Disclaimer: Of course none of these characters (with the exception of Annie, Joseph, Dave, the Parker Family and the librarian) are mine. They're property of Golden Books.

I'm not from the States and am not totally familiar with the schooling system... So if you find anything strange, just tell me. I'll appreciate it. Enjoy.

Never Second Best or The Case of the Repeating History

By Claudia

Chapter One

The sun had just shed his first rays of light on the Hudson Valley and over the small town of Sleepyside, when Jim opened his eyes. The faint light that came through his bedroom window told him that it was still very early. A look at the clock on his bedside table confirmed it: 5:30.

He groaned and rubbed his eyes with the back of his hand. Laying there, facing the white ceiling above him, he waited for sleep to return, but it didn't. Coming to terms with the fact, the 24-year-old red head sighed and got up. He walked over to the window and opened it, breathing in the fresh morning air. Despite the cool breeze, Jim knew that soon enough that sun would grow warmer and this would be another typical July day.

Wearing nothing but his boxer shorts and a T-shirt, Jim walked out to the balcony that surrounded nearly half of the big, elegant mansion where he had lived for the past 9 years and leant over the railing. He gazed on the well-groomed, green lawn that spread all the way down hill, almost to the edge of Glenn Road. Beyond it, he had a partial view of Crabapple Farm. Trixie's house. Jim smiled, as he remembered everything she had done for him nine years before. If it hadn't been for her, maybe he would never have escaped the torture of living with his stepfather. Thanks to her, he had a wonderful family, a home and a future. And no matter how much time went by or how many times he had taken his turn in helping her out of her messes, he still felt grateful... And he knew he always would.

Jim let his mind wonder off and tried to imagined if she was still asleep. Probably... Being the beginning of summer vacation and all. But soon the beautiful white house at the foot of the hill would spring to life and Trixie along with it. Jim walked back inside and threw himself on the bed, his thoughts lost in time.

Things had always been weird between them. There was a permanent feeling of things left unsaid and undone. When he'd first met her, he'd been fascinated with her tenacity and strength... the fire that burnt deep inside her. Then he had grown to respect her, deeply, more than he had ever respected anyone. And one fine day he had discovered that the pain he felt in his heart whenever she was in danger could mean only one thing: the freckled faced, feisty blonde girl had got under his skin in an irreversible way... He was in love.

It had taken him a long, long time to admit that this was more than just a high school crush, a fantasy born out of his gratitude for everything she had done for him. Even after he had given her the ID bracelet and told her she was his special girl, he had never had the courage to take it further... Maybe out of fear of being turned down, of getting hurt... Or maybe because he already knew how deep those feelings were and didn't want to make her commit to something so strong while they were still so young.

No, it didn't make much sense to him either. But those were the excuses he found to drag himself through nine years of being just friends with the only girl he had ever loved. After he had gone off to college, along with Brian, her older brother and his best friend, Jim had felt like they had deserted her and the other members of their club, the Bob-Whites of the Glenn. The seven members were then down to five and they all knew things had changed forever. The summer vacations and other small breaks they had would never make up for the time that they hadn't been there. And though he knew it to be inevitable, he also was aware of how much Trixie had suffered with the separation.

But so had they. Brian and him had been miserable during the first few months in NYU, away from their friends and loved ones. Jim remembered the long conversations they had back then. It had been the very first time they had openly talked about their feelings about Trixie and Honey. Jim had been adopted by Honey's family nine years before, after he had inherited his great-uncle's fortune. And the quiet, serene and lovely Honey Wheeler had instantly charmed Brian.

But things eventually fell into place. Classes were a full time occupation and their friends back home got used to not having them around. And the result was the remaining BWG's becoming closer than ever before. Especially Trixie and Dan Mangan. Thinking about that made Jim grind his teeth. He had been jealous of Trixie with other guys... Ned Schultz, for one. But the nephew of the Wheeler's groom had been his major concern while he was in college.

Truth was that at first he hadn't even thought about it... Until Trixie's letters started to talk more and more about Dan. Brian had told him that it was natural, that since both of them were away Dan was likely to become the 'protector' of the other four. Trixie, of course, would always be getting in incredible scrapes, dragging Honey along in the process. Diana Lynch, the other girl in the group, wasn't much of a concern, being so quiet and naturally hesitant when it came to Trixie's adventures. And Mart Belden, Trixie's almost twin brother, was a bit of a hothead himself. So Dan was the natural choice.

But Jim still didn't feel very comfortable about it. And it was about that time that he understood how wrong he had been in waiting so long... Even if he hadn't started a relationship, because he wanted Trixie to grow up and find out by herself what she truly wanted from life, he should have said something about his feelings. He had taken her for granted. And only then did he understand the true depth of his feelings...

