I claim no rights to Code Lyoko.

"Substitute"

Aelita rolled her eyes as Ulrich and Odd bickered back and forth over breakfast. They were always having a small war over something. The only thing that was missing was someone to laugh at them with her. She cast her eyes over the cafeteria, her disgusting porridge already given to Odd, trying to find a bespectacled blonde in particular.

"Come on, Aelita, you know Wheelchair Zombie 3 was way better than Wheelchair Zombie 4, right?"

Aelita sighed and grinned exasperatedly at Ulrich. "I haven't even made it through the second without gagging."

He groaned and turned back to his roommate to continue the argument. Aelita spotted a boy in a brown sweater across the room and instinctively waved before dropping her hand and feeling foolish. Jeremie beamed at her with more warmth than she expected and skipped the breakfast serving line to join the group.

"Morning, Jeremie," Aelita greeted him, sliding over on the bench so he could sit at her side.

Jeremie's hello came in the form of an arm pulled tight around her shoulders and a kiss pressed to her cheek. Aelita gasped and blushed a rosy red. This display of affection even captured the attention of Odd and Ulrich. Jeremie moved his face away from Aelita's, but slid his arm down around her waist, looking perfectly content.

"J-Jeremie?" Aelita stammered.

"Sorry I'm late, guys," Jeremie apologized coolly.

Odd's stunned expression broke out into a huge grin as he cheered. "Go Einstein! It's about time you made a move!"

"Wait." Ulrich held up a hand to halt the conversation. He peered at Jeremie carefully, although couldn't quite hide his smirk at Aelita's pink cheeks. "Xana?"

Aelita jerked away slightly at this suggestion, but wasn't entirely willing to move herself away from Jeremie. He looked at her, eyebrows raised in confusion but not anger. Then she noticed his lack of laptop. "No..." she decided, and then was hit with the answer. "It's a clone," the pinkette said bitterly.

The two boys across the table scrutinized the genius and nodded. Odd added with disappointment, "Too bad, I was looking forward to picking on the lovebirds."

Aelita's blush renewed and she folded her arms over her chest defensively, staring at the table to avoid the bright blue eyes of her best friend's look-alike. She pulled her cell phone out of her pocket and picked Jeremie from her speed dial, waiting impatiently for him to pick up and trying to ignore the clone's fingers lightly rubbing her side.

"Good morning, Aelita," Jeremie chirped. Even over the phone she could hear him typing rapidly.

"Jeremie, did you happen to scan a clone this morning?"

"What tipped you off?" Jeremie asked sheepishly.

"Nothing, just a hunch." Aelita bit her lip and shifted uncomfortably. "But I thought we agreed it was a bad idea for you to skip class with a clone."

"I was making adjustments all night," assured Jeremie hurriedly. "It can pick up what to do from its surroundings instead of needing a direct order. I programmed it to follow you so if anything wrong does happen, you'll be there."

"Maybe, but the behavior hasn't improved," Aelita noted, for while the clone's arm still remained around her, his eyes were fixed on the table next to theirs, which was filled with the more attractive girls of their class. She took hold of his chin with her free hand and guided his gaze back to the group, more than a little piqued when he groaned wistfully.

"I'll work out the bugs later," Jeremie promised. "I'm on a lead, you should come to the factory after school."

Aelita sighed; she hadn't planned on playing babysitter today. "Please don't make this a habit, Jeremie. You need to be out of the lab sometimes."

"Don't worry about me, Princess," replied Jeremie soothingly. "I know I can bring William back, I just need some time."

"All right, I'll see you in a few hours." She ended the call and glanced wearily at the clone. Again, he was staring at the girls at the next table. He clicked his tongue slightly in disappointment when his face was forced away from them. "You can't do that."

"Do what?"

"Flirt with every girl at Kadic," finished Aelita.

"Yeah, don't you know? The whole school thinks you're property of Princess."

Aelita shot a dirty look at Odd, making a mental note to shave Kiwi later. "Jeremie doesn't usually talk to any girls besides Yumi and myself, it would look strange."

"So...I only get to look at two girls?" The clone didn't bother to keep the whining out of his voice.

"I'd keep it to Aelita if I were you," advised Odd, watching Ulrich's fists clench on the table. His fellow blonde groaned. "I'm starting to think Jeremie made you his exact opposite for a laugh."

