I thought this was really funny, but the night I published the third chapter, I had the same chicken meal I made the Storm Hawks eat, minus the potato. I was laughing so much. Italics are thoughts. I'm using the same technique as chapter 2, so enjoy.

Anyway...you have all been so patient and I believe I promised an update in July.

Disclaimer: I don't own the Storm Hawks, but this story belongs to me.

"I'm going to wring his neck. I'm going to kill him." Piper angrily seethed through her teeth as she walked down the corridor, her hands held in front of her in a strangling position. "I'm going to grab him by the throat and just-" The mage shook her hands in a choking fashion as though she was picturing the blonde sharpshooter already in her tight grasp.

She was going to make him pay. No one embarrasses her like that in front of her father or her boyfriend. The mage stopped dead in her tracks.

"Pretend boyfriend," Piper had to remind herself.

The crystal specialist was so mad at Finn. He promised that he would keep their secret, pretend that Aerrow and she had been dating and were actually in love to keep her protective father happy. But no, he had to use his power against them and make an awkward situation unbearable.

He was asked to keep quiet and promised many privileges if he played his part well. Unfortunately his meddling almost revealed their secret, but to Piper, it did have its own rewards.

The girl stared dreamy eyed into space, her teeth biting down on her lower lip as she did so. Piper rested her back on one of the walls of the corridor and slid down to the floor, not looking at anything in particular and still sporting a goofy, dazed look as she remembered what had happened during lunch.

It was her dream come true.

'He kissed me'.

Granted from the look they both shared, she wasn't sure if he was feeling the same way as she did during that magnificent moment.

It wasn't awkward, was it?

Sure this wasn't how it was planned, but sometimes you just need to-

Oh screw it. You're a tactics officer and strategist. Planning is essential for a perfect plan and at no point should you ever 'wing it'. Once again, the perfect plan was ruined by the immature blonde.

Oh how she was going to make him pay.

Her plotted revenge ceased abruptly by the whizzing and buzzing sounds coming from the hanger bay. Her curiosity got the better of her as she entered the inlet in silence.

Aerrow POV

Shortly after lunch I had made a bee line to the hanger bay. I had to keep myself busy by any means necessary and thankfully, I had a broken skimmer hoisted on a lift which was the perfect distraction.

Distraction from what, you ask?

Well, it's not that I don't want to remember it, but lunch...got a little awkward today. I know I promised Piper I would pretend to be her boyfriend while her dad was around, but this is getting difficult. I'm trying hard to be the perfect guy for her, standing up for her in front of Finn, remembering that date she gave me...but the kiss?

What was I supposed to do? Was I supposed to do something else? Did she want to kiss me?

Anyway, that's why I'm here fixing my skimmer. To try and forget what happened during lunch, to try and avoid any more of Finn's antics. To try and avoid Piper's intimidating stare. She gets that from her father.

The hanger bay is a mess, but not a big enough mess for Stork to wonder in and begin lecturing me. A few small puddles of oil have formed on the tarp and my feet work around them as I inspect the damage of my ride. Thankfully it wasn't completely totalled. Twisting the wrench here and there, my work was interrupted as I heard the door to the hanger bay open.

I should've expected it. Piper would always examine every detail of a last mission to determine what went wrong; examining the black box in the flight wreckage. Her concerned eyes bore into my skull and for a moment, I couldn't look away.

"We need to talk." She bluntly stated, sending a small chill down my spine at her lack of emotion.

"About what?" I tried to stay casual, wiping some of the grease from my cheek.

Her face became riddled with confusion, as though she thought I generally had no idea what was going on. "About...about what happened during lunch."

I could guarantee that I looked worried. "Yeah, ok." I mumbled in defeat while dropping the rag from my shoulder into a bucket of water on the ground. Piper dropped her head and twiddled her fingers, almost embarrassed to further talk about the situation.

"Sorry it wasn't planned," her gaze never left her hands, and I took this opportunity to overlook my skimmer with curiosity. "But could you tell me next time something like that is going to happen."

My head shot up at her last comment. "You think I planned that?" I questioned her incredulously.

"I meant telling Finn. You sort of just...told him without asking me first." I tried to busy myself with the repairs, but made the mistake of sneaking a glance of her. Her eyes always seemed to find mine through the framework of my skimmer. With an exasperated sigh, I lowered the winch just enough to rest my chin in my folded arms on the seat of the skimmer.

"If I hadn't of told Finn, he would've found a way to spill this secret during lunch and in front of your father. My leader's instinct told me to go with it."

"Your leader's instinct?" She raised an eyebrow as she strolled over to the hoisted skimmer and mimicked the position of myself. I closed my eyes and humoured her with a nod and a hum of agreement.

"Did your leader's instinct question my feelings on the matter?" My eyes snapped open, and immediately I recognised the annoyance and sadness hidden behind her gorgeous golden orbs.

