*Poke poke* Did my compliments from last time overwhelm your mind? I didn't her from a lot of you last chapter. 'Twas sad. But, as always, onward!

Candace's POV time! I love writing as her XD hope you guys enjoy it!

Disclaimer: I do not own Phineas and Ferb.

CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR:

Silent

CANDACE

"Yeah, babe, you missed out on a great grilled cheese," I cooed into my phone, rinsing my plate in the sink. "Everyone else? Oh, most of them are out. Ferb's having a little chat with his girlfriend, but the others should be home soon."

As I expected, this brought questions from my fiancé, and I laughed.

"Well, let me restate; Ferb is having a little chat with his secret girlfriend. No one knows they're together. You know, I'm not even sure if they know that they're together, but you should see the way they act around each other."

I shifted my phone to my other ear, turning on my mom's sixteen-year-old coffee maker. It sputtered, clanged, and made a random beeping noise, but after a minute, warm, dark liquid started dripping into the pot.

"Yeah, that was the coffee pot. We should get Mom a new one for her birthday… Huh? Oh, I was talking about Isabella… yeah, Isabella Garcia-Shapiro. No joke."

I pinched my neck to the side, holding my phone with my shoulder while I dug around a cabinet for my favorite mug.

"Yeah, it is unexpected, but seriously, the way they look at each other… you should have seen them this morning, all shy and stuff. He was talking to her until he saw me, and zip, he was silent." I grabbed hazelnut creamer from the fridge. "Yeah, it's cute, right? Like he'd deign to speak to anyone but her. Ugh, where'd Mom put the sugar?"

My fiancé—eep! I could not call him that enough—reminded me that my mom recently ditched the giant sac of sugar for a quaint little jar shaped like a bird. The teasing tone in his voice wasn't needed, but when he was right, he was right; I grumbled out a thanks.

I swear, some days I would lose my head if not for him.

"Phineas? Oh no, he doesn't know… no… I don't know how he'd handle it. Back when I was first suspicious, I tried to bring it up, and let's just say it did not go as planned. The goof totally took everything the wrong way. Go figure."

I spooned two shots of sugar into my mug and settled down in front of the coffee pot, watching it drip, one little brown bead at a time. This old device was the closest thing to a modern torture machine.

"Oh, no, I know he's kissed her… no, he didn't tell me, but trust me, I know." More snarky comments from Jeremy's end of the phone, and I rolled my eyes. "Hey, I'm an excellent judge of character! I've been suspicious for a while. Although, this morning pretty much confirmed it… Yeah… Let's just say someone left a little evidence on Isabella's neck after that party they went to last night."

Laughter exploded from the speaker, and I pulled my phone back. Jeremy had one of those loud, full, and engaging laughs—just one of the infinite reasons I loved him—but through the phone, it was always an earful.

"Yeah. My eyes nearly bulged out of my head when I saw it. Oh, hey, I think I just heard Phineas pull into the driveway, so I'll let you go. Good luck in that meeting!" The coffee maker beeped, and I freed the pot from its cubby. "I love you too, babe. See you tonight."

I hung up my phone and poured my cup of coffee. I'd just added the creamer, when I heard the front door open.

"Candace!"

Next thing I knew, I was being glomped with a hug.

"Hey, Phin!" I laughed, putting my cup down before it could be squeezed out of my hands. "I can't breathe!"

"Sorry," Phineas murmured, but he held on for a few seconds longer before pulling back.

"You're in a good mood."

"I'm always in a good mood."

I smiled. "True. What's up, bro?"

"A lot, actually. You'd never believe what happened yesterday." He blushed, and that little mischief radar in the back of my head started dinging. Was this about the party? Did Phineas find out about Ferb and Isabella? "Well, actually, you probably would believe it, since apparently everyone else has known about it for years."

"Try me."

"Well…" Phineas smiled in an odd way I'd never seen before. It was almost… shy? I shook my head; Phineas was never shy. That couldn't be it. "At the party I—"

The stairs creaked, and we saw Isabella peak her head over the banister.

"It looks like you're going to find out the direct way," Phineas breathed, shaking his head amusedly. "Wish me luck, Candace!"

Wish… luck? What? But before I could clarify further, Phineas turned on his heel and made his way down the hall. I followed after him slowly, watching him approach Isabella, who was now waiting at the bottom of the stairs.

