Chloe laughed softly as she basked in the afternoon sunlight and listened to Jason recount an amusing tale of his troublesome tricks from the past. Taking a bite of her fruity ice cream bar, Chloe asked, "Was there ever a time in your life when you didn't get in trouble?"

Faking a pensive look, Jason paused before answering, "Nah, I don't think so. But, hey, what about you? Breaking into a building and nearly getting caught? I think that qualifies as trouble."

"Okay, I confess. I let you talk me into doing something wrong."

"Oh, I may have been the one to lead us in there, but you were the wild one that had to push it to extremes by going back to your locker. By the way, what was so important that it couldn't wait until Monday?"

"Nothing," Chloe quietly answered while avoiding Jason's curious gaze.

"Nothing? It had to be something if you were willing to risk getting caught by Principal Cohen." Gently placing his hand under Chloe's chin, Jason turned her face so that he could look into those amazing blue eyes. With a rare softness, he questioned, "What means that much to you?"

Chloe rolled her eyes and sullenly answered, "If you must know, I wanted to put a picture of you and me in my locker, okay?"

"That's so . . ."

"Cheesy?" Chloe proposed.

"Maybe, but the word I was looking for was sweet."

After giving an almost humorous lift of his eyebrows, Jason began to close in for a kiss. However, he was mere centimeters from Chloe's inviting lips when he happened to see a terribly familiar person walking through Salem Place. Pulling away from Chloe, Jason cleared his throat and said, "Don't look now, but Principal Cohen has arrived."

Hurriedly spinning to look, Chloe nervously asked, "You don't think he's here looking for us, do you? Is it possible he figured out that we broke into the school?"

"I hope not," Jason muttered as he carefully watched the principal cross Salem Place like a man on a mission. "Maybe we should just make a quick getaway before he actually sees us."

"Or, maybe we should just face the music. If Principal Cohen knows we were there, he's going to call our parents. And, I seriously doubt if either of our mothers will appreciate us breaking into the high school."

"So, you're saying we should just approach the old goat and see what happens?"

Chloe shrugged and responded, "I guess."

"Here goes nothin'," muttered Jason as he stood and extended his right hand to help Chloe to her feet.

After tossing the remainder of their ice cream into a nearby trash container, Jason and Chloe reluctantly began to walk toward the high school principal whose office they had so often frequented over the past few years.

As they made their approach, neither Jason nor Chloe even realized that their hands were still clasped. It simply seemed natural. When they were only ten to fifteen feet away from the distinguished looking man, Jason and Chloe saw someone else approaching him – his wife.

Relief washed over the duo as they heard Cohen tell his wife that he had been waiting for her to finish her shopping so they could grab something to eat together.

Jason tossed Chloe his infamous sexy grin and muttered, "Let's get out of here." Gently pulling on his girlfriend's hand, Jason began to lead her away from the high school principal. However, the couple were stopped in their tracks when Principal Cohen, yelled, "Stop right there, you two! Masters and Lane, get over here . . . now."

"Oh, no," whispered Chloe as she forced herself to stay outwardly cool and collected. Of course, cool and collected would be the last thing she would appear if Craig and Nancy learned that she and Jason had let themselves into the school – after Jason had picked the lock to the custodial entrance.

Their hands still clasped together, Jason and Chloe slowly turned to face Cohen and his wife. Seeing that the two students were not making any efforts to move any closer, Cohen used his index finger to motion for them to draw nearer. "Come on, get over here."

Never dropping Chloe's hand, Jason walked toward Principal Cohen with a rather false smile plastered on his face. "Principal Cohen, we didn't even see you standing over here." Directing his gaze toward Mrs. Cohen, Jason smiled just a little broader and said, "Principal Cohen didn't tell me that his younger sister was in town for a visit. In fact, I don't think he ever even mentioned having such a beautiful sister."

