Vicki looked around the table at the five seated teens. Her narrowed eyes a threat of murder should anyone even think about singing 'Happy Birthday'. She inhaled-
"Oh! AJ had a... Doctor's appointment to get to, so he couldn't stay, but he gave me his present that he was gonna give you." Timmy spoke up and held AJ's gift in the air.
At this interruption, Vicki exhaled upward, sending her breath into her bangs, making them blow up slightly. She could tell that was a lie, but of course the Twerp would cover for his friend. "Ah, just leave it on the table, I'll open it after the cake." she smiled sweetly, keeping up her favorite facade in front of Trixie and Veronica. She inhaled again-
"Happy-"
Smack
Averting her eyes from the cake and exhaling in annoyance again, Vicki's gaze fell on Chester, whose mouth was now covered by her sister's hand. "Of all the people to cover his mouth..." the red-head inwardly smirked. "And here I thought he'd have a thing for blonde girl... Or... Veronica, that's her name, right?" "Something wrong?"
"Ah...! Nope! Just keeping Chester from singing, I'd prefer you not murder my best friend!" Tootie giggled nervously. "Please?"
"Sis... You're such a kidder!" Vicki waved off Tootie's comment. "Remind me to ask you something later though, 'kay?"
The bespectacled girl audibly gulped as her older sister smiled at her. Vicki's smiles always meant trouble. "Heheh... Yeah... sure, Vicki..." "I'm dead."
Vicki looked around the table once more, expecting another interruption, but after nearly a minute of silence, sucked in a breath, and quickly blew out the candles before said interruption could occur. "Good, nobody sang."
"So... Presents?" Chester piped in.
"After the cake, Chester." she nearly laughed at the surprise on the blond's face, that was probably the first time she had actually used his real name, rather than 'Braces' or 'Blondie'. "You that eager to see what I got?"
"Actually, I'm more interested in seeing what everyone else got you." getting over his shock, the blond remarked rather confidently, knowing that he, at the very least, was safe from her wrath, thanks to Timmy.
"Well, you'll just have to wait a little longer. Knife?" Vicki glanced around the table, and was met with some very confused(and likely concerned) looks. "To cut the cake? I need a knife... Unless you all just want to eat it with your hands like a bunch of animals?"
Shifting his gaze between the members of his small group of friends and seeing that no one was about to get the red-head her requested utensil, Timmy rolled his eyes, realizing that AJ had succeeded in putting the fear of Vicki into Trixie and Veronica. "I'll get it." The brunet stood up and opened the silverware drawer, took out one of the many butter knives, then walked over to Vicki and handed it to her.
"Thanks, Timmy!" again, she smiled at him sweetly, and he felt his heartbeat quicken slightly.
"Uh-huh..." Feeling uncomfortable all over again, Timmy quickly glanced over at the door to the living room. "I need to go grab something from my room... Someone else mind taking over to hand out slices of cake?"
"You go ahead, I'll make sure to cut you a slice." Vicki spoke up and nodded her head towards the door she knew the brunet was looking at.
Sighing in relief, Timmy half-walked, half-bolted out of the kitchen, through the living room, tossing the gifts meant to be from Chester and AJ onto the coffee table, and up the stairs, throwing his bedroom door open as he reached it and shutting it behind him. "Why does she do this to me?!" he harshly whispered out and tried to calm his racing heart as Cosmo and Wanda returned to their fairy forms.
"Because she's a girl!" the green-haired fairy exclaimed.
"No, that can't be it. She... she must've cast some kind of spell, right? Wanda, you and Cosmo are magic, can't you sense that sort of thing?" he needed an explanation now. The spark he felt when he grabbed her wrist, the stuff the jewelery store owner said, kissing his cheek, and now the hug in front of all his friends? "She... she really is a witch, right? That's how she's making all this stuff happen to me, right?"
Seeing how desperate her godchild was, Wanda stuck her wand in the air, making it emit a beep every few seconds. "Timmy, this might take a little while. Mind coming back in an hour or two?"
"Really?" Timmy asked in disappointment. "There's no way you can, like rush it or something?"
"Not if you want to be sure. Sweetie, it'll be fine. Just try to have a good time, and if Vicki did cast some kind of spell, we'll find some way to deal with it, okay?"
"A-alright, thanks..." Leaving his godparents in his room, the brunet left and shut the door behind him.
In truth, the pink-haired fairy was almost positive there wasn't any form of magic at work, but thought it might be better to humor Timmy, rather than just come right out and say what was really on her mind. "Cosmo, I think... you might be right." Wanda lowered her wand now that Timmy had left, knowing for sure that there wasn't any 'magic' at work.
"Really?! I am?!" Cosmo looked at his wife in genuine disbelief. "You mean... I'm on a roll today?!"
"Shocking as it is, yes Honey. Timmy seems to be feeling the way he is because Vicki's... Well, a girl." Wanda shrugged.
"So why not tell him?"
"Timmy may be our godchild, but we can't just hand him answers all the time. Like us, humans need to figure some things out on their own, and this is definitely something Timmy has to figure out himself. He can't depend on us to solve all his problems."
"And if he doesn't?"
"Then I'm sure Vicki will help him along." Assuming that Timmy likely wouldn't be back for a while, Wanda poofed herself and Cosmo back into their fishbowl to wait and see how the rest of the day would unfold...
Timmy pinched the bridge of his nose as he walked through the living room. "A couple hours... What am I supposed to do for a couple hours?" The brunet made his way toward the kitchen door, only for it to swing open as Trixie and Veronica came through.
The raven-haired girl spoke up first as she got over the shock of nearly running into Timmy. "Oh! Hey Timmy. I wanted to thank you for inviting us before we headed out!" she smiled at him cutely, and for a split-second, Timmy nearly forgot about how crazy the girl really was.
"Headed out? You're leaving already?" he knew he probably sounded disappointed, but they hadn't really been there that long. "You two really have to go?"
"Yeah... My mom needs me to keep an eye on the house while she and my dad go out tonight, and it's getting kinda late anyway."
At this, Timmy looked out the living room's picture window, seeing the early signs of twilight coming over his neighborhood.
"And Trixie's my ride, so..." Veronica spoke up now. "Mind if we take a few pizzas with us?"
"Of course, you guys did buy them, thanks for helping Tootie set things up... and for the pizza."
"Anytime! We should all hang out more often!" Trixie exclaimed happily as Veronica grabbed a couple of the pizza boxes.
"Not sure how keen Tootie would be on that idea..." "Definitely." Timmy nodded and followed the two girls to the door to see them out, then shut the door and turned around to find Chester grinning at him slyly. "I do not like that grin." "Okay, what's up?"