Now, in general, I wasn't the most observant person. I liked what was in my own world, and kept it to that as much as possible, but when it came to my brothers… it was a different story. There was a little switch in the back of my Busting Brain that turned itself on at the slightest hint of suspicious behavior.

It was blaring.

Phineas clasped his hands behind his back—a sign of nervousness, but expressed in a way he never had before. Isabella began messing with the folds of her skirt. They were so squeamish… something clearly happened between the two of them. Maybe at the party—

Oh. Oh. Oh! Oh, ho ho, no way. NO WAY!

"Hey," Phineas greeted her, looking down at his feet. "I didn't know you were here."

"Hi." Isabella glanced up at me awkwardly, then back down to my little brother. "I, uh, I haven't been here long. I didn't know you were helping your dad earlier. We…"

"Need to talk, don't we?" Phineas finished her sentence, his words more statement than question, and Isabella nodded.

My mind was swarming right now. Isabella's hair was now down—a clear attempt to hide her neck. Phineas was fidgety in unexpected ways. Ferb was nowhere to be seen. Could what I think was happening really be happening right now? Was that even possible?

"How about lunch?" Phineas smiled.

Isabella blinked. "Lunch?"

"I just made a grilled cheese. I don't mind making a few more," I offered, refusing to believe the crazy theory my mind had created seconds before. My idea… it was too out there. It couldn't be possible.

Phineas looked back at me and gulped. I realized he was gathering courage—something that he never had to rally. It was always just… there for him. Courage at the end of each fingertip.

"Thanks, Candace, but I had something else in mind." He looked back to Isabella, and our neighbor stared at Phineas like she couldn't believe he'd uttered those words. "Izzy, I was thinking maybe we could… go grab lunch. You know, out someplace. We… we have a lot to talk about."

Okay… I knew this was not the place for big sister interference. I'm sure this would have been easier for Phineas had I stayed in the kitchen. It most certainly would be overstepping boundaries to make my presence here even more pronounced, but… gah, I simply couldn't hold back my outburst!

"Are you asking her out on a date?" I blurted out, and both Phineas and Isabella turned to me, their faces betraying something absolutely scandalized. So… that was a yes. "Shit," I laughed, my gaze shifting between the two, "well… well, damn. I… I'm going to shut up now."

The two teenager's gazes slowly drifted from me back to each other, and Phineas rubbed the back of his neck.

"Um… just so you know, the answer to her question is yes." He took a deep breath. "I… I am." After that was said, Phineas stood a little taller, his confidence returning after the apparent loss of this burden; his intent was in the open now. "Do you want to go out to lunch with me?"

I wasn't quite sure what to expect from Isabella. Part of my brain wondered if she'd squeal and practically rip my little brother's arm off tugging him out the door. Another part wondered if she'd faint. Maybe she'd dreamily reply, I do, before giddily skipping around the house.

Another part of my brain wondered if she'd say no. If she'd tell Phineas that she had a boyfriend she'd been keeping secret. If she'd tell him that she was in love with his older brother.

I had no clue what the facts were anymore.

What really happened made me think that the recent idea that sprang up in my head was perhaps not as crazy as I initially thought; Isabella took one glance—one quick, subtle, and… forlorn (but I must have been imagining that, right?) glance—to the top of the stairs before looking back at Phineas.

One breath. One tentative smile.

"Yes."

In my periphery vision, I saw a shadow flicker against the upstairs wall—someone retreating from the top of the steps.

Phineas let out a sigh of relief, and some way or another, he and Isabella left; I wasn't paying much attention, since my mind was working overtime. My brain wove it all together, and my feet were already moving up the stairs.

It felt bizarre approaching my old room with the intent of hunting someone else down, but I didn't dwell. I knocked on the door, but before I could even call his name, I got a response.

"Go away, Candace!"

I was about to protest, when his words struck me. His words. I… I got a response. Ferb had talked to me. Ferb had yelled through the door.

Oh, something was wrong, so very, very wrong.

I opened the door and let myself in. To… an empty bedroom? Where the hell was he?

"Not what, go away, Candace, means," came his grumbling voice, and if he hadn't spoken, I wouldn't have seen him. He… was he actually sitting in his English telephone booth? Ferb Fletcher… scrunched up on the plastic floor of the red box?

