Part 3

I've been avoiding Oliver all week. And by avoiding, I mean constantly bumping into him and scrambling to get away before he can say anything potentially more damaging to our friendship then he did last weekend. I'm not really sure it's possible, I can only think of three scary little words. And what's worse is I can actually see him saying them.

Which is why I'm here, at his doorstep, at an ungodly hour of Friday night…trying to decide if I should knock. On the one hand, if I just leave it alone we could forget about it and go back to normal. On the other, I doubt it and I don't want to take my chances and end up with only Miley for the rest of my life. And then there's a third option, the option that I might…I might…not be able to say. I don't even know if it's a choice. It's a maybe choice. Like the tiniest possibility it could actually happen. And if it did happen it would work? If it did though…god, what if it does?

I rap my fist against the wood three quick times. It takes about two minutes, but Oliver shows up in the doorway in a pair of Batman pajama bottoms and a black t-shirt. His hair is all over the place, and he's blinking slowly. "Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you up."

"You didn't," He says slowly, rubbing his eyes. "Actually I was just about to go to bed."

I nod, "Well, never mind. Goodnight." I turn to go next door and to my own bedroom but he catches my arm.

"Nah, we need to talk," He smiles a little and lets go, walking down the hallway and leaving the door open for me.

I hesitate a moment, and then go in. He walks before me into the living room. The TV is on. That '70s Show's theme song is blaring out. It's one of the earlier episodes, judging by the fact that Leo's still in the Vista Cruiser during it. I sit down on the couch, away from him on the rug. We need space.

"Lils, what are you doing?" He asks, looking back at me. Okay, maybe it's more like I need space.

"Sitting," I inform him and he rolls his eyes.

"I mean over there, on the couch," He lets out a little smirk. "We both know you can't even see the TV from there." It's true. When Nancy redid the living room she didn't keep their comfort in mind so much as that the couch would look great under their new Rembrandt painting. It's not even real, it's a copy in a tacky gold frame.

"I can see fine," I tell him though. "It's much more comfortable over here."

He gives me a look, "Really?" I nod. "What color is Jackie's top?"

"Uh…purple?" It's gotta be either that or pink, right? And I can claim colorblindness.

"Jackie's not even in this scene."

"Oh," That I can't talk my way out of, can I? Maybe I'll tell him I've gonna legally blind and since I can only hear it doesn't matter? No…that sounds like something Jackson would say to get away from Sarah. Oh my god, has it really gotten that bad between us?

"Come sit next to me, Lillypie," He looks up at me with his big brown puppy dog eyes. Miley says he looks like a spastic monkey when he does that, but I don't see it. "Pwease," He sticks out his bottom lip. "I'll be your best friend," He smirks.

I sigh, "Oh fine," and crossover to sit next to him in front of the coffee table. I glance at the screen. Bob's just walking in, dressed in uniform. "What did I miss?"

"The Foreman's are having a Veteran's Day barbeque. So are the Pinciotti's. Jackie's all upset because Hyde doesn't like her…" He keeps going but I'm not really listening anymore. I know this one by heart now, I can't believe I didn't recognize it on my own.

Red and Bob are competing to see who can have the better barbeque. Not that I care, what I care about it is the guy Jackie brings to make Hyde jealous. I wait eagerly through the rest of the other crappy subplot to see Hyde talking to stupid Chip. To have stupid boy call Jackie a bitch. Right before Chip runs his mouth, I hear a voice from next to me, "I love this part." And then Hyde looks tortured for a moment before his fist connects with the jerk's face. Jackie comes running over.

I watch in anticipation and then they're finally on their date. And times passes because I'm so wrapped up in it, I forget everything else. I forget until the very end. I'm still not in my mind as they talk about bowling, then it happens. The kiss. The most perfect kiss ever. And I have never been so aware that Oliver is sitting next to me in my whole life. He must feel just as awkward, he must-

"God, he's such an idiot!" Oliver yells at the screen, knocking over an empty plastic cup on the table behind him. "Letting her go like that."

"He said he didn't feel anything," I shrug, entranced with him for some reason. I've never seen Oliver care so much about any couple besides Erika and Storm from his Grandma's soaps before.

