Disclaimer: I do not own any characters or songs used in this fan fiction

Author's Note: Hi everyone! I'm so sorry it took me so long to post this. Second semester just started at school, so I've been a little busy. Plus I've been going through writer's block... I wrote nearly half of this chapter, but ended up not liking it, so I started over. But it's finally here! Yay! There's quite a bit of SimonxJeanette in this chapter. There wasn't supposed to be, but that's just how it ended up. So if you like Simon and Jeanette, this chapter is for you! Please review. Enjoy!

***

Wednesday, June 5

10:04 pm

"Got any eight's?"

"Go fish."

Simon sighed as he drew another card from the pile. The last few days he and the others had played every card game they could think of. They were now playing Go Fish, arguably the most boring game ever created.

"Eleanor," Jeanette said, "do you have any four's?"

"Go…"

"I CAN'T TAKE IT ANYMORE!" Alvin threw his cards in the air and stomped over to Dave, who was driving the RV.

Dave frowned at his son's dramatic behavior. "Alvin, was that really necessary?"

"I'm dying of boredom!" Alvin whined. "Please tell me that we'll be in Portland soon!"

"We'll be there in about ten minutes," Dave said.

Alvin let out his infamous dramatic cry and went to the back of the RV. He went into the small room where the beds were and closed the door.

"What a baby," Brittany observed, not looking up from her Seventeen magazine.

"Alvin gets cranky when he doesn't get enough fresh air," Theodore said, flipping through his pile of cards. "It's your turn to go fish Eleanor!"

Eleanor grinned. "Actually Theodore, I think we ought to put the cards away. Dave said that we're going to get to the hotel soon."

Ten minutes later, Alvin emerged from the room. "I thought you said we'd be there by now," he said to Dave.

"Calm down, Alvin," Dave said. It was obvious that he was getting annoyed with his son's behavior. "The hotel is on this road."

"I'm gonna die!" Alvin cried.

The others rolled their eyes and shook their heads, but the truth was that they were getting a bit impatient as well. After performing in L.A., the gang had a show in Sacramento a few days after. They had left Sacramento earlier that morning and had been on the RV all day, headed for Portland, Oregon. Everyone was eager to get to the hotel.

Eventually, the chipmunks did get to their destination, and Alvin was still alive and well.

The chipmunks gathered their things and started to get off the RV.

"You kids wait for me in the lobby," Dave called to chipmunks as they left. He noticed that Simon was the last one to leave, so he quickly said, "Simon, do you think I could talk to you for a minute?"

"Sure Dave," Simon said as Dave shut the door. Simon wondered why Dave didn't decide to talk with him earlier. After all, they had been in a vehicle together for nine hours.

"Simon," Dave said with a wide smile, "how would you feel about doing a solo for our next show?"

"A solo?" Simon raised his eyebrows. "Me?"

"Yes, you," Dave said kindly. "So what do you say?"

Simon looked closely at Dave. "Does Alvin know about this?"

"Well, no," Dave said a little nervously. "That's why I wanted to ask you about it in private. I don't want Alvin giving you a hard time about this. You know how he gets when he isn't the one in the spotlight." Dave gave Simon a hopeful look. "So are you interested? I've been getting so many e-mails and letters from fans saying that they want to see more of you onstage. You're a fan-favorite, Simon."

"I'm honored, Dave," Simon said. "But I'm not so sure I would be comfortable with it. I'd feel strange singing all by myself."

"Well," Dave said, "what if we had you singing to someone? That way, someone could be onstage with you."

Simon nodded slowly. "Okay," he said. "I suppose I could deal with that. Who would I be singing to?"

"How about Jeanette?" Dave suggested.

Simon shrugged. He liked Jeanette, but he thought it might be awkward being onstage with just her. But when he saw Dave's desperate look, he didn't have the heart to tell Dave no. Simon figured that Dave had been put under a lot of pressure to have Simon sing alone. Plus he sort of just wanted the discussion to end so he could get into the hotel.

"I'll do it," Simon confirmed.

"Great!" Dave said. "You go ahead and join the others. I'll tell Jeanette."

Dave walked off the RV. Simon sighed heavily. He hoped that Alvin would take the news well.

***

10:37 pm

"What do you mean you get your own solo?!"

"It was Dave's idea," Simon told Alvin. "I have a feeling that the fans and producers pressured him to give me my own song."

