Authors note: This picks up in right where my previous story (Code Lyoko: Final Mission) left off. This chapter is for Jeremy and Aelita. What happened with Yumi and Ulrich comes next.

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Kadic Academy, Aelita's dorm, Monday 8:30 PM: Jeremy escorted Aelita back to her room and went to give her a goodnight hug, instead he found himself pulled inside and towards the bed. Aelita removed her shoes and sat down, motioning him to sit down next to her. As soon as he had Aelita hung her head and started to cry, releasing the tears she had held back earlier. All throughout the memorial dinner she had a recurring thought, that her father could have lived if not for her. If she had been stronger or smarter or,... something then he wouldn't have had to use his life energy to fuel the anti-XANA program. Instead he had to die because she didn't realize that his program would have had to be specially encrypted, or that the supercomputer would have limited resources. Maybe something in all the interfaces they didn't know about could have allowed them to defeat XANA without the loss of her father. Interfaces that she should have known about considering how long she had lived in the computer. Considering that Lyoko was so much a part of her that she could alter it with a song, could use it to reach out and touch the real world with only concentration. She was broken from her thoughts by a single question "Aelita, what's wrong?" whispered into her ear by Jeremy who had been hugging her gently ever since she started crying.

"I feel guilty about my father. I mean in a way I killed him. I know I didn't actually shoot him or anything like that but I took away all the energy that was protecting him and he died as a result" Aelita was still crying and had struggled to say those words.

"It wasn't your fault Aelita, he tricked us."

"But why. How could he do that to me. After everything we've been though. All the work you did to find him and all the effort put into trying to materialize him, he went and killed himself. How could..." Aelita choked up and was unable to continue.

"The same way you did that to me probably." Jeremy said softly.

"I... I... Jeremy when did I " Aelita's voice trailed off as she understood. After regaining some of her composure she continued "I shut off the supercomputer. I thought that my dad had ruined my life by locking me in the computer and I believed I had ruined yours just by being here..."

Jeremy interrupted her and offered his perspective on her suicide attempt. Tears formed in his eyes as he started "I can understand that. I was spending so much time working on your problems that my health was deteriorating. But you weren't ruining my life. I was happy to make those sacrifices for you because I love you. Fixing your problems was the only way I could show it at the time. When I..." He paused and when he continued his voice was broken "I saw your lifeless body on the floor I thought it was the end of my life too. And afterwards, alone in my room I felt really guilty. I had failed you, failed to save you from XANA, failed to give the life you deserved." Tears were running down his cheeks as he finished.

"Jeremy, that wasn't the reason I shut off the supercomputer. You didn't fail me, I just didn't think my life was valuable enough to allow you to continue risking yours for. It wasn't even valuable enough to allow my father to let me live it. I know differently now. Thanks to you and all of my friends."

"Your father probably felt the same way Aelita. He couldn't risk your life and ours for his. He loved you too much. He may have even felt that he didn't deserve to be in your life considering how badly he screwed it up."

"He didn't completely screw it up Jeremy, if he hadn't did what he did I wouldn't have met you, or Yumi or Ulrich or Odd. I can't even image life without any of them, especially you. Not after everything we've been though together, after all you've done for me."

"But that's your perspective, and not his." Wondering if she felt as he did after her suicide attempt Jeremy asked in gentlest, most supportive voice he could manage "Aelita, as I said I felt that your attempted suicide was my fault for not doing enough for you. Is that how you feel?"

Aelita answered truthfully "Yes, there had to be something I could have done. We had the warning. I should have" She was cut off by Jeremy.

"Trust me Aelita that's a dark path your starting down. How many times have you been mad at me because I was willing to risk our friends lives for yours? How would you have felt if one of my choices to save you had resulted in the death of Yumi or any of the others, or even someone you didn't know?"

Aelita looked at Jeremy through her tear filled eyes. His words were said with a gentleness and such regret. After a few monuments of silence Jeremy continued "He couldn't take the chance that we would have died trying to save him. He had lived his life but you hadn't gotten to live yours."

"And Aelita, I believe your father died happy knowing that you survived, that you can grow up free and clear of anything he did, that you have people who love you and will support you."

Aelita sat silent in contemplation nestled in Jeremy's warm embrace. Aelita recalled her father's final words "your life is more important than mine". It wasn't something she had truly understood until now. Jeremy had valued her life above his own and even above the lives of his friends. She had valued the lives of Jeremy and their friends above her own. That her father felt the same way made sense now that she had that perspective. And somehow she knew that he died happy, though the memory was buried by grief and guilt to the point that it seemed fake and imagined. From her understanding came forgiveness of both herself and her father. Through forgiveness came the end of her guilt and with that much of her grief left.

Seeing as she had stopped crying Jeremy pulled back and wiped away the remaining tears from her face. She looked back at him and did the same. Afterwards the pair sat in comfortable silence until just a few minutes before curfew. Jeremy reluctantly got up to leave then stopped and turned to Aelita "Will you be ok for tonight?" He asked.

"Yeah, I think so." She replied. "Um Jeremy..."

Jeremy turned back towards her, "Yes princess?"

"Earlier you um... you said you love me. I was wondering.. um... did you mean it?" Jeremy bit down his shock, had he actually said that? Yes, he had said it during their conversation. And it was truer now than it had ever been. "Yes my angel, I love you. More than anything in the world." Jeremy had just enough time to realize how good it felt to finally say those words before he was engulfed in a crushing hug.

Jim came around and pushed open Aelita's door just in time to hear her say to Jeremy "I love you too." He quietly closed the door allowing them to have their moment. Aelita loosened her grip on Jeremy enough to allow him to breath. Then she pressed her lips to his, feeling warmth flood through her body as he returned both the hug and the kiss. They stayed locked together, sharing a soft sweet kiss until their lungs demanded air. Neither Jeremy nor Aelita wanted this moment to end and stood there holding each other tightly. Aelita stared in for another kiss but Jim knocked on the door, startling the young couple and causing them to break apart. "Ok you two, curfew. Jeremy time to go to your room." Jeremy and Aelita exchanged good nights then Jeremy left Aelita's room. Jim turned to the boy and said "Congratulations, but make sure you two keep track of time while your together. You'll both be in big trouble if you end up caught together after curfew. Ok?"

"Yes sir" was Jeremy's reply as Jim walked off.