Thanks to darkdestiney2000, warrior of the shadow, and HockeyGurl for their reviews for the last chapter, I'm glad that putting the play into it hasn't made it strange. Who wants to see some more CharlieStella romance? Let me know in your review, because I've got a great idea coming up, but I'm only going to use it if I know that people want to see a little fluffy scene(it's the suprise that Charlie refuses to reveal). Also, I downloaded a script to the Italian Job the other day which wasn't the final draft, and mentioned that Philly Steak came to Stella's house when she was little and dropped quaters on the floor for her to find while he played poker with John. I don't know if anyone else has read that, but it gave me the idea of doing a fic of Stella growing up and ending at her father's death. If anyone is interested in it, please let me know!

Sam

xx

After school, Holly and the boys came into the Croker house. Holly ran through ahead of them screaming at the top of her lungs: "I got it! I got the part!" Charlie and Stella were in the garden, relaxing in the remains of the summer sun when they first heard her shouts. She came crashing through the house and it was a wonder she hadn't knocked anything over and broken it with the amount of things she had run into to find her parents. When they heard her approaching through the doors, Stella stood up to greet her. Holly ran head on into her and hugged her. "Mom! I got it! I got the part of Christine!" She cried excitedly.

"Well done!" Stella praised, equally excited for her.

Holly went next to Charlie, and was hugging him when the boys came out into the garden.

"Thats great, Princess." Charlie said with a grin. The nickname 'princess' had never really faded, not for Charlie. She would always be his princess, and she knew it. She was still a daddy's girl even though she had grown up a bit.

"It was amazing, Dad." Alex said slyly, getting a raised, teasing eyebrow from Stella as he did so.

"Yeah, you should have seen her," Damon agreed.

Charlie winked at them over Holly's shoulder. "Trust you to sneak in." Charlie muttered under his breath, but loud enough for them to hear. Alex was about to reply with 'trust you to join us' when he remembered that Holly wasn't to know. Charlie grinned as Holly pulled away from him.

"I have to go practice!" She announced, running back through the house, only to appear in the window beside the stereo, flicking through the CD's until she found the one she was looking for 'The Phantom of the Opera Soundtrack' and ran upstairs with it.

"How did your audition go, Michael?" Stella asked him. Charlie hadn't stayed long enough to find out if either of them had got their parts, as they were announced in an assembly at the end of the day, and if he had been spotted on the roof then, he would have been in trouble.

"Thanks to Holly, I got the part too." He said with a confident smile. "I really didn't think I'd be able to sing any of the songs, but Holly helped."

"Who did you get?" Stella asked again.

"Raoul." He said. "I get to play Holly's on stage fiancee."

The others had never thought of this, and the boys looked to each other with disgust on their face. "But-" Alex began. "We're like brothers. That would make you like brother and sister!" He protested.

"It's almost like incest." The twins said in unison, the strange awe for the disgusting was evident in their voice.

It was no secret that Michael had a small crush on Holly, as they were always together growing up, but to them it was just a brilliant friendship. Stella thought it was sweet, as did the other adults, even though they were too manly to admit it was 'sweet'. The boys all flopped down on the patio, only Michael thought logically enough to lounge on one of the chairs, and Stella went back to her own as up above, music from the Phantom of the Opera flooded through Holly's open window.

"I'm bored." Damon announced.

Stella looked up with a warning look to Alex, and found that already he had a curious look in his face. He was always one for coming up with a means of entertainment when it came to the words 'I'm bored', which usually resulted in a concussion or a broken object, more than likely a bone. "No." She said, seeing the look on his face.

"What? How did you know-" He started desperately, trying to defend himself.

"I'm your mother, I know everything." She said simply, picking up her magazine and continuing to read the recipe she intended to try. Alex stood up and walked into the house. "Where are you going?" She asked him.

Alex turned to her with a cheeky smile, alike to Charlie's, but unique in its own way. "I thought you knew everything." He challenged.

Charlie laughed at his response. "That's my boy." He said under his breath.

The other boys continued to figure out what they could do until their parents arrived to collect them. "Let's go fake an injury at the ice rink and sue for damages." Nathan suggested.

Charlie looked up at them with a confused look on his face. "What the hell would you want to do that for?" He asked. "We've got millions between us, and you want to sue someone for a fake injury?"

The twins looked at each other and then back at Charlie. "Sure, why not?"

He shook his head. "I give up with you two." He said quietly.

There was a small silence, broken by a small humming. Charlie looked up at Holly's window, and the noise definately wasn't coming from her. He wouldn't be able to hear her humming over the noise of that music. It was a good thing that their neighbours were quite a distance away and couldn't hear her music else they might have the police on their doorstep. He looked around, the boys were chatting amongst themselves, and Stella was twirling a lock of her between her fingers whilst she read her magazine, tapping her foot against the others and humming the tune that was floating down from the window. Charlie smiled at her. She looked up at him and grinned back.

"What?" She asked, still smiling.

"Do I need an excuse to look at my lovely wife?" He asked innocently.

"You do when you have that look on your face Charlie Croker." She replied.

