Full Summary: He met her at the corner music store. Over the year, she became one of his closest friends. When his group of friends and him are chosen to go to LA to become a boy band, he has to choose staying behind with her or going to LA to go after his career.

Note(s): The majority of the first part of the story will start before the TV show did. I won't do a play by play of episodes since I hate that. Remember, criticism always helps a writer.


Before The Future: Chapter One.

It was the perfect winter day in Minnesota. Icicles were hanging off the roofs of houses and the snow buried the grass beneath. It crunched like breakfast cereal every time someone walked over it. It was a great day to sit inside with a warm cup of hot chocolate nestled in between two cold hands. The sky was darkened since it was nearly 5:00 in the evening. It was weird how much later it seemed in the winter. Snow drifts piled up on the front yards of certain homes. Mothers were calling in children and fathers were putting away the snow shovels.

The cold air nipped at his cheeks, which were rosy red now. His hands were stuffed into the tight pockets of his coat, which was zipped up as much as it could. He had tucked his chin in the top of his coat and his head was covered by a stocking hat. It wasn't exactly weather for anyone to walk about but he didn't mind. His footsteps were heavy against the icy sidewalk, he had to watch his step in case he fell. He smiled warmly at the people he came across before he let out a sigh of relief when he finally approached his destination.

Stein's Music! was carved into the sign that was above the door. It was one of his favorite places. Taking out his gloved hand, he pushed open the door. He greeted the man that stood behind the counter as if they were old time friends. Stein's Music! wasn't a big music store. The CDs were nearly crammed together on the shelves and few instruments for sell sat in the back corner. The floor was scuffed from many feet having shuffled across it. The soft voice of some country singer drifted around the atmosphere and grabbed at customers' ears. His eyes drifted across the many shelves, a smile bringing to his face. One day, his CD would be sitting on one of those shelves. He was that confident.

It was warmer in the store then it was outside. He took both of hands out of his pockets, slipping the hat off of his head. He smoothed down his hair before looking around. Nothing had changed about the old place, not since his mother had started taken him here when he had been nearly 10.

Giving a small sigh, taking in the hot air of the store, he proceeded to walk down one of the small aisles. He wasn't looking for anything in particular, just to admire the CD cases and the music that changed every once in a while over the speakers. He was in peace here. He usually visited it when his house got too loud or one of his friends was too busy to let him hang with them. He didn't glance up when the bell over the door chimed. Stein's Music! wasn't a store that gained a lot of customers but it gained plenty enough that it hadn't been closed down. He would surely hope that the day it did close down, he wouldn't be alive. He would not like to see that.

Putting his hat in his pocket, he grabbed one of the many CDs that were lined up. He flipped it over, his gaze scanned the back at the many songs. He didn't even notice any of his surroundings changing until he heard a voice.

"Do you need help?" He blinked, turning his head. He frowned softly, letting his gaze fall about a foot below his first look. She was standing next to him, looking at him expectedly. She was wearing a blue t-shirt that had Stein's Music! written across it in big white letters. He had to bow his head almost entirely to look at her, she was short.

"Uh, no, just looking." He replied, hastily putting the CD back as if he were embarrassed for examining it. Apparently, his embarrassment was found funny by her since she laughed slightly. It was a nice laugh, though he had met many girls that had nice laughs.

She leaned away from him and peered at the CD that he had just had. She nodded her head, almost in an amused but approving tone, "Fall Out Boy. Good band." He cleared his throat, glancing at the rest of the CDs before turning to look at her again.

"I was just picking up the CD," he mumbled under his breath. He really was never tongue tied around girls, or shy in fact. Maybe it was the cold.

She smiled at him, shrugging her shoulders as she clasped her hands behind her back. He noticed that her hair was a very bright red, in the fluorescent light anyway. He didn't know if it would look different in the sun though, "I'm not judging you. I like Fall Out Boy, too."

He wasn't actually a fan but he merely plastered on his pearly white smile and nodded his head in agreement to what she was saying, "Great." In all the time that he had visited the small music store, he had never seen her around. He pressed his lips together before asking, "Did you just start working here?"

She sucked in her breath as if it were a big secret and glanced around them. She focused her attention back on him before laughing nervously, "Is it that obvious?" she wondered, looking down at her blue shirt.

He laughed gently, shaking his head, "Nah. I just come here well enough to know." She looked up at him, her face written in puzzlement.

"Oh! Are you the guy that walks in around 7 or what and sits in the corner just staring at the wall?" she asked, leaning her head to the side so her cherry red hair cascaded down her shoulders. He looked alarmed then confused.

"No! No! I, uh, no, that's not me," he said, trying to confirm his story. She laughed, covering her mouth.

"Dude, I was joking. But that's good to know. You don't look creepy enough to be him," she said, nodding her head vigorously to show her point.

He couldn't help but smile at that, "You shouldn't really judge people on how they look," he commented, arching his eyebrow. That seemed to put her in think mode before she agreed with him. He held out his hand, which had warmed up from the air in the store, "I'm James," he introduced.

She took the hand that had been hooked on her pocket and put it in his. It was much smaller, "I'm Sam," she said in a bright tone.

James shook her hand slightly before taking his own back and placing it in his pocket, "So, Sam, do you live around here? Because I don't think I have seen you around before," he soon realized that she was a new face and the town that they lived in wasn't exactly big enough to not notice anyone.

Sam nodded her head once more to respond to his question, "Yeah, not far though. I just moved here with my family. Mom wanted another start," she said, her voice had only changed slightly to a more mellow tone. She leaned to her side, looking past him. She smiled, gesturing with her head toward the window, "Look, it's snowing," she said, interested in the weather.

"Doesn't it snow from where you are from?" he asked, turning the upper part of his body to see what she was talking about. Small snowflakes drifted from the sky and planted themselves on the grass. Just what the town needed, more snow.

"Nope, I moved from Florida. It doesn't snow a lot," James nodded as if he understood and turned back to her.

"Well, welcome to Minnesota," he said, grinning widely at her. She laughed once more, bowing her head a little bit.

"Well, thank you. I feel welcome, already." She smiled back at him, almost matching the vivid smile stretched across James's face.

"Well, you made your first friend, I think." He said, sounding slightly puzzled at the last part. She snickered before nodding her head. She seemed to like whatever he said. Normally, he would have been flirting non-stop but he didn't feel like doing that with her.

She brushed her bangs out of her way before speaking, "You are. Not many people have approached me since we moved here, or even our family. I'm almost afraid to start school."

James chuckled, mirroring her action by pushing his fringe out of his face, "I think it might be your hair," she looked bewildered for a moment before glancing at a piece of it, "Not many people in Minnesota have that color of red." He then shot out a question for her, "School? Are you going to the local school?" His face almost fell when she shook her head.

"No, Mom wants to make me go to the school in the next town over. I don't know why," Sam rolled her eyes, letting go of the piece of hair that she had been curling around her finger and releasing.

"Oh, that's too bad," he said, frowning once more. He glanced up when he heard the voice of the manager of the store.

"Sam, I don't pay you to dilly-dally around with the customers." Sam cleared her throat before offering the manager a tight smile. He nodded at James, "Hello, James."

"Hello, Mr. Stein," James greeted before looking at the red-head, "I think you have to go," he muttered before laughing at the look on her face.

She clicked her tongue, backing out of the aisle, "I'm gonna go before I lose my job," she then smiled at the taller boy, "See you soon, James." He waved at her as she disappeared into the back of the store.

He exhaled before muttering to himself, "Hopefully."


Hopefully, this came out better than I thought.

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