Lilbit4: It's gonna be a while; but I am working on it. Sorry.

Jeremy Shane, Kirsty Joy, Geno beast: Thanks!

Dizzy78: You know, I never thought of how long Maddie and Greg had been dating. I want to say about a year. It's a miracle she's been able to keep him a secret for that long huh?

The fallen sky: Thanks! I'm really glad you think I'm doing okay with my OCs.

"Train them to do what?" I thought the line was Clark-like. He seemed to have trouble with Chloe growing up and dating and stuff. I figured he'd be worse with his daughters. And I can't say how; but the puberty stuff is important otherwise I wouldn't have mentioned it. I can be just as squeamish as the guys when it comes to that kind of stuff;)

Lol. I know what you meant about Casey; and I think it's good that you seem to have a grasp of her personality so early in the story. That means I did what I set out to do. Yay! And Andrew, I'm glad you got to see him. I thought I was going overboard with the choking at first; but the way the story plays out, it was too Andrew-like to omit.

I agree with you. I loved Maddie on the show; and I was very sad when she got shipped off to her grandmother's and then they just forgot about her. Based on the relationship she and Clark forged within a day, I would have thought she'd be in his life for a long time…so I made it happen. That's the awesome power of fanfiction;)

Anyway, I got a surprise for you in this chapter. I hope you like it; well, I mostly hope you're not offended by it. Just don't read too much into it. I just thought it'd make you smile. But if you don't like it, I can always fix this chapter and repost it. Gosh, now I'm nervous again.

Shonnia22: Thank you! I'm glad you're liking the fact that Lois is pretty much the same. I used her a lot in "I'll Be Right Here" to lighten the mood. That was a very depressing story.

Madlenita: Lol. I figured you guys would like that.

~~{(O)(O)(O)(O)(O)(O)}~~

I've been in school for twenty minutes. That's it; and I can already tell this is going to be a bad day.

Sammy's in my class; and he's sitting behind me.

Why? I have no idea. He's supposed to be in Metropolis.

How? I really have no idea. He's supposed to be a freshman.

I smell a conspiracy.

And then I feel a vibration; one that lets me know that my phone is receiving a text message.

I try to wait until my teacher, Mr. Reynolds, turns his back to answer it; but he doesn't really seem to have the desire to do so.

I can't wait forever. It might be an emergency; so, I pull my phone out as inconspicuously as I can and I read the message.

I get caught though, and it's not because Sammy just whispered, "Ooo, I'm telling." I'm pretty sure that I'm the only one who heard him say that. It's because we got another new kid in today; and Mr. Reynolds was looking for a volunteer to show him or her around the school today. I'm not sure which it is, a him or a her, as I haven't been paying much attention to my teacher. I heard most of what was said, but I was too busy thinking about how much I don't want to piggy back Sammy to the mall while agreeing to do it at the same time. It's not like I have much of a choice. I don't think my other siblings will do it; and it's not like I can just leave my cousin behind.

"Thank you for volunteering Lizzy," Mr. Reynolds says as he takes my phone away.

None of my teachers ever call me Moira. Not even the strictest ones. That's what happens when you grow up in a town like Smallville. Teachers know who you are before you even enter their classroom. They've met you several times at the park, or at the grocery store, or at your fifth birthday party; or if you're as unlucky as I am, they can be the father of a little girl you failed to protect.

I apologize to my teacher, keeping my eyes on my desk. He doesn't know that I'm not really apologizing for having my phone on me.

He doesn't know that his daughter is dead because of me.

"Ms. Kent, do you think you can at least introduce yourself to the young man you'll be spending so much time with today?"

Everyone in the classroom snickers quietly when I jump a little in my seat; but my cousin's the loudest. God, this is embarrassing. I don't usually get into so much trouble. Actually, I don't usually get into any trouble; so, I can imagine my face is no less than three shades lighter than a tomato right now.

"We're all waiting, young lady," Mr. Reynolds says to speed me up a little. I'm still trying to find the courage to look up from my desk.

"Hel-hello," I stammer once I finally look over at the desk beside myself and get a good look at my new classmate, who is definitely a "him." Then I take a few deep breaths and swallow hard a couple of times. I think I'm going to be sick.

The other kids laugh a little harder; and I imagine they either think it's because I'm still embarrassed, or because I'm really shy around boys, or both.

I don't blame them for thinking that. Me and boys don't mix too well; especially good looking boys. I can see, and hear, that this one's already piqued the interest of nearly every girl in this classroom; even ones who aren't exactly available right now. He may be the new kid; which means he's susceptible to a few friendly welcoming pranks and teasing according to unwritten high school rules; but I don't think it's gonna happen this time. This boy's different; nothing like the boys here at Smallville High. He's mysterious…dark.

