Kat shifted slightly in in her seat, the leathery texture of the booth squeaking with every movement. Her cheeks were dusted a light pink from embarrassment, and the instinct to cross one leg over the other was barely held in check. Her eyes drifted down to the gaudy yellow raincoat she wore, the hem brushing just past her knee when she sat. Looking back up her eye's met with Jane's, and the mirth she found sparkling in her green depths caused Kat to scowl. Jane was also wearing a horrendously yellow raincoat, but since she was standing it ended at the middle of her calves. Outside it was raining, and despite having a hood, Jane had let the water soak her hair, the air making it frizz slightly. This was just a precaution so that she wouldn't be recognized so easily when they had decided to go into town, and so far, it was working. Though she was still causing more than a few head to turn, it wasn't because they knew her identity.

Kat watched as Jane ordered them both strawberry banana milkshakes and the cashier, a young teenaged boy, tripped over his words at Jane's brilliant smile. He gave her his own smile, braces and all, and Kat couldn't help but feel envious at the attention. Her mind was quickly changed when she spotted a man at another table giving her an odd look. His eyes roamed over her bare legs with curiosity, and when their eyes met, Kat's stomach dropped at the saucy grin that came over him. Mentally preparing an angry speech to yell at Jane with later, Kat wondered how the hell she'd been talked into this idea.

At that moment, Jane walked over to their table. She sat down and handed Kat her milkshake.

"What's the matter Kat?" she asked innocently, taking the straw and drinking greedily.

"What's the matter?" Kat screeched, then lowered her voice to a harsh whisper. "I'm sitting in a freezing diner, completely soaked, and wearing nothing but a freaking rain coat!"

Jane grinned mischievously, reaching over and tapping the buttons on Kat's coat.

"Oh what are you worried about? It's not like your showing off the goods."

Kat glared, noting that Jane was unashamedly flaunting her own cleavage by having unbuttoned the top two buttons.

"Do you really want people to know we're naked?" Kat grumbled, causing Jane to chuckle.

"Does it matter? Nobody knows who I am. Besides, I've always wanted to do this with a friend."

The last part was quieter, and Kat found her anger diminishing. That's right, Jane had grown up with almost no friend's at all thanks to her mother. Today was Friday, exactly a week after her background was revealed, and through those days Jane had finally let them all in on a few key personal facts of her life. But there was one, the most recent in fact, that Kat was extremely curious about. A personal fact that just about everyone in the household was itching to know…

"Hey, um, Jane?" Kat began, fiddling with her napkin.

"Yeah?" Jane asked expectantly.

Kat licked her lips, deciding to take the direct approach.

"What do you think of…Stinkie?"

Jane's brow furrowed.

"Casper's uncle?"

At Kat's nod, Jane seemed to consider the question.

"How so?"

"Well…um. You see, Casper said he's, well, attracted to you and…I was just wondering what you thought of him."

Jane's eyebrows flew up, truly surprised at Kat's statement. Stinkie was…attracted to her?

Well now that I think about it…Jane mused, not very sure what to say.

"Hmm…" she began while pursing her lips. "I don't really know. I mean he's nice enough, and we actually talk more than you think."

"Really? When do you guys talk?" Kat asked curiously, having never heard about this.

"Well Casper's been cooking a lot lately, and we mostly talk in the kitchen over some cake or something."

Kat's mouth opened silently in confusion, something Jane didn't pick up on. Something didn't fit right here. Casper hadn't been cooking at all this past week, he'd been right at Kat's side while they worked on-

Something clicked in Kat's mind and she gasped, drawing Jane's attention. When questioned, Kat just looked up with a smile.

"Jane, Casper isn't the one who's been baking all this time."

"What? But he said-"

"Think Jane, have you actually seen Casper make anything?"

"Well…no, but-"

"Then who else is always with Casper in the kitchen?"

Kat stared into her eyes a bit longer, waiting for realization to hit. After awhile, Jane finally got the idea.

"No way," she breathed incredulously.

"Yeah!" Kat said excitedly. "You know what this means?"

Jane shrugged, thinking back to the cupcake left in front if her door so long ago.

"That means Stinkie really does have a crush on you!"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Let's not get ahead of ourselves now!"

