Chapter Four

Brooklyn grabbed the keys out of his hand thankfully and opened the driver's door to her truck. "Bye," she called to JC, waving before she slipped in. Austin slammed his door behind him, and they waited for the taxi to leave the parking lot before she pushed the key into the ignition. "So, how was your day, and please say that you grabbed some chicken," she said with a smile, turning the key.

The engine rolled to life, and he nodded distractedly, reaching over his shoulder to put on his seatbelt. "Yeah, I grabbed some. You're lucky that I can."

She nodded happily, turning the radio up ever so slightly. "I know, I love the fact that my brother is a certified chef and works in one of the best restaurants in Nashville. Hey, when's that big cooking competition, anyway?" she asked, turning out of the parking lot. She followed the rest of the traffic towards the road that took them to Belleview.

"Not until the middle of your tour. I'm going to come with you for the first week of it, and then fly back to your place. It is all right if I use your place, isn't it?" he asked, reaching for a pair of sunglasses that she kept ontop of the dash.

"Of course. I wouldn't want it any other way," she said with a smile. "Sorry, I saw Tim, the other Tim, as in Faith's husband, in the courtyard today, before JC soaked my head in the fountain," she added, putting a hand on her now dried hair.

He chuckled, looking over at it. It had dried funny, making Brooklyn not look like herself. Usually, her hair was perfect, but now it looked like she had been playing in a very long and tiring basketball game. "How was your day, Brooke, or do I even have to ask you that. I should just answer it myself. You had the best day, compared to mine, and nothing ever effects you."

She smirked and turned onto the road, humming with the son that was playing. "Well, you don't win the cigar. It was absolutely horrible. Of course, it's always hard for the first single, but this is just impossible. Nothing I did was good enough. They'll piece together the better parts, sure, but I mean, come on. Nothing can be perfect."

"Except for you, right?" She rolled her eyes and snatched the sunglasses off of his face, putting them on herself. "Ah, striving for the big star look, are we? You're a big enough star as it is, Brooklyn. You may not have won a Grammy yet, but you've got ACMA awards coming out of your ears. What do you do with all of those, anyway?" he asked. "I've never noticed them before in the house."

Brooklyn smiled softly, turning on her windshield wipers when a few drops hit the windshield. "I keep them in the music room for inspiration. Just like you and all those cooking awards that you won. Of course," she said, taking on a snooty voice, "my ACMA's and CMA's are so much more important than your pieces of tin." They chuckled together, when a new song came on. "What sucks is that they're not even filled with chocolate. Now that would be a cool award."

Austin shook his head slowly. "That's all you need is more chocolate." He fell silent for a moment, before looking over at his little sister. "Brooke, can I ask you something important?" he motioned him on, and pointed at the pack of gum in front of him. He willingly pulled out a piece and unwrapped it before handing it to her. "Does it bother you that Tim and I don't get along?" he asked suddenly.

"Yeah, it does." He looked surprised by her frank answer, so she hurried to add on to it. "Put it this way. You're one of the most important people in my life. Hell, you're the most important." He grinned brightly at her words. "I would do anything for you, seriously."

He was growing a little wary of what she was saying, but he liked the fact that she thought of him as one of the most important people in her life. That meant the world to him, because it was the same to him. He would die for his baby sister, if need be. He had strived, for so many years, to protect her. He just didn't think that he was doing such a great job with Tim. "Something tells me that there's a but in here, somewhere," he said quietly.

She nodded with a grin. "It amazes me how perceptive you can be. There's a but in here, and it's a big one. Don't you even say that I'm talking about my butt, either," she said, pointing a finger at him when she saw him mouth open. "The but is the fact that I love Tim." She took a deep breath and tucked her hair behind her ears. Austin quickly grabbed her wrist and put it back on the steering wheel. He was still nervous, driving with her. He had been since the day he had taught her to drive. "I know that there's some sort of macho bullshit that's going on between you. So, yes, it bothers me that you two dislike each other so much." She quieted for a moment. "Austin, I said that I would do anything for you, and that's true. If you ever told me to leave Tim, I would do it for you. I wouldn't be happy about it, I wouldn't be happy with you for quite awhile, but if you ever told me too, I would. So, what do you want me to do? Do you want me to stay with him and let you two avoid each other, or should I leave him so that you can be happy?"

He was waiting to hear the anger in her voice, but there was none. It was just plain wonder and eagerness. He leaned back and thought about her question for a moment. She sounded like she was almost looking for validation to leave him if she needed to. He didn't like the tone, but he could ignore it, like he had ignored so much in her life before. "It's up to you, Brooklyn. You're old enough to make your own decisions. I may come in with a few suggestions, but I'll never tell you what to do."

