A/N: Sorry for the postponing of the story. Believe it or not I get busy. Since I always love pleasing the fans and I oh so love the reviews I figured you guys would understand. Anyways, enjoy! I hope you like it.

"Kimberly!"

She groaned, as she inserted her key into her red Porsche sedan. "Not now. Please…"

"Kimberly Hart, aren't you going to turn and greet your colleague and partner, and did I happen to mention your-"

"Deryck!" She turned around and embraced him. "What are you doing here?"

He gave her a charming smile to match his handsome looks. Licking his lips faintly, he raked his fingers through his dark flaxen comb-over. "Well, someone forgot to mention they got accepted for the Druid excavation in England."

She shrugged, shaking her head in unbelief. "I decided to take up teaching for a while. Besides you remember high school and all those monotone lectures given by the ancient supposed sage know-it-alls."

He laughed. "No, I kind of liked my history teacher."

She gave a rueful smile. "Well, excuse all of us who didn't happen to have a genius historian as an instructor. Anyways Deryck, I didn't take you for a same sex lo-"

"Kim! Come on, now. It's okay, just get it off your chest. If you want to reveal your feelings for a certain female authoritarian, just go ahead."

She punched him playfully. "Okay, okay. Deryck, now tell me why you're really here."

He stuck his hands in his pocket and leaned against her car. "Kim, you know why I'm here."

She looked at the ground. "Do I?"

He took his hands out and walked towards her, taking her hand. "I've missed you. Things haven't been the same without you around. I should have said it sooner, but I didn't actually think you would give up your career to… teach high school students."

She rolled her eyes pulling her hand away. "Deryck, I didn't give up my career. I still dig on weekends with Parkinson's crew here and I'm even dabbling a little bit into paleontology. I see it as opening up new avenues of opportunity. And to tell you the truth, I like being settled right now."

He nodded, seemingly in thought and expressionless. "So this has nothing to do with the famous and reputable paleontologist Dr. Tommy Oliver?"

Confusion placated her hostility and she quickly put aside how he might have come across her past relationship with Tommy. "No. This has something to do with me taking care of my younger brother and still being able to have some control in my career. How dare you come here and try and say otherwise?"

He sighed. "Look Kim, I didn't mean it like that. It's just that I adore-"

"Kimberly!" Tommy came running their way.

Oh brother! "Tommy?"

"Kim I need to-" Tommy noticed Deryck standing uncomfortably too close to her.

This is a train wreck. Speaking of awkward tension… "Oh, Deryck meet Dr. Thomas Oliver. Tommy meet Deryck Ashcroft."

The two just looked at each other as if staring each other down.

"Oh on second thought, Kim, I'll just leave you and… him to finish talking. I'll see you around," Tommy said drawing away literally and metaphysically.

Her eyes bugged for a minute. He's jealous. Aww… Looking back at Deryck and then again at Tommy being his ever manly self, she pat Deryck on his arm. "Finish this later? Thanks." With that she began running after Tommy.

"Uh, yeah… Whatever," he turned and walked off.

She grabbed his arm. "I can't believe it. You're jealous." She couldn't help but grin.

He yanked his arm away. "Kim, I am not jealous. You can talk to whoever you want."

"Okay," she said, stopping once they approached his black jeep, unable to stop smiling.

He opened his jeep door and threw his bag in the backseat. You idiot! Now she's going to think you don't care. You're just handing her over to that guy! Do you really want that, Tommy?

"So I guess this means that we are officially over."

He kept his back to her for a while before facing her. "Wait a minute. I thought you said you didn't want anything to do with me."

She nibbled on her bottom lip and leaned into him, tugging on his shirt. "Are you really that gullible? What we had… I thought it was impenetrable. But if you really think I'd give up so easy, maybe you should reconsider your explanation. I mean you should just leave things the way they are and move on if you truly feel that way." She pat his rock hard stomach, feeling her insides flip, before laughing it off and then walking away. "It looks like I'm keeping my La-Z-Boy set."

Gasping, she looked down at her stomach to see large, masculine hands holding her waist. He leaned in, "Think again, beautiful."

He knew he had her right then and there but pulled away. "If you think that Deryck can give you something better- but, who are we kidding? Kimberly, I still affect you in every possible way. You're not going to get over us."

