Joe's POV

"Hey, Dad," I said as we walked through the door. It was about four weeks after prom, which was… the greatest night of my life. I guess every teenager's favorite day is prom. But I never really went to a high school prom before. It was a good thing to experience. And to top it off, I was with this amazing girl.

"Joe," he said. Nick and Kevin, my brothers, were sitting down. They obviously had discussed something important, "We have to talk."

"What's up?" I asked a little nervous.

"Tour dates are in," Dad replied, "But we have to leave a few days earlier than we expected.

"How many days?" I asked.

"September second," he said. My heart fell to the bottom of my stomach. This was terrible. We were suppose to leave September tenth, after Bella's birthday. But now we were leaving early.

And Bella couldn't go with. She had a court appearance… for her attempted murder.

Dad could see my remorse, "I'm sorry, son. We just have no other choice." I didn't want to ruin this for him… or for my brothers. Or even for me. So I shook it off. Bella and I would talk it out. We would have to.

"No," I smiled, "It's alright." I guess that was that.

There wasn't much to talk about. There would just be only two weeks until we had to leave. Two weeks to pack the bus and say goodbye to her. I excused myself to the privacy of my room. Taking out my cell phone I dialed Bella's number.

"Hello?" someone asked. It wasn't Bella… it was her best friend Lily.

"Lily," I said, "Hey, it's Joe."

"Hey," she said happily. Lily was an optimist, a fantastic quality considering how many trying times there's been these past two months, "Bella's not here. She was actually on her way to see you."

"Oh," I said, "That's good. Thanks."

"Wait a second," she said, "What's going on?"

"I'll explain later," I said, "But long story short, the day after your birthday, we're leaving for tour."

"Wh-what?" she asked, "But Bella's court appearance… oh boy."

"We can work it out though, right?" I asked for some reassurance, "I mean, she'll understand."

"Of course she will," she said, "No doubt about it."

"Alright," I said, "Good." I was hoping she was right. But was she just telling me what I wanted to hear?

I mean a while ago, Bella would be perfectly fine with this. But things have changed with her. She's becoming down on herself. I'm not sure why but when I try to figure it out, I don't get anything out of her. I didn't understand what was going on. Half the time she won't even look at me because she knows I'm trying to figure out what's up with her.

I wasn't giving in on it at all but we haven't even seen each other in a while. I tried to think of things that have been happening lately. But nothing came up.

There was a knock at my door. "Yeah," I called. Nick walked in, Kevin shortly following. "Hey man," Kevin said, "You alright?"

"Yeah," I said, "Yeah, I'm good. It's not a big deal."

"Well, we sort of have a plan," Nick said.

"Really?" I asked, "What is it?"

"You know how we're leaving the day after Lily's birthday," Nick began, "And chances are she'll probably be coming along still."

"Yeah," I said.

"And Bella's court appearance is September tenth," Kevin said, "Well the day after Bella's birthday is the day we happen to be playing in Santa Barbara."

"R-really?" I asked. I guess Dad thought this through more than I thought. He might've even been indirectly giving me a solid.

"Yep," Nick smiled, "So Lily will come by, say she's paying a visit, get her to come to the venue and we surprise her. Then afterwards, we hang out. Then next morning we leave for Nevada. Not that far away."

"Guys, you are true genius," I said standing up to hug them, "But Bella's on her way here. What do I tell her?"

"The same thing you were planning on telling her before," Nick said, "That is, if you knew what you were going to say."

"I think I had a gist of what I was going to say," I laughed, "Thanks guys… you're the best."

"It's our job," Kevin said. I heard a car door shut outside; I walked to the window and looked down. Bella was there leaning against her car. She was rubbing her temples, like she had a headache.

I turned back around; Kevin and Nick were gone. I smiled and zoomed out the door. I knew that I could always count on my brothers to make things okay.

Bella's POV

"Hey," Joe said striding out the door and to me. I was waiting outside, thinking of what I was about to tell him. I couldn't believe what was happening.

"Hey," I mumbled. He came to me and held his arms out. I willingly took the embrace, tears forming in my face. My life was ruined. He looked down at me and saw my expression.

"W-what's wrong?" he asked worried.

"Um," I said, "Can we talk?"

"Of course," he nodded, "Where to?"

