A/N. Did I do it, or did I not? (Wow, that sounds misleading) I UPDATED AGAIN! *happy dance*

The result: A good ol' chapter and cramped fingers!

Enjoy!

Chapter 6: Startling Revelations

"It's not that funny," Daphne growled, slamming a box down on the counter in the biology equipment room.

"You're a senior, but I took your first kiss?" Mr. Firay asked, laughing so hard he was out of breath. "You had your first kiss as a senior?"

She felt herself blushing and looked at the ground. "I mean, I've done quick pecks and stuff, just nothing like that."

Mr. Firay started snickering again. "How many boyfriends have you had?"

"Four," she responded, frowning deeper. Henry was not happy when all of those relationships ended with 'Let's stay friends!'.

"Only four?"

"What about it?" she demanded, glaring angrily at Mr. Firay. "I can't help if it guys don't like me!"

Mr. Firay looked surprised for a second, then he smirked. "You're mistaken. I think a lot of guys like you."

Daphne rose an eyebrow at him. "How would you know? This is only your fifth day here."

"When you're a young, handsome, kind teacher, people tell you stuff," Mr. Firay responded with a shrug. "For example, your friend Willow is going to be asked out today."

"What?" Daphne gasped. "By who?"

"Some kid named Colin?"

"I knew he liked her!" she responded, slamming her fist down into her hand. "It was only a matter of time..."

"First kiss as a senior," Mr. Firay snorted once more.

"Oh, will you drop it!" Daphne snapped, unpacking the box that she had jsut placed on the counter. "How'd you even find out about it anyway?"

"Your friend, Ariana." That little traitor. With unnecessary force, Daphne ripped the tape off the next box.

"I'm going to go get a drink, do you want something?" Mr. Firay asked, hopping down from the counter.

"I don't have any money," she told him.

He shrugged. "It's on me."

"Really?"

"Don't sound so shocked; you make me feel like a mean person," Mr. Firay responded with a sign.

"You are though," Daphne pointed out.

"I know."

"Bottle of water. Now go," she demanded, irritated again.

He left the room, and Daphne continued to unpack in silence. There were only a few more boxes left before they were all gone. I'd probably finish today. If I finished, did that mean I was done helping him after school? For some reason, that thought made Daphne's stomach turn a little. Why was I sad about it?

Daphne shook the thought away and continued unpacking. After her third box, she frowned. How long did it take Mr. Firay to go get drinks? Daphne started on the fourth box, and was halfway through when he walked in, carrying a coke and a bottle of water. He set them both down on the counter and ran a hand through his hair.

"Geez," he muttered, pushing himself back on the counter.

"What took you so long?"

"I ran into some girl's at the vending machine," he explained, taking his coke and opening it. "It took forever to get away from them."

"Why didn't you just say you didn't want to talk?"

Mr. Firay gave Daphne a flat look. She realized why he couldn't do that. He was the "nice, handsome, young, amazing" new teacher. He couldn't ruin his image. Daphne grumbled as she grabbed her water. Why was it only me he was himself with?

"Thanks, Mr. Firay," she said, as she opened it and took a long drink.

"Call me Matt outside of class," he ordered, setting down his coke. "It's weird being called Mr. Firay when school's over."

"Okay, Chris."

To Daphne's surprise, she blushed. It sounded a little intimate; calling a teacher by their real name, that is. She faced away from him to hide her blush and continued unpacking boxes. She actually felt a little lucky that she knew his real self. The girls that already, or probably would, have crushes on him wouldn't know a thing, unlike Daphne did. It was like a secret between them. Daphne smiled to herself, feeling slightly happier.

After half an hour, she finished the last box. Daphne frowned when she turned and realized there was no more. She turned to Mr. Firay. "-er, Chris?"

He looked at Daphne, opening his mouth to speak, but suddenly, his phone went off. He placed the magazine he was reading down and held up a finger to her. He pulled out his phone and looked at it. A scowl appeared on his face, and he flipped the phone open, putting it to his ear.

