Janey Allens stood fiddling with her pen in the Blue Pointe Diner. She had been a waitress at the diner ever since she was fourteen, and each day the job got more and more old. She didn't mind working at the Blue Pointe diner, but it had to be one of the most boring jobs on weeknights. She worked every other night and only on Friday nights was the diner ever really interesting. But even then she couldn't hang out with her friends because she was working.

But as she leaned against the counter waiting for any customers that might happen to drop by for a bite to eat on a snowy Wednesday evening, Janey's mind traveled to the Friday before. Luckily she had gotten off of work early, happy that Greg could work for her. She decided to drop by Dan Quantan's party, and she was truly having a nice time. Until, of course, Dan Quantan himself had gone a little too far. Janey and Dan had been off and on for a few months, but recently he knew he'd been rejected by Faye Berry. So, he tried to let his anger out on Janey and that night he tried to force her to sleep with him. She had been quite content on making out, but when he wanted to sleep with her it had gone too far. She wasn't a prude, but she had her morals. And giving away that special gift drunk on a Friday night at some party was not very appetizing.

Janey grinned. But then Teddy had come along. Or, more so, she had gone to Teddy. She always knew who he was; the infamous Teddy Duchamp, the manwhore, the teen-drunk. But that night when she had talked to him for hours and hours on end about anything, she looked passed stereotypes and found Teddy Duchamp was actually a very sweet sixteen year old boy.

She sighed. Janey didn't have a lot of luck with guys. She was intelligent and pretty, but not so much every guys wet dream, like that Anne Donahue. Most guys didn't even know she existed in that sense. She was mostly like everyone's little sister. Cute and adorable and funny, but not sexy or even hot. She would always just be dear, sweet little 'Janey.' Even her name sounded immature!

Tucking a strand of cinnamon colored hair behind her ears which had fallen out of her ponytail, Janey scribbled absentmindedly on her menu pad. She hadn't even noticed the little tinkling of the door which signaled the arrival of a customer. She was oblivious as the person walked up to her, and finally, after clearing their throat did Janey look up.

"Hey Janey."

Janey grinned and stood straight. "Hi Teddy."

Teddy grinned at her at took a seat on the stool at the counter.

"So what are you doing here?" Janey asked, then immediately wished she hadn't. It was a diner! He had come here for food, obviously. Great, now he was bound to think her a senseless fool her wore an apron and poured glasses of pop all day.

"Believe it or not, I came here to see you," Teddy replied casually, playing with the corner of a nearby napkin. Janey smiled and shifted her weight to her right foot. She examined the boy in front of her and was shocked to find how innocent he looked. He looked like just a normal guy, not some boy who'd been smoking and drinking since the tender age of twelve.

"Oh, really?" Janey replied, and she couldn't help but grin. How could she not? She hardly ever got attention from a guy unless it was a hair-tousle or a slight punch on the arm or the casual bear hug.

Teddy nodded and arched an eyebrow. "Why's that so hard to believe?"

Janey shrugged, and began to pour herself a pop. "I dunno. Want a pop?"

"Sure."

Teddy began to dig in his pockets for some change, but Janey waved a hand in the air, dismissing this action.

"It's on the house."

Teddy arched an eyebrow. "Cool."

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Halle skipped giddily around her bedroom blaring The Beatles from all ends of the house and dancing around. She had never been in a happier mood. And why? For no reason at all! She was purely bored to no end and decided to just forget about her constant anger and let loose.

Just as she was in the middle of dancing on bed with her hairbrush as her microphone, her door opened and in strolled Chris with an amused Gordie to follow. Immediately Halle fell down onto her bed and stuffed her 'microphone' out of sight. She was panting and her cheeks were flushed, and the music continued to blare.

"Whoah," Chris muttered, turning off the music. "Hales, I should leave you alone more often."

Halle scowled at Chris and couldn't help but blush. "I wasn't-erm-doing anything."

Chris and Gordie laughed. "You looked like you were having fun," Gordie said, grinning.

Halle's heart skipped several beats but went back to normal. She had long since thought about her chances with Gordie. She knew it would never happen. How could it? Besides, she was content with his friendship. But that didn't mean she minded him seeing her dancing and having fun like that.

