The Way You Look at Me [Kenzie]

[Kenzie Karter]

Kenzie adored being held in Jon's arms; it made her feel so safe and secure, unlike anything she had ever felt before with anyone. Her heart skipped a hundred beats just for him because he made her feel this way, which was the best feeling in the world. When she was with him, it was as it the world seemed to stop around them and they were the only two people that existed. Nothing else compared to how he made her feel.

She did notice that it seemed to be a bit colder than she had anticipated, but Jon was unusually warm against her body. She had never really noticed it before until now, but she stuffed that thought in the back of her mind, not wanting to ruin their moment together with silly questions and thoughts that ran through her head. "Well, at least I have you to keep me warm," she giggled and hugged him tighter. In her mind, she was rationalizing it as guys were always warmer than girls anyway. That's normal, isn't it? she asked herself mentally before scolding, Oh shut up Kenzie and enjoy this moment with your boyfriend.

Walking toward the beach, she turned to Jonathan and said in a gentle voice, "So, you have this whole romantic evening set up for the two of us and I didn't think of anything for you...I'm such a horrible girlfriend." Kenzie honestly didn't know what she was doing on the relationship front because Jon was her first real boyfriend that was not abusive and manipulative. He was so good to her and she sometimes wondered how she ended up so lucky.

[Jonathan Whiteman]

   Jonathan's pulse was quietly coming closer and closer to hammering with the anxiety of not knowing if she'd notice, though he let out a light laugh only merely touched with the hints of his fear. But... Kenzie didn't let him down again. And his pulse did race, this time overwhelmed by the accepting love that she never failed to own for him. It was blissfully overwhelming, to say the least. Oh, how I don't deserve her...

   His eyes widened, however, at her words, and he quickly, looking in sincere shock at her, pulled a hand quickly up from behind her to gently press a finger against her lips and shake his head with a faint chuckle and the small etchings of the beginning of an incredulous grin. "No," he simply, firmly corrected. "You are wrong. I have never loved anyone more than I love you, Kenzie Karter, and you do not have to do anything but be your loveable, stunning, adorable self, which is unbelievably so much more than you need to do or that I deserve." He stopped them for a moment, the beach just on the other side of the thick, final wall of foliage just behind Kenzie, and, letting his hand regain its position around the small of her back, he pressed his lips firmly against her to prove his point, doing his best to put his every affection for her into the kiss.

[Kenzie Karter]

Kenzie felt Jon's finger press against her lips and she giggled lightly. He really does have this adorable boyfriend thing down, she thought to herself. There was no one else in the world that could have been this way with her but Jon. She would not have allowed it because she guarded herself so carefully. Since Jerron, her heart had been so locked away...until Jon walked into her life. He had taken her heart so carefully into his hands and protected it with all that he could muster. That meant everything to Kenzie. And before she could say anything else, his lips effectively cut off anything she could have said with an amazing kiss as he pulled her closer. The feeling of security she got from him was unlike anything she had ever felt before, so she knew she could trust him entirely.

Breaking their kiss, she pressed her forehead to his chin and sighed. "Jonathan Michael Whiteman, there has never been nor will ever be a more perfect boyfriend for me than you," she said softly, looking up into his eyes. Those green orbs that captivated her attention everytime they were in the same room together. "I love you more than any girl has ever loved any other guy in the world." And that was her truth.

[Jonathan Whiteman]

   A low, happy sigh mixed with a humming, growl-like sound from deep within Jon breezed through his nose, and he blissfully shut his eyes as she leaned her forehead against his chin, professing her love for him. Oh, how I don't deserve her... he sighed simply.

   He felt her forehead leave his chin, and he looked down towards her face, opening his eyes, and cracked a small, grateful grin at her words. With no verbal response, he leaned forward, over her, to gingerly caress her forehead, leaning back and subtly downward to surprise her once more by picking her up. Sly smirk sneaking through his expression, he carried her effortlessly just a bit further along their path before stepping carefully through a narrow opening in the forest's surrounding, thick wall of trees.

   Before them laid Jon's second surprise for the evening: a four foot deep, ten foot wide fire pit with deep charcoal driftwood giving birth to an ethereal cerulean glow whose heat he could feel standing even where they stood, about ten feet from it. Forming half a square around the circle were two thick tree trunks, partially sunken into the rocky sand, with their insides partially hollowed out so that they formed a sort of pair of benches. Even as a werewolf with hyper healing, Jon's arms were still feeling- though not due to Kenzie, of course; she was still as dainty and fragile and breakable as ever- every last chop of the ancient axe that was all La Push had to offer for tree issues. But, in the end... she was worth it. Without a doubt.