"Not much." the blond glanced out of the corner of his eye at Tootie, who sat down on the couch and looked over Vicki's gifts, then turned his attention back to Timmy. "Just thought you might wanna know that Vicki's alone in the kitchen." Chester winked at his friend, earning him an annoyed glare.
Timmy wasn't a rocket scientist, but he didn't need to be one to know what Chester was doing. "Do me a favor?"
"Yeah?"
"Shut up." the brunet deadpanned as he walked past his friend and into the kitchen, doing his best to ignore the fit of giggles coming from the blond.
"What's so funny anyway?" Tootie asked as she placed Chester's gift back down on the table and the teen moved to sit down next to her on the couch.
"What? You haven't noticed the sexual tension between your sister and Timmy?" Chester jabbed his thumb toward the door separating the kitchen and living room.
"S-sexual tension?! What are you talking about?!" Tootie nearly screamed in disbelief as her glasses slid down her nose.
"Shh!" the blond mimicked Tootie's earlier action and covered her mouth with his hand, then began giggling once more. "You seriously haven't noticed it?"
Tootie, mouth still covered, raised an eyebrow at her friend.
"Oh, sorry." Chester pulled his hand away to let the raven-haired girl talk.
"What makes you think there's anything between them?" Tootie lowered her voice to a whisper.
"Well, there was that hug." Chester stated like it was an obvious fact. "Does Vicki even hug you?"
"I... She's... hugged me... Of course she's hugged me, she's my sister!" She opted to leave out the fact that Vicki hugged her very rarely.
"Okay fine. But do you know anyone else she's hugged?"
"No... But that doesn't mean-"
"And Timmy's been acting pretty strange since they got back from the mall. I think something's goin' on, just saying." Chester rubbed his chin in thought.
"Something like what?! She's almost six years older than him! You don't honestly think that those two have... feelings for each other, do you?" she hadn't meant to sound disgusted, unlike earlier that morning, where she very much was disgusted by the idea, but this was... Her best friend and her sister! The very idea of Timmy and Vicki...!
"I'm a firm believer that age is just a number, Toots-"
"Stop calling me that!" the girl whispered at him harshly. "You still haven't told Vicki that you want to... date me..." Tootie trailed off at the end, this day was just becoming weirder and weirder... First her and Chester, now Timmy and her sister? "If there's a Cupid, he's out of his damn mind!"
"I will... Soon as she finishes cleaning up the kitchen and comes in here, I'll tell her..." the blond stated reassuringly. "Anyway, you're telling me that if you liked me, and I was few years older than you, you wouldn't want to give the idea of 'us' a try?" Chester frowned at her.
"There are certain differences one has to take into consideration depending on if the boy in a relationship is older than the girl, and vice versa. If you were say, seventeen, and I was the age I am now, it might not be so bad, but Vicki's..."
"Ugh... You're getting too scientistic on me... Reminds me of Brainiac..." Chester rubbed at his forehead, pretending he had a headache, then sighed. "Not like it matters anyway, you really think we can stop either of them if that's what they want? Timmy's too willful, and Vicki is... Um... Vicki."
Tootie found she honestly couldn't argue with that logic. Timmy's willfulness was something she adored about him, if he had his sights on something, he would not give up on getting that something, no matter what. And her sister... She was pretty similar, except she'd just take what she wanted, rather than earn it like Timmy. "I think we'd be better off staying out of it." she slumped back into the couch and leaned into Chester, then grabbed his arm and lifted it up to put around her shoulders.
The blond smirked at his girlfriend's actions. "Agreed."
In the kitchen...
"Think I'd rather be in here with Vicki than try to explain myself to... those... two?" Timmy trailed off as he walked into the kitchen and was met with a very peculiar sight. Currently, his supposedly evil babysitter was doing the dishes, obviously not something he envisioned the red-head doing, not in his wildest dreams. Though, he had to admit that today hadn't exactly been 'normal', so Vicki doing the dishes was fairly tame in comparison.
"Why? What's up with them?" Vicki turned off the faucet as she looked over her shoulder at the brunet. "And what exactly would you rather not explain to them?" she turned around to look at Timmy fully as she dried her hands with a towel.
Timmy, however, hadn't heard her, being more in shock at the fact that the kitchen was cleaned up. "What- Why are you doing the dishes? And... why'd you clean up?" the teen looked at the table, now clear of everything except a significantly smaller birthday cake, and what he assumed was the slice Vicki said she'd cut for him earlier.
"Felt like it." Vicki shrugged, signifying that that was the end of that conversation, and tossed the towel she was using behind her onto the counter, then grabbed the lone plate off the table and handed it to Timmy. "Saved you a slice, like I said I would."
"Um... thank you?" taking the plate from her, the brunet couldn't help but chuckle at the fact that said cake slice had the name 'Vicki' written on it in frosting. Smirking at this, he turned the plate so she could see. "Wanna switch?"
"Hm? Oh, you got the one with my name, huh?" Vicki crossed her arms, slightly pushing up a certain part of her anatomy and smiling while shooting the brunet a sultry look. She found herself wondering for a few brief seconds if he'd get her next joke. "...Nah, it's fine, you can eat me."
"Um... Okay? If you say so, Vicki." Timmy sat down at the table and began eating his slice of cake. "Huh. This is really good!" He'd never had red velvet cake before.
Snickering at her Twerp's naivete, Vicki grabbed the rest of the cake and stuck it in the fridge, then sat down in the chair next to him. "Ah... That joke went right over your head..." she ruffled Timmy's hair, absently wondering why he was without his favorite hat. "So what's going on with my sister and Chester?" she nearly laughed out loud as Timmy abruptly stopped eating and looked at her with wide eyes. "Just tell me."
He wasn't sure if the smile she was giving him warranted caution or not, but it did somehow put him at ease, if only a little. And he knew from the tone in her voice that lying was out of the question anyway, so, after swallowing his cake, Timmy released a loud huff through his nose. "You sure you don't want to hear it from them?"
That was all he needed to say to confirm what she had already guessed. Sitting next to each other, Tootie covering Chester's mouth to protect him from her wrath when the blond started singing, and then her sister pleading with her slightly more forcefully than was normal to not kill said blond? Seemed to Vicki that those two were more going out of their way to show that they were an item, rather than try to hide it. "Are you so sure that they're gonna tell me?"
Timmy didn't answer at first, opting instead to give his slice of cake the occasional stab with his fork, though his gaze remained focused on Vicki. "Dunno for sure." for once, the brunet felt he could talk to the red-head without feeling nervous, though he knew he could probably attribute it to the fact that the focus wasn't on his growing feelings for her. "I know Chester felt the need to text me, remember back in the restroom at Giovanni's?"
