Before this, the last time I made something for this story was back in December of 2020 - nearly 2 years ago, but I'm back with more of 'How I Met Your Mother'! Here's where we get to the real angsty parts of the story! Author's note: This whole story of how Milo and Melissa eventually became a couple is being told over multiple nights. So...here's part 3 of the Middle School Arc and Part 1 of the joint Milanda/Zalissa arcs.
Back in the present time, Cory and Topanga were in awe of how their parents pulled of 'Home Alone'-type schemes not once but twice.
"So cool, dad!" Cory said.
"Yeah, dad! You and mom pulled from our favorite holiday movie twice over to take out those bumbling idiots!" Topanga added in.
"So what came next?"
"Did mom come running into your arms?"
Milo gave a chuckle. "Not exactly."
"It was a tough road ahead of us, kiddos," Melissa said. "You see, back then...Milo was crushing on someone else."
Cory and Topanga gave a nod, knowing who their parents were referring to. "Aunt Amanda..."
(Flashback: March 2016, just after the Octalia Incident)
It's March 20, 2016 - the Monday after the Octalia Incident. Two weeks earlier, Milo and Amanda had competed on Amanda's favorite show 'Cake 'Splosion' and ended up winning. That Saturday, Milo and Amanda made their relationship official at the 'Forget the Llamas, Save the Al Pacas' benefit concert. 2 weeks later, Milo and friends saved Octalia from the Sphere of Calamity. Zack finally broke out of his shell and got a kiss on the cheek from Melissa. While Milo was happy for the new pair, something inside him was not right.
While Milo was getting ready for the day ahead at Jefferson County Middle School, Bradley came up beside him.
"So how's it feel to lose your girl to the new kid?" he taunted, referring to Melissa and Zack.
Suddenly, something inside Milo snapped as he turned to Bradley with a mean look in his eye. "How's it feel to get slammed into your locker?" He retorted. Bradley didn't have time to react as he was immediately body-checked into his locker and locked inside. This drew Amanda's attention.
The Latina sighed and opened Bradley's locker. "Milo, what's gotten into you?"
"What do you mean?"
"You're not your usual chipper self. You're rougher, meaner, nastier, so...un-Milo. That's what I mean. What's with you lately?"
"I don't know. It's like ever since Melissa, Zack and I got home from outer space, something inside me just snapped. It's weird. Maybe it's because there's something...missing in my life..."
"Well, let's backtrack a bit. What happened while you were up in space that might have triggered this?"
Milo thought back to everything that happened on Octalia. "Well, we saved an entire civilization from Murphy's law calamity, Dr. Doofenshmirtz became the hero he was supposedly destined to be..." he trailed off as he saw Zack and Melissa walking by hand in hand. "...oh, and Melissa kissed Zack."
Amanda snapped her fingers, as if a lightbulb came on in her head. "There's the issue. You're missing Melissa."
"I am? You think Melissa's the issue?"
Amanda nodded. "I'm sure of it. Think about it, Milo. Who was the first one to ever see past your family hex? Who was your first friend ever?"
"Melissa..."
"Exactly! I'm sensing you fear not having Melissa around as often as you're used to. That's what's causing your sudden turn in behavior," Amanda assessed. "Maybe there's something more going on between you two..." she teased.
"You think Melissa's hiding a crush on me?"
"She's always been good at hiding her emotions. Maybe she has a crush on you, but is too shy to admit it and is trying to hide it by dating Zack. And as for you, Milo...you think Melissa's crushing on you, but you're not sure. However at the same time, you may be conflicted with your feelings towards me."
"That's...pretty astute, Amanda."
"I'm getting an A+ in Science and English. It just comes naturally to me. Anyway, my cousin Marco Diaz is going through the same thing with his girlfriend Jackie. He's questioning whether he really likes her or if he just likes the image of her,"
"Sounds eerily similar to what I'm going through. You think he could figure this out?"
"If anything, he can share his own experience with you and help point you in the right direction. He's getting an A+ in his Psychology class at Echo Creek Academy, so it wouldn't hurt to take a trip there over the weekend, see if he can help you out."
"At this point, I'm willing to try anything," Milo confesses. "Now come on...Murawski's gonna have a cow if we're late."
The rest of the week dragged on. Saturday finally came and Sara drove Milo and Amanda 2 hours south to Echo Creek (A/N: I'm keeping it a bit ambiguous as to where Danville really is). It had been a while since Amanda had last seen Marco, so it's also a chance for her to catch up with him. Since this is Amanda's cousin, she rang the bell. They were then greeted by a Latino boy around Amanda's age wearing a dark grey shirt, red hoodie, dark jeans and olivine sneakers.
