Author's Note: Thank you so much to all of my followers and any new readers to this story. I have had a whirlwind year with welcoming twin boys in 2012 and have made it my new year's resolution to make an effort to find the time to write this year. I am hoping that I can update these stories with greater frequency and ask that you be patient. Thank you again and enjoy the first of many new chapters.

Chapter 53 – The Time of Our Lives

The Old Globe

Brenda walks slowly from her car to the theatre. She walks into the theatre two hours before rehearsal to meet with John about the apartment.

'Hey, Brenda,' he says, looking up from his script. 'Oh, what's wrong?' he asks her when he sees her face.

'Nothing, I just had a very uncomfortable conversation with my mother and I'm just a little upset,' she says.

'Oh, I'm sorry to hear that. Are you sure you're alright?'

'Yeah, don't worry about it, I'll be fine,' she brushes him off.

'Okay, well, let's get over to the apartment so that you can get comfortable,' he says.

They walk back to her car and he drives two blocks from the theatre and parks on the street. Brenda looks up at the building and instantly gets a good feeling from it.

'So, the apartment actually belongs to a friend of mine that is out touring with a show right now. He won't be back for about a month, so it is perfect timing,' he says, leading her up the stairs.

Carrying one of her bags, she follows him into the apartment.

'It's not much, but it's close and habitable,' he says with a smile.

Brenda looks around the small apartment. 'It's perfect, John, thank you so much for this,' she says.

'It's no problem at all. Well, I'll leave you to get acquainted and I'll see you in a few hours for rehearsal,' he says, handing her the key.

She thanks him again and sits down on the couch after he leaves. She puts her head in her hands and starts to cry.

The conversation with her mother really took a toll on her emotions and she just had to get them all out or she would never be able to concentrate on acting.

As painful as it was telling her mother about moving out, Brenda was not entirely sure that she could go through that agony again to tell her father. Her mother had stormed up the stairs, leaving Brenda standing in the kitchen by herself.

Brenda begins to calm herself down using a breathing technique she learned in acting class and tries very hard to focus. She opens her eyes and decides to devote all of her attention to unpacking her things in order to feel a little more comfortable in this apartment.

Campus

Kelly walks out of her last class and makes her way down to the parking lot. It was already starting to get dark and as nervous as she was walking by herself to the parking lot, tonight she felt more paranoid than usual.

She turns her head every few steps to see if someone was following her, but fails to notice anything. She starts to walk quicker and when her car comes into sight, she picks up the pace to almost a run. She jumps into the car and as she turns to lock the door she thinks she sees a blur through the trees.

Kelly drives home holding so tight onto the steering wheel that when she finally lets go her hands actually begin to hurt as the blood rushes back into her fingers. She turns the car off and makes a run for the door.

Once safely inside the apartment she locks the door and leans against the wall to see if she was followed.

After a minute, she lets out a deep breath and turns to enter the living room, when she sees Donna standing in the kitchen looking at her very strangely.

'Kel? Are you alright?' Donna asks slowly.

'Um,' Kelly says, moving into the kitchen, 'yeah, I'm fine. I just thought someone might be following me, that's all.'

'Really? You know that's the second time I've heard that today. Andrea said the same thing to me this afternoon when I saw her,' Donna says.

Kelly looks up with wide eyes and starts to nod her head. 'Have you gotten any creepy feelings that someone might be following you?'

Donna shakes her head and says, 'Sorry, I haven't.'

'Maybe Andrea and I are just on edge or something,' Kelly says and tries to give Donna a smile.

'Maybe,' Donna says, walking past Kelly and into her room.

Kelly grabs the phone and dials quickly.

'Hello?'

'Brandon, it's Kelly, are you busy right now?' she asks him.

'Um, not really, just doing some reading, why?'

'I had a creepy feeling that I was being followed as I came out of class tonight. When I got home and told Donna, she told me that Andrea had the same feeling,' Kelly tells him.

'Do you think you've inherited Steve's stalker?' he asks her with concern.

'I don't know, but I definitely felt something and I thought that I saw something, but I can't really be sure,' she tells him.

'Are you alright now or do you need someone to hold you tight and tell you everything's going to be okay?' Brandon asks her, looking for an invitation.

