A/N: I've been rewatching a lot of Kim Possible this summer and was always bothered by how quick Kim seemed to return Ron's feelings in "So the Drama," especially because she had never shown any real romantic interest in him before. So, I decided to appease my own shipper conscience and write this fic, explaining how Kim came to recognize her feelings for Ron early on in the 3rd season, which then made it easy for her to reciprocate his feelings later during the movie. Anyway, read and enjoy! xD

Kim stood on her front porch, her hand hovering above the door knob, mentally preparing herself for the onslaught of questions she would receive the moment she set foot inside the house. It wasn't that she was scared to face the inevitable - no, she'd faced much worse than this before. It was just the whole situation itself that was so painfully embarrassing, and Kim still couldn't believe how silly she'd acted throughout the entire ordeal. She was just thankful Ron decided to go home instead of staying to help her explain the mishap to her family. That would've been even more awkward.

After she stalled long enough, Kim took a large breath and walked in, the telltale squeal of the door turning on its hinges alerting her family to her presence.

"Kimmie? Is that you?" she heard her mother ask from the kitchen.

Kim peeled off her ridiculously high heels and dropped her purse to the floor before answering. "Yeah, I'm back." Her voice sounded falsely chipper even to her own ears.

Immediately both of her parents appeared before her, their faces identical masks of concern. Her father narrowed his eyes when he saw she was alone. "Where's Ronald?" he questioned, raising an eyebrow.

And so it begins, Kim thought with an internal sigh.

"Uh, he's at home." Kim slipped past her parents and walked into the kitchen, grabbing an apple off of the counter to snack on. She had barely eaten anything during dinner due to her...excitement for that evening.

"It's only nine o'clock though," Mrs. Possible pointed out. "We thought for sure you two would be out until ten. Is everything alright?"

Out of the corner of her eye Kim noticed her two twin brothers hovering by the doorway, listening attentively to their conversation.

Great, more humiliation. Kim let out an audible sigh this time. "Well, it's kinda a long story. I feel like I should clarify first though that Ron and I aren't together - it was all just a big misunderstanding."

Her mom instantly put a consoling arm around her shoulders, her expression full of pity. "Oh, honey, I'm so sorry! What happened?"

Kim shook her head, flashing her mom a reassuring smile. "No, no, we didn't break up or anything - well, actually we did, but it's fine, really. What I meant was it all started last night with this thing called the 'moodulator'..." Kim then went on to explain how it had been affecting her emotions all day, and how it had unfortunately gotten stuck on "lovesick" for most of the afternoon and evening. Kim mentally cringed as she thought about all she had done while under the influence of that device. First there was the incident at school, and then she had raced home, acting like a complete idiot as she gushed to her parents about how excited she was to go on a date with Ron and how he was so perfect and handsome and charming and -

Kim was sure her face was red just from recalling the memories.

Ignoring the furious cackling of her brothers as they listened to her finish the story, Kim focused her attention on her parents instead.

"So...you and Ronald are not dating?" Mr. Possible asked in clarification.

"No," Kim responded, taking in her father's relieved expression and her mom's forlorn frown.

Was her mom actually disappointed?

Before Kim could ask, her dad came over to pat her on the shoulder. "I'm glad to hear it. Boys are no good, Kimmie. It's best if you remember that."

"Dad," Kim moaned, barely refraining from rolling her eyes. "This was Ron though. He's different."

Her dad simply huffed in reply, to which Kim interpreted as a begrudging agreement.

"I'm just glad everything's been sorted out," her mom eventually said, coming over to gently kiss Kim's forehead. "How about you get some rest? You've been through a lot today."

Kim nodded at her suggestion, and swiftly headed up to her bedroom before the tweebs could tease her about her case of emotion sickness. She quickly locked her door and then flopped face first into her bed, trying not to think about the day's recent events and failing miserably.

Why had it been Ron? Why couldn't it have been some other random classmate? It would've been awkward, sure, but she wouldn't have to look them in the eye everyday like she had to with Ron. Why, why did she latch onto Ron? She could've ruined everything!

Kim sat up and sighed, tugging on her hair in exasperation. At least they were both able to play it off cool, or at least as cool as they could. (Really, Kim, "there's still fireworks"? What did that even mean?) Thankfully Ron didn't seem to hold a grudge, although he was a bit wary of her when they walked home, but overall he just seemed glad that she was back to normal. But how was she supposed to function the next day, the next week, or even the next month every time she looked at him, knowing what it felt like to have his lips pressed against hers?

