A/N: This is my first Gorillaz fanfic. My first fanfic ever, actually. I've had a few ideas before, but never really got around to writing them. I don't have a name for it yet, so bear with me. Anyway, here goes.

Disclaimer: I don't own Gorillaz.

Murdoc stormed nosily out of the lift. "Bloody zombies broke through tha wall an' destroyed our studio! All our recording equipment is ruined!" Russel rolled his head back and groaned. "Aw, man. What is this, the third time it's happened?"

Murdoc nodded feverishly before pulling out a cigarette, lighting it, and storming out of the room. 2D spoke up, pulling out of his absent-minded trance. "Well, this is actually kinda good."

Russel cocked an eyebrow. "Boy, I know you ain't all there, but this is bad. We need our equipment! You musta popped one too many pain pills."

2D shook his head defensively. "I mean, this finally gives us a break. Lord knows we need it."

Russel shrugged in agreement. "Guess you're right. Any of ya'll hungry?" he asked, heaving himself off the chair he'd been sitting in.

"You're always hungry!" Murdoc shouted from another room.

Turning to face the general direction of the voice, Russel hollered "Muds, you're lucky I haven't eaten YOU yet!" He turned back to 2D and Noodle. "'D, do ya want anything?"

2D tapped his chin with his finger a few times, thinking. "Uh…hang on a sec." he said, before fishing out a nearly empty bottle of pain killers from his hoodie pocket. He held the bottle close to his face and squinted his eyes. "Take one pill every four hours, or as needed…do not drive or operate machinery…take on an empty stomach…nope, nothin' for me. Bottle says no!" 2D said, smiling his goofy toothless smile and holding out the bottle.

"You would think that by now, you'd know everything there is to know about your pills." Russel shook his head slightly before shifting his attention to Noodle. "Noods, anything for you?"

"No, thanks. I get self-conscious when I'm the only one eating." She anwered, blushing slightly.

"Okay, then. Lemme know if ya'll change your mind." With a wave, Russel turned and left for the kitchen.

Noodle flopped down on the couch she'd been sitting on, while 2D tilted his head a bit. "Luv?" Noodle propped herself up on her elbow. "Yeah?"

"D'ya fink tha' I'm…well…stupid?"

Noodle sat up, staring at him. "No. Why do you think that?" 2D looked down and began fidgeting with his hands. "Well…yew hear what Murdoc and Russ say ta me. I may 'ave gotten hit in the head wit a car…twice…but tha' don't mean I'm stupid."

Noodle climbed off the couch, dragged a yellow bean bag chair next to the blue one 2D was sitting on, sat down and crossed her legs. "2D, I'm not going to lie. You're doped up on pain pills a lot, so obviously you may come across as, well, not the brightest bulb. But they haven't seen you when you're not on them. They don't know you." She smiled warmly at him, and 2D smiled back. "I do. We've been best friends since you signed for me and opened my FedEx box. We saw each other first. We share a bond that Russell and Murdoc can't even begin to fathom. I've seen you act goofy when high, stupid when drunk, slow when on pain pills. But, most importantly, I've seen you completely, 100% sober. You're absolutely brilliant." Noodle reached over and rustled 2D's spiky blue hair.

"Thanks, luv. Yew always know how ta' make me feel betta."

Noodle reached behind her back slowly, grinning mischievously. "I'm not sure if this will, though."

2D's expression changed from comforted to confused. "Luv, wot are yew do—" he was cut off by a pillow whacking him in the face. "'ey! No fair! I wasn' ready!" He exclaimed, while Noodle laughed. "All's fair in love and war!" she scrambled to her feet, and barely dodged the pillow 2D had hurled back at her. "Yew lil' punk! I'ma get yew!"

Noodle stuck out her tongue. "I'm smaller and faster. You're never going to catch me!" she turned to run, but instead she smacked into Russel's large belly. 2D began to laugh hysterically, while Russel caught Noodle before she hit the floor. His belly had caused her to bounce back, and she would've cracked her head on the ground if not for Russ.

"Baby girl, are you alright?" he asked, concern written all over his face. Russel was always like Noodle's big brother; looking out for her, taking care of her. Like she was his blood sister, not a tiny Japanese guitarist that showed up at the front door of Kong Studios one day all those years ago.

"Yes, I'm fine." Noodle answered, slightly dazed. Russel glared over at 2D. "Dammit, 'D! You could've really hurt her!" he shouted over Noodle's head. 2D flinched back, and Noodle turned to look at him in time to see it.

"You're going to seriously hurt her one day! Don't you realize how little she is? Look at her!" Russel continued to yell, before Noodle interrupted.

"It's not his fault! I hit him in the face with a pillow first! Don't yell at him!" Her heart rate accelerated, her face heated up, and she felt this…protection over 2D. It wasn't the normal kind; it was something she'd never felt before. Noodle knitted her eyebrows together, confused. Russel and Murdoc had yelled at 2D for years, multiple times a day. Why was this time different? Seeing 2D flinch back, looking helpless and scared, filled Noodle with this strange feeling. Like she never wanted any harm to come to him ever again. Like she only wanted to see his toothless smile, and his eyes shine with happiness. Noodle shook Russel's hands off her shoulders and pushed past him.

