As promised, here is the next chapter...you guys are truly amazing with all of your responses! I can't say thank you enough, it's really inspiring. Since I'm heading out for the weekend, I wish you all a very happy New Year! Here's to more IS in 2006 and plenty more of your amazing fanfics to keep us all going! I'll make sure to update once I'm back, but until then, hope you enjoy :-)

Jude's shriek startled everyone, and as she went to yell again, Tommy covered her mouth with his hand to avoid anyone upstairs hearing. Jude quieted down and Tommy slowly removed his hand. They stood in disbelief looking at the couple holding the flashlight.

"What are you two doing down here?" Tommy asked.

"By the looks of it, the same thing you two are doing," Ryan responded. Kristen hid behind him, buttoning her shirt.

"Oh my god, oh my god," Jude repeated. "I am so not seeing this."

Just then, they heard Mrs. Harrison yell from upstairs, "Everything okay down there?"

Tommy and Jude looked at each other in panic. He nudged her to respond, so she yelled, "Uhh, yeah, sorry! Just thought I saw a mouse!"

They heard Mrs. Harrison's footsteps retreat into the living room as they turned their attention back to the scene before them. The four of them looked at each other, not knowing where to begin.

"How long…when did this…have you been cheating on her the whole time?" Jude said to Ryan.

"No. This just started, last night. After the whole Truth or Dare thing," Ryan said, looking between Tommy and Jude. "Which actually brings me to the two of you. Was this going on before the game yesterday?"

"No," they both said simultaneously. Tommy and Jude awkwardly looked at each other, realizing their physical appearances, messy hair and clothes disheveled. Smoothing out her hair, Jude said, "It just kind of…happened. After the game yesterday."

"Not surprising," Ryan said with a smirk.

"Enough about us, this is about you and my sister, who you're dating! And who's supposed to be your best friend!" Jude cried, pointing to Kristen. "How could you do this to her?"

Kristen and Ryan looked at each other. "We didn't mean to," Kristen said. "We don't want to hurt her …"

"But after the whole commotion yesterday, Kristen and I started talking," Ryan continued. "I was angry about how Sadie acted and Kristen understood. We bonded over the whole thing and before we knew it, we were making out in the laundry room."

"Too much information," Jude commented quietly.

"Anyway, it's nothing serious, it's just a blizzard thing," Kristen said.

"Just a blizzard thing?" Jude repeated.

"Yeah. You know, it'll be done when the blizzard is over. I love Sadie, I don't want to break up with her. This ends once we get out of here," Ryan said, looking disappointedly at Kristen.

"Why not end it now? I could easily run upstairs and tell Sadie what's going on," Jude threatened.

"You could, but somehow, I think more people would be interested in knowing about a certain 17 year old Instant Star getting it on with her 23 year old producer," Ryan sneered.

Tommy, who had been unusually quiet, stepped forward, saying gravely, "You wouldn't…"

"I probably wouldn't. As long as what you two witnessed doesn't leave this basement. Deal?"

The four of them looked at each other, knowing they needed to trust each other to keep their secrets quiet. Jude looked at Tommy and shrugged, knowing they had no choice.

"Deal," Tommy said, shaking Ryan's hand.

"Okay, then. So what's our story as we all leave here?"

"Maybe we can leave first, saying that we were cleaning the basement," Kristen suggested to Ryan.

"Cleaning? Sadie will never believe that, but she probably didn't even notice we were gone. After you," Ryan beckoned, letting Kristen exit first through the closet door.

Tommy and Jude were left alone in the closet. She grabbed the flashlight on the ground and turned to look at him. He was rubbing his forehead pacing around the small space, clearly anxious and deep in thought.

"Tommy? You okay?" she asked, slightly alarmed at his actions.

He continued to pace, not hearing her. So she stepped directly into his pacing line and grabbed his arms to stop him from moving.

"Hey, you okay?"

He looked at her but she could see the distance in his eyes. "No, I'm not. And you shouldn't be either."

"What are you talking about?"

He slid out of her grip, walking across the closet, rubbing his head again. "Jude, this can't happen."

"What can't?"

"This. Us. Being caught by Ryan and Kristen was a close call. Too close."

Jude felt her heart start to race. "But it was just that, a close call. As long as we don't say anything—"

"It could've been anybody down here. It could've been Sadie or Jamie or even your mom. Close isn't good enough. We need to make sure this doesn't happen."

"We just have to be more careful."

"That's not good enough," he said dismissively. "It's too big of a risk. I can't do this."

She felt a lump form in her throat as she looked at him. "I…I thought this was what you wanted…"

"It is, but not now. Not yet. There's too much on the line," he said walking towards her, "I don't want to hurt you but it just…can't continue right now."

"So…we're just a blizzard thing too?" she said, feeling the tears welling up in her eyes.

"No," he stated quickly. "We're not. But we can't do this now, not until there are fewer consequences if we're discovered."

"Fewer consequences? Tommy, there will always be consequences," Jude cried, feeling the tears fall. "Even when I turn 18, we're still going to have to deal with the studio, with Georgia and Darius, and my parents, who still won't approve. When will there not be consequences?"

He stood there blankly. "I honestly don't know. But at least when you're 18, there's a huge hurdle that's taken off the table," he tried to rationalize. He walked closer to her and grabbed her hands, "We just need to be patient. What is it—5 months?" She nodded. "Well, that's not long. We can do it."

"I don't believe you," she said through tears, pulling her hands away from him. "In 5 months, you're still not going to be ready. There will still be risks and you're still going to have issues."

"That's not true. Those risks won't matter as much then," he protested.

"So I'm just supposed to wait around for you?" she asked angrily.

He sighed, considering her question. "If you want...I guess that's your decision."

"Well, you're making that decision easy for me. If you can't do this now, who's to say you'll be ready in 5 months? Would I just be waiting around so you can hurt me again? I can't do that, Tommy."

"You don't trust me?" he pleaded softly, realizing she was about to give up before anything had actually started.

"With everything else in my life—yes. But when it comes to us, how can I? You keep playing these games with me and you still haven't even told me how you feel about me."

"Jude, I…"

"It's too late," she said wiping away her falling tears. "I don't want to hear it now. You made your decision, so here's mine: You don't want to do this now, so I'm not promising I'll be around in 5 months for you. And then you're going to regret ever making this decision," she said coldly, opening up the closet door and storming out, leaving him speechless in the dark closet.