A/N: Happy Christmas! This has one of the first scenes I wrote and is probably my favorite. Also, yes, for anyone who has seen You've Got Mail, I pulled bits and pieces from it. For anyone who hasn't and enjoys this story, go watch it! ❤

The next morning when Odd woke up and after he filled himself with some delicious breakfast, he took the familiar position of propping his head on the side of the wardrobe and setting the laptop in front of him, pulling up the chatroom. Jeremie had been nice enough to lend him the computer overnight and while he usually would spend his time typing away with his girlfriend, the chatroom had been eerily quiet.

Odd had first apologized to Sissi the night before for what happened. Sk8r_Trix633 had not been there and instead of seeing someone she was beginning to trust, in his place was an enemy. Odd didn't explain why he hadn't been there but he hoped she would forgive him.

Since their meeting time after lunch the day before, Odd hadn't received any response from Sissi. Even after his apology. He stole the computer several times and checked for any unread messages but she had stayed silent.

Something in him, the dark anxious part of his mind, told him that Sissi had never really trusted him with her heart in the first place and even if she had, she certainly didn't now. It had only been an act of desperation from a lonely girl who wanted affection.

Odd didn't really blame her. Although the idea that he had upset Sissi caused a lump in his throat, he had pushed his luck with her and when he didn't show up for a second time, Sissi had taken that as a sign and broken ties with him.

Odd tried to tell himself the sour taste in his mouth and the tightening in his chest was from the relief of not having to ever reminisce romantically with his rival again. But he knew better.

"I think I might have fucked up." He mumbled to himself.

Ulrich was rummaging through his closet and he spoke up at the sound of Odd's voice.

"And this is surprising to you, how?"

"Hey," Odd said, slamming the laptop closed. "I'm a gentleman. Girls love me."

Ulrich shook his head but smiled, realizing what, or more of who, he was talking about.

"You may have a way with talking to girls," he admitted. "But this isn't just some girl we're talking about here."

Odd nodded. "Yeah, I guess that's true."

While agreeing with what Ulrich had said, it was for a completely different reason than the meaning behind his friend's words. Sissi wasn't just 'some girl' to him, as much as he didn't want to admit it to anyone. Getting to know her without constant berating between them had made him see how compatible they could be as a pair.

Odd sighed, standing from his bed, and began his Sunday morning routine. It was his favorite day of the week, mostly for the fact that they didn't have any classes and he was free to do whatever he wanted.

Setting the computer on his bed, Odd thought about the similarities between himself and his online girlfriend.

Sissi and Odd were both hopeless romantics and craved the attention being in a relationship gave. While Odd was a little more ambitious when it came to testing the waters, Sissi knew what she wanted and stuck to that.

Even if their peers said otherwise, their sense of humor and interests were quite similar as well. Sissi shared Odd's love of horror movies and, when he talked to her online, would laugh at almost every joke he threw at her. He had convinced himself early on that she wasn't just overcompensating for their lack of face-to-face contact but that she actually found what Odd had to say funny.

When Odd opened the bottom drawer of his dresser, Kiwi's ears perked up. He was so smart when it came to things like food and playtime. Odd pulled out his dog's leash and jingled it in the air, letting the sound excite Kiwi more.

"That's it, boy! Your favorite time of day."

Odd bent down and attached the leash to Kiwi's collar, giving him a few scratches behind the ears.

"I'm taking Kiwi for a walk," he said to his roommate, waving a hand behind him as he made his way to the door. "I'll be back in a few."

Ulrich waved back. "Don't forget, we're doing some training on Lyoko later."

Odd nodded, not caring if Ulrich could see him or not.

"I won't be long. See ya!" he said, closing the door behind him.

The air outside was crisp and clean and Odd took a deep breath the moment he walked out of the dorm building.

Many kids were running around but none of them minded Odd and his dog, too caught up in the sunshine of their day off to worry about anything as insignificant as a boy and his pet. There was a nice open space near a bench that he and Kiwi regularly liked to play in. It was fairly secluded and faced away from any teachers that might pass by.

