Disclaimer: I do not own Kickin' It, Lord of the Rings, or Iron Man, let alone Iron Man 2

I know, I know, long wait for the update again. Sorry guys, but I promise that this shouldn't be a disappointment. And if it is, well, shame on me.

Alright, I confess: I avoided Jack all throughout the next day. Milton's question had gotten me thinking a lot about my relationship with Jack, and it was driving me crazy. So every time I saw him I turned tail. I left school as early as possible so I wouldn't have to see him. I ignored his texts and phone calls.

The weather had gotten even colder than it had been before overnight. I actually had to carry a thermos of hot chocolate to school this morning to keep from freezing. By the time I'd gotten home again, the temperature had seeped completely through my jacket and into my skin, and I really needed a hot shower.

I walked upstairs and into the bathroom, and got in the shower. The steaming water was heaven on my body, the heat slowly working its way through my limbs and making the stiffness slowly subside. As soon as every trace of the cold was gone, I shut off the water, got out, and dressed in my Bobby Wasabi t-shirt over a dark green long-sleeved top, jeans, and my favorite bunny slippers.

My plan was to go downstairs and have a Lord of the Rings movie marathon, it being Friday and all. But as soon as I got downstairs, I was confronted with a sight that could be intimidating or funny, depending on who you are and what your mood is. I, for one, wanted to laugh but was too tired to do so.

Jerry and Eddie stood directly in front of the closed front door. They were shoulder-to-shoulder, glaring at me with their arms crossed.

"Hey guys," I said slowly. "How'd you get in?

"We know where you keep the key, Kim," Eddie said.

"Alright, then. Why are you here?"

"I don't know," Jerry informed me, maintaining his irritated expression. "Eddie and Milton just told me to come here and look mad."

I looked at Eddie expectantly. After a bit of a staring contest, he finally threw his hands up in exasperation and said, "We're here, Kimberly, because you're making Jack insane ignoring him like this!" He ducked as I tried to punch him for calling me Kimberly, and continued, "Whatever Jack did to make you so mad, he's trying to find out what and fix it, don't you see?"

I crossed my arms. "Oh, he knows why I'm avoiding him, the eavesdropper. He should just drop it." I turned and walked toward the kitchen.

The guys followed me, and Eddie kept persisting. "Oh, you know that's not why. You may be temperamental," – duck – "but you really aren't one to hold a grudge."

"He's right." Jerry put in. I got some cherry pie from the fridge, set it on a plate, and stuck it in the microwave before turning to face the Latino boy. "We know you, Kim. You've forgiven us every time we do something stupid. Even with your enemies, you just beat the crud out of them then walk away. Well, assuming Jack doesn't hold you back when you try," he added as an afterthought.

I rolled my eyes slightly as the microwave beeped. I got out the pie and attacked it with a fork. "What's your point? What do you want from me?"

"We want you to go over to Jack's house, right now, and tell him what's going on; so that we can all go back to our normal lives." Eddie looked resolute.

I told him through a mouthful of pie, "Make me."

"Alright, I will." He made towards me, the quickly stopped. "Jerry, you make her."

Jerry shook his head vigorously at the other guy, then looked at me. "Kim, please just go."

I sighed exasperatedly. "Fiiiine, I'll go. After I finish my pie." I turned back to the delicious dessert and kept shoveling it into my mouth. But as soon as the last bite was eaten and I looked up, Jerry was pulling my arms through my jacket and Eddie was pushing me through the door. Next thing I knew I was on my front porch and my entire being was once again engulfed in freezing air. Well, except my feet. It turns out that my slippers are really good at trapping heat.

Rolling my eyes and turning to leave, I heard muffled voices from the other side of the door. "Do you think there's any of that pie left? I'm starving."

"I don't know. I'm gonna go see what movies she's got." Pause. "SWAG, did you know she's into Pirates of the Caribbean?"

"Eddie, don't you DARE touch my pie!" I shouted. Silence. Satisfied, I started down the street to Jack's house.

Sadly, the Andersons lived several blocks away from me, giving my body the chance to absorb the cold again. Twenty minutes later found me on my best friend's front porch, shivering violently. I carefully pressed one finger onto the doorbell. A minute later Jack appeared, holding a large bowl of popcorn. His eyes widened when he saw me standing in front of him.

I took a deep breath. "Jack, I–"

"Get in here." Jack swiftly wrapped his free arm around my shoulders and pulled me inside. "You look like death."