"Oh come on Jane! Your in denial!"

"What? Seriously, just because Stinkie baked a few things for me doesn't mean he…likes me like that."

Kat gave Jane a look that made her want to sink further into her rain coat. They talked a bit more on the subject before leaving the diner. Jane had continued to deny the possibility of Stinkie's attraction, but the more she pondered it, the more she began to see the truth. Kat had insisted on paying more attention to him whenever he was around, and Jane promised to do just that. But not just to figure out Stinkie's feelings, but her own as well.

XxXxXxXxX

It was after dinner when Jane found herself sprawled lax on her bed, waiting for Fatso to return with a movie of his choice. They'd taken to watching at least one movie she starred in every night, whether the role be minor or major. She had just closed her eyes when there was a knock at the door, and Jane wondered who it could be. Fatso would just have come right on in, so who…?

"Hiya," Stinkie said shyly when Jane opened the door.

"Hey," Jane replied with a bewildered smile. "What's up?"

"Fatso said dat you two's were watch'n a movie and invited me and Stretch ta join ya's."

Jane couldn't help but giggle at the way he spoke, finding his accent adorable yet charming. It was then that Kat's words rang through her mind, and Jane put on a casual façade as she invited him in. Stinkie floated towards the middle of the room, torn between sitting on the bed or just awkwardly hovering. Jane decided for him when she suddenly grabbed his hand and dragged him with her.

"You know," she began with a flip of her hair. "you and your brothers act so differently when you're separate."

Stinkie creased his ghostly brow at the statement.

"Well even doe we're brodas dat don't mean we ain't separate people," he said matter factly. After a moment, Stinkie realized he'd taken a defensive tone and immediately felt embarrassed. But Jane hadn't taken offense.

"Yeah I know. It's just you guys always act so, well, mean whenever you act as the trio.

Stinkie could only shrug.

"I guess it's cuz we acted like dat in life. Old habits die hard."

Jane chuckled, and Stinkie found himself smiling along. Then a question came to him.

"Say, what was with dat raincoat earlier?"

The question had been nagging him ever since Jane and Kat had gotten home after going into town. He had just been passing through when the girls came running in the front doors, faces flushed with exertion and eyes twinkling with mirth. They had not noticed him and began conversing, talking about having "almost got caught" and "I think the waiter knew". Their giggles, something that should have irked him to no end, strangely made him feel lighter, and his eyes followed Jane's bubbly form as she practically skipped up stairs. Kat had fallen behind, and when Casper came up to help her out of her coat, she squealed in terror and ran to catch up with Jane. Stinkie was curious as to what they'd been up to.

Jane was also curious about something, but nothing so trivial as impish whims. Lately, she had found herself wondering about Stinkie. She didn't know much about him. He wasn't as simple as his brothers (that's not to say they weren't complex, but I digress), and his wishy-washy attitude that had more mood swings than a bipolar teenager going through puberty completely baffled her. It hadn't really occurred to her until now that there was possibly something more to their odd friendship, and with a sudden burst of boldness, Jane decided to test the invisible lines of their still confusing relationship.

Her smile took on a devilish curl, and Stinkie's eyes widened when she leaned closer. Their faces were but inches apart, and he fought the urge to lean back. Now was not the time to be a pussy…

"Can you keep a secret?" she purred, trying to sound seductive. She really wanted to get a reaction out of him.

Stinkie's mouth went dry at her tone, and the heat of her breath made his ectoplasm tingle.

"Uh-huh," he replied dumbly.

Jane's lips were right beside where his ear would have been, and Stinkie couldn't see the slight flutter of her eyelashes when their cheeks brushed. But he did feel the shiver as his cold met her heat, and before he knew it his eyes were closed, shuddering right along with her at the strange, yet exotic feeling.

"You sure?"

Stinkie swallowed and nodded as her voice sent electricity through him.

"Yeah…"

Then Jane leaned back, her cheeks flushed with embarrassment. She'd chickened out. At the last moment she couldn't handle the atmosphere and felt the desperate need to put space between them. Stinkie blinked, shaking his head slightly to cure his dazed state. What had that been all about?

"Ya gonna tell me?" he asked anxiously. Jane looked away, biting her lip and smiling.

"We uh, went around town…with just the rain coats."

