Author's Note: A while ago I had the idea of writing fanfiction. "Why not?" I thought and got the answer pretty soon: Being able to communicate in a language that is not your first language is NOT the same as writing a story in a foreign language. Duh! ;) So do not hesitate to tell me if you find mistakes (grammar or spelling).

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Egon made his way up the stairs to the upper floor of the firehouse. Deep in thought about a ghost they encountered which he could not classify, he ran into Winston who headed to the ground floor.

"Whoa! Sorry, Egon!" Winston said. "I was in a hurry. Drama-time up there – you don't want to be there either."

Without given Egon a chance to reply or ask further questions, the tall dark-skinned man jumped down the stairs. Adjusting his glasses which were misplaced because of the collision Egon wondered what this was about. Continuing his way up he heard voices from the kitchen. One was the unmistakable Brooklyn-approved sound of Janine Melnitz. The other was familiar, too, but in a less pleasant way. Clenching his fist in the pocket of his lab coat he recognized Roger Baugh the former (or so he had thought) boyfriend of Janine.

Neither of them saw him. Janine was staring out of the window, while Roger looked at her.

"Janine, please!" The English Professor said in a pleading voice. "I miss you!"

"You were the one who left." She reminded him.

"Yes, I was hurt and I overreacted. I shouldn't have put that much pressure on you. Asking you to leave your home, your friends, your job and giving almost no time to think it through… I was wrong to do that!"

"You're damn right!" Janine snarled at him, still not facing him.

"Twinkle, please!" Roger put a hand on her shoulder. "For you I will come back. Let's start again!"

Egon froze in his place. He had thought that the intruding philologist would be of no concern anymore – and there he was again, messing up Egon's well-planned strategy. He knew he had to apologize to Janine for his behavior in the last few months, for things he said and things he didn't say. He had spent the last weeks to carefully considering the right words to do that before telling her how much she meant to him.

But now Egon was forced to think and act fast. Trying to win Janine's affection back would not be easy anyway and it would be even harder if Professor Baugh would succeed in re-establishing his romantic relationship with her. The "Brains of the Ghostbusters" was forced to improvise which he was quite good at - in the field, fighting Class Fours which turn out to be Class Sixes or facing an entity alone because Venkman got lost somewhere on the stairs. But when it came to emotions he struggled even with planning.

"What do you say, Twinkle?" Baugh said in a tender voice. "Give me a chance!"

Before Janine could answer, Egon clamorously cleared his throat. Janine and Roger turned around to face him but looking surprised.

"Egon? You startled me!" Janine breathed.

"Excuse us, Dr. Spengler!" Roger demanded coldly. "But Twin… Miss Melnitz and myself have a private matter to discuss."

"I am quite aware of this, Professor!" Egon nodded respectfully. "But I think before Janine considers your offer to revive the relationship with you, it just makes sense to let her know that I am offering the same to her."

"What?" Janine and Roger said at the same time.

"Janine", Egon said. "I didn't plan this – I wanted to take my time. To find the right words to tell you how much I care for you and to ask your forgiveness for the distance I kept lately. I just did not expect Professor Baugh to return."

"Oh, I am so sorry!" Roger interrupted.

"No need to apologize!" Egon said - ignoring his rival's sarcasm. "But as a matter of fact your re-appearance made it necessary to state my feelings now."

"You are really serious!" Roger realized and stepped closer to Egon. "After you rejected her for years, you want to take her from a man who really cares about her."

"I did not reject her – I simply did not react to her advances!"

"You don't really think this is better, do you?"

"Look, I understand that you are upset and I am sorry to interfere in this very moment, but…"

"Oh, you should be!" Menacingly Roger closed the gap between Egon and himself leaving his face but inches from the scientist's. "I want to fix things between me and Janine and that is exactly the moment you feel the urge to confess your love for her!"

Egon did not step back even though the other man seemed not unwilling to take the argument to a physical level. The Ghostbuster tried to reason with his rival: "To wait until Janine made her decision would have caused much more chaos and unpleasant emotions."

"No, it would not!" Roger claimed. "Because she will decide for me, so you declaring your love will make no difference!"

"You sound certain!"

"I am!"

"Alright!" Egon raised his hands carefully as a sign of peace. "I think we can both agree that this is not our decision, can't we?"

"Right!" Roger nodded.

Both men turned to face Janine. But the secretary was not standing at the window anymore. Searching the kitchen the men noticed she was nowhere to be seen. Egon stuck his head through the door that lead to the old sleeping quarters just to see strains of flying red hair disappearing in the opening of the firepole.

"Twinkle?" Suddenly Baugh had appeared right behind Egon and obviously had witnessed the same because he headed for the stairs.

Egon himself ran to the pole and slid down. On his way down he shouted: "Janine, this is infantile!"

After he arrived in the main hall he looked around but the only person present was Venkman sitting on Janine's chair with his feet on her desk, looking up from a newspaper. Soon footsteps were heard from the stairs and Roger entered the ground floor as well.

"Gentlemen?" Peter raised an eyebrow. "Seen a ghost?"

"Not now, Venkman!" Egon was not in the mood for jokes. "Where is Janine?"

"She just stormed out, uttering something about 'lunchtime'!" The psychologist answered. "And boy, she must have been hungry – stormed out like the devil was behind her. In those heels! Frankly, I'm impressed!"

"I will find her!" Roger ran towards the exit.

"I do not think she wants to be f…" Egon called after him but it was too late. The English Professor had already left the building in search for Janine.

The scientist turned around meeting Peter's curious eyes but he chose to ignore the unspoken question.

"I will be in the laboratory!" He informed his colleague matter-of-factly. "Should Janine return, please ask her to see me!"

"Okay, Spengs!"

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Peter waited for the lab door to close. Then he turned away from his newspaper and looked under the desk he had placed his feet on. The pretty redhead beneath it gazed back at him, her green eyes full of embarrassment.

"Care to explain, Miss Melnitz?" Peter asked with a big grin causing Janine to sigh in desperation.