Yawning widely, Brandon Walsh put down his pen and stretched his arms out above his head in a futile attempt to loosen muscles that were stiff from an evening spent hunched over his desk. Man he was beat. It was a rare night off from the Peach Pit and he'd been hitting the books pretty hard.
"Listen man I think I'm gonna bail" Steve announced starting to gather his books together. He grinned at Brandon "You know a guy can only take so much studying in one night".
Brandon laughed. "I hear ya". Then he spoke more seriously "Listen we did some good work tonight. We keep going like this and we're gonna ace those finals".
"Hey I can already picture those college offers flooding in" Steve boasted, pulling on his jacket. He slapped Brandon on the shoulder on his way out "Hey don't work too hard man you'll make the rest of us look bad".
Brandon smiled "Don't worry I'm just gonna finish up this chapter then call it a night". What with all his other commitments he'd been neglecting the study recently, and it felt good to get back in to it, the finals were coming up fast and Brandon wanted to be prepared.
As he listened to Steve drive away Brandon marvelled at the change in his friend's attitude. Steve Sanders wasn't exactly known for his work ethic; in fact he usually took every shortcut going, but not this time. This time Steve had taken Brandon's advice and decided to put in the time with the books. He smiled. He had to admit he was impressed; maybe Steve Sanders was finally growing up.
Turning back to his book he tried valiantly to concentrate, but his eyes were so tired the lines of text kept jumping about and he couldn't make any sense out of them. Rubbing his eyes he checked his watch and was surprised to see that it was so late. He frowned. Brenda should have been home by now, the library shut over an hour ago. Brandon sighed. If Brenda wasn't home, and she wasn't in the library it could only mean one thing, she was with Dylan.
He knew that Brenda had a tendency to over dramatise but she'd been pretty upset last night and he was worried about her. He hadn't had chance to talk to her today, had no idea if she and Dylan had managed to figure things out. Brandon stifled another yawn, just thinking about Brenda and Dylan made him feel tired. He loved his sister, and Dylan was like a brother to him, but sometimes the two of them drove him crazy. Nothing was ever easy with those two, and somehow they always managed to drag everyone else in to their problems. He shook his head. So many times he'd ended up in the firing line because of something that Brenda and Dylan had done. Grimacing he remembered all the uncomfortable family meals that he had endured because Brenda and Dad had been fighting about Dylan.
He knew that his father didn't really approve of Dylan, and sometimes he had to admit, Dylan didn't exactly help the situation. Brandon smiled. Jim Walsh could be stubborn and proud but he'd met his match in Dylan McKay. Things between his father and Dylan were always fragile, but right now they had reached an uneasy truce. Brandon wondered just how long the peace would last this time. After the last major bust up Dad had sent Brenda to Paris in an attempt to separate her from Dylan. At the time Brandon had thought it was a pretty extreme measure but he guessed it would take something extreme to keep those two apart.
Although Brandon often found Brenda's relationship traumas tiresome, secretly he envied her. He had never felt about anyone the way Brenda felt about Dylan, and he was pretty sure that no girl had ever felt that way about him. Oh he'd had plenty of girl friends and of course he'd cared about them but he'd never felt that special something that he imagined went along with being in love. He smiled ruefully thinking of everything Brenda had been through these last few years, maybe it was safer not to fall in love, that way you couldn't get hurt. The closest he'd gotten to love was with Emily Valentine and look how badly that had turned out.
Closing his eyes and leaning back in his chair, he thought about some of the women that had been important in his life. Sheryl had been his first, and at the time he'd thought he'd been in love with her. He sighed, Sheryl had turned out to be completely different to the girl he thought he knew. They'd parted as friends but he hadn't kept in touch with her after her visit to Beverly Hills.
He cared a lot about Andrea, and sometimes he wondered if he might be in love with her, he certainly felt jealous when he saw her with Jay. Could he be in love with Andrea? Frowning he pushed that thought to the back of his mind. As great as Andrea Zuckerman was, he wasn't sure it was a good idea to try to turn their friendship in to something more. Once you cross that line there's just no going back, and his friendship with Andrea was too good to spoil.
