Author's Notes: A lot of weird stuff takes place in this chapter. I don't know if I like it that much, that's why I took a little bit longer to put it up. Michael is a little bit out of character as he was in the book in this chapter with the whole hallway PDA thing with Judith, but I figured that wasn't a really, really big deal.

I want to hear about what you guys want to see in this story, so suggestions as to where the plot can go are welcome. I haven't totally decided where I'm going with this and I have about a million and a half ideas of things that could happen, so I'm curious as to which direction you guys think I should go.

And I promise that there will be a point to the whole Michael-and-Judith and Kenny-and-Mia thing sometime.

Next chapter I'm hoping to have more Lilly, Tina, Boris, Kenny, and Michael.

If you like it, please review!


It was Monday afternoon, after lunchtime, and Mia was sitting at the usual table in G & T class beside Lilly Moscovitz. Next to her sat her boyfriend, Boris Pelkowski. The couple was involved in a serious discussion about the violin concert that Boris had taken part in that weekend. Mia didn't want to interrupt, so she simply sat with her books closed on top of the table. Propping her head up on one of her arms that laid on the desk, she proceeded to stare carelessly into space.

She didn't even notice when someone sat down on the other side of her and opened their books.

"Michael!" Lilly yelped. "What are you doing sitting over here with us? You don't belong here," Lilly finished accusingly. She had turned away from Boris to question Michael on his choice of seating arrangements the moment her brother had sat down next to Mia.

Mia instantly shook herself out of her thoughts the moment she heard Lilly speak to Michael, who, upon Mia's glance to her right, was sitting in the chair next to hers. She instantly felt a shudder go through her body. He was sitting right there beside her, less than a foot away from her. Mia blinked.

"Thanks for making me feel so welcome here, Lilly," Michael answered, his tone one of indifference.

"You're not welcome here, loserface," Lilly retorted.

Michael rolled his eyes. "You're so juvenile sometimes."

Lilly scowled, and turned back to Boris.

Hesitantly, Mia smiled at him.

He smiled back at her, slowly. "Do you mind if I sit here?" He asked, quietly, so that Lilly wouldn't overhear.

"No," Mia answered, shaking her head.

Michael flipped to a blank page in his notebook that laid on the desk, and picked up a pen that sat beside it, and began to write furiously, his dark brown hair falling into his eyes. Mia's eyes wandered around his naturally tanned left arm, exposed by the fact that he had rolled up his light blue long sleeved button up collared uniform shirt's sleeve, which was laying about four inches away from her own right arm. The regulation light blue plaid tie hung loosely around his neck, his dark hair dusting the tie at the nape of his neck.

Mia wondered what he was always writing. Did he have a journal? It would be so cute if he had a journal like she had a journal. She wondered if it was almost like his friend like it was hers. Or maybe he wrote poetry. How cute was that? Mia thought for a second. If he wrote poetry, maybe it was love poetry. Love poetry for Judith, his girlfriend. She shuddered. No. It couldn't be poetry, not for Judith.

Sighing to herself, Mia opened up her algebra textbook and stared at the words on the page. None of them were actually getting through to her right at the moment. She couldn't help it, not when Michael's godliness was seated in the chair right next to hers, about a total of twelve inches away from her own.

[MONDAY, JANUARY 24 4:00 PM]

KENNY ASKED ME OUT!!!!!!

Yes. That's right. Kenny "I'm-a-dork-who-likes-Japanese-anime-and-I'm-in-the-Computer-Club" Showalter asked me out. ME. OUT ON A DATE. HE WANTS TO GO OUT WITH ME ON A DATE. Who'd ever have thought anyone would ever want to go out on a date with me? I'm this total freak. And to top that off, I'm a princess.

Never mind the fact that I don't like Kenny that way. I don't like anime or science fiction, both of which are his passions. I couldn't really bring myself to say no. Sometimes, I'm just too nice. He sounded so nervous and so terrified that I just couldn't bear to say no to him. And he's a nice guy. He lets me copy his Biology homework, because I always get all the questions wrong.

I totally wouldn't object, though, if a different Computer Club geek asked me out. Namely, Michael Moscovitz.

But he's not really a geek at all. Well, I guess he is. But he's an attractive geek.