"Well it's called knocking asshole."

"It's called turn off your record player so you can hear the knocking!" Chris retorted. Gordie snorted with laughter and Halle sent them both death glares.

"You two are horrible," she muttered, pushing away her hair that had gone haywire during her imaginary concert. "Anyways, what do you two Neanderthals want?"

Chris rolled his eyes. "Well I have to go work on a project for English," Chris explained. "And Mom wanted me to watch Dani tonight. But I doubt I'll be home early enough. So you mind watching her?"

Halle frowned. "Yes! I have plans too you know!"

Chris rolled his eyes once again. "Oh yeah, like what? It's a Wednesday for God's sake!"

Halle screwed up her face in irritation. "I don't care! I shouldn't have to explain myself to you."

Chris quirked an eyebrow.

"Okay, so I don't have any plans. But I don't want to be stuck watching that...that monster!"

"She's our sister! And your responsibility too!"

Halle shook her head vehemently. "No, she's mom's responsibility Chris! Not ours!"

Gordie knew this conversation was more than just a plain argument. Obviously both Chambers kids were fed up with their mother.

Chris glared at his sister. "Halle, please just this fucking once! That's all I'm asking. This project is important to me!"

Halle scoffed. "Project? Important? Those two should never be in the same sentence coming from you. Who's in this group anyway?"

"Anne and Grace."

Halle nodded. "Oh. Anne, huh? That's why it's so important."

"Fuck you!" Chris was red with anger. "I don't care about her anymore! Why can't everyone see that? I don't care if she's there or not! It's MY grade, and I want to pass, thanks."

Halle waved her hand in the air dismissively. "Yeah, yeah. I'll watch the little bugger. But don't expect me to do this all the time!"

Chris was not any less angry. He let out a cry of frustration and stormed out of the room. Gordie put his hands in his pockets, and rocked back and forth on his heels.

"So, Halle," Gordie said.

Halle looked up, surprised he was still there. "Gordie."

"Listen, if it helps at all," Gordie began. "I'll help baby sit with you. Okay? I have nothing better to do tonight."

Halle shook her head. "No-you don't have to. It's okay...I was just being bitchy."

Gordie shrugged. "Come on, it'll be...um fun?"

Halle laughed and smiled. "Okay."

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"Wait-so you're telling me you actually ENJOY that vile stuff?"

Teddy laughed disbelievingly. Janey laughed too. The pair had been sitting there at the counter for almost an hour just laughing away at anything. The diner was slowly becoming less and less crowded.

"It's not vile!" Teddy shook his head. "It's actually quite good. And it's not 'stuff' it is cherry pop!"

Janey scrunched her face up. "It's death! It's horrible; they shouldn't even be allowed to sell it!"

Teddy took a sip from his cherry pop and looked at Janey. She was really interesting to talk to and he found himself enjoying her company. Looking at his watch absentmindedly, he was surprised to find how late it was.

"Aw shit!" he said suddenly, causing Janey to start. "It's almost seven thirty. I got to get home."

Janey sighed and sat up, taking the empty glasses. "Yeah, guess you should."

Teddy got up and began to put on his coat. "What time do you get out of here?" He questioned, buttoning up his coat.

Janey began to wipe down the counter. "Oh not until another two hours. I should be here pretty late. It sucks working weeknights."

Teddy nodded. "I wish I could wait for you-I'd give you a ride home. But I really have to get home."

Janey grinned. "Don't worry about it. I'll see you in school tomorrow I guess."

Teddy nodded. "Yeah. I'll see you, Janey."

"Bye Teddy."

Janey watched Teddy walk out of the diner and smiled to herself. Maybe working at the diner wasn't so bad afterall.

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Knocking swiftly on the Hanlon's front door, Chris waited impatiently in the cold. He'd been in this house thousands of times before and not until now as he truly apprehensive. He knew Anne was going to be here too, and that honestly bothered him. He hadn't talked to her since she broke up with him, and the situation was quite awkward. But Chris was willing to put all the differences aside for the project. He desperately needed to pass.

The door swung open to emit warmth and light. Grace stood there before him, smiling slightly, her red hair tied loosely into a low ponytail. She was wearing her pajamas and Chris grinned.