'Very funny, Brandon,' she says.

'Well, why don't you give Andrea a call talk about it?' he suggests.

'I think I have to,' she says.

Donna pokes her head into Kelly's room while she's on the phone and waves goodbye. She waits until Kelly acknowledges her and then leaves the apartment to meet up with Chase.

She drives down to meet him at a historic building downtown so that he could snap of few shots of it before they went to dinner.

'Did you get the shots you wanted?' she asks him, walking up to where he was standing.

Chase turns around and smiles as soon as he sees her.

'Yes I did,' he beams. 'It's such a wonderfully charismatic building, don't you think?'

Donna smiles back at him and nods.

Chase puts his camera away and takes her hand. 'The restaurant is just a few blocks from here, I thought maybe we could walk,' he says.

'Sure, that sounds nice,' she says as they walk together.

'Um, Donna?' he says, looking a little nervous.

'Yeah?'

'There's something I wanted to talk to you about,' he starts. He finds a bench on the side of the street and sits her down.

Donna starts to feel butterflies in her stomach at what Chase might say.

'First, I wanted to say that I hope you're having as much fun with me as I am with you. The time that we've spent together has been absolutely wonderful and I've cherished every moment,' he says.

Donna's mind starts to race and for a fleeting moment she thinks that he might be breaking up with her or something.

'I'm not quite sure how you feel, but I hope that you're not offended or anything that I haven't tried to get you into bed,' Chase says quickly and then lets out a breath.

'I don't want you to think that I don't find you attractive or anything because I do. You're very beautiful and I think when the time is right, if the time is ever right, we'll know,' he says.

He gives her a weak smile and leans slightly back and winces a little in anticipation of her response.

Donna looks into his eyes and can't help but let a tear fall down her cheek. She squeezes one of his hands with hers and slowly puts the other one up to his cheek.

'Oh, Chase,' she says, 'I'm not offended at all. That's exactly how I feel about it. I don't think I'm ready for that kind of relationship and I figured that when the time was right, I'd know.'

Chase picks up her hand and kisses it. He had never had anyone say that they actually agreed with his approach before and he was so grateful.

He puts his arms around her and holds her tight to him. He kisses the top of her head as he feels her arms tighten around him.

Dylan's House

Dylan walks into his house after his trip to the beach with Monica. They had just started to scratch the surface with the story they wrote in the car, but he could tell that every time something even remotely sexual came up, Monica would blush and shift in her seat.

He decided that he better write his version of their chapter for the project, just in case she never came around.

He sits down at the table with the book and his notebook and starts to jot down ideas. He starts to think of some of the things he had done with Brenda as a starting point. He smiles as he starts to write furiously.

The Old Globe

'Great job tonight, guys,' the director says. 'This is really coming along nicely. Have a nice weekend and I'll see you all on Monday.'

Brenda gathers her things and comes back out onto the stage to leave. She looks up and sees John talking with the guy she had met the other day.

John turns when he sees her walking closer.

'So, Brenda, how is the apartment?' he asks her.

'Oh, it's great. It will be perfect for me until the show opens,' she says.

'Great, I'm glad that all worked out,' he says and then turns toward Phil. 'Oh, I'm so sorry, Brenda this is my friend Phil. Phil this is the star of my show, Brenda.'

Brenda smiles and shakes Phil's outstretched hand. 'Yes, we have already met,' she says.

John raises his eyebrows and turns toward Phil.

'We met out on the walk there in front of the theatre and I introduced myself,' Phil tells John. 'Listen, Brenda, we're having a little get together next Thursday night. It's nothing fancy, just some friends. Since you're going to be in town next week, you should come,' he says.

Brenda smiles and nods her head. 'I'll think about it, thank you for the invite,' she says and turns to leave.

The Beach Apartment

Brandon stands outside the door waiting for Kelly to answer it. She swore that she didn't need him to come over, but he had a weird feeling that she might be lying a little bit. He waits patiently as he hears her come closer to the door.

'Kelly, it's Brandon, I swear,' he says out loud. He sees her peek around the curtain, spot him, and then quickly open the door.

She grabs his arm, pulls him inside and then closes and locks the door quickly.

