Love Triangle (Wilkinson vs. Gilinsky)

11. Park

SHAY'S POV

It's the last day of spring break and Jack and I have spent every single day together since the day I had to make one of the most stressful decisions of my life.

Unfortunately, I haven't seen or heard from Sam since then... At first, I found myself constantly checking my phone to see if he texted or called me. I even questioned whether I made the right decision.

But Jack made it better.

Whenever I looked worried or upset, Jack held my hands in his and kissed them softly until I started to smile.

My thoughts are interrupted as I hear my phone buzz. I unlock a message from Jack, 'Coming in 10!'

I quickly type in, 'Can't wait :)' and press send. I've gotten used to being completely unaware of what Jack and I are doing and where we're going until we're on our way there.

I throw on a flowery sundress and brush through my hair once before I hear the doorbell ring. I squeal in excitement and feel the butterflies start to form as I peer out the window and see Jack. He's wearing a denim button down, khaki pants and sperrys.

I open the door and smile at him. He gives me a small peck on the lips and greets me, "Hi beautiful." I blush and ask, "So, where are we headed to on this fine evening?"

He smirks at me and replies, "It's a surprise." I roll my eyes playfully and he grabs my hand in his, leading me to his car. I hop into the passenger seat and Jack scoots into the driver's seat. He starts his car and pulls out of my driveway.

--

Jack puts the car into park and kills the engine. We step out of the car and I survey my surroundings. I see a small lake filled with ducks swimming about and an array of trees scattered around it. The trees are filled with pink spring flowers and the loose petals conceal the grassy ground. I feel Jack come behind me and wrap his arms around my waist. He rests his head on my shoulder and I lean my head against his.

"This park is gorgeous, Jack."

Jack lets go of my waist and walks toward the trunk of his car. "Just wait. It gets better." He smiles at me and I raise an eyebrow.

Jack opens the trunk and reaches in, pulling out a mini picnic basket and a blanket. As I watch him take out the supplies, I feel my heart literally melt and the butterflies flutter about frantically in my stomach. Smiling wildly, I shake my head in disbelief. "Jack, nuh uh. You did not."

He smiles at me and closes his trunk, "Oh, but I did." He holds onto the basket in one hand and throws the blanket over his shoulder. He interlaces our fingers with his free hand and pulls me down a small hill with him.

We're only feet away from the lake when Jack takes the blanket from his shoulder and lays it down in the grass. I help him spread it out and he places the basket in the middle. We kick our shoes off and sit down on the cozy blanket.

I hear the distant yells of children and various dogs barking at all different pitches and frequencies. I breathe in the sweet smell of the pink flowers and sigh happily. I inch towards the picnic basket Jack prepared and look up at him, "So what's in here?" I raise an eyebrow.

"Why don't you find out?" He suggests and pushes the basket towards me.

I grab the basket and place it between my legs. I untie the bow latching it closed and open the top. I reveal a stack of finger sandwiches, a bag of chips, a tubbleware bin of red strawberries, and two chocolate chip cookies.

"I hope you haven't had dinner yet." Jack looks from the basket in my lap to my face and smiles with no teeth.

I smile back widely and say in awe, "Did you do all of this?"

Jack reaches for the basket and lays out all the food on the blanket. He scratches his head and says, "Well my mom made the sandwiches and cookies... But I did the rest."

I beam at him and hug him close. He wraps his arms around my back tightly and whispers in my ear, "Happy weekiversary."

I pull away and giggle. "Oh my god, now I feel guilty." I whine mockingly.

"Why babe?" He pulls me closer to him and wraps his arm around my waist, sending shocks up my spine.

I lean into his chest and say, "How could I forget about our weekiversary?!" I look up at him and pout my lips.

Jack looks down at me and smiles slightly before saying, "You're right. That's ridiculous, Shay." I laugh. "You're gonna have to make it up to me now."

I look up at him and smirk. I move my legs so I'm straddling him and say, "And how can I do that?" I lightly stroke my hand up and down his arms.

His face inches closer to mine and he breathes, "I think you know how." Smirking, I move my hands behind his neck and press his lips to mine. Jack slowly lowers his body so he's laying down and I'm on top of him. I clutch onto his hair and kiss him harder. Our tongues wrestle each other and I bite his bottom lip, pulling it gently.

I plant one last kiss on his lips before pulling away. I sit up straight, still straddling him, and reach for the tubbleware. I pop the top off and grab a handful of strawberries. I look down at Jack in the eyes as I purposely bite into the strawberry in the most sexual and seductive way possible. "Mmm," I say as I chew the fruit. He bites his lip and mutters, "I shouldn't be jealous of a fucking strawberry right now."

I giggle and get off of Jack's lap to reach for the rest of the food. Jack sits down next to me and reaches for a sandwich. I rest my head on his shoulder and he leans his head on top of mine. We watch the sun slowly set over the lake and eat our dinners peacefully.

--

We finish our food and the sky becomes a deep blue. Jack and I lay on the blanket together and stare into the cloudless sky. Jack is unusually quiet and I turn my head to look at him. "What are you thinking about?" I ask.

There's a pause.

He turns to look at me. "I was thinking about you." I wait for him to elaborate, grabbing his hand and stroking it with my thumb. "I was thinking about how lucky I was to have bumped into you at the grocery store. Or, I guess how you bumped into me." I smile at him embarrassedly as I recall the moment. "And how thankful I am that my mom convinced me to take a hard math class this year. I don't know, Shay. Us being together is just so right. Like--like fate brought us together or something."

I bury my head in his chest. I look up at him and say, "Jack, I wanna cry." His eyes widen at my words and he asks in a panic, "Why? What's wrong?" I smile at him and say, "That was just so beautiful."

Jack's expression softens and he smiles, "You scared me, Shay."

I kiss his neck. "I'm sorry." I kiss his jaw. "So sorry, babe." I kiss his lips.