Her head nodded, but her eyes stayed ahead. "Really, you didn't think that way last year," she told him dryly. He began to chuckle, when he remembered telling her that she absolutely couldn't wear a certain outfit to an awards show. She hadn't been playing on wearing the outfit, but she let him sweat, anyway. It was funny for her to stand there and watch his eyes grow large and his mouth drop open at the barely there piece of material that was supposed to be a dress.

"Just one more thing, Brooklyn." She looked over at him for a moment before looking back at the road.

"Hurry up, the entertainment news and rumors are coming up," she said with a smile, one hand poised to go towards the volume control.

Austin tried to hide his smile and resist rubbing his hand together like a demented scientist. "If, and I'm saying if, I ever told you to leave Tim, would you ever consider going out with JC?"

At the time, Brooklyn had been blowing a bubble, but when he said that, it popped and wrapped around her lips. He started to laugh as he watched her pull off the purple gum from her face with her tongue. "That was not funny," she said, trying not to laugh herself. "That was cruel. No, I would not consider it. I wouldn't even think about it. It would be the furthest thing from my mind, all right? Now, shut up."

She turned up the radio and listened intently. This was what she loved about driving home so much. She didn't usually read the newspaper or tabloids, so this was her only source of entertainment rumors. Not only that, but most of them seemed so ridiculous. It was funnier to listen to them coming from someone's mouth than to read them. "Hello, hello all you rumor starved people out there. Believe it or not, we have more than one NSYNC rumor for you today." Austin raised his eyebrows, knowing what was coming, but Brooklyn looked completely enthralled. He turned it up and leaned back, a smug smile on his face. She was going to blow her top eventually. "Of course, Justin Timberlake is back in the news, with Britney Spears, believe it or not, folks." She rolled her eyes and turned a quick corner, causing Austin to grab onto the side of the door tightly in fright. "Rumor has it that the two are getting a little too hot and heavy, and young Timberlake is supposedly going to propose to the pop princess. Everyone let out an aww."

Neither occupant of the car could resist themselves, and they both let out the noise before laughing. "Now, everyone knows that Tennessee's own Brooklyn Turner is back in the studio again. As per usual, she has one artist collaboration on her CD, and somehow, we obtained a copy of how she might be singing with." Her eyes widened but she didn't say anything yet. Austin just nodded; he knew that this was coming soon enough. It was just sooner than he had expected. "From what is says here, Diamond Rio, Sawyer Brown, Tim McGraw, Mark Wills, Reba, Trisha Yearwood, Toby Keith, and Alabama. Unfortunately for everyone, all those names have been crossed off, and just a few days ago, Brooklyn was seen walking around town with the last name on the list...JC Chasez, also a member of NSYNC. Not only that, but she has been heard calling Lance Bass, yes, another member, and supposedly calling him a sweetheart. Hmm...I thought that Brooklyn has a boyfriend. Maybe he still thinks that, too."

She shut off the radio with a snap. "How the hell do they get their information. No one had a list of that except for Joe and me. No one else. Even JC hasn't seen it." With an unhappy sigh, she turned onto her street.

"You should know by now that everything is going to leak out eventually. There are people that hear these thins, or find these things out, and the first thing they do is run to the nearest radio station or newspaper. Some people just don't have morals, but you can't let that bother you." She nodded and pulled into the driveway, almost groaning. This all seemed like a bad dream, and she wanted to wake up before she got in the house. Tim's car was parked in her usual spot, once again. "Doesn't he know not to park there?" he asked her, almost annoyed.

She sighed and slid out of the truck. "I've tried to tell him many times, but he just doesn't listen." With a roll of her eyes, they walked up the driveway and entered the house. The only thin that made Brooklyn wonder was that he didn't lock the door this time. Of course, she reasoned, she was with her brother this time, so there was no point to warn her that he was angry, even if he was.

Her boots were dropped in their normal place, beside her bag, and she hurried into the kitchen when she heard him in there. "Hey, what are you doing here?" she asked, genuinely surprised as she placed a kiss on his mouth and moved away to get a drink from the fridge. She pulled out a bottle of iced tea and shook it a few times before opening the top and taking a deep sip. Austin rounded the corner, and the smile he had been wearing became more tight.

"Hello, Tim. How are you doing?" he asked stiffly, walking around his sister and put the container with their food beside the oven.

