Open Case File [COMPLETED]

Dress Shopping

Simply cause I could and did.

Enjoy, Noodle!

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Donovan turned the Mercedes into the empty gravel drive and curved around the front of the school, sending rocks skittering away. Kennedy jumped up from her spot on the steps and raced over, hopping into the car. She rubbed her arms and shivered.

"Sorry, I'm late," Donovan said.

Kennedy shook her head as she buckled herself in.

"It's fine. You can make it up to me by taking me dress shopping."

Donovan cast her a sideways glance. At fifteen she looked more and more like Carter, her body lengthening.

"Why are we going dress shopping?" he asked.

Kennedy bounced in her seat, hands knotted together in barely contained excitement. The look made Donovan smile.

"Aaron Kent asked me to go with him to Winter formal," she said.

When Donovan chuckled, Kennedy bit her lip, face flushing with giddiness.

"Then we will go get you a dress."

Mind spinning off to the future, Kennedy curled one long leg under her and gazed out the window. Eddies of leftover flurries from the weekend whipped outside. The sky was a piercing blue that contradicted the mounds of unmelted snow.

"I'm surprised Aaron asked," Donovan said.

Kennedy snapped her head towards him, frowning.

"Why?"

"I thought for your first Winter Formal you would go with Harrison."

At Harrison's name, Kennedy's glow dimmed. She tugged at a strand of her black hair, facing the window again. The small gestures told Donovan that the feelings that had arisen regarding her best friend were still there.

"He asked Julia Blake," Kennedy said, twisting the hair around her finger.

"I see."

"I'm happy for him. I mean Julia is really pretty and super nice. They will look good together."

Donovan said nothing, knowing that admitting he knew where his daughter's affection lay and offering reassurance would only humiliate her. Kennedy relaxed into the silence, grateful that the issue wasn't pushed further.

The parking garage was icy as they climbed out and the pair jogged towards the stairway. At Donovan's insistence that he would win in the race upward, Kennedy bolted forward, darting around the stair's curves with an agility that was given to by her mother. At the top, Kennedy raised her hands into the air, grinning.

"I win! Ha!"

Smiling at his daughter's renewed mood, Donovan wrapped his arms around her shoulders.
"So you did. Seems I'm getting old," he said.

"At least you could run up the stairs, Julia's dad couldn't have done that."

"That is comforting."

The pair stepped into the warm confines of the mall. Music and the beat of footsteps echoed in the air around them. As they walked, the scent of cinnamon and sugar tickled their noses. Kennedy led them to an expansive shop that was bursting with racks of color and sparkles. Rainbow hues lined the walls, the textures shifting from shimmering to muted. The place was relatively empty and Kennedy hovered at the entrance unsure.

"Do you want me to pick one out for you?" Donovan asked.

Kennedy blushed. "No, I got this."

"Okay. There are chairs in the back. I'll be waiting."