Hi guys! I don't know if anyone is even still interested in Camp Rock, and I especially don't know if anyone is still interested in my stories (holy crap, it's been 5 years!). But, I'm here with this one shot anyway. My life has pretty much flipped upside down since the last time I wrote anything. This idea came to me at work, and I decided to just fit it in the same universe as A Better Place to Start. It's not necessary to read that one first. I just didn't want to have to come up with a totally new backstory for my characters. Hope you like it!

Mitchie stomped up the stairs to get to the apartment she shared with her best friends Sierra and Caitlyn. They had all moved to the city the year before to attend college. Mitchie and Caitlyn went to Columbia College, an art school while Sierra went to DePaul University. Mitchie was glad that they had all become great friends, but today she really hoped that the other two were not around.

She had just finished a group presentation in her Music History class, and it was a disaster. No one had worked together, they started arguing in front of the entire class, and they had gotten a D on the project. The project was worth one-third of their grade. Since Mitchie was on scholarship, that meant that she would have to spend most of the next week and a half studying for her final in order to bring up her grade and stay in good standing.

This afternoon though, she needed to find some way to quickly wind down and mellow out. It was Friday, and it was also her and Shane's two-year anniversary. It was so close to Christmas, but Shane thought it was important to celebrate on the actual day, so he was flying out to spend the weekend with her. She didn't have much time before his plane landed, and she wanted to be in a much better mood when she saw him.

Mitchie unlocked the front door and saw the living room empty. She heaved a sigh of relief and threw her bag on the table while kicking off her shoes by the front door. She was still too worked up to start studying, so she grabbed a People Magazine Sierra had left on the couch. She was flipping through the magazine when she came across a picture of Shane smiling and dancing with a girl in the Star Tracks section. It said it was taken at a party for his record label that was held the previous week.

Huh…Shane mentioned the party was a dud. This does not look like a dud.

Mitchie laid the magazine down on the coffee table and stared at it. The picture was a close-up of Shane and a brunette wearing a tight purple dress. They weren't actually touching, but it was obvious they were dancing together. She tried to tell herself that it meant nothing, that he was with her, and it didn't matter.

Oh yeah, that didn't work.

Caitlyn came in from her jog and stopped when she saw Mitchie sitting on the couch and staring into space. "Hey Mitch, what's up?"

Mitchie said nothing and just pointed at the picture, causing Caitlyn to roll her eyes after she realized what she was looking at. She knew that it didn't look good, but she also knew Shane pretty well by now and was positive that it wasn't anything to be concerned about.

"What, Mitch? It looks like Shane was having fun at a party." She smiled at her as she took her jacket off. "He's allowed to have fun without you, you know."

Mitchie sighed and looked at Caitlyn, fire burning in her eyes. "I know he's allowed to have fun without me. I'm not that much of a ball buster." She gestured at the magazine again. "But he told me this party was boring. That he went home early because of it."

"And maybe he did. One dance does not make it an awesome party."

Mitchie shook her head. "You just don't understand…"

"You're right," Caitlyn snapped, tired from both her run and Mitchie's attitude. "I don't understand. I couldn't possibly understand because I'm not lucky enough to have a boyfriend, especially not one that I've had for 2 years and who is head over heels for me. Forgive me."

"Just drop it, Cait."

"Hey. What's going on?" Sierra had heard their voices from the bedroom where she was studying and came out to see what was going on. She looked between the girls worriedly, taking in Caitlyn's rigid stance with her hands on her hips and Mitchie slouched on the couch with her arms crossed. Caitlyn picked up the magazine and handed it silently to Sierra just as Mitchie's phone started vibrating on the coffee table.

Seeing Shane's face on the screen, Mitchie huffed, jumped to her feet and picked it up. By the time she had answered and put it to her ear, Shane was already talking excitedly. "Hey, babe. My plane just landed. I'm waiting to get a taxi that will take me to pick up my car from my parents'. I cannot wait to be with you tonight. I was thinking we could go eat at a nice restaurant and then go to that cool swing club we walked past over the summer. Don't you think dancing sounds fun?"

"Oh. Like how much fun you had dancing with some other brunette at that party last week?" Mitchie's voice was cold, and she could hear him take in a sharp breath before replying.