He was. He totally was.

I burst out laughing.

"Are you… brooding? What are you, ten?"

"Get out."

"Ferb, why are you hiding in your phone booth?"

"I'm not hiding."

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing. Leave."

I was about to fling back a retort, but caught myself. I reined in my giggles at the absurd sight. It was funny, but laughing at it was massively inappropriate right now.

"Ferb, clearly something's wrong. I mean, forget about the whole pouting-in-the-phone-booth thing… you're talking to me. Why are you talking to me?"

Ferb opened his mouth, but caught himself. He shrugged.

"There was something going on between you and Isabella, wasn't there?" I crossed over to his bed and sat down.

Ferb shook his head.

"Bull shit. What happened?"

He shook his head again, and I chastised myself for pointing out that he hadn't been silent. Now he seemed to be going out of his way to be as incommunicative as possible.

"Ferb, I'm not as gullible as Phineas. You can say shit like, nothing's wrong, and, no, I don't have feelings for Isabella, to our brother all you like, but don't insult me."

I could see it, just there—the pre-quiver of shoulder movement.

"Don't you dare shrug your damn shoulders!" I exploded, throwing his pillow across the room, even if only to watch it feebly bounce off the glass of the box's closed doors. Ferb sighed.

"Nothing is happening between Isabella and I. She's going out with Phineas. I'm sure anything to make you believe the opposite resulted from a plan we developed to make Phineas jealous. Now leave… please."

So… that was how it was going to be, huh? I kept plowing forward.

"I hope your composure was better than this when you fed Phineas that story, or he's more gullible than I thought. You realize how hollow that sounded, right? Majorly unconvincing."

"My composure was plenty fine when I told that to Phineas. That is my thing, isn't it? The quiet one, the stoic, the composed older brother—and they're going out. Mission accomplished."

He raised his fist in mock celebration, before pressing his knuckles against a glass plane.

"And I suppose that hickey on her neck was part of the mission? Because I'd sure as hell be willing to bet Phineas didn't put it there."

Ferb's head shot up, his eyes scanning my face. His expression was completely smooth—too calm, really—which made one thing very clear: busted.

Haha! Nailed it! It's a busting feeding frenzy; stay out of the water!Successfully busting my bros… Woo! Busted! Busted! Busted! Oh yeah!

… Er, but, being the mature, non-busting non-teenager that I was, it didn't matter. I digress.

"Was that part of this great plan of yours?"

He shook his head, his gaze falling to the tops of his knees.

"You know, I think of those kinds of things as more of love bites. Marking your territory. How the hell did it go from that to Phineas asking her to lunch? There's… a serious disconnect, bro. And when did you get that close to Isabella without Phineas knowing and realizing that maybe asking out his brother's girl wasn't the best idea?"

Ferb's arms tightened around his legs, his eyes closing. "Phineas asking out his brother's girl? That's hilarious. I've been struggling with that notion, just in reverse. I've never had a claim on her. She's always been his."

I was hunting for a clever remark for this strange form of denial… before I had the jarring realization that he was no longer denying. He was speaking freely. He was openly showing his turmoil, he was… showing me some semblance of unconstrained thought and emotion—if only just a little peak.

Who was this boy in the phone booth? Because it could not have been Ferb.

"Isabella isn't a doormat, and she's sassy when she wants to be; if she's always been his, then I guarantee you'd never make it as far as you did. Not to mention the whole thing I saw in the hall, her coming to you crying, falling asleep on you… twice."

"Oh great," Ferb laughed, though not with any humor. "You've been talking to Mum, have you?"

"Maybe," I chuckled, deciding we'd had enough of beating around the issue. I stood up, making my way to my brother's self-appointed prison. I opened the door and held my hand out. "Come on. No more moping. Come talk to me."

"You're… not going to take no for an answer, are you?" he droned.

"Nope," I confirmed, pressing my open palm even closer. He eyed it distastefully. "I can be stubborn as all hell, Ferb, so just save us both a headache and take my freaking hand."

He smiled, and though it was still etched with sorrow, it was at least genuine. He took it. I began to pull him up, but he sprang up on his own, so I shifted my goal to tugging him to his bed.

"What happened?"