"I didn't know it was a sleep over," Chris joked, walking in. "Damn."

Grace rolled her eyes. "I'm tired. So what?"

Chris shrugged and followed Grace into her kitchen. Anne was already sitting there, her head sitting lazily in her hands, and she tapped her pen consistently. When Grace and Chris walked in, she looked up and to Chris' surprise, she grinned good-naturedly.

"Hey," she said casually. Chris grinned awkwardly back.

"Hi."

Grace took a seat beside Anne so Chris wouldn't have to sit there, and watched the greeting with apprehension. There was tension in the air, that was for sure, and you could cut it with a knife.

"So," Grace said. "We'd better get started on this sucker. It's going to take forever."

"Yep," Anne said. "This poem is a hard one. Edger Allen Poe was a great writer, but his poems are intricate. Especially this one, Annabel Lee."

Chris watched Anne speak and not until now did he truly miss the way she spoke. It was poised, and clear and crisp. He hadn't meant to compare her to Faye, but the way Faye spoke was so opposite. Faye spoke in just one tone which never really differed with her mood. If she was happy, sad, hurt, anything it was all spoken the same. But in Anne's voice you could almost heart what she was feeling, her voice being so compassionate.

"So, what should we do first?"

Chris looked up at Grace who was looking back at him expectantly. He immediately felt ashamed. Why was he comparing Faye to Anne? Anne had hurt him and was an inconsiderate bitch. So why did he feel like he still harbored feelings for her?

"Um-" Chris' voice came out shakier than he meant it. "Let's start with the first stanza, I guess."

Grace nodded. "Okay. Er- 'It was many and many a year ago, In a kingdom by the sea, That a maiden there lived whom you may know By the name of Annabel Lee; And this maiden she lived with no other thought Than to love and be loved by me.'

Okay. That's pretty simple."

Anne nodded. "Yeah. Basically all he's saying is this girl loved him and she lived by the sea. Not too bad, huh?"

Chris shrugged. "Not yet, but this poem is tricky. It seems simple, but it has another meaning underneath it."

Anne quirked an eyebrow and Chris remembered she always used to do that when being contradicted.

"Oh, and how so?"

Grace looked back and forth between the two, her eyebrow also raised. This was going to be interesting.

"Well, the chick dies by the end of the story. They're all happy but these men in the village envy their love. Annabel here is supposed is this beautiful, amazing woman whom everyone loves. And this guy obviously loves her back, but the men figure if they can't get the man they'll kill this chick."

Anne's face was beginning to turn a bright pink at being put in her place. "Well-er-it's still fairly simple, we shouldn't have a problem wi-"

"No," Chris interrupted. "We won't have a problem with it if we just 'read' it. In order to appreciate Edgar Allen Poe's works, you've got to read between the lines. Find the depth of his writing, the meaning. Then we shouldn't have a problem with it."

Anne grumbled. "Whatever."

Grace was having trouble keeping a straight face. She knew by now that whatever motives Chris had at the beginning of the night were gone; she could tell by the way he rolled his eyes when Anne answered him.

Chris, however, was merely trying to cover up the admiration he held for the girl. Anne might have been tiny, but she was a strong minded person. She wouldn't give up without a fight, and that was one of the things he had loved about her.

Finally, around ten thirty, Grace was falling fast asleep at the table and murmured something about them all leaving before she called her pet squirrel to come and whisk them off.

Anne giggled at this and looked up at Chris. "She's funny when she's tired."

Chris grinned slightly. "Yeah, you should see her when she's asleep...it's one hell of a sight. Yeah, well I better be going."

Anne jumped and looked at the clock. "Oh my gosh, I didn't realize it was so late. My mom's going to kill me!"

She grabbed her coat from behind the chair and grinned at Chris somewhat bashfully. "Uh-see you, then."

Chris nodded as he headed out the back door to his truck. "Bye."

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School the next day was not a very happy atmosphere. Faye had overslept and forgot to do her chemistry homework, so as she ran down the hall, her hair flying behind her and her eyes still puffy from sleeping, she scribbled on a piece of loose leaf trying to remember the questions from the previous night. Just as she was finishing up her last question, she opened the door to Mr. Bailey and the rest of the class looked up, slightly alarmed.

