Hi there,

After much consideration on the matter (and official sister stamp of approval =winkwink=), I have decided to continue this story for, starting with this chapter (which will give Quinn some say…) She's seriously way too interesting to omit, don't you think. Not to mention I am having way too much fun with these characters now that I started writing for them and the possibilities of these experiments… hope you do too.

"The Collective Trials of a Quinnventor and… Logan"

Chapter 2 – Frigid Fundamentals

Quinn Pensky's (private and/or spare time) Experimentation Log

Today, sitting at my blacktopped lab table, blissfully solitaire; I find myself in a very strange need to write for a bit. Not about my zap watch's modifications for once, not about the progress made on any of my prototypes. I feel the need to express some of the recent events more, separate from my craft, some of the more mundane happenings in this entry (even though most of it feels anything but mundane).

Usually all of my spare time is commandeered by my studies and inventions; like any lady of true ingenuity and science. Always in the pursuit of making our planet's quality of life a little better if not figuring out all of the puzzles and mysteries naturally formed by our world. It sounds like a lot of work to most of the people who hear my view of an ordinary life, unless you're of the same mind and it sounds a lot like a normal Tuesday…

Though if this were a normal Tuesday, at nearly 1pm, I would normally have at least six different ideas or things I was working on. However, all I could seem to do during my lab time this morning was sit there, in my lab coat, goggles and heavy-duty inventor's apron with built in tool belt tied tight… and do absolutely nothing! I looked like myself, I'd done everything normally before that point in time but I somehow did not feel like myself at all. I'm not ill and I'm not injured, or at least I wasn't at the time. Yet I could not seem to focus on any one thing and I can't remember the last time that I was this creatively blocked.

Nevertheless, that is not what we are talking about right now; that isn't for this ingress at all.

I could waste more of my time describing my dwindling dilapidated dissertations and dialogues carried out with my ex today. For this was the day he'd decided that he needed to intrude upon my lab periods () to harass me for a bunch of his things back. Okay, maybe 'harass' is a bit of a stretch for referring to Mark, even in this annoying insistence of his, he was flatter than two-week-old soda. I got no passion, no fire and on top of all of this, he totally had his trollop in tow. It wasn't enough that he stomped on my heart and started dating the tank top tapered tart he'd been half cheating on me with. The little tramp has now become his enforcer… good luck with that honey. Anyone with an percentage of a brain stem knows that Mark doesn't naturally think like average. Any order she gets to enforce is likely doomed at the start. If he left me so abruptly and so cruelly for you, eventually the same will more than likely happen to you. Best case scenario is that she dumps him before he gets the chance. The Brainless Battalion marched in here a united front and ran out just as... well, no that was pretty much a free for all, every man for himself.

I could go into all of the gory details that lead to both of them leaving with what they came for, even if not quite as serenely as they'd hoped. That just goes to show them to never again interrupt my lab time, or walk into my inner sanctum and ask me to play nice. I could spill all of that twaddle but that would mean living through it a second time. I need to put all of this behind me, and move forward. I think harping on all of that negativity would be more of a setback… even if it had done my heart so good to watch Mark using the new one a human shield at least three times... I don't miss that at all.

Lola and Zoey tried to cheer me up at lunch, afterwards; and really their hearts were in the right place. I appreciate it, really I do; they have been so good to me throughout everything. Today they even got James, Lisa and Michael in on it too… as well as Lola's new cast-mate that will be starring as Lola's lover in the upcoming school production of "Landmine Love" (conveniently for Lola, whose been crushing on him all of five minutes). I ended up pretending to get a call from my lab professor, telling me one of my Quinnventions had just gone haywire… Sure, I lose points for lying and putting down my own research; but I just had to get out of there and fast. They were all so sweet to try to include me, but they were paired off like Noah's ark at the beach! Normally I am fine with all of them being cute little couples, all their feeding each other, wiping each other's faces from stray condiments, baby talking and kissy facing between bites. Shockingly, today I just couldn't handle all of that, and I think Zoey was on to me…

Mark is to blame for my intolerance of their mutual affections, stupid Mark! Why did he have to cut me so deep, hurt me so bad, humiliate me and act like my feelings were nothing. Dispensable and unessential, even when we were together, he just never cared for me, I guess... Not really, Ugh, stupid Mark, making me feel mindless and love is the stupidest of all… Was it ever going to feel normal again? Was I ever gonna trust myself again?