'Hi Brandon, what are you doing here?' she asks him normally.

Brandon starts to laugh. 'Kel, you can't seriously tell me that you're not freaked out right now,' he says.

'Oh, Brandon, I'm fine, really,' she says, walking over to the couch and sitting down.

'Oh, yeah? Is that why it took you ten minutes to open the door? I really didn't think you were going to until you heard my voice and saw me out of the window,' he tells her.

Kelly turns to stare at him and tries to keep her composure, but can't help but smile at him.

He returns her smile and joins her on the couch. He puts his arm around her and pulls her close to him.

'Kel, I have no doubt that if you felt that there was someone following you then, there was probably someone following you. I know that you're uncomfortable now, but you're a smart person and you know how to keep yourself out of dangerous situations, right?'

Kelly lifts her head off of Brandon's shoulder and looks at him. 'Brandon, it's just so unnerving to know that there is someone out there watching you. If this is in some way connected to what Andrea experienced or what we know that Steve is going through, maybe someone is targeting us for a reason,' she says.

Brandon tries not to think about what Kelly just said and tries desperately to comfort her.

The Restaurant

Donna takes Chase's hand as they walk out of the restaurant together. They stroll slowly down the street with smiles on their faces.

'That was an incredible meal,' Donna finally says, breaking the silence.

'Yes it was,' he agrees. 'Donna, I just wanted to say again how relieved and grateful I am that you are such a wonderful and understanding person.'

Donna stops walking and turns to him. She puts her arms around his neck and kisses him softly.

'Chase, I have never found anyone that has any understanding of how I feel about sex. I understand exactly what you are feeling and I'm just so glad that we found each other,' she says, tearing up a little.

Chase pulls her close and they both relax into each other's arms.

Hannah's House

David pulls up in front of Hannah's house to pick her up for their date. She is actually standing outside waiting for him and as soon as the car stops, she opens the door and gets in quickly.

'Wow,' David says. 'Am I late or something?'

Hannah turns to face him and smiles brightly. 'No, of course not, I was just too excited to wait in the house.' She leans over and kisses him.

David smiles at her and feels the butterflies in his stomach that he always felt every time she smiled at him.

He pulls the car out of the driveway, smiling the entire time.

The Beach House

Brandon had convinced Kelly to call Andrea to talk about the stalking experience. Andrea had agreed to come to the house so that they could discuss what had happened to them.

'I felt the exact same way,' Andrea tells Kelly after hearing her story. 'I was at the Peach Pit and as I was walking out to leave, I thought I saw someone shift behind me quickly. I felt entirely exposed the entire way home.'

'Do you think that what happened with us is connected somehow to what's happening to Steve?' Kelly asks her.

'I don't know, Kelly,' Andrea says, as she drops her eyes to the floor. 'If it is connected, at least we know who's doing it.'

'Do you think that maybe we shouldn't be going anywhere alone?' Kelly asks.

'Well, nothing really horrible has happened to Steve this entire time, so I don't know that you have to go that far,' Brandon chimes in.

Andrea tries not to meet their eyes as she remembers Steve telling her the truth about his black eye.

'Well, just to be sure, it would probably be a good idea to stick together,' Andrea says quickly.

Kelly and Brandon look at each other and then back to Andrea. Kelly nods her head and puts her hands together in her lap.

'Speaking of sticking together, I'm going to have to get home at some point,' Andrea says with a smile.

The Beach

David and Hannah walk slowly down the beach holding hands. David turns to notice the soft breeze moving her hair slowly around her face and he smiles.

He stops walking and turns to face her. 'You really are beautiful,' he says softly.

She smiles brightly at him and moves closer to his body. She wraps her arms around his neck and lifts her face to kiss him.

'Hannah, can I ask you something?' David says.

'Anything,' she says with a smile.

'Why do you always want to come down here and walk on the beach after we've had dinner or gone to a movie?'

She smiles again and puts her hand on the side of his face. She kisses him again and says, 'For one thing, it's peaceful on the beach. I love spending time with you and I just wanted to extend our date for as long as possible.'

After hearing her words, David found that when he tried to speak, he had a lump in his throat.

