WORD OF ADVICE; don't ever piss Katherine Decker off. Sure, on the surface she seems like the type to feel bad hurting a fly, but that wouldn't be the case if you tipped her off, or if your name was Lucas Friar.

Barging into class, Kat marched up to Farkle and yanked out of his seat. "Alright, listen up, genius. Where is she?" she urged to know, with Maya behind her.

Farkle merrily grins at her. "Whatever have I done to deserve this display of affection? Did you want to go for round two from what happened at the auditorium?"

Disregarding his last sentence, Kat's eyes narrowed into slits. "Does this look like affection to you?"

"I takes it however I gets it," Farkle replied, puckering his lips. "Right there, nurse."

Kat's face spoils. "Look, apparently she wasn't there when Maya tried to pick her up this morning, and we couldn't find her in the halls. What'd you do with our girl?"

Suddenly, a voice echoed from the hallway outside. "Kitty-Kat, release the Farkle."

Kat and Maya turned around to see Riley striding into the classroom, dressed and styled like a Harajuku girl, having this newfound confidence in her look.

Kat chuckles dauntingly at the sight before her. "Oh-hohoh, no..."

"Farkle didn't do anything except open my eyes to what the world really thinks I am," Riley declared proudly.

Maya raised a brow. "A harajuku girl?"

"Yes, because I figure if what I am is nerdy-geeky, I'm going to set the nerdy-geeky world on fire," Riley explained, her spirit undaunted.

The two girls exchange bemused glances before turning to their teacher. "You take it."

Cory shook his head. "Nope, beyond me. All yours."

Riley continued on, unfazed. "Why should I struggle to be popular when I can be these people's empress fairy queen?" She ends her statement with a playful honk noise, which prompts the geeks in the room to join in.

As Riley settled into her desk, Maya and Kat stood before her, still trying to process the unexpected transformation. "No, please. The one guy was two guys. The sword fell. This is the way you're gonna go? You're gonna embrace this?" Maya questioned frantically.

Riley shrugged. "Deal with it. I've gone over to the dork side."

Kat shook her head, evermore in denial. "This isn't you."

"This is her," Farkle argued.

"Can you stop talking?!"

"Yes, ma'am," the genius hazily replied.

A flash of belief appears on Kat's face. "Yikes."

Riley assured, however, "Just deal with it, Kat. They love this me."

She and Maya shook their heads. "Yeah, I'm not fixing you back then," Kat advised as they sit at their tables.

"Oh, yes you are," Cory stood up on his feet. "My daughter's going through this week's crazy... You two better get in there."

Riley interjected, adopting a dramatic tone. "Father, may we continue with the lesson? I seek knowledge."

Cory hesitates, observing her for a moment before relenting. "Never mind, leave her alone."

Maya gestured to his daughter in concern. "Look at her."

They watched as Riley rested her chin on her book, reading in a manner that was both peculiar and oddly captivating.

Cory, trying to maintain his composure, couldn't help but approach the group of geeks at the back of the class. "All right, what do you guys know about girls?"

"Mostly we're terrified of them, sir," one of the geeks confessed.

"So we try to keep our distance," added another.

Cory nodded. "Well, then I choose empress fairy nut job."

With this happening, it became clear to Katherine, that this was going to be a long day.

An unpredictable one at that.

⤵︎

THE DECKER FAMILY decided to accompany their aunt as she was talking to the lawyer that wants to throw her business out.

"Mrs. Svorski, while I am charmed by your old-world bakery and thoroughly enjoyed the...Muffin," the lawyer began, attempting to maintain a professional demeanor.

Kim couldn't help but scowl at him. "Man, get your pastries right, it's bulochki!"

Mav shot her a warning look. "Kim..."

Undeterred, the lawyer continued addressing their aunt, "You still need to make up for your rent from last month and this month, and that's already a lot to make up for."

Kat jumps into the conversation, "Well, the month just started, why does she have to pay for this month's rent when it isn't the 27th?"

The lawyer narrowed his gaze. "Who knew you'd be a smart girl for such a small figure?"

