Disclaimer: I own nothing.

While in the middle of pouring just the right amount of milk into the measuring cup, Olaf suddenly leaned over to present a small white oval sitting directly in the middle of his hand to me. "So, what's the difference between an egg with a baby chicken inside of it and an egg with an egg in it?" He asked like he had no real idea. I rose an incredulous brow at him and opened my mouth to reply, but was cut off by a fellow classmate.

"They're the same thing, you dolt." Kida scoffed and turned back around to show him her heavy amusement along with a dripping whisk. Now that instantly made me frown in confusion at her. Oh, I just had to play along with Olaf now.

"Well...that's really confusing, because," I began and took the egg from Olaf's hand to hold it in my own palm while I pointed at it with my free hand. Looking up, I caught Kida's eyes in nothing but solemnity as I tentatively emphasized the shell. "This is a baby chicken's house." My face turned compassionate, complete with a mock pout, which made a few snickers erupt from around Olaf's and my table. They were clearly entertained, but I focused on keeping my face from breaking into the ridiculous grin it so badly wanted to.

"Just crack the eggs you three so we can move on." The teacher pronounced when she came up beside Olaf to check our progress. However, seeing as we were less than participating in baking, she felt the need to take the milk I'd previously measured and pour it into the bowl. She actually ended up snatching the egg from my hand and cracked it herself, making Olaf and I gape at one another in feigned shock and gasp like idiots with our hands to our mouths.

"How dare she?" Olaf whispered dubiously.

"May as well have broken my heart too." I agreed loud enough to make the teacher roll her eyes at us and again, scattered giggles came from all around us as she handed me the bowl like I knew what to do next.

Since our usual first hour teacher was out with the flu and spare substitute teachers were almost mysteriously scarce that morning, our class had been told to report to the Home Economics room (because she had a free period) where we were now learning how to make cupcakes until they found a suitable sub for the rest of the day. Well, some were trying to learn how to bake. Others were much too busy messing around with all the utensils surrounding our table. (Like me.) But I had a right to blame Olaf because he just so happened to choose the seat next to me and had scored an energy drink earlier that morning from one of his drama buddies. Olaf, Kida and I snuck drinks while the stand-in teacher went out for a minute and now I suddenly felt like I had a lick of ADHD because of all the shiny stuff. I wasn't sure if I liked the feeling or not. I still don't think I'll have another one for awhile, though. My hands busied themselves with mixing whatever was in the bowl in the next instant, regardless that I didn't know if I should have started yet.

When the teacher nodded her approval, she went about checking out other stations as she slowly made her way to the back tables to the front. "Ah, yes. Mrs. Potts?" Kida flipped around the other way to address the scrutinizing teacher better. "I understand that cupcakes are pretty trendy right now and I know that making a foie gras might be a little gloomy...but I would like to at least graduate high school knowing how to make some kind of pâté." While she was talking, her hands motioned as one held a gooey, chunky, dripping whisk and the other was covered with an oven mitt. The way she was being so energetic with the whisk, I thought a dribble of that horrid-looking batter would come and claim my face. Luckily, she put it back in the bowl, but now I had to look over my own batter to make sure it didn't look as unfortunate as hers. It wasn't.

"Hey, is she speaking English?" I whispered to Olaf, earning a touch of flour to the side of my cheek from him.

"Beats me. Didja ever try saying her full name out loud?"

"Yeah, what's up with that?"

"Funny." Kida turned back around with a sneer on her face. "You two are Comedy Central hilarious."

"I do what I do." I grinned. "And I would totally agree with you on the pate thing, but I don't know the first thing about baking."

"Then, maybe you could listen for a change, hm?" Olaf nudged my shoulder teasingly.

Before I could say anything more, a slightly peeved voice spoke up. "That's enough." Mrs. Potts dismissed all of our mindless comments and dove right into a lecture about something that probably made sense to people who could actually cook. Me? Not so much, but I was liking how my batter was coming out. It really didn't taste too bad either.

