Right. I'm here to say a big thanks for those who like my stuff. Thanks, you people out there. Please keep doing it.

These characters belong to the creators of "Phineas and Ferb". Which is a show you should all watch.

This takes place when Vanessa is about 20, and the age gap is three years, so 20-3 = 17. Ferb is 17.

Where is he? Derrick is already fifteen minutes late. He's never this late. If he doesn't come soon, we won't have time to go to the movie. I was sitting my chair, anxiously kicking my feet. I felt like a little girl going on her first date, which was ridiculous. Derrick and I had been dating since high school. It was our fourth year anniversary and we were going out somewhere nice, hopefully getting seats on the patio. The weatherman had threatened rain the whole day, but turned out to be a sunny afternoon, and pretty hot. I hope it doesn't start to rain. Maybe I should use the weatherinator just in case...

*Ding dong*

That must be him! There was no one else it could be. Dad was gone to an evil genius convention, and Perry never rings the bell. He knocked once, but mostly just comes through windows or makes a hole in the wall.

I ran over to the door and yanked it open.

"You're late." I scolded playfully, but stopped when I saw who it was.

Ferb. What was he doing here? I immediately spotted the changes in his appearance. He was taller, his hair longer. It was still green (I could never tell if he dyed it) though darker, and now it flopped across his face, shadowing his eyes slightly. He looked older. And stressed.

"Ferb?" I asked, eyes wide. I hadn't seen him in a year or so. And how did he know where I lived?

He said nothing, and for a moment, I was hopeful I had taken his breath away with my beauty. I mean, I was dressed up and I had done my hair and make up to match. I had ditched the dark eyeliner look a few months ago, and was now going for a dark purple. That, plus dark eye shadow and black mascara- the least you could say was that I looked good. It matched my dress too; a strapless number, with a slight v-neck. It was originally burgundy, but I had covered the whole thing with a delicate black lace, so it looked infinitely more badass. The whole affair was ready to be paired with mid-calf high leather black boots. I might have lost the black eye liner, but I still loved my black clothing. My hair was braided down the side of my face and my bangs were swept off to the side. All in all, I looked hot.

I stared at Ferb, who stared back. I was waiting for him to say something. You idiot, I thought suddenly, remembering, did you forget that he never talks?

He still could have paid me a complement though. Even a nod of the head would have been nice! He didn't look so bad himself- leather jacket over a pine green dress shirt and black dress pants. A pair of sunglasses was hooked on his collar. And man oh man: he must have been playing soccer wherever he was- I could see the muscles ripple under his shirt when he moved. Like now. Not that I watching every shift he made.

I stopped mindlessly staring to actually pay attention to what he was doing. He motioned himself into the house.

"Oh, you wanna come in?" I stammered. He nodded slowly. "Oh sure, yeah. Come in."

He nodded again and sailed into the room. Damn, he was graceful! All his muscles moving in sync like that…- ah, anyway.

"You can sit down." I gestured to the chair I had been using earlier. It was the only piece of furniture in the room, but I didn't mind standing. I hated sitting in dresses. Ferb, always the gentleman, refused to sit and have me the chair instead. He looked around curiously, like he was expecting someone.

"My dad isn't here. He's gone until Sunday. He's at some convention for his, ah, work. " Well, it was true. Let's just hope Ferb doesn't ask what kind of work. Nothing turns a guy off like having an evil scientist for a father. Wait, did I just think that? "Um, do you want a drink or something?"

I made my way over to the kitchen, and mentally smacked myself. I had forgotten to go shopping today, so the ol' fridge was pretty bare. Dad had left me some money to get food- looks like grocery shopping was my plan for tomorrow.

"Well, I have water and..." I dug to the back, behind all the half empty bottles of Dijon mustard and soy sauce, "A bottle of peach schnapps." I pulled out the bottle and got some glasses. Ferb was standing by the table when I turn around, though I hadn't heard him come over. He was staring at me with a fierceness that startled me. He looked away as soon as our eyes caught.

"Water for you, I guess." I shrugged, recalling. "Still not allowed to drink." I didn't want him drinking, though I didn't know why. He was too innocent in my mind for things like that.

