Author's Note: You all are awesome.

Disclaimer: I do not own the Mentalist and would not be foolish enough to claim to.

Where could she be?

Jane sat in his seat, eyes latched on the door, leg jittering at a fast tempo to keep himself from vibrating out of his chair. He'd just seen Lisbon this morning, he shouldn't be this nervous. At least, he knew he shouldn't. However, class was about to begin and there still wasn't any sign of her. He was starting to feel panic gripping his chest like a vice and frankly, that disturbed him just as much as her tardiness.

Usually, he was a very patient person. Usually, he could manage to control himself at least, but then again, he was normally able to think straight on a daily basis.

Nothing about this was normal.

Nothing about her was normal either. Wasn't that why he liked her so much?

Now it was all topsy-turvy and confusing as hell. He was getting a headache- and where the hell was she?

Just when he was considering leaving his seat to go look for her, class and Hightower be damned, he saw her. The second Teresa walked through the door of the classroom, his eyes were roving over her, taking in every inch, assessing every movement. He looked up her worn jeans, her even more worn jacket slung over one shoulder, her dark hair falling like a cloud over her shoulders. Taking everything in and not missing a single nuance. The way she was walking, the way she moved. The way she smiled when she shifted and saw him. Looking for even a hint of a limp to her steps. A hitch to her breath. A grimace along her lips.

There didn't seem to be anything alarming and it was only when this thought passed through his mind that he remembered to breathe. He wondered briefly if maybe she was just hiding something very well, but he couldn't be certain. That frustrated him to no end.

Entirely too good at hiding for her own, this one.

As she walked past, Lisbon lifted an eyebrow at him questioningly and slipped into her seat. "What's up with you?" Her words, spoken quietly for his ears only, made him physically and mentally shiver, recalling her whispered teasing from earlier.

He wanted a rematch. "Nothing." He lied casually, turning to follow her. Carefully, he plastered on his best smile. "Have a good lunch with Tommy?"

Her eyelids moved in a slow blink- nonplussed. "What? How..."

His smile grew triumphant.

Teresa shook her head, a tiny little smile playing about her lips, leaning back in her seat and putting her foot up on his chair. "Nice guess, Boy Wonder."

"'Professor Marvel never guesses, he knows'." Jane said in a mockingly serious tone.

Her bark of laughter was enough to momentarily capture the attention of their nearest peers, including Van Pelt beside her.

It wasn't lost on Jane. Nor did he miss that when the redhead looked around and saw the two of them leaning close together, she just grinned and turned away again. The others followed her lead, seemingly unconsciously. He was grateful. As much as he loved being the one that managed to make Teresa laugh like that, he didn't want their conversation to end just like that. Not yet.

After all, they still had one minute before Ms. Hightower would begin and he planned to make full use of it.

He returned his eyes back to Lisbon's face.

"An 'over the rainbow' fan, are you?" Teresa's eyes fairly twinkled as she looked at him.

A goofy grin slid across his lips. She was dazzling, and that look was for him.

Not for the first time, he wondered just what this intriguing creature must think of him. She'd seen him as a psychic, as a classmate, as a friend. She had said she liked him.

Would she still, if she knew the truth about him. About why he was here in the first place?

He blinked, realizing she had asked him a question and probaly expected an answer. Shrugging one shoulder at her, he leaned in closer to her against the back of his seat so she could hear his stage whisper. "The Wizard of Oz- is a classic. No doubt. I'm surprised you know it well enough to recognize the quote though."

"Are you kidding?" She tilted her head toward the ceiling, still smiling even through her aggravation and amusement. "My brothers and I used to watch it all the time. They always wanted to see it over and over again. It got to where we could repeat the whole movie verbatim." Her smile slipped slightly and she shook her head morosely. "My dad won't even let it in the house now."

He tilted his head, thinking about James' split lip and feeling the happiness in his chest dim. "How come?" Though he asked, he didn't exactly expect to receive an answer.

Typically, she just shrugged in response and picked at a loose thread in her ratty jeans. "So, is that movie what inspired the 'boy wonder'?"

