I leave school and immediately head to Layne's. The implications of Dr. Harvey's concerns haunt me. She isn't Wren. I remind myself. This isn't that.

Layne climbs into my truck without giving me a chance to get her door. As soon as she's settled she kisses me, gripping my shirt in the process, before pulling away, "Hey."

"Hey," Is all I can get out before she's kissing me again. Her tongue demands entrance to my lips and I grant it, falling deeper into the kiss. We're interrupted as my phone rings and I fish it out my pocket. AUNTIE DEAREST.

I let it keep ringing and turn back to Layne. "Aren't you gonna answer that?"

I shake my head and it stops ringing, "See, it's stopped. No biggie." I lean in to kiss her again but before our lips touch, my phone starts ringing again. AUNTIE DEAREST.

"Answer the damn phone, Kaylie Jane," Layne crosses her arms, showing me she's serious.

"Hello?" I answer my phone with one and and start my truck, pulling off, the mood ruined.

"Kaylie Jane? It's your aunt Violet," my aunt's voice comes out strong and powerful, "I guess you finally decided to answer your phone, hm."

"I've just been busy is all," I correct her, "You know me. Work, school and sleep." Not mentioned: the beautiful girl who I enjoy swapping saliva with.

"Mmhm," I can tell she knows I'm lying, "Well, Thanksgiving is coming up. Here's the plan."

She proceeds to tell me what I am cooking for dinner, although I'd yet to agree to go to it, let alone cook for it. I nod as she goes on and on, everything hitting one ear and going out the other.

"Okay, Auntie," she pauses and I take the opportune moment to say something, "Well I'm at school now so I'll have to call you back."

"Alright sweetie. Have a nice day," she hangs up. I exhale and Layne gives me a long look, "We've still like ten minutes away from school.

"I know," we arrive at a stop light, and I move to kiss her, only to be rejected by means of her pushing my face away, my lips landing on the leather of my seats.

"Who was that?" She questions. The light turns green and I can feel any chances of her kissing me anymore crash and shatter to the ground, "My aunt. I don't wanna go into it right now. It's a long story."

"We've got a long drive home," she says, telling me we'll definitely be back to this subject. Fuck me.

At school Layne goes to grab her stuff and I interrupt her by grabbing her wrist, "We aren't telling people yet, okay?"

Her only response is an eye roll. "Let me go, Kaylie Jane." Her tone is so sharp that I recoil instantly. She hops out without another word to me and I begrudgingly get out as well. We've been together two seconds and are somehow in a fight already? This is some shit that would only happen to me, I swear it.

I drag my feet to towards the building, but before I reach the door, Wren grabs me, "Wipe your face."

I mindless oblige, "What?"

"You're cover in sparkly lip gloss. Layne's sparkly lip gloss to specify," she uses her own shirt sleeve to remove some of it, "You're horrible about being on the down low by the way."

"Thanks," I say, not entirely sure why she's helping.

"No problem," she realizes how close she's standing to me and jumps back, "Yeah. Um, no problem."

I give her a curious look and she backs off entirely, wordlessly heading into the school. Okay...

I take my new place next to the window, changing into my uniform. As more class streams in, I feel all eyes land on me. Fuckery to ensue in three... two... one....

"Layne and KJ are dating!"

***

I'm fuming as we head back to the truck after school. I wasn't sure how it'd came to light, but now it was out there, at least at NCT.

"You can't really be mad?" Layne follows me to the car, "It was bound to come out eventually."

"So you told them?" I turn. Calm it down, KJ. Calm it down.

"What?" she gives me an innocent look, "Okay so I told Lori. But only because she asked."

Bitch ass Lori... "Layne I asked you not to tell anyone. Why the hell would you tell Lori of all people. Wren--- sure. Maybe Nik. Shit I would've trusted Graves more. But Lori? That's basically just as bad as hosting a broadcast."

"Is it so horrible that people know I'm dating you?" Layne asks, "Or is it just cause I'm a girl? I mean, would you give a damn even if a rumor came out you were dating Jonah?"

I immediately lose track of whatever I was going to say next. There's nothing I can say that she won't be able to challenge.