As if my teacher had just sensed I could use the distraction when I returned to her lab. She sent me down to the home economics building, for all of their walk-in refrigerators built into their facilities were on the fritz again. Something similar to this had happened my first year at PCA and I had fixed the same problem on one of the fridge unites, over the years I've fixed them all. Now it was all four walk-in fridges and two freezer units all at once. As if that wasn't enough to keep me busy I was in a race against the clock, because if I wasn't successful before a certain time, all of their perishables would ruin. I managed, but I ended up spending a lot of time in fridges, freezers and transporting icy if not chilled perishables from working facility to temporary locations and back. It was well past midnight before I returned to my room and both of my roommates were asleep.

I must have caught a chill somewhere along the way, because I stood in the shower for a little while longer than usual (I'm usually very careful to only use the water I need for environmental preservation) and I still could not seem to get comfortable. Even when I finally crawled into bed my teeth were chattering. I added extra blankets and even an electric blanket I've never needed at PCA before today… all for naught, I still couldn't get warm.

The discomfort and chill was unrelenting overnight and into the next day of school. I wasn't running a fever or anything so I attended class, I was just bundled up and still freezing. I ended up not only getting zero sleep, but getting passed around by nearly all of my friends who were kind enough to try and help me. I couldn't have made it through my day without their help. The shared body heat created between two or a few close bodies can be a way of treating hypothermia. So Zoey and Lola took turns holding on to me and keeping me buddle up. When they couldn't hold on anymore I was even passed off to Lola's latest crush (she's already moved on to dating one of the tech drama guys now, named Carlos who looks like he's living a Spanish soap opera all the time, even with an eskimo occupying one of his thick arms). James was hanging on to me at lunch and somewhere around my last class period I finally fell asleep on Michael's shoulder.

My guess is that I just conked out in pure exhaustion, the sleepless night and all of that tiring shaking took their toll.

When I woke up, I was mysteriously back in my dorm room and draped across the couch in the corner. I had no recollection of how I'd gotten there. How bizarre right? The part that even more inexplicably was that I was no longer on Michael's shoulder but 'A shoulder' was still pillowing my head. Nope, Michael wasn't a sleeveless shirt guy. I didn't even have to ask or look up to confirm who was laying with me. I knew for a fact that I was completely alone with Logan Reese and you want to know the most peculiar part yet. I was not even a little disgusted! In the past I would have definitely gagged. Not today, no; I felt him kiss the top of my head and mumble something like "It was about time for me wake up."

When I first opened my eyes my face was turned where it could observe the rest of the room. Which was completely unoccupied and I was worried to know just how long I had been sleeping practically on top of Logan.

I shouldn't be nervous, I shouldn't be excited either. The moment his lips connected with my hair however, my body had a reaction. My heart started pounding, my breath quickened and all not in a bad way. If this were happening normally I would simply be amazed at his help or care. That just isn't the world I live in anymore, plain and simple. Since that terrible day that I accepted things were over between Mark and me. I realized he wasn't taking me back and I didn't want him too… Comprehending that for two years I'd done nothing but waste my energy…Logan has done nothing but keep on surprising me. Like in a way that I still can't believe. There have been full years that I would have sworn to you that no one at PCA hated or disrespected me more than this guy. That just isn't so…

Here I am, draped half on top of him across the couch in the corner of the dorm room I shared with the girls. Rolling over so that I can look at his face as he holds onto me. The sunlight was streaming down on us through the window overhead and for the first time in so many hours, I wasn't freezing. When I did chance a glance up into his face, it wasn't the snarky smart-ass expression I would usually be prepared for. It wasn't even the miserly, "You-owe-me,-BIG-time" and "I'm gonna hold this over your head forever" Guy. No, His eyes were warm and his smile was so soft. I felt myself automatically smiling back. He seemed to always have that result on me recently, even when I did try to hide it. Or so much worse even when all I felt like doing was crying, where in the world was this coming from. Had we always been these people or was it something that had just happened one day? I have no idea.

He greeted me with a gruff sounding "hi." That sounded like I hadn't been the only one sleeping. Then he said, "And here I was thinking you were avoiding me."