She tilted her head, challenging him. "Yes, I can. In fact I have. I can have any guy I want Tommy and be happy. I don't even need anyone else to make me happy. I can do fine by myself."

"That's one lonely road," he commented, a hint of a skeptical grin mocking her.

"Look at you Tommy, you're doing just fine. I think it just may be for the best if wonderboy stayed alone. That way he'd have no one to feel sorry for when he left them to go off and save the world!" She sighed, she had let her emotions get the better part of her again. "Yeah, Tommy who are we kidding? Every time we do this- every time we try and pick up the pieces to this relationship, it always get ruined and someone always ends up hurt. I don't want to live like that anymore. So you know what, maybe Deryck will make me happy. After all you don't care who I talk to."

"Kim," he called out, watching her leave. "Damn it, Tommy."

Getting in her car, she turned the key in the ignition blurrily. I can't believe him! God, how can you give a person the best years of your life only to have them lie to you and pretend to not even care? She sped out of the school's faculty parking lot as another voice chimed in, Yeah, do as I say, not as I do. Kim, you're one hell of a hypocrite. He probably just feels guilty and feels he doesn't have a chance now that you threw his playing cards out. Kim, you know Tommy better than anyone else. You know how macho and arrogant and insecure the guy gets, even with his hero complex…

Groaning, she slammed on her brakes in the middle of the empty street. "And now he thinks I have a thing for Deryck." She groaned even louder, letting her head hit the steering wheel. "God, Kim how stupid can you get? You're never going to salvage anything with the man at the rate you're going."

Someone honked their horn behind her causing her to snap back to reality.

"Yeah…"

Pulling up in the driveway, she spotted Antonio's bike. She jumped out, not even bothering to take out the keys. "Antonio?"

She closed the front door, throwing her coat aside. "Antonio?" She glanced around for him as she climbed the stairs. "Antonio!" Approaching his room, she slowed her pace. "Antonio?"

Laughing softly, she released the air she had been holding. "Oh, Antonio," she whispered, sitting on the edge of his bed.

He lay sound asleep under the flannel sheets and Superman comforter.

Her tranquil state made a quick exit and she balled her fist and hit him in the arm. "I can't believe you!"

He jumped out of the covers in panic. "Wha- What?"

"Marc Antonius Hart how could you scare me like that! Do you know how scared I was! You have a cell phone for a reason, you know!"

He calmed down and stared blankly at his sister. "Wow, I didn't know you were mom." He climbed back into bed, pulling the covers snuggly over him.

"You missed two classes today and it's only the second day. Ant they said you were sick."

"Kim I'm fine, it was just a headache. Now can you leave."

Kim walked over to his desk nearby and sat in his chair. "Ant, be honest with me now. Have you been taking your medicine?" She could hear him growl softly, which made her more inquisitive.

He sat up and looked over at her. "How come every time I so much as cough you guys jump on my back?"

She grew concerned as fear began tearing at her. "We care about you Antonio. Now answer the question."

He leaned his head against the bedhead, his jaw set. "I'm not a little kid anymore. I haven't been seriously ill since fifth grade. I think I deserve a break."

"What! Antonio the only reason you haven't been sick is because of the treatments and the medication." She stood, her eyes burning with tears. "Antonius, you aren't even out of the ballpark with this. The pneumonia can come back stronger than last time."

He laughed half-heartedly. "Kim, maybe I might have actually cared five years ago, but I'm letting the best years of my life pass me by all because of some illness that may or may not come back."

She edged in on him, the anger and sadness visibly fusing into an emotional time bomb. "I can't so much as even fathom where you got that stupid idea from! Antonio you could die! I will not sit and watch you go through the same torture as I did when I was eighteen! They're pills for crying out loud! You only have to take one a day…" Her anger burned out as she pleaded with him to be reasonable through her silent stare and frowning forehead.

"Alright. I'll go back to taking the medication that will prevent me from being normal," he responded defeated.

"Being normal is highly overrated, that is if there's a such thing."

"Kim this is my last year of high school and the most I can do is Brain Bowl or Computer Club. The same things I've been doing since freshman year. I'm tired of living my life as a geek. I want to play sports."

She felt his frustration in heavy rolls of anxious vibrations.

