Author's Note: I have OFFICIALLY removed everything that was Just A Friend from my Doc Manger on here, thus making more room for this story and other random shenanigans. Yay! That said, sorry I'm not pushing this one out like I've done my other stories. It's just that I'm not used to writing R!Edd and I really wanna do the guy justice so just bear with me please! Thanks! LOVE YOU!

Thanksgiving

"How long is she gonna be here?"

Marie was sitting on a bar stool at the kitchen island at Eddward's house. He was helping his step mom as best he could to prepare the family meal for the Thanksgiving holiday. While he and his parents would have rather had a small meal at home or gone into the city for a mini family getaway, his grandmother managed to guilt his father into hosting her and some poor wayward girl from her church. Sophia and Eddward saw right through her scheme and each was furious with his father for acquiescing to Addison's passive aggressive demand. But the plan was made and now they had to deal with it. So Eddward was up to his elbows in pastry and cookie dough. His fury sparked his sweet tooth and since he was stuck at home, might as well make some pie.

"Hopefully, only through Saturday morning. She does have church on Sunday morning and she can't possibly miss it."

Marie snickered at his sarcasm. But her tone softened when she saw the rage still dancing in his eyes as he pounded the pie dough for another blueberry pie.

"I'm sorry, E."

"It's okay," Eddward sighed.

"I can stop by, you know," Marie said with a sly grin.

Eddward smirked but shook his head no and Marie giggled. The two friends new thing to do was flirt with each other when they were around people who either knew about their pasts and had suspicions that they were dating. If his grandmother saw Marie, considering what she knew about their pasts, she'd flip. The Kanker wasn't good enough for her grandson, but God forbid he ever make his own decisions about who he should want to date.

Ever since Eddward was a small boy, his eyes wandered across the universe. When it came to intimate persuasions, he was just as apt to look at a boy with the same longing he looked at a girl. His grandmother noticed this fairly quickly and did her best to nip it in the bud. Snide remarks were made about men who acted in any way she deemed unmanly. "Little boys don't do that," was heard often around her home. So Eddward, dutifully obedient, remained quiet, but made sure to keep his wandering eyes still.

In middle school, his eyes started wandering again. But his father had a plethora of books, scientific and medical journals on what made human beings what they were. And now, at 15, he was starting to figure things out. But his grandmother was still very adamant, even if it was a in a very passive aggressive manner, about him behaving as she thought he should. Thus the visit and her bringing the girl along with her.

"What are you doing for the holiday?," he asked.

If Marie was offering to stop by, that meant she and her sisters were staying in town. But considering that she and May were still at odds with Lee over him and his broken relationship with Eddy, the holiday was bound to be a tense one.

"Staying at Ed's," she shrugged.

Eddward nodded.

Ever since the football game against Lemon Brook, May and Marie would spend the night at the Hill's in Sarah's room if they needed to get away. It became their safe haven away from the trailer park, their sister and Eddy.

"Hide your makeup," he smirked and Marie rolled her eyes.

Sarah had taken to the two younger Kankers rather well, and while May was always down for a makeover courtesy of the cul-de-sac's resident spit fire, it wasn't Marie's cup of tea. When Sarah saw how she came to do her own makeup, she wanted to learn and help. Now, Marie will either do her makeup at school or wake up early and sneak over to Eddward's. And Sarah still wouldn't take the hint. It was tragically adorable.

About five minutes later, Eddward's door bell and door are both being pounded on. Eddward quickly washes his hands and Marie smirks and grabs her soda as she goes to stand in the kitchen doorway as the swimmer storms to the door. Whoever is on the other side is about to get a read down from the raven on how one announces themselves at a closed door.

"Can I help you?!," he asks tersely when he opens the door.

"Oh, my God! Thank God, you're home. You gotta hide me, Dude," Kevin said frantically as he bounced from foot to foot on Eddward's front porch.

"What? Why do I have to hide you?"

"Bridget."

"Get in here," Eddward hissed as he grabbed the redhead by his collar, pulled him inside and locked the door.

Marie quickly bounds in to the living room, puts her soda on a coaster on the coffee table and she and Eddward then start to close the blinds and drapes at all the windows in the living and dining rooms. Kevin settles on the couch and puts his face in his hands with an aggravated sigh. Eddward turns on the one lamp in the front window. It was a hint to his parents that he was home and not in the front of the house and something the family always did to deter burglars.

"Kitchen. Now," he whispers as he leads the way to the kitchen, Marie and Kevin on his heels.

The doorway to the kitchen is far enough away from the living room window that no one will see that anyone was in it from the front of the house. He drew the blinds closed over the kitchen sink and Kevin prayed no one could see through them from the backyard.

