Disclaimer: Characters are owned and produced by The Disney Channel, That's So Productions, Brookwell-McNamara Entertainment, It's A Laugh Productions, Warren & Rinsler Productions, NBC Universal, Tailwind Productions and Shaftesbury Films. I am just borrowing them for these stories. Original characters are owned by the author of this story.

When Continents Collide

Chapter 7

Lunch Ladies

As morning dawned in New York City, Chelsea Daniels was sitting in the window of the apartment she shared with Raven to greet it. Raven wouldn't be up for another hour or so, therefore, Chelsea had a perfect opportunity to gather her thoughts for the day that lay ahead of her. She knew from Raven that Claire wanted to talk to her as much as she wanted to talk to Claire.

In thinking back on the encounters she had with Claire she realized something. She never had a meaningful conversation with Claire. She met Claire and briefly chatted with her before Claire went to study. She was gone by the time Claire had returned. She ran into Claire and Teri at Starbucks and chatted briefly before Raven's Thelma and Louise text message led to her early departure. Then, after a year and a half passed, there was the debacle at the restaurant the night before.

And that was it. Three encounters with Claire that were less than a half an hour combined. She was terrified of and angered by a woman that she had known for less time than it takes to watch a television sitcom. She only knew of Claire what Raven had told her and while she had no reason to believe Raven would lie to her about Claire, she still preferred to get to know her on her own.

Chelsea sat with her cup of coffee and reminisced about the evening before. Any doubts or fears about Raven leaving her had been cast aside. Even in the face of her near miss with Teri, she knew that her present and future was with Raven Lydia Baxter. Raven was so good to her and for her. No one in the world understood her the way Raven did. No one in the world was there for her like Raven was. And after finding out that Raven beat down the school bully to defend her honor, Raven's status as her knight in shining armor only solidified in her mind.

"Morning, baby." Chelsea heard a sexily sleepy, raspy voice behind her. She turned to greet her lover.

"Morning, sexy." Chelsea purred to Raven. "I'm not even gonna ask you if you enjoyed last night because your face says it all." Chelsea noticed the warm, satisfied smile on Raven's face.

"What time is it?" Raven asked.

"A little before eight." Chelsea answered.

"My history class is at ten." Raven remembered. "Wanna share a shower?"

"Yes… but I'll pass. You go ahead." Chelsea said. Raven playfully pouted, drawing a soft giggle out of Chelsea. "You think it's too early to call Claire?"

"You really mean to apologize to her, huh?"

"I feel so bad. Not just about last night, but for the last year and a half." Chelsea said. "Do you realize that last night was the most Claire and I have ever said to each other?"

Raven pondered Chelsea's question for a moment. "You know you're right. I didn't realize that. Some way to open up the dialogue, Chels." Raven deadpanned. Seconds later, the telephone rang. Chelsea, who was within arms reach of the phone, answered.

"Hello."

"Hi. Is this Chelsea?"

"Yes it is. May I ask who's calling?"

"Hi, Chelsea. It's Claire."

"I'm sorry. I didn't recognize your voice." Chelsea said. She looked at Raven and mouthed "Claire." Raven looked at Chelsea and motioned to the bathroom letting her know that she was going to take her shower and give her some privacy. Raven blew her a kiss, which Chelsea caught and placed lovingly on her lips.

"That's okay. We've never spoken on the phone before."

"True." Chelsea said with a chuckle. "So what can I do for you?"

"I wanted to talk about last night… well actually… apologize for last night, but I want to do it in person."

"That's funny. I was thinking the same thing over here. I wanted to apologize to you in person too."

"I was wondering if you had a break this afternoon for lunch. My treat."

"I have a two-hour break after my ethics class, but you don't have to treat me…"

"It's the least I can do and I'm not taking no for an answer."

Chelsea smiled. She actually admired Claire's spunk. "Well in that case, I accept. My class…"

"Is over at 12:15." Claire finished Chelsea's thought. "I'm not psychic or anything. Casey's in your class."

Chelsea chuckled at Claire's mention of her lack of psychic abilities. If only she knew that she dated a real psychic for six months. "Right. Casey. How is she?"

