(A/N: Sorry I took so long on this one. Writer's block is a nuisance when stories are just getting started on. I was inspired by a scene in All Growed Up, the Rugrats special. Enjoy!)

Love At First Sight

Ch. 1

The next morning, Shenzi woke up with a plan in her head. She changed into a black short-sleeved button-up blouse with a Peter Pan collar and a white Saturn on the left shoulder, a green flared pleated skirt, black socks with white organza ruffles, a purple extension, a purple hair bow with black lace over it, white pearl and black rose front-and-back earrings, a black Ouija board watch on her left wrist, and classic Converse high-tops. Their old school was mysteriously burned down to the ground, so they were going to a new one nearby. She met Fridge by accident, considering he didn't go to her old school. Long story, will be explained later. As she ate breakfast with Frankie, she went over her plan in her mind; Show no perkiness at school. Heck, show no emotion at all. She'll look like a robot, but she didn't care.

After finishing breakfast, she and Frankie grabbed their backpacks, and waited at the bus stop. She planned on taking on her emotionless personality whenever Frankie wasn't around; Hopefully that wouldn't be too tough. Once they boarded, Frankie sat near the front and turned on her mp3 player to occupy herself. Once the music was playing through her headphones, she was in an entirely different world. Although she was surprised at Shenzi walking to the very back of the bus. She never did that before.

As Shenzi walked down the aisle of seats, students scooted away in intimidation and placed their backpacks on the free seats until she was in the back. She smiled internally at the students practically cowering before her. That meant her plan was working. But it wasn't going to work on one person.

Near the front, 10-year-old Phil DeVille shrunk back when the intimidating girl passed by. "Creepo, 9 o'clock," He mumbled to his twin sister Lil DeVille, and two of their friends, 10-year-old Tommy Pickles and 11-year-old Chuckie Finster.

Instinctively, Chuckie looked back, and his jaw dropped a bit at the sight before him. Her flawless skin, her large eyes framed by her thick glasses, her flowing hair; Despite her intimidating vibe, she was the prettiest girl he had ever seen! A lovestruck smile grew on his face as he couldn't stop staring.

In the back, Shenzi was absentmindedly looking at her black-polished fingernails; After she pushed her glasses up, she saw a boy staring at her from near the front of the bus. A boy who had to be the cutest she had ever seen in her life; His peachy-pale skin, his wild red hair, his freckles dusting his cheeks, ec cetera. She accidentally dropped her no-emotions act by raising her eyebrows in surprise.

When her eyes made brief contact with his, Chuckie gasped and quickly turned around in a panic. "What's wrong, Chuckie?" Tommy asked him.

"Uh, eheh, that girl," He giggled nervously.

"Who, Angelica?" Tommy raised an eyebrow at him.

"No! Not Angelica!" The redhead glared at the younger boy, "The girl in the back. I was looking at her, then she looked at me, and then she almost smiled, and I had to turn around."

"What, that creep?" Phil asked him.

"She is not a creep!" Chuckie snapped at him, "She is the most beautiful girl I've ever seen in my whole life!"

"Are you sure she smiled at you, Chuckie?" Tommy asked him before any fights could break out.

"Yes," He replied, "Well, almost," He admitted. "I feel kind of sick, but in a good way. I never felt this way before, Tommy."

"Wow!"

"And I would've smiled back, yknow, but I was afraid my lips would get stuck on my braces."

"Does that happen?" Lil asked him.

"Well, it-it hasn't happened yet, but I think it's possible. And I can't risk smiling at a cute girl like her, if there's a chance that halfway through, my mouth is gonna get all tangled up, and... can I?" He slumped in despair.

"You guys!" 10-year-old Kimi Finster caught their attention, "Tomorrow, we're officially, practically teenagers! We're going to our first concert!"

Shenzi secretly listened to the group talk, ignoring the "creep" comments. A concert? She'd never been to a concert. Not once in her entire life. If that redhead was going, and her parents allowed her to, she just score not only her first concert, but her first date!

Her heart fluttered at what the redhead said to the brunette boy; Most beautiful girl? Her? No way; He must've been talking about someone else.

Soon, the bus came to a slow stop in front of the main entrance. Shenzi's stomach flipped with fear at the unfamiliarity. "Okay sprouts, off to school," The bus driver announced as the door was open, "I got a skydiving lesson at 10:30." She was surprised at that; The man had to be in his 90s, and he was skydiving? Quickly forgetting about it, she stood up, trailing behind intentionally as the students started filing out. Although her nerves were affecting her alertness.

When Chuckie stood up from his seat, he didn't realize his backpack was upside down until its contents were dumped out on the bus floor. When the vehicle was almost empty, he had his stuff all gathered up, but when he stood back up, someone bumped into him with a feminine, awkward "oomph!" He looked, and his heart leapt when he saw it was the girl from the back of the bus! A blush grew on her cheeks as she tried to stammer out an apology to him.

