This one's a little longer, so enjoy!

I don't own any Phineas and Ferb characters, places or themes only this idea.

Friday night rolled around painfully slow. Throughout the week, the Phineas and Isabella situation had managed to get worse tenfold. Isabella had made a deadline herself and it was that unless something happened between them before summer started, she would give up for good. She was in high school now, she told the Fireside Girls. These four years were the most important years while she grew up and how could she grow up while still holding onto a fantasy from her childhood?

Phineas spoke to Ferb about it every night leading up to the date. He kept running it past his brother to ask Isabella to go with him and Ferb excitedly passed on this to the others. Unfortunately, every time Phineas tried, he was overcome with the inability that Isabella had experienced years before and could never bring himself to see it through. Instead, he went even further out of his way to avoid her around school. This, of course, did not do anything to help with Isabella's situation.

With the date night coming around, the gang became even more desperate that it worked. If not, there would be nothing anyone could do to knit this relationship back together.

The Fireside Girls had booked at table at Arcade Land – the perfect place for Phineas and Isabella to have fun together while Baljeet and Ginger could go off and leave the two alone. They were under the impression that there would be a whole group of them going for a fun little outing to celebrate the end of their first year at high school and so were surprised to see each other when they arrived outside the restaurant.

"I didn't know you were going to be here," Phineas said awkwardly. The two stared at each other, seemingly frozen.

Suddenly he felt completely underdressed in his simple peach shirt and grey slacks. If he had known he would be seeing Isabella, he would have put a little more thought into what he took out of his closet that afternoon. It had been on his mind a lot lately that when she thought of him, she probably imagined him in his little orange and white striped T-shirt, blue shorts and covered in motor oil. Up until about a year ago, he'd been fine with that but then he'd started to feel self-conscious whenever Isabella was around. She always managed to pull off her dress and tunic flawlessly, always managed to show up looking effortlessly beautiful. How could he even begin to expect himself to compare to her?

"Same here," Isabella replied. Eventually. She had no idea how to react about Phineas being there that evening. It was officially summer, officially the time she had agreed to stop fawning over her childhood crush. And yet, another part of her longed to at least try one more time. Surely since school had ended that afternoon it meant that the first day of summer was technically tomorrow? Maybe she could just see how this night went and maybe something would happen. Yes, it was decided. This would be her last night being in love with Phineas Flynn unless she had a concrete reason to assume her feelings were reciprocated.

"Should we… go inside?" Baljeet suggested, eager verging on desperate to escape the uncomfortable silence of the situation.

"Good idea," Ginger agreed and the two set of inside with Phineas and Isabella trailing behind. "Let's find a table."

Arcade Land was pretty packed that afternoon. The first week of the summer holidays was the best week for businesses such as this one. The main restaurant was based around an American diner with the classic red, black and white completed with tiles, booths and a bar. Until a couple of years back, it had only been a restaurant but after the bank next door had shut down, they had expanded and brought in a ton of old arcade games. In only a short amount of time, Dan's Diner rose to number one teen hang out in Danville and later changed its name to Arcade Land. It also happened to be the only place where Baljeet and Ginger would have an excuse to leave Phineas and Isabella alone without it being obvious they were trying to get them together. Phineas and Isabella would be forced to spend time with each other since they were both too considerate to third or fourth wheel on the couple's night.

They found a booth near the doors through to the arcade area, boys on one side of the booth and girls on the other. Phineas found himself sitting opposite Isabella and couldn't help but regret again his casual attire. She was dressed simply in a white blouse and pink skirt, her hair pulled back in a pony tail. And yet, she looked stunning, Phineas could barely take his eyes off of her. She looked up and caught his gaze and they both blushed and looked away.

Thankfully, at that moment, a waitress approached their table and started handing out menus. Baljeet and Ginger sighed in simultaneous defeat as the other two busied themselves in studying the menu intently.

"Welcome to Arcade Land," the waitress said the dullness of her tone indicating she had recited this speech multiple times already this evening. "Let me explain how your experience will work. This table is reserved for you as long as you stay. You may go into the arcade and spent as long in there as you please. When you get hungry, you should come back here and place an order at the counter which will then be brought to your table. Please do not take food into the arcade with you. Have a nice evening." She tried to smile cheerily but ended up looking more like a snarl before her face returned to its natural state of boredom and she walked away.

Phineas and Isabella both chuckled lightly over the matter but once they noticed they were both doing the same thing, immediately looked back down at their menu. It took everything Baljeet had to stop himself from slamming his head against the table in his exasperation.

"Should we play some games first?" he offered instead, wrapping an arm around Ginger's waist.

Picking up on his idea to leave the two alone, Ginger smiled and leaned into him. "Sure, let's go."

Phineas frowned slightly as the couple slid out of the booth and made their way into the arcade. "Y'know, considering how those two are acting it probably looks like we're on a double date."

