Endless || Jonah Marais ✓

♪ FIFTY-ONE ♪

"ONWARD, MY NOBLE BLONDIE!" Aurora yells, jumping onto Corbyn's back in the middle of the Toys R Us parking lot.

"Are you sure you want to go shopping with us?" Jonah chuckles, glancing at Esther Grace as Addilyn jumps onto his back. "Aurora has a tendency to get us banned from stores."

"I'm positive," Esther grins, trailing behind the group as they pass the automatic doors. "Besides, she can't be that wild. Can she?"

"Look, Blondie!" Aurora squeals, jumping off of his back and dashing down a random aisle. "THESE STUFFED ANIMALS ARE ON SALE!"

"NO WAY!" Corbyn bounds over, startling away several of the kids that had been looking at the bin as well.

"Aurora," Jonah sighs, appearing next to the duo as Addilyn slides off of his back. "You and Carmen have tons of stuffed animals back home."

"But Addi might need stuffed animals," she challenges, crossing her arms. "Right, Addi?"

"Right," Addilyn nods her head vigorously, gasping as her gaze lands on one of the animals. "That one looks like Mr. Quackington!"

Addilyn dives into the middle of the bin, resurfacing with a stuffed duckling in her hand and a victorious smile on her face.

"Can I keep her, Corbs?" Addilyn pleads, clutching the small toy to her chest possessively. "Mr. Quackington needs a Mrs. Quackington."

Corbyn smiles, a dazed look crossing his face as he glances down at the excited girl. He opens his mouth to respond but stops himself as a familiar song floods through the store speakers.

Aurora watches in amusement as Jonah's and Corbyn's expressions light up, not catching on until the first line plays.

"Look at us. We could paint the perf-"

"HOLY CHEEZ-ITS! THAT'S YOUR SONG!" She shrieks, ignoring the weird looks being thrown her way as she dances down the aisle.

"I know!" Jonah exclaims, twirling her around.

So caught up in their excitement, Aurora's worries slip away as she tugs him into a kiss.

"I can read your mind. I know what you're thinking."

"JONAH, THIS IS AMA-"

"Ma'am," an obviously new employee begins tentatively, cutting her off. "It'd be greatly appreciated if you would lower your voice."

"I'm sorry, what was that?" Aurora snaps, glaring at the guy. "I couldn't hear you over the sound of MY BOYFRIEND'S SONG PLAYING THROUGH THE SPEAKERS!"

The employee casts a wary glance at Esther, who simply shakes her head in response, before quickly backing out of the aisle.

Aurora turns her focus back to Jonah, simultaneously wrapping her arms around his neck as his slide around her waist. He spins her around once again, pulling here into another kiss as the song comes to an end.

"EW!" A little boy no older than five screeches, pointing at the couple. "COOTIES!"

Leaning back, Aurora laughs as Jonah blushes. An embarrassed mother appears, dragging her son into another aisle, scolding him quietly for behaving so rudely.

Resting her forehead against Jonah's, Aurora continue to smile as the blush slowly fades from his cheeks.

"I'm so proud of you."

××××

"OW!" Jonah shrieks, clutching his foot. "Aurora, watch whe-"

She honks the horn on the battery operated children's Lamborghini, drowning out Jonah's scolding.

"Are you rea-"

Aurora giggles, honking the horn again and slamming her foot onto the gas pedal, swerving into another aisle.

She continues to drive as she glances over her shoulder, watching for Jonah to turn the corner.

"WHOA!" An employee yells, leaping out of the way as she comes to a sudden stop, hitting the brakes.

The rather handsome stranger - who can't be any older than Jonah - smirks as he looks down at the girl. "Aren't you a little old to be driving a kiddy car?"

"Nope," Aurora argues. "The fact that I act like a three year old lowers my actual age."

"My bad," the teen chuckles. "I should've known."

"Is this the part where you ban me from the store?" She asks, surprised it hadn't already happened.

"Nah," he dismisses her question with a wave of his hand, casually leaning against one of the shelves. "So, can I know your name? Or would you prefer for me to call you reckless driver?"

"As amazing as that name sounds," she can't help but roll her eyes, "mine is actually-"

"Aurora!" Jonah exclaims, apparently having found Addilyn and Corbyn as they trail behind him with Esther. "We've talked about running over strangers!"

"But he's not a stranger," she protests indignantly, gesturing towards the employee as Jonah comes to a stop beside the car. "This is my new friend."

"Why do I have a hard time believing that?" Jonah raises an eyebrow, briefly glancing at the employee. "If you're done running over feet, let's buy this car and go get some food."

"But I want to finish my conversation with my new friend," Aurora argues, honking the horn to emphasize her point.

"I'm sure he has to get back to work," Jonah states.

"Actually," the employee - who's name tag she now realizes says George - interjects, looking at his watch. "My break started a few seconds ago."

"That's great but we really do need to be going," Jonah says curtly. "Now, do you want this Lamborghini or that SUV you drove earlier?"

"I want two of these Lamborghinis," Aurora decides.

"Why do you need two?" Esther questions, the only one out of our group surprised by the odd request.

"One is for me and the other one is for Caramel," she states simply. "Georgie, be a dear and grab another Lambo off the shelves."

George snaps into a mock salute, reminding her of Daniel, before disappearing around the corner to where the other toy cars sit.

"Aww," Aurora coos, poking Jonah's leg from where she still sits in the car. "Is Jonah jealous of Georgie?"

"No," Jonah denies, grabbing her hand to stop her from poking him. "I'm just ready to get some food."

"There's a Chipotle right across the street," Addilyn suggests. "I saw it as we pulled in."

"In that case," Aurora grins mischievously, pulling her hand from Jonah's as she hits the gas pedal again. "LATER, BITCHES!"

"WHERE ARE YOU GOING?" Corbyn calls after her. "ESTHER HAS THE CAR KEYS!"

"HAVE FUN RIDING IN THAT, PEASANTS! I'M DRIVING MY BRAND NEW LAMBORGHINI!"