Jade paced in the front of the music room, hands clasped behind her back, slightly hunched over as she stared intensly at the floor she traversed. Band practice had ended just ten minutes ago, but most of the band had already left for home. Kai and 'Mega had bailed first, they'd promised their mom that they would watch Hope that evening. Alex had left, her stepmother, Bitchzilla, demanding her presence at a 'function' she was throwing. Gj had loitered around for a while, taking Ty and Jen up on their offer for a video game night at Jen's house.

So at the moment, only Sunny and Hyper were witness to Jade's apperant distress over something. Hyper was sitting at the upright piano, playing a slow and idle waltz as she watched her friend pace; while Sunny was sitting at their teacher's desk, going over something important in her date book. Both were acutely aware of Jade's distress, and they both knew their friend well enough to wait for her to ask the first question, elsewise they'd never get a word out of her.

As for Jade, she was still struggling to digest a realization she'd come too earlier that day.

It had been a normal January day. She got up that morning, got dressed, threw her things in her backpack and drove herself to school. She dragged herself through her morning classes, scarfed down some lunch and headed for the library to get started on that Christmas break homework that she never did.

She spent her lunch period half working on academics, half joking around with Kloud who joined her in the library for the same reasons she'd gone there. She played with Alex during Strings, and then partnered up with 'Mega, Kai, and Sunny to do a lab in Biology. After that, they headed out to the Strings classroom for band practice. And in doing so, she passed Kloud in the hallway - he'd told her he would be working on his Biology project after school in one of the labs. He winked at her when her friend's weren't looking, making her grin at him and wink back.

Then Jade almost stumbled right into a wall at the thought that passed through her head.

The thought had just been so blase, so serious, and so...well...Jade, there was no way she couldn't write it off as one of those annoying bi-polar moments. And of course, it had returned her to Kloud's kitchen weeks ago when he'd stolen her first kiss. That rush of primal heat that she didn't realize was possible. And the fact that despite her inital response, she'd enjoyed every second of the time she spent pinned against his back door.

And finally, the last realization that came crashing down on her in those few seconds in a crowded high school high way.

She wanted more.

And it wasn't just the kiss. She wanted more of Kloud. More of his jokes, his laughs, and his company. She wanted him as more than a friend. Much, much more.

Band practice she got through on auto-pilot. While she played, sang, and participated, in her mind she was turning her thoughts over and over.

Could this be for real?

She knew it was inetivable that it would happen someday - extreme attraction to the opposite sex was a given for any straight, living woman. But now? And for Hunter Kloud?

But then her heart whispered to her all the times that she had felt that intense attraction for him: that night in October when she'd showed up on his doorstep; every time that he called her 'Dragonet' her heart would flip; November, when Sari had asked her point blank if she had a crush on Kloud and Jade had lied; that kiss in December, and their reconcilation just after Chirstmas. Jade had known then, riding his new bike with him, that with the right set of circumstances she could come to love him. That intense, forever kind of love that both made and destroyed people.

So by the end of band practice, Jade had accepted that she wanted Kloud for a boyfriend. But now...now came the choice as to whether or not she would act on that desire.

Sunny purposefully nudged one of her notebooks off the desk and onto the floor, just in case Jade had forgotten that there were others in the room. And Jade, who could get intensely focused that she forgot her surroundings, jerked to a stop and looked up in surprise.

"Oh, what are you two still doing here?" she asked.

"Working."

"Playing."

Came Sunny and Hyper's respective answers. Jade blinked at them, then narrowed her eyes.

"You both can do that at home, what's up?"

"Shouldn't we be asking you that question?" Sunny asked. Jade scowled.

"I'm just...working through something..." Jade said weakly, taking a seat at one of the chairs.

"Want to share with the class?" Hyper asked cheekily. Jade rolled her eyes.

"Hypothetically?" Jade hedged.

Sunny and Hyper looked at each other, then back at Jade, "Sure," Sunny said for them both.

Jade sighed, and leaned back in her chair, "Let's say that I realized I have this huge crush on a guy."

Hyper squeeled in delight, "Ooooh! Who is he?!"

"Hypotheticals only!" Jade retorted, crossing her arms over her chest in indignation. Hyper huffed in disappointment.

"Fine..."

"Anyways, so, hypothecically, I have this huge crush. And I know for a fact that he thinks of me that way too. So on that front, it's all green lights. But even though I want it, and he wants it, is it the right thing to do? I mean, let's say that I really value this guy as a friend. Is it worth the risk of this great friendship?"

Sunny and Hyper both gaped at her. Sunny, unsurprisingly, managed to find her voice first.

"Are you insane?! Of course it's worth it you moron!" Sunny yelled, getting up from the desk so fast that she knocked the chair back. Hyper too, rose from the piano bench. Jade didn't look too surprised at Sunny's answer, but rather the vemenous with which it was delivered.

"It's a liable concern!" Jade defended.

"Jade, honestly, if you both hypothetically want to date, then these concerns aren't important enough to stay in your way," Hyper said firmly, taking the seat next to the brunette.

Jade was quiet for a moment, then spoke, "But...he's a really good friend, guys. It'd break my heart if it didn't work out."

"So what if it doesn't?" Sunny said, calm enough to take the other seat next to Jade, "If it doesn't work out then make sure that it works out on amiable terms and you guys can still be friends."

"Yea, just make sure that you're always up front with him, you know?" Hyper added.

Jade went quiet again, staring at a spot on the floor, turning over the words of her friends in her head. Finally, she nodded.

"Okay," she admitted, then she looked up and flashed them both a sly grin, "If I ever find myself attracted to a friend, I think this advice will really help!"

Sunny and Hyper both groaned, "Come on Jade! Just a little hint! Is it one of our guys?" Hyper asked egarly. 'Our Guys' reffered to of course the band guys. Ever since grade school the girls had refered to Gj, Kai, 'Mega and Ty as 'Our Guys', because that's what they were, and god help any other girl that thought otherwise.

Jade laughed, "Please! I would never, ever attempt to put a move on one of our guys. They're hot and sweet, don't get me wrong, but the bottom line is I'm not suited for any of them."

"What makes you say that?" Sunny asked, curious.

Jade shrugged, "Well, take Kai for instance, Kai needs a girl that's just as hard headed as he is, otherwise he'd get away with too much. I know I'm stubborn, but not in the way Kai is, Kai well...he gets off on arguing and we all know it. I enjoy a good debate, but I'm more likely to give just so I can get some quiet time."

Sunny and Hyper both started laughing, knowing every word was true.

"What about 'Mega?" Hyper asked.

Jade snorted, "Are you kidding? 'Mega is like my big brother, and he needs someone way more sensitive than me."

"Ty?" Sunny offered.

"Oh no. Ty needs someone who can remind him to have fun, you know, get him out of those funks he works himself into."

"And Gj?" Hyper asked, enjoying this.

"Gj just needs someone who speaks his language. And I don't just mean Spanish. He'd also need a girl who's really athletic because you are guarenteed that he's going to cook for her," Jade said chuckling.

Sunny leaned forward so she could look around Jade to Hyper, "She makes some good points about our boys."

Hyper nodded her head in agreement, all the while, Jade was mentally snickering for all she was worth. She wondered if they would ever accept that she'd been describing them. Ah well, as her grandmother and she loved to say, maybe yes, maybe no.

"So was this really just hypothetical?" Hyper asked, uncertain.

Jade gave them a sort of half smile, "Maybe yes...maybe no," she said cryptically, using one of her favorite sayings. Both Hyper and Sunny groaned again, this time in utter protest.

"Come on, Jade! Just a little hint?" Sunny begged.

Jade shook her head, "Guys, if, and I do stress the if, if I was really looking to start a relationship with a guy outside our group, can you blame me for keeping it to myself? I mean, think about it, there's eight of you and there'd be one of him. You guys would have to give me a chance to reel him in first!" Jade said laughing.

Hyper and Sunny considered it for a few seconds, and had, if begrudingly, to agree.

"Okay, but you would share this hypothetical boy friend with us eventually, ne?" Hyper asked.

"As if you'd let me keep a secret like that for long," Jade pointed out.

"To damn straight," Sunny agreed, eyeing Jade closely, looking for any hint that Jade actually had a crush, or that she really was just asking for the sake of asking. It wouldn't be the first time Jade had done something like this, presented a hypothetical situation and then asked for advice. More often than not, it was because of something she'd read and wanted to know more.

Jade just met Sunny's eyes, her golden depths sparkling with her usual dry humor.

"Well alright Jade, you're off the hook for now," Sunny announced, getting up to collect her things. Hyper followed, intending to bum a ride from Sunny since her house was on Sunny's way.

"Guys?" Jade called as they were leaving, both turned in the doorway. Jade was standing at the other exit on the other side of the room, the one that lead back towards the school. "You know that I'd tell you eventually, right? That I wouldn't keep it a secret forever."

"We know Jade," Hyper assured.

"Good." And she was gone.

Hyper and Sunny were silent on their way to Sunny's car. Sunny opened her door, and reached for the door lock when she paused to look across the car roof to Hyper who waited at the passenger door.

"Hyper? Jade said that Kai needed someone who was as hardheaded as he was, yea?"

Hyper nodded, "Yes."

"Do you think he looks for that in a girl? You know, someone who can argue with him?"

Hyper shrugged, "Well, Jade's right, he does seem to enjoy arguing, so he probably does look for someone who's willing to trade words."

Sunny bit her lip, and nodded her head in agreement. But before she could reach the unlock button, Hyper caught her attention.

"Sunny? Jade said that she thinks 'Mega needs someone more sensitive than she is, in what way do you think?"

The other girl frowned as she considered it, "I'm not completely sure, but I'd guess Jade meant that 'Mega would need someone who would not only put up with his brooding, but understand why he's brooding, and be pacient with him. And we both know, Jade's not pacient."

"True, true," Hyper agreed. Sunny unlocked the door, and they both got in.

It wasn't until they were halfway to Hyper's house that a thought occured to Sunny.

"Hyper? You don't think that Jade said all that about the guys because she knew that we'd be more interested in thinking that over than her 'hypothetical' situation with a crush, do you?" Sunny asked, wondering if she was just being paranoid.

"Well, she had to have thought that we'd be interested enough in what she had to say about the boys..."

Hyper trailed off, and both came to the same conclusion.

"...Oh she's good..." Sunny concluded, and considered turning the car around to track Jade down and wring out some answers out of the skinny little brunette. But in the end, the memory of her, standing in the music room and promising that it wouldn't be a secret she kept forever, kept Sunny on her course, wishing Jade the best of luck on hers.

~

Jade found his car in the parking lot, it was one of the few one's left. Wrapped up in her great grey trench coat against the harsh January weather, Jade waited for him. She wasn't completely sure what she was going to do, or how she was going to tell him -

That was when she spotted him, coming around the corner of the science building, hunched in his letterman to guard against the wind that was cutting across the parking lot. She felt a smile creep up on her, just from watching his familiar form lope towards her. His hair was braided still, Jade had done it for him at the library earlier. He couldn't braid his hair straight to save his life, meaning that she often did it for him.

He looked up suddenly as if hearing her thoughts, his face visibly brightened when he spotted her, making her feel warm despite the cold. He picked up his step, hurrying over to her. And suddenly, all thoughts of plans or well rehearsed confessions flew from her mind. Because this was Kloud. And with him, she never had to try. It just was effortless with him.

"You make any head-way in the project?" she asked, smiling at him like she had a secret he didn't know. Because well, she did.

He walked up to her, coming to stand in close, much like he always did. Kloud never had respected her personal space, and this time, Jade didn't bother taking her usual step back. Not that she would have been able too with the car behind her.

"I've got it half done," he answered, taking a little step closer, Jade didn't so much as flinch, "You had practice today?"

Jade nodded, "Yea, but Kai let us out early, no one was really concentrating today," she answered, leaning back against his car window. She watched him closely, practically hearing the thoughts run through his head, ones probably pertaining to her right hook, and his current proximity. He seemed to gather his courage, because he took another step forward. Now he feet were even with her own, but since she was leaning back against his car, there was still plenty of space between their upper bodies.

"I've been dying to see that new Spielburg flick that came out just after New Year's, I could use the company," he invited, not taking his eyes off her own. She smiled up at him.

"Sounds like fun, you driving?" she asked, her head tilted to the side and brushed some of her hair from her face.

"Sure I'll pick you up for the last matnee on Friday, that alright?"

"That's fine," she answered, still smiling up at him, her secret making the smile more impish than anything else. She could tell that she was beginning to really get to him. That he, sensing something was up, was getting ready to -

"Why haven't you pushed me away yet?" he demanded, then he flushed a little as if he hadn't meant to say that, and was shocked that he had. Jade grinned at him, this was just too easy...

"'Cause I was kinda hoping you'd kiss me first," she said, enjoying the look on his face as her words registered.

"W-What?" he said, which came out as more of a squeak. What else could she do, but reach up and pull him too her? He came willingly, and seemed half stunned that this was even happening. But it only took a second, and he was there. His lips moved with hers, almost tenative, testing the waters. But when she didn't pull away his kiss became a little more insistant.

Kloud leaned in close, pressing her up against his car. She felt his one of his hands sneak under her coat to rest against her hip, the other she felt tangle in her hair. And just as before, she was lost in the rush of heat that seemed to inflame them both. Jade reached up and pulled the hair tie that she'd leant him from his hair. Threading her fingers through it, his braid came undone.

