Disclaimer: You think I own Code Lyoko? I wish!

Chapter 1

Aelita Stones walked down the hallway with her friends, preparing for another brutal gym class. She could see why Jeremie despised it, it seemed like a waste of time. Some of the games were actually quite fun, and she was getting better on Lyoko because of the exercise, but there were other things much more worthwhile she could do in that time.

"So, Jer, you're actually going to P.E?" asked Odd, sniggering.

"Jim's been getting on my case about skipping, and I don't think my grades will save me," said Jeremie, frowning. "I can't believe it, though! I could be working on the antivirus! I'd take that over push-ups any day."

"You've saved Princess dozens of times before, I don't think she'll mind if you take a break," said Ulrich.

"If you can call running around a break," retorted Jeremie.

"It's a lot healthier than burning yourself out in front of a piece of equipment," said Aelita, laughing.

"Not you, too!" moaned Jeremie.

"Sorry, Jeremie," said Aelita, smiling. She leaned over and pecked him on the cheek, hoping to make it a proper apology.

"Oh, er, it's okay," said Jeremie, beet red.

Ulrich and Odd tried their bests to swallow their laughter, but they didn't succeed. They kept this up until they reached the gymnasium, where they would be starting their short self defense unit. Needless to say, Jeremie was less than enthusiastic.

Afterwards, Jeremie had received a few bruises and wasn't in good spirits. Since it had been the final class, he chose to retire to his room instead of going to dinner. Aelita decided to go to her dorm and catch up on her homework, but she knew she'd be fantasizing about a very special genius half the time.

"Aelita, we need to talk."

Aelita's jaw dropped when she stepped into her room. About ten girls were in her dorm, Sissi in the lead. Something wasn't right.

"What's going on?" asked Aelita slowly, dropping her bag to the floor.

"Shut the door, we won't bite," said another girl, Azra, Aelita thought. Aelita did as she was told and sat down in the chair someone had set up in front of her.

"How can we put this tactfully, dear," said Sissi, looking like she was thinking hard. "You need to make your move with that nerd, we're all sick of waiting for it to happen."

"What are you talking about?" asked Aelita, genuinely confused. Make her move?

"You know, flirt with him," said Heidi, perched casually on the bed. "Let him know you're interested, though he should already. We all know you want him."

"Um, well, the thing is..." said Aelita, not finding the right words. Some of this was beginning to make sense.

"Cut the stalling, we're here to help," said Melanie, grinning.

"Help?" asked Aelita uncertainly. Why would these girls help her? Had she done anything?

"As a fellow female being, it's our duty to help you," said Claire jokingly. "There's no romance more destined to happen than the one between you and Jeremie. We don't know why, but we want you to get it over with already!"

"Ahem, me and my Ulrich are ten times more compatible!" said Sissi, offended.

"Sissi, we had a deal!" said Emily threateningly. "You can help us, but no talking about how you're obsessed with Ulrich!"

"He wants me, is it my fault?" asked Sissi, turning her nose up in the air.

"Whatever," said Jean, rolling her eyes. "Back to you, Ms. Stones. First we need a full assessment on the situation."

"What are you talking about?" asked Aelita, wishing Yumi was there to explain things.

"We need to know why you like him, what he does that makes you keep liking him, that sort of thing," said Lola, sitting pleasantly on the floor.

"Er, um," said Aelita, knowing she couldn't answer those questions truthfully without doing major damage. Looks like lying was the only option, or at least a few half-truths. "Jeremie seemed to really care about me when I met him. He still does, sometimes a little too much."

"Aw, isn't that sweet?" asked Naomi, twirling her brown hair in her fingers. "What do you think, girls?"

Whispering darted back and forth across the room; Aelita wondered what she had gotten herself into. If it made Jeremie see she had certain feelings for him, it might be worth it, but it was definitely an uneasy situation.

"So, first step for you to win Jeremie's heart, although you've pretty much done it already, is to flaunt it," said Camille, smirking.

"Um, 'flaunt?'" questioned Aelita, making a mental note to look up Earth slang when this was over.

"Let him know that you know that he knows you like him," explained Emily.

"Come again?" asked Aelita, utterly confused.

"How obvious do we have to make this?" asked Claire, sighing. "You like him. He likes you. Honestly, you two are worse than Yumi and Ulrich!"

"Ahem!" said Sissi angrily.

"Oh, can it, Sissi!" said Azra, growling. "This isn't about you!"

"One of the most common mistakes girls make is over-doing it," said Lola, ignoring the bickering among Sissi and Azra. "In Jeremie's case, especially. He's most likely not used to attention from girls; you've got him baffled enough already. We'll make sure you stay discreet, but noticeable."

"Um, okay?" answered Aelita, bewildered to say the least.

"Good, let's move on," said Heidi. "Sissi, did you bring the supplies?"

"Right here," said Sissi, stopping her argument with Azra and holding up a large case.

"Wh-what's that?" asked Aelita, stricken with fear.

