Wow…I guess I'm getting this sequel out a lot faster then planned! But that's a good thing, right? (:

Just a side note for everyone reading; updates will probably not be too regular, due to the fact that I now have a job, and I'm fairly busy! Don't worry though; I likely won't go a month without updating this fic. I'll try my best!

Also, if you haven't read Family Ties and you want to read this, you might want to, or else you might get slightly confused at times….:P

Anyway, here it goes!

As I heard a light knock on my door, I smiled slightly as I rolled around. The sweet smell of fresh pancakes entered my nostrils as I opened my eyes. I looked around and saw Elliot standing at the door, smiling as he held my breakfast in his hands.

"Morning sunshine!" he smiled that perfect smile of his as he spoke.

I smiled back as I sat up in bed.

"Morning," I yawned as I stretched my arms out. Elliot looked at me, and laughed.

"So do you want breakfast in bed again, or do want to come out into the kitchen today and eat?" Elliot asked.

"I think I'll eat in the kitchen this morning!" I giggled, thinking of how I was always too lazy to get up, and how Elliot always fed me in breakfast in bed.

"Alright, just come out when you're ready!" Elliot told me excitedly as he left the room and went back downstairs.

I smiled and thought about what had happened in my life the past few months, and how it had really turned my life around. Dad's funeral was about 5 months ago now, and dare I admit it, but it kind of did a lot of good for me. I had a chance to think and regret a lot of the stuff I had done over the past few years, and it helped me come to terms with a lot of my past. I had to face my family again at the price of my dad's life, but it did pay off. I talked to my mom a few times a month now, and Elliot and I came by to visit her a few weeks ago. She really misses dad along with the rest of us, but she is doing alright, and a lot better then we thought she would be.

As I walked over to my closet and picked out an outfit for the day, I thought about Elliot too. He didn't know about a lot of my past, and I knew I had to tell him at some point, but I didn't know how to tell him, or when to tell him. I did know that I was falling in love with him though. He had done so much to help me the past few months. We went out a few times, then asked me to move in with him to make it easier since things were going great, and we lived too far away. He didn't want to rush anything, so he told me he had a bunch of extra bedrooms, and that I could have my own. It was a kind gesture, and I really appreciated it.

It turned out that Elliot was living in his house up at Lake Winnetka, so just coming there brought back a lot of memories. It was around November when I moved up, so we couldn't do any water skiing, knee boarding, or anything in the lake, but we knew that once spring rolled around, it would be one of the first things we would do together.

As I got dressed, I walked around to the other side of my room and looked out the window. The lake was covered in a thick layer of snow, and it was gorgeous. Everything around the little town here was gorgeous in February. I used to only come up here and see the area in the summer, but now I knew why some people wanted to live up here year round. It was a nice, wonderful place to live.

It turned out that my brother, Charlie, had ended up buying Mike Romano's place across the lake. He now lived there with his wife, Anne, and two girls, Lily and Amber. We saw them often, and we sometimes babysat the kids if they waned to go out and do something. It was always nice to have family close to you. I missed having that familiar feeling the past few years, and it was great to have back.

I pushed my thoughts away as I went into the bathroom to brush my teeth quickly before I ate breakfast. I then walked downstairs, and found Elliot making me more pancakes. I sat down, and noticed that my plate was now empty.

"Elliot, what happened to the other pancakes?" I asked.

Elliot smiled at me.

"They got cold, so I ditched them, and decided to make you some fresh ones," he explained.

"Oh…you didn't have to do that!" I protested. "I could've just warmed them up you know!"

Elliot shrugged.

"Oh well," he smiled. "We had a ton of extra batter, so I thought why not!"

Elliot then brought the pan over, and dumped the warm pancakes on my plate. He brought over a glass of orange juice, and grabbed the maple syrup out of the fridge. He smiled at him in thanks, and grabbed my utensils, taking my first bite.

I smiled at Elliot.

"These are great!" I commented after I swallowed. He did make really good pancakes…

Elliot laughed.

"Thanks!" he smiled. "So, anything special you wanted to do today?" he asked.

I shrugged.

"Well, I have to work from 1 till 5," I reminded him. "Did you want to do something after that?" I asked.

"I dunno. Calvin invited us to some party of his at some bar in the city tonight…did you want to go?" he asked me.

I sighed.

"I'll go with you, but I don't drink…so I won't be that much fun."

Okay, so I know I had to tell Elliot about me being an alcoholic in the past at some point, and it had to be sometime soon…I just didn't know how, or when to tell him! He'd probably break it off with me if he knew-no one would want someone who's been in trouble like that before.

"Sarah, it's alright," Elliot told me. "I know why you don't drink," he told me shyly. Looking in his eyes, I knew he was scared for my reaction.

I tried to stay calm.

"H…how did you know?" I asked.

Elliot shrugged.

"It gets around," he explained. "Charlie told me few weeks ago, and I didn't really want to bring it up with you unless I had to," he added.

I didn't know what to say to that…I didn't think that Charlie would cut into our relationship and reveal things like that, but was I ever wrong. I was going to get pretty mad next time I saw him, that's for sure!

"Don't worry about it though," Elliot told me, walking over and grabbing my hand. "I've been through some stuff too, so I know how it feels, sort of."

My eyes widened as I stared at him.

"Y...you have?" I asked.

Elliot sat down and sighed.

"In high school, I was big time onto weed and smoking anything I could get a hold of pretty much," Elliot explained. "I've quit though, and haven't touched any of it in years," he reassured me. "Don't worry Sarah, you're not alone…I know what you've been through," Elliot forced a smile as he rubbed my back.

As Elliot talked about him smoking, I immediately thought of Mike, and wondered how he was doing. Maybe he would finally come to his senses and quit too.

"Thanks Elliot," I smiled as I leaned in for a hug. He smiled and gave me a small peck on the lips. I immediately felt so much closer to him then I already did, knowing that we had overcome similar things in the past. His safe, gentle touch made me never want to let go of him ever again.

And there is the first chapter of Crossing Paths! I hope you enjoyed it!

Thanks for reading guys! Review? I'd love to see some! (:

~Lauren