author's notes: i can't believe i've been writing this fic for over a year now. but it's coming to an end! it's looking like it'll be done at either chapter 30 or 31, depending on how massive i want the last chapter to be.

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Cree walked into the school's cafeteria; it was crowded and noisy as usual. But it was always easy to pick Chad out of the crowd, mainly because he was never in it. Sure enough, he was sitting at the end of the emptiest table. The nerd-loser table was more populated than his. His back was turned and he was studying, as usual.

She walked over, sat beside him, and shoved up against him to get his attention. Subtly, of course.

It worked; he turned and stared at her, surprised.

"Whatcha doin'?" she asked.

"Uh…huh?" he replied, gaping at her.

Cree laughed and scooted a few inches away, returning to him his personal space. "What are you doing?"

The vaguely glazed look in Chad's eyes dissipated. "Oh…um, studying for chem."

She leaned in closer for a look at his notes; her arm pressed against his. "Hm…chemical equations. Fun."

He didn't answer; the pen in his hand slipped from his grasp and rolled a small distance away. Cree looked up to see him gawking at her again.

She pulled away and made a face at him. He blinked at her a few times and said, "Sorry—what were you saying?" as he reached to reclaim his errant pen.

"Not important," she grinned. Chad sure is loopy sometimes. "So what's for lunch? More bologna?"

He shook his head. "Times are tough," he said, holding up his sandwich. "PB and J."

"Oh, I'm sorry. Maybe it's time you sell your cow at the marketplace."

"But if we sell Bessie, how will we get our milk?"

Cree laughed and had to resist the urge to hug him senseless. It was weird how happy she felt when she was just joking around with him. Well, why shouldn't I hug him? She wondered to herself. We're friends, and friends hug all the time. But ultimately she talked herself out of it; it would be kind of weird to suddenly glomp him.

"So where's your lunch?" Chad asked.

"Ate it already. I got hungry during English class. We're reading Pickwick Papers."

"There is a lot of food porn in there. You want some of mine?" he offered up his sandwich.

"No, thanks. Doesn't feel right taking food from starving football players. Besides, I need to try and con Mrs. Leerburger into giving me an extension on my paper."

"Try telling her how well her pointy hat goes with her green complexion."

"I used that last time. This time I'm thinking of mentioning how well she handles her broomstick."

"Good luck," Chad grinned at her as she stood.

"Thanks." As she crossed behind him she had a thought and this time decided not to ignore it. Standing directly behind him, she leaned up against him and reached forward to take his right hand, holding the pen. With his hand in hers, she directed his pen to doodle a turtle in the margin of his chemistry notes. Satisfied with the result, she giggled a little then released him and left. She could feel him gaping at her again, and somehow that made her happy too.

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Maurice sat on the lumpy couch of his living room in front of the television. He should have been doing his homework; he should have been checking in with the head of Covert Teen Operations. Instead, he was there staring at the screen which flickered images that he didn't even register. He was thinking of Abby. More specifically, he was thinking of how he could make amends with her.

Apologizing to her was a step in the right direction. He was glad he had done it, even though it had been difficult. The simple act of talking to her lately was difficult. Telling her he was fine with her relationship with Chad was hardest of all, mostly because it wasn't true. Yes, Maurice wanted Abby to be happy, but with himself, not Chad. I want to be the one she talks to; I want to be the one she goes to for comfort. Maurice sighed. Instead I've been selfish and petty; I argued with her over stupid things. I might as well have thrown her at Chad. The image of Abby and Chad in each other's arms flashed in his mind, and he clenched his jaw tightly. That bastard. He kicked the coffee table at his feet, which upset the vase of flowers upon it and it toppled over, spilling its contents onto the carpeted floor.

"Damn," he muttered as he went to get towels to clean up the mess.

As he blotted up the water and returned the flowers to the vase, (it thankfully hadn't shattered) he had to acknowledge the fact that it wasn't Chad's fault that Abby was in love with him. But that didn't stop Maurice from being jealous of him.

Maurice heaved a sigh at the thought. He decided to let evaporation take care of the rest of the cleanup and flopped back down on the couch.

He needed to find a way to make things up with Abby. He needed to be her friend again. He had lost too many of his friends as it was.