"Ah right... You were saying that Tootie had the hots for someone..." Vicki supported her chin in her hand as she leaned on her elbow. "So it was Blondie..."
"I thought you were calling him Chester?" Timmy wondered if she had slipped up, or-
"Chester, Blondie, same person." she shrugged indifferently.
"Or if she just doesn't care." Timmy mused to himself.
"So lemme ask you then, since you probably know him a lot better than I do... He wouldn't... do anything to hurt her, right?" She knew she probably sounded too sincere, too concerned about her sister, but she really, honestly was.
"Wait... you think Chester might... Why didn't you ever ask me about this type of stuff when Tootie had a crush on me?" Timmy asked almost in disbelief, he was aware that Vicki could be protective of Tootie(even if she'd never show it openly, let alone admit it), but were they really having this conversation? She was confiding in him?
"Tootie's crush on you never bothered me because..." she hesitated, paying compliments to people had never been her forte, and that was especially true when it came to Timmy, even if she was beginning to take a shine to him.
"Because...?"
Vicki sighed, mildly annoyed. "Because I know you. We've spent so much time together that... I guess I trust you. I knew you wouldn't hurt her, not just because you two are friends, but because you're a good person. But I've also spent the most time around you, gotten to know you. I don't know Chester or AJ all that well, so I'm asking you, seeing as how she's your best friend; do you trust Chester to be good to her?"
"Well... Chester can be kind of..."
"Dopey?"
"I was gonna say goofy, but sure." Timmy took another bite of his cake. "Yeah, I guess I do. It's not just about Tootie being your sister, I don't think Chester would do anything to hurt her, not on purpose anyway."
"...Alright then." seeing that Timmy had finished his cake, Vicki stood up and grabbed his plate to wash it, then nearly jumped when the brunet's hand shot out and took the plate back.
"Nope. You've got presents to open, I'll take care of the rest of the dishes."
"I can-" Vicki paused as she looked at Timmy, he was smirking at her, and obviously wasn't budging on this one. "Fine, if you really want to. Don't forget, Timmy, I am gonna pay you back."
"Pay me back? For what? Did I... do something wrong?" the brunet asked, a hint of worry evident in his voice.
"No, you've been great, I told you that. Payback doesn't necessarily have to be bad..." she winked at him.
"So... what did you have in mind...?" he asked fearfully. Even with her saying the payback wouldn't be bad... That didn't necessarily mean it would be good... Did it?
"It'll be a... Surprise." she snapped her fingers. "You'll see later. Now go on, you've got dishes to clean." with that, Vicki left Timmy alone in the kitchen and went into the living room.
The teen sighed and hung his head as his babysitter disappeared into the living room. "I can't catch a break, can I?" Timmy looked up at the ceiling, expecting some eldritch deity to answer him, yet no response came. "Yeah, that's what I thought..."
In the living room...
Vicki walked into the living room and immediately went into stealth mode upon seeing Tootie's and Chester's heads over the back of the couch, also seeing that her sister was resting her head on said blond's shoulder. "Oh this is too good to pass up!" Creeping over to the couch and reaching the back of it, the red-head vaulted over it, plopping down next to her sister and Chester, nearly making them leap forward out of their seats. "So how're you two?" She smirked at the two teens, having to stifle a giggle as Tootie pressed herself against her blond friend.
"Um... Y-y'know..." Tootie pushed off Chester, realizing that she was likely just further incriminating herself at this point.
"Living the dream?"
"Huh?" as ready as she had been to have Chester's back and tell her sister that they were testing the water, Vicki's calm demeanor and casualness made all of Tootie's confidence drain away. "What do you-"
"I'm okay with it." the red-head stated rather simply and smiled at the teens sharing the couch with her.
"I don't care what you say! I like Tootie, and I won't let you be evil and keep us apart, no matter what you say, I'm gonna see her, because I care about her, and- Wait, what?"
Vicki quirked an eyebrow at Chester and his sudden outburst, he had practically leapt over Tootie and gotten right in her face, then started yelling out of the blue about how he was going to date her sister... "Guess he wasn't expecting me to give consent for their relationship..." "But! Let me make myself perfectly clear. If you even consider thinking about hurting her, they will not find your body, understand me?"
"You- You're okay with me and... Tootie?" Chester's angry determination gave way for genuine shock.
"As long as we understand each other, yes, I am." the red-head stuck her hand out and let it delicately come to rest on Chester's cheek, then roughly pushed him out of her field of view and off the couch. "Now, I know you're smart enough to know better, but if you two should... actually last, Sis... Don't make me an aunt before thirty, okay?"
Blushing for what had to be the hundredth time that day, this time thanks to her sister's insinuation, Tootie nodded her head vigorously in understanding.
"Good, we're all clear on how this is gonna work out. Chester, you need to head home."
"Wha?! Why?!" "Vicki, that isn't fair!" Chester and Tootie shouted at the same time.
"One-" Vicki stuck up her right index finger. "Because it's getting late, and I'm not getting paid to keep an eye on you." she directed her gaze at Chester. "Two-" the red-head now raised her middle finger. "I never claimed to be a fair person. You both know that... And consider yourselves lucky that I'm giving you my blessing at all!"
The two teens shrank back at their babysitter's raised voice, both muttering 'Alright' as Chester sat back down next to Tootie, and both slid over to the other end of the couch.
"You need a ride?" "Oh great, do I actually feel bad?!" Vicki grimaced at herself. She was beginning to wish this day would just end so she had an excuse to go back to be being mean... Well, after she paid back her Twerp...
"No thanks, I don't live too far anyway." the blond stood up and made for the door, followed by Tootie, then stopped and sighed before turning around. "Um... Happy Birthday, Vicki."
"...Thanks, be careful on your way home." she looked out the window, seeing that it was almost night.
"I will." Chester made his way over to the front door and pulled it open, only to find himself being turned back around to face Tootie.
"Forgetting something?" the bespectacled girl raised an eyebrow and smirked at her friend that would soon be known as her boyfriend.
"I... don't think so..." the teen began patting himself down absentmindedly. "What am I-"
"She wants a kiss, Knucklehead."
Tootie rolled her eyes. "Thank you, Vicki..."
"Oh! Right!" Chester leaned in-
"Hey! No lip action in front of-" Vicki sighed as she placed her right hand over her eyes. "Nevermind... Do what you want."
Smirking at having been given the go-ahead, Tootie gave Chester a quick peck on the lips. "I think you've gotten enough today..." she whispered as she pulled away. "So... tomorrow?"
"Yeah? Okay sure! You want me to bring flowers for you or-"
"Just bring yourself." Tootie cut him off, giving the blond a parting hug, then shut the door and leaned against it before sighing contentedly.
