AN:

Guest: Thank you! Should I tell you the answer to that? :P.

Tob2008: Don't worry I haven't forgotten about the ring. But that is a great idea, I will definitely include the details of the back story. It's good that you all remind me. I have little notes to ensure continuity :DD

Guest: Thank you! I hear you on the flashbacks :D As for Brandon, he doesn't actually know yet that Thomas has feelings for Pam. All he knows is that he hooked up with her - Only Valerie figured it out in Chapter 35-(Wrecking Ball) remember? :D All Brandon knows is before Minnesota he found out more about his son's rebellious nature and how Thomas has appeared to act carelessly, so Brandon has no idea what's going on with him and as he said he doesn't know how to get through to him.

Bursting Out

'Genius might be the ability to say a profound thing in a simple way.' -Charles Bukowski.

"Hey, where's your dad?" Kelly asked once her daughter arrived home.

"He just dropped me off." Pamela sighed, walking in.

"Oh. Okay. How is everything?" Kelly joined her daughter on the sofa.

"Couldn't be better." Pamela rested her head back on the couch. "...You missed quite the reunion at the Peach Pit the other day."

"I heard. Your dad texted me." Kelly sympathetically tilted her head to the side.

"Well I guess I should get used to it, you did." Pamela shrugged, "Tell me are there any more of my ex or future boyfriend's fathers you dated that I should know about?" She teased

"Watch it, smart mouth." Kelly jokingly reprimanded.

"Honestly, mum... " Pamela began after a beat, "I don't know how you do it..."

"Do what?" Kelly sat upright.

"Try to get by with them all here." Pamela let out an exasperated sigh.

"Oh it doesn't bother me." Kelly shrugged it off with a flail of her hand

"Really?" Pamela turned to face her, "...Why didn't you tell me about Tommy's dad?"

"There was nothing to tell." Kelly sighed, her demeanor was a lot more relaxed. Pamela noticed that her mother didn't tense up like she did when she asked about Dylan. "We were best friends. We knew each other so well... We were friends far longer than we were a couple. But our relationship was wonderful, and we ended with a lot of love. There's no hard feelings there."

"Right." Pamela nodded, surprised how easily she opened up about it. "But what about Dylan?"

"What about him?" It was now Kelly's turn to let out an exasperated sigh.

"Well since he moved here, there seems to be a lot of tension... There was tension when I started dating James... You don't talk about Dylan the way you talk about Brandon. With Dylan it seems... it seems like every time you're about to open up about it, you stop yourself."

"Pammy, I've told you everything. You know about Cameron, the truth is out!" Kelly tried to hide her irritation over the subject matter.

"Alright. But... that's the only relationship from your past that you don't talk about." Pamela kept her voice low.

"The reason for that... is because it was a very tough time. But luckily... after everything with Cameron, it's all... resolved." Kelly drawled with as much confidence as she could muster.

"It just feels like... there may have been more to it than that." Pamela studied her mother, whose eyes averted her gaze.

Kelly got up and headed to the kitchen. Pamela shortly followed her.

"Mum." She urged. "You can talk to me, you know?"

Kelly kept on rummaging through the kitchen drawers, clearly not looking for anything in particular but an escape from the conversation.

"Look at me." Pamela demanded.

Kelly finally turned around and faced her. Pamela could see her mother's face fall. Pamela sighed and offered a consoling arm squeeze.

"Vault." Pamela insisted.

Kelly offered her daughter a faint smile. "Okay..." She began. She lowered herself onto one of the chairs around the kitchen table and Pamela followed suit, looking at and listening to her mother intently.

"We... we once thought that we were soul mates." Kelly felt like a weight was lifted as the words left her mouth.

"Before Brandon?" Pamela asked

"Before Brandon. During Brandon. After Brandon..." Kelly muttered

"Oh." Pamela was taken aback. It was all coming together now. "So... you kept going back?"

"More like... I never really left."

At school, Pamela was heading to her locker with a couple of textbooks in hand. She slowed down her walking pace once she saw James putting his books away in his locker. She was just about to keep on walking, when he turned around and began to walk past her. Before he passed her, he stopped in front of her. After a beat, he breathed out:

"Hi Pam." He drawled.

"Hi!" She said softly, unable to hide the fact that she was surprised. He offered a polite nod and continued walking off. She turned around slightly as she watched him leave. She then smiled to herself before heading to her locker. Time heals all wounds.

"Look at that, on time!" Dylan smirked as he opened the hotel door to Kelly, not letting her in without a 'hello' smooch.

"Well you were very persistent." She said in between kisses as his arm wrapped around her to pull her close. As per usual, he struggled to tear his lips away from hers, panting as she pulled away and headed into the room. He quickly caught his breath, and followed her in.

"Well you made me late last time. I had to meet David without fitting in a shower. In fact, I'm gonna start showering here." He walked up behind her and pulled her hair away from the back of her neck, kissing the back of her neck and shoulders.

"That would be wise." She moaned, feeling a rush as his lips brushed over her skin. His breath on the back of her neck made her legs a little shaky.

"How've you been?" He said finally, walking in front of her to now kiss and nibble along her jawline.

"mmm... I'm better now." She breathed out, enjoying the feeling of being wrapped up in his touch.

"I've got news for you." He finally pulled away, still wrapping his arms around her waist.

"What?" She mirrored his enthusiasm.

"I met with an editor. Brandon introduced me... She worked with the Beverly Beat for a bit."

"That's great!" She exclaimed.

"Yeah no... the job was awful." Dylan shrugged and headed over to the bed. Kelly shortly followed him and sat beside him. "They wanted useless articles like 'How to spice up your marriage."