"That's because, she's my beautiful wife – and, you know that she's not my sister since you've spent enough time in my office to have memorized every single one of our wedding photos that are on my desk." Turning his attention to Chloe, Principal Cohen continued, "You're being unusually quiet Miss Lane. Don't tell me that you don't have some wisecrack to make."

"Indignant rebuttals are more my style, Principal Cohen. I leave the wisecracks to Jason," Chloe answered with a slightly bemused grin.

While Jason broke out with a laugh, Principal Cohen said, "Enough. Now, which of you is going to tell me what is going on?"

Instantly, Jason and Chloe became a matching pair of silent statues. The smiles were erased from their faces as they each contemplated various lies, excuses, and alibis.

In an attempt to appear innocent, Jason asked, "What are you talking about, sir? What do think is going on?"

Cohen shocked both Jason and Chloe by motioning toward the couple's joined hands and saying, "I want to know where you were dragging Chloe and what you planned to do to her."

A wicked grin devoured Jason's face as he responded, "Now, that gives me all sorts of fun ideas." Jason then tossed his blushing girlfriend a wink.

"I'm serious, Mr. Masters."

"So am I, Mr. Cohen."

Chloe, the more logical of the oddly-paired couple, saw that Jason was headed no where but toward trouble. Intervening, she said, "Is that all you needed to speak to us about? You only wanted to make sure that we weren't getting into trouble?"

"Yes. Believe it or not, I don't want either of you to get yourselves into any more bad situations that will cause you problems. All I really want is for the both of you to learn from your mistakes. Maybe just give each other a chance. Now, are you going to tell me where the two of you were going?"

"If you must know," Jason began with an expression of minor annoyance. "We're not really going anywhere. Chloe and I were just hanging out here at Salem Place and talking."

Principal Cohen gave a doubtful smirk and responded, "The two of you . . . hanging out?"

"That's what I said," Jason confirmed.

The older man's face was conquered by a smile that clearly displayed his skepticism. "So, the two of you were just going to sit and chat like friends? Is that right? Am I supposed to believe that Jason Masters and Chloe Lane are suddenly best pals?"

After taking a quick glance at Jason's handsome, and reassuring face, Chloe countered, "Actually, Jason and I are more than just pals. We're sorta . . ."

The smile dropping from his face, Principal Cohen echoed, "Sorta . . .?"

"The next super couple of Salem High – Chloe and I are dating," supplied Jason with a grin that combined both triumph and a hint of self-satisfaction.

When several seconds had passed in silence, Principal Cohen shocked his wife and the two teens by bursting into a brief fit of laughter. "You expect me to believe that? Nah, not in this lifetime, kids."

Before Chloe was given the briefest of moments to prepare herself, Jason had cupped her face in his strong hands and pulled her face to him. Covering her shocked lips with his own, Jason began a passionate kiss that bordered on pure aggression. However, as Mr. and Mrs. Cohen began to fade away into a blurry background, Jason softened the kiss and let himself truly enjoy the feel of his lips gently crashing against Chloe's.

Losing herself in the magical touch that only Jason seemed to possess, Chloe heedlessly lifted one hand to the back of his neck and began to softly run her hands though his short blonde hair.

Literally pulling the two teens apart, Principal Cohen placed himself between their bodies. After a quick look at each, he announced, "Alright, fine, I don't doubt the two of you are a couple. As unbelievable as it is, I believe." Shivering as though he had truly felt someone walk across his own grave, the principal added to his wife, "This is just a little too weird. Honey, you ready to go eat lunch?"

Receiving a nod from his wife, Cohen added, "Well, I guess I'll be seeing you two at school on Monday. I take this means we'll have less unruly episodes in the hallway from now on?"

"Yes, sir," confirmed Jason with a mock salute. Tossing Chloe that familiar mischievous grin, Jason then said, "Let's get out of here."

Seated with Isaac at a booth inside the cozy Brady Pub, Bo and Hope Brady quietly discussed their son Shawn and his uncertain future.

