Shawn and Kendall Ch. 14

"I hate you," she whined with a stressed-out face, "you are so fucking hot. It's not fair!"

Shawn grinned with confidence as he felt her fume before him. The heat from her place nearly burned his knee, telling him she was incredibly turned on.

"Shawn, I have to go! Come on!" She demanded, shoving him off of her and struggling to recompose herself.

She sighed with agitation, trying to fix her hair and slow her breathing down before leaving his room.

"Have a good day at work, Weirdo," Shawn snickered, sitting back down at his desk, "and don't forget your promi- I mean, threat," he finished with a playful look.

Kendall shook her head at him as she opened his door to leave, blown away by the power of his touch. She wasn't looking where she was going and nearly ran into their mom on the other side of the door. They both jolted in surprise, and their mom almost dropped the plate of breakfast in her hands. She would have caught them if she had been just five steps closer.

"Uh- Sorry, Mom!" Kendall stuttered, proceeding to squeeze past her.

"I thought you were late for-" She attempted to say to Kendall, but Kendall flew down the steps and was out the door in a flash.

"Work...?" She finished, giving Shawn a curious look.

Shawn shrugged, pretending to be busy working. He had to slide as far up against the desk as possible to hide his throbbing boner from her. Pressing Kendall's hot buttons and tasting her mouth set him on fire, and he was still agitated from teasing her.

"Oh, lord," she mumbled, bending down to pick something up from the ground, "that girl. I swear. She dropped her bagel."

Shawn struggled not to let his face scrunch up into a smirk, realizing he was the reason Kendall dropped it.

"Here," she continued, setting a hot plate of breakfast on Shawn's desk.

"Whoa, thanks, Mom! You're the best," he praised, sliding the plate in front of him, excited to dig in.

It was a delicious spread of buttered toast, sliced avocado, maple sausage links, crispy hashbrowns, and eggs over easy. The smell was incredible and made Shawn's mouth water.

"I was wondering why you never came down to grab a plate," she crossed her arms, "you okay?"

"Mhm," Shawn hummed, shoveling bites down, "I just have a lot of work to do today."

Their mom casually wandered over to his bed, analyzing his room. She didn't frequent the space much in his adulthood and took the time to be a nosy mother. She sat down on his bed with a sigh, wanting to catch up with him for a moment. But seeing Kendall flee his room the way she did caused a slight concern to fester. It didn't look like anything strange was happening, but she couldn't think of why Kendall would need to stop by his room if she was already late for work. The bagel on the floor was odd as well. Her motherly instincts would not allow her not to ask questions.

"You two have really been hitting it off since she moved back in," she said, casually looking around the room, "I haven't seen her sneak into your room like that since you were kids."

Shawn suddenly stopped eating and spun around to face her. Her random acknowledgment of his closeness with Kendall lately threw him off. He briefly recalled fond memories of staying up late with Kendall and talking in the dark when they were supposed to be asleep.

"It's not my fault she constantly wants to bug me," he retorted with a fake attitude and his mouth full, trying to act the part.

Their mom snickered at him, shaking her head.

"What?" Shawn snapped, wiping his mouth.

"Nothing," she answered condescendingly, "you're just terrible at lying. Exactly like your dad."

Shawn's eyes looked around in embarrassment, not liking that his mom could see straight through him the way Kendall did. It was clear where her ability came from.

"It's okay, Honey," she chuckled, "you're allowed to like your sister. I won't tell."

Shawn grumbled at his desk, spinning back around to continue working.

As she sat on his bed, she ran her hands along his blanket, and a particular feeling caught her hand. A long strand of hair had wrapped around her finger when she looked down. She unraveled it in her hands, wondering why Shawn wouldn't have hinted at having a girl over. It was dark and seemed relatively healthy and fresh. Naturally, her eyes wandered toward his pillow, looking for others, and sure enough, there were. It was painfully evident that a girl had been in his bed recently. That tiny seed of worry their dad had implanted in her the night before instantly made her wonder if it was Kendall's hair and why it would be in Shawn's bed. Flashbacks of stumbling upon their late-night talk and seeing Kendall in his bed entered her mind. She then began thinking of ways to ask without making it obvious.

