Chapter 15: The Inevitable Meeting

Eddy took slow steps in the direction of the clubroom, he wasn't one to back down from a challenge and he was afraid to face what he knew was coming. The issue was how frustrated it made him when he thought about it and now he'll have to deal with that smug little…

*Sigh*

'Pull it together McGee' Eddy chastised himself 'so you called her beautiful, big freaking whoop. Doesn't mean anything, when you see Kanker just play it off'

With that thought he opened the door, at least he'll have time before she arrives

'Ah, shit'

Eddy kept his features schooled as the door opened revealing Lee Kanker sitting by the desk with one leg over the other. Her eye caught his and her lips curved into a smirk, that same smirk she had when they were kids. If it was like then, this would be the part where he finds the farthest seat from the red she-devil.

Fat chance of that happening.

This was a battle of wills and the moment he showed any kind of weakness she'd have won 'time to wipe the smirk off her face'

Instead of grouching and sitting away from her, Eddy calmly made his way to the seat right next her. From his peripheral he could see Lee's smirk grow. Didn't matter, he was bound to face this at some point and if he avoided her she would just have more ammo for when they did meet.

He decides to lead the inevitable conversation "you're early" he looked her in the eye.

"Well I wouldn't want to be late for my favorite Ed" she replied in a teasing voice.

Oh, so its gonna be like that huh?

"Sure it doesn't have anything to do with our last meeting?"

Lee hummed "maybe, but hey, you said it not me"

Eddy shrugged "I calls it like I sees it" he gave her a coy smile "like you didn't like what you see in the gym" Lee's smirk twitched but he held up his hand "yeah you don't have to say anything "I know" he rubbed fingers on his shirt "I'm a stud."

Lee scoffed "yeah right."

"You saying I'm wrong?"

"I've seen better."

"But you ever look at them like you looked at me?" he raised an eyebrow.

Lee's brows quirked and Eddy laughed triumphantly "thought so"

Just then Ben walked in "oh you're early for once Lee" he smiled "good, now we can get started."

\

Ed was mentally preparing himself for his first practice, a little late but he's sure he could get into the swing of things. Ed was acutely aware that he was being looked at and despite himself he began to feel a little self conscious. He knew what they were probably thinking, after his little, let's call it episode, they probably think he was weird.

No not probably, definitely. They probably labeled him after his display on the field, he was aware he went overboard there. So far no one has had the courage of saying something to him, not even Kevin which was a little weird. He was actually half expecting him to make fun of him yet he's keeping his mouth shut.

Ed spared him as he fit into his shoulder pads and saw he had a frown on his face.

Kevin caught his stare and sneered at him "the fuck you looking at dork!?"

Ed didn't reply and focused at the task at hand but at least he was assured Kevin wasn't ill, not that it made much difference to him.

"Ah, don't mind him amigo" an accented voice said behind the open locker beside him. Said locker closed, revealing a boy a few inches shorter of latino decent "his ass is probably still sore from you kicking it on the field during tryouts" he smirked in Kevin's direction when said boy gave him a dirty look.

"Watch it Lopez" he warned.

Lopez snorted "whatever" he dismissed easily before adding "pandejo."

Kevin looked like he wanted to protest but a hand on his shoulder and turned to see a tall man with burnt orange hair. The man shook his head and jerked it in the direction of the captain who had taken to watch the exchange.

Back with Ed he found himself being talked to by the latino boy "Ed right?"

Ed put on his spiked sneakers "yeah"

"The name's Lopez, saw your tryout a few days back. Gotta say it was muy excellente"

Ed smiled once he searched Lopez for any hidden intentions "thanks" he stood and grabbed his jersey.

"I'm not gonna lie, I'm kinda jealous amigo" he shut the locker and leaned on it.

Ed pulled his jersey on and grabbed his helmet "what do you mean?"

Lopez pushed off the locker and both boys headed for the field "you kidding right? You tossed the equipment across the entire field and trounced all the seniors to score a touchdown" he explained and at that point they reached outside.

"Plus your girlfriend's the hottest girl in school."

What?

"What?"

Lopez looked at Ed who gave him a confused look "don't try to deny it homes, everyone saw her practically tackle you after tryouts."

Wait, he can't possibly mean…

"And speak of the devil" he jerked his head behind the taller boy.