His fingers brushed a small bit of skin exposed when her shirt rode up, and she gasped. Kloud gave a low groan, something she felt in his chest more than heard. But with her mouth opened, Kloud capatilized on it, and re-explored territory he'd only gotten a cursory exploration of before. His tongue swept her mouth, and Jade had to fist a hand in his hair to keep on her feet.

He pulled back, gasping just a little, she looked up at him, this time not bothering to hide what she felt. She let it shine in her eyes, and show on her face. But he didn't draw back, he didn't even seem all that surprised or startled. Instead, he leaned in and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her up from the car and against him. She wound her arms around his waist, and laid her head on his shoulder so that she faced his neck.

And it was there that she whispered her greatest fear, and her only request, "Don't break my heart, Hunter."

His arms seemed to tighten around her, but she knew that was impossible because any tighter and she'd probably be in pain. No, it was more his presence, he seemed to be wrapping more of himself around her in more way than one. And she knew, as her hands twisted in his shirt, that she was doing the same. Here, in this moment, they tied their ties to each other, all the tighter.

It was only a week before the Boys Vs. Girls competition that the band had planned out as one of their farewell junior year events. Basically, they divided the band up between the boys and the girls, each got to play five songs, and it was up to the crowd to decide which did a better performance. It had started out in good fun, but now, with only seven days left, the competitive spirit had taken over. The guys practiced at 'Mega and Kai's house, while the girls used Sunny's. Each group guarded their song lists viciously, though each could name at least half of it simply because they all knew each other far too well.

Alex sat on Sunny's bed, tuning up her guitar, getting ready for the practice. Sunny was bent over her own guitar, strumming the stings, and tweaking the sound. Hyper was playing on her keyboard, warming up, while Jen adjusted the drum set they had borrowed from 'Mega. For all the songs, it was rare for any of them to play the same instrument twice, since Hyper, Jen, Sunny, and Jade were all singing it meant they had to shift people around. Jade and Hyper were the only ones who could play all the instruments well enough for a performance, while Jen could play all of them except the keyboard, and Sunny could play all but the keyboard and the violin, and finally Alex could play everything except the bass, keyboard and drums, though Gj was teaching her the drums.

Jade was overdue, but they had time to wait. And they didn't end up waiting long. They heard the downstairs door slam open, and then slam shut, followed quickly by pounding footsteps up the stairs. Jade burst into Sunny's bedroom, flushed and out of breath, her guitar slung over her shoulder and resting against her lower back.

"I found it!" Jade screamed in triumph, and then proceeded to collapse face down on the floor.

The girls all looked at each other, and sighed.

"Found what, excatly?" Jen asked, amused.

Jade, still face down on the floor, held up one of her hands, in which she clutched several sheets of crumpled papers. Hyper got up, and took the papers from Jade, turning them over and looking at them. She wrinkled her brow as she looked over them - they were printed sheet music, a cover by Katy Perry.

"Uh, Jade? We already have our five songs, so why...?"

Jade pushed herself up onto her elbows and grinned at the room in general.

"We're dropping that Sugababes cover, and we're doing this song instead," Jade said confidently. Sunny raised an eyebrow at Jade's simple statement.

"What makes you so sure of that?"

"Read the lyrics."

Sunny, Jen, and Hyper all bent over the papers, while Alex carefully put aside her guitar and got up from the bed to come over as well. But before she could get a glimpse at the papers, Hyper started laughing uncontrolably. She was almost instantly joined by Jen, who had to sit down on the floor because other wise she would have toppled over. Sunny's eyes were glowing excitedly as she took the papers from Hyper and turned her attention to Alex. Alex for her part, took one look at that manic look on Sunny's face and starting backing up.

"Oh no," Alex said, holding up her hands in defense,"I told all of you, I'm not singing!"

Sunny waved the papers around, "Oh hell yes, you are. Alex this song is bloody freakin' perfect for you. I mean, Jesus! It's like Katy Perry wrote this song for you!"

"There's no way!" Alex protested. At that, Sunny thrusted the papers under Alex's nose. Alex, painted into a corner, had no choice but to look over the papers, her eyes reading the lyrics under the guitar melody. Her eyes widened incredilously with each word that she processed. "Holy crap!" she yelled, ripping the papers from Sunny's hands and quickly flipping past the first page to the second and third verses. But no, it didn't change, if anything, the lyrics became more and more accurate.

Jade had sat up by this point, sitting cross-legged on the carpet grinning a cheshire cat grin, hands around her ankles. "There's no way you can say no to singing this song; because none of us could pull it off like you could!" she chirped.

Alex looked up horrorfied, "But...I can't sing!"

Hyper shook a finger at Alex, "Tut, tut, you don't sing. You can sing perfectly fine, you just don't like too."

"Excatly!" Alex said, handing the papers back to Sunny, but Sunny wouldn't take them. Instead Sunny was looking at the other girls, tapping her fingers against her chin.

"Hmmm, well Hyper you take keyboard," Hyper saluted, "Jen...you take the drums, I'll do the bass for this one, Jade? You're on guitar." Jen and Jade both copied Hyper and snapped off a salute at their captain. Alex sputtered in protest.

"You're not actually thinking of changing the line-up!? The competition is in a week!"

"Which means we're going to really have to practice this one. But we'll be fine! This is great! The guys will never see this coming!" Sunny cheered.

"Because it's never going to happen!" Alex said empthetically, crossing her arms over her chest and raising her chin stubbornly. Jade, Hyper, Sunny, and Jen all turned their full attention to their friend, standing in the center of the room. Alex felt trepidation rise at the evil smirks her friends were shooting her. This was so not good... "Don't look at me like that, guys! I'm not singing!"

Her friends all started stalking towards her, moving slowly, as if they didn't want her to start running.

And suddenly, Alex got the overwheleming desire to bolt.

But Jade stood in front of the door, smirking.

Shit...Alex thought.

~

The crowd was excited, overwhelmed, and screaming when the girl's finished their fourth song. As it was, Jen, Hyper, Sunny and Jade had all sung so far - Natasha Beddingfield for Sunny, Jordin Sparks for Hyper, Vanessa Carlton for Jen, and Misery Buisness for Jade. The crowd was loving them, while the guys, who were up front, were shooting them begrudging looks of respect. The guys had gone first earlier that afternoon, while the girls got to play after the break. (they'd drawn straws just before the competition started. Short straw had to go first.)

Now it was time for the final song.

Alex swallowed convuslevily, unable to get the lump that had lodged there free. She turned to Jade, who was settling her guitar strap over her shoulder and making sure it was still in tune.

"I can't do this," she whispered to her friend. The younger girl lifted her golden eyes and looked sympatically at her.

"I felt the same way, Alex. But trust me, with the right song, it becomes easy. And this is the right song for you," Jade said seriously.

"Why?" Alex asked.

Jade grinned, "Because it's what you've wanted to say...for a while now I think."

Sunny bounced up after that, before Alex could think of a response.

"Time to change, Alex," Sunny said cheerfully. Alex grimanced, but knew there was no getting out of it so reached up and took down the two buns she kept her hair up in. Jade, Hyper, and Jen all made themselves busy, checking the amps, making sure the keyboard stand was sturdy, amongst other things, all with then intention of keeping the crowd from paying too much attention to what was going on behind them.

Alex was in short jean shorts, with a pair of tennis shoes, and a plain baby-blue tank top, and a dark blue button down shirt overtop. Sunny took the tails of the shirt, and tied them together right under Alex's breasts which served to not only accent her assests, but empahsis her tiny waist. With just those couple of changes, Alex went from typical tom-boy, to distintly female. Sunny grinned, and then fluffed Alex's hair, arranging it around her face. Satisfied, Sunny picked up Jen's bass and pulled the strap over her head. Jen and Sunny traded places, and Jen climbed behind the drumset, picking up the drumsticks, spinning one in her right hand hoping to dispell the nervous excitment she was feeling.

This was their last song, and it was the best, hands down. Just so long as Alex relaxed enough to sing it like they all knew she could.

Jen counted it off, "One, two, three, four - "

The song began softly, and Alex gulped but lifted the mike that Jade had slipped her; and walked forward to the front of the stage, Jade and Sunny moving to the side to let her.

The crowd was a little confused, but no one was more stunned that the four boys right in front of the stage.
"Alex is singing?!" Gj exclaimed, though it came out as more of a squeak. Before anyone could answer Gj's stunned question, Alex began to sing.

She was so nervous that her voice was almost a whisper in the mike, but strangely enough, it came out sounding coy, and shy, and almost instantly had the male population of the crowd loosening the collars of their tee-shirts.

Alex savored these next words, knowing that Jade was right - this was something she'd wanted to say for a while. To someone in particular...

The other girls leaned forward to their own mikes to provide the needed backup vocals, and at that reminder that she had her friends just behind her, Alex loosened up enough to put a little more attidude into the chorus.

The pearls comment was pushing it, but she couldn't deny the rest of the words. Middle school flashbacks came to her, which made her smile ruefully. Unconciously, Alex began to rock back and forth with the beat. This was a good song, Katy Perry's stuff was some of her favorite.

Alex could remember when she'd starting dressing a little more feminin with the intention of getting rid of her fan boys, it had shocked Gj and the other guys at first, almost as if they'd forgotten she was a girl. So it was with a growing grin, and Alex cradled the mic and crooned the next few lines.

Alex flicked out her arm, holding her left hand up as if showing off a ring that was there. She put the mic back in the stand, so that she could lean back on her heels and have something to keep her balance with.

She winked at the crowd, but it was the guys that roared back their approval. Alex was well known amongst them as a die hard fan of video games (and the ruler of Halo), Star Wars, cars and motorcycles, and to top it off, she looked like that. All it took was one coy litttle look, and Alex jumped the guy's dream girl lists.

All of the girls were having fun at this point, and the crowd was jumping.

The other girls all harmonized as backup while Alex whispered into the mic like before, letting her voice soften so that it came through the speakers as a kind of sexy croon. Then Jen began to hammer on her snare drum, and the texture of the song returned to pumping.

Alex finished off, her voice clear, perfect, and enthuastic. The girls all closed down the song, while Alex pulled the mic free of the stand, swung it around in a circle several times by the cord, grinning. She made sure to switch of the mic, and then absently tossed it over her shoulder, just as the song cut off.

There was a pause after the song finished, and then the crowd screamed its approval. Alex grinned, clutched the mic and took a bow.

As she straightened, her eyes found Gj in the crowd, and winked at him.

~

i heard this song and the lyrics and thought instantly: ALEX!!!! lol, i did this just for fun, so don't go thinking that this has to be used in the real plot line. *snicker snicker* just for shits and giggles! ^.^ review please!

for the song, think linkin' park.

~~

Jade growled she clipped her keys on her beltloop, and made her way to the front office. She had been told yesterday that the school was getting a transfer student down from New York, and that since her schedule mostly coinsided with this transfer student's they had assigned Jade to be the student guide. She really wasn't interested in doing anything. She had a band performance this afternoon during the pep rally, she hadn't gotten a whole lot of sleep last night, and to top it all off, she had to get up earlier than usual in order to meet this person at the front office.

She checked herself in the glass of the trophy cases, looking over her still half-asleep apperance. Sighing, she tugged her hair free of the bun she usually slept in, bent over, and ruffled her fingers through her wild curls. Snapping back up, she pulled her hair back into a high ponytail. Jade looked her clothes over, she'd just pretty much grabbed whatever her fingers found this morning in her rush to get to school. She had on a pair of jeans, a white tank top, with Kloud's button down shirt over top, left open with the cuffs rolled up to her forearms just below her elbows. It wasn't cold enough outside for a jacket, but it was pretty cool this morning. Her black Converse tennis shoes completed her rather rumpled look. Rolling her eyes at herself, she turned and crossed the hall to the front office. Opening the door she stepped in and searched the waiting area to the left.

There was only one person there, a girl, wearing a perfectly coordinated outfit that proudly displayed its designer tags and designs. All light, pastel colors that reminded Jade of tourist season in the summer. She noted the manicured nails, the perfectly permmed black hair, with the matching headband. The girl looked like she'd just stepped out of a magazine, or that 5th Avenue New York City threw up on her. Jade decided to go with the latter description, it was better for her own non-existant vanity.

Jade turned to the clerk behind the desk, smiling at her warmly, "Hey Ms. Johns, good morning so far?" she asked, leaning one arm on the counter.

"Good so far, Jade. The kids haven't arrived yet," Ms. Johns said blithely, looking up from her papers. The woman turned and looked over at the girl sitting in the waiting room. "Miss Lincoln?" she called. The girl got up, tucking her purse under her arm and shouldering her backpack, all without disturbing her perfectly styled hair. Quite the feat in Jade's mind. She was constantly having to pull her hair free of her backpack and occasionally zippers. "Miss Lincoln, this is Jade Oba, she's going to be showing you around today," Ms. John introduced, then turned back to Jade, "Jade, this is Sari Lincoln, from New York City."

Jade held out her hand, Sari visibly hesitated before taking it and shaking it briefly before pulling back. "Pleased to meet you," Sari said sweetly, her violet eyes shining with what Jade could clearly see was false sincerty. Jade felt her defenses rise.

"Likewise," she said dryly.

"Well, I'd like to see some of the school before classes start," Sari said, her nose in the air. She turned without a further word and stode out of the office. Jade watched her leave, amused. Turning back to Ms. Johns shook her head and chuckled.