The bell that signaled breakfast was over rang through the cafeteria, making them all jump. True to Jeremie's word, the clone stood up like everyone else without verbal prompting, only removing his arm from Aelita's middle when she gathered her books. She met his eyes for a brief instant, blushing in spite of herself when he flashed her a smile. There may have been major differences in personality, but the grin was the same.

"J-Just try not to attract too much attention," muttered Aelita anxiously.

Classes didn't end soon enough. The second the bell rang one furious pinkette was out the door of the classroom and headed for the park. The crowds of jubilant students parted automatically for her, all sensing her mood. No one dared follow her to find out what was wrong except for one blonde—one very brave blonde, the students of Kadic decided.

"Go away," Aelita growled once they were out of earshot and on the forest trail, though not looking behind her to check who it was.

"Come on, sweetie, what did I do?"

Aelita flinched but didn't stop moving; she didn't want to be angry when Jeremie called her by a pet name, but she had to keep in mind that it wasn't really Jeremie right now. "You nearly blew our secret," she spat over her shoulder. "How is Jeremie supposed to deal with Melanie, Claire, and Heidi when he just spent an entire science period passing love notes to them?"

The clone had caught up to her, not a hint of remorse in his face. "They were looking fine today."

"Ugh!" Aelita quickened her pace, disheartened when he did the same. "Go away!"

"I can't, I have to follow you," the clone answered innocently.

"Then go bug Odd and Ulrich!" The pinkette's patience had long ago worn out.

"Not the group. You." He flashed her another grin—Not Jeremie! she thought—and continued, "I guess Jeremie trusts you more." Aelita turned pink and slowed in her walk without thinking. This only egged the clone on as he gripped her hand in his; could he really help it if he was a player by nature? "So where are we going?"

"The factory. Jeremie needs my help." Jeremie's fingers were warm and it was getting difficult to maintain her dislike for the virtual doppleganger. The way he smiled made her want to smile, too. But then he had to go and say something.

Aelita sighed and slumped into a nearby bench. It felt so weird looking at Jeremie with this much contempt. The clone automatically perched himself next to her, not hesitating to loop his arm around her. She shrugged him off—again, this went against all of her instincts.

"Are you still mad at me, babe?"

The pink-haired girl stared at him for a few seconds and slowly shook her head; he was only a packet of data and didn't know any better. He couldn't be blamed for Jeremie's occasionally flawed programming. "I guess...it's not a big deal," she conceded. "Odd told the girls it was a prank, so...no harm done."

The confident grin was expected from the brazen boy. The kiss not as much. In fact, not at all. But as Aelita's mind tried to figure out what was happening, all her body understood was that Jeremie was kissing her as he held her face, and that she should respond in kind. His lips were warm and soft, his hands cradled her cheeks and combed through her hair, the embrace was sweet, it was passionate, it was—

Wrong!

Aelita's brain caught up to her in that instant, and her conscience commanded she push herself away. "W-What was that?!" she sputtered, touching her mouth with her hand anxiously and very nearly scooting off the bench.

The clone couldn't understand the girl's actions, finding his own quite rational. The purpose for his existence (short it may be) was to fill in for Jeremie during his classes. However, he was a clone—while the behavior might differ not all the intentions did. For reasons only his creator could explain, it displeased the look-alike to see Aelita distressed. She seemed happy enough when he touched her at breakfast; accordingly, the pinkette ought to be thrilled by a kiss.

If only he could offer his reasoning that way. "You looked so good I had to have a taste." The flirt was surprised when she didn't find the comment as charming as he did.

"You...you..." Aelita wasn't as angry at him as she was at herself. She hadn't just accepted the kiss, she'd enjoyed it, she'd returned it! "We...oh, God."

"What's the matter, cupcake?"

Aelita bit her lip hard, curling forward into herself. She was so infatuated with her best friend a kiss from his clone would make her melt! "That...shouldn't have happened."

Once again an arm wrapped around her shoulders, but this time she did nothing to get rid of it. In a way, Jeremie's scent was comforting. In another way, it made the whole thing worse. His other arm coiled around her stomach and he pulled her away from the edge of the bench. Aelita didn't fight it, how much more shame could she feel?

"Come on, baby, talk to me," the clone murmured, his lips brushing gently against her temple. He couldn't understand what the problem was, he had kissed her and now she was miserable. "Couldn't handle macking on the Big J just yet?"