"Middle of nowhere will do," I said. He smiled and took the keys from my pocket. I didn't argue with the fact that he wanted to drive. I wasn't in the mood for it. Besides, I wasn't even thinking about that at the moment.

The middle of nowhere usually meant that place he drove me once. It was a long empty road; no buildings, no houses. It was just us. I remember that moment. We sat on the top of my van and began the process of falling in love with him. That place was always special inside to me.

The drive was mostly silent. Joe looked like he wanted to tell me something too. I didn't know what to tell him; how to say it. I'm sure it wouldn't change his life as much as it did mine. But he should know anyway.

Soon we were there, the familiar spot I called a place in my heart. As soon as the car stopped I moved to the back of my van, popping up the top. I jumped as high as I could, successfully getting on the top. Joe quickly followed. I didn't like making him worried. But this was just a big deal and I didn't want to make this a fast "we'll-deal-with-it" thing.

Joe was quickly at my side. It was just like the last time we were here, calming me somewhat. "Bella, what's wrong?"

"I-I can't…" tears were forming in my face.

"Bella, what has gotten into you?" he asked, "You're not telling the truth anymore. You're afraid." I looked down, avoiding his eyes. He sighed and lifted my face, "you won't look at me." He was right. I wasn't telling him the truth. I found out a long time ago. I was afraid to tell him… I was afraid of going back home to face Glenn. And I wouldn't look at him. At that point I had no other choice but to look at his eyes, questioning but intense.

"I'm… sorry," I said.

"Tell me," he said his staring was putting me in a compulsion. I couldn't help but comply with everything. I would have to tell him about the phone call from my parents. They were so happy. But why? Why would they do this now?

"My parents are getting married," I cried. Joe sighed in relief, pulling me into his arms. He wasn't bothered; that was expected. But he knew that I was clearly sad.

"Why is this bad?" Joe asked.

"Because," I said, "It's just going to be the same way it was before. They're going to fight constantly… their going to split up again."

I couldn't help but look at Joe's face… some sort of reaction had to come, right? He stared at me, "When?"

"I don't know," I said, "After your tour."

"Bella, it'll be alright," he said, "I promise." He didn't know my parents… mostly my mother like I did. She would begin to drink again after a while. I knew she had been doing it behind my back. But hey, my mom and my dad were both dating behind my back so why not start drinking again. "What are you thinking?"

"Nothing," I said trying to pull away from him. But his grip tightened.

"Bella, talk to me," he said gently.

"I'm just afraid," I said, "What if things get screwed up again."

"Before, you didn't have me," Joe chuckled, "Trust me, I'm good with advice."

"I love you," I said. He kissed away a stray tear.

"There's something you need to know," Joe said. I tensed in his arms, still hugging him tighter.

"Please don't tell me something that's going to make me hate you," I whispered.

"We're leaving for the tour," Joe whispered, "September second." That was a good thing. I mean I thought there was going to be worse news.

"That's alright," I said, "I know the court appearance is the tenth but I can just meet you guys there."

"Yeah," Joe said, "I was hoping you would say that." I looked at him and smiled smugly.

"You were afraid to tell me," I said, "Why?"

"I don't know," he said, "You've been so tense lately… so hard on yourself."

"And you know why now," I sighed.

"Yeah," he said, "Yeah, I do. But like I said, it'll be fine. We'll get through it together." He leaned in and kissed me; as like the many kisses we've shared, it was electrifying. It was like a drug.

"I love you," he said.

Two Weeks Later

Lily's POV

"You knew?" I asked Nick. We were on the roof, our place. It was only six in the morning; the morning of my birthday. He had is arms around me, a single long chair is where we watched the sun come up over the Hollywood sign. I yawned.

"Yeah," he said, "But I wasn't suppose to tell Joe. Dad wanted to break it to him. Besides, I couldn't ruin his night."

"Yeah," I said, "He was happy." Nick had told me he knew that they were leaving early for their tour. But he did do the right thing by not telling him. Nick smiled and kissed the top of my head. "So why did you bring me out here?" He laughed.

"Well it's your birthday," he said, "And I want to spend every hour with you." I smiled, "Except for seven to nine."

I chuckled, "So that's why you dragged me out here at six a.m. What do you got going on tonight."

"An unplugged session," he replied, "Right here. I'm sorry but it just sort of came up."

