Of a Sweeter Kind
by Kameko-Lullaby
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PART THREE

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Poker Face - "…You're blushing again, Wally. It's kind of cute."

It had never occurred to Wallabee Beetles that miracles could happen in real life none-of-the-less to him but, that was the only reasonable explanation he could come up to explain as to why Kuki hadn't tried to strangle him or tried to turn his gray matter into slush by shaking the crap out of him. He remembered stuttering something out about aliens and a mugging. Kuki just stared at him before bursting out into laughter, her pretty violet eyes crinkling with delighted humor.

"You're such a silly, Numbuh Four,"

He felt his lips twitch into a fond smile, letting the warmth of her smile flood his limbs. He rolled over in his quilts so, he was facing the ceiling. Darkness covered it from his view. It never really bothered how empty his room until that moment. He had never been much of a sociable person but, now he was aching for human contact and the stillness that surrounded him in his boxing ring was suddenly quite suffocating.


Kuki Sanban was curled on the floor of living room, her back pressed against the edge of the couch that faced the large television directly. Her night attire hadn't changed much since she was ten but, had adjusted itself to fit the ideals and frame of a fifteen year-old girl. The baggy sleeves had faded into thin tank-top like straps, and the slippers had disappeared. The cotton fabric of the nightdress clung a little around her small hips but, flowed away from her prettily at her knees. Soft, not overdone, and entirely feminine; it was how Kuki like everything she wore.

"It's too bad Numbuh Four didn't want to watch the movie," She murmured, unconsciously squeezing the tattered orange Rainbow Monkey she clutched in her lap. Only Abby and Nigel knew what she had lovingly dubbed the stuffed animal. Hoagie didn't care too much to know and Wally, well, she wasn't about to tell him about his namesake. He'd probably end up highly offended, and threaten to tear Wallikins' poor head off.

"Well, you had made a date for tonight," Numbuh Two said, choosing to be the one to reply.

The Japanese girl stuck out her tongue at the pilot who had his hand buried in a bag of crisps, "I told you that I made it 'cause I'd forgotten what today was already!"

"You forget everything, girl," Abby said, speaking over the sound of the previews, and the beat of the music throbbing in her ears. She really couldn't go anywhere without her music.

"I do not," Kuki argued, pouting a little as she pulled the comforter she had dragged from her room over the exposed part of her legs. They were always teasing lately about her memory. Hoagie and Abby kept calling her senile. She didn't even really know what that meant but, it still sounded offensive.

"Do too," The retort hadn't come from the darker-skinned girl, Numbuh Two or from Nigel, who was now smiling lightly to himself, focusing his gaze on the television screen which was flickering with the trailer to some cheesy new romance flick. She didn't even have to guess to know who it was. Who else but Wally had a very thick Australian accented voice that loved and adored?

Numbuh Three grinned happily, "Do not,"

"Do too," He returned, now actually in the living room.

"Do not," She standing now, standing on the tips of her well-painted toes, her face hovering in his. She realized he wasn't blushing. It seemed that when they were arguing playfully like this, he forgot to turn to a shade of red like the color of a cooked lobster.

"Do too!"
"Do not!"
"Do too!
"Do not!"
"Do too!
"Do too!"
"Do not - - - ?"

Kuki grinned as Wally gave a defeated sigh, before rolling his eyes, mumbling out a distinctive "crud".

"I win!" She giggled before grabbing him by the wrist and forcing to sit down on the cushion she had been leaning against. The blush he had been missing before finally found its way into his cheeks as the petite girl stumbled and ended up in his lap. Her forehead rested against his chest as she laughed, shoulders shaking with mirth.

"Sorry, Four," She chirped, sliding out of arms. A bit of a heated flush rested on her own face but, Wally took it as a result of her laughing to hard.

"Y-yeah," Was all he could manage to stutter out as she smiled warmly at him before settling once again to her pile of quilts. He wondered briefly if things would be easier for him if she wasn't so cute, and hadn't the love of throwing her arms around his neck.

"So," Numbuh One began, choosing to save the blond of the awkwardness of the moment, "What brought out the desire to mingle with the commoners?" If he had been someone else, he would have made a joke about the bluntly obvious flirting that was still being smothered under piles of denial.

Numbuh Four laughed a bit stiffly, "Don't know, just felt like it I guess,"

"Aw, he wuvs us," Hoagie joked from the other side of the ancient couch. He grinned teasingly at his blond best friend between crunches of potato chips. Wally scowled at him, gently of course.

From her place between the two boys, Abby grinned as she changed songs on her I-pod. "Nah," She remarked, gesturing to Kuki. Numbuh Three had made herself cozy between Wallabee's feet on the floor. One graceful arm was curled under his knee, clutching the connecting limb to her small, shapely form. Her cheek rested against her fingers that curled around the ligament and bulking muscle, while her own half-bare legs brushed against his other. It was a lot of nearly intimate contact that the blond teenager honestly didn't seem to mind. "He just loves her,"

Wally could only blush and thank whoever that Kuki was too entranced in whatever movie was flickering on the screen to pay much attention to the three of them.

"I don't!" He hissed. It was an angry half-whisper.

Abby only gave him a 'don't-even-try-denying-it' look.

"I don't!"

She just shook her head, while Hoagie laughed, and Nigel grinned, failing miserably to hide it.

Wally fumed.

And yet - -

Even though it could have silenced them and proved his declaration.

He never moved his leg.


The movie ended some two hours later with the entirety of the living room, expect for a pretty girl named Kuki, wide awake, but tired. Numbuh Three had fallen asleep forty-five minutes in. Another fifteen later and her other arm had moved to snuggle Wally's limb. He believed the pins-and-needles feeling had to do something with a lack of blood flow.

Now, how to go about standing?

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In the doorway to the hall that led to their bedrooms, Abby observed the boy with a grin, while Numbuh Two trailed slowly behind, a sleepy look on his face. Numbuh Five turned to him. "So, you gonna tell Abby what's going on there?"

He blinked, "Uh, Wally loves Kuki?"

Numbuh Five rolled her eyes under her the visor of her cap, "Five knows that, but she's noticed somethin' a little new,"

"Huh?"

"He's lettin' the girl touch' em without pushin' her off in three seconds,"

Numbuh Two made a gesture with his fingers that told her to continue.

"And that Ace boy canceled on her, and you know as well as Abby does that no guy as ever broken a date with Three," It was true. "So," She continued, "I know you know what's going on. Four hangs with you more than the rest of us lately,"

He swallowed. The pilot guessed that that woman's intuition thing was more spot on then he had reasonably thought to consider, "I-I don't know what you're taking about,"

Maybe it was the way he stuttered. Maybe it was the way his gaze flickered to the ground. Maybe it was both, but Abby had figured something out as soon as he opened his mouth.

She smiled.

"You suck at lying, baby,"


A/N: PART THREE is now finally completed. I totally love the way this story is coming together in my head. Oh, and I thought to throw in some, slight, very slight 2/5 at the end there. It's more of a read between the lines thingy.

See you in PART FOUR.

- Lullaby.


Codename: Kids Next Door (c) Tom Warburton