. Toes shuffled forward enough to settle an inch under Gabe’s upper leg, keeping them warm.

For a moment she paused, only to continue after three seconds or so. “And it would be kind of rude to work on it when you’re here… Some of those are pretty childish.” At the same time, however, there was a hopeful look in her eyes. If Gabe would deny that, she could not use him as a reason for not doing any of those tonight. Ki would have no excuse. She kind of didn’t want to have an excuse…

As for his secret… Ki hadn’t seen that in him. But by backing out, he probably did justify it to a certain extent. “You’re talented enough…” She pointed out to him with a comforting smile. In the process, toes absentmindedly wobbled some under his leg. They did stop abruptly as his question though, and it might have made her look like someone caught doing something wrong. “Please don’t tell Ev about that one,” the blonde muttered quickly and first of all. But at least a soft chuckle followed right after and a hand tucked a curly strand behind her ear while a light blush graced her cheeks.

“I, um, kind of opted to experiment? To try and be more special. To be someone I wasn’t.” A close to bitter smirk could be heard before she shot a sheepish smile at him. “Did you never experiment? Or, no, wait… you are very much straight.” Her chin settled down again before her head once more applied the typical dip. “Have you… you know… slept with a lot of different girls then?” It was a question that had still lingered from back when they were in the car. Gabe had confessed to LA creating a different life style and even though he had been in a committed relationship at Hammel, he hadn’t been while in the big city.

[Gabriel James]

"Ok. For the record blanket forts are not pathetic. Even alone," Gabe said, defending what he considered a past time. He could barely remember a time he wasn't getting himself in trouble for turning his bedroom into an elaborate fort - with blankets and pillows and comforters and couch cushions he stole from the living room. "And I wouldn't mind if you did," Gabe noted with a shrug. "Work on it, I mean," he continued, glancing over at the list, considering what could possibly be accomplished right now.

"As much as I'd love to see you milk a cow, I can't see you accomplishing that tonight, but maybe you should write your letter," Gabe suggested. "After all, the longer you wait the less you'll probably learn from it." Each year that passed you got a little wiser, sure, but Gabe was pretty sure your wisdom plateaued after a while. How much would your 50 year old self learn from your 40 year old self? Not as much as your 30 year old self would learn from your 20 year old self, in Gabe's opinion.

Kiara's reaction to Gabe's question was pretty priceless, like she had forgotten the man she was sitting next to was her brother's best friend and roommate. But Gabriel wouldn't squeal. It was hardly any of Everett's business, let alone his to tell. "Lips are sealed," Gabe promised with a hand over his heart, and another 'zipping' his lips, then tossing away the key. Her explanation was simple enough, and Gabriel couldn't fault her for it. He had never done the same, but never judged people who did. Sometimes experimenting was the only way to know.

It was Gabriel's turn to go red when Kiara asked her next question, head dipping low, as if she knew there may be an answer that was less than socially acceptable. Gabe licked his lips which had suddenly gone dry and muttered an "Uh..." while he started counting in his head. "You know... just a reminder... I'm not judging you for your experimentation and "a lot" is such a subjective term," Gabe gave his disclaimer with a small laugh.

He shrugged, having promised to be honest, and usually not being afraid of holding back anyway. This question felt a little different though. Probably had something to do with not wanting Kiara to feel like a number. "Yeah there were a lot of girls," Gabe admitted. "More than I'd like to admit but I have a number if you want it," he said honestly with a sigh, nervously rubbing the back of his neck. And if she wanted to know, he would tell her. Not just because it was part of the game but because as someone he's slept with, she had the right to question Gabe's previous enocounters and if there was anything to worry about. Gabe hadn't even thought about that after they had slept together, that it may be a concern, but it occured to him now, almost suddenly.

"I don't know if it makes it better or worse, but I think you should know that I'm clean. And I still remember all their names. And there were only like... 2 that I didn't call afterward and that was because I never got their number..." he explained in a rambly fashion, trailing off at the end. He was pretty sure he wasn't going to be able to ask another question until he Kiara responded. He just hoped she wouldn't think less of him. Things were rough in LA, and Gabe had been pretty depressed when he first arrived. And he relied on sex and alcohol to get him through...

[Deleted]

Okay, true enough. Blanket forts were not pathetic. What Gabriel could not deny, however, was it being a childish goal. When younger, her castles always existed out of carton boxes given those could be drawn on. She had initially tried to use blankets, but after that first attempt it was forbidden by her mom, based on the many colorful flowers and rainbows that graced the white covers. Instead came the boxes (and that one already ruined sheet). The rest of activities on the bucket list didn’t really fall back on a memory.

