MICHAEL:

I liked the look in her eye when she said he wasn't like me. "What happened with Elle today?" I asked finally. I hated saying her name when I was near Mia now. It only reminded me of the slime I was for cheating with her in front of her face. It was one thing to cheat with strangers, much different with the girl of my dreams.

I also hated the look she had on her face when I said Elle. It was like...like she suddenly remembered that I had only slept with that woman that morning. Just down the hall from where we were currently sitting. I noticed that she was staring down at my bedroom door. Then she looked back at her food.

She shook her head. "She's nosy. Started looking through my bedroom. My bookshelves…my old journals…."

"She did that?" I said with a laugh. "Please Mia, tell me. Did she get any good dirt? Did she read about how adorable Napoleon looked in his lacrosse uniform? Or how amazing Huck was in bed?"

She gave me a look. It was supposed to look stern, but I could see she was trying not to laugh. , "I know, but I'm just under a lot of stress, ya know?"

And she really looked it. With her hair falling down loose around her face and the easy smile her lips had formed. The smile she always had on when she was around me. Maybe it was because of me, or maybe it was just her smile. I dunno.

Isn't it funny how love can make no sense at all? I'm just saying gibberish now so please, please ignore it. And do not remind me of my love sickness when I get into a fight or something with Mia. Just let me be.

"How so?" I asked, balancing my macaroni on my fork.

"Felix…you…the band…Elle…Louie…shit, I have to call him."

She jumped up and left the room to call her brother. Just in time too, Elle called my cell phone. "Hello?" I asked, feigning grogginess.

"Oh goodie! You are up! I was just calling to see if you were up still. I am getting really hungry. Wanna meet up?"

What happened to the sexy independent girl I had met all those years ago? The girl who had no fear. She moved all the way to New York from Australia because it sounded cool and she liked New York accents? The girl who had tons of friends over every night to party? Why was she so suddenly so dependent on me taking her out? "I'm sleeping."

"Michael, I feel like we haven't spent any time together since you've gotten home."

"Elle, I'm fucking tired. What do you want? I'm not a fucking machine."

She sighed, "I'm sorry babe…I just miss you. Don't you miss your tall glass of water?"

I sincerely tried not to laugh. Mia walked in and I put my finger to my lips to tell her to be quiet. "Elle… come on. Let me get some damn sleep."

"Fine. I'll see you tomorrow night?"

"What, you aren't joining us in the studio?" I asked, almost immediately regretted it.

"No. I'm trying to get myself a manager. I need to meet with some people."

I smiled but made my voice hide this fact, "Oh…oh well. I'll see you um…"

"I'll try Mia. Try to smooth things over today. I started reading things I shouldn't have looked at. Did you know she had a crush on you when she was younger? Even when she was dating Felix and those other guys…"

I looked at Mia who was innocently slurping her noodles. "Yeah. I know. Everyone knows that. She knows I know."

She sighed, "That girl has ALL the connections."

I sighed, "What's that supposed to mean?" I asked.

"I mean, she's known you forever so you handed her a job when she lost out on being a princess. Did you know she dated the President's son? The one that is a baseball player… Schilling Davies? She's practically engaged to a musician, she's a princess…stop me when I say something wrong here."

I laughed, "She has her faults too. I'm gonna go to bed. I have to be there in a little while."

"Okay babe. I'll call you tonight."

"I'm sure you will," I replied, mentally noting to shut off my phone.

"I love-"

"Bye."


"How's Louie?"

Mia smiled, "He's exhausted by the UN, but he'll deal. He'll be here tomorrow night. I guess he had already known but didn't tell me. He's going to stay with me and Lilly."

"We'll hafta take him out and show him a New Yorker's tour of the city. He hasn't been let loose around here in like...forever."

She smiled, "Grandmere is faxing over rules and regulations to me in the morning."

I laughed. That was definitely her grandmother. "Well, can't blame her. We might tattoo her future crowned prince. Bring him by Cappy's. Manny and I are doing an acoustic set."

"You realize once people hear you guys are there it will be impossible to get in, right? I mean, everyone knows that Chariot is our fake stage name now-"

"I'll have a table for you two. I know the owners," I teased. "C'mon. You wanna do it. You know you wanna do it"

"Sure," she said after a while. But she was smiling widely.

I cleaned up the dishes and looked at the time. We still had another forty five minutes before we had to be at the studio...which was a five minute walk. And I'm known to be late. And Mia is known to be the one to be dragging me to where ever I have to be.

I left our dishes in the sink and returned to the living room where she was twirling her glass of wine around and looking out the window. "Come here," I said putting out my arms.