He tried to smile down at her (she was a bit shorter than him, not including those pointy ears), but his lips were stuck together in the middle from his braces. Her left hand instinctively went to her mouth at the uncomfortable sight. "Uh... your um..." She stammered, not knowing what to say as she gestured to her own small lips. As she talked, she made sure to not open her mouth too widely. "I uh..." An idea flashed in her mind. "Here, um." She turned, her dark hair whipping around with her movements, and dug through the front pocket of her backpack, and took out a small stick of lip balm to help him. She held it out for him to take, her cheeks flushing deeper when they briefly made physical contact as he accepted it. "Y-you can keep it," She shrugged shyly, before walking off the bus to catch up with her sister.

Chuckie gazed at the small item in his left hand, then smiled again as he caressed it like it was a prized possession.

"She said you can keep it?" Tommy asked him in surprise after he was told what happened during their science class. "Oh, that's pretty serious."

"I think I like her, Tommy," Chuckie smiled as he held the balm close to his chin.

"Is that why you keep writing her name all over your book cover?" Tommy's eyelids lowered at him.

Chuckie had written "Shenzi" on his book, along with hearts. He along the rest of the class had learned her name when she was introduced by their teacher. "Well, it's only this book," He smiled sheepishly as he opened it to hide it. But luckily for him, at another desk in the room, Shenzi had dozed off from boredom, with her hands smushing her cheeks up, so she didn't hear them. Light snores were heard from her, but they were vague.

"Hey Chuckie, are you using that lip stuff?" Lil asked him quietly, surprising Kimi when she was leaning forward in front of her.

He glanced down at it, before responding. "No."

"Can I have it?" She held out her hand.

"No!" Chuckie yelled defensively.

At her desk, Shenzi flinched awake with a small snort. "Wha-what?" She stammered, making the redhead's heart leap in fear that she heard everything. "Ug-g-g." She slumped down again, but her head fell out of her hands, and hit her desk, making a loud, smacking noise that caught everyone's attention. Including the teacher's. "Ow!" The class, sans Chuckie, started laughing at her, but stopped when she let out an inhuman growl with a menacing glare.

"Ms. Tuck, I'd appreciate it if you would stay awake during my class," The tough science teacher, Mrs. Guppie scolded her after silencing the other students.

"Y-yes ma'am," She stammered. She rubbed her forehead where it was hit. "Man, that hurt."

"Do you need to see the nurse?"

"I think that'd be a good idea."

"Alright, you may go."

"Thanks." Shenzi stood up, and walked to the nurse's office, praying that she was going the right way. As she walked, she heard the teacher announce their science projects to be presented. After she was provided with a gel ice pack for her forehead, and a bed to lay or sit on, her mind raced. That boy with the red hair and purple glasses was in her head, and wouldn't leave. What was his name? She had to know! She bet that it was as cute as he was. But at the same time, she was ashamed of herself for dropping her act at the mere sight of him alone. She vowed to keep it up, even if he asked her out on a date. That would never happen anyway. Once she was feeling better, she thanked the nurse for everything, and walked to the cafeteria, since science class was over. When she saw a certain someone, she averted her gaze nervously and focused on searching for a good table.

"Save you a seat!" Kimi called out to Chuckie and Tommy as she followed Phil and Lil to a table.

When Chuckie turned around, he froze when he saw Shenzi across the room. She was looking at him for a split second, before she averted her eyes. "Tommy, there she is! How do I look? Is my hair sticking up?" He rambled nervously.

"Not more than usual," Tommy replied.

"Oh no! She's coming this way! Fix it, Tommy!" The younger boy attempted to smooth down his hair, as the spectacled girl was still walking towards them. She wanted to attempt to at least talk to him, and ask for his name. "I'm getting that weird feeling in my stomach again."

"Just act natural, Chuckie. Be yourself."

"Um, h-hi," Shenzi stammered, "I saw y-oh!" She almost dropped her lunch tray in surprise upon seeing him, the noise attracting attention; Instead of his hair being wild, all over the place, and overall cute, it was smoothed down over his face like a teen heartthrob wannabe. "I... I uh," She stuttered awkwardly, "I, I gotta go." She walked away, as Angelica had witnessed the scene.

"Smooth move, Finster," Angelica taunted him.

"I might as well just hide for the rest of my 2.5 years of braces," Chuckie vented as he walked away to a vacant table.

"Very interesting," She remarked, "Boy dork has a crush on girl dork."

"Uh, what makes you think that?" Tommy played confusion.

"Oh please, Tommy! I read teen magazines; Spill it."

"Well, okay. Chuckie likes that Shenzi girl, but now he's definitely too scared to talk to her."

"I could fix that."

"You could? How?"

"Dorks like her listen to everything cool people like me say," Angelica explained, "I'll just tell her what a great guy Chuckie is."

"You'd really do that?" Tommy paused. "What's the catch?"

"It's easy; I'll fix up Mr. Metal Mouth with Ms. Metal Mouth, if..."

