Special Thanks: Many thanks to Rosalie. I loved your reviews, they made me smile (and I got the inside joke =P). I know you'll love this chapter. You'll recognize a certain someone in here by the end of the third paragraph, I'm sure (lol). Wolfess, thank you sincerely; I appreciate it so much more than you know. ;) And omigosh, no, I did not hit writer's block, lol! I'm sorry! It's just a long chapter. Future chapters will be this way too, and henceforth they will take a while to post. Emilie, I cannot thank you enough. That was very meaningful, beautiful, and made my day. :) Thank you for reading! Oh, and I'm glad I'm filling your head with questions (lol). Cimee, thank you! I must say that your second interpretation of Kayley's nightmare is pretty much spot on. I really enjoyed reading your ideas, and I appreciate that you gave me some of your thoughts. :D elemental13, your interpretation was spot on, and I admit I was a bit astounded someone nailed it so perfectly. I thank you for your beautiful review of Chapter 10 and your interpretation of Chapter Eleven. The reviews were fun to read, as always. And many special thanks to my mom for reading my chapters for errors! :D

Nightmare Interpretation: Nightmares can be interpreted in a number of ways. Henceforth, I am not ruling anything out. After all, Kayley herself does not yet know the meaning behind her dream. However, I will reveal the general purpose for the nightmare. Like Cimee said, Kayley is struggling to understand Jim but feels that when she is on the verge of discovering something, he evades her and she is left in the dark. elemental13 completely nailed my intention for the nightmare. It is to show that for some reason(s) unbeknownst to her, Kayley is afraid of getting close to Jim, and thus he was her attacker. She's also so intrigued with him that she can't help but want to get to know him, hence her chasing him down after the attack. These two conflicting feelings have forced Kayley into an inner conflict with herself, and henceforth we arrive at the conclusion of why she had her nightmare. In addition, Kayley is beginning to explore her deeper feelings she has previously left unexplored. Thus, it is a frightening time, for she does not understand what is happening. For example, why is she becoming so interested with Jim's life? Why does she care? (Of course we all know, bahahaa.) Yet, even despite the things I have said, I am not ruling anything out, and you shouldn't either. It just may be that there is more to Kayley's dream than anyone knows. :)

Very Important! Please read: The next chapter, Chapter Thirteen, will boarder on the 16+ age rating for relations. I caution impressionable viewers. I may be making too big a deal out of this, but I just want to cover my bases. :)

Yes, I realize that I spelled "Fervour" in the British dialect. That was done purposely, as you'll soon come to see. In addition, I had the hardest time with this chapter! I've never written such long descriptions like this before, so I hope it's okay. Fun Fact: The Corrs (an Irish music group) sang Kayley's songs in Quest for Camelot. You'll find them mentioned in this chapter. =)

I apologize for my ridiculously long chapter introduction. I thank you for reading and tolerating my need to write page-long intros. Please enjoy!

Chapter Twelve

Part One: Unforeseen Fervour

Kayley could hardly get ready for school that morning. She was sleep deprived, for her nightmare had kept her awake the remainder of the night. She had run her nightmare over and over again in her mind, pondering its meaning. She could find none and didn't know what to make of it. She was frustrated, and she was tired. And most of all, it frightened her.

Kayley slowly climbed the steps of the high school and pushed open the door. She tiredly approached her locker and crammed her lunch and a book inside. She proceeded to close her locker and then she started to walk off. She had this nagging feeling, as if she was forgetting something, something important. "Hmm, I wish I knew what it was...let's see, I put my things in the locker, then...oh, right!" Luckily, she remembered before she had gotten too far and she quickly returned to secure Locker D23.

In her English class, the poor girl was so tired that she had to prop up her head with her hand. She stared straight ahead, unfocused on the topic being discussed. She didn't even really hear what the professor was saying. He sounded like a never ending torrent of words. Yet through her hazy fog she did happen to notice that displayed on the blackboard was an ancient poem that read: "'The most persistent hate is that which doth degenerate from love.' -Walter Map, De Nugis Curialum." Kayley smiled to herself and read it repeatedly, engraving the beautiful poem in her memory. But it didn't dawn on her that today was the study of romanticism in American literature. It was a shame, for romanticism was one of her favorite literature topics.

A dreadfully long hour later, the shrill bell screeched and Kayley was forced to wake from her drowsy reverie. She heaved on her backpack, not exactly anxiously awaiting what the rest of the day had in store.