Tim turned around, wearing much of the same smile that Austin was. "I'm all right. How was your vacation?" The tone was polite, but strained. Brooklyn let out a sigh of relief when she heard the phone ring and she hurried to answer it. Instead of taking the call in the kitchen, she dashed into the living room, hoping to ignore the tension in the air.

"Hello, Turner residence," she said, after she had calmed herself down.

The voice on the other end had a smile in it, a genuine one. It made her smile as well, as she sunk deeper onto the couch. "Hi, Brooklyn. I thought I would call and make sure that you're treating our boy all right," Lance said, chuckling under his breath.

"Oh, I'm sure he's fine. He hasn't been seen in a few days, but he's fine. So, what's up, neighbor? And just how did you get my number, considering it's a private one."

The stuttering on the other end caught her attention, and she laughed gleefully. "I got it from JC. I know, I'm horrible and probably should have asked, but darn it, we're neighbors," he commented, pulling out his accent to the extreme. She laughed and closed her eyes. "So, did you hear?" he asked, breaking into her thoughts.

"Do you hear what I hear?" she sang to herself. "Sorry, I know it's still a few months away, but I can't wait for Christmas. Please, continue."

"Uh huh, sure. I take it that you didn't hear, then." She sighed and waited for him to go on. "It's all over the radio and television. I never knew that you and JC were going out."

She rolled her eyes. "It made it that far already? It was on a Nashville station early today. My official comment is...holy crap!" she shouted, when she heard a crash in the kitchen. "Umm...hold on a second, please." She dropped the phone on the couch and dashed into the living room. A water lass that she had used the night before was now on the floor, shattered, but what surprised her was how the two men looked. From polite, yet forced conversation, Tim was standing with one fist clenched tightly, and Austin was rubbing the side of his jaw. "What the hell...Tim!" she exclaimed, running over to her brother and looking at the side of his face. "Okay, this is getting ridiculous," she said, her usually soft voice now booming throughout the house. "You, get the hell out of my house and get the hell away from my brother. We're going to have a nice little talk, in public one of these days. Austin, why don't you put some ice or a steak on there. Excuse me, but I was on the phone."

She walked calmly back to the living room and sat down on the couch, taking a few deep breaths. "Sorry about that, Lance. I just had to break up a little fight. Anything interesting going on over there?" she asked, leaning back on the couch. She practically sunk into it.

"A fight? You've got to be kidding me."

She shook her head before she remembered that he couldn't see her. "Afraid not. My boyfriend attacked my brother. The punch had been coming for at least a year now, but I didn't think that they would do that in front of me, or in my house." She laughed a little, trying to ward off her chill. "I even lost a glass in the process. Do you know how much this sucks?" she asked, laughing a little harder now.

"You're complaining about a glass, and your brother just took a hit for you? I want to know when you're next family reunion is, because if they're as strange as you, it must be a good party."

Brooklyn smiled. "Nah, it's just two people. My brother and I." She dropped her voice to a whisper. "I think he's on something, but I don't want to mention it in case he goes crazy and wants to slaughter me up into little pieces?" Her voice came back to its normal level. "Now, I don't deserve that, do I?" she asked.

"Not you, Brooklyn. You're just as sweet as can be," he said sarcastically.

Her mouth dropped open briefly. "What did I ever do to you, Lance? I've been nothing but the usual sweetheart I am..." she trailed off when she heard Austin snort in the kitchen. "Austin, you better stop laughing and cleaning up that mess. I have no doubt that you provoked him in some way," she called into the kitchen.

Lance was more than enjoying the exchange between the siblings when her brother shouted back. "If it's anyone but JC, then tell him to get off the phone."

He could hear Brooklyn trying to hold back the giggles that were trying to come from her throat. "It's not JC, and if it was, I would have hung up on him by now. It's Lance, from Mississippi," she added with a devilish sound to her voice. "Wait for it," she told Lance on the phone.

"Mississippi? Keep talking, then." Brooklyn finally let herself laugh as she slumped even further onto the couch.

"Well, you passed the older brother test. Don't you feel privileged?" she asked him.

"More than you know," was the sarcastic reply.

Brooklyn leaned back in her seat, her arms crossed on her stomach very lightly. One foot tapped from one side to the other as she waited, her head bobbing from side to side. JC watched as her hair swung with the movement. "You're not nervous, are you?" he asked, as she blew a bubble from the gum in her mouth. The bright pink bubble popped, and she pulled the gum back into her mouth.

