I Dreamed I was an Architect

(Later that morning)

"Lucy."

She slammed her locker and whirled round, to stare straight into the chest of a certain solemn-eyed pianist. Drat. She'd been able to avoid Schroeder so far, but he'd caught up to her during recess. The closeness between the two of them finally registered and Lucy felt a rush of warmth around her face and averted her eyes quickly, before snapping, "What?"

"Thank you." Schroeder leaned over and kissed her cheek gently.

There were gasps and then total silence in the hallway.

Lucy looked flummoxed for a moment, but quickly realized that people were staring. It was straight out of one of those horrifically cheesy romantic comedies that Sally loved to make her watch. (Lucy would die before she told anyone about her DVD collection of the very same films which was currently hidden under her bed in a box that said "DO NOT TOUCH".)

"What?" She shouted. "Don't you people have anything better to do than to stare?"

With that, she reached out, grasped Schroeder's arm in a death grip and dragged him outside towards the bleacher stands. Once she was satisfied that they were sufficiently isolated, she glared at Schroeder, folding her arms.

"Why did you just try to humiliate me in front of everyone in school?"

Schroeder sighed, exasperated. He should have known better – something had possessed him to go up to her and kiss her. Maybe it was the soft smell of coconut that he had just happened to catch, from her hair, as she had walked by with Linus. Maybe it was the twinkle in her eye from when she had mischievously teased Charlie Brown about something or another. Or, it could have been that the milk he had with his cereal that morning had gone off. It hadn't, and Schroeder knew it hadn't, but lying to himself made this more bearable. Because, something had made him behave like a lovesick puppy and there was no way he was one. The only reason all this had bothered him was because she hadn't shown up to homeroom, otherwise–

"Fine, don't even have the courtesy to answer me. See if I care." Lucy began to storm off.

"Wait! Lucy!" He caught up with her in a few easy strides – one of the advantages Schroeder had gained with adolescence was that the top of Lucy's head only just managed to reach his shoulder.

She stopped, thinking how much she hated that he was taller now. "What?" She glared up at him.

"I know you gave me that cupcake."

"N-no I didn't." Her stammer had given her away. Lucy mentally kicked herself.

Schroeder gave a small smile. "I just wanted to thank you, that's all."

"Well, I have no idea what you're talking about. But if you're thanking someone, shouldn't you try something more conventional? Like a thank you note?"

"Who even does that any more?" Schroeder laughed.

Lucy frowned, looking offended.

There was a momentary silence.

She looked apprehensive before she spoke again. "You do realize that just because you pulled that little stunt, it doesn't automatically make us friends again?"

Schroeder's face froze into a tight-lipped mask. "I didn't think it did."

There was a significantly awkward pause between the pair, which was promptly broken by the bell, announcing homeroom.

Lucy, chewing her lip, glanced over at Schroeder, who was resolutely looking away from her. "I have class." She blurted, before darting off and leave the slight scent of coconut in her wake.

(Summer, 15 years old)

"God I hate this weather." Lucy announced, fanning herself as she flopped down on the couch and stealing the can of cola out of Linus's hand. "Thanks, little brother." She smiled cheerily at him, before taking a large gulp of the icy soda.

Linus rolled his eyes, and sighed before getting another out of the fridge and settling back into his seat. "Where've you been anyway? Shopping?"

Lucy shot him a withering look. "Actually, yes, I have been."

"I've been dragged all around town by Sally," Lucy's lips curved into a wicked smile when she saw Linus's pained expression, "-for a birthday present for her sweetest baboo."

Linus sank further down the couch, burying his face in his hands. "Oh no, oh no."

"The last thing we looked at was a baby blanket. She thinks that'll make you remember how much you liked her when you were a kid."

"She must have been remembering someone else then, I've NEVER liked her!"

Lucy laughed. "I think the lady doth protest too much!" Linus glared at her. "Admit it, you like her just a little bit!"

"NO! NO I DON'T!" Linus shouted, blushing so much that even his ears had turned red.

However, before another one of the regular van Pelt arguments could arise, Rerun burst into the house, out of breath and panting. The boy had obviously sprinted back home.

"Rerun, don't breathe like that you'll give yourself a heart attack!" Lucy exclaimed.

Rerun shook his head and continued to try and gather his breath. The two elder van Pelt siblings stared at him and waited.

What he had to say next would come as a shock to them both.

Rerun gathered himself and said, "Schroeder's been hit by a car!"

There was a mad scramble on the couch, as Lucy went up to her youngest brother and, looking shocked, asked quietly "What?"

"I saw him get in the ambulance Lucy. They said he got hit by a car!"

Lucy turned to Linus. "Are you coming to the hospital with me?"

"Of course."

"Rerun, stay at home, ok?"

"Okay Lucy."

With that, Lucy and Linus ran out, leaving a puzzled looking little boy. Yes, Schroeder had been hit by a car, but he hadn't seemed severely injured. The only reason Rerun had run home that quickly was so that he wouldn't miss his favorite cartoon, which was on right now. The boy happily clicked to the appropriate channel and took a sip from an abandoned soda can. Spongebob and soda? Today was a good day for Rerun.

AN: I know, I'm as surprised as you are, dear reader, that I'm updating! I can only apologize, because life has taken over completely and I had the largest case of writer's block. These are all feeble excuses, I know, and to be honest, I'm not sure if I will ever have the time to complete this, but I will do my best, so please stick with me!

As always, please review!

PS. I've noticed that over time I've received some requests for stories - considering the fact that I'm not doing very well with my own story already, I don't think it's a good idea for me to promise anyone anything. To all of you who have made requests, I'm very sorry - I'm very flattered you've asked, but I'm afraid I have to decline!