"This is going to be fun, I can tell already," Jade said to Ms. Johns.

"You're going to need alot of luck Jade. That girl is a piece of work, let me tell you. All sweet and innocent, except for the real hoity-toityness you can see in her eyes. Looks at you like you're nothing but the trash in the street, that one does," Ms. Johns drawled.

"Then you best hope God grants me patience, elsewise I'll end up in ICE for slapping her," Jade remarked. Noting that Lincoln stopped outside the office, looked right, then left, and huffed. She whirled around glared through the windows looking into the office and bekoned Jade out.

"I'll be praying for you," Ms. Johns agreed.

"Have a nice day, Ms. Johns," Jade said and exited.

"What took you so long?" Lincoln asked.

"Gossiping about you of course," Jade answered blandly, walking down the hall towards the closest doors.Lincoln trailed after her, already annoyed.

"Gossiping about me?" she asked.

"Yeeep," Jade said, opening the door and stepping outside. Jade lead the way across the courtyard, dodging around the many groups of students miling about waiting for the bell. "This is the courtyard," Jade explained flatly, "it's at the center of the school building and from here you can get to the front parking lot," Jade pointed over her shoulder at the way they had come, "Or the back parking lot," she pointed forward in the direction they were heading. "Kids sit out here during lunch when it's nice. A couple of teachers have had their classes out here too."

Sari struggled to keep up, having more trouble than Jade did getting around the groups of people that unlike home, didn't get out of her way.

"How many kids go to this school?" she asked.

"'Bout 2600 to 2700 hundred, why?"

"You'd think you'd get a bigger school building then," Sari snapped, as then worked their way underneathe a broad breezeway.

"The school turned charter last year, so suddenly it is one of the better schools in the district. So kids come here from all over, Johns Island, West Ashley, Downtown, and Mt. Plesant. Some come in from Ravenel, or even Monk's Corner, which are a good 30 to 40 miles away."

"This is one of the "better" schools in the district?" Sari asked disbeliefingly, shaking her head.

"Yes. It is," Jade said around clenched teeth, "You a private school girl then?"

"Naturally," was Sari's answer.

"Then why didn't you go to one of the private schools in the area? We've got five."

Sari sniffed delicately, "My cousin goes here. My aunt wanted us to go to the same school so I'd have someone to look out for me."

"Who's your cousin?" Jade asked.

"None of your business," Sari said imperiously.

"Let me guess...Christian Lincoln?" Jade guessed.

"How'd you know that?"

"Lucky guess, you two share a last name." Jade said nothing of their other similarities. The curly haired girl pulled open a door and held it open for Sari who walked through it. "The cafeteria is up here on the left," Jade nodded at the huge double doors. One opened and a young man stepped out, backpack slowly falling down one shoulder while his hand were occupied juggling two cartons of milk and an apple. Sari's eyes widened in surprise as she got a good look at the guy. To sum him up in three words: tall, dark, and handsome. Sari licked her dry lips appreciatively, studying him intently from the tips of his spiky black hair all the way down to the toes of his Nike shoes. He looked up as if feeling the attention, and when his eyes landed on them, he suddenly grinned. Sari smirked, feeling the smug glow that she always got when a guy noticed her.

"Jade! There you are! We thought you were running late this morning!" he greeted the rumpled girl to Sari's right, making her jaw drop in total surprise.

"Gj, honestly, I told all of you yesterday that I had to act as a student guide today, remember?" Jade asked, walking over and taking the apple and milk from his so he could shoulder his backpack properly.

"Thanks. And now that you mention it, I do seem to recall you saying something like that," Gj finally rested his eyes on the girl next to his friend. He had to admit, from the perspective of a hot-blooded male, the girl was smokin'. Pale skin, offset by her long dark hair and those impressive violet eyes. She was a knock out. But then Gj's eyes fell on her designer clothes, the Prada purse, and the haugty angle at which she held her head. His interest in her vanished, and he returned his attention to his second breakfast that he cheerfully accepted back from Jade.

"Anyways, Sari? This is my friend Gj, Gj, this is Sari Lincoln, transfer student from New York City," Jade introduced, keeping one of the chocolate milks, opening it and taking a quick sip before passing it back to Gj.

"Nice to meet you," Gj said obligingly, and gave her no more attention, much to Sari's annoyance. The girl stalked closer to Gj, invading his personal space, and Gj frowned at her.

"Isn't that apple for Alex?" Jade asked before Sari could speak, giving Gj a quick out. Gj flashed her a relieved smile, and nodded enthaustically.

"Yup, she'll skin me if I don't get it to her before the bell. Morristone doens't let us eat in his class," Gj said, drawing back from the creepy-hot girl and heading for the doors at the end of the hall that lead outside. He paused only to glance back at Jade, who was standing there, arms crossed over her chest, a request in her golden eyes.

Warn the rest of the guys, her eyes said.

Gj inclined his head in wordless acknowledgement, You bet.

 

Once Gj was gone, Jade turned down the hallway to the right, leading the way again. Sari, who had stopped to stare after the hot guy for a second, had to jog to catch up.

"Hey! How do you know that guy?" she demanded.

"We've been friends since elementary school," Jade said simply, stopping off at her locker, which was across from the library. She spun the dial lock, flipping expertly through her combination.

"Is he seeing anyone?" Sari asked coyly. Jade stiffened, then jerked her lock open with more force than nessecary.

"No, he's not," she said, her tone even, but tense. Sari immdiately brightened, which made Jade grind her back teeth.

"Why not? He's really hot! I'm surprised girls aren't lined up to date him," Sari said.

"Because most girls think he's in love with his best friend," Jade answered flatly, finishing pulling out her driver's ed book, and her History text, then slamming her locker shut. Sari blinked, then frowned.

"Is he?"

"In love with his best friend?" Jade clarified.

"Yes," Sari said, aggravated.

Jade seemed to stop and think about it, then she shrugged her shoulders, "Perhaps. I don't know. All I know, is that most girls don't feel like they can get close to him because of Alex. The two of them are inseperable."

"Hmpf," Sari snorted in amusement, flipping her perfect black hair over her shoulder in a flawless motion, "We'll see about that."

Jade clenched a fist, and told herself in calm tones that she wasn't to resort to violence this early in the morning. No matter how deserving the target.

"Come on, I'll take you to your locker. Where is it?" Jade asked, changing the subject.

Sari pulled a piece of paper from her purse and looked it over. "It says A87," she said.

Jade considered it, and then nodded. "Yea, that's upstairs. Follow me," Jade said, turning on heel and marching towards the closest staircase.

"What does Gj like to do in his free time?" Sari asked.

"Eat," Jade answered without thinking.

Sari wrinkled her perfect little nose, "Eat? What kind of pasttime is that?"

Hoping she found a turn-off for the girl, Jade explained further, "One that Gj likes. The boy is a bottomless pit."

"Hmmmm...well he must work out in order to keep the pounds off then. He certainly looked buff," Sari cooed, and Jade felt like gagging. Gj was not buff. Gj was toned. There was a difference, one meant athletes roided out of their minds, and the other meant porportioned athletes who honestly cared about themselves and their health, not just how they looked.

Jade mentally winced as another thought occured to her. Alegbra, with the twins, and lunch with everyone, was not going to be fun with this little...permiscious chick following her around. Maybe she could foist her off on her cousin for lunch...

Jade pointed out Sari's locker to her as they approached it, "This is the math wing," Jade said gesturing. Then she pointed down the hall to their right, "if you go down there and around the corner, is the English wing. Take another right, and you get the home-ec classrooms, another right after that, and you're in the history wing. Another right after that and your back over there," Jade turned and pointed down the hallway to the left. Sari waved away Jade's explaintion however, and instead focused on her locker, unlocking the lock and taking a look inside.

"Ewwww, what died in here?" she asked, pincing her nose, Jade took a look inside. It was a perfectly normal locker, and Jade couldn't smell anything. Jade rolled her eyes and leaned against the row of lockers, waiting. Sari pursed her lips and slammed the locker shut. "Well I can't use this. The office will have to assign me a different one."

"Hon, these are the nice lockers. Trust me, the only other spares they are going to have are the piece of shit ones in the English hallway. Those are the ones where shit really does die."

"Well this is just unacceptable."

Jade rubbed her temples with her fingers so she wouldn't be tempted to wrap her fingers around that skinny little neck of hers. The bell went off, startling Sari, while Jade automatically dropped her hands, and began walking for her first class. "Come on! Our first class is just up here on the left," Jade said. Sari hurried after.

"What about my locker?"

"You can complain to the office if you want, but as I've already mentioned, there isn't a whole lot of space in this school."

"They'll make space for me!" Sari said firmly, striding past Jade to enter the classroom they had stopped outside, seeing how it was clearly numberd 205, which she knew was the room number for Driver's Ed. She smirked as she left Jade standing in the doorway, staring after her. But Jade quickly recovered and walked in after her. While Sari debated where to sit, Jade took her usual spot in the back. After a few more seconds of debate, Sari went to take the seat in front of Jade. But before she could, Jade stretched out her long legs and propped her feet up in the desk chair.

"Are you naturally this rude, or am I special?" Sari spat, turning and going around the row to take the seat on Jade's right.

"Nope. Always this rude. Nothing special about you at all."

~

Jade lead the way through the overcrowded halls, heading for Alegbra with Alvano. Checking breifly to make sure that Sari was still behind her, Jade forged ahead. She was dreading this next class. Because if Sari's reaction to Gj was any indication, she was going to latch onto one or both of the twins. Probably both.

Jade ducked into the classroom, her eyes immdiately finding the forms of her friends. Kai was in his seat, while 'Mega was sitting on his desk, with his feet in the seat of the desk in front of his brother. The two of them were talking quietly and seriously, probably about today's performance. Quickly, Jade found their teacher, who was sitting behind her desk. Before Sari could get her bearings, Jade put her hands on the other girl's shoulders and steered her right up to the teacher's desk.

"Ms. Alvano? This is the transfer student, Sari Lincoln."

Ms. Alvano looked up from her papers and smiled at Sari in welcome. As the two of them went through the standard introductions, Jade slipped away, making her weary way across the classroom to the last couple of rows where she, 'Mega and Kai sat. She'd taken her hair down during Driver's Ed so she could listen to her iPod without the teacher seeing her earbuds in her ears. With a sigh, she ran her fingers through her hair, pushing it from her face.

"Heads up you two," Jade said by way of greeting. Both of them looked up as soon as she spoke. She stood next to them, dropping her backpack next to her desk, and then nodding her head in the direction of Sari. Both, in sync, turned their heads slightly so they could catch a glimpse of the girl from the corner of their eyes.

"Gj said to watch out for her," Kai said, "she really that bad?"

"Pushy, full of herself, and convinced every guy will fall at her feet."

'Mega nodded decisvely, "Yup, that bad."

For her part, Sari watched Jade slip away after introducing her to their teacher. Ignoring what the teacher was saying, Sari took a look at her classmates. There weren't many in the classroom just yet, so Sari followed her student guide as she walked across the room. She seemed to be making a bee line for something, Sari looked around and her eyes landed on not just one, but two hotties, sitting towards the back corner of the room. Twins, Sari quickly realized, taking in the broad shoulders, the tousled brown hair, the strong and even features.

Amazed and throughly irratated, she watched her student guide greeted both of them in a familiar manner, dropping her backpack at a desk next to them both. She watched as the twins cut their eyes her way, glancing at her, assesing her, and then turning their attention back to their friend. Sari gritted her teeth. How was it that this rumpled, uncoordinated, unpolished little no one could garner such attention from these incrediably good looking guys?

She watched as their attention shifted completely, when the little upstart bent down and fished out a beaten notebook from her backpack and plopped it down on the desktop between the two twins. She flipped it open to about halfway and pointed to something, talking quickly, gesturing with her free hand.

Sari had to return her attention to her new teacher, who was starting to talk about make-up work and seating arrangements. It looked like this teacher did seating arrangements by last name, and her new desk had a row between her and those twin hotties. She watched, fasniated as the two of them bent over the notebook the girl had put between them. The one sitting on the desk top, reached up and brushed his bangs from his intense brown eyes, while his brother traced his fingers down the notebook page, talking.

"I was able to beat out a couple more stanzas for that song you two were working on, what do you think?" Jade asked, pointing to the words she written down in a hurry as she daydreamed on her back deck, watching the sun set behind the trees.

'Mega hummed the main harmony line, while Kai softly sang Jade's lyrics, tracing his finger down the page as he did so, liking how it flowed. When he got the end, he smiled up at Jade. "I like this, thanks alot Jade," he said. 'Mega nodded as well. He and Kai had been working on this song together, but had gotten stuck when they couldn't come up with a closing stanza that ended with the kind of tone they wanted.

"One time inspiration, I assure you. Don't know where the hell it came from to be honest," Jade admitted.

"Could we change this line though?" 'Mega asked, pointing to the second line down, "I don't like how this is worded, got anything else you could come up with?"

Jade looked at the line in question, frowning as the thought about it, her mind spinning through potential rhyme schemes as well as her mental thesarus. "Give me a bit with it, I'll come up with something," Jade said.

The teacher called the class to order, and they all took their seats. Altmega and Kai were uncomfrotably aware of Sari's heavy gaze on them then entire time.