Faye walked into the room and made her way to her seat beside Grace when Mr. Bailey looked at her expectantly.

"Uh-good morning?" Faye asked weakly, grinning innocently. A few people snickered around her and Grace rolled her eyes.

Mr. Bailey sighed and put down his pointer he was using to explain to the class what acids and bases they would be mixing that class period. He ran a hand over his forehead and leaned on the pointer, clearly aggravated.

"Miss Berry," Mr. Bailey began and Faye grimaced. Whenever he called anyone 'Miss' or 'Mr.' it meant bad news. He was in one of those serious modes that were not nearly as entertaining to the victim as they were when it happened to someone else. "You're late."

Faye had expected him to say more, but when he stopped she looked at the clock. "Oh, would you look at that? I am. But I did do my homework!" She waved the paper in the air high above her head. Grace snatched the paper away and glared at her friend, however, she was slightly amused.

"Miss Berry, what am I going to do with you?" Mr. Bailey shook his head and walked toward her, stopping a few tables short. Everyone's eyes were on Faye and Mr. Bailey, including Chris and Gordie's. Gordie was trying to keep a straight face and Chris was sitting back, as if watching a movie.

"Mr. Bailey-" Faye started, but Mr. Bailey waved a hand dismissively in front of her and she snapped her mouth shut.

"Listen to me," Mr. Bailey started. "You are late for my class. You come walking in here like nothing happened. You expect me to except your poor excuse for homework. Do you even have a note from the office, Miss Berry?"

"No."

Mr. Bailey nodded. "I see. Well, I'm going to have to ask you to leave my classroom, then and return when you are ready."

Faye glared and her face burned a bright pink. "Mr. Bailey, that's not fair! Come on! You always let other people get away with being late!"

"I do not tolerate tardiness in my class, Miss Berry. You've got to learn that."

"But-but-what if I miss something really important?" Faye was almost pleading. "Please don't send me out! I can't take going to the office, they're so mean in there!"

Mr. Bailey shook his head. "They are not. Now, off you go then, shoo!"

Faye gathered her books and cast her eyes down as she walked down towards the office. She couldn't believe he had actually sent her out! The nerve of that mean. *Well, maybe next time you'll wake up* a little voice in the back of her head yelled at her.

"Oh, shut up you," Faye muttered.

Faye spent the rest of the class in the library and decided to skip her last period, French. She couldn't take it in there. Faye was sitting in the empty courtyard when the dismissal bell rang and not before long Chris had found her. He looked at her, sitting there on the bench, her hair laying around her, her eyes downcast and her face in her hands. He grinned and couldn't help but get butterflies.

"Hey there rebel," he said, sitting beside her. Faye looked up and smiled somewhat sadly.

"Hullo."

"You look like your puppy just died," Chris said, fiddling with the latch of his bag. It had broken awhile ago and he still hadn't fixed it.

Faye looked over at him and sighed. "Chris, just buy a new bag. That thing is falling apart."

"Yeah right. I'm broke these days. So what's bothering you? You're not still mad about Bailey are you?"

Faye shook her head. "Nah. I deserved it anyway. I was just sitting here, being bored, throwing myself a pity party."

"Aww," Chris joked. He leaned in and kissed her sweetly. She instantly smiled. "That'd cheer you up?"

Faye smiled. "Yep!" he leaned in and kissed her again. She grinned and leaned her head against his shoulder. "Guess what?"

"Hm?" Chris asked, still fiddling with his latch.

"It's almost Christmas!"

"Oh yay!" Chris mocked, and laughed when Faye swatted his shoulder.

"And that means the Christmas dance...joy!" Faye said sarcastically and sat up, gathering her bag.

"It'll be okay," Chris said, pulling out his keys. "Come on, I'll do you the honor and drive you home."

"Oh yay!" Faye grumbled, but took Chris' outstretched hand all the same.

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Oh yay, guys, I think that was one of my longest chappies ever. I was feeling bored. Okay, here's another chapter. I'm going through a mini- writers block. I have no idea where this story is going, so I want to figure some stuff out. Well anywho, review please! It'll help me greatly. :) Yep, so enjoy!

Love and Strawberries, The Good Girl