AN: So, I hope you enjoy this. I have the basic outline of the story written – which is why I'm writing so fast. As for the first four-or-so chapters, all I need to do is to go back and extend what I have already done, which is making my life a lot simpler. Don't expect speedy updates like this all the time, mind you. I've got A-Levels and stuff to do. And no, the content hasn't hit T level yet, but still... rated T for Triumph (Teen, really, but let me have my moment.) ~ Someone (Also PS: This is the longest chapter I have -ever- written, so enjoy it and please, please, please review. My ego requires it.)
Phineas and Ferb were gliding along the smooth pavement, with their bikes remaining perfectly balanced. In a change from normal tradition, Ferb was leading the direction of the ride, as it was he who knew where they were going. Ferb turned his head, noticing how the details of the houses and trees were nothing more than blurs at this speed, the downhill incline increasing their speed to it's limits. This was in a part of town Phineas had never been in before, while Ferb seemed to know exactly where they were going. As a result of this, Phineas was nervous of travelling at full speed, but sped up in order to get within speaking range of Ferb. "Hey, Ferb, where are we?" Ferb ignored Phineas' question, and instead sped off, picking up more speed as he travelled, pushing his bike as fast as it could go. Phineas started to pedal furiously – this is why he always went in front, as he had a difficult time keeping up with Ferb's speed, as did everyone. "Phineas! Come on!" Ferb's shout seemed farther away than it was, but even so, Phineas picked up his pace even further, tiring him out, and giving him the realisation that he really needed to exercise more. He saw Ferb slide into a skid in front of a house, with a skilful manner which simply screamed "showoff!" Following him, and trying to skid in a similar manner, he crashed into a nearby pole, with his bike remaining unharmed. With Ferb picking him up, he brushed himself down, wincing slightly as he felt his knees. "Aww man, that hurt!" was his only response to his crash, with his ego dented as well. Ferb merely chuckled, before walking towards the door. Quickly looking around, he gently tapped on the knocker, in the manner that only he could. A few seconds later, the door was opened.
A girl, dressed in some basic clothes, with her brown curly hair not yet adorned with a bow, as was her standard. Her T-shirt and skirt were plain, which was unlike her., normally opting for something with details on it. "Yes, Ferb?" was her greeting. "Morning Milly. Phineas needs some help." Milly promptly looked over Ferb's shoulder, looking at Phineas, almost trying to figure out why Phineas needed her. "Oh, what do you need?" Her tone was filled with curiosity – what could they need HER help for, she wasn't in any way special! "I need you... to... erm... teach him about love." Milly quickly ushered them into the house, with her face having turned into one of incredible excitement, which was a far cry to the look of polite indifference she previously possessed. Being led into a well furnished living room, she invited them to sit on a florescent pink sofa. "Hang on, I'll be back in a second." Phineas looked around the bright, and exceedingly pink room. Many photos occupied any free space – one with her and the Fireside Girls, one in what appeared to be her first uniform, and several involving her family "Man, this place is so girly!" Ferb stared at Phineas for a second, before simply sighing, shaking his head as he did so – he was expecting that comment, with Phineas being the way he is.
Milly flew into her room, scattering books and other objects, turning the rather haphazard mess on the floor into something akin to a health hazard. She quickly moved around, looking for a specific book she wanted, but in the mess which she called her room finding a specific book is impossible. Sighing, knowing explaining without it will be far more difficult, she gazed on her table. Lying there, neatly, with it's sides perpendicular to the table edges, was the book she was looking for – almost like it had been placed by some otherworldly power for her to find. Rushing over, causing yet more books to be sent flying, she grabbed it, noticing the title and confirming that yes, this was the book she needed. After hearing Phineas' exclamation downstairs - "Man, this place is so girly!" - she realised leaving him downstairs may not have been the smartest idea... especially without her parents in, and his "If I don't like it, I'll change it" attitude. Descending the stairs, smiling with every double-step gap she crossed, her thoughts went to how this was going to work. Before she could dwell any longer on it, she saw Ferb simply shaking his head at Phineas, causing Milly to have to repress a chuckle.
