Video Chat

Summary: CJ's been keeping in contact with a girl who lives out of town through video chat on his laptop. And he's fully excited when he gets the chance to see her in person again. But…One problem…She may already have a boyfriend…

"…So when are you gonna get here?"

"Um… I'm thinking maybe a week, but maybe a little longer. And be patient with me, I'm not in a rush." CJ smiled at the screen. For the past month, he spent quite a lot of time talking to Demiah, a brunette girl he met one night at a mall, he'd helped her carry a couple of boxes and they agreed to stay in touch when she left town. Rory glanced over at him, pausing the video game he was playing to stare.

"…Okay, so I'll see you then. Okay, Buh-bye." CJ blew a kiss to Demiah and shut his laptop, only to find Rory staring.

"Do you know how sickening it is watching you do that 8 hours a day?" he asked.

"Do what? I don't do anything."

"Awww, CJ's in love." Rory teased.

"You wanna bet?"

"How much?"

"Fifty bucks, double if I kiss her."

"Deal." They shook hands with serious looks on their faces, until CJ reached up his other hand and smacked Rory in the face and laughed, then saw Cate standing behind them, arms crossed.

"Uh…He said I could if he lost another game." CJ stuttered, un-pausing Rory's video game.

"Aw, man, now I gotta start from the damn checkpoint."

…

Demiah put her hand on the plane window and stared out at the state she was finally returning to. She couldn't wait to see her friends again, surprise them with returning early, just to see their faces again would be enough to make her happy.

A few hours later, after the plane had stopped and a friend had dropped her off two blocks away from the Hennessey's, she made her way down the street. When she reached the Hennessey's front door, she knocked three times and bit her lip anxiously until the magically familiar voice of Cate asked who it was, and Demiah replied in a girly-girl voice, "Would you like to buy some cookies?" She listened as feet shuffled and she heard something like, 'Don't open it, Cate, it's a scam!' and the crinkling of paper. The door opened and Demiah's sickeningly sweet smile grew so wide you would've thought her face would split.

They all squealed with joy and CJ dropped the rolled up newspaper he'd been holding and wrapped his arms around Demiah and they jumped around in happiness. After hugs from the whole Hennessy clan (Is that the right word?) CJ grabbed her shoulders. "Dem, I thought you said you weren't comin' till next week!"

"I couldn't wait any longer!"

"Naw, that's sweet." CJ cooed, and Demiah gave him a shove in the chest. CJ chuckled a little and Rory got in his ear.

"…Get your money ready…" He whispered. CJ rolled his eyes at him.

"So, how was your little road trip?" Bridget asked.

"Amazing, seriously, it was beautiful!" Their conversation carried on for hours until the sun went down. After an agreement on letting Demiah stay at the Hennessey home, CJ and Demiah stayed awake and talked in the family room hours after the others went to sleep. Legs crossed, sitting towards each other on the couch, CJ asked the first question.

"Okay, first question. Have you ever kissed a person of the same sex?"

"If my mother counts with a kiss goodnight." They both chuckled. "Well, there was this lezo chick in senior high in the girls' bathroom." CJ laughed.

"Oo, tell me more."

"Well, I went to the bathroom, and when I was washing my hands, she came out of the stall and like, flung her arms around me and I tried to get out of there, boom, lip-lock. That Yuki bitch comes in and takes a photo."

"Wow, wish I went to your high school."

"Ha ha." Demiah laughed sarcastically. "How about you, ever kissed another man?"

"Accidentally kissed my friend Zack once." CJ admitted with a hint of shame in his voice. "Yeah, he was like, sitting there all cool and collected and some ass tripped me over and I fell onto him." Demiah chuckled. They turned around and faced the TV.

"Okay, I've got an idea. How 'bout each night one of us asks a question, and we both have to answer it." Demiah suggested.

"A question a night, I like that, we'll know more about each other." CJ laughed. "Well, it's like, tomorrow already…that didn't make any sense, but still, I think I'm gonna call it a night."

"Me too. G'night CJ."

"Good night Demi." CJ said in a sing-song voice as he headed downstairs to the basement. Before he was out of view, Demiah picked a nut off the table and threw it at his head, to which CJ looked at her in great annoyance, and then chuckled as he made his way down the stairs.

…

The sun shone brightly through the gap in the curtains of the family room and Demiah yawned. "Good morning, sleepy." CJ's voice rung in her ears as she rose from the couch.

"Hey, CJ." She greeted with a smile.

"Made ya breakfast." CJ informed cheerfully as Demiah approached him, running her fingers through her slightly knotted brown hair.

"Aw, you didn't have to do that."

"Please, it's just a bowl of Fruit Loops." CJ said, waving her off. He grabbed his own bowl of cereal and sat beside Demiah on the couch, putting the bowl on the coffee table.

"Well, aren't you two up early?" The familiar voice of Cate chimed in.

"Hey, Aunt Cate."

"He woke me up." Demiah lied with a big cheesy smile on her face. CJ gave her a playful shove.

"No, I didn't." He chuckled. He only just noticed Rory on the staircase rubbing his fingers together to which CJ sprang to his feet and chased Rory, back upstairs. Cate walked over and sat beside Demiah.

"Thank you for letting me stay here, Cate, it was…really nice of you. I don't get that too often."

"What do you mean?" Cate asked, a hint of concern peppered in her voice.

"Well, I was adopted, and apparently I wasn't good enough. So, I was out on the streets for most of my life, until this old woman took me in, and after that I got a job in the stockroom at some company at the mall, and…that was about when I met CJ. And you guys. And I became independent. And I don't know why I'm using short sentences. And starting them all with and." Demiah chuckled and Cate laughed a little. "But…I can't thank you enough, Cate."

"It's okay Demiah. You're very welcome." Cate got up from her seat just as CJ came back downstairs.

"Sorry about that, he was just being a tick." CJ said, referring to Rory. Demiah stood up and walked over to CJ.

"What is that?" She asked, a small smile creeping onto her face.

"What's what?"

"That right there, what is that?" She asked, putting her index finger near his chest. As he looked down, Demiah flicked her hand up and smacked him in the face and CJ stumbled backwards, stunned. Demiah cracked up laughing, and then bolted out the house as CJ chased her.

A/N: So, I hope you liked the first chapter and Crystal Forest, hope you read this, because if you do, you're even more awesome! Now, my favorite quote today,

'Why don't we all just settle down and have some…olives.' – Cate, Vanity Unfair, 8 Simple Rules