A/n: See, I am capable of fast updating occasionally. Enjoy!

Chapter 2

The next night, Phil rang the the Teslow's doorbell, nervously tapping his foot against the worn wood of the porch. He hoped Keely was in a better state than she had been when they'd said goodnight the previous evening. Keely answered the door and flashed him a smile. He could tell she was feeling better but still wasn't back to her cheerful, bubbly self, which, he thought, was understandable given the circumstances.

In his mom's car, Phil headed in the opposite direction to Keely was expecting. "Aren't we going to Owen's party?" She asked, raising her eyebrows at him.

He shook his head. "Nope. I thought we'd just hang out at my house instead. Order a pizza, watch a couple of movies. Mom and Dad are at some play downtown and Pim's at Danny's working on a school project so we'll have the house to ourselves" He looked over at her. "I figure it was better, you know, considering everything."

Keely smiled. Even with as long as she'd know him, Phil's thoughtfulness still amazed her sometimes. "Thanks, Phil."

At the Diffy house, Phil ordered the pizza and then settled on the couch with Keely. As they waited for and ate their pizza, Phil and Keely watched a dumb teen comedy neither of them liked very much. When it was over, Keely, "So what's next?"

Phil grinned. "I've got a movie that'll cheer you right up." He hit play on the DVD player and sat back down on the couch next to her.

Keely couldn't help but smile as the opening titles of Mary Poppins came on the screen. Mary Poppins had always been one of her favorite movies.

"You know, it's scary how well you know me."

Phil just laughed as he put his arm around her. She snuggled against him and laid her head on his chest. As she watched Julie Andrews sing about spoonfuls of sugar, Keely forced herself to forget everything about the situation at hand and focus on the movie. She was, after all, in Phil's arms, the one place she always felt safe and protected, no matter what was going with the rest of the world.

Meanwhile, at the Teslow house, Jeff was sitting in the kitchen, drinking coffee with Mandy.

"So, I met Phil yesterday," he said, stirring sugar into his coffee.

Mandy took a sip from her Pickford Realtors Association mug and said, "I'm not surprised. He and Keely are pretty inseparable. Where there's Keely, there's usually Phil."

"I met his family too."

"The Diffys? They sure are nice, aren't they? I'm glad Keely has some place safe to go when I'm not around."

"So you approve of this relationship?"

Mandy looked at him, a little confused. "Of course I approve. Why wouldn't I? Phil's a good guy."

"Yeah, well, I don't like him."

Mandy was starting to get annoyed. "That's because you don't know him, Jeff. Phil is a wonderful, upstanding young man who has been nothing but an incredible best friend and boyfriend to Keely."

"I can't believe you would let our daughter run around with some boy, Mandy. Do you know they were kissing on your front porch when I left last night?"

She laughed in disbelief. "Do you hear yourself when you talk, Jeff? First of all, they're teenagers, they're allowed to kiss. And second of all, I'm not letting her run around with some boy, I'm letting her be with someone who cares about her and makes her happy. I watched those two fall in love and there isn't anybody who deserves to be together more than Keely and Phil."

"Love? Are you kidding me? They're just kids, Mandy!"

"No, they're not. Even if you don't want to admit it, you're daughter is all grown up and in a serious relationship. Just because weren't around for when she was growing up, Jeff, doesn't mean it didn't happen."

Neither of them said anything after that, both of them just stared into their respective coffee cups. Finally, Mandy said, "Well, I've got some work to do." She didn't, but she needed an excuse to get rid of him.

"Right. I'll leave." Jeff drained the last of his coffee and left, leaving Mandy wondering how she ever stood being married to him.

Back at the Diffy residence, Dick Van Dyke was now singing about shaking hands with a chimney sweep being good luck and Keely had fallen asleep, having not gotten very much sleep the night before. Phil smiled and decided not to wake her up until after the movie was over. She looked so peaceful, asleep in his arms, holding onto his shirt in her sleep as assurance that he wasn't going to leave.

A/n: Thanks for all the great reviews! I got a lot of comments on Jeff's character and after this chapter I'm sure I'll get quite a few more. When I first started writing this, Jeff was sort of based on Christopher from Gilmore Girls, because that was what originally inspired me to do a story about Keely's dad, but as I got into it, his character sort of evolved and took on a life of his own, which all the best characters do. Anyway, leave me a review, like always, and stay tuned for the next chapter!

--Sam