Kat grew a confident smile. "And this small figure will show a big figure like you what it means to not underestimate small figures."

The lawyer raised a skeptical eyebrow, but before he could respond, Maverick intervened. "What my daughter is trying to say...is that we should only have to pay for last month's rent before paying this month since the due date hasn't passed yet."

The lawyer considered his words. "You could do that, but you'll still have to pay for this month eventually, and that'll be more than last."

Suddenly, Topanga and Auggie come in. "We'll see about that," they say together.

All eyes turn towards the unexpected duo, curiosity piqued by their entrance.

Maverick can't help but smile at them. "Looks like the old Topanga is back," he remarks.

"Yup," Auggie confirms with a nod. "And she talks to her mirror now, apparently."

The lawyer spoke up sternly, "You're not on this case."

Topanga meets his gaze squarely. "Oh, yeah? Why's that?"

"Because you like people, and that gets in my way," the lawyer retorts, making an exception for Mrs. Svorski. "I'm not talking about you, Mrs. Svorski, you're a peach."

Mrs. Svorski responds with a quip, "When you go bald?"

"Right now," the lawyer deadpans.

Topanga then adopts a serene demeanor, pressing her hands together in a meditative gesture.

Intrigued, but concerned, the lawyer demands to know, "What are you doing? Why are you doing that? What are you doing?"

"She's going to her happy place," Auggie explained.

"What do we do in the meantime?" Kim sought to know, her forehead puckering.

Mrs. Svorki's face lights up as an idea hits her. "I know! I sing song from old country." She sings then, "100 people in line for the bread. 100 people in line. One gets a loaf, takes it home. That's all the bread we have for entire year." She frowns. "Oh, that's a good song," she says, before wiping away a tear.

Topanga takes the opportunity to express her beliefs then, "I think it's important to have a neighborhood place that reflects an actual culture. Where people sit and they talk."

Auggie adds his own quirky touch to the conversation. "And there's a nice lady who pinches your cheeks."

The aunt smiles. "Oh..." she says, going to pinch his cheeks.

But Auggie moves away. "Don't."

Meanwhile, the lawyer reveals his less-than-zen state of mind. "See, in my happy place, I'm hearing she pays triple rent next month or she's out on her bulochki." He adds, veering his gaze to Topanga, "And hey, Aquarius, be a good hippie and see if you can channel my shark lawyer back. Ask her if she's still working for us."

Having the same idea in mind, Kim and Kat both suddenly tried to jump the man, but Maverick and Topanga push then back, patting their shoulders to calm them down.

⤵︎

IN A COLLECTIVE effort, Kat and Maya decided to try and stop Riley's alter ego once and for all.

They climbed through Riley's middle window, as she was there sitting on their left, as always.

"Okay, we're gonna take one shot at this while we believe Riley is still in there and not completely under the spell of..." Kat began, only to be interrupted in noticing Farkle's presence beside them.

He smiles and points to the two. "Ladies."

Kat and Maya exchanged a look, silently communicating their plan. "Get him for me, please," the apple-haired one requested, prompting Maya to spring into action.

With a swift movement, Maya tackled Farkle to the ground. "Farkle!" she yelled.

But Farkle, ever the resilient genius, yanks Maya down and stood back up with a smirk. "She's one of us now, guys!" he declared.

Maya yanks him back down and rises back up tall. "She's one of us, Farkle!"

Farkle yanks her down again. "You're not letting her reach her full potential."

But instead of being yanked down another time, Kat kicks the back of his leg, driving him to yelp and fall again.

Determined, Kat seizes the moment, pulling Riley up from her seat to stand face-to-face. "Look, in my world it needs you. It always has." She grabs her hands and folded them together, emphasizing the depth of their connection. "You're one of my best friends, Riles. My world and Maya's will always needs you...the real you," Kat insisted, her eyes pleading to the brunette.

Riley's expression flashed in shock, her eyes widening as Kat's heartfelt words sank in. Maya's frown deepened slightly, mirroring the concern etched across her friend's face.

But just as hope began to flicker in the air, Farkle intervened, disrupting their moment.