Kenny is okay, I guess. He's nice enough.

We were sitting in Biology, and, well, here's how the conversation went.

Me: I'm not really sure how this works, Kenny. Can you explain it for me?

Kenny: Huh? What? Oh, sorry, Mia.

Me: Are you okay, Kenny?

Kenny: Well, no. See, I have this friend. And he likes this girl. He really, really wants to ask her out on a date.

At this point, I'm wishing his friend was Michael Moscovitz, and that Michael wanted to ask ME out on a date. Really, really.

Me: So what?

I'm totally insensitive.

Kenny: I.. I mean, uh, he, he doesn't know how to ask her.

Me: He should probably just ask her, straight out. There's always a fifty-fifty percent she'll say yes.

Kenny was silent for a minute, with this thoughtful expression on his face. He muttered under his breath to himself and everything. Meanwhile, I'm thinking that we should really get back to this Biology business. I didn't want to take all my homework home with me.

Kenny: So, uh, Mia.. I'm sort of asking about this for myself.

I'm totally confused. What? Oh. He wants to ask a girl on a date. Boy, was I ever wrong. Not just any girl, no.

Me: Yourself?

Kenny: Mia, I really like you.

And I'm speechless. WHERE ON EARTH DID THIS REVELATION COME FROM? Meanwhile, Kenny's staring blankly at me and waiting for me to speak. He'll be waiting awhile. I don't really have anything to say to that. It's not like I can say, "Kenny, I like you too." Which is probably what he wants. I'm not much of a liar, though. It seemed like forever until he answered, finally realizing I wasn't going to say anything. I couldn't say anything.

Kenny: So, uh, I guess what I'm trying to say is, would you go out on a date with me?

By now, you'd think I was expecting that, right? Wrong. This is me we're talking about. Of course I didn't expect him to ask me out on a date. So I was completely, completely blown away. And my first instinct is to say no and let him down gently, telling him I don't really like him that way. But no, I'm not really like that. I had to do the nice thing. I couldn't break his heart. He's a nice guy.

Me: Sure, I guess so, Kenny.

I swear, he started beaming. What have I gotten myself into?

Oh, never mind, I know the answer to that. Now I'm going to have to spend a few hours alone with him on Friday night, watching Star Wars at the local theater downtown. I like Star Wars alright, so I guess that will be okay. It's just that the company isn't really preferable. Don't get me wrong, I know Kenny's a nice guy. It's just that I don't really like anime or science fiction. But I guess it's better than going by myself.

Why am I such a pushover?

Mia shut her diary, sighing. At that moment, the telephone rang. Mia got up off of her bed and went down to the kitchen. Frank, her mother, and Rocky were nowhere to be found, so she picked up the kitchen extension. "Hello?"

"Mia!" said the voice on the other end of the line. "It's me, Lilly."

"Hey, Lil," Mia answered. "What's up?"

"Boris just told me you're going out on a date with Kenny!" she exclaimed. "Is it true? Boris says Kenny asked you today in biology class. I can't believe you didn't tell me on the way home! Why didn't you tell me you liked Kenny?"

"Yeah," Mia answered. "It's true. We're going to see Star Wars on Friday at the theater."

"Oh, really? Boris and I are going to that too," Lilly replied. "How long have you liked Kenny?"

Mia stalled, unsure how to answer. Truth be told, she really didn't like Kenny that way, or any way, for that matter, at all. "I don't really know Kenny," she answered, her voice unsure and stumbling over the words. "I mean, he's a nice guy, but we haven't really talked a lot except in biology class. He seems nice. And he likes me."

Lilly noticed this, to Mia's dismay. "What's your problem? Last week, you told me you wished you had a boyfriend. Now you've got this guy who wants to be your boyfriend and even asks you out on a date, and all of the sudden, you're not interested anymore? What's up with you, Mia?" She asked, in an accusing tone of voice. "Is there something you're not telling me?"

Mia sighed. She had hoped that Lilly would have been blissfully ignorant to the way that Mia was acting about her impending date on Friday night. It's just that Kenny wasn't really the right guy. Not for Mia. "There's nothing to tell, Lilly," she said, not voicing her thoughts. She knew Lilly would laugh if Lilly knew that Mia had a small crush on Lilly's perfect older brother. He was a senior. He was perfect. And he had a girlfriend. There was no way that Lilly could find out about this. "I'm just tired. I'll see you tomorrow at school," she finished, hanging up the phone after Lilly said a hurried farewell.