"Can I move my hand now, or are you gonna start swooning again?" Vicki smirked as she peeked an eye out from between her fingers.
"Ugh! I was not swooning!" Tootie crossed her arms and looked away indignantly.
"Then you were making a very swoony-sounding noise." the red-head moved her hand away form her eyes and let it come to rest on her gift from AJ. "Guess I can start opening gifts, now that everyone's gone!"
"Um... yeah, about that..." Tootie, now realizing her situation, rubbed the back of her head nervously. "I... didn't really have the chance to go out and get you anything... so-"
"You're worried about that? Tootie, you and the Twerp threw me the best birthday party I've ever had, far as I'm concerned, you two are golden." she began tearing the tissue paper off the gift, letting it fall to the floor, along with the ribbon. "Hm. Should've known Baldy would try and get me something practical..."
"What is it?" Tootie stepped closer to get a better look at the now unwrapped gift.
"'Best Weapons and Methods to Survive the Zombie Apocalypse', by Jacqueline Salt... That name sound familiar?"
"Mmm... Nope, not ringing any bells." Tootie plopped down next to her older sister on the couch.
"Well... I suppose it should be an interesting read... How did you and Blondie even... Happen? You two been doing this for a while, and just now decided to stop being careful, or...?" Vicki picked up her other gift, the one from the blond teen she was currently questioning her sister about.
"It- We- ...I yelled at AJ when he tried to get out of helping with getting ready for the party, and... I guess me getting angry and yelling was somehow... a real turn-on for Chester... I had no idea he was... Like that. I was so confused at first! I thought..." Tootie sighed loudly. "I don't know what I thought. But I do like him, and he- He actually likes me! Wants to be with me, I don't have to chase him, or-"
"Whoa whoa whoa! Should've asked for the short version!" Vicki chuckled as she rubbed Tootie's shoulder. "I told you I'm okay with it, just wanted to know how it came about. Good for you, Sis! Really, I'm happy you found someone that likes you as much as you like them. Just... make sure you're careful, okay? I don't just mean being 'safe'-" Vicki used air quotes. "I mean don't scare this one, okay?"
"Thanks, Vicki. I... I'll try to be... better..." Tootie looked at her hands in her lap, now feeling a little unsure once more. What if she screwed up again and scared Chester too? "Um... What did Chester get you?"
"A game, if I had to guess." Vicki held up the aforementioned gift and shook it slightly. "Definitely a game."
"What's a game?" Timmy came in from the kitchen, finally having finished cleaning up from the party. He totally wasn't stalling and taking his time to keep from facing Vicki and Tootie, definitely not, don't even think it.
"This." Vicki held the tissue-wrapped gift up so the brunet could see it.
"Gonna open it?" Timmy sat down on the couch between the two girls with a thump, making the both of them bounce up slightly.
"Figured we'd wait for you." the red-head began unwrapping her gift. "Chester went home, by the way. Told him it was getting late, which, it is."
"'Kay. You guys-"
"Yeah." Vicki cut him off, knowing he was about to bring up the Chester/Tootie thing. "Oh! He got me Bio-Evil Five! Must've gotten his dad to buy it!"
"So you're a big fan of survival-horror then?" Timmy asked, already knowing she was, since he got the game for her.
"Bet your ass I am! You two wanna break it in?"
"And suddenly my evil babysitter turned into a video game nerd, and it was awesome." Timmy mentally laughed at how excited she was. "Aren't we kinda young to play that, what with all the blood, gore, and trench coat wearing bad guys?"
"Yes. But it sounds like someone else is a fan of the series... Care to share with the group, Twerp?" Vicki smirked at Timmy knowingly.
"Well... I might have a few of the prequels up in my room..." "Like, all of them." Timmy stated coyly.
"You two are perfect for each other..." Tootie shrugged and shook her head in mock-disappointment. "You want me to head out so you two can make out?"
Timmy blushed beet-red at this, and attempted to stammer out an adequate retort, but Vicki wasn't fazed in the least by her sister's little teasing remark. "Just for that, you can play last." the red-head stood up from the couch and popped her new game into the game system beneath the TV set, then grabbed a controller and tossed it to Timmy.
The brunet caught the controller and shot the girl a confused look. "Why do I go first? It's your game and your birthday, shouldn't you-"
"And risk looking stupid when I die first? No way. Test the water for me so I can get a sense of what I'm in for."
"So... make myself look stupid instead?" Timmy frowned up at her, which, in her opinion, only made him look cuter.
"You'll do fine, I have faith! So, whose idea was it to have a party for me, really?" Vicki asked as she sat down on the couch between Timmy and Tootie, nearly landing in the brunet's lap and making him scoot over to give her room.
Knowing they were caught, Tootie sighed loudly. "It was Ti-"
"Tootie's." the brunet interrupted Tootie before she could finish, earning him a wide-eyed look from his friend that went unnoticed by the birthday girl seated between them. "After I talked to you this morning and went back up to my room, Tootie called me and asked me if it would be okay to throw you a birthday party."
"Really." Vicki looked at her sister, who still seemed rather confused as to what was going on.
"Ayup. She was telling me about how she wanted to do something nice for you on your birthday, since you'd never had a real party before, so she asked me to keep you busy while she set everything up; inviting our friends, getting the cake, decorating the house... y'know." all during his little speech, Timmy never averted his gaze from the television, being under the assumption that Vicki would see through his lie should he make eye contact with her.
"This true, Toots? You did all this for me?" Vicki looked at Tootie, who in turn looked at Timmy, who frantically nodded at her in an effort to get the raven-haired girl to take full credit and play along.
"Um... Y-Yes? I- It was my plan to throw you a party..." Tootie shifted her gaze away, pretending to be embarrassed at having been found out. "But I couldn't have done it without Timmy's help!" she added in suddenly.
"And to think that I was actually afraid you had forgotten my birthday!" the red-head leaned over and pulled Tootie into a hug, making the girl flinch, clearly not expecting such an action by her sister. "Guess I was just being silly! Thanks for throwing me a party, sis!"
After a second, Tootie relaxed, realizing she wasn't in any immediate danger from her sister, and returned the hug. "A-anytime Vicki." "What- What could've happened at the mall?" She looked at Timmy, who by now returned his attention to the video game he was playing.
Sure, Vicki wasn't heartless, and did occasionally show this by being nice to Tootie or hugging her(though hugs were pretty rare, kind of a blue moon type of thing), the girl could tell that this wasn't the usual sweet-as-an-angel facade that she'd put up around unsuspecting parents. This was real, actual affection, something she first noticed when her sister and Timmy had returned, and Vicki hugged him.