He didn't really want to think about Emily, it was still too painful. He knew that she had some problems, but he couldn't help feeling that he'd failed her in some way. He sighed. Perhaps if he'd been a little more understanding, or if he'd spotted the warning signs earlier, things might have turned out differently. Last Christmas he'd been to visit her in the hospital. It had been a little awkward at first but he was glad he'd made the trip. She was out of the hospital now and trying to put her life back together. They'd both decided it would be for the best if he kept his distance for a while, but that didn't mean that he had stopped caring about her.
Now of course there was Nikki, just what exactly did he feel about her? They hadn't been seeing each other for long but he was having fun, and he thought that she was too. He sighed, feeling more tired than ever. Brenda wasn't the only one with relationship problems right now; he and Nikki hadn't had their 'college talk' yet. He hadn't decided where he wanted to go to school next year, but there was a chance that he would go away, and if he did where would that leave Nikki?
That question was enough to send Brandon back to his textbook. Right now studying for finals was a whole lot easier than trying to decide his future, especially his romantic future. He'd always looked forward to his senior year but now it was finally here he had to admit it was pretty scary. Everything was changing, and he wasn't sure he was ready for it to change. The future held the prospect of challenge and new beginnings but also uncertainty. He had absolutely no idea where he was going to be next year, or who he would be with.
Right now Brandon's life was pretty good. He had great friends, a girlfriend that he loved spending time with, he was sports writer for 'The Blaze' and of course he had his job at the Peach Pit. Next year things could be very different, especially if he chose to go away to school. He sighed heavily. He knew that he would have to start making some big decisions soon, but he wasn't gonna make them tonight. Tonight Brandon was gonna enjoy the present - the future would come soon enough.
Steve Sanders impatiently drummed his fingers on the steering wheel of his corvette as he waited for the lights to change. He was tense and edgy, unable to sit still, and even the few seconds he had been waiting for the lights seemed too long. He was running out of time. The finals were in less than two weeks and his window of opportunity was getting narrower every day. He'd had his plan worked out for a couple of days; he just hadn't had the guts to go through with it - until now.
He reached in his pocket and fished out the legacy key. Under the eerie glow of the streetlight it took on an almost magical quality. He smiled. In a way it was magic, he'd been stuck, his college hopes sinking without trace, and then the key had just landed in his lap. He felt kinda bad about Brandon though, they'd studied hard tonight and it had actually felt pretty good. If his grades had been higher or he'd had more time, maybe he would have followed Brandon's advice, but he didn't have that luxury. He hated lying to Brandon, but there was no way he was gonna tell him the truth. Not only would Brandon disapprove, he'd try and talk Steve out of it and the last thing he needed right now was any more doubts.
Sighing heavily, he pushed all thoughts of Brandon Walsh to the back of his mind. If things worked out right Brandon would never find out, and the two of them would have a great time at college next year, maybe even join the same fraternity. As far as Steve was concerned the ends more than justified the means, all he had to do was make sure he didn't get caught. He took one last look at the key before putting it back in his pocket, tonight was the night, he wasn't gonna back out this time. The lights changed and Steve floored the accelerator, more anxious than ever to put his plan in to action.
Andrea Zuckerman was bored. It was late and her Grandmother had gone to bed hours ago, leaving Andrea alone at the kitchen table with only her textbooks for company. Sighing, she shut her book and put down her pen, she knew this stuff backwards. She could take the finals tomorrow if she had to, but the finals were still almost two weeks away. Despite being a straight A student and classic over achiever, Andrea usually got stressed out around testing time, but this time she felt more than ready. She guessed she should be happy that she had prepared well, but right now she just felt bored and restless. Even her job as editor of the paper, which usually consumed her waking hours, had little to interest her lately.
After the relative excitement of Brandon's basketball scandal, things at 'The Blaze' had gone real quiet; it was just the usual run of the mill football games and bake sales. Everyone else was glad of the respite, a chance to prepare for finals and look forward to the Christmas vacation, but Andrea, who relished the feeling of being caught up in a big story, lamented the lack of activity.
She frowned, Christmas, maybe that was what was causing her blue mood. She had to admit, being Jewish kinda took the excitement out of Christmas. Last year at the Walsh house she had experienced her first ever Christmas Eve dinner. She had loved everything about it, the food, the gathering of friends and family, and the feeling that everything was right with the world. It had felt great to be a part of things for once, rather than the outsider looking in.