Isabella smiled nervously, "Would that be so bad?"

Phineas glanced sideways at her, "No, no it would not."

"Aaaand I beat you again," Isabella smirked. "I think that's a high score."

"I can't believe this," Phineas spread his hands in defeat. "What is that, like eight wins in a row?"

"No way!" She squealed and rushed over to an old game. "Phineas, look at this."

Phineas smiled fondly at her excitement. When she smiled, he noticed, her eyes lit up and every time it sent shivers running through his body. If there was ever a trace of doubt in his mind that he liked Isabella as more than a friend, this evening had long since diminished it. He was one hundred percent sure that he was in love with his best friend. The only question was, did she feel the same way?

They'd been playing games for about an hour now and it seemed to Phineas that Isabella was having as much fun spending time with him as he was with her. He followed her through the grid formation of the arcade as she sat down at the one she had just found.

"It's Pac-Man!" she told him excitedly. "This game is from the eighties; it hasn't been around since I was tiny."

"I'm pretty sure it's online," Phineas commented, taking a risk and squeezing onto the seat beside her. Instead of jumping up like he'd thought she would, she made room and smiled at him.

"An online game isn't the same," she explained. "That's what's so great about this place."

He grinned and reclined in the seat, resting his hands on his lap while Isabella manoeuvred Pac-Man around the maze, eating the pellets and avoiding ghosts. He couldn't help but feel a rush of affection at the way she bit her lip while concentrating, the way her brow furrowed slightly.

"Hey," she said absentmindedly, "could you move your arm?"

He glanced down at the way their shoulders were pressed up again each other and obediently shifted his arm so it was resting along the frame of the chair. An inch lower and it would be wrapped around her shoulder which came with its own surge of hopeful anticipation.

Isabella glimpsed his hand so close to her shoulder and thought, 'what the heck' and moved even closer to him so she was nestled into his side. She spared him a small smile before returning her attention to the game.

From across the room, Ginger had her hand to her heart, "they're so cute!"

"Mission accomplished?" Baljeet grinned but his girlfriend shook her head.

"We have to see this through." She kissed him on the cheek. "But we're close."

"It's almost six," Phineas said nudging Isabella lightly. "You wanna get some food?"

She frowned at the screen which was displaying a large red 'game over'. "Food sounds like a good idea."

He got up and surprised himself by offering her his hand which she gladly took. Once they got back to their table, they sat opposite each other but looked over the same menu. Neither of them had felt so close to the other before, not even years ago when they were really good friends.

"I feel like we haven't hung out like this for a long time," Isabella commented casually to gauge his reaction. Did he know that she had been trying to avoid him the past year? Had he noticed it and if so, had it bothered him?

"Yeah," he replied carefully. "We haven't spent that much time together since we started high school."

"We should do this more often," she said.

"I'd like that." He smiled shyly which surprised Isabella. Of all the things she could say about Phineas Flynn, being shy was certainly not one of them. She had no idea how to feel about the fact that she was making him nervous. A part of her was hopeful, maybe he returned her feelings and this date situation (for there was no point denying that they were on a date any longer) was bringing those feelings to surface. Or, as her past experiences were telling her, she was about to be let down. He probably wasn't as clueless as she had thought and had known all along about her little crush: he just hadn't felt the same way. Now he was nervous about being on a date with someone he didn't like.

"I'm thinking Nachos," she pointed at the menu, ducking her head so her hair hid the disappointed look that had come across her face. "With salsa, guacamole aaaand…"

"Cheese," he finished for her. "Salsa, guac and cheese."

"Maybe some chili flakes?" They both laughed and Phineas took the menu to the bar to order their food. He couldn't help but feel like this evening was going exceptionally well. They'd been a little awkward at first but now it felt like it was back in the old days when they were two kids living on opposite sides of the road, who also happened to be great friends. Which was what he was so scared about. What if she only saw him as that little boy and nothing more? What if he was forever stuck in the friend zone?

He dismissed the thoughts from his head as he made his way back to the table, this time sliding into the same side of the booth as her. She seemed a little shocked but turned to him and smiled.

"How've you been?" She asked. "We haven't talked in a while."

"Alright, I guess," he replied. "I can't believe we're gonna be sophomores after this summer."

"I know, it's insane to think about," she nodded. "We only have three years left of school before college."

"Don't remind me," he muttered. "This topic suddenly got pretty gloomy, should we move on?"

And the conversation for the next hour or so continued on in the same way, much to Baljeet and Ginger's glee. Phineas and Isabella hadn't laughed together in such a long time and yet slipped seamlessly back into their old ways. From the way they were sitting so close to each other, to the way they were feeding each other nachos, to anyone else in the restaurant it looked like the two were celebrating a relationship anniversary as a pose to just a meet between friends.