His eyebrows furrowed, and he shot me a look that asked, everything?

I nodded.

This was the point when—according to all history records regarding my brother—Ferb wouldn't speak. He would retract into his own pensiveness and silent strength, and solve the world's problems on his own.

I slung my arm around his shoulder, gave it a squeeze, and hoped that he realized what I was trying to do; I was telling him that he didn't have to do that this time. That I didn't want that for him. That he had support. And I was telling him this in the way that he'd know best—without words.

"Thank you, Candace. That's sweet of you," he sighed. "But there's nothing to… there's nothing to…"

I side-hugged him a little tighter, letting my concern bleed through my expression.

And I could finally see it. I couldn't say he snapped, or changed, or turned a corner—those would have been too drastic. But he turned his head. He took a deep breath. He filled his lungs, but with more air than I'd ever seen Ferb take in before.

Because this was the lungful of someone who had something to say.

"There is, actually. There's a lot to… to talk about. So much has happened, and… I haven't talked to anyone but her about it. Hell, we haven't really talked about it either."

I nodded, letting him know that I understood. That I'd be silent. I'd listen.

Just like that, the floodgates opened. Ferb told me everything that had happened these past two months. He told me every detail—every kiss, every ounce of flirting, every muddling interaction, every incident at the party, right down to Phineas kissing Isabella, and Ferb's decision to go along with the idea that nothing had ever happened between him and Isabella in the first place.

Countless minutes passed, and he was finally winding down. He ended with an airy, "so… what do you think?"

That was laughable; as if there was an answer that could encompass all that I was thinking right now. My mind… blown. Kablooey. So I did what I often did in situations like these. I resorted to humor.

"I think… it'd make a great story," I laughed. "Mind if I use something like this in one of my Fanfictions someday?"

Ferb snorted. "You and your Marvel fanfiction… Have you really not grown past that yet? I thought it was just a phase."

I smacked his arm. "There is nothing wrong with a grown woman enjoying Fanfiction, Ferb, thank you very much! But, man… you've really gotten yourself into a doozy, haven't you?"

"It… it doesn't matter now. Isabella has made her choice, and she and Phineas will be happy."

"She didn't make her choice," I scoffed.

"What do you mean?"

"Okay, now… let me premise this by saying mistakes were made everywhere. Isabella should have been more straightforward with Phineas from the beginning, and—"

"Says the girl who spent many a teenaged hours talking into a banana because she was too scared to call Jeremy…"

"My point, smart ass, is everyone has a little blame here, so don't freak out when I say this… but I don't think Isabella chose Phineas. I think you kind of… coerced her into it."

"I—what? That's preposterous!" Ferb spluttered, his arm flying out wildly. "The last thing I want is to see her in the arms of another guy, but it was inevitable! It's what she wants, and I won't stand in her way!"

"Or this idea to go along with the jealousy theory was put in front of her at a time of high emotional distress, and she saw no other way through this without seriously jacking up her life," I countered.

Ferb simmered. "What do you mean?"

"You have to look at this from her perspective, Ferb. I think she's realized just how strongly she feels for you, then bam! Phineas steps in with the realization that he likes her. She has two boys—both her best friends, both brothers—who like her and whom she liked at some point or another.

"No matter who she chooses—regardless of how cool the losing brother is to just stand aside—things will change. Building a relationship with one, the acknowledgement of the lack of that with the other: this isn't just a lose-lose, chance for pain thing for her, Ferb. This is something with the potential to be really destructive to a relationship she cherishes."

Ferb crossed his arms, determined to be huffy.

"Well she doesn't have to worry about that now, because she chose Phineas anyway. That's behind her."

"She didn't chose Phineas," I sighed. "You practically put Phineas right in front of her and tore yourself out of the picture. She chose not to choose."

Ferb grew still, his eyes swelling with my words. It looked like I'd just taken his ear and shoved an atom bomb into his brain.

"So… what? You're saying this is my fault? That I bullied Isabella into going with Phineas?"

"No!" I quickly assured. "No, I'm not saying that. And it's a two-way street; Isabella went with it. All I'm saying is that it seems like you automatically assumed she would pick Phineas and gave up before she could even blink.

"And I know you said it was to make her happy, but I think it's more than that." I took a deep breath, hoping he took my next words alright. "I think… I think you didn't wanted to cross Phineas."