   With not so much as a pause, he walked her around the setting, taking a seat right where the two trunks came together but leaving her leaning against him with his arms wrapped around her. Even with the quiet snapping of the flames and their waves of heat, he couldn't- and wouldn't- let her go. Subconsciously realizing this as another freaky wolf instinct to protect his mate but not really caring either way, he couldn't dare risk her getting cold. If anything ever happened to her that he could have stopped... Ugh. There were no words.

[Kenzie Karter]

Kenzie laughed as Jon picked her up. He was always doing stuff like that to surprise her, which she found to be completely adorable and endearing to his personality. He was this big, tough guy on the exterior, but to her he was just her teddy bear. Her heart fluttered wildly as they walked around to the beach where she saw his second surprise, the huge fire pit that he had set up for them to keep warm. It was perfectly romantic in her mind to just sit on the beach with him. "You know something," she said, snuggling into his arms as they sat down on the tree branch together. "You are quite possibly the most romantic person at heart that I have ever met. No one has ever done something so sweet for me and I love you even more for that."

Kenzie snuggled into Jon's body, feeling his warmth completely surround her. Nothing else in the world could make her more happy than she was right then. Her heart was still fluttering with the fact that she was near Jon and completely happy. Nobody else in the world could have made her feel this way in that moment but him. He made her laugh when she didn't even want to smile.

[Jonathan Whiteman]

   A soft, small, toothless smile wiped briefly across his face as Jon gave the faintest ghost of a snort through his nose. "...you are worth it," he replied simply and honestly, laying the side his head gently against hers. "...so worth it."

   Wordless moments passed by, but he could find nothing wrong in them being wordless. The quiet crackling of the flames and the wispy whooshing waves softly synthesized towards a subliminal sonance that faded faintly behind the wonder that was the impeccable treasure in his arms. Silently, he leaned up and pressed his lips against her hair, the softly surprising scent of lavender wafting sensuously beneath his nose mixed with another, new scent. He couldn't identify it; but an earthy tone lie somewhere deep within it that somehow worked magically with the lavender, and, even if he never smelled it again until the day he died, he would always remember the nameless scent as Kenzie's, and Kenzie's alone.

((OOC: Strangely, here's an almost exact pic of that scene.))

   Letting himself take his original position of leaning his head against her, he took a calmed sigh. Though every moment with her her was irreplaceable and totally unforgettable, the high that came from first seeing her was beginning to fade away, the daze of exhaustion from the red alert patrols and the day's earlier manual labor was beginning to lurk in, and a sudden need to yawn was assaulting him before he knew it. Jon was sure he'd staved off the will to yawn, but it caught him at the first syllable as he began to ask, hand flying up to keep him from giving her a faceful of yawn breath, "So-ho-ho-ho... babe, besides Katelyn, what's happened with you since I last saw you?" As soon as he'd finished, he couldn't help but laugh lightly at how ridiculous he'd just sounded. Don't fall asleep on her, ya doofus, he half-seriously joked with himself.

[Kenzie Karter]

Their wordlessness really did not bother Kenzie all that much; in fact, it was nice to just sit there in front of the crackling fire together and cuddle. It had taken all of her will-power to not just kiss him on sight, but she had successfully evaded her own wants and desires so that they could have a sweet, genuine moment together. Hearing him yawn, she smiled and bit her lip to keep from laughing as he tried to talk through the yawn. Looking up at him, she sighed and said, "Not much of anything else has happened. I'm still doing dance rehearsals all the time with Kate and Lucy because our Spring Showcase is coming up, so we have a lot to do in order to get ready for it."

The wind whipped around them and Kenzie snuggled closer to Jon in order to keep warm. Good thing guys exude heat, she jokingly thought to herself. She hated to leave their moment when everything was so beautiful, but the temperature was dropping into the upper thirties...at least, that's what it felt like to Kenzie. Her body started to shake involuntarily. Stop shaking stupid, this is too good of a moment to ruin with your inability to keep warm, she scolded herself. The temperature caused her to snuggle even closer to Jon.