Ignoring me, he pulled the bottle over and poured an ounce or so in his glass.

"Ferb," I grabbed his glass and moved it from his reach. "Aren't you a little young to be doing that?"

"Yes, yes I am." His accent was still there, and it made me smile. I had forgotten how much I had missed the lilting cadence of his voice. "Just because I'm not allowed doesn't mean that I don't." He sounded a little annoyed. I wondered why.

With a casual flick of his wrist, he tossed the whole shot back, not even flinching as he swallowed. Holy crap- Derrick wouldn't have even tried that.

"Wow Ferb." I chuckled slightly, "Look who's the bad boy now." I had always pegged Ferb to be a sort of hidalgo. He followed his own rules and to hell what ever anyone else said or thought.

His eyes, which had been focused on the bottom of his glass, slowly drifted up to lock with my eyes. He was looking up through his hair; his dark green (I had never noticed that they were green before) eyes sparkled slightly. Ferb had never had a happy expression on his face, the exact opposite of Phineas, but this was the first time I had seen a frown. It wasn't much of a frown- just a slight turn down at the corner of his lips, but it turned the rest of his expression horribly upset. I opened my mouth to ask what was wrong, but before I could, Ferb silently pushed the bottle to me. The frown was gone, and he looked much more serious. Maybe I had imagined the frown.

With a shrug, I poured myself the same amount and threw it back. No news from Derrick- a pick me up would probably be a good plan. I almost choked half of it back up through, and felt like an idiot. So much for being smooth around the hot, err, the guy. The plain old regular guy.

"What have you been doing lately Ferb? Haven't seen you around." I asked when the coughs subsided. I drank another one, as did Ferb. I'd probably die if I tried the match him drink for drink though- he swallowed it like water. "How's high school?"

He raised an eyebrow. I felt like swooning- even that tiny movement was so graceful and- nothing. It was nothing. Get a hold of yourself Vanessa!

"I do hope you realize I've been graduated just as long as you." He muttered dryly.

"Oh yeah!" I laughed like I had forgotten. As if forgetting was possible. "You're at Yale now, right?"

He blinked at me. I think he was shocked that I knew.

"I read it the paper, I think." That was true, but I hope he doesn't ask why I was reading that article in the first place. "Phineas goes to Harvard, doesn't he?"

Ferb nodded slowly. He sat down in the chair opposite mine and grabbed the bottle for a third time, though there was barely anything left. The green-haired genius tilted the bottle to me, as if he was offering the last of it to me.

"Nah, it's cool." I declined. I was kind of a lightweight and I had much more, I wouldn't be going anywhere. Speaking of which, Derrick was now half and hour late. What the hell?

Ferb shrugged and finished it off straight from the bottle. He looked so suave doing it too: Derrick just looked like an alcoholic- and he'd be angry as hell if he actually managed to finished a whole two-six. I stood quickly and went through the fridge again.

"I'd offer you some more," I sighed, looking through the cabinets as well this time. "But I'm pretty sure this house is as dry as a bone when it comes to liquor." I slammed the doors on the cupboard, and turned around.

Ferb was standing too now, a foot or so from me, a confused look on his face. He gestured to the hair and the dress, and the small frown reappeared on his face.

"Oh, I'm going out with Derrick." I explained with a smile. "It's our four year anniversary."

Ferb's frown deepened, and anger flashed in his eyes. Why was he angry? Oh that's right...

"Yeah, he's the one who took me to prom and then left me alone so he could party with his other friends." I muttered as the Fletcher boy shook his head.

"But it wasn't all bad." I reminded him. "You were there too and we ended up talking the whole night."