For some reason she was feeling pretty low tonight, what she needed was someone to cheer her up. She'd talked to Jay on the phone earlier, but he'd seemed a little preoccupied. They hadn't talked for long, but instead of making her feel better, tonight talking to Jay had made her feel worse. She missed him terribly and talking to him had only served to remind her of the distance between them. Andrea sighed again. Lonely, that was her problem, she felt lonely. Her grandmother was great, but they didn't exactly have a lot in common, and her long-distance relationship with Jay wasn't ideal.
She knew she had a great group of friends but sometimes she couldn't shake the feeling that she wasn't really one of the gang. No matter how hard she tried to ignore it there was still a tiny part of her that felt like she didn't really belong. She guessed it was because for a long time she had been an outsider. It had taken her a long time to feel comfortable with the group, but she was glad that she'd hung on in there. So why after all this time did she sometimes still feel like that girl from the valley who didn't really belong?
Frowning she tried to pinpoint exactly what was bothering her. It wasn't that they deliberately excluded her; it was just that sometimes they didn't think to involve her. Take Brenda for instance, right now Andrea knew that Brenda and Dylan were having problems, but Brenda hadn't once turned to her for advice or support the way she did with Kelly and Donna. The others were the same, Donna was obviously worried about David and although Andrea had gently asked her about it, Donna had smiled a little too brightly, and told her that everything was fine.
As for Kelly, well she was a completely different case. Andrea couldn't help but feel a little intimidated by Kelly Taylor. Kelly was everything that Andrea wasn't - rich, glamorous, popular, and sexually experienced. She knew it was stupid, they had gotten much closer over the last few years, and Kelly had occasionally surprised her with a candid confession or offer of support, but still Andrea couldn't quite shake the secret suspicion that Kelly only tolerated her for Brandon's sake. She'd noticed that Kelly had seemed a little different lately, moody and quiet. It was obvious that something was troubling her but for some reason Andrea hadn't felt able to ask, and Kelly was obviously equally unable to confide in Andrea. Sometimes she wished that the other girls would talk to her about their problems, at least that way she'd feel a little closer to them.
Apart from Brandon she wasn't really that close to any of the guys. Now she thought about it she didn't really know David that well at all. She smiled. She guessed he was a little like her, an outsider who had wanted to be part of the gang. He might have been a geeky freshman when she first met him but David Silver now seemed a more legitimate member of the group than she did. His status as Donna's boyfriend and Kelly's stepbrother had guaranteed him the acceptance he had craved.
As for Dylan she doubted if anyone, except perhaps Brenda, really knew him. She couldn't quite figure Dylan out; he had always struck her as something of a loner, yet he seemed happy enough to be one of the gang. His dark good looks and brooding manner meant that he was never short of female attention, yet he had eyes only for Brenda.
Andrea never quite knew where she stood with him, always felt as though he was holding something back. There was something slightly dangerous about Dylan, a dark side that he kept hidden. She knew about his battles with alcohol and his traumatic relationship with his father, but he hardly ever discussed either with his friends. If she had to describe it, she'd say her friendship with Dylan was superficial; they'd never had a conversation about anything that really mattered.
She shrugged, he was probably very different with Brenda, and she knew that he had confided in Brandon on several occasions, although she didn't know the content of their discussions. She knew that Brandon considered Dylan a true friend, and had a lot of respect for him, and that was good enough for her.
When she'd first met Steve Sanders he'd been everything she tried to avoid in a guy, loud, brash and spoilt but since then she'd gotten to know a different side to him. She smiled. They had even shared a kiss once, though neither of them had wanted to take it any further. Some people might be surprised at her friendship with Steve, in fact it surprised her sometimes, but Steve had come a long way in the last two years, he'd really matured. Still she remained a little wary of Steve. He had a smart mouth and quick line in charm. Sometimes she wasn't sure if he was being genuine or if he was playing her.
