The mildly warm sun of mid-March was shining brightly as Chloe entered Dotcom on Monday afternoon. Glancing around the popular hangout, Chloe immediately noticed how empty it appeared without her senior class filling up the booths and free seats at the bar.

Sure, there were younger students hanging out while enjoying their spring break, but it just wasn't the same as seeing Philip and Shawn doing battle at one of the booths.

Walking over to the music section, Chloe began to casually glance through the selection of classical music. She soon found her way to the listening station where she allowed some of her most beloved opera songs to calm her frazzled nerves.

She hadn't seen or spoken to Jason since he had dropped her off at her house on Saturday night. And, she was almost hoping that she wouldn't meet up with him again until they returned to school. Then, things could get back to normal. But, did Chloe really want things to go back to the way they had been?

Allowing her eyes to drift shut and the music to truly control her spirit, Chloe thought back to all the moments she and Jason Masters had shared in a span of time just over a week. As the most unique memories of her life flowed over her, Chloe was jarred by her headphones suddenly being ripped from her ears.

Quickly spinning to see who had dared to take away the headphones, Chloe found herself glaring at none other than Jason. Snatching the headphones back from him, Chloe said, "Excuse me, I was listening to something."

Jason flashed Chloe a carefree smile before taking the headphones from her once more. Holding them up to his right ear, he cringed and asked, "You honestly listen to this for enjoyment?"

"As a matter of fact, I do."

"That has to suck."

Tilting her head to one side, Chloe released a soft sigh and asked, "Don't you have anything better to do than criticize the music I choose to listen to?"

"I'm not criticizing the crap you listen to. I'm just wondering if you'd be interested in expanding your musical tastes to some more modern tunes."

"First, the music I listen to is not crap. Second, I don't need you helping me become familiar with modern music, because I already am."

"Sorry, Chloe, but John Tesh doesn't count."

Giving Jason her usual annoyed glare, Chloe asked, "Has anyone told you that you're incredibly obnoxious?"

Jason gave an indifferent shrug and responded, "One or two people may have mentioned it on occasion. Of course, there's this one chick I know from school with long brown hair and big blue eyes, and she loves to tell me that all that time."

"Well, she must be very intelligent."

"Or, just rude," commented Jason with a grin. Raffling through the available music, Jason said, "How about we find you some real music to listen to?"

With a sigh of frustration, Chloe asked, "What do you have in mind?"

Jason gave his companion a wide smile as he held up the compact disc. "This."

"P.O.D.?" Chloe questioned with obvious apprehension. "You don't really expect me to listen to that, do you?"

After setting the player to the appropriate track, Jason brought the headphones to Chloe's right ear and held them there as he stood directly in front of her with only inches separating their bodies.

As the song Alive began to float from the headphones, Jason carefully monitored Chloe's face for any response - finding himself entangled by the intensity that seemed to hide in her eyes.

When Chloe allowed her eyes to momentarily drift shut while becoming somewhat lost in the song and its lyrics, Jason took it as a good sign. It showed that Chloe Lane just might be more receptive than he previously believed.

Jason continued to stare at Chloe even after her eyes opened once more. Holding the headphones to Chloe's head, Jason found himself once again getting lost in the diva's eyes. His mind could not recall ever seeing anything quite as captivating as those blue depths.

Jason's voice erupted in a husky whisper as he asked, "Don't you ever want to really feel alive?"

As Jason's face slowly neared her own, Chloe found herself unable to look away or stammer a response. His eyes, more green and luscious than the most vibrant rain forest, truly took Chloe's breath away. It was an amazing feeling to stare into Jason's fiery eyes and not be seared by burning hatred or contempt.

Forgetting what he had once deemed as rational action and becoming lost in the moment, Jason began to move even closer to Chloe - her lips his only destination.

However, a shrill ringing stopped Jason when he was but a mere inch or two from kissing Chloe. Not backing away from his beautiful former nemesis, Jason whispered, "Chloe, your purse is ringing."

Chloe hurriedly moistened her lips before replying, "Mm-hmm."

Breaking the tense mood with a light chuckle, Jason asked, "Are you going to answer your phone or not?"

"Um . . . yeah . . . of course," stammered Chloe as she finally put some physical space between herself and Jason. Turning her back to Jason, Chloe reached into her purse and retrieved her cell phone. Quickly punching a button, she brought the communication device to her ear and greeted, "Hello."

Though he was pretending to glance as nearby music, Jason was actually paying immense attention to the conversation Chloe was having. He barely noticed his brother entering the popular teen hangout as he listened to Chloe's end of the obviously important conversation.

Having finished the call and returned her phone back to its place inside her purse, Chloe turned to face Jason with the biggest smile that had ever graced her face. Unable to contain her measureless excitement, Chloe practically screamed, "I got the part! I'm going to be starring in the next production at the Lorsee Theater!"

Jason was yet again lost in a moment with Chloe. Forgetting all the bad feelings that had once separated her from him, Jason began to feel happy for Chloe and shared her excitement.

Also lost in the happy moment, Chloe threw her arms around Jason's neck and began to hug him tightly. Without hesitation, Jason wrapped his muscular arms around Chloe's waist and spun her around, telling her how happy he was that she had got the part - not that he'd ever had any doubts of her success.

Chloe kept her arms tightly wound around Jason's neck and happily allowed him to lift her into the air and gently swing her. She wondered if there had ever been a moment when she had felt so complete.

When her feet returned to the ground, Chloe unhooked her arms from Jason's neck and took a single step away from the handsome guy that she had once hated with every fiber of her body. Her voice quite low, Chloe stated, "I'm so happy."