Ferb's gaze softened as I spoke. It had been a horrible night- Derrick had left me alone to party with other people so I ended up just sitting on the benches on the side of the gym, almost crying. Ferb, who was also there, (which is why I'll never forget that he graduated along with me,) came over and sat beside me. Phineas was DJ-ing the party, while Ferb had just set it up and had been doing the levels. I guess Phineas let him go, and he came to sit beside me, two glasses of punch in hand. We talked, I mean, I talked the whole time, with an occasional comment from Ferb, and by the end of the night, we were pretty good friends. We hung out during the summer when I wasn't with Derrick, or working, and eventually I got to help with the building of the machines and stuff that Ferb made with his brother. Candace and I even became pretty good friends- her, Jeremy, Derrick and I go on double dates once in a while. Last week we went to Danville's water park.

"Hold on a minute. Why are you home? Term isn't over for another couple weeks." I noticed suddenly.

Ferb, who had been leaning against the counter, stood up straight. He shrugged, but wouldn't meet my eye. His handsome face- I mean, his normal, not at all appealing face- was troubled. What the hell was going on with him?

"Ferb, come on." I insisted. "Tell me. You can't just show up at a girl's house- who you haven't seen in a year- out of the blue, with no explanation."

"I can assure you, I do have a reason." He spoke slowly, his eyes searching my face. His voice was so much deeper than I remembered it. And had it always been so strained?

"Then what is it?" I laughed slightly. "What's with the cloak and dagger stuff? Have you decided you want to be a 50's detective again?" I joked, trying to ease the frown off Ferb's face.

He kept silent. Something was going on here. I threw a glance at the clock behind me. 8 o'clock- an hour late.

Ferb, I guessed, made this really weird noise, so I turned back to look at him. He was seething. His fists were clenched, his jaw was locked and he looked like he was going to hit someone.

"Whoa, Ferb." I stepped back. "What just happened? You look like you're gonna hit someone."

He snapped. "I would never do such a thing." He spat and flipped around.

"Ferb, what the hell?" I demanded. "What's going on?" He said nothing, except muttered something under his breath that I couldn't understand. "Ferb! Why are you here?"

He sighed, defeated. I did a little mental victory dance- that was the "Alright Vanessa, I'll tell you what you want to know" sigh. He could never stay mad at me, not even when I had broken his favorite wrench. I still don't know how I managed that, but he's never let me touch any of the tools that he likes ever again.

"You've been hanging out with Candace, haven't you?" He asked. What a random question.

"Yeah. What difference does it make?"

"Candace told me you and Derrick have been fighting a lot." His voice was careful and he was speaking quite slowly. A cautious look had replaced the angry one.

Where was this going? "Um, yeah, I guess."

"Candace also noticed something when you four were at the water park."

Oh shit.

Ferb gently took my chin in his long, mechanic fingers and looked me straight in the eyes. I felt like melting- no! Vanessa, don't let him get your guard down! "Vanessa, has Derrick been hitting you?" He asked softly. His voice was so smooth and dark- I could listen to it for days... Argh, no!

"Ferb, that is so-"

"There's a bruise on your neck. I saw it when you turned to look at the clock." I had no idea what emotion he felt now. He had turned his blank expression to the max.

Deny, deny, deny.

"A thing in my dad's lab fell on me." I lied quickly and pulled my chin out of his hands.

"On you neck."

"Yes!"

He pushed my hair out of the way. "And it left a bruise in the shape of a hand print?"

Oh right. That was from when Derrick slammed me into the wall. Shit. I thought I had covered it up! I guess my hair had rubbed it off.

Wait. Did Ferb have something to do with Derrick being late? "What have you done with Derrick?" I demanded angrily. The best defense is a good offense, right? "Where is he!"

"He's being questioned by the police." He was so passive. Why was he doing this to me?

"What? You asshole! Why?" I shouted.

"He's been hitting you Vanessa!" Ferb roared, stepping in my direction. That was the first time he had raised his voice against me. "That bastard shouldn't even be around you!"

Ferb was right, of course. Three months. It had been three months of me doing something he didn't like. Three months of hiding bruises from everyone. I don't even know how it started. Probably when I said I wanted to break up, but Derrick wouldn't never let that happen. He said he loved me too much. Suddenly, Derrick's love meant that he would beat me, and then he'd apologize and say he'd never do it again. It became the norm. Any fight that we'd have would end up in Derrick shouting and me crying. And a new bruise to hide.

