A/N: And here's chapter 11, I probably won't update for a few weeks or so because I'll be out of town but I will try to anyway stay tuned and as always read, review and most of all enjoy!

"Alvin, are you ready to go?" Dave shouted up the stairs as he walked from the kitchen to the living room of the Seville household.

"Yea Dave" the man's eldest son called back as he practically sprinted down the steps wearing his backpack. Tossing the his backpack near the front door the chipmunk hurried into the living room following his father, "when do we leave Dave?"

Double checking the time before answering the man glanced at his watch briefly to reconfirm what he already believed to be true, "about 2 hours or so".

Without hesitation Alvin jumped at the opportunity to pose the question that was burning inside him since this morning after he forced himself to stop procrastinating and actually pack, "can I go over to Brittany's for now and you could pick me up on our way out of town?"

Not thinking about it the man began speaking, "why do you want to-" but he caught himself quickly, "sure, Alvin that shouldn't be a problem".

Beaming brightly the chipmunk spun around and tore off for the door, exiting the house he ran down the sidewalk knowing he had little time to spare. Pulling himself to a stop out front of Brittany's house, he quickly made his way into the house and up the stairs to find Brittany seated on her windowsill bench, a place she much enjoyed sitting and could usually be found more recently.

The sounds of someone entering the house and walking up the creaky old stairs of the large Victorian clued the chipette in to the fact that there was in deed someone else in the house with her besides her guardian. Turning her head slightly to see who the footfalls coming down the hallway belonged to she was somewhat surprised but happy to see it was her best friend.

"Alvin, aren't you leaving for that charity tour today?" the chipette asked as he neared her.

Still wearing a broad smile the chipmunk nodded, "yea… but I wasn't going to leave without saying goodbye".

Brittany looked at him with a questioning look, "Alvin you said goodbye last night, I assumed that would be the last time I'd see you".

Shrugging this comment off the chipmunk sat down beside her, "I had some time to kill so I figured I would come over and say goodbye again before heading out".

Chuckling at this the chipette shook her head as she fought back a smile, "you're impossible Alvin, you know that?"

The chipmunk nodded without missing a beat, "that's what Dave tells me every time he grounds me".

"He's right you know" Brittany poked back shaking her head, changing the subject Brittany decided to ask her friend a question, "how long did he give you?"

"Eh… 2 hours or so" the chipmunk replied brushing off the thought of a time restriction.

The given time frame gave Brittany a flurry of emotions, she was happy she had another 2 hours with her best friend while at the same time she felt the sadness of it being only 2 hours. Letting out a breath she smiled, "wanna go out back for a little bit?"

Having no quarrel with this idea the red capped chipmunk nodded as he stood up to assist the chipette in standing before leading her out of the room. Going down stairs the duo exited the Millers' house through the kitchen door that led to the backyard. After walking around the small suburban yard for a little while the two chipmunks settled down in their favorite spot beneath the large oak tree residing not far from the house.

Finding the silence that had fallen between them somewhat peaceful and pleasant Brittany took in a deep breath of the hot summer air as she closed her eyes and tilted her head back to let it rest against the tree. Remember they probably did not have too much time left together before Alvin had to depart on his shorty charity tour; the chipette began humming the tune to a song she knew and wanted to sing.

Hearing the chipette humming the melody prompted Alvin to remove from his pocket his harmonica; pressing it against his lips he began playing the instrument to the tune of the song. Coming back around to the beginning of the tune Brittany ceased humming leaving Alvin to carry the tune while she sang the first verse.

"Next to me, next to me
you are always next to me
when I'm needing you,
needing you the most
holding on, holding on
for my dear life I'm holding on
to you alone
cause you alone are my hope"

The chipette took a very brief pause to regain her shortened breath before starting to sing once more.

"And I've had front row seats
to your faithfulness
a spotlight shining
on your promises
so I can't deny
cause I've seen it a thousand times

I can count you
I can count you
like a parachute when I fall
a lifeline when I call
you come through
and prove it's true
I can count on you
I can count on…"

Anticipating another pause by the chipette, Alvin managed to drag out a few notes to give her time to recover so they would stay in harmony. Brittany noticed his efforts and smiled at him gratefully before starting to sing once more.

