Aladdin honestly felt like he was in an alternate world. He had just come over to see Clopin and go out clubbing tonight. He wasn't expecting an overly emotional Angelica in tears. And he definitely wasn't expecting her to kiss him. He would be lying if he said he didn't think Angelica was attractive. She was absolutely beautiful. They had been friends for a long time. Aladdin was good buddies with her brother Clopin. He had never really looked at her in that way before but now that he was kissing her, he was rapidly changing his mind.

Her lips tasted like mangoes. He pulled her closer to him to taste her more. He felt her hands wrap tightly around his neck. In their feverish need to be closer to one another, Angelica somehow ended up on his lap. Aladdin ran his fingers through her long brown hair as he continued assaulting her lips with his. He was surprised when he felt her tingling fingers trail down his chest and pull at the bottom of his shirt, tugging at it, itching to pull it off.

Aladdin momentarily broke the kiss long enough to comply to her request. He got excited when he saw the eager and hungry look in her eye. She pounced on him, kissing him, running her fingers over the taught muscles of his chest. Aladdin's hands wandered to under her white t-shirt. His body temperature rose with the sudden skin on skin contact as he smoothly removed her top. It pleased him when he felt her hands direct him to her bra clasp. He smiled against her lips. He liked her forwardness. He couldn't wait for more.

He felt her hands hovering over his belt buckle. Then he remembered they were in the common area of the apartment.

"Dude, they have beds for this you know."

The voice of Clopin interrupted their actions. Angelica bolted up, hurriedly putting her t-shirt back on and looking at her brother in embarrassment.

"Clopin! I didn't know you were home!"

He smiled.

"I didn't know you were into Aladdin."

Angelica blushed.

"I'm not. I mean...I...it's not what it looks like."

"Yeah, man. It just kinda happened..." Aladdin added looking as embarrassed as Angelica.

Suddenly Aladdin noticed that the hurt and shame had returned in Angelica's eyes. After what had just occurred, he wanted nothing more than to take all her pain away. It was weird to feel that toward a girl a few minutes ago he considered to be only his friend.

"Whatever. Like I care. You ready to go, Al?"

"Uh. Yeah. Let me just find my shirt," Aladdin responded frantically searching.

"It's on the lamp..." Angelica shyly whispered, blushing.

Aladdin nabbed his shirt and quickly threw on his shirt and stood up as if the couch was hot as coal. Angelica frowned, obviously still embarrassed.

"Ready."

"Let's go then. See ya later, sis," Clopin said nonchalantly as he headed toward the door.

Aladdin had a confused look on his face like he wasn't sure how to react or where to go. He followed Clopin, shaking his head back to reality and awkwardly waving and smiling goodbye at Angelica. When they shut the door she took the alone time to fall forward onto a pillow and groan loudly.

What on earth was she thinking? She was angry at Jack yet she still wanted to be with him – but still wasn't sure how to go about telling him. Jack had hurt her pride and her feelings by his suggestion and it made her very upset. Emotions about her tumultuous relationship with the feared smuggler got the best of her. They came bubbling up in angry tears. And Aladdin just happened to be there when it happened. She hoped that this incident wouldn't ruin the friendship they had. She was grateful her brother had walked in when he did. She would be lying if she said she didn't enjoy the kissing and the touching that went along with it. But her heart belonged to Jack and she couldn't think of giving herself to someone else. She hoped Jack would be at Pridelands tonight. She needed to talk to him with a clear head.

Jack was in an equally tortured mood regarding their relationship. He walked back to his temporary apartment deep in thought about the status of his relationship with Angelica. Her fiery temper was definitely an attractive factor to him but he feared that he had gone too far in provoking it. Of course he didn't want her to give her body to the stupid coastguard. He just wanted her to do a bit of teasing. The last thing he wanted was someone like Norrington getting his hands on his precious Angelica.

He thought about how to mend things with her during his stay when he walked through the door of his building and bumped right into the back of someone.

"Oy!" he shouted, a bit dazed at first.

"Oh. I'm sorry!" a sweet girly voice responded.

Jack looked up to see a bright-eyed redhead standing in front of his apartment door.

"Make it a habit to loiter in the hallway, do we, luv?" he asked, taking a key out of his pocket.

"No. Just getting up the courage to knock, I guess." She sighed. "Wait, you live here?"

"For now, luv. What is your name?"

"I'm Anya."

Jack furrowed his brow, recognizing the name.

"Anya...Anya...where have I heard that before? Oh! Yes. Flynn said something about you being back in town. I remember because Will looked like the biggest whelp I'd ever seen when he heard the news."

Anya blushed at the mention of Will's reaction. She couldn't wait to see him and the guys again.

"Come on in, luv. Will should be up by now. We had a long night, you see."

"What exactly do you do?" Anya asked following Jack inside.

"We are...in...the import export business. We ship the goods, luv."

Technically he was telling the truth. He just left out the smuggling part.

Anya nodded, remembering Will's fondness for ships and the sea.

"Jack! Is that you? Back already? What's wrong, Angelica turn you away again?" Will asked as he appeared from one of the bedrooms, putting a clean shirt on and laughing at Jack's expense.

Anya turned to face him. His smiling face transforming into an open-mouthed shock.

"Anya."

