A wave of apprehension washed over Lennon as she faced the house, preparing herself to enter the halloween party.

She hadn't heard from Kade for a week. She had reached out once or twice but wasn't surprised when she didn't get a response. She knew he must have been busy with his family.

But he had been back in LA for almost two days and she had yet to see him. They were suppose to drive to the Halloween party together but he had texted last minute to let her know he was catching another ride. She had hoped for a little time to catch up with him before they were seen together. Now, walking into the party alone, she felt blind and unsure of how he would act.

The large front doors to the house were open and Lennon stepped into a large entry way. The floor was shining black tile and the first thing she caught sight of was a pair of dramatic staircases, one on either side of the entry way, sweeping up into the second story with cobwebs with large spiders covering the banisters. The lights were low and there were Jack o lanterns along the window sills.

Lennon's eyes darted everywhere as she took in all the different costumes. She smiled at the people she passed, looking for a familiar face she could attach herself with until she found Kade.

She was moving through a doorway when a tall Batman reached out and grabbed her arm. She studied the eyes, unsure who it was. The Batman gave her a smirk before he removed his mask to reveal Kade's friend Devon.

"Hey!" she said.

"Hey, you look good," he said, checking out her little Bo-Peep costume.

"Thanks. Kade is dressing up as Woody.  I like your costume. It's very realistic," she said, tapping the plastic chest piece he was wearing.

"Of course it's realistic," he said in his usual cocky manner. "Cause I'm Batman."

Lennon laughed at the deep voice he had put on.

"How have you been?" Lennon asked.

Devon's face fell and he gave her a serous look. 

"Awful," he said dramatically.

Lennon gave him a curious look.

"Awful because you still haven't been to one of my games. Your name is on the list. Why have you kept me waiting?"

Lennon smiled and shook her head.

"I never heard from you," she argued.

"I said you had an open invitation. To any game and I meant it."

"Then I might have to take you up on that offer," she said.

"Don't make a promise you don't intend to keep," he said. "I can't take anymore heart break."

A camera flash cut off her response. She turned to see a photographer taking pictures.

"How about Batman and Little Bo Peep?" the photographer suggested.

"Of course," Devon said.

He pulled Lennon to his side and wrapped an arm around her.

"I'll have to make sure I get a copy of that," Devon said as the photographer moved on.

"You do that," Lennon said. "Have you seen Kade?"

As Devon was responding someone wrapped an arm around her.

"There you are," Kade said.

Lennon turned towards him, surprised. Before she could get a good look at him, he kissed her.

"I've been looking for you," he said, placing a cowboy hat on his head.

"Well, here I am," Lennon managed to get out.

His entrance had startled her. So had the kiss.

"Devon, what's up man?" Kade said, turning his attention to Batman.

Kade was wearing a yellow shirt with a grid pattern in red, a red bandana tied around his neck and blue jeans. The cowboy hat was jauntily perched on the back of his head. While he didn't look exactly like the character, the costume looked good on him.

"I was just thinking Lennon and I needed to come to one of your games," Kade said. "Wouldn't that be fun, babe?"

"Yeah," she said.

He turned back to Devon and Lennon didn't pay attention to what they were saying as she studied his face. He was grinning and animated as he talked. She wasn't sure what she was more surprised by, his sudden appearance or the fact that he was acting completely normal. It seemed like all her worrying had been for nothing.

Kade and Devon started to talk about the basketball season and were both surprised when Lennon added her own two cents. She wasn't a huge basketball fan but Hunter had loved it so she had learned the basics and she still followed the Charlotte Bobcats.

"I don't know about Nico Tallis. He seems nervous and it's hurting his game," Devon said.

"He just needs a little time to warm up," Lennon argued. "He grew up near Asheville and I have watched him play since he was a sophomore in high school.  Give him a few more games and you'll have some tough competition."

Devon smiled and looked Kade.

"How did you get this girl?" he asked.

"My winning personality," Kade said.

Devon laughed and rolled his eyes.

"Definitely not that," he joked.

"Then it must be my amazing good looks," Kade said with a cocky smile.

Lennon laughed.

"How about this? We fight for her," Devon said. "Your sad cowboy outfit doesn't have anything on Batman."

"Don't be so confident," Kade said. "But no thanks. I'm happy staying right where I am."    

His hold on Lennon tightened and she looked at him. He kissed her again and Devon let out a disgusted noise. Lennon laughed as Kade pulled away.

"You two make me sick," Devon said.

"Does that mean you are taking back your invitation to a game then?" Lennon asked.

"Of course not. But you have to promise to cheer for me."

"You don't need any more cheerleaders," Kade said.

They kept up the banter until a tall brunette dressed as a slutty angel came up to Devon and he happily let her steal him away.

Now that it was just the two of them, Lennon was thinking about asking Kade how he was doing. He seemed normal, but she had also seen him act like everything was fine when she knew it wasn't.

"Have you seen Will or Noah?" he asked, looking around the party.

"I haven't."

"I think they're over here," he said, as if he hadn't really been listening for her answer.

He took her hand and led the way into the kitchen. They got stopped every few feet by someone eager to say hi to Kade. He always introduced Lennon but she felt like she was on the outside of those conversation, trying to find a way in. But she never found one before they were moving again.

The photographer found them and Lennon was surprised when Kade happily agreed to pictures. Even more surprised when he jokingly posed, dipping her and then holding his cowboy hat in front of their faces, as if they were kissing behind it. He even kissed her for one of them.

She was still trying to wrap her head around this affectionate and boisterous version of Kade when they found Will and Noah. Will was dressed as Captain American and Noah was a gladiator in very little clothing.

"Do you like my cape?" Noah asked, dramatically swooping it.