Then, without him even noticing, time had gone by. A year later, Dan and Mart had gone to college themselves... Mart had gone to the Agronomy School and Dan had decided to become a lawyer, instead of a cop, as he had always planed. He wanted to work in the DA's office, one day. The following year it was Trixie, Honey and Diana's turn: Trixie and Honey to major in Psychology (which they believed to be very helpful in their future careers as private investigators) and Diana to major in Art History.

The girls were now back and through with college, as were Mart and himself. Dan and Brian still had a few years ahead of them, so they would the only BWGs to be living Sleepyside after the summer. Dan was going to Law School and Brian still had a couple of years to go in Medical School.

So, they now had a whole summer ahead of them... A summer in which they would have nothing else to think about but their futures. Jim was certain that those 3 months would bring about a whole lot of changes. In about a week, Honey and Brian would be officially engaged in a huge party Madeleine Wheeler had decided to throw in honor of her only daughter. And he was going to start building his school for orphans... A dream he had had for years and on which he had been working since he finished college, two years before.

But something else was going to happen... Something he dreaded... Maybe that was the reason why he had wakened up so early. In fact he could barely wait to find out how things had turned out.

As if on cue, he heard a knock on his door. "C'me in." he said as he sat up on the bed. He smiled as his adopted sister, still in her pajamas, walked to the bed and sat down with a sigh.

"I didn't wake you, did I?" Honey asked, yawning. "I heard when you opened the door to the balcony... I didn't get much sleep last night."

"I thought about waiting up for you, but you came in pretty late and I was tired... Was it that bad?"

Honey shook her head.

"No... But it was a long conversation... And then I spent a long time talking to Brian too. He was very anxious to know how things had turned out."

"I can relate to that..." Jim said, trying to make the subject less dim. "But how did Trixie take it?"

"Surprisingly well... She even said it didn't come as a surprise. But I'm still worried..." Honey shrugged her shoulders, in desperation. "You know how she would rather die than hurt one of us...But I know she was hurt by my decision."

Jim pulled his sister into his arms and gave her a big hug.

"It was the right thing to do, Honey, believe me. And even if Trixie is hurt now, she will soon understand it will all be for the best. You couldn't loose this opportunity, not if it was what you really wanted..."

With her head still resting on Jim's chest Honey let a tear roll down her face.

"But it was her dream... For years we planned to open that agency together!"

"Yes, Honey. I know. But like you said: it was HER dream. Was it ever really yours?"

Honey looked into her brother's eyes. And she knew she didn't have to answer.

Jim caressed her cheek, tenderly, trying to reassure her.

"Trixie must understand it. And somehow I know she does". But deep inside his heart he wasn't so sure.

Trixie did understand. She understood it very well. But it still hurt, anyway.

The blonde girl emerged out of the Wheeler's lake, shaking the water off her curly hair. She hadn't slept much that night and the sun had hardly been up for half an hour when she had decided to take a swim and cool off her head.

Lying on the sandy margin of the lake, Trixie closed her eyes, thinking about the talk Honey and herself had had, the previous night. It wasn't as if she hadn't seen it coming... For years she had wondered if Honey was really cut out to be a detective, but so much time had gone by that Trixie had finally reassured herself about that topic. If Honey hadn't backed out that far, she probably never would. And after they had gone off to college she had believed everything was settled.

So, the previous night, Trixie had felt the rug pulled out from under her. After all, they had majored in Psychology because of the agency... If Honey wasn't sure, why had she gone along with it? And what hurt her most was that Honey hadn't even told her she was entering that designing contest... Last night had been the first time she had heard about it. Honey had told her she hadn't even come close to win it, but the designing school that had sponsored it had been very impressed by her amateur work... So impressed that they had offered her a scholarship.

Of course Trixie was glad for her friend... In fact she was very happy for her. And that only made it worse, because she couldn't be angry at Honey. Her heart and head were now in a turmoil of mixed emotions.

Sitting up, the 22-year-old girl sighed and wondered what was happening. Why hadn't she noticed that something was wrong with Honey? Or hadn't she? After all, she was supposed to be her best friend. And despite what had just happened, Trixie knew she would always be.

"Why are things always so difficult, when it comes to me?" Trixie asked, not noticing she was speaking out loud.

"That's part of your charm, dear little sister!" said a voice behind her. Trixie turned to see her almost-twin brother Mart, walking towards her.

"And just what are you doing here at this hour, dear almost twin?" she asked, teasingly. She knew he hated to be reminded that he was only 11 months older than she was.

"I could ask you the same question..." he answered, sitting down beside her. "But I believe I know the answer already."

"Yeah... you were always the smart one, weren't you?", Trixie said, gazing at the quiet, mirror-like surface of the lake.

