AN: So, this is technically a sequel for my 5+1 one-shot Lounging Around. It's after the five but the plus one will be included and expanded in an upcoming chapter. Parts of Lounging Around are referenced, so reading that first is a good idea.

"So, you wanna tell me what's up with you and John?" Gaila asked a few days after the great blue paint debacle.

"No," Jaime answered.

"'No' there's nothing going on or 'no' you don't wanna tell me?"

"Don't wanna tell you," she told her friend. She and John were friends, they may have had a moment or two -or ten- over the last four months or so but that was it.

"But there is something," the redhead smiled. "You should go for it."

"Not gonna happen."

"Why?"

"I don't know," Jaime lied. It wasn't that she didn't like John, she did. He was nice, smart, funny, handsome as hell. The problem was that none of this is permanent and she didn't want to get attached or, heaven forbid, fall in love with someone only to lose them next year when they graduate.

"You're scared."

"Am not."

Gaila smiled, "You are. Look, other than Gary, you haven't really dated anybody…"

"Gary graduated, joined the Air Force, got stationed in Germany and dumped me over the phone. So, yea," Jaime sighed. "He'll leave… John. He's only in the country for school. What happens when he graduates and goes home?"

"That's next year, longer if he's post-grad. You have some time. Isn't he a dual citizen anyway?"

"Not the point. I… I thought I had some time with Gary and look what that got me. I think it'll be best if I just avoid the heartache all together and not go there."

"Not go where?" a voice asked from behind them.

"Nowhere. Hey, John," Jaime smiled. Gaila gave her a nudge. "What up?"

"I need a moment of your time," John with that disarming smile that always seems reserved for her.

"Sure. Gaila…"

"I gotta call your mom. She left me a message when I was in class," Gaila smiled. "You'd think she adopted me or something."

"She did. You just now figuring that out?" Jaime chuckled as her friend blew her a kiss and waved before going in their room and leaving Jaime with John.

"She looks better," he smiled.

"She's tougher than she looks," Jaime chuckled. "You wanted to talk to me."

"What are your plans for the summer?"

"I don't know yet, might take a class or two. Why?"

"If memory serves, you've never been to England and you've always wanted to go," he said. They sat up one night comparing passport stamps, he has her beat with 7 countries to her 4.

"Yea. Are you inviting me to come home with you for the summer?"

"You've showed me around your home. Figured it was only fair to show you mine."

Jaime smiled, she couldn't help it. "What am I gonna do with you?"

"There are many different ways I could answer that. Quite a few of which aren't entirely appropriate," John chuckled. If her heart fluttered a little, she wasn't sure if it was at the sound or the words but she was not going there.

"When are you planning to leave?"

"A few days after classes are dismissed. Better to get the tickets now as opposed to later. What do you say?"

"Most people just ask if you wanna have coffee or dinner before the international travel," she chuckled.

"Do you?"

"What?"

"Want to have dinner with me before the international travel?" he smiled. She realized that set herself up for that half a second after the words came out of her mouth.

"Are you asking or are you asking?" Jaime wasn't sure which answer she preferred at the moment. Her head always gets like that when he's in close proximity. She was torn between keeping her distance and wanting to find out just how soft his lips were.

"Will you out on a date with me?"

"Yes," Jaime said before she could stop herself. She wanted to kick herself because her brain has obviously left the building without her. 'Dammit, Gaila's never gonna let me hear the end of this,' she thought. "I'll have to get back to you on going to England, though."

"No rush. So, dinner, Friday?"

"Friday's good," she barely squeaked out.

"I will knock at six," John said before he kissed her cheek and walked away. Jaime opened her mouth but nothing came out just as the door to Jaime's room opened and Gaila gave her that look.

"Shut up," Jaime said.

"I didn't say anything yet," the redhead smirked.

"I know but you're thinking really loud."

"I'm just trying to figure out if I should say 'I told you so' now, or wait until your wedding," the other woman said as Jaime walked into their room and sat on the edge of Ny's bed. "You really like him. You can deny it all you want or you can go with it."

"Gaila…"

"Look, I know I'm not the best person to give dating advice to anyone but I do know about regret. There is something between the two of you, anyone with eyes can see it. You should see where it goes, you'll regret it if you don't."