O~o~O

Kayley stumbled out of her French class and made for her locker. She grabbed her lunch sack and spiritlessly shuffled toward her table. Jim was already there, gobbling down some strange sandwich concoction. She would have eyed it suspiciously, raising an eyebrow at the sight of it...if she had seen it. Instead, Kayley plunked down beside him. And stared at the table. Jim saw her exhausted expression and wondered what brought about such a change. Kayley, on the other hand, didn't even notice Jim was there.

Kayley listlessly unwrapped the paper around her sandwich and took a bite. Her eyes suddenly widened and she coughed down her bite of tuna. She then stood, leaving the table with her sandwich in hand, and deposited her tuna sandwich in the garbage. In her inability to focus that morning, Kayley had completely forgotten to ask one of the cafeteria workers to stow her tuna sandwich in the refrigerator. By the time she bit into it, it had turned rotten. A little more awake than before, she returned to her seat and began munching on her fuji apple.

Jim eyed the girl curiously. He had to know what had happened. Seeing her like this was just too funny. "What was wrong with the sandwich?" he asked.

Kayley paused mid-bite. Jim had spoken, and this time, more than just a vague "I dunno." For reasons unbeknownst to her, she blushed and looked away. "I, um…I forgot to put my tuna in the icebox," she faltered.

Jim screwed up his face. "Ewww…"

Still looking the other way, she put her hair behind her ear. "Yeah, I…I know, right?" she laughed. Her laughter dying, she asked meekly, "Could you open my rootbeer, please?" She held the can out before him. Jim took it, snapped the tab, and then nudged her in the shoulder with the can, signaling he had opened it. She turned ever so slightly and snatched her can, offering a quick nod in return. He nodded back and offered the slightest of smiles. Feeling awkward, she completely turned her back to him. And huddled up, she ate the rest of her lunch staring at the corner of the wall.

O~o~O

The day dragged on. At the end of the day, as Kayley was leaving the school, head down, she accidentally bumped into the back of somebody. "Ooops!" she chirped, looking up. "I'm sor…" The student turned. Much to her dismay, it was Jim, who wore a puzzled expression on his face. She stared up with an equally surprised look in her eyes. ". . . ry," Kayley trailed off, her gaze lingering half a second too long. Swiftly averting her eyes, she once again placed her hair behind her ear and scuttled off in humiliation.

In the solitude of her room, Kayley could have shaken herself. Flopping down on her bed she asked in despair, "What is wrong with you, Kayley?" before drifting off into a much needed sleep.

As Jim pushed himself toward Sarah's Café, he couldn't help but think over Kayley's strange behavior she had demonstrated that day. He hadn't seen her snooping around as she had the day before, which meant she had taken their little confrontation seriously. That was a positive. But something still wasn't right. She was usually brimming with self-confidence and pride. Now she was unsure of herself. And exhausted. And unfocused. And just about everything else she's not. In fact, she almost seemed…shy. Delicate. Fragile. It couldn't be explained. Something had happened to Kayley, that was agiven. He wondered what Friday would bring.

Saturday passed, Kayley being rather standoffish that day. Truth behold, she was trying to thoroughly, critically analyze herself and see what was causing her odd changes in behavior. Yet she was left just as clueless as before.

Sunday morning, Kayley picked up a book and desperately attempted to comprehend what she was reading. She again skimmed through a page of a biography on Eleanor of Aquitaine. "Oh yes, her son Young Henry was married to Princess Marguerite of France, daughter of King Louis VII, Eleanor's ex-husband. How terribly awkward!" Kayley then began the next page but found her mind uncomfortably flashing back to her nightmare. It still troubled her, and each day it bothered her more, albeit in a much different way than it had to begin with. Her initial, former fear was of the terrifying dream itself. Now she feared not so much the dream but the reason behind it, for she was now certain that it did, in fact, mean something.

She shook her head defiantly. She was not about to let her fears get the best of her. "Focus, Kayley. You can do this." Kayley began the page once more, reading of how Queen Eleanor, after having borne yet another child to her dearest King Henry, whom she was utterly in love with, was growing to resent his domineering attitude and betrayals. "Poor woman. She was swept away with meaningless ideals and dreams. I don't think she or King Henry really understood true love."

She began to read on, but again her mind relentlessly flashed to her dream, Jim's blurry face appearing before her. She sighed angrily. "What does it mean?" she cried in exasperation. She pouted and, tossing her book aside, decided to focus on the meaning of her dream. It involved Jim, but why? He was after her, a strange and mysterious assailant. Did that mean she was letting him get the best of her? Then there was the issue of chasing him down as he tried to escape. Perhaps that meant she was intrigued by the mystique, she realized. Or…him? She smiled at the absurd thought. Then her eyes grew wide. "No," she mouthed in shock.

