Suddenly Adult

Wut up, 10 Things?

Sorry. Literally the only reason I'm being this obnoxious on only my second fic into a new fandom is because a bunch of people physically TOLD ME they wanted me to write more Katrick. And I am only too happy to oblige. So, the only really noticeable thing about my writing will be its familiar snobbery. We cool? We cool.

Disclaimer: I need help. Severely.

Roses. Seventeen of 'em.

This is what Kat Stratford found on the doorstep at six in the morning on her daily paper venture.

Wide-eyed with a mix of masked delight and indignation, Kat ran to the end of the driveway, still on the pretense of retrieving the paper. No one was there.

But then, she already had a pretty good idea as to who was the benefactor.

*

Bianca slammed the passenger door and immediately ran to Kat's side to link their elbows. Upon entering Kat's bedroom this morning to perform her daily alarm-clock duties, she'd spied the flowers cradled in her sister's arms, and the sight had caused such romantic scenarios to fly through her head that she'd be in a perpetually good mood all week.

"I can't believe this is happening to me!" Bianca gushed, unintentionally tugging on her sister's arm as she skipped up and down.

"Has your intellect deteriorated that much, that you can't read a simple flower card bearing the word 'Kat' on it rather than your own?" Kat quipped, touching the bud that Bianca had quickly snipped and shoved behind her sister's ear.

Bianca didn't even roll her eyes. "You going out with Patrick Verona means I'm finally free!" she exuberated, flamboyantly throwing her arms into the sky.

"What makes you so sure it's Patrick Verona?" Kat tried to suppress her impending blush with a bite of venom in her voice. In hindsight, the comeback was shoddy, but she'd think of something later.

"Ladies." The smirk was all-too-audible in the deep rumble that issued from behind the pair. Kat cringed as Bianca whirled her around.

"Patrick," the younger girl replied cheerily, while Kat just stared at her eye level, which was Patrick's chest. The three stood silently for a few moments, until Bianca finally had the presence of mind to pop her lips and blurt, "I'll be late!" just as the first bell rang.

Kat took off after her sister, in the direction of her locker, but three quick footsteps later and the last (and first) person she wanted to see was walking in her stride.

Patrick leaned over and nudged his companion. Kat looked up to see him smiling knowingly, as usual. She opened her mouth to make her token scathing comment, but her beat her to it.

"It's my birthday," he announced, proud as a four-year-old holding a frog.

Kat's eyebrows rose at the unexpectedness of such a comment. "Happy birthday," she congratulated customarily, surprise colouring her tone. "Any presents yet?"

"I'm working on it," Patrick grinned cryptically. Kat was interrupted before she could say anything for the second time, this time by an action. Patrick reached up to her hair, where the rosebud lay situated behind her ear, and stroked the bloom. "I see you got my flowers."

"Yes," Kat replied, having nothing else for it. "But why give me flowers on your birthday?" Mandella stood across the quad, finally within Kat's eyesight, and she motioned her friend over. When she'd turned back, Patrick was extracting something from his bag. Another rose.

"The eighteenth," he commented, seeing Kat's confused expression.

"Eighteen roses for eighteen years," Kat confirmed. "But I still don't get it. Customarily, at least if you were a lady, you'd be the one getting the flowers on your big day."

"Ah, yes, but there's the rub - " Patrick handed her the flower – "I'm asking you to dinner. That's my birthday present. From you, of course."

"Oh, and here I thought I was going to have to settle for a nice necktie for you," Kat sneered. She turned to continue to her locker, Mandella between the two locations. Patrick, unsurprisingly, followed.

"So how 'bout it? Pick you up at seven."

Kat turned, her backpack swinging about and knocking down an unnoticed freshman. "I can't anyway," she informed him. A part of her had wanted to preface it with even if I wanted to, but it was his birthday. "I have a very important dinner date already, and I can't miss that."

She didn't dare to turn around to watch his answer, preferring to merely hear it instead, but an audible one never came. Kat pivoted to see her companion leaning against a widely-potted plant, face impassive. Rolling her eyes, she leaned down to him and continued, "Of course, I could always see if I could get out of it. Walter Stratford's a strict guy, but he's not a mean one." Something came back into Patrick's eyes as he realised she was speaking of her father. "I'm sure he'll let this one pass, once I explain the circumstances."

Mandella tapped Kat on the shoulder, eyeing Patrick. "Come on, we can't miss the second bell."

Kat stood, moving into the current of quickly dispersing students. "Seven, then?" she heard from behind. A sly smile crept up her face.

"Six-thirty. Walter's gonna be a bitch tonight."

Mandella gave her friend an identical smile as they walked away from the sudden adult in the midst of adolescents.

I tried to integrate the title back in, as everyone can probably tell, and yet failed miserably. Whatever. Two more days till the season premiere, and then all our wishes will come true, my partners-in-pairing.