Ringer {Kellan}

[ken]

This was entirely too complicated.

Kennedy stared through the store window at the display laid out before him. His eyes scanned the selection, not believing that there could be this many different things you could do to a circle of metal. How on earth was he supposed to pick something out? Kennedy would rather fight off a vampire than have to deal with something like this. Probably be easier too.

Fortunately, Kennedy did have resources. He was blessed in having one of his closest friends be female, and, added bonus, Kellan happened to be Angela's best friend. Kennedy really couldn't get someone better suited to help with this.

And he certainly needed it.

"At least I got her size," he murmured. That in itself had been tricky, and had taken some help. After all, he couldn't very well ask Angela, not without giving something away.

Kennedy shifted again, eying pricetags. Hopefully Kellan showed up soon, before Kennedy panicked and bought something hideous.

[Kellan Grace Callahan]

Kellan had no clue why Kennedy had asked her to meet him in town. All she knew was that it was freezing and that he better have a good excuse for making her venture out into the cold. Usually the blonde couldn’t spend a whole day inside without going crazy, but on days like today the only thing she wanted to do was plant herself permanently in front of a fireplace.

But when it came to her friends, you couldn’t find anyone more loyal than Kellan. Kennedy had told her that he needed her, so of course she wouldn’t disappoint him. That didn’t mean she was going to be on time…

It was a good ten minutes later than Kellan was supposed to meet Kennedy that she actually showed up. To make up for her lateness, she came baring a gift – hot chocolate.

“Sorry I’m late,” she apologized once she finally got to Kennedy. “You should be used to it by now though, right?” Despite being freezing, she smiled at Kennedy and offered him one of the styrofoam cups of hot chocolate. She sooooo didn’t pay attention to just what store they were in front of.

[ken]

The weather hadn't even occurred to Kennedy. He'd been far too wrapped up in the current circumstances to display even a passing interest in the world around him. Enough to know that he needed to throw on a coat, and that was about it.

In fact, he hadn't even noticed the time, and therefore hadn't noticed that Kellan had been late. Kennedy probably wouldn't have cared even if he did, though. Especially considering what Kellan bore.

He smiled as he took the hot chocolate, inwardly musing about things had certainly come full circle. His and Kellan's relationship had really kicked off over hot chocolate. Specifically hot chocolate over Kade, but who paid attention to little details like that?

"Hey Kellan," he managed, following up by taking a sip of the chocolate. "I didn't even notice you were late."

His eyes fell on the store display again, feeling the daunting expectation in all those little bands of gold.

"Thanks for the hot chocolate," he mumbled. Another sip. Like he didn't even notice the temperature.

Shifting his feet, he looked over at the rings again, then back at Kellan. How exactly did he word this without Kellan getting the wrong idea.

"So... I kinda wanted your input on something..." his eyes flicked to the rings again, which should work, he hoped.

[Kellan Grace Callahan]

Of course Kellan remembered the last time she and Kennedy had hot chocolate together. She lad laughed to herself when she was paying for the steamy drinks, and the vendor looked at her like she was crazy. The two of them had definitely come a long way. Kennedy had gone from being tongue-tied around Kellan to being head over heels for her best friend in just over a year. She was still a little weirded out by that, but they were both disgustingly happy, so of course Kellan was more than happy for them.

After a nice long swig of her hot chocolate, Kellan noticed the big glass window behind Kennedy and finally realized where exactly he had asked her to meet him. Her expression was indecisive, going from understanding to shocked, and from shocked to panic.

“Kennedy,” she said to him, her eyes wide. “Kennedy what did you come here to buy today?”

She could hardly look at him – her eyes kept focusing on the sparkling rings in the window. He couldn’t possibly be thinking about buying Angela an engagement ring, could he?

[ken]

"Well, um, I was thinking, um, of, er," Kennedy shifted nervously, eyes darting to the rings again. They were taunting him, he just knew it. All glittery and special looking, each one perfectly made to please someone.

"I was thinking of, you know, buying one of," Kennedy waved a hand at the rings. Of course, this happened to be the hand with the hot chocolate, and he splashed liquid all over his hand. Wincing, he quickly wiped it off, nodding to the display. "One of those. An engagement ring, to be precise."

He looked over at Kellan, smiling sickly, then realized that there could be some miscommuncation here. His eyes widened, and he shook his head, holding both hands out.

"Not for you! I mean, I like you, but not like that. Besides, you're with Kenneth and," Kennedy took a deep breath, licked his lips, and continued, "it's for Angela. I'm planning to. Planning to. Anyway, I thought that you could give me a hand here. I think I got her size, but I'm at a complete loss here. And you're a girl. Well, obviously you're a girl, we both know that. I mean, you're a girl with good tastes who happens to be her best friend."

Sighing, Kennedy massaged his temple with the hand that did not hold scalding liquid. This was just...

[Kellan Grace Callahan]

-- ahh, I was halfway done with this post when I learned I had to leave the house in five minutes. It's so rushed and gross. Sorry.

