"like sands through the hourglass... so are the...Days of our Lives"

Christyne's "The Teens"  
Fan Fiction Site

Chloe suddenly noticed that Belle and Mimi were standing behind Philip, trying to look as inconspicuous as possible. She waved to them. "Hey guys!"

Mimi and Belle got very guilty looks on their faces, like children that had been caught with their hands in the cookie jar. They’d obviously been eavesdropping. Chloe glanced back at Philip, and he seemed none too pleased by this interruption.

"I’m sorry," Chloe apologized. "You were going to tell me something?"

Not like this, Philip thought. He’d tell Chloe about the bet another time. "Oh, yeah. Very important stuff. I don’t remember any of it now, but you would have been fascinated. Possibly moved, even."

"Okay," Chloe said, her eyebrows arched in confusion.

"So, I’ll see you at my house after school," Philip confirmed.

Chloe shrugged. "Sure. See you then." Philip walked away without looking at Belle and Mimi. He was having a hard time dealing with the humiliation just then, and didn’t want it intensified by the pitying looks they were sure to give him.

"I see what you were saying, Belle. Definite sparkage," Mimi smiled, as she tapped her fingers on her crossed arms.

"With me and Philip? Not hardly. I don’t want to date him," Chloe lamely asserted.

"Well, then you’d be the only girl at Salem High that didn’t want to," Belle told her. "I mean, besides me and Mimi, of course."

"Yeah, those tall, fair-haired, Greek god sorts are real pains in the asses, aren’t they?" Mimi laughed. "I mean, where does he get off coming over here all handsome and charming and asking you to lunch? The nerve!"

Belle joined with Mimi’s giggling. "Next thing you know he’ll want to take you out on a date, actually kiss you. I just don’t know how you put up with it, Chloe." Chloe sat back down on her stool and Belle sat on the stool next to her while Mimi continued to stand. "Come on, Chloe. You can say at least one nice thing about him, can’t you? Like his eyes. Philip has pretty eyes, don’t you think?"

Chloe ran her fingers along her bookbag. "His eyes? They’re placed well. I mean, they’re, you know, symmetrical."

"Chloe!" Belle exclaimed while laughing.

"Okay, they’re the most fervent, vibrant, electric shade of blue I’ve ever seen. And when he looks at me with them, I feel like I can hardly breathe." All the girls, including Chloe, were shocked by her admission.

"Then why did you blow him off?" Belle prodded gently.

Chloe wasn’t sure that she really even knew. She knew what she’d told herself, that she had to keep him at arm’s length, but that wasn’t the only reason. She was terrified. While part of her was excited by the things Philip did or said, another real part of her experienced mind-numbing fear at the unknown. Philip was so experienced, and she was so completely inexperienced. What if she made an idiot of herself around him? What if she kissed him wrong? Or said the wrong thing?

"I just didn’t want to…I didn’t want to go out with him and say something utterly moronic," Chloe sighed as she put her face in her hands.

Mimi put her arm around Chloe’s shoulders. "Oh, Chloe, when your heart’s involved, everything comes out in moron."

"Besides, Philip needs you," Belle said as she stood, putting her bag on her shoulder. "Who else is going to tell him that the dancing trash cans in the beginning of the movie aren’t real?"

All three girls chuckled gently. "Sometimes…sometimes I wish he would just kiss me," Chloe said quietly. "Just so that I would know what it was like. So that I wouldn’t be so afraid."

Belle and Mimi exchanged glances. "Chloe, there isn’t anything to be afraid of. In fact, you might be pleasantly surprised by how nice it can be," Belle tried to assure her as she pulled Chloe to her feet. The three girls headed out into the hallway, and saw Shawn and Philip joking around with a few of their baseball teammates. Several girls approached the group, and one blonde put her arm through Philip’s. Philip quickly disentangled himself from the girl and gave his full attention back to his friends.

"Wow. I’ve never seen Philip do that before," Mimi observed. "He usually enjoys the attention." Mimi saw the look on Chloe’s face. "Oh, but I forgot. No worries. You don’t care. You don’t like him."

"I do like him," Chloe admitted quietly, in a voice so tiny that Mimi and Belle almost missed it.

"Then if I were you Chloe, I’d invest in some dance classes because the way you express yourself needs a little work," Belle said as she and Mimi continued walking. Chloe hadn’t moved from the doorframe. "Chloe? You coming to lunch?"