` "Hmm, do I get to see it?" I asked.

"Of course," he laughed.

"Then you're forgiven," I said. I snuggled up closer to his chest, resting my head on his shoulder.

"I want to give you something," he said. I got off the chair as he reached behind him. It was a guitar. I was a little confused but didn't let it show. I just waited. He sighed and looked at me, "I wrote you a song."

"W-what?" I asked shockingly, "You wrote me a song?"

"Yeah," he said, "And I wanted to show it to you."

"Really?" I said, "Well let's hear it." He smiled and nodded; then he began plucking the guitar. I had chills. I'm not a crazed fan, but Nick Lucas was singing to me. This was all still so mind blowing and unreal.

He sang the song the lyrics were hypnotizing. It was amazing to see him sing. His voice is so amplifying and… real.

"What's the song called?" after he was done

"I call it give love a try," he said, "Yeah, its not that good but-"

"Its amazing," I said, "Are you kidding."

"Hmmm, no," Nick said, "I'm not kidding." He got up and was soon only inches at my face, "But I'm thinking about kissing."

I laughed, "You should probably stick to music. Comedy's not in your future."

"Right," he said. He leaned in and kissed me. I ran my fingers behind his neck. Nick Lucas wrote me a song. That is like a life time accomplishment. I would have to cross it off my list of things to do before I die… although I don't have one.

***

"Hey, sorry I'm late," Bella said storming through the apartment. She carried and big pizza, "The orders got mixed up then I got chased by… you know." Yeah, I knew that. Joe, Nick, Kevin, Danielle, and I were just talking about good times we've shared.

"They haven't settled down yet?" I asked.

"Nope," Bella said. Joe got up and went to help her. He kissed her quickly. What was going on here? I shook it off. Nothing could ruin this day. Bella smiled at Joe as she got out paper plates.

"Nick check-" Kevin began.

"I'm on it," Nick said. Nick's diabetes were… controllable. But he has forgotten a few times to check his blood sugar. I was hoping that wouldn't happen again.

"Oh, Lily," Danielle said reaching into her purse. She pulled out a small gift-wrapped box. I smiled, "Happy birthday."

"Danielle," I said smiling, "You didn't have to."

"Oh, please," she chuckled, "It's your birthday."

"Thank you," I said giving her a hug. I unwrapped it. Inside was a flash drive.

"All your favorites books," she said, "I figured it'd be less to haul around." I smiled and gave her another hug.

"This is great," I said happily, "Thank you so much."

"My turn," Kevin said handing me a gift. Where did they come from? It's as if they appeared out of thin air.

"Aww," I said as I revealed a necklace, the pennant a Lily, "Thanks Kev, I love it."

"I thought you would," he joked. I laughed and gave him a tight hug.

"From Joe!" Joe said giving me a present. I smiled and unwrapped it. Inside was a photo album. I smiled and opened it up, revealing pictures Joe took himself. He was into that stuff. There was a huge prom page and other candid shots he took of everyone. I smiled.

"This is awesome," I said.

"There are some blank pages for whatever," Joe said.

"Thanks, Joe," I said standing up and giving him a hug.

"Oh," Joe said, "I almost forgot." He reached out of his back pocket and pulled out a card. I took and opened it up, "Frankie wanted me to give it to you."

"That's sweet," I smiled.

"Bella's turn," Bella said pushing aside Joe with her hip. He smiled and wrapped his arms around her. She smiled and handed me… my keys?

"You didn't!" I said jumping up and down.

"Uh, yeah," she said, "I did." I threw my arms around her.

"Thank you!" I said. I missed my yellow slug-bug. That was like a piece of home. I looked out the window and sure enough, my car was in perfect sight.

"I also installed a new radio," she said, "The only thing you could play in there was folk." I laughed and gave her another hug. Someone tapped on my shoulder. I turned around and faced Nick. He smiled and put something in my hand. I looked down and saw a ring.

"It's a promise ring," he said, "That no matter what, we'll all be in each other's lives regardless."

"It's beautiful, Nick," I said, "Thank you." I kissed him, "This is the best birthday ever."

Bella's POV

"You're brother's so good to her," I told Joe. We were getting ready to go to this unplugged session in my van.

"She's great to him," Joe said, "Trust me, you have no idea how much happier his is with her."