Oh damn, her suspicions had been right. Kellan’s hand immediately flew to cover her gasping mouth. Kennedy was buying Angela an engagement ring. He was going to propose to her. Ask her to marry him. There was no possible way he could have been serious.

“I know it’s not for me, you idiot,” she said to him once she was finally able to come up with any kind of words. “Kennedy, you know I love you both, but are you out of your mind? You’re eighteen years old - you can’t get married! Please tell me you’re not being serious.”

No, Kennedy had to be kidding. This was some kind of big joke that Kellan was just going to laugh at later. At least she hoped so, because otherwise Kellan wasn’t sure what she was going to do or say. Angela and Kennedy getting married? That was crazy.

[ken]

"Nineteen," Kennedy muttered, shoving his hands into his pockets. Again he looked at the dastardly display of devilish ornaments, glaring. "And yeah, I'm being serious."

He didn't look to Kellan, trying to work through his thoughts. "Look, it's not like I just woke up this morning and decided it would be a great idea. I've thought this through, Kellan. Really. It's. I'm."

Kennedy took a deep breath, turning to look at Kellan now. "I really can't see myself not with Angela. And just because we'd be getting engaged doesn't mean we'd be getting married immediately. I mean, there's a lot to do for these things and all that. Meet the family, get everything together, the whole nine yards."

He took another deep breath, running his hand through his hair. "My family has a tendency toward marrying young though, really. And staying married. I'm not just rushing into this, I swear. Besides, I've already got a job and a load of success. And I've dated around, I know I want to be with Angela. Why should I wait?"

[Kellan Grace Callahan]

Was Kennedy even listening to what he was saying? He still hadn’t even met her family. How could you possibly think about marrying someone when you hadn’t even been with them long enough to meet their family?

“Kennedy, you guys have been together officially for what, a month?” she asked him, trying to remember when the festival was. He could try to tell her that they had been seeing each other since before graduation, but Kellan would have no choice but to argue that that hadn’t counted because Angela still had a boyfriend then.

Kennedy hadn’t been the one to read Angela’s journal. It wasn’t his name that filled the pages. How could anything in their relationship before graduation be real when someone had tricked Angela into loving him in the first place? Kellan had no doubt in her mind that the love her best friend felt for him now was completely real, but she just couldn’t understand how they could be so ready to jump into things. And what would Angela think? If Kellan were in her shoes and Kennedy asked her to marry him, well that would totally freak her out and drive her away. But she knew that she and Angela were so different.

Kellan closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She couldn’t believe that Kennedy had asked her to help pick out an engagement ring. She would have been totally flattered if she wasn’t so shocked. Her eyes fluttered open and she blinked a few times before she said anything else.

“I’m sorry,” she apologized. “I just… I care about you a lot and I don’t want to see you make a decision that you’re going to regret in the future. You’re a sensible guy, Kennedy, and if you really think that this is a good idea and you truly think that you’re ready for this, then I believe you.”

[ken]

"Two months," Kennedy muttered. Kellan's words were getting to him. and he'd been so sure that this was the right thing to do. That this is what he wanted to do. But she had a point. It hadn't been that long.

But Kennedy had known Angela for longer than that. And he'd met Travis before. And Angela had met Eoin, though not any of the other Cavans. And there were a lot of Cavans. Holly would probably kill Kennedy if he didn't introduce his girlfriend before she became his fiance.

"Look, I'm buying the ring," he said, extending both hands to the display, "that doesn't mean I'm going to walk up to her later today and pop the question. It doesn't even mean I'm going to do it this week. It just means that I'm seriously considering taking the next step. Really. I'm just committing to buying a ring and seriously thinking about asking Angela to marry me. It's not set in stone or anything."

Okay, who was he trying to convince now? Kellan had just told him that she knew he was sensible, and that she'd believe in him. There was just a lot to consider here, and Kennedy was clearly still working things out himself.

"Thanks for your honest opinion though, really," he said. He reached up to rub his face, peeking at the rings through his fingers. This was just so... huge, and Kellan's words were not helping.

[Kellan Grace Callahan]

Two months. Kellan couldn’t possibly understand how you could know you wanted to spend the rest of your life with someone after being with them for just two months. Maybe two years, maaaaybe, but definitely not two months.

Kennedy’s reasoning didn’t seem too logical to Kellan. What was the point of buying the ring if he weren’t going to ask Angela now? He was seriously thinking about asking Angela to marry him. Shouldn’t he think a little more before making this purchase?

It was Kellan’s obligation as Kennedy’s friend to let him know what she really thought. Now that she had done that, she had no choice but to help him out. He said he knew what he was doing, and she just had to trust him.

“Kennedy Cavan, I think that you’re out of your mind,” she told him, but the smirk on her face let him know that no matter what she thought, she was still there to help him out. That’s what friends were for, right?

“So what’s your price range?” she asked as she tossed her mostly-empty hot chocolate cup into the trash can sitting outside the jewelry store. She’d hate to point out some stunning ring to Kennedy only to learn that he wouldn’t be able to afford it.

[ken]

"Yeah, you're probably right," agreed Kennedy sighing. He soon smiled though, glancing at Kellan out of the corner of his eye. "Let's hope it's the good kind of insanity then."