"Every word you said to me
you hold the future I can't see
so I believe no matter where I go
you give me

Front row seats
to Your faithfulness
a spotlight shining
on Your promises
so I can't deny
cause its written all over my life

I can count You
I can count You
like a parachute when I fall
a lifeline when I call
you come though
and prove it's true
I can count on You
I can count on

You when my strength's not enough
you when I'm looking for love
you when I'm standing on the edge
and I've got nothing left

I've got front row seats
to Your faithfulness
a spotlight shining
on Your promises
and I can't deny
you've shown me time after time

I can count You
I can count You
like a parachute when I fall
a lifeline when I call
You come though
and prove it's true
I can count on you
I can count on you"

Dropping off the last note Brittany ceased singing as Alvin stopped playing his harmonica, "I will always be able to count on you Alvin" she said smiling happily. The red capped chipmunk had a feeling she was singing about him but he did not want to jump to that conclusion to fast. Not sure what to say to her comment he merely wrapped his arm around her shoulder and pulled her in closer.

"I missed hearing that voice of yours sing" he spoke softly, nearly a whisper in her ear causing her to smile even wider.

"I missed singing like that" Brittany replied softly just before they were joined by Dave who had just exited the kitchen into the backyard to collect his son.

"Hey Dave" Alvin greeted with a false air of cheerfulness, although he willingly agreed to perform the charity tour there was still a part of him that wanted to stay with Brittany and not travel to northern California but he knew he had too.

Dave greeted both chipmunks in turn before turning to his son, "Alvin, it's time to go" he prompted kindly knowing how hard it must be for his son to leave his best friend/rival/singing partner behind.

Alvin nodded in acknowledgement but asked a slight favor as well, "do I have time to help Brittany up back up to her bedroom?"

Dave took a moment before answering the question, not because he had to think it over the answer was obviously yes, they had time. He was more surprised Alvin would ask to do that, he knew they had grown close, a lot closer than he had ever thought they would but he still did not expect him to be that caring of her, "sure Alvin, I'll be out in the car".

As Dave turned and walked away, Alvin stood up and extended his hands down for Brittany to hold while he pulled her from her sitting position to her feet so they could walk into the house. Walking on flat surfaces was pretty easy for the chipette but stairs was another story, due to the weakness she felt it was difficult for her to maneuver herself up steps so she required the support of another person, in this case Alvin. Reaching the bedroom door Brittany stopped and faced him, "I'll be fine from here Alvin, you should go… your brothers and Dave are waiting for you".

The chipmunk nodded slowly before he pivoted his body around to depart. He no sooner took one step before she called out for him stopping him in his tracks and forcing him to spin around to face her once more. Taking a step or two to close the distance between them the chipette leaned forward and planted big kiss on his cheek making him blush lightly, "thank you Alvin…thank you for everything".

Alvin was not sure why but he detected something strange in her voice, it was slight and foreign, the micro nuances in her voice sounded final as if this was the last time they were going to see each other or something. He knew that was absurd though, he was going to be back in a few weeks a month tops so he would see her soon, besides he planned on keeping in communication with her via phone and writing while he was gone so he was not sure why she sounded so final. Needing to know what she meant by her statement he asked her, "what do you mean?"

The chipette shrugged off his question mostly but dignified it with a response, "you've done so much for me, I don't want you to think I don't appreciate everything you've done for me these past months".

Alvin shook his head at this, "you don't have to thank me for that and you never will, I will always be here for you Britt, that's what friends are for".

The chipette smiled broadly at this motivating Alvin to pull her into a firm hug, accepting the embrace the chipette placed her chin on his shoulder and enjoyed the warmth from his body, closing her eyes momentarily she reopened them and sighed, "Alvin… you should probably go, you don't want to keep your family waiting".

Nodding to this he slowly released the chipette from his embrace, "I'll call you every night" he stated softly as he dropped his arms to his side.

Brittany smiled at his, "I'd like that a lot" she replied happily cuing Alvin to slowly depart, silently nodding his head he took a few steps backwards away from her before turning to walk away hoping she would call out to him again preventing him from leaving but she did not. Exiting the house the chipmunk found Dave and his brothers waiting for him just as Dave said they would be right outside.

Saying nothing Alvin climbed into the back seat of his father's car where his brothers were already seated and waiting for him join them. Simon was propped in the corner between the seat and the door reading a book while Theodore sat in the middle seat munching on a bag of pretzels. Noticing how his older brother continued to stare out the back window at the large yellow Victorian as they drove away Simon tried his hand at reassuring him that everything was going to be ok. "She's going to be fine Alvin, we're only going to be gone for a few weeks, before you know it we'll be back home" the bespectacled chipmunk said caringly.