"Chelsea says, 'How are you?'" Chelsea heard Claire ask Casey, who was apparently in the room with her. Chelsea then heard a throaty knowing laugh in the background from Casey; the kind of throaty knowing laugh someone has after they've had a night to remember.

"Oh, that's gonna be a conversation starter in class!" Chelsea said, causing a surprise laugh from Claire that she couldn't suppress. This chick is funny! Claire thought to herself. "Well then, I'll see you at 12:15."

"Twelve-fifteen it is then." Claire said. "Would I be out of line if I asked you to tell Raven I said hi?"

"Not at all." Chelsea said. "I'll tell her."

"Thanks. See you after class. Bye."

"Bye." Chelsea hung up the phone and took a moment to reflect on the conversation she just had. Is it possible that I might actually end up liking her? She seems cool. Chelsea thought to herself before heading to the bedroom to lay out her clothes for the day.

The morning came and went like the wind. With Casey arriving seconds before the professor, Chelsea didn't have a chance to talk to her before class. As the professor dismissed class twenty minutes early, the two classmates had a chance to catch up on the evening's activities after the restaurant.

"So what was with that laugh I heard on the phone this morning?" Chelsea probed. Casey responded by laughing again in that same throaty knowing manner. "Now that I see the look in your eyes, I know exactly what that laugh was for. You go girl!"

"I don't know what you're talking about." Casey couldn't suppress the grin that was spreading over her face.

"Play innocent if you want to. I used to do it myself." Chelsea said with surety. "But see the smile on my face and the pep in my step this morning? That is courtesy of Raven Lydia Baxter. That woman flips my switch! And I will tell anybody that crosses my path!"

Casey laughed at the unexpected display of boldness from Chelsea. She decided that maybe this once; she would stick her toe in the water as well.

"Well…" Casey said sheepishly. "Maybe you weren't the only one to… get her switch flipped last night." Chelsea nodded and grinned.

"Atta girl, Casey!" Chelsea said. "Now I can leave you alone about it."

"Yeah, right." Casey deadpanned.

"Huh. You know me better than I thought!" Chelsea said, earning a laugh from Casey. "You mind if ask you a personal question?"

"No. Shoot."

"When did you develop an interest in the fairer sex?"

The young women sat down on a bench not far from the entrance to the quad near the law building.

"You're not gonna believe this but it actually started on a movie shoot in my high school." Casey started.

"They shot a movie in your high school? Ours too!" Chelsea said. "They shot this ridiculous B-horror flick called High School Zombies."

"You mean the one with Nikki Logan?" Casey asked incredulously. "Oh, god! My stepbrother Derek loves that movie! I cringe every time I see him watch it. That movie was terrible! They filmed that at your high school?"

"They sure did. Raven was even a technical consultant." Chelsea said without thinking.

"A technical consultant? About what?" Casey asked.

Oh shit! Chelsea thought. You can't tell her it was to coach Nikki on being a psychic. Think, Flo. Think! "On how to act like a normal high school student. You know those Hollywood types." Whew! Good job, Daniels! "So anyway…"

"Right. Fairer sex, movie shoot, my high school." Casey picked up where she left off. "My high school was one of the four high schools in Toronto they used to shoot Mean Girls."

"I love that movie!" Chelsea exclaimed.

"Well… I was hanging out one day watching them film and said something under my breath about one of the scenes they were doing being stupid. Well I didn't realize that I was standing near one of the girls in the movie and she overheard what I said."

"Oh boy!" Chelsea said.

"You know, right? But she leaned over to me and said that she agreed with me. Well we started up a conversation and after a while, she invited me to hang out with her in her trailer for a while. She said that she hadn't been around real people in a long time." Casey continued as Chelsea listened intently. "I still don't know how it happened but before I knew it, we were making out… right there in her trailer!" Chelsea gasped. "Nothing happened except kissing and fondling but… after that I began to question who and what I was. It didn't hurt that she was incredibly hot."

"You are killing me! Who was it?" Chelsea asked with wide-eyed anticipation.

"I have only told this story to two other people besides you; my best friend Emily and Claire, and I have yet to utter her name." Casey said in a hushed voice.

"You have no idea how good a secret-keeper I am!" Chelsea said, knowing how long she has kept Raven's most prized secret. "Please? Just a hint!"