"So, Phineas, what do you want to know?" Phineas paused for a moment. What did he really want to know – all sorts of questions bubbled through his mind, with the insides of his thoughts unknowingly resembling Ferb's at this present moment. "I guess... I want to know what love is." Milly flicked through her book, before deciding on a page, and handing it to Phineas gingerly, as if she was afraid of holding it. He took it, with a smile, and began to read, with his attention becoming almost completely undivided. While Phineas was engrossed in reading, Ferb walked over and sat next to Milly, working as best he could to ensure that it wasn't misconstrued. "Well, Milly... do you know if..." He paused, momentarily, wondering how to phrase what he really wanted to say. Realising (after Phineas had told him) the blunt approach worked for him, he decided to try it. Taking a deep breath, he continued."...Gretchen likes me?" Milly ignored him, knowing full well the answer to that question, having known for several years. When Ferb asked her again, she decided the time was now to tell him, as maintaining the secret was getting harder and harder for both her and the other Fireside Girls, who just wanted her to ask him out. "...Yeah, she does. I didn't tell you, though." Ferb's eyes lit up, in a manner which no one except Phineas had ever seen before, and Milly had one thought running through her mind, which was impressive for her - "Did I do the right thing?"
Phineas was reading the book, looking intently at the words, staring at them, as if a deeper look can provide a deeper understanding. "Love is defined as an attraction to someone..." He failed to understand - What -sort- of attraction? He knew the feelings he felt; like he wanted to be with her forever, or that he'd be devastated if she was gone. Or was it referring to the sexual attraction he felt, with his eyes never leaving her whenever she was dressed, wishing to see her in her more natural state. He continued to read, hoping that the rest of it will provide some sense."People in love often find that they have a desire to be with the person forever...." It was finally coming together, and with this new information found a new understanding of why... Isabella always came round to his house, and always helped with whatever his plan was, even if it was uninteresting, or simply something which many girls would not find an interest in. He would normally associate it with trying to get accomplishment patches, or whatever they call them, but is there a different reason?
He flicked forward a few chapters, until he found one that he found a serious interest in. "The Guys Howto: First Dates" Realising that this will be coming far sooner than he could prepare for, he begun to read, almost sinking into the chair as all his attention was directed to the book. "Many first dates are a nervous time for both guy and girl..." "Man, they've got that one right." He glanced away from the book, curious as to the lack of any particular sort of noise, to find that Milly had vanished. "Hey Ferb, where did Milly go?" Ferb just stared at Phineas, with a "You don't need to know" look, which always seemed to give Phineas the creeps. "Fine, don't tell me then." With this, he returned to his book, which he provided with his undivided attention. Milly's voice booming from the stairs redirected it, and he gave a start as he put the book down to listen. "Phineas, Ferb, Your gonna have to go – I need to be somewhere. Phineas, you can take the book with you." Phineas was smiling – he would make sure he read this at home later, and for now left content.
Back on the bikes, Ferb had slowed down so Phineas could keep up without over-exerting himself. "So, Phineas, did that help?" Phineas merely nodded, with a gleeful smile across his face, along with the unique twinkle in his eye he has whenever he has an idea. He wanted to voice his idea to Ferb, but felt that he may think it's not wise, or even a bit mushy. "Ferb... I want to take Isabella out on a date." Ferb just smiled, thinking to himself, as if planning. "Well... It's about time." was his main response to this, which Phineas merely ignored. Ferb already had an awesome idea planned - he'd need Phineas to keep Isabella busy for a while of course, and we was counting on the fact that the Fireside Girls always had at least one person on the PC. He began to speak, with his British voice punctuating the air. "Phineas, you are going to go spend time with Isabella today. Just Isabella. No one else, got it?" Phineas nodded his agreement. "Why, though?" was his reply to the statement, with curiosity thawing what he had intended to be an icy tone. "Just do it, I need some time." Phineas nodded, taking the left that would take him to Isabella's, and away from Ferb. They waved their goodbye, and parted, with Ferb finally able to pick up his speed and cycle like had wanted to for a while.