Maybe if they come out good enough I'll sneak one to Elsa.

When class finally ended, I found myself falling right into step with Hans Marsden as I slipped into the flow of students.

"Hello, Anna Crescent." Came his charmingly characteristic voice that could have made angels weep if he so wished. I was too busy wiping the taste of frosting off my lips and even rubbing my hands together to try to loosen stray batter that had ended up on my skin thanks to Olaf. Speaking of…

"Hans." I nodded in greeting at him, barely noticing that Olaf and Kida were nowhere to be seen. Thanks guys. My hand came up to pull at the strap of my bag and I cleared my throat. "To what do I owe this pleasure?" I asked after a few uncomfortable seconds for me. Hans just looked at ease. Like his whole purpose was to be vigilant at my side and I'm sure he would have offered his arm had the timing been right.

"What, a guy can't show his chivalrous side and walk a beautiful girl to her next class?" He directed a lethal smile in my direction before handing me a bottle of Green Tea. With a raised brow, I gingerly took it from him. Okay, so now he know what I like to drink?

"Uh, Thanks?" I made sure to let him see me put it in my jacket pocket so I could drink it later. He'd actually been doing things like that for a few days now and I was starting to get suspicious. I mean, who in their right mind would just show up one random morning, walk you to your classes, smile all the time at you, and just plain look like he was trying to court you?

At first I thought I was merely overthinking it because it wasn't my thing to outright judge books by their covers and that maybe he was trying to get on my good side because I was dating Elsa, but since he'd been going at it for more than two days in a row, I had to start questioning again. Especially when I surmised that he only came up to really talk and joke with me when Elsa was nowhere to be seen and when she was around, he'd be prompt and formal before excusing himself altogether. I can be wary of that strange behavior, right?

"Oh, I do what I do." Hans chuckled and I swear a few girls swooned behind me as I was pulled out of my musings. Looking around, I could see other students giving us odd, questioning looks. Like they couldn't believe Hans and I were walking together. Close at that, seeing as his arm would brush mine every other step and I made it a point to move over, only to get pressed back into him when a gaggle of students squeezed by us. "Hey, I won't bite." He added with another good-natured laugh, going as far as placing a hand on my shoulder. The lingering touch may have looked comforting from across the hall, but boy did it push a few less than pleasant buttons in me.

"Neither will I." I replied as steadily as I could, brushing his hand off my shoulder while I was at it. "As long as you keep your distance, that is."

"Feisty!" Hans moved away and gasped teasingly.

Regardless of my doubts with him, I suddenly found myself smiling for no particular reason. He did look ridiculous at the moment. But once I made eye-contact with a certain devious redhead, my face dropped into a more somber expression. Ariel looked from him to me and then turned around with an up-to-no-good smirk on her lips as she sauntered in the opposite direction. That look alone made me want to chase her down and clamp her mouth shut with some serious duct tape, but first things first.

"As much as I've enjoyed your chivalry, my good sir," I spoke up when we rounded a corner. "But my destination approaches."

There was a short apprehensive pause until he stepped infront of me with a certain fire in his eyes. "I'm just going to go for it," Hans announced and then placed his hands against the lockers on either side of me so I wouldn't try to escape. "How are things going with Elsa?" He asked so suddenly that I felt the first signs of whiplash. "Are you happy with her?"

Undaunted by the small space he'd surrounded me in, I crossed my arms infront of me with a displeased frown."I don't see how that's any of your business, Hans." I snapped with enough venom in my voice to drop a rhino.

Our eyes clashed heatedly and there was a tense moment as we stared unwavering at each other. He may have looked a little intimidating to any passerby, but there was no way I was going to back down from getting him to step off. Regardless if he was an angel in disguise himself. Because whatever Elsa and I did, during school or outside of it, should not have been at the center of everyone's attention.

