Standard disclaimers apply. If I owned Rent, I'm sure Jonathan Larson and I would have serious issues.

I thought up this idea several days ago. To me, since I know a lot about the subject, it seemed like a good, original Rent idea. It's post-Rent, by the way, and I know some of you will hate me for both Angel and Mimi being dead, but I don't mess with perfection, OK? I'm not Larson, and I don't try to be... OK, I'll stop rambling now, and you can read on!

Chapter 1

As the band struck their last chord, the crowd burst into applause. Roger grinned at the cheering fans and noticed a particularly pretty girl with a bright smile at the front of the crowd. He smiled at her and spoke into the microphone.

"Thank you, ladies and gentlemen," he said. "Once again, we are Mute and we had a great time tonight, performing for all of you. We will be back tomorrow for another great show, and we hope to see you all there. Thank you, God Bless, and goodnight."

Roger smiled again, turned off the microphone, and took off his guitar. Setting it down on the stage, he met the gaze of the girl, who was remaining behind, and then he joined his band in disassembling the equipment.

A little while later, Roger went out to the lobby of the building and sat down at the table with his band to begin signing autographs. Roger spotted the girl in the crowd, and eventually, it was her turn to meet the band and get her merchandise signed. She handed Roger the ticket stubs, three CD's, and a T-shirt. Roger and his bandmates signed the stuff for her, and then another girl came up beside her.

"Did you get the stuff signed, Stephie?" she asked.

"Yes, Jen, I did," Stephanie said. She looked at Roger. "I'm Stephanie Bradford, by the way, and this is Jennifer Dawson. We're, like, your biggest fans."

Roger chuckled. "I bet," he said. "I'm glad you liked the concert."

"We've actually seen you guys four times in the past six months, but this is the first time we've actually been able to meet you," Stephanie said. "Once in Baltimore, another time in Los Angeles, a third time in Philadelphia, and another time in Richmond."

Roger was surprised. "Wow," he said. "You girls went all the way across the country for us?"

Stephanie grinned again and shrugged. "Anything for our boys," she said.

Roger laughed. He already liked this girl. He'd, of course, seen thousands of fans in person before, but Stephanie was different. Tall and slender, she had platinum blonde hair that shone in the light and flowed down the length of her back. Her blue eyes were like sapphires that sparkled from within her heart-shaped face. She smiled at him again. He noticed her teeth were perfect, too.

Charlie, DJ, Graham, and Tommy finished signing Stephanie and Jennifer's merchandise and handed it back to them. The girls smiled at the band members one last time and then turned and left.

Charlie was giving Roger a suspicious look. Roger raised his eyebrows. "What?" he asked, in an innocent tone that deceived nobody.

"Oh, come on, Roger," Charlie said. "You like her, don't you?" he teased in a sing-song voice.

Roger smiled. "I could," he replied. "We'll see."

Charlie smirked. He knew that, already, Roger was falling hard for his biggest fan.

During the show the next night, Roger could barely concentrate. All he could think about was Stephanie. The whole duration of the concert, he was lucky he never messed up, because she and Jennifer were standing right in front of him, even leaning up against the stage. When he walked by, a thrill went through Roger's body every time Stephanie's hand touched his. Roger noticed a dazed, glassy look in Stephanie's deep blue eyes that he couldn't help but think was strangely familiar from his past, and this worried him slightly. He sensed something was wrong, but he couldn't figure out what from ten feet away.

They'd begun their final song when it happened. Jennifer looked over at Stephanie and noticed the distant look on her face. As the crowd tightened around them, Stephanie suddenly began to seize.

Jennifer cast a horrified look at Roger.

"Stephanie," she yelled. "Stephanie! Oh my God! Roger, help her!" she screamed.

Jennifer could barely hold onto Stephanie, she was shaking so badly. The band stopped playing in the middle of the song and Roger took off his guitar, set it down on the stage, and jumped into the crowd. He, Charlie, DJ, and Tommy managed to get people to move back, but it was difficult.

"What's wrong with her?" Jennifer asked, horrified.

"She's having a seizure," Roger said. "Does she have a history of them?"

"Not that I know of," Jennifer said, and she clutched Stephanie even more firmly, for fear of dropping her. Jennifer sat down on the floor and cradled Stephanie in her arms. Roger stood by them the whole time. One of the security guards dialed 911, and finally, Stephanie's seizure stopped. A few minutes later, the paramedics arrived and made their way through the crowd of people.

"We need to get these people out of here," Charlie said. "Come on, DJ, Tommy, they need to leave. Now. But keep a path clear for Stephanie and the paramedics."

Charlie, DJ, and Tommy quickly spoke into the microphones. The crowd, thankfully, took them seriously and filed out as quickly as possible, leaving a pathway for the EMT's. Roger met Charlie's gaze and he nodded.

"Go with her," Charlie said. "We can take care of this stuff. She needs her idol."

Roger smiled gratefully at him. "Thanks, Charlie," he said. "See you guys later. I'll call when we know anything."

And without another word, he followed the EMT's out to the ambulance and went with them and Jennifer, not letting go of Stephanie's hand the whole way.

Don't forget to review. In the next chapter, you'll find out why the seizure happened.

In case anyone was curious, the title of this story is one of my former favorite, old Backstreet Boys songs. It seemed to fit the story just perfectly, so I decided to use it. Naturally, I don't profit off it in any way. Wishful thinking, though.

Thanks for reading!

Until next time, love of love,

Renthead07