So since I wrote my first story last year (or something) I have gotten several requests to write an additional story bringing back characters from my version of Kelly's past. And at first I thought hmm...I don't know how that would go since people might be tired of it already. But I thought about it awhile and decided that if I ever ran out of story ideas that I would go ahead and write it.

Well, sadly my well of creativity is only three stories deep.

But that's ok! Because I'm all about giving the people what they want! (or something)especially when I am out of plots and haven't posted in six months, and so here it is. I hope this is an acceptable continuation of events from my first story, and though I realize it may not exactly be what some of you were expecting, I hope you enjoy it all the same.

Also my thanks to Ally for her ideas and for naming the damn thing, since I clearly am incapable of doing so on my own :)

Ok, that's it. Enjoy! And Merry Christmas!

-kp

Chapter 1

Kelly Garrett unlocked the trunk of her car and immediately jumped backwards as if it had been an electric socket rather than the keyhole she had just stuck her key inside.

The sound of the inner mechanics of the lock clicking free seemed to echo obnoxiously through the quiet streets, surely sending birds scattering, pricking dog's ears, and turning heads within a mile radius of where she was standing. Had the lock always been that loud? She had certainly never realized.

But it was just a normal, everyday sound wasn't it? Surely no ones attention would be caught by hearing a trunk open.

Would it?

She let her watchful eyes scan her surroundings for any potential witnesses to her activities.

Be suspicious just don't look suspicious, she quietly reminded herself.

Under the guise of examining a nick in her paint job, she leaned forward and carefully looked around. The same old view up and down her empty street greeted her, still and quiet in the soft grayish light of early morning. This place should be as familiar with her as she was with it, but there was no telling who could be lurking about, someone who didn't belong spying on her from behind a curtained window or through the leafy branches of one of the many hedges.

One could never be too careful.

Her hands suddenly felt dirty and she absently wiped them on the leg of her jeans. There appeared to be no living creature in the quiet neighborhood save for a stray cat walking leisurely across the top of a neighbor's fence. And unless the mangy orange tabby planned to report her, then it was safe.

Kelly smiled and for the first time since pulling up in her driveway, let herself relax.

Her neighbor's didn't know this side of her.

They saw her as the quiet, single young woman who did some kind of policing job, never caused problems, often baked cookies for the neighborhood kids, and never let her front lawn get overgrown.

The perfect neighbor.

Kelly's smile broadened as she silently swung open the door to her trunk.

Her neighbors could never know this side of her.

It wouldn't do to have them know that their polite, well mannered neighbor who let the neighborhood kids climb in her tree, who, without fail, decorated for Christmas the day after Thanksgiving, and who always had a nice thing to say, also had a secret.

No. That wouldn't do at all.

The sound of a car crunching through loose gravel behind her made her whirl around, instinctively blocking the view of her open trunk with her body. How had she let someone sneak up behind her? Her mind frantically tore through a list of excuses and means of escape if it came to it.

But as soon as her eyes focused on the car in question, she relaxed. The five seconds of panic had been unnecessary, she realized as she followed the car up the street with her eyes.

The familiar white Cobra rolled to a stop along the curb of her front lawn and Kelly even sighed in relief.

She had always been a guarded person. Even as a small child, she had learned to hide things, twist and mold herself, pretend to be what people wanted her to be, lock secrets away where no one but her could find them. Sometimes this personality trait hindered relationships. But just as often it was useful.

She was accustomed to this though and took the good with the bad, because this was the way she was and had been for so long that now, even if she wanted to, she couldn't change. Her neighbors probably didn't know this about her, but though she was well liked and friendly, there were only a handful of people she trusted. None of them were part of that handful.

The driver of the Cobra was.

Kelly didn't tell her everything, but there was no reason to put up a guard against her this morning. The contents of her trunk didn't have to be hidden from her.

Because Jill already knew her secret.

Kelly slid her hands into her back pockets and leaned against her car to wait for her best friend. Jill wasn't moving fast enough though, and Kelly quickly became restless. She shuffled her feet anxiously against the smooth concrete of her driveway and couldn't help feeling a bit annoyed. They had to get inside soon before someone noticed.