"What…what are you talking about?"

"Don't play dumb with me Shane. There are pictures and everything. I thought you said the party was boring and you left early?"

"It was boring…and I did leave early."

"So the dancing started soon after you got there then? Isn't dancing usually fun? That's what you wanted to do tonight wasn't it? Dancing? So you're saying that tonight would have been boring?"

Mitchie heard Shane take in a deep breath and let it out before speaking in a measured and slow voice. "Look, if you would just calm down and let me explain…"

"Calm down? Calm down?!" Mitchie's voice rose in pitch and volume. She could see Sierra making motions with her hands to get her to calm down herself, but she was already too far gone.

"We are supposed to be celebrating our anniversary, and you are off dancing with some slut! Is that why you left the party early? To be with her? A little special after party back at her place?"

"Okay, now hold it." Shane was almost yelling now. "Don't even try to accuse me of this again. Of course I didn't leave with her. How could you even think that? Don't you trust me?"

"How the hell can I trust you Shane?! You aren't here. You're partying with random girls, and worst of all, you are lying to me. Last time I checked, that doesn't equal trust."

Shane didn't say anything for a long moment. She heard him blow air through his teeth and could tell he was trying to calm himself down. When he finally spoke again, his voice was low and deep.

"I am not going to argue about this with you on the phone while I am standing in the middle of an airport. I can be there in about an hour. We can sit down and…"

"Oh no. You are not coming over tonight. You are not coming over ever until you can prove that you even deserve my trust."

Mitchie jabbed at the screen to disconnect the call and threw her phone on the couch, breathing heavily. She looked up and saw Caitlyn and Sierra staring at her like she had gone mad. Sierra moved forward give her a hug, but Mitchie raised her hands and backed away.

"Not what I need right now, Si. I'm going to our room. I'm sorry you guys had to see that."

Mitchie stopped in the kitchen to get a drink and grab her bag that was on the counter. She went to her room and closed the door. After a few moments, she could hear Sierra and Caitlyn talking in Caitlyn's room next to the one Mitchie and Sierra shared.

"What the hell has gotten into her? I mean, I know she gets insecure sometimes, but seriously."

"I don't know, Cait…do you think he's going to come anyway?"

"I think he will. I know he's got to be mad now, but he'll show up. Eventually."

"Well, do you want to do something tonight? I can't study now that my books are locked in our room with her."

"I was planning on changing and then eating junk food, watching crap reality TV and wallowing in my aloneness while they were on their date. You wanna join?"

Sierra laughed "Sure…"

Mitchie smiled a little as she listened to the two of them get settled in the living room. She was glad that Sierra and Caitlyn had become friends during their freshman year. She couldn't imagine having to keep her two worlds separate, and now the three of them were practically like sisters.

Mitchie stayed in her room for the rest of the afternoon and evening. She tried to study, read, write, anything, but she couldn't concentrate. She was still too angry. How could he just dismiss her feelings like that? And why didn't he tell her what really happened at the party?

At one point, Sierra had brought her some pizza, but it sat with just a few bites missing on the desk they shared. Mitchie had finally settled on watching Saw. There was just something about all the blood that was calming and numbing. Around 9:30, Mitchie heard the unmistakable sound of Shane's Mustang pull up in parking lot below. She kept waiting for the doorbell, but it never rang, and she never moved.

Sierra came in around 11 to get ready for bed. "You know that Shane is out front, right?"

Mitchie didn't even look away from the TV. "Yep."

Sierra stared at her for a moment. "Are you going to go down?"

"Nope. He'll get the hint and leave eventually."

Sierra sighed and climbed into bed. She turned onto her side and faced Mitchie. Her jaw was set, and her eyes were glued to the TV, but Sierra didn't think she was actually watching the movie. She tried again: "I really don't think he's going to leave Mitch."

Mitchie finally turned away from the television and looked at Sierra. Her eyes were bloodshot; not from crying, but from stopping herself from crying.

"Well, that's his problem isn't it? I didn't ask him to come. In fact, I told him not to."

Sierra's heart broke for the pain that she knew her friend was in, but enough was enough. She was sure that Shane was in just as much pain, and she cared about him also. "No. I believe you told him not to come over until he could prove you could trust him."