The next morning at school, Mia walked over to her locker listlessly. She had been up all night, worrying and thinking about her date with Kenny on Friday, and the fact that Lilly was beginning to suspect that something was up with her. Was Mia really that transparent? She shook her head, her long, straight blonde hair grazing her cheeks.

And then she saw it. Michael Moscovitz and Judith Gershner, the happy, perfect couple. They were standing in the middle of the otherwise empty hallway facing each other a few feet away from Mia's locker, their hands clasped together, and their bodies less than six inches apart. Mia sighed. Michael had a small smile on his face and he was gazing into Judith's eyes, and she was laughing slightly, her eyes gazing right back into Michael's.

Michael leaned in to close the small distance between their faces and kissed her lips gently, his eyes closed and the smile still etched onto his lips. Judith leaned into Michael, wrapping her arms around his neck and playing with the hair at the nape of his neck with her fingers. After what seemed like forever, Michael pulled away from Judith and let her go. Smiling at him, Judith walked away. Michael stood there, staring at her back as she walked away.

What a way for Mia's day to start off.

Mia stood in the middle of the hallway, watching their affectionate display and wishing that she could melt into the floor and rise up again as Judith Gershner, just so that she could be the perfect Michael Moscovitz's girlfriend. Realizing that Michael was now standing in the middle of the hallway a few feet away with his back turned on Mia, she rushed to her locker and fumbled with the lock.

As she piled her books into her locker furiously, someone came up from behind her and wrapped their arms around her waist. "Good morning, Mia," said a familiar male voice.

Mia nearly screamed.

She whipped her head around and smacked her head with the head of her unexpected, overaffectionate assailant. He groaned, and she pushed the hair out of her eyes and found herself staring back into the eyes of Kenny Showalter, who was now clutching his head and grimacing. "Geez, Mia, you've got one heck of a hard head."

What an idiot. Mia rolled her eyes. "Kenny, you don't just do that to someone! I wasn't expecting that."

Kenny looked confused. "But we're dating now, aren't we? Isn't it okay that I do that?"

Mia shook her head. "I wasn't aware that you were to be known as my boyfriend. Are you?"

Kenny shrugged. "You said yes when I asked you to go to Star Wars with me on Friday. I thought that meant you liked me back." He looked even more confused, and a sad smile replaced his pained grimace. "Do you not want to date me? I thought you wanted to be my girlfriend," he continued, in a small, defeated tone of voice.

That was it. Mia couldn't bear to break his heart, and he looked so sad. "No, Kenny, that's not it."

Kenny smiled eagerly. "So, you'll be my girlfriend, then?"

Mia forced a smile onto her face, telling herself not to hurt him. Kenny was a nice guy. "Yes."

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Michael strolling over to her locker, a look of confusion etched on to his face. So she and Kenny weren't the only confused ones this morning, apparently. Michael stopped and stood beside Kenny, across from Mia. "Hey Kenny, hi Thermopolis," he said. "I didn't know you guys knew each other." He looked from Kenny to Mia and back again. "Kenny and I are in the Computer Club together," he explained to Mia.

Mia began to speak, but she was interrupted by Kenny. "Actually, we're dating," Kenny said proudly, throwing his arm around Mia's shoulders. "We met in Biology class last week. And I asked Mia to go to see Star Wars with me this weekend. So now, Mia's my girlfriend! Isn't that right, Mia?"

Mia flashed a weak smile at Michael, who looked even more confused. "Yeah," she echoed emptily.

Kenny clutched Mia's hand briefly and smiled at her. "I have to go to my locker before my physics class. See you at lunchtime," he said, walking away in the direction of his locker. "Save me a seat beside you at your table!"

Then it was just Mia and Michael. Completely and totally embarrassed, Mia grabbed her bookbag off of the floor and continued to shove her books into her locker. However, Michael didn't leave, and Mia wasn't sure why he was just standing there, shifting his weight from foot to foot and staring at his shoes thoughtfully. He looked perfect in his school uniform. A vision in blue and... darker blue.