Dark hair; almost black.

Dark eyes; nearly black, just like mine.

Dark clothes; a black t-shirt and dark jeans.

Dark mood; really dark mood. I'm sure he hasn't smiled once since he got here. He hardly ever smiles. I would know. He's my friend. Sort of. Okay, so he's not really my friend; in fact, we don't exactly get along. Not even a little. He's just someone I've known for a very long time. But he's also my secret; and now he's here, in class with me…and my cousin.

Not a good place for a secret to be.

It's making me nervous; more nervous than I've ever been in my entire life. I want to ask him what he's doing here; but I can't. He's the new kid. I'm not supposed to know him.

"What's your name?" I ask him instead.

"Heath," he tells me without smiling or looking my way.

I make a face at him. Of course he doesn't see it because he's looking straight ahead.

Heath? It's not a bad name I guess; it's just not his name. But I suppose I don't really expect him to use his real name.

In fact, now that I think about it, I prefer the fake name. It gives me hope that he's not here to completely destroy my life.

"I'm Lizzy," I tell him while looking up at Mr. Reynolds. I want to smile to let my teacher know that I'm on board with giving "Heath" a tour of Smallville High; but I don't think my face can actually make a smile right now.

I don't think Mr. Reynolds cares though. He has my phone, and he has a tour guide for the new kid. He's satisfied.

As he heads back to the front of the room, my cousin pokes my back and whispers lowly that he thinks I have a crush on the new kid, and that he's going to tell my mom.

He's joking; about telling my mom at least. Sammy doesn't usually tell on anyone. But I think he seriously thinks I like "the new kid" as he called him. He couldn't be more wrong about that; but I'm not helping to persuade him otherwise either. During the whole class, I keep sneaking looks at "Heath", and dropping things, and stammering.

When the bell finally rings, I take off; needing to go somewhere, anywhere, to get myself together; but Mr. Reynolds stops me. He tells me that I'm forgetting something while nodding his head in the direction of a Jeremiah, that's his real name by the way, who's taking his precious time to pack his one notebook and one pencil up before leisurely making his way toward me. He still hasn't smiled yet; and though I'm used to him not smiling, I still wish he would so that he could look like a normal kid.

He needs to blend in better.

Smallville is not like the city. The gothy emo thing doesn't really work here unless you want the attention; and I really don't need him to have any attention today. Not while I'm his guide.

"So, how do I get to room 203, Lizzy," Jeremiah asks me without the slightest amount of enthusiasm.

I roll my eyes at the way he says my name. Jeremiah's never called me that before. He only knows me as Moira. And he doesn't even call me that. But that's okay. It's not like I actually call him Jeremiah either.

I pull him to a corner in the hallway. It's not a private place at all; but if we whisper low enough while everyone's bustling around trying to get to their next class there's a good chance we won't be overheard. Or I won't be overheard. Jeremiah's not much of a talker.

"What do you want from me?" I hiss.

He sighs as if I'm the one irritating him; as if I'm the one who's transferred to his school. He doesn't even have the decency to feign surprise or shock. He knows that I know he came to Smallville High for me. He's seventeen years old, nearly two years my senior and a senior this year. Why else would he be in a sophomore's class; in my classroom. I don't believe in coincidences; and if I did, I'd be really stupid to believe that this is one of those.

"What I want has nothing to do with you. Or yet, it's to have nothing to do with you," he whispers as he takes a step or two forward and leans into me.

I lean back from him, trying my hardest to ignore the looks some of my schoolmates are sending my way. I understand them. I'm entirely too close to the new kid. I don't even get half as close to any of the guys here and I've known them practically my whole life.

"But here I am, waiting for you to take me to our next class," Jeremiah finishes while keeping his eyes on me. He doesn't so much as glance around himself to acknowledge the kids staring at us. That's because they're not important to him. No one's important to him. I've known him for eight years and I'm not even important to him. Just like he said; he wants nothing to do with me. I already know that. He's told me a million times so I kinda just didn't pay attention to that part of his little rant. The part that I did pay attention to however, the part about him waiting for me to take him to our next class, makes my heart sink.

"Our n-next class," I stammer while snatching his schedule out of his hand. I nearly ripped it while doing so; and I definitely want to rip it after reading it. We have the same schedule. The same exact schedule. Even free period.

I feel like chewing him out something awful…as well as his mother. There's no way he could have done this without her. The same way Sammy couldn't have ended up in my grade, in my class, without his parents. That conspiracy theory I'd been thinking about earlier is starting to actually sound plausible.

