Feeling the warm water cascade over her aching body, Chloe surrendered herself to the amazing effects something as simple as a shower could produce. This had been the first day since taking ill that she had felt energized enough to even consider taking on such a strenuous task, namely showering, but it had undoubtedly been worth it.

It had not only proven to provide a credible excuse to escape Nancy�s constant watch, but also helped wash away the ickiness that only days worth of vomiting were capable of inducing. Yep, cleanliness was nothing to take for granted, especially for those sickly individuals who found practicing good hygiene well beyond their capabilities, as Chloe herself had the last few days.

Noting the increasing steam, Chloe decided that as pleasurable and relaxing this �foreign� experience had been, it was time to wind it up. She had easily spent a good fifteen minutes under the shower�s rays and she now had the pruny skin to prove it. No doubt, any minute Nancy would be frantically rushing into the bathroom, expecting her daughter to be sprawled out on the shower floor unconscious, and all because of her leisurely shower surpassing the usual ten minute period. Although, Chloe�s initial frustration at her mother�s routine antics had faded over time and eventually given way to acceptance. Nancy was an overbearing mother hen, pure and simple, and it was useless to try and change that fact of nature.

Making sure that she had thoroughly rinsed the shampoo out of her hair, leaving no residue, Chloe shut off the water and grabbed her towel. She quickly wrapped the plush white towel around herself before stepping out of the shower stall. Above her CD player�s soft operatic music that had accompanied her shower, Chloe suddenly heard a faint sound. A ring of sorts.

Ring...Ring...Ring...

Upon opening her bathroom door, Chloe determined that it was indeed her phone. But, who would be calling me in the middle of the afternoon on a Friday? Chloe wondered as she made a quick dash for it.

�Hello?�

****

With that one simple word uttered by Chloe, Philip let out a sigh of relief. Chloe�s voice was clearly back to normal, no longer the weak, raspy tone her sickness had evoked, but her signature high-pitched, almost lyrical quality had returned in its place. Maybe, she wasn�t in as dire straits as he had envisioned.

After dropping her off at home, he had convinced himself that her illness had just been a fluke, a 24 hour flu of some kind or a case of mild food poisoning, and that she would surely return to class the following day. But her continued absence from school throughout the remainder of the week had gradually stirred up an unfamiliar emotion within Philip. One that he liked to label as merely, �worry.� However, by the third day, his �worry� had admittedly erupted into full-blown fear, precipitating his decision to call Chloe and satisfy his overpowering need to see for himself that she was indeed alright.

�Hey, Chloe. It�s me, Philip.� He was acutely aware that he was grinning foolishly from ear to ear and was therefore glad for the physical distance between them the telephone allowed. Lord only knew what Chloe would think of him if she knew that the sound of her voice alone had instantly made Philip practically jump for joy.

�Oh, hey Philip. It�s 12:00...shouldn�t you be at school?� Chloe tried to act nonchalant, but was inwardly shocked at this new turn of events initiated by Philip himself.

�I AM at school. It�s our lunch hour, remember? You know, the administration can�t legally keep us under lock and key all day long. Anyway, I just wanted to call and make sure you were doing okay. I mean, I thought you�d be back at school by now,� Philip tried to brush off the immediate sting of rejection he experienced at Chloe�s seeming utter indifference to his obvious concern.

�I know, I thought I would be, too, but it�s just been taking longer than anticipated to recover. Still, I should be back at school Monday. Oh, and we can meet twice next week if you want, so you get your money�s worth...�

�Chloe, I wasn�t calling to butter you up for an extra session,� Philip shook his head in complete exasperation. He took a deep breath before continuing, �I don�t care about the stupid money...I was honestly worried about YOU and that�s the one and only reason I called.�

Chloe was silent for a moment before quietly responding. �I�m sorry, Philip. I guess I just jumped to conclusions�but it was wrong of me. Thank you for calling to check on me. Honestly, it was very thoughtful of you.�

�You don�t have to thank me, Chloe. Besides, I had to call anyway to check off the progression of your symptoms so I could prepare myself if you, in fact, passed it along to me when I was forced into carrying your ailing self down the stairs and ALL THE WAY out to my car,� Philip smirked, sure that his comments would unnerve Chloe as only he could.

�First of all, no one forced you to carry me. If I remember accurately, you can take all the credit for that move. And furthermore, I hope you do get sick, Philip Kiriakis. It would serve you right! Maybe then you�d realize that even Kiriakises are hardly impenetrable,� Chloe�s eyes flickered with amusement as she was thoroughly enjoying the familiar banter with Philip she had unwittingly come to rely upon following her arrival in Salem.