"Really?" I asked, "I never realized him being sad."

"Well, you know the whole Sierra thing," Joe said, "He felt pretty used."

"Yeah," I said, "But that's all of the past now." Joe smiled. It was true. I haven't heard from Amy and Sierra in weeks. Maybe they were bored of us.

"What you did for Lily was pretty awesome," he said, "And I've gotta say, you being all good with cars… its kind of sexy." I smiled and punched his arm, obviously not having any effect on him.

"So how does this stuff work?" I asked.

"Well," he said, "Like most concerts except there's a smaller crowd and its all acoustic. It should be pretty cool 'cause we've never done something like that before."

"You'll do great," I said, "I'm sure of it."

"I sure hope so," he said, "Because we're here." Like he said it was a small place. It looked like a house of blues sort of thing. Joe passed the building and went behind it. I smiled at his nervousness.

"You've performed in front of bigger crowds," I said.

"Not in front of you," he said, "Well yeah at prom but that's just once."

I laughed, "Trust me. I don't care if you fall off the stage. I'm going to like it either way." After he parked he turned over to kiss me.

"I love you," he said.

"I love you too," I smiled, "Do you're thing… and have fun."

***

"Hey," Lily said when people began coming in for the show. We were backstage, out of sight. "What's going on?"

"What do you mean?" I asked, "I'm fine."

"I don't know," she replied, "It seems as though you're not telling me something."

I sighed. I didn't tell her my parents were getting married. I didn't want it to get to her. But now I was nervous she would get mad at me and I would ruin her birthday.

"I won't get mad at you, Bells," she said, "Whatever it is." I looked at her. She had the honest look, like she wouldn't care how important it was. And I trusted Lily and her intentions.

"Okay," I said, "But you can't freak out."

"Are you and Joe going to elope?" she joked. I smiled and shook my head.

"You're close though," I said, "My parents are-"

"Oh my gosh," she shrilled, "They're getting married."

"Y-yeah," I said, "I'm sorry I didn't tell you its just I didn't want to ruin your birthday and-"

"Nonsense," she said, "I completely understand. Besides, this is a good thing, right?"

"Yeah," I said unsure. I'm pretty sure I'll be unsure until I actually see my parents… together. It sort of made me cringe.

"Joe!" someone yelled. Joe was back stage completely on the other side. I looked behind me to see a blonde girl, tall and beautiful. She strode over to Joe and gave him a hug.

"Who's that?" I asked Lily.

"Are you joking right now?" she asked, "That's Taylor Swift." (A/N: Just so you know I have nothing against Taylor Swift. She's a great gal I bet. This is also a disclaimer.)

"Oh," I said, "She's um, pretty."

"What are you thinking?" she asked.

"Nothing," I chuckled, "Nothing." What I was thinking was another problem coming my way. Joe was hugging back. Gosh, I have to stop being so protective. I'm sure they're just good friends. I smiled and turned around to follow Lily. Nick was sitting on an amplifier, trying to tune his guitar.

"I can't get it," he said repeatedly plucking the same string.

"Let me try," I said. He handed the guitar to me. I was pretty good at tuning instruments. I guess it was a talent of mine. I strummed the entire guitar just to see if I had it. I think I did.

"Wow," he replied, "Thanks, Bella." I smiled and handed the guitar back as gently as possible.

"No big deal," I said.

"Hey, Bella," Joe said from behind me. I turned around to see him and Taylor. Now that I took a second look at her she was familiar. A lot of people like her.

"Hey," I said.

"This is Taylor Swift," he said, "Taylor this is Bella."

"Hey," she smiled, "Its nice to meet you." She shook my hand. I felt really better now. She was probably just a friend. I smiled back.

"Nice to me you too," I said, "Um are you singing with the boys?"

"Yeah," she said, "I came in last minute. The unplugged sessions get a lot of ratings if you have a guest singer."

"Especially someone as talented as her," Joe said, "She's a great musician."

"He's overreacting," Taylor said modestly.

"I'm sure he's right," I said, "I can't wait to see the performance."

"Great," she said, "Well I gotta go for a quick sound check. I'll catch you guys later?"

"Totally," Joe smiled. Taylor gracefully went down a hallway with who looked like a sound coach.

"Joe did you know Bella's an epic guitar tuner?" Nick said. Joe looked at me and smiled.