"Baby girl?" "Luv?" she heard Russel and 2D call after her at the same time. Shrugging absentmindedly, she mumbled "I have to…feed Mike real fast…"

"I fed him this morning!" Russel called after her. "Uh-huh…" She said, making her way to the lift and down the hall to her room. In the safety of her room, Noodle collapsed face down on her bed. "What in the world was that?" she asked, her voice muffled.

She rolled over onto her back, staring up at the paper lanterns Russel had bought her in an attempt to make her feel more at home. Noodle sighed, and wished Mike was with her. She'd feel less crazy talking to a monkey than to herself. Glancing around, her eyes landed on a light blue Tamagotchi Murdoc had given her as a birthday gift last year. "You're neva' too old ta' push buttons on a piece of plastic, yea?"

Murdoc had horrible hygiene, always swore, was a huge pervert, and drank and smoke as often as possible. But Noodle still cared about him. Sure, he only kept her around at first because she had insane guitar skills, but she knew he'd grown attached to her, even if he rarely showed it. All four members of the band were like family. Except Noodle and 2D. They had something much more special. Noodle squeezed her eyes shut, trying to force all of this away. What happened downstairs was nothing. Absolutely nothing. She kept repeating that in her head, trying to convince herself she just wanted her best friend to be safe. Nothing more.

Downstairs, 2D was staring at the lift, worried. "'ey Russ, wot d'ya fink all tha' was about?" Russel shrugged. "I dunno, man. Maybe it's…well, you know…her 'time'." 2D looked at him quizzically. "Wot time?" Russel shifted his weight from one foot to the other, obviously uncomfortable. "Her, uh, girl time. Y'know, her time of the month."

2D's brain slowly began to understand, and his eyes widened. "Oh. Oh! Ew! Russ!" He shook his head frantically, his blue hair a blur. Russel shrugged and put his hands up defensively. "You asked!" 2D squeezed his eyes shut. "Yea, but…eww!"

Russel sighed. "'D, calm down. I'm sure it's hard enough for her to go through it every month without another girl to talk to about it. She doesn't need to freaking out about it."

2D opened his eyes and tipped his head back. "Yea, yew're righ'. But, she's neva acted like this before. It has to be summfink else." Russel scratched his stomach. "Well, Murdoc is wit a lotta girls. Maybe he knows." 2D shrugged. "Maybe."

"Yo Muds! Get yo' ass down here!" After some loud stumbling and a long string of curse words, Murdoc stumbled into the room, wearing nothing but his underwear and clutching a half-empty bottle of beer. Scratching his stomach lazily, he slumped down on a recliner. "Wot the fuck's so bloody important?" Russel jerked his head toward the lift. "Noods was acting funny earlier, and me and 'D can't figure out why."

Murdoc chugged the rest of his beer and threw the empty bottle over his shoulder. "Funny 'ow? Funny like ha-ha, or funny as in pissed off? If it's pissed off funny, maybe you two blokes oughta shut yer traps for a while. Yew're both pretty annoying. 'specially you, Face Ache."

Russel sighed."Muds, don't go pickin' a fight with 'D. This is serious. I'm worried." Murdoc rolled his eyes. "I'm sure she's fine. Just bein' a teenager."

"Muds, this is about my baby girl. I don't fuck around when it comes to her. You know that." Murdoc groaned. "Fine. Wot happened?" 2D spoke up then. "She hit me wit' a pillow, got up, an' I threw it back at 'er. She ran inta' Russ, he yelled at me, then Noodle yelled at 'im. Then she said she had ta' feed Mike an' left."

Murdoc actually looked thoughtful for a few seconds. "'ave either of you though' 'bout, oh, y'know, goin' up an' talkin' ta' 'er?" 2D and Russel exchanged a quick look, before Russel answered. "Well...no." Murdoc groaned again. "I expected that from Dullard ova' there, but not you, Russ." Russel slumped his shoulders. "I'll go talk to her, then." 2D stood up. "Why don' yew let me go? Yew're like a big ol' teddy bear ta' 'er. But I'm 'er best friend."

Russel nodded slightly in agreement before mumbling something about a sandwich and leaving the room. 2D half-ran to the lift, and bounced impatiently on the balls of his feet while he waited for it to reach Noodle's floor. Stopping a few feet from her door, he smiled fondly at the sign she had tacked up on it. He raised his hand to knock, but stopped when he heard a voice inside. Curious, he pressed an ear to the door.

It sucks typing out Murdoc/2D's accents. But at least I've got all these other fics on here to help. And yeah, I know, the whole Noodle-suddenly-realizing-she-loves-2D thing is overdone and blah blah blah, but whatever. It's my fic, and I can do what I want with it. Anyway, it's past midnight, and I'm too tired to type any more out. Chapter 2 will be up either tomorrow night or Monday afternoon. And hey, while you're here, why not move your little arrow over and click 'review'? Feedback would make me pretty happy.