At last she asked a practical, easy to answer question. Price range. Kennedy could certainly handle that question. Completely tackle it with no compunctions whatsoever. But he was still mentally stalling for time.

"Under one thousand dollars," he finally offered. He licked his lips. That struck him as being rather high, but this was an important thing. And he'd been putting away money for a while now. Quite a while. Besides, he still had some reward that the Academy had given him for some of his past deeds. It had simply been shoved in a savings account to worry about later.

"I mean, it needs to be kind of expensive, right? Because it's an important thing and all? I mean, that's not too much though, right?" clearly Kennedy knew exactly what he was doing here.

[Kellan Grace Callahan]

Kellan winced when Kennedy told her how much he was willing to spend, but turned away toward the door of the store so he couldn’t see her reaction. She played it off like she was just turning that direction anyway. Kellan definitely wasn’t some jewelry expert, especially when it came to engagement rings, but she was girly enough to know that a thousand dollars wasn’t going to buy Kennedy a jaw-dropping, stellar ring. He’d still be able to find something nice, probably a third of a karat – half at the most, and classic solitaires were always a favorite.

“No, that’s not too much,” she answered, pulling open the jewelry store’s door and stepping inside, waiting for Kennedy to follow her. It was so much warmer inside than it was outside, and Kellan couldn’t have been more happy to take in the heat. She peeled off her pea coat and hung it up on the rack by the door.

If Kennedy had been intimidated by the rings in the window, he was going to have a heart attack inside. The entire store was filled with enormous glass cases sparkling with diamonds, rubies, emeralds, pearls, and every other gorgeous stone. Bracelets, rings, necklaces, watches, and earrings stared back at them, practically drawing them in with their smooth edges and shine.

"So where do we start?" she asked, wondering if Kennedy had anything in particular in mind.

[ken]

Wow, that reaction certainly didn't give Kennedy a lot of confidence. Maybe he should consider digging deeper. His family would be willing to help pay for something, and he did just get a credit card recently. Just because he thought a thousand was a lot of money didn't mean everyone else did.

"Should I go higher?" he asked. It was really hard not to sound panicky. Or light things on fire.

Sometimes he really hated picking up new abilities.

"You know, I just got a credit card, I'm sure I could go higher. I just, you know, it's not like I buy these things everyday," he laughed nervously. Why was it that Kellan always got to see Kennedy at his worst? Honestly, it was like someone planned out these things. Put Kennedy somewhere near Kellan and watch the fun happen.

"Yeah, I figured we'd start at the rings," admitted Kennedy. He pointed at said pieces of jewelry. "Preferably ones of the engagement variety. You know, because that's what we're getting."

He sighed, lowering his arms. "Gah, this would be a lot easier if I wasn't freaking out."

[Kellan Grace Callahan]

It could only be taken as a good sign that Kennedy was freaking out so much. Hopefully that meant he was thinking about this a little more deeply. Just as Kellan had told him, she was going to help him out and support him if he was sure that this was what he wanted, but because she cared about him, that hidden maternal instinct poked out.

“Kennedy, listen to me,” she lectured. “Angela loves you. It’s weird and creepy and makes me feel like my brother is hooking up with my cousin or something, but that doesn’t matter. The bottom line is that she loves you and she’s going to love your ring no matter how much you spend.”

Well, hopefully she would. Compared to Kellan, Angela was as girly as they came. The girl loved her clothes and her shoes and her purses and her makeup, but in the time that they had been friends, Kellan had never taken Angela to be materialistic.

She grabbed Kennedy by the arm and tugged him over to one of the store’s many cases. The diamond case. She looked over the top of the case and scanned the selection. Most of them were pretty pricy, but there were definitely some that Kennedy would be able to afford.

“You’ll probably want to go with a solitaire,” she explained, just assuming that Kennedy would know what she was talking about. “That’s always really classy and traditional and eye-catching. Plus, you won’t have to take out a second mortgage on the house you don’t even have just to pay for it.”

So maybe this would be more fun than Kellan thought it would be.

[ken]

Right, of course Angela would love anything Kennedy gave her. He could probably propose with a Ring Pop and get away with it. Make a funny story too. But this was something a girl could hold on to. Talk about for years. Kennedy's mother still complained about her engagement ring. Then again, Mackenzie Cavan complained about a lot of things.

"Okay, solitaires are the ones with only one diamond, right?" asked Kennedy. He eyed the case again, still feeling as if the rings were about to leap out and attack him. This time he at least had someone who knew how to deal with this sort of thing, so it should be alright.

One of the workers noticed the couple, and headed over. Soon Kennedy and Kellan found themselves dealing with a middle-aged brunette with a wide smile.

"Can I help you two?" she asked. Her eyes went to the diamonds then to the duo. Clearly she'd already pegged them as a couple.

Kennedy smiled, nodding to the case. "We're just looking right now..." His eyes darted to Kellan, wondering if he should be asking for more help. He wanted to at least get a basic idea. "Could we browse for a while and then call you over?"

the woman smiled, but hesitated, looking to Kellan for confirmation.