Alvin, Simon, and Theodore were in their hotel room. Simon figured that he might as well get it over with and break the news to Alvin about his solo. Alvin, as expected, was visibly upset that a chipmunk other than him was getting the spotlight.

"Well why doesn't anyone want me to have a solo?" Alvin snapped. He was pacing around the room wearing a scowl upon his face. "It's Alvin and the Chipmunks! Why can't Alvin sing anything by himself?"

"But Alvin," Theodore said in his sweet voice, "you get to sing Crocodile Rock by yourself."

"Yeah but no one requested it," Alvin pointed out.

"Look," Simon said, trying to calm his brother down, "It's not like I'll be onstage by myself. I'm singing to Jeanette, just like you sing to Brittany during Crocodile Rock."

Alvin stopped pacing. "Well, I guess that's a little better," he said.

"Are you going to dance, too?" Theodore asked.

"I have no idea," Simon replied. He took off his glasses and gently set them on the nightstand. "I don't even know what song I'm singing. Dave and I haven't discussed the details yet."

Alvin suddenly remembered something. "How does Jeanette feel about this, Simon?" he asked. It was no secret that Jeanette was uncomfortable when a lot of attention was directed toward her. Alvin doubted that she would want to perform when there was only one other chipmunk onstage.

"I don't know, Alvin," Simon yawned. "She probably doesn't even know yet."

Theodore saw Simon yawning, which caused him to yawn as well. "I'm sleepy," he announced.

"So am I," Simon said. He laid down in a bed and pulled the blankets up to his chin. Theodore also got into bed.

"We spent all day laying down in an RV and you guys are tired?" Alvin asked, amazed. He was planning on walking around the hotel, just so he could get out of the small room.

"Sleep will do you good, Alvin," Theodore said, closing his eyes. "You have been kind of grouchy today."

"I'm not tired," Alvin insisted, sitting on his bed.

"You're probably more tired than you think, Alvin," Simon suggested as he adjusted his pillow.

"Yeah right," Alvin said, fighting back a yawn.

Approximately two minutes later, all three Seville boys were curled up in their beds, fast asleep.

***

Thursday June 6

1:35 pm

Simon and Jeanette stood alone on the quiet stage. They were getting ready to rehearse their routine for the concert later that evening.

"So what song are you singing?" Jeanette asked.

"I Don't Want to Miss a Thing," Simon said. "It was one of the producer's ideas."

Jeanette smiled. "I like that song," she said. "Do you know it well?"

"Yes," Simon told her. The year before, Alvin went through a huge Aerosmith phase and I Don't Want to Miss a Thing was one of the many Aerosmith songs that Alvin played nonstop for a week.

Simon cued the sound booth to play the music. Simon was using a traditional hand-held microphone for the song since he obviously wasn't going to do much movement to the slow, romantic song.

The soft music played, and finally it was time for Simon to sing.

"I could stay awake just to hear you breathing."

"Watch you smile while you are sleeping."

"While you're far away from dreaming."

Simon focused on Jeanette when he sang because, well, he was supposed to. But as he sang, he felt himself really looking at her, as opposed to simply just singing to her. He noticed how the dim lights made her brown hair shine. He found himself studying her small pink nose, the faint smile on her lips, and her blue-green eyes behind her glasses.

"I could spend my life in this sweet surrender."

Had Jeanette always been so pretty? He had been her friend/science partner for years. Simon wondered why he hadn't noticed her like this before.

"Every moment spent with you…"

Simon slowly stopped singing. He found himself just staring at Jeanette. He couldn't get over how pretty she was… it was as if she were, well, an angel or something. Simon didn't know how else to describe it.

"Simon?" Jeanette asked. She had no idea why Simon stopped singing.

Simon forced himself to look away from Jeanette. He signaled the sound booth to cut the music. He walked to the front of the stage and sat down, letting his legs dangle off the edge. Jeanette sat down beside him.

"Simon?" Jeanette seemed concerned. "Why did you stop singing?"

"I, um, forget the words," Simon said quickly.

"Are you okay?" Jeanette asked. Simon Seville forgetting lyrics? That was unusual.

"No," Simon replied. "I mean, yes. I mean… well, I was thinking… it's just kind of strange singing while you just stand there."

"Oh," Jeanette said quietly.

"It's nothing against you Jeanette," Simon said quickly. "I just think the performance would be better if you could perform with me. Maybe we could do a duet instead."