Isabella had just woken up. Glancing around her purple room, she noticed all the photos of her and Phineas she had adorned on the walls. At least she knew how he felt about her now – she didn't have to hide it any more. With a sigh of happiness, she forced herself out of bed, repressing the urge to go back to sleep, to have just a couple more hours of glee. After climbing out of bed, the first thing she decided to do was check her mobile. Normally, she wouldn't do that until she was well and truly awake, but she had a feeling she needed to check them – a premonition something important may have been sent. She found she had two new messages – one from Phineas, and one from Milly. She decided to read Milly's message first – she expected the one from Phineas to be about what big plan he and Ferb had done that day without her, while she was sleeping. Milly's text was short. "Ferb knows. Milly." She sighed – but that might make her life with Gretchen easier, in any case. She scrolled to Phineas' message next, and opened that in a similar way, expecting a bog-standard message. After reading it's contents, she gasped, with happiness masking any shock she may have had. "Isa, on my way over, just me. Phineas" She began to rush around in a frantic hurry to prepare herself, making sure she looked the best she could, given the time she had, as well as attempting to clean the pit she called her bedroom.
Ferb enjoyed riding his bike. The solitude it gave him allowed for plenty of thinking without interruption, and the feeling of the wind rushing through his hair was one he would never grow tired of, no matter how often or for what reasons he felt it. He and Ferb had recently come into a bit of money, with each brother taking half of it – which left them with a substantial sum. He checked his pockets, before realising he had both left his wallet at home and that getting it out while going incredibly fast on his bike was a bad idea anyway, as he was liable to lose it or have it fly out of his hand. Pulling into the all-too familiar garden, he found a note from Linda on the door, taped up in a hurry. It seemed to have been there a while – they must have missed it when they left the house.
"Hey boys, I'm off out for the day. Key is under the "rock" - Mom x."
Ferb leaned his bike up against the tree, locking it, hearing his large padlock click shut. He liked this padlock – it was large, bulky, and had never failed him yet. After trying to remember which rock the key was under, he sighed and picked one up at random. Luckily for him, that rock was the hollow rock which they kept the emergency key, designed for preventing lock outs. Unlocking the door, he let himself into the pristine kitchen, with the only sign of change being Phineas' bowl on the side – he never did get used to cleaning up. It felt weird, being in the house alone, but it was a good type of weird, a feeling he could possibly get used to – it allowed him to be himself, where you weren't a freak if you didn't speak. He wondered if there was anyone he could possibly want with him... at the minute, no one. He needed to think, to plan, and most importantly, to sort out the jumble of thoughts and memories he had residing in his mind. He began to move upstairs, before realising none of them had noted Perry's disappearance – which had become a normal tradition for them, said as often (if not more often) than "I know what we're gonna do today." Ferb chuckled, noticing that they each seemed to have a catchphrase... except him, of course. But there wasn't the time to worry about that, let alone think about it, as the time he did have was precious. He felt his mobile vibrate, the rhythmic pulses of it alerting him that he had a text message. It came from a number he had never seen before.
"Hey, how are you? I'm free at the moment... wanna come round? Gretchen."
This was a surprise for Ferb. I mean, he had told Milly to pass on his number, but having her act upon it this quickly was absurd – not even he was expecting Milly to work this fast. He continued walking into his bedroom,noticing both the mess that had been there earlier, as well as the additional mess Phineas had left the room with. Piling the clothes that remained on the floor into the washing basket, he sat down and turned on the computer, feeling the click of the power switch. Watching it go through it's agonizingly slow boot sequence, he debated on who he should focus on first: Him and Gretchen, or Phineas and Isabella. Realising the many things his brother has done for him on many an occasion, including making him feel accepted, he decided to help his brother out first – he deserved it, after all. He gazed up, staring at the photos that adorned the wall – some of Phineas, some of him, and some of the three of them with Candace. One particular photo caught his eye, however – it was the entire group of them, back when they were younger. He reflected on how they had all changed – some had matured, some had gone through personality changes, and he himself had become far more quiet. He heard this PC make a noise, alerting him to the fact that it had turned on. Entering his username, he thought back to his password. "Of course... England." He proceeded to log in.