"Why would you think that?" she asked, tapping one of her fingers against the back of her hand. "You're the one that looks nervous," she added, closing her eyes and tipping her head back. "I didn't get a hell of a lot of sleep last night. Tim attacked Austin last night, and sent him a nice one right on the jaw. Of course, I'm sure that Austin provoked him but neither one will say anything because they need to protect the 'fragile little Brooklyn' because they love me." She stopped and rolled her eyes. "I'm not nervous. I think you are."

He shook his head and leaned back further in his chair. "Did they really get into a fight last night?" he asked.

She nodded quickly. Another bubble popped and was pulled back into her mouth. Her hands came up and readjusted the black ball cap she was wearing backwards. "Yeah, it wasn't much a fight though. I was on the phone with your friend, and he asked me something, and all of a sudden, I let out a shout and run into the kitchen. There's Tim standing there, with one fist cocked and ready to fly again, and Austin rubbing the side of his jaw. I kicked Tim out and Austin cleaned up the mess, but I'm anticipating the talk I'm going to have with him. More like frightened. Definitely frightened rather than anticipating."

The lost look on her face was almost too much for him to look out, and one hand covered one of hers that were resting on her stomach. She looked up at the contact and smiled her thanks. "Are you sure you're going to be okay, New York? You look more than a little frightened." She shook her head at the comment, still smiling. "Maybe you should get Austin to go with you. Or a bodyguard. You must have at least one."

"Yeah, I have one or two for the tour, but other than that, I don't." Brooklyn laughed, a delightful sound that caused the look on her face to melt away. Underneath, she was still the same sweet woman that he had met just a few days ago. "They don't follow me around like they do you. It's mainly just to get in and out of arenas. I consider them to be more traveling companions than bodyguards." She sighed and closed her eyes, blowing one more bubble. JC reached out with his free hand and popped it. She pulled it back without comment. "I would take Austin, but he holds a grudge for a long time. Never ever get him mad at you," she said with a laugh. "Oh, that reminds me. When are you leaving?" she asked him.

"Umm...two days, why?"

She grinned and moved forward in her seat when the door opened. "I convinced Austin to cook dinner for me, but only if you come over tomorrow. Just check out of your hotel room and spend the night at my place. Besides, if Tim does come over, which he has a habit of doing, then I have two people standing up for me, instead of one." She frowned, and then grinned again. "Actually, you'd be holding back both Austin and I. I can't believe he did that," she said one last time. "Don't even bother arguing with me, because you know that I'll get my way. I always do." Brooklyn turned and looked at the man that just entered. "Hey, Joe. You here to listen to the final cut?"

He took the seat beside her, and looked curiously as JC finally removed the hand that was sitting atop of hers. By then, both of their eyes had been shut, and they were both waiting anxiously for the track to start playing. "Yeah, I figured that I would play the concerned manager role and see if this really worked out, considering that I wasn't with you when you recorded."

She shrugged. "I haven't even heard it yet, not that it's a big surprise or anything." She snickered at her words and pushed her chair back so that it was on two legs. "Don't even say it. Last time you told me I was going to fall, what happened, JC?" she asked, a smile spreading on her face.

Joe looked between the two of them, but didn't catch on to what they were talking about. "Oh, I remember, quite well. I hit my head hard on the floor that time," he said with a laugh. "Believe me, you don't want to know," he added, when one eye opened and looked over at Joe. "Don't even ask." He nodded willingly at the pop star's words, and leaned back, waiting for the track to play.

The soft sound of the piano floated through the air towards them, and all talk in the room was quieted. Everyone was listening intently to the song, a proud smile on both of the singers faces. Brooklyn brought her chair back onto all four legs, and closed her eyes, her head cocked to the side. The look on Joe's face was priceless as he listened to the two voices melting together on the track, singing the chorus together. When the last note faded out, Brooklyn opened her green eyes and looked over at JC. "Perfect," she said excitedly, exchanging a high five with him.

"Couldn't have done it better myself," he teased her, laughing when her band members and manager started to clap appreciatively. Like she always did, she turned around and stepped up onto the seat of her chair, bowing for the applause. She continued to mouth a thank you, while taking in the applause, her cheeks flushed with excitement.

