Jake let out a weak wheeze of laughter from underneath Molly, also staring around at their latest round of total destruction. "I figured we'd start with the lamps first, then take a sledgehammer to all the furniture."

"Good plan," Molly sighed, rather reluctantly moving off him, wincing a little as he slid out of her.

"Does it hurt?"

"Only a little," she had to admit, but not enough that she wasn't considering trying again as soon as humanly possible as she glanced at his sweat-kissed skin. "I'm okay."

They both laid back, staring at the ceiling and possibly both wondering: what now? At least, she was. She wasn't quite sure what Jake was thinking. Luckily, or not, he spoke first.

"So... when you said you were crazy about me since I was a chubby little—"

"I didn't say that," she cut in quickly. Or did she? She was pretty sure she only thought it, but who knows what she might have said in the middle of everything? Stupid, stupid... 

"Yes, you did. You said--"

"I think I said I was into you before. Very mildly into you. Possibly just hypothetically into you and not actually—"

"Fine. Hypothetically, you were into me then," he broke in, turning to face her. 

She glanced his way. 

"Are you more into me now?"

"What do you mean?" She couldn't help feeling a tiny bit scared, like he was setting her up for some kind of disappointment and just checking it wouldn't hurt too much before he dropped the hammer.

"I mean that I don't want this to be some summer thing. It was one thing to have that with Rachel, but with you..." He shook his head, his eyes as worried as hers must be. "You're too important for that. But if you don't feel the same—"

"Of course I do," she said on a relieved breath. She couldn't let him jump on that train. Not when she was just getting off it. She held in a smile. "Don't be an idiot."

He leaned over her and grinned. "Can't help it. You practically just said I wasn't done being an idiot."

It was infectious when he smiled, all toothy and sweet. She couldn't help smiling, too. "I only meant idiot in the sense that you're a magic-crystal-believing fool."

He leaned down, then stilled, hovering over her lips. "I technically don't believe in magic crystals."

"I'm glad you finally see it. That thing wasn't any more magic than these beads... which, by the way, I'm keeping." She pulled the necklace away from her chest. "Not that I think they're magic, but they are sparkly and cute, way more than that dumb magic bracelet."

"That wasn't magic, either."

"Yeah, obviously."

"Patience said that crystal power is all about science and nature."

She wondered if she would really have to explain how science and nature didn't allow for crystal power. "Oh, Jake..."

"I'm serious! Crystals are basically how watches and microphones work!"

"Huh?"

"Look, I don't know how to explain it," he growled, "but Patience had this whole thing about it. She said it wasn't magic. It was science or something. She said that everything that came to me with the crystals was basically mine if I just got out of my own way."

Molly stared up at him and his painfully earnest face. "You sure she wasn't hedging her bets?"

"She wasn't like that."

Molly sat up. "But she could have been. If it didn't work out, it wasn't meant to be and, if it came to you, it was yours. Doesn't that sound a little convenient?"

"Why are you so dead set against Patience? She made this happen." Jake took her by the shoulders. "Don't you get it, Molly? The crystals led me right where I needed to be!"

She put a hand to his cheek. "Oh, sweetie. Don't ever go to one of those cold-reading psychics. You'll be conned out of every dime."

"We can't deny the evidence. She loaned me a crystal and this all started after that. Besides the thing with you, there was Juliet and—" He stopped, frowning. "Then again, it didn't really work on Juliet. Not that it had a chance."

She found herself pulling away. "Why? Because of what I..." She silenced herself. He wasn't supposed to know about that.

He laughed. "Oh, yeah. Almost forgot about that. You sabotaged me."

"I have no idea what you're talking about." She was not about to incriminate herself, at least not yet.

"How do you think I got these beads? I saw Juliet yesterday." He smiled. Had she really thought his smile was infectious a minute ago? Right now, it was downright obnoxious.

"So?"

"So she seemed to think there was something going on between us."

"Well, with you all over me in the middle of—"

"No, this was before that."

"Well, that was probably because--"

"Because you told her there was."

She tried to glare at him and his extremely smug, little smirk, but she could feel herself flushing. "So? Are you disappointed?"

"I don't know. Let me see..." He grinned and flattened himself over her.

"Let me up!"

"Never! Just listen!"

She stilled – mostly because he was too heavy to move under, the big lump!

"I thought the crystal was working on Juliet."

"Yes, I remember. You wouldn't shut up about it."

He laughed and tucked her firmly under him. "Actually, you wouldn't let me talk about it."

"I still don't want to talk about it." Molly wasn't even gratified when he started nuzzling her neck, wondering if her neck was even the one he wanted.

"The crystal didn't make me feel anything with her, not even close to what I felt with you."

She reluctantly stretched her neck, baring more to him. "So it worked with me," she repeated, really needing to get this straight before she could do anything crazy like enjoy it, "and there was nothing happening with Juliet?"

"I wouldn't say that." He laughed as he moved lower, nibbling at her shoulder. "Actually, none of this would have been possible without Juliet."

She pushed him away and sat up again. "What the hell does that mean?"

"Nothing bad!" He put up his hands. "She gave me that necklace and got us booze, which we broke..."

"We? You were the one who broke everything," she pointed out, trying to edge off the mattress. "Jake, if you got over your Juliet thing, then good for you. But do we have to talk about her now?"

"No, Molly, trust me." He tackled her and held her still. "If you're looking for a bad guy, Juliet is not the one."

