A/N – So another chapter, a little late again and I'm so sorry! I will do my best to get another chapter up on Friday and then I'm probably going to try and work on getting this story finished and focus on my other two ideas that I have knocking around. Please review! All feedback appreciated! Thanks for sticking with me so far! -Kx



Vanessa's POV

I pretended to listen to what Phil was talking about, I was sure that I made all the right noises, laughed in all the right places, spoke when I was supposed to. He had thankfully refrained from his usual coments when I ordered a double Jack and Coke, but I needed something for the alcohol to hit me slightly. The knowledge that Jeff was nearby was sobering, in fact it almost filled me with terror.

I glanced over to the other side of the bar, Jeff was nursing a bottle of beer with another on the bar. I smiled, knowing it was for me. I turned back to Phil, "Sorry, I need to go talk to do Jeff about something. I'll maybe see you later?"

"Sure," he sighed.

He may have started to say something else but I was already walking away from him, towards Jeff. I slid my arm around his shoulder and picked up the full bottle of beer, "This is for me, right? Cause you ordered three and that's usually a signal."

He smiled and nodded, before taking a drink of his own beer, "Have fun with Punk?" he asked,

"Well, he's hardly gonna start buying me drinks so I thought I would've been better at this side of the bar. I'm kidding. I just wanted to talk to you." I had a drink and then hugged him properly, "I hate shopping, what did you do today?"

"Sat around?"

I glared at him, "That isn't fair. That isn't fair at all," I sulked, resting my head on his shoulder.

He put his arm around my shoulder and kissed the top of my head, "Sucks to be you."

I sighed, slipping my arm around his waist and standing up properly, "It doesn't so much now I'm with you and have a beer in my hand. Did you have fun sitting around all day?" I asked,

He laughed and nodded, "Yeah, it was okay. It was quiet without you."

"Aww, did you miss me?" I laughed, taking another drink from the bottle. I spotted Maria standing at the bar with Matt and Eve and caught them looking at us. "Looks like we're the special attraction tonight," I said, nudging Jeff in the side.

"Yeah, I think we are," he sighed, "We could always just get outta here?" he suggested.

At that moment, I really wanted to say yes. If it were just the two of us, things would be a lot less awkward, we could just do whatever we wanted and not have to worry about being watched. But then there would be the talking. News that Jeff and I had slipped away back to the hotel from everyone else...it would be all I would hear about for weeks. I could already imagine the sort of things the guys would be saying to me at work. It wasn't that I couldn't handle it, I would just hate it.

"But we only just got here, and I want to spend time with both of my favourite guys tonight," I said, turning my attention back to Jeff, "And since there's every chance I'll be going home with you, I really should at least talk to Matt!"

Jeff's POV

The rest of the night went really quickly. We went from bar to bar, Vanessa's hand in mine as we ran from the car to the door of the bar. By the time we made it back to the hotel bar, numbers had dwindled: there was myself, Vanessa, Matt and Maria. What was most surprisingly is that Phil was sitting at the bar. Vanessa and I gave each other the same confused glance as we walked in, "That's weird," she said, her hand dropping from mine, "I'll go talk to him. Get me a bottle of water?"

I nodded and rejoined Matt and Maria at the bar. I could tell immediately that Matt was watching them over my shoulder as he drank his beer. "I don't understand..." Maria trailed off, glancing over at Vanessa and Phil, "I don't understand you Jeff." She glared at me for a moment before speaking again, "You like Vanessa. Yet you let Phil have a shot. And I know Phil, I know him better than you do. And don't think that he isn't going to fight if he thinks he has a chance."

"You can't fight over Vanessa, she'd hate that," Matt cut in.

Maria nodded in agreement with Matt's statement before continuing, "He's right, but you don't have to fight over her. You just have to show Phil that he doesn't have a chance. Vanessa's thinking a million and one things at once, you two need just need to talk to each other."

She made a lot of sense. I don't know why I hadn't thought about it before. I didn't have to worry about Phil if I just told her how I really felt. She was always going to be friends with him, I could handle that, but it didn't have to be any more than that with him, if she were more than just best friends with me.

I glanced over at them, he stood up, hugged her and left. She kicked off her heels and ran over to us, "I think it's time I called it a night," she sighed, glancing at me, "Walk with me?" she asked. There was something in her voice and her eyes that made her appear incredibly vulnerable in that moment.

"Of course."

Before leaving, she spoke to Maria for a good ten minutes. I could tell that there had to be something wrong but I didn't know what I was meant to do about it. Matt was watching them closely, "Do you think he said something to her?" he asked,

"Only one way to find out."

Maria sat down next to Matt, but Vanessa remained standing, "Can we go?"

I got up and followed her out of the room. She walked ahead of me by a few paces and showed no sign of slowing done until we got back to her her room. "Ness, wait," I called after her, and thankfully she stopped. I put my hand on her shoulder and turned her so she was facing me, "What the hell is going on Ness?"

She took a deep breath and stared at the ground for a second, "I love you Jeff. And not just cause you're my best friend anymore..." She kept rattling on, like she always did when she was nervous but I didn't hear a word. My mind was filled with her first three. She loved me. And I loved her, I just didn't know how to get the words out.