I hit a button on the stereo remote and the sounds of Norah Jones came out. Not many know this, consider yourself lucky to know this, but I love Norah Jones. Her voice is the opposite of mine; it's pretty.

Her version of Love Me Tender came on and Mia melted into my arms.

"I love this song," she whispered.

"I know," I replied. "You used to sing it in the shower."

She gave me a face, then leaned up and kissed me. This was the first time she had made the first move.

We fell onto my couch and simply kissed. Then our hormones got the better of us and there was groping. We hadn't even really decided if we wanted to pursue a relationship, but I didn't care. This felt too damn good.

I was just about to start kissing between her breasts (I don't know how, but her blouse became open…) when a phonestarted ringing. We began to ignore it, but found that difficult because it wouldn't stop. "It's mine," she admitted guiltily, reaching for her phone on the coffee table. I won't lie. I simply stared at her body while she was reaching. Something that was so normal it hurt…yet I now found every little thing she did arousing. Which is why I got off of her (yes, I was lying on top of her).

"Relax Lilly. Relax. Breathe. Look under- you got it?" she asked forking her fingers through her hair. We were too much alike.

"What did she lose?" I asked, resting my head on her bare stomach.

"Her keys. She wanted me to come home and let her in. But she forgot that she left them in her messenger bag and not her purse."

"Good," I said finally. "Cuz you aren't leaving here until we have to. Then you're coming back here and continuing this."

"Continuing what exactly?" she asked, her eyes glowing.

I crawled back on top of her and leaned my forehead against hers. "I dunno... I'm having fun though."

She laughed and put her fingers through my hair. "I am too," she whispered.

I looked at the clock and saw that only half an hour left before we had to literally run to NBC. "We shouldn't start anything," I decided finally.

She nodded in agreement.

"Are we going to ever make a decision about…" I started. I wanted her to dump ass face so I could have her all to myself.

"About?" she said with questioning eyes.

"Us?"

"There's an us?" she teased with a smile.

"I should certainly hope so," I replied, helping her button up her shirt.

She blushed. "I can't believe I let it get this far," she laughed.

"You regret fooling around?" I asked, hoping she hadn't. God. I'm worse than I was when we were kids. I'm STILL questioning every word she says.

"No…I don't…just…I mean, I don't want to bring up a sore subject, but Felix and I don't have the most physical relationship. Not anymore"

I smiled. "I figured."

She looked at me oddly, "But…Not that I only want you for that….I mean…"

"I get it," I said softly. She wasn't ready to say that she wanted me for a relationship.

"I mean, he's reliable. And he does love me…but shouldn't there be a physical part of a relationship?"
I replied by kissing her neck.

"Michael, I already have marks from your five o'clock shadow. They'll know."

"Let them," I replied, pinning her against the couch again.

My phone rang about forty five minutes into our second make out session. "Dude where are you? Where's Mia?" Manny asked, exasperated.

"Oh, she stubbed her toe," I lied.

She smirked.

"How?"

"In the bathroom. She was wearing sandals. We are getting back from her place so she could change into sneakers.

"Whatever. Just get here."


She wasn't really around much the next day. She hadn't come back to my place after rehearsal because Lilly needed girl time or something. I think the two of them were going out with Shameeka since she was in town for a few days.

She got tothe studioearly and left early the next day to meet her brother. "Can I meet you two for dinner?" I asked her when we were enclosed in an office. I was nuzzling her neck.

She shook her head. "No. I need alone time with my brother. It's been months."

I could respect that. "Fine. But you are all mine tomorrow night, got it? If I'm stuck with her on Thursday-"

"We're going out with Lix tomorrow night. Sorry."

I shrugged. I couldn't stop her from dating her boyfriend. I was still dating my girlfriend. I still couldn't get the nerve to break her heart. Maybe if I just continued to blow her off it would be okay. She'd catch the hint. "Fine. I'll go out with Ryan and the boys."

"I'll pretend to be jealous," she said pulling away.

"I'll see you tonight though, right? With Lix?"

I turned as the door opened, "Mia, some woman named Clarisse is on the phone. She didn't know your extension. Should I let her through?" the receptionist asked. She looked at Mia, then me. We were both wearing rather wrinkled clothes.

"Oh, that's my grandmother…and no. I'm not here."

The receptionist looked at me, "Michael Moscovitz….." she asked.

I nodded. Mia looked really amused. The woman had already met her and gotten used to seeing her lurking around the offices. I hardly ever ventured into the offices of the record company. At least not this end of them. I only came in when necessary. When contracts needed to be signed or I needed to fight a producer. This was more the financial end of the building. Mia came here often to just be alone and write or talk on the phone. She got privacy here. No one ever bothered her.