Don't get me wrong- I know how twisted my relationship with Derrick is. I know he doesn't love me properly, but memories of when he wasn't like that keep to clinging to him, hoping that the old Derrick will come back. It's not like I want to be hurt all the time- yet when I'm with Derrick, and he isn't hitting me, I feel safe. I feel like he'll always protect me. Well, at least until he gets angry. Then, I just feel like crawling into a hole and never coming out.

I wanted to tell Ferb everything so bad- I felt sick from trying to hold back the words. We had done so much together. I wasn't use to having secrets from him. If he had been around the first time Derrick had laid a hand on me, Ferb would have been the first on to know. But it's kinda hard text an old friend outta the blue to tell him your boyfriend is beating you up. Instead, I kept quite, hoping someone would take action for me. Now someone was, but if I told- Derrick had threatened one time what he would do if I told. Personally, I liked my face the way it was.

So I couldn't tell Ferb.

"Get away from me!" I shoved him in the chest, and he stumbled away. "Ferb, this is none of your business!"

When had I started to cry?

"When some starts hitting the girl I love, it becomes my business!" He yelled, and I froze.

What did he just say?

He looked as surprised as I felt. I don't think he meant to say that.

"Ferb, what did you-"

"Nothing." He jerked his head away from me. "He's never going to touch you again." Subtle subject change, Ferb. "Even if you don't want my help, I'm giving it to you."

I crept as close as I could before he turned back around. His eyes flickered to the sides, searching for an escape route, but I had effectively trapped him against the counter.

"Ferb, did you just say that you loved me?" I asked quietly. My chest ached with the amount I wanted him to say yes.

"I believe you heard what I said." He muttered, probably uncomfortable with the (lack of) distance between us. He's never been good with words, either. That's what Phineas was for.

I took his chin in my fingers, not that they were anywhere near as perfect as his, and look him straight in the eyes. I bet I was a mess now. I was still crying, so my make up was ruined. My hair had come out of its braid at some point. Yet Ferb was looking at me like I was the most beautiful girl in the world. And he was the best-looking guy I had ever met- I had kinda always thought so. Ever since he had helped me find that pizzium thing, I had liked him. I told no one- I was 16 and he was 13. It would have been weird. I never lost my crush.

"Oh Ferb."

That's not what I meant to say. I had meant to saw that I loved him back, and a bunch of other sappy stuff. But his name was all that I could saw before I was overcome by my urge to kiss me.

Hot damn, that boy could kiss.

It was so much more than I had ever imagined it to be. His lips tasted like summer and apples, and I could smell his scent that I had never forgotten but always missed- metal and motor oil and the smell of grass. I wrapped my hands in his hair (finally!), and anchored myself to him. I never wanted to let him go now. If he was going to be mine, he was going to me mine forever. We both leaned back, slightly out of breath.

I untangled my hands from his hair, meaning to wipe away the smudged eyeliner, but Ferb intercepted my hand. He silently put our hands together, palm to palm, and looked at me questioningly. I nodded and he closed his fingers around my hand. I shut my eyes and leaned into his chest. He was so gentle. I could stay here forever.

"So, are you going to testify against Derrick?" He murmured into my ear a few minutes later.

"Who's Derrick?" I teased, just as quietly.

He chuckled. "I'll take that as a yes, then."

More quiet.

"Vanessa, if you-" He stopped.

"Yeah, Ferb?"

"You if want- this-," I felt his head, that was resting on my shoulder, bob up and down.

"I've always wanted it." I whispered. "You have no idea."

He chuckled again. I could get use to that sound. "I think I do. " The humor vanished. "I am serious when I say this Vanessa. I swear to never lay a hand on you."

"I trust you Ferb. I don't think you ever will."

"Vanessa-"

"Ferb." I cut him off. "I love your voice, but right now is a great time to be quite."

He laughed out loud this time, and snuggled closer.

Safe. I thought to myself. This is what safe is like.

No. This is love.

No underage drinking. And don't be in an abusive relationship. Agreed? Good. NOW GO AN READ MORE FANFICTION!