Alvin knew the probability of his brother Simon being right was up around 100% so hearing this prospect from him eased Alvin's mind a little but he was still going to miss her. Nothing Simon could possibly say would help him with that; it was just something he felt deep down and nothing he said or did could help. For Alvin it was something of a new feeling, it felt sort of like worry, a feeling he had become quite accustomed to feeling recently, but this new feeling was bitterer. When you worry about someone there's the perk of getting the chance to see and talk to that person and know that they are alright. When you miss someone, it is worse, because you miss them, you are not around them so there is no opportunity to see them or speak to them to quench the feeling. Letting out a deep breath the chipmunk tried to come to terms with this new emotion but was failing miserably.

Trying to take his mind off the absence of his friend he began asking about some of the details concerning their mini-tour that had not yet been disclosed to him.

"So since we didn't rent a van this time I suppose the instruments will be provided for us?" the eldest chipmunk asked trying to preoccupy his thoughts.

Dave nodded as he stole a glance at the rearview mirror to look at his son, "that's correct, they're going to loan us the instruments, I did take the liberty of bringing with us a few of you fellas favorites though, like your favorite guitar".

Alvin was relieved to hear this, he was afraid Dave may have left it behind. Although Alvin was not picky as too who's or what instruments he played, having his favorite guitar along as well as his harmonica would make this trip a little more bearable for him.

Barely letting the information about the instruments have time to sink in the chipmunk posed another question, "what's the exact number of performances we're doing?"

Dave was silent for a moment or two before answering, "we still have to work that out with the organizational manager" the man replied, "but it won't be as long as the 2 months we previously discussed, we will be back in august, we're only going to be gone about 36 days including travel".

"Good… that's not too long" Alvin sighed trying reassure himself of that same point before asking yet another question, "have our songs been decided yet?"

Dave shook his head from the front seat, "they've made a few requests but other than that I'm going to leave that up to you three. Our first performance is tomorrow night so you don't have a lot of time".

A short deadline to decide on songs for a concert was not a problem for Alvin he always had songs in his back pocket for every occasion, being a children's medical charity organization he knew they would need songs with a good beat and some with a touching message. Which brought up another question for the chipmunk. "Are we raising money for the organization or are we preforming for the children?" he asked curiously.

"Both" Dave replied with quickly, "at each location we will be doing two concerts, one free of charge for the children at the institution then one public concert to raise money for the cause".

It seemed to be a bit different of a strategy but Alvin liked the idea, so they could cater their song choices to the children then offer a slightly different selection to the paying crowd to boost fundraising.

"Out of curiosity Dave, where is our first stop?" Alvin asked still not knowing their destination.

"San Francisco" Dave said back, "we should be there in a few hours".

Letting out a long breath that came out sounding more like a sigh Alvin let his head flop back against the seat and let his eyes slide close. Having all the information he needed thus far for their concerts he decided to pass the time of the long car ride the fastest way he knew, sleeping. Although sleep did not come all too easy for the red capped chipmunk he eventually did pass out into a peaceful slumber letting the journey north pass him by. Before he knew it Dave was rousing him from his sleeping state because they had arrived at their destination.

...

Keeping his word Alvin made it a point to make contact with Brittany at least once a day somedays more depending on their practice and concert schedule. For some reason though he had trouble getting in contact with her for the past few days, she would answer his phone calls but she seemed to be ignoring his video calls. Continuing to be persistent payed off for the chipmunk however and after about 3 days she finally started answering his video calls again as well.

"Dave says we're almost through with our concerts and should be home soon maybe a week or so" Alvin said happily to the chipette on the other end of the video call he was using a laptop to execute. The chipmunk was laying stomach down on his hotel room bed, his elbows down on the bed with his face resting against his closed fists to help hold up his head, a laptop in front of him offering him a live video feed of his friend.

"That's good to hear Alvin" Brittany said forcing a smile on her face as she tried desperately to prevent herself from falling asleep.

Alvin quickly took note of this behavior and wasted no time in addressing it, "tired?" he asked somewhat surprised that she would be this tired, he knew here current state of health was taxing on her energy but she seemed more tired than usual.

"Yea" she practically whispered in return, "it's been a long day… I had to go for more tests"

Alvin nodded his understanding, "good news hopefully?"