With a decisive turn, he redirected Riley's attention to him. "You're one of us now. And I've decided to prove it by letting you help the John Quincy Adams' spelling-bee team to the regional finals."

"Really?" Riley chuckled, her disbelief tinged with excitement.

"I'm right about you, Riley. I know I am."

"Thank you, Farkle." She turns around to the girls, making it clear that their efforts were thrown into the trash. "Sorry, guys. The world wants what the world wants. And right now the world wants me like this."

Maya's eyes narrowed. "This isn't over, Farkle," she warned.

Unfazed, Farkle shrugged off the challenge. "I'm not scared," he retorted.

A mischievous smile tugged at Kat's lips. "Oh, really?" And with swift action, she seized Farkle and yanked him to the ground before he could react.

But Farkle proved quick on his feet, swiftly retaliating and yanking Kat down beside him.

"Guys, what about us?" Riley asks.

That's when Farkle and Kat collectively drag Riley and Maya to the ground with them.

"Yay!"

⤵︎

BEING BACK IN her room, Kat was having another anxious night. She gave up trying to sleep yesterday and has been running on no sleep since. It was only eight pm, but Kat had already finished all her homework, and studying for the day and couldn't think of anything else to do to make herself feel better.

Sure, she could read a book or something but she didn't like to read when she was anxious. She knew she'd only be skimming through a book without actually absorbing the material.

Kat did have one last idea in mind, which was a last resort. But considering her options, she didn't really have anything else left.

So reluctantly, she grabbed her phone from her nightstand and called the last person on her mind tonight.

"Hello?"

"Hi—cowboy," Kat sighed.

She hears a cough through the line. "Hi? Uh...are you sure you meant to call me?"

"Yup."

"You sure?"

"Yup."

"Like really sure?"

"I said yup two times. Can't you just accept that this is happening?" she spoke, and rolled her eyes.

"I-I'm sorry it's just...*coughs* I didn't expect you to call me right now."

She shrugged. "Well, you said if I ever need anyone to talk to, you're there so...yeah." Her lips falter into a frown, one she didn't mean to have. "But you've been sick?"

"Yeah, could you tell?"

"Well, considering you're coughing and you haven't been to school in the past two days, it wasn't a hard guess."

"It must be such a breeze for you not to deal with me, isn't it?" he snarled, coughing away from his phone after.

She stays silent. "It hasn't actually," Kat admits, a little awkwardly. "Although it has been nice to not hear your agonizing voice for forty-eight hours, I—I think kind of miss having someone to tease."

"Are you saying you miss me, red?" he asks, and she could just imagine the obnoxious pout on his face right now.

"I'm not, but if that's what lets you sleep at night, then sure." She lets out a sigh. "But I think I just needed someone to talk to...that isn't a part of the mess I'm in right now."

"You're in a mess?"

"I'm in two of them, cowboy." She starts to rant. "Riley's gone all Harajuku, and Maya and I have been trying to stop her but Farkle's being Farkle and corrupting her. And my aunt might lose her bakery, you know? The one that I told you about. She might lose it and I've been trying to help my dad convince this guy not to triple her rent but he's like a boring Lex Luthor from Superman, and I'm just so tired and I can't sleep. I've been awake for the past two days because of this and I just..." Kat trails off. "I don't know what to do."

It hits her then, that she just sort of word spilled to Lucas Friar of all people. Something she never would've thought she'd be doing right now, but she just did.

Again, Kat sighs, letting her eyes close. "Sorry, you probably don't care about all of this, I'll just talk to someone else."

"No, Kat, it's okay. I'm listening," he assured.

Her breathe seizes for a second, but she doesn't pay mind to it as she lets her back fall onto her bed. "Look, I don't like putting my problems on other people, or letting people know about my problems. Especially my friends. I don't want them to feel bad."

It's been a habit she's been trying to deal with since she arrived here in New York. However, Katherine didn't think she'd run to her enemy for any type of solace, but perhaps this was better than nothing.

"Did you just call me your friend?"

"Oh, don't flatter yourself, I still think lowly of you, Texas," she spat out, only to reluctantly add, "But I think at this point Lucas, you and I are more—frenemies than actual enemies."