�Well, the bell just rang. I should probably be getting back inside, but promise me you�ll get some rest okay, Chloe?�

�I promise I will. Thanks again for calling, Philip, and for the other night, too.�

�It was no problem. But seriously, do rest up this weekend. I need you in tip top shape for our next session on Tuesday because our Algebra quiz is rapidly approaching and frankly, I�m ashamed to admit it, but you should be warned that you definitely have your work cut out for you. Not to put too much pressure on you, of course!� Chloe plainly heard the hint of a smile as Philip gently teased her in his amused tone and couldn�t refrain from momentarily picturing those adorable dimples of his that surely were flashing wildly about now.

�Philip Kiriakis, pressure me? Don�t be ridiculous!� Chloe scoffed, trying to hide her disappointment at the first purely entertaining conversation she had had the pleasure of engaging in all week, following the onset of her illness, that is, having to come to an end so soon. �Well, you should probably get going so I�ll see you next week. Bye Philip.�

�Bye Chloe,� Philip had barely snapped his cell phone shut when a hand roughly gripped his shoulder and spun him around, forcing him to come face to face with one smug Shawn Brady, smirking knowingly.

****

�So Phil, is there something you want to tell me?� The familiar sparkle in his friend�s eyes told Philip all he needed to know. Shawn had unquestionably heard him talking to Chloe just then, but the next all important question was for how long? Just how much of their conversation had he actually caught?

�Shawn, what the hell are you talking about?� Philip fired back. From experience, he had learned that answering a question with a question was always an effective ploy to throw the interrogating party off course and distract them for at least the time being, buying some extra time to invent some sort of excuse or, in worst case scenario, a lie. He would just have to think and fast.

�Don�t play innocent, Phil. I heard you talking to Chloe, plain as day. So, are you going to come clean about what�s going on between the two of you or continue on with this pitiful charade of yours?� Shawn asked incredulously. He couldn�t believe Philip was actually going to stand there and feign ignorance.

Yep, that sealed it, Shawn thought. Something was undoubtedly going on with Chloe or Philip wouldn�t be acting so god-damned defensive. Philip was not only a friend but family too, his uncle to be exact, and therefore Shawn knew him more than he cared to admit. He had become quite familiar with Philip�s habitual game tactic of stalling which he was obviously pulling right then, but that in and of itself was a sign in its own right. For, Shawn knew that Philip only fell back on it when he was at his most desperate. That tidbit combined with his friend�s blatant hesitance to answer his one simple question practically screamed that there was more to Philip and Chloe�s publicly antagonistic relationship than met the eye.

Proud of his skills of deduction, Shawn couldn�t help but think how proud his father would be to know that his son was well on his way to following in his footsteps and becoming a full-fledged detective...call me Brady, Detective Shawn Brady. And, by the deer in the headlights expression on Philip�s face, he figured that he was just about to crack his first case.

After a few moments under Shawn�s intense scrutiny, Philip managed to finally pull it together for the sake of his reputation, if nothing else. He cleared his throat and met Shawn�s gaze dead on, determined to play the role of his life, �Nothing�s going on between us. We�re partners in Mrs. Johnson�s class so I called her to make sure that she�d be back at school by next week so we could start to prep for our project. Why else would I be calling her?� This was it, Philip thought. If Shawn had indeed overheard their whole conversation, or his side of it as it were, then this was the moment he would call his bluff.

To Philip�s satisfaction, Shawn simply shrugged good-naturedly, �I don�t know. I guess I thought maybe you two were, like, hooking up or something.�

�Me and Chloe...give me a break!� Philip practically coughed over his words. Sensing that Shawn�s intuitive suspicion remained, he forced himself to muster up a small chuckle, �Like I could ever be interested in a loser like her. Come on, we should get back to class.� With that said, he turned and sauntered toward the main doors, hoping against all hope that he had played it off alright. Philip only wished he felt as nonchalant and carefree as his laid-back facade was projecting at that moment.

�Sure, whatever you say, Phil,� Shawn muttered under his breath, watching his friend�s retreating figure. Talk about denial, Shawn sighed, shaking his head ruefully. While he had only caught the last minute of Philip�s conversation with Chloe, the tone in his voice when he�d said goodbye was unmistakable. It could only mean one thing and one thing only�Philip Kiriakis, star quarterback and all around Crown Prince of Salem High, was undeniably falling for none other than the resident school outcast, Chloe Lane. Shawn shook his head yet again in disbelief, would wonders never cease...