Lennon laughed and tried to hide her surprise at Noah's extremely buff body. Kade joked that his abs were spray on. But they looked very real when Noah tightened them as Kade tried to punch his stomach.

"You should probably get that hand checked out," Noah said.

Kade and Lennon moved off after a few minutes to say hi to the host. They found her among a large crowd and Kade introduced Sloane Pearson to Lennon. Sloane was dressed as a milkmaid. She was very happy to see Kade. So happy in fact, it made Lennon uncomfortable. She was possessive when she hugged him, her hand stroking the back of his head. She held his hand as she talked to him.

Lennon tried to smile and act normal but she felt awkward standing there while her 'boyfriend' held hands with another woman. Who was blatantly flirting with him. Even with Lennon's arms around Kade, Sloane was bold enough to hold on to his hand and talk only to him.

"She's interesting," Lennon said, as they walked away.

"Mmmm," Kade said.

His eyes roamed the party.

"Do you want to get something to eat?" she asked.

They had been so busy talking with people they had barely exchanged two sentences between themselves. She could do with a break from meeting new people and it would give them a chance to talk.

"I already ate," he said. "But you can get some food."

He didn't look at her as he talked, his eyes moving over the crowd.

"I'm gonna catch up with Jack real quick," he said.

He nodded his head in the direction of a guy dressed like Han Solo.

"I'll come find you after you eat."

Before Lennon could say anything, he was gone. She made her way back to the dining room but was stopped along the way.

"Lennon!" a superwoman called out to her.

She was waving excitedly and smiling. Lennon waited as the girl walked up and tried to place the face. She wasn't sure how she knew the girl or what her name was.

"I'm so happy you are here!" the girl said, giving her a hug.

It surprised Lennon but she went along with it.

"I haven't seen you for a while," the girl said.

"I know!" Lennon blindly agreed.

"Is Kade here?" the girl asked, looking around.

"Yeah. He just went to talk to a friend while I grab some food."

"Perfect, I was going to eat too," she said.

She slipped her arm into Lennon's and led the way to the food.

"So how long has it been?" the girl asked.

"I'm not even sure," Lennon answered.

Hopefully the girl wouldn't realize Lennon couldn't even remember meeting her.

"I think it was the concert at the Staples Center, right?" she said.

"I think you're right," Lennon said.

"How have you been?" the girl asked.

"Really good. Busy but who isn't?" Lennon joked.

"I saw the exciting news about you and Kade!" the girl said.

Her tone was casual as she scooped salad on to her plate but it was a little too casual.

"Yeah. It's been good."

Lennon wasn't sure exactly what the girl was after but she would just keep things vague. They found a few open chairs at a table and sat to eat.   

"That's Lauren Reynolds and Mitchell Ray," the girl said, pointing out a couple. "There was a huge scandal when they got together because Mitchell was still with his girlfriend, who was six months pregnant. Rumor is they are expecting their own baby now."

The girl tried to get information about Lennon and Kade's relationship, but Lennon danced around any details and was vague when she brought up stories she had read in the media.

"I do have to say, I'm impressed with your relationship with Kade," the girl said.  "I think everyone is. Kade hasn't been committed to a girl in years."

"Sometimes it just takes the right person to make the relationship stick," Lennon said.

The girl frowned and quickly changed the subject. Shortly after, she made up an excuse and left the table, leaving Lennon perplexed. As she was finishing up her food, Kade sat down in the empty chair next to her.

"Who were you talking to?" he asked.

"I have no idea. Do you know her name?" Lennon asked. "She looked familiar. She says we met at the LA show."

"Yeah, she was there," he said. "That's Brianna."

"I kind of remember that. I felt bad because we had a full conversation and I had no idea what her name was."

"What did you guys talk about?" Kade asked. His tone was causal but his eyes were intent on her.

"I have no idea. She seems to know everyone's story. She asked about us."

"Did she?"

"Yeah. What is it?" Lennon asked.

Kade was trying to act casual but he was too interested to seem completely nonchalant.

"Nothing. I'm just trying to make conversation," he said distractedly.

He stood and pulled Lennon up.

"Let's dance," he said.

He led her into a room that had been transformed into a dance floor. The music was loud, making Lennon feel like she couldn't even hear herself think. Kade spun her around once and dipped her before he pulled her close.

Dancing was fun and Kade was flirty but something about the way he was acting felt distant. Lennon still felt like they hadn't had a actual conversation. Even though he was acting affectionate, none of it seemed real. Something about the way Kade was acting felt more like what he use to do at the beginning, when they weren't even talking but flirting through their duet performance.

*******************************

Lennon felt nothing but relief when they finally found Sloane at the end of the night and thanked her for the party. Lennon was even too tired to care about the way Sloane hugged Kade goodbye. She was eager to leave and get a chance to talk with Kade. See how his trip to Boston had been.

Their driver opened their door for them. Lennon climbed in and moved across to give Kade a spot but when she turned around, she found him standing by the door.

"I'm going to catch a ride with Devon," he said. "He has something he wants to show me. I'll see you later. Night Lennon."

He shut the door and Lennon watched him walk away to a crowd of people. She was too surprised to do anything as the driver climbed into the front seat and pulled away from the house.

As Lennon drove home alone and replayed the night in her mind, she realized her distance from Kade had been his doing. All night, he had sought out other people to make sure they were never alone. That could be excused because it was a party but he left her alone on the way home. For some reason, Kade was avoiding her.

**********************************************************************

Hey hey!

I have to tell you when it comes to Halloween costumes, I'm the worst. I wait until the last minute and then put something together from my closet. I think the closest I ever came to planning out my outfit was when I actually bought a pair of fairy wings, the rest I threw together the day of. Of course I still made an adorable fairy if I say so myself. ;)

Vote, comment, follow. Join in with the craze! I hear everyone is doing it!