[Jonathan Whiteman]

   Just as Jon was about to reply to her response, he felt her shudder from the increasingly chilly breeze and snuggle closer to him. "Wow," he mused aloud, now wide awake and blushing violently, "a blanket probably would have been a good idea. I'm so sorry! Let me carry you to me house before you get hypothermia or something." Still blushing splendidly, he threw his arm underneath her, securing her gently yet firmly against him, and stood, stepping over the log and beginning a gently hurried jog towards his house.

   Whether she knew the reason behind it or not, he was warmer than her, and he was determined to make good use of it, doing his best to block any bare skin from the bitter wind with his own. The result nearly had her pressed fully against him, her front pressed protectively against his. The blush's touch still lingered lightly on his face, but it was only half due to embarrassment now...

   He reached his house, backing against the intentionally unlocked door, thankful he'd left it as such, and took her inside, leaning over slightly to stand her carefully on her feet in the front hallway just inside the front door. "There. Ought to be a little more appropriate," he announced somewhat quietly with a forced smile that was hopefully anything but. Calm down, Whiteman. One step at a time. And she doesn't want this sort of speed in a relationship. Don't be a Jerron.

   The disgust accompanied with that thought slowed his pulse- Did I seriously just let myself get that carried away?! he wondered with tinges of disappointment in himself. But now was not the time to discipline oneself. Kenzie was here, and this was about her. Just watch yourself, alright?

   Bearing that in mind, he shook his head briefly, realizing he'd let a few moments slip by when he'd been thinking so internally. A natural smile slid across his face, though, as he looked into her eyes. Just watch yourself... he reminded himself quietly as he announced a tad louder this time, "Well, this my house."

((OOC: Good lord. This post sucked.))

[Kenzie Karter]

Kenzie all but blushed profusely whenever Jon picked her up and carried her back to his house. She snuggled against his warm chest as they ran from the beach to his house, finding comfort and security there. Once they reached his front door and opened it, she felt the brush of warm air coming from inside the house and her shivers finally stopped. When they got inside and she was back on her feet again, she looked into his eyes and saw his gentle smile as he showed her his house. Tearing her eyes away from him, she looked around. It was definitely a guy's house, but at the same time, it was very uniquely Jon. She took a few steps into the entryway and looked around. "It's very you," she giggled and added, "which is a very good thing because if it weren't...I'd seriously question if you lived here."

After looking around for a few more moments, she returned to Jon's side and took his hand to lead him into the living room. "So, what else is planned for this evening?" she asked innocently, looking back into his eyes as she stopped in the middle of the floor and took his other hand so that she was fully facing him. He is so adorable when he is acting like this with me, she thought to herself. I am the luckiest girl in the world to have the best boyfriend ever. One day I'm going to wake up and this will all be a dream and I'll still be waiting for my life to start. Or will I?

[Jonathan Whiteman]

   Jonathan smiled appreciatively as Kenzie began lightly exploring his house with her eyes. Her ever-present curiosity just never failed to warm his heart. She's just so... Kenzie! he sighed blissfully. His grin widened as he replied, "Well... guess it's a good thing I live here, then."

   "Well..." he trailed off, shrugging as she lead him by the hand into his living room, "...I did happen to pick up a movie to watch tonight-" he nodded towards the TV with the DVD player sitting beneath it- "but I don't know if you'd like it..." A sly grin snuck across his face as he added after a moment of 'pondering', "'t's called Moulin Rouge. Have ya heard of it?" He couldn't deny a sneaky snicker- of course she'd heard of it. Thanks to a call earlier in the day to the Karter's, her parents had told him as soon as he'd revealed his plans in secret that it was her favorite movie. With that, he reached over, still looking blissfully into her eyes, and pulled the DVD box from the shelf on the wall, displaying it to her with an air worthy of Vanna White.

   "But first," Jon finally added, bending over a bit to lay the box on the arm of the sofa, "I'd... well, I know this sounds sort of weird, but I'd like to show you around my house. If you'd like to see it." He shrugged nonchalantly, pulling the hand being held by hers up to her side and stepping in close. "After all," he murmured, breaking his words to kiss her forehead briefly, "this is... well, this is my home. And I'd like for it to be a second one for you, where you can always go at any time. Because I'll never stop being here for you, Kenz. I love you."

[Kenzie Karter]

Kenzie laughed at his response to her statement of fact. Sometimes she just tended to say things like that and not think them through first...it was just Kenzie's nature, at least according to her mom. At least he doesn't think I'm a total dork...most of the time, she thought ruefully before giggling in her mind. She watched as he went over to the television and DVD player to pick up the movie he had picked out...which just so happened to be her favorite. "How did you know that Moulin Rouge was my total favorite movie in the entire world?" she asked in a more retorical manner, walking over to him. "And yes, I would love to go on a house tour with you because I do consider this my second home. I love you too, Jon."