~

Jade dragged her sorry self over to the lunch table, and dropped into one of the seats. She folded her arms on the table and put her head down. Her friends all looked on with varying degrees of pity. Gj, Kai, and 'Mega had spared no detail in explaining to the rest of the band who Sari was and what she was like. Gj explained about her invading his personal space, and the arrogant tilt of her head. Kai and 'Mega told them about Alegbra and how Ms. Alvano couldn't get a single equation worked out today because Sari was questioning her at every turn; trying to catch their teacher in a mistake.

"Where did you dump her?" Sunny asked.

"Did you stuff her in a locker?" Gj asked hopefully.

"No, I left her with her cousin," Jade answered thumbing over her shoulder blindly in the direction of the football jocks. During her brief respite in 3rd period (Sari had a study hall, while Jade went to History) she'd warned Kloud not to come to lunch, but to hide out in the library if he wanted to avoid 'the princess' as Jade had taken to calling Sari. Kloud had protested, stating that if she intended to foist such a 'creature' off on his best friend's table he was honor bound to go and help. All Jade had to do was detail Sari's meeting with Gj before Kloud saw wisdom and decided to hide out like she reccommended.

"I never thought I'd say this, but poor Chirstian," Jen said thoughtfully, looking over at the table made up of footballers and cheerleaders...and Sari. "I mean the girl looks like she wants to slam Sari's face into her french fries."

Jade raised a hand, "I'd help."

"Well, you've got strings - "

"She's in strings."

The lunch table gaped at Jade.

"Really?" Alex asked horrified.

"Yup. Apprently she's had lessons since she was seven. From a world famous violinist as well," Jade answered, not lifting her head from the table.

""Naturally."" Kai and 'Mega said at the excat same time in the same tone of one Sari Lincoln.

"Well, she's got strings, we've got rehersal," Ty pointed out.

"That does make me feel better. Kai? Are we doing Truth and Jusitce?" Jade asked curiously.

Kai ran a hand through his hair, "Yep. Number four on the line up."

"Kewl."

~

Sari frowned, and pursed her lips in distaste at the violin that the strings teacher had thrust into her hands.

"This is not a violin! This is a piece of firewood!" she hissed, but the teacher was already halfway across the room, calling the small group of players together. The other student that her fashionably inept guide had shoved her off on, looked over with her big brown doe eyes, and smiled kindly at Sari.

"Sari, that is a wonderful violin. It was a gift from one of our older teachers," Ashlin said, opening her music folder and pulling out several sheets of music and arranging them on the stand.

"As I said," Sari said imperiously, "it's a piece of firewood. I didn't realize the teacher would make me play today so I left my Stradivarius at my aunt's house."

"Well, just bring it in tomorrow," Ashlin chirped diplomatically.

Sari ground her teeth, this girl was a dolt. Kind to all, pacient, sweet, and even tempered. A dolt. Her student guide was preferable to this chick. But no, her student guide had ditched her, muttering something about rehersal. Like Sari bought that. The girl was no doubt skipping in order to do something unsavory - whore herself out perhaps. Or go bargin shopping. Sari shuddered at the very thought.

"When will...Jade be coming back?" Sari asked.

"Oh, she asked me to take you to the gym for the pep rally. She said she'd meet you there, after the band plays," Ashlin said shouldering her violin at the teacher's signal. Sari was unable to ask any further questions because the teacher began to count off. Sari looked at the music on the stand...ugh, amatures.

~

Sari trailed after Ashlin in the noisy, crowded, hot and humid gym, picking her way over the filty concrete covered in old gum stains.

"What are we doing again?" Sari all but screamed.

"Pep rally! There's a football match tonight!" Ashlin yelled back, "We're playing West Ashley, they're big rivals!"

Sari was in the sophomore section with all of her classmates, which was on a large balcony over the floor bleachers. The balcony also held a series of bleachers, but luckily, Ashlin grabbed two seats on the front row. Sari perched on the edge of the seat, not liking the look of the discolored plastic at all.

"Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls are you ready?!" some loudmouthed boy screamed into a megaphone. Sari rolled her eyes while the students all cheered.

"Well then, lets get this party started! Please welcome...the James Island Trojans!" Music came blaring over the speakers, and from one of the side doors to the gym floor, the football team came jogging out, waving to the crowd that cheered for them. They filed into the stands below the sophomore section, sitting in a few rows of seats that had been left empty. Judging from the number of players, it looked like both varsity and junior teams.

The 'pep rally' went forward with the stereotypical pomp and circumstance. Sari had to supress a yawn while her cousin was down on the floor doing a routine with her squad. The school band played, followed by something called a 'step team', which seemed to consist of a bunch of girls just stomping around. Honestly, the entire thing was just a waste of time. Sari was thinking she'd actually prefer to be in Spanish class - which she had this period.

Sari let her eyes wander around aimlessly, before checking her watch again, there was still half an hour before final bell. As she looked up, she noticed a young man, slipping through the railing along the balcony to climb down into the section of bleachers below and sit with the footballers. She could only see his back, but he had well defined broad shoulders, and long black hair that came to his shoulder blades. It was pulled back into a low ponytail. His skin tone was dark, and he had a small mole behind his right ear just like...

Sari's thoughts were cut off completely by the abrupt cesation of noise in the gym at the sudden and clear peal of an electric guitar. Sari along with her classmates all focused their attention on the gym floor, where a group of students had set up amps and speakers.

"The Notebook!" the announcer kid hollered, while the students all roared. One of the twins from her Alegbra class was standing in front of a mike, dark blue guitar cradled in his hands as he effortlessly made the instrument sing the opening strains of a familiar song. Then, behind him, her very own student guide joined him, tossing back her wild, unkept hair as she played the counter melody. Sari's focus slid from them to the rest of the band. There was the other twin, spining a drumstick in one hand from his spot behind one of the two drumsets. She also recognized the hottie from that morning, behind the second set. There was yet another great looking guy, long dark hair, asian features and a cheshire cat grin holding a bass. The girls, Sari didn't pay much attention too, but noted - a red head bassist, a bouncing black chick banging on a keyboard, a girl with her hair streaked with lime green holding an electric violin, and a blond-brunette standing off to one side, tapping her foot to the heavy beat.

A rock band.

This school had a rock band.

With four very hot guys.

Well, surprise, surprise, this school did have one advantage over her old one.

She listened as they played through a couple of songs, all covers. They were alright, but Sari thought that the guys would have better luck going solo without the girls. They'd sell better without the excess baggage. She crossed her legs primly as the fourth song started up, heavier and with alot more bass than she'd heard them play thus far. Also, the girl that had been standing off to the side, came up dragging a second mike stand forward.

"This is one of their originals!" Ashlin yelled in Sari's ear, startling her.

"They write their own stuff?" Sari asked, surprised.

"All the time!" was Ashlin's answer, "'Mega, the drummer? he and Hyper, the girl on the keyboard, collaberate on a lot of their rock and pop stuff! While Kai, the singer, and Jade do most of their alternative rock! That's not to say the rest of them don't write though!"

"Who did this one?" Sari asked, it was pretty close to what she would call heavy metal...

"Jade and the twins!"

Sari turned her attention back to the band as suddenly the playing lightened and 'Kai' began to sing at almost a croon.

On the chorus, the girl who'd dragged the mike stand up, sang with him, her voice high, even and as clear as a bell.

It was clear to Sari, though she was loathe to admit it, their playing had gotten better with this song. It was obvious to her that they enjoyed it because it was one of their own.

The students, who had been on their feet since the first song, were now jumping up and down, making the bleachers squeal and rumble in protest. Sari remained seated primly, not at all willing to even show how much she was enjoying the performance.

Here, Kai leaned over his guitar, focused and intense as his fingers flew up and down the neck, and his right hand a blur as he strummed. Jade, who was beside him, leaned back on her heels and her eyes closed was doing the same. The two bassists looked like they were having their own personal battle, and the two drummers were so insync with each other, Sari almost found it disturbing. The violinist was in 3rd position on her violin, putting so much pressure on the strings with the bow, that several of the bow hairs had snapped. She could make out the sweet, screaming high notes. Then there was the bouncy girl on the keyboard, her fingers splayed across several keys, playing so hard the keyboard moved on its stand.

The last notes faded, and the crowd roared. The band was all panting, but they grinned at each other, and bowed. Sari polietly clapped, her hands making no sound over the noise of the crowd. She stood up, seeing how all the jumping her classmates had done had made her personal space less and less, meaning she was in danger of getting stepped on. And that was just unacceptable.

Then, her eyes fell on that boy she'd noticed earlier. He was on his feet, hands cupped around his mouth, cheering loudly. Time slowed, for Sari, and the noise fell away to just an annoying buzz. The boy turned to face someone on his right, and thus she saw his profile.

It was him...

She couldn't believe it...what were the odds...?

But it was.

He'd grown up, gotten much hotter than his 11 year old self, but there was no doubt in her mind - Hunter Kloud was standing less than thirty feet away from her. He was taller of course, he had to be around six feet. He was lean, but fit, and wearing simply blue jeans with a dark green tee-shirt. He lifted one of his hands into the air, clenched in a fist and cheered again. The crowd was calming now, time returned to normal. One of the teachers had the megaphone and was making an annoncement of some kind. A dismissal, Sari realized a second too late.

She was immdiately over taken by the rush of students in a hurry to get the hell out of the school. Ashlin was next too her, yelling something about meeting Jade down on the gym floor and that she'd take her there. But Sari had only eyes for her Hunter, she tried to follow him. However too many people were between her and him, and as she craned her neck around a group of students, he was gone.

Jade was barely awake, knowing that her body was preparing to wake in expectation for the alarm that would go off in a few minutes. Things were hazy and indistint, but Jade was warm, and she was comfrotable, and her alarm hadn't yanked her fullly into conciousness so she saw no reason to rush. Languid and practically purring, she stretched her slim body, letting out a little noise of happiness before relaxing, and tucking herself closer to her bedmate.

Kloud grumbled at her moving while he was sleeping, thus disturbing him, but he settled down as she did, pulling her back into his arms. Jade smiled as she felt those long fingers of his tangle in her messy braid, and began to subconciously undoing it, running his hands through her tresses; calming her further.

Then the alarm on Kloud's night stand switched on, suddenly playing the morning radio news.

"...-igh of 57, and a low tonight of 42. Partly cloudy, but mostly sun this morning, which is hopefully help dry up the roads from the downpour last night. For later this week, it looks like we can expect more rain..."

"Hmmmm...turn that racket off," Jade mumbled into Kloud shirt, throwing one of her legs over his. Kloud made a noise of assent, reached over behind himself, and blindly slapped his hand on his snooze button, shutting the radio up. The two of them sighed in relief, and returned to their relaxed positions tangled up in each other. Kloud continued to run his fingers through her braid, until it came undone completely. Jade smiled against his chest.

And then, reality set in.

Jade froze first, and was followed instantly by Kloud. The two of them didn't move for several seconds.

"What are the odds of this not becoming awkward?" Kloud asked her.

"If you have to ask, you're already too late," was Jade's reply. Kloud sighed, stirring her curly hair.

"I was afraid of that."

"You never left last night," she said, her voice holding hints of accusation.

"You wrapped yourself around me like a boa constricter. I couldn't leave without waking you, and then before I could figure out what to do, I fell asleep myself."

"A likely story," Jade muttered teasingly.

"Well, if you're going to kill me, have the decency to be quick about it so I can get back to my sleep."

Jade giggled, and then started laughing. She clutched Kloud's shirt and laughed. When she calmed down, she sat up, and the blanket that had been wrapped around her shoulders that in their sleep they must have pulled over them both fell down her shoulders. Kloud looked up at her, the sun coming in from the window, striking her hair and turning it gold with touches of copper. She grinned at him, and Kloud blinked in confusion. This was...not what he expected.

He was startled further, when she bent forward, and pressed her lips to his forehead. "You are some kind of wonderful, my friend. Thank you," she murmmered there. Then she climbed over Kloud and bounced out of the bed. Kloud rolled over, and watched her stretch, rising up on her toes, hands over her head, before relaxing. She looked at him, over her shoulder, the open neck of the sweatshirt had been pulled aside, and was showing her neck and shoulder. She grinned at him again, and winked.

"School's in twenty minutes you know," she pointed out. Kloud jerked around and looked at his clock.

"Shit!" he swore, throwing back the blanket and leaping out of bed.

"Can I borrow a shirt for today?" Jade asked.

Hunter, who was rummaging through his drawers tossed a shirt her way. Jade caught it and went running through the house for the landary room. Thankfully, her clothes were perfectly dry. She shed the pj bottoms and the sweat shirt, and pulled on her underware, her jeans and finally the shirt that Kloud had tossed her way. It turned out to be a simple navy blue button down shirt that had thin, lighter blue pin stripes. Jade grinned and pulled it on, doing up the buttons. She had to roll up the cuffs a couple of times, but it fit her just fine.

Kloud came barreling into the kitchen, toothbrush in his mouth. He ran over to Jade and thrust a bottle of mouth wash in her hands.

"'Orry, no 'xtra 'mooth brushes," he mumbled around his own toothbrush. Jade just pulled off the cap, took a swallow, swished and spat into the kitchen sink. She was followed shortly by Kloud who did the same, and used some of the tap water to rinse. He tossed his tooth brush onto the counter, then opened the fridge and pulled out two bottles of water.

