A/N: And here's the second half of the chapter from yesterday (in case you missed it, you may want to go back and read Chapter 4 before proceeding). Thanks again, all of you faithful reviewers!

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Tommy's eyes immediately changed from confusion to clarity, putting the pieces together of why she wasn't singing anymore. His expression softened as he leaned back, looking down at his feet under the table, contemplating the impact of her words.

"Jude…" he started quietly.

"No, it's fine," she said quickly, not letting him finish. "It's been five years, I'm over it."

He looked up at her skeptically. "You're over it?"

"Yes," she said confidently. "I'm fine without the music. Happy, in fact. Happy and over it."

He sighed and looked down at the table. "Well, I'm glad you're over it…because I'm not."

"What?" she asked, as though she didn't hear him correctly.

He looked up at her, his blue eyes intensified by the light above the booth. "I'm not over it."

She looked questioningly into his eyes, not understanding where he was going. He took a deep breath and began, "I know I owe you an explanation."

"You don't have to," she countered quietly.

"No, I want to. Leaving five years ago was the hardest decision I've ever made. I didn't want to sacrifice my friends, my job…but it killed me to know what I had done to you. I thought about you every day. Hell, I still think about you every day. Wondering what you're up to, where you are, if you're happy…and I hear your voice in my head. Yelling after me when I got in that car."

She turned away from his gaze, feeling a lump form in her throat and the back of her eyes burn at the memory.

He continued, "There is no way I will ever forgive myself for leaving you the way I did. You were everything to me and I threw it all away."

"But why?" she asked softly, returning her tear-glazed eyes to his. "Why did you leave?"

"I had to. It wasn't something I would ever choose, believe me, but well…there were some issues that I had to deal with."

"Like what?" she asked, now feeling like she needed more of an explanation.

"Well, for one, my sister passed away."

"Oh, I'm sorry," Jude replied promptly.

"Thanks. It was pretty sudden—a drunk driver. She passed away and wasn't on speaking terms with her ex-husband, so I ended up caring for her daughter."

"Daughter?" Jude said with surprise.

"Yeah, a little girl—Anna. She was two at the time, although now she's a full-grown seven year-old, living with her father, who we managed to track down."

"So…that's why you left? To care for her daughter?" Jude questioned.

"Basically. Jude, my father was really involved in politics in Quebec and the thought of his daughter having a child out of wedlock was a huge misdemeanor in our family. He felt that it tainted the family name, so he threw her out of the house when she was 6 months pregnant."

"Seriously? That's terrible."

"I know. She had no choice but to marry her boyfriend at the time, Anna's father, but that quickly ended. I helped her when I could, but when she died, my dad pressured me to take care of his little 'problem,' being Anna. So I stepped in for two years until we released her to her father's custody."

"Wow…" Jude said, taking it all in. "And after that?"

"Well, after that, I didn't really know where to go or what to do, so I traveled a lot—Asia, Africa, Europe. It was great but I needed a fresh start, so I ended up here."

Jude nodded in understanding but her expression still showed confusion. "Okay…but I still don't understand. You didn't call or respond to emails. It was like you had fallen off the face of the earth."

"I know," he admitted, looking away from her eyes. "After Anna was back with her father, I thought about coming back. About picking up the phone and calling…but I couldn't bring myself to