She raised her hands, silencing them all with a laugh. "Thank you, thank you. You don't know how much this means to me. I can say that I thoroughly enjoyed the experience," she paused, wiping away a non-existent tear, "and I just wanted you all to know how much of a help you all were. I'd like to thank the Academy," she said with a laugh, ducking the water cap that came flying towards her. "Hey now, that's not very nice. As I was about to say, seriously, you all did an awesome job on the track. It was more than I could have wished or hoped for, and yes, I was playing the violin," she shouted above the cheers. "Now, if you'll excuse us, JC and I are going to go celebrate, while you all get back to work." With an evil chuckle, she slipped off of her seat and pulled on the dark jean jacket she had worn to the studio. For once, she was dressed normal to him, normal being a long sleeved shirt and a pair of jeans, with sneakers. "Come on, let's go," she said, pulling JC out of his chair with her hand on his wrist. She waved goodbye to her musicians and manager before dashing out of the room and closing the door behind her. "My God, that was awesome," she said with a laugh, as they walked down to the elevator.

He smiled and pressed the button, watching as she leaned against the wall, waiting for the car to come back up to the floor they were on. "It turned out way better than I thought it would have. You're a great singer, New York," he said with a grin.

Laughing, she ducked into the elevator, and waited until he followed. For the first time, they had it to themselves, and Brooklyn took advantage of that by sitting on the ground, against the wall. "Nah, I think it was all you. Definitely all you. You have a fantastic voice. Are you sure you don't want to do country sometime, because I know someone that would jump at the chance to manage you. You could really work the country scene." Her words were teasing and light, but the compliment was genuine. She could tell a country voice when she heard one, and with the right vocal coach, she knew that JC could be pure country. If only he wanted, which he didn't. She still thought that he would be able to make it, and make it big. Her only disappointment was that he was too into the pop music scene, and wasn't a big country fan.

"Funny, little girl. Very funny." She smiled sweetly, and took his hand when he extended it. They stepped out into the lobby and walked out into the slightly chilled air of Nashville. "I'll be glad to get back to the warm weather of Florida," he said, shivering slightly.

Brooklyn smirked. "Oh, yeah. I'm sure that you've never been in cool weather before."

With a smile, he walked with her across the street to the diner, opening the door for her. "I used to live in D.C. before, New York. I have been in cold weather before. I'm just not as used to it as I used to be."

"Really? I've never moved from Tennessee. Moved around the state, but never moved out of the state." She shrugged and took her stool. "It's home to me. I can't bear to live anywhere else." She flagged down Molly and smiled. "Two pieces of chocolate pie, with two scoops of ice cream, please," she said with a smile.

Molly grinned, sticking the pencil in her hand into her messy bun. "Celebrating something?" she asked with a laugh, filling up two cups of coffee for them.

"Definitely. We just finished our single, and we need to do something to celebrate."

She turned to look at the kitchen, and shouted out the order. "Make up two Brooklyn Celebrations, with vanilla ice cream!" she called, turning back to look at the smiling couple. "I suppose this means that you'll be heading home soon. What is Brooke going to do without you? I don't believe in long distance relationships, but if you two want to work on it, by all means, go for it."

Both of them groaned and dropped their heads onto the counter. "Are you ever going to let up about that, Molly?" JC asked, his voice muffled. "If I've told you once, I've told you a thousand times, New York and I aren't dating." She nodded knowingly.

"Sure. JC, come here for a second, please. I'd like to speak to you for a moment," she said, gesturing for him to follow. Brooklyn shrugged and sipped her coffee, turning to talk to the person beside her. He walked around the counter into the corner where Molly cornered him. "You know that I've just been teasing you about Brooke, but in all seriousness, I want you to listen to me for a moment." He nodded, leaning against the wall. "Now, do me a favor, and look over at her for a moment, okay?" she asked.

Brooklyn must have felt him watching her, and she turned briefly to wave at him, smiling brightly before turning back to talk to the elderly man beside her. "Okay, I looked at her. It's not like I haven't before."

The waitress shook her head and pushed a stray piece of hair out of her face. "Yeah, you may have looked at her, but you don't really see her. You don't know much about Brooke, do you?" When he shook his head, she pushed a stool over to him, and pulled herself up on the counter. A shout came from behind her. "Oh, just hold on a second," she shouted behind her, before looking back at JC. Brooklyn Turner is...how do I put this? Very complex. You've most likely seen her happy side, her giddy side, her excited side, her angry side, but that's not the real Brooklyn."

"If it's not, then who is she?" he asked. Normally, the words would sound sarcastic, but he was genuinely interested in what Molly was saying.