"Nope, I didn't," he said.

"Right, um, I'll be right back," I said walking pass Joe not making eye contact. I seriously needed to give myself a pep talk. I don't know why I felt so protective of Joe. I've never felt that way. I certainly didn't want it to show. There was only one thing to do in a situation like this.

I dialed the number and sighed in relief when the familiar voice flooded through my ear. "Bella," Jay said, "Gosh how are you?"

"I'm good," I said, "I missed you and thought I'd give you a call. H-how've you been?"

"Bored," he said, "But I bet you're doing pretty well for yourself. I've seen all those tabloids. Nice."

"That wasn't me," I laughed, "You know it."

"Yeah," he said sourly, "I know it wasn't you." I know what you're thinking. Jay's just looking out for me and as long as he doesn't snap off at Joe or he's mean to him, I'll let him be.

"Yeah so," I began, "I'm coming home for that court appearance early."

"R-really?" he asked excited.

"Yeah," I said, "And I was wondering if you had an open day or two."

"Yeah, let me check my schedule," he said sarcastically, "Of course I have time. We've gotta meet up and hang out."

"Great," I said, "Well, I sort of gotta go. A shows about to start. I'll see you soon?"

"Uh, yeah!" he said. I laughed, "I'll see you Bells."

"Bye," I said. I definitely needed that. Jay was one of my close friends. We had a lot in common parent wise. But I guess he'd have to find out that was going to change too.

"Who was that?" Joe asked from behind me. I jumped and turned around. I still wasn't use to his silent entrances.

"Jay," I said, "Haven't talked to him in a while."

"Ah," he said, "And that's it?"

"What do mean?" I asked.

"You seem a little… tense," he said curiously moving closer.

"Tense?" I questioned, "Nope. Not tense." He place his hands on my shoulders and pushed down slightly. My shoulders fell. Was I tense? "Oh, I didn't notice."

"Hmmm," he laughed examining me, "What's going on."

"Nothing," I said simply.

"Aw," he said, "We're not talking are we?" I tilted my head, questioning his laughing eyes. Joe sometimes comes off as a mind-reader. I guess he just gets me that way.

"I guess not," I said.

"Lucas Brother's on stage," someone called. I looked up at Joe.

"This isn't over," he said, "I'm not letting you go next time." He kissed my cheek quickly then turned to go on stage.

Nick's POV

"Hey everyone," I greeted the small sized crowd. It was a pretty exclusive concert. The first hundred people or so were the lucky ones because that's all the seats they had. I smiled at the cheering and screaming; the flashing of cameras, "How's everyone doing tonight?" More cheering. I laughed, "Well, I want to start of the show with something new. It's something I've been working on and my brother's agreed to show it to you. It's called give love a try."

The song began automatically. I looked backstage and saw Lily smiling. I smiled back, hoping no one saw that. I'm not embarrassed to be with Lily. God, no. But I don't want to get chased around like Bella and Joe do. If it weren't for Amy and Sierra than that wouldn't have even happened. But I couldn't think about that now. I had to get into the zone.

You; you're like driving on a Sunday. You; you're like taking off on Monday. You; you're like a dream. A dream come true. I was just a face you never noticed. Now I'm just trying to be honest with myself, with you, with the one. You might think that I'm a fool for falling over you. So tell me what can I do to prove to you that its not so hard to do. Give love a try, one more time. 'Cause you know that I'm on you're side. Give love a try, one more time. (A/N: I don't know if I got those lyrics write. X D)

The crowd went nuts after the first verse. I continued on, really feeling the song. Lily's face felt like it was right in front of me, like I could be singing straight at her like this morning. When I closed off the sound the fans were still cheering.

"Thank you," I said.

***

"Everyone, please welcome," Joe said, "Taylor Swift." Everyone began to cheer. We had just recently gotten to know Taylor and she was pretty cool. She taught us a little bit more about performing in front of big crowds. I mean, we've only been on one tour. She's been on plenty.

"Hello!" Taylor said enthusiastically. She agreed to perform with us when she realized we'd get a lot more talk if the famous Taylor Swift sang a song with us. It was a good kick-off for the tour.

Joe took the reins on the song. I didn't know the lyrics very well but I knew the music. I think we did pretty well for her song. I didn't mind that it was country whatsoever.