"I don't know, Simon," Jeanette said, blushing slightly.

"Why not?" Simon raised an eyebrow.

"Well," Jeanette said. "I don't mind just standing there when you sing. That way, there's less of a chance that I'm going to mess up."

Simon looked at Jeanette and asked, "Why do you think you'll mess up?"

Jeanette shrugged and gave Simon a sad smile. "I always mess up," she said softly.

"You don't always mess up," Simon assured her. "Sometimes you slip or stumble a little, but usually you're the only one who notices."

Jeanette had a puzzled expression on her face. Simon sighed. "I can't believe I'm about to say this," he said, "but maybe you need to learn a thing or two from Alvin."

Jeanette's dark eyebrows shot up. Was Simon actually suggesting that she should do something like Alvin?

"As you know, Alvin is nowhere near perfect," Simon said. "But even though it's clear that he isn't good at everything, he goes into every situation thinking that he will succeed." Simon paused. "Alvin has confidence, Jeanette. Actually, he has so much confidence that it's obnoxious. But no matter what he does, he holds his head high and believes that he can do it. That's what you need to do, Jeanette."

Jeanette smiled. "You're right, Simon. It's just really hard for me to be confident. Brittany and Eleanor are so comfortable with themselves, but I… well, I'm just not."

"You have no reason to doubt yourself," Simon said, putting his arm around his friend. "You're intelligent, talented, kind, trustworthy…"

"But I'm such a klutz!" Jeanette interrupted. "How can I have confidence when I'm always falling down?"

"Well," Simon said carefully, "a lot of people find you're clumsiness charming."

"They do?" Jeanette asked with wide eyes.

"Of course," Simon said. "That's why you have so many fans. It's because people can relate to you. You're a very likable girl, Jeanette."

Jeanette smiled gratefully at Simon. "Thank you Simon. Those are some of the nicest things anyone has said to me in a very long time."

"That's too bad," Simon said quietly. "You deserve nice things said to you more often."

The two chipmunks grinned at each other for a few moments. Finally, feeling a little shy, Simon said, "Well I guess we should run our duet idea by Dave."

"Right," Jeanette said. She was suddenly feeling bashful as well. "We, um, have a lot of work to do."

The two hopped off the stage and went to find Dave. They walked in a comfortable silence, both of their minds trying to analyze their heart-to-heart they just shared.

***

9:22 pm

After they performed the fun 80's hit Vacation, the Chipettes were whisked off stage to start on hair and make-up for the next act. The Chipmunks were singing two songs in a row by themselves to give the stylists a little extra time.

Jeanette was following her sisters to their dressing room when a cold hand gripped her shoulder.

"Not so fast Jeanette," a woman's voice said. Jeanette looked up to see a cute, petite blond woman smiling at her. Jeanette remembered that her name was Suzie, and she was one of the make-up artists. "You're changing into your duet outfit."

Jeanette's heartbeat sped up. She had forgotten that her duet was her next song!

Jeanette was hurried into a separate dressing room from her sisters. "I don't believe you've seen your dress yet," the blond woman said. She pointed to the dress on a nearby rack. Jeanette gasped when she saw it.

"It's beautiful," Jeanette breathed. The dress, which was strapless and floor-length, was a very deep shade of blue, almost black. It was covered in sparkles, making the lovely garment shine. It reminded Jeanette of a clear night with stars twinkling in a midnight-blue sky.

"Well don't just stare at it!" Suzie laughed. "Try it on! You're on in ten minutes."

Jeanette was helped into the gown by a few people and then they practically carried her to the vanity chair. Jeanette watched in the mirror as a plump red-headed lady quickly pulled Jeanette's hair out of its messy bun. That was the last thing Jeanette could clearly see in the mirror; an unfamiliar hand yanked off her glasses. The next few minutes, half a dozen hands were on Jeanette's head, styling her hair, applying make-up, and placing jewelry on her.

Finally the hands were removed. "All done!" Suzie chirped.

Jeanette grabbed her glasses from the table and looked at her reflection. She hardly recognized herself at first. She looked a little closer and realized that she was just the same old Jeanette Miller, only more glamorous. Her make-up was flawless and her chestnut brown hair fell in soft waves down her back.

"Well aren't you just the prettiest thing!" Suzie gushed. She pointed to Jeanette's glasses. "Now are you sure you don't want to take those off?"