"Kim, I want my glory days too. It's not fair that I have to watch every waking second of my life be wasted sitting on the sidelines. Just let me have that chance. You of all people should be able to understand."

She nodded sadly. "Ant, I do. It's just I'd rather have you alive and well and angst then to not have you at all. All of us do. Why do you think we look out for you so much? It's not that we don't care but without you we'd hardly be anything of a family. You complete us. I hope you'll learn to accept it. I know I have," with that she backed out of the room.

Breathing softly, he pulled the permission slip from under his pillow. "I'm sorry Kim but I just can't do that."

Morning

"Hey you!" A perky voice called from behind.

He turned and smiled somewhat dimly at his newly made friend. "Hey yourself." Keeping with the rest of the crowd, he moved on, unmoved by her charm.

"Well, someone's in a good mood. What's wrong? Yesterday you couldn't stop flirting, now you seem so…"

"Distant, nonchalant, how about petulant and crabby? Listen, Kira I don't need you checking up on me like I'm a baby. I already have an entourage taking care of that. You know what would be nice? A break. Yeah, a break from our friendship."

She stood there stunned as he walked away, melding with the rest of the student body. "What?"

He hurried down the hall before the first bell could ring, clumsily holding his things.

"Ah, there you are… I thought you'd never show," the pretty blonde from the day before said smoothly with a subtle undertone of flirtation.

"Yeah," he replied abruptly opening the door and switching on the light. "Sorry about that. I guess that doesn't make me the most dependable person on your list right now." Even though he could care less, he charmed her. After all good looks were only a part of the overall package.

"Actually, I pretty much figured you'd come late. That's why I took the liberty of getting you these." She handed him a bag with what seemed to be pastries. "They were freshly baked and hot twenty minutes ago. But I doubt that'll change their taste very much."

Tommy looked back at her from the pastries. "Thank you… I don't know what to say."

She smiled, pleased with his reaction. "Nothing. -Say nothing, just accept it as payback for saving me from my caffeine withdrawal."

The bell had rung, bringing them back to the reality of their jobs. "Well, that's my cue to leave."

She started to leave. "Wait!"

She stopped, turning to face him before his students had the chance to pour in in innumerous numbers.

"What's your name?"

She laughed in disbelief. "Are you telling me you forgot my name?"

"Sorry," he said trying to pull off his best puppy dog face.

"Aww, since you know how to hook a girl up with daily does of caffeine. I'll be easy on you. Ms. Terrill for now, you'll have to work your way up to a first name basis."

"Well, you know how to wound a guy's pride that's for sure."

She walked back, smiling ruefully. "Bye."

He waved, a feeling of liberty stirring in his gut. …Am I getting over Kimberly?

Kira always the tough outsider for the first time gave the impression of her defenses crashing. If a girl ever looked on the brink of tears at that moment it was her. Her mind swirled in weary cognitive dissonance as she fought long and hard to understand what went wrong. Why does this always happen to me? I really liked him. I didn't even care if he just wanted to be friends. I would have settled for just that. I wouldn't have even pressed for him to be my boyfriend or anything., she discarded to no particular being.

"Kira?"

"Oh no," she muttered to herself, closing her locker door.

"Are you okay?"

She flashed him a friendly smile and continued to walk onward to their history class. "Yeah," she lied. "What makes you ask that?"

"You just look… Sad."

She laughed in false amusement. "Me? Sad? No, but I feel tired though. I'm worried about you Trent, you're reading into me way wrong these days."

Kira took her seat in the midsection of the class and he went to his in the front on the other side of the room.

"Okay class, today we're going to go in depth with WWI. The key figures being Wilhem II, Franz Ferdinand, Gavrilo Princip…"

Kira opened up her notebook and poured her heart out onto the blank notebook paper, creating in it a new angst song. Nonetheless wasn't angst her style anyway?

3rd period

"Hey guys what's up with Kira? She seems gloomy," Trent whispered, trying to be as discreet as he could.

"Yeah, I know," Conner agreed.

"Earlier she was fine. I think it's the new kid again. I think one look at him, drives her crazy. It's like her PMSing on crack."

Conner and Ethan cracked up, causing their teacher to glare at them. Trent just looked out uncertain.

"You don't think she's still mad at me?"