"Where do you think Baljeet and Ginger went off to?" Phineas said as closing hour drew closer and the restaurant began to empty. "I haven't seen them since we got here."

"They probably ate at a reasonable hour," Isabella teased, hitting him in the chest playfully. "Like at the time I suggested but you insisted we play another game because I beat you."

He scratched his head comically, "you'll have to be more specific; you beat me every time we played."

She laughed and waved away his statement, "I think we both know you let me win most of them. You're such a gentleman."

"Excuse me," the waitress from before approached their table, "I regret to inform you that Arcade Land is closing in half an hour. Can I get you anything before you go?"

"Uh," Phineas glanced at Isabella before shaking his head. "Nah, we're good thank you."

"We'll be heading out in a second anyway," Isabella added. True to her word, the two of them got up and walked towards the exit, sparing a glance back towards the arcade in the hopes of spotting Baljeet and Ginger. They reached the door, which Phineas held open for Isabella as she stepped out.

"I had a really great time tonight, Phineas," she said blushing slightly.

"I did as well," he grinned goofily before stepping up to her and wrapping his arms around her in a hug. "We should meet up over summer, and do this again."

She leaned back but remained in his embrace his hands on her shoulders and her arms around his waist. From where they were watching inside, Baljeet and Ginger dared to hold their breaths as the two leaned in until their faces were within a centimetre of each other, lips almost touching and…

At the last moment, Phineas jerked away. "Oh gosh I'm so sorry I don't know what came over me."

Isabella shook her head, "Phineas, I-"

"I should go," he interrupted, looking stricken. "I'm so sorry, Isabella, I honestly am."

He turned away and hurried off leaving Isabella standing alone outside the restaurant feeling like reality had finally slapped her in the face. If there was ever a trace of doubt in her mind that Phineas didn't feel the same way, the events of this evening now diminished it. She was one hundred percent sure that there was no future for in her pursuing her crush on Phineas: it was time to give up.

"What just happened?" Ginger cried as she burst out of the doors with Baljeet on her tail. "Isabella are you ok?"

"I…" she trailed off then took a breath and forced a smile onto her face. "I'm fine, Ginge, don't worry."

Her face fell slightly, but she was already on her way before the other two could register it.

"Ok, you take Phineas, I'll take Isabella," Ginger instructed before rushing after her friend. "Isabella, wait up! Come on, talk to me!"

Isabella slowed to a stop to allow Ginger to catch up but didn't look at her. "I was right." She said simply. "He doesn't like me, we're just friends."

"Friends who have been avoiding each other because you both wanted more?" Ginger put a hand on Isabella's shoulder. "Please, you have to listen to me, he likes you back. Everyone knows it."

"He doesn't," Isabella replied. "He doesn't and therefore why should I spend any more time wasting my life on him?"

"Isabella, everyone at school is aware that he likes you! Why do you think we orchestrated this whole thing?"

"I don't know," she answered honestly, "Because it didn't work."

"Isabella," Ginger made her friend look at her, "you two almost kissed!"

"Exactly," Isabella sounded exasperated. "Almost, but we didn't because he doesn't like me! If he did…"

"So what's your plan now?"

"I have to bury these feelings until they disappear completely." She started walking again. "I need to move on. So that's what I'll do."

Phineas was having the exact same thoughts when Baljeet reached him halfway down the street.

"Phineas," he panted. "What happened back there?"

"I tried to kiss her!" Phineas snapped. "I let my hormones get ahead of me and I tried to kiss a girl who doesn't even like me!"

"But she does!" Baljeet answered. "She's liked you for years."

"Well even if that's true, she definitely doesn't like me anymore," he sighed. "I can't believe I almost just ruined our entire friendship."

"So what, you're just going to give up?"

"I don't see what else there is to do," Phineas shrugged. "I'll be lucky if she ever wants to see my face again, let alone get into a relationship with me."

"Phineas you have to keep trying!"

"No!" His voice rose in volume so much he was almost shouting. "I will not keep trying, Baljeet. Isabella is too important to me and I refuse to keep screwing up her life just because I have a silly little crush."

Baljeet came to a halt but Phineas continued walking. Once he was sure he was being followed no longer, the tears came, gushing freely down his cheeks. How could he have been so stupid as to let himself get so caught in the moment he essentially tried to force himself on his best friend. Even if what Baljeet had said was true and Isabella had liked him, he didn't deserve her. While it was true he cared for her a great amount, maybe even loved her, she merited someone who could put her needs before his own. And that someone was not Phineas.

I'm not gonna lie, I had a really hard time writing this chapter. While I knew I was going to drive the wedge between them, I hadn't realised how painful it would be to do so after all the progress they made earlier on in the evening. So, I'm sorry about that but I'm working to upload Chapter 3 today so you guys aren't left on such a low for too long.