"If you want to play hooky, just say the word," Jeremiah says. It's his way of letting me know that it's time to go to our next class, together. But I also suspect that he wouldn't exactly mind skipping class either.

Without another word, I turn on my heels and lead him to room 203. Spanish 2; a class taught by a teacher whose native tongue is actually French. He's not that bad though. He's really nice, more of a pushover really, so he doesn't say anything when Jeremiah and I arrive a few seconds after the bell.

Sammy has something to say though. He's in yet another one of my classes apparently; and as soon as I sit down, not in front of him this time, he whispers an inappropriate remark about Jeremiah and me. It doesn't matter that I'm sitting on the opposite end of the classroom from him. He knows that I can still hear him.

I respond by taking a deep breath and trying to pay attention to my lessons.

It almost works.

Almost; but obviously Sammy's not the only one who's noticed how "weird" I'm being with the new kid, "Heath."

Everyone knows that Mr. Baton won't pay attention to their whispering and note passing. So they're doing a lot of it; but to my dismay, they're doing a lot more whispering than note passing. I would prefer it the other way around of course. At least I can't hear what's being written down on paper. And what I'm hearing is that Josh and Allen think they should "welcome" the new kid to Smallville High; and trust me, it wouldn't be a friendly welcome because Daisy keeps staring at Heath; but Nicole keeps reminding her that she can't have Heath because she's been going out with Josh for five whole months now. And Daisy wants Nicole to shut up because Nicole just wants Heath for herself; and Chantel wishes the two of them would just shut up and has just whispered to Carla that she's going to try to talk to Heath before Nicole can get the chance to; all she has to do is steal him away from the Lizzy first...

The nonsense goes on and on; but it's nothing worth listening to. But that doesn't mean everyone won't listen; it means just the opposite actually. At this rate, I give the whole school another half an hour to find out that there's a new kid at Smallville High; and they wouldn't be finding out about Sammy. He may be new here; but he's not new here in Smallville. Everyone knows that the Kents are related to the Queens; but Heath/Jeremiah, no one's ever seen him before. And now the "odd" Kent kid is showing him around, and she keeps tripping over her own feet, stuttering nonstop; maybe even blushing. And no, I'm not exactly blushing; but one look at my red face and that's what the rumor will be. They'll never consider the fact that I'm nervous, embarrassed, and maybe even a little angry.

Spanish class ends an eternity later and now I'm on my way to the next one. We're on our way to the next one. Jeremiah's following behind me. I'm sure of it, though I've refused to check behind myself to see if it's actually true. I don't want to talk to him right now. It only irritates me.

I pass by the bathroom; then I stop abruptly, getting an idea. I don't want to sit through another class with him. I don't think I can sit through another class with him, with Jeremiah.

He doesn't bump into me or anything when I stop. He just keeps walking as if I hadn't stopped; and he's walking with Chantel. The girl wasn't lying when she said she'd talk to him before Nicole. I'd like to thank her for taking over my job for me. I'm sure she'll get him to his next class safely; or maybe they can both skip class together, like I'm going to do right now.

I double back a little and head for the sanctuary that is the girls' bathroom. One small paranoid glance behind myself lets me know that Jeremiah's seen me; but he keeps walking as if he hadn't. I'd question that further; but right now I've got other things to think about. If the ladies room is the place for that, then so be it.

I pick a stall, the last stall, and sit. I've never missed a class before; well, not on purpose, and certainly not to just think.

Apparently, I'm not going to be able to do so today either.

Not even a full minute later, there are shoes outside my stall; dark shoes that belong to a guy with a dark mood.

"Mosey, get out of there and get to class."

"You get out!" I hiss. I shouldn't have to say that. This is the girls' bathroom. Why would he even risk coming in here? What will everyone think if someone sees me and him come out together? Not that he cares. In fact, he'd probably like what everyone will assume if they saw me come out of the girls' bathroom with a guy. The fact that I'd be completely humiliated would probably amuse him immensely.

"I'm going to count to five," is his answer.

"And then what?"

"I think you know the answer to that."

"I'm using the bathroom!" I lie.

"No you're not; five."

"I've got my period," I lie even more. I've learned from my father, brothers, and uncles that guys don't like to talk about girls' cycles.

"You haven't even started yet; four," he answers calmly.

Except for guys like Jeremiah I guess.

"Three."

I seriously consider dropping my pants and actually sitting on the seat; but think better of it. He'll probably come in anyway; and then he'll see me.

"Two."