Odd made his way over to the bench and sat down, unlatching Kiwi from the leash that held him back from his very important mission of finding the perfect spot to take his morning bathroom break.

The shade from a nearby tree, combined with a slight breeze was the perfect combination for a nap. Odd lifted his arms and placed his hands behind his head, enjoying the solitude.

While he wanted to forget the problems of his love life, even the picture-perfect nature that surrounded him wasn't enough to brush the uneasy aching in his chest.

Kiwi yapped, breaking him out of his melancholy. Odd looked down and found that he had brought him a stick to throw. He laughed. Leave it to man's best friend to help bring him out of a self-pitying slump.

Odd leaned forward to grab the stick but Kiwi jumped up and ran in circles, playing keep away like he always did. He grabbed for the stick again, almost falling off the bench. Finally, he was able to take hold of the stick and tug at it.

Kiwi tugged back with a little growl. Odd smiled and pulled until his dog decided enough was enough and let go. He wagged his tail, waiting impatiently. Odd threw the stick and just as he began to sit up straight he heard a distinct whimpering sound behind him.

It was like a monster from Lyoko had struck his chest and he felt himself freeze at the familiar voice.

"Sissi?" Odd managed to say, straightening his back abruptly to look behind him.

Leaning against the back of the bench was the very girl he was trying to forget, very obviously crying, and holding her head in her hands. It was as if she appeared out of nowhere and Odd felt himself flush at the impromptu meeting.

"Oh-" she looked around her shoulder surprised, vigorously wiping the tears from her cheek, as if he hadn't already seen the streaks that ran down her face. Odd's heart tightened at the sight.

"Shit," she said. "I didn't see you sitting there."

"Are-" he hesitated, lifting a hand towards her but thought better of it and retreated slightly, unsure of what to do. "Are you okay?"

Sissi sniffed and turned away. "Do I look okay?" She barked.

Odd visibly recoiled and shook his head. "Well geez, sorry. I won't ask next time."

Sissi crossed her arms but didn't move from her spot. She wiped a few more tears that spilled onto her face.

He didn't know what had made her so upset that she was brought to tears, but he didn't like seeing her sad. Suddenly, he had a horrible thought that her sadness had been brought on by her online boyfriend and the fact that she thought he hadn't bothered to show up the day before.

Odd's heart dropped to his stomach. As much as they bickered with one another, Odd knew it was all bark and no bite and even if he had inadvertently been the one to cause her tears in the first place, he didn't want to be the one who turned her bad day into a shit day. He dropped his shoulders, glancing up at her.

"Sorry," Odd said quietly.

Finally, she turned to look at him, a sad but pensive look on her face.

"Thanks." She said with a sniff.

Neither of them said anything for a moment, Odd sitting awkwardly on the bench. He wanted to confront her and ask if he was the one she was crying about but he had to remind himself that he wasn't supposed to know about any of that so all he could do was sit quietly, watching Kiwi run back with the stick he had thrown.

When his dog returned, he jumped around playfully, unaware of the thick tension between the two rivals. Odd grabbed the stick from his mouth and tossed it again.

"So," Odd said slowly, unable to sit in silence for too long and desperately wanting to comfort the crying girl beside him. "What's going on, you know, I am a pretty good listener."

Sissi let out a sound of disbelief but gave him a soft smile nonetheless.

"Yeah," she said, "listening to yourself talk."

Odd shrugged, relieved that the tension seemed to dissipate slightly with his words. "Hey, you gotta admit, I do always know what to say."

Sissi looked at her feet and after a moment of silence Odd thought she wasn't going to answer him but then she spoke.

"My dad grounded me." She said, finally.

"Oh," Odd said, not expecting it to be something that sounded so trivial. He shook his head. "Is it that bad of a grounding?"

Chewing on her lip, Sissi continued.

"He took my computer away. He said I was too focused on- well, talking to my boyfriend than working on my studies."