Time flies when you're on stage. This was a great first show; the best we've had so far I think. Taylor had said goodbye and waited backstage. I wonder what we were going to do after this. Lily and Bella did have to be apart of it no matter what though.

We closed off with one of our older songs. Soon we were able to run offstage. Lily was right there waiting for me. I smiled and kissed her. "Did you like it?" I asked.

"I loved it," she said, "Even that first song. I mean it's really familiar but original." I laughed.

"Nice," I replied, "I'm glad you liked it."

"Now what?" she asked, "You seem tired."

"Well," I said, "It's your birthday. I don't go to sleep until the day is over." She smiled and kissed me again. Her piercing blue eyes making me melt.

Where did Bella go?

Where did Joe go?

Where was Taylor?

Bella's POV

"Hey," Joe said, "Did you like the show?" After the last song, I went to the bathroom to get sick. I guess I just wasn't feeling well. It must've been something I ate. But I didn't let that show. He leaned in to kiss me but I couldn't have that. That was disgusting. I avoided it and kissed his cheek lightly.

"I loved the show," I smiled, "It was amazing. You are all so talented."

"Thank you," he said shaking off the fact that I wouldn't let him kiss me. He wrapped his arms around me, "So. Now I have you in my clutches. What's been up?"

"Oh," I said, "Um." I felt another vomit montage coming on, "Joe let me go."

"What?" he asked confused. I pushed him away and ran into the bathroom. What was happening to me? I went into the stall and puked again. I heard Joe stride into the bathroom, "Bells." I felt his hand on my back.

"I'm sorry," I said between gasps for air.

"Don't be sorry," he chuckled, "You could've told me you were sick."

"I didn't know until I felt it," I said. I came again and before I let it flow, Joe moved my hair back, keeping it away from my mouth.

"Just let it out," he said, "I'll take you back home."

"I'll go," I said, "You don't have to."

"I want to," he said, "Of course I want to. You have to get home safely."

"Hello?" I heard a voice. Awesome. Just what I needed.

"Taylor?" Joe called, "Over here." I heard Taylor's heels clack over. She gasped at the sight of me.

"Is she alright?" she asked.

"Yeah," Joe said, "She'll be okay. I'm going to take her home. Sorry I can't meet up with you guys."

"Aw, it's alright," she said, "I understand." I felt Taylor's cold hand on my back, making me tense, "I hope you get well soon, Bella."

"Thanks," I said not looking at her. Soon she was gone.

"So that's what this is about," Joe said. My muscles were still tight on my back, my shark bite was in pain. Over a year ago, I was attacked by a shark. It's old news in this relationship.

"What?" I asked trying to be as dumb-struck as I could, "No, not at all."

"Bella, you don't fool me," Joe laughed, "You're taking Taylor as a threat. Why?"

"I don't know," I said after a brief pause, "I just… I don't know. I've honestly never felt this way."

"You're protective," he said, "I can see it."

"You can always see stuff like that in me," I replied turning to look at him. I definitely felt better, "But I don't know why I'm protective. It's just so stupid-"

"It's not stupid," he said, "I understand. Taylor comes on strong."

"You knew?" I asked. He nodded. I sighed and tried to stand up. I fell right back down, feeling dizzy.

"C'mon," he said picking me up. He began walking out of the bathroom, "Don't puke again, okay?"

"Shut-up," I said tiredly. He laughed.

This was going to be a long hard time. I'm getting sick, Taylor Swift, tour, court appearance, Julliard, tabloids, parents. What else?

Alright, so I know this took me forever and it's not really good. But it's hard starting out and I admit I've had a big writer's block. So I hope I haven't pissed off and Taylor fans. I think Taylor Swift is cool and I in fact do not hate her. I just need something extra in here. Hopefully this will get better as it goes. Please don't stop reading! I love reviews! Make my day! You know you want to! = )

Oh and I need some help! WHAT DO YOU THINK JOE SHOULD DO FOR BELLA'S BIRTHDAY EXCEPT FOR THE BIG SURPRISE?

This is posted on my first story just to let you know I'm reposting it on a second one! Make sure you check that new one for chapters because this one is officially complete.

I can assure you this is going to become a better story. There's going to be some drama, some scares, some health problems, and some upcoming proposals! So don't miss out! Thanks!