It was a distraction and a poor one, but he let her have it for now. He chuckled. "Not exactly. The first time I actually saw that movie I'd been working the 'boy wonder' angle for almost a year. My dad worked the mid-west carnival circuit for several years when I was a kid, you see. I guess it just sorta fit the lifestyle. Annie always did want a psychic in the show booths." Why was he telling her all this?

"Did your... colleagues teach you to read people like that then?" She was all curiousness, obviously intrigued.

"Who says I needed it? I could just be the greatest psychic you've ever seen." He grinned at her cheekily.

She snorted and dug the tip of her shoe into his leg through the hole in the back of his chair. "Smart-alack."

"Not to say the carny life isn't very educational." He granted. Where else would he have learned how to pick-pocket an easy mark and crochet the niftiest sweaters in the county?

"Oh? How so?"

"You pick things up." Jane said noncommittally, grinning at her interest despite a sudden drop in his good mood. "You'd be surprised how well I can swallow fire, thanks to Kale."

"Sounds like you never lack for interesting company." She chuckled, the corners of her eyes actually creasing in humor.

He made an attempt at a smile, his good mood leaching somewhat, though he couldn't tell why. "No, I really don't." His lips compressed on any other information that could pour out of them unsuspectingly.

What was he doing? He needed to stop talking before he said something revealing. Thankfully, Hightower started the class then and he was able to turn around in his seat. For the rest of the class, he tried to put it from his mind- to put her from his mind. Not that he was very successful with that.

What would she say if she knew the truth? Would she hate him?

Teresa seemed to notice he was unusually quiet as they walked together to her next class afterward. She put a gentle hand on his forearm, stopping them near the threshold. "Hey, you okay?"

He started a little and looked down at her slender fingers in surprise, having let himself get distracted. The thoughts tumbling around in his brain ground to a halt. Her fingers were still soft, both delicate and tough in a way he couldn't quite understand. His eyes trailed back up to hers, emerald orbs shimmering with concern. He shrugged as nonchalantly as he could, nodding and clearing his throat. "Sure."

Teresa raised an eyebrow at him, disbelieving.

He grinned, despite himself. He adored the way she did that. He adored her. Everything about her, from the dark semi-curls of her hair to the concern now in her eyes. It amazed him how could she care about him when she really knew nothing about him. It filled him, in a way he had grown so unaccustomed to, he almost gasped at the alien feel of it all. Dangerous or not, revealing or not- He found he wanted her to know him. Wanted her to see things about him no one else had ever bothered to see.

A strange thought came to mind as a result. It would be a tightrope walk on his part, but what bit of his life wasn't right now? "You... you wouldn't want to meet some of them, would you? At the carnival, I mean?"

Clearly startled, she let her hand drop back down next to her leg and stared at him. "Really?" There was a blunt surprise in her voice, making it an octave higher, so she cleared her throat hastily and modified her tone down lower. "Really?"

He nodded, grinning again, this time more broadly. "Yeah. Their still doing clean-up right now and I'll bet they'd love the distraction." He chuckled, warming to the idea more and more "You'd love Daisy."

Grinning back at him, she appraised him studiously. "Who's Daisy?"

"You'll see."

Mockingly distrustful for a moment, suddenly her face changed, taking on a stricken expression. "I- I can't."

He peered at her questioningly.

Her lips pressed together, mouth askew. "Tommy. Drew." She said by way of explanation.

"Life. You." He said testily. "James can watch them for a little while. He's not irresponsible."

She gave him a look. "Seriously? I'd come home to World War Three. Besides, I pick up Tommy from school and Drew needs help with his homework, and dinner-"

"Come on, Teresa." He whined, purposefully using her first name against her. "They'll survive. When was the last time you did something just because it might be fun? You're a kid. Act like it."

She narrowed her eyes at him, clearly not swayed by his charm or his wheedling. A beat passed as she looked him over, but he could see it. The corner of her mouth was already lifting.

Alright, maybe a little swayed.

"After school, one hour, all right? Not a minute more." She shoved him a little. "Patrick." Then she disappeared into her class, leaving him looking after her in with a satisfied and smug expression.