"You? It's not like you two were going out or anything. I don't see why she would take out all her anger on the new guy if she was angry at you," Ethan said.

"Psch! She does it to me all the time," Conner countered.

They nodded reluctantly, at a loss to solve whatever problem that had arisen and pestered their girl friend.

Kira bore a hole through his head with her heated gaze. I can't believe him! What an asshole! And all that shit about people being layers. I had him pegged out all along.

"Anyone care to explain the dynamics of this diagram?" Dr. Oliver asked the class, holding the clicker for the PowerPoint presentation.

Antonio raised his hand, but Kira beat him to it.

"Kira."

"It shows the host-parasite relationship between a housefly and a parasitic wasp. The host being the housefly, it's population grows rather speedily, fluctuating between near 400 and 550. Once its population levels the parasite, being the parasitic fly follows closely in number in pattern of the host population."

He nodded, satisfied. "Very good."

She took his compliment in stride, biting on the end of her yellow-gold ballpoint pen.

Antonio grinned, looking back. "Nice answer."

It seemed she'd ignore him, before she gave a void sounding thanks.

Confusion plastered his pretty guy face, turning in his seat. "Okay…" The bell sounded for them to go to the next class. Getting up he followed her out. "Hey, Kira what's up?"

She swung around and glared at him. "What do you mean what's up? Don't you know? After all you're the one who needed a break."

"Oh… that. Kira, I'm sorry I said what I said. I didn't mean any of it."

Crowds of kids passed them noisily.

"Well, it sure sounded that way when you said it," she shot back, trying her best for sarcasm.

"Kira, I was just having an off morning. I didn't mean to take my anger out on you."

She nodded, feeling his reprieve. "Yeah, you shouldn't have. Because that was really unfair."

He looked down, realizing he wasn't going to get another chance.

"I have to get to class."

Watching her leave, he stuck his hands in his pockets and turned to go to class.

Lunch

Her class emptied when she came upon her rebel brother strolling in.

"Hey baby," she kidded.

He glared at her, looking serious. "Hey ma, can I borrow the car?"

She raised her brow in suspicion. "For what reason?"

"Look, can't I just borrow the car without being suspect for something stupid and irresponsible?"

She smiled. "Maybe, but everything you've done in the past involving cars was something stupid and irresponsible."

"Whatever. I want to go to McDonalds."

She handed him her keys. "What's wrong with your bike?"

"It doesn't have a backseat or tinted windows," he told her winking.

She glared at him and he held his hands up in defense.

"Hey I was just joking around. I have to put Driver's Ed. to use sometime, right?"

She shrugged, "Just bring me back an All-American and my car with no extra surprises."

He gave her a very reassuring smile before running out to escape getting jumped by his midget of a sister.

Nancy Macintyre related to her girls the sleazy details of every obscenity and piece of gossip that took place at Reefside High but today she was in for a surprise. Patti Jacobs nearly burst with giddiness in her excitement with being the first to tell the smut of the day.

"Like you guys won't believe what I like just overheard," Patti squealed, holding her freshly done French tipped nails in front of her face as if in shock.

"What Patti?" Eliza Romst asked, ever the credulous one.

"Like Ms. Hart, like called Antonio Myers-Hart her baby. It's like she didn't even care who heard. And he goes in her room everyday during lunch, that's the reason he's like always so late like getting here."

"Shut up you whore! Why would Ms. Hart be macking on Antonio? She's like thirty. I already see wrinkles forming. Antonio can't possibly be that retarded."

"Antonio's retarded? But he seemed pretty smart to me," Eliza asked.

Nancy rolled her eyes. "Eliza just shut up."

Cassidy leaned in, Devin following her.

Just then Antonio walked out of the school and passed them to the parking lot.

Nancy looked down at her Rolex and cussed. "Damn it, the bastard's fifteen fucking minutes late. He's been screwing Ms. Hart!"

Cassidy frowned impressed. "I'm surprised she even knows how to tell time."

Eliza laughed. "Screw's such a funny word."

Patti rolled her heavily pink eyeshadowed eyes. "Told ya so."

Cassidy gasped and ran back over to the table where Ethan, Conner, Kira, and Trent were sitting. "Like you guys will like totally not believe this!"

Trent laughed quietly. "What? Nancy Macintyre got a new arm ornament? What's his name?"