"What are your feelings on the matter?" I relayed her question, knowing full well it was the only acceptable reply in this situation.

"I feel...that if you keep it up, my father will think things between us are getting serious." Again her lack of emotion in her words sent a chill down my spine, and my eyebrows knitted together in confusion at her sentence.

"But isn't that good?" My heart sank a little as she dropped her head down again and shook it ever so slightly.

"You don't understand. When dad's heart is set on something, he'll stop at nothing until it's fulfilled."

"What does that mean?"

"You're doing too good of a job." Her soft tone laced my ears and stirred the hair on the back of my neck. "Could you maybe just tone it down a little?"

I shrugged my shoulders from my awkward leaning position in front of her, only now registering the fact that one inch was the difference between our noses. Just a little closer and those lips could be yours again. "You told me to act as your boyfriend; I would think that I'm doing what you want."

"Well, yeah but-" Piper closed her eyelids and released a small sigh of exasperation, not daring to look me in the eyes. "You're playing your role a little too well."

Too well?

"I'm sorry but...what do you think a good boyfriend does?" Her mouth was left agape at my question, and I simply raised an eyebrow at her lack of response.

"Well-" her voice came out a little shaky, and I instantly noticed the glaze of threatening tears.

"Hey," I calmed, gently stroking her cheek with my hand. It was so soft. "Don't worry, we'll figure it out. We'll just try and act more casual."

My words appeared to comfort her as a small but noticeable smile pricked the corners of her mouth. I walked around my skimmer and towards Piper, draping my arm over her shoulders.

"C'mon, let's go see how far away we are from Terra Fauna." In an attempt to walk us towards the door, my movements were stopped short as Piper stood in her position like a statue. Curious, I glanced down to her and noticed her deadpanned expression. Her gaze travelled from me, down to my hand that sat comfortably on her shoulder, and back up to my emerald eyes. Wow, she really is like her father. Releasing a nervous chuckle, I retracted my hand and rubbed my nose with it in a clever act to conceal my blush of embarrassment.

"Casual." I corrected out loud and grasped her hand in mine. The smile she presented me after that melted my heart in an instant. My legs turned to jelly, my throat became dry and once again, I could feel myself leaning in.

But as luck would have it, things never go according to plan on the Condor. The moment I saw Piper's eyes begin to close; the door to the hanger bay swished open and in strolled none other than the obnoxious sharpshooter. I couldn't help myself but roll my eyes dramatically and slap my hand against my thigh in annoyance when I faced him.

Flashback

I entered the hanger bay in silence. My brow furrowed in sympathy at the state of the small room. Aerrow's skimmer had been lifted off the ground; liquids dripping from it and on to a mat. From where I was standing, Aerrow's face was hidden behind the frame of his skimmer, buried deep within his work. The only way I knew he was there was the casual clinking of his wrench, and obviously his legs poking out at the bottom.

"We need to talk." I casually stated once his head poked out from above the heavy vehicle.

"About what?" His expression remained unchanged as he wiped a small spot of grease from his face, spreading it around even further. I stifled a giggle, now was not the time to be laughing. His expression seemed very still. Did he really not know what I was talking about?

"About...about what happened during lunch." I told him in a way that sounded like I was asking him the question. The worried expression across his face made me instantly nervous.

"Yeah, ok." Good, he was cooperating, although I still felt as nervous as anything to bring it back up again. What was I even going to say? 'I'm sorry for kissing you'. Of course not, I'm not sorry for that. Ok, maybe just apologise first.

"Sorry it wasn't planned," I continued to stare down at my hands in embarrassment. Out of the corner of my eye, I could tell he had resumed working on the skimmer. He was just as uncomfortable as I was. "But could you tell me next time something like that is going to happen."

I was startled slightly as his head popped over the top of his skimmer with a shocked look on his face. "You think I planned that?" His voice was almost raised. He was talking about the kiss, wasn't he. No that's not what I meant.

""I meant telling Finn. You sort of just...told him without asking me first." He went back to working on his skimmer, but against a background of grey, red and blue, his vibrant green eyes were easy to find. He lowered the skimmer with another exasperated sigh, resting his crossed arms on the brown seat and placing his chin in his arms, his eyes never leaving mine.

"If I hadn't of told Finn, he would've found a way to spill this secret during lunch and in front of your father. My leader's instinct told me to go with it." He stated matter-of-factly. My eyebrows furrowed in confusion. Finn almost blew the secret during lunch anyway, telling him did not make a difference.

"Your leader's instinct?" I walked over to him and crossed my arms, placing them on the skimmer and resting my chin in my arms in the same fashion as the Sky Knight. He simply closed his eyes, nodded and hummed. A small part of me wanted to slap him, remove that stupid look from his face, but I was so caught up with myself that even moving seemed like a difficult feat. I could feel it coming, the anxiety and pain pushing itself closer to my throat.

