Once again Kevin found himself pacing. He was usually much better at handling things, but ever since Kelly had turned his world upside down, his usual relaxation technique didn't seem to work. Today was the worst, and no amount of deep breathing or yoga was helping. And trying to meditate only brought images of Kelly's face to his mind.

Why hadn't she called? It had been a week since Kimberly had talked to Kelly, and she had assured Kevin that he should be getting a phone call very soon. But it never came. He had listened to Kimberly when she said to just give Kelly some time, but he was tired of waiting.

He picked up the phone and impulsively dialed Kelly's number. After four rings the machine clicked on, and Kevin hung up without leaving a message. He tried the radio station, but was told that she wasn't expected back till Monday. In desperation, he dialed Kimberly.

"Where the heck is she?" he barked as soon as he heard Kimberly's voice.

It took Kimberly a minute to figure out who was calling. "Kevin? What's wrong?"

"I thought you said Kelly was gonna call. But I haven't heard from her, and there's no answer at her apartment. Is she there with you?" he demanded.

"No....she's not," Kimberly said. She was puzzled. "You mean she hasn't called you?"

"No, she hasn't," Kevin ran his fingers through his hair out of frustration. "What am I gonna do?"

"I haven't talked to her, Kevin. I assumed that she had called you, and everything was fine."

"Well, she hasn't. And I'm not waiting any longer. I have to DO something."

"Kevin, wait..." Kimberly started to say, but Kevin interrupted, "I told you, I'm tired of waiting."

"No, I mean...let me try her again. I'll call you right back, I promise."

Kevin agreed, but reluctantly. He hung up, then walked into his music studio to turn to the one thing that always made him feel better. His music.

"Stop ringing!" Kelly yelled at the phone, covering her head with her pillow. She was laying in bed, trying to read a murder mystery, and this was the third time the phone had rung in the last ten minutes. She had ignored it the first two times because she just didn't feel up to talking to anyone. But now she was ready to throw it across the room. She grabbed the receiver on the fourth ring. "Yeah, what?" she snapped.

"Somebody sure is in a mood," Kimberly said. "Is that any way to talk to your best friend?"

"Sorry," Kelly told her. "This phone has been ringing off the hook, and it's driving me crazy," she grumbled.

"Are you sure that's what's bothering you?" Kimberly asked. "Or could it be something else?"

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Maybe it's who is calling that's got you upset."

"I don't know who's been calling. I haven't been answering it, and whoever it is keeps hanging up without leaving a message."

"Probably because he wants to talk to you, instead of your machine."

"He? What are you trying to say?" Kelly asked, getting more frustrated by the minute. "You mean Kevin?"

"Yes I mean Kevin! Who else would I mean?" Kimberly was frustrated too. Kelly was just not acting like herself. "He called me, worried about you. Why haven't you called him?"

"I told you I need time," Kelly answered.

"You've had time," Kimberly told her. She softened her voice. "He's really upset, Kel. You need to talk to him."

"I just can't," Kelly pleaded with her friend to understand.

"Why not?"

"What I did was unforgiveable. He tried to give me a special gift, and I basically threw it back in his face."

"That's not how he sees it," Kimberly replied. "You really need to talk to him."

"Let me think about it, okay? I just don't know if I can face him right now."

Kimberly sighed. She wasn't getting anywhere. "Okay Kel, I'll let it go for now. But I'm not giving up. The man loves you."

"Yeah okay. I'll talk to you later," Kelly said as she quickly hung up the phone. What did Kimberly know anyway? She had probably never hurt someone the way Kelly had hurt Kevin. She just didn't understand.

Kelly wanted to forget about her conversation with Kimberly. Her book was still laying next to her on the bed. That should take her mind off things for awhile. But first she took the phone off the hook. Now maybe she could read uninterruped.

But what she hadn't counted on was seeing Kevin's face on every page.

Kimberly slowly hung up, and shook her head. Well, she had tried. But what was she going to tell Kevin? She had promised to call him back, but she didn't know what to say. She stared at the phone, as if it would somehow give her the answer that she needed.

What she really needed was a way for Kevin to get through to Kelly, that would catch her off guard, that she couldn't run from. As she gave it some more thought, a plan began to formulate in her mind. She wasn't quite sure of all the details, but Kevin might have some ideas.

The more she thought about it, the more sure she was that this would work. She quickly called Kevin back. As soon as he heard her voice, he barraged her with questions. "Did you talk to her? What did she say? Is she still mad at me? Where is she?"

When Kimberly could finally get a word in, she told Kevin about her plan. He loved the idea, and helped her work out the final details. "But are you sure it will work?" he asked one last time before he hung up the phone.

"Oh, it will work," Kimberly reassured him. "Trust me."

After she got done talking to Kevin, she started the wheels in motion to get her two friends back together. She just wished she would be there to see it.

Chapter 25
Chapter 23
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