At another table, Shenzi barely heard their conversation, but wasn't aware that they were talking about her. She felt guilty upon seeing Chuckie sitting alone, looking depressed. She wished that she didn't react the way she did; But at the same time, she now felt too embarrassed about her outburst to face him again. She even sat away from her friends, not wanting to explain what happened, and ate by herself.

In the girls' locker room, after finding her locker, she changed into black low-riding biker shorts, black Tripp shorts with turquoise ruffles and pipelines, black and teal argyle knee-high socks, black Converse high-tops with turquoise laces and stitches, black barbell earrings, a turquoise extension, a black bow scrunchie to keep her hair up in a high ponytail, and a white and black ringer t-shirt that showed two inches of her flat stomach when her arms were down. When her arms were up, such as to tie her hair with the scrunchie, all the skin just below her belly button was visible. She had a strong feeling that she would get stares from boys all around during the class from that factor.

When she arrived at the gymnasium, her heart leapt upon seeing Chuckie. He seemed to spot her as well, but she avoided eye contact, keeping her act up as the gym coach was taking attendance. She flinched when her name was said; Or yelled. The gym coach, Mr. Pangborn, was very loud; His voice echoed off the walls with every word. She then decided to stand her ground. "Tuck! Aren't you going to properly introduce yourself?!" Here goes nothing; She didn't move a muscle, and kept a neutral expression. "Tuck! Are you hard on hearing?!" Nothing. "Do you plan on doing something, or are you just going to stand there like a dead fish?!" She just blinked. "Pheh!" He waved his hand down at her. "So today..."

As soon as she was out of his sight, she stifled laughter with one hand over her mouth, although it was heard by students standing close to her. When she was back in Pangborn's peripherals, she immediately shut up and kept a straight face, having difficulty in the latter. When she was smiling at one point, he actually noticed it. "Something funny, Tuck? Stay serious, or I'll give you something to laugh at!" At "give", he poked her stomach, touching both fabric and skin at the same time. She involuntarily arched back and let out a giggle as she protected herself instinctively. Because he just barely touched her belly button; It was very, very ticklish. She's ticklish everywhere, but her belly button is her weak spot, along with her sides and armpits. "Anyway..." As he assigned certain excercises for the students, Shenzi gently rubbed her stomach in discomfort.

To her dismay, she was assigned to do pull-ups on the bar. When her arms were straight up to grip the bar, her shirt was ridden up high enough to let her belly button peek out. Using all her strength, she performed the task with some struggle. Every time her feet were on the floor, she felt eyes on her. She even spotted Pangborn eyeing her a little too closely from his place at the rope climb. Was he staring at her breasts? Maybe her stomach, since it was out for the world to see, or... worst. Shivers shot down her spine, before she continued her task.

Thankfully, gym class was over before she knew it. But as she climbed down the rope, she suddenly felt strong hands grab her bare sides, under her shirt. She accidentally let out a loud yelp that echoed off the walls, making the rest of the students whip around to look at her. She let go of the rope by accident, but Pangborn's hands kept her from falling. But as he put her down, his fingers moved against her skin, making her twitch harshly, her breath hitch, and hold in a laugh. When she was on the ground, she hastily moved away, and fast-walked out of the gym.

In the girls' locker room, she shivered as she changed back into her school clothes. Why was the gym coach so handsy with her, and only her? And why did he move his fingers like he was trying to tickle her? It was very unsettling. He was supposed to be teaching the kids how to exercise, not touch them like some kind of pervert! She decided to use a different kind of shirt in the class from now on; Hopefully that wouldn't tempt any more touchies.

In the boys' locker room, 4 certain boys were laughing their heads off. "L-like a dead fish!" Phil cracked up.

"That's got to be the funniest thing the man's ever said!" Tommy laughed. Chuckie would've laughed too, but he was lost in his thoughts. Why was Pangborn touching her so much? He poked her stomach, and grabbed her sides. He shivered at the concepts; What a creep. "You okay, Chuck?" Tommy's voice snapped him out of his thoughts.

"Huh? Oh um, y-yeah," He nodded, "I was just thinking. And yeah, that dead fish thing was hilarious." He laughed half-heartedly. As the day went on, he thought about Shenzi. The prettiest, cutest girl he had ever seen was getting touched inappropriately by a school faculty. He had to do something, but what? He was only one person, and the principal would never believe him. But he decided to give it a try anyway; No student was getting practically felt up again on his watch.

"Alright, I'll do whatever I can."

"Thank you, sir." Chuckie walked out of the principal's office; He told him everything that occurred with Pangborn and the new girl, and the slightly greying man looked shocked, and disgusted. To Chuckie's relief, he seemed to believe him. He just hoped that the problem would be taken care of. As he walked outside to the buses, his mind raced about something a bit less important; Why was it that Shenzi showed almost no emotion? She seemed like a perky girl, but she was more like a robot. That couldn't be the real her; It just couldn't be.

He then made a decision: The next time he should see Shenzi Tuck, he was going to learn about the real her.

(A/N: Well, there's one chapter. You know the disclaimer. The dead fish line is from an episode of Phineas & Ferb. XD)