"Trix...", Mart's voice lost its usual ironic tone and became serious, as he held his sister's hand in his. The blond, blue-eyed young man was very fond of his little sister, despite his usual teasing and right now he was very concerned. "Brian told me what happened... I know this has got to be hard on you... I just wanted you to know that... Well, I'm here for you."

She smiled and placed a kiss on Mart cheek, making him stare at her, surprised at the sudden tenderness.

"Thanks, Mart." she said. "I do need to talk to someone... I'm really confused."

"This came as a shock to you, didn't it?"

She shook her head.

"No, not really... That's what's troubling me the most. For a long time I wondered if she was right for detective work... But I never really talked to her about it. I thought she would eventually overcome those fears and we could complement each other. And I expected her to talk to me if she had any doubts... But she never did... Until last night, that is..."

"So now you were caught of guard...", Mart completed her sentence, as she nodded. "And now you're angry?"

"No, Mart... How could I be angry with her for trying to accomplish her dream? I'm... hurt, because she never told me she had this dream. And I also feel... Feel like I've been very selfish, for never really having talked to her about it... Trying to find out if what I was sensing was true..."

"Don't feel selfish, Trix... Maybe she didn't know this was her dream... You know, many people go through life without ever finding their place... We are lucky, because we know what we want to do with our lives."

To his surprise, Trixie hid her face in her hands and mumbled something that he couldn't understand.

"What was that?" he asked.

"I said I don't... I don't know what to do with my life! Not after this..."

Mart had only experienced the feeling of being left without words a few times in his life. This was one of them. Trix had always been so sure of what she wanted, even when everyone else opposed her, so this was shocking.

"Sweetie," Mart gulped, feeling the words caught in his throat and sensing that this was a very troubling time for Trixie, "What are you saying? You're giving up the agency?"

"I don't know... I'm confused... Honey's decision was just the last drop..."

Gently, Mart tilted her chin up, forcing her to look at him.

"Talk to me, Trix... Please."

"Oh, Mart... Have you ever had the feeling that you fought for something all your life and then when you finally get it, it's just not like what you thought it would be?" Trixie rubbed her eyes, trying to wipe away the irritating tears.

"We all have..."

"But you didn't build a whole life around it..." Trixie shook her head. "I feel like a jerk, you know?"

"But why, Trixie? Why are you saying that?"

"Because I don't know if I want to be a detective anymore!" Trixie yelled, unnerved, as she got back up on her feet. Irritated, she kicked a pebble and hurt her toe.

"Ouch!" Trixie finally let the tears roll down her face. Mart's first impulse was to get up and hug her, but he knew she had to let out steam. And the truth was that he needed time to compose himself from the shock of what he had just heard. Hearing his sister say those words had felt like a kick to the stomach, although one day he would have loved to hear it. But not now, not after being certain of Trixie's convictions for such a long time.

"I hated being away from Sleepyside, Mart..." she said, trying to wipe away the tears. "I really did. Away from you guys and all of this." Trixie gestured to indicate the surrounding woods. "If I became a detective I would have to go to a big city... Maybe bigger than White Plains! And there's more...When I was in college, I wrote an essay about private investigators and the way they work... I met a few and what I found out scared the hell out of me! They hardly ever get a chance of working on anything other than adultery cases! The other things are usually left for the police to handle. It's not like the mystery novels and TV, you know?"

Mart only nodded.

"And I kept thinking that it was silly, that it was natural to be scared and that I could make things work better for me... But the more I saw the more I feared. And what kept me going and believing was Honey. She was there with me... That would make the difference. I never mentioned any of this to her... And now..." Trixie's voice broke and she stood staring at the lake, quiet, her arms wrapped around her body.

Knowing that this was the time to show Trixie how much he cared, Mart finally got up and walked to her. Softly circling her shoulders with his arm, he whispered:

"But you still have her... You still have us. You always will."

"It's not the same, Mart..." Trixie faced her brother, a serious look on her eyes. "When I started to get involved in mysteries and adventures, you were there with me, helping me... Even when you didn't want to..." she added with a sad smile. "I thought about it all night... That was why it was so wonderful, so exciting. Because you were all there. When Jim and Brian went to college and then you and Dan... Well, it just wasn't the same. I'm afraid it doesn't mean the same anymore..."

"What do mean? Trix, you've helped so many people!" Mart made her look at him.

"Yes, that's just it! I wanted to help people... It wasn't just the hunt, as they say it. But taking pictures of adulterers is not my idea of helping others..."

"Well, it is really..." Mart started, not knowing what to say. But Trixie stopped him.

"Mart, don't... You know perfectly well what I mean!"

He did. And so he just stood there, his arm wrapped around her, knowing that there were times when emotion was so overwhelming there just wasn't space for words.

A/N: All I need is two reviews to post the next chapter.