She smiled and blinked innocently. "That's the problem. No one has been able to find out who the real Brooklyn is. She's never let anyone see the real side of her. That's not what I wanted to get at." She paused and looked over at the young country singer herself, and smiled softly. She had always had a soft spot for her, ever since she had first walked into the diner, at all of seventeen years old. Since they, the two have been incredibly close, and Molly always felt a sadness overcome her when she went away on tour. Brooklyn seemed to light up the whole diner whenever she was there, and all of the customers loved her. The other waitresses and cooks loved her, too, because when it was busy, she would help out, handing out dishes and taking orders if she thought one of the girls needed a break. "I'll admit, she's a very beautiful woman, and she doesn't flaunt it, either. I've known her since she was seventeen, and I've watched her grow up. A lot of people don't know about the demons she had to wrestle to make it this far in her life, and they probably never will. She's worked hard, and she looks like she has a perfect life, but that's far from the truth."

"I'm not sure I completely understand," he added.

His eyes ran back to Brooklyn and watched as she stood up and looked over at where Molly was. She lifted two fingers, and picked up the plates that were waiting on the counter, and tucked them on her arms expertly, walking over to one of the booths. Both of them just caught her voice as she placed them on the table. "Hey there, guys. Molly is a little caught up right now. How are y'all doing?" she asked. She smiled and laughed at their answer. "Really? Well, tell him that I say hi, all right? I haven't seen your little boy in ages. Now, is there anything else I can get you? More coffee?" she asked.

Both of them turned back to each other and smiled. "What I meant to tell you was that recently, Brooke has been a little different. She...she has this twinkle in her eye that she only had a long time ago, when she first signed her contract. She lost it when her parents died in a car accident, and it disappeared even more a few months before you came here. She had come back during a little break in tour, and something happened between her and Tim, something that she doesn't talk about." Molly watched as his eyes darkened slightly. Brooklyn turned around, and picked up some more plates and bowls, heading over to another booth, further away from them. She called out an order to the kitchen, and spun back around, reaching for the coffee pot. She seemed to be having the time of her life.

"You mean, you don't know what it was," he said, a bewildered look on his face.

She shook her head and frowned. "She wouldn't tell me. Not even her brother knows about it, and he knows everything about her." Sighing, Molly shook her head. "JC, that sparkle is back in her eyes, and I think it's because of you." She raised a hand, when he looked like he was going to protest her. "No, just listen to me. I don't mean it the way that you think I do. I meant that somehow, just working with her, just meeting with her, somehow that sparkle came back."

JC chuckled lowly. "Molly, you're a sweet lady, and I mean that in the nicest way possible, but I have nothing to do with that. Nothing." She just shrugged as he stood up and walked back to his seat. Brooklyn laughed when he came up to her and slugged him on the arm, speaking quickly. He laughed and smiled at her, while she brushed back her honey brown hair.

"You may not think so, but there's something between the two of you. I just wish I knew what it was," she said with a sigh, standing up to take her orders. "I'm here. Don't get your hairnet in a big bunch, now."

"I can smell something from here, but I don't know what it is, yet," she said with a smile, picking up one of his bags from the back and swung it around her. She took a deep breath and laughed. "Yup, Austin's cooking something."

JC laughed and took his other bag from the back of her truck, following close behind her. "You can smell that all the way out here?" he asked, still laughing.

She stopped on the stairs and turned to look at him, closing her eyes as she sniffed the air. "I can tell you right now that he's doing something with rosemary. Trust me on this," she said with a grin when her eyes opened. He couldn't help smiling back at her, watching as she turned around and opened the door. She stuck her head in the kitchen, smiling when Austin protested. "Are you cooking with rosemary?" she asked with a smile.

"Could you smell it outside?" he asked with a grin, turning away from a pan. She nodded. "Okay, now get out of my kitchen, please, before I throw something at your head." She stuck out her tongue and moved away. "Come on, Austin freaks if anyone's in that kitchen when he's cooking. We might as well stay in the living room. It's probably the safest." Her eyes traveled down to the bag in her hands, and she grinned to herself. "Never mind, I guess I should show you where to stay, this time. Austin's staying in the room you were last time, so you'll have to deal with the guest room," she said with a smile.

He nodded and gestured for her to show the way. She climbed the stairs quickly, and opened the door to the room beside hers. "This is the guest room?" he asked, looking around.

"Oh yeah. It's pretty big, but it'll do, I'm sure," she said with a smile. "Listen, why don't you get settled a little, and then come down to the living room. I'll be there doing something or other, I'm sure." She closed the door behind her and he watched as she did so, before sitting down on the bed, looking around the room a little more closely.