Unfortunately to Alvin's dismay she shook her head before she shrugged, "sorta… they've stabilized most of my medications, so that should help me feel better".

"But that's only helping you feel better… what are they doing to make you better?" Alvin asked, this was a question that had been nagging at him for some time now. He had asked this question before in more cryptic forms but never in such a direct manner before. The directness of his question nearly caught Brittany off guard but she had an response ready for him, "it's a process Alvin, they're still trying to figure out how to make me better… don't worry though I'm sure very soon I won't be sick anymore" she told him forcing to smile at him through her obvious fatigue.

Silently nodding his response Alvin decided to change the subject and end the conversation, "get some rest Brittany… we'll talk again tomorrow" he told her flashing her a comforting smile.

"Ok Alvin" she whispered very much grateful for the leave he had granted her, "good night".

"Sleep tight Britt" he said before closing out of the online video communication application. Closing the laptop lid he moved the computer to the nightstand beside the bed before rolling over to try and sleep himself. As he laid there he could not help but think about his conversation with his friend, it was nothing about the actual conversation or the words used, it was the surroundings. The area the video camera picked up around the chipette, that was bothering him. There was something about it that made it seem unfamiliar; it really did not look like her bedroom. The walls seemed a different color, and even the little bit of the bed that she was sitting on looked different to him. These thoughts bothered him probably a little more than they should have but he had trouble shaking off the feeling that something might possibly be wrong. 'It's probably just how it all looked on camera… I'm sure, if something would have happened or changed she would have told me… I'm her best friend after all' he tried to rationalize it for himself before he slowly drifted off to sleep.

Simon stood beside his two brothers listening intently to Dave briefing them about their final concert and how it was going to work. Simon continued to listen while he eyed his older brother somewhat suspiciously; Alvin was slouched in a chair to Simon's right staring off into the distance obviously distracted by his thoughts while he aimlessly plucked at the strings of his guitar. Once Dave had finished speaking to them the man departed to check on another aspect of the concert leaving the boys alone.

"Alvin" Simon began readjusting his glasses; he waited to address his brother to make sure Dave was outside of earshot, "did you hear a word Dave said to us?"

Simon waited for a few moments but got no response; "I don't think he heard you Simon" Theodore put in observantly as he watched his two older brothers.

Simon barely turned to his younger brother to address him, "I gathered that Theodore".

Reaching out to get his brother's attention the blue clad chipmunk wrapped his hand around the neck of his brother's guitar rendering it unplayable. Alvin continued to pluck at the stings mindlessly for a few more moments before finally stopping and looking up at his brother's hand. Tracing the hand back to its owner the chipmunk locked eyes with his brother for a moment before the red chipmunk dropped his gaze causing the other to drop his hand from the instrument.

"Alvin did you hear what Dave said to us?" Simon asked restating his earlier question.

The red capped Seville nodded, "sure… what did he say?"

Simon put the palm of his hand against his forehead and sighed, "so no you heard nothing… Alvin is there something bothering you; you haven't been acting like yourself all day?"

The older of the two chipmunks thought for a moment before shrugging, "I don't know… I've got this weird feeling and I can't seem to shake it" he said distantly as he continued to stare blankly at the floor.

Simon looked at his brother skeptically, usually when Alvin got a feeling it was never good, usually it would lead the boys into trouble but he had to ask. He had to know what was troubling his brother and throwing off his game, "what type of feeling?" Simon questioned hoping this would not lead him and Theodore into trouble behind their older sibling.

Alvin mouthed a few words as he thought about what exactly to say, "I don't know honestly… I feel like something is wrong but I can't put my finger on it" he said finally turning his deep blue gaze towards his younger brother.

Almost knowing for certain without having to even ask Simon knew this feeling had something to do with Brittany but he was not sure what it could be. To the best of his knowledge she was safe at home in her bedroom Alvin had just spoken to her the previous night and probably would tonight as well. So he was not sure where this feeling could be coming from, "I'm guessing this has to do with Brittany?" he asked just to confirm his belief.

This question gained a nod from his brother and prompted him to ask another question, "what does it feel like is wrong?"

Alvin struggled to find the correct words to state his concern, because even saying it in his head it sounded ridiculous. "It… feels wrong… all of it" Alvin said slowly, "I can't put my finger on it but it feels like… something is wrong".