"Jus da raincoats?" Stinkie asked, his mind kind of slow due to the lingering affects of Jane's close proximity.

"You know…naked…"

The statement hit Stinkie like a ton of bricks, his entire ghostly form turning a bright red, then changing to purple, and then back to red again. Jane watched in awe at the display, unable to help herself when she began laughing.

"H-Hey! Dat ain't funny!" he exclaimed, face twisting in anger though the only thing he felt was embarrassment.

"Yes it is!" Jane shot back with uncontrollable giggles, holding her stomach as it began to ache.

Stinkie growled, making himself solid and tackling her. Jane landed on her back, still laughing as his hands grasped her wrists and pinned them to the bed.

"Don't laugh at me!" he tried to shout, but a giggle of his own bubbled up.

"Can't help it!" she gasped, throwing her head further back into the comforter covering the bed.

That's when it finally hit him.

Stinkie was pinning her down.

He was on top of her.

They were in her bed.

His eyes widened at the revelation, a sudden feel of electricity building within him. His amber eyes slid down from her face, studying the smooth, and slightly tanned column of her throat. They traveled farther to her exposed collar bone, her laughter causing the visible cleavage to heave in an almost hypnotizing way. He squinted with interest as he spotted a barely visible freckle just below her jaw line. He leaned closer, his buck teeth cannibalizing his bottom lip. He needed to feel it. His lips on her skin. He needed-

"Stinkie?"

Jane's breathless voice stopped him, and he was almost unable to meet her eyes his head was so close to her throat. She stared down at him in shock, holding her breath in anticipation.

Shit! she cursed herself. What's he doing? I knew I shouldn't of teased him!

Oh shit! Stinkie cursed as well. What da hell am I doin?

"Stinkie what-?"

"Jane I-!"

"What da hell is goin on here?"

Jane's head snapped up to meet Stretch's eyes, and Stinkie whipped around to look over his shoulder. He didn't even have enough sense to get off of her.

"U-Uh, um I- we, uh, we weren't-"

"Save it," Stretch said, so calmly in fact that it rendered Stinkie speechless.

Jane gently pushed at Stinkie, making him stutter and float away to the opposite end of the bed. He was too embarrassed to even look at her, so she took the opportunity to glance at Stretch. He held here gaze, and there was something in his eyes that kept her from looking away. He seemed angry, but…

"Hey guys! Movie time!" came Fatso's jolly voice as he floated in.

"'Bout time!" Stretch griped, floating over to the bed and plopping himself against the head board.

"What movie is it?" Jane asked, using her acting skills to make it seem like nothing at all had just happened.

Fatso grinned, waving the case in her face after putting the movie in. Jane grasped the case and read the title, but soon after her smile dropped, and she felt heat flood her cheeks.

"Fatso you can't be serious!" she exclaimed, smacking her forehead and trying to hide in her palms.

"What is it?" Stinkie questioned quietly, daring a peek at her.

Fatso eyed his brother curiously before brushing the strangeness off. He then floated to the bed and sat next to Stretch, grinning all the while.

"You'll see."

XxXxXxXxX

Jane sat on the floor at the foot of her bed, arms crossed in agitation and face as red as a tomato. Stretch and Fatso were laughing their asses off on the bed, and Stinkie was gaping at the TV next to her, a blush dusting his cheeks and flustered smile pulling at his lips.

"It's not that funny you know," she muttered with a huff, her only reply being more laughter.

"Hot damn!" Stretch whooped. "Didn't know ya swung dat way!"

"I don't!" Jane cried, trying to fight back a smile. "We were acting! It was part of the script!"

The trio continued to laugh, Stinkie too, as they all watched the gag reel during the end credits. Jane had starred in the film when she was sixteen, the plot circling around a young high schooler coming to terms with being gay. It wasn't the common angsty movie that would normally be made out of such a touchy subject, but was in fact a comedy. The trio had all laughed at the jokes and huffed at the bullying, but were silenced when the scenes suddenly got steamy. At the end, they all cheered as Jane's character 'got the girl', and made fun by asking if she and the other actress 'got together' afterwards. The truth was, Stacy Fisher, the other actress, actually became Jane's best friend after the film. She explained how the movie was a sort of joke between them, and that they were as straight as arrows, but would sometimes tease the males who worked onset with their act. Now the trio sat through the end credits, cackling at the bloopers, most of them consisting of the steamy moments between Jane and Stacy. Stinkie snorted beside her, and Jane was surprised to see how intensely he was staring at the screen. What a pig!

