Sorry if I screw up any New York Trivia!

Disclaimer: I of course still own nothing, except the made up characters!

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He walked around for another hour, just mindlessly. He had no idea where he was going, or what he was planning on doing at that point, but it was just nice to be lost. After passing the Port Authority and finally getting a gauge on where the hell he was, he started to head back to the Starbucks he had ventured to just 5 hours before.

"Ouch." He had run into someone when he mindlessly opened the door. "Sorry," he replied, still out of it as he leaned down to pick up book he had knocked out of the person's hand. "Slaughterhouse Five, nice choice," he stated as he stood up again. He recognized the face, and she recognized his too.

"Thanks," she replied with that trademark smile form just hours before.

"Hey," he replied, realizing it was Julianna. He looked like a deer in the headlights staring at her eyes. He hadn't really noticed before, but she had amazing eyes. Hazel eyes, but her right eye had a little spot of bright blue.

She smiled knowing he was looking at her. "How'd the meeting go?" she asked, breaking the silence.

"Oh, the meeting," he said, breaking his gaze with her eyes. "Not too great, I don't even know what to expect right now." She looked at him with one of those frowns girls are so good at. They make you want to spill your heart but look so cute, he thought. "The CEO of the New York division told me to come back next week. He seems crazy, I can't really decide what to do. I think I may have shot, I don't really know. There are all these catches though…" he trailed off.

"Catches?"

"Yeah."

"What are they?"

"I have to come back next week, but with the girl I recorded my demo with."

"From where you came from? Do you guys talk anymore?"

"I don't really know. I lived in Tree Hill in North Carolina for six years. I kind of kept to my self, and just went about my way. I graduated from high school there, and kind of cut ties with my dad. I rented an apartment above a record store, and worked there for the next 4 years. That's when I got into music, and started playing with a few guys. I don't think I was ever cut out for a band, I guess I'm just the guy and a guitar type. A couple weeks ago I met this girl, Haley. She's an absolutely amazing musician, but she's married….and 17..." he trailed off.

She had a shocked look on her face. She led him down 6th Avenue towards 8th Street near the NYU campus. "Will she come?"

"I don't know," he replied. He shifted the guitar from his left hand to his right hand. "That's why I have no clue where I'm headed or what I'm gonna do about next week. I don't even have her number." He was starting to have a flashback of the day before. He'd seen her such a short time before, but it had felt like years and two different worlds.

"Well, I think it's the music that really matters." She grabbed a key from her pocket and ducked into the next door as they were walked past another huge building. "Come on," she motioned for Chris to follow her as she stepped up to open the large metal door to the building. He felt a little awkward just standing in the middle of the sidewalk, so he walked over and leaned up against the metal of the door frame as she struggled with the key. "I can never get this thing open. One day I'll have someone chasing me and I'll be stuck outside," she laughed.

"Lemme try." She handed him the key. He opened the door swiftly with one turn of the key. He handed the key back as he opened the door, letting her lead the way. They walked up a flight of stairs. Julianna opened the door and again motioned for Chris to come in as he hesitantly stood outside the door. She seemed too nice to be one of those serial killers he had heard of from crappy TV shows like "60 minutes." He decided to put his life on the line, ha, who was he kidding?

Throwing the keys down on the counter in the studio apartment, Julianna walked over to put a notebook down on the table while Chris took a quick survey of the place. It was way nicer than the outside of the building, and it looked like she had to be creative. The place was extremely modern, and had huge windows. He started to wonder how she dealt with the lack of privacy, but then his eyes were drawn to the large curtain that had been pulled back.

"Do you have a CD?" she asked.

"Hmmm?"

"A CD? Of the Demo?"

"Oh yeah, I do." He pulled a CD out of his guitar case and handed it to Julianna. The CD cover was plain a label across the front:

Christopher Keller and Haley James-Scott

Cover of Ryan Adams' "When the Stars Go Blue"

Recorded in Tree Hill, North Carolina under Cold Monday Independent Records

Produced by Christopher Keller and Mark Hazelwood

She studied the label before sticking the CD into the stereo on the glass table in the presumed "living room." She sat down on the couch as the opening notes started. "You can sit if you want." He walked over next to her and sat at the other end of the couch. He was nervous about having someone hear the recording and was also kind of still tentative about Julianna.

They both listened as the notes flowed from the speakers, strategically placed around the apartment. Chris started to day dream of the time he had spent with Haley just sitting in the studio as he looked over at Julianna. Her lips curled into a smile as she listened.

"That was beautiful," she smiled again as the last notes of the song played.

"Thanks," Chris replied, smiling sheepishly.

"Do you write your own music too?" Julianna asked. She knew the answer, but she just wanted to coax him into actually singing for her.

"Yeah." He got the hint and walked over to grab his guitar of the case and returned to the couch. He played her "Glad" the same song he had played when he auditioned in front of that emo girl, and met Haley for the first time. He started to go into a fog as he played, he saw Julianna smiling at him. Her blond hair glistening in the sun, and the spot of blue in her right eye glistened in the light. His eyes locked with hers as he finished the song. They both leaned in as the song ended. Lips locking in a kiss that lasted just a few seconds.

Chris leaned back, his hand resting on his guitar. He couldn't believe he was tossing in his heart on day one. His music career wasn't even on his mind at that point

…..and Haley James? Haley James who?

If only that had been the truth…