She wraps her arms tightly around his back and lays her head on his shoulder. He closes his arms around her and kisses the top of her head.

'David, can I ask you something now?' she says, without lifting her head.

'Sure,' he answers.

'I really like you and normally I'm not this forward at all, but,' she pauses and lifts her head to look at him.

David waits for her to continue while searching her eyes for a clue.

'I think I'm ready to move our relationship to the next level. Are you?' she finishes quickly while trying not to look him in the eye.

The world around David starts to move in slow motion as he tries to comprehend the words he has just heard. He almost pinches himself to make sure he wasn't dreaming.

'I'm, um,' David stammered, 'yes, definitely, of course I am.'

'I just wanted to ask because you seemed a little,' she pauses, 'distant sometimes.'

'Well, I just didn't want to screw this up or anything. I really like you and after coming out of a long relationship, I didn't want to do anything to jinx this,' David explains.

Hannah smiles at him again and presses her body against his body. 'Okay, now that that's settled, come here.'

She sits on the beach and motions for him to sit next to her. David awkwardly, but quickly sits down next to her.

Dylan's House

Brenda walks through the door and drops her bag on the floor.

'Hey, babe,' Dylan says, coming out of the kitchen with a glass of water.

'Hey,' Brenda says with a sigh as she drops her body onto the couch.

Dylan sits next to her and lifts her legs onto his lap. He starts rubbing her feet and smiles as lays her head back.

'How was your day?' he asks her.

Brenda sits up to look at him. 'It was alright. We're making progress,' she says with no real emotion.

Dylan turns his head and looks at her sideways. 'Uh, Bren? Are you okay? That wasn't your usual enthusiastic self.'

Brenda sighs again. 'Sorry, I'm just a little distracted.' Brenda pulls her legs from Dylan's lap and turns her body to lay her head on his shoulder and wrap her arm around his chest.

Dylan looks down at her and starts to stroke her hair slowly. Based on her mood, Dylan decides that it would be a bad idea to tell her about the phone call he got earlier from her father.

'What's the matter, Brenda? Talk to me,' he says softly.

'I had a really horrible conversation with my mother. I had to leave right from there to drive down to meet John so that he could show me the apartment. I had just enough time to put some of my things away and then I had to go to a four hour rehearsal,' Brenda explains.

Dylan continues to hold her as she recounts the events of her day.

'I just haven't had any time to process what happened and I'm feeling overwhelmed with everything that's going on right now.'

'Do you want to talk about it?'

Brenda lets herself slowly start to remember the conversation she had with her mother that morning. Almost immediately she begins to tear up and before long she is sobbing uncontrollably.

Dylan tries his best to comfort her and just let her get out her emotions. As she is crying into his body, he thinks back to the short conversation he had with her father. He tries to remember whether or not he sounded upset or angry, but can't seem to pick out anything out of the ordinary.

'Oh, Dylan,' Brenda sobs, 'that was probably one of the most uncomfortable and angering conversation I've ever had with my mother.'

Brenda lifts her head and grabs a tissue from the table. She wipes her face and turns to face Dylan.

'Really?' Dylan says with a little disbelief.

'I've had some pretty uncomfortable discussions with my mother over the years, but sitting in that kitchen telling her that I was moving out and seeing the look on her face,' Brenda pauses and wipes the tear that just rolled down her cheek.

'The frustration and disappointment just shot through me and I felt like I was back in high school,' Brenda says. 'And the worst part is that I have to do it all over again with my dad.'

Dylan struggles with whether to wait for her to speak some more or say something now.

'I just don't think I can handle it,' Brenda says. She stares down at the tissue in her hand and starts to fold it.

'I'm sorry you had trouble with your mother, Bren, and I'm sure that everything seems pretty daunting right now, but you can't let it get to you. You are an adult now and capable of making your own decisions. I'm sure your parents are just upset that you're growing up and finally have the right to get on with your life,' he says.

'Maybe you're right, Dylan, but it sure doesn't feel that way. Apparently I've let them down again, but this time feels different.'

Dylan watches Brenda's facial expressions as she battles with the feelings inside of her head.

'It's okay, baby,' he says, rubbing her arm. 'Everything is going to be okay.'