So that just left Brandon. She smiled. She'd been in love with Brandon Walsh almost from the first moment she'd met him. At one point she'd actually allowed herself to believe that he might feel the same way, but nothing had ever come of it. In the end she had tried to put her feelings for Brandon aside, to accept that friendship was all that she could hope for. It hadn't been easy and still when he looked at her a certain way she found herself wishing that things could be different. Now of course she had Jay, he was a great guy and he made her happy. Yep, Jay was a great guy alright; in fact there was only one thing wrong with Jay. He wasn't Brandon Walsh.
Andrea sighed and wondered if she would ever find a guy that could match up to Brandon. She was tempted to call him, but it was late and besides he'd said he was studying tonight. Her hand hovered over the phone for a second but she fought the selfish urge to talk to him. She knew his busy schedule and lack of study time had him on edge, he probably wanted some time alone with the books. Biting her lip she moved away from the phone. She wasn't sure if he'd see the interruption as a pleasant diversion or an annoying waste of valuable study time, and right now she wasn't feeling confident enough to risk it.
She frowned. It had been a long time since she'd felt so paranoid about her friends. She really was getting maudlin now and it had to stop. She knew that she was being ridiculous just letting her imagination and her own insecurities take over. This is what comes of not having enough to occupy my mind she thought bitterly. What she needed was something else to focus on, a challenge, something she could really get her teeth in to, but right now the possibility of that happening seemed pretty remote. Instead she headed over to the coffee pot and poured herself another cup, all she had to keep her mind alert and occupied tonight was caffeine and William Shakespeare.
Hands shaking a little with nervous excitement Steve Sanders pulled on a pair of black gloves and a black ski mask. Already dressed in black jeans and a black sweater he definitely looked the part. He probably didn't need the ski mask but he wasn't gonna take any chances. He was standing outside the back entrance to West Beverly High; his corvette parked out of sight about a block away from the school. He smiled ruefully, it was all very well having a car that got you noticed but tonight the last thing he wanted to do was attract attention.
Despite a few last minute nerves he was feeling pretty confident. He'd painstakingly worked through every aspect of the plan and he was certain he had all his bases covered. He'd figured out the quickest route to the school office and out again. He'd even hung out with Hutch the school janitor last week just so he could get the inside knowledge on Hutch's nightly patrol. He knew exactly where Hutch would be and when. By now Hutch should be long gone.
Taking the legacy key out of his pocket he smiled to himself, 'this is it baby, make or break time.' Slowly Steve put the key into the lock, and holding his breath turned it, praying that it would work. Feeling the lock click open he grinned to himself in delight, good old B.J. had really come through for him. Taking hold of the door handle Steve took a deep breath, and then opened it.
'Waah, Waah. Waah, Waah, Waah,' the noise of the alarm was so loud and so sudden that Steve dropped the key in fright. 'Come on Sanders, get a grip' he mentally berated himself. He'd known about the alarm, had planned and prepared for it, it was just because he was a little jumpy. Reaching inside the door he keyed in the sequence of numbers he'd memorised, and prayed that they hadn't changed the code since last week. As suddenly as it had started, the alarm stopped. Steve leaned back against the wall in relief; he'd been terrified that the code wouldn't work. Last week he'd volunteered to come in on the weekend to help Hutch set up for a school governors meeting. It had scored him some much needed points with Mrs Teasely and more importantly had given him access to the alarm code, he just had to remember to reset it when he left.
He checked around nervously, he'd let the alarm sound for a little longer than he should have, but no one was rushing over to arrest him. Steve took one last look before bending down to retrieve the legacy key. He stashed it safely in his pocket and stepped inside the school, carefully shutting the door behind him.
Once safely inside Steve reached in to his pocket and withdrew a small flashlight he'd bought at the hardware store last week. Hopefully it should cast enough light for him to find his way, without attracting any unwanted attention. Quietly he moved off along the hallway heading for the school office. So far so good, all he had to do was keep his head for a little while longer and he would be home free.
Steve grinned to himself, he was enjoying this, and breaking into the school had given him a real buzz. As he crept down the darkened hallway, keeping as close to the wall as possible, he hummed the James Bond theme under his breath, and fantasised that he was on a deadly mission for the secret service. Sanders, Steve Sanders he whispered in his best Sean Connery impression. A noise somewhere off to his right pulled him out of his reverie. He froze, and turned off the flashlight, trying to keep in the shadows as much as possible.
