One-shot, because I'm feeling bored and need to brush up on my writing skills.

There was a soft tapping on the door. "Come in," muttered Nigel.

A blonde girl, about 12 years of age, walked through the door. Her caramel eyes glittered with fresh tears as they settled on the boy lounging on the couch. But he wasn't a boy, not anymore, anyways. She sniffled. "I… Nigel… it's almost time…"

The bald brit flicked his eyes towards her for a moment before sighing. "So… is Fanny going to…?"

Rachel shook her head sadly. "Her birthday was a month ago."

"Oh."

A heavy silence settled between the two. Nigel coughed to break it. "… I'm… sorry…"

"Sh-she was a good friend…" Rachel whispered.

"And what of Patton?"

"Decommissioned a few months ago."

Nigel blinked. "My team…?"

"Numbuh 2, 3, and 4 are still in Sector V. They never filled out the operative replacement forms for you or Numbuh 5. Numbuh 5 is the Supreme Leader now. I… I stepped down."

"Why?"

"...I was tired of the work load." She laughed weakly and looked down. "You wouldn't believe how many reporters asked me that question. Well… actually just Sector L. They were very persistent though…"

She lifted her head to see Nigel narrowing his eyes at her in suspicion. Nigel stared at her for a good minute, all the while Rachel fidgeted uncomfortably. "Permission to speak freely?", he asked, finally breaking the silence.

"I'm not your superior anymore Nigel. Permission granted."

"You're a horrible liar."

Rachel scoffed indignantly. "No, I am not a horrible liar!"

Nigel's' lips curled up into a smirk. "Really?" He quirked an eyebrow. "Well, if you aren't a bad liar, you're horrible at keeping the lie. You just admitted that you were lying when you said, and I quote, 'No, I am not a horrible liar!'"

Sticking her tongue out at him, she sat down on the couch with Nigel. "I wasn't lying though. It was a lot of work and… I just…" she looked down. "I just decided to step down…"

"That's a load of crud." Nigel said briskly. "I don't believe that excuse, not for a second."

"What other explanation do you have then, oh, Numbuh 1-the-great-and-all-knowing?" Rachel quipped. "Assuming that I'm lying."

"First off," Nigel held up a finger. "I know for a fact that you were lying. When someone lies, they have a tendency to repeat the question asked of them. For example, I said, 'You're a horrible liar', and you reiterated the phrase. Liars also tend to blink a lot and not make eye contact, and you just displayed both those symptoms."

Rachel opened her mouth to protest, but Nigel continued before she could rebut. "Secondly, when you first stepped down, I know that it genuinely was because of the work load. There was so much pressure on you, that you just snapped. Everyone on Moonbase saw it. Personally, I would have done the same. But… you were doing well when I left. Strong-willed, smart, a leader." Rachel flushed, flattered by his compliments.

"You had motivation to lead, not something everyone has. I don't think you stepped down because of the work load a second time. Kids learn from their mistakes, which is what make them so smart compared to adults. Granted, sometimes we have to repeat the mistake several times to learn from it, but you…. I think I already mentioned that you're smart, perhaps exceptionally so. You wouldn't want to step down for the sole purpose of causing another I.T fiasco. Now, I know that the only other way to step down from the position of Supreme Leader without a game of tag is to personally interview every Sector Leader in the organization to find a suitable replacement." She twitched. Nigel grinned. He was in the ballpark.

"Now that requires a lot of effort. You don't go through all that trouble just because you're exasperated because of a little-… well a lot- of paper work. You truly wanted to step down. And you decided on Abby."

Bingo. Hit the nail on the head. "Nigel…."

"Why, Rachel? You loved the job, even with it's disadvantages. What was different about the second time that made you want to step down so badly? What changed so that the job was no longer fun?"

"Nigel."

"What caused such an utter lack of motivation? What happened? Was something added to your heavy burden of leadership? A new problem? Or did something go missing?"

"Nigel…"

"It must have been something important. The thing that kept you going, kept you fighting. Heck, you must have loved this thing if it kept you fighting so hard. What happened to it, Rachel?"

Color flooded high on her cheeks. "Nigel… I…."

"What was it? Was it important?" He grasped her hands. "I want to help. Tell me. Please."

Rachel looked broken. She was trembling. "I… I…" She then looked up at the slightly taller boy. His eyebrows were knit together with concern, his eyes- those beautiful azure eyes- focused on her, and only her. And-not for the first time - the thought, Zero he's attractive, ran through her whimpered and then all but mashed her lips against his.