:)

Once the bell rang, releasing them all from their very last class, Jane was able to find Lisbon among the crowd easily. Which, in a overly jam-packed school hallway, was remarkable in and of itself. She hadn't seen him yet and she obviously wasn't expecting anyone to be looking at her. Not crunched up in a corner near the lockers like she was. Half of her face was hidden by her hair, but he could see enough to know she was glaring and openly.

Following her gaze curiously as he got closer, he spotted a girl at the other end of the hallway that was clearly the recipient. She was a dark-skinned, dark-haired beauty. Exotic. Her skirt showed off a lot of her long legs and there was an arrogance about the way she held herself that was immediately evident. She was leaning back, her spine pressed up against the lockers along the wall.

A young man with a twisted smirk creasing his lips had her caged in by one arm and she seemed to be enjoying the attention he was giving her. The two of them were talking and smiling, the boy handing over a gorgeous bracelet that might actually have been real gemstones. It was difficult to tell from where he was, with such distance between them.

Based on his attire, Jane wondered how the kid could have afforded such a gift. He looked back at Teresa again and noticed her eyes had grown hard to match her glare. It made him frown, not liking that steely look. At least when Lisbon glared his way, it was with an undercurrent of mirth. Amusement, maybe. This was... well, he'd never seen such a level of malevolence from her.

Looking back at the other girl, he gave her another once over, but still couldn't think of why his Lisbon would be so upset? It wasn't like the girl was a threat.

But then, why did Teresa look so- jealous of her?

There must be something, a background he was missing. An interaction he'd yet to understand, obviously. He couldn't help but shake his head at his pale-skinned firecracker.

Teresa really had no idea just how beautiful she was. How mysterious and intriguing. How kind and forgiving.

Or much more he wanted to spend time with her, than with anyone else in the world. Jane rolled his eyes and strolled up to her side. "You shouldn't scowl so much, you know." He said nonchalantly, leaning against the wall beside her, startling her. "It makes people think you're not friendly."

Lisbon glanced a dimmed version of her scowl at him briefly. "That's because I'm not friendly."

"Oh, don't give me that. You're one of the nicest people I know, Lisbon." He folded his arms across his chest and lowered his voice as she returned her gaze down the hall. "You just gotta work on all that pent up jealousy and resentment." He couldn't help teasing her a little bit.

Again, she glared at him, this time heatedly. "I am not jealous."

"It's alright." He assured quietly, ignoring her growl and pretending he hadn't heard her. "I admit, I feel that way sometimes too. After all, why should everyone else get to have a normal life? Why do they seem to get everything they ever wanted, when we would settle for getting just one thing that we've always hoped for?"

Hurt flashed across her expression before she could hide it.

It made him feel both glad and sad. He'd never want to see her hurt, but if she was hurting, he really didn't want her hiding it from him.

Teresa peered back down the hall, this time frowning in a longing sort of way.

For what, he didn't know, but his heart broke just a little for her. This on top of everything else and... James' split lip.

She deserved so much better than that.

They both did.

If the only way to get to the truth was to immerse himself in her misery, he'd gladly do it. Perhaps it would distract him from his own for a while. With a new appreciation, he followed her intense gaze to see that the girl was still there, now laughing lightly at something being whispered intp her ear. As though she hadn't a care in the world.

Happy.

Feeling a wave of unusual resentment rise up in him, Jane let his tone become bitter and shallow. "Why do they get love?"

Lisbon looked at his face quickly, a little stunned.

He wasn't surprised, he was stunned himself by his feeling. Raw and a little twisted. He saw the look- saw the sympathy flash across Teresa's expression- and for once, didn't try to hide how very much he sympathized with her too.

Maybe they weren't so different after all.

She smiled faintly then and lifted her hand to press a finger delicately against his brow. "Now we're both scowling." Shaking her head and chuckling morosely, she dropped her hand and pushed off the wall. Her hand snagged his shirt sleeve in passing to tug him along with her. "Come on, 'Toto', let's go before she starts singing or something."