Anyway, Kiara didn’t object to any statement made by Gabe. Instead the brief laugh that came in response to the cow remark developed into an expression of gratitude. “You’ll help me?” It was more so to gain confirmation than to ask him if he would. Part of the blonde was convinced that it could be fun if they set it up as a goal to still be friends in ten years and to open it together then. Of course there was no obligation attached to that, but Kiara seemed willing to work on it now – she simply judged it to be inappropriate and perhaps a tad bit weird if the music teacher was just sitting there without getting involved. “Or you could write one as well.” He might be a few years older, but surely Gabe also had things that he could learn from it.

With that said, the curly one rose off the couch to go and find some papers and pens. It possibly gave him some extra breathing space, even though she did her best to cast as many glances at him as possible. She was on the verge of apologizing, knowing the question might have been out of place, but the blonde was genuinely curious. “No judging,” Ki reassured him before possibly disappearing out of sight for a second as she hunched down to pluck two notebooks from a closet near the window. Two pens followed out of the drawer once the girl was fully standing again. At that moment Gabe mentioned having a number, and she nodded. “I would like to know.”

Her voice remained serious as she stepped over to the couch again, rather nonchalantly plopping down again. Ki still had a reassuring and comforting smile on her face, hoping Gabe would interpret it like that. Placing a notebook and pen down in his lap, the blonde tipped her head slightly to the right side. “Most guys are proud to have had many girls, you know.” She wasn’t too sure why this was added, but perhaps to let him know that he was not like most guys. It clearly troubled Gabe after all.

“And, um, if it makes you feel better… Two. That’s my number.” Of course that was hardly any and it was doubtful this could compare to what Gabe was to inform her of, but part of the girl hoped it made it easier for him to blurt his out. Because, you know, she had done the same...? Kiara’s logic.

[Gabriel James]

"Yeah I'll help," Gabe offered, not sure how he'd be able to help, exactly, but always willing to try. Perhaps he'd even be compelled to write his own like Kiara suggested, though he wasn't exactly sure what he'd want to say to himself... He didn't notice her glances as she left to find pens and papers. Gabriel was a bit too fixated on the question she asked, and nervously played with his fingers.

Part of Gabe hoped that 'a lot' would suffice, and Kiara would be content with that, but at the same time Gabe wasn't surprised to hear that the blonde wanted to hear the number. He sighed lightly, accepting the notebook and pen from the blonde. He opened up to the middle of the book (never starting from the beginning of a notebook for some reason), and put his pen to the paper, drawing some random squiggles for now as he looked into himself to find the courage to say the number out loud.

He laughed when Kiara tried to make him feel better with her number. "Of course its two," he said with a chuckle and a sigh. No. No that did not make him feel better. That made him feel even more awful, really. And the fact that most guys were proud of high numbers didn't make Gabe feel better either. He didn't give a shit about other guys or what they thought. He just knew he felt awful about himself and his body count. He put down his pen, and ran a hand through his hair quickly before just letting it out. "Eighteen," he said. "That's the number. Eighteen." Why was it so hot all of a sudden?

It was probably even worse that over a dozen of those eighteen were smashed together over the course of three years - equating to a new girl every 2 or 3 months. But Gabriel knew it was worse than that, because many of them overlapped. And none of them were any sort of serious relationship. He had only been dating three of them. Of course, all of that book ended by Mikayla and Kiara... the two of the eighteen he could honestly say he wasn't ashamed or upset about. Gabriel picked his pen back up, and added to his elaborate squiggle, "Say something so I don't stab myself in the thigh with this pen," Gabe said with a dry laugh, honestly just wanting some sort of reaction out of the blonde so he could get it over with.

[Deleted]

Kiara genuinely cared about Gabriel feeling at ease. Her attempt at diminishing some of his discomfort failed and in addition it inflicted an equal feeling on herself. While his statement had a chuckle attributing to it, she had no clue how to interpret it. Disbelief perhaps? Though the blonde figured that the ‘of course it’s two’ more than likely meant that he hadn’t expected a higher number. The way he worded it, however, she took it as him not being able to imagine her having had more bed partners. Low self-esteem made the girl prone to linking that to her feminine curves not being able to compare to those of bimbos. Features drooped some in response, despite her trying to keep a smile there. Gabe clearly had enough experience to compare…

Her way of coping was essentially the same as him: absentmindedly doodling in the notebook, even though Ki did look up for a second once his number was stated out loud. She could tell the man felt awful. So, inwardly sighing, the blonde put her pen down and then reached out for the one in his hand. She didn’t take it away, put instead gently pushed it down horizontally on the squiggle. “I’m not judging…” He wanted her to say something, and that was the only thing coming to mind that exact moment. After that, Kiara hesitated for a second and slowly withdrew her hand from his. “And I guess that’s normal in a big city? To come in contact with a lot of people, I mean…”

While it was not the girl’s turn to ask a question, one did sneak past her lips. Or, well, more like a statement full of hope for receiving ‘no’ as an answer. “You… never paid for it, right?” Some girls had it as a profession, sure, but Ki might grow a tad bit judgmental if he had.