He froze. The kiss tasted of desperation, of unrequited love and passion. Her lips were soft and coaxing, causing his heart to flip flop like a fish out of water. He liked it. He liked it a lot. He slowly closed his eyes and savored it.

For the first time in months, Rachel felt happy. Finally, finally, she was kissing him. She poured every bit of passion she had into that kiss, but her good feeling quickly washed away. She wasn't eliciting a response from him. Her eyes were shut, but she could tell that he remained frozen in place, most likely from disgust, she reasoned. To avoid further insulting him, she pulled away and broke the kiss. Both of them stood in uncomfortable silence. Rachel tried to say something, anything to amend the situation, but she had been rendered speechless.

Nigel blinked. "Well… that happened…."

And suddenly Rachel felt like crying. He didn't like her. He didn't love her. He hated her. She tried to stand up and run from the room, but Nigel gripped her hands, which were still in his, tightly. "I'm… not quite sure why you kissed me..." he began. He looked her dead in the eye. "Could you explain?"

"…Nigel…." What could she say? How could she tell him? Easy. Three words. I. Love. You. Come on, it isn't so hard! An oddly calm part of Rachel said. Instead, a different three words slipped out. "You were right."

Nigel had to admit, he wasn't expecting that. "What?"

"You were right. The reason I stepped down…" she looked down. "Something went missing. The reason for my motivation. My will to keep on leading. It disappeared and for the longest time, I had no idea where it was. Then, I got a tip off. It went out into space, so I was determined to find it. I searched for a good month before deciding that it's departure left me broken, and that I was dragging down the rest of the KND with me. So I stepped down. And… and the thing that kept me going, the thing that I depended on, the thing that I loved… is you. Nigel…. I love you." She looked at him, bracing herself for the harshest of rejections. Instead, she was met with a passionate kiss. This one was much better than the last one, they both decided. Rachel whimpered into the kiss. They savored the moment until the need to breathe arose. They broke away, panting.

After Nigel had caught his breath, he remembered something. He looked at her. "I… hate to break it to you," Nigel started slowly. "But… I'm being decommissioned today."

Harsh, cold reality swept over Rachel, reminding Rachel of the reason she came in here in the first place. She sniffled. "I…I don't want to lose you, Nigel…" She hugged him and buried her head into his chest. "Not again…" she whispered.

Nigel laid his head on hers and hugged back. "I have to leave honorably. I have to practice what I preach."

"No. You don't."

Nigel recoiled. "What?!"

"You don't have to leave." Rachel looked at him determinedly. "You could just escape. Slink off into the shadows. I'd cover for you." She looked down sadly. "…Just don't forget to visit me every once in a while. The solution isn't perfect, but at least you won't forget me."

Nigel blinked. "No… I can't do that."

"Why not, Nigel?!" Rachel pleaded. "I don't want to lose you! I don't want you to forget me! This is the easy way out!"

"I can't do that!" Nigel shot to his feet. "I knew what I was signing up for the moment Abby asked me to join the KND! I knew that I would have the best childhood ever and that I wouldn't get to remember it! I don't want to become a teenager, but I have to suck up my pride and grow up!"

Rachel gasped. The two forbidden words had been spoken. Nigel grew more irate. "Look! Even if I were allowed to stay, I wouldn't. I don't belong here anymore!" He roared. "Look at me! I'm already starting to change! I don't belong here, fighting for ice cream and less homework. My time is up." He sighed and sat down. "And there's nothing I can do about it."

Rachel hugged him. "Stay with me until you're called for decommissioning. I don't want to waste what little time we have together."

"I wish…" he looked into her watering eyes. "I wish that I wouldn't have to forget you. I'd give all of the candy in my secret stash to have just one clear memory of you."

She silenced him with a kiss. When they broke away, Nigel smiled a little. "There's this quote by a guy named Henry Van Dyke…."

"Oh really? How does it go?" she asked, deciding to humor him.

"'Time is too slow for those who wait, too swift for those who fear, too long for those who grieve, too short for those who rejoice,'" he leaned in close, so their noses touched, and gave her a chaste kiss. "'But for those who love, time is eternity."

YAY! I managed to write something I don't think is totally sucky! Anyway, please review! The little button there is your bestest friend in the WHOLE world!