Katherine knew she still hated him, but considering she spends every day being by him, talking to him in some way; it was only a matter of time before something other than hatred would bloom between them.

"Frenemies, huh?" Lucas echoed back.

"Yes. Or do I have to explain to you what that is, Cattleboy?"

"No, I know what that means, Kat," he assured, his tone growing annoyed. "Do you think I'm that stupid?"

She shrugged. "Not necessarily. But you're not smarter than me."

"Am so!"

Raising her brows, Kat sought from him, "Alright, what's the capital of Arizona?"

"I-"

"What happened in the Battle of Alessia?"

"Kat-"

"How was the universe created?"

"Katherine!"

"Oh come on! There's a whole show with the answer to the last question, you weirdo!"

Silence hits them before she spoke again, "I'm sorry. I guess...I'm also just frustrated that there's nothing else I can do besides be a moral support. I wish I could do more—hell I wish I could fix or solve the whole problem itself."

"You like to do that?"

"Do what?"

"Fix things?... Solve people's problems?"

"Yeah," Kat nodded. "When I was in Philly I would always try to help my friends out when they needed any type of support. Even tried to mend my friendships with them, but most of the time, they ended up just dumping me. Some didn't even want to apologize to me when they did something wrong."

Lucas coughs again. "Your old friends seem like horrible people."

"I try not to think about them. They're all in the past and in another state anyway." She pushed that thought away. "But I realized from them that I like helping others. I like to try and solve problems and try to fix things... I like to think it's like my fatal flaw in life."

She knew couldn't fix everything or solve every problem that came her way, but Kat always tried, no matter what, even if it seemed impossible.

It was who she was, and Kat knew in some way, it was her downfall in this life.

"Well, personally, I think that's a very beautiful flaw to have, Kat."

Stop.

That was what her heart did then. And it wasn't just a flicker. It felt like forever that her heart had stopped. Almost like she died.

Sign #2. He thinks my fatal flaw is...beautiful.

Kat swallowed hard at the thought. "Thanks..." she trails off, her heart rate rising.

Suddenly, sge hears from his line, "Lucas? Are you talking to someone?" It's a woman's voice, and immediately Kat knows who it is, even if she's never met her.

"Y-yes, mom. I'm talking to my—classmate."

The urge to burst into laughter arose in Kat but she held her composure.

"Oh! Oh! Okay! A-are they checking up on you or?"

"Yeah...you could say that."

"Okay then, sweetheart. I'll check up on you later."

"Okay, thanks, mama."

She hears the door close then, and Kat can't help but taunt. "Classmate? Wow, Lucas, I think you've wounded me for the first time."

"Aww, and am I supposed to care considering you physically wound me everyday in the form of punching my shoulder?"

A knowing smile creases her face. "You know what—you got a decent point there, Texas."

She realized then that she felt lighter talking to him. It was weird initially. She would admit this to anyone, even herself, but she sort of felt lost without him around lately.

Whether she liked it or not, he'd grown to be a someone that was apart of her everyday life. So talking to him now was relieving.

"But I feel—better now," Kat admits, mixing between confusion and relief. "So uhm, thanks for letting me talk to you, I guess."

"Yeah, you're welcome." He takes a beat before adding, "I hope that whatever happens with you, it ends alright."

She grins weakly. "I hope so too...And I guess I hope you feel better. I do miss having someone to tease at school."

He chuckled into a small coughing fit. "I'll be back to torment eventually."

"Good. I'll...see you then."

"See you, Kat."

And with that, their call ends, on a better note than most of their conversations ever.

She spent the moments after their call taking in what just happened. Out of all the options that she thought would've worked to make her feel better, Katherine certainly didn't expect that talking to her frenemy would do any good, but it did.

Perhaps all it took was somebody to give her some hope to make her hold onto her own.

Soon enough, she finds herself going to the kitchen to go and get water. But as she walks there, she finds her father and her godparents at the dinner table.

Maverick's gaze locks onto her as soon as she enters the room. "Hey, Kat."

The Matthew's twisted their heads to her, finding a grin on their faces. "Hey, you."