"Avoiding you? Why would I do that?" I asked.

"I don't know, things have been pretty strange between us lately" He shrugged as he played with a lock of my hair. "I had tons of awful ideas before we were, here. Especially when Zoey and Lola wouldn't let me near you."

"Aww, well sorry I made you feel that way, they've been a little overly protective lately."

"Or always." He pointed out.

"Or always, but I wasn't avoiding you. They just have no idea that things have gotten so- odd – between us, lately." I tried to explain, and I feel like I must have shrugged at least three times during that clarification.

"Good to know," He said and for a long time after that, we just couldn't seem to stop staring at each other. Our faces were very close and I was way too comfortable after finally sleeping and only feeling so much soreness before that. This was all just recipe for disaster, my most logical half of my brain screamed in warning and yet somehow I was still stuck. I couldn't break eye contact with him or I couldn't seem to stop having this silent conversation with his eyes. As if I need more encouragement, my brain felt the need to flash back to all of the times he's kissed me recently. Yes, you read that right, Logan Reese jock and cool guy has kissed me.

We're not talking a friendly peck on my hand or cheek either people. Not last night, but the evening before that, this same boy was locked in a closet with me, and we were making out. Days before this occurrence we'd sworn to each other in that same closet to forget another kiss that had happened. (We kissed again between these two happenings, and we'd both gotten blown up) Before the making out began, he confessed that he didn't want to forget any of it. Didn't want to pretend any of it had never happened, this same guy looking at me with the same melty heat making my heart ache because he looks so sweet. Eyes all sleepy, it felt so good to be held on to so tight and carefully…What-IS-this?

I feel my head, quite of its own conviction incline just slightly towards his. I saw him wet his lips and when I did catch myself and not continue closing the gap between us… he almost looked disappointed. I asked him, "Would you mind explaining just how we ended up here and all alone? I don't remember."

"Sure, about ten minutes before last period ended, you went out like a light on Michael's shoulder. I had been offering my arms up for keeping you warm all day. But both Zoey and Lola were thinking I would only hurt you or embarrass you. Neither would believe me, when I agreed that you had dealt with enough of that lately. Luckily for us, all of them are majorly busy after class. Zoey and James are off working on some project that is due like… yesterday. They were both majorly stressed and Lola's off-"

"-play practice."

"Yeah, opening night is in a few days," he confirmed.

"So, you've just been hanging out here ever since?"

"Yeah, Michael and Lisa are off on a date too, so I would have been way bored anyway... So Lola asked Michael to carry you back here and put you to bed. I finally persuaded him to hand you to me half way here. It turns out he didn't trust me either, because he made certain I brought you here and placed you in your bed."

"If I was in my bed, why are we on the couch, now?"

"We'll, I don't like being told what to do…it's warmer over here with all of this sunshine, and… I kept bumping my head laying with you on your bottom bunk." He said still holding his head.

"You're kidding?"

"No, I slept on the bottom bunk for years in the room I shared with Michael, Chase, and now James. I did not bump my head that much in all that time. You guys must have them cranked closer together or something!"

Not thinking I cupped his face in between both of my hands and said, "You poor baby…"

What is wrong with me? Why did I call him, "baby?"

I'd never called anyone "baby" before… then I'd had my first real boyfriend. We all saw how well that turned out (not well at all). What if he didn't like it, what if he wasn't that certain about wanting to be my 'baby' just yet, did I want him to be? Why is everything so difficult? My hands had left his face to now squeeze my face embarrassingly. The same time I was trying to say, "I'm sorry."

Logan asked in that snarky little smart ass tone (that just reeks of male satisfaction), "Am I your baby? Am I? Is that who I get to be now?"

"I don't know, it slipped out."

"I get to be your 'baby,'" then he gasped and asked. "Does that mean I get to call you pet names like that too?"

Whoa, why do I feel like this is backfiring so much worse than I ever could have imagined the moment he said that? This can't be good, he went on to say, "Come on! I've never been able to do that before now because I never dated anyone consistently enough."

"Well, 'baby' was all I got the first time around because Mark was a strictly no petname mate, until I kept sneaking 'baby' in there and he almost could stand that… almost. I snuck others rarely, but-"

Logan cut in, "He does show emotion to things even if not living things?"