It definitely looked like Brooklyn had decorated, because it seemed to have a little bit of her all around. The dark green of the heavy comforter that matched her eyes, and the dark maroon pillowcases that reminded him of her truck. All of the furniture was a blonde colored wood, that seemed to remind him of the streaks in her hair. With a smile, he moved the small powder blue stuffed bear that was sitting against the pillows, and moved it off to the side. His eyes took in the pictures on the wall, mostly framed photos, of her and her brother, along with celebrities and singers, and the occasional person that he didn't know.

He sighed and closed his eyes. Unwillingly, the words of Molly came back into his mind. There was no way he could have been the one to bring the sparkle back into her eyes, and he wasn't even sure if it was gone to begin with, but he trusted Molly. "It has nothing to do with me," he whispered, a smile breaking on his face. He figured that it had something to do with her brother coming back to live with her.

There just wasn't something right with the reasoning. He hadn't known the country singer all that long. He mentally counted a figured that it had only been five days since the two of them had their first meeting. "No, six," he said aloud, looking at the window. He stood up and walked out to it, spying the mobile home that she kept in her backyard. He remembered how she had told him about it, and another smile came to his face. It obviously held a lot of memories for her, and she couldn't bear to let it go. It was that moment that he knew that Brooklyn Turner was something more than all the women that threw themselves at him. He knew that he was more than privileged to meet her.

Giving up on his thoughts, he opened the door to his room and went back down the stairs. He could hear Brooklyn in the kitchen, talking to her brother. "Austin, my God, I just came in here to get a drink. It's not like I'm going to put arsenic in whatever you're making." He heard her break off and the refrigerator door shut loudly. "Whatever it is, it smells good," she said, a hint of a smile in her voice.

"Wonderful. Now get out of here. Go sing or something," he said with a laugh. Brooklyn appeared, her hair swinging behind her as she spotted him. She smiled and pulled him by the arm into the living room.

"Can you believe him?" she asked, sitting down on the couch. He sat down beside her, and watched as she got into her usual comfortable position of curling up in the corner. "He thinks that I'm going to sabotage whatever he's cooking for us. Can you say NOT VERY NICE?" she shouted behind her, listening as Austin started to laugh again.

With a shrug, she moved the slender magazine between the two of them and put it on the table. JC leaned forward, and looked at the cover. "Soap Opera Digest, New York?" he asked, laughing.

She shook her head and laughed. "One of my little known secrets. I'm a diehard Days Of Our Lives fan. I watched it with my mother when I was a kid, and ever since then, I've been in love with the show. Besides, how can you not love a show that has a character that played the devil for a little while?" She laughed again, and he couldn't help joining in with her. There was just something about her laugh that made other people laugh along with her. "It's a cool show. You should watch it once in awhile. I even got Austin to watch it with me."

"And I'm embarrassed to admit it," he yelled from the kitchen. Brooklyn just shook her head.

"I don't blame you," JC yelled to him. Austin laughed, before another bang came from the kitchen. She shuddered, imagining the worst. "There's obviously a lot that I don't know about you," he said with a smile, watching her reaction.

He had expected a laugh or at least a shrug, but her face lost all of the happiness it had a moment ago. His eyes scanned her face, and noticed that she was wrestling with something inside, something that she obviously didn't want him to know. "Yeah, more than you know," she said quietly, before forcing a smile on her face. For reasons unbeknownst to him, he wanted to know. In fact, he wanted to know everything about her, and that thought scared him more than she could have ever imagined.

Her eyes may have been hid behind a pair of sunglasses, but he could still see the bags that she was hiding from their late night talk. Neither of them got much sleep, not that it really mattered. Austin had disappeared in his room, claiming exhaustion at midnight, but the other two were up, talking, until at least four in the morning. They both looked dead at nine, standing in the airport. "Well, you're all checked in and ready to go, I guess." She smiled hesitantly.

One thought had been running through her mind all yesterday, though she would never admit. Brooklyn had wondered what she was going to do now that he was leaving. The past week had been more than fun with her, JC ending up to be more than she had ever expected, and it took her awhile to remember that they probably wouldn't see each other very often, if at all. She would be busy recording her album, and getting the next tour started, while he had to go back on tour. It was unlikely for them to be in the same city at the same time, or even remotely close to each other. They didn't even frequent the same awards shows, unless there was a freak chance that both of them would be nominated for a Grammy. That was something that Brooklyn didn't see happening.

"I guess," he said, dropping his backpack, which was being used as a carry-on, on the floor. They both started to talk, before Brooklyn started to laugh. "Go ahead," he said, putting his hands in the pockets of his pants.