"So, Mr. Dance Moves," she said, trying to force her concerned tone into a curious one so he wouldn't notice, "been talking to any girls lately?"

"No way," Shawn answered without thinking, typing away, "you know I don't care about all that."

"Not even... Casually?" She asked hesitantly.

Shawn stopped typing and turned to face her in his chair, wondering where her sudden curiosity came from. She quickly hid her hands in her lap so he wouldn't see her playing with the strand of hair. Her eyebrows raised curiously, wanting him to answer.

"Are you asking what I think you're asking?" He responded awkwardly.

She shrugged and looked away, letting him know he didn't have to answer if he didn't want to.

"Um..." He swallowed, struggling to stay composed because he wasn't sure what caused her to ask, "no, I'm not."

"Oh, come on," she pried with a mischievous tone, "you sure you haven't had any cute girls in here lately? You can tell me. It's your room, after all."

"Mom, stop! That is so weird!" Shawn snapped, turning back around to continue working.

Her motherly cackle followed, finding his embarrassment more adorable than anything else.

"Well, just know that it's perfectly okay," she said, standing up from the bed, "as long as you're safe."

"Yeah, yeah, got it," Shawn grumbled, dismissively waving his hand at her, "now do me a favor and go away. I need to focus."

She grabbed his empty plate and playfully ran her hand against the back of his head.

"I'll be downstairs if you need anything," she smiled.

"Thanks for breakfast," Shawn said just before his door shut.

He waited for it to close before flopping out of his chair and pacing toward his bed. He nervously scratched his head, wondering why their mom was suddenly curious about him having girls over. It's very motherly to wonder about these things, but the timing was too precise. Shawn had not laid a finger on a girl for some time before having sex with Kendall, let alone brought one to his room. His paranoia stirred while he looked around for anything that might have caused their mom to become curious. A stray sock or pair of panties in the open? Did the bed smell like sex? Or was it his recent behavior with Kendall? Their mom had mentioned their closeness before going into his intimate life. The idea of her being onto them was nerve-wracking and immediately made him race for his phone.

"Come on, come on..." He paced, scratching his head, waiting for Kendall to answer.

"I'm walking into work!" Her voice snapped.

"I know, sorry!" He palmed his forehead with a panicked tone, "uh- hey! Did Mom say anything weird to you this morning?"

He nervously turned to face the door as he quieted his voice, trying not to be too loud. Kendall did not answer. The hospital was noisy around her, and her eyes nervously wandered the ground, wondering why he was asking.

"No? Why?" She finally responded.

"It's just that she was in my room, and- and, she started asking me about girls and stuff, and-" Shawn babbled like a maniac.

"Shawn," Kendall cut him off as she swiped her badge to clock in, "I really gotta go. I'm sorry, I can't talk right now. Tell me later when I come home, okay?"

"Yeah-" Shawn attempted to answer, but she hung up. "Sure..." He mumbled to himself as his arm lowered.

Kendall held her phone against her chest after hiding in a nearby office, spacing out momentarily before starting her shift. Her stomach churned, remembering someone checking on her the night before to ensure she returned to her room. And now Shawn was being questioned. Of all the people they had to hide their relationship from, their parents were the last people they ever wanted to find out, and the feeling in her stomach told her they were beginning to smell something odd.

"Shit..." She whispered, trying not to let the anxiety overtake her because she knew it was not a coincidence.

Leaving Shawn's room, their mom consciously resisted the urge to look in Kendall's room for the same hair found on Shawn's bed. She walked past Kendall's door, took the plate downstairs, and set it in the sink. Her hand gripped the counter as she stared at the strand of hair, struggling to subdue her growing concerns. There wasn't a single time she could recall anything weird happening between them. They fought just like normal siblings. It felt like they were constantly bickering like normal siblings. Kendall had been in a relationship for years until recently, and she would never cheat. Shawn had also been with girls during the same time. How could they possibly do such a thing, and when? It didn't seem feasible with how closely involved their household was over the years. She or their dad would surely have noticed something before now. Then, she remembered the weekend and how they were alone at the house for almost two days. Could that have been when something happened?