"Yeah, there's a joke in there somewhere I know it, but it's just way too dirty to tell." I said and we both ended up laughing. So hard for a while, because we ended up saying some of it anyway.

When we caught out breaths, Logan asked, "Is this okay, talking like this? It's not making you uncomfortable?"

"No, it's actually nice to laugh about it, some of it…even if there's still a lot I can't laugh about." When I said this I felt him take both of my hands, I took a deep breath and smiled up at him.

"What did he call you, so I know not to use those nicknames."

"He called me Quinn, or Quinn; sometimes Quinn and QUINN!" I explained while Logan laughed.

"You have to be making that up."

"No, Mark… heeeeeeee's… he's more of a tone guy. As unfathomable as that is bound to sound, it was all about the tone in which he said it."

"He does use other's, not just the same one I always heard?"

"Yes, believe it or not, the differences are very settle and if you'll notice there were only four." I said which made him laugh again.

Then he got an evil smile and said "We are gonna get back to those nicknames and petnames in just a moment. In the meantime, I'm very glad that you feel bad that I hit my head so much on your bunk bed, does that mean you're gonna kiss it better? Because I believe I deserve a reward for laying here with you even when I was hurting myself doing so."

I pulled his head down to mine, and craned my neck upwards so our lips met somewhere in the middle. I intended it to be brief and sweet, but he had other ideas. He dragged it on for quite a while to the point of us both mutually breaking it off for air. When I caught my breath again, I asked him, "All better?"

He lifted me slightly off of him, and in one fluid motion, I was trapped beneath him and we'd switched places. Now I was the one being penned to the couch, only Logan was using his full body to accomplish this, and somehow I didn't feel smooshed and he wasn't hurting me. His head came down and on it's way he said, "Lady, you're gonna have to do better than that."

Then he was making out with me again… I don't remember anything after that until I started trying to ask him, "Lo-… Logan?…Did… anyone… mention… check..ing..up on me?"

"No."

"You sure?"

"Yes, must you talk so much?"

"Aren't you the least bit worried about getting caught?" I asked him.

"Sure, but we're alone and they're all nuts with whatever. I'm not anxious enough to want to stop, I'm more eager to continue."

"You are?"

"Yeah, are you?"

"Yes… but what is this, Logan. We keep swearing not to tell, and neither of us have told a soul. We keep saying never again and yet here we are again breaking that pact at the first opportunity. Does any of this make any sense to you."

"Of course it doesn't!" He almost shouted, hoping off of me to pace back and forth across the floor. "This is a first for me too, ya know. When have I ever failed to notice a pretty girl as she walked by… huh? Do you know the answer? Never! I have never failed to catcall and applaud the lovelies who deserve such praise. Yet since all of this has started. I keep forgetting to pay tribute often enough to the point of my roommates checking my temperature."

"Really?" I asked hugging one of the pillows on the couch and sitting up.

"Yes really… Oh, and you think that's good? When have I ever turned down other offers of make-out sessions, just because all I can seem to think of is that bench and that damn closet!"

I tried to keep a straight face, I did… but my cheeks were hurting too bad. I smiled, he shook his head and said, "Don't do that!"

"What?"

"Smile all beautiful like that, something is wrong with me." As he began to study his feet and stick his hands in his pockets. I tossed the pillow, stood up and came over to stand with him in the center of the room. I put my hand on his shoulder to turn him to face me and tilted his chin up, making him look me in the eye.

Then I said, "Hey this is all new to me too. I keep thinking that there's something wrong with me too. We'll figure it out together, alright?"

I wiggled the finger the was tilting his chin back, he took hold of it in his hand and pulled it to his lips. He kissed it then pulled me in for a hug and said, "That makes me feel a little bit better."

"Well you know that old saying, crazy likes company." He lifted me off of the ground a little and just squeezed me to him. I was certainly not used to outbursts of affection like this, but I was already growing so addicted to them. I could just feel my hurt feelings and missing Mark grew less and less noticeable all the time. I gave him a gentle kiss, and as my feet hit the ground again, I stepped away and pat his shoulder. Telling him that he was more than welcome to stay, but I did need to finish one assignment before I was truly free.

So while I was working diligently on knocking out a history paper, Logan was researching pet names on the internet. Which quickly became a game of who could think up, or find the worst pet names... and yes, we used them all.