"So," he started. "You and Kenny are really dating?"

Mia faced him and sighed. "Yeah. We are."

Michael laughed, but it came out sounding completely forced. "Don't sound so enthusiastic, Thermopolis."

"I'm just tired," Mia protested. "Kenny's a really, really nice guy. I like him a lot." Just not as much as I like you. Picking up her books for her history class, she began to walk away from Michael. "I have to go to history."

He quickly caught up with her. Hesitantly, she turned her head to look at him and saw that he was smiling slightly. "I'll walk you to class?"

He wanted to walk her to class. Mia couldn't help the smile that spread itself across her face. "Don't you have a class to go to, though?"

In response, Michael shrugged. "I've always got time to walk my friends to class," he said, smiling at her.

Mia felt a tingling sensation spread throughout her body as he smiled at her. This was so wrong. And now, Kenny was her boyfriend. Mia liked Kenny, she really did. He was a nice guy. A little bit dorky, maybe, but Mia didn't mind his dorkiness. And was kind of an awkward guy to be around, but all in all he was a nice guy. And he, unlike Michael, actually liked Mia.

"Thanks, Michael," she said, managing to smile back at him.

"What's wrong, Thermopolis? You don't seem yourself this morning," Michael said, as Mia rubbed at her tired, downcast eyes with her free hand. "Do you want to talk about it? I'll skip my calculus class if you want and we can hang out in the courtyard. I don't really want to go anyways. And you look like someone who needs a friend right now."

Mia smiled. He was so sweet to offer. "That's okay, Michael. I'm just not having a really great day. I'll be fine," she said, nodding her head earnestly. "And I really do have to actually go to history class." What was Mia, crazy? Would she really, really rather go to history class than hang out with the guy she was in love with? She sighed, knowing that she couldn't skip class.

He didn't look convinced. "Okay, but remember that if you need to talk, I'm here for you." He looked down at the floor. They had stopped walking, right outside of Mia's history classroom. Lana Weinberger, in a cloud of blonde hair and sickeningly sweet perfume, pushed past Mia, rolling her eyes as she did. "And I mean, Lilly is too. You can always count on her. You're one of her best friends now. I know she's often busy with Boris, though, so if she's not there you can always talk to me."

Wouldn't Michael be busy with Judith? She was his girlfriend, after all. "You're such a good friend, Michael. I'm glad I met you," she said, sincerely.

Michael smiled down at the floor. He was avoiding her eyes. "Yeah," he said, echoing her sincerity. "I have to go to calculus. See you later," he said, turning around quickly and walking in the direction of his math classroom, his hands jammed into the pockets of his navy blue uniform pants.

Mia sighed, and turned to head into her history classroom.

She was a little bit late, and the only empty seat was beside Lana Weinberger, since her equally sickening entourage was not present that day. Mia walked over and sat down, pulling out the chair quietly, hoping Lana wouldn't notice her and look up from her lip gloss application process.

Lana flashed her a haughty glare and smirked at her. "You know, Princess Freak Mia, Michael Moscovitz already has a girlfriend. He's totally taken." She tossed her long blonde hair. "Judith Gershner? She's the smartest girl in school, and she's also a senior. Just like Michael. Do you really think he's going to leave her so he can be with you? He's just taking pity on you simply because you're his disgusting little sister's new best friend."

Mia glared at her. "For your information, Lana, I have a boyfriend. And Michael and I are just friends." Even though Mia wished they could be something more.

Lana flipped her hair over her shoulder, smirking. "He's a total computer geek anyways. Talk about a ten on the ew-factor." She raised her perfectly tweezed eyebrow. "Your boyfriend is Kenny Showalter, I heard. He's an even bigger computer geek than Michael. A fifteen on the ew-factor, at least. And he's not even a senior." She shrugged. "Mind you, he's a total freak and a half, just like you. So I guess you guys are a match made in heaven."

Mia rolled her eyes at her and opened her notebook. She began copying down the teacher's notes off the board into her book and ignored the fact that Lana was talking at Mia about how much hotter and better her boyfriend, Josh Richter, was than Kenny Showalter and Michael Moscovitz combined.

For all she cared, Lana could just fall through a hole in the floor and hopefully, never be seen ever again.