Disclaimer: I do NOT own the K.N.D., Nigel Uno, Abby Lincoln or anyone else except for Amanda Ortiz... she's mine =]

The clock on the wall struck 10:00pm; it had been exactly three hours since the death of teen operative Numbuh 56. It had all happened so fast, so sudden. They had all been on a mission together, Numbuh 56, 22, 5, 2, and Numbuh 1, just that morning. It was a hard bite for any of the members of the Teen Chapter to swallow, but they had been conditioned to handle it with strength. When crossing over to the Teen Chapter, after being invited to join the select few on your 13th birthday, you have to come to terms with the fact that the missions become a whole lot more dangerous. It becomes more about intense battle and less about soda pop. The fatalities become much more real in the fight against adult tyranny; they stop holding back since you're no longer just a kid.

Nigel, Numbuh 1, understood that, he understood it all. He was one of the most strategic and rational members the Teen Chapter had to offer and that's why they kept him around. Nigel was known as the cool guy who usually had all of the answers. Unfortunately, this time, he couldn't come up with a question to save his life. He sat on the edge of his bed in his dark room watching the lightning flicker on the outside of his window. He watched the sky weep for him; the rain beating against the ground became one with the pain beating in his heart. He felt like he had lost a part of himself that evening. Every member of the Teen Chapter was close to him because it was such a personal and intimate affair; it was so few of them and they were all so easy to bond with. He laid back and took off his sunglasses, putting them on the bed next to him. He rubbed his eyes harshly and fingered his fresh buzz cut, sighing heavily thinking about his fallen comrade.

"Oh, Amanda…." He whispered to himself quietly, placing his hands behind his head. Never had someone so close to him died in such a way. Fighting Father was never a way to go. He picked up a box that was near his sunglasses and opened it. Inside was a pin that Amanda wore every day religiously. She had given it to Nigel last night and told him to keep it safe, she knew their next mission would be rough and she didn't want anything to happen to it. Nigel drifted into a warm memory.

"Nigel," Amanda said grabbing his arm.

"Yeah?"

"I need you to do something for me. We are friends right?"

"Well, yeah Amanda. The best." They both smiled at the remark.

"Can you hold on to this for me?" She asked, removing the pin from her breast pocket and closing it into Nigel's hand, "If things get sticky, I don't want my favorite pin getting lost in the crossfire. Clearly, I trust you or something."

"You made the right choice." He pinned the vintage rainbow monkey pin on the inside of his pants pocket. "I'll be sure to keep it safe."

"My grandma gave me that pin when I was three… can you believe I kept it that long?"

"That sure was a long time ago. You're, like, 16."

"17," Amanda corrected, "You're not any older than I am!" They both laughed as they hopped into the shuttle, then shot off into the distance to put an end to Father's latest plot.

Nigel quickly snapped out of the memory when he heard someone opening his door.

"I'm sorry," Numbuh 5 said, walking into the room, "I knocked but you didn't answer. I figured you weren't sleepin or anything since it's so early in the night. I brought you some coffee… decaf, you don't need any unexpected excitement." She put the coffee on the night stand and sat down next to him. She looked at his tired eyes and empty expression. It was clear that he had been going through it just as badly as everyone else, if not worse.

"Thanks Abby," Nigel said sitting up, "you really didn't have to. If anything, I should be getting you coffee or something… she was your friend since forever."

"Yeah, we were thick as thieves when we weren't fightin adults. I can't believe – "

"Please, don't say it. It's really hard for me." Nigel said quickly, cutting her off.

"It's hard for me too honey. It's hard for everyone in the Teen Chapter. I'm just glad the kids don't know, it'd break their hearts."

"Guess this is one of the reasons they don't tell you about the Teen Chapter until you're commissioned into it. Things would… get too complicated." Nigel sighed and Abigail put her arm around his shoulder.

"They're not giving her a funeral," Abigail murmured.

"What?" Nigel jumped away from her.

"Her parents, they want to spread her ashes over one of her favorite places. They don't want a funeral though; they said it gets too emotional. They think she died in a car crash." The two grew silent for a while, looking into each other's weary eyes.

"I'm gonna go now, I'm pretty worn out… long day." Abigail said getting up.

"Yeah, long day." Nigel's head sunk into his chest. Abigail watched him drift back into the emptiness that consumed his, otherwise, vibrant spirit.

"Good night, Nigel." Abigail said slipping out of the door.