Mitchie turned the TV off and tossed the remote on her nightstand. "Well it's the same thing, isn't it? He hasn't done anything yet to prove it, so he shouldn't be here."

Sierra opened her mouth to speak, but Mitchie stood up and cut her off. "Look, Sierra. Forget it. I know you are trying to help, but I'm not going to talk to him. If you are so concerned, you can go talk to him. I'm getting ready for bed."

She went down the hall to the bathroom and slammed the door. As soon as Sierra heard the shower start, Caitlyn slipped into the room. "Seriously?"

Sierra sat up and nodded at her, not knowing what else to say. "Shit. I thought she would have calmed down by now. He's been out there over an hour."

"I know that, and so does she. She won't go down. Do you think one of us should?"

Caitlyn shook her head emphatically. "No. This is their fight. I love them both, but they have got to stop doing this to each other."

They heard the shower stop and Caitlyn started backing toward the door. "She's done. I better get back to my room. I so do not need any more drama right now."

Sierra laughed and laid back down. A few minutes later, Mitchie came in and turned off the lights. Sierra feigned sleep and watched as Mitchie went over to the window and cracked the blinds. She sighed and looked out for a moment before climbing into her own bed. Sierra shook her head and then rolled over, falling asleep for real.

Mitchie couldn't sleep. With nothing to distract her, she played their argument in her head over and over and over again. If she was honest, she knew that nothing had happened at that party, and that he was just trying to have some fun. But that didn't stop the hurt she felt after seeing it. It hurt that those girls were allowed to dance with him and be with him while she was alone on the other side of the country.

She felt a little bad about leaving him out there. He was still sitting on the hood of his car, and it was close to freezing. There's no way he could be comfortable, but she couldn't make herself go down there. Every time she felt too bad about leaving him in the cold, she pictured that girl and got mad all over again. She didn't know how long she waited, but after a while, she heard a car door slam.

He's finally leaving….

Mitchie woke up the next morning feeling appropriately chagrined. She had let her frustration about her class and grade bleed into their relationship and had hurt Shane in the process. She stumbled out of bed as quietly as she could so as not to wake Sierra and padded into the bathroom.

Mitchie took a deep breath and looked at her reflection in the mirror. She had definitely seen better days. Her skin was blotchy, her eyes were still a little bloodshot, and there were pronounced dark circles ringing the bottom of both them.

She gave her head a little shake. Time to get moving. She grabbed a washcloth, washed her face and then put her hair up in a ponytail. After giving her reflection a small smile, she made her way into the living area. It was time to route her frustration into something that deserved it: her studying. She could get a couple of productive hours in and then go find Shane.

Mitchie turned on the coffee pot and started organizing her books and papers on the dining room table, quickly realizing that she had left one of her notebooks in her car. It had to be below freezing outside, but most of her class notes were in there, and she needed it. She didn't want to risk waking up Sierra by changing into warmer clothes, so she threw on her slippers and an abandoned hoodie and ran out to get it. When she reached the top of the stairs that led to the parking lot, she froze.

Shane's Mustang was still in the front spot, and there he was, bundled up and leaning against the hood. He wasn't sitting in the exact same place she had seen him in the night before, but the frost on his windows proved that he hadn't ever left. When he saw her stop, he reached up lowered his hood. His movement spurred her own, and she cautiously made her way down the stairs, his eyes following her the entire way. She stopped a few feet in front of him.

"You've been out here all night? Are you crazy?"

Shane looked at her incredulously. "I would have stayed out here all weekend, Mitchie, if that's what I needed to do. What is it going to take for you to realize this?"

At the earnestness and hint of anger in his voice, the enormity of everything that had happened in the last 24 hours crashed down upon her. She pulled the jacket tighter around her and started crying, backing away from Shane and looking around wildly as if trying to find somewhere to escape to.

Shane quickly pushed himself off the hood and grabbed her arms, pulling her tight against his chest. He rubbed his arms up and down her back. "Shh…it's okay. It's going to be okay."

He felt Mitchie shake her head into his coat and almost teared up himself when he heard her start to cry even harder. "No." Shane pushed her head back and held her face so she would have to look at him.