Chloe sprinted the last few feet to the Kiriakis porch in an effort to achieve shelter under its awning from the pouring rain. It was approaching the end of September and the threatening grey skies accompanied by the random sprinkling were recently beginning to make their presence known, signaling autumn�s arrival at long last.

She hastily ran a hand through her thoroughly wet mane in an attempt to make herself look mildly presentable. Realizing that it was, in all actuality, a lost cause and that she would just have to accept the fact that, at that very moment, there was a remarkable resemblance between she and that of a drown rat due to her excursion out into Salem�s water wonderland, Chloe reluctantly rang the door bell.

To her surprise, she was greeted at the door by Philip instead of Henderson, the Kiriakis family�s butler.

Philip took one look at the sorry sight before him and without warning, his notorious temper flared up, "Chloe, what were you thinking? You�ve been healthy for, like, what, two minutes? And, already you�re parading out into a full-fledged storm? What, are you shooting for pneumonia now?" His frustration building, Philip resisted the urge to shake her right then and there for being so careless.

Beyond Chloe�s soaked exterior, there was a somewhat familiar, though haunting quality to behold. One that had singularly rocked Philip to his very core. One that Philip could only identify as simply, �frailty.� Of course, the entire populace at Salem High would think him insane if they heard him associating a weakness of sorts with Chloe Lane - the self-proclaimed loner who was rumored to have ice in her veins - but Philip knew better than that now, especially after witnessing her bout with that horrid illness the previous week. To be fair, her failing state of health alone hadn�t triggered his change in perspective�rather another tangent of that evening had since tugged at him as a softer, less enigmatic side to Chloe had been revealed through her necklace.

That small, smiley-faced girl locked within the locket was locked within Chloe herself, he�d realized, and it had allowed a never before seen vulnerability in her to emerge in his eyes. A vulnerability that disease could not hide. And, so �frailty� was born. Although, her frailty was made even more apparent to him now than before when she had taken ill, as she currently trembled, chilled to the very bone. It was this vision that overwhelmed his senses, leaving him to stew in his all consuming concern. At that moment, all Philip knew was that he wanted, needed to take care of Chloe and protect her at all costs.

"Philip, calm down. Craig was going to give me a ride today, but he got beeped and had to take off for the hospital early so I decided to walk. It didn�t start to rain until I was already halfway here and by that point there was nothing really left to do, but up the pace and keep on coming. Of course, I had to maneuver my way around some fairly massive puddles, but I made it here in one piece. No damage done," Chloe smiled slightly, hoping that she had managed to duly reassure Philip, considering his highly agitated state. Although, it was quite obvious, even to Chloe, that it stemmed primarily from his concern for her. Somehow, the thought that he actually cared enough about her to worry pleased Chloe immensely.

Her smile broadened as she remembered his words to her just days before on the telephone, "I was honestly worried about YOU and that�s the one and only reason I called." That simple statement had echoed in Chloe�s ears from the moment she had hung up the phone to the present, warming her over and over again.

"God, what am I thinking? Come in, come in. Get out of the cold," Philip motioned her in, suddenly aware that to Chloe�s mind�s eye his behavior was most likely appearing insensitive or quite possibly flat out rude. "Next time just give me a call if you don�t have a ride, okay? I�ll come pick you up," he said over his shoulder, the tone in his voice notably softened, as he closed the door behind her.

"Fine," Chloe replied, too emotionally spent to get into yet another one of their heated debates. "But, just so you know, it was no big deal. I actually kind of like the rain. I don�t know, I guess it helps soothe me." She turned around to face him but, to her surprise, found that Philip had momentarily disappeared.

Well, this is some greeting I�m receiving, Chloe thought sarcastically. Philip really rolled out the welcome mat this time. First, he practically yells at me and then follows that invigorating feat up with deserting me in his own home without the all important map to help guide me. Lord knows she�d never find Philip within the complicated maze-like confines of the Kiriakis towering mansion solo�she�d either pass out in fatigue after conquering the east wing or quite possibly go mad like those frustrated mice she�d observed in science class. Surrendering herself to the utter helplessness of her predicament, Chloe figured that there was nothing left to do but stand there and wait. Now feeling the full chilling effects of the cold water seeping in through her clothes to reach her naked skin, her teeth shattered uncontrollably.

