Lunch

It wasn't until Kim and Ron were in line at lunch that she asked him just what, exactly, went down in Trigonometry. "So how did you know that Barkin knew that I gave you the answers?"

Ron took a breath, "Tara told me in Home Ec." He picked up his tray and immediately regretted not calling ahead for the kosher meal.

"How'd she know?" Kim asked, still harboring some concern regarding Tara's recent behavior toward Ron.

"Bonnie told her that she saw you giving it to me." He said as they sat down at their usual table.

'You wish she'd give it to you.' The little voice teased.
'You already used that one.' Ron pointed out.
'Uh…never mind.'

Ron smirked and chuckled to himself.

Kim was seething, "That tramp, when I see her I'm going to…"

"Hey Kim, Ron." It was Andrew Mathews, Kim's current boyfriend.

"Andy." Kim and Ron both greeted him.

"Missed you Saturday night." He sat down next to Kim, and gave her a small peck on the cheek.

"Not as much as I missed you." She cooed back, flittering her eyelashes at him. He leaned in and quickly kissed her again.

Ron rolled his eyes, "Enough already with the PDA guys. I'm trying to eat over here."

"Sorry if we're ruining your appetite, Ron." Andy said, looking in disgust at the brownish-green ooze on Ron's plate. "We'll try and keep it to a minimum while you eat…that."

Monique

Monique was on her way to the cafeteria when her cell phone started buzzing. She ducked into the girls' bathroom to answer it. "Hello?"

"Dr. D wanted to let you know…" Shego began.

"I told him never call me at this number!" Monique snapped. "What if she were here? Huh?" She took a quick glance under the stalls, the room was empty, she was alone. "How would that look?"

"Jeez. Calm down." Shego said, attempting to allay the situation. "A person might get the idea that you're nervous Monique."

"Nervous? Who me?" Shego could hear the anxiety in her voice, it was so obvious.

"Relax…You're doing fine. It'll all be over soon." Shego spoke in a soothing tone. "You'll be fine, trust me…"

"Trust you?" Monique asked wryly. "Uh huh sure. That'll happen."

"Whatever. Dr. D wants you to work on the whole," her eyes rolled as she passed the instructions on, "Kim has feelings for Ron thing." Why they couldn't just deal with Kimmie in a more conventional manner was beyond her. Although she had to admit, this was fun. In a twisted running over kittens kind of way, so she wasn't going to complain…much.

"Don't you go worrying your green self about that. I'll work it, work it real good." Monique flipped her phone shut and walked out of the washroom, headed for lunch.

Tara

Tara stepped quietly into the cafeteria; she had been avoiding Bonnie, with good reason, ever since Trigonometry. She looked around the crowded room for someplace to sit. Someplace safe. Her eyes scanning the various tables, 'Too many geeks, too many jocks, Bonnie.' She shuddered as their eyes met, an icy cold glare from her friend convincing her to look elsewhere. She once again began to scan the familiar faces, looking for a certain face in particular. 'Ron…' She found him, 'Sitting with Kim of course and... Andy?'

Was she ready for this? To sit with Ron when her brother was right there? Would he notice? Would he approve? She took a cleansing breath and walked over to the table.

"Mind if I sit with you guys?" She asked, smiling brightly.

There was no discussion necessary; although she wasn't a regular at the table she was welcome. "Sure, grab a seat." Andy said, motioning to the chairs on his right.

There were three empty seats for her to chose from, one next to her brother, one next to Ron, and one in-between those two. She considered her choices, and sat down next to Ron.

Kim's eyes narrowed, burning a hole straight through the blonde's pretty little head. From across the room Bonnie glared back at Kim, who she thought was glaring at her. If only she knew the truth…

Andy and Ron both noticed the change in Kim's mood; neither knew the cause, not that they would believe it if they did. Both of the boys knew her well; one as a friend of over twelve years, the other as a boyfriend of just over two months. "You ok?" They asked.

"Huh? Oh, yeah, I'm fine." Kim lightly shook her head from side-to-side and blinked her eyes, before settling back into a relaxed state.

"You sure, KP?" Ron asked.

"I'm fine. It's just Bonnie, she's…" Kim paused, searching for the proper word.

"She's so mean." Tara finished, stealing a backward glance at her friend. "It's not like she's never cheated before or anything."

A Fifth

Monique walked up to the table and sat down next to Andy, she wanted to give Tara and Ron their space. "Hey all. Did I miss anything?"

"Nothing much." Was the general consensus from the four occupants. There was a period of shared small talk before the conversations broke down into two groups. Kim, Andy and Monique in one. Ron and Tara in the other.

"So are you going to check into a tutor for Trigonometry, Ron?" Tara asked leaning toward him slightly, although not unintentionally. Her eyes attempting to catch his.

"I figured I'd head down during Study Hall, see if I can get something lined up." Ron said, not noticing the shrinking distance between them.

"Hopefully they have someone for you." Tara said, quietly scooting her chair slightly closer to his. His eyes met hers and for a brief instance in time, everyone else disappeared. It was just the two of them, alone.