"Catch!" he called, Jade turned and caught the water, uncapped it and drank about half in several huge gulps. Kloud picked his backpack up from the corner he'd tossed it into last night, and stuffed his own water inside. Then he reached into the pockets of his jeans and pulled out Jade's wallet, keys and phone. "Here, don't go forgetting these," he said, putting them in her hands. Jade quickly pocketed her wallet, clipped her keys on her belt loop and flipped open her phone to check the charge. She was surprised to find that she had a message that wasn't from her parents, but from her cousin Jake. She dialed into her voicemail while Kloud was pulling on socks and shoes.

"Jade, is Jake. Look don't know what the fuck is going on, but Sakura came over to my house early and told me to take your backpack and leave it in your locker at school. I got the combination from her, who says she got it from your mirror. Whatever that means. Anyways, your stuff's waiting for you at school when you get there, which I sincerely hope is this morning. Call Sakura when you get a chance, whatever happened last night has kinda freaked her out. I'll see you at school."

Jade closed her eyes and mentally thanked her sister.

"What are you going to do about your homework and your books?" Kloud asked, pulling on his jacket. His eyes fell on her and then realized she didn't have one herself. He shrugged out of his jean and sheepskin jacket and held it out to her. Jade hesitated, but Kloud was having none of the stubborness he could see rising in her eyes. He turned her around and put the coat on her shoulders. "I can wear my letterman. Now, what about your books?" he asked again.

"Sakura gave them to my cousin, and he left them in my locker at school. Backpack and all. I'm good. Thanks for the jacket. And the shirt. And well...the place to crash. And well...everything, okay?"

Kloud grinned at her, threw an arm around her shoulders and kissed her temple.

"Jade, you are welcome here anytime, okay? Don't even have to knock."

"I'll hold you too that," Jade said.

They stared at each other for a long second. But then reality set in again, and they realized they were still running late. They scrambled out of the house, Kloud locking up behind him. They ran down the steps.

"Shoes! Jade! You don't have any shoes!" Kloud yelled, turning and running back up the steps. Jade looked down at her feet, and blanched.

"Crap!" Jade cried, and turned and ran back up the steps behind him. She had to stop however, and duck when a pair of Reef flip flops came flying out the door and at her head. "Hey! Watch it, Kloud!"

"Sorry! But hurry!" he yelled, coming back out, locking the door again and running down the steps. Jade grabbed up the flipflops and jammed them on her feet. They were a little big, but they would work for her.

"See you in History!" Jade called, throwing open her truck door and climbing in. Kloud waved and comfirmed it before getting in his Nissan and starting it up. They two of them sped over to the high school and peeled into the parking lot just in time to hear first bell. Jade parked in the very back of the lot, since there was no other parking spots, and climbed out. She didn't have time to check her reflection, but ran helter skelter across the parkinglot towards the school. She was aware of Kloud, who had pulled into a parking spot not far from hers and was now running for the school too, already a few rows ahead of her, pulling his hair back into a messy ponytail.

She grinned, and pushed a hand through her own hair, knowing it was a similar mess. She was glad she'd borrowed (okay, she was glad he made her borrow) his jacket, as it was cold outside. The flipflops didn't do much for her toes, but it was better than nothing.

Jade coasted into her first class that morning, plopped down in her seat, listened to the late bell as it tolled, and laughed.

She was glad that she hadn't lied to Kloud last night.

She really did feel better this morning.

~

Jade stopped into the lunchroom, wolfed down a sandwhich, and a carton of milk, made her excuses to her friends and dashed off to the library.

What she didn't know, was that her actions had already started to raise questions amongst said friends.

"Damn, is it just me, or has she been doing that alot lately?" Jen asked, sitting down with her lunch just in time to see her wild haired friend disappear through the double doors.

"Nah, it's not just you," Sunny said, munching on a french fry, "but remember she's got that AP History class with Coach Hill. Everyone knows it's a harsh class."

"True, but that's just one class!" Hyper pointed out.

"Don't forget her problems with math. She'd be copying Kai's homework daily if he didn't guard it like a virgin guards her virtue," Gj said, laughing.

"Virgin's actually guard their virtue?" Ty asked.

"Ty!" Alex said, laughing.

"And we go off topic yet again," Jen said, taking a bite of her cheeseburger.

"Right, right, Jade. We're talking about Jade," Alex reiterated.

"Why are we talking about Jade?" Kai asked for him and his brother as they walked up to the table. The rest of the band looked up from their lunch.

"We've just noticed she's been spending alot of time in the library these days," Gj said, already halfway through his second lunch.

"She's working hard. Pretty heavy semester this year, flip side, spring semester will be a breeze," 'Mega remarked dropping his backpack and taking a free seat next to Hyper while his brother took Jade's vacated seat between Sunny and Ty.

"We've talked about that," Sunny said.

"She'll have a study hall in about four more weeks, she's in driver's ed remember?" Kai added.

"You lot are just worrying over nothing," 'Mega said digging through his backpack looking for his notebook, "she's probably been spending her time at home reading, and just does her homework during lunch. Wouldn't be the first time."

The band considered it, and then realized it was typical Jade behavior to do just that. Besides, it was the start of the semester, Jade was sure to find her academic balance soon, and would no doubt be back among them at the table soon.

"I'm just wondering where she got that jacket. Haven't seen it before," Sunny told Alex, as they returned to their meals. Alex shrugged.

"Late birthday present? She told me that her Aunt Sophie gave her an Old Navy gift certificate. Looked like something they'd carry."

"Oh. Well that explains it then," Sunny admitted.

~

Jade flopped down on her bed with a sigh. Face down, she held her breath, and wondered if she could manage to knock herself unconcious before her parents got home. She rolled over and took a deep breath, probably not. She knocked her heels against her bed frame, kicking her feet and stared at her cieling.

A couple of years ago, she and her mother repainted her room. Jade had just read Midsummer Night Dream by Shakespear and wanted her room to emulate the forest where the play took place. The end result was a room painted green, then sponge painted with shades of dark and light green, blue and purple. She herself spent a weekend on a scafolding on her back, painting the ceiling a soft blue, like the sky at twilight. Her mother had let loose her inner artist and painted a tree in one corner, that had wistera growing in the branches. The end result was what Jade still thought was the perfect bedroom. It was quiet and calming, her own little corner of a busy world.

Her father, after she and her mother had finished repainting, had remarked that her bookcases which was made of a light colored wood didn't really fit the decor anymore. That started a project she shared with her dad as they built new mounted shelves that went all the way around the room, with the exception of her tree in the corner. Earlier that year, she and her dad had added another row to hold her growing book collection.

The more she lay there, the more tired she felt. She unbuttoned her jeans, and slid out of them. Then she crawled under her covers, made sure her cell phone was within reach, and settled down for a nap. It would pass the time, that would otherwise spent waiting.

Her phone buzzed on her nightstand before she could meet up with the sandman however.

She checked the number, a picture of Kloud, his profile, was on the display. She'd snapped the picture during their first project session at his house, just after he'd given her his number. He was wearing his reading glasses (Jayson said she now owned one of three pictures of Kloud with his reading glasses. He'd told her in serious tones to guard it with her life, because it was worth millions.), and had just looked at her from the corner of his eyes.

Jade answered it.

"You cannot keep that jacket. So don't even entertain the thought," he told her, not bothering with greetings.

"Too late."

"Jade. I'm serious, that's one of my favorite jackets!" he said, annoyed.

"I can see why. It's soft, warm, and stylish looking. I like it too," she said, looking at the jacket in question hanging up on her hall tree behind her door.

"You will return it."

"Eventually."

"Tomorrow."

"Alright, alright. I promise to return your jacket to you tomorrow."

There was a pause on the other side of the line. Jade knew it was because he was suspisious at her agreeing so easily. But he couldn't see any problem with her promise, so he relented.

"Alright, then. Tomorrow. Your parents home yet?"

"Nope. Dad'll be home in about half an hour, Mom an hour after that. Our 'discussion' will most likely be during or after dinner. Depends on where Sakura is."

"No arguing in front of the younglings?"

Jade snorted, "I wouldn't call Sakura a youngling. But the thought behind it is correct."

"Ask her to stick to your side like glue then," Kloud said.

"A good idea, but my parents want to talk to me, and I don't want to put Sakura in that position. I ran out on them, disobeyed, scared them, and ignored them, I'll pay the price for it."

"How refreshingly noble of you," he remarked teasingly.

"Noble? Please. Inetivable is more like it. I am merely playing the part of the resigned teen."

"Nothing is inetivable," he said back.

"Except death."

"And taxes."

"Ahhh yes. Musn't forget the taxes."

"Or the IRS will get offended."

"And offended IRS agents are not pretty."

"Regular IRS agents are not pretty."

"...damn."

"Ha! I finally win one!" Kloud crowed over the phone, his voice triumphant. Jade grimanced.

"You aren't going to let this one win go, are you?"

"Never! This is going down on my calendar!"

Jade rolled her eyes, "Kloud? That's sad."

"Sad it may be, but I still won this round."

"The dollar theather is doing a special on Addams Family flicks next week for Halloween," Jade said, changing the subject.

"Already hooked on that place are you?"

"Your fault."

"Too true. Need some company?"

"That'd be nice. Sushi again?"

"Sushi? I'm in. Which day is good for you?" he asked.

"Wednesday or Saturday, no band practice. You want to drive, or shall I?"

"I'll drive," he volunteered.

"I swear, that Nissan is the love of your life."

"Hmmmmm...nah. Just an affair I'm having. Flavor of the week, that kind of thing. My motorcycle on the other hand..."

Jade frowned, "You don't have a motorcycle," she said.

"Yet. Been saving up since New Year's. With my Dad chipping in as my Christmas present, I'll have enough to get...her."

"Don't ever use that tone of voice again for an inanimate object. You're freakin' creepy."

"You just haven't seen this baby yet," Kloud said, practically crooning.

Jade was about to respond, but her ears picked up the sound of the backdoor slamming.

"Damn. That's my dad. I should go," she said, her voice tired and resigned.

"Shall I put fresh sheets on the guest bed?" he asked.

"No. I won't be going anywhere tonight. I'm not that stupid."

"Never know..."

"I'll be fine, Kloud."

"Call me afterwards then, okay?"

Jade bit her lip, hesitating for just a second. But keeping him distant was pretty pointless now. After last night, he'd ceased to be just one of her 'school' friends. And although she wasn't going to admit it to him aloud, she was kind of glad. Kloud's point of view had proved valuable and comforting.

"Yea, okay. It'll be late though, eleven-ish."

"That's fine. I'll be up doing homework tonight. Lots of History to catch up on."

Jade rolled her eyes again, "How many chapters are you behind?"

"Eh...only four or five."

"Slacker."

Kloud let out a bark of laugher, "That's a bit of the pot calling the kettle black. How many Alegbra assignments have you yet to turn in?"

"Slackers know other slackers."

"Clearly."

"Bye."

"Talk to you later."

She hung up, put the phone on her night stand and sat up. Knowing that hiding out in her room was not an opition that her pride would let her take, Jade got out of bed, pulled her jeans on, and went to go help her father cook dinner.

~

She and her father cooked dinner in realitive silence, save for the usual cooking instructions or requests. "Pass that onion." "Coming through! Hot pot!" Etc. Most American households would find this not only odd, but boardline blasphemous towards the American spirit. You got a problem with someone, American tradition states you make it known.

But the Oba household was a different one. Japanese values, in particular the one that pretty much translates too: don't rock the boat. Spagettii was easy, and quick, and pretty soon it was simmering on the stove, waiting for mom to get home, so that they could start the water for the pasta.

"Your mom and I are going to want to talk tonight," her father finally said, as Jade was drying her hands with a dish towel.

"Yea, I know," Jade said, looking out the window at the herb garden, "after dinner then?"

"Most likely before," he answered, "your mother isn't going to want to wait."

Jade sighed and looked up at her dad. He was standing by the counter, his hip against it so he could lean some of his weight there. Jade had braced her hands against the sink, and looked to her right at him. She was struck for a moment at how old he looked, his hair thinning, and already half-grey. The lines around his eyes, which usually made his eyes crinkled when he smiled, adding something to the picture of happiness he made, now only added to the weight he bore on his broad shoulders. And to her father, in that instant, his young daughter looked years older than he knew her to be.

"I don't understand perfectly what happened," he said softly. Jade snorted and shook her head.

"None of us do," she replied.

"You never talked about that time with us," her father said.

"I know. I prefer it that way," Jade said, her voice going hard.

"Then don't be so surprised when me and your mom don't know what's going on in your head, Jade."

Jade closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and then let it out slowly.

"That isn't the problem, dad. Never has been," Jade finally said, her voice even.

"Then what is?" he asked. Jade looked away, pushed off from the sink counter and turned to leave the kitchen.

"Jade?" he asked, not repeating his question, knowing he didn't have too.

She sighed, but didn't turn. "I can't tell you," was all she could come up with.

"Can't, or won't?"

"Can't...yet," Jade said. She didn't wait for any further respone, but fled the kitchen.

~

Sakura came home, and made a beeline through the kitchen, completely ignoring her dad, through the living room, down the hall, past her own bedroom and straight for her sisters. Without knocking she threw open the door, went in, slammed it shut behind her, turned the lock, dropped her backpack and fixed her darling elder sister with a glare.

"You're home early," was all Jade said from her spot on her double bed, leaned against the wall, her acoustic guitar in her lap stumming some minor melody.

"Spill. Now."

Jade sighed, put aside her guitar, and patted the spot next to her bedspread. Sakura hopped up on her sister's bed, crawled across the space and sat next to her.

