Love spells, Safety kids, and fire demons

Part 7: The Not-quite-a-date Date

Jackie got up, grabbing her skateboard as she sauntered towards Marco.

"Heyy, Diaz! Thought you'd never come!"

"Oh, I'm sorry! I didn't know i was late," the boy blandly apologized.

"Nahhh, its peachy dude! I just live close & came a little early, don't stress it," she coolly said in a near-monotone voice.

Marco couldn't place his finger on exactly what was so extremely wrong with him at the moment. I mean, he's on a date with THE Jackie Lynn Thomas for Pete's sake! Why wasn't this a dream come true? Why was there no connection? Why did everything feel so... bland?

"So, are we gonna do something or just stand around all day? Lets get going, 'bad boy' Marco," she lilted, grabbing his arm & ushering him towards the path she wanted to venture on.

~a magical timeskip due to my lack of ability when it comes to transitions~

Marco laughed as Jackie cracked a joke, the both of them finally playfully bantering when they sauntered past an ice-cream shop.

"Whoa, Marco dude wait up-" she interjected their conversation. "We. Have. To. Go. In. Here. I hear its the best ice cream shop in Echo Creek."

The little bell above the door made a small jingling sound as the two walked in, the scent of freshly made waffle cones hitting the two of them in the face.

"It smells so good in here," the Latina mumbled excitedly, nearly drooling as he slipped his Super Secure Wallet ™ that Star got him for their friendiversary.
"The real question now is," Marco put on a serious tone & snapped his focus onto Jackie. "What're your opinions on mint chocolate ice cream?"

"Marco Diaz, I laugh at your question. This date has obviously gotten to one of the most important questions that can put any relationship on the precarious edge of budding into something beautiful, or crashing and burning. You silly little man; mint chocolate is my favorite type of icecream in the known universe!" Jackie laughed, replying with the same seriousness as Marco asked the question with, as if it were a perilous life-or-death situation.

Marco felt a slight pang in his heart when Jackie Lynn said date, reminding him what they were on and that this wasn't just some friendly hang out with them simply pallin' around; this was an actual date: something that can create romantic relationships, and the reason that the single word causes Marco to have such a feeling was because, well, he didn't want him & Jackie to become anything more than friends. He eased up as the skater chick went on, however, his squinty eyes easing up into a chuckle as she faked seriousness.
"Good answer, Lynn Thomas," he giggled as they grew closer to ordering.

Marco & Jackie exited the parlor, laughing as they were when they entered, except this time with ice cream cones in each of their hands.

"I had a lot of fun today, Jackie," Marco sighed as they came to a little bridge over the creek in the park.

"So did I, Diaz," The blonde smiled, leaning her arms on the stepping bridges edge. "Y'know, you're a lot cooler than I had expected," she smirked as she glanced over at him, their eyes locking.

"What do you mean by that!?" Marco chuckled slightly, biting his bottom lip as the girl kept the eye contact.

"Well, I mean; you're so awkward at school, especially around me-- in all honesty, i was expecting a lot more incoherent babbling from today than I got! I guess what I'm saying, Marco, is that I like you."
Jackie turned her whole body to face our leading man.
That pang in Marcos heart? Well thats back & worse than before.

"Oh... Ohhhh geez," Marco frowned intensely, starting to bubble into a nervous, uncomfortable laughter.

"Wh...what? What's so funny?" Jackie frowned, furrowing her eyebrows & tilting her head in a mildly annoyed confusion.

"On literally any other day, I would reciprocate this, but of course, of course this is my luck. Jackie..." Marco worried his lips, his tone of voice getting even more concerned & panicked as he spoke. "Jackie... You used to be the love of my life, but... I just? I don't love you like I used to any more. T-Theres something really big going on right now and im positive that it's the cause of this sudden change of my feelings..."

Jackie had a hurt expression on her face, yet her tone was still calm & cool. "No, Marco. I get it. We're teenagers, our hormones are unpredictable. Don't try and defend yourself, it's not something worth wasting your breath on."

"Jackie, I'm sorry..."

"It's fine," she muttered. The skater thanked him for the ice cream, and for spending time with her, then walked a few paces before putting her board down & skating away.

The sun was setting, and Marco felt awful for his actions.
~teeny time skip~

"Star? Star I'm home. I brought you some ice cream," the brunette projected his voice into the house as he turned, closing & locking the door behind him as he was taught to do years ago when he very first began school.

Star bounced down the stairs beyond excitedly, screeching Marcos name with joy.
"AAAA MARCO YOU'RE HOME!!!! HOW WAS YOUR DATE? DID YOU GUYS KISS? OOOO WHAT FLAVOR OF ICECREAM DIDJA GET ME?!!" The princess danced around him like a puppy welcoming home its owner.

Marco sighed.
"Rocky Road; your favorite," he handed the alien her food, putting his house keys into the bowl next to the house entrance, and walked upstairs without another word. His actions are something that he needs to sleep on; maybe everything will make more sense in the morning, but in the meantime, contemplation must happen for our young boy.