"I have to go talk to my science teacher. I’ll catch up with you guys later," Chloe said.

To be continued…

Belle watched her go, and turned back to Mimi. "You go on ahead without me. There’s something I have to do," she said and scurried away.

All by my lonesome yet again, Mimi thought. She should be accustomed to it by now. Mimi went to her locker and began spinning the combination. When she was finished she pulled the door open, and there taped to the inside of the locker door was a large sunflower. Who did this? she thought, whirling around to see if anyone was watching. Seeing no one, she spun back, and carefully pulled the flower off of the door. Behind the head of the flower was a small white piece of paper. The note had a heart drawn on it and said simply "B.B." Belle? she thought. Did Belle leave this flower for her? She didn’t see how, she’d never given Belle her combination. But who else did she know with the initials "B.B."? In an instant she knew. Not Belle Black. Brady Black. Mimi’s heart started thumping in her chest, and she gently put the flower back in her locker, shutting the door. She stood there with her hand pressed up against the door. She didn’t notice when a shadowed figure behind her detached himself from where he’d been waiting to see what her reaction was and began walking away.

**************************************************

Belle walked up to the group of boys, giving dagger eyes to the girls that dared venture too close to Shawn. She cleared a path, her eyes trained on Shawn. She walked up to him and planted a big kiss on his lips. "Nice to see you too," he smiled as he reached for her waist.

"I have to talk to Philip for a second. But I’ll be right back," Belle said as she grabbed Philip by the arm and led him away.

"Whoa, what’s this about?" Philip asked. "Is everything okay?"

Belle had been wrestling with her decision, but had ultimately decided that she was doing this for Chloe, and that it would be in Chloe’s best interest that she intervene. "There’s something you need to know."

"And that would be?" Philip questioned.

"I don’t want to do the whole interfering friend bit here, but Chloe likes you."

"And you’d base this on what exactly?" Philip said, his pride still tender from the rejection he’d just received. "You heard. I asked her out. She said no. End of story."

Boys could be so dumb, she thought. "For once Philip, just shut up and listen. I am telling you that Chloe likes you. She’s just scared. Now if you have any brains left in that jock head of yours, get her alone today and kiss that girl."

As Belle turned to walk away, Philip wondered if he should salute her. "I’m guessing I’m not supposed to tell Chloe that you’re my accomplice."

"I am not your accomplice," Belle asserted, spinning back to face him.

"You’re not," Philip immediately agreed, knowing better than to anger Belle.

"I’m not."

"Yes," he nodded.

"We’re clear?"

"We’re clear."

Belle started heading back for Shawn. "By the way Philip – whatever you do, don’t tell her that she’s done anything stupid or wrong, okay?"

"Okay," Philip managed to get out. Kiss Chloe, huh? The idea spread a grin slowly across his face, his dimples furrowing deep. He was fairly certain that he could manage that.

**************************************************

Chloe followed behind Philip’s butler Henderson through the large and imposing Kiriakis mansion. The luxury and obvious style she saw around her was stunning, as well as fairly intimidating. She couldn’t believe that Philip actually lived in this house. It looked more like a museum than a home. And he had a butler. Who had a butler?

Henderson stopped short in front of a door and knocked. Chloe caught her breath when Philip answered the door without a shirt on, wiping a towel over his face.

"I have brought Miss Lane upstairs as per your instructions, Philip."

"Thanks, Henderson," Philip grinned. He noticed Chloe was shifting her weight and looking distinctly uncomfortable. He wondered why. He hadn’t even tried anything. Yet.

Henderson turned and left. Philip pulled his bedroom door the rest of the way open and cocked his head to one side. "You coming in?"

"Oh…yeah." It suddenly occurred to Chloe how stupid she must look standing there in the hallway gaping at his naked chest. She went into his room and was surprised. The room looked like the rest of the house. There were definitely personal touches here and there like some framed sports jerseys, but for the most part it had the same elegant feel that the rest of the house had. The thought made her sad – had Philip not been allowed to decorate his room the way he wanted? The Wesleys was the first place that Chloe had ever lived where she’d been able to decorate the room the way she wanted. Most foster parents didn’t want holes in their walls.

Philip wondered what Chloe would do if he grabbed her and threw her on his bed. After what Belle had said today, maybe Chloe was even thinking the same thing, he smiled to himself. Chloe’s gaze drifted back to Philip, who had been watching her intently. "Penny for your thoughts," he said.

