Aaand more on the same day! I have another two chapters written, and then I am into uncharted territory, as in I have no idea whatsoever what I'll have my characters do next. Meanwhile, it seems like someone has problems in the love chapter of their life, and doesn't handle failure well.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Please enjoy and review!

Tron POV

The User was acting weird of late, I thought during a particularly boring literature class. Since she had taught some respect to that cheerleader she was quite elusive, always on her phone and more often than not she was distracted and airy. I glanced at her fingers moving quickly on the phone keyboard and the smile that lit her face and I mentally shrugged; she was a teenager after all, and I doubted that even Beck would have been much different if the Coup didn't take place.

I winced as I remembered Beck. The kid was one of the bravest, most reckless and kindhearted Programs I had ever met. His death was one of the hardest things for me to remember, since I had been the one to end him while under Clu's repurposing. Suffice to say, Beck was one of the most frequent visitors of my nightmares, only beaten by the Coup and Yori's demise.

I glanced down at the sketch that graced the page under the few notes I took before I got too bored and began drawing. It was Anon trying to get Quorra to stay in one place instead of running into Users know what trouble. The Monitor was an almost exact copy of Flynn and one of the best I ever trained. However, he always got the 'nasty stuff you don't want to get Tron to do', as he once complained to Flynn after the User assigned him to keep an eye on Quorra. One cycle, right after he rezzed in the system, he came dragging his feet to where Flynn and I stood overlooking Tron city, looking exhausted and annoyed.

"I get that you're the senior System Monitor, Tron," he ranted, "but why me? And why Quorra of all Programs? That ISO is going to get me derezzed one day! She's the most curious and most prone to get in trouble of them all! Not to mention the pranks..."

Flynn snickered, shooting me a glance as I shrugged. I knew the ISO well and she gave me a hard time keeping her out of trouble before Anon came to the Grid, so I knew all too well why the Program was complaining.

"What did she do this time, man?"

"She redecorated both mine and Clu's apartments," Anon deadpanned, "and she made them pink! And she even left a note saying 'I hope you like my redecorating skills! Love, Q.'"

"Did she lock the code?"

"Yes," the junior Monitor grumbled, "Clu hasn't seen it yet, but when he does... I wouldn't want to be on the receiving end of what he'll tell her."

A gruesome shout made us all jump and we saw Clu stomping furiously towards us really pissed, holding a hot pink data pad in his hands.

"Well now he saw it," Flynn said dryly as his Admin reached us, looking like he'll pop any second.

"OOOOH, THAT ISO," he snarled, "If I get my hands on her..."

"Hey, man," Flynn warned, "don't mess with my Zen thing."

"It's not you who I'm going to mess with," Clu growled, "but that damn ISO! She's a pest, Flynn, she should be locked away! Last time the gridbug prank and now... this!"

Flynn put a hand on the angry Admin's shoulder as I caught a movement with the corner of my eye and smiled. Clu would have a hard time catching Quorra.

"Come on," Flynn said, "let's find Quorra and she'll make everything the way it was..."

After Flynn and his Programs went just far enough I looked up at the ledge on which said ISO stood, grinning silently as the User tried to calm Clu down and shook my head. I guess some things never changed.

The bell ringing announced the end of the last class, pulling me out of my reverie, and to my surprise Emily didn't bolt out of the chair like she usually did. Actually, the User seemed to be embarrassed as she picked up her stuff slowly.

"Is there a problem if..." she started, fidgeting nervously, "um... I have to see someone after class, do you mind heading home alone?"

"It's fine, I guess," I answered, "who takes the car?"

"You do," she said.

"Okay, see you home, take care."

"Bye," Emily chirped, bolting out of the classroom with a huge smile painted on her lips.

Well that was weird.

Later that afternoon I finally accepted to compete against Mike in a video game marathon, seeing as he had begged me to play since I got to the User world. Unfortunately for him he had no idea that I had been the undefeated champion in the Gaming Grid for a really long time even before the Coup when he picked a car racing game so he was in for a nasty surprise.

"Ha," I snapped, waving my controller, "you lose again. Any last words, User?"

The said User elbowed me and I smacked his head with the controller before turning to the game again and winning the race with Mike's car far behind me.

"I can't believe it," he scoffed, "it's like you work with the game."

"You should remember where I come from," I reasoned, "want another chance to get your rear end handed to you?"

"Watch it, Program, this time I might win," Mike warned.

"If you win, I swear I'm drinking all those beer things in your fridge in five minutes," I snickered. "But if you lose, you get to clean up for me for the next two weeks."

"There's a lot of beer," he noticed, "Can you do it?"

I rolled my eyes, barking a short laugh.

