Sookie and Eric had a brief but intense romance just after college, which was ended by Sookie's career choices. In a hotel bar on a business trip, Sookie reminisces about that summer two years later only to realize that Eric is also at the bar. When they start drinking together, will they be able to deny the love they still have for each other? AH/AU/OOC/WTF/OMG (lol) CH/AB own all this stuff.

Based on the song Break Each Other's Hearts Again by Reba McEntire and Don Henley.

I sat on the edge of the bed in the hotel room, glancing between the door and the laptop sitting on the desk. It was tempting to log on and continue working, though I'd spent over ten hours at a regional office already that day. What I really needed was a stiff drink or two and a good sleep. My eyes cut back and forth; bed, door. Door, bed. I stood suddenly and grabbed my purse on the way to the door. I could work forever if I let myself. The hotel bar won this time.

Catching my reflection in the hall mirror, I made a pit stop in the bathroom. I brushed through my hair a few times and swiped on some lip gloss. Otherwise, everything looked about as good as it was going to. The elevator ride took only a couple of minutes and soon, I was seated in a swiveling chair on the corner of the bar. Though the place was pretty busy, the bartender made her way over and quickly took my order. I'd been drinking gin and tonics since I was barely legal for a reason: They were tasty and they got the job done.

I love my job, Lord knows that's the truth, but I'd been feeling the strain lately. For the past two years I'd been traveling almost constantly, which was something I'd always wanted. What I hadn't realized was that when you travel all the time, you get set in a routine of working yourself to death. Granted, my work days technically ended at four o'clock like everybody else, but without the temptation to visit family or pal around with my friends, I tended to stick with the one constant in my life. Work. It's a great job, really. Which is a lucky thing, considering what I'd given up for it. He hadn't made regular appearances in my thoughts for a while but when he did, it was always a fresh blow. I coughed a little, trying to clear the sudden tightness in my throat, and took a long sip of my drink.

Eric Northman was my first big love. My only big love, really. He'd come barreling into my life like an oversized Nordic hurricane the summer I turned twenty two. I was moving back home just after college and he'd rented out the old Compton place across the cemetery from my Gran's house. Old Man Jesse had relocated to the new old folks home in Shreveport and his grandson decided to let the house out after a few minor repairs. I still remember the day I pulled up Gran's driveway and almost swallowed my tongue when I saw him pushing a lawn mower through her yard. He was wearing tennis shoes and a pair of basketball shorts and I thanked the Lord that I didn't have a penis. Because if I had, I surely would have been sporting the most monumental wood in the history of the human race.

I had no idea who he was and as I parked my car I hoped like hell he wasn't some long lost cousin that had turned up out of the blue. Just in case he was, I thought over my stance on incest and decided that maybe it wasn't too bad after all. Yes, that's how sexy he was. At almost six and a half feet tall with long, lean muscles and a perfectly golden tan, I was in love before I ever made it to his face. I stepped out of the car, standing beside the open door while he shut the mower off and looked my way.

He wiped the sweat off his forehead and squinted at me, obviously not recognizing me either. "Can I help you?"

I cocked an eyebrow at that. "I live here," I called back. I couldn't work up to my usual snarkiness with him looking all Playgirl like he did.

"You must be Sookie," his face lit up in a smile and I swear it felt like he reached out and sucker punched my heart. He was so gorgeous, it was almost unreal. His face was perfect, even all sweaty and with the flush of exertion. His nose was a little wide but perfectly straight, he had adorable lines around his smile, the most beautiful blue eyes I'd ever seen. The little gaps in his teeth were just about the cutest thing on the planet and made him seem boyish even though everything else about him was very adult. His blonde hair looked like it was growing out of a bowl cut and was wet with sweat; as I studied his face, he ran a big hand through it and I shivered. He was so hot, I couldn't help it.

"That's right," I answered, finally coming back to my senses. He was walking toward me and my eyes were glued to his abs, the muscles contracting with every step. With a herculean effort, I peeled them away and looked at his face instead. Which was wearing a slightly cocky grin, clearly a product of my obvious appraisal of his body. I felt myself blush and stepped out from behind the car door. When his eyes dropped to my body, I felt a little better about myself. It was hotter than the hinges of Hell outside and since I was only driving home, I'd worn a bikini top and a pair of cut off jeans for the ride. I was pleased to note that he found me just as fascinating as I found him and when he glanced back up to my face, I was sporting a little cocky grin of my own. "And you are?"

