"He would never talk but he was not shy
She was a street smart girl but she could not lie
They were perfect for each other"

-Razorblade, The Strokes

One would think that after all the things the five members of the Breakfast Club had said to each other in detention, there would be no reason for them to be nervous around each other. But every member of the group found themselves experiencing that nervous feeling in the pit of their stomachs as they went about their school routines that Friday. Allison was nervous about her very first date, Andy was nervous about making a good impression on Allison, Brian was nervous about being the third wheel, Claire was nervous about getting through her date with Bender that night without saying something to upset him or make him think she was a raging bitch, and Bender was nervous about getting through the evening without completely fucking it up with his own unique brand of self-sabotage.

They were all so nervous, in fact, that Friday at school was almost as if things were back to how they'd been before detention. None of them so much as even looked at each other if they did happen to pass in the halls. That would have just made any of them more nervous. And at lunch Allison retreated to her solitude on the football field, Brian ate with his honors friends in the cafeteria (to avoid Bender and Allison and not, he told himself, to look for Saidie to see where she sat), Claire decided to eat alone in her car to be alone with her thoughts, Bender went to the burnout wall to get as high as possible so he wouldn't have to think about Claire, and Andrew worked through lunch to study for a test he'd barely been able to study for last night, due to stressing out about his date with Allison.

Bender had found himself, though he'd never have admitted it, anxiously waiting for the phone to ring on Thursday night, and when it was almost 8 and he hadn't heard anything, he'd almost started to consider calling Brian to see if he'd heard from Claire. But just as he was debating this, the phone had finally rang. Bender kept a phone next to his bed so that if he were expecting a call he could always answer it before either of his parents could get to it. He answered it almost on the first ring. "What?" he said.

The person on the other end cleared their throat. "Is this Ben…John?" Bender knew right away that it was her. No other girl he knew would ever sound so nervous on the phone with him.

"Cherry?" He asked, already knowing the answer.

"Hi." She said simply.

"Hey."

"Um, I got your note from Alli. Um, thanks…" Claire said, almost as a question. Bender just smirked.

"I've never been thanked for writing someone a note before. Come to think of it, I can't remember ever writing a note to someone before." He thought aloud.

Claire giggled. "Sorry, that was stupid." She said. "Um, I just wanted to say that I would really like to do that. Hang out with you tomorrow, I mean. So, um, yes."

Bender couldn't resist antagonizing her a little. "Really? You mean Little Miss Popular doesn't already have plans?"

"Well my friend Charlotte did invite me to go bowling with her and some of the rest of the group. I said no, but I can always tell her to count me in, if you want. There'll be plenty of jocks and pretty boys there, I'm sure." Claire challenged. Bender knew she'd gotten him.

"Please. As if anyone could prefer going bowling with the Future Asswipes of America to an evening in the company of John Bender." He said. After he said it, he thought maybe he shouldn't have, but Claire had just laughed, and said, "See you tomorrow night."

And that had been the last contact any of the group had had with each other prior to date night.

Andrew picked Allison up that evening, having agreed with Brian that he would meet them later.

She was dressed in a black rocker T-shirt, strategically tied and ripped in certain places to make the shirt look more feminine, and a blue skirt that was somewhat shorter than the one she'd worn in detention, but was still ruffled and loose. Her hair was pulled back the way Claire had done in detention, and she was wearing makeup-not the black shit or the stuff Claire had put on her, but blue eye shadow and pink lipstick. Andrew thought she looked absolutely gorgeous—a look that was all her own, but still really pretty.

He told her so when she got into his truck. She smiled, looking surprised. "Thanks!" she said. "Where are we going?"

"I thought we'd go to the art museum." Andy said sweetly, almost proud of himself.

But his smile faded when he noticed the scrutinizing way Allison was looking at him. "Why?" she asked, in the way she had that could make a person feel like an absolute idiot.

"Well, I thought it might be fun. And I know you like art. You could maybe teach me a thing or two."

"Or did you just want to go somewhere you knew we wouldn't run into any of your friends?" Allison practically spit out.

Andrew was shocked. He was beginning to think he'd made a huge mistake listening to Bender. "What? No! I just wanted to do something I knew you'd enjoy!"