If I remember correctly it all started when Logan said, "Hey babe…that's a good one, yeah 'Babe?' while you're killing it old world style. Is it cool if I try some of these terms of endearment on you? Are you a good multitasker?"

"I hear a challenge in there, lay it on me, Ace."

"On second though, finish first… because I want your full attention after all."

I shot him a look over the rim of my glasses, he was leaned back in my stationary chair way too comfortably. That was when a pizza he'd ordered for dinner arrived and he ran to get the door. Dear god what had I gotten myself into?

As soon as I was done, and we'd both eaten a little pizza. He decided to make this a real game. He made us sit in chairs facing each other, and he'd printed out these crazy lists loaded with pet names. I had the list that was all names that could be used for guys, he'd highlighted a few that he liked (they were all racy like "lover," "Adonis" and "sex-god"). We would take turns reading out names, firing back and forth. We had an even number so we would finish at the same time. If he used any pet names that I was okay with him using when he was referring to me, I had to let him know by kissing him (and he would let me know the same way). The part that he totally didn't warn me about was that he used his acting ability. Yes, the super power he possesses secretly that was so good that he almost convinced Zoey that she liked him at one time. He delivered every single one of these pet names believably.

Oh yeah, not one living soul would expect Logan to call them one of these, and yet I was "Angel, babe, baby, petal, flower, sunshine, darling, sweetheart, my beloved, my pearl, my pet, woman, mama, lady, old lady, minx, foxy, moxy, goddess, countess, duchess, princess, queen, dear, sweetie, sweet-ums, honey, valentine, my lovely, sugar, doll, beauty, my prize, treasure, sexy, lover, mistress, home-wrecker." Those were all just a few of my favorites and just the English ones. We got so loud laughing at some of these that Coco came to check on us... twice! Coco checking up on us like that is a monumental occasion usually (because usually other RAs are checking not Coco). Twice, is unheard of. Luckily that wasn't during any of the times I did kiss him (or that he was kissing me).

This exchange went on for hours and I didn't realize it till it was happening, but he'd put the nicknames "baby" and "boyfriend" at the bottom of my list. So at the end of the game when I called him 'baby' the second time… He laid a kiss on me that was so hot, I thought the fire-alarms were going to go off.

Then explained, "Even if it's not me, you choose to call that next, you should expect nothing less than that response to it."

"I'll keep that in mind." I promised, then he fired off "girlfriend?" and I gave him a light kiss saying. "This doesn't mean we're official or anything, it just means I'm not as opposed the idea as I once was."

"Fair enough," he said, before reminding me, "You've got one more and then we're done."

Then I read, "boyfriend," and not only did he kiss me, but he lifted me out of my chair, stood straight up and leaned me back into a dip above my chair all the while kissing me like there was no tomorrow. I though the room would be up in flames by the end of that one. When he sat me back down in my seat, he somehow ended up on his knees in front of me and hugging me still so tightly I was in awe. Then he said, "Whoever your next boyfriend will be. Again, even it's not me; that lucky bastard better kiss you like that every day that he gets to be with you."

"I don't know about every-" I began only to be cut off as he insisted.

"Every day, I don't hate Mark but he didn't handle you at all the way you deserve to be treated. The next guy better get it right or he's gonna have a lot more than just Zoey and Lola to worry about."

"It really is a shame that you don't let everybody see this guy." I said before I could catch myself.

"What guy?"

"This guy you become, when we're alone, like this. If you let him show more often, and I wasn't on a nasty rebound; I wouldn't have a second thought before I'd be calling you boyfriend."

"You don't think he's a sap?"

"He's not a sap! He's more real and genuine than… nearly anyone else here at PCA. If I hadn't been hurt, if I trusted myself as confidently as I once did. This wouldn't even be an issue; I would be doing everything I could to confirm things between us...but"

"You're more careful because you don't want to get hurt again, I know." He smiled.

"Thank you for not pushing and understanding-"

"Quinn, there's no need for thanks."

"Yes there is, you warmed me up-"

"When I finally got a chance."

"Then you made me laugh, you're a great friend… I'm sure that if you ever decide a girl is worthy of the term girlfriend. Even if she isn't me, she will be extremely lucky."