Jeanette backed away before Suzie could get to her spectacles. "I think I'll leave them on, thank you." Whenever someone removed Jeanette's glasses, Jeanette always ended up running into something (or someone) and ruining whatever event was taking place. She was determined not to mess anything up tonight.

She and Simon had rehearsed their song for hours that afternoon, since neither of them was very familiar with it. It was called At the Beginning, and it was from the soundtrack of the animated movie Anastasia. Jeanette thought the song was beautiful, but she didn't think that Simon liked it very much. He sang it very well though.

There was a loud tap at the door. Without waiting for a reply, a stage manager opened the door and frantically hollered, "Jeanette! You're on in less than two minutes!"

The mini-army of make-up artists and stylists took a moment to admire their work. They were very pleased on the quick, yet effective styling they had done on the young Chipette.

"Good luck, dear," Suzie said. "Knock 'em dead!"

Jeanette giggled. She quickly stepped into her high heels, (Great, she thought. Just what the clumsiest girl in America needs during her big duet: high heels!) thanked the team of stylists, and hurried toward the side stage. She heard a big applause, meaning that the Chipmunks had probably just finished their song.

Brittany and Eleanor were already standing at the side stage. Eleanor was surprised at the huge amount of people in the crowd; every seat was filled. She didn't think a Thursday night would be that popular of a concert date, but there had to be well over twenty hundred people in the audience.

Jeanette appeared next to her sisters. "Where is Simon?" she asked nervously.

Brittany and Eleanor turned around to face their sister. They gasped when they saw Jeanette.

"Jeanette!" Eleanor admired. "You look gorgeous!"

"Thanks," Jeanette said. "Um, so, have you guys seen Simon? We're supposed to go onstage any minute now and he's…"

"Who picked out that beautiful dress?" Brittany wanted to know. "I need to tell them to design one of my costumes!"

"I don't know," Jeanette said quickly. "But where is…"

"Jeanette?"

Jeanette turned around to see Simon looking at her. His jaw dropped when he saw her. She looked incredible.

"You look… amazing," Simon said with wide eyes.

Jeanette blushed. "Thank you Simon. You look nice too." And he did; Simon looked very sophisticated and handsome in his tuxedo.

"Simon! Jeanette!" the stage manager yelled. He gave the singers their microphones. "You're on! The music starts when you walk out!"

Simon looked at Jeanette. "Are you ready?"

Jeanette took a deep breath and nodded.

"Remember," Simon whispered, "be confident. This is your time to shine and you'll be great."

Jeanette smiled at Simon, who smiled back. Hand-in-hand, they made their way toward center stage.

Neither Simon nor Jeanette was prepared for the crowd reaction. The place exploded with cheers and applause the second to two chipmunks appeared onstage. The music had to be turned up a little louder just to be heard.

Jeanette's heart pounded. She was nervous, excited, and amazed at the same time. Before she knew it, it was time for her to sing her part and start the song:

"We were strangers, starting out on a journey."

Simon didn't think it was possible, but the crowd actually got louder once Jeanette sang.

Jeanette continued to sing. Brittany and Eleanor exchanged amazed glances. Jeanette had always been more of a "background singer," and they had rarely heard her sing on her own. They never realized how angelic Jeanette's voice was.

Then it was Simon's turn to sing: "No one told me I was going to find you. Unexpected what you did to my heart."

Simon singing just increased the volume of the audience noise.

At that moment, Alvin and Theodore appeared next to Brittany and Eleanor.

"What's all the noise about?" Alvin asked. "Are they still cheering for our last act?"

Brittany rolled her eyes. "As if. They're cheering for them." Brittany pointed onstage at Simon and…

"Whoa!" Alvin exclaimed. "Is that Jeanette?"

"Of course it's Jeanette!" Brittany said.

"She looks… wow," was all Alvin could say. He turned to Brittany. "Why doesn't your make-up ever look that good?"

"Alvin," Brittany said, still looking at her sister and Simon.

"Yeah?"

"Shut up."

They audience grew much quieter as Simon and Jeanette's duet continued. It was as if the crowd was completely memorized by the performance.

"Now I know my dream will live on," they sang together.

"I've been waiting so long."

"Nothing's gonna tear us apart!"

Simon went on the sing the chorus when Jeanette sang a high note. The crowd, who had dramatically quieted down up to that point, went into a huge cheer.

The two kept singing their hearts out until finally the last few lines came.