But how? Maurice thought of their days back in Sector V. They had used to go on candy expeditions together, but he couldn't very well ask her on one now. Why did life always get more difficult?

There was one other option. It had been in the back of his mind for a while now. He could break up with Cree. Abby herself had once essentially asked him to do it, but he had refused on grounds of being loyal to the Kids Next Door. At the time he had hoped Abby suggested it because she wanted to be with him. But now he realized it was more than that. Abby didn't like him deceiving her sister. And he didn't like it either. It was just…he had gotten used to it after all this time. If you do something often and long enough, even if you know it's wrong…it becomes habit. He had grown accustomed to lying to Cree; to everyone, even. He had to stop. Before he turned into a person he didn't want to be.

Having made this decision, he was still uneasy. He had never had to break up with anyone before. And he had been dating Cree for over a year. How would she take it? And would it compromise his position in the Covert Teen Ops?

It shouldn't be so bad, he thought to himself. We've been growing apart for a long time now. She'd probably agree that splitting is the best decision.

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Cree sat at the kitchen table with a cup of coffee in her hands that grew slowly colder as she smiled to herself while staring off into space.

Abby entered the kitchen. "'Morning, Cree."

Cree, still lost in her thoughts, didn't reply.

Her younger sister pondered over her for a moment. "Earth to Cree," she said in a louder voice.

"Oh! I didn't notice you come in."

"Well, this is a large, dark, kitchen," Abby replied sarcastically, squinting at the sunlight streaming in through the windows.

"I'm sorry," she repeated, "I guess I'm not completely awake yet." She sipped her coffee.

"I know the feeling," Abby shrugged, sitting down at the table as well once she had poured herself a glass of orange juice.

"I had that dream again."

"The one where you show up to class in your underwear?"

"No," Cree laughed. "The one where I'm chasing after someone, but lose him…or her. And then someone comes--"

"Oh, the mystery-hugger dream," Abby interrupted. "Did you turn around this time?"

"No."

"I still think it's mom."

Cree shook her head. "It's not a mom kind of hug. It might be Maurice," she suggested doubtfully. The more times she had that dream, the less certain she was that it was her boyfriend.

"What about the person running away?"

"I don't know either." Cree gazed at the hat on her sister's head.

Abby had become pensive as well. She sighed. "Sometimes dreams are just dreams."

"Yeah…." But she hoped it wasn't. She wished she had turned around to look at her dream love, but every time she dreamed that dream and she was in his arms, she felt so contented that all she did was drink in the feeling…. And before she knew it the dream was over and she was awake, and she had missed another chance.

"So how are you and Chad doing?" Abby asked.

"What about Chad?" Cree could feel herself blushing though had no idea why. "Why would we be doing anything?"

Her sister stared at her with a weary expression. "I'm just asking how your friendship's holding up now that you know he and I aren't dating. Haven't been dating, ever, I might add."

"Oh, that, well," Cree chuckled weakly. "At first I was a little worried how it might affect things, but then I realized I was being silly. I've been friends with him all this time and it's been fine, right? And besides, my little crush on him was forever ago." She didn't think anything of the impulse she was having lately to touch him as much as was decently possible.

"Hm, that's good. Are you going to tell him you saw him naked?"

"Never!" Cree yelped, turning a brighter shade of red. "Besides, he was only mostly naked."

Abby snickered and left the room as Cree desperately tried not to think of her best friend in various stages of undress.

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Chad's alarm went off at 6:00 in the morning as usual. But he lingered in bed, not because he was tired, but because he wanted to. It was Saturday, and he really didn't have anything scheduled for that morning until his violin lesson at 9:00 anyways. Somehow, his laziness was linked to the strange feeling, almost like happiness, that he had been feeling lately. He supposed there wasn't any real reason to feel happy, it wasn't as if anything had changed. Cree was still dating Maurice, and yes, that sucked. But it seemed that lately they weren't so close. She didn't seem to be constantly hugging and touching and kissing him anymore. It was only a matter of time before they broke up. Then the time would be right. Then he could finally tell her that he was the one who truly loved her all along. And then…life would be perfect.

He picked up the stuffed turtle from his nightstand, giving it a light squeeze. "It'll be soon, won't it, Speedy?"

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author's notes: Cree was acting pretty shameless in this chapter, wasn't she? XP