Prompt 4: It's back to high school and your OTP is in trouble. A has been getting bullied and it's up to B to straighten some things out.

Answer: Definitely Kate and Richie. The thing I love most about their relationship is that they can be so intimate without being sexual in the slightest bit. This is going to be an AU in which Jake was the one to save Santanico instead of Richie. He turns into a culebra but Scott and Richie remain human. Seth, Richie, Scott and Kate escape the Titty Twister and make a run for it. Richie and Seth become the teens illegal guardians while they assume false identities in a small town. A copy cat duo is running wild which takes the heat off of them but needless to say: Seth is not happy. Scott is a total ladies man and things are pretty great except for the inexplicable tension because the younger Gecko and the older Fuller.

The little hand of Kate's watch pointed at the three while the long one rested on the nine but the thing was always a little off. Ever since her mother bought if for her a few years ago and her father set it to the wrong time her life had constantly been a little off schedule. Whenever she wore it she made the conscious decision that her whole day would be a little screwed up because more often than not she forgot about the little time lapse. The thought of fixing it was out of the question since half of her felt the missing fifteen minutes was given to another version of herself where life was simple with her parents and the other half forgetting it was messed up. She'd look at the small face of the object sometimes and tell herself, "I have time, I have time" only to find time had left sometime ago.

Kate didn't realize it was one of those moments as she stomped toward the spot Richie picked her up from every day after school. Scott was on the lacrosse team so he usually got a ride from friends and Seth was always busy with the bar he had managed to swindle into letting him work for more than minimum wage so it was just easier for him to give her the ride. It wasn't like she could take the bus and have everyone know where she lived. Plus, she was a senior and though she wasn't exactly spoiled she still made a point to never be condemned to that horrid ride. The bus smelled…that was all.

It had nothing to do with Tammy-Lee.

Around the corner of the old building she turned, pulling out her concealer from her backpack, with the assumption that she would have enough time to cover up her reddening face but the sight of Richie leaning against the sleek black car made her stop in her tracks. He was early. She glanced down at her watch. No. She was late.

His still and cool face was waiting for her and as always their eyes met effortlessly. Usually that gave her some sort of confirmation about something she never voiced but that second it was a curse. She lowered her face behind her eyes and took in secret gulps of air as she walked across the grass to where he waited. Before he could ask she began to answer in a trembling voice, "I-I'm sorry I'm late. Ms. Alistair made me stay after for, um, a test. I didn't do too well. She, uh, she wanted to know wh-"

The strong grip of Richard Gecko's steely fingers grasped Kate so swiftly off her path to the passenger door she could do nothing but brace herself for wherever he wanted to take her. Her eyes were squeezed shut, face turned away, but not because she was afraid of being hurt by him. Even with a gun in his hand and pointed in her direction she knew he would never harm her in any way. The thing she was afraid of was the unpredictability of him. She had seen the crazy side of him, the angry, drunk, annoyed, cool, casual, funny, genius and still she never knew how he would react to anything. She always thought it was kind of amusing how Seth and Richie were exact opposites like that—Seth seemed unstable but was actually calm and predictable while Richie appeared collective and inside was an unknowable storm.

"What happened to your face?"

"I-I…"

Didn't have an answer. His hand cupped her chin while the other ever so delicately traced over the growing puffiness of her right cheek. He was so close to her it was almost impossible to focus on a lie of any sort. The only thing that filled her mind was the way his crystal eyes darted over every invisible finger of the girl that slapped her just fifteen minutes ago. Last she had looked it only appeared like maybe she had fallen asleep on her arm or something but leave it to Richie to see exactly what she wanted to hide. He smelled so good and she found that incredibly distracting.

"I'm fine. I-I just hit myself."

He had no reaction to her words, it was as if she hadn't even spoken. His jaw was clenched tightly and though he seemed perfectly normal she could almost feel the rumbling inside of him like a volcano waiting to blow. He took in an easy breath before finally meeting her eyes, "Give me a name."

"I…" she couldn't go on. Her mouth hung slightly open with the intention of giving another lie or protesting but she had always been a terrible liar and she could never keep anything from him. Either way she knew he would find out. He had that look in his eyes like a mad dog with a scent stuck in its nostrils. She knew he wouldn't give up. Kate took in a breath as she shut her eyes and whispered, "Tammy-Lee Johnson."

"Fuck, Kate," he was almost yelling. His hand dropped and he stood straighter, angrier, as he looked away and swung his arm downward in a frustrated fashion, "The same Tammy-Lee Johnson that 'accidentally' shoved you in that mud pit? The same Tammy-Lee Johnson that 'jokingly' filled your locker with chum? The same Tammy-Lee Johnson that invited you to her birthday party and 'unintentionally' almost broke your neck when she dared you to jump into an EMPTY pool."

"Richie, stop."

Kate's eyes were on the verge of spilling over and in reality she didn't know what she was telling him to stop doing. She had been trying so hard to not think and not feel and she could deal with a slap from that girl but she could not deal with him looking at her and scolding her that way. Seth was the one that yelled—but to be fair even his indoor voice was on the louder side—and Richie was the one that talked. They fought with each other all the time but never once did Richard use the same tone with her and Scott. She just couldn't take him talking to her that way.

