I just thought this deserved some kind of an… epilogue. Enjoy!

Eddy grabbed his friend roughly by the shirt collar. He looked him in the eye, mouth a firm line, suspicious. "I know what you were doin' with Marie."

Double Dee yelped as he was jerked forward. "Oh, um, Eddy, I'm sure it's not what you think it is… we, were, um, I-I just c-caught her in the ha-hallway, and…" Double Dee's lying skills were lackluster, since he had had no practice prior to this moment. His face was a deep shade of crimson and he was barely sputtering out his words.

"You were kissin' her," Eddy said. He raised one eyebrow, bemused. His expression was daring Double Dee to challenge his words.

Double Dee looked down at his friend in silence for a moment, groping for words that would make this situation easier. For once, he found himself at a loss and, out of embarrassment, yanked his hat over his eyes and ears. He didn't want to see anything right now.

"Ha!" Eddy laughed out as he let go of him. "I was right! You were kissin' a Kanker! Marie Kanker!" He was bent over from the laughter as he coughed out, "W-who are you and what have you done with Double Dee!"

Double Dee readjusted his hat and gazed at Eddy, who was still snickering. "Eddy…it…I don't…" He seemed to coil farther into himself.

Eddy regained his composure and glanced over at his friend. "I don't know how you even stomached it."

Double Dee's mouth turned down sharply; he felt a pang of protectiveness over Marie in his chest. "Eddy, she's not a disease."

"Says you, Casanova," Eddy jeered. "You're the one lip-locking with a Kanker. Obviously you don't know what's going on anymore." This sent him into another fit of giggles.

Double Dee began to speak but stopped. He didn't know what to say to his friend; they had all collectively despised the Kankers. He figured that this turn of events had to be shocking. He was still blushing and feeling light-headed from that afternoon's events, so he couldn't really expect support. "I don't… really… understand this myself, Eddy," he admitted slowly.

Eddy smoothed back his hair with one hand. "How's it gonna be? Are the Kankers just gonna ambush us and you and Marie are just gonna start makin' out and leave me and Ed to be tortured?"

"Of course not, Eddy!" Double Dee protested, taken aback. His mind began to think about what the following days were going to be like. He had not been able to think very well since his encounter with Marie. What would they do? Were they a couple now?

"Right, right," Eddy mumbled. He drew lines in the dirt with his toe and didn't look up at him. "I mean… I don't even know how you could…"

"It's not like I expected…"

"I didn't expect it either."

Double Dee could see that this was affecting Eddy in a different way than he expected. It was as if he had broken some kind of boundary or bond. The Eds hated the Kankers; Double Dee dating a Kanker didn't work with that. "I really do like her, Eddy…"

Eddy crossed his arms. "That's so wrong…"

"Eddy, please try to be more understanding…" Double Dee grew anxious; he did not want to upset his friend in this.

Eddy looked at the ground thoughtfully. He was quiet for a minute and then looked back up at Double Dee. "Just try to make this as…not weird as possible, Sockhead."

Double Dee felt a small smile creep across his face.

XXX

The sky was battleship gray and the weather was chillier than usual. Marie zipped up her hoodie and kept her hands in her pockets all the way to school. She could feel a small flame inside of her, though, keeping her warm. She was still in a euphoric state from yesterday. Sure, she had gotten a lot of girly, sisterly teasing from her sisters, but that had given way to prying and jealousy. She had gotten to brag about how she got the "cute Ed" and an Ed at all, for that matter. She was walking on air and for once in her life, Marie wanted to go to school.

The old, brown building that was Peach Creek Jr. High could not have come into sight sooner. Marie almost wanted to break out into a run and throw herself through the doors, but not even requited love could make her act that way towards a school building. Instead she pushed silently through the doors and slipped in as she usually did, then waited by her locker for the sound of Edd's voice.

Edd himself was on his way to his locker, eyes stuck to the floor. He felt so awkward and unsure; he didn't know what to expect this morning. Would Marie publicly throw herself on him? For a moment he thought that such an act wouldn't be so bad, but he dismissed that when he considered the attention it would draw.

Double Dee collected his books from his locker and shut the door. He turned the next corner and saw Marie in all her glory lazing about her own locker, a bored expression printed across her features. He bit his lip and felt a foreign tingle of excitement as he looked at her.

Marie caught him looking at her and gave him her mischievous smile. He took this as a command to come over, and he followed her unspoken directions. He stopped in front of her and swallowed hard, not sure what to do.

She didn't say anything, just looked at him with those smoldering eyes. Her hand reached down towards her pocket and she extracted an apple. Double Dee felt a shiver of relief come over him as he realized that she wasn't going to jump on him.

"Morning, Oven Mitt," she cooed.

"Oh, um, yes. Morning." He was hoping that he would learn to stutter less when in her presence.

She grinned at him. "So," Marie began casually. He looked at her expectantly but she said nothing, only reached to finger his sweater with her free hand.

It felt strange to have her touch him, and he wasn't entirely sure how to react. Double Dee was silent for a moment before speaking up. "So, Marie…um, what are we to, um… do?" He waited for her to give some kind of an answer, but she didn't give any clues to what she was thinking. She was already being a walking puzzle.

Marie took a bite out of her apple, a light pink stain smeared on the exposed white flesh of the fruit; he momentarily wished he were an apple. "I've got an idea of what we can do," she said after swallowing. Her eyebrow cocked up and her mouth pulled into a carnal smile.

Double Dee felt a bead of sweat run down his neck. He'd have to get used to her openness, and he'd have to get used to liking it. The chills came back as she ran her hand up his arm. "Ohuh… " was all he managed to choke out.

She tossed her apple into a trash bin and squeezed his arm. "Yeah," Marie said, appearing totally at ease. She draped her arm across his shoulder and wrapped the other around his waist. She apparently had a very clear idea of what she wanted to do.

"Ehm," Double Dee sputtered as he saw fellow students beginning to file into the building. Marie looked to see a few people staring at them strangely, and with that, she pulled him even closer and their eyes locked into a stare.

"Don't worry so much," was all she said before pressing her mouth to his. He felt a fire set beneath his skin that wasn't only from embarrassment. He felt weird staring at her when her eyes were closed and she was kissing him, so he shut them quickly and tried not to think about the audible sounds of shock her heard and the stares he felt.

She tasted so sweet, like a guilty pleasure. Her hips were pressed against his and her body was warm. Double Dee could feel his own mouth pressing back, working against hers, and his hands sliding around her slender waist. When they broke apart, Marie did something unexpected. She laid her head on his collarbone, a tender move indeed, and he smiled.

"That's just gross," the voice of Kevin mumbled, and for once, Double Dee did not care whatsoever.