Username: Ferb
Password: *******
Phineas waited outside Isabella's house for what had to have been at least 10 minutes. He hadn't knocked yet, trying to maintain his composure, trying to be seen as 'cool' and 'slick', but ultimately failing. He eventually realised this was futile, and knocked on the door as he had done many a time before, with a rhythmic tap that reminded him of his once famous song. Isabella answered, and he was lost for words, which had been a first for him – he always had some comment to use when faced with any situation – be it time travel, a bully, or even his parents. Instead of her normal purple attire, she had put on one of the most beautiful dresses he had ever seen, shimmering in the light, with a strange effect to it which captivated his often one-track mind. Isabella just blushed as she noticed Phineas' expression of pure awe, with his eyes barely moving as he gazed at her. Phineas, realising he is simply staring at her, and that he is doing it in an incredibly awkward fashion, quickly snaps himself back to normal. "Hey." Isabella wasted no time on inviting him in, stating that "my parents are out, off shopping or something." Phineas smiled with relief – dealing with the parents is something he didn't want to try – although he had seen Isabella's mother many-a-time, he had never dealt with her while in a relationship with her daughter before.
Ferb was moving through his PC with incredible speed, with the skill of someone who has been using them for a large portion of his life, knowing exactly where to click and when in order to do what he needed to do. Opening his contacts list, embedded into MSN, he scrolled until he found some of the names he was looking for. Clicking on several of them, he invited them into a multi-user conversation. Waiting for his slow internet to kick in, he noticed their names. How suitable they were.
Loading...
Loading...
Ferb was getting tired of waiting. "One of these days, I will fix this thing! It takes forever to do anything!" He sighed, and kept watching, slowly tapping his fingers in an recognisable tune. "I wonder where that's from..."
Loading...
Loaded!
Giant Paintbrush has entered the chat.
Blondy has entered the chat.
Purple Tree has entered the chat.
Giant Paintbrush: Huh?
Red Stripe has entered the chat.
Curb Hitter has entered the chat.
Purple Tree: Hey, guys.
Blondy: Hey
Curb Hitter: what do you want?
Purple Tree: I need some help. I want to do something for Phineas and Isabella.
Blondy: :D!
Purple Tree: I was thinking a romantic date – without Phineas' help, of course. We all know what happened last time.
Giant Paintbrush: Sounds good, count me in. I'll be back in 5.
Giant Paintbrush is Away.
Blondy: I'll help out as well, if I can.
Red Stripe has disconnected.
Red Stripe has reconnected.
Red Stripe: Stupid internet... what did I miss?
Purple Tree: I was thinking of doing a romantic date for Phineas and Isabella.
Red Stripe: Sure, sounds fun.
Curb Hitter Is that all? I've got better things to do...
Curb Hitter has disconnected.
Purple Tree: Well, he isn't helping. Meet me in my back yard in about... 10 minutes?
Red Stripe: Me & Blondy might be a little later, we need to get ready.
Purple Tree: How long can it honestly take to get ready?
Blondy has disconnected.
Red Stripe has disconnected.
Purple Tree: See you soon, Paintbrush.
Purple Tree has disconnected.
Ferb looked up from his monitor, staring out the window, looking onto the front garden. 10 minutes to go until preparations begun. Rising out of his chair, he quickly gathered some blueprint paper, as well as some of the special pens he and Phineas used for it, and rushed into the garden. As he walked out, the intense heat hit him, and without the wind to mitigate it, which he had when he was on the bike, it was a lot hotter. "Sometimes, dressing like this sucks." He debated changing his clothes, before realising he really did not have the time – they would be here soon, and with the state of their room, finding anything in a timely manner would be impossible. Sighing with defeat, he walked towards the cool shade of the tree. He sat under it in his normal spot, laying his back up against the trunk. Pulling the black marker pen, he slowly etched a name onto the blueprint paper.