"Eric Northman," he answered quickly. "I rented the property across the way," he nodded toward the trees.

"The old Compton place?" I asked.

"That's the one," he smiled. "Gran came over with a casserole as soon as I got all moved in and we've been buddies ever since."

"Gran?" I narrowed my eyes suspiciously, getting a tiny bit jealous that he was using my nickname for her. He held his hands up, gesturing innocence.

"I tried to call her Adele but she wouldn't hear of it," he explained. I had to laugh at that, knowing that what Gran said was law. I was about to reply when I heard her call from the porch.

"Sookie? Is that you?" I turned my head, spotting her standing by the back door. She had her hand held over her eyes like a visor, blocking the sun.

"Hey Gran!" I called, bounding over to the porch. I hadn't seen her since spring break and was missing her like crazy. A second later, her familiar scent was flooding my nose as I wrapped her up in a huge hug.

"Oh dear, it's so good to have you home," she crooned in my ear. I smiled into her hair, thinking the same thing. I wanted to enjoy my time there because with my degree, I had planned to do a lot of traveling and had every intention of savoring the time I had with her.

"Looks like you've found some company," I answered, stepping back from the hug and waggling my eyebrows at her.

"Isn't he just the most handsome thing you ever saw?" she asked, a devilish grin on her beautiful face.

"That's a resounding yes," I wholeheartedly agreed. He cleared his throat behind me, causing my whole body to blush with his nearness. I hadn't realized he'd followed me up to the porch. I looked over my shoulder at him, expecting that cocky grin again. What I got was a heated stare that made my whole body tingle. That's when I knew I was in trouble.

"Miss?" the bartender asked, jarring me back to reality.

"I'm sorry?" I was a little dazed, not realizing how deeply I'd fallen into my memory.

"Would you like another drink?" she gestured to my now empty glass. I nodded absently, unaware that I'd finished it off. Eric was like that, though. He always did make the world disappear for me. I smiled at her a few moments later when she sat a fresh glass in front of me.

"Thank you so much," I told her. She smiled and made her way down the bar. Heaving a sigh, I fished my Blackberry out of my purse and scrolled through some emails. I didn't want to work, but I didn't want to go down Northman Memory Lane, either. Our love had been hot, fast and all consuming. Our break up had been devastating. Luckily for me, nobody died from a broken heart. Although in my opinion, I had come pretty damn close. I sighed again, almost like I was trying to physically expel the thoughts from my mind. I tossed the phone back in my bag, severely uninterested in it at that moment. Picking my glass up and popping the straw in my mouth, I looked around the bar as I drank.

The day we called it quits was forever burned into my memory. He had been taken completely off guard, which made it all the more difficult for me. I loved him so much, I could barely imagine a future without him in it. But he had made it clear he had no intentions of leaving Bon Temps and I had to get out. Every day I felt a little more claustrophobic. A little more chained down. Even the way he slept, with his arms locked around me, had started to feel like a harbinger of the future.

After only six weeks of knowing each other, I'd moved most of my day to day stuff over to his place. We'd been doing little things to fix it up; painting a room here and there, changing the carpets, stuff like that. I was putting real life on pause for a while, not thinking of the future or starting my career. My Business Administration Major wasn't going anywhere and I figured I had a little time. We were inseparable that entire summer, never out of each other's sight longer than his eight hour shift on the road crew. Everything was perfect, clear up until the pregnancy scare we had a few months later.

It turned out to be a false alarm, thank God, but it brought me crashing back to reality. As much as I loved Eric, and I did love him, I was not ready to start a family. I didn't know if I'd ever be ready. I'd never pictured myself as a wife or mother, especially after my parents' divorce. It had been a nasty split, befitting their nasty marriage, and when it was over they both left town. I hadn't heard from my mother since I was fourteen and my dad rarely ever checked in. I'd stayed with Gran at her insistence and though I missed them now and then, I never wanted for anything. I knew I didn't want to end up like them and when I finally got my period that November, I started sending out resumes.