Apparently, nobody else in that gossip-infested place thought the same. Ever since I'd gotten in that fight with Ariel a few weeks ago, the student body lifted me to a whole other place in the school's stupid hierarchy whether I wanted it or not. So much so, that I was up there right alongside Elsa and now that I was, I had the one thing most girls wanted at least a little bit of: popularity.

And that I found particularly strange because unlike other popular kids, despite all obstacles of puberty working against them, they still managed to be effortlessly hot, likable, fun, aloof and just plain cool. Yet, I was somehow added to the mix. Seriously, everyone liked the ones at the top of the heap and those particular cool kids always appeared gleeful and the majority of their crushes were not unrequited. Of course that image was just an image, considering that I was in fact dating one. On the outside she projected happiness and a lot of self-confidence, but there were times when she was just as sad and lonely as some of the other students and I had the tremendous chance to see her as a warm, caring and loving human being and not some cold-hearted girl. Nevertheless, I had no actual idea how Elsa handled all of that in and out of school. Now that I'd gotten a taste for myself? I didn't like it.

Popular. It just wasn't me.

"You're right. I'm being a bit intrusive." Hans thankfully backed off.

A bit? "You are." I snapped, actually taking the tea he'd given me and placing it back in his hands with a little more force than I'd anticipated. Hans actually looked surprised at the piercing way I looked at him right after all but shoving him away from me. If this was going where I thought it was going with him trying to schmooze me into something more, I needed to stop it lest he try stealing me from Elsa. Key word: Try. I'm not an idiot. I knew that amazing, yet subtle dash of determination mixed with longing look in anyone's eyes anywhere. Hans Marsden had a reputation of seducing younger girls when there was something in it for him. In my case, I didn't know what that was and I was not willing to even think about finding out.

Still, I knew that nothing would happen between us because I was too much into Elsa to let someone like Hans tear us apart and since he was her longtime friend, there was no way he would try the reverse effect. (At least I hoped he didn't try.) I just needed to be careful around him, even if he went back to only talking me when it was appropriate.

I could be a little untrustworthy about it, but I knew better since I'd witnessed a few great relationships fall apart because of this particular scenario of someone moving in on someone else's girl.

Some were: Oaken's wife and one of Alice's past boyfriends. Those two were the most important since it cost Oaken his marriage and kids. I swear I had never seen someone so broken before. My dad, mom and I did our best to comfort him, but he ended up burying himself in his work instead of dealing with it. Tour after tour, we patiently waited until he finally came around and when he did, he was almost a different person. That time around he was still partially happy like he'd always been, but mainly hollow. We found the reason out later because he told us that on one of his tours, he found out that he'd had another daughter added to his ex-family. Only she wasn't his. (Romie wasn't his biological daughter, but he sure didn't treat her any different than Felicity and Jackson.)

Months later, he came to visit before his last tour and eventually seemed to be in a good place again. I was happy for that, but all that he'd previously gone through hung in the back of my mind whether I wanted it to or not.

And then there was Alice. Since Oaken's ordeal, I had a hard time forgiving her about that one because I actually liked her boyfriend and it was obvious that the guy was a keeper. But the one time she foolishly decided to let her guard down, another unworthy twerp swooped in and stole her heart. Those idiots didn't even last two months before she was holed up in her room and crying her eyes out with me there to try to keep her together.

The sole moral of my musings were: I don't need this.

So I left Hans there lest I be tempted to break his nose too.

Black Bear Auto.

'...Sometimes when I'm far away from you, I get a little lost, a little out of my element. I miss the way your body burns, when we melt alone.

There are things in this world, that I don't understand. Like: love, war, gravity, or the lay of the land. But all of these remain mysteries, but one thing is for sure-'

"'You are worth living for...'" I quietly sang along to my iPod that I had plugged in to the handy stereo earlier. My hands moved on their own accord as I visibly scanned to see that the rest of the clamps were in place and I reminded myself to make sure they were tight enough afterwards. As the song built up, so did my voice. "'Sometimes when I let my mind run free...it never fails, it goes right back to you, and a smile takes hold of me. I miss the way your body burns when we-'"

"Hey."