Project Double
Contrary to what was said, Adyson and Katie arrived first, having forgone their uniform's, instead choosing to dress in their casual clothing. He also noted that they had brought Holly along for the ride, in order for her to be of some assistance – or was it so she wasn't left out? He was also relieved that the three of them had the tact to not invite Gretchen to come with them – if they did that, the second part of his plan would be ruined. He then thought of something – it was pure luck that they didn't invite Gretchen! "Hey, Ferb." Adyson was speaking first, with her dormant leadership taking the spotlight, as it did whenever Isabella wasn't present, with her head moving slightly as she spoke. He smiled – it was always her style. It was no wonder she was the deputy troop leader – there to fill in when Isabella wasn't around. Unfortunately for Adyson, however, Isabella was always around, willing to help or at least guide even if she is sick. Ferb simply waved back, as speaking aloud wasn't his style. They sat near him, watching him draw onto the blueprint paper. As they did, realisation of what he was planning began to set in. After several minutes, Django walked in. "Sorry I'm late." They all waved, with Holly adding a friendly remark. "It's girls who are supposed to take ages, not guys!" He laughed, and joined them, sitting gingerly down. Ferb just looked for a second, before he realised he had sat away from the girls. "Why did he do that...?" was his remark on this, before continuing on with the blueprint.
Gretchen was lounging by the pool, in a vain attempt to relax. Her outer appearance and attitude suggested that she was simply relaxing, but she was poring over her mind. When Milly had sent her the text, she felt a massive range of emotions, with disbelief crowning them all in intensity. When Isabella comfirmed it, her internal rage flew out into the open, threatening to tear apart anything that stood in her way - they broke her trust! "Ferb knows. Milly." "Milly sent it me as well... Isa." After letting her rage fester for a few moments, threatening to overwhelm her, she realised this may not be a bad thing. Reminding herself to ask Milly what had happened – she did deserve an explanation after all, she decided to go for a swim, but not before inviting Ferb over to hers with a simple text message – from the number Milly had included. Now, swimming in the back garden, with the pool water warm from the sun, she wondered why Ferb hadn't arrived, or indeed, why she hadn't even got a reply. Feeling extremely rejected, she continued on her lane-swimming. She had even put on her bikini, an act which made her extremely uncomfortable normally – she was shy of herself, and her small body, and jealous of the other girls. Even Adyson, although she would never admit to having a nice body – she knew most of the boys cooed over her. And some other girls as well, her thoughts drifting onto one girl in particular.
Reaching out of the pool, she saw Ginger waving goodbye to Stacy, the car slowly pulling away. She recognised Mrs. Hirano, in her white labcoat as always – she was always ready to do any doctors work she needed. She climbed out of the pool and wrapped her towel around herself, ensuring her bikini was hidden from any passers-by, before calling her over. Ginger, jumping in surprise as she did whenever anything startled her, smiled back at her, and began her walk towards Gretchen, with her eyes enviously moving towards the pool. "Hey, you didn't tell me you were going to have a swim today, I'd have brought my swimsuit." Gretchen chuckled at Ginger's greeting. "It's nice to see you, too. Where are they off to?" Ginger simply sighed, with the look of defeat on her face. "Mom's gotta go to a doctors convention, and Stacy is not happy about having to go along."She had obviously attempted to get Stacy to stay at home for whatever reason she could – they were close. Gretchen's mind drifted to Ginger being alone at the house, which caused her to exclaim, with an edge of shock combing her voice. "Who's staying with you?!" Ginger raised her hand up, as if to dismiss her worry. "Don't worry, my aunt's coming soon. I'm fine." Gretchen looked around, and saw the pool, looking inviting – both to her and to Ginger. "Don't suppose you want a swim, do you?" Ginger's eyes lit up – she loved swimming, and was far better than she was at it. "I'd love one – back in a flash!" with the end of the sentence in a raised voice, as her distance away from Gretchen increased, her legs pounding the pavement as she ran faster and faster. Gretchen's face broke out into a smile, with her teeth reflecting the light – today would be good after all.