"Okay, okay," I relent; but I'm not fast enough. He's already on "one," down on all fours, and crawling through the huge and unnecessary gap at the bottom of the stall.

He stands up, drawing himself up to his full height and glares at me. He's irked that I didn't obey him immediately by coming out as soon as he said "five."

"I said I was coming," I say in my defense; and then I push past him, upset at myself for feeling the need to defend myself to him in the first place.

As soon as I'm out of the stall, I freeze. There's another boy in here, in the girls' bathroom; but this boy probably knows me better than my own mother. I'm really bad at lying to him; but I know I'm going to have to now. And I'm going to have to be convincing. I don't have a choice.

"Johnny, what are you doing in the girls' bathroom?" I ask my brother.

"Probably the same thing I'm doing in here; checking up on you," Jeremiah answers from behind me. I nearly pinch the bridge of my nose; but I somehow manage to settle for crossing my arms over my chest. Why couldn't Jeremiah just stay in the stall? It's not like Johnny can see through them. They're covered in lead paint. We can't see through lead; or hear through it for that matter.

Johnny walks toward me, making me nervous; but I fight hard against biting my lip or doing anything else that would give me away.

"Here, you left these," Jeremiah says while holding my books out to me, seemingly oblivious to my brother's presence. And right now, it is most definitely a presence. First, I wasn't in my English class, one of the few classes that Johnny and I share together, and now he finds me in the bathroom with another guy.

I try to keep my face neutral as I thank Jeremiah and take my books; like it's perfectly normal and innocent to find two people of the opposite sex cooped up in one of the stalls of the girls' restroom. I think I'm doing okay with it though. Johnny hasn't thrown Jeremiah against the wall and dragged me out by the arm. Then again, Johnny is the least violent of my brothers. He'll hear me out before he jumps to a conclusion, no matter how inappropriate the situation may appear.

"You're her twin brother right? She told me about you. I'm Heath by the way," Jeremiah continues while holding his hand out to my brother. It's a bold move; but I'm not at all surprised by it.

Johnny eyes him briefly before taking Jeremiah's offered hand and formally introducing himself.

Jeremiah smiles, looks my brother straight in the eyes, and lies.

"It's nice to meet you. I'm new here; but I'm sure you probably figured that out by now; small town and all," he says everything convincingly; using the right tone as well as his hands to gesture an emphasis on "small town". I'm not sure my brother buys it yet. His face is set into that seemingly pleasant expression he uses when he's thinking something over. Usually "the face" is reserved for Noley and Andrew; but I'm not surprised he's using it now. Like Jeremiah said, he's new here. Johnny doesn't know what kind of person he is yet.

"Your sister was chosen to be my chaperone for the day; but she suddenly ran into the bathroom a few seconds ago. I called to her; but she didn't answer me and it made me worry that she was sick or something."

Johnny raises his eyebrows at me. I don't get sick unless there's kryptonite around.

"I know, I know," Jeremiah cuts in before I can let my brother know that I'm fine via a look of my own.

"I should've gone to get help; but I wanted to make sure she was well enough to be left alone before I actually left her alone.

"Lizzy?" Johnny inquires when Jeremiah's done lying, sort of. He mostly told the truth; which is probably what made the lie easier to tell, as well as believable.

"It's sort of true," I sigh heavily. Taking my cues from Jeremiah, I look my brother straight in the eyes and I lie to him. Sort of. While mostly telling the truth.

"I was trying to cut class and"-

"You? Why were you trying to cut class?" Johnny cuts in with a raise of his eyebrows.

"Sammy," I shrug while shifting my books to my other arm. They're not getting heavy. I'm just nervous.

"What about Sam?" my brother frowns.

"I don't want to be a tattle," I answer.

Johnny just looks at me, waiting for me to continue even though I really had no intention of going any farther. The look on his face is clearly saying 'you can tell me anything and you know it.'

"Well, you know how Sammy is; and he's been in all of my classes so far; and he keeps saying things about me…and um…" I glance back at Jeremiah; letting my brother know without words that Sammy wasn't just talking about me and me alone.

"And he's not the only one. I keep hearing the other kids talking too and I just needed a break. Are you gonna tell Mama?" I ask while simultaneously, and nonverbally, pleading for him not to. I don't like making trouble for her. She's got Noley and Andrew for that. And trust me, they're enough.

"I won't have anything to tell if you get to class right now. You've only missed a few minutes," Johnny smiles.

I grin back excitedly and hug him quickly before exiting the bathroom. That was so close; and I can't believe it worked!

But then, I'm not so sure that it did work. A few steps down the hallway later I realize that my brother's still in the bathroom with Jeremiah. It makes me nervous again, so I stop to listen.