Casey looked around to see if the coast was clear. "All right. I did the same thing for the two of them. I still won't tell you her name… but it rhymes with Kinzie Flowpan."

"Kinzie Flowpan?" Chelsea uttered in sheer confusion. She then tried sounding it out against her mental Rolodex of Hollywood starlets. "Kinzie Flowpan?" Then like a bolt of lightning, it hit her. "HOLY SHIT! You mean you made out with…"

"That is my brush with a celebrity." Casey said with an air of finality. Chelsea began laughing incredulously.

"Please let me tell Raven? Please? She would love to hear that story and I swear she would not repeat it to anybody." Chelsea pleaded.

"Okay. But only because you're cute when you beg." Casey said with a smile. She then spotted Claire coming across the quad. "Hey Chels, here comes your lunch date."

Claire walked over to them and greeted Casey with a peck on the cheek.

"Hey. How are y'all doin'?"Claire said to the two of them.

"Phenomenal." Casey said with a sly sexy smile. She then changed gears. "Did you know that they filmed High School Zombies at Chelsea and Raven's high school?"

"That crappy flick with Nikki Logan? I wouldn't use that DVD for a drink coaster!" Claire said. Both Chelsea and Casey laughed. "But it must've been cool having a movie crew at your school."

"It was." Chelsea said.

"So I take it that she told you the 'Kinzie Flowpan' story?" Claire said.

"My head is still spinning over that one!" Chelsea said.

"I know, right? I just kept playing it in my head, over and over and over…"

"I bet you did." Casey joked.

"And on that note…" Claire said with a hint of embarrassment. "You ready, Chelsea?"

"Yes. Lead the way." Chelsea said.

"I'll see you tonight?" Casey asked Claire.

"Eight o'clock… with bells on." Claire responded before giving Casey a quick peck on the lips. "Bye."

Casey watched as Claire and Chelsea walked toward the street. "I hope they behave themselves this time." She said to herself as they walked out of sight.

Claire and Chelsea engaged in banal chitchat on the 5-minute walk to the restaurant, not having time to delve into anything deeper. They arrived and were standing at the hostess stand waiting to be seated when the manager on duty recognized them and approached them.

"Ladies, I trust that this afternoon's meal will be less volatile than last night's." The manager said.

"It will… Mr. Davis." Claire said, reading the manager's gold-plated name badge.

"We apologize for last night. We came back to make amends. We come in peace." Chelsea said.

"Just make sure no one leaves in pieces." Mr. Davis shot back. Chelsea burst into laughter but quickly checked herself when she saw that he was not amused.

"We have a table for you. Right this way." The hostess said. She led them over to the same table they had the night before.

"You've got to be kidding me." Claire said, recognizing the irony of the moment.

"We were destined to get this table. Life is coming at us full circle." Chelsea said as they sat down. "So before I apologize, I need to know who I am apologizing to."

Claire shifted in her seat and sat up straight. "Okay. My name is Clarissa Cheyenne Bennet, I was born just outside of Odessa, Texas. I was adopted by the Bennet family when I was small. I have a 15-year old brother named Lyle and my mother has a show poodle named Mister Muggles."

"That's a cute name." Chelsea said. "So do you… know who your biological parents are?"

"Yeah. I met my mom right after graduation. She still lives in Texas. And I met my father about six months ago. He works here in New York."

"Do you get to see him often?" Chelsea asked.

"Every night when I watch the evening news. He's Nathan Petrelli."

"The guy who's running for Congress?"

"That's him."

"Wow! That must be exciting knowing your father is running for Congress."

"I keep a safe distance. Let's just say it's not good for an election campaign to have an illegitimate daughter running around. Especially in the city where you're running, so if you don't mind keeping my father's identity to yourself I'd appreciate it."

"Then why tell me?" Chelsea asked.

"I don't know. You look like someone that can keep a secret. Someone a person can trust. Unless you're a pod person or something." Claire said. Chelsea chuckled.

"No. Not a pod person. Although Rae and Eddie wondered about me sometimes." Chelsea replied.

The server came over, took drink orders and served warm bread.

"So what's your story?" Claire asked.

"Born and raised in San Francisco. My parents met in college in D.C. I'm an only child. This IS my natural hair color…" Chelsea recalled Claire's Clairol dig from the night before. Claire dropped her head and smiled in embarrassment. "And I had a dog named Sammy. He was 14 when he passed."