Ed turned and saw something he'd never notice before. He saw a group of girls, a group of slim, toned and downright hot girls in cheerleading outfits that were barely legal. However his gaze was glued to the one blonde with long hair and a bright smile doing a routine that just goes to show that he wasn't the only one capable of performing feats of extreme flexibility.

The only difference was she made it look less PG.

Eventually May caught him staring and beamed at him with a continuous exaggerated wave of her hand while standing on her tippy toes like a little girl.

"You gotta tell me how you got May Kanker as your girlfriend."

He'd like to know that too-wait- girlfriend?

Ed turned to correct the mistake but the coach's whistle went off and like recruited officers everyone fell in line for the latest drill. He turned back to May who winked at him and at that moment he knew this would a lot harder than he thought.

\

Edd didn't know when he reached his front door, his body had gone on autopilot while his mind wandered. Now it could be said that Edd 'Double D' Hawkins is an intelligent individual, not just because of his grades or even his clever inventiveness but also through his actions. Edd carries himself with an air that is very foreign to locals and even his speech carries a certain cultured tone only found in most high society.

If one were to ask what the secret to it was, he would answer patience, diligence and a bit of OCD. That last one, his OCD was to ensure things were always labeled, clean and in order, he liked to do those when he thinks. Now that his OCD has been cured he has taken to pondering about his dilemma in solitude rather than cleaning things five or six times a day. Today's ponderings was brought to him by his latest dilemma.

Women

He'd always heard and read that the downfall of most prominent men had something to do with a woman's machinations. He'd always thought they were folly, or exaggerated, even when he and his friends were plagued by the Kanker sisters.

And that one time when they took their infatuation with Nazz to a whole other level…except what they did wasn't for Nazz.

*Shudders*

Anyway he could now see that those stories weren't completely unfounded since he's been thinking about them for over fifteen minutes.

Then again he was kissed by two girls on the same day not even ten minutes apart. Not even Double D could help but think about it. Believe it or not Double D is just as interested in the opposite sex as any normal hormonal teenage boy. The only difference is, he can control himself so as not to ogle them, his mother raised him better than that.

Then what were doing to Marie earlier?

It was a tiny voice in his head and it reminded him he was doing exactly what he said he didn't do. Upon entering his room he sighed and placed his messenger bag on the chair back. Okay Edd wasn't going to deny to himself that he wasn't ogling Marie's…posterior when she departed. In his defense her earlier kiss caught him off guard a little.

'Oh, who are you kidding Eddward, she practically disabled some of your higher brain functions with that kiss.' That voice reminded him.

That's not an easy thing to do and so far it only happened once..no twice. The first time was always with Nazz and that second time oddly enough with Sarah.

'I'm starting to see a pattern'

Not that any of that stuff would have worked on him now especially with a girl who stalked and tormented him for years. Which begs the question

'Where on earth did Marie learn how to kiss like that?'

Double D is by no means an expert on kissing, though he could make educated guesses based on prior experience and let's face it there may be no one else in the entire Peach Creek who could be an expert on being kissed by Marie Kanker. He touched his lips, that kiss is by far the best he'd ever gotten from her and not because it's the first he'd gotten from her in five years.

And while he could go into the specifics, the bottom line is that it caught him off guard, something he didn't…ex..pect…

"Hmm?" Double D had just taken off his shoes and was emptying his pockets when he noticed something.

"Odd" he patted his pants pocket "where is-" he paused and slowly his eyes widened in realization before rapidly checking his other pockets until he eventually stopped and leaned on his desk with an expression of mild disbelief.

Well, he did mention that kiss disabled some of his higher brain functions meaning he was only partially unaware of what was happening around him. With this knowledge Double D immediately came up with the explanation...

"Unbelievable" he shook his head with a somewhat wry chuckle.

"I'll see you around Dreamboat."

The words she parted with echoed in his mind along with that devious smirk.

'That damnable smirk'

Yep, there's no doubt about it now, he's check everywhere. It can only mean one thing.

"She stole my wallet."

\

Meanwhile Marie had just entered the Park N' Flush skimming through Edd's wallet. There wasn't much cash inside but there were a few pictures, none of them recent. Then again she couldn't really have expected him to have recent photos when it's barely been a week since he was back. She seriously doubted pictures were high on his list of priorities at the moment.