"We had something similar to your alcohol in the Grid," I explained, "when you have too much of it you get over energized. It's basically the same thing with getting drunk."

Oh, Users, that party at Zuse's club. Flynn dragged me, Anon and Clu to it under the pretext of 'I hate to see you two stressed, man, at least Anon's having fun trying to get the ISO out of trouble'. Logically Clu didn't drink at first, but Quorra decided it was time for another prank and spiked mine and Anon's drinks heavily, making us both over energize and act like silly idiots all night long. I couldn't remember half of the party, but the next day we discovered that the one who couldn't hold his liquor was Clu, who was sick for an entire milicycle after Quorra managed to slip him spiked drinks too.

"Well," I grinned mischievously, "deal or no deal?"

"I'm in," the User retorted, "I want to see you drunk."

"Wouldn't you love to see that," I growled playfully, resetting the race.

Five minutes later Mike lost again and I clapped his back.

"Go get those beers," I beamed, "and get me one too."

"Here, I got them," another voice said, and we turned to see Emily in the doorway, grinning at us and holding a six-pack in her hand.

"Boys will always be boys," she said, sitting on the armrest and handing us each a bottle, "I didn't know you drink, Tron."

"I'm not always acting like a humorless System Monitor," I retorted, sipping the beer, "I can have fun too."

"That I know," Em replied, "but it's funny seeing you act like a User and beating Mike at video games."

"How was your day?"

"Yeah," Mike added, "where were you?"

The User turned a bright shade of red, averting her sapphire gaze.

"I was at... um, school," she mumbled, "I had to do some extra work for Physics class."

"You never do the extras, Em," Mike said, "Who did you hang out with?"

"Come again?!"

Mike did not relent even when Emily shot him a murder glare, her face a blazing scarlet color.

"Come on, it's obvious," he snickered, "who's the lucky guy?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Emily declared, getting up and storming out of the room.

Mike chuckled and I shot him a questioning look.

"What was all that about?"

"She doesn't usually go on dates," he explained, "but when she does she's more secretive about it than a CIA agent. Didn't you notice her texting like crazy lately?"

"Yes, I did," I answered, "but I had no idea who she talked with."

"I guess we'll find out soon enough."

"She won't tell us if that's what you mean."

"Oh, I know," Mike said dismissively, "but I know her passcode."

He pointed to Em's phone which she forgot on the table and I laughed, picking up the device and handing it to Mike. He messed with it for a brief moment, opening the message inbox and reading the latest texts before giving it to me.

"Who's Liam," I asked, reading the call ID.

"He's in your year in high school, and he was Em's boyfriend in freshman year. He was also with that cheerleader Em beat up, but I think he broke up with her after she tried to snog the hell out of you after the show."

"They have a date tonight," I remarked, showing Mike the message.

"Oooh, this is blackmail material," he chucked as he scrolled down," look, he even calls her 'baby'. Screenshot time!"

He managed to send the images to his phone before Emily appeared out of nowhere, snatching her phone out of Mike's hand.

"YOU WERE READING MY TEXTS?!," she shrieked, "Those are private!"

"You were so cute," he cooed, "he even calls you 'baby'! Way to go, Em!"

I stifled a laugh, turning it in a cough as the User glared at me and her friend.

"You are both so...UGH!," she snapped, stomping her foot on the floor before bolting upstairs.

I heard the door of her room slam shut and Mike shot me a meaningful look before we both erupted in loud peals of laughter.

Two weeks later I was in the shop, helping Mike fix a motorcycle he was working on for some time. Emily still avoided the subject of her new boyfriend like crazy, giving Mike the occasion to make fun of her every time she snuck out to meet with Liam and make what he called 'goo-goo eyes and cuddle like puppies'. She was out on a date tonight, since she said something about Liam taking her to an expensive restaurant and a movie.

My phone rang and I picked up after cleaning the engine oil on my hands.

"Come pick me up," Emily growled, sounding really pissed.

I was a bit confused; it usually took a lot of coaxing to make her cut a date short.

"Wasn't Liam supposed to take you home?"

"Oh, for God's sake," she snapped, "just come already, I'm at the mall cinema."

She hung up, and Mike raised an eyebrow.

"What did she want?," he asked from beside the motorbike.

"She wants me to go pick her up," I answered, "and I could tell that she was pissed about something."

I looked at my grease stained t-shirt and shrugged, heading upstairs to change.

"I won't be long," I shouted, grabbing the keys to the motorcycle Mike gave me and towing out to the street.

It was a short ride to the mall and Emily was already waiting for me in the parking lot.

"Just don't ask," she snarled, getting on behind me and wrapping her arms around my chest for support as I got out of the parking lot.