Thankfully, a few seconds later, Philip returned with an armload of towels. "Here, you can use this one for your hair," he said, handing over one abnormally toasty towel. Watching her sudden fascination with the texture of the terry cloth, Philip let out a small chuckle, "Lucky for you, these just came out of the dryer."

With one swift motion, Chloe had thrust her drenched hair into the towel and up into her routine post-shower turban. Catching Philip�s amused expression, Chloe quickly spoke up in an effort to deter the onslaught of his impending jokes and merciless teasing, "Don�t say one word, Philip. I�m warning you. You make one comment and I�ll be out the door so fast."

"What, did I say anything?" Philip asked in mock innocence, his infuriating smirk betraying that his true intent previously had indeed coincided with that of Chloe�s assumption.

Before Chloe had the chance to think up a fitting retort, Philip had unfolded the other towel he had retrieved from the dryer and wrapped it around her. He moved his hands back and forth along the sides of her newly toweled body in an attempt to quicken the drying process and warm her up ASAP. As affected as he was by their shockingly electric contact, Philip determinedly focused in on the task at hand and fought the impulse to give in to his overpowering desire to sweep her off her feet right on the spot and feel her in his arms once again.

Well, Chloe had to admit that she did feel substantially warmer all of a sudden, although whether it was the towel�s doing or merely Philip�s touch that had warranted that notable shift was definitely up for debate. However, considering the fact that a tingling sensation accompanied the newfound warmth, Chloe would be inclined to say that the latter was undoubtedly the case.

Feeling her cheeks begin to flush at Philip�s continued physical contact, Chloe decided that she couldn�t handle it a moment longer and abruptly took a step back, blushing even more in embarrassment at the sight of his visible confusion in response to her spontaneous retreat.

"Um�thanks, Philip. I�m okay now. I feel much dryer," Chloe managed to stutter out, turning an even deeper shade of red under his bewildered gaze.

Taken aback by Chloe�s obvious discomfort, it was Philip�s turn to feel embarrassed. What was I thinking? Philip wondered. She probably thinks I�m some sort of pervert for touching her like that when she could have just as easily handled it herself.

"Good. Well, let�s go up to my room and get down to business then," Philip decided, hastily turning to head up the stairs to lead the way. Reflecting on the previous course of events, Philip involuntarily sighed in disgust. Just another instance where Chloe�s mere presence had left him devoid of all rational thought, allowing his intense attraction to her to supercede all self-control and possess his every move. What am I going to do? Philip asked himself as he made his way down the hall with Chloe at his heels.

It was then that Philip concluded that his bedroom was not precisely the choice location for their tutorial session, especially after taking into account his present state of mind, wavering as it was under Chloe�s influence. In fact, it was absolutely the LAST place on earth where they should be studying just then. Yep, it was most definitely not a good idea, Philip thought yet again, but remained unable to reroute, his curiosity piqued as to the endless possibilities inherent in such a volatile situation.

He swung his door open, allowing Chloe access to his private domain which, in Philip�s opinion, was analogous to crossing the threshold into the corrupt sea of temptation. At this rate, he would be lucky if he made it 15 minutes without succumbing to Chloe�s mystique. Glancing at Chloe once more, Philip revised his statement. Make that 10 minutes...

****

An hour later, Chloe was perched on the edge of her chair beside Philip at his desk, anticipating his completion of one of the example algebra problems assigned that day at school. Her towels had long been discarded and she was now more or less dry as she awaited his answer to what she perceived to be a fairly basic equation.

While Philip had been hard at work, Chloe�s mind had wandered aimlessly until finally settling on surveying her surroundings at long last. Sure, the previous week she had had the privilege of a backstage pass to the inside of Philip�s bathroom or, to be exact, his toilet bowl, and had even laid on his very bed, but at the time her malady had practically incapacitated her mentally, leaving her disoriented and confused, thereby dismissing all cogitation, including that of observation.

Now, in the midst of his trophies and various football related paraphernalia, Chloe was hardly surprised. It appeared to be the typical all-American teenage guy�s bedroom with all the appropriate trimmings. Although to be fair, Chloe based this standard on what she had heard to be true by word of mouth because, in truth, she held no real firsthand experience, considering this was her first venture ever into a guy�s home, let alone bedroom.

