Sorry for the extreme delay between chapters, I'm sure it probably made some of you wonder if I'd forgotten or abandoned the story. Fear not! Real life may have gotten in the way, but this story is still very much alive and well. This chapter will be kind of short, but I wanted to get something new up given how long its been. Longer chapters and plenty more of them still to come!

Autumn had descended on John Tyler high school. Along with the crisp, cooler air came a rush of excitement among the students, as Halloween was just around the corner. While the school didn't host its own Halloween party or have events like James K Polk middle school had, the students were still encouraged to dress up, and many of the teachers still planned on decorating their rooms, along with various other surprises. But the most exciting part for many of the students, were the annual Halloween parties that were always held. Each class had a party hosted by one of its members. It was a tradition that had gone on for years. Each of the parties were hosted by a student who volunteered (almost always with their parents permission first) to have the party at their house. That student would then get their friends to help supply things like food, music, decorations, etc.

Since this was his first year, Ned decided it would be better not to try to volunteer to host the party for the freshman class. He didn't want to risk screwing it up, and figured it made more sense to learn by attending a party first so he could get an idea of what they were supposed to be like. Ned was hoping to host one of the parties in the future, as it was a sure way to cement his status socially as something other than an outcast or a nobody, not that there was much risk of that right now anyway.

Ever since Ned had punched Jeff in the face at the Sadie Hawkins Dance, he'd found himself thrust into the spotlight. People he didn't know and had never even met were coming up to him in the halls and congratulating him, patting him on the back, and some even thanked him! Apparently Jeff was not as well liked as it appeared, and many of Ned's fellow students had been hoping someone would put him in his place. The school hadn't been as enthusiastic about the situation, and Ned had to endure meeting the Vice Principal, Mr. Alberson, who gave Ned a rather stern lecture and a warning against future behavior. Ned had still gotten off easy in the end. As a first time offender, he was not given detention and the school didn't even contact his parents. But Mr. Alberson had made it clear to Ned that any future misbehavior would lead to more serious consequences.

On the flip side, Moze seemed to be dazzled by the whole thing. Ever since that evening she'd practically glued herself to his side. Fortunately Moze was still Moze and seemed to instinctively know the line between adoring girlfriend, and obsessive annoying stalker, and was never at risk of crossing it. When Ned needed a little space, or guy time with Cookie, Moze had obliged without hesitation. To Ned, Moze was everything he could have hoped for in a girlfriend, and the days seemed to fly by in a wonderful haze. They had developed a habit of sneaking over to each others rooms at night to get some undisturbed time together, which often consisted of laying outside under the stars in one of their backyards, watching a movie, or even just talking for awhile, and of course there was plenty of snuggling. It was one of their favorite things to do together. Well, that and making out, which had already led to a couple of embarrassing situations where their parents had walked in on them during a major lip-lock when they were supposed to be studying, or doing chores, or something else besides kissing.

Ned and Moze were glad both sets of parents approved of the relationship, but they had been reminded more than once that they shouldn't get TOO wrapped up in each other, that schoolwork couldn't be ignored, and that grades couldn't suffer because of their relationship. Ned's mom had even had an uncomfortable conversation with him where she'd hinted about the dangers of going too far physically, and Ned and Moze both not being ready for that kind of thing, a conversation which had left Ned a little bit traumatized, but he'd managed to remedy it by burying himself in video games for a few hours. Needless to say their relationship was in full bloom, and neither of them could remember feeling happier. That's why, as Halloween approached, Ned and Moze began to fret about it much more than usual.

"Cook, I can't wear some kid costume anymore. I want to impress Moze and look kinda tough at the same time"

"Ned, Moze won't care what you wear, she'll just be glad to be with you. Speaking of which, you're going to the party tonight, right?"

Ned and Cookie stood by Cookie's locker, waiting for Moze and Lisa to join them so they could all head to the bus and go home. Ned glanced down at the flyer in his hand announcing the time and location for the freshman class Halloween party and shook his head.