"That conveniently happens to be on the outskirts of town, far away from anyone you know."

"Allison, it's not like that! I wasn't… trying to hide you or anything. I can't help it if the things you like are far out."

"I thought we'd be going to the movies or something."

"I considered that, but I didn't think you'd enjoy that."

Allison got that daring look in her eyes. "Because I'm a weirdo? Because I'm such a mess that you didn't think I could even enjoy a typical teenage movie night with you, Sporto?" It was clear that Andrew had hurt Allison's feelings without even having a clue or meaning to.

"Allison. I didn't mean it like that. I'm sorry. I just really wanted you to have fun. I've been thinking about tonight all week." Andrew said, almost whispering. Allison softened slightly at this.

"Why are you always so concerned with what everyone else will think? With trying to please everyone but yourself?" Allison asked him.

"I'm not. At least, I'm trying not to. Not anymore. You were right. It is a problem. But that's the thing. See, Allison, you're the first person who has given enough of a crap to actually ask me about what I want and to want me to please myself. Everyone else in my entire life has always only cared about what I can do for them. No one cares about what I want or think. So, because of that, because you're the only one that cares about what I want, I thought I'd do something nice for you. Is that so wrong?"

Allison looked close to tears again, and Andrew couldn't tell if this were her pitying look again, or a pure moment of connection between them.

Finally, Allison said "Okay" so softly Andrew almost couldn't hear her. And as Andrew finally pulled off, she added, "But next time, Sporto, we do something normal for teenagers. Becoming a predictable weirdo would defeat the whole point of being a weirdo." Andrew smiled. She was joking, but Andy knew what she meant.

Brian was waiting for them outside the art museum when they arrived. He smiled nervously, and Andrew realized, after the debacle in the car, just how grateful he was that Brian had agreed to tag along.

But the rest of their evening went off without any problems. Andy could see why Bender had suggested the place. Allison was certainly in her element. For someone who rarely said anything, Allison seemed to open up that night. She had a lot to say about all the paintings, and Brian and Andrew hung on her every word. It was fascinating to see this stuff, that would have been boring with anyone else, from her perspective.

There was one painting that spoke to all three of them. They stood in front of it a long time. It was one of those spiritual mother-and-child paintings, with the mother holding her child in her arms and looking down at it adoringly. They all knew they were thinking the same thing. It was almost as if they couldn't take their eyes off of it. Allison wondered what it would be like to be loved like that. Andrew wondered if his mom loved him, why she'd left and why she'd let his father treat him as a tool instead of a kid all these years. And Brian didn't even think his mother had it in her to look adoringly at him; everything she said to him was cold and academic.

Finally, Andrew tried to break the silence before he broke down the way he'd done in that library on Saturday. He joked, "It's a good thing Bender's not here to see this one. He'd probably try to knock it down." It was a horrible joke to make, but Allison and Brian smiled slightly and they all moved away from the painting.

At dinner, the three of them made sure to keep the mood light by catching up on their weeks. Andrew noticed that Brian asked Allison a lot of questions about art, and listened intently to the answers. That struck Andrew as weird; he'd never have pegged Brian as interested in art. But he listened just as intently, happy to keep Allison talking and smiling.

Brian left them alone for awhile, saying he was going to find a pay phone and apologize again to his friend Dell. But Andrew saw through that, knowing that Brian just wanted to give them time to themselves.

Andrew scooted closer to Allison. "I'm really glad we got to hang out tonight." He said shyly.

Allison smiled slightly. "Are you going to kiss me, Andrew?" she teased. Andy smiled back, but then said, "I think that's the first time you've called me Andrew."

Allison got quiet again and just squeaked. Then she shrugged. Andrew leaned over and kissed her. It was a very different kiss from their first one outside of the school after detention. That one had felt like goodbye. This one felt sweet, passionate, and like a real first date kiss ought to feel. Allison wondered if this was what normal girls, girls like Claire, got to feel like all the time.

Back inside town, Bender and Claire met at the arcade. Bender took one look at Claire, and his eyes got as wide as they did when she'd kissed him on the neck in the closet. "What did you do, Cherry?" He asked her.