Steve could hear his heart pounding and feel sweat trickling down the back of his neck. This wasn't supposed to happen, the school was supposed to be empty. He held his breath and waited. There it was again, a soft tapping sound like someone was walking down the hallway. He listened in vain trying to make out if the footsteps were coming towards him or moving away.
Mentally he ran through possible escape routes, but from here there was no way out except back down the hallway that he had just walked down - the one the noise was coming from. It was a dead end; he was caught like a rat in a trap. There was nothing for it but to sit tight and hope that whoever it was would just go away.
The minutes ticked by as Steve waited, hardly daring to breathe. He hadn't heard the noise for a while now, but that didn't mean he was safe. The person could have gone away or they could be standing very still hoping to trick him in to coming out. Steve frowned. He was pretty sure that whoever it was had gone, but there was a chance that he was wrong. He'd seen this scenario play out in a dozen different movies and the bad guy was always lying in wait.
'C'mon Sanders' he told himself 'you can't stand here in the dark all night'. Slowly, ever so slowly Steve turned the flash light back on. The hallway was deserted, either he had imagined it or whoever it was had really gone. Steve let out a deep breath. That had been a little too close for comfort. From now on he had to keep his senses alert and his mind on the job.
It was with great relief that he reached the school office, and then he nearly jumped out of his skin when he heard the footsteps again! Spinning round to face his assailant Steve was momentarily stunned to find that there was no one behind him. He looked around wildly trying to figure out the source of the noise, and then relaxed, it was just the wind whipping a tree branch against the window. He laughed. Some secret agent he'd make, getting spooked by a tree branch.
B.J. had promised that the key could open every door and every filing cabinet in the school, and as he stood outside the school office, Steve prayed that B.J. was right. If not this would all have been for nothing. He glanced around nervously, unable to shake the feeling that he was being watched; even though he knew there was no one else in the building. He guessed that a guilty conscience had made him a little paranoid.
Once inside the school office he was tempted to switch on the light, but was too afraid that someone might notice - the office window was visible from outside. In the half-light of the small flashlight, it took him a few minutes to find the filing cabinet he was looking for. Steve grinned in delight when once again the legacy key worked its magic on the lock. Working as quickly as his gloves would allow, he flicked through the files until eventually he found what he had come for, the finals papers.
Taking his prize, Steve moved over to the staff photocopier and flipped the on switch. This was the part of his plan that made him the most proud. Of course he couldn't just walk out with the papers, as soon as someone discovered they were missing the game would be up. There would be a major investigation and obviously the staff would change the questions on the papers. No Steve had to be smarter than that, he had to get access to the questions without removing them from the building. He'd puzzled over it for a while, thought about trying to memorise the questions but decided that wasn't reliable enough. Next he'd considered taking pen and paper and copying down the questions, but decided that was too time consuming which equalled too risky. Then a stroke of genius, the staff photocopier! All he had to do was make a copy of the papers. He could put the originals back where he found them, walk out with the copies and no one would be any the wiser, it was brilliant.
Carefully he typed in the coded sequence of numbers that operated the copier. By sheer coincidence Donna had been helping out in the school office last week, it was a part of the senior work-study programme she was involved in. It had been no coincidence however, that he had chosen to discuss David's showcase with her whilst she was doing some copying for Mrs Teasely. It had been easy enough to look over her shoulder as she punched in the code. He felt kinda bad about using Donna like that, but he had to admit it was smart. No one would suspect anything if the code belonged to Mrs Teasely. Whistling tunelessly to himself Steve set about copying the pile of papers he had retrieved from the cabinet. This was all turning out to be much easier than he had expected.
Grumbling to himself Hutch slammed the car door shut and zipped up his jacket. It was late, it was cold, and he was getting too old for this kinda thing. His customary cold beer and pizza had been rudely interrupted by a call from the cops asking him to come check out the school building. One of the housewives from the residential area behind the school had sworn she'd heard the alarm go off. He rolled his eyes. Just his luck, she was the responsible citizen type, and she'd sent her disgruntled husband out to investigate. The guy had been halfway down a bottle of Jack Daniels at the time so he wasn't exactly the most reliable witness but he'd found the back entrance unlocked and the door blown ajar by the wind. Rather than risk walking into danger, he'd gone back to his old lady and called the cops. The cops had called Hutch.
