Disclaimer: The following fiction is based on characters currently owned and operated
by the writers and producers of NBC TV's DAYS OF OUR LIVES. It is for entertainment purposes only.
I claim no ownership of the characters.

Christmas Present by Fidomom

~Part 2: Finding Brady

The Set-Up: Brady has let Chloe know he has feelings for her and regrets doing so. He leaves the party, reconsiders and finds Chloe in Philip's embrace, he flees again. Chloe realises she has feelings for Brady too and tries to follow him but is waylaid by Philip's attempt to sweep her off her feet. She utterly rejects Philip publicly and loudly and admits within earshot of everyone (except Brady) that she is in love with Brady. Philip turns on Chloe once again and Chloe's eyes are finally opened to his true nature. She dismisses him permanently, and leaves in search of Brady.


Chloe hurried away from the party wracking her brain, talking to herself in near panic.
Chloe: Where is he? Where would he go after telling me something like that? If I were Brady, where ... oh duh! Of course Lane! Oh, Brady, please let me be right! Please be there!
Chloe hurried to the one place she felt sure he would be. She was right. He was just standing there with his back to her. She hesitated. Now that she was there she was uncertain as to how to proceed.
Brady: What are you doing here Chloe?
Chloe was startled out of her thoughts. He hadn't turned around at all ... he just seemed to know she was there.
Chloe: I came to look for you. You left so fast you never even let me respond to what you said.
Brady: S'okay I saw with my own two eyes what your response was ... you took him back.
It wasn't a question but rather a grand assumption. He walked away from her and up the steps to sit inside the gazebo. He kept his eyes on his own hands which were fidgeting compulsively. He chanced a glance at her, and drew in a sharp breath. Her skin was rosy from the cold. Her eyes were shining more than usual as the cold air caused them to moisten more frequently. She was still trying to catch her breath and her chest was heaving with the effort. None of that made him catch his breath though. It was the look in her eyes, of such tenderness the small smile on her lips, God those lips! He felt himself tremble with bottled emotion.
Chloe: I don't know precisely why you think that, Brady, I can only guess that you must have seen Philip grab me and kiss me. Maybe you thought it was a mutual thing, I don't know what you think you saw. Too bad you didn't stick around to see me slap his face for his trouble, or hear the heated argument we had. Too bad you missed what I admitted to him and everybody within earshot.
Chloe swiftly ascended the steps and stood directly in front of Brady. She crouched down, (no small feat in heels!) placing her hands on his knees, forcing eye contact.
Brady: Do tell.
Chloe: I will tell you after you admit precisely what you meant back there.
Brady: Oh? And just what do you think I should be admitting to?
Chloe: That you are in love with me. You are aren't you.
Brady: Kind of presumptuous of you to believe that.
Chloe: It's the truth though, isn't it?
Brady: So what if it is? You've made it crystal clear to me that you view me as your best friend and that Philip is the one you are so intensely in love with, so what does it matter to you how I feel about you?
Chloe nearly laughed out loud with glee.
Chloe: Brady? Philip was my first love and as such he'll always have a special place in my milestone memories. The intense feelings I was having about him were feelings of grief and regret and loss of a dream, they weren't 'in love' feelings at all. How could I possibly be in love with Philip, when I am so head over heels in love with you?
Brady's face froze in shock. His eyes frantically searched hers wanting to believe his ears but needing confirmation from her soul. He got it. In one fluid movement he swept her up in his arms, standing, holding her tightly, squeezing tears of relief from his closed eyes. Chloe clung to him and breathed in his Brady-ness, a smile of utter joy on her face. She tilted her head back and turned her face up to look at him. God he was beautiful. He was hers. She felt it in her soul.
Chloe: Brady? Please, won't you admit it now? Won't you please tell me you are in love with me, too? I so need to hear it, to see it, to feel it, and touch it and... and taste it...
Brady souldanced with Chloe for an eternity before answering her.