Kim blinked. No, no, no, her thoughts shouldn't be going down this route. She quickly hopped to her feet and tried to distract herself by getting ready for bed. It worked for a while, but then she finished her entire nightly routine and found herself faced with the same problem as before - too much time to think. There was no way to avoid it though (unless she physically knocked herself out, which she wasn't a fan of), so Kim turned off the lights and buried her face deep into her pillow, begging sleep to take her, but of course her mind seemed to have other ideas.

His lips were soft.

The thought seemed to jump out of nowhere. Kim frowned as she gripped her sheets in annoyance.

He tasted like peppermint chapstick.

Kim squeezed her eyes closed, trying to ignore the fact that every time she tasted peppermint from now on she was going to be reminded of him.

He kissed you back.

Kim's eyes snapped open, the thought breaching the fortified wall she had deliberately built up in her mind. He did, didn't he? she mused thoughtfully as her fingers began unconsciously tracing the edge of her lips. She could remember the moment as clear as ever - she leaned in and kissed him, and he was as stiff as a board, completely in shock. And then he suddenly relaxed, and his arms slowly encircled her waist as his lips molded to hers, pressing back against her and bringing her to a state of pure bliss.

Kim felt herself blush despite being completely alone in her dark room. It was just a kiss - she'd kissed a few other people before, so it wasn't new to her. It really shouldn't be a big deal.

But it was, because this was her best friend - this was Ron. She hadn't been lying when she told her dad he was different from most other boys. Sure, he was a lot weirder than most high school boys with his irrational fear of monkeys and unhealthy obsession with Bueno Nacho, but he was also so much kinder, funnier, and more loyal than any other boy she knew. He had a heart of gold, and although he was often clumsy and acted irresponsibly, Kim knew he was actually very intelligent and extremely talented - he was just lazy most of the time.

He was also cuter than a lot of the boys she knew, too.

Kim blushed again in spite of herself. She'd consciously acknowledged the thought before, but she'd never outright admitted it to herself despite it's truth. Of course, he wasn't drop-dead gorgeous like some of the boys she'd seen in movies or fashion magazines, but he was attractive in a cute, dorky type of way, though she wasn't completely sure what she found so endearing about his appearance.

Maybe it was his disheveled, golden blond hair that always seemed to smell like freshly made tortillas. She still wasn't sure if it was because he spent so much time at Bueno Nacho or if he actually had tortilla scented shampoo, but frankly she wouldn't be too surprised if the latter was true. Or maybe it was his warm, friendly brown eyes, and how they squinted up when he was laughing or just genuinely excited or happy about something. Or maybe it was the light splattering of freckles across his face, forming a constellation of sorts that she often found herself staring at, mentally connecting the dots scattered across his nose and cheeks to make a pattern. Or maybe it was his smile, which was almost always bright and cheery with his annoyingly straight teeth. (Kim always found it frustrating that he was one of those lucky kids who had perfect orthodontic structure and never had to endure the agony of braces.) Or maybe it was just his physique in general. He was relatively tall and lanky, yet Kim knew that hidden beneath his baggy clothes and lackadaisical attitude he was actually fairly fit and muscular, thanks to all the missions they went on almost daily. Or maybe -

Kim bolted upright, her heart beginning to pound furiously against her ribs as her common sense finally caught up with her thoughts. What was she doing?! This was Ron, not some random guy she'd seen wandering around the mall or down the hallways at school! She was acting as though she was crushing on him - hard.

This is ridiculous, Kim berated herself, pressing her palms into her eyes as though trying to keep her sanity in tact. Ron's your friend - you don't like him like that, right?

RIGHT?

The fact that she wasn't sure unsettled her. Did she like Ron romantically? It wasn't like she hadn't thought of it before - the idea of dating Ron had fluttered across her mind from time to time, but it was always such a fleeting, ludicrous thought, it was dismissed before she could even consider the idea and the implications it presented. Yet now it seemed to be the only thought her mind could conjure up, and the more she entertained the idea the more appealing it sounded. She knew Ron almost better than she knew herself, so there would never be that uncertainty about the type of person he was that often accompanied the beginning of new relationships. She also enjoyed Ron's company, and dating would only increase the amount of time they spent together, and they also would never have to worry about meeting each other's parents and making a good first impression. Dating wouldn't take anything out of their friendship, would it? It would just enhance it with long hugs, tender caresses, sweet kisses, terms of endearment, and everything else that went along the lines of romance.

But dating could complicate things, too. What if she and Ron began going out and then got into a huge fight and broke up? Or if their feelings began to fade over time and they no longer wanted to date? What would happen to their friendship then? Could they even still be friends after dating? She knew people always said it could be done, but she didn't want to have to find out for herself if the statement was true.

And then there was the fact that Ron had "broken up" with her just a few hours ago. If anything, that surely revealed how he felt about the situation, and that he didn't want to be anything more than just friends.