Gently rapping her nails on the table's surface, Hope stated, "I'm worried about him, Bo. First, he thinks that he's going to join the Merchant Marines; then, he says he may go to Salem University for a year or so, and now he's determined to go to Pepperdine."

Bo released a soft chuckle and replied, "Fancy Face, I think you're getting yourself worked up over nothing. Shawn has a good head on his shoulders; he'll figure things out for himself."

"I know, but I just can't help worrying about him," conceded Hope before popping a tater tot into her mouth.

Satisfied that he had calmed his anxious wife, Bo turned his attention to young Isaac. Speaking animatedly to the child, Bo told the youngster how much fun they were going to have when he learned to play ball. When several seconds passed and Hope did not make any contribution to the conversation, Bo turned to see what had so effectively grabbed her attention. Following her eyes, he found himself watching Jason Masters and Chloe Lane prepare to enter the family restaurant.

Hope released a sigh and commented, "I feel so bad, Bo. The night before Shawn left, he told me how worried he was about Jason and Chloe being left in Salem together with no one to play referee. And, I promised him that I would try to keep an eye out for Chloe and keep her clear of Jason. Well, Shawn will be back this Sunday night, and I have done nothing to help ease the tension between those two."

"Hope, don't blame yourself. You've had a lot to deal with lately, and it's not your job to keep those two teenagers from fighting."

Carefully watching Jason and Chloe walk across the room, Hope said, "Oh, Bo, I really hope that they don't get into a fight here. Maybe I should call them over . . ."

"Hope . . .," Bo began to argue.

However, it was too late; Hope was already smiling at the two young adults and waving a hand at them, motioning them to approach the booth.

With obvious hesitancy Jason and Chloe approached Shawn's parents and his baby brother who sat in a high chair at the end of the table. Neither teen had any idea what to expect from Bo and Hope, but both were thoroughly dreading whatever was awaiting them.

Reaching the booth, Jason was the first to speak. "Hi, Mr. Brady, Mrs. Brady."

"Hello, Jason," returned Hope. Turning her attention to the young woman at Jason's side, Hope continued, "Hi, Chloe. How are you and your parents doing?"

"We're all fine," Chloe answered with a healthy mixture of suspicion and hesitance.

Hope gave her classic smile and nodded. "Why don't you two join Bo and me for lunch?"

In an attempt to actually be able to have lunch alone with Chloe, Jason answered, "I'm sure the two of you would much rather have a quiet lunch with the rugrat here. We really wouldn't want to intrude on a family meal."

"Nonsense. We insist that you stay – don't we, Bo?"

Bo could only force a smile onto his face as his darling wife hopped up from her side of the booth and moved to sit beside him. Tossing the young adults an almost apologetic smile, Bo said, "Yeah, why don't the two of you just sit down and join us?"

Jason and Chloe had just sat down across from the married couple when a familiar waitress arrived at their table. As soon as the woman had taken Jason and Chloe's order and walked away, Hope asked, "So, are you both ready to get back to school and have all your friends back home?"

After sharing a look with Chloe, Jason answered, "Well, I guess it'll be nice to go back to school and have the gang back in town but that doesn't mean I'm really ready for this time off to be over."

"Oh?" Hope curiously questioned. "Why is that?"

"Let's just say that getting suspended from school and having to miss senior trip was the best thing that could have happened to me."

Against his own will, Bo also found himself becoming rather curious about Jason, Chloe, and all the vagueness surrounding them. "So, you've learned a lesson from all of this?"

"We both have," Chloe answered with a weak smile that was sent solely to Jason.

"So, are you saying you're not going to be fighting each other at school anymore?" Bo asked before taking a sip of his iced soft drink.

"Something like that," Chloe mysteriously answered with a grin.

Hope glanced at Bo with a single silent question in her animated eyes. What was going on with Jason and Chloe?