Odd's eyes widened. Her sadness was in fact about him but not about what he had, or rather, hadn't done. It was clear to him that her silence in the chatroom had been caused by her father rather than by choice.

The tears began to well in her eyes. "And now I can't even tell- tell him what happened. He's going to think that I dumped him or just don't want to talk to him anymore."

Odd felt a little helpless as she began to cry again, covering her face with her hands.

"It's just not fair," she said through sniffling. "We were supposed to meet yesterday and maybe I had the wrong time or place," She paused briefly and looked at him a little weary, "Or maybe he saw me with you."

"That wouldn't stop me from walking up to you." Odd said, and then once the words processed in his brain he blushed. "I mean-" he backtracked, "If I was meeting a girl, I wouldn't let some random guy come between me and my girlfriend."

Sissi's shoulders sagged. "What if he showed up, took one look at me, and left."

"Not possible." He said without thinking.

Sissi arched her eyebrow. "Don't patronize me."

"Look," he said, his blush refusing to dissipate and instead creeping up to his ears. "You're one of the most beautiful girls in the school. Everyone knows that." Odd shrugged, looking away. "He'd have to be nuts to- to just walk away from you."

Odd fiddled with his fingers, unsure if speaking close to the truth was a good idea. But Sissi deserved to know how wanted she was, even if he couldn't tell her that he was the one wanting her.

Since Odd was turned away from Sissi, he didn't see the light flush on her face from his words. When she spoke again, the despair was back in her voice and Odd turned to look at her.

"I just don't know what to do."

There was an ache in Odd's chest at the sight of her misery. He reached out without thinking and placed a hand on her arm.

"I could- I could tell him for you."

Sissi looked up abruptly and it occurred to Odd that if she didn't know who her digital boyfriend was, he most certainly wasn't supposed to know.

Odd blanched and let go of her quickly.

"I mean-" he faltered, "You're talking about your virtual boyfriend, right?"

Sissi simply nodded, the tears subsiding.

"Maybe I could- I don't know, message him for you. Let him know you didn't abandon him."

It was a stupid idea. Odd had spoken without thinking, something he did quite often, but he knew there was no backtracking now. Sissi had just seemed so broken by the idea of hurting her cyber love that he had to do something about it.

Sissi looked at him with wide eyes.

"You," she hesitated, "you would do that for me?"

Odd shrugged, unable to stop the blush from returning to his face. "Sure."

Sissi began to wipe the remaining tears off her face, including a few new ones that fell. Odd clenched his fists in an attempt to stop them from reaching out and wiping the tears away himself.

"Um, yeah." she said nodding, "that would- yeah."

Odd smiled. "See?"

With another sniff, Sissi looked down at him.

"I AM a good listener."

Softly she smiled and Odd noticed a beautiful blush warm her face. She looked him over for a moment and spoke again, softly.

"How are you going to find him?"

Odd blanched for a second before he realized a perfect solution to cover his faltering.

"Give me his name. I'm sure Jeremie could figure out a way to message him."

"Jeremie?" She said, sounding a little nervous about the idea of other people knowing her problem.

"I don't have to tell him what it's for." Odd said quickly. "Just- for a friend."

It occurred to him a second later that he was now referring to Sissi as a friend and he wasn't sure how she was going to react.

Sissi caught her breath. "A fr-" she stopped but smiled. "Okay."

Reaching into her bag Sissi dug around briefly. She struggled for a bit but before Odd could ask her what she was doing she finally pulled out a pen.

"I was going to write his name down," She said apologetically, "but I can't find any paper."

Since he wasn't supposed to know who her online boyfriend was, Odd shrugged and held out his palm.

Sissi's eyebrows furrowed but she handed him the pen.

"No," he said with a laugh. "Write the name down on my hand!"

"Oh-" Sissi said, grabbing for the pen again. "What if- I don't want anyone to see the name. What if he sees it?"

"He won't," Odd promised, shaking his head. "but I guess you can just write it on the inside of my arm then if you're so worried."

Sissi studied him for a moment, unsure if she should even be trusting him with what he knew was delicate information. She finally nodded.