"Can I ask you a question?" Claire said.

"Sure."

"When did you know… that you were in love with Raven?" Claire had wanted to know the answer to that question for over a year.

"When she came home two years ago. I felt… different about her. It wasn't an overnight thing. It was very gradual over time. I didn't tell her then because I was unsure myself of what I was feeling. It really didn't hit me until I watched her walk to her gate at the airport, but when it hit me, it hit me hard."

"I told her to tell you about us before you came." Claire said. "Looking back on it, now I know why she didn't. She knew then that she was in love with you and that she was hoping you felt the same way."

"You have to know that I did feel bad about hurting you." Chelsea said with sincerity. "I didn't mean to hurt anybody."

"I know you didn't, even back then I knew." Claire said. "I had a feeling the second your text message went off in Starbucks that day that it was her." Chelsea simply blinked. "I couldn't really blame you. She draws you in with her aura. It's very powerful."

"It is." Chelsea replied then paused to pick at her roll. "I'm sorry I went off on you last night."

"I had it coming. I'm sorry I was such a bitch. I didn't have to come out of my mouth with the spring break thing. I should have left well enough alone."

"That still didn't give me any right to threaten you."

"I called you Pollyanna." Claire said.

"That was actually funny. So was 'The only things between us are air and opportunity'. That was classic." Chelsea said.

Claire laughed. "I got that off of some TV show. It sounded cool when I heard it."

"It was a good line." Chelsea said laughing. "But the 'can of Odessa, Texas whoop-ass'?"

"Too much Stone Cold Steve Austin I guess." Claire said with a laugh.

"So coming back with, 'If ya smellllllllll, what The Chels… is… cookin'!', would have been overboard?" Chelsea wondered aloud.

"Yeah. Funny… but overboard." Claire said.

"And to think I was scared of you." Chelsea said.

"Scared of me? Why?" Claire asked.

"I stole your girlfriend, moved into the place that you two shared, all the while barely saying two words to you… I was afraid when you reappeared that you were going to come re-claim what had been taken from you."

"I saw how devastated Raven was after your fight that first night in town. I knew then how much she loved you. And as painful as it was to do, I had to let her go, for her sake. I still love her and I always will. But you make her happier than I ever could. Even as a best friend, you cast one hell of a shadow. When she finally came to terms with her feelings for you, I didn't stand a chance. Understanding that eased the pain of losing her. It also helped me appreciate what I have now."

"Casey is a wonderful person. You are lucky to have her in your life." Chelsea said with a warm smile.

"I basically told Raven the same thing about you last night." Claire said with an equally warm smile.

The server came back to take the meal orders. Chelsea chose a Caesar salad with a lemonade while Claire opted for a Cobb salad and a Diet Coke. They continued their meal trading childhood tales of frolic and merriment. Chelsea filled in the blanks on some Raven stories from childhood that Raven had not gotten around to sharing with Claire. Although it was a year late and in the capacity of the friend not the lover, Claire finally got what she wanted from Chelsea – the final piece to Raven's puzzle.

When they finished their hour and twenty-minute long lunch, they apologized again to the manager and stepped out onto the city sidewalk.

"Well, I'm headed that way." Claire pointed away from campus. "I've got to go grocery shopping. I'm cooking dinner for Casey tonight. Maybe the four of us can give the dinner thing a try again sometime."

"I'd like that." Chelsea said. "I don't know after all this if we can ever be friends but…"

"I don't see why not." Claire interrupted. "Now that I have talked to you, I can truly say that I like you as a person and truly believe that you are the best for Raven. You make a person that I care for very happy and are a wonderful person in your own right. And I would like to call a person like that my friend."

"Friends it is then." Chelsea extended her hand in friendship. Claire looked at Chelsea in disdainful disbelief. Oh man! Why is she looking at me like that? What did I do now?

"You're kidding me right…" Claire said. "Raven's girlfriend gets a hug from me." Chelsea smiled. That was exactly what Chelsea said to Claire the first time they met when Claire extended her hand to Chelsea. They had indeed come full circle. Chelsea stepped forward and embraced Claire. It was an embrace of acceptance and friendship.