"In the end I want to be standing at the beginning…"

Simon and Jeanette looked at each other and both smiled when they softly sang their last words: "With you."

As soon as the music began to fade out, every single audience member rose to their feet and cheered loudly. Jeanette felt so happy that she threw her arms around Simon and hugged him so hard that he nearly fell over.

"Si-mon! Si-mon! Si-mon!" the crowd chanted. Then they let out cheers of, "Jean-ette! Jean-ette! Jean-ette!"

"Good luck following that up," Alvin said to Brittany, knowing that the Chipettes were up next to perform. Alvin wished that he was the one getting the standing ovation, but he was actually very happy for his brother. Simon never got to do anything cool or fun; he just stayed in the dirty basement all day and mixed chemicals. Maybe being in the spotlight for a night would do him some good.

After almost a two minute standing ovation, the people working backstage were motioning Simon and Jeanette to get off stage.

Jeanette was greeting with hugs from her sisters. Eleanor was actually crying.

"That was so beautiful!" Eleanor cried.

Theodore hugged Simon. "You were great, Simon!"

"Thank you," Simon said. "I need to go get ready for our next song." Simon hurried to the dressing room. He was very pleased and excited about the duet, but he didn't want to rub it in to his brothers. He didn't like when Alvin bragged about getting extra attention, and he wasn't about to act like Alvin.

In less than five minutes, Jeanette was back in her regular clothes, her hair was pulled back again, and her glamorous make-up was removed and replaced with much more natural-looking colors. Jeanette smiled at her reflection. It looks like Cinderella turned back into a pumpkin, she thought. Nevertheless, Jeanette was very happy about the duet, and she didn't mind being "plain old Jeanette." Perhaps Simon is right, she thought as she made her way onstage to join the other Chipettes. Maybe there's nothing wrong with being Jeanette Miller.

***

11:56 pm

Theodore yawned as he climbed into bed. The concert had ended about an hour ago and he was anxious to get some sleep. It was way past his usual bedtime.

"Great show tonight, boys," Alvin said, putting his red cap on the nightstand.

"Thanks Alvin!" Theodore said with a grin.

Simon, who had just brushed his teeth, was climbing into his bed when there was a soft knock at the door.

"It's probably an adoring fan," Alvin said, walking up to the door.

Alvin opened the door to see a tall, slender chipette looking back at him.

"Hi Alvin," Jeanette said. "Could I please talk to Simon?"

"Yeah," Alvin said, disappointed that it wasn't a Chipmunk-crazy fan girl. He turned and said, "Simon! Jeanette wants to talk to you!"

"Jeanette?" Simon felt his heart beat a little quicker. What was that all about?

Simon got out of bed and walked to the door. He and Jeanette stepped into the quiet hallway and gently closed the door behind them.

"Hello," Simon said.

"Hi," Jeanette said with a shy grin. "I, um, just wanted to thank you."

"Thank me?" Simon was a bit confused. "For what?"

"For being so nice to me and helping me believe in myself," Jeanette said. "I really appreciate it. And also thank you for convincing Dave to let us do a duet together. I've never enjoyed being onstage so much before. This was probably the best night of my life. So… thank you."

Simon smiled. He had never seen Jeanette so happy. "You're very welcome Jeanette. It was an honor performing with you."

"Maybe we can do it again sometime," Jeanette said hopefully.

Simon laughed. "After that crowd reaction, I'm sure Dave will want us to do that song together every concert from now on."

Jeanette's smile never left her face. "I guess you're right. Well, good night Simon. Thanks again!"

"Good night, Jeanette," Simon said. He watched Jeanette enter her room across the hall. Before entering her room, she turned and gave Simon a shy little wave. Then she closed the door and she was gone.

Simon stood alone in the brightly lit hallway. He wondered why he felt so light-headed and why his face felt flushed.

Hmm, he thought, it must be some sort of odd reaction I'm having due to the bright lights.

Simon entered his hotel room trying to figure out why the lights made him feel that way. After all, it had to be the lights; what else could possibly make him feel that way?

***

A/N: Well, there it is. I really struggled on what song Simon and Jeanette should sing, but after browsing through Chipmunk fan videos on youtube, I deciding I like At the Beginning. It's different, which is nice. If you haven't heard it, check it out :) Anyway, please review! I want to know what the readers think... what did you like, was there anything you didn't like, do you have suggestions, etc. I want to know!! Anyway, thanks for reading and have a terrific day.