"I can see that," responded Jason with an unusually warm smile. Shocking even himself, Jason added, "I knew you'd get the role Chloe. You deserve it."

Following those words, another tense silence overcame the two teens. As their relationship underwent an obvious transition from bitter enemies to something far more gentle and caring, neither Jason nor Chloe knew how to respond.

Saving the couple from having to make any forced attempts at conversation, Devon approached them and greeted, "Hey, congratulations, Chloe. I couldn't help overhearing the good news."

"More like you couldn't stop yourself from eavesdropping," muttered Jason.

Chloe tossed Jason a small grin before saying, "Well, I have to go. The director wants to meet with me A.S.A.P., so I'm going to hurry up and get over to the theater."

Reaching out and gently placing his hand on Chloe's arm, Jason suggested, "How about I drive you over? After what happened the last time you were there, do you really want to go back alone?"

Her smile never fading, Chloe removed Jason's hand from her arm and replied, "Jase, I'm a big girl, and I don't need you protecting me from monsters that just don't exist. I really appreciate you saving me that night, but I seriously doubt that there's a copycat mugger out there waiting to attack me at the exact same place in the middle of the day. But, thanks for the offer."

Watching Chloe walk away, Jason muttered to himself, "No problem."

When Chloe disappeared out the door of Dotcom, Devon harshly slapped his baby brother's back and stated, "Quit wasting time, Jason. You've screwed around long enough. If you want the girl, just ask her out. Otherwise, I think you need to let her go, because it's pretty damn obvious that you're really starting to fall for her."

Jason attempted to appear skeptical as he replied, "You think I'm falling for Ghoul Girl? That's the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard, bro."

"Just remember what I said, Jase. If you want her, go for it. Don't let her slip away." After taking a few steps away from Jason, Devon turned and added, "Just remember one thing - if you throw her away, there's going to be some other guy out there who'll be more than happy to be her knight in shining armor."

Left alone as his brother also departed the hangout, Jason became oddly nervous. Devon was seldom serious, and Jason couldn't help but believe that there was a great deal of truth in his brother's words. Jason wasn't completely sure that he even wanted to consider some sort of relationship with his former enemy. But, he did know that he'd rather die than watch Chloe ride off into the sunset with another guy.

ORLANDO, FLORIDA

With her arms crossed over her chest, Belle Black stared gloomily out the glass door. Sheets of rain seemed to practically pound against the wooden deck outside - just as it had done for the past week.

Gently wrapping his arms around his girlfriend's waist, Shawn pulled her close and whispered, "Don't worry, Belle. The local station is predicting that today will be the last day of rain. After this, we should have nice, sunny skies for the rest of our trip."

"I hope so. I don't know how much longer I can take being cooped up in this hotel. We've hardly gotten to see any tourist attractions, Shawn."

"I know, but like I said, after today, things will be looking up."

Glancing across the room to where Philip sat alone, Belle quietly said, "Not for everyone."

Shawn briefly looked to see who had captured Belle's attention. His arms still firmly placed around Belle's waist, Shawn sympathized, "I really for sorry for the guy. He and Mimi were really looking forward to hanging out together on this trip. I can't believe she missed the plane."

"Yeah, as bad as it is for Philip, this whole thing has to be harder on Mimi. I bet she's probably moping around Salem all alone - trying to avoid getting caught in the middle of one of Jason and Chloe's arguments."

Releasing a very soft chuckle, Shawn said, "That's if Jason and Chloe haven't killed each other already."

"So, Jason and Chloe are back home more than likely plotting more cruel pranks against each other, and poor Mimi is alone and miserable . . ."

MIAMI, FLORIDA

Laughing almost hysterically, Mimi tossed a handful of popcorn at Austin Reed. "You're such a riot!"

Austin gave Mimi a rather skeptical look and questioned, "Me? You're the one cracking me up. Man, Philip never told me what an amazing sense of humor you have."

Her smile dropping just a little, Mimi said, "Well, Philip and I really didn't do a lot of joking when we hung out. Of course, we didn't usually have a lot of time to hang out anyway. Being the star athlete of Salem High is hard work, so Philip seems to constantly have some type of practice. And, well, I still have to scrub toilets, so that keeps me busy, too."

Rising from the arm chair, Austin moved to sit beside Mimi on the couch. Ignoring the comedy playing on the television, Austin said, "Mimi, I'm really sorry that I haven't been able to take you up to Orlando yet. But, my last meeting was this morning, and the rain is supposed to be over by tomorrow, so I'll finally be able to give you a ride to the hotel in Orlando. I bet you'll be glad to hook up with Philip and your friends, huh?"

Mimi's mind flashed back to all that had happened since that day she had accepted Austin's spare plane ticket to Florida. She had initially felt rather shy around the older guy, but Austin quickly eased her tensions with his unique sense of humor.

Arriving at Austin's hotel in Miami, they had been able to get adjoining rooms. Austin felt that it was his duty to take care of Mimi before safely handing her over to her class sponsors in Orlando. However, it quickly became apparent that it would take longer than expected to get Mimi to her friends. Between horrible weather and an intense schedule, there just wasn't any way for Austin to drive the girl all the way to Orlando.

However, despite all his work, Austin somehow managed to make enough time to keep Mimi entertained whenever possible. Since arriving in Miami, the two had developed a tender friendship. In fact, there was a very deep and hidden part of Mimi that almost wished that Austin would consider seeing her as something more than just a friend. Though she was dating Philip Kiriakis, Mimi was quickly developing a crush on his older brother.

And, now that their time together was preparing to come to an end, Mimi almost wished that she didn't have to go to Orlando. More than anything, part of her just wanted to stay in Miami and be with Austin . . . even if it was only as his friend.