However, one thing had caught her eye as somehow out of place among the machismo decorum -- a framed photograph of him with his parents situated on his dresser. Philip couldn�t have been more than 12 in the picture and he had the biggest grin plastered across his face as he stood nestled in between his mother and father. The warmth and sincerity radiating from Philip was drastically contrasted against that of his parents whose visibly forced smiles and overtly posed appearance betrayed the cold and distant manner Chloe had initially witnessed upon their first acquaintance. At any rate, Chloe couldn�t help but wonder why Philip, the ultimate "guy�s guy", would choose to display something so utterly sentimental. It seemed the more she learned about him, the more confused she became as to who the real Philip Kiriakis was behind the facade.

Philip let out a deep sigh just then, startling Chloe from her reverie.

"Chloe, it�s no use. I have no idea what the hell the answer is to this question and you know what? I really don�t give a damn!" In his absolute frustration, Philip leapt to his feet abruptly, sending his chair toppling over. He continued on with his rampage, gradually increasing in volume with each passing syllable as he paced back and forth, "You know what? You should just go home. All of this has just been a big waste of your valuable time. I mean, at this point, I doubt even Albert Einstein could dig me out of this neverending pit I find myself trapped in! You should be relieved, Chloe. Ecstatic, in fact. No more brainless jocks on your �to do� list. That must be a total load off, right?!" Philip turned to face Chloe, but was instantly caught off-guard by her menacing scowl.

"Are you done yet?" Chloe asked finally, the effect of her scowl diminished as the stern tone in her voice took center stage in Philip�s utter astonishment.

After a few seconds of silence, Philip semi-recovered from his confusion and managed to express his shock at Chloe�s unexpected response with one simple utterance, "What?"

"You heard me, Philip. I asked if you were done feeling sorry for yourself. You know, you were sorely mistaken if you thought I was going to jump on the bandwagon with your pity party for one. Because the truth of the matter is that acing exams and getting good grades takes time and effort," Chloe stood up to meet Philip�s gaze face to face. "I worked hard to get to where I am today and I resent the fact that after merely an hour of concentrating on your studies, you�re willing to throw in the towel because it all didn�t just fall into place immediately, easy as a snap."

"Chloe, you have no idea what it�s like. You�ve always been smart and all of this algebra junk just comes easy to you. I mean, did you ever ask yourself why I never raise my hand in class? Did you ever wonder if maybe it had nothing to do with �making the time� or �finding the motivation� and EVERYTHING to do with my capabilities, or lack thereof? Did you ever, for one moment, consider the fact that even if I applied myself I might still end up failing because I just don�t have what it takes?" His voice cracked with emotion as he reached his last few words, self-deprecating as they were.

Following his spontaneous admission, Philip hung his head in shame and embarrassment for at long last coming clean to someone about the real reason behind his reticence to actively pursue his academics as his parents had repeatedly urged. And not just to someone, but to Chloe Lane, of all people.

Chloe took a few steps toward Philip, closing the distance between them within seconds, and tentatively reached out her hand to touch his shoulder in an attempt to regain his attention. Satisfied with their newfound eye contact, Chloe murmured in a gentle tone, "You won�t know until you try, Philip. But, in my personal opinion, I find all of your aforementioned concerns completely unfounded. I truly believe that if you used just 1/10 of the concentration and determination you do when you�re playing football or basketball and focused it toward your academics, you�d be raking in As and Bs no problem."

"Well, at least someone�s optimistic," Philip replied with a wry smile, his spirits considerably lightened by her comforting assurances.

"No, I�d say I�m more realistic." Chloe�s eyes sought out Philip�s once more, insuring that her next words would not fall on deaf ears. Peering into the depths of his pools of sparkling blue, she lowered her voice to just above a whisper, "I believe in you, Philip."

Chloe�s heartfelt words almost shattered Philip�s composure completely, his eyes stung with unshed tears as he was momentarily overcome with emotion. After a few moments� silence, Philip spoke up in a quieted voice, "You know, I don�t think anyone�s ever said that to me before."

Determined to change the undeniably gloomy atmosphere that had forcefully pervaded his room only moments before, following his admission, Philip composed himself and managed a small smile then shrugged, "Well, I guess I should get back to work, huh? I mean, if Chloe Lane, the smartest girl in Salem High, or in all of Salem, for that matter, believes in me then maybe there�s hope for me after all."

With that said, Philip slowly made his way back over to his desk, returning his toppled chair to its upright position, much to Chloe�s surprise and satisfaction.