"Look at me." He bent down to get closer to her eye level. "It is okay. Am I upset that you still have problems trusting me? Yes. Am I freezing and sore and tired from sitting out here for 8 hours? A bit. But I really don't care. I will do what I need to do to make sure we get through this."

Mitchie let out a sob and threw her arms around his neck. Shane wrapped his arms back around her and alternated between kissing her temple and murmuring soothing sounds to try to get her to calm down. He glanced up and noticed one of Mitchie's neighbors smoking out on their balcony and unabashedly watching the two of them. Shane turned his head to speak straight into her ear.

"Why don't we go inside? You're not dressed warm enough to be out here, and I think we've got an audience." Mitchie froze and fought the urge to turn around to see who it was. She was mortified to be making such a scene, and on top of that, she was sure she looked horrible. She kept her face hidden and spoke quietly.

"I still need to get a notebook out of my car. You wanna talk there? I don't want us to wake up Cait and Sierra." Shane instinctively looked up and saw motion from Mitchie's window. He doubted that either of her roommates was still asleep. But, he knew they needed to talk, and he figured she might be more open if they did it in private.

"Sounds good."

Shane kept one arm wrapped around Mitchie's shoulders as she led them to her car. They settled into the front seat, and Mitchie turned the heater on full blast. They had come to her car to talk, but neither of them knew where or how to start. Mitchie took this time to really look at Shane as he stared out the front of the car. She didn't think it was possible, but her stomach dropped even further.

Shane looked horrible. While he had been trying to be strong for her, she could tell he was exhausted. This was totally understandable considering he had flown all day from Los Angeles, just to see her. And then instead of having a fun and relaxing evening, he had sat on the hood of his car in Chicago Winter, waiting for her. She thought she had run out of tears, but Mitchie felt them welling back up in her eyes.

Her voice broke when she started to speak. "Shane, I am so, so sorry."

He quickly turned his head to look at her. "Sorry for what?"

Mitchie winced at how sharp his words were. But she knew she deserved his anger. Honestly, she deserved more than just a few harshly voiced words. "Sorry for making you sit outside all night. Sorry for not trusting you. Sorry for being so insecure."

Shane let out a big breath. "Mitchie. I am here for you. I always have been, even before we were together." He reached up and pulled his hat off his head, gripping it tight in his lap. " They say love means you never have to say you're sorry. Well, it's lame, but it's true. I know you are sorry. I do. What I don't know is what I'm going to have to do to get you to trust me. Because we cannot keep doing this to each other."

Mitchie looked down at her hands in her lap as the same words she heard Caitlyn say last night ran through her head. They were both right. Every single fight they have had has started with her insecurities. Either she questioned him about something and he got mad, or she just started out mad and it all escalated from there.

"I know we can't. And I know it's my fault." Mitchie took a deep, shaky breath. "The thing is…this just never made sense." She gestured between them. "You and me…"

Shane moved as if to reach for her. "Mitchie."

She raised her hands. "No, let me finish. I need to get this out"

She turned in her seat to face him fully, desperate to get the words out and make him understand. "It doesn't make sense. You are Shane Gray, superstar member of Connect 3, loved by millions all over the world. I am Mitchie Torres, nothing special college student with very few people who even know I am alive. You have more money than you will ever need, and I am worried about how I'm going to pay for the gas we are wasting while sitting here with the car on." Her voice cracked a little. "And the worst: You have had countless girlfriends, and I have never had a boyfriend before you."

Mitchie paused to wipe away a stray tear, and she could see how hard Shane was working to stay on his side of the car and let her finish what she needed to say.

"I love you, and in my heart, I know that you love me too. But, so far that hasn't been able to quiet the voice in my head saying that you could do better. You've asked me over and over what you needed to do. But, you have done so much more than enough."

Mitchie stopped now as the tears started to run more freely down her face. As she took deep breaths to get back in control, Shane gave up trying to restrain himself, took off his gloves and reached for her hands. Mitchie gave him a wobbly, teary smile and shrugged. "So now it's my turn. I can't promise that I won't get upset by the pictures and the girls. It upsets me when they get to be with you and I don't. But I can promise to always talk to you about it and not let my emotions get the best of me."