Grabbing at the first conversation topic she could stumble upon, Hope cheerfully asked, "So, have either of you decided where you'll be this fall?"

"If nothing goes wrong, I'll hopefully be at Julliard," Chloe replied.

When he began to feel all eyes turn to him, Jason quietly answered, "I'm not completely sure yet. It's sorta a work in progress."

"Oh?" Hope commented. "How so?"

"Yeah, Jase," added Chloe. "I thought that you've been planning to go to school in California."

Unconsciously pulling at his shirt collar, Jason avoided the gazes of his inquiring companions as he responded, "Well, I've decided that I probably wouldn't have all that much fun living in sunny California and going surfing and swimming and all that stuff. Instead, I've been considering NYU . . . as in, New York University."

When Jason finally found the courage to lift his own gaze to look at Chloe, he found his new girlfriend staring at him with such unconcealed admiration that he begrudgingly began to fill soft and mushy inside. Whether he liked it or not, Chloe Lane truly had the ability to melt his sometimes icy heart.

"You want to live in New York?" Chloe questioned.

"That's what I said, Einstein."

Bo and Hope held their breath as the sarcastic comment sat on the air and seemingly hovered above them all. However, they were shocked when Chloe simply slapped Jason's arm in an almost playful manner and commented, "Oh, you're funny, Jase. Real funny. Maybe you should even consider your own stand-up comedy show."

"You think?" Jason jokingly asked with a smile. As the waitress returned with his and Chloe's lunch, Jason quietly said, "Yeah, I'm thinking that New York City might be a fun place to spend a few years. Besides, Jan will be going to college on the West Coast, so I'd prefer to be on the complete opposite side of the country." With an almost wicked grin, Jason added, "Plus, I hear all the beautiful, intelligent girls are moving to the East Coast."

Picking up her fork and stabbing a helpless piece of lettuce, Chloe grinned and responded, "Good answer."

Hope's innate curiosity getting the best of her, she asked, "Jason, did you and Jan have a falling out?"

"Jan and I broke up the day Chloe and I got suspended."

"Oh, Jason, I'm sorry," Hope apologetically replied.

"Why? I'm sure as hell not. In fact, that was one of the best things to ever happen to me."

Yet again, Bo and Hope shared a quick glance that confirmed their mutual confusion. Both knew that they were missing a piece of the puzzle, but neither had any clue what it could be. They would soon be enlightened.

Using his own fork, Jason reached over and stabbed a chunk of red tomato that sat atop Chloe's salad. He proceeded to casually dip the tomato in some of the salad dressing on Chloe's plate. He then devoured the innocent tomato. All the while, Bo and Hope watched with unabashed fascination.

After swallowing the alleged fruit, Jason asked, "So, when will your rehearsal be over tonight?"

"Probably around seven-thirty or eight. But, rehearsal will only last until six-thirty tomorrow and Friday night."

"Great. How about I pick you up at the theater when you finish tonight?"

"Jason, I can walk home. It's not very far."

"Chloe," countered Jason. "I can pick you up – it's not that far. Besides, I know that you can take care of yourself . . . I just like doing it for you."

Underneath the booth's tabletop, Hope wildly hit her husband's leg with her fist as though to tell him what he was already figuring out for himself. Something was going on between Jason Masters and Chloe Lane. And, it was definitely romantic.

"Ooo-kay," Bo drawled out as he rose from his seat. "I think it's about time I got back to the station." Looking down at his wife, he continued, "Hope, you're ready for me to drop you and Isaac off at the house, aren't you?"

Tossing Chloe and Jason one last glance of curiosity, Hope answered, "Yeah, that sounds great." As she picked Isaac up from his high chair, Hope said, "You know, I think the two of you finally have things figured out – I'm proud of you."

Watching the blissful older couple exit the pub, Jason again showed his usually concealed soft side by gently kissing Chloe's temple. His voice much softer than usual, he simply surmised, "Life is good."