"You ask your questions, and I'll try to answer them as best I can," Jade said.

"Why did the pamphlet freak you out?" Sakura asked without preamble. She had had all day to think about this, and already had her questions lined up in her head.

"The pamphlet was for Beringston Academy. When I was eight, and you were four, Mom and Dad wanted to send me there," Jade said.

"Because of your reading scores?" Sakura guessed.

"Yea. I had a reading teacher I impressed. She called our parents, and it snowballed from there."

"You didn't want to go?" Sakura asked.

"No, I didn't," Jade answered. Sakura waited for her sister to continue, but Jade said nothing else.

"Am I going to have to draw this entire thing out? Question by question or would you just tell me what happened?"

Jade closed her eyes, "I'm human too, Sakura. And all humans have something that is better left in the dark. This, is mine, okay? The only thing you reall need to know is that seven years ago, mom and dad tried to send me to Beringston. I didn't want to go, and in the end, I didn't."

"And I have a feeling that what happened between mom and dad telling you that you were going to go to Beringston, and you not going, is a pretty big story."

Jade said nothing.

"Jade, what happened?"

"Seven years ago? Or last night?"

"You won't tell me what happened seven years ago. You won't tell anyone, will you? Nope, didn't think so, so tell me what happened last night."

Jade smiled a little at that.

"The pamphlet caught me by surprise. And reminded me of that 'pretty big story', quick, fast and in a hurry. I would have been fine, given a few minutes to recover, but then..." Jade shook her head.

"Then what?"

"It was just something they said, after you left."

"What did they say?" Sakura pushed. Jade opened her mouth, but was interrupted, by someone knocking on the door. The handle was tried, but upon finding it locked, their dad spoke through the door.

"Jade. Mom's home. Meet us in the kitchen please. Sakura? You stay in your room." The two sisters listened to him shuffle back down the hallway. Jade sighed, and hopped off the bed. As she was heading for the door, Sakura tried one more time.

"Jade, what did they say?"

Jade unlocked the door, opened it and stopped in the doorway. She turned around, looked at her sister with sad gold eyes.

"They said, 'only if she wants too'."

Sakura blinked, confused, but Jade reached out, closed the door and left. Sakura sat on the bed, thinking the words over and over. And then added them together with what Jade had told her before.

"Only is she wants too? Only is who wants too?" Sakura asked no one, confused. Her mind reeled, her parents wouldn't have used 'she' if talking to Jade about herself, they would have used 'you'. Which left...

"Oh...only if I want too. Want to...go...to Beringston?" she put together quickly, adding that line with what Jade had told her about her own experience with Beringston.

"Oh...oh," Sakura covered her mouth with her hand, and closed her eyes, "I get it, Jade. I get it. They didn't let you choose, did they?"

~

"You ran away. You directly disobeyed. You lied."

"Whoa, whoa. I'll admit freely to those first two, but when did I lie?" Jade interrupted her mother, leaning forward in her kitchen chair that sat opposite from her mom and her dad across the table.

"You said you were with a friend. You don't have any friends but the band. And yet you claimed you weren't with any of them," her mother said, tapping the table with her forefinger for emphasis.

"I was with a friend. Because I do have friends outside of the band," Jade said firmly, "I did not lie to you."

Her mother narrowed her eyes at her daughter, taking in her position, the way she held her eyes. Arthur put his hand on her shoulder, and her mother relaxed.

"Alright, we believe you. But you disobeyed. Ignored us. You ran away."

"Yes. Yes. And yes."

"Why?" her mother demanded.

"Because I needed to get out of the house."

"And away from us?" her mother said bitterly.

"...yes," Jade said after only a moments hesitation. Both her parents stared at her in surprise. "What?" their daughter asked, "I'm a teenager, guys. There are plenty of times in the past and in the future when this house, is too damn small."

"Jade! Language!" her mother admonished. Jade gave her mother a hang-dog grin.

"Am I sorry? Yea, of course. I don't mean to hurt you guys. But I would do it again, because I needed the time to cool off, to regain my footing. And I couldn't have gotten that here. Not without hurting everyone in this house. So...I left."

"And what happens the next time, Jade?" her father asked, "did it occur to you that running away from the arguements, these problems, won't solve them."

"Of course it occured to me. It also occured to me that we wouldn't solve anything if I started screaming at you either."

This time it was her mother, to put a hand on her father's arm. "She has a point there, Arthur."

"What happens if we stop you the next time, Jade? If we ground you? Lock you up?" her father asked, his voice hard and even, a tone she'd learned from him early in her life. His un-compromising tone.

Jade squared her shoulders, and locked eyes with her father, and spoke in that same tone. "Then the next time I run? Chances are, I wouldn't come back."

Her mother looked at her in horror, and then turned that expression on her father. Something flashed in her father's light brown eyes, but it was there and gone to quickly for Jade to name.

"You're threatening us?"

Jade didn't give under that attempt at stirring guilt, "You threatened me first."

The three of them faced off across the kitchen table, none of them moving.

"Is this...it then? Is this where we stand? You holding us at arms length, not talking, not explaining, and ready to run at a moment's notice?" her mother asked, slowly realizing for the first time, just how far Jade would be willing to go. And just how little she had suspected about her own daughter. What had happened to make her loose her faith in her parents like this?

"For now," Jade said slowly, not taking her eyes from her father, who still stared at her as well, "this is where we stand. I still love you both. I still want to live here. I have no intention of causing you any pain. But..." Jade trailed off, and shrugged her shoulder's ineloquently.

Jade didn't have the heart to even think the two little words that should have been attatched to the end of that thought. Instead she let it trail off and looked away from her parents, and out the big bay window that looked over the pond. Her parents sat in silence, and the setting sun bathed the room in shades of orange.

...by you.

~

Kloud was in the middle of the details of yet another war between France and England (honestly, even those two can't keep track of all the freakin' wars they've had.) when his phone began to buzz on his desk next to his elbow. He reached over, and checked the display.

It was a picture of Jade he'd snapped in retaliation for the one she'd taken with his reading glasses on. She had been laughing at his attempts to steal her cell phone, so she had her mouth open and she was grinning. Her eyes were sparking with little star bursts of gold...

Kloud gave himself a metal shake, followed by a slap.

"Poetry? What's next Kloud? Seranade?" he asked himself bitterly. He flipped open his phone.

"How'd it go?"

"It went."

"Went where?"

"Fifth circle of hell," was Jade's blithe answer.

"Fifth circle of hell? Where the wrathful fight each other for all eternity, according to Dante."

"You've read the Divine Comedy?"

"Airport book," was his reply.

"Are all your books airport books?" she asked.

"No, some of them are Jade books," he said grinning. There was no sitting with Jade Oba in a library without talking about books at least two dozen times. "So, wrathful?" he asked, turning them back to the original topic.

"Yea. Wrathful. Well, that's what it seems like to me at the moment. My parents threatened to ground me if I pulled a stunt like last night again. I threathened to run away and this time, stay away. Sounds kinda like wrath to me."

Kloud thought about it, "Wrath is revenge. And I don't think you'd use running away as revenge on your parents. I think you'd use it to well...just run away. To keep them from hurting you, and you from hurting them."

Jade fell silent over the phone. Kloud sat up in concern.

"Jade?"

He could hear her breathing faintly, but nothing else.

"Jade?" he asked again.

"How...why am I so transparent to you?" she asked finally.

This time Kloud was the one who fell silent, he stared blankly at his computer for a long second, and then his eyes looked up, almost out of reflex at his mother's picture on the wall. He always turned to her, when he didn't know what to do. What to say.

"I don't know, Jade. All I know is that with you...it's...effortless," Kloud said softly.

She fell silent again, but this time Kloud didn't call her name. Instead, he just waited, knowing in that simple and easy way that he couldn't explain, that she would answer when she found her words.

"Ditto."

~

i'm exhausted. *collapses* that was HARD fucking work. and damn if I know why.

Jade yawned as she walked into her house that evening, well after dinnertime, and kicked off her shoes. Her little sister was at the kitchen table, working on her homework, so Jade walked over to her, and dropped into a chair next to her.

"Hey kiddo, how was school?" she asked, rubbing her eyes.

Sakura rolled her own eyes and looked up from her WordlyWise english homework. "It was fine, but honestly, this wordly wise crap is going to kill me. I mean look at this vocab list: arbitray, indicitive, obvious, and so on. Do they think we're stupid?" Sakura asked, scribbling in her workbook furiously.

Jade chuckled, "I felt the same way, kiddo. But really, not all kids start reading at an early age, like we did."

"You started earlier than I did. I'm amazed you didn't burn your workbook."

"What makes you think I didn't? The moment the year was over? That piece of shit went up in flames, I can assure you."

Sakura perked up instantly, "Does that mean you'll-"

"Help you commit wonderful acts of arson at the end of the year? Yes. I'll even buy you the lighter fluid."

"You're the best Onee-san a girl could ask for!" Sakura chirpped, and went back to work a little more cheerful. Jade just laughed, and relaxed, contemplating the possibility of leftovers in her fridge. She had already had dinner, since Nikki had fed them all before letting them go after band practice, no easy task with four growing boys, and six not shy girls.

"So how was your band practice?" Sakura asked brightly, closing her workbook and putting it in her backpack, and then pulling out a math textbook.

"Just fine. Gj was snacking the entire time on a chicken drumstick, which totally pissed Kai off, until Gj proved he could do the song we were playing one handed, which only ended up impressing everyone. 'Mega took it as a challenge, and the two got into drum wars, which is always fun," Jade dutifully reported. She and Sakura were pretty close, and Sakura despite not having spent much time around her bandmates, knew them all by name, apperence, description, and personality, simply from how much Jade talked about them.

"How's Hyper and 'Mega? Last time we really talked, you said you thought there was something up with them," Sakura said. Jade frowned, and leaned forward, resting her elbows on the table.

"Still not sure what happened there. I mean, it's obvious that something happened. But the two of them are really closed mouthed about it, which in of itself is relaly odd. Makes me worried, you know? But as to your original question, they're better, if marginally. Hyper's back to laughing a little, and 'Mega doesn't glare at the cieling anymore. Well...not as much anyways."

"Well that's good. About Hyper specfically, I know you were really worried about her," Sakura said, flipping her math book open to her homework for the night.

"Do you have any homework tonight?" Sakura asked, curious.

"Ugh. Tons."

"You want to work on it together?" Sakura asked hopefully. Jade grinned, Sakura loved getting a sneakpeek at what she'd be working on in highschool. Jade thought it was cute, her little 6th grader sister, "helping" her with her 10th grade homework. Granted, the little bugger actually had helped her with a few of her math problems. Unlike Jade, Sakura got along fine with math.

"How about this, you look over my Alegabra homework, and we call it a night?" Jade said.

"But you said you have tons!" Sakura pointed out.

"Yea, I know. But I'll get it done tomorrow. You know how it goes, do History in Alegbra, and Bio in History and-"

"And English during Bio, I know. And I still think you're crazy."

Jade just chuckled, and pulled out her homework from her backpack, "Oh to be so young and niiave. Trust me, I'm perfectly sane in this case."

Sakura rolled her eyes again, "Hey! 'Tou-san got those shortbread cookies today, wanna break into 'em?" she asked gleefully.

Jade's eyes lit up, "Absolutly! Why didn't you say so earlier!" Jade sprang up and quickly assembled said cookies, along with two big glasses of milk and plopped the whole thing between herself and her sister.

The two sisters worked side by side on their homework, not so quietly for a while, putting a not-so-healthy dent in the cookies, and finishing off the milk.

"Gods, Jade, what are you thinking. You're forgetting your basic Alegbra rules!" Sakura admonished her older sister, "Honestly, don't they teach you anything? Exponents before division!"

Jade growled, and erased half her work, and started again, "Sometimes I don't think they teach us anything," she grumbled and reworked the problem, this time to Sakura's satisfaction.

"I'd be inclined to believe that, if I wasn't privy to your math scores."

"Gaki," Jade muttered.

"I am not a brat!" Sakura retorted, slamming shut her textbook. Jade winced and sighed, throwing down her pencil and leaning back in her chair. Using that insult against Sakura guarenteed a souring in the mood, and Jade hated when she let herself use it.

"I'm sorry, Sakura. You know I don't mean it."

"Then stop using it!" Sakura hissed.

"It just bothers me sometimes, imouto," Jade said, using the Japanese for little sister, which within their family was a way of showing affection, "you being so much better at this than me. Christ, you're four years younger than me, and already so much smarter."

Sakura looked at Jade, searching for any sign of insincerity. She didnt' find any, and she knew that Jade was telling the truth. Sakura huffed, and looked down at her math book.

"I'm sorry too, 'Ne-san. I mean...I don't intend to you know...show you up or anything."

Jade chuckled, and reached out and ruffled her sisters wavy black-brown hair. The younger girl squwaked in protest, and shoved the other girl's hands away.

"You don't show me up, you just...remind me of my own inadaquieces sometimes, babe. And that can be hard to take. I know I suck at math and on most days I'm okay with that. And on some, I'm not."

"This is one of the not days?"

"Guess so. But that's alright too, I'll get over it."

Sakura nodded enthastically, "Yea! Just remember you'd totally whip me in a literature contest!"

"Cute, imouto. But you're no slouch at english, either. I've just got time on you there. Give you're self a few more years, and you'll be giving me a run for my money."

"Would...would that make you mad?" Sakura asked uncertainly. Jade shrugged.