Shane squeezed her hands tightly in his. "That's all I want Mitch. Last night just about killed me. I know we don't get to be together as much as we would like, but I really can't live without you. That's why I drove over here even after you told me not to. If I thought you would have let me in, I would have come up too."

"I still can't believe you stayed out there all night." Mitchie tried to smile but could feel her tears starting again. On the one hand, it did feel kind of good that he was willing to do something like that for her. But, she also felt like the most horrible and selfish person ever for putting him through that.

Shane reached out with his free hand and cupped her cheek. "Hey. Don't do that. It's over now, and I would do it again in a heartbeat if that's what it took to get you to believe and trust me. Okay?"

"Well, I hate that it took that, but I do believe you. And I have always trusted you in my heart."

"And while I'm here bearing my soul, it was actually especially not fair what I did last night. See, I got a D on a group project that was worth one-third of our grade in class yesterday. That's part of why I went off so bad. We had to do a whole presentation, and it was such a trainwreck. Before it was done, we were just standing there arguing in front of everyone. It was so horrible."

Shane's eyes widened. "Shit, Mitch. Seriously? You should have told me!"

"I was going to! And then I saw the picture. And then you called, and you were so happy and I was so not…"

"Well, next time text me or something." Shane gave her a wry smile. "Let me know it's not completely my fault that you want to kill me."

Mitchie smiled back at him and then sighed when she saw him try to stifle a yawn.

"Why don't we go inside? It's still super early. You can get some sleep on our couch while I study a bit."

"That sounds great. And then I'm going to take you ladies out for a breakfast. But first, come here."

Shane leaned towards her and slipped his hand behind her neck. Mitchie's smile grew as he pulled her in for a kiss.

The kiss started off soft and sweet, an apology and declaration of love from each of them. But, it quickly deepened and turned heated with their desperation from being apart and the angst from the night before.

Mitchie was the first one to break the kiss with her need for air. She rested her forehead against his and looked deep in his eyes while they both tried to catch their breath.

"I love you."

Shane's face broke out into a big grin, and he gently pushed her head away from his. He smoothed her hair back from where he had mussed it up.

"I love you too; so much."

He gave her one last quick kiss and then looked around the car.

"Okay let's get your stuff and get inside."

Mitchie grabbed her book from the backseat and turned the car off. They walked back to her apartment with his arm around her shoulders and hers around his waist. Once they got inside, Shane took off his coat and boots and laid down on the couch. He was asleep within seconds. Mitchie smiled and watched him sleep for a moment before tiptoeing to her room to get a better quilt for him.

As soon as she opened the door to her room, she saw Sierra and Caitlyn waiting for her, smiling expectantly. Caitlyn spoke up first.

"So it looks like you guys made up, huh?"

Mitchie quickly closed the door behind her so they wouldn't wake up Shane. She could feel a blush rising on her cheeks as she sat down next to Sierra on her bed.

"Yes. We made up. Everything is okay now. Mitchie's psycho freak out is over. "

Caitlyn and Sierra both laughed as Sierra reached over and gave Mitchie a hug.

"Thanks guys. And thanks for putting up with me last night. I'm sorry for going off on you too. I'll tell you all about it at some point, I promise, but right now, Shane needs a blanket and I need to study."

Mitchie crossed the room to her closet and got out her favorite quilt. She went to leave the room but turned around before opening the door.

"Oh, and don't eat anything. Shane is going to take all of us out to breakfast after he wakes up."

Mitchie walked into the living area, hugging the blanket to her chest. She looked at Shane sadly one last time before deciding that she wasn't going to dwell on it anymore. Like Shane said: it's over and it's okay.

She spread the blanket over him and gave him a light kiss on the forehead. He turned his face toward her but didn't wake up. She walked over to the kitchen, poured herself a cup of coffee and settled in at the table. She put her headphones in her ears and opened her books. She had a feeling this was going to be a real turning point in their relationship, and she honestly couldn't wait. They had a lot they needed to talk about, but first, she needed to pass this class.

The end. I'd like to say I've got more coming, but life is a bit hectic right now, so I can't make any promises. Hope this one wasn't too melodramatic for you all. I think it was a little cathartic for all the drama going on around me lately, and MAN it felt good to be writing again.

Peace and happy early 4th of July! :)