"Um, hey?" Kat responds, a hint of confusion in her tone. "What's going on?"

"We're just chatting," Maverick assures her. "You tired?"

Kat nods weakly, her expression betraying her restless state. "Yeah but you know, I haven't been able to sleep lately."

"Why's that, sweetheart?" Topanga asks, concerned.

"Well...for obvious reasons," Kat sighed.

Knowing what she meant, Cory insisted to his goddaughter then, "Well, get ready to sleep tonight, Katherine."

Her brows snap together. "Why?"

Cory and Topanga exchange a look before turning to Maverick, who flashes a grin. "Come join us, and we'll fill you in," the father insisted.

"Fill me in on what?"

Maverick pauses, letting the anticipation build. "On how we're going to save the bakery."

⤵︎

INSIDE THE BELOVED bakery, the lawyer already has the negotiation papers in front of Mrs. Svorski.

He brings her hand with the pen to the papers. "You've made the right decision letting the bakery go, Mrs. Svorski," the lawyer asserts, his voice laced with authority and charm. "What's the point of serving people in a self-serving world?"

The atmosphere shifts dramatically however as the Decker and Matthews families enter in.

"Don't sign anything,"  Topanga declares, slicing through the air like a sharp blade.

The lawyer sighs. "You work for me," he reminded.

"Oh, yeah? Then you're gonna hate this," Auggie snarls.

His mother calmly spoke again. "I'd like to call my first witness," she announced.

"Nobody's on trial here," he retorts dismissively.

Topanga remains undeterred despite of him. "Actually, a voice I've always trusted has been telling me that I am."

"Well, could you tell that voice that you're in a bakery?"

But the gravity of the situation quickly returns as Topanga takes her seat next to the old lady. "Mrs. Svorski... I know that you can't afford the new rent by yourself. But I wonder if you would share your business with some people who will care about it as much as you do?"

"That's us," Auggie gestures to the family.

Kim smiled proudly. "Yup," she spoke as she seized Auggie and Kat's hands, "And he means, all of us."

But amidst the familial support, Cory proclaims, "Topanga succeeds at anything she puts her mind to. And I'm here with our checkbook."

Curiosity sparks the aunt's mind. "What do you do for a living?"

"I'm a middle-school teacher."

She laughs. "Oh boy."

Maverick couldn't help but wheeze too. "Very, oh boy indeed."

Topanga spoke then, "He's always been my partner and we've always done well together. Plus Maverick has been our childhood friend since we were little. He means a lot to the both of us...just like this place is to us and the neighborhood. But now it's time to do good."

Mrs. Svorski's hand finds its way to her heart. "Topanga," she whispers, her voice filled with emotion, "You would help me keep my place?"

Topanga smiles. "There's a part of me that knows what's right. It's right that this place stays right here," she assured.

"You sure you killer-shark lawyer?"

Continuing to smile, Topanga rose to her feet then, her eyes locking onto her boss. "I need an advance on my salary in the exact amount it costs to keep this place going. Or I will go to the competition, and I will destroy you."

Kat's smile mirrors Topanga's. "And she does mean—destroy you, bald man," she adds.

The lawyer's arms crossed over his chest. "What? Where am I gonna find somebody else like you?"

"You won't," Cory assured.

Defeated, the lawyer hefts his suitcase with a heavy sigh, his shoulders slumping in defeat.

"You're still mean," Auggie snarled.

"Don't try to cheer me up, kid," the lawyer warns as he leaves the bakery.

In the wake of his departure, Kim and Kat approach their aunt with beaming smiles. "You're keeping this place, Auntie," Kat exclaims, her voice bubbling with glee.

She frowns as she looks at everyone around her. "Thank you all very much," she murmurs, her voice thick with emotion as she gathers the girls into a warm embrace.

⤵︎

AS THE SPELLING Bee time eventually rolled in, the classroom buzzed with anticipation, and the students nestled in their seats, awaiting the event ahead.

"Welcome," Cory's voice booms into the room. "To this qualifying round of the city regional spelling bee between our own John Quincy Adams middle school..."