"You guys are assholes," she grumbled, standing up to leave the room.

"Aw come on doll face!" Stretch snickered, following her out into the hallway.

Jane stormed down the hall. Once she reached the stairs she spun around, determined to give him a piece of her mind when she halted. The expression on his face displayed nothing of his earlier attitude, but rendered her completely speechless.

"Meet me in da piano room," he demanded simply.

And then he was gone.

XxXxXxXxX

Jane sat nervously at the edge of her seat, listening quietly as Stretch played a slow melody. She didn't know what it was, but she was too jittery to care. What did he want to talk about? Was he mad? What did she do? Well, excluding the fact that she almost seduced his brother…

Jane startled as the piano came to a halt, and she looked expectantly towards the ghost. He didn't turn, nor did he even twitch. The only thing she could see moving was his jaw as he spoke.

"What went down earlier?"

Jane swallowed, contemplating on lying. Then she decided against it, sitting back to sink farther into what little comfort the chair had to offer.

"I…I um, wanted to see if…"

"If?" he snarled, slowly looking over his shoulder at her.

"If…well, what Stinkie thought of me."

Stretch fully turned at that, his face slack with bewilderment. Jane didn't know if that was good or bad.

"What did ya do to 'im?"

His tone was protective, as if she had just openly confessed to violating and raping him. What the hell?

"Not much!" she spoke quickly, becoming more and more intimidated by his violet glare. "I just leaned in to tell him about what me and Kat did today! Then I laughed at his reaction, h-he got mad, and then he tackled me! We started laughing together and then he-" she stopped, her hands moving in front of her as if trying to grasp the right words.

Stretch's gaze continued, his jaw moving restlessly as he seemed to mull the information over.

"And he…moved in?" Stretched asked finally, a small hint of amusement breaking the ice in the pit of Jane's stomach.

"…yeah…"

Jane rubbed her arm distractedly, still unsure how Stretch was going to react. However, she most certainly did not expect him to suddenly laugh! She watched, shocked, as ghostly tears sprang from his eyes as he nearly tipped from his seat, obnoxious guffaws bouncing within the enclosed space.

"'Bout time!" he exclaimed, calming down enough to speak.

"Wha-"

"I ain't mad dat he like's ya," Stretch explained, referring to his earlier attitude. "I jus-"

Jane waited, nodding for him to finish. But Stretch was not willing. There was no way he was going to tell a…a fleshie that his brother's interest in her had felt like he was losing the last legitimate thread to his family. He had always thought that, if Stinkie had met a girl, he himself would finally be utterly, and totally alone. J.T had found love, Fatso too. Hell! Casper wasn't even alive and he found Kat! Throughout his afterlife (and actual life for that matter), Stretch had been the one clinging to his brother. Though Stinkie had come to him first, the younger brother had been strong enough to strike out on his own. Even with the fact that no girl would come near him. Stinkie hadn't needed women. Or really, he hadn't found the one to be needed. But now…with Jane being so kind…

Stretch was torn.

Either he defaulted to being nasty and put down his brother for liking Jane…or…

"He really does like you's," he finally said, earning a chuckle from Jane.

"I'd have to be an idiot not to see that," she replied, and Stretch finally saw what he needed. Jane was thinking of him. Of Stinkie. And there was a happiness within her eyes that glowed as she looked to the floor, a bashful smile stretching across her face that threatened to become permanent. Jane genuinely liked Stinkie. Maybe not in that way…not yet. But there was still something. Potential. A kind Stretch had no right to snuff. Stinkie deserved happiness outside his family. And it was high time Stretch let go.

"So what do you think of 'im?"

Jane seemed startled by the question. She had expected it, but it still surprised her.

"I like him…" she began. "But…not like that."

And somewhere, who knows where, readers of all sorts stared at their computers with glee, all thinking the exact same thing.

Yet.

A/N: I'm back baby! And just in time for the holidays! Merry Christmas Everyone!