"Yes he did!" He shakes his head angrily, standing up and starting to pace. "He touched his lips afterwards, you don't do that unless it's amazing or you've been making out so long your jaw hurts!" He breathes out hard, "And then, he lets her get back together with Kelso. Kelso! The lying, cheating bast-"

"Oliver, quit it, you're scaring me!" I shout at him, not really caring if I wake his parent's up.

"I don't care! You scare me with your Harry Potter babble all the time," He snaps, and looks at me. "They should have ended up together. Even after they date for real. She chooses Fez. It's wrong."

Then something occurs to me. Something I can't help but laugh at because it's so freaking ironic. He stops pacing as I go insane with giggles and snorts and all that good stuff, "What?" I just laugh harder, and he comes over and shakes me. "What?"

"Jackie…" I manage. "She…she and Hyde…" I stop for a minute. "They're sidekicks!" And I collapse in a ball on the floor, oh my god. It's just so hilarious.

"No…" His eyes go wide, and he sits down next to me. "Ron and Hermione, they're Harry's sidekicks. Sam and Freddie are Carly's. Jackie and Hyde aren't."

I try to constrain my utter amusement for a moment to get through my sentence, "Eric and Donna are the heroes. Jackie's Donna's sidekick, Hyde is Eric's." And suddenly, I don't feel so ecstatic anymore with the look on his face. I feel my stomach gurgling.

It's a long time before either one of us talks. We just sit there in the awkwardness and bake until we're too stressed to keep quiet. "Oliver-"

"Lilly-" We start at the same time. And we look at each other. I'm about to tell him to go ahead but then he kisses me. And as soon as his lips are on mine I can feel my body working on it's own, overriding every instinct in my brain telling me this is a bad idea and to stop. Instead, I lay a hand on his cheek and press against him as close as I so can. I taste the sour Icebreakers I steal off him on a regular basis on his tongue. Smell his shampoo in his hair. And then he's pulling away. Suddenly my brain's back.

"Oliver, we can't-" I begin.

"We can." He interrupts, glaring at me. "Don't tell me that was a mistake. I know you, Lillypie, and, god help me, I will make you tell the truth if I have to."

Despite that, I start to, I get the word, "I," out but that's as far as I get.

"I love you," Oliver stops me. "I know I'm an idiot, and I make you angry, and you think my hair looks stupid so long, and I'm the doughnut-next door, but I do."

"I…" I look him in the eyes. I'm scared, I want to be with you, I think I love you too. I can't say any of those words though, as much as I would like to. Something inside just can't let go.

Oliver knows though. He smiles at me, seemingly reading my mind. "It's okay, Lils, you'll get there someday. We'll do it, together." He takes my hand and squeezes. "In the mean time, you want some ice cream covered brownies?" He flashes a stupid smirk at me, and for some reason, my heart tugs up a little. Stupid organ is constantly betraying me, if only when it comes to him.

"Yeah," I nod, and he gets up, pulling me with him. So we make our sundae and sit on either side of the coffee table eating it. We keep watching That '70s show, even though Jackie thinks she's over Hyde in the next episode.

"Hey Lilly?" I hear from next to me, a long time later when we're both half-passed out on the floor in a chocolate coma. "Why are they gummy bears?" I groan out load and turn on my side. "Seriously, why can't they have gummy frogs? Or elephants!"

"They have gummy worms," I mutter, trying to cover my ears.

"Your right, that makes it right to discriminate against all the other animals! Because they have gross bugs that eat dirt."

"Goodnight Oliver," I murmur, closing my eyes easily for the first time in weeks.

"Goodnight Sweetheart."

AN: Originally Lilly was rambling about sidekicks and doughnuts at the end, right after the ILY ordeal. It seemed so cliché to me though, and I'm not big on those so I changed it to be more them. Thanks to anyone who's read all the way through this. That's awesome, hope you liked it. This'll probably be my last post for about a week, going on vacation in a place that is internet challenged. I'll probably have a bunch of new stories/one-shots/chapters when I get back though. So I'll see you all next Sunday. : P

AN2: I'm sorry for those of you who just suffered through the underlining, and thank you to all of you who pointed it out to me. It does it when I upload it onto FF but I usually edit it out before I post. I was just half asleep this morning, so I'm changing it now. So sorry.