Chloe smiled. "Oh, my thoughts are much more expensive than that."

Philip gave her an impish grin. "Not a problem. I’m sure I could afford them."

Chloe’s eyes roamed back over the room. Yes, he probably could afford them. She looked back over at Philip and was again acutely aware that he was standing there half-naked. Chloe’s curiosity was completely aroused. What would Philip feel like? Did his skin feel the same as hers? What would those muscles in his chest feel like? The room had turned noticeably warmer. Chloe resisted the urge to fan herself. Okay, he needed to get dressed. Now.

"Are you going to put a shirt on?" she asked, surprised at how calm her voice sounded.

"What? Oh, sorry. I was doing some chores and was just in cleaning up when you got here. I’ll be back in just a second." Philip went into his bathroom to retrieve the shirt he’d picked out to wear.

Chloe began walking around, investigating Philip’s knickknacks and other various items he had out. There were several trophies from different sports. She picked one up. "MVP – Philip Kiriakis," she read. Chloe put the trophy back on the shelf. She continued walking along the wall until she happened upon his CD collection. Some Top 40, some rock, some rap. One CD in particular caught her attention. She picked up the case and began studying it intently. She didn’t notice Philip coming up behind her and reaching around her to grab the case out of her hand.

"Was that ‘Carmen’?" she asked.

Philip looked completely embarrassed, as if she had stumbled onto some big secret about him. "Yes."

"I love Carmen," she sighed.

"I know," was his quiet response.

Had he been listening to Carmen because of her? He was certainly acting as if he had. Why else would he be upset that she found the case? The thought that Philip would listen to opera because she liked it…for some reason that thought pleased her immensely. And made her feel comfortable, as if she finally had an upper hand.

"Did you hate it?" Chloe asked.

"Actually, it wasn’t that bad," Philip asked, eager to change the conversation to something else. "Hey, little Phloe over there is okay. I took very good care of her today."

Chloe looked back over at Philip’s CD’s. She wondered if she could find a copy of ‘Madame Butterfly’ in there somewhere. Instead she noticed a couple of pink candles. She picked one up and smelled it. "Strawberry," she smiled.

Okay, that was it. Philip had to get her out of his room. She was going to think he was some psychotic stalker or something.

Chloe walked over to the window, oblivious to Philip’s distress. She looked out across the estate that he called home. "I can’t believe you have strawberry scented candles."

"Yeah, well…" What could he say? ‘I was in a store and bought them because the smell reminded me of you?’ She would run away screaming.

"Did you know that I love strawberries?" she asked him.

Oh hell, she did know he was an obsessed idiot.

Chloe put the candle back up to her nose, and inhaled the scent. "I have very few memories from when I was little. I remember only a few things about my adoptive parents. The Lanes were older, and I always felt like I had to be quiet, like I couldn’t disturb them. Sometimes I felt like I was a guest in their home, rather than their daughter."

Philip stayed quiet, letting Chloe talk. "I do have this one memory. It must have been like the Fourth of July or something. I think I was about three years old. I think we were at this family reunion. I remember being in a big park, lots of green grass and trees. There were so many happy people there, so many smiling faces." Chloe closed her eyes, as if she could still see the event in her mind. "I remember the smell of barbecue, the other children running around, playing, laughing. I was put in a chair, and someone accidentally left a bowl of strawberries within my reach. I remember eating one. Then another. And another. I started cramming them into my mouth as fast as I could. I loved the way that they tasted. Someone apparently discovered me too late and I’d eaten the entire bowl. I remember being picked up, and a lot of laughter. They must have thought it was funny that I’d eaten the whole thing." A single tear slid down Chloe’s cheek and she opened her eyes. "I remember that feeling of laughter, of lightness, of being held tightly. Of really and truly feeling loved."

"And when you smell strawberries it reminds you of that," Philip stated quietly.

Chloe nodded, and then let out a half-laugh. "Here I am crying again. You must think I am so stupid."

"No," Philip whispered. "I think you’re wonderful." He crossed over to her and gently wiped the one tear from her cheek. He put one hand on her neck, as if to hold her steady, or perhaps to prevent her from moving away. Chloe looked up at him. This was it, she thought. He was going to kiss her.

to be continued...