And then she knew. "Well what do you know," she whispered, leaning back against the frame of her bed, biting her bottom lip and breaking into a shy smile.

Chapter Twelve

Part Two: Stupid Cupid

Kayley fixed her hair into an attractive ponytail and stared at her reflection in the mirror. She pursed her lips, knowing something was off, but not yet knowing what exactly that something was. Then a light bulb went off in Kayley's head. "Aha!" she thought in triumph. She began rummaging through her drawer for an eye utensil.

"Kayley, what's taking so long?" her mother called impatiently. "We need to leave!"

"Coming Mum," Kayley called back, applying the last of her mascara.

Rushing out of her room, Kayley heaved on her backpack. "Ready!" she exclaimed in a sing-song voice.

Julianna jingled the keys in her hand before looking over. "All right, then, let's…" Julianna studied her daughter with inquisitive eyes.

"What?" Kayley asked, catching the glance.

"Are you wearing mascara?"

Kayley shrugged. "Yeah."

"You never…" Julianna trailed off, realizing what was done was done and that Kayley wouldn't give her a reasonable answer no matter how hard she pressed; Kayley was already being vague enough as it was. "Let's depart on our departure, shall we?"

O~o~O

Kayley jumped out of the car and ran up the stairs of the high school. Upon entering, she espied Jim at the lockers. Slowing her pace, Kayley casually approached hers and fiddled with her locker.

Jim was suddenly overwhelmed with the scent of flowers. He sniffed the air, trying to find the source of the pleasant scent. He turned to Kayley, who was busy manipulating a textbook into her locker. He arched an eyebrow. He hadn't smelled anything until she had come over. Conspicuously leaning closer toward Kayley, the scent became stronger. Kayley was wearing flowery perfume? Interesting. But not strange. Jim shrugged it off and went back to focusing on his locker combination.

As Jim concentrated on that, Kayley succeeded in fitting her things into her locker and began to spin her combination as well. They finished at the same time, Kayley immediately making a beeline for the English classroom, shooting a small glance at Jim over her shoulder in the process.

Jim stood there a moment, a dumfounded expression on his face. What was that girl doing? He pondered the meaning of her glance as he followed.

After class had finished, they each went their own way, and, as always, met once more at lunch. A bit self-conscious, Kayley refused to look over at Jim. Jim sat at the table, unbothered. Kayley soon broke his peace of mind, however. As he snapped her tab, she offered her sweetest smile. And that's when Jim noticed. Mascara? Gee, Kayley sure was stepping out of her element that day: Perfume and mascara. He quickly turned back to his lunch, trying to forget her eyes.

O~o~O~o~O

Jim sat atop his roof, tossing pebbles into the murky stream below. Using the chimney for support, he stared out thoughtfully at the apartments.

Something was nagging at him, making him feel a sudden sense of happiness—and fear. But he had no idea what it was making him feel that way; he just felt the way he did, and that's all he knew.

Normally Mrs. Hawkins would have been at the restaurant, but Julianna was doing so well handling the customers that Sarah was allowed to spend the first half of the day doing things around the house, a rare luxury. But it was approaching evening and she knew Julianna would not be able to handle the evening crowd by herself.

Sarah exited the house and heard the plunking of something being thrown into water. She looked at the stream and saw a pebble being sent on its way to the murky depths. Her gaze flew upward. "Jim," she called up to him.

"What?" he grunted.

"I'm going now."

"'Kay," he answered, barely looking over the edge of the roof at his mother. He tossed another pebble into the stream.

Mrs. Hawkins crossed her arms and shot her boy a critical look. "You know, if you're so bored, Jim, why don't you hang out with some of your friends?"

Jim snorted. "What friends?"

Sarah pursed her lips. "You know, your buddies at the skate park."

Jim's eyes roved to the pebbles in his hands. "They're not my buddies."

Mrs. Hawkins placed her hands on her hips. "You know, Jim, you should go give Julianna's daughter, Kayley, a visit. I hear she's been awfully lonely."

"Mom," he warned guardedly, an edge in his voice.

"It's just an idea. Show her the city. Give her the proper welcome to this country. Or…you can just sit there and mope as you're doing now."

"Mom, I'm not going to see Kayley," he said firmly.

Sarah threw her hands in the air. "Fine, have it your way." She shook her head and hopped into her compact car and drove away.