And then, of all things, she was laughing. He couldn't figure the reaction, but it satisfied the need to see her happy. The giggles seemed uncontrollable, even when the pinkette buried her face in his sweater. Not sure what else to do, the clone held her awkwardly, figuring keeping some kind of physical contact would continue her newfound cheer he apparently needed.

Aelita eventually managed to swallow the laughter, resting her forehead against the blonde's chest and smiling in spite of herself. Macking on the Big J...just thinking the words forced her to press her mouth back into his shirt to stifle more chuckles. She had no choice, trying to match quiet, shy Jeremie to those words was a ridiculous feat. Aelita didn't realize she was prolonging their closeness; the clone's hand smoothing her hair was very distracting.

A sharp bird chirp made her start and she sat up, the pink returning to her cheeks. Jeremie has to be missing me by now, she thought suddenly. The thought of hours at his side and the customary three inches of space between their arms rarely being breached depressed her. Cuddling up to his double in the park actually looked preferable...although the original, the one not full of impersonal pet names and cocky self-assurances, would be best.

No, a mental voice chided her. This is wrong. What would Jeremie say? That idea took all good humor from her. "I-I have to go," murmured Aelita, hesitating to rise.

"I gotta go with you, sugar."

A tiny smile tried to claim dominance over Aelita's lips—the obvious contrast between the clone and his maker was more funny than irritating now that he wasn't flirting with anyone else—but instead her mouth shaped into a grimace. The control of her mouth was then left entirely to the boy next to her when he leaned in to renew the embrace. What the...oh...Her ability to think coherently was once more shot, all Aelita could do was wind her arms around him and let it wash over her.

The clone realized if he kissed her she couldn't be frowning, so she couldn't be unhappy, and he concluded from the way she clung to him Aelita must be very happy indeed. She broke her mouth away from his (though that didn't separate her hands from his hair), panting heavily.

"We...I..." Through all her confusion Aelita couldn't choke back a sense of joy. What she'd craved for two years was finally hers; well, almost. A copy of it was. She bit her lip and inhaled deeply—the clone smelled just like him.

Screw it, one rebellious voice in her head declared loudly. Without pause Aelita obeyed, only having to reach a few centimeters for another pair of lips. The clone handled this with more cool than she expected; during one of the air breaks he whispered, "That's right, baby. Let Daddy take care of you."

"Mm..." Aelita moaned into his neck. "Just...one thing."

"Anything for you, kitten."

Aelita shuddered as Jeremie's lips traced a path from her mouth to her ear. "Stop talking."

Odd hummed loudly, enjoying what good weather was left of autumn in the park. Take left fork and continue on the bend...Ulrich had told him a shortcut through the forest to sneak into town easier, but Odd hoped it wasn't just a prank so his roommate could slobber over a picture of a young Asian woman in privacy. He really did need the new SubDigitals' CD, after all.

His hums weren't the only sound as he took another turn. Up ahead he could see two people on a bench to the side of the path, their moans echoing through the trees. Is that...pink hair? he wondered as he stepped closer. No doubt about it, Aelita was locked in an embrace with...All right, Einstein! Odd mentally cheered, now only a few meters away from the couple. It didn't seem likely their limbs would untangle any time soon, Jeremie's arms were tightly snaked around Aelita's waist, and she almost had him pinned down to the bench.

"Oh...Jeremie..."

Aelita's sigh made Odd cover his mouth with his hands to keep from snickering. He quickly backtracked from the two, not wanting to ruin the moment everyone had waited years for. He could always have his fun at dinner, after all.

Perhaps if Jeremie checked his watch he would've realized Aelita was over an hour late. But he couldn't manage to tear his eyes away from the monitor and the seemingly infinite data. His mood brightened when he heard the elevator whirring, however. Finally, she's here...Even if he didn't know the pinkette was tardy, that didn't stop him from missing her.

"Hey, Einstein!"

Although Odd was one of Jeremie's best friends, he still had to carefully school his face to keep the disappointment out of it. "Hey, Odd. How were the classes?"

"Same old, same old." Odd grinned at his fellow blonde devilishly, peering over the genius's shoulder and failing to make sense of the codes. "Not pining for the Princess too badly, I hope?"

Jeremie rolled his eyes—he was used to Odd's teasing by now. It was actually quite tolerable as long as Aelita wasn't within earshot. "You haven't seen her, have you?"

"Not since your little tryst in the park."

Jeremie raised an eyebrow; was Odd trying to get him to admit something so he could mock it later? "Well, when you see her, let her know I could really use her help."