He held his hands up in defence. "I was just thinking." He admitted.

"About what?" She asked.

"Your suprise."

He still hadn't told her, but she knew as much to know that it was happening tomorrow, friday night. He had the whole evening planned out for them, and was extremely pleased with himself for thinking it up, and for resisting her every attempt to worm it out of him. Usually he was terrible with keeping secrets, and would always end up telling her when he was planning something. But this was special, and so he had kept his lips tightly sealed.

Alex reappeared in the doorway holding his hands in his pockets. "Guys, I'm all out." He said.

"All out of what?" Stella asked, forgetting Charlie's incessive teasing.

"Ideas." He admitted.

At that moment, Lyle came in through the house and settled down on the bench. "Hi guys." He greeted. "How'd it go, Mikey? He asked Michael.

Michael nodded. "I got the part." He informed him.

"Nice one." He said with a grin. "Not that I'll have any idea, but who?"

"Raoul." As expected, there was a confused expression on his face. "Holly's on stage fiancee." He added, and Lyle nodded.

"Bet you love that." He said with a chuckle.

"Dad!" Michael said, trying to quiet him. Stella and Charlie laughed, they didn't mind.

Lyle pulled his laptop out of his bag and opened it up. He began to talk to Charlie about his latest program, and Stella wandered upstairs to Holly's room.

She stood outside her door for a few moments, listening to her daughter's voice as she sang her favourite song of the play 'Wishing you were somewhere here again.'

"You were once my one companion,
you were all that mattered.
You were once a friend and father,
then my world was shattered. "

Stella knocked on the door and Holly stopped singing. "Come in." She shouted, pausing the CD. Stella stepped in, closing the door again behind her. "Oh, hi Mom." She said sweetly as Stella came and flopped onto the end of Holly's bed, where she was lying on her front, with a page of lyrics in front of her, even though she didn't need them. As soon as she had found out about the play, she had printed them all off, not only as a help to her, but also for Michael.

"Hi sweetie." She replied. "Don't stop singing on my account. I just came up here for some female company." She assured.

"Uncle Lyle here?" Holly asked, understanding.

"Uh huh." Holly always called the other men Uncle, she had done so ever since she was little. "Go on," Stella encouraged. "Carry on singing, I like that song." She smiled.

Holly shrugged. "All right." She put the CD back to the beginning of the track, and kept her face down at the lyrics as she sang to Stella.

"You were once my one companion,
you were all that mattered.
You were once a friend and father,
then my world was shattered.

Wishing you were somehow here again,
wishing you were somehow near.
Sometimes it seemed if I just dreamed,
somehow you would be here.

Wishing I could hear your voice again,
knowing that I never would.
Dreaming of you won't help me to do,
all that you dreamed I could!

Passing bells and sculpted angels,
cold and monumental.
Seem, for you, the wrong companions,
you were warm and gentle.

Too many years fighting back tears,
why can't the past just die!

Wishing you were somehow here again,
knowing we must say goodbye!
Try to forgive, teach me to live!
Give me the strength to try!

No more memories, no more silent tears!
No more gazing across the wasted years!
Help me say goodbye
Help me say goodbye..."

Stella listened to every line she sang, trying to find the deeper meaning in it. Holly looked up from the lyrics thoughtfully and spoke quietly. "Mom, why is that one your favourite?" She asked.

Stella was silent. "I don't know." She said.

"Is it because it reminds you of Grandad?"

Holly and Alex had been told all about the legendary John Bridger, their grandfather. They knew how much Stella and Charlie both missed him, and if she admitted it, the words in the song described exactly how she had felt that day when Charlie had waltzed back into her life telling her that they'd found Steve. Stella stared up at the ceiling. "I guess so." Holly moved and hugged her mother, seeing that she was getting upset a little.

"Sorry, Mom. I didn't mean to make you sad." She said quietly.

"It's all right." Stella said with a smile. "I was just thinking how much he would have loved you and Alex." She said. "He would have loved you so much." She told Holly.

"Just because you can't see him, that doesn't mean he isn't there." Holly said, remembering when her friend's mother had died last year. "Ally's Dad said that even though her Mom was gone, she was still there watching there, and looking after them both." Stella smiled at Holly. "I've never met Grandad, but I know he's there."

"You do?" Stella asked.

"Yeah. When I see you upset, I always ask Grandad that if he is there, to let you smile. And he does."

Stella looked at Holly proudly. There was an untold wisdom in the girl that she rarely showed, but when she did, it was amazing how much it made sense. "He always told me that when I had kids, I would be a great mother." She told Holly, "And that I would have a wonderful man to love me, and kids whom I loved. When he told me that, I was eighteen years old, and had just broken up with someone I was seeing. I didn't believe him when he first told me. I didn't believe him until the day Alex was born, and your Dad was at my side the whole time."

Holly smiled. "See, Grandad's still there. He wouldn't let anything bad happen to you 'cause you're his little girl, and so he made sure that you got good things."

Stella smiled again, and they were silent for a few minutes. "You want to help me make dinner?" She asked.

"What are we having?"

"Whatever you want."