Forgetting all about the song, I looked up from tightening the last hose clamp to see Elsa standing timidly against one of the three couches set up in the corner of the shop. My bike just so happened to be settled behind the cozy waiting area. But none of that mattered when a sudden happy grin slipped into place on my lips as I stood back up, absently wiping my hands on my hips. "Hi." I replied before frowning in question. "I-I thought you had a board meeting." Then another thought occurred to me. "Crap. Was I supposed to stay and help you? B-because I remember telling you that-"

"Anna, it's six-forty." Elsa answered on a light giggle, making my hands freeze at my sides.

"Is it?" I asked with a raised brow. "Already?" Looking around, I could see that only Petro, Giovanni and Danny were still around to put things back in order for tomorrow morning. Even several lights were off save for the ones directly over me. "Oh." I let out a distracted cough and then motioned for her to follow me as we walked toward the lockers, unzipping my uniform while I was at it. One.

Once school ended, I made my way back to the garage to make good on my measly part-time hours and promptly got caught up in working on my bike instead since it was a pretty mellow afternoon. Danny was actually very considerate of Petro and I. Because of our school schedules (and apparent knowledge on current times) he let us work for two and a half hours on Wednesdays to Fridays and then a full day on Saturday. And since I was oh-so close to finishing up my bike, he even let me spend the majority of my time with it. In short, he made our jobs super easy and often times I had to wonder if he even needed to hire us in the first place considering the slim number of hours we spent in the garage. Then again, I was sure he was keeping to his original plan and only hired us for extra help. (Which he desperately needed. Especially when it came to computers.)

"Have you thought about where you want to eat?" I asked as I stepped out of my coveralls, missing the way those pretty blue eyes fell along my freshly exposed front when I tossed my navy blues into the hamper. Turning back around, I pulled my extra t-shirt out of my bag and replaced it with my school uniform, which I'd hung up behind the TV so it wouldn't get too wrinkled, since I was now ready to split. Two. It was a little bothersome at first to carry an extra set of clothes around while I was at school, but it didn't matter when I eventually got used to it. Not like I can work on cars in my skirt. The thought was amusing and by the time I turned back around with a silly grin, I finally saw that Elsa hadn't thought to look away yet.

I didn't know what to think about that particular expression, but she had successfully brought a slight tint to my cheeks and I let myself glance down at my attire to try to see what she was looking at. "What is it?" I inquired, seeing nothing out of the ordinary other than the sliver of my stomach showing because my tank top had previously risen in my coveralls.

"N-nothing." Elsa snapped out of it and gave me a shy smile. "Don't you get cold just wearing that?"

That? Meaning jeans and a tank under my coveralls? I shook my head before pulling my t-shirt on. "Nah, my navy blues are surprisingly toasty." My voice dropped into a conspiratorial tone as I leaned in a bit, "I have reason to believe that they have built-in heaters." Keeping that particular look she'd just had in mind, I chuckled at myself and made her smile more genuinely while I was at it. Three.

"You'll have to let me try it sometime then." Elsa teased, pushing some of her hair behind her ear with a soft grin. I watched her glorious hair as it shimmered like the top of a snow-covered mountain under the lights of the garage, making my breath catch in my throat.

Honestly, the image of Elsa Mariani with her hair pulled up out of the way, those arms of hers covered in grease smudges, eyes focused and attentive and wearing coveralls? Think I'd like to see that. "Why? You have crazy body heat." I commented instead as I slung my bag over my shoulder and left her there to ponder while I made my way to the sink so I could try to wash off some of the black coating my hands.

"Hey, cucciola. Did you finally find the will to leave?" Petro's face appeared behind me, causing me to grin at him.

"If I didn't have a very stunning reminder that 'yes, there is life out there,' I probably wouldn't have had the absurd thought to stop." Figuring that my hands were as clean as they were going to get, I dried them and then followed him back out to where Elsa was still waiting for me.

"Yeah. Careful there, Anna. You just might turn out to be a workaholic." Petro warned teasingly.