Finally succumbing to her insecurity, she quietly crept back upstairs and entered Kendall's bedroom with the strand of hair still in her hand. Her eyes studied the room, looking for signs of questionable activity, but Kendall was always tidy since she was young. Her bed looked neatly made, her bathroom was spotless, and the only visible mess was stray clothing here and there. She sat on Kendall's bed, breathing deeply, not wanting to have such awful concerns about her children—brief thoughts of aborting and leaving the room prodded at her mind. But it did not help that Kendall was again in Shawn's room that morning for unknown reasons. As close as they were, their mom couldn't help but begin to see what their dad was hinting at because of how oddly attached they were lately.

She finally stood up and walked into the bathroom, knowing Kendall's brush would be there. She had to be sure. As expected, a neon purple hairbrush sat by the sink, caked in Kendall's hair from daily use. She delicately plucked a single hair from it, holding them side-by-side, analyzing its color and dimensions. They were nearly identical. Their mom knew this was still not cause enough to believe such a thing, but unfortunately, it did not dismiss it entirely the way she had hoped. She silently prayed they would look nothing alike, but now, all she could do was convince herself that Shawn was lying and whoever he had in his bed had hair just like Kendall's. Or perhaps Kendall sat in his bed often for their talks, which didn't mean they were doing anything inappropriate. Every possible way she could, their mom fabricated ideas that debunked Shawn and Kendall crossing any lines with each other.

"What am I doing..." She whispered, rubbing her fingers together and dropping the hair, "that one girl he dated was brunette. He probably likes brunettes, yeah. And besides, it's not like he would ever talk about his sex life on the spot like that. He's totally had girls over. Yeah."

With that, she sighed and left Kendall's room, dismissing her worries and rationalizing that her children would never do something so vile. They were close and loved each other dearly, but they knew better than ever to act on such a thing. In her mind, there was no longer anything to worry about. She hadn't witnessed any inappropriate touching, talking, or other behavior once since they'd been born. Something, however small, would have been caught at some point before now.

Shawn nervously bounced his knee under his desk, trying to focus on work and not let their mom's awkward sex life interview distract him. It was very slight, but Kendall paused before answering his question over the phone, which bothered him. Was there something she wasn't telling him? His thoughts stirred, making him horrifically unproductive that day. Before he knew it, the clock was approaching five, and his day was almost over.

"Shit!" He grunted to himself, seeing his inbox still crowded with requests and other items that required follow-up.

He finally took a deep breath and dug his heels in, determined to smash the rest of his workload so it wouldn't spill over to the next day.

"Come on, man," he mumbled, "that 'moms know everything' bullshit is just bullshit."

Shawn had to tell himself everything in the book to stop his brain from conjuring storms of anxiety and paranoia. First Grace, and now their mom? What else could go wrong if things continued the way they were? He began retracing his steps from the weekend, trying to think of any mistake that could have caused their parents to become suspicious. He washed their blankets after having sex with Kendall on their bed, collected all clothing items, and acted like her brother when they were around. Shawn felt he was following the rules well, but something had to have happened to cause doubt. The stress from worrying about it made him fidget and breathe violently.

Suddenly, his door opened, causing him to jolt from being distracted by his anxiety.

"You almost done for the day?" Their mom poked her head in.

"Uh..." Shawn sighed, wiping his eyes with his elbows on the desk, "yeah, Mom. What's up?"

She stared at him briefly, noticing that he looked on edge.

"Are you sure you're okay?" She asked, stepping fully into the room, "you know you can always talk to me, right?"

"I'm fine," he brushed her off, logging out of his work portal for the day.

"You don't seem fine," she answered with crossed arms and an attitude, "and I know when something's bothering you."

"Nothing is bothering me, Mom!" Shawn snapped, not wanting her to pry any further, knowing his dilemma would ruin her.

"If you say so," she answered cynically, "anyways, the grass is getting a little tall. Mow it before your dad gets home, please."

"Yeah, okay, Mom," Shawn groaned, not wanting to but understanding it was his chore.

"Don't sound too excited," she poked at him with a raised eyebrow and a smirk, trying to cheer him up.

Shawn gave her a fed-up, unenthused look, not entertained. His nerves were pulsating with vexation.

"Honey, what's wrong?" She dropped her arms with a stressed-out tone, growing more concerned by his behavior.

"Mom..." Shawn grumbled, gripping the sides of his face with irritation.