Ferb's head jerked up at me. "What?"

"Ferb… I know you're used to… stepping back when it comes to Phineas. You let him do all the talking. You let him be the poster boy, and never say a word when people skip right over—"

"I don't let that happen, Candace, it just does!"

"You let it happen by not objecting. It's just like Isabella with Phineas right now; choosing not to choose. Did you ever tell her how you felt? I mean, actually, explicitly let her know the extent of your feelings?"

I let that sink in. Ferb placed his hands in a contemplative steeple. I could tell he hadn't. He'd never told her, in words, how he felt about her.

"Well… what do you want me to do? Steal the girl from my little brother?"

"Maybe it's what you need to do."

He groaned and ran a hand through his hair.

"I couldn't do that, Candace. You know that's… that's not really in my nature."

"So it's too late, then?" I challenged, watching his face sour with distaste.

"I suppose that depends… on how this lunch goes."

I opened my mouth to spew an entire typhoon of protests against the amount of knuckling-under bull shit leaking from his lips, when Ferb continued.

"You have to understand; Isabella likes him." I prepared to speak again, but his voice rose to keep plowing on. "Even though she may like me, she's always had feelings for him. And now he likes her too. If things go well between the two of them, I won't say a word."

"Not a word?"

"I won't ruin that for them."

"You'll just hide away in your phone booth?" I scoffed.

"If need be," he replied without a hitch, and his melancholy gained a new level of infectiousness.

If need be.

I didn't think there was much else I could say at this point. I was frustrated, though. Wouldn't this all be so much simpler if Ferb could swallow back his brother-shadow issues and make a stand for her? If Isabella could grow a pair—er, so to speak—and tell Phineas the jealousy idea was actually a lie, and that she had feelings for his brother?

How could neither of them see the only thing keeping them apart was their own stubborn issues and a smidge of fear?

But I guess everything was easier said than done. They were in a tangled mess, and if both sides were willing to sweep what happened between them under a rug and go in a different direction, there was nothing I could do about it. They'd have to discover that for themselves, or sleep in the bed they made.

They were, after all, practically adults now. Adults that had rambunctious amounts of play and that hid in phone booths when upset… but adults nonetheless.

Sensing our conversation was coming to a close, Ferb put his hand on my shoulder, giving it a light squeeze of appreciation. I rolled my eyes, pulling him into a proper hug.

Then, because I knew he hated it, I shook my hand through his hair and gave him one of those big, embarrassing Sister Kisses on the temple.

He made a face, and I poked him in the side.

…Okay, so maybe we weren't adults all the time, but with my brothers, that never really mattered.

On my way out the door, I was struck with the most peculiar thought, and I couldn't help but release an amused breath.

"What is it?" Ferb asked, and I shook my head.

"Nothing, really." I let out an airy laugh, one that picked my shoulders up in a hug before letting go. "It's just… I bet Phineas hasn't ever heard you talk that much, huh?"

Ferb rubbed the back of his neck. "No."

"There's nothing wrong with that," I promised, letting the big sister feels inside of me congeal into a smile. "I'm just… I'm honored, Ferb. Thanks for letting me in."

My little brother seemed surprised at this, two puffs of cotton candy appearing on his cheeks, but he nodded.

And call me crazy, but it didn't just feel like a nod from Ferb anymore. The incline of his chin, the set of his brow—I realized it all meant something. He seemed to be thanking me, to be saying he was happy he let me into his tight circle, even if only a little.

I let my smile say, anytime, bro.

I'd always ragged on him for never talking, but I decided I would never get on his case about it again. After all, maybe there was something to be said for being silent.

I just hoped they'd find a way to make everything okay.

R/R please! Reviews are inspiration to keep moving along.

What did you guys think about Candace's POV? I liked it because it allowed me to convey a few things that would be forced with the other character (since they're too involved to make the observations themselves). Plus, after everything that's been going on in my personal life, I had to write a chapter with Big Sis feels in it. It was a must.

But it is a sticky mess. Both are to blame for how things are going. They like each other, but after this date with Phineas, is it too late? Well, this is Fanfiction, so probably not XD but you'll have to keep tuning in to find out how it all plays out! Same Bat time, same Bat channel!

Lilly-Belle is out, peace!