"What now?" he demanded into the receiver. "How many times do I have to tell you no? No! I said I don't care, and I really don't care. Yeah. Do what you want, but leave me out of it. Go ahead. Whatever. Bye." He snapped the phone shut and glowered at it for a moment before tossing it onto the counter.

"Was that the same person from a few days ago?" Daphne asked, her voice quieter than she expected.

"Yeah."

"Is everything okay?"

"Sure," Mr. Firay responded with a shrug. "Now, what did you want?"

Oh, um, all the boxes are unpacked and put away," she told him, gesturing to all the empty boxes behind her.

"Oh. Well I guess you can go home for today," Mr. Firay responded, looking slightly surprised, and a little disappointed. "That took less time than I expected."

Daphne waited for him to say more, but when he didn't, she frowned. Was this really it? Was I of the hook now? Now more chores from him? Daphne didn't know why, but not only did she feel sad, but she actually felt a little bit lonely. She hesitated by the counter, taking her time to finish her water so she didn't have to leave.

It was much more fun to be here than at her house, all by herself since her mother and father didn't come home until late due to work. Red had started to date Tom, so she went out a lot, and her sister and brother-in-law were living somewhere else in New York now. If Daphne was here doing the work for Mr. Firay, she actually had someone to talk to and interact work, even if it was just orders, and being made fun of for me.

When her water was gone, Daphne sighed and threw it into the recycling. She stooped down to pick up her school bag, lingering. She pretended to be interested in a poster on the wall. After a few minutes, she heard the jingle of car keys. She turned to see Mr. Firay holding them out to her.

"Want a ride home?"

Daphne smiled to herself. "Sure."

It was sort of awkward sitting in Mr. Firay's car. He had a pretty fancy BMW. It made Daphne wonder how he could afford it. She didn't say anything though, she knew better than that. Daphne sat in the passenger's seat with her hands in her lap, staring straight ahead.

"Do you mind if I stop for gas?" he asked, quickly glancing at Daphne.

"No," she responded quickly. Daphne cursed inwardly and bit her lip.

He looked at her suspiciously, and Daphne instantly regretted answering so quickly. He probably thought Daphne liked him or something now.

"I, er, don't really want to go home yet," Daphne said, fiddling with her fingers. "No one is ever home, so it's boring, you know?"

"I see," Mr. Firay responded, his eyes on the road again. "Where are your parents?"

"Both work really late. Actually, when I was 6, they disappeared. They were gone for two years, and I thought they were dead."

Daphne waited for Mr. Firay to say the cliched line, that everyone else had told her when she mentioned their disappearance. But to her surprise, he didn't even mention it. However his grip tightened on the steering wheel.

"So, they're both alive?"

"Yup, they are," Daphne told him. "And they work their butts off to support my brother and I. Even though they're back, they still have to try to pay off all the debts and taxes that they didn't when they disappeared. My mom has this crazy idea that we need to live in a big house and wear brand name clothing like all the kids at school. But I don't really like taking money from my mom, nor my dad. It feels weird."

"I know what you mean," Mr. Firay responded.

Daphne stared at him curiously. "You do?"

He nodded. "I never had a good relationship with my parents. It was always weird asking them for money. I felt like a moocher or something since I never really saw them. They were more of the business type of parents; the ones who thought money and power was more important."

She realized Mr. Firay was speaking in past tense. "They're dead?"

Mr. Firay nodded. "My father died a few years ago, and my mom was walking down the streets when a car hit her, about a year or two ago."

Daphne's mouth went dry. She remembered her mother telling her that some crazed driver. That Everafter happened to be Puck's mother, Titania. Did this mean what Daphne thought it meant? Was Mr. Firay...Puck's brother?

"I'm sorry," Daphne apologized aloud, putting her hands to her head. "I'm sorry, Mr. Firay...I think I just came to a realization."

"I said call me Matt, but that probably won't do now. I'm sure we're thinking the same thing."

"You...Mustardseed?" Daphne whispered. "Is it really you?"

"And is it really you, Daphne Grimm?" Mr. Firay responded, rolling his eyes. "I thought you would've understood by the third day of school. Those thoughts just popped into my head at this moment, you know. I didn't actually think that you were the Daphne Grimm I met years ago." Even though she found out his identity, Daphne stills thinks of him as Mr. Firay.