"Please?"

A deep sigh escaped Richie's lips as he gazed at her from what felt like so far away behind those glasses. His hand reached out once more but this time it didn't rest on her face. His fingers looped around her neck and guided her to his chest as his other arm wrapped around her body to hold her close. For the second it took to get into his embrace she was stunned. He had never hugged her before and she instantly was transported to the brief kiss that had surely been buried in the back of both of their minds. She immediately realized how stiff she was and with the warmth of his body around her she sank. Her own arms latched around him as she began to cry pent up tears of anger and hatred.

"I didn't want to worry you! I didn't want you to know. I thought I could handle it and she started bothering me in the locker room after everyone left and I tried to talk to her but then I got so angry and called her a-a cunt and she hit me and I just ran away!" she cried. Even as the tears came down she knew she wasn't really devastated by the events. The only reason she was crying was because of the sting in her cheek and the fact that she was psyching herself up for Richie not noticing and her putting it all behind her.

The stupid watch had given her a false perception of time and had completely twisted the knife in her gut that reminded her everything was all wrong. She should be back in her mother's arms watching Scott try to convince her dad God endorsed those comics he read. It shouldn't be like this.

"Shh, Katie. Shh," Richie's mouth was pressed against the side of her head, bottom lip just barely touching the top curve of her ear. He wasn't saying much but the combination of that and the way he slowly tightened his grip on her—as if he were breaking through boundaries he had placed himself—gave her some sort of comfort. His hand gripped the back of her neck to keep her face close against his chest, fingers tangled into a ball of her hair, while his other wrapped around her lower back and every so often rubbed between her shoulder blades and she couldn't help but to feel the anxiety that had gripped her intestines gracefully release.

The situation suddenly shifted from him comforting her to her totally and completely indulging in the way his arms felt around her body. For the first time since her mother died she felt safe from the evil of the world and the deception that plagued it. The culebras were gone and so were the police. Tammy-Lee was the furthest thing from her mind in that second that she shared with Richie; she felt like nothing could touch her—not with him there.

But time stops for no one and Richie's arms evaporated like the kiss Seth had interrupted so long ago. A deep breath escaped him as he looked down at her—eyes studying the swollen side of her face again—before motioning toward the car with his head, "Get in."

That was the end of that. It was strange how the whole situation fell apart like that in a less dramatic way that she had anticipated. In the car he played some of her favorite Christian music that he only put on when he knew she was having a tough day and didn't say a word. Seth was home already but before he could get a sentence out Richie got his attention by taking the beer he had just opened. Scott wouldn't be home for another hour so there was no worry that he would intrude on her with whatever news he had gotten about the incident. Kate was safe to go to her bed and crash and it wasn't until the second before sleep gripped her that she realized she didn't say "don't do anything."

It was too late anyway.

The next morning Seth was waiting to take them to school as part of the routine but Kate couldn't help but wish it were Richie. Breakfast was an energy bar and coffee which she was thankful for. She was positive no one knew of the previous incident because she had covered up the bruising and no one gave her any funny looks and Seth would have made his special pancakes that he only made for certain occasions. Scott talked about an upcoming party and how the babes kept hounding him but he was still waiting for one that would make their father proud. Kate thought she might cry.

Despite the twist in her stomach school went by with a breeze. Tammy-Lee didn't even look at her and that was saying something. Since the first day of school Kate felt like a mouse under the narrowed gaze of psychotic panther but that day it was different. Because of the crazy feline Kate found it impossible to make actual friends but on that day she had begun actual conversations with some girls in a lower grade. The whole thing seemed surreal as if the past few months had been completely erased. She wanted to ask what had happened but then it dawned on her that she new exactly what did.

At their spot Kate didn't bother to wait for the car to come to a complete stop before opening the door and getting inside, "What did you do?"

"Uh," Richie paused in that almost robotic way of his before becoming human and snarky again, "Good afternoon to you too. My day was great."

She squinted her eyes with a nod and smile that said 'Oh, you think you're so cute' so she didn't have to. She pulled the door shut before folding her arms, "What did you do?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," he answered, looking forward as he slightly lifted the volume of the indie rock station he had playing.

"Come on," she grumbled as she snapped her hand forward to shut off the radio but before she could Richie's hand was gripping her own.

It wasn't hard and it wasn't angry. His face had that usual calm to it that could withstand a hurricane. His eyes were gorgeous and gazing at her as he spoke in a serious manner, "Seriously, Kate. I didn't do anything."

She could only stare at his hand—so large and everything she imagined a man's should be—and then his eyes—mesmerizing with their own gravitational pull—still not letting go as she took in a deep breath. His eyes released her and she went back to gazing out the window. If he did do something she should be thankful, she thought, Tammy-Lee was a terror. But what if he hurt her? Things were going so well, they didn't need the police on their tail again.

"I just had a chat with her."

"Richie!"

She couldn't help but to smile as he laughed in the most impossibly adorable way. Kate didn't want to scold him but it was something to be expected. Half the time she didn't mean what she said anyway but she liked the way he looked at her when she did. There wasn't really anything to follow the calling of his name but a roll of her eyes and an exaggerated huff. She couldn't actually be mad, after all he was still holding her hand.