A wave of applause rippled through the classroom then for the home team.

"...and Einstein Academy," Cory announced.

The room roars in applause again at the opposing team once more.

"Formidable opponents... And Smackle," Farkle's voice dripped with a hint of resentment.

With a steely gaze, Smackle turned towards Farkle. "I will destroy you."

But Farkle's response was swift. "I am energy, you can't destroy energy. Ha!" he countered, his words a playful taunt aimed at his rival.

She desperately mouths, "I love you."

Meanwhile, Farkle turned to Riley, his eyes sparkling with pride. "Riley, get up there and show us who you really are," he urged.

Riley's smile lit up as she rose to her feet and went to the stand, ready as she could be.

"Okay, Miss Matthews. Your first word is-" Cory says at first before suddenly, Kat and Maya come in, with her putting a card infront of him, "Kat, you can't-"

"Check out the word, Uncle Cory."

Riley's confusion mirrored her father's. "Kat, what are you doing?"

She smirks in reply. "I think what Farkle forgot about me all these years is just how easily smart I could possibly be as him."

Cory's hand rose as he read the card. "Miss Matthews, your word is Harajuku."

Riley's eyes widened. "Excuse me?"

"Harajuku."

Perplexed, the brunette sought clarification. "Uh, may I have the meaning of the word?"

Cory's response was laced with a touch of exasperation. "Oh, you don't know? Then let me tell you; it's a real neighborhood in Japan, where authentic Japanese girls have created an authentic look and life for themselves that is unique to them."

Riley's silence hung heavy as she processed the information. "Country of origin?"

Cory's expression falters. "Are you kidding me?" he muttered under his breath.

Seeking assistance, Riley pressed on. "Can I hear it in a sentence?"

Maya steps forward. "Yeah," she spoke, her voice steady. "Stop pretending to be a harajuku girl, because you're not; you're Riley. R-i-l-e-y."

Cory's voice cuts through the tension. "Five seconds, miss Matthews, or you're eliminated."

Riley's brows furrowed. "What do you mean eliminated?"

Farkle rose from his seat. "It means you wouldn't be part of the group anymore," he explained, slightly frowning.

With resolve, Riley spun back to face the challenge before her. "Harajuku, something I'm n-o-t," she spelled out, her words a declaration of self-assurance and defiance.

Turning around to her team, she apologizes, "Sorry, Farkle. It was a lovely party, and your friends are really pretty cool."

Their faces lit up with surprise and warmth. "We are?" they echoed in disbelief.

A chuckle rippled through the group as another spoke. "We've never been called that before."

Farkle grins. "Thanks, Riley. We feel the same way about you."

Cory rings the bell then, signaling the end of Riley's turn, leaving her standing off the stand once more.

As the girls reunited, Riley sighs. "Well, I guess we're back to where popular is gonna be kind of hard, huh?" she mused to her friends.

Maya shrugged. "I wouldn't know."

Kat grins as she offered some perspective. "But let's not try so hard to find out, okay?"

Nodding in agreement, the trio leaned in, their heads coming together in a show of solidarity and support, ready to face whatever was ahead of them in the future.

⤵︎

     IF THERE WAS any explanation Kat had to go on how she knows a lot of stuff, especially in History, it's because she spends most of her insomniac nights reading about them all on her laptop.

She realized years ago that if she had to struggle with falling asleep, she should do something other than mentally yell at her brain for that problem.

And that's when Katherine realized that she could use those extra hours at nights like now, to her academic advantage...Or to watch funny videos, but you get the point.

She was currently reading about the Renaissance when suddenly, her phone started buzzing beside her.

Veering to it beside her, she noticed Lucas was calling her, seeing his obnoxious face on her screen.

It takes her a moment to answer, spending a solid three seconds wondering why he was calling her all of sudden, but she answers.

"Hello?"

"Hey."

"Hi...Uh, did you need something?" she spoke in question, having not expected him to call, at all.

"No... I just wanted to check on you," Lucas's voice, warm yet tentative, floated through the line. "After yesterday and what you told me, I've been thinking about you, and I wanted to see how you were holding up today."