"Can I…wait; can I get fired for asking for an autograph?"

"Here is a super secret promotional shot of him," Mia said handing the girl a picture of me to have me sign. "He'll be happy to sign it."

The girl blushed and handed me a black and white shot of me from high school. My senior photo. The only time the school let us wear something to express ourselves (AKA: out of our uniforms). I was wearing no shirt and had let myself grow a little facial hair. I wanted to look different from how everyone saw me.

"Happily," I said scribbling my name on it.

"Head shot?" the girl teased.

"Kind of. Senior picture."

"Mug shot more like it," Mia teased.

She laughed and left us alone. Once she shut the door Mia practically jumped on top of me. "I'll miss ya," she said smiling with her legs wrapped around my waist and her arms around my neck.

I would miss her too, but I hated admitting it. So I kissed her instead.

"I'm not starting anything," she said getting up. "I'm going to meet Louie and take him on a real tour of the city."


I watched from the fourth floor as she left the building. "What are you doing?" Lilly asked, coming up behind me.

"Me? Nothing."

"Uh huh, right. I got some designs for the next tours posters."

"Oh great."


MIA:
I don't have any idea what is going on with me and Michael. When ever one of us feels comfortable, the other starts pulling back on the emotional stuff and just starts kissing the other.

I couldn't think about that though because by the time I got to the corner to get a cab I ran into Lix (literally). "Hey sweetheart," he said kissing my cheek and handing me a bouquet of wildflowers.

"Oh, hey," I said hugging him. "Where did you get these? They don't smell like the city at all."

"I was in the country," he explained. "And picked them for you."

"The country?" I asked. Who the hell goes to the country and picks up flowers? "Oh, um, okay. I'm just about to get Louie from his hotel-"

"Sure."

I had invited him thinking he'd say no. For once he surprises me.

"Lexie, do you mind if I hang with my sister alone a little bit?" Louie said when we got back to my apartment. I silently thanked him as he dropped his bags to the floor. I told him no airs would be allowed in my house. He had to carry his own things and make his own bed.

"Oh certainly. I will see you both this evening? Rainbow Room?"

"Oh definitely the Rainbow Room," Louie said, emphasizing rainbow. I elbowed him and kissed Felix on the cheek. "See you at eight."

Louie fell onto the futon in the living room. "You haven't given him the axe yet?"

I shrugged, "No."

"Do it before my birthday. I don't want him there."

"He won't be here. Michael said he wanted to come too."

He smiled, "Oh really? Things progressing there?"

I shrugged, "I don't know. I don't wanna think about it too much. Let things go as they may. I don't want to jinx it." I replied. "What did you wanna do?"

"Can we go to Central Park?" he asked.

"Oh right. Throw your bags in my room. We'll run out right now."

It was fun seeing him walk through the city. He didn't have his body guard on top of him, so he felt normal (Francois, my former Genovian guard was laying back with Lars thirty feet away and was wearing street clothes to blend in). He was so happy to be seeing New York. He'd grown up on a farm in Connecticut with his mother and grandparents. Then he went to Princeton and found out he was the prince of Genovia. And he never got to experience drunken nights in New York City like his friends at school.

We bought food from the venders (which is always questionable but he needed the full New York experience). We fed the squirrels. Got chased by squirrels. Had our picture taken by the reservoir by some paparazzi. We made faces to them and even talked to them. Funny.

When I'm with my brother I will actually talk to the paparazzi. Grandmere says that we should form a kinship with them so that they will respect us when we truly need to be alone. So we wouldn't end up like other celebrities.

But when I was alone, just Mia Grimaldi of Glass of Water I never wanted to be photographed. I just wanted to play my music and hang with my friends. Hang with Michael. And to stay away from the photographers.

"It's because you are famous with me because of our birth. People want to see a princess when you are with me. When you are playing in the band they wanna know you because you play music and are having fun doing it. Not many people get that…you know, having people wanting to know them because of their job…"

"That made no sense," I said with a laugh, throwing a peanut at my brother.

"Well, as a princess you are to be gracious and friendly. Your life is an open book. What happens to you…who you marry your kids…. Will go into history books. You have no control over that. But your band is more personal. It's your real life."

I nodded and put my head on his shoulder, "Oh shit!"

"What?"

"We're going to be late!"

Louie and I were done just in time for dinner with Felix. We weren't really dressed for the Rainbow Room so we had to borrow from Sebastino (whose shop is nearby). I had a pink and white tea length dress that had a halter top (which showed off my fab should's) and black open toe heels.

Louie wore the newest suit from Seb's fall fashion line. Charcoal, (which I must say he looks really handsome in…come on, even sisters respect a good looking brother) with a maroon shirt. "You look handsome," I said as I heard camera flashes going off.