I stopped a couple of streets from the warehouse and she got off, dropping on the sidewalk.

"That hypocritical piece of scrap," she spat before I got to ask her what happened, "he was still chatting with Jane all this time!"

"How did you find out," I asked, sitting beside her.

"He got a call while we were having dinner," she explained, "but he ignored it. When I asked who it was he said it was a friend of his, but I saw him text during the movies and I could clearly see it was her."

Emily raised her hands with an exasperated sigh before dropping them, glaring at the starry sky.

"He swore that he didn't talk to her anymore, but all the time he was doing it behind my back," she ranted, "That dumb bimbo was the reason we first broke up, since she had a crush on him, and now this?!

The User shivered and I could see goosebumps forming on her bare hands, so I took off my jacket and draped it over her shoulders.

"It's okay, you didn't know," I told her, "but it doesn't make it easier for you."

"I know," she said, tears glistening in her eyes, "but why me, Tron, why me? Am I such a nasty person nobody wants to get close to me?"

"No you're not," I replied, "why do you say that?"

"Ever since I got to high school nobody seems to like me," she hissed, "everyone is avoiding me just because I'm not the kind to go cheerleading and dating the popular guys and I prefer to stick to my computers."

"There's nothing wrong with that," I said, "Why do you let them make you think there's something off with being smart?"

"Because it's hard being the computer geek with no friends," she howled, "I hate them so much..."

Em's words trailed into a sob and I put a hand over her shoulders, pulling her close and letting her get it all out. Her tears wet my shirt and she gripped it hard as she wept.

"Am I doing something wrong?," she hiccuped, "Maybe it's all my fault, maybe I'm the weirdo they say I am, and that's why all of this is happening to me..."

I pulled her away for a second, forcing her to meet my gaze.

"Emily Grant, you're one of the best people I ever met since I was created," I started slowly, "be it here or on the Grid. You're brave and noble and kind and you shouldn't let anyone tell you otherwise. Do you think any of those pathetic pricks could have done a fraction of what you did? You saved me, stood your ground even when everything seemed hopeless, and you're brave enough to stand up for the people you care for."

"Yes, but..."

"No buts," I cut her off, "you're a wonderful person and you shouldn't be afraid to show it."

"If I am what you say I am," she whimpered, tears streaming on her cheeks, "then why doesn't anybody like me?"

"Maybe they're just idiots who don't deserve you," I deadpanned, making her give a weak chuckle, "that boy included."

"Maybe you're right," she admitted, "but it doesn't change the way they see me as a weirdo."

"You're not weird, you're just different," I corrected, "and there's nothing wrong with that."

"What do you know about being different from the others?"

"I'm a computer program who got repurposed by a maniac and ended up killing hundreds," I deadpanned, "I can't get more different than that."

Emily said nothing to that, putting her head on my shoulder as I still held her.

"Your nightmares have subsided a bit," she whispered.

"Yeah, but they're still bad," I sighed.

"I hear you wake up in the middle of the night," she said softly, guessing my unease, "but I know that you don't want to talk about it."

"Maybe I will finally put Rinzler to good use," I growled, "When I get my hands on that boyfriend of yours he'll regret the day he was born into this world."

"Ex-boyfriend," she mumbled, "and I seriously consider giving you a hand to do it."

"Get in line," I chuckled, "Mike might want his shot at it as well."

The User gave a short laugh, burying her face against my collarbone with a heartbreaking sigh.

"Thanks, Tron," she whispered, "you have no idea how much this means for me."

"That's what friends are for," I told her, setting my chin on her hair and humming softly.

"Is it the song you played at the auditions?," she whimpered.

"Mm-hmm," I purred, still humming.

"It's one of my favorites," Em said, "and you did a really good impression of Hetfield back then. Maybe we'll go see them when they concert here."

"I'd love to," I told her helping her up. "Ready to go home? I told Mike we won't be long."

"I don't know..."

"We'll order pizza and make one of your 'Lord of the rings' marathons," I tempted and Emily's head snapped up.

"The extended version and make that pizza an extra spicy Diavola and I'm in," she said with a lopsided smile.

"You've got it," I grinned.

"You do know how to cheer someone up," the User mused, getting on the motorcycle behind me.

"I owe you big time after what you did for me," I replied.

"That's what friends do for each other," she said mirroring what I told her earlier as I revved the engine.

Later that night when we finally went to sleep I heard her silently get out of bed and sneak to the basement, but I didn't follow; I knew she went to the Grid and that she'd get mad if I even asked what she did there, so I supposed it was fine as long as she didn't get killed by accident. It was a better idea than strangling someone to death in the User world, anyway.