Any time I brought up relocating to Eric, he talked like it was some far off event in the future, usually changing the subject with sex. I'd been confused at first, knowing that he had also gone to college for Business Management and wondering why he didn't want to use it. I'd put it together eventually, though. His dad had been a corporate man and very rarely home when he was growing up. His mother was clinically depressed and so he was left by himself most of the time, with no family to speak of. When he'd moved to Bon Temps, he'd fallen in love with the charm of the tiny town and the homey citizens. I could understand that, but I couldn't agree to spend my life that way.

Looking back, a clean break was the worst thing I could have tried for. I had already accepted the position with a national health care corporation before I even told Eric it had been offered. The day we broke up was the day before I flew to my first assignment. The look on his face when I told him was worse than if he would have hauled off and hit me. I was crying before he even said a word, begging him to understand. Before it was all said and done, we'd both cried, screamed, begged, broken things. It was devastating. Walking out of his door that last time was like cutting my soul away from my body.

Gran told me that a month after I'd been gone, he had stopped at her house to tell her goodbye. She didn't know where he was going but he moved from Bon Temps and nobody had seen him since. I had second guessed my decision for almost a year. I had immediately loved my job but I missed Eric like crazy and I was never sure if I'd done the right thing. Two years had passed now since the night I walked out of his life and even still, I found myself reminiscing about our time together. Like I said; hot, fast and all consuming.

I shook my head, reminding myself that there was nothing to be done about it. Catching the waitresses eye, I scooted my empty glass forward a bit. She came right over and a moment later, I was sipping on my third drink. The alcohol was finally stretching it's fingers out into my legs, giving me that fuzzy buzzed feeling. Once that glass was finished, I was headed back up to my room. I had to fly to Tennessee the next morning and didn't particularly want to be hungover when I did it. I stifled a little yawn and scanned the bar area once again, noticing it had filled a bit during my reminiscing.

Then my eyes landed on a hauntingly familiar pair of baby blues and my heart jumped into my throat. His hair was shorter, a shade darker. His face was a little older, a little harder, but still Eric. He stared back at me for a split second and then my vision blurred. I blinked quickly, horrified at the tears flooding my eyes. When I got them clear, his face had softened and it made my chest tighten. I offered him a smile, or as close to a smile as I could get, and he slowly stood from his chair. I watched him as he lifted a suit jacket from the back of his chair and a glass from the bar. His body moved the same way it always had as he made his way toward me. My heart went into hummingbird mode as I started to panic. What could I say to him? How could I explain myself? I couldn't figure out how to tell him how much I'd missed him and how hard it had been to leave him like that and how I had been sure I wouldn't make it without him for so long.

"Hello Sookie," he greeted me in a sad voice, draping his jacket over the chair next to me.

"Eric, I-"

"It's ok," he cut me off as he eased into the chair. "I understand. I didn't, at first, but I do now. I can't say I agree with the way you handled things but I know why you left me and I'm not mad anymore," he told me. I just looked at him for a minute, not sure what to say to that. I realized I would dearly love a shot of something strong at that moment and decided that's just what I would do.

"You still drink whiskey?" I asked, hopefully. He cracked that grin that cracked my heart.

"Does it still get dark at night?"

I laughed, breaking the tension. "I see some things will never change," I muttered, waving the bartender over. He laughed at my assessment and the sound brought tears to my eyes again. I kept my head turned toward the bartender until I got my shit together. "How have you been?" I asked, clearing my throat. When I looked at him, I felt that same pull I always had. He stared at me for a moment, feeling it too.

"I've missed you," he whispered. I pursed my lips, shifting them to the side as I teared up again. His hand left his lap but fell before it reached me and I swallowed hard to get rid of that nuisance of a lump in my damn throat.

"I've missed you too," I told him honestly. We were both quiet for a moment and then the waitress brought our shots, breaking the silence. The whiskey burned down the back of my throat and I hoped like hell it singed that lump for good. The clink of the shot glasses on the bar seemed louder than it should have been and I glanced up at Eric because I couldn't stand not looking at him anymore.

"You're still at your job?" he asked, eyes glued to mine. I nodded.

"I am. I love it," I confessed. He nodded.