Watching the car puttering down the road, Jim thought about his mother's suggestion. "A day with Kayley? No thank you." As he continued to watch the little car disappear into the distance, he smiled in spite of himself. He could just imagine. Kayley would be all standoffish and he'd be all mopey. He'd show her the skate park and she'd cringe in disgust. Then he frowned. That was the problem. Kayley wouldn't like anything he liked. She wouldn't—couldn't understand him. She was too different, too…gentle, innocent.

He gazed up at the sky, recalling his latest encounters with Kayley. She had seemed so shy and bashful. She had a natural beauty about her. "And not just within…"

Jim sat bolt upright. "What the…?" Jim's face twitched. What did he just think? He didn't just acknowledge her beauty had he? He hadn't…he had. And he couldn't deny it, much to his great disliking. He tried to convince himself it was just natural for him to notice that; all guys do. It didn't mean he liked her or anything. Did it? "Are you crazy!" The more he thought about it, the more he believed he was. He pulled at his hair. He had to stop this madness. "Okay, let's think of all her annoying points. She's moody. Too talkative. Clumsy. A stalker," he ticked off in his brain. "Anything else?" He tried to come up with another reason, but instead he kept seeing Kayley's smile she had exhibited when he had landed atop Zach in their scuffle. There was something more to that smile than he had at first realized. It was one more of less of adoration, not of thanks. And then there was the smile she had offered at lunch that day, the scent of her hair, and her gorgeous eyes…

He felt heat in his face, an obvious sign he was blushing. He scrunched up his face. "Oh…hell!" he yelled, flinging his handful of pebbles into the stream below.

By Tuesday, Kayley was much more controlled and self-possessed, albeit displaying that new shyness about her. She was constantly averting her eyes and seemed very self-conscious in everything she did.

Jim avoided looking at her whenever possible, as she did likewise with him, resulting in an awkward situation at the lunch table. He opened her can and slid it to her. She was so twisted in her seat, staring the other way, that she did not notice. After several moments of nothing, Jim decided she needed to be alerted. "Hey, uh, soda…" Kayley jumped and spun around in her seat.

"Huh?" She looked down at the table. She broke into nervous laughter. "Haha! Uhhh…" she laughed as she picked up the can before quickly twisting back around toward the wall.

Jim's face was filled with perplexion at her strange behavior. "Okay…that was weird." Then he smiled in satisfaction as an idea occurred to him. "Another thing to add to the list of weird Kayleyness!"

That night, a restless Kayley tossed and turned in her bed, unable to sleep. She was well aware of her growing feelings toward Jim. The problem was she didn't want to accept them, despite the fact she seemingly was more and more with each passing day. "He's just a silly boy, Kayley! He's not your type a'tall. He likes skateboarding and most likely punk/emo music. And he dresses so queerly. I'm much different. Heaven knows I don't think I'm better, not one bit, that's not the problem here. It's just…we come from two different worlds. You'll never understand each other. Henceforth, Kayley Evans, you shall move on with your life and get over this trifle!"

To calm herself, Kayley began humming some of The Corrs' tunes. All too soon her tired mind drifted to The Corrs' "Breathless".

"Aargh!" Kayley wailed, pulling her comforter over her head.

O~o~O

Wednesday rolled around, and Kayley felt shyer than ever, and she exhibited it. She was blushing…in fact, there hardly was a moment that day when she wasn't. When she saw Jim at the locker, she practically turned beet red and she fumbled with her books, nearly dropping one.

"Whoa there," he said, reaching for it. Kayley caught it first and when she looked up, she flinched.

"Got it," she replied in embarrassment. In her haste to get away and be humiliated in privacy, she practically threw her book into the locker, and it began to slip out, resulting in her diving for it once again.

"Are you sure?" he asked, furrowing his eyebrows.

She stuffed her book in and slammed her locker shut, then began fiddling with the combination. "Mmmmmmm….!" she squeaked before scooting away in a rush.

Jim stared after her, a grin spreading across his face. Catching himself, he frowned, and slowly made for the English classroom. During the lunch period he sneaked several glances at Kayley. He was enjoying her company immensely. She was so quite, so shy. He thought she'd stare at the wall, but this time she did not. Instead, she kept her eyes glued to the table. She was forcing herself to remain calm, to accept her predicament, to come to terms with herself. Yet she was eager to finish her lunch, and more swiftly than ever before she was finished and excusing herself from his presence. Jim found himself wishing she would have stayed.

