Title: Cooperative Hooky
Word Count: 500
Summary: _carly_'s prompt was "Jeff or Annie has a weird/embarrassing/dorky hobby that the other finds out about." Not exactly happy with this one, but I hope you enjoy it all the same.

"'You have tickets?'" Annie said, sliding into the booth across from Jeff. "That's why you can't go to Pierce's party?"

"Yep," Jeff said, looking up from his lunch. "Avalanche-Red Wings. Besides, you're not going either, Miss 'Other Commitments.' Care to share?"

She glared at him. "See, Jeff, I know two things."

"Only two?"

She ignored him. "The first is the Avalanche's schedule." He raised an eyebrow at her. "What? I may not know football, but I love hockey. I've been an Avs fan since 1996 and my parents got me a Patrick Roy jersey to wear during the playoffs. Why do you think I'm not going? Once Troy and Abed leave, it's puck night."

"Okay, so you know their schedule," he said, crossing his arms.

"So I know that they're playing in Detroit tonight," she said, grinning. "Which means you're not going."

Jeff glared at her. "Fine. I'm not going to the game. But I do have tickets to… something" he said.

"That brings us to the second thing I know," Annie continued. "Which is the Downtown Theater's schedule."

Jeff's eye's widened. "Annie…"

She smirked. "You're missing the party to go to the ballet."

He sighed and pulled two tickets out of his jacket pocket, sliding them over the table so she could see. "Yes. I'm going the ballet."

"Hah! Knew it." She studied the tickets, frowning. "Why two? Taking a date?"

"No," he muttered. "I like having some space to my left."

"This is too rich," Annie said with a smirk.

"Annie, you cannot tell them," Jeff pleaded.

"And why not?"

"Because I'll tell them about your 'other commitment.'"

She chuckled. "Troy and Abed already know I'm a die-hard Avalanche fan. I don't really care if everyone else finds out."

Jeff leaned in. "Please. I'm begging you."

Annie studied him for a moment. "This is really important to you, isn't it?"

He let out a small chuckle. "I've been going since I was ten. They usually put on four or five shows a year, and if I can go, I go." He waited for her to interject, but she remained silent. "For those few hours," he continued, "I'm not… me. I'm not anyone. I just..." he paused. "You get lost in it, you know? In the elegance and the passion of it all. It… makes you forget your problems for a while."

She smiled and handed him the tickets. "Okay," she said. "I won't tell. But you owe me."

"Thank you," he said, taking them back.

"You wanna come?" He blurted out after a brief pause. "I mean, I have an extra ticket and all."

"I… I'd love to," she said, taken back by his offer. "But Jeff… it's Avs-Red Wings. They only play twice this year."

"I'm Tevo-ing it," he replied. She raised a questioning eyebrow. "What?" he said. "No true fan misses that game. So, what do you say? Ballet at eight, game at my place afterwards?"

Her face lit up. "Pick me up at seven thirty."