Staring at the picture which was his former student ID a wave of nostalgia hit Marie at seeing the 12 year old gap-tooth smile. Is it weird for her, the outspoken, punk rock, bad girl who doesn't give a flying fuck to end up crushing on the reserved, well-mannered, nerd who couldn't save himself from a Chihuahua attack?

Pshyeah like Kanker women are known for their exquisite taste in men. Her two sisters notwithstanding, their mother could be a prime example, three deadbeat guys, three daughters and none of them stayed. Marie rolled her eyes, it's a wonder how they fell for the weirdest guys in the Cul-de-sac.

No wait that's a lie, the kid who talked to the piece of wood is the weirdest. And at least she had the brains to pick the guy most likely to not wind up a deadbeat in the future.

Marie smiled entering the trailer, predictably she was the only one home. She headed straight for the bathroom with no doubt that he would be missing his wallet by now. It was actually a miracle she managed to take it with how sharp he's become.

'Guess he's a man after all' she smirked before remembering that flash of his abs 'a real man.'

Great now she had two reasons to take a shower. Edd's not the only one who's grown up and Marie intends to prove it. Besides she saw him first and there is no way she's gonna throw in the towel to some preppy cheerleader skank.

Marie paused and blinked, was she seriously getting territorial with Double D? After all these years she's actually picking up where she left off with him in regards to their relationship? Does she even have a claim over him anymore? Did she ever in the first place?

Marie paused, just what is it she wanted from the guy now?

Most people would think it's because she harbored feelings for him. That's not entirely so, Marie was hardly a romantic but she would admit he interested her. Edd back then was like a breath of fresh air from the stink that was other men. That and it was really fun to torment him.

What? Marie Kanker was a lot of things but a saint she was not.

So she kept up with the rough love, occasional kisses she admit she didn't have to do but it was so worth seeing the look on his face. It was funny to her, he was fun, may not be muscular or smell like axel grease but he was fun. He certainly helped distracted her from the shithole that was and still is her life.

Edd was like the perfect none lethal drug she got addicted to and her fascination and fun soon turned to affection by the time they went back to school. Looking back at it, yes by that time she was genuinely crushing on Double D, the guy who couldn't be more her opposite. Well you know what they say about opposites?

So here she was, trying to rekindle that old flame. No not old, she had long since moved on from the Double D five years ago. If he had come back an older version of what he was then she wouldn't have given him much of a second thought.

She certainly wouldn't have been so hung up on him.

No she was attracted to the guy here and now. The fact that he changed so much physically yet still remained that goodie two shoes intellectual only serves to make him more appealing. Now it was time to make her play, besides, she still had questions for him.

\

"Curse my inability not to be swayed by the female form" Edd had been swearing to himself the entire time it took for him to go to the trailer park.

The trailer park, the one place in his youth he would not dare enter willingly unless it was purely necessary…or Eddy dragged him along because of some hair brained scheme or he was tricked into going because he thought it was necessary but it was all a part of Eddy's scheme.

Double D cringed at the though 'a cup of sugar from the Kanker sisters?' Edd shook his head at his younger self's naiveness and his damn dependence on sticky notes to get things done.

He remembered whenever he entered the trailer park, the place would always seem darker and smellier. And after five years he could see there hasn't been much improvement on either fronts.

It would also seem that for some reason his body was subconsciously moving slower the closer he got to the Kanker residence. The only thing that has changed would be the fact that he wasn't afraid, oh no he was long past being afraid of the Kanker sisters. Right now he's wary of what Marie would try to pull now.

He just proved her usual methods of violence got her nowhere and her other method…*gulp* managed to actually disable him. With that he should be aware of what she might do to him. He took a shuddering sigh.

'Where is the Kanker trailer? Surely it should be around here somewhere.'

He paused and looked right before him to see a trailer vaguely reminiscent of the Kanker trailer except bigger. What was once little more than a two storey trailer was now fitted with extra parts. Double D stood there for three minutes familiarizing himself with it before he shook his head.

He didn't know what was more amazing, the fact that they managed add more to the trailer without damaging the structural integrity or the fact that it was added in a way that actually makes it look as if it was made that way. The slightly discolored parts not withstanding if Edd wasn't familiar with the trailer he would have thought it was always like this.

'Alright Eddward you've stalled enough, it's time to get this over with.'