"Did your leader's instinct question my feelings on the matter?" His eyes met mine almost immediately, and knowing him for so long, I could tell he was concerned.

"What are your feelings on the matter?" Good answer. If he had said 'no', that would've had a different ending. He needed to know. I had to tell him how I was feeling.

"I feel...that if you keep it up, my father will think things between us are getting serious." His face changed to a look of confusion. What was so hard to understand? I swear he could be a little ignorant sometimes.

"But isn't that good?" His voice was small, afraid, vulnerable. I had never heard a sound come out of his mouth. I could feel the sadness reaching the back of my throat, I couldn't talk. My only option was to drop my shaking head in a sad manner.

"You don't understand. When dad's heart is set on something, he'll stop at nothing until it's fulfilled."

"What does that mean?"

"You're doing too good of a job." I whimpered out in a quiet voice. "Could you maybe just tone it down a little?"

He shrugged his shoulders in a somewhat adorable manner and released a small sigh. His breath hit my nose and a cold shiver ran up my spine as I realised our proximity to each other.

"You told me to act as your boyfriend; I would think that I'm doing what you want." He sounded sad. God I hated making him sad.

"Well, yeah but-" I sighed in defeat as my tongue tripped over my thoughts. I brought my attention back to my hands. I couldn't stand seeing the hurt in his eyes. "You're playing your role a little too well."

As soon as the words escaped my lips, I wished I could've taken them back. But he had to know, it felt like this whole charade wasn't a charade anymore.

"I'm sorry but...what do you think a good boyfriend does?" His question left me stumbled. My mouth fell open in slight shock. At no point in that sentence did he mention the word 'fake'.

"Well-" I began, but the anxiety was reaching further and further up my throat. A stinging began behind my eyes. Please don't cry again.

"Hey," he cooed in a hushed tone, his hand stroking my right cheek. I immediately stopped shaking. I immediately stopped crying. I immediately felt better. "Don't worry, we'll figure it out. We'll just try and act more casual."

I was glad he was the leader. His calming words always did sound reassuring. I couldn't help but smile a little bit. He walked around his skimmer and draped his arm over my shoulders. I suddenly stiffened. What happened to casual?

"C'mon, let's go see how far away we are from Terra Fauna." In an attempt to walk us towards the door, he stopped suddenly and looked at me as I stood my ground. His eyes once again portrayed concern as they searched through my orange eyes. With a deadpanned expression, I looked towards him, down to his hand on my shoulder, and back to him in a 'casual' way of telling him that that was not casual. He released a nervous chuckle and although he thought he hid it, I could see the red blush adorning his features.

"Casual." I felt his warm hand grasp mine once again. I smiled brightly and was relieved to see all the concern and worry leave his face. What happened next though was not relieving. He started to lean in. Oh no, what is happening? I thought we just agreed casual. Why am I complaining? Just go for it!

But as luck would have it, things never go according to plan on the Condor. The moment I began to close my eyes; the door to the hanger bay swished open and in strolled none other than the obnoxious sharpshooter. I couldn't help myself release a small sigh of annoyance as I shifted my stance uncomfortably and brought my gaze to him.

Normal POV

"Fine. If you don't want me here, I'll go." Finn complained in a deep voice, but to those who had known him for a long time knew he was joking.

"What do you want, Finn." Aerrow questioned his wingman in a bored manner, his grip tightening on Piper's hand.

"Just thought I'd let you both know that we're almost at the Terra." Finn stood in front of the fake couple, bouncing on the balls of his feet with eagerness in his eyes.

"And..." Piper urged, realising that Finn had more to say.

"And...to remind you that you don't have to act like a couple when Sir Jet is not around." He stated matter-of-factly.

"And..." Aerrow urged, raising his eyebrow at Finn as the same eager stare returned to his features.

"And...Junko knows the whole plan is a fake."

"What?" The leader and the mage shouted to the blonde in astonishment.

"How?" Piper questioned, the anger slowly rising in her voice.

"Did you really think I was going to lose a game of truth or dare to Junko?" Finn crossed his arms in a serious manner, resulting in the Sky Knight and the crystal specialist to roll their eyes at their marksman's stupidity.

"Oh by the way, Aerrow," Finn's head poked through the door again before he left. "You got a little something on your cheek."

His sly smirk left the doorframe and back down the corridor, Aerrow's face flushing a bright red almost instantly. With a shaking handing, he grazed the side of his face and looked down at the two gloved fingers that now held a small smudge of black grease.

Had that been there the whole time?

I love banter between these two. So sorry for the late update but considering I am in my final four months of schooling, I doubt any more of my stories will be updated until December (Please check profile for notifications). Little bit more dramatic but let's hope I can return the humour, especially now that the team is on the expedition. R&R, good reviews mean a good update!