"That's going to be a great shot," he teased. He and I loved making weird facial expressions when we spoke in public to one another because then the paparazzi wouldn't want a picture…who wants one with a princess's nose flaring up?

"Your highnesses, please follow me," the maitre d greeted.


Michael:

Mia was going out with Senor Douche and her brother that night. "Ready for tonight Lil Man?" Manny asked, coming into the office that I had been only hours ago making out with Mia.

"Hey, look at these songs," I said tossing songs from a folder. I'd written them ages ago. "I wanna play that second one tonight. Think you can figure it out this afternoon?"

"Looks simple enough. What's going on?"

"Nothing," I replied, spinning a quarter on the table.

"It's not nothing," he replied, stopping the spin. "What happened in Boston?"

"Weezer put on a great show," I replied. "Seriously. The best one I've ever seen."

He shook his head.

"I gotta go take a piss though. You'll be all set with those songs?"

"Dude, I know you too well. Don't hide."

"Look," I said, getting up and pacing. "I'm….I did meet someone in Boston. She's…" I stopped myself, trying to find the words that would sum up Mia. But none came to mind, so I settled for, "amazing…."

"She's-"

"And Mia loved her. I- I met her at that benefit thing," I said cutting him off before he could get a single thought out.

"Right," he said crossing his arms across his chest.

"Seriously. She's…she's pretty much perfect. Mia knows her. They uh, went to school together."

"And so you wrote this for her? All in what, two days?"

"No, I actually wrote it a while back. Just…wanted it to be played when I found what I was looking for."

He studied my face. He knew I was lying. He knew me way too well. "Which is?"

"Uh, her."

"What's her name?"

"Her name?"

"This girl."

"Oh, Mary."

He looked back down at the papers I'd given him. "Fine. I'll buy that story… for now. But I'm not buying it forever."

Cappy's was always the place that let us hang out when we were younger. But when we went out west we found out that it was in danger of closing because of sales. So the five of us got together and bought half of the business. We used the money from our signing to help Mr. O'Malley out. We figured it was only fair since he had served us when we were underage and let us practice at times when it was slow and we wouldn't be bothering his customers. Back then his general customer was in his or her sixties

So now when we are in town we try to do some special shows at Cappy's. This brings in crowds. Business is doing really well now and we couldn't be happier for Mr. O'Malley. He has a picture of the six of us (including him) hanging over the bar. He is always telling us about the girls that come in looking to see if we were popping in; and how they would leave their numbers and bras for us. I dunno what they expect us to do with the bras but whatever.

Guys leave resumes for Mia to peruse.

"Hey Mr. O'Malley," I said, entering the bar before the opening of the night. I sat at a bar stool as he handed me a Shirley Temple. My usual.

"Hey there Mickey. How goes it? The boys were telling me you and Miss Mia were in Boston?"

He was the ONLY person allowed to call me Mick. He had names for all of us. Mia was the only girl of our elite crew and therefore was Miss Mia. He adores her and innocently flirts with her all the time. "Yeah, there was a concert and a game. And a benefit thing she promised she'd do."

"You kids are great with all the charity work you do."

"What is the point of money if you aren't helping people?" I asked.

He nodded, "Right. I don't know where I'd be without you kids helping me out. Whoddathunk it huh? You kids acting all rowdy all these years and then come out and help an old guy like me. I'll never be able to make it up to you-"

Right then Kevin came in and rang the bell. He'd gotten some the night before. "What's up brotha?"

Mr. O'Malley rolled his eyes and got Kevin's beer for him. "Manny and I are doing a show tonight."

"Nice. I got a booty call at ten."

"Something to look forward to."

"You gonna go see Elle?"

"Nah."

"You need some ass man. Seriously. You become a bitch when you ain't getting any. O'Malley, did you know that this kid here has-"

"Kevin, shuttup."

"No man, O'Malley, he was offered a threesome, and he turned it down cold. He got offers like, EVERY night and turned them all down."

O'Malley looked at me and smirked. "Oh, what did you do instead Mickey?"

"He went and played fucking cards with Mia is what he did. Dude, you could have done sooo much on this tour alone if you weren't such a pansy. I gotta take a piss. I'll be right back, don't touch my beer."

After he left O'Malley looked at me and laughed. "After all this time he still doesn't get it, does he?"

"Get what?"

"You and Mia. You two have this…this chemistry. I noticed it from the first time you boys brought her in here."

There was no denying that. O'Malley had always been the type to sit back and observe. "Well…."

"It's only a matter of time m'boy," he said in his heavy brogue.

"You have no idea," I said swallowing a big gulp of water. "No idea at all."