"Same with me!" she told him quickly. "I knew I had seen you somewhere before, when I saw you in the alley." Daphne then stared at the ground. "Your parents are really dead?"

"Yeah. I'm sure Puck knows by now, too."

"I'm sorry. I couldn't help confirming that."

"It's fine."

"It's weird though," Daphne said. "I met both of your parents, and really didn't think about them, until your dad died. I never really thought about Titania either. I just thought 'these two are the King and Queen of Faerie'. I didn't think that they would actually die, and not come back because they were immortal. I thought immortal people never died..."

"Well, they do. It just depends on how they get hurt that determines their fate. And that's normal to think," Mr. Firay responded. "I thought the same thing about humans. I never really thought about them dying because, well, they're really all over the Earth. If one dies, another is born. It's human nature to only think of people you're close to."

"I still feel guilty even though I had nothing to do with your mom's death..."

Mr. Firay rose an eyebrow at her. "You're an interesting person, you know?"

"Eh? Why do you think that?" Daphne responded, staring at him.

He chuckled. "No reason."

"Okay..."

"It's a small world, no?" he suddenly said, his lips witching. "I expected our next meeting to be in Ferryport..not us both suddenly finding ourselves teacher and student."

For some reason, his first statement sounded like he had a double meaning to his words. Some kind of inside joke only he knew. Daphne pushed the though aside and nodded in agreement, glad for the change of the subject. "Yeah."

Daphne stared at Mr. Firay thoughtfully. So he had gone through -almost- the same grievance as Daphne did at around the same time she did. Except while her parents had only disappeared, he had lost both of his. Daphne couldn't imagine what she had gone through being fatal. The thought of losing her mom was horrible! But losing both her parents at the same time? She couldn't even begin to imagine what Mr. Firay had been through. To her surprise, tears were starting to form in her eyes. Daphne tried to subtly wipe them away.

"What's wrong?" Mr. Firay asked, glancing over at her.

Daphne blushed; embarrassed that she had been caught. "Nothing. I was just thinking..."

Mr. Firay smiled gently at her. "It's all in the past now, so don't worry, okay?"

Daphne stared at him with her mouth open. What was that smile? She took a mental picture of it, because she doubted she would ever see it again. Mr. Firay noticed her gawking and smirked.

"I knew you would fall for my good looks."

"Who did?" she muttered, rolling her eyes.

He pulled into the gas station and pulled up next to a pump. Mr. Firay turned off the car and waited, staring at Daphne expectantly. She returned his gaze with a confused look.

"What?" she finally asked.

"Go pump my gas."

"What? No!"

A minute later, she was out of the car and pumping the gas while rubbing her arm, where a bruise was sure to appear later. That guy was abusive. But somehow, she was relieved that they had managed to stay away from the awkwardness of finding out how their parents and lives were connected (in a way). If it was anyone else, she was sure it would've been awkward. But Daphne was very glad it was Mustardseed.

When she finished pumping the gas, she got back into the car while Mr. Firay put his credit card into the machine and paid. They were silent on the way back, arguing slightly at a dumb comment every now and then. When they pulled up at Daphne's apartment, she got out of the car and leaned over before shutting the door.

"Well, it's been fun working for you after school," Daphne said, trying to sound sarcastic, even though it was the truth.

"What are you talking about?" Mr. Firay replied, leaning over the seat to look at her. "This is just the beginning."

With that, he shut the door and with a small wave, began driving away from Daphne. She waved after him for a moment, a smile slowly spreading onto her face. He was right. It was just the beginning.

A/N. *snickers* Daphne's first kiss. *snickers*So what'dya think? Most of you knew it was Mustardseed, didn't you? COMMENT SO I CAN HEAR YOUR THOUGHTS! ^^

In the past few hours, I see no one has reviewed. Hmm, I guess everyone doesn't know that I'm back yet...

Anyways, that's enough updates for those school week! Another is sure to come this Saturday or Sunday! ^^ HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

~Lara