"What's wrong with that?" I winked at him.

"Oh nothing." He shrugged, reaching up to pull my beanie over my eyes. "Unless you want to be married to your job. Or how do they say it? Make it your mistress or something?"

"I don't know what you're talking about." I replied, adjusting my beanie to its original position.

"Yes, you do."

"Nope."

"Yes."

"Wait. What are we talking about again?" I ended up deadpanning after catching sight of Elsa once more. Petro let out a snort of laughter and I met him with a chuckle.

Actually, she was busy carefully inspecting the motorcycle with the cutest crease in her brow I'd seen all day. Petro gave my shoulder a gentle nudge, which I couldn't resist giving him a playful shove as I came up beside her and instead of taking her hand, I offered my arm. Blue eyes met mine briefly as she looped her hand under my arm.

"Are you almost done then?" Elsa gestured to the bike.

"Just about. I just need to take the carb out and clean the bowl, float, fuel valve, the jets and then put it all back together. Once that's done, there are a few plugs I need to replace, get a matte paint job and voila, we're ready for that aforementioned date." I couldn't stop the stupid smile from smearing across my face because I was almost done. If I timed it right, I would be able to take it for a test run by the next week and after that, I would surprise Elsa by picking her up for school one morning. It only needed to stop snowing first before Letizia would even consider letting us leave the parking lot.

"Okay." Blue eyes were as confused as a water flea as she slightly tilted her head at me. "I-I'll try to pretend that I completely understood what you just said."

I rolled my eyes and stated mock gravely. "Snow Paw, we definitely need to educate you on some of this stuff." Of course, my garage talk was simple baby talk compared to Danny and Giovanni's own automotive shop language. Now, when they got to talking about engine parts and whatnot, they went total Nerd Mode and even Petro would be able to keep up with what they were saying from time to time.

Elsa didn't need to know that just yet though.

"I, at least, know how to change oil now. With guidance." Elsa ducked her head sheepishly, making me give in so I could playfully nudge my temple into her jaw.

"I'll take that any day." I chuckled, placing a chaste peck to her cheek before tugging her along. "Now, let's get out of here so we could go eat." I wouldn't tell her that I had heard her poor stomach growl three times until later.

Driving the Smurfette.

"...well, holy moly. Me, oh, my. You're the apple of my eye. Girl, I never loved one like you."

"Hey." I said along with the song before she changed the radio station.

"I feel like a fool. And it's too late, baby, now it's too-"

Again she changed it, making the words next words of the lyrics die in my throat. The funny thing was that I knew all the songs that were playing, just not what she was looking for. Though I didn't mind because any time spent with Elsa Mariani was a time well spent and I couldn't think of a better way to close a lousy school/work evening.

"I feel the earth move under my feet. I feel the sky tumbling down. Tumbling down. I feel my heart start a-trembling whenever you're aro-"

Changed again. "That was a good song." I commented when we stopped at the light. "Do you have a particular song in mind? N-not that I mind." I added. Elsa shook her head and continued searching.

"...I want you to be mine, lady. To hold your body close-"

Okay. That one I didn't know, but that didn't mean I'd be looking for it later. A few more songs rolled by and when one particular guitar riff started on a random channel, I frantically grabbed her hand. "W-wait, wait, wait. Leave it!" I protested, almost causing us to run off the road, but luckily she recovered and even had the audacity to pinch my hand as punishment.

"Ow! What was that for?" I asked even though I knew the answer, resisting the urge to pout at her.

"Hi, Gattina." Elsa said sweetly instead.

"Buon giorno, Snow Paw." I stuck my tongue out childishly.

"That was actually pretty good." She stated after moving forward again. "Bravissima."

"Mustang Sally. Guess you better slow your Mustang down. Mustang Sally, think you better slow your Mustang down."

And then Elsa looked back at me from the corner of her eyes skeptically. "And just what is this, now?"