Disappointment settled like a dead weight in Kim's stomach before her mind began scolding herself again. Why was she upset? Did she actually have serious feelings for him that were just now being unearthed? She turned her head to look out her window, knowing she'd be staring directly at Ron's house if the blinds weren't obscuring her vision. Was he still awake, thinking about the night's recent events? Thinking about her? Maybe, hopefully, reconsidering his feelings?

Kim turned her head away from the window, grinding her teeth at how pitiful and desperate her thoughts sounded. It would definitely be safer if they were to remain just friends, but now that she had been given a taste of what their relationship could be like if they were more, Kim found herself with an insatiable desire for it, despite Ron's obvious stance on the matter and her uncertainty of whether her feelings were genuine or not.

But he kissed you back, doesn't that mean anything? she found herself arguing, but quickly dismissed it as an instinctive reaction. He was so surprised he probably didn't think anything of it.

Maybe.

Kim groaned and fell back onto her bed again. She hated having debates with herself; her mind was her own worst enemy. She rolled onto her side and stared at her bedside table, her eyes immediately being drawn to the picture frame of her and Ron at the Middleton county fair last summer. She and Ron were standing at the entrance, both smiling widely with his arm slung casually over her bare shoulder. Kim shivered as she recalled the way his warm skin felt against her own and had to reach out and place the photo face down, significantly bothered by her reaction and the direction her thoughts were heading.

This wasn't normal, platonic behavior. This was the type of behavior she'd expect after a first date with a longtime crush. Her stomach wasn't supposed to have butterflies thinking about Ron. She wasn't supposed to be blushing when she thought about his looks. And she definitely wasn't supposed to be swooning over a kiss they accidentally shared.

Kim rolled onto her back and stared hard at the ceiling.

I like Ron. I'm crushing hard on my best friend.

Her revelation was fairly anticlimactic, but it still shook her to the core and unleashed a whole new onslaught of questions for her to deal with.

How long had she had these feelings? Were they always there subconsciously or was this all the moodulator's fault? Should she tell Ron or make a move?

Kim bit her bottom lip as she tried to quell the steady stream of uncertainties filling her head. Her very, very strong crush on Ron was harmless though, right? It should eventually fade with time, just like all the others she'd had. Soon enough everything would be back to normal, and she wouldn't be kept awake half the night tormented by the feeling of her best friend's lips against her own. That wonderful, intoxicating feeling...

Kim buried her head beneath her pillow. It was useless. She couldn't lie to herself, no matter how hard she tried. Now that these feelings had been awakened, she knew it would be a long time before they disappeared. It would be hard for them not too, seeing as she saw Ron and interacted with him on a daily basis. But what was she supposed to do about it? She couldn't just avoid him for the next few months - that would just make everything worse.

Kim sighed for what felt like the millionth time that night. No, she would just go on pretending like everything was normal, and hope that Ron wouldn't notice her ongoing internal struggle.

He'll probably forget about the whole thing in a few days, she thought, and found herself torn between hoping that it would be true and despairing over the fact that he might not remember their shared experience.

The rest of the night was spent fitfully, as she kept tossing and turning and trying to put her newly discovered feelings out of her head. It wasn't until almost dawn that she was finally able to close her eyes and sleep, all the while imagining Ron's arms around her as she drifted off into a much needed rest.

When she woke only a few hours later to a blaring alarm clock, it was no surprise that last night's revelation was the first thing on her mind. She had quickly decided that her feelings for him would be her most guarded secret - not even Monique or her diary were going to hear about it - and it would be a secret until he ever reciprocated them.

If he reciprocated them. Kim sighed as she stood up and stretched, putting the thought out of her mind and actually succeeding for once. Yes, in some ways it really tanked that she happened to have romantic feelings for her best friend, yet it was also one of the best things that could've probably happened. She could always be by his side without people thinking she was "into him," she already knew everything about him and didn't have to worry about the type of person that he was, and Ron always told her exactly what he was feeling - there were no guessing games with him. If he ever did return her feelings, she was sure he'd show her somehow in his own unique way.

By the time she was completely ready for school, Kim no longer felt so troubled about the whole situation anymore. Even though her feelings were new and it would be challenging to act normal and not stare at his lips every time they talked (she was still mentally preparing herself for that one), she knew that overall, she was making the best choice. It would be hard, but Kim was prepared and found herself full of resolve. Anything was possible for a Possible, right?

She gripped her backpack tightly and exited her house, her eyes immediately spotting the familiar figure of her best friend leaving his own home several meters away.

Their eyes met.

She saved the world on a daily basis - how hard could having a crush on Ron be?

The boy in question waved to her, a large grin splitting his face. Kim returned his smile, feeling her heartrate quicken as she walked over to meet him.

No big.