She shook her head. "Nah, you go for it."

Nervously, he rocked on his heels for a little while. He didn't know what the big deal was. Normally, JC didn't let people in so quickly, but there was something about Brooklyn had caused him to. He knew that there was nothing particularly special about her. She was as normal as could be, considering that she was as popular as he was (in a different genre, of course), but there was something that drew him to her. Something that made him not want to leave. Not want to leave her. "Yeah, umm..." he said, looking down at his feet. "We're acting kind of stupid, huh?" he asked, looking back to at her. She nodded, smiling a little. "Anyway, I just wanted to thank you for everything this week."

"Thank me? I should be the one thanking you, which I was planning on," she added with a light laugh.

JC shook his head quickly. "No way. New York, you're the one that gave me the opportunity to sing with you. You're a fantastic artist, you're incredibly talented, and to tell the truth, I had fun this week." He gestured for her to sit down on the chair beside him, and finally took his hands out of his pocket. "You know, when I first heard about this, I thought that this would be another time when I would spend a week in a hotel room, and just come into the studio to work. I really did have fun. Not only that, but I think that your little diner has some of the best food in the country." She grinned at that. She couldn't help it.

"You made quite an impact in my little world. Molly obviously likes you, especially with that bouquet you gave her. I know that she can be annoying but, she's a sweet lady." He nodded at her words, and watched as she brushed her hair behind her ear. For some reason, he was stuck at the fact again that she didn't have any piercing. She smiled again, more nervously. "I had fun this week, too, Jace. I admit, you were right, I thought that you were going to be a complete ass, but I'm glad that you proved me wrong. Most of the artists that I work with, it's like they come in a for a few days, and then disappear. You...you were different. I don't know how, but I actually enjoyed everything I did with you. Even being dunked in the fountain," she said with a sour look, patting her hair protectively.

"There just something about you that screams that you need to be dunked every now and then," he said with a smile, taking her hand off of her head. "You know, if you keep that up, you're going to mess up all that pretty hair." Her hand fell into her lap, as the first boarding call came through the airport. They both stood up and looked at each other. "Thanks again, Brooklyn. If it wasn't for you, I probably would have been incredibly bored up in my hotel room."

She smiled, and shook his hand. "No problem. I know it probably wasn't better than a vacation, but it was fun while it lasted," she said with a laugh. They continued standing there for a moment, and JC didn't make one move for his bag on the ground. "Oh, hell," she said, finally wrapping her arms around his neck. He wrapped his own arms around her small waist and breathed in the scent of her strawberry scented shampoo. "I'm going to miss you. I didn't think I would, but I am," she said quietly, trying to stop the tears from falling from her eyes.

Her head rested against him, Brooklyn just being short enough to come up to his shoulder. "I know. I'm going to miss you, too, New York."

He was about to say goodbye when she stopped him by pulling away. "Don't say goodbye. It's too final. Until next time, I can deal with, but if you say goodbye, I swear, I'll start bawling all over you," she said with a laugh.

He smiled, brushing her hair off of her shoulder. "Sure. I can do that." She looked into his blue eyes and smiled at what she saw. The same seriousness, mature-ness that she saw when she had first met him, mixing with the mischief that she was lucky enough to experience. "Until next time, all right, New York?"

She nodded as he picked up his bag and through it over his shoulder. "Call me when you land, all right?" she asked. "Just to let me know that you got there safely." He nodded as she lifted herself onto her toes and placed a kiss on his cheek. "Say hi to Lance for me," she said with a laugh, before turning away. She started to walk down the airport, before she turned and waved one last time. He smiled and watched her closely.

"Until next time," he repeated, nodding, before disappearing.

Her feet moved quicker through the airport, smiling at a few people that recognized her, before she finally made it outside. She practically ran to her truck and unlocked the door, slamming it shut behind her. Once inside, she dipped her head against the steering wheel, and tossed her sunglasses onto the empty seat beside her. The tears that she had fought back began to fall, fast and furious. "Until next time," she whispered to herself, her arms coming up to rest above her head on the steering wheel.

Brooklyn was like JC. She didn't let a lot of people in. She knew a lot of people, but they didn't know her as well as they thought they did. He had been the first person that she had let see the real her in a long time, and he was gone. The story of her life, she reminded herself bitterly. "God, why am I crying over him?" she asked herself, sitting up and wiping away the tears that remained on her face.

"I don't know," she answered honestly. "I really don't know." And with that, she started her truck and began backing out of the parking lot.

Chapter Five
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