"I don't know. I really hope not. But even if it did bother me, Sakura, you can't ever let that stop you from trying your hardest, you hear me?" Jade said seriously, looking at her younger sister in the eye.

Sakura stuck her jaw out stubbornly, "Not if it meant you'd hate me!"

This time, Jade rolled her eyes, and reached out and pulled Sakura, chair and all closer to her.

"Listen up, imouto. There isn't a damn thing you could ever do, that would make me stop loving you, got that?" Jade said fiercly, "You are, and always will be, first and foremost my little sister. And the rest of everything can go rot. I don't care if you turn out to be the smartest person that ever existed, I'd still love you and be really proud of you, okay?"

Sakura looked at Jade, once again, searcing for any sign of insincerity. Once again, she found none in her sisters gold eyes, and relaxed.

"Okay."

"Good. You done with math then?"

"Yep!"

"What you got left?"

Here, Sakura wrinkled her nose, "History," she said in disgust. Jade laughed, and held out her hands for the textbook. Sakura reached out, dragged her backpack closer, and pulled out the slim volume for inspection.

"Ah, yes. Intro to European history. I'd almost forgotten. Well you're in luck, we're studying the same thing this year!"

Sakura didn't look convinced that history was anything to get excited about, even if her sister was studying the same thing. Jade just sighed, and flipped the book open. As she did, a paphlet fell out and into Jade's lap. Jade put the book down and picked up the glossy pamphlet, as she did, her eyes fell across the word: Beringston. Jade rapidly paled, so quickly that Sakura noticed the change.

"Jade? Are you okay?" Sakura asked.

"Sakura? Where did you get this?" Jade asked horasly.

"That? Mom and Dad gave it too me yesterday. Apperently my math teacher called them about this fancy school up in Columbia, and how I might be able to get in. Why? Are you alright?"

Jade didn't answer, but stared in barely forgotten horror at the picture on the front, which was of a vividly remembered brick building, with uniformed and happy kids all out front and smiling at the camera.

Just then, their father came in from the hallway, and greeted Jade.

"Oh there you are, Jade. Didn't hear you come in. How was practice?" he asked, as he went to the pantry looking for something. He obviously didn't find it, because he turned and his eyes landed on the cookies on the table. "Ah. Found those already did you? Leave any behind for me and your mom, you two?" he asked, making his way over. When he got close enough, he realized that his eldest was rather pale, and hadn't answered any of his questions. Concerned, he looked at her carefully, looking for the source of her distress, and his eyes fell on the pamphlet in her hands.

"Jade..." he began warily. Jade's head snapped up, and looked at her father, her eyes and face blank, but her fingers were curling around the glossy pamphlet, creasing it. At the sound of the pages crumpling, Jade looked back down at it.

To add to the scene, their mom walked in from the living room, cordless phone held against her ear, "...of course not. I can look after them on Wednesday. I get home early that day, so we could trade off after lunch...hold on Sophie," her mom said as her eyes fell on the tense situation in her kitchen. "What's going on guys?" Artemis asked, then, like her husband before her, her eyes fell on the pamphlet in Jade's hands. And like her daughter, she paled. "Sophie? I'm going to have to call you back, uh huh. No, we're fine. Just got to deal with something...yea. bye." she hung up the phone, and put it down on the counter.

"What's going on?" Sakura finally ventured to ask, looking back and forth between her parents and her sister.

"Sakura, honey, I need you to go to your room," their father said slowly, not turning his focus from his oldest.

"No. Tell me what's going on!" Sakura demanded, frightened at how her sister wasn't saying anything. At how she hadn't moved. At how the light had left her usually bright eyes.

"Sakura Lee. Now." their mother ordered in the tone of voice she only rarely used. Sakura looked for a second like she was going to argue further, but then slowly got up, and left the room, leaving behind all her things.

Once she was gone, Jade spoke in low, dull tones that held no sign of emotion, "You're sending her to Beringston?"

Her parents looked at each other nervously. Finally, her father cleared his throat and spoke quietly, "Only if she wants too. Which we doubt. But we wanted to offer it anyway."

"Only...if she...wants...too," Jade repeated slowly, flatly. She hadn't looked up from the pamphlet, but she did now. She looked up at her parents, and they looked at her.

And Jade couldn't bare it.

Her parents didn't have enough time to register that she had moved, before she shoved past them, and bolted for the back door with reckless abandon.

"Jade! Wait!" her mother called. But Jade didn't dare stop. She threw open the backdoor with a bang, and lept off the back stoop. She was instantly soaked by the rain that had started sometime after she got home, and it was cold. She didn't even feel it. Her bare feet pounded down the driveway, and then across her front lawn to her brand new truck that she'd only just gotten days ago, that was parked over by the tool shed. She distantly heard her name called over the roar of the rain, but she didn't bother looking to see who it was.

Grateful she'd left the door unlocked, Jade opened it and threw herself inside the cab. She dug her keys out of her pocket, turned the engine over, and jerked the truck into reverse. In the rearview mirror, she saw her father dart out of the truck's path. Jade continued to back up, and then switched to drive, not listening to her fathers yells. She stamped down on the gas, and took off down the dirt road, splashing violently through the pot holes. She turned on her windshield wipers, and flicked on the headlights, and turned onto the main road, leaving her home behind.

Her cell phone began to vibrate in her pocket, without thinking, she pulled it out and answered it, operating on autopilot more than actual thought.

"Jade! Come home now!" her mother yelled through the line. Jade hung up, and tossed her phone into the passenger seat. It was still for a second, and then began to vibrate again, this time, Jade didn't answer.

Jade sped blindly down the wet streets of her home town, no destination in mind, just the terrible urge to put as much space between her and her parents as possible.

This wasn't happening.

It just wasn't.

She had buried this. She had buried it years ago. Tied rocks to it, and sunk it in the deepest parts of her mind and soul. She'd cut it out of her heart, and thrown it away. So it wouldn't ever come back.

But it had.

Jade realized that she'd kept the pamphlet, and had thrown it on the floor of the passenger side when she'd gotten in. Furious, she pulled over onto the shoulder of the road, some back road, she didn't even know, reached for the pamphlet and then began to viciously tear it up. Again and again, she attacked the pieces until it was confettii, and then she rolled down her window and dumped them out into the rain.

But even then, it remained.

Tears welled up in Jade's eyes and she pressed her forehead to the steering wheel. Sobs burst from her throat, and she had to take huge gasping breaths because she felt like she was drowning.

It had never left, had it? She thought histerically. No matter the space she'd tried to put between herself and what had happened. No matter the years that had passed. No matter. It had never left her. It had dogged her footsteps, making each little motion forward pointless, because it put no distance between them.

What was she going to do?

Jade sat in her truck and cried. Cried the tears of a heart-broken child, and suffered from that heart that had never healed.

~

Kloud peered blearily out at the weather that had taken an abrupt turn for the worst while he had been having dinner at Jayson's. His best friend had told him he could sleep over, rather than driving home in the rain, but Kloud had insisted. Now he was almost regretting it, it was really coming down out here! He piloted his Niisan slowly through the flooded streets, until he finally came to his safely. He pulled into the driveway, and was shocked to see that there was a blue truck already sitting there. One that looked very familiar...

Then it came to him. That was Jade's new truck.

Kloud turned off his car, grabbed his backpack, and quickly got out. But Jade didn't get out of her truck, which is where he assumed she'd be, considering the weather and the locked state of his house. He didn't have a hide-a-key anywhere (though he'd been meaning to get one, having accidently locked himself out of the house last month), so there was no way Jade could have gotten in, save for breaking in.

Which...somehow...Kloud didn't completely disreguard as impossible.

He ran for his back door in the dark, and in the rain, cursing as he did so. And once he got to his steps, he found his missing friend.

Jade was sitting on his back stoop, knees to her chest, arms around her legs, and her chin resting on her knees. The overhang of the house roof offered her a little shelter from the rain, but not much, and she was soaked to the bone.

"Jade?! What on earth are you doing?!" he yelled as he hurried up the steps, and quickly unlocked and opened the door. He reached down, grabbed her hands and yanked her too her feet.

"Waiting for you," came Jade's quiet and almost completely missed reply. Kloud all but shoved her inside, and threw the door shut behind them.

"Jesus, you're soaked through! You're going to catch your death you know that?" he demanded, kicking off his shoes. In doing so, he realized that Jade wasn't even wearing shoes. "Wait here, let me get you some towels," he ordered. Dropping his backpack and cutting through the kitchen, making for the linen closet.

As he went, he quickly tried to think of a reason that would drive Jade Oba, a girl that he shared a tenious friendship with, to his backdoor at nine o'clock at night, with no jacket and no shoes. Further along that line of thought, what would upset her so much, that she would actually sit out in the rain, rather than just sit in her truck and wait for him?

Nothing good.

Kloud fought down his concern and worry, and concentrated on first getting her comfortable. She needed to warm up and fast, best way to do that would probably be a hot shower.

He found Jade in the excat same spot in his kitchen that he'd left her in. Just staring at the floor. He held out the towels, and she slowly took one with hands that were trembling. Kloud wrapped the other around her shoulders, and ran his hands quickly and firmly up and down her arms, trying to warm her with friction.

"Jade, you've got to warm up. Look, why don't you use my shower real quick? I can get you some dry clothes, and we can put yours in my dryer."

Jade nodded mutely.

Kloud tried not to demand answers like his racing heart and mind wanted to. Instead he lead her through his house back to his room and bathroom. He turned on his shower for her, making sure it was hot, and then dug some fresh towels out from under his sink, along with a washcloth, he put those in her hands. "I'll bring you some dry clothes when you're finished, okay? We can put your wet clothes in the dryer after you get out of the shower."

He watched as Jade seemed to gather herself, and finally seemed to focus on him, and where she was fully. "Thanks, Kloud," she murmmered.

"It's okay," he assured her, "feel free to use anything you need," he said and then left the bathroom, closing the door firmly behind him. Once there, he leaned against the door with a sigh.

What was going on?

Kloud set his shoulders and tried not to focus too much on it. But his thoughts whirled unbidden.

Had someone tried to hurt her?

Had someone actually hurt her?

Kloud berated himself, he should have asked. He should have checked her over for injuries.

Maybe someone in her family was dead?

Gods, maybe one of her friends?

No...no, she'd be with the rest of her band mates if that had happened.

And there in lie his central question. Jade was insanely close to all the members of her band. That was eight best friends that she could have easily sought out tonight for better comfort that he could offer her.

So...why on seek him out?

~

Jade peeled her wet jeans off, and quickly empited her pockets of her damp wallet, keys, and her cell phone. She checked the display, and dispassionately noted that she had been out in the rain for a good half an hour before Kloud had gotten home. She took her v-neck, long sleeved shirt off, shimmied out of her underware, and then hopped into the shower.

The hot water shocked her at first, then made her extremities burn at the radical change in tempature. She stood under the spray, soaking herself in the warm water, chasing the cold she had subjected herself too away.

"Gods, I'm an idiot," she muttered to herself, turning under the showerhead, to let the hot water slid down her back. She pulled her hair over her shoulder, braced her hands on the tile wall, and stood still, letting herself thaw.

She must have scared Kloud out of his mind, she realized dimly, and promised herself she would apologize as soon as she got out.

In all honesty, she wasn't sure what had brought her too Kloud's house in the first place. After she'd stopped crying she noticed that she was very near his house. She originally thought she would head over to Gj's house, which was closest, but instead, she had driven herself here. Something in her unconcious sought out Hunter Kloud rather than any of her friends, who logically, would have been her first choice. None the less, she found herself pulling into Kloud's driveway, getting out, running for his backdoor and knocking hard. He never answered, and Jade berating herself the entire time, finally noticed that his car was missing, and thus he probably wasn't even home.

And instead of going back to her truck, and heading to Gj's, she had crouched down on Kloud's stoop, folded herself up and waited. She let the rain fall on her head, allowing it to freeze her there.

"I've turned quite masochistic," she had muttered to herself, and then turned her thoughts back to Sakura, her parents, and Beringston Academy.

Seven years before, when Jade was in the 4th grade, her parents had attempted to send her to Beringston Academy, however the ensuing fight their desire caused, made a rift form between Jade and her parents. A rift that had never healed. Most days, they operated around it. Ignored it. Most of the time, it wasn't important at all. Jade still loved her parents unconditionally.

But...

She was never home much, either. With eight friends, all with their own houses, Jade always had plenty of places she could spend the afternoons, nights, and weekends. And then when they had started up the band, it just gave her futher excuse to spend time away from home.

Jade clenched her teeth so that they wouldn't chatter, as her temperture dropped in the rain.

It was times like these, that Jade couldn't ignore that the problems caused by that fight seven years ago, went deeper than just a 'rift'. It was something she studiously ignored, and loathed when she tripped over it, which was thankfully rare. It also meant however, that when it did pop up, she was always caught in violent surprise.

Truth was, Jade's heart had been broken in that fight. And that was something she hated admitting. Not because it happened, but because she had yet to forgive her parents for it. No matter how hard she had tried...

Jade snapped out of her reminisings and turned off the shower. She was pink from the heat, and the bathroom was full of steam. Stepping out carefully, she reached for one of the towels she'd set by the sink, and quickly used it to wring the excess water from her hair. She grabbed the next to dry off her body, and wrap around herself.

There was a knock at the door, which eased open very slowly. Kloud came in, one hand full of clothing, the other over his eyes. Jade laughed.