Now, being that Tootie was the second-smartest person in their group of friends(a title that she'd probably have to struggle to keep, now that Trixie and Veronica were their friends as well, and the blonde was at least more devious than she had given her credit for), she knew something must have happened between her sister and best friend at the mall. What that something was, was the problem. She hadn't been there with them, and was almost positive that neither of them would tell her if something did happen anyway.
Hearing her phone vibrate from its position on the endtable next to the couch Tootie looked over at it, and Vicki released her to let her grab it. "It's... Mom."
"Hm." the red-head found her good mood nearly instantly shattered. "Probably afraid I'm corrupting you or something..."
"Or she's just worried since I've been gone all day." Tootie rolled her eyes. She knew that Vicki wasn't fond of their parents, and she couldn't really blame her for that either, they had always been more distant with Vicki than with her.
"Whatever." Vicki waved her hand dismissively and turned her attention to the other teen on the couch. "My turn." she reached for Timmy's controller.
Instinctively, Timmy moved the controller just out of her reach. "Hang on, just let me-"
Before he could finish, Vicki flicked the joystick, making the brunet's in-game character lurch forward... And right into a chainsaw blade, slicing their head clean off. "Oh no! Looks like you died, my turn."
Sighing in defeat(though not very surprised by the red-head's actions), Timmy handed off the controller and stood up from the couch. "You two want anything to drink?" He looked at Tootie, who was more interested in her phone conversation than what he had said, then over at Vicki.
"Got any pink lemonade?"
"No, we don't." "I can check." leaving the two sisters in the living room, Timmy went back into the kitchen and opened the fridge to see that, no, they didn't have any pink lemonade. "Why even ask for that?" He was positive this was the first time she had ever asked for the drink, much in the same way he was positive that there wasn't any in the house in the first place. Yet this brought another question to the front of his consciousness. Why had he said he'd check if he already knew they didn't have the beverage? Did he... Was he trying to go out of his way to make her happy? And if so, why? Hadn't he done enough in giving her something she'd never had before? "Argh! I don't-" Timmy caught himself before yelling and sighed. "I wish there was a bottle of pink lemonade in the fridge..." he muttered out as he pinched the bridge of his nose and grabbed the drink as it materialized onto the shelf in the fridge.
He simply couldn't understand it. This was Vicki. Sure, she had mellowed over the years, and even been nice to him today, but that shouldn't change things between them, should it? It was beginning to feel like whatever he felt for the red-head wasn't the same as it had been with Trixie. For some reason, he wanted to see her smile, wanted her to be happy. He found himself actually wanting to go out of his way to get the girl to smile at him. With Trixie, he hadn't felt quite like this, it was more just getting her to return the affections... And finding out how dependent she was on attention from other people... What point was there in a relationship if he couldn't make her happy without help from complete strangers?
The brunet stopped in front of the door that separated the two rooms. "Am I... Actually considering this?!" he whispered loudly, hoping it was still low enough so that Tootie and Vicki wouldn't hear. For some reason, he kept getting the slight nagging feeling that his... feelings weren't brought about by some errant spell cast by his babysitter. It was terrifying to admit, but he had to consider the fact that maybe it wasn't magic at all. Maybe Vicki's being nice, even for a few short hours, had radically shifted his opinion of the girl; maybe he did like her, or at least, this side of her. "Or... maybe it's just magic..."
For anyone else, this explanation would sound extremely unlikely, and rightfully so. How many fourteen year-olds could say they went on as many magical adventures as Timmy Turner? Very few, and that's being generous. But, for the aforementioned teen, magic made more sense than even the most obvious evidence, leaving the poor brunet rather torn.
"Hey! I'm dying of thirst in here! You get lost in the- Don't give me that look, Tootie! You want privacy, talk somewhere not in public!"
Hearing Vicki berate him shook Timmy from his introspection long enough to leave the kitchen and return to the living room, once again sitting down between the two sisters, who continued to argue back and forth, though Tootie did so silently, being that she was still on the phone. "Here." he tossed Vicki's requested drink onto her lap.
"Thanks." pausing the game, she opened the bottle and took a sip, then stuck her tongue out at Tootie before turning her attention to Timmy. "So what took you so long? I thought you were finished cleaning up?"
"I am. I just... got texts from Chester and AJ, they wanted to thank me for inviting them, and you for not... Murdering them." he lied quickly and(he hoped) believably.
"I figured I'd try my hand at being nicer for a change, since it's my birthday." Vicki shrugged as she unpaused the game and turned up the volume, mostly just to spite her sister and mother.
"So... Does that mean you're gonna be extra evil tomorrow?" Timmy asked hesitantly, remembering he and Vicki were going to spend the weekend together.
"Well... Can't guarantee I'll be nice..." Vicki glanced over at Tootie, who was looking away and still yammering away at their mother, from what she could tell. "But for you?" she smirked and leaned toward Timmy, nudging his shoulder with her own. "I can try..."
The brunet thought -Like seriously thought- about moving away from Vicki when she did this, especially with Tootie so close(he'd never hear the end of her teasing if she noticed this little interaction), but there were two problems with this idea. The first being that giving his babysitter the cold shoulder was likely to end badly for him, and the second was... He honestly didn't mind her affectionate little gesture. Sure, it made his heart speed up again, and at this rate, he was beginning to worry that he might have a heart attack from all the various paces the organ had been going through, but he felt a warm, almost tingly sensation in his stomach from their contact, one that he wasn't necessarily opposed to.
"Ugh! We need family counseling!" Tootie exclaimed loudly(making Timmy and Vicki both jump in surprise and pull away from each other) as she ended the call with her mother.
"What's up?" Vicki asked coolly, not showing even a hint of surprise at almost being caught. "Mom mad at me for whatever again?"
"Just the usual... I think you're right, maybe she does think you're corrupting me... Makes me feel like she thinks I'm not my own person... Can't you and her just-"
"No." Vicki cut Tootie off coldly. "I didn't do anything wrong. Mom and Dad screwed up as parents, I just gave back what I got growing up."
"But maybe you could apologize-"
"My birthday has been happy so far, Tootie. Don't go ruining it now. They want to apologize, fine, but I'm not gonna let them walk all over me, and then say I'm sorry that I wasn't good enough for them to love me."
Knowing that was the end of the conversation, Tootie sighed and opened her mouth to speak, only to be interrupted, this time by her phone notifying her of a text message. Picking it up and glancing her phone, she realized it was Veronica.
Don't forget our deal! 3
"Who was it? Mom again?" Vicki asked in mild annoyance.
"Um... N-no, just Chester telling me goodnight! Heheh..." Tootie texted back quickly. Vicki might know and be okay with her and Chester seeing each other, but Tootie wasn't about to risk her entire school finding out...