"Aelita, you're a very pretty girl, but to get this done quickly, we'll have to have your cooperation," said Naomi solemnly.

"For what?" inquired Aelita, shrinking into her chair.

The girls didn't answer, they only swooped in and started taking things out of the case, giving a brief explanation for each item before using it.

"This eye shadow will really bring out the green in your eyes."

"Apply this lipstick and he'll be all yours. That's what the magazine said."

"Quit fidgeting, Aelita! This blush will make your cheeks look flawless!"

This went on for about twenty minutes. Aelita tried to stay still despite her fear, but every once in a while, the powder would make her sneeze or the perfume would make her cough.

"Done!" proclaimed Sissi, looking triumphant. She looked at the clock next to the bed. "We've got just enough time to make an appearance at dinner."

"What did you do to me?" asked Aelita, biting her lip.

"Don't, you'll smear the lip gloss!" said Azra frantically. "Don't worry, Jeremie will love it!"

"But, Jeremie's not going to dinner," said Aelita, trying not to move her lips.

"I'll handle him," said Emily, walking out the door.

"What'd she mean by that?" asked Aelita, standing up.

"Relax, it'll be okay," said Lola, smiling encouragingly. "We should get Yumi to calm her down, anyone know where she is?"

"Remember, she took that trip to Japan with her parents?" reminded Claire.

"A nice change of pace, if you ask me," sniffed Sissi.

"Nobody asked you!" replied Melanie menacingly.

"We'll wait a few minutes for Emily to get things set up," said Heidi.

"Good idea," said Jean. Aelita nodded and rubbed her eyes; this crazy plot wiped her out. "Aelita, you'll mess up your mascara!"

"Sorry!" apologized Aelita, keeping her hands clasped and trying not to move. She didn't want to upset them. Who knows what they did to her already.

A soft song rang through the air, and Aelita recognized it as a ring tone. Camille took out her cell phone and answered it.

"Hello?...Are we ready?...Great! I'll send her in!'"

"Come on, Aelita, it's time," said Naomi seriously. Aelita was nervously led to the cafeteria, but halted before they opened the doors.

"What am I supposed to do?" asked Aelita, wringing her hands.

"Female intuition will guide you!" said Heidi. She dramatically opened the doors and pushed her through, hiding herself and the other girls.

Aelita felt herself freeze for the smallest second when she entered the room. She saw her usual table and reasoned that she might as well sit down. She cautiously walked over and sat down next to Jeremie, who was busy trying to explain something about how hard they needed to work while Yumi wasn't around to join them on Lyoko.

"Our Romeo's going nuts 'cause his Juliet's away," said Odd, laughing loudly. Aelita giggled, trying not to cover her hand with her mouth and ruin whatever it was those girls did. Jeremie turned to look at her. He loved it when she laughed. He grasped the table for support the moment he laid eyes on her.

"Aelita," choked out Jeremie. "What did you do?"

"What?" asked Aelita, biting her lip against the other girls' warnings.

"Aelita, you look amazing!" said Ulrich, his eyes wide.

"Are you wearing makeup or something?" asked Odd, knowing Jeremie sure didn't teach her that.

"Uh, I guess so," said Aelita, connecting the girls' comments and the word "makeup." "Is that bad?"

"Well, no," said Jeremie, going red, not believing something this beautiful was sitting right next to him. "But, well, you don't really need it, anyway."

"What do you mean?" asked Aelita, cocking her head to the side.

"Well, makeup is supposed to make girls look prettier," explained Odd, thinking this might be a bit too much for Jeremie. "I think what Einstein means is that you're pretty enough without it."

"Jeremie, you're so sweet!" said Aelita, pulling him into a hug, making him blush more.

"Hey, I translated!" said Odd indignantly.

"Here you go," said Ulrich, ruffling his hair up.

"Aaagh!" yelped Odd, trying desperately to fix it. "Ulrich!"

"Well, so much for us working hard in Yumi's absence," said Jeremie, moving his potatoes around and trying not to gawk at Aelita.

"We'll be good," said Odd angelicly, obediently spooning his soup into his mouth.

"Yeah, sounds like Mission Impossible," said Jeremie, snorting. Aelita laughed, then stopped. What was she supposed to do now?

"Uh, could you excuse me for a moment?" asked Aelita

"Sure, Aelita," said Jeremie, but she was already making a dash for the exit.

"Well?" said Azra when Aelita came rushing out.

"I don't know if he liked it," said Aelita. "What did you do to me?"

"You're kidding!" said Sissi, stamping her foot. "That geek has no taste!"

"Don't insult him!" said Aelita, walking up to her and staring her in the eye. "He has more of a backbone than you ever will!"

"Calm down!" said Melanie, standing between them. "Okay, make-up didn't work. We'll have to work on the way you act around him.

"What are you going to do now?" asked Aelita worriedly.

"You'll see," said Melanie. "Just follow our instructions to the letter. Jeremie will be all yours."