According to Plan

Chapter 13: That's Gonna Leave A Mark

"Leo, where the hell is this place that this dinner is at?" Rose asked as Leo turned onto the highway. She had convinced her sister to let them take her car while she took her Dad's to work. Alli bitched the entire time she was getting ready, right up until she walked out the damn door, but one day wouldn't kill her.

Leo tapped at his phone to pull up the directions, which was hooked to the vent with the navigation turned on. She tried to do it for him earlier, but he had a Samsung ["if you come at me with that apple is better bull-" "Leo, just do it, I don't know how to use it"] and she couldn't figure out the apps to save her life.

"In Oakgrad. Some nice Italian place, apparently," He said after a moment, glancing over his shoulder as he changed lanes. "It looks pretty good."

"As long as I can get some pizza, I am all good." She shrugged, and Leo laughed as the phone prompted them to stay to the left. "What? I don't eat much. You know that."

"I know." Leo grinned. "One of the many things I love about you."

He looked at her out of the corner of his eye, biting at his lip. They both realized what he had said, and it caught both of them off guard. She couldn't tell if he did it on purpose or not, but by the way, he adjusted his grip on the steering wheel as his face turned red. She could tell the silence was killing him.

Finally, he made a face, and she hit him. "Legit, shut up."

They sat quietly for a second when Rose looked down at her phone and looked at the photo of her and Jake that was still her background. She flashed back to the conversation she had with Rachel at semi, and realization hit her like a ton of bricks.

"Leo, I have to tell you something, and you have to swear not to tell anyone else." She said, looking at him.

Leo frowned, stealing a glance at her as he signalled to change lanes to get around a slow car. "I promise, but is everything okay? Is everything okay with your family?"

She nodded quickly. "No, everything is okay, but I think I know what Rachel is going to do at this party."

She gave him the quickest recap of what happened with Jake that night in Drinkwater. She hadn't said it out loud before now, and with every word, she could feel tears threaten to fall. She left out the conversation that they had a few nights ago. That wasn't what was important at this point. However, she realized that she had told everything to Leo before her sister knew, which made her feel a little guilty. However, it wasn't anything she could fix now, so she pushed that feeling away for the time being.

When she finished, she sighed and finally whipped at her eyes, trying not to mess up her make-up. "Fuck, Leo. I think Rachel could completely blow this lie up in our faces, and I don't want this to mess anything up. I don't want you guys to fight, and I do not want every single person in her friend group knowing about what happened with Jake. It seems like a stupid thing to be protective over, but I can't-"

Her voice cracked at the end. This was the first time she had really said this all out loud, and it was overwhelming. She really needed to sort her shit out if this is what was breaking her.

"Hey, hey, hey. It's okay." He reached across the console to grab her hand. "Thank you for telling me. And we are going to make sure that she doesn't do anything. Jake left you in a horrible position. I am going to make sure that tonight is going to be okay. You have my word."

Was Jake to blame for the mess she was in? She didn't know, so she didn't say anything to that. Instead, she just gave him a small smile. "Let's hope so."

"I know so."

*****

They told the hostess the name of the reservation, and she led them to the back of the exquisite restaurant, complete with linen tablecloths and wine glasses set on each table.