Description: It was amazing how quickly he was able to calm her down, almost like he knew her well enough to read into her rage.

AN: I'm so sorry for not updating for ages but a) I couldn't decide what to write about and b) I've been really busy with college :-(. This one is set during Season 3, the flashback being from Season 2 "Flight of the Snow Eagle." Thank you for your time and patience and I hope you enjoy this chapter.

Whenever you ask Jessica who knows her best, her answer would always be Toby. He always seemed to know how she was feeling about something, even before she did. No matter what she was thinking, he had her completely figured out.

This meant that it was easy for him to understand why she would get mad at certain things, or why she would cry whenever certain songs played on the radio. The only thing he doesn't quite understand is why she gets so flustered whenever he so much as looks at her or speaks to her directly. She knows he is determined to figure that part of her out, and he won't rest until he does. She doesn't know if it's wrong for her to hope he figures it out so she doesn't have to confess her biggest secret herself.

She remembers when she was under the effects of the Curse of the Elements. That time had been one of the worst in her life. She had hated seeing her friends tip-toeing around, afraid to do or say something that would trigger her extremely fragile temper.

Flashback

After Magmion and Xiron left on the back of Cerberion, Jessica found herself growing angry yet again. Her eyes glowed red and she growled slightly, glaring in no particular direction. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Nick and Toby flinch slightly and it made her feel awful.

They're afraid of me!, she realised. Her frustration, anger and hurt started building up until she finally let out a scream. "I hate this!" They both looked at her, then at each other. "Please just make it stop! I can't take it anymore!" She begged them, tears falling from her eyes and spilling onto the ground.

She closed her eyes, trying to calm herself, to no avail. Suddenly she felt a pair of arms wrap around her, causing her to struggle against them. "G - Get off me!" She pleaded, her voice cracking. "I don't want to hurt you."

Whoever was holding her merely continued to do so. She could feel them holding her close, a feeling of calm pushing against her rage. "It's okay, Jess. Just let it all out." She jumped in surprise when she heard Toby's voice, realising that he was the one holding her so tenderly. She felt so much warmth and care in his embrace that, within minutes, she stopped struggling and her anger was forgotten.

She opened her eyes and saw Toby's relieved smile, telling her that her anger seemed to have stopped for the time being.

He continued to hold her close, confusing her greatly. She had calmed down so there was no reason for him to still be holding her, right? She didn't know why he had started holding her in the first place- he had probably thought it would calm her down somehow, though he probably hadn't known it would actually work.

"Don't worry, Jess." He told her, an ever optimistic light in his eyes. "I promise we won't rest until we find that antidote. Until then, we'll just have to do our best to make sure you don't suffer too much."

End of Flashback

Her thoughts started wandering as she started to recall just how quickly he had been able to calm her down. Even after years of being friends with him, she still didn't quite understand why she had calmed in his presence.

"Something on your mind?" She turned around to see the very person she was thinking about standing with an amused look on his face, watching her.

"N-No." She denied quickly. "Why do you think that there's anything on my mind?" She hoped that he would believe her and drop the subject. Unfortunately, he knew her too well and saw straight through her.

He rolled his eyes slightly. "Come on, Jessica. I've known you for years so I know when something's bothering you." When he finished, he sat down beside her, a silent invitation for her to open up.

Letting out a sigh, she looked at him and said timidly, "Can I ask you something?"

"Yeah, sure," he agreed. "As long as I can ask you something as well."

She briefly wondered what it was that he could possibly want to ask her about. "Well, I was thinking...about when I was under the Curse of the Elements and you... How did you do it?"

"Do what?" He asked, remembering the event but not knowing exactly what she was asking him.

She moved her hands in exasperation. "One minute I was so angry, then the next you made me feel calm, almost in an instant."

"I can't explain it," he said, slowly beginning to piece together his memories of that day. Gently, he placed her hands on her shoulders, noticing immediately how she blushed and ducked her head. "I guess I just thought I could get through to you somehow, you know?"

"I guess..." She said, still not quite understanding and also being quite flustered with the contact between them.

He smiled at her reassuringly. "Anyway, I have to know this: why do you always get so flustered around me?"

Her eyes widened. "I don't!" She protested. Seeing his oh really? expression, she added, "What makes you think that?"

He deliberately put his arms around her, smirking slightly as she instantly leaned into him. "Oh, I don't know, Jess. Maybe because of that?"

Without realising it, they found themselves moving closer to one another. He looked her straight in the eyes and asked, "Do you really want to know how I calmed you down so quickly?"

She looked right back at him and nodded. Slowly his hands moved to her face, caressing her cheeks. Just as she was about to ask him what he was doing, he ducked his head and kissed her.

She inwardly gasped as she felt that same feeling she had felt that very day so long ago, except it felt infinitely stronger this time.

He continued to kiss her, smiling as he felt her begin to respond. He let his kiss say what he knew words would not be able to say. After all, how could he ever find the words to tell her...

Eventually they parted, staring at each other with identical expressions of confusion, elation and something else.

"You love me." She stated matter-of-factly. It wasn't a question since it was so obvious to her now. "That's how you were able to calm me down so quickly: that feeling I felt was love, wasn't it? You love me, Toby."

He took hold of her hand and held it gently within his own. "Yeah," he admitted, after a while. "I suppose I do."

"I love you too. Why do you think I always get so flustered whenever you get near me?" She confessed, as he held her close.

"Amazing, isn't it?" He said, looking her directly in the eyes. "How quickly our feelings changed, how we went from friendship to romance in the blink of an eye?"

She smiled back at him. "Amazing." She echoed softly. Touching his shoulder briefly, "Have I told you how amazing you actually are?"

"No," he replied. "But you're more amazing than I am, and don't you ever doubt for a second that I love you. Because I will always love you, no matter what happens, okay?"

"You took the words right out of my mouth." She informed him, pleased that his feelings for her were as strong as her own. "And I won't doubt your love as long as you don't doubt mine."

He kissed her once more, savouring the moment between them, before holding her and whispering, "Never."