She leaned in tenderly and kissed his lips twice before walking a few steps away from him, looking back and holding out her hand for him to take. "Alright, you lead the way and I will follow," she said. In truth, she would have followed Jon wherever he went...to the ends of the earth and back, so long as she got to go with him.

[Jonathan Whiteman]

   Simply, Jon snickered and shrugged as she rhetorically asked about the movie. "I'm just good like that," he concluded, giving her a wink.

   When she agreed to go on a tour, his excitement at her words spread across his face, and he had to force himself to resist grabbing her hand and pulling like a little kid to a parent at the zoo. The way she accepted him was just so... unconditional. It was overwhelming.

   Taking her hand calmly, he led her through the house, showing her its various, though small, rooms and their contents. Don't bore her; don't bore her! he kept reminding himself, but he couldn't help but think that, after all, she wouldn't get bored with him. Her love always had seemed, to one degree or another, unconditional- as was his for her eternally- but she was so caring that he couldn't even be sure of her disinterests when sheh was with him. Regardless, the tour continued, full of smiles at least on his part.

   And then came the end of the tour. The bedroom.

   Pushing the door open on its silent hinges, he led the two of them inside unconsciously to the foot of the bed. "...and this is my bedroom," he announced as he occasionally had for rooms- pulling her close to him and wrapping his elbow over her, holding her hand the entire time, to sort of hug her around the waist so they were close. But there was something... different this time than the iterations in other rooms; something that seemed to come from deep within him, something instinctual and... wild, though it still lingered deep within him. There was no naming it as a few moments passed, but it would be weird to just keep staring at her in his bedroom. Wasn't there something he was supposed to remind himself of...?

   "...and now you've seen the whole house," Jon finally added, looking deeply into her eyes by no purpose of his own. "...welcome home." The strange instinct within him growled, but it wasn't an angry sound... as Jon went in to kiss her cheek softly once, then again, then again, the kiss lingering longer than the other two combined.

[Kenzie Karter]

The tour of the house was brief, as it was not a huge house. Kenzie liked how cozy it was because it made her feel secure. Everything about the house was distinctly Jon in everyway from the way it smelt to how it looked and Kenzie loved it. I could get used to staying here a lot, she thought. After all, I don't want him at my house all the time where my parents can walk in on our make-out sessions...like that first time. Kenzie thought back to the first time her parents met Jon, how awkward it had been since they walked in on the two of them kissing. It was the most painfully awkward situation Kenzie had ever been put in. She never wanted to experience the weirdness of having her parents watch her kiss anyone until her wedding...and even then, it was going to be a tame kiss.

Thinking on kissing, Kenzie smiled when they reached the end of the tour...Jon's bedroom. She blushed when he said "Welcome home" and proceeded to kiss her cheek, each kiss lingering a little longer than the last. Reaching up, she wrapped her arms around his neck and moved her lips to his and began to kiss him softly. Words were not needed for how she felt about him and how happy she was to be there with him.

[Jonathan Whiteman]

   A light shudder, striking at some deeply forgotten- or buried?- memory deep within Jon's mind, unrelated to being a werewolf flicked at his spine as she wrapped her arms around him and began kissing him back. The monster within- so strangely new, yet so foreboding in its unplaceable familiarity- gave another growl, and Jon found him kissing her with increasing intensity levels unfamiliar to their normal, everyday affections. Before he knew it- though there was no sudden movement involved- his back was to his bed and his hands were lovingly strong on her back. With no conscious effort, he was carefully but heatedly falling backwards, back landing against the mattress with a soft pooft while his hands brought her down with him, keeping her at the same level against his body so he could keep kissing her.

[Kenzie Karter]

Kenzie felt the passion behind Jon's kiss and knew that this was different than any kiss they had previously shared. She did not know whether it was because their relationship was progressing the way it should or if it was because there was such an attraction between the two of them. Whatever it was, Kenzie was slightly scared of it, but she trusted Jon with all that she was, so she kept kissing him. Their kiss seemed to transcend time itself and even movement as she did not realize they had moved from their place by the door to right next to his bed. When he laid back on the bed, he brought her with him. She landed on his warm body with a soft thud; his body creating an instant cushion, keeping her lips against his and her hands on the sides of his face.