Simon continued to stare at his brother somewhat confused but blinked a few times breaking that stare, "Alvin maybe you're getting this feeling that something is wrong because Brittany is still sick, so something is wrong" Simon said taking a shot in the dark hoping to at least pacify his brother for a while.

Rejecting this prospect Alvin shook his head vigorously, "let me try to explain it the best I can"

Simon nodded and placed his hand on his chin in a thoughtful manner as he listened to his brother. Alvin took a deep breath and tried to explain, "you know that feeling you get when someone you know is close by… even though you cannot see them you still know?"

Simon nodded unsure of where he was going with his idea but prompted him to continue, to which he did, "well I up until a few days ago, I felt as if everything was fine, but suddenly one day I started getting this feeling as if Brittany was no longer near" Alvin explained.

Simon raised an eyebrow at this, "maybe because that's because she's all the way back in LA while we're up here somewhere north of San Francisco?"

Alvin quickly dismissed this with a shake of his head, "this feeling only started a few days ago" he said softly.

Simon quickly thought back over the past few days and tried to figure out what could have possibly changed to shift his feelings like this. After a few silent moments of thought Simon snapped his fingers, "a few days ago isn't that when you had radio silence with Brittany… you couldn't seem to get a hold of her for several days?"

Alvin nodded his answer prompting Simon to explain his theory, "you probably just got a little paranoid after you couldn't reach her, it put psychological distance between the two of you from your perspective spawning these new feelings of excessive distance between the two of you".

Alvin toyed with this thought in his mind, he was not quite sure what Simon meant by 'psychological distance' but it did seem to be a valid theory. On top of that Simon presented it with his factual tone of voice, whenever Simon would present information to Alvin in that particular tone it was usually correct which would usually annoy Alvin but today right now he found it very comforting believing that Simon was in deed correct about this matter.

"You really think so?" Alvin asked hoping for final confirmation from his ever so smart younger sibling.

"I do" Simon replied matter-of-factly.

Alvin let go of a short chuckle as a small grin crept across his face, he believed Simon was right about why he was having the feelings but knowing why did very little to ease them. Alvin continued to seek comfort in knowing that within the week he would be home and with his best friend once more.

Seeing his brother's mood lighten up a bit made Simon happy, letting out a breath he placed a hand on his older brother's shoulder, "you gonna be alright?"

Alvin nodded slowly, "yea Simon I think I will be"

"Ok" Simon said with a toothless grin before leading his young brother away to leave their older sibling alone with his thoughts to sort them out.

Sighing out loud the chipmunk slouched back into his chair and began plucking away at the strings to his guitar. As he continued to pluck at the strings a very fitting song began to formulate in his mind and he began to turn the random plucking into an organized tune.

Getting the tune started on his guitar he began singing,

"Gone away far from home, the weekend's over
Let's pack up and start again
Twenty days on the road, just left Sacramento
With sixteen days to go

I just called my friend to tell her that I miss her
I just wrote my girl
Man I can't remember the last time I kissed her
Soon I'll be at home with my best friend
After thirty-six days on the road

Lights go down the noise has faded
We'll leave this town anticipated
Soon we'll be back on the road again
All is lost, but not forgotten
One by one the fights we've fought
And soon we'll be back on the road again
For thirty-six days

We turn around, face the crowd
We're starting over
This time north of L.A.
Once again here we are
It's a new beginning
I'd leave this life any day

I feel so alive, though part of me is gone
And this life I lead, is the life that I've dreamed of
Since I was the age of twelve
Now I'll sing with all this is within me
After thirty-six days on the road

Lights go down the noise has faded
We leave this town anticipated
Soon we'll be back on the road again
All is lost, but not forgotten
One by one the fights we've fought
And soon we'll be back on the road again
And soon we'll be back on the road again
Soon we'll be back on the road again
For thirty-six days"

Alvin finished singing then strummed out the last few notes of the song before pressing his hand against the stings of his acoustic guitar over the opening to silence it faster. Letting out a long breath he began to feel better, "I'll be home soon Brittany…" he whispered softly to himself making a smile a creep onto his own face.

A/N: Huh oh! I used two songs in one chapter! Goodness me what was I thinking? How could I? Well it's pretty simple these were the two songs that inspired the chapter and they were able to be input into the story pretty easily so yea. Got a problem with it? Deal with it. Nah just drop me a line if you don't like all the song in the story I might do something about it, I will certainly consider it if it bothers someone. But anyway go ahead and review, hope you guys and girls enjoyed :D