Wait, was she being silly?

Kelly sighed and forced herself to take a deep breath. It would be fine. She had to stop being so paranoid.

"Hey, Kell!" Jill greeted cheerily. She waved, then skipped around to the back of her car and flung the trunk open with a loud creak.

Kelly winced inwardly and her eyes darted around the neighborhood again, searching for a curious onlooker. Jill was clearly not operating under the same stealthy manner that Kelly had so carefully adopted. Her shuffling feet went still and every muscle tensed. Everyone on the block had to have heard that.

"Is it all in the trunk?" Jill called.

Her voice seemed to echo loudly through the empty street, but Kelly forced herself to relax. It would be fine, right? Jill didn't seem to be worried.

"All here." Kelly answered, patting the trunk of her car.

Jill grinned and then disappeared from sight into the trunk of her car. She popped up a few seconds later with three heavy looking burlap sacks, bulging to capacity from their contents. With a grunt of effort, she hefted them out of the trunk and onto the grass.

As she did, another car turned onto the street, crunching through the loose gravel just as Jill had done minutes earlier. Coincidentally enough, this car was also white.

And blue.

A cop car.

The grin faded from Jill's face and she stepped in front of her heavy bundle and pretended to busy herself looking through the trunk again. Despite herself, Kelly grinned. So it appeared Jill was a little nervous.

Good. That never hurt anybody.

The police cruiser coasted by harmlessly, the driver only turning his head long enough to smile appreciatively at the two good looking women for so considerately standing in his line of vision. As the car disappeared down the next street, Jill closed her trunk and the two girls shared a nervous giggle.

"That was close." Jill whispered. She took a look around and then grabbed up her bags, hoisted them up on her shoulder, and hurried over to where Kelly was standing. "Well?" she asked impatiently. "Did you do it?"

Kelly grinned in response and opened her trunk just enough for Jill to peer inside.

She watched with satisfaction as her blonde friend's eyes seemed to double, then triple in size.

"Oh my God, Kelly!" Jill gasped. She slammed the trunk down and looked around in alarm. "Thank God that cop didn't stop here!"

Kelly shrugged. "I was careful." she replied casually. "Are you gonna help me or not?"

Jill sighed. "Of course I am. Let's get it inside."

She opened the trunk again but paused thoughtfully and then closed it.

"First lets get some bags or something. Your neighbors will call the cops if they see us carrying this around."

Kelly nodded agreeably and reached out to take a bag and lighten Jill's load. "Let's take in your stuff first and we can empty out the bags on the table and use them to bring this mess inside."

Jill made a face. "The table? We have to eat on that later."

"I'll clean it."

"Will this stuff come off?"

"Yes, Jill." Kelly sighed, stepping towards her front door. "Let's hurry. The old lady across the street drinks coffee on her porch and I don't want her to see us."

Jill rolled her eyes and followed.

The two girls made quick work of emptying their sacks out on the table, which proved to be messier than Kelly anticipated. But deciding that it wasn't anything a few spritzes from a bottle of Formula 409 couldn't fix, the girls finished the job and hurried back to Kelly's trunk with three stained but empty sacks.

Kelly opened the trunk, revealing its startling contents again. The two girls stared at it for a moment in awe, seeming to have forgotten how much was in there in the short time it took them to empty Jill's bags. They shared a gleeful look, their eyes twinkling with childish mischief.

"You really went all out, huh?" Jill laughed, giving Kelly a playful shove. "Are you sure you've never done this before?"

Kelly could only grin in response.

Sure the various fireworks and rockets had been a little pricey, but she had a feeling it would all be worth it.

Next week was the Fourth of July after all.

But not just any Fourth of July. An event like this only happened once every hundred years and they were lucky enough to have it land during their lifetime. So of course they had to be prepared.

Because next Sunday was July 4, 1976.

The American Bicentennial.

And if that wasnt cause for a hundred years worth of celebrating, then what was?