"So…you couldn't check to make sure she was okay from outside the stall?" I hear Johnny ask.

"You're right to be suspicious of me. I did lie to you and I want to apologize."

'Oh no,' I think to myself; but I don't go back in there even though I really want to. I just stand still and listen.

"Lied about what?" This from Johnny of course.

"Her being sick. You're her brother and I thought I'd get her in trouble if I mentioned she was trying to skip class; but then she just told you the truth without hesitation. You two must be very close," Jeremiah answers smoothly.

"We are close; but not close enough to share the same stall," my brother replies in a tone that suggests he doesn't think Jeremiah and I should be close enough to share the same stall either.

"I am sorry about that. It was inappropriate. I let my pride get the best of me."

'Pride?' I frown.

"Pride?" Johnny echoes my thoughts.

"I couldn't get her to come out," Jeremiah chuckles softly. It's a fake chuckle. Jeremiah never chuckles. But it's a good chuckle. I'd believe it was real if I didn't know any better.

"I told her that if she didn't come out and go to class I'd go in and get her. She didn't come out. I told her that I'd count to five. She still didn't come out. I counted to five and she called my bluff. I had to either go in and get her like I threatened to do or admit defeat. My pride wouldn't let me admit defeat."

I can't see him; but I imagine he shrugged his shoulders after that sentence.

"She's not usually so stubborn," Johnny says; but I can hear the smile in his voice.

Jeremiah chuckles again. "Honestly, I don't blame her. The other students have been talking about me and her nonstop. By the time first period was over she was beet red"-

I leave and go to class then. I don't need to hear anymore. I heard the most important part; and that part is the fact that my brother believes Jeremiah.

When I open my classroom door, all eyes turn to me. I knew it would happen. That's what happens when you're late.

"Lizzy, sit down please. You may have missed a few things by being late; but I assure you, an empty desk is not easy to miss."

Mrs. Pratt. One of the strictest teachers here at Smallville High; in Smallville period. No one even snickers at the remark she made. She wouldn't have allowed it.

I find myself a seat quickly. Like she said, an empty desk isn't hard to miss. As soon as I sit, everyone's eyes turn to the door once again as my brother and Jeremiah enter the room.

Mrs. Pratt doesn't say anything to them. My brother had her permission to go fetch me and "Heath" is the new kid.

Johnny sits in front of me; Jeremiah sits about three desks across from me; and no one whispers about Heath and Lizzy.

I'm starting to feel better. And I stay feeling better throughout the whole class…then came lunch period. I tried to sit by myself outside; but Jeremiah decided to sit with me, evoking more stares and more whispers because he didn't just sit next to me. He sat really close. But that was just to slip me my other phone without other people noticing. His mother gave it to me a while ago, but I don't get to keep it with me. When I'm done using it, I have to send it back with Jeremiah. Its sole purpose is to allow me to communicate with him via text so that I can't be overheard by my father or siblings. Not that we have to use it often. I can actually count on my fingers the amount of times that we have. If no one's around to actually see us, we usually resort to sign language. His mother taught us when I was little. I thought it was a fun game and I showed it to Casey; that way we could "talk" whenever we weren't supposed to talk. Not that we talk much now anyway. I've been thinking about showing Noley; but I'm afraid of what she'll do with it.

He texts me that I'm not to come over anymore. Ever. No matter what.

I text him back, asking why.

He sends me one more text before getting up, taking my phone back, and walking away.

It said "dangerous."

That concerns me. What kind of dangerous? Though there's really only one kind of dangerous; but I want to know exactly what's so dangerous that I can't visit anymore. I may not get along with Jeremiah; but I love his mother. She's almost like a second mother to me. I don't think it's fair for me not to be able to visit again; or say goodbye at least.

I stand up and look around myself quickly. I can see my siblings and my cousin; but they're really not paying attention to me.

I catch up with Jeremiah; but he keeps walking; so, I hurry and get in front of him.

"Why?" I sign.

"I already told you," he signs back.

"Says who?"

"She said so," he signs. He's referring to his mother; but I don't believe him and I tell him so.

"I swear on Fluffy," he signs back to me.

Now I know he's serious. He probably loves his pet snake more than he loves his mother. Yes, he has a pet snake named fluffy. We were kids when we named him.

"Promise me," he signs.

I don't want to promise him that I'll stay away; but I do it anyway. If it's what his mother wants then I'll do it.

~~{(O)(O)(O)(O)(O)(O)}~~

A/N: I know, I know; another OC; but hey, it's my birthday today. Literally. I just turned 24 so be nice.