O~o~O

Thursday morning Kayley awoke with butterflies in her stomach. She had drawn a conclusion, and there was no denying it: She was completely and utterly infatuated with Jim. Now today she'd have to be there with a boy who didn't have the faintest of her feelings. "Heavens," she thought aloud, "the only feeling he's likely to have ever felt is the thrill brought about by riding a stupid skateboard. If he gets word, he'll just think me a silly girl." She stared at her wall for a moment, looking right through her Beatles poster. "There's only one thing to do. I'll have to keep my feelings to myself." Hiding her feelings would be difficult. She shuddered at the thought of sitting next to him day after day and never accomplishing anything more than having him open her soda cans.

Sighing heavily, Kayley dragged herself out of bed and prepared for the day much the same way has she had the day before. Despite her skepticism, she got ready with flair. "Better to try and fail than to never try at all."

Her mother called impatiently, as she had done the day prior, and Kayley emerged from her room humming to the tune of "Breathless".

"Ready Andrea?" Julianna asked, referring to the lead vocalist of The Corrs.

"Absolutely."

At the school…

Kayley strode toward her locker with dignity. She was cool and in control. Jim was all ready there, and when Kayley approached, he looked over from the corner of his eye. Kayley was absent-mindedly humming to herself. It sounded like "Paparazzi". Jim refocused his attention on his combination. "Interesting twist. Quiet Girl likes Lady Gaga."

It was Kayley's turn to quickly eye Jim, who was unusually absorbed with his locker's dial. She mentally sighed before walking away.

Lunch started out just as disappointing. Jim refused to look over at all, as usual. And Kayley was too shy to say anything to even try to capture his attention. Kayley wanted to smack herself on the forehead. "He's not paying any attention to me! Failure!" she thought, distraught and dismayed.

Kayley slouched in her seat, then straightened. She was not going to be weak in this. Forcing herself to accept reality, she reached for her soda can. If this would be her only joy, so be it. She passed the can to Jim, who silently took it from her and snapped the tab. Kayley held her hand out, waiting. As he handed it back, their hands accidentally brushed against each other's. Kayley, shocked, let her hand linger. Electricity surged through them. Finally gathering her bearings, she tightened her grip on the can. As she began to pull her hand away, his fingers slowly slid off hers, and he retracted his arm.

Kayley turned away and slightly trembled. "What…what was that? And…and…whoa…"

Jim swallowed hard. He didn't mean to leave his fingers there! He didn't mean to bump her hand in the first place! But…there was something to that, he felt it. Yet the thing that scared him the most was that he actually liked it.

As Kayley left the table, hand still tingling, she glanced back over her shoulder, and Jim caught it. Blushing fuchsia, Kayley turned forward, grinning ear to ear.

The school day over, Kayley collected her things and began her way out. Leaning up against the wall was Jim. He was staring at his shoes. The hallway was so crowded that Kayley didn't see him. Jim caught sight of her in his peripheral vision, though, and watched her as she left the school. He wasn't certain of his feelings, but he was certain of one thing: Kayley Evans was the most beautiful, interesting girl he had ever met.

Friday morning, Kayley awoke feeling exhilarated. She loved feeling this way. She was becoming a woman possessed. Jim was the only thing on her mind. And, from the soda can incident the day before, she wondered if Jim could possibly feel the slightest bit of something for her. Maybe, just maybe, she had been wrong about Jim. For once she hoped she was.

Jim rolled toward the school, all the while recalling the events of the day before. Especially the thing with the passing of the soda can. Jim winced. Had he been too obvious by letting his hand touch hers for so long? Was Kayley on to him? If she was, how would she react? Would she accept? No, of course not. She was so…sophisticated compared to him, an adrenaline junkie who spent his days reveling in a skate park. He grimaced. He'd need to end his interest in her now, before it got out of hand. He was totally gonna have to play it cool from here on out. And by cool, he intended to be freezing, a real iceberg.

His plan was immediately put into action as he met Kayley at the lockers. She smiled ever so slightly, but he ignored it, jerking open his locker and cramming his things inside. Then he slammed it shut, quickly adjusted the dial, and hurried into the classroom.

In the hallway, Kayley eyed the English classroom with curious eyes. "What's eating him?" Then Kayley grinned. A challenge! She ran to catch up.

Jim plunked down at his desk. When Kayley entered and shot him a questioning glance, he glared at her. Now that she was not expecting. "Oh-kay…" she mouthed, taking her seat.