"Are you serious, Einstein?" Odd couldn't believe Jeremie was this much of a workaholic. "Not even making out with Aelita can keep you from slaving over a computer?"

"Odd, what are you talking about?" Jeremie asked, a hint of irritation in his question.

"I saw you two going at it in the park!" Odd folded his arms and smiled animatedly. "I think you made Princess's month."

"I've been here all day and Aelita will be here any second." Jeremie wasn't sure where this joke was going, and his patience was nearing its end.

Odd cheeky grin faded into a scowl at the bespectacled genius. "Why are you trying to deny it? We all know you practically worship her."

"Joke's over, Odd, I need to work."

"Dude, I saw you."

"Saw what?"

Now the purple-clad boy was outright gaping. "You...and Aelita...kissing...in the park." Maybe speaking slowly would jog his memory? "It was just under an hour ago, even someone as disorganized as you shouldn't be able to forget it."

"And even someone as unobservant as you should've been able to tell by my bugged clone that I've been here all day."

The clone.

Oh my God, Odd thought solemnly when it clicked. Then, it took all his self-control not to start laughing—from an outsider's point of view it was pretty funny. And from Jeremie's expression he hadn't managed to figure it out yet. What was Odd supposed to say? Hey, man, just happened to see your double feeling up your de facto girlfriend, thought I'd let you know.

"Jeremie...is the clone still, like...around?"

Jeremie glanced at his watch and shook his head. "It had a set time to return to the factory and step into a scanner, the supercomputer took care of the rest. That was about fifteen minutes ago."

"So...if that wasn't you I saw with Aelita..."

It was Jeremie's turn to scowl. "What are you saying?" There was no doubting the lethal tone of his voice.

Odd fought the urge to retreat; perhaps Jeremie was indeed blinded by his feelings that Aelita was nothing short of an angel. "Jeremie...it was you. I mean, I even heard her say your name..."

Jeremie made a sound somewhere between a gasp and a sigh. "That's...absurd, Odd. Sh-She wouldn't do something...like that."

"But I saw—"

Before he could repeat what he saw the boys heard the elevator starting up. Odd gave Jeremie a pleading look: Believe me!

Inside the elevator car Aelita was quickly smoothing her clothes. It had been quite a shock when the clone abruptly jumped out of her arms and dashed away at a lightening fast pace; but then she recalled what happened to copies that didn't become possessed by a malicious virus. By now the clone was in the supercomputer's memory, waiting to be called out again—hopefully not before Jeremie had a chance to work on the kinks.

The doors parted and she stepped into the lab, caught off guard when she was met with two blondes instead of one. "Oh, hey, Odd," Aelita greeted, taking her usual place at Jeremie's side.

"Hey..."

Odd's response lacked his frequent enthusiasm, but Aelita didn't notice. The troubled look on Jeremie's face did catch her attention, however. "Is everything all right, Jeremie?" the pink-haired girl asked, setting a hand lightly on his arm. The warmth was familiar to her now.

"I..." Jeremie glanced from her to Odd and back again; was it him, or was Aelita's hair untidier than usual? "Y-You're...late."

Aelita nipped her lip, but a slight blush betrayed her all the same. "I really wanted to finish my algebra homework before I came by."

For the second time, Jeremie's gaze switched from her to Odd, who's eyebrows were raised in disbelief. Aelita's lips seemed permanently pulled into a small grin as her green eyes peered into his blue ones. Her stare made it difficult to speak past the lump in his throat. "Right, well...um, Aelita?"

The grin widened when he said her name, bringing forth a blush of his own. "Yes, Jeremie?"

"D-Did you...er...I mean, were you..."

"What is it, Jeremie?" Aelita's hand slid down his arm to grip his fingers.

Odd, seeing the genius was indisposed to continue, took a step towards Aelita and cleared his throat. "Princess, were you...making out with Einstein's clone earlier?"

Aelita jerked away from the two boys, shifting nervously and suddenly refusing to lift her gaze from the floor. Jeremie's eyes grew round at this reaction, his expression—if possible—looking more perturbed. She glowered at Odd, then softened her face for Jeremie in a more penitent look. No, no, oh, please no...There was no judgment in his eyes she could see, only astonishment.

"I...I can explain."

Yes, I am that awful. Not sure if I want to continue, but I do have a question for the reader: Do you think Aelita cheated on Jeremie?