As they began to release their hug, Claire had a surprise for Chelsea as she suddenly captured Chelsea's lips in a premeditated five and a half second kiss. When Claire let go, Chelsea stood frozen in shock. After about ten seconds, the shock began to wear off and Chelsea spoke.

"What… was that for?" Chelsea said still reeling from the most unexpected smooch.

"I had to see firsthand if the reason Raven left me was truly worth it." Claire said.

"And your verdict?" Chelsea asked as she finished gathering herself.

"You're like L'Oreal…" Claire said with a smirk. "You're worth it. I'll see you around." Claire turned and headed off into the New York afternoon.

Chelsea shook her head as she watched Claire walk away. "Now I understand why it was so hard for Rae to leave her."

Chelsea walked back home, deciding to skip her afternoon classes. She opened the apartment door to find Raven sitting on the couch with her feet tucked underneath her, remote in hand watching TV.

"Hey sexy." Chelsea said as she closed and locked the door. She then pulled her shoes off and walked over toward the couch.

"Hey baby." Raven said softly. Chelsea leaned down as Raven lifted her head. They met halfway for a soft kiss. "How was lunch with Claire?" Raven asked as Chelsea sat down.

"Good. We apologized to each other and to the manager at the restaurant, we talked, we reminisced about our childhoods, we talked about you and Casey… by the way remind me to tell you about a hall-of-fame Casey hook-up story…"

"Okay." Raven said with a chuckle.

"And we came to an understanding about each other and called each other friends… and, oh yeah, she kissed me."

"She what?" Raven exclaimed.

"She kissed me." Chelsea said.

"Why?" Raven asked.

"She said she wanted to see if the reason you left her was worth it." Chelsea said.

"Well, did you make it worth her while?" Raven asked.

"Yeah. I taxed that ass like the government!" Chelsea joked.

"Oh you did? Kinda like I'm gonna do now?" Raven began tickling Chelsea, who exploded in laughter. After a few seconds, Raven stopped.

"What are you watching?" Chelsea asked, noticing a program on TV she had not seen before.

"Some program on the Earth and continents colliding." Raven answered. She then turned the volume on the TV up.

(TV narrator)

"When continents collide, the subduction zone or collision site is destroyed, mountains are produced and two continents are fused together. Continental collision is not an instantaneous event, like a car crash, but takes place over time…"

"That sounds like us, Rae." Chelsea said. "We are like the continents that were on a collision course. When we collided, the subduction zone; your relationship with Claire was destroyed, mountains of physical and psychological obstacles were formed that had to be overcome and finally the two continents, us, were fused together. And it took time, 15 years to be exact, for it to take place."

"Wow, Chels. That is deep." Raven said. "And to think, all that came from a woman that protected a potato shaped like Abraham Lincoln's head."

Chelsea laughed. "There is only one person, place or thing that I protect like that now. And believe me, she ain't shaped like a potato."

"What is she shaped like?" Raven said, her voice dropping into a seductive purr.

"Why don't I come over there and show you." Chelsea dropped her voice to match Raven's.

"Ain't nothin' between us but air and opportunity." Raven said with honey dripping from her voice, sliding down on the sofa. Chelsea seductively slid over to Raven's side and on top of her. "Make that nothing between us but opportunity."

Chelsea issued one more definitive statement before kissing the hazel-eyed love of her life. "Raven, nothing will ever come between us again."

THE END

I cannot believe this is the end of my seventh Chrave story. It feels like I just started yesterday. You know what they say… time flies when you're having fun and I am having a blast. I am not saying goodbye, cause I haven't put my pen down yet. Not by a long shot. But I am taking a break from Chrave, just for one story though.

I am going to start my first non-That's So Raven story. (INSERT SHAMELESS PLUG HERE). It's gonna be called "Requited" and it is going to be in the Suite Life of Zack and Cody fandom. It's is a London/Maddie femslash set in the not-to-terribly distant future. I think you'll like it. Now I just have to go write it! LOL!

Thank you from the bottom of my heart for sticking with me, but you have one more thing to do before you go… PLEASE REVIEW THIS CHAPTER. I will be back to Chrave as soon as I finish "Requited". After all, the last three words of "The L Word" were TO BE CONTINUED! Much love and I'll see you soon!