Chapter 1: Who dares wins
Stephanie sighed contentedly as she carefully added the finishing touches to Stingy's birthday cake. She could hardly believe that it had been a whole ten years since she first arrived in Lazytown to live with her uncle Milford; the time just seemed to have sped by in a blur. She wondered if she would ever leave Lazytown and go back to the city or if she had found a home for life. Without warning, she was roughly jolted from her thoughts as Ziggy ran full kilter into the kitchen howling in a state of obvious panic 'HE'S COMING UP THE PATH, HE'S NEARLY HERE, HE'S…' Losing no time Stephanie clapped a hand over his mouth before he had the chance to yell out anymore. 'Ziggy, be quiet, we don't want to ruin the surprise,' she reproved him. Hastily she stuck a big number eighteen candle into the very top of the cake and then grabbing Ziggy by the hand ran into the living room switching off the lights as she went. She pulled him along with her to the back of the room to hide with the others.
In the darkness she could just about make out the shape of Sportacus crouching in one corner. She was glad he had been able to make it. It seemed that she saw very little of him these days. She understood that they weren't little kids anymore and there were others who were currently had greater need of his help and guidance but she missed him a great deal; they didn't even talk like they used to. Whenever she saw him these days he seemed rather distant and flustered and she had the suspicious feeling that he was avoiding her on purpose.
The clear sound of jingling of keys made everyone freeze, their breaths catching in their throats with anticipation. A lanky silhouette appeared as the door swung open and stumbled about for a bit before flicking on the light switch. 'SURPRISE!!!!!!!' Everyone sprung up and shouted in unison as loud as possible. Stingy was visibly shocked for a few moments but swiftly managed to regain his composure. 'For me?' he enquired drawing his hands together at his chest as he took in the sight of all the bright decorations. 'Of course it's for you silly, know anyone else living here with a birthday today?' Trixie quipped. Stingy looked extremely satisfied as a mountain of presents was rolled out followed by a hulking birthday cake.
Stephanie could hear the cries of "mine, mine, mine" resonating loudly around the room as she picked up a couple of drinks and made her way over to Sportacus. As she drew close to him she felt the familiar funny tingling sensation start up in the pit of her stomach. She couldn't really remember exactly when her feelings for him had changed. When she was little she had always looked up to him, tried to imitate him but now she saw him in a completely different light. Even just thinking about him was enough to give her butterflies. 'Hey Sportacus, fancy some apple juice?' She asked offering him a glass. Sportacus smiled at her, 'My favourite, thank you Stephanie'. He took the glass from her hand, his fingers briefly grazing hers. A shiver ran down her spine at the contact. As she stood facing him she couldn't help but admire his toned figure, she wished he would pick her up and twirl her around in his strong arms like he used to.
Sportacus tried his best to direct his gaze anywhere but on Stephanie. He hadn't seen any of the youths that much lately. Most of his time had been taken up keeping the new bunch of lazytown kids out of trouble. He was proud of how the gang had turned out; quite the mature and responsible lot now, apart from maybe of course the ever-hyperactive Ziggy. Thankfully Stephanie usually kept a watchful eye over him.
Stephanie had always been dear to him but now that she had blossomed into a young woman his feelings had unintentionally taken a new direction. He had found himself worrying about things that had never bothered him before like his appearance and if he smelt sweaty. When he was around her he often felt the almost irrepressible desire to run his fingers through her pink hair and lose himself in her chestnut brown eyes. Of course he knew that it was just a fantasy, he was too old for her, she would never be interested in him. As a hero he naturally aged slower than normal people, however he had already resigned himself to the fact that there was no chance she would ever see him as anything more than a friend. He would be mortified if anyone ever found out about his true feelings. He had therefore adopted a successful but rather cowardly strategy of avoiding Stephanie whenever possible. Unfortunately, now was not one of those times, he therefore tried to make some small talk.
'So Stephanie, how are your studies coming along? I heard you got all A's last semester in your mock exams! Good for you!' He piped up. Stephanie flashed him one of her irresistible smiles, 'Yeah, college is going great Sportacus.' An awkward silence followed as his eyes met hers and then instantly darted away to the floor. That didn't help much as he felt himself go hot under the collar staring at her legs. 'Sportacus are you ok? You look like your burning up! You're not coming down with something are you?' she asked concerned. 'No I don't think, it's just… errr… a little hot in here,' Sportacus stammered switching his focus to the bland reprieve of a nearby wall. 'Don't worry Sportacus, I'll go get you some ice for your drink, that will cool you down!' he heard her exclaim. Sportacus exhaled in relief as Stephanie disappeared into the kitchen. He might be a slightly above average hero but he still felt out of depth when it came to his emotions. He didn't know how much longer he could keep up the charade with her around.
While scooping out some ice cubes from the freezer Stephanie's mind was working overtime. She smiled to herself, had Sportacus been checking her out? His behaviour distinctly reminded her of the time Pixel and her had gone out on their first - and last - date, the same uncomfortable silences and flustered behaviour. Now that she thought about it all seemed to click into place, no wonder he had been avoiding her- or more precisely - avoiding his own feelings. Her heart skipped a beat at the possibility of them being together as a couple. With this uplifting thought Stephanie resolved that it was time to find out once and for all if her theory was correct. 'After all, who dares wins right?' she said half out loud.
She returned to the living area and promptly poured the ice cubes into Sportacus's drink all at once, deliberating causing the liquid to spill over onto his shirt. 'Opps, silly me,' she chided. Setting the drinks down she tried not to grin as she picked up a napkin, moved in close and began dabbing at the stain on his chest. As Stephanie had expected Sportacus immediately began to back off. She could feel his heart beating out a frantic rhythm inside his chest. 'Umm Stephanie, don't worry about it, it'll be fine, I'll deal with it later,' he spluttered. She ignored him, continuing to daub at his chest with the cloth napkin. 'Don't worry Sportacus, I'll have this dry in a second!' She chirped reassuringly, amused by his evident discomfort. Sportacus was at a complete loss about what he could do to make her stop and finally in a half panic he grabbed her wrists holding them still with a kind of pleading look apparent on his face. The tiniest hint of a bemused smile played across Stephanie's lips, 'Sportacus is something wrong?' she enquired innocently. 'Umm… no of course not it's just… errr,' he trailed off seemingly losing the ability to speak as their eyes finally locked together. Staring deep into his sky blue eyes Stephanie glimpsed the burning desire buried there.
As her doubts melted away Stephanie's courage grew, she knew it would be downright mischievous but looking at Sportacus she just couldn't help herself. Slyly she leant forward to whisper in his ear 'Sportacus, I don't think this is working, I think that you'll just have to take it off.' Sportacus stood dumbstruck for a moment not comprehending before she playfully lifted a finger to poke at his shirt. Abruptly he leapt backwards clearing half the room in a single bound. He knew that if he didn't get away now he wouldn't be able to keep his feelings in check any longer and what would everyone think? Looking around he was reassured to see they were all preoccupied by Stingy showing off his new super sized piggy bank with additional credit card slots. To his sheer relief Sportacus's crystal suddenly started flashing and after making his usual declaration about trouble and with a quick zigzag of his arms he immediately departed. With one hand on her hips Stephanie watched him go from where he had left her.