"Kloud, I'm covered," she said, still chuckling at the picture he made. Kloud for his part, peeked through his fingers first, as if checking to see the coast was clear, before lowing his hand.

"Well...can't ever be to sure," he said, and held out the clothes to her, "it's just some pajama bottoms and a sweat shirt."

"That's perfect," Jade said, accepting the folded articles.

"Uh...I'll just be...in the kitchen..." he trailed off, and then left, practically fleeing. Which only made Jade chuckle again, closing the door after him. She dropped her towel and pulled on the borrowed clothing. They were soft, clean, and smelled like her friend. Jade raised up a sleeve to her nose and inhaled, trying to place the scent in her memory. Spices, and pine forest... Jade thought. Odd, but appealing combination.

Once decent, she picked up her wet things, hung up her towels, and left the bathroom. Padding across the wood floors with her bare feet not making a sound, she found the kitchen. Kloud was plugging in an electric kettle, with his back to her.

"Where's the dryer?"

"Gah!" Kloud jumped and whirled around, almost dropping the kettle. His eyes fell on Jade, and he relaxed, "Jesus Christ, don't do that!"

"Do what?"

"Sneak up on a guy! Make noise when you move, for the sake of my blood pressure, please," he said, turning and finishing setting up the kettle.

"Sorry, I really don't mean to sneak up on people. People are just rather unobservant," Jade said. Kloud turned back to her after pulling down some mugs from a cabinet.

"Or maybe you're just too damn quiet. The dryer's through here," Kloud said, leading the way across the kitchen to a little closet beside the pantry. He opened the dryer door, and then reached over and set the timer for about half an hour while Jade bent and tossed her wet things inside. Kloud shut the door and started the machine up, closing the door after they left. "I've got hot chocolate and about a zillion kinds of tea, which would you like?" he asked, noting that the kettle was boiling. He switched it off.

"Hot chocolate would be great, thanks. Why so much tea though?" she asked.

"My dad travels alot for work, as you know. And he has this...tea fetish. Constantly buying up different flavors from all over the world."

"Hmmm, well, it is light and easy to carry. Not a bad thing to collect for a world travler," Jade pointed out, accepting the spoon Kloud offered so she could stir in the water in her mug that she'd already put the powder into. Kloud did the same, opting for hot chocolate as well.

Silence settled over the pair, as they stood in the dimly lit kitchen sipping their hot beverage. Jade couldn't help but shiver, it was cold in his house. Kloud, who had been acutely aware of Jade from the second she stepped through his door, noticed.

"Come on, it's warmer in my room," he said, leading the way throught he living room, down the hall and to his little corner of the house, "with it being just me most times, I don't really bother keeping up with the heat or the A/C."

Kloud's room looked large, simply because he didn't have much in it. All the traveling he'd done with his father after his mother died had curing him quickly of any pack rat nature, and his room reflected that. His bed was in one corner, along the wall with the main window, and had a small night stand with his reading lamp and alarm clock on it. He had a dresser, that served as his catch all for recepits, coins, mail, and a host of other odds and ends. And his desk was currently a mess of papers and textbooks, reflecting the active school year he was having. His desktop computer was there as well, with a large display, and the keyboard buried under the papers. His screen saver was playing, electric sheep, showing his computer's dreams. He also had one small upright book case that had three of the shelves stuffed with beaten up paperbacks. Jade, as with the first time, she'd explored his room, immdiately focused her attention on the pictures decorating the walls. All were simple, black wood frames, and of a similar size, and had pictures of Kloud's extensive travels. From Singapore to Rome, and Buenos Aries to Moscow, Kloud had pictures of it. Above his desk however, was only one single picture, a black and white photo of his mom, her body turned away from the camera, but her face looking over her shoulder with a grin. When Jade had first seen it, she had thought that Kloud looked a great deal like her. It was the eyes, they shared eyes. Not just in color or shape either. Both had that look of patience, and easy compassion.

Jade felt something settle across her shoulders, and looked up in surprise. Kloud was standing behind her, wrapping a blanket around her shoulders, pulling the wings of it forward across her chest. Once he was sure it was secure around her form, he pulled his hands back so that they rested on her shoulders. Jade swallowed thickly, feeling a familiar lump rise in her throat. Tears rose in her eyes as well, and Jade reached out and blindly rested her mug on one of the shleves of his bookcase. Without understanding it fully, Jade turned under Kloud's hands, and wrapped her arms around his waist, buring her face in his chest. Kloud hugged her tightly in return, one hand coming to rest at the back of her head, his fingers tangling in her damp hair. Jade shuddered in his arms, trying to hold back her cries, which left her hiccuping from the effort it too. Kloud just remained quiet, rocking them a little, as he smoothed a hand down her hair.

"I hate feeling like this," Jade hissed through clenched teeth, her voice still cracking as she spoke.

"Feeling like what?"

"Out of control. Weak. Helpless."

"Okay. Welcome to being human. Please take a number?"

Jade couldn't help the choaked little laugh that escaped at his dry tone, and held him tighter.

"You going to tell me what happened?" he asked finally. Jade didn't pull away, only let out a shaky sigh, that gave him goosebumps as it brushed across his chest and arm.

"Do I have too?" she asked in a small voice that reminded him of a fightened child more so than a resigned teen. He wanted to tell her yes, that she had to tell him. But unable to shake the frightened child image Jade unknowingly cast, he wasn't able too.

"No. You don't have to tell me. But you do have to tell me that you're going to be alright. That whatever it is that has happened, will resolve itself in due course so that it will cease bothering my friend."

"And if it won't?" Jade asked.

Kloud grumbled, "Then I give you permission to lie to me."

That made her laugh an easy laugh. "The problem probably won't resolve. But I will feel better in the morning."

"That'll do I guess," Kloud said, with a frustrated sigh, "Although I can't help but wish you'd tell me."

Jade fell silent, and thought about it. She'd never told anyone what happened between her and her parents seven years ago. No one. Not any of her family, not her friends. No one. Previously, she'd flinched violently at the very thought of telling anyone. But here, standing in Kloud's arms, knowing that he might wish for an answer, but would never pressure her for one, the idea of telling him, wasn't such a terrible one.

"I might...one day," she found herself saying.

Kloud kept his shock from showing only barely, that was a first. Jade implying both that their friendship would continue indeffiently, and that she would share more about herself in said future? He grinned, maybe he was finally getting somewhere with this prickly, curly-haired guitarist. She guarded herself with electric fences, attact dogs, and lots of landmines, maybe he'd made it through the mine field. Hey with her, he'd take what he could get, progress was progress.

He was interrupted before he could formulate an answer however, by a loud buzzing noise that came from the open door of his bathroom. They turned as one, and Jade realized quickly it was her cell phone, that she'd left on the counter. Kloud with drew his arms, as did Jade, and both felt the loss acutely, and both chose to ignore it completely.

Jade snatched up her cell and came back into Kloud's bedroom, looking at the display on the front which told her it was her house calling. It went to voicemail after two more rings, and her phone dutifully reported that she had 6 missed calls, 3 voicemails, and 4 new texts, all from either her house, or her father's cell phone. She sighed, and rubbed her forhead with her free hand.

"I don't know who it is," Kloud said softly, causing Jade too look up at him, "But I do know you're going to have to talk to them soon."

He was sitting on his bed, cross legged, and Jade came over and sat down next to him on the double bed. Pulling her legs up so she sat like he did, Jade flipped open her phone and pressed speed dial 1. It rang only once, before it was answered.

"Jade?" her mother's voice demanded.

"It's me," was Jade's plain answer.

"Where are you? Are you alright? It's been raining so hard-"

"I'm fine, mom. I'm safe. I'm with a friend," she said.

"One of the band?"

"No." Jade said simply, offering no further answers.

"Then...who? I mean...I've never heard you mention anyone outside the band," her mother hedged, hoping for a name, and thereby an address.

"It's a new friend," Jade answered, looking at Kloud out of the corner of her eye, "And a good one."

"When will you be home?" her mother asked.

Jade looked at Kloud fully, she absolutely positively did not want to go home. And she really didn't want to try and find another place to stay. Kloud read the question in her eyes easily, and nodded his head, giving her permission to stay.

"Not tonight," Jade answered, giving Kloud a grateful smile.

"You're crashing at this new friend's house?" her mother asked, stressing the 'new'.

"Looks like it."

"Am I going to have to call Hyper or Jen to find out about this new friend, Jade?" her mother threatened. Jade winced at the low blow. Her mother knew she hated causing her friend's any trouble on her behalf.

"Don't, mom. Please don't. Besides, they don't know my new friend. They wouldn't be able to help you."

"I'm not sure I believe you," her mother said, "You and your band friends are way to close."

Jade bit her lip, no one in the band knew about her friendship with Kloud. And at the moment, she really wanted it to stay that way. It wasn't through any fault of their own, but the band had a way of overwhelming new comers in to thinking that they had no place in such a tight-knit community. The band never did it on purpose, there was just alot of them, and they were loud, talkative, and could be over-bearing when together. And more than anything, as selfish as it was, Jade really like having Kloud as her friend, rather than the band's. If her mother called Hyper or Jen, or anyone else, her phone would be instantly flooded with texts and calls wanting to know what was up. And all Jade wanted right now, was sleep.

Looks like a bluff was needed.

"Fine," Jade said dully, "Call them. They won't be able to tell you a thing. I'll just deal with the consequences on my own."

There was a long pause. Jade felt a pressure on her shoulder, Kloud had rested his hand there, gently, lightly, just an assurance that he was there. Jade felt tears sting her eyes, and she smiled. Kloud was a wonderful friend to have.

Her mother sighed over the phone, "I guess I can't make you come home," she concented.

"No. You can't."

"Will we see you tomorrow then?"

"Yes."

"When?"

"After school. No band practice tomorrow."

"Fine. Goodnight."

"Goodnight, mom."

Her mother hung up, and Jade closed her phone. She stared at the little machine in her hand, not really seeing it, or anything as her thoughts whirled around in a tight little circle.

Her thoughts were stopped when Kloud reached out and took the cell phone from her, and put it on his night stand. Jade started, and shook herself, and looked at him. His eyes were soft, and kind, and he said nothing. Just got up, went to his dresser, picked up something and came back to the bed. He handed it to her.

A hairbrush.

She laughed, and immdiately began attacking her wild main. It was still wet enough that she'd be able to brush it out before braiding it back, but it wouldn't last long; so she went at it rather forcefully. So forcefully in fact, that Kloud reached out and snatched it away.

"Jeeze, you're gonig to rip your hair out you do it like that," he admonished.

"Oi, just because you've got long hair, doesn't mean you could do better," she jibbed back. Kloud raised an eyebrow at the challenge.

"Scoot back," he ordered, as he did the same, bracing his back against his wall. Jade rolled her eyes, but did as commanded, figuring she'd let him try, and when he realized just what a challenge her hair was, he'd leave her too it. Shouldn't take longer than a few seconds. But when she felt the brush in her hair, he started down at the ends, with one hand on her hair to keep it from pulling painfully. His long fingers teased out the big tangles, and the brush smoothed them away. Jade was shocked, well I'll be damned, she thought.

His strokes got steadily longer, and pretty soon he'd reached her scalp. The touch of his hands, and fingers, coupled with the almost hypnotic movments of the brush, was making Jade's eyes heavy.

"Mmmmm, I'm falling asleep," she told him drowsily.

"I can tell," was his amused answer. But Jade couldn't summon enough ire to be annoyed at him. She was too relaxed.

"You'll have to carry me to the couch, or guest bed, or whatever..." she grumbled.

"You can sleep here, I'll sleep somewhere else."

"'Kay..."

"Besides, I always did want to get you in my bed," he quipped. Jade huffed, able to summon up at least that much annoyance.

"Lech."

"Indubitability."

"You better not molest me in my sleep," she warned, her body starting to get really heavy, she was having trouble staying upright.

"I promise. Sleep, Jade. You need it."

She never answered. Kloud caught her with gentle hands before she could fall forward, and instead pulled her back against him. With her there, he could quickly and easily, braid her hair back to it would stay out of her face while she slept. He tossed the hair brush on the floor, and went about shifting her, carefully, so that she could stretch out.

He had her about half way, when suddenly she turned in his arms to face him, wrapped her arms around his torso, buried her face in his chest, tangled their legs together, and then relaxed back into boneless sleep. Kloud narrowed his eyes at her.

"That...is not funny," he whispered, accusingly. Jade smiled in her sleep, and Kloud briefly wondered if she was faking. But no, she'd never do this if she was awake.

Which posed the question as to why she'd do it asleep. But Kloud shrugged that off.

"Get your mind out of the gutter, Kloud," he hissed to himself, "she is distraught. And futhermore, if she wakes up and sees this, she'll effing kill me."

Kloud sighed and relaxed, hoping that if he did, Jade would relax her grip on him as well.

No such luck.

"I never would have pegged you for a cuddly sleeper. You seem more like the kicking type to be honest," he told her quietly. He glanced at his alarm clock, it was just past 10. Sheesh, what a night. He mentally reviewed his opitions for getting out of her grasp for a few minutes, never noticing how the room seemed to get dimmer. Or how his eyes drifted shut of their own accord. He never even noticed when everything ceased, and he himself fell asleep, turning instintively to the girl beside him. He unconciously arranged his arms around her, so that they would be comfortable and then he too dropped off completely. Content.

~