Her name on his lips was like a siren's call. It was soft and sweet and delicate. Anya blushed and smiled in spite of herself.

"Found her on the doorstep, I did. Said she's your friend from way back when. I'm sure you'll have loads to talk about!" Jack announced heading toward the other bedroom. "Now if you'll excuse me, I must ready myself for the festivities tonight!"

Jack disappeared and Will and Anya were left alone.

Will was at a loss for words. He'd dreamed of this day since he could remember but no words were forthcoming. He wanted nothing more than to tell her how happy he was to see her and wrap her up in his embrace and hold her until the end of time. But it had been a lot of years since they'd spoken to one another. And Will was sure Anya still thought of him as a good friend and nothing more. Now that she was back he made a mental note to change that effective immediately.

"Hi, Will."

Her voice was softer than he remembered, more adult like.

"It's so good to have you back, Anya."

"It's good to be back. I've missed you guys."

Will had been hoping she would have left out the 'guys' part of her sentence but he should have been expecting it. His heart broke a little knowing that Anya still thought of him as a friend.

"Flynn and Aladdin will be happy to see you."

She smiled. Her eyes wandering around searching for something to say.

"Please, sit down. We have a lot of catching up to do."

Will motioned for her to sit at the small dining room table that was in the kitchen. He pulled her chair out for her and took a seat across from her, folding his hands on the table, eager to hear her speak.

"What brings you back?" he asked, deeply curious.

Anya looked down at the small wood table and sighed unsure of how to begin.

"Well...it's a long story. But in a nutshell...I found my family."

"What? That's amazing!"

She nodded, nervously. Will was curious as to why she wasn't more elated. Anya had dreamed of finding her family. She hoped and prayed for it every night before lights out. She told Will countless times that she wanted nothing more than a place to belong. He had longed to tell her that she belonged with him but now was not the time nor the place. He listened as she continued.

"Yeah. Yeah. It really is. I have a grandmother named Marie and a cousin – Sophie. And as it turns out I have an older brother."

"Wow. Talk about finding family!"

"I know. And everything seems to be going well since I found out about them."

Will could tell that Anya was troubled about something.
"Okay, just because we haven't seen each other in years, doesn't mean I can't still read your face like a book."

Anya smiled and laughed softly.

"Anya, tell me. What's bothering you?"

She took a have sigh.

"Something is just off. They've known about me all this time. And they chose after my biological mother mysteriously vanishes and my father dies to come find me. My grandmother claims that my mother hid me away to spite my father."

"That's pretty messed up."

"I know. And when I asked Adam about it he got angry and told me never to speak of her again."

"Adam?"

"My brother. Adam Beastman."

"Adam Beastman is your brother?"

She nodded as if it wasn't a big deal.

"Are you telling me that you're the biological member of one of the richest families in Fantasia?"

"It's not that big a deal, Will. Family is family."

He frowned.

"I know. I mean. It's just, you dream of finding your family but you never dream of finding a family like the Beastmans."

"What's so special about them?"

"The Beastman name is a very respected and well known name in town. Anya, your father's business is one of the most profitable organizations in town, next to Shipman, Inc. and Sultan's Imports."

Anya sighed, seemingly unimpressed.

"So all they're known for is money and success."

"Isn't that a good thing?" Will asked, puzzled at her disappointment.

"I mean, yeah. But it's not an important part of a family to me. I wanted love and togetherness and warmth. I don't care about money. I have enough of that."

"Oh, yeah. I heard you were a model."

She nodded as if it was nothing special.

Will was amazed at her carefree attitude about her career and her new-found family life. It was a sharp contrast to the Anya he grew up with who wanted nothing more than to explore the world and find her family. He looked at her closely, still mesmerized by her beauty. Her red hair was a little darker than when he last saw her. Her eyes were still big and bright. Her lips were still slight and demure. He remembered his longing want to kiss them. He brought himself back to reality, discarding any romantic feelings for the moment.

He just got her back in her life. He didn't want to ruin it by revealing his romantic feelings for her too soon. He had to build their friendship back up from what it used to be. It would take time but he'd waited this long. He would wait longer if it meant Anya would finally be his.

"I don't know, Will. It's just not what I thought it would be."

He didn't have any time to answer. Jack had reappeared, fresh and clean in different clothes. He sauntered out into the kitchen with a smile on his face.

"Alright, ladies and gents. It's time to hit the town and enjoy all the Fantasia has to offer."

Will rolled his eyes.

Anya looked at Will.

"Seriously? Where'd you meet this guy?"

Jack leaned down. His face was right next to Anya's. Will controlled his need to jump up and throttle him.

"Why don't you come out with us tonight, luv, and find out."

Will cleared his throat, signaling for Jack to back off.

"Anya, would you like to go out with us tonight?" Will asked, more formally and respectfully than his friend.

Anya giggled and fervently nodded his head, wondering what the night ahead would bring.

A/N The creative juices are flowing for real, guys. Loved getting another fave and follow today. Glad you all are enjoying this story! It's possibly my favorite! What will happen at the bars and clubs tonight, huh? Any guesses? How are you liking the Will/Anya pairing? And what do you think will happen with the Aladdin/Angelica sitch? I want to hear from ya'll! PLEASE READ AND REVIEW AND I'LL UPDATE FASTER! :) xoxo JTD