I won't.
"A-anyway, Mom's coming to get me in a few minutes. Would it... be alright if I come over tomorrow?" Tootie looked at Timmy, who had kept quiet up until now.
The brunet looked at her. "I'm okay with it-"
"But I doubt Mom will be." the room's only adult(so she claimed) once more interrupted without tearing her eyes from the TV. "Long as she knows I'm here, anyway."
"Then I'll tell her I'm going out with friends." Tootie offered.
KNOCK-KNOCK
"Speak of the devil..." Vicki handed her controller to Timmy as she stood up and strode over to the door, opening it to reveal a woman that looked... A lot like Tootie, actually. Well, if Tootie were older, didn't have pigtails, and did have pink eyes... but she had similar facial features, and of course, glasses. And the woman wore black jeans and a purplish shirt. She looked like she might even be younger than his own mother... Timmy frowned as he realized his in-game character died again, thanks to him looking at Tootie and Vicki's mother, rather than the game. He at last realized where Vicki got her pink eyes, since her mom's were the same color. "And she shall appear... Nicki." her words were so bitter, Timmy felt he could taste the bitterness.
"Vicki..."
Timmy noticed that this woman, who one would think(from the way she was described) actually had a bit of authority over the red-head, suddenly seemed nervous, almost... sheepish. "Vicki is that scary at home...?" He was once again alerted of his character's death due to his relatively short attention span, and decided he was better off keeping his nose out of the Valentine family's business.
Tootie got off the couch and walked over to stand next to Vicki by the door. "Is being a normal family all that hard? Why can't you two just bury the hatchet and-"
"I'll bury a hatchet alright..." Vicki muttered as she crossed her arms.
"Tootie... Your sister doesn't want to-" the woman known as 'Nicki' began.
"Don't. Don't even think about putting words in my mouth. You and Dad gave up on me out of the blue. Do you seriously wonder why I turned out the way I am?" Vicki spat back venomously.
"I-it isn't like that! I- We both made mistakes as your parents, I know we did... And you never did anything wrong, we- ...We weren't ready to be parents, but I refused to give you up... And... And by the time I was ready to try and be your mother, you were-" Vicki's mother blinked back tears.
"Awful? Spiteful? Evil? Maybe... A monster? Look who I had to raise me; no one!" She wanted to end this conversation right now, she didn't need this today, on what was supposed to be a happy birthday.
"You think I don't know that? You think I don't regret not being there for you? You don't want us to make amends!"
"You don't want to apologize!"
Timmy glanced over at the two arguing women, finally understanding where Vicki got her temper, and maybe why she could be so mean at times. A little voice at the back of his head told him that he should go to her, but why? She wasn't- They weren't together. What right did he have to stick his nose in their business?
"I'm sorry, okay?! I screwed up as a parent, I should've- I should've been better... I can't change the past, but do we have to fight all the time? I wanted to wish you a happy birthday..." Nicki at last finished, slightly out of breath from arguing, and looking a combination of defeated and ashamed.
"Who told you? Tootie?" Vicki asked, taken aback at the thought that her mother actually remembered her birthday.
"Who needed to tell me? You think I don't remember giving birth to my own daughter? ...Not like I deserve your understanding... I didn't even have a party planned for you, yet it seems that these people did... We've avoided each other for so long, I feel like I barely even know you. I didn't want to set something up, only to make you angrier with me-"
"You thought doing nothing was better?"
"I know it wasn't, but... But we never talk! I may not have been the best mother, but I can't begin to make up for my mistakes if you don't talk to me!"
Vicki rubbed her eyes with her right index finger and thumb, feeling the slight itchiness that let her know that tears were on the way. All this time, her mother... and maybe even her father? Had wanted to make amends... And she had been too stubborn to swallow her pride and try to be a family, even if they had ignored her, that didn't make them beyond forgiveness... "You two should head home, it's getting late."
"...Alright... C'mon Tootie..." Nicki began to turn away from the door-
"And... Mom?"
Only to stop and look at her eldest daughter fully. "Y-yes?"
"I'll... call you tomorrow, okay?" the red-head shot her mother a small smile.
"O-okay!" Nicki suddenly stepped forward, capturing Vicki in a very Tootie-like hug.
"Yeah..." Vicki returned the hug for a second, then tried to push her mother away, to no avail. "...Mom?' she squirmed slightly in her mother's grasp. "Mom. Too much."
"Oh! I'm-" Nicki pulled away, a light dusting of pink on her cheeks. "S-sorry Vicki..."
"It's alright..." the red-head sighed, knowing that there was going to be a lot of talking come morning. "Tomorrow then?"
"T-tomorrow." her mother nodded, then turned around and made her way over to her car, then got in, followed by Tootie.
"Love you, Sis!" the raven-haired girl called as she got into the car.
"Love you too, Toots!" Vicki waved and shut the door, sighed loudly(and dramatically), then walked back over to the couch and sat down next to Timmy. "I suppose now would be the part where you tell me you're so proud of me for trying to make amends with my mom, right?"
Timmy paused the game at this and shot his babysitter a sly smile. "Nope."
"No...? Really? ...Why not?" she asked suspiciously.
"You really want to talk about it? Do I get paid to be like, your family therapist or something?" the brunet asked, pretending to be excited at the prospect.
"Nevermind." Vicki brought both hands up to her face and covered it as she yawned. "It's been a long day..."
"Wanna open the rest of your presents?" Timmy turned off the game system. He hadn't been doing particularly well anyway.
Rather than respond, Vicki stuck her right hand out, open-palmed toward Timmy.
"Y'know..." the brunet picked up the first gift from underneath the coffee table, this one from Trixie. "I think Trixie and Veronica's gifts might be... Kind of last minute, so..." he placed the gift in Vicki's hand.
"I'll try not to look too disappointed." Vicki deadpanned as she began unwrapping the gift, revealing it to be exactly what Timmy thought it was, a blanket. Specifically the fleece variety with a picture of a wolf on a blue background. "...I can actually use this."
"Well... it is a blanket, but isn't it a little hot for a fleece blanket? It's the middle of July!" Timmy grabbed the other gift as he spoke.
"I keep the air conditioner on in my room when I sleep, it gets cold, I have an excuse to sleep wrapped in a blanket." Vicki stated like it was the most normal thing in the world.
He couldn't argue with that logic, considering that, while he didn't own a fleece blanket, he did sleep wrapped in his comforter when it was cold, and he slept very well in those instances. "Here." Timmy handed her the gift from Veronica. It was about the same size as Trixie's, but was definitely solid; a box of some sort.
Wrapping her new blanket around herself, Vicki took the present and shook it, producing a faint rattling sound.
