Disclaimer: I don't not own Strange Days at Blake Holsey High. There I said it! Are you happy now:P

Lucas stepped into the, until recently, forbidden Science Office, his hands in his pockets. He walked slowly to the center of the room and looked around, remembering everything that had happened in that very room over the past few years.

Glancing through the windows, he saw Josie walking past with the Janitor. Lucas watched her without moving as she gradually traveled out of his visual range. He still couldn't believe she was back.

After all this time, an entire year, she was back. He had almost given up, but she'd made it back. Everyone else had researched and looked and theorized about where she'd gone, he'd done the same, but they'd slowly lost enthusiasm, believing her lost.

The night before Graduation, he'd finally disobeyed Professor Z and went into the office where he stood now.

A slight grin lit Lucas's face as he remembered Z lecturing him earlier. Josie's clone had stepped in and Z had gone slack jawed, it was all Lucas could do to keep from laughing aloud.

The grin faded as Lucas thought. Josie's clone. It'd had never felt right to call her anything but Josie, though it'd been confusing when they were together. He sighed, it had been awful to condemn her to stay in the alternate timeline. Necessary maybe, fair, never.

When she'd come out of the wormhole that morning, he'd hugged her, she hadn't hugged back, but when he looked at her face…it was difficult to explain. After a year, Josie had come back; only, it wasn't Josie…but it was, in a way.

He knew they were different people on the inside, but her eyes. There was a seriousness in them, a message…a picture…an emotion that said she'd seen more then her years.

When the real Josie came back, and he'd looked in her eyes, there were the same. That look. Josie had it too.

They were so similar, though it seemed few noticed it. The same determination, the same strength. Sure, the clone acted…colder then the real Josie, but Lucas suspected it was just an act. The way she'd looked at the Janitor before she left had conveyed more then a simple thanks.

Lucas sighed again and turned his gaze down. Something caught his eye and he walked closer to Professor Zachary's desk. There he saw the watch. His eyes widened as he realized Josie must've left it there after her fight with Avenir.

Lucas picked it up to examine it more thoroughly. He turned it over in his hand, thinking.

He'd known for a couple years that Josie wasn't interested in him. She'd been painfully frank with him a couple times and completely oblivious during others. He'd given up on her ever feeling the same way about him as he did about her.

Especially now that she was back in this timeline with Vaughn, Lucas sighed. He didn't have a chance.

He paused, the watch still in his hand. Josie's clone was so much like her, and she didn't dismiss him as Josie did so often. He shook his head, thinking he liked her just because she was like Josie.

He thought back to that morning. Josie's clone had come out of the wormhole and the feelings inside him, elation, relief, affection...Even after he knew it wasn't really Josie, all those feelings stayed.

That had to mean something, Lucas thought. He fingered the watch then started as the door opened behind him.

"Oh, Lucas. I didn't know you were in here." Professor Z said closing the door behind him. He walked over and looked out the window as Lucas did the same.

"It's hard to believe it's all over." Z said softly, referring to multiple things.

Lucas nodded in agreement. "School's over, Josie's back, Avenir is finished, and everyone's leaving."

Zachary heaved a sigh. "It's been fun."

"Most of the time."

Z gave a half smile and turned his gaze to Lucas who still stared out the window. After a moment, he lowered his eyes to Lucas's hands. His brow furrowed.

"Lucas? What were you doing with that?" He asked hesitantly, not pushing.

"What?" Lucas gathered his thoughts and looked at the watch. "Oh, nothing, nothing…"

Z looked at Lucas, with concern, reading his expression. "Lucas, you know that we couldn't have left Josie there, the fact that her clone had to stay in her place was inevitable. We couldn't do anything else."

Lucas looked up at him, eyes flashing. "We could've tried. We just gave up! We wait a whole year for Josie, but in five minutes we give up on her!" He looked away.

Lucas felt a hand on his shoulder and turned his gaze to met Z's.

"Lucas, I know it wasn't fair. Very few things in life are." He shrugged. "We haven't given up on her. We've bought some time. We needed Josie, the real Josie, here. Now that everything is finished, we can work to bring her back."

Lucas looked back to the watch in his hand. "I could bring her back," he said, mostly to himself.

The grip on his shoulder tightened, the voice firmer, "Lucas, we can't just jump into this. You need to calm down and think this through. You—"

"Jumping in is what saved Josie!" Lucas interrupted, "Maybe if you'd let us go into your office in the first place, Josie wouldn't have been isolated for a year!"

The hand clenched, then drop off his shoulder.

There was a moment of silence. Lucas thought of saying, I'm sorry Z, I didn't mean it, but he did mean it.

"…I know this has been hard…for all of us." Z said slowly, emotion quieting his voice. "I won't defend my actions in the past," His voice grew stronger, "but I also will not allow you to charge blindly into a new situation."

"I won't wait this time Z." Lucas said defiantly, definitely. He stepped back from Z and turned his attention to the watch. He had it set in a second. Josie, Josie's clone, he corrected himself, had showed him how to do it before she left. Almost as if she knew…

Professor Z looked quickly up in a panic and moved to stop him. "Lucas, no!"

It was too late; Lucas vanished.

A/N: I made a deal with my buddy that this fic would be finished before Saturday of this week so the updates should be pretty quick. :D