"Did you just go all Tennyson on me? 'Tis better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all.' Seriously?"

"Hey, old dude knew what he was talking about."

"Okay, so what are you planning to do after that?" John asked as he drove her car back to campus.

"My focus is in robotics, however, Bones has this research project to improve prosthetics. It was originally his dad's before he passed away. Anyway, Sam and I are gonna work on it with him for our dissertations."

Jaime explained how she, her brother and her best friend were doing a study on how to improve prosthetics while making them cost effective. Between their studies in mechanical engineering, computational biology and medicine, they figured that they could come up with something better than what was out there now, that didn't cost nearly as much. She planned to apply in the joint masters/doctorate program for her graduate training.

"I'm actually thinking about taking some additional courses in biomedical," she smiled.

"It would suit you," he told her. "Getting to work on equipment and people at the same time."

"That's what my dad said."

"He's a wise man. Scary but wise."

"He's not scary," Jaime chuckled.

"No? Gaila's not even his child and the man looked like he was ready to kill someone for her. I can only imagine what would happen to me if I angered you in any way," John said. "I bet there are shallow graves littering your backyard."

"I'm not telling," she gave him a wink. "He's actually not that bad once you get to know him. And my whole family is protective of Gaila. Ny's family too. Her parents died in a car accident when she was fifteen. She didn't have anyone, so Nyota's folks took her in. The three of us met during our first semester in an elective and we've all been friends ever since. Then, one night, this girl wouldn't leave my brother alone and Gaila punched her. After that, it was a done deal, she was family. It's why I let her talk me into stuff."

"Like going out with me?"

"She didn't actually talk me into this."

"No? I swear I heard you say you were going to avoid the heartache and not go there."

"Heard that, huh?" Jaime asked and John nodded. "It's not you. And it's really not a first date conversation. Especially here." He had just parked in the lot next to Sam's building. Student parking on campus was by permit and limited so Jaime and her brother decided to share their late father's car and split the nearly thirteen hundred dollar annual permit fee. Their assigned lot was outside Sam's place, Jaime lived in the residence hall a few minutes' walk down the street.

"But you're going to tell me anyway because date or no date, we're friends. And, if you want to get technical, Valentine's Day was our first date," John said as he unbuckled his seat belt and turned to look at her, she did the same. He was right. Sipping hot chocolate while overlooking the Golden Gate Bridge and talking about everything they could think of definitely counted as a date. Why it took her so long to admit it was a mystery, even to Jaime.

"Quick version: started dating this guy when I was a freshman, he was a junior. After he graduated, he joined the military. He convinced me that we could make it work while we were apart, even talked about getting married. I stayed faithful during everything but when he got to Germany last semester, he called me one night and broke up with me. Couple weeks later, ran into his best friend, who told me that he got married."

"Ouch."

"Yea. College is a temporary thing so…"

"So, you think if you don't form any attachments you can't get hurt again. While mostly true, you can't live your life shying away from making new connections because of him. You never know what you'll miss."

"I think you just want to go out with me again."

"That too," he chuckled. "I had fun tonight."

"So did I but I always have fun when you're around so…" she said before she closed her mouth and looked anywhere other than the blinding smile on his face. She didn't mean to say that and he knew it.

For their date, John took her too this little Mediterranean café in Emeryville before they explored a nearby bookstore. Jaime had no idea how she's ever gonna read Shakespeare again since John whispered the eighteenth sonnet in her ear with that damn accent.

"I noticed," John said before he tucked her hair behind her ear, allowing his fingers to brush her cheek. Jaime instantly relaxed at the increasingly familiar gesture. "I'm going to kiss you."

"Okay," was all she could manage before he leaned in and pressed a soft kiss against her lips.

It was sweet and mildly seductive, just like him. Then, like a switch flipped, it went from tempting to searing. Jaime buried her hands in his hair in an attempt to keep him there, not that he seemed in a rush to go anywhere. John swept his tongue along her bottom lip and her lips parted in response, he wasted no time tangling his tongue with hers. She doesn't know how long they were like wrapped up in each other like that before he pulled away with a smile.

"Wow," Jaime whispered.

"We should probably get out of this car before we do something stupid."