"What if it's just filled with snakes?" He grinned at her, earning him a scowl from the birthday girl as she tossed the box into his lap.
"You open it, Smartass." Vicki crossed her arms over her chest. She didn't really believe it was snakes, that'd be crazy. "Though impressive."
"If you want me to..." Carefully unwrapping the ribbon and gift paper, Timmy placed it in a small heap on the floor, then slid his fingers along the lid. "Okay..." Taking a deep breath(more for effect than actual fear of the box containing snakes), the buck-toothed teen lifted the lid up. "What the..." reaching into the box, Timmy pulled his hand out, now holding a gift card. "It's... A gift card to Wall 2 Wall Mart. For... Wow. I-Hey!" he exclaimed as Vicki snatched the gift card out of his hand.
"Three hundred dollars?" the red-head whistled. "Not bad... Leave it to rich people to throw money around like it's candy... Though I do wonder why she put it in such a big box... Was Veronica the blonde one?"
"Yes-"
"That explains it."
"Suppose so." Timmy changed the channel on the TV to one that showed mostly movies. "Don't forget your gift, idiot!" He could feel the small velvet box practically burning a hole in his pocket. "I've... got time. Just... I'll give it to her in a little bit. No rush, right?" he shifted nervously in his seat. What would giving her the gift mean? You gave nice jewelery to girls you liked, right? So... should he?
Meanwhile, Vicki glanced over at the brunet, still having his little internal conflict. "Y'know..." she slid over the couch cushions and stopped next to Timmy. "Now that we're alone... I really feel the need to thank you for today..."
"Hm? Oh, that's alright, I was just-" Timmy paused mid-sentence and turned his head to look at Vicki, nearly jumping out of his skin upon realizing how close she suddenly was to him. "Trying to be... nice?" the brunet trailed off under Vicki's gaze. There was a strange quality to it that made him uncomfortable... Mostly in his stomach. Not nausea... More fluttery, he supposed.
As for her expression... She was smiling, and her eyes were half-lidded, not seeming to be sleepy though... And that red blush he had seen when she pulled him into the dressing room at the mall was back, mostly on her cheeks, and just below her eyes. And... "She keeps leaning closer!" That was what irked the teen the most, his babysitter was leaning in like this was some... some romance movie! Like this was the part where they were supposed to- "You... you like me?!" he harshly whispered out, not wanting to yell in her face, even if this was(to him) Earth-shattering information.
The sweet smile broke into a more Cheshire one at that, complete with Vicki showing her pearly white teeth, which Timmy was surprised to find were not serrated like a shark's(as he imagined they'd be). "Hey! Maybe you're not as naïve as I thought!" she laughed lightly.
Had she... just confirmed it? Timmy had his suspicions that his babysitter might like him, but for her to admit it so easily? The teen simply wasn't ready for it. All day he had begun to think it was he who liked her, and now she dropped this on him?! His mind was snapped back to reality as he felt her hand slowly move forward along the couch cushions(slightly depressing them), then collide with his upper thigh, steadily creeping up it until- "Um!" he tensed up at her touch.
"Hey... What is..." the red-head's fingers curled around something... Hard. She ran her fingers around it, quickly realizing that this was not... What she'd originally thought it was. "I'd ask if you were happy to see me... But unless your package is... really oddly-shaped..." Shaking the blanket off her arm, Vicki looked down to find her fingers were wrapped around a box of some kind, still hidden in the confines of Timmy's jeans. "You holdin' out on me, Punk?" her grin faded, now replaced by a small frown, and she raised an eyebrow at the brunet.
"I..." Timmy sighed and hung his head. "Chester's been teasing me all day after that hug when we got back, so I didn't want to give it to you in front of him and Tootie... And... and lately I can't even begin to figure out what I'm feeling, and you..." the brunet looked up at Vicki now, meeting her pink eyes and feeling his stomach get all fluttery once more. "You like me? Why-" Timmy froze, feeling Vicki's index finger suddenly come to rest on his lips. It felt nice... and a little cool.
"Just give me the gift."
Another sigh, this one out of Timmy's nose, since his mouth was covered. He reached into his pocket, pulling out the small box and holding it in his hand, still unsure if he should give it to her. "Look, I-"
"Shh! Give it here."
The brunet handed her the gift, now feeling extremely uncomfortable, due to the distinct lack of emotion in Vicki's voice. She wasn't mad, or happy, or sad... Or anything. Her tone was nothing... And nothing felt like the calm before the storm. So she liked him, at what point did that mean he was safe from her wrath?
Moving her hand away from his mouth at last, Vicki carefully undid the ribbon from around the small velvet box. She felt... a little scared to open it. Some part, deep down, kept nagging at her, telling her it was a ring, mostly just because the box was rather stereotypical. Little black velvet boxes didn't always contain engagement rings, and the Twerp had no reason to get her something like that anyway; he was still struggling with figuring out his feelings for her, that was made evident... Pretty much all day, so...?
Gently placing the green ribbon down on the coffee table in front of her, Vicki lifted the cover up, revealing the pink, square-cut crystal, attached to a little silver chain. "Wow..."
"Oh great! She hates it!" Timmy misinterpreted Vicki's tone as sounding fairly unimpressed, while, in reality, she simply couldn't quite think of an adequate response.
"I- I'm... Um..." The gift had caught the red-head completely off guard. A thousand things could be read into from this gift, yet not a single one wanted to be voiced. Once more, the brunet had surprised her by going out of his way to be a good person to her. What could she have done to justify her getting a gift like this? She'd been terrible to him, to his friends! And yet... He'd gone out of his way to not only throw her a party, inviting his friends, covering for them and getting gifts from them, taking her out to eat and shopping...
In essence, he was showering her with undeserved adoration. Even as she knew he was struggling with feelings for her, he was treating her...
"You... could probably give it to someone else... if you don't like it?" Timmy offered, seeing that Vicki apparently didn't like the gift.
"Wha? Why would I do that?" her gaze at last shifted from the gift, to Timmy, whom she now looked at bemusedly.
"Because... you don't like it?"
"When did I say that?" averting her eyes from the brunet and back to the necklace, Vicki removed it from the box and held it up with her right hand as she dropped the box onto the table. "I like it... I'm just a little confused, that's all."
"...Okay...?" Timmy rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. He had expected her to elaborate on why she was confused, yet all she was doing now was looking at the necklace.
"I guess... I shouldn't be..." undoing the little metal clasp, Vicki brought the two halves of the silver chain around her neck, attaching them together and making them one again. "I mean... You're you, after all."
"I'm... me...? What's that supposed to mean?" it didn't sound like an insult, but what did she mean? Who else was Timmy supposed to be but himself?