Cursing under his breath Hutch wished not for the first time that he'd taken that job at the factory his brother had told him about. Okay the pay wasn't great but he wouldn't be on his feet all day, and he wouldn't get called out at all hours of the night to deal with stuff like this. He'd been the janitor at West Beverly High for more years than he cared to remember and in that time he'd just about seen it all. He had no doubt that he'd find a couple of kids up to something they wouldn't want their parents to know about. He smirked. He'd give 'em the shock of their lives when he caught 'em, that'd teach 'em to drag him away from his beer. He set off down the hallway footsteps echoing in the eerie silence.
Steve was almost done copying when he heard the footsteps, and this time there was no doubt, that was no tree tapping against the window. Frantically he scooped up the papers and switched the copier off. Fumbling, his hands made clumsy by nerves and the thick gloves, he wrenched open the filling cabinet and frantically put the papers back in. In his panic he didn't notice that he'd left the paper he'd been copying in the machine.
Moving quickly Steve shut and locked the filling cabinet and slipped out of the door, remembering just in time to lock it. There was no sign of anyone but the footsteps were getting louder. Heart hammering against his ribcage Steve looked round wildly for a hiding place. It was no good. He was trapped. His heart sank; he was in trouble, big trouble and he didn't think he could talk his way out of this one. It was yet another Steve Sanders disaster. He could just see the look on his father's face when he heard about this. He should have listened to Brandon, but no he thought he knew better. Good going Sanders you've really out done yourself this time he thought bitterly. Then he saw it. The alcove. It wasn't much but it was his only hope. He dived for the alcove and flattened himself against the wall. Steve Sanders wasn't a particularly religious guy but in that moment he prayed to whatever God would listen to get him out of this mess.
Slightly out of breath Hutch rounded the corner and headed towards the school office. He flicked on the light switch and the entire hallway was illuminated in bright electric light. In his place in the alcove Steve blinked uncomfortably as his eyes responded to the sudden brightness. He had felt all too visible before when the hallway had been cloaked in darkness, now he felt as though he were on the stage with a spotlight trained on him.
As he walked Hutch fiddled with his keys and muttered to himself under his breath. Steve couldn't quite catch the words, something about busy body neighbours and wasting time. Steve had to clamp a hand over his mouth to stop from shouting out as Hutch stopped directly in front of him and turned to face the school office. Steve held his breath. If Hutch so much as turned his head to the left, he was done for. Hutch was so close Steve could smell the stale beer on his breath. For what seemed like the longest moment of Steve Sanders' life, Hutch stood peering in to the school office.
Hutch scowled. He really should go in and check, although the office was in darkness there could easily be someone in there. He'd checked the rest of the school and found nothing. If the office was clear he could lock up and get back to his beer and pizza, call the police and let them figure out what happened. Sighing heavily, he tried the door. It was locked. He hesitated. If the door was locked it was pretty unlikely anyone was in there but still he would look a fool if he went back and reported the school as all clear if there was someone lurking in there. He shrugged he'd wasted enough time already a few more minutes wouldn't make much difference and at least he'd know for sure. Retrieving the key he unlocked the door and stepped inside fumbling for the light switch as he did so.
With Hutch inside the office and safely occupied checking that nothing had been disturbed, Steve saw his chance to get away. Pushing off from the wall he took off down the hallway as if a pack of wild dogs was after him, stopping for breath only when he reached the relative safety of his corvette. Sliding behind the wheel Steve gunned the engine; he had to get out of here and fast. He had no idea how he'd managed to get away but he wasn't gonna hang around and give Hutch another chance to catch him. He pulled off the ski mask and allowed himself a celebratory smile. He'd done it, he had the papers but that had been way too close for comfort.
Bone tired Dylan McKay pulled in to his driveway. It was late and maybe his eyes were playing tricks on him but he could have sworn he saw someone sitting by his front door. Rubbing his eyes wearily Dylan took another look and this time what he saw jolted him wide-awake. There caught in the headlights of his Porsche was Brenda Walsh. Swallowing past the lump, which had suddenly lodged itself in his throat, Dylan killed the engine and reluctantly got of the car.