He went to knock but found a doorbell 'interesting' he pressed it and a buzzing sound could be heard.

A moment later he could hear feet padding towards the door. He mentally prepared himself for the meeting that is to come. The door opened and he had to admit he didn't know what Marie would do but he knew she was going to do something and boy she did not disappoint.

"Well, well, well look who came crawling back for more."

With her trademark smirk Marie leaned against the door frame hair still wet from her shower and clad in nothing but a black tank top and grey short shorts that showed her nice toned, smooth legs and…

'Is that a tattoo?'

Edd couldn't really describe it, except it was multicolored but then his eyes spied the black lace bra strap and you bet he followed it down to her ample cleavage. He didn't know whether he was relieved or disappointed Marie showed just enough for it to not be obscene yet enough to be downright sexy.

And that word would be enough to describe Marie at the moment.

Edd coughed in his fist 'no I will not be defeated by this a second time.'

"Hello Marie I-"

"Hello Eddward~" she said seductively.

Edd did a double take, blinking at her. She has never called him by his proper name before why di- his eyes narrowed slightly.

'No it's a trick!'

"I believe you have something that belongs to me Marie" he wasn't beating around the bush anymore and he most certainly didn't want to be here.

"Whatever are you talking about?"

"Don't play games with me Marie" he cut to the point "I know you stole my wallet when you kissed me earlier today."

"Oh~" she raised an eyebrow in amusement before cupping her chin "hmm, nope sorry not ringing any bells."

"Enough of this Marie, I thought you would have grown past these games over the years."

Marie did nothing but stared at him for a while, his gaze sent a shiver down her spine, she almost grinned.

"Okay so maybe I picked your pocket when we were swapping spit" this time she did grin, especially when she saw him twitch, she wanted a blush but eh.

"I would not use such an uncouth term to describe what transpired between us."

Oh Double D and his use of big words to distract himself from his obvious embarrassment.

"You're right, 'swapping spit' isn't the right term. We locked lips, is that better?"

"Unless there is a term for kissing someone without their permission" he grumbled.

"I mouth raped you?" she raised an amused brow and smirked wider.

Double D sputtered briefly looking aghast.

Marie couldn't help but laugh at him "the look on your face!"

"I don't find the humor in your words Marie."

"Okay, okay so I stole a kiss from you then. How's that?"

"That term is quite apt, yes. Can we get back on topic please?"

"Hmm? Oh right your wallet, yeah I have it" he opened his mouth to speak but she beat him to it "no you may not have it" she said in a mock appropriate tone similar to his.

"Marie" he said in a warning tone.

"Here's the deal Double D" she said seriously "I still have some questions for you, answer them and I'll give you back your wallet."

Well compared to what double D thought she was going to do this wasn't so bad.

"Very well then"

Marie smiled triumphantly opened the door the rest of the way "then come on in."

Double D looked apprehensive about entering 'the lioness' den' and Marie saw this.

"Unless you want me to ask you here WHERE THOSE ASSHOLES ACROSS THE PARK ARE OGLING ME!" she shouted and Edd turned just in time to see some figures duck down the window of a trailer before him.

"Goddamn parasites" she grumbled "so what do you say?"

Edd sighed, like she had to ask after that outburst "may I come in?"

She gave him an amused look "I thought you'd never ask" she didn't wait for him to enter and went inside "don't hit your head on the way in."

Marie made sure to put an extra swing in her hips as she moved. Edd stared at said movement a little longer than he would have liked but at least he was all there this time.

He sighed again 'this is going to be a long day' he thought closing the door behind him.

To Be Continued

Author's Notes: The worst part of this chapter was with Ed, I know nothing about football I'm pretty sure I said this before so I couldn't go in depth with any practice so I'm going with locker banter. The best part of this chapter has got to be Marie, I personally like it when I run commentary on a character in the form of musings rather than actual dialogue and with Marie did it feel nice. The dialogue between her and Edd is good too.

Oh and I just checked, this story reached 100 follows, I am so~ happy. Sorry I can't get back to weekly updates with this story I haven't read much of Ed, Edd N Eddy so I'm basically still going with this because I genuinely like this story and the characters' interactions preferably the bantering between Eddy/Lee and Edd/Marie.

Next chapter I'll have another flashback, picking up where Edd left off.