When I Come Around, chapter 4

Kellie wandered up the stairs towards the kitchen, breathing in the scent of coffee and bacon. She found Tre in the kitchen, wearing a "Kiss the Cook" apron and making her breakfast.
"Good morning!" He said cheerfully when he saw her.
"Morning!" she said, taking a mug of coffee, smiling at him.
He slid a few slices of bacon out of the frying pan onto a plate and handed it to her.
"I remember you said you liked bacon!" he said, "sooooo I thought I'd make you some."
"Aw, thank you. I can't believe you remembered what food I like." She took a bite of her breakfast. "Tomorrow I'll have to make breakfast for you!"
"Can I have breakfast in bed?!" he asked enthusiastically, already perky from his coffee.
"Ummm. I guess."
"Will you feed me oatmeal with a spoon and do all that 'here comes the choochoo train' shit?" he joked.
Kellie laughed and playfully punched his arm. "Puh-lease, bitch! I am not going to spoon feed you!"
"Pleeeeaaaase?" he playfully begged.
Kellie picked up a piece of bacon and waved it in front of Tre. "Here comes the freaking choo choo train!" she joked. Tre ate it and smiled. "There, you happy now?" she said with mock annoyance.
"Yes!"
"Hey," Tre said, remembering what he was supposed to tell her. "Addie called! She said she'll be here in an hour."
"Cool!"


Addie and Kellie searched through the racks of clothes in a punk store downtown.
"This would look SO good on you!" Addie exclaimed, holding up a short black dress with a blue sparkly skull on the front.
"Oooooh!" Kellie took the dress from her and held it up in front of her. "I have to try this on!"
They looked through more racks of clothes, suggesting various shirts and skirts to each other.
"Okay, so now I want details!" Addie said as they headed towards the dressing room.
"Details?" Kellie echoed, confused.
"On living with Tre! Has it been totally insane?" she laughed. "Living with him must be crazy fun, right?"
Kellie tried to conceal her beaming smile when she thought about Tre.
"Yeah," she replied, smiling dreamily. "He's a lot of fun......Tre's really great...." Her voice trailed off as she pictured the way Tre looked when he smiled.
Addie looked at her suspiciously. "He's great, huh? What do you mean?"

"He's a nice guy." She said, recalling how he'd cooked her breakfast. "He's funny too. Keeps me entertained. Tre's really great." Kellie couldn't stop smiling, no matter how hard she tried.
Addie was curious. "So Tre's great, huh?" She pulled Kellie over into a corner of the store and gave her a suspicious smile. "How great?"
Kellie gave a nervous giggle. "Whaddya mean?"
"Come on. I can tell, Kellie. I can SO tell!" Addie smiled. "Is there....something going on, maybe?"
"Wh-wh-what?" Kellie gave a shaky laugh. "No!" Addie didn't look convinced. "No." She repeated again. Addie was still smiling at her in that knowing way. "Nooooo. No, there is nothing going on."
"You sure?" She asked. "Cause I'm pretty good at recognized the signs of liking someone. As more than a friend. I remember when I met Billie, whenever I thought about him, I couldn't stop smiling. I just went around smiling like a happy little dork.....You're smiling like that."
"I am not," Kellie insisted. "I barely even know Tre! I just moved in 2 days ago! I mean, we're just starting to be friends. And he's a great friend and all. But that's it."
"You like him." Addie insisted.
"Do not," Kellie said.
"You liiiiiiiiiiiiiike him!" she teased.
"Addie!" Kellie said, embarrassed. "No, i don't!"
"Oh my god, you like Tre! Yes you do, I can tell! You really like him!"
Kellie's eyes shifted around nervously. She was trapped. she knew it.
"ALRIGHT!" She whispered angrily. "Alright! Yes! Yes, you're right! OKAY?! You're right! I like him. I LIKE HIM. But don't you tell anyone about this! Not even Billie! ESPECIALLY not Billie!!!!!!!"

Addie smiled reassuringly. "Don't worry, I won't tell." She giggled. "AWWWW, you like Tre!"
"Shhhhhhh!" Kellie giggled.
"Maybe he likes you!" She suggested excitedly.
"No way," Kellie insisted. "He's practically twice my age! We're just roommates to him. Besides, it would be weird if we were actually together! He has kids. He's been married before. It would be weird."
"No it wouldn't!" Addie said. "And believe me, Tre is not the type to care about age. You guys would be adorable together. And come on, he might like you! You never know! You're pretty and you're funny and you're living in his house now. Why WOULDN'T he like you?"
Kellie sighed dreamily. "I wish!"



Billie, Tre, and Mike sat around a table in Mike's restaurant, Rudy's Can't Fail Cafe.
"So Tre," Bille said, "how's the roommate thing working out for you? Has Kellie been good so far? I talked to her yesterday about it. She seems pretty happy with the arrangement."
Tre's eyes shot up from his food and stared at Billie, smiling. "She does? She said she's happy about it?"
"Ummm. Yeah." Billie said, confused. "Why? Does she not seem happy or something?"
"No, I thought she was pretty happy.....just...it's good to know that she said she's happy." he explained, trying not to smile.
"Mmmmhmmmm," Billie mumbled, suspicious.
Mike laughed. "So how are you making her happy?" he joked sarcastically.
"I made her breakfast today," Tre said cheerfully.
"So have you like, raped her yet?" Mike teased. "Me and Billie made bets on how long it would take for you to try something."
"GUYS!" Tre gasped, shocked. "I would never rape Kellie! I don't want to hurt her!"

They laughed. "Well, we know that you'll fantasize about anything that MOVES!" Billie teased, much to Tre's annoyance.
"I wouldn't hurt her, you guys," Tre said seriously, insulted. "And she's not some whore I fantasize about. She's not like that, okay? I wouldn't hurt her."
Billie and Mike nodded reassuringly. "We know, man," Mike said. "We were just kidding. Jesus. No need to freak out and get your panties in a knot."
"Yeah, calm down," Billie said. "Usually you think that stuff is funny." Billie looked at him suspiciously. "Why are you so pissed?...is something....up?"
"No," Tre insisted quickly.
"You don't sound too sure about that."
"I'm sure!" he said, shaking his head. "Its nothing."
"So nothing's going on?"
"No!"
"Cause if something WAS going on, you could tell us. You tell us everything."
"I would tell you," Tre said.
"So there's nothing going on?" Billie prodded. "No....feelings?"
"No, okay? Just drop it!" Tre told him, annoyed.
"Alllllllright, man. Just...be careful. Don't do something stupid. Hypothetically. Cause feelings are heavy shit, man...."
"Billie. Drop it." Tre said.
"Alright, alright. I'll leave it alone." He shot Mike a knowing glance. "Whatever."