Rolling the little hunk of pink crystal about between her thumb and index finger, the red-head took the time to think on a proper response, one that her Twerp would actually understand. "You've always been so naïve... Which really shouldn't surprise me, what with your wanting to be friends with me when we first met. Bear with me here, I'm not the best when it comes to complimenting people... You're... brave, kind, honest, sincere, you care about your friends... and enemies..." she chuckled humorlessly. "And... you want me, of all people, a constant source of misery and hatred in your life... to be happy." Vicki let out a deep breath, one that sounded relieved, mostly because she was. "You wanted to know why I kissed you? And why I like you of all people? Well, now you do."
Was he really? Maybe the girl- woman- "What do I even call her?" Maybe she was right, to some extent... But then, she didn't know about all the things he'd done to get back at her... And there really wasn't any way to safely tell her without risking his godparents. "But... but aren't there... other guys you'd rather like?"
"Are there other girls you'd rather like?" Vicki shot back, her tone significantly more sure than Timmy's.
"I never said I liked you though, I told you already, I'm... confused about everything right now..." the brunet nervously fiddled with the green ribbon that had been around the box containing Vicki's necklace, not knowing when he had even picked it up. "I like hanging out with you when you're..."
The red-head quickly moved across the couch cushions, turning her body to land butt-first in Timmy's lap, making him raise his arms up in shock, not wanting to inadvertently touch her in the wrong place. "Fun?" she looked up at him, eyes sparkling playfully.
"Th-that's one w-way to p-put it. A-Aren't you worried though?"
"About...?" Vicki laid her head down on the armrest of the couch, arms folded across her chest.
"Me?"
"Why should I be worried about you?" bringing her right hand up, the red-head lightly caressed Timmy's cheek, feeling him just slightly lean into her touch.
The brunet, meanwhile, wanted to stop himself, but couldn't. He wanted to push her hand away, to wriggle out from under her and move to the opposite side of the couch, to keep her at arm's length, where they were friends, where things made sense... He wanted to...
Almost as much as he wanted to stay right where he was. He could no longer deny the fact that he enjoyed her touch at the restaurant, teasing and meaningless as it was back then, much like he couldn't deny liking when they were in the vent, and she pressed herself against him, or how thrilling he found the act of skipping out on the check with Vicki to be. Even though he had only been exposed to it for a few hours, Timmy found that this playful and actually happy attitude of hers was enjoyable. "I-I'm only fourteen though! Even if we got past all the stuff we've been through, there's no getting past the fact that you're six years older than me!"
"Five and a half." Vicki corrected, but pulled her hand away from Timmy's cheek to bring it behind her head, and now used it as a pillow. "And... you're considering this, aren't ya?" she raised an eyebrow at the brunet, slightly adjusting her position in his lap and offering him a small(and sly) smile.
"I..." Timmy's cheeks were overcome by a light pinkish blush. "Is there even any point in trying to hide it now?"
"Not really. Everyone else is gone; just you, me, and those goldfish of yours. C'mon..." Vicki moved her right arm out from under her head, snaked it around Timmy's shoulders, and used him as leverage to pull herself up, bringing her face in front of his. "Get it off your chest so you can relax already."
"I like... how you were today. When you're being nice to me... You're kind of fun to be around. I guess... I like you... No, I do like you, but..." the brunet looked away, suddenly feeling ashamed because-
"But you're afraid of... me going back to how I usually am, right?" Vicki turned Timmy's head with her finger, making him face her again.
"Dammit, I am easy to read!" he shifted his legs uncomfortably again.
"It's kind of funny. When I was with Ricky, the two of us used to torture you and your friends for fun, that made me happy. Ricky went out of his way to make me happy... Or so I thought." Vicki once more adjusted her position in Timmy's lap, then rested her head on his shoulder.
"V-Vicki... maybe you could let me sit-"
"Don't act like you don't enjoy this." reaching behind herself with her left arm, the red-head grabbed Timmy's arm, bringing it around her waist and planting it firmly on her hip.
"But I- I don't-!"
"Right... So, those times I caught you staring at me, there was absolutely nothing naughty on your mind?"
"That's not the point! We shouldn't..." he sighed and leaned back, again remembering that giving his babysitter the cold shoulder was bound to end badly for him.
"Re-lax. Anyway, I should have known from the start that Ricky only wanted one thing... There were others too."
"Boyfriends?" Timmy hadn't meant to sound so disbelieving, but he couldn't recall seeing his babysitter with any other boys besides Ricky...
"No, girlfriends." Vicki deadpanned at him. "What do you think? Yeah, I've had my fair share of relationships that have crashed and burned... Generally by my choice, just so we're clear."
"Because you'd have to be an idiot to break up with Vicki Valentine, right?" the brunet's voice dripped with sarcasm.
"Now you're getting it! Who in their right mind would break up with someone as fun, beautiful, and sexy as me?"
"And so humble too!" Timmy said with a chuckle, starting to feel a little more relaxed.
"See? Now, if we get each others jokes, enjoy each others company, and you admitted that you liked me... I can't help but ask, what are you so afraid of? ...Besides me?"
"Yeah, that's pretty much it." Timmy rolled his eyes, despite that statement being in his head.
"So...? How 'bout it? Wanna make your babysitter the happiest girl in the world?" to drive her question home, Vicki nuzzled her head against Timmy's shoulder, tickling his neck a bit with her hair.
"...Really?" the brunet asked with a chuckle, not quite believing his babysitter had just said and done what she did. "That was-"
"Ugh... Bad, I know. I think I felt the sweetness of that one in my pancreas..." she rubbed at her stomach.
"If... if we're gonna try this... Could we... maybe try and take it slow?" Timmy pulled away from her slightly so he could look her in the eyes.
"Slow? Where's the fun in slow? And since when do I seem like the type to take things slow? You're passing up a golden opportunity here. All you have to do is ask, and I'd-" focusing on Timmy, his not-so-evil babysitter took pause. Realizing the position the two were in, and how she was essentially forcing him into something that he still wasn't completely sure of... It was probably a lot of stress for someone his age. "I know a good way to relieve stress..." "Fine. Anyone ever tell you you're a tease?" her tone was low in his ear, but seemingly understanding as she moved off Timmy's lap and back over to her side of the couch.
"No... Though I'm sure Tootie's thought it once or twice..." Timmy rubbed the light coating of sweat on his palms onto his jeans, and quickly realized that he missed the contact they had been sharing already. "So... that's it?" he moved over, from the left-hand seat on the couch to the middle one, settling in next to Vicki without actually making contact.
Fingering her latest gift once again, the red-head shrugged, then shot him another small smile. "I think... This is the beginning of 'it'."