He took both of my hands and interlocked our fingers as asked, "What if it is you?"

I took a breath to calm myself, because my insides were squealing. Did I really want this? Is he for real right now? Am I ready for this? I wanted so badly to say not just yes, but "YES!" But something inside of me outweighed all of the excitement and screamed that I was not ready yet. I have no idea where this part of me lives inside of myself, but it has to be in my torso somewhere. For my un-ready-ness seemed to stem from there.

"That would be wonderful, but I don't think I'm quite ready to-"

"I know, it's gotta feel like too much too soon, but I can wait." He said.

"You can?" I said sounding a little doubtful, even to my ears.

"I can," he said confidently. "Take all of the time you need and who knows, it might be fun."

"With more days like this one, sure." I agreed and he smiled.

"Did this feel a little like a date?" He asked.

"A little, though I'm unaccustomed to waking up to a date in progress. That was something new."

"It just cause you're so damn cute when you're asleep."

"Please dear god tell me I wasn't snoring or saying stuff in my sleep."

"You weren't, but if I played with your hair and massaged your scalp or if I scratched your back in just the right spot you did purr like a little kitten."

"I did not!"

"Yeah, you did!" He confirmed while I covered my mouth in mortification.

"Don't get all nervous, it was adorable." He said before bending a little closer to whisper, "not to mention it was a little sexy."

"In what way?" I shot back in the same hushed tone.

"In the way that made it very hard not to kiss you till you were awake."

I know I turned three shades of red and he smirked back with way too much happiness for my comfort. Trying to change the subject to more typical and less mortifying levels, Logan asked, "Did Mark ever pay any attention to any of this stuff?"

"Mark, are you kidding? Me, being a lady of science, I like to document everything. So while I've never been the type to keep up any journal that wasn't scribbled with experiments and prototype blueprints. I bought a little book just for recording the things I wanted to remember doing with Mark."

"You did?"

"Yeah, but in the two years combined we barely filled the first twenty pages and I was writing in the book hours before he broke up with me."

"So it wasn't from lack of you keeping it up-"

"It was from lack of caring, on his part… What's worse is the book doesn't even look like something I would pick for myself. It looks like antique valentines, because Mark collected those and antique calendars. It sits in my lab cubie and I have to look at it every day. It's very hard fighting the temptation to take it to one of my Bunsen burners…"

"That would be cool, can I be there if you ever decide to really do that?"

"Sure, I guess part of why I feel like I need to say thank you to you is because it isn't so bad when I'm around you."

"The hurt?"

"It's beginning to fade as time passes, and I'm coming to realize more and more as the pain dwindles. The thing I resent the most in all of this is how dumb he made me feel. Like I can't trust myself, you know."

"I trust you, hell, I would trust you a lot quicker than I would myself. You're by far one of the smartest people I know."

It was that moment that Coco busted in the room and said, "No boys after 9!"

"It's not-Oh my god, it's past ten. Coco, you're more than an hour late!"

"No I'm just in time, OUT!"

"Okay, OKAY! See ya in class tomorrow Pensky."

"See you later, Logan." I did manage to get out before Coco felt the need to chase Logan down the hall. It did turn out to be a blessing in disguise because Lola and Zoey both walked in the next thirty seconds and both had seen Logan getting chased out. Though not from where exactly in the building, thankfully.

The next morning when I arrived for my appointed lab times, I found that "someone," had placed a wrapped gift in the top of my cubie. The folded card under the bow read, "Saw this and thought of you, hope you like it." Sighed with just a letter, "-L."

The present was this beautiful hardcover book, that was shiny green backdrop that faded into blue in so places, embossed with white and yellow Lotus flowers. Just beautiful, on the inside of the first page; He'd written, "This for you to keep track of whatever you would like. All the events you want to never forget, even the next luck bastard who gets to call you girlfriend. You are amazing Quinn, never let anyone convince you differently."

Again, he signed it simply "-L"

I think I just may have a few things I wouldn't mind writing down just now.

Well, what did ya think? Did you like it, love it, hate it, tolerate it? Let me know, I love hearing from you guys and keeps me going! Thank you so much to anyone who has read this far and I'm gonna try to make this a Saturday thing, have the next chapter up at least by next Saturday if not sooner. Thanks again, God bless, see ya next time