Stephanie felt like a bit of a stalker.

Charlie was sitting in one of the booths in the corner when she finished her shift. There was a sketchbook in front of him and he was currently using a dark pencil to shade something in-she couldn't see it from where she stood. Which she'd tried. It was a curious thing to see. She never knew he was into art. It must have been after everything went down, as she didn't remember him doing it back in fifth grade.

Lacey, one of her co-workers, was at the front counter and not so subtly watching him. "Who is he?" She said dreamily. "What a dreamboat."

Stephanie shrugged. Lacey stared at her in disbelief.

"Steph, come on, you have eyes. Don't tell me you're blind to tall, dark and handsome over there."

"Will you shut up?" Stephanie hissed. "He'll hear you."

"What's the big deal?" Lacey was pretending to wipe down the counter whilst keeping her eyes trained on Charles-Charlie. Gosh, she'd have to get used to that.

"There's no big deal," Stephanie shrugged again. "I just know how you are."

Lacey was a flirt. And boy crazy. She wouldn't subject Charlie to that.

"Mhm," Lacey didn't believe her. She propped herself up with her elbows. "Tell me where you know this guy. I saw you two talking earlier."

"So?" Stephanie crossed her arms, feeling uncomfortable with where this was going.

Lacey took on a look of anguish. "Come on, Steph, give me the deets. He's totally an ex-boyfriend, isn't he?"

"No," Stephanie almost snorted at the ludicrous thought of her and him dating. "Definitely not."

"Well, you know him from somewhere," Lacey was oddly smug. "He knows youuuu."

Stephanie rolled her eyes. "We were partners in fifth grade for an assignment."

"And?" Lacey said eagerly.

"He just moved away," Stephanie tried to sound as nonchalant as possible.

"And now he's back!" Lacey grinned. "Oooh, lucky you!"

"What are you talking about?"

"He's clearly into you," Lacey smirked.

"We talked for like two minutes."

Lacey came around to wrap an arm around Stephanie's shoulders. "Long enough for Cupid to put his arrow in."

"Hilarious," Stephanie said dryly. "You're a real riot."

She spritzed herself with some vanilla bean perfume to combat the bleach that was still on her clothes.

Lacey was observing her. "Trying to doll yourself up for Mr. Handsome?" She teased.

"As if," Stephanie scoffed. "I put this on everyday."

"But now you have a reason!" Lacey said. "Come on, Stephanie, just admit it. He's handsome, isn't he?"

Her eyes subtly shifted to glance at Charlie. Alright, so he wasn't bad looking. He was kind of cute. But not in that kind of way, of course.

As if she'd ever think Charles-Charlie Hansen was cute.

"Love is in the air," Lacey said in a singsong voice, slyly.

"I think you're sniffing too much bleach," Stephanie retorted. "Now if you'll excuse me-"

She ignored Lacey's stifled laughter as she made her way over. Charlie looked up and a grin came to his face. "Hey."

"Hey yourself," Stephanie sat down.

He raised his eyebrows. "Well, that's an interesting combination," He said after a moment. "Vanilla and bleach, huh? Are you trying to asphyxiate or something, Tanner?"

"Ha, ha," She deadpanned. "You're so not funny."

"Ouch," He mocked. "You always did go straight for the heart."

She couldn't help it. She laughed a little as she shook her head.

"Did I just make Stephanie Tanner laugh?" He grinned wider. "I barely even tried."

"You get one freebie and that's it," Stephanie said smoothly.

Charlie leaned forward somewhat. "I'll make you laugh again, Tanner. You just wait."

"I'll be dead by then."

"You're not funny," Charlie repeated her earlier words.

Stephanie shrugged. "I think I'm hilarious."

"You're the only one, trust me."

They smirked at each other. Stephanie let out another laugh. "I can't believe you're here. I didn't think I'd see you again."

Charlie's smile became rather fixed. She, of course, knew why. "Yeah. I didn't think so either. But my adoptive dad got transferred here for work so here I am."

Stephanie felt really happy to hear the words adoptive dad. "You got adopted?"

"Uh, yeah," Charlie rubbed the back of his neck. He quickly changed the subject before she could say another word. "How's everything going for you? Didn't get held back, did you? That'd be pretty embarrassing for you if I finished before you."

It was a weak joke. She couldn't remember him being so awkward. In a way, she felt sorry for him.

"It's great," Stephanie felt like she ought to be cheerful. "You know, besides, this-" She gestured around them. "But it's only for a few months so I have enough for college."

"What are you planning on studying?"

Stephanie shrugged for the umpteenth time. "No idea. " She took another peek at his drawing. "You should go for art, though. You're really good."

Charlie closed the sketchbook, his cheeks reddening. He shook his head. "Nah. I'm not that good."

"Is that your way of getting another compliment out of me?" She teased. She added, "I didn't know you could draw."

"I only started a year ago."

"It's good," She repeated. "I can't do that."

"Have you tried?"

She nodded. "I took sophomore year and barely passed with a C. hang on," She pulled out her flip phone, scrolling through her pictures, showing him one of her attempts at drawing and shading a brown paper bag. He stared at it and then looked back at her.