I exhale, "I'm sorry, you're right. Fight over."

She smirks, clearly pleased with herself, and rewards me with a soft kiss on the cheek, "Thank you. So what's up with your aunt?"

I exhale, "She exists. And when break hits in two days she'll expect me to exist with her. For Thanksgiving. Where I'm doing like seventy percent of the cooking for some reason."

"Sounds fun," Layne skips over my blatant disapproval, "Can I help?"

"No. No no no. No ma'am, no ham, no chicken, no beef," I shake my head.

"Why not? I wanna meet you family," she persists, "We don't have to tell them we're together."

My mind goes back to NCT, where after dating literally two seconds, they caught on.

"You say that, but that doesn't mean my family will turn stupid and just not notice you're constant affection for me."

"I don't know what you're talking about," she refutes,"I can control myself!"

"You're literally stroking my thigh right now," we both glance down at her hand, which almost seems to be moving on it's own accord. She snatches her hand back, like my leg is on fire. "That doesn't mean anything."

"Layne, I can't bring you to a family gathering and believably pass you off as 'just a friend'. It isn't happening."

"Why do I have to be 'just a friend'?" she questions quietly, "Why can't you just tell them about us?"

"Sure thing," I fake the happiness voice I can, "Hi ultra-conservative family! This is my girlfriend, Layne Sinclair! Yep, she's gotta vagina and everything and I should know I've seen it! What's that? We're both going to hell and you're booting me from the family? That's okay! Who needs a family when I can have love!"

"Okay okay," she backs off, "You can come to our Thanksgiving right?"

"I'll try to," I give a cryptic answer, not having the heart to tell her no, but not having the stomach to tell her yes, "No promises."

"I'll take it," she sighs, "On the record: You're not being a good girlfriend and we've been together a whole twenty four hours. Get it together."

"You haven't dumped me yet," I shrug, "So I'd say I'm doing pretty well."

She rolls her eyes, "Yet."

"You know you wanna kiss me," I tease, "And from the way your hands doing the thing again, I'm guessing it's more than just kissing that's on your mind..."

"Regardless of if I am," She makes a conscious effort to move her hand again, "You're getting no kisses or more than kisses until you get your shit together."

She crosses her arms to show she's both serious but also to avoid reaching for me again. I sigh, and cut on some music to avoid Layne's silent stand off, but without her talking to me, there's a definite absence.

When we arrive at her house, she gets out without a kiss goodbye, leaving me to myself.

***

"What's happening with Thanksgiving?" Chess asks as we finish cleaning up, "I'd hate to miss a chance to taste some of your cooking."

"Don't you have your own family to mooch off?" I question.

He shrugs, "I like you much more than my own family. Too political."

"Oh, so you think you'd rather hang with my too political family?" I joke, "Yeah sure you and my girlfriend both."

"Oh? Girlfriend?"

"It's not like that," I immediately backpedal, "We aren't doing labels."

"Except 'girlfriend'?" he teases. My face heats and he gabs me in the side, "KJ it's okay. I like Layne. You two are cute together."

"Who said it was Layne?" I smirk, "I could be talking about one of my other hoes?"

"What other hoes?" We both jump as I find Layne causally leaning against my truck, one eyebrow raised.

"No one," I rush to her side, "Just you and only you."

"Right," I go to reach for her and she moves away, "To think I came to forgive you."

Dammit KJ. Chess holds back snickers as I try to talk my way out of yet another disagreement with Layne.

"Shut up," I stab a finger in his direction and he falls apart. "I'm sorry," he moves to his car, "You two get home safe."

Chess pulls off and with him gone, I take Layne's hand, "I'm sorry. Again. For like the fifth time today."

"Apology accepted," she sighs, "I just wish you'd stop being sorry and start not fucking up."

"I'm not good at this I know," I pause, "But I'm working on it."

She sighs, "It's a good thing you're cute."

I smirk and she slaps me. "Shit! What was that for?"

"I wanna be mad at you but your dimples are making it hard," she sighs, "So fuck you."

Nevertheless, she hops into my truck and I deal with, for the second time that day, a pissed Layne and silence left by the absence of her voice.