the boy next door • jenzie

10 | The Way He Looks at Her

Ashton wakes up Thursday morning to find himself alone in Kenzie's bed. He groggily crawls out from under her comfortable covers and stumbles over to the attached bathroom to get ready for the day. When he emerges from the bedroom, sporting a fitted baseball t-shirt and khakis, he hears an abundance of voices coming from the living room and kitchen area, many more than just Kenzie, Greg, Melissa, and Taylor.

He gets there and sees Johnny's sister Lauren squished into an armchair with Taylor and his other sister, Lilly, in the kitchen along with her parents. Johnny and Kenzie sit next to each other on the couch, the Thanksgiving parade on the TV and a box of donuts on the coffee table in front of them.

"Hey, Sleeping Beauty," Kenzie teases when he sits down on the couch next to her.

"Why didn't you wake me up?" he asks. "I hate being the last one to get out of bed."

She tilts her head up and kisses his jaw. "You're so cute when you sleep."

Johnny looks away from Kenzie and back at the TV, trying to block out the flirtation between the couple next to him by focusing on the performances and floats.

His peaceful oblivion is interrupted by Kenzie slapping his arm.

"What was that for?" he asks.

"You don't get to be in a pissy mood today, okay?" she demands.

He holds his hands up in surrender. "I ain't in a bad mood."

"Good because you have to be thankful for me today since it's Thanksgiving and I'm your best friend," she says.

Johnny raises his eyebrows. "Who said you're my best friend? That title goes to Hayden."

She clenches her chest. "Did you hear that cracking noise? That was my heart breaking."

The rest of the afternoon is filled with a adults cooking, Taylor running around playing, and Johnny and Ashton subtly fighting for Kenzie's attention, while she remains completely oblivious to that fact.

Dinner is finally ready, and the two families gather at the table on the back patio. Kenzie sits down next to Johnny, and Ashton sits down next to her.

⠀⠀⠀"You'll get used to the smell," she tells Ashton, noticing the look on his face. She kisses his cheek and turns her attention back to the food being passed around the table.

~ ~ ~

After dessert is eaten, the adults go back inside the house to clean up, instructing the kids to stay outside and hang out.

"I'll help you with the dishes," Ashton offers. "It's the least I can do."

Kenzie looks down at a plate that has not yet been taken inside and scoops some of the leftover mashed potatoes onto her fingers. While Johnny is looking over at his sisters, she goes up behind him and smears the potatoes on his cheek.

"Oh, Kenz, you are so dead!" he teases as he picks her up and slings her over his shoulder.

As on Halloween, he dangles her over the fence dividing the yard from the pigs.

"Johnny," she screams, "stop!"

"What's the magic word?" he asks.

"Please!" she cries. "Please stop!"

He lifts her back up, and she wraps her hands around the back of his neck for sturdiness. Once again, their faces are very close to each other.

And all Ashton can do is look out the window and see Johnny look at Kenzie the way he looks at her, and Kenzie look at Johnny back.