"Wilson Pickett, of course." I declared, choosing not to remove my hand from hers for the time being. "Don't tell me you've never heard of Mustang Sally." My thumb swirled against the underside of her thumb as I smirked at her. She kept her eyes on the road, but I could see that she was smiling at the tender way I slid my fingers between hers so I could grip the stick-shift too.

"Um, no?" She took the chance to glance apologetically at me. I held back a knowing grin.

"...been running all over the town now. Oh! I guess I'll have to put your flat feet on the ground."

"And don't you dare say that we can't listen to it because you have a beetle and not a mustang." I teasingly squeezed her hand and she finally turned to smile at me, elaborating on her guilty face for having thought that exact thing. I didn't hesitate to laugh at her adorableness that time. And she calls me a dork.

"All you want to do is ride around Sally, ride, Sally, ride..."

Kitty's Café.

Since Elsa seemed a little iffy about Djali's as a first pick, I decided to try another place that Sen recommended the other night after I informed her about the Esmeralda mishap. And the fact that I wanted somewhere good to eat and Elsa just so happened to have left it to me to choose because she wasn't sure either. Anyway, Sen guaranteed that Kitty's was a sweet little hang-out that served extremely hot chicken wings when you were in the mood for it and what got me was that they had all day breakfast. And who doesn't enjoy a plate of eggs in the evening?

"You certainly like your waffles don't you?"Elsa's blue eyes lit up with amusement as I all but shoved half a waffle in my mouth. (Or waffles, that is.)

"Yes. Yes I do." I took care to at least chew a little before answering. "Seriously, waffles are just like pancakes. The only difference is, like me, they have abs." I sent a wink her way and took a drink of my orange juice.

Elsa actually had to cover her mouth after an unladylike snort erupted from behind her hand. Also to keep from spitting out her drink at me too. After a few tense seconds of her collecting herself, she suddenly reached over to pinch my cheek with enough friskiness to paint my face with a light flush. "Sono pazza di te." She hissed through her teeth. The mixture of heavy mirth and mock seriousness in those eyes had my senses going haywire because it made me both want to laugh and groan in embarrassment at the same time. Sheesh!

And I actually knew what that sweet little saying meant now, having spent the majority of one night trying to figure out the exact words that she said and how they were pronounced. It was frustrating because my laptop kept bringing up the word 'pizza', not 'pazza', and that kept confusing me until I went back over the way those full lips of hers kissed every word. Unfortunately, I couldn't say much when her hand was still holding my cheek captive.

That cheek flushed even more when I found Elsa still gazing at me with a hint of a teasing smirk on her pretty face. I knew my blush was only turning darker, but I didn't want to get shy just yet. Not outwardly, at least. So I held her arctic gaze, since she was clearly holding back a bout of laughter as she waited for me to get bashful. Not today! When she recognized that I was being stubborn about it, she stared right back and we instantly found ourselves in an unspoken staring contest to see who would end up blinking first. The simple juvenile thought made both of our lips curl upwards in idiotic grins.

I couldn't take it after a straight minute of soberness. With a snort of laughter, I ended up breaking eye-contact first. Seriously, how old are we? Elsa was eighteen and I was sometimes called a mature young woman around my dad's work buddies, so that basically made us adults. Yeah. You're an adult that's flirting with the girl of your dreams with some super mature staring contest. Brilliant, Anna. Clearing my throat, I unlatched her hand from my cheek so I could playfully bite at the spot just above the small scar on her knuckle.

"H-hey!" Elsa yelped with wide blue eyes.

I smoothed it over with a deliberate open-mouthed kiss before whispering, "I'm crazy about you too, Elsa Mariani."

Now it was her turn to blush furiously and mine to grin like a lovesick imbecile. Because I was. Definitely.

A/N: After much deliberation, I decided to end this chapter here. Reason being that I would probably not stop writing if I did.

Don't worry, I intend to write more about them dorks next time around. So until then...thanks for reading, reviewing and whatnot!

Tootles~

Ah, yes. I own nothing.