Claire just smiled at him. She knew exactly what he was talking about. There was nothing pristine or prom queen-ish about the way Claire looked tonight. Her flaming red hair, usually perfectly styled and curly, was flatter and messier, in a very sultry way. Her lips bore really dark red lipstick, and to Bender they looked luscious. And she was wearing a short denim skirt, a Ramones tank top that she'd borrowed from Allison, and a leather jacket, matched with her black eye shadow. Bender had a feeling Claire didn't even own black shadow, at least not until very recently. She looked absolutely hot. And Bender knew this effort was all for him.

Claire shrugged. "Just trying something new." She said. Before he could stop himself, Bender had walked over to Claire, pushed her up against the wall, and kissed her. Hard.

"I guess that means you like it." Claire tried to joke, catching her breath, and covering her very red face.

Bender just smirked. "Let's go." He said.

Despite the fact that they were both out of place, they managed to enjoy themselves. Claire found it nice to have fun that wasn't at someone else's expense (the kind of fun she had with her friends), and Bender thought sometimes it was relaxing to not have to be such a tough badass with all his defenses up.

Brian was right about Claire not knowing anything about the games. Bender helped her as best he could and, just as Brian advised, he got to put his arms around Claire a few times. He could feel Claire getting hot and bothered, and Bender was thrilled to get that reaction out of her, in a way he never was with other girls.

When they'd had enough, they ordered burgers (which Claire insisted on paying for) and sat down in the café.

"I gotta say, Cherry, you look so hot I almost forgot I was out with a princess."

"So are you saying I don't normally look hot, John?"

"I'm saying normally you look….atrractive. Hot is different from good looking or attractive."

"How so?" Claire asked.

"If you're attractive, you're passable. It'll get you a few dates, But hot… hot is everything. It will get you everything. Hot is forever. If you're hot, even when you get older and your looks start to fade, the hotness is still there. Because it makes you eternally cool, and it never goes away."

"So, what are you? Are you hot, attractive, or something else?" Claire asked inquisitively.

There was that mischievous smirk again. "Why don't you tell me, Cherry?"

Claire rolled her eyes, smiling. "You're trying to trick me into telling you you're hot, and it's not going to work."

Bender smirked even harder. "You just did." He said. Claire threw a piece of bread at him.

Then she said, "I wonder how Andrew and Allison's date is going."

"Relax, Cherry. They're fine. Brian is there to make sure of it."

"What do you mean?"

"Brian. He's with Klepto and Sporto. Sporto asked him to go on the date with them? As a buffer? You knew this, right?" Bender asked.

Claire got a weird look on her face. "No! That is so not cool!"

"Um, Cherry? Is there a problem?"

"I don't like Brian being used like that. Andy didn't ask me, he didn't ask you. He asked Brian because he assumed Brian wouldn't have anything to do tonight. I mean, did he, like, ever stop to think how it would feel for Brian to be the third wheel on their date?"

"Brian didn't mind. I told him to tell Sporto to fuck off if he didn't want to do it."

Claire sighed. "I don't know. I just worry about him. People don't show him enough respect and I worry that any little thing could push him over the edge, and…..you know."

Bender knew that this was a load of crap. He'd spent more time with Brian than any of them, and he knew the last thing Brian was, was some fragile weakling.

"Cherry. He's not a child. He's not a fucking poor puppy dog who needs you protecting him."

Claire rolled her eyes. "How would you know? Everyone's not as macho and emotionally removed as you are. You don't care about Brian's feelings because you don't have any. Everything is all tough and hard with you. You wouldn't understand what it's like for me, or for Brian."

Bender felt like he'd been slapped in the face. After he'd put himself out there to ask her out, and after all the time he'd spent with Brian and said things to him that he wouldn't have even said in detention, for Claire to…to attack him like that and tell him he didn't have feelings? That was the living fucking end.

"You…you bitch. You don't know what the fuck you're talking about. You don't know shit about me and you know even less about Brian."

Claire's face flushed, this time not with cute embarrassment, but with anger and hurt.

Bender took a deep breath. "Queenie, I think… I think we should just forget this conversation before…." He trailed off.

"Yeah." Claire said. And they sat in silence for a long time.