And there that heart-stopping feeling went, again, adding a loss of her breath to the mix.

I've been thinking about you.

Huh...

Sign #3. He's been—thinking about me?

Kat's lips twitched into a bemused grin. "Wow. Concern? Coming from you? Well, that's a new one, cowboy."

"Well... we're 'frenemies' now, right? I can't show a little concern for my... friend?" he insisted, having a playful edge to his voice.

But unbeknownst to Kat, hell, even himself, there was just a flicker of something deeper beneath his banter.

Either way, he had a point. "I guess so," she sighed. "But if you must know, things did end up working out for me...My aunt's keeping the bakery, with the help of my dad and the Matthew's family; and Riley's back to her normal quirky self, thankfully."

"That's good to hear, Kat."

"Yeah," she chuckled. "I guess all I had to do was—hold onto the hope that things would get better, and they did," she replied. And in that sense, Kat couldn't help but add, "I guess should also thank you then for reminding me to have some. Yesterday I felt so burned out and helpless, and you helped me feel—hopeful about my situation. So thanks."

There's a beat of silence. "Wow...I never thought I'd see the day in which Katherine Decker said thank you to me twice in two days," he spoke obnoxiously. "I'm honored."

"Get off your high horse, Texas, you're still annoying in every way possible to me."

He hummed. "Thank you."

"You're so not very welcome," she replied with a mocking tone.

His laughter rings through her ears, and Kat can't help her lips as they curl upwards. She doesn't even notice her heart rate rise again.

"Well, if that's all you wanted to call me for, then I guess I'll be talking to you whenever you come back to school."

"Tomorrow you will."

Both her brows raised. "You're coming back tomorrow?"

"Yup. I went to the doctor's today and he told me I should be fine to come back," he replied. "And now you and I can go back to our daily banters and arguments about which ice cream flavor is the best."

"Cookie Dough is the only way to go, Texas."

"But Mint Chocolate Chip is like 100x better!"

Kat shook her head at his nonsense. "You—and your questionable taste buds."

"It's not questionable if the majority agrees with me."

"I actually read into that; it's only 8%, loser."

He scoffs. "Whatever...I'll talk to you later, Kat."

She sighs. "Talk to you later, headache."

And with that, the line went dead again. But along with that, something else died in a sense.

Kat immediately noticed it the moment the call ended; that suddenly, she felt empty. She didn't even notice that she was feeling anything at all until it seized out of her.

What the... she thought confusingly.

This was perplexing to her. Well, lately there were these moments before that she had between Lucas that also perplexed her too.

Moments where she'd look at him, and along with this pang annoyance hitting her chest,  other things would happen in her heart, sometimes even in her stomach too.

At first, she only thought that it was puberty was finally hitting her, but she realized these feelings only happened when Lucas was around. Sometimes just thinking about him would cause different things to occur in her body, even if her thoughts of him weren't all that fond.

It hits her then on what was happening to her. And not only did Kat feel stupid for not realizing this sooner, but she also felt dreadful of her own realization.

Returning to her laptop, she opened a new tab and pressed her fingers through the keys, and stopped to hover her finger over enter.

The question in the search bar loomed before her, and at that moment, Kat knew her life was about to change with one simple press of a button.

And it would be up to her on whether she was going to accept it or not.

How do I know if I like someone I hate?

lani's talking!

this manip still blows my OWN mind honestly.

anyways, now I feel like some of you are wondering why I'm making Kat aware of her feelings for him this early in the story (if you think this is early lol) and it's because:

one, considering her character, I like to think that because she's smart enough to notice things (but not all things) right away, especially when it comes to her feelings.

and two, as much as I love stories that drag out the characters realizing they are in love with their love interest, I wanted to write not only Kat's journey through figuring out her feelings for Lucas, but also how her idea of love changes bc of her feelings for Lucas.

but lowkey, I miss old Kat LOL. (only invisible string readers would know). old Kat would want to beat up present Kat for being so mean and hating her boy hahaha.

but anyways, thank you all for the love and support you've given this story. and I will see you all later :))

byeeee <3