"What is that?"

"A bag," She said.

"Are you sure?" He said, amused. 'You weren't kidding, Tanner. You suck."

"Thanks," She said, sarcastically.

"You said it," He snickered.

"If you were nice, you'd say, 'Oh, no, Stephanie, You're not bad. Not at all.'"

"I don't make it a habit of lying," He flashed her a smile.

She scoffed. "Right."

The silence this time around wasn't as bad as before.

"So," She shifted, "I bet your friends are excited to see you again."

He quirked an eyebrow. "I must have missed the welcoming party."

"Don't you-"

"Incase it wasn't obvious to you, Tanner, I didn't have any friends," He said, not unkindly. In fact, he sounded a little tired.

"But what about those guys you hung out with?"

He scoffed. "We weren't friends. Besides, they never called me when I left."

"Oh," She frowned. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be," He said, shaking his head. "They were idiots."

Well, he wasn't wrong. Marcus Barnaby still struggled with his times tables.

"Did you make any friends at your other school?" Stephanie asked.

"Didn't go."

She looked at him strangely.

"My adoptive mom homeschooled me to help me catch up. I was a bit behind on some things. It was either that or repeat fifth grade."

Stephanie was astounded. "I didn't know you were doing that bad."

"Not technically," He said. "But the principal and a couple teachers were concerned so I spent sixth grade learning twice as much." He rested one arm over the back of the booth.

"Oh. So are you, uh, good now?"

"Yeah," he chuckled a little at her wording. "I'm good now."

She blushed.

"How's school going for you?" He asked casually.

"Good," She responded. "I got almost all A' last semester. Except for math." She rolled her eyes. "I hated geometry."

"Me too," he agreed.

Stephanie's phone started to vibrate. She flipped it open and saw it was Gia calling her.

"You gonna get that?" Charlie said.

"Nah," She shut it and put it away for now. She could call Gia back later. She didn't want to interrupt this time with Charlie, as crazy as that sounded. "It's fine. I'll call back later." She put her chin in the palm of her hand. "So, are you going to Bayview this year?"

"Yeah," He nodded.

"Nice," She said. "'I'll be there so I can show you around."

"You don't have to-"

"What kind of-" She was going to say friend. What kind of friend would she be if she left him out in the cold like that. But they weren't friends. Barely acquaintances. She didn't know what they were considered now. "It's okay. I don't mind." She felt her stomach rumble. Stephanie hadn't eaten since her lunch break that afternoon, which was cut short when an influx of customers came piling in with all the kids out on summer break. Technically, Ted could have helped but as usual he was too lazy for any actual work so it was up to Stephanie, Lacey and the fry-cook, Marvin, to ensure everyone got their food.

"Hey," She said and he looked at her, "I'm starving. You want something?"

"Oh. No. I don't have money," Charlie mumbled.

"Just wait here," Stephanie told him and he looked confused. She went to kindly ask Marvin if he'd prepare a basket of fries while she worked on making two milkshakes for them. All the while, she felt Lacey's eyes on her and made it a point of ignoring her. Since there was hardly anyone in there except for them, she called out to him, "Is chocolate okay?"

He realized what she was doing. "I can't pay for it," He protested. "My mom-adoptive mom," He corrected, "only gave me enough to get us all dinner and I already spent it."

"Just answer the question," She said with exasperation. 'Chocolate, vanilla or strawberry?"

"Stephanie-"

"You're not paying for it," She cut in. "I get a discount."

He still seemed hesitant. But slightly less so now. "Strawberry."

After that was finished, Marvin slid her the fries to which she thanked him and went back to the table, plopping down.

"Thanks, Tanner," Charlie rubbed the back of his neck.

"Back to Tanner, huh?" She remarked. "What a pity."

"Sorry babe," He mocked. "Won't happen again."

"It better not," She said with her eyes sparkling in humor.

He took a drink of his shake before swallowing and saying, ""Can I ask you something?"

"You already did."

He rolled his eyes. "Like I said, not funny."

She smirked. "I disagree. But anyway, what's your question?"

"What's with the girl at the counter?" He subtly jerked his head in that direction. "She keeps looking at us."

Tow guesses as to who that was.

Stephanie almost groaned. "Sorry. That's my co-worker. Lacey. She's, uh, a special kind of breed."

Charlie snorted and then seemed embarrassed by it.

She couldn't help but grin.

What's happening to me? She wondered. I've not been annoyed once by him. Maybe he really has changed. He hasn't insulted me yet. That's a record.

"What is?"

She snapped her head up. She'd said that last part out loud. "Nothing," She said far too quickly.

He didn't believe her. "Right."

"I was just thinking, that's all."

"Don't strain yourself too hard."

"Ha, ha."

They ate their food and talked some more. They exchanged stories from the past few years they'd been apart-including Michelle's horse accident and memory loss. She was caught off guard at how he seemed genuinely concerned for her sister. As for him, Charlie didn't share much. Not anything that would give her a good glimpse into the world he'd been accustomed to since he was taken into foster care. Oh, sure, she heard stories from his new-well, former-school but it wasn't the same.