"Okay," Sissi agreed, holding the pen up. "Let's see that stick of an arm then."

Odd pursed his lips but pulled up his sleeve. "Maybe I'll change my mind, if you're gonna be so mean about it."

Sissi moved around the bench to sit beside him, grabbing his wrist.

"Oh quiet. Am I wrong?"

Odd's ability to speak was frozen when he felt her warm hand touch his arm. The writing of the pen felt a little weird but he ignored it for the fiery heat that was Sissi's skin against his own. Her fingers were delicate against his open wrist, pressing against his pulse, and holding him just enough that she could steady herself as she wrote.

God, he had always loved how soft a girl's hand could be but the fact that it was Sissi's hand made it unimaginably better.

Odd could hardly breathe.

With Odd's arm crossed over his body, Sissi was practically leaning against his chest and was so incredibly close that the warmth of her body radiated from her. Odd's eyes were fixed on her face when she finished and she looked up, noticing how close she had gotten.

"Uhm," she said, caught off guard by their closeness. She capped her pen, putting it back in her bag but didn't move away. "Don't forget to write it down before you clean your arm."

Odd pulled his arm away, an unfamiliar nervousness overtaking him. He looked down at his username scrawled across his arm in flowery penmanship.

"Sk8r_Trix633?" He said smiling, raising an eyebrow.

Sissi blushed.

"He sounds like a cool guy." Odd said, rolling his sleeve down.

"He is." She said sharply.

Ever the optimist, Odd felt like he was on a roll and couldn't stop the words from tumbling out of his mouth.

"Why don't you give me your number too? I can let you know what he says."

Sissi's blush deepened and Odd felt his cheeks warming as well. But he didn't back down.

As Sissi reached for her phone, Odd realized the fact he didn't even have her number was a little surprising considering the amount of time she spent hanging around his group.

When Sissi handed him her phone, her perfectly manicured hands briefly brushed against his skin again and Odd cursed himself for the flutter it gave him.

After a moment, he smiled and wrote a contact name for himself. When he handed her the phone she looked down at it and frowned.

"Short King?" She said looking back at him with an eyebrow raised.

Odd grinned.

"Hmm," she said unamused but less sad than before. "Well, you're definitely short, but I don't know about the king part."

Odd noted that as she put her phone away, she hadn't moved to change the contact name.

"What are you even doing out here?" she said, leaning back to sit fully on the bench.

Odd smiled. "Well, I have a duty to my dog- I mean," he said, gesturing to Kiwi who was sniffing Sissi's legs, intrigued by the new visitor. "My dog has a dooty. If you know what I mean."

His smile widened as he grinned at his own joke. Sissi looked wide-eyed at his dog and suddenly stifled a giggling laugh.

"I'm guessing it's a serious duty." she said, rolling her eyes but finally giving him a full smile.

Odd felt a warm pulse in his chest.

"Yeah, a really big dooty, considering his size." Odd patted his knees in an attempt to get Kiwi to jump up.

Sissi laughed a little harder, a light bubbling sound that had never been present when they were around each other. The warmth in his chest crept up to his ears and he looked quickly down at Kiwi, trying to hide the effect her laughter was having on him.

At least she wasn't sad anymore.

"You know," Sissi said contemplatively, "I don't think you've ever told me your dog's name."

Odd nodded, looking towards Sissi carefully. "You never asked."

Sissi opened her mouth as if she was going to say something. Odd's eyes darted to her glossy pink lips a couple of times before he was bombarded with several kisses from his dog.

Kiwi had jumped into his face, licking him as he wagged his tail.

"Alright! Alright!" he said, laughing. "This is Kiwi. I believe you two have met."

Kiwi barked in response.

Sissi chuckled beside him as he calmed his dog down. Looking at her again, Odd smiled.

"Do you want to pet him?"

"Oh!" she said, a little surprised at the gesture.

Odd was unsure if she would want to be licked by Kiwi but the soft lighthearted side of her was completely distracting. He was on unfamiliar terms when it came to gentle gestures between himself and Sissi.