"Cousin Amanda!" Marco called out, hugging Amanda.
"Marco! It's been so long!" Amanda greeted. Amanda and Marco were indeed cousins on her mom's side of the family. They hadn't seen each other in what seemed like forever, so Milo decided not to get in the way of anything.
"How long has it been, Amanda?"
"I don't know...maybe 2-3 years at least!"
"Too long, if you ask me! Come on in, guys!" Marco said. "So who's the guy in the sweater vest?"
"That would be my boyfriend Milo Murphy."
"Who would've thought you'd have it in you, Amanda!" Marco cheered, high-fiving his cousin.
"He's usually a chipper guy, but I can sense something's bugging him. I believe it to be something involving the first friend he ever made..."
"Melissa?"
Amanda froze. "How'd you know?"
"You texted me last night, remember?"
"Oh yeah...forgot that. Anyway, Milo seems conflicted between Melissa and me."
"Sounds like what I'm going through right now with Jackie. Just let me handle this," Marco said as he approached Milo, taking him up to his room with Amanda and Sara following. Once inside, Marco closed and locked the door. "So Milo, Amanda tells me you've been acting strange this past week."
"Yeah. I've shoved 13 of my classmates into their lockers, my grades have started to slip and my Murphy's law hex has started ramping up..."
Hearing about Milo's condition intrigued Marco. "Murphy's law?"
"Anything that can go wrong will go wrong...around me. Usually it's well controlled, but this past week it's not."
"And Amanda believes that Milo's fear of not having Melissa around as often as he's used to may be playing a factor here," Sara added in.
"So what's Melissa like to the 3 of you?" Marco asked.
"Let's see...she's cheer captain, straight A student..." Amanda started.
"She's always been a great friend to my little brother...first one to ever look past his Murphy's law hex..." Sara added in.
"And she's extremely beautiful..." Milo trailed off. "Did I just say that out loud?"
"You did, Milo," Marco stated. "How long have you crushed on Amanda?"
Milo thought about it for a while. "Since about the 5th grade. Now I'm conflicted - do I really like her or do I just like the image of her?"
"Sounds an awful lot like what I'm going through with Jackie, my own girlfriend."
Milo sighed. "You must think I'm a real dork now, huh?"
"Not even close, Milo..." Marco reassured. "You and I are in the same boat. We're both teens, trying to find our place in the world, trying to figure out who we're meant to be with. Your mind's saying Amanda, but your heart is telling you otherwise. Your heart is telling you you're really meant to be with Melissa. Milo, what do you feel whenever Melissa's near?"
"I feel like I can do anything when she's with me. She gives me the strength to carry on through the toughest Murphy's law can dish out. She and I have always been there for each other - like Kim Possible and Ron Stoppable, Ned and Moze or even Zoey Brooks and Chase Matthews..."
Marco smiled at hearing this. "Amanda, Sara, I think your suspicions have been not only confirmed, but amplified..."
"AMPLIFIED?!" Amanda and Sara say in unison.
"What do you mean by that?" Sara asked, worried for her little brother.
"Sara, your little brother definitely has that fear of not having Melissa around as much as he's used to. But it's much worse than that...I suspect he's in love with Melissa."
Amanda snickered. "I knew it..."
"Knew what? What did you know about my little brother that I didn't?"
"The sudden change in behavior, Murphy's law being amplified...it's all starting to make sense!"
"One problem," Milo started. "Melissa just got together with our new friend Zack. So you all found out I really love Melissa, okay? What's there to do now except wait for Zack and Melissa to break up? I don't want to be the one that messes things up between them - we're talking total flame out here! Not to mention what it would do to mine and Melissa's friendship..."
Amanda and Sara put their hands on Milo to calm him down.
"Easy, Milo...try to calm down..." Amanda said calmly.
"Relax, little brother. No one here heard you except all of us in this room," Sara added in.
Milo took a deep breath and sat down next to his sister. "Thanks, girls. But still...what am I gonna do right now?"
"We'll figure it out as we go along, I guess..." Sara marked.
"Never boring even for a minute with you, Milo..." Amanda added in.
One thing was certain, it was bound to be a long summer. 8th grade was going to be even longer for young Milo Murphy.
How was that for a return? A big chapter to cover what happened after Octalia and a little cameo by Marco Diaz of 'Star vs. The Forces of Evil'! Next time out, the summer between 7th and 8th grade! See ya then and remember...
IT'S MILO'S WORLD AND WE'RE ALL LIVING IN IT!