"Gee, thanks," I muttered. He rolled his eyes and guided me to the couch, sitting me down. He left for a few minutes, and then returned with a large mug of cocoa and a thick, fuzzy blanket. He handed me the drink and wrapped the blanket around me, and took a seat in a chair across from me.

"You remembered." I looked down at the hot chocolate and smiled. He knew it was the one thing guaranteed to make me feel better no matter what. I felt a smile playing across my lips. Genuinely this time, I said, "Thank you."

Jack smiled back at me. "You're welcome."

I stared at him a little sadly. "Jack, I'm sorry for avoiding you. The guys told me it was making you crazy."

"Yeah, what's been going on with you?" His eyebrows furrowed in that cute way of his when he's confused. "You're like, really happy one minute, pissed off the next, and before you know it, you're in front of my house looking like a Kimsicle."

I stared at the floor. "I take it that you overheard my conversation with Milton the other day."

"Kim, I'm s–"

"No, let me talk. You don't have to apologize." Words began to spill out of my mouth. "I saw that you were getting suspicious, because when I was talking about Julie and Milton's date and you asked why he freaked out, I knew I wouldn't be able to lie to you convincingly. So it was either embarrass myself in front of you with the truth, or let you assume possibly the worst. I talked to Julie that night…" I swallowed some hot chocolate nervously. "And…that conversation presented a new problem. She said that you might get…um…well…jealous." I felt flames dancing on my cheeks.

I glanced up. Jack only looked more confused. "Why would I be jealous?"

Shrugging, I told him about how Julie had noticed how overprotective he gets of me whenever I have 'romantic relations,' as she would put it.

Silence followed, during which I kept drinking and avoided Jack's eyes. Eventually I couldn't take it. "Please, say something."

"It's just…" Jack started. "About what Milton asked you. Why didn't you want me to know really?"

I looked at him incredulously. "You really don't get it, do you?"

"Okay, both he and you have said that to me now. What am I not getting?"

"Forget it." I muttered. "My turn. Why aren't you even a little bit disturbed? I mean, I kind of want to puke every time I think about it, and the fact that it happened at all between two of your best friends doesn't strike you as even the tiniest bit weird?"

Jack's cheeks steadily turned an interesting shade of pink. "I don't know."

"Aw, come on Jack –"

"No, Kim, I really don't know why." Jack ran his fingers through his hair, looking frustrated. "All I do know is what finding out made me think about."

I relaxed into the back of the couch, tired. "What is that?"

He breathed in deeply. "I did the mental math, and the kiss was only a little while after the Cotillion Ball."

Well, that caught me off guard.

He continued, "For a minute there, when we were dancing, I'd thought that we were kind of having a moment. But then the music changed, and it was gone." He stared at his feet, and his voice grew quiet. "And lately, especially thinking about that, I feel like, maybe… I should've been the one you kissed.

Yep, that boy was definitely blushing now.

I said softly, "I thought you didn't care." After a moment of silence, I felt myself smirk slightly. "Sooo…"

Jack looked up at me darkly. "So what?"

"So at that first tournament, when I was still with the Black Dragons, it was you who had a crush on me, huh?"

He stood up and crossed his arms. "Whaaat? Pfft. No."

"Mmhm." I stood too and faced him, mimicking his stance. "Prove it."

"You want me to prove it?"

"Yes."

"You really want me to prove it."

"That's right, Jack."

"Alright Kim, I pr–"

As you probably guessed, he never finished his sentence. That's because at that point I knew he was never going to man up and make a freaking move. So I unfolded my arms and kissed him.

I kept it soft and sweet. I felt Jack uncross his arms too and gently place his hands on my waist. I put mine on the back of his neck.

After a few seconds I broke off and pulled back slightly, staring into his beautiful hazel-brown eyes. It wasn't long before he smiled and said, "I knew you'd always had a crush on me."

I laughed and hugged him. I felt a ray of sunlight shine through the window and land on us, heating our bodies. For the first time in days, it was warm again.

"Nonsense. You know I suck at lying, Jack."

So maybe it was a little cliché, but I think that it was sweet. I hope you guys liked the ending; I did my best to make it good and realistic to the characters, but romantic at the same time.

Please be on the lookout for my new stories! I promise they will come. I have two more planned centered around Jack and Kim, if you're a Kick supporter.

Since this is the last chapter, please please please review! Everyone loves reviews, myself included. I really hope that this was a satisfying spin-off of the kiss between Milton and Kim.

Love y'all,

Reyna S.