Disclaimer: If I owned any of this except for the original characters, I would be extremely rich at the moment.

Chapter Thirteen

Entering her apartment, Brooke locked the door behind her before turning on the lights and collapsing onto her couch, exhausted. She had a long day and no doubt tomorrow was going to be even longer. Seeing her book that she was supposed to be reading for her Literature class, Brooke grabbed it and flipped to the page that she had left off on.

After several moments of intense concentration, Brooke finally threw the book aside. It was too late to be trying to decipher through nineteenth century way of speaking. Standing, she made her way through the clutter to her kitchen counter to check her messages.

"You have three new messages," the voice on the recorder chanted at her.

"That's typical, I can never have just one," Brooke muttered to herself.

"Message One," the voice continued. "Recorded at 3:45 p.m."

"Oh, just get on with it," Brooke growled as she made her way around the counter to reach the refrigerator.

"Hey, Brooke, it's me, Tara. I was just calling to see what you were doing this weekend. Obviously you're not home yet, so call me back when you get home. Catch you later."

Brooke laughed and shook her head. Her friend Tara Croft was as impatient as anyone she knew. Tara was also one for bringing out the best of the best in the weekends, making each one worthwhile, each one different from the last and each one to remember for a long time afterwards. Brooke wished she had as much energy as that girl did.

Message two was from her university, telling her that the morning's classes were cancelled due to the air conditioner being broken. That was good since Brooke needed the morning to finish her lines and get a start on her Literature homework. Literature wasn't a requirement at her college, but Brooke figured that the study of the characters would help her a lot in theatre.

"Message three, recorded at five-thirty p.m." the voice exclaimed, breaking Brooke from her thoughts.

"Hey, it's Jesse. I thought you might want to do something tomorrow since classes are cancelled. Let's say we go to the café for something to eat and chat. Then maybe we can do something afterwards. Give me a ring."

"No more messages," the recorder informed her before beeping off.

Brooke sat back on the stool that she had settled herself on and smiled. Jesse had been her best friend since they were kids and went to the same college that she did. She had a feeling that Jesse had a crush on her and that's why he came to London to be at the same college that she went to. Whatever the reason, Brooke was glad he did because it was at least one familiar face in a sea of strangers.

Finishing her leftover spaghetti that she had for dinner last night, Brooke dialed Tara's number. It was better to not let the girl suffer a moment longer.

"It's about time you called, girl, I was about to call the police on you," Tara's voice said loudly.

"Well, that's a nice way of being a good friend," Brooke said, laughing.

"Someone's got to look after you," Tara exclaimed, joining in the laughter. "So what are you doing this weekend, friend? I thought we might take a road trip."

"A road trip?" Brooke asked skeptically. Tara's road trips ended up on the beach for a week with parties that included the guys. Tara was always trying to find the right guy for the both of them.

"Yeah, it's a great plan. And you can meet that new guy from America I was telling you about. You would like him, I promise you."

"Well, I'll have to see, because I have plans for lunch tomorrow at noon and my friend Jesse wants to do something tomorrow, also," Brooke stated.

"Isn't Jesse that one guy who you said followed you here all the way from Manchester? I keep telling you he's a stalker, B, and you don't need to be around him," Tara said.

"Oh, give the guy a break, Tara, he's my friend. And anyways, you haven't even met him yet," Brooke said.

"I don't need to, the way you keep talking about him. So are you going to come or not?" Brooke could feel the expectant tension on the other end.

Brooke sighed. "When are you leaving?"

"Five o'clock sharp, right after I get off work. We're meeting at my place," Tara said.

"I'll try and be there," Brooke informed her.

"Oh, come on, Brooke, it's going to be lots of fun," Tara pleaded.

"I'm telling you I may or may not be there, depending on how the rest of the day goes," Brooke said firmly, determined to get the upper hand.

"Fine, but you'll miss out on all the action if you don't go," Tara said.

"I'll take that chance," Brooke stated.

"Well, I'll talk to you later, I've got to catch up with my gossip," Tara exclaimed.

Brooke rolled her eyes. Catching up with her gossip meant going down to the downtown pub. Brooke just didn't know how her friend could do this every night and still get good grades in college plus a part time job on the side.

"See you then," Brooke said and hung up the phone.

Brooke twirled the straw in her, tiredness suddenly washing over her. She had a long day, yet she couldn't help but feel excited for tomorrow. She was going have lunch with Charlie Bucket tomorrow! That should prove exciting. She hadn't wanted to tell Tara about it yet, in case it ended up going wrong. She would just have to wait and see tomorrow.

Picking up the phone one last time, Brooke called Jesse's number. After several rings, the answering machine picked up.

"Hi, I'm not here right now. Please leave a message and I'll get back to you as quick as possible," Jesse's voice said into the phone.

Brooke sighed. She wished Jesse had been home to answer the phone, she enjoyed talking to him—it made her calmer somehow.

"Hey, Jess, it's Brooke. I was calling to say that breakfast would be great tomorrow, but I have to be back before noon, I have a meeting with someone for lunch. Call me in the morning, bye," Brooke hung up the phone.

Standing and stretching, Brooke headed back to the bathroom to take a shower. An hour later she was stretched out comfortably on her bed. Brooke wanted to stay awake a while longer, thinking about her long day and her chance meeting with Charlie Bucket. As much as she tried, though, she felt herself drifting off into sleep, dreaming of chocolate bars and heroes.

--

Author's Note: Stupid ending to the chapter, I know but I didn't know how else to end it, so there you have it. I know it seems a little boring at the moment, but I'm getting to it, I'm getting to it. I just had to do some background stuff for Brooke so you all weren't thrown into the oblivion and wondering how the heck you got there.

Thanks for the reviews for the last chapter, I really do appreciate. I know you must be tired of me saying it at the end of every chapter practically, but I really do appreciate the reviews. Anyways, I hope you liked the chapter and I hope you keep reading and I'll keep on writing.