"Don't worry," Marie said when she spotted him eyeballing the window as she grabbed him a soda from the fridge. "If she comes through the back, everything on Rolf's farm will hear her."

Kevin sighed and accepted this bit of news with some reservations. Rolf's farm was always noisy.

"And I don't take to kindly to trespassers," Eddward said as he whacked his rolling pin across a freshly floured palm.

Kevin snickered.

"You're gonna run her off with a rolling pin?"

"Says the boy who's hiding at my house from her. Why didn't you go home, Kevin?," Eddward asked as he went back to making his pie.

"My mom's home. As far as she knows, I'm hanging at Frank's, and I was, but the bitch followed me back this way."

Marie and Eddward groaned. They both knew Mrs Barr would let the girl in for at least 30 minutes before kicking her out, but with the holiday upon the country, Kimberly Barr was up to her elbows in preparing her own family's Thanksgiving dinner and would lose track of time. Most anyone else in the cul-de-sac wouldn't be able to hide Kevin for however long he needed it on a holiday because of family curfews. Knowing that Eddward was always willing, usually able and his parents didn't have a lights out policy, he was Kevin's first stop.

"She followed you?!," Marie asked. "From where?"

"Prolly Marcie Bank's. I know she lives up the street from Frank," Kevin shrugged as he opened his soda.

"I thought they hated each other," Eddward said as he put his pie dough in the pan and started to fill it with his special blueberry glaze.

"They do," Marie said. "But they both want Kev here so I'm sure they're willing to work together on that goal."

Kevin groaned and hid himself in an arm fort but now Eddward was even more confused.

"If they both want him, as you say, Marie," he asked as he weaved the pie dough in a delicate crisscross pattern across the pie plate, "why would they both try to get Bridget with him?"

Marie sighed. Time to let loose some girly secrets.

"Whoever grabs him, gives gossip to the loser first. Loser gets to live through the winner."

Eddward made a face.

"Well, that doesn't sound like it'll work out well."

"Didn't say it was a perfect plan. Just that that is how things work," Marie shrugged before tossing her soda into the trash can and letting loose a loud burp.

Eddward made another face and she just stuck her tongue out at him. Kevin came out of his arm fort as Marie burped and looked at them both curiously. It still amazed him how close they had gotten considering their pasts. Sure, he was as close to Eddward as anyone else in the cul-de-sac in the year or so that they all came together to save The Ed's, Eddy specifically, from Eddy's brother. They had gotten a bit closer in the few months since everyone had chosen sides in the Eddy vs Eddward fight. But it was nothing like what Eddward and Marie had. The Raven and the Bluenette were close. Even closer than he and Nazz. But Kevin couldn't get a read on whether they were dating or not.

No one could.

A moment later, a small knock was heard from the door. All three teens jumped and when they all recovered from their sudden scare, Eddward looked as cross as ever.

"Sink. Now," he ordered as he wiped his hands on a dish towel and went to the door.

Kevin and Marie hurried to the sink, which was away from the doorway and held their breath.

Eddward groaned as he peeked through the peephole and Marie rolled her eyes. She knew that groan meant he had a very unwelcome visitor at the door. Considering the situation, she actually hoped it was Bridget as he always hated talking to Lee or any members of the wrestling team Lee or Eddy would send to he or Ed's house to walk Marie home. Because he and Ed were never sure of their intentions, they always did it themselves, but they knew the fallout was the same; a Kanker screaming match that would last half the night. Kevin just held his breath.

"Hello, Bridget," Eddward said loudly, alerting his more welcome guests to their intruder.

"Hey, Edd. Is Kevin here? I just want to ask him some questions about our Spanish assignment and I can't seem to find him anywhere," the overly flirtatious blond said.

"No, he isn't. Have a good evening."

Before the girl could say anything more, he slammed the door in her face and went back into the kitchen. Marie and Kevin sighed with relief when his shadow darkened the doorway. Kevin outright hugged him.

"Thanks, Dude. I owe you one," Kevin murmured into his shoulder.

"Think nothing of it. I understand."

"Hey!," Marie protested with a pout.

Eddward snickered as he patted Kevin's back. And the touch was so soothing for the redhead, he didn't move until Eddward set him aside so he could wash his hands again and get started on his next baking project.

"What did you do to her?," Eddward asked as Kevin and Marie settled down to watch Eddward bake chocolate chip cookies.

All anyone knew, was that after homecoming, Bridget Wilson set her sights on the redhead and hadn't let up.

Kevin sighed.

"Asked to borrow a pencil."

Before he went home that night, Eddward gave Kevin two packs of pencils.