Disclaimer: I don't own Crash Bandicoot

Summary: Isabella remembers how she and Crash became a couple.

Pairing: Crash/Isabella

Warning: None

I actually finished this yesterday but by the time I was done, I was too tired to post it. But here is a new story from me once again.

I have seen a few pairings involving the trophy girls from Crash Team Racing (it's funny, I didn't knew that they even have names until a few months ago). So far, I have seen Dingodile/Ami, Tiny/Ami, N. Tropy/Megumi and Fake Crash/Isabella. Then I started to think a bit and ended up thinking of Crash and Isabella together, and I immediately thought that they'd be cute together. And after that, I got the urge to write them together.

This takes place after CTR and this is in Isabella's POV.

I glanced at my boyfriend, Crash, who slept next to me. I smiled softly at him as I reached my hand out to stroke his spiky hair. His sister, Coco, is by her laptop as usual and their pets, Pura and Polar, are sleeping next to her. It was a quiet day. I continued to smile at Crash. It's times like this where I think back to how I ended up with him.

I remember clearly the day we met each other. We met each other on a racing competition, but it wasn't a normal one. It was a race that would determine the fate of our planet and our lives. There was an evil alien (I believe his name is Oxide if I remember correctly) who wanted a race against us and turn our planet into a concrete parking lot if he wins. Luckily, one of the contestants won against him and Earth is saved.

I was one of the trophy girls. It was my job to award some of the contestants with trophies if they win a track. I was the trophy girl for Crash and Coco. Admittedly, I didn't expect that I would eventually get into a relationship with one of them.

I remember our first meeting. It was a simple one. We greeted at each other, then I introduced myself as their trophy girl. During the time at the race, I became quickly friends with the two bandicoots. At the beginning, nothing unusual happens. The contestants were just racing against each other, winning trophies and there were times where they have to race against four other competitors.

However, it didn't take long before I started to notice Crash's feelings for me (he wasn't exactly subtle about it).

At first, it was just friendly gestures – and I think it was how it was at the beginning. Crash would often smile and wave at me whenever he sees me, then I return the greetings. It went like this for a while, but as the time passed, his gestures are starting to surpass the platonic line. I noticed how he would sometimes sneak glances at me, even when he thinks I wasn't looking. And when I do caught him looking at me, he would blush in embarrassment and quickly look away. Admittedly, it was cute when he does that.

It didn't take long before the other contestants noticed it as well, including his own sister. My colleagues were no exception. Ami and Liz teased me about it, saying that Crash and I would look cute together, and I always get annoyed at them. While they are my friends, they can be embarrassing when they're teasing me. At least, Megumi was more merciful on me but I could tell that she agreed with them.

I wasn't the only one who got pestered about it. There was one time where I saw two other competitors, Tiny (who have a very ironic name) and Dingodile, with Crash. They were trying to encourage Crash to confess his feelings to me, but he was too shy. I'm sure they meant it well, but they're making him feel uncomfortable, so I decided to stop it. I went to them and told Tiny and Dingodile that they should leave Crash alone and they shouldn't force him into something he isn't ready for. They were reluctant at first, but neither of them objected and left us alone. When they were gone, I asked Crash if he was fine. He nodded and grinned at me.

After that small incident, nothing much had changed. However, I did notice that Crash was trying to make his feelings less obvious. I think after what happened with him, Tiny and Dingodile, he didn't want to go through that again. I don't blame him. It can be annoying when people always sticks their noses into something they don't belong, and it doesn't get better when they even tease you about it.

When one of the contestants won against Oxide, we all cheered in happiness and celebrated our victory, happy that we won't lose our home. When the celebration is through, it was time for all of us to go home.

While I was packing, Crash and Coco came to me, wanting to say goodbye and thank me for the trophies I gave them. After we said our farewells, Coco left to get her own stuff but Crash stayed. With a shy smile on his face, he blushed a bit and looked up at me. I was surprised when he gave me a flower, then I accepted it. I smiled at him and kissed him on the cheek (naturally, I had to bent down because I'm taller than him but that is a small detail). Crash grinned happily, then he ran around and cheered in joy. I giggled at his behavior. He can be so silly sometimes, but it's one of the reasons why I like him.

Although I do return his feelings, we didn't become a couple immediately because we had our own plans at first; I got to have a big part in the season finale of a show called "Bay Waters", while Crash had sold his life story to a film studio. But we promised each other that when we fulfill our plans, we can start dating.

After some while, I can say with full confidence that we kept our promise. And we couldn't be happier.

I heard a noise and I snapped myself back to reality. I hadn't even realized that I had daydreamed until now. I glanced at Crash, who stirred and stretched his arms until he opened his eyes. He's awake. He glanced up at me with his big, green eyes. I smiled at him. "Did you sleep well?" I asked him. Crash nodded, grinning at me. I continued smiling at him before I placed a kiss on his forehead.

Still to this day, I am grateful that I met Crash. Sure, he might be goofy sometimes but I love him and I wouldn't trade that for anything in the world.

What do think of the way I portrayed Isabella in this story? Do you like it or is there something else I could do?

By the way, I'm not sure how much time had passed in CTR but I made the competition last more than one day because I wanted the romance between Crash and Isabella to blossom without rushing it.