At lunch, Jim completely avoided any contact with Kayley whatsoever. When he opened her can, he slid it back to her over the tabletop. She had to put out her hand to keep it from flying over the edge of the table. She curved an eyebrow and eyed him stupidly. But he never looked over or spoke a single word.

Jim sure was being distant. Somehow, his continuous ignorance of her made Kayley try for his attention even harder and more so than before. Not getting anywhere with her can of fruit punch, which he almost sent plunging to its death, she smirked wickedly with Plan B. She pulled her long auburn ponytail over her right shoulder and began running her fingers through it, brushing it out. Then she tossed it back over her shoulder. Out of the corner of her eye she studied his response. Nothing. "Dang!" Irritated, she swung her eyes to the left and saw a few curious boys quickly averting their eyes. She scoffed. It worked, but not on her intended target.

As she thought through the problem, she did not notice Jim clinching his teeth. He saw what she had done. He had smelled her hair, the beautiful scent of it. He felt some sort of temptation…as if it was baiting him. Clinching his teeth was all he could do to keep from showing his vulnerability.

Kayley thought quickly, and then resorted to inconspicuously pushing her backpack off the back of her chair. It landed with a thud. "Ooops!" She shot a glance at Jim. He wasn't paying attention. She picked it up and placed it back on the chair. "Silly me," she said, flashing a smile. Still nothing. Jim was being so infuriating! Now she'd have to put into effect Plan C. "Jim," she said sweetly as she took her seat, "I just want to say thank you for opening my sodas for me…" He refused to look over. "Despite what we've gone through, when things were very awkward between us, you've still done this for me and…" She was talking sincerely now, her voice coming more softly. "I've never given you the proper thank-you. So thank you, Jim."

Jim was unsure of what he should do. He did not want to hurt her feelings, but he didn't want to respond either. He needed to break his feelings for Kayley, and he needed to do it now. His jaw twitched, and Kayley took that as a good sign. His ignorance of her was melting. She wanted to reach for his hand. She began to lean forward. "Jim…"

That's when Monique approached. "Hey Kayley! I was wondering if you wanted to finish lunch with me, Viola, and Violet. I think I finally talked them into liking you!"

Kayley was ready to scream. "Impeccable timing! Unbelievable!" She bit on her lower lip and bowed her head. She was silent for a moment as she weighed her options. If she agreed, she wouldn't be near Jim. On the other hand, her plan was now shattered. And if she left, maybe he would miss her company. Hopefully. It was her last remaining move.

"Sure! I'd love to join you," she answered, shooting Jim a you-missed-your-chance look, which to her great dismay he ignored.

"Great!"

Kayley gathered up her things and followed Monique.

Jim watched Kayley as she marched over to the other table. Setting down her things, she peered over her shoulder at Jim. He hoped he had averted his eyes quickly enough.

Apparently he had, for Kayley's face filled with the mixed expressions of failure and frustration.

Her absence allowed him time to think over what she had said before she was so rudely interrupted. She had thanked him. She was so sincere. It was as if all past incidents were forgiven in her book. And then she was about to say something else, but she was cut off. He wondered what it was.

School came to an end all too soon. Jim leaned against the wall, right foot planted firmly against it. He held his Algebra II book before him, pretending to skim the pages. From this position he stole discreet glances of Kayley. She had left him hanging, and he found his interest in her piqued more than ever. So much for being an iceberg.

As Kayley left the school, she made one more hopeful glance at Jim, who conveniently held his head low, face aimed down at the pages of his book. Bowing her head, she slowly walked off. Jim had succeeded in being an iceberg, one that could sink the Titanic a hundred times over.

As Jim watched Kayley depart, he smiled to himself. She was something special. And he couldn't help but regret how he had treated her.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: PLEASE READ

The upcoming chapters will be very lengthy, much longer than this one. Therefore, they will take a great while to post. I really appreciate all my readers, and I want you to know that. I've noticed that I have readers who do not have fanfiction accounts and henceforth they cannot put the story on update alert. Because of that, I am open to e-mail updates. Any of you may contact me and I will be sure to keep you updated as I work on the chapters. I will not leave you hanging! I'm also very talkative, so if you just want to talk, I'm open to that as well. If you decide to e-mail me, please put your reviewer name and "Update Alert" in the subject of the e-mail. For example, the subject would look like this: "Rosalie—Requested Update Alert on Chapter Thirteen". I want to be sure of what I'm opening, haha. Anyway, my account is through Yahoo, and stefied7 is my address (the fanfiction uploader won't allow me to put my complete address in because the system sees it as a link, I guess). Au revoir! I hope to talk with you soon. =)