A/N: So just to give a general timeline, this whole party takes place near the beginning of Kim's first year (sophomore year) at Seaford. This takes place prior to the Seaford events in "The Wasabi Chronicles." And to answer the guest reviewer's question, they're not technically dating, but there is planned romance of sorts. ;)

This oneshot below takes place the day before the party.

Kim liked Julie; truly, she did. She only wished the brunette came with an occasional mute button.

"Mr. Mason is so harsh," Julie complained. "I mean, he says that sulfur has a higher ionization energy than oxygen, when clearly it's below oxygen on the periodic table."

"Mmm-hmm," said Kim automatically. She preoccupied herself tidying up her locker – she didn't have the talent for looking interested.

"Right? It says it right there in the textbook, and he still wouldn't change my grade from a ninety-one to a ninety-three."

"Mmm-hmm."

"I think we should paste naked pics of your dad all over his walls."

"And now you're being ridiculous for two points," said Kim, dryly.

Julie cracked a smile. "Just seeing if you were paying attention."

Kim shook her head in mirth. "How can I not when you use 'naked' and 'dad' in the same sentence? By the way, I appreciate it if you never bring that up again."

Yes, Kim liked Julie Kratz, even if she was overwhelmingly chipper. Aside from wearing glasses and excelling academically, Julie didn't exactly fit the nerd prototype Kim had conjured up in her head. The girl was fearless, for one thing; she jumped readily into any situation and had no problem giving it back as good as she got. She was also tactless, which led to many awkward conversations to navigate around. Kim enjoyed her company, nonetheless, and particularly more so when she let Julie yap away.

"H-h-h-e-ey Julie," a nasally voice stammered.

Milton Krupnik was so quiet that they didn't hear him crept up. Then again, he had about the physique of a praying mantis, so Kim wasn't altogether surprised. She was amused to see that Milton accomplished something she had not: getting Julie to shut up. The brunette's cheeks began to flush, and she offered him a shy smile.

"So..um…what are you …doing…this Saturday?" asked Milton.

Kim turned away and bit her lip to keep her grin in check. Out of the corner of her eye, she could make out the sudden change in Julie's face and posture; her eyes wide and hopeful. Julie had gushed too frequently about her "manly" man; so the ensuing show would prove to be all the more entertaining for Kim.

"Nothing," Julie said, almost breathlessly. "How about you?"

The poor guy was quivering all over like a chiguagua. Coupled with the colorful argyle and bowtie, the effect was rather nauseating to watch. Milton took a few gulps, attempted some kind of sound. Thirty seconds later, the guy still hadn't uttered a word.

"He's throwing a party at the Bobby Wasabi Dojo."

Kim nearly dropped her book. Her pulse spiked considerably after hearing his voice, and she fought the habit to rub the back of her neck. She managed to steady her hand, and stuffed the textbook in her messenger bag before facing the newcomer. Kim was determined not to stare too long at the muscular bicep propped up against the locker on her right. The bicep, of course, belonged to one Jack Brewer, currently peering down at her with amused eyes.

"You guys should swing by," he said casually.

Kim felt irritated. The guy had no concept of personal space. Kim was pretty sure he was leaning down on purpose. The disparity in their heights afforded her a direct view of his collarbone peaking out above his shirt. The moles on his cheeks were the most inconveniently placed targets; her eyes were forcibly drawn to either to his brown eyes or to his full, mocking lips. Jack Brewer just radiated cockiness.

Jack tried to gauge Kim's reaction at the invitation. For the most part, she had a very good poker face. He would have passed it off as disinterest if not for the slight incline of her head and the subtle lift of her right brow he detected. Still, she was not as receptive as he had hoped.

"What kind of party is this exactly?" Kim asked slowly.

"The kind without balloon animals," he joked.

"Huh. So I guess the mall dojo must be a real hot spot in this town then."

"Is that a question?"

"It's not a compliment." She said it lightly though; mouth quirked at the corners.

Jack grinned. "Well, it's still the place to be tomorrow," said Jack. He pulled out a folded up flyer and handed it to her. "Food. Drinks. We got the best D.J. in the house too."

"So there's also dancing?"

"Goes without saying."

"Should we be expecting ninjas to show up to this too?"

"Nope. Just you."

He spoke the last word low; placed the right amount of huskiness in it. Kim refused to believe that her erratic heartbeat could result from just one syllable. She ignored the pounding in her ears, narrowed her eyes, and opened her mouth to retort at the audacity –

"And Julie," Jack added quickly.

He started walking backwards and shot her a final grin. "See you tomorrow then," he said flippantly. He saluted her off with two fingers.

"What kind of smug-ass invitation is that?!" she called out.

But Jack had already turned around. He continued to saunter off, talking with his buddies. Despite that, she could feel, rather than see his smirk.

Kim slammed her locker and zipped up her bag roughly.

"So that's a no?" Julie asked cheerfully.

Kim pressed the flyer into Julie's chest. "That's a definite hell no."

Julie followed after her friend, scanning over the flyer. "Is this Bobby supposed to have two O's in his name?"

A/N: Kim's personality is OOC in this AU version. Thanks once again to the guest reviewer and rosa24 for reviewing. Hope everyone enjoyed it, and reviews and thoughts are appreciated.

Soundtrack rec: Aint it Fun by Paramore