Hi--a couple of quick things for all of you wonderful readers out there.
First, I'm sad to say that there are only a couple more chapters to this story. I haven't written the ending yet, but it looks like it'll only be another 2 after this. I can't believe it's almost over, but you guys have truly been amazing throughout the whole thing. There isn't going to be a sequel, but as I mentioned earlier, I'm working on another fanfic that I'm completely obsessed with. I love every chapter of it so far, so I can't wait to start posting it. But I promised myself I wouldn't until I finish this one.
Second, I have a massively crazy week ahead of me and then I'm going away for a week on vacation (yay!). Not far away, but I may not have easy access to a computer, so my goal is to post the rest of the story by the end of the week, if possible. If not, I'll figure out whether or not I'll be able to post the remaining chapters while I'm away or if I'll have to wait until the following week. I'll definitely let you know as the week continues. Thank you for your patience in advance :-)
I guess that's about it. I'm glad you were all happy with the studio's reaction to Tommy and Jude's relationship. I aim to please! So here's our next part...ENJOY!
Tommy and Jude casually re-entered the party, unable to stop smiling. Making their way towards the bar, they were accosted by a frenetic Sadie.
"Jude!" she cried, heading towards the bar. "Where have you been?"
"Around," Jude replied vaguely, her smile growing wider as she beamed at Tommy.
"Eww, thanks for the mental image," Sadie replied, looking between the two of them.
"Sadie, not everything is about sex!" Jude retorted, shaking her head. "We actually just got out of a meeting with Darius, Georgia, and Liam."
"A meeting? Now?" Sadie questioned in confusion.
"Yes," Tommy replied. "This was the meeting where we were told whether or not we would still be working together given our situation."
"Wait—you told them? About the two of you?" Sadie asked, her face in shock. Tommy and Jude nodded, watching her jaw drop. "Are you crazy?"
"Probably," Tommy replied with a smile. "But they're letting us work together anyway."
"Wow, congratulations," Sadie said, surprise still in her voice.
"Thanks," Jude said softly with a grin, leaning in closer to Tommy who hugged her warmly.
"You two are seriously grossing me out…" Sadie remarked, watching them. "Anyway Jude, I came to tell you that the DJ played a song I requested and you missed it."
"What song?" Jude asked.
"Bye Bye Bye by 'N Sync," Sadie replied. Jude immediately laughed, remembering the song's significance.
"I don't get it," Tommy said, watching them both laughing now.
Jude quieted down to answer. "Well, one afternoon when Sadie was bored, she forced me to learn all of the dance moves in the 'N Sync video for Bye Bye Bye. We literally watched that video a hundred times."
"Jude is not a dancer," Sadie commented with a grin.
"So I've heard," Tommy replied, grabbing her hand. "I think I'm going to have to witness it for myself though."
"Wait—no," Jude resisted, being dragged onto the dance floor. "Tommy!"
"Nope, sorry, you have to dance on your birthday," he responded, pulling her into the middle of the floor. She turned bright red as everyone applauded for her, waiting for her to dance. She sighed, hearing the beats of "I Will Survive," and began dancing as best as she could.
Half an hour later, Tommy and Jude decided to take a break, sitting down at a vacant table. He went to get her a glass of water as Jude's mother approached the table.
"Having a good time, sweetie?" she asked, sitting down across from Jude.
"Mom! Hi," Jude replied awkwardly. "Yeah, I'm having a great time."
"Good. When Tommy said he wanted to throw you this party, I wasn't sure if you would be happy with it, but I guess he knows you pretty well," Victoria said.
"Yeah, he does," Jude replied distantly. "Mom, there's something I need to talk to you about."
Victoria sat up straighter, looking at her daughter with concern. "Is everything okay?"
"Oh yeah, everything's great. It's just that there's something…I need to tell you," Jude started, seeing Tommy come back with the glass of water.
"One water, Miss Harrison," he said, placing it down on the table in front of her. He looked across from her and immediately stiffened at the sight of her mother. "Umm, hello, Mrs. Harrison."
"Hi, Tommy. Please, call me Victoria. Sit down and join us. Jude was just about to tell me something," Victoria said. "Unless you want to wait until later, Jude?"
Jude looked nervously at Tommy who slowly took a seat next to her. She looked back at her mom and said, "Actually mom, what I have to tell you involves Tommy too."
Before she could continue, another figure approached the table.
"There's my birthday girl," Mr. Harrison said, holding out his arms for a hug. Jude hesitantly stood to hug him.
"Hi, Dad," she said quietly.
"Did you get my gift? I know you don't really ski, but Yvette thought—"
"Stuart, you're interrupting," Victoria cut in sharply.
"No, Dad, why don't you take a seat too?" Jude said nervously, pulling up another chair. "What I have to say is for both of you actually."
"Okay, then what is it? Is it your album?" Victoria questioned.
"No, the album's going great," Jude said, fiddling with the edge of her dress in nervousness. "It's not about the album…or the studio actually…" She bit her lip and met Tommy's anxious gaze, knowing she needed to be the one to say it.
"I'm sort of…Tommy and I are sort of…ummm…."
"What is it, Jude?" Stuart questioned.
"Tommy and I are…sort of…ummm…." Jude started again, looking down and faintly adding, "dating."
Both Victoria and Stuart leaned in closer, faces scrunched up in confusion. Stuart quickly asked, "I'm sorry, you said that so quietly, I'm not sure if I heard correctly. You're…dating?"
Jude sighed and looked up at them. She felt Tommy grab her hand under the table and squeeze it tightly. "Yes, we're dating."
Tommy, not knowing what to say, remained silent, waiting for their reaction. Stuart exhaled deeply and leaned back in his chair, while Victoria just stared at them blankly.
"For how long?" she asked.
"Just a few weeks," Jude said quickly, looking at Tommy uneasily. He knew she had decided to lie to keep the reaction to a minimum. "We would've told you earlier, but we umm…well, we…we…"
"We wanted to make sure it was serious before letting anyone know," Tommy suddenly chimed in, filling in for Jude's floundering words.
Victoria nodded in understanding. "How serious is serious? I heard what you said before turning on the lights—"
"That was a joke, Mom," Jude defended.
Victoria relaxed in her chair, while Stuart sat forward and asked, "Does the studio know?"
"We just told them," Tommy replied.
"And they're letting you work together?" he questioned.
"Yes. They trust us," Jude answered.
He shook his head disapprovingly. "I don't know about this…have you thought about what this could do to your career, Jude?"
Jude's eyes narrowed. "What does that mean, Dad? Tommy has only done great things for my career so far."
"No, I mean," Stuart began, "you two will be in the papers. Paparazzi will follow you around, they'll pick you both apart—they always do. Don't you want people to know you for your music and not your love life?"
"Dad," Jude started, trying to stay calm, "my music wouldn't be what it is without Tommy. And I don't care what people think. It's my life, I'm making my own choices."
Tommy listened to her and watched her father's distressed reaction, feeling the need to interject. "Mr. Harrison, we thought about all of this. We know what people's reactions will be, but it doesn't matter. We just want to be together."
"And you think your social reputation isn't going to taint my daughter's image?" Stuart asked curtly.
"Stuart!" Victoria cried, outraged at his question.
"Vic, you know exactly what I mean! How can you sit here and act so calm when our daughter is running around with this party animal behind our backs?" Mr. Harrison suddenly stood up from the table, turning to walk away without another word. Jude looked at Tommy in a panic, feeling the situation suddenly spiraling downhill.