He held Kiwi up to her slightly. "He won't bite. I promise."

"Well," she said hesitating, "I really do like dogs."

Sissi smiled then and her hand reached out towards Kiwi's head. Kiwi, who would usually bark at her, was behaving quite wonderfully. He sniffed her hand for a moment before letting her rub his ears. Sissi gently ran her fingers through his thin fur.

"He's so soft." she said.

Odd nodded, watching her fingers as they moved against his dog.

"Yeah," he said, "he's great for cuddling."

Sissi nodded and leaned into Odd's space, giving Kiwi a small kiss on the forehead.

"I'm sure you are." she said, her voice changing into something he could only consider a dog voice. "You're just so cute, oh I wish I would have known how cute you were."

Odd felt frozen in front of her. It was the closest they had ever been to one another, other than throwing back-and-forth insults. They were so close, even in the spring sun, he could feel the heat radiating from her body. Sissi's demeanor was strikingly different from the harsh persona she put on in front of everyone. It was a completely new side to her that, frankly, Odd was finding hard not to be entranced by.

Sissi smiled brightly, scratching under Kiwi's chin. She looked up from her cooing and froze as well, finally noticing how close they had become.

Her smile dropped, only briefly, as her eyes darted around Odd's face. Slowly, nervously, she brushed her hair behind her ears.

Odd had never felt so completely compelled to kiss someone before.

Suddenly Kiwi jumped up and began kissing her face for him.

"Oh my god!" she shouted, pulling away and wiping her flushed cheeks. For a moment, he thought she would be upset but she laughed, moving to stand.

"Uhm," she said, clearing her throat. "It's a good thing you're cute, or I'd call my dad on you."

Sissi nodded sternly at Kiwi before turning even redder. Odd's heart fluttered at the insinuation.

"The dog, not- I didn't mean-" she said flustered, waving her hands in an attempt to backtrack her statement.

Odd laughed making Sissi scrunch her nose in the most adorable way, it made him a little breathless.

She was so surprisingly charming, that it was hard to remember all the reasons he was supposed to hate her. It made Odd's natural flirtatious demeanor surface. He was used to flirting with the cute girls on campus and a lump formed in his throat at the need to flatter the flustered girl in front of him.

He looked at Kiwi sitting on the bench.

"Looks like someone has a crush on you Kiwi." He giggled looking back at Sissi who was crossing her arms with a pout. He turned his attention back to Kiwi, unable to ignore the undeniable urge of flirtation.

"Gotta say, pal, I'm a little jealous." He focused on his dog, afraid of the horrified expression he imagined on her face.

"You always get the attention of all the pretty girls."

Seeing Sissi shift beside him, he glanced up at her. She was quietly standing there, still blushing, but she smiled softly.

It had been simple, really, but just having Kiwi as a wingman had somehow pushed their familiar tepid relationship into something more romantic. Not only that but having Kiwi as an icebreaker had lightened her mood considerably. He mentally reminded himself to give Kiwi extra treats when they got back to his room.

Odd grinned and began to speak but realized both he and Sissi had spoken at the same time.

They both let out a laugh, the romantic tension from before dissolving with their laughter.

"I'll see you around, scrawny." Sissi said finally, scrunching her nose in a satisfied smirk when Odd took the bait.

"Hey," He said, "I told you, I'm svelte." Odd smiled and put a hand on his chest, Kiwi moving to jump off of his lap. "It fits better with my charming personality."

Sissi scoffed, "Oh charm, is that what you were aiming for?"

"Only when the company is equally as charming." He said truthfully without thinking.

Sissi blushed but her smile didn't falter.

"Don't forget to contact him." She said, pointing a finger at him. "And make sure to tell me the moment you hear from him."

Odd made a faux salute, straightening in his seat. "Yes, ma'am."

Sissi laughed as she walked away and it was like lightning in his chest to know that he had been the one to put that lovely smile on her face.

"God," he said to himself when she had walked away and out of sight. "What are you doing to me?"