Finally Bender sighed and said, "Look, Cherry. I shouldn't have yelled at you."

Claire couldn't believe Bender was actually apologizing to her. She figured she should meet him halfway. "I'm sorry I said you didn't have feelings."

Bender nodded.

And that was really all they needed to say.

Before they knew it, Bender had Claire up against a wall again kissing her goodbye before they went their separate ways.

Brian Johnson woke up Saturday morning realizing that John Bender was perhaps the smartest person he'd ever met. He had told Brian that perhaps he'd been living his life all this time thinking he'd been trying to make things work with women, but he was coming to realize he'd never so much as asked a woman out. In fact, he wouldn't even know how to do it, if he wanted to.

And that was why he found himself sitting on the front steps of his school on another Saturday afternoon waiting for Bender to come out of detention.

Bender stopped short when he saw Brian, the source of his fight with Claire, sitting there. "Big Bri. What are you doing here?"

Brian smiled at him. "Hey, man." He said in an unusually cheery voice. Bender eyed him suspiciously. "What's with you?" he asked.

"Uh..nothing, just thought I'd come by and see how things went with Vernon."

"Peachy." Bender said, sarcastically.

They started to walk across the football field. "So,um… what are you up to the rest of the day?"

Again with the suspicious look. "Right now I'm going to smoke. Beyond that, I don't know."

"Okay. Can I come with you?" Brian asked.

"Fine, dweebie. Under the bleachers. In case Dick comes out."

And that's where they went.

While they smoked, Brian asked, "How was your date?"

"Picture our detention. You know. One minute we were arguing, the next we're all hot for each other?"

"Yeah?"

"That's about how last night was."

"Oh. Are you guys okay?" Brian asked, genuinely concerned.

"We're swell, dweebie." Then he said, "Hey, Big Bri, not that I mind the company or anything, but you wanna tell me why you're really here?"

"I..uh…. kinda… wanted to ask y-your advice on something."

"Okay. Shoot."

"How do you ask a girl out?"

Bender began to cough loudly, almost hacking. Brian patted him on the back until Bender shoved him off. "What did you just ask me, Big Bri?"

"It's stupid, I know."

"Since when have you decided to ask a girl out?" Bender asked.

"I…uh..h-haven't…that is, decided anything. I'm just asking about the general concept. I was just curious."

"Well, you can start by fucking not asking questions like that. There is no way. That shit only works on airheads, and other kinds of girls you don't want. The kind of girls you want, that are actually worth a shit? They see right through that shit. There are no games, no strategies. You say whatever the hell you want. She either says yes or no. If you plan it out, it's too rehearsed and phony, or you'll stumble over it."

Brian just nodded. "Well how can I tell if a girl is interested before I ask her out?"

"Well…if she smiles more than normal when you're around that's a pretty good fucking start. One thing I've learned, Big Bri, is that girls aren't like us. We're simple. We either like a girl or we don't. Girls aren't like that. Too many damn layers, too many variables. You can't break them down to a science, man. It won't work."

Brian just nodded again, more thoughtfully. Finally, when they were done smoking, Bender got up and said, "I'm getting out of here."

Brian got up to leave too.

As they walked off of the football field, Bender kept the conversation going. "Me and my friend Freddie are getting together later to work on some music with some other guys. Too bad you gave up playing the guitar, Big Bri, or you could join us."

Brian laughed at that. The thought of rocking out with John Bender was too funny to resist.

Bender kept talking. "Talk about getting girls, man, that's the way to do it. Most girls love musicians. It's one thing they have in common. Did you fucking see the way the Princess looked at me when all I did was mention I play the guitar—''

Bender cut himself off because that was when it hit him. Of course. That look. That look that Claire had on her face when she found out Bender was a musician. That look of pure lust and adoration and admiration. It was the same look Saidie had had on her face when she talked to Bender about Brian on Thursday. That was why everything about Saidie at that time had reminded him of something—it reminded him of his Cherry. Saidie had looked exactly the way Claire did at the pizza place. Like she was wrapped up in adoring something….or someone.

Bender smirked to himself. He didn't know what to do with his current thoughts, but he felt it appropriate to ask, "Hey, Big Bri, how about another trip to the record store?"