"It's not just Moze, I don't want people looking at us and thinking oh, what's Moze doing with that dorky looking guy? I can't wear a costume that says I still dress like I'm in elementary school. So the vampire costume is out."

Cookie sighed.

"But Ned, if you go as a vampire and I go as a werewolf..."

"People will think we're into Twilight" Ned finished. "Another image I could do without."

"Moze likes Twilight."

"Moze is a girl. We're guys." Ned tried to make himself look bigger and added "No, we're MEN."

Cookie shook his head.

"You're overthinking this Ned. You're already popular because of Jeff, you don't have to worry about it."

"We'll see" Ned replied. "We'll see."

"Jennifer, I still don't understand why you're freaking out about this. It's just Halloween. It's supposed to be fun."

Moze stopped walking and turned to face Lisa, and put her right hand on her hip.

"Lisa, it's not just Halloween anymore, that's what I'm saying. Before, I could just wear any goofy or clever costume I wanted. Now I have a boyfriend that I want to look good for. I want a costume that I like, but that also looks kind of, you know, a little bit... sexy." Moze blushed a little as she said the word sexy.

Lisa giggled and put a supporting hand on Moze's shoulder.

"Jennifer, Ned will love whatever you pick out, it doesn't matter if its silly, clever, or...you know." Now Lisa blushed a little.

Moze smiled.

"I know, and I don't feel like I HAVE to, I just WANT to, you know?"

"You could coordinate your costumes" Lisa suggested. "That way you know you'll both be happy with what you pick. That's what Simon and I are doing."

Moze raised an eyebrow. "You're coordinating your costume with Cookie? What are you going as, a computer and a keyboard?"

"No, Simon wanted to go in his Iron Eagle costume, but I thought it might not be the wisest idea if everyone realized he was the Iron Eagle. However that did give us both the inspiration for our costumes. We are going as Superman and Superwoman, although Simon insisted on dressing up as Clark Kent while we are at school before changing into Superman for the party."

"Superman and Superwoman" Moze responded thoughtfully. "Isn't it Supergirl, not Superwoman?" Now she grinned and tried (and failed) to contain a giggle. "And aren't they supposed to be brother and sister?" Her grin disappeared, her eyes widened a little, and she shook her head. "Wow, I have been having WAY too many comic book themed conversations with Ned."

Lisa smiled and gently patted Moze's arm reassuringly.

"Don't worry Jennifer, I think its cute you are sharing in Ned's interests, and to answer your question, we decided to change the characters a little so we won't be dressing up as superhero siblings."

Moze's smile quickly returned, with a mischievous hint to it.

"So your Superman and Superwoman are MARRIED then?" she asked playfully.

"Dating" Lisa amended, a hint of a blush appearing on her face.

Moze couldn't resist teasing Lisa just a little bit more.

"Awww, Cookie's your SUPER boyfriend! That's adorable!"

Now Lisa's face turned beet red.

"Two days until Halloween!" Coconut Head announced as he walked past Ned and Moze.

Ned gave him a high five.

"You going to the party?" he called after Coconut Head, who didn't even slow down.

Coconut Head finally stopped and turned back around to face Ned

"Are you kidding? A party? One I can actually go to and not feel out of place? No way I'm missing it!" He grinned widely then turned and continued on his way.

Moze laughed as she put an arm around Ned's waist.

"I'm glad Halloween is on a Friday this year" she commented. "We can party late and not have to worry about school."

Ned turned his head to face her and nodded.

"Picked a costume yet Moze?" he asked.

"Working on it" she replied with a hint of a smile playing at her lips. "You?"

"Let's just say I've been cooking up something good" he said with a grin.

"Can't wait to see it"

Moze gave Ned a quick kiss on the cheek and hurried off to her next class.

Ned leaned back against his locker and smiled.

This is gonna be an epic Halloween. I can't WAIT for the party! he thought to himself, and smiled even wider.

So this chapter was short and more of a setup chapter, but long overdue, and the next one should be longer and definitely a lot better (and not as long of a wait!) Thanks everyone for your patience!