"I'm glad to hear that," he said. "It would be a real shit kicker if you hated it," he added, chuckling a little. I joined him and a moment later, we were laughing hysterically, which effectively banished the awkwardness. As we caught up, I became more and more relaxed. Falling back into Eric was scary-easy and I found myself dreading the moment we would have to say goodbye.

He had taken a job with a computer company after I'd left. Said he couldn't stand being in the house alone and everywhere he went in the town reminded him of me. I felt like a heartless bitch as he recounted how lost he'd been without me and how he had eventually decided to get into business after all. He said he wished he had taken me more seriously when he'd had the chance but that he had moved on. I wasn't sure which part of that cut deeper but I just nodded through it. I started telling him about my job and then filled him in on a couple of good Gran stories.

After the waitress brought us our fourth shot of the night, he stared at the amber liquid in his for a moment. I watched him intently, studying the strong line of his jaw. HIs beautiful profile. Those lips. When he cut his eyes back up to me, the fire from the first time I'd met him was there again. I couldn't have looked away if I tried.

"Why don't we get together," he said roughly. "And break each other's hearts again."

The hope that flared in my chest scared me. Not only was I in bad decision mode thanks to the whiskey, but I also missed him so much it hurt and the offer, heartbreak notwithstanding, was just too good to pass up.

"I'd be lying if I said I didn't want to hold you again," I murmured, watching as my finger traced the rim of my glass. I wasn't even sure what drink it was. Fifth? Sixth?

"So would I," he told me, just as softly. I thought as quickly as the alcohol haze would allow, running over my options. No matter what happened when we left the bar, he would be on my mind for months thanks to this chance meeting. I'd been having so much fun catching up with him, once we'd made it past the initial phase, that I had forgotten how hard it was going to be to leave him at the end of the night. My mind, being the asshole that it is, chose that moment to supply a flashback of Eric's body against mine, moving the way only he could, his skin against mine, my hands tangled in his hair. My hand shifted over to the shot glass, lifting it up from the table.

"What doesn't kill you," I declared in toast form. He smiled one of those heart breaking smiles and lifted his shot, clinking it against mine.

"Only makes you stronger?" he finished, turning it into a question. I laughed, shaking my head. I tossed my shot back and he followed suit.

"I was gonna say 'will probably try again' but that works too," I answered, sitting the glass back onto the bar. He barked out a laugh, eyes dancing with warmth as they focused on me. I leaned toward him without thinking about it. he paused for only a moment and then met me halfway. When our lips touched, it felt like home.

When my eyes opened the next morning, I wasn't even disoriented. Waking up on Eric's chest seemed like the most natural thing in the world. Until everything came crashing into focus. My chest squeezed and I felt the bottom drop out of my stomach realizing I had to leave. Tempted as I was to throw everything away and try to start again with him, I didn't know if he even could. He'd told me he was working with a major corporation, traveling as much as I did for my own job. As far as I knew, our chance was gone and last night had just bee a fluke encounter.

Still, feeling his bare skin under mine was like a fantasy. His arms were wrapped tight around me even in his sleep. I had seen that as a sign of his attachment before, and it had scared me then. Now it made me feel loved and that damnable lump was back when I carefully maneuvered my way out of his embrace. Standing next to the bed, I took a moment to study his face. In his sleep, he was perfectly relaxed and I seriously considered crawling right back in beside him.

Instead, I found my clothes and got dressed as my headache started to kick in. Making my way into his bathroom, I filled a paper cup from the sink and drank it in one gulp. Filled it again and drained that one too. A glance in the mirror showed severe sex hair and slightly smeared mascara. I had to smile at the rosy color of my cheeks, knowing that it was thanks to Eric. I walked back out of the bathroom, taking one last look at him. He had shifted to his side and sprawled out, taking up most of the bed with his big body now that I was gone. I bit my lip, trying to postpone the moment when I would walk out the door and out of his life. Again.

In a moment of insanity (or clarity) I snatched the pen and hotel stationary from the desk against the wall. Before I could stop myself, I scrawled out a note.

Eric,

I think I'm ready now. If you are too, we can try it without the heart break this time.

Sookie.

I scribbled my number at the bottom and left before I could change my mind.

I could only hope that he would call and hold me to it.

A/N Link on my profile to this Eric in case you're wondering what I'm smoking with the cute little gaps in his teeth part.