Conner hit him. "Hey, do not disrespect the Nancester. The girl's hot."

Ethan laughed. "Nancester? Wow, how long did it take for you to come up with that one?"

Conner glared at him in response.

"You gotta hand it to him though, she is pretty bangin'."

"Bangin'?"" Kira mouthed, rolling her eyes and covering her face in embarrasment while scribbling in her journal and adjusting her headphones so she could tune them out.

"No, Ms. Hart is screwing with Antonio," Devin said uninterested. "So what she picks on the guy. He's too smart for his own good anyway."

"No Devin," Cassidy said pushing him, her facial expression reading 'like, duh'. "It's perfectly obvious. What I hear is that Ms. Hart is screwing Antonio? See it's all about context."

Kira kept singing softly to herself whilst looking at them funnily.

"You can't possibly be serious? That's illegal. Why would you be feeding us garbage like this, Cassidy?" Trent accosted.

"What! Antonio with the hottest female teacher in the school! How?" Conner all but shouted.

She shrugged. "Well, apparently that's why he's always so late to lunch."

Ethan stared at her with his mouth hanging open. "He's my new idol."

Kira sat thanking herself that Trent didn't absorb himself in the same filth. At least I didn't pick someone who's so vulnerable to believe something as that. Antonio with Ms. Hart, please.

Trent nodded. "I can't believe it. But I can't blame him. What guy wouldn't want to get with Ms. Hart?"

He joined with the other guys, slapp

I spoke too soon. Kira got up and got her things. "You guys are impossible. It's so ludicrous I can't even repeat it. Antonio's a respectable guy. He would never do something like that, especially knowing it could cost a good, respectable teacher her job. Besides Ms. Hart would never agree to something like it even if Antonio did have an interest in her, which he doesn't?"

"Wow, you really believe in him," Trent stated slightly shocked. "You've only known him for about three days."

"Well, weren't you the one who told me I should give him a chance. I can't believe I'm friends with any of you. To actually believe that- Ugh, I can't even repeat it. And you Cassidy, you're the most talented journalist I know. The guys I can somewhat see their reasoning but to see that you'd eat up garbage like that makes me second guess my faith in all of your work. Bye."

Walking into the school she didn't really car if Marissa Andrews saw her or not, she was going to let Antonio know what everyone was saying so he could clear it up. First she was going to go to her locker and- Nevermind, he's right there.

Antonio strutted down the hallway, shuffling about Micky Dee's in hand. Opening the door to his sister's room, he tossed her the food.

She jumped up for joy and jumped him, nearly knocking him over. "Baby brought me fries and a cheeseburger and didn't forget! Yay!" She pulled herself from off of him. "Really Ant, I owe you one."

He laughed. "That's not the first time you've said that…" He bit into his Big Mac squinting his eyes at the direction of his sister's gaze. Turning he saw Kira staring wide eyed before turning traumatized. I can't believe I was so stupid.

Smiling at his sister, he jumped off the desk he was sitting on and jogged coolly out.

"Kira where are you going? If you wanted to talk to Kim go ahead."

Angry, she faced him. "So what? Are you two on a first name basis now?"

He looked at her in pure bafflement. "What?"

"You and Ms. Hart! The whole school practically knows Antonio! You could have tried to be a little more discreet about it all, you know!"

"Okay," he said, still not getting what she was talking about.

She looked at him exasperated. "And you're cool with this?"

He nodded. "Pretty much. I have no choice but to be."

She nodded, the dam of tears nearly breaking. She shrugged, holding her arms out, not knowing what to say or do. "Okay, as long as you're happy I am."

He nodded sympathetically. "Thanks for the gesture."

He walked back into the classroom where Kim was.

"She's cute. You like her, don't you?" Kim asked playfully.

"That was really weird." He intimated, frowning slightly as if it were a complex math problem.

"Why?" Kim queried with a mouth full, wiping her mouth with her napkin.

"I could have sworn she was on the brink of tears. But I don't know why? Man, Kim why'd you have to move us to the weirdest city on the map. I would have taken Angel Grove over this any day."

"Aww, already tired of your high school glory days?" She giggled.

He looked up at her, serious. "Not funny, Kim." Besides I'll be living them soon enough. He stuck his hands in his baggy pants, fingering the permission slip.