It was probably dumb on her part, assuming he'd be comfortable enough to share any of that with her when they hadn't seen each other since they were eleven. Especially given the subject. He'd been anxious over her finding out about his dad when they were eleven. It was simply unrealistic that he'd be willing to say more.

Eventually, it came time for them to go. Her eyes glanced at the clock on the wall, widening when she saw it was nearly eleven-thirty.

"What?" He said immediately.

"I've got to get home!" She panicked, jumping to her feet to take care of the trash and hurriedly grabbing her things. "My dad's gonna kill me! He already doesn't like me working so late. I'll be grounded for sure if he knows I missed curfew."

"You gonna have time, Steph?" Lacey frowned, standing at the front counter.

"I don't know," She said with a sigh.

Charlie watched her. He was frowning as well. "Would..." he said, carefully, "do you need a ride, Tanner?"

She stopped in her tracks. She thought she heard Lacey mutter something suspiciously like aww but couldn't be sure. "What?"

He was uncomfortable. "Just thought I'd offer."

"Oh, uh-" It would be convenient. It wasn't too far from her house to the burger joint but long enough that it would be nearly twelve by the time she got home. Her dad would be even less happy with her.

But she wasn't so sure he'd appreciate her riding in the car with a guy. Especially since this was a guy she hadn't seen in years. She'd get the safety talk again, about how they didn't ride with people they didn't know well.

"You don't mind?" She ended up asking.

He shook his head, shrugging. "It's along the way."

Stephanie smiled gratefully at him. "Wow, thanks, Charlie."

Once they were all ready to go, Stephanie called out a goodbye to Lacey, who was wiggling her eyebrows suggestively when Carlie wasn't looking. Stephanie gave her a dirty look for that one.

/

"Thanks again, by the way." They were settled into Charlie's car, an old beat up looking black car. It was kind of weird, reminding her of being driven home after a date. But this hadn't been a date and he wasn't one of her boyfriends.

"Tanner, chill," He drawled. "You've thanked me five times already."

"I'm being polite," She defended herself.

"You're rambling," he corrected her. "I already told you, it's fine."

She shrunk a little in her seat. "Right," She muttered. "Sorry."

He glanced at her before shifting his eyes back onto the road. "Do you not have a car?"

"I do but there's something wrong with it. It won't start and I don't have enough money right now to get it checked out right now," She said.

He hummed. He'd taken his hat off, throwing it to the backseat. His hair was as dark as she remembered it. A little messy, too. He made it work. "You still live in the same house?"

"Don't you think you should've asked me before you started driving?" Stephanie teased him. "Yeah, yeah. Same house. I guess you remember where it is?"

"Couldn't forget it."

She supposed that was true.

A soft tune filled the car. It was one of those oldie classics her dad would listen to.

"No offense," Stephanie felt like she should fill the silence, "but the music's totally lame."

"My mom was using my car," Charlie explained, chuckling. "And changed the radio. I just haven't changed it back yet."

He moved the dial until it came to an acceptable station.

"Alright!" She exclaimed as soon as the new song came belting out. "I love Ricky Martin!"

"You're not gonna sing, are you?" Charlie side-eyed her.

"Maybe," She lied just to rile him up.

"Don't."

"Hey," She pretended to be offended. "I can sing."

"I'll take your word for it," He said dryly.

"You try, then."

"Not a chance, babe."

"Scared?" She challenged.

"Don't be ridiculous, Tanner."

"Then do it."

"No."

"Come on, don't be a chicken."

"Shut up," he said good-naturedly.

"Chicken!"

"You're lucky I'm driving," he said playfully.

"Oh, yeah?" She said, "Whatever. I still think you're a chicken."

"I think you're stupid."

"Ouch," She knowingly echoed his words from earlier, "you always did go straight for the heart."

They pulled up to her house. The lights from the living room were still on. Stephanie winced. That meant dad was up, waiting for her to return. If he hadn't gone out with Joey and Uncle Jesse on a search party for her.

"Thanks," Stephanie said.

"Six," Charlie muttered.

"Whatever," She said. And then became serious. "I hope it wasn't out of your way. I'd hate if you got in trouble."

He met her eyes. "They're pretty reasonable," he said softly. "They won't mind."

She was relieved. "At least let me do something for you."

"Tanner-"

"No," She interrupted him. "We just saw each other again and you've already done me a favor."

"Hmm." She saw a sparkle of the same mischievousness he had as a kid. "Alright. I do believe I'm entitled to some free food."

Okay. She could handle that.

"For two weeks."

"What?"

"Yeah," He nodded and looked like he was trying not to laugh, "it is late and you don't smell the best-"

"Hey!"

He continued on as if she hadn't spoken. "And you made fun of me. I think it's only fair."

"You're unbelievable."

He seemed proud of himself. "Only the best for you, babe."

She snorted. "Fine. Two weeks. That's it." She grabbed her belongings and got out of the car. "See you, Hansen."

"Hey, Tanner, wait!"

She turned.

"Don't forget to use soap!"