"Well, we know you're good at that." She smirked, leaning in.

He grinned and embraced her kiss. "Yeah something tells me... If we were married, that wouldn't be a problem."

"If." She repeated, looking down. The shift in the mood was subtle but deadly. He cleared his throat.

"Alright... Let's not go there." He looked away for a split second before turning back to face her. He watched her take a moment before she was present. His hand reached out and began to caress her cheek and chin.

His touch helped her escape the moment.

"So you're not gonna take the job?" She eventually asked

"Nope." He said dismissively. His eyes fixated on her hair as his fingers began to entwine in her hair.

"Why don't you go work with Steve and Brandon?" She asked, but his gaze remained on the soft blonde strands in his hands

"I don't wanna write that stuff. Besides, I've got something better."

"You do?" She asked

"mmhmm." He then turned to face her, "But for now... A little less conversation." His hand now gripped the back of her neck and lowered her onto him, as he rested his back on the headboard.

With a brush of their lips, it didn't take long for her to crawl on top of him and reposition herself. His arms wrapped around her once more, holding her tightly, as they exchanged delicious kisses.

A slower pace than their previous hookups, this one felt like they were already an established couple again. It reminded them of when they lived together in college. They would each come home and share details about their day, lying in bed or on the couch and stealing kisses between sentences, loving the chance to taste each other's sweet love after being apart.

After some long, longing kisses, she bit his bottom lip, which caused him to smirk and pull her even closer towards him if that was possible. His hands reached up and cupped the sides of her face, something that made her melt as his strong hands held her in place. He then slipped his tongue into her mouth and they both hummed out choruses of "mmm"s, immersing themselves in the pleasure.

Their lips finally broke apart and they came up for air. His lips parted, as they always did once he got to taste her. No matter how many times he kissed her, the sensation managed to seduce him every time. She clearly felt the same way, always ready to give it all up to be in his arms once more.

His lips couldn't stay away for long, his hands lifted her hair off the back of her neck and he lifted his head up to kiss along her neck and collar bone. She moaned with pleasure, before urging him to make love to her.

This time, he made sure to do just that. Happy that he didn't have to fight with every fiber of his being to resist her.

"Listen," Kelly began once they were done, putting her sundress back on. "Pamela will be with me this weekend. So I may not get time away."

"Yeah, I figured." Dylan was still catching his breath after the love making, as he grabbed a towel to head into the shower. "Besides, with Brenda's new play, I kinda gotta be around this week."

"Yeah... " She sighed, "So I guess.. I'll see you next week."

"Sure... " He walked over to her, still naked, towel in hand. "It's just a few days to endure the wait."

"Yeah," She said with an unsteady breath She looked at him and swallowed a gulp at how beautiful his body was. "We'll be fine." She tried to assure herself.

"Sure." He nodded, eyeing her from head to toe, fantasizing about the way her sundress hugged her curves. Resisting each other for long periods of time was never their strong suit.

"Kel..." He finally whispered

"Yeah?" She quickly snapped back after staring at his naked form for probably too long. He couldn't help but grin at her.

"I found a publishing house I like." He added

"So you did have something better up your sleeve?" She finally looked into his eyes.

"I told ya..." He smirked. "...Thanks."

"For what?" She seemed puzzled.

"Reminding me to not give up." He sighed

"I didn't do anything." She smiled sweetly at him.

"...You did everything." He insisted. His gaze met hers, and they smiled at each other. A simple, tender moment, that had all the love and appreciation they had for each other bursting out with one look.

She does what she does.

I do what I do.

I picture her in red, showing a face to the world that they'll approve of. Only I know her face when she's free to be herself.

I pour my whiskey, I read Bukowski, and I wonder if my demons will go away if I see her again.

A romantic, a poet, He was a man who considered intelligence to be saying a profound thing in a simple way.

Romance, poetry, that was our love. A profound passion felt in a simple way.

Out of sight, out of mind, I thought. If I don't let myself think about her, I'm ok.

But now I'm here, I've had a taste. I don't think she ever really went away.

She does what she does. Make me desire her

I do what I do. Like Bukowski, I say a profound thing in a simple way.

Praying that one day, it'll be easier to stay away.

Dylan had finished writing his poem out when his son and Brenda walked through the door.

"Hey honey." She bent down to kiss Dylan, who was sitting at the kitchen table.

"Hi dad." James uttered as he placed his school bag on the couch. Brenda went to sift through the mail by the door.

"How was school?" Dylan asked, sitting back to be present with his son

"Good." James replied, and Dylan seemed surprised. That was the first time his son described school in a positive way in a while.

"Good." Dylan smiled

"I uh I broke the ice today." James pursed his lips.

"You did?" Dylan approved

"Yeah... Said hello to one of them."

"That's good, son." Dylan was proud. "A small step like that is bigger than you think."

"Look, I'm not saying things'll go back to normal but... I'm getting a little tired of being angry."

"I know what you mean."

"Oh wow!" Brenda exclaimed. Dylan and James turned to look at her

"What is it?" Dylan asked

"We just got a wedding invite. Steve's getting married." Brenda announced.

1 week later.

"Mr. McKay. This... is fantastic." A woman exclaimed behind her desk.

"Well... I finally got some inspiration." Dylan slouched in the chair opposite her.

"Well whatever it is, you keep right on doing it." She insisted.

"One can only hope." He shrugged

"It's... beautiful." She finally put down the collection and looked up at him.

"Well, Lindsey... Bukowski did say you should only write when it comes bursting out of you. Guess it finally did." He sighed.