"If you would just talk to me about-"

"Mom!" Shawn shouted, slamming his hands on the desk, causing her to jump from the sound.

The look on her face caused him to look down at his hands, immediately regretting his outburst. The stress from his situation with Kendall had overtaken him and made him lash out unintentionally. No part of him wanted to make his mother feel like she wasn't allowed to care about him. Remorse engulfed him while he raced to think of a way to recover.

"I- Mom, I didn't mean to-" he stuttered, wishing he could take everything back and try again.

"So that's it?" She mumbled with her head turned, visibly struggling not to cry, "you're just going to shut everyone but Kendall out?"

She closed his door behind her, not allowing him to respond. Shawn palmed his face, cringing from his unacceptable behavior.

"Nice job, asshole..." He groaned, hating that he just pushed his mom away so violently.

Shawn sat at his desk, submerged in guilt. He knew her concern came from a place of love and felt like an awful son for talking to her in such an ugly way. Shawn struggled to communicate his feelings throughout his entire life, but his mother never gave up on him. She always asked how he was doing, always offering to support him. But this was the first time he had lashed out at her over it. All he could do was sit and wonder how to recover from acting like a jerk. He loved his mom wholeheartedly, and she was only trying to help.

Shortly after, Shawn wore a light outfit and knocked the grass out. The entire time he mowed, he listened to music and thought of ways to apologize to his mom. The betrayed look on her face made him feel abysmal, and he wanted to fix things as soon as possible between them. But his mind also grazed over her comment about Kendall. Did he treat the rest of his family so differently from her? Had his infatuation with Kendall been so obvious lately that it made her seem more special than his parents? Wheeling the mower back into the garage, he saw their dad pull into the driveway after a long day. He waited for him to exit the car, knowing his dad might be able to prep him for his apology.

"Hey, Dad," he causally greeted him, removing his earphones.

"Howdy," their dad greeted him, walking toward the garage, "thanks for taking care of that."

"Uh, yeah, sure..." Shawn mumbled, awkwardly trying to initiate their talk.

"Um- Dad! Can I talk to you for a sec?" He asked.

Their dad stopped walking and gave him a curious look. Shawn rarely approached him this way.

"Yeah, sure. What's going on?" He responded.

"It's Mom," Shawn mumbled, trying to find the words, "we were talking earlier, and I just..."

Their dad stared intently at him, noticing he was highly bothered and struggling to communicate his feelings.

"Dad," Shawn's voice cracked as he wiped the sweat from his face, "I feel like such a jerk right now. She just wanted to talk to me, and-"

"Hey, hey," he interrupted Shawn, firmly gripping his shoulder.

Shawn stared at him, his emotions running amuck.

"Bad day, huh?" He quietly asked, releasing his shoulder.

"Real bad..." Shawn answered, lowering his gaze.

They sat in silence momentarily. The ambient summer sound of others mowing their lawns and birds singing filled the air around them. Their dad seldom saw Shawn get like this, and he knew his son needed him right now. Shawn's difficulty with expressing himself and communicating his emotions had caused issues before, and this was just such an occurrence. During times like this, his dad knew it was better to address the issue with compassion, not wrath.

"She, uh, called me and told me about your little scuffle earlier," he gently informed Shawn.

Shawn's eyes shot back up, surprised that his dad knew how he'd treated his mom but wasn't coming down on him.

"She told you?" Shawn asked, bracing for his dad's reaction.

"Mhm," he nodded, seemingly unbothered.

"Dad, I- what should I do?" Shawn stumbled.

"Well," his dad began, leaning against the garage wall and folding his arms, "as much as your mom deserves an apology, I don't think you should start there."

Shawn stared into his eyes, waiting to hear his advice.

"I think you should ask yourself why you talked to her like that in the first place," his dad calmly said, "is there something bothering you so bad that even your mom and dad can't help?"

Shawn's eyes lowered as he began reflecting on what caused his emotions to flare and erupt toward his mom. Everything seemed stressful because he was too focused on hiding his and Kendall's secret from them.

"Shawn," his dad said, causing him to look back up, "your mom loves you, and what you did earlier broke her heart. I'm not telling you this to make you feel bad, either. I'm telling you because you need to understand the gravity of how you treat her. How would you feel if you were in your mom's position and your sister talked to you like that?"