"Great! I'm glad she's still perfect and awesome." She really was trying to get up, but he started kissing her neck again.

"She really is awesome. We owe her lunch, at the very least."

"Well, I hope you two have an awesome time at your stupid lunch." She tried not to moan and failed as his lips made their way lower.

"Oh, we won't. She won't even show unless you're there."

That stilled her – that and the fact that he was saying it against her nipple. "Why does she want me there?"

He lifted his head and, sadly, his lips, laughing a little. "Let's just say that, if the crystal was working on Juliet, it was not aimed at me. She was into someone else."

She frowned up at him. She still didn't believe in magic crystals, but he did. "And you're okay with that?"

He stared at her for what, to Molly, felt like too long before answering. "Not completely. I mean, I might be a bit jealous about the whole thing. But what can I do about it?"

Once again, it didn't even matter that she didn't believe in his precious crystals. He did and this whole night suddenly seemed tainted. She tried to break away, but he held her.

"Let me go! For real this time! You were jealous about Juliet?"

"What? No! Juliet didn't want me, not even close to it."

"I'm not your consolation prize, so..."

"But she wants you to know that, whenever you get tired of me..."

"I'm tired of you now! She can have your ass!"

"It's not my ass she wants," he growled, "it's yours!"

Molly froze. "What the blazing hell?"

"That was my reaction, too." Jake nodded and sat up. "I mean, at first..."

By the time he explained everything, Molly was laughing like a loon – at herself, at him, but mostly at life. Before this week, she'd never seen Juliet as something that would come between her and Jake, but that was mostly because Juliet was too perfect to go for a mere mortal like Jake. She'd never imagined this!

"So the hottest girl in the history of our high school, the girl who could have anyone she wanted, has a thing for me?" She snorted. "Damn! I must be hotter than I thought."

"Well, I'm starting to see it." Jake tugged her to him.

But she held him at arm's length. "No offense, Jake. But if you couldn't pull the hottest girl and I could... Should I even be associating with you?"

"I shouldn't have told you." He grinned and pulled her in harder. "I should have known you'd be a brat about it."

"Me?" She splayed a hand on his chest. "You call me names? You lured me here with your silly excuses and your lying text!"

"I technically didn't lie." He gripped her hand and brought it to his lips. "I did need you and this was very, very important."

She had to give him that one. She also had to let him kiss his way down her arm and to other more interesting parts. "Still, I don't know how I put up with you," she sighed lazily as he laid her down again.

His hum as he trailed down her belly seemed to agree.

"Then again," she breathed, "I'd probably put up with a lot more from you. Always have."

He stilled, which was really too unfair. "You have," he agreed, moving up her body. "You're always there when I need you."

"Yes, I am." She leaned up and nodded significantly. "So if you could return the favor..."

"That's why the crystals chose you!"

She threw her head back on the bed. "Seriously, Jake? Stop with the magic crystals!"

He laid down beside her. "Hey, they're science crystals, not magic. And they work. I got the girl, after all."

She snuggled into his side, starting to figure that she couldn't fix crazy.

But maybe one more try... "Okay. If the crystals work so well, then how come I didn't fall all over you in that puddle of mud?"

Jake lifted his head, looked down at her with something like a resigned sigh. 

She was pretty sure he was about to say her favorite words ever: You are righ...

"Maybe because not even magic can make someone fall in love with you," he said softly, "not if they're already there."

Damn him, she couldn't fight him on that. She'd already given him all her ammo.

"And maybe I was there before I even knew it," he whispered, pulling her closer as he laid back.

She glanced at him, surprised, then brushed her lips against his shoulder, sort of relaxing into the feeling of this, of him. They hadn't said the words yet and she still didn't subscribe to that whole crystal thing, but she liked the idea that she hadn't been in love by herself all this time, even if it was buried under layers of insecurity, expectations, history...

"How do we get out from under all that?" she mused aloud.

"Hmm?"

"If we're doing this, we're going to have to break it to our parents."

He laughed. "You kidding? Our moms will never stop high-fiving each-other. They'll probably throw a party. I mean... after your dad shows me his machete collection."

"All three of them," she giggled. "He does love you, so he might just mention it instead of giving you the tour."

"And mine love you. I guess my dad's always kept things a bit mysterious, but he does ask about you on the phone. And I know my mom's your biggest fan or she wouldn't trust you to boss me around all the time."

She elbowed him, but lightly. "Are you sure your mom will keep loving me once she knows I'm corrupting her baby boy?"

"Does she have to know?" He swallowed hard. "I'm actually still more worried about your dad. Once we come back from here and announce ourselves, they'll know exactly what happened here, won't they?"

"Maybe we can wait a bit to tell them. Give them a little plausible deniability."

He chuckled. "You always were the brains of this operation." He sat up suddenly. "Damn it, Molly, this is gonna work." He sounded so sure.

Maybe she could be sure, too. She drew him down to her. "Yes. Think of what we could do. My brains and your brute strength," she giggled against his mouth. "A lifetime supply of Band-Aids and Bactine."

"Don't remind me. At least we're in a bed now." He finally started kissing his way back down her stomach. "Hopefully, I can't screw it up much more."

"Mmmm. Screw up all you want. I like the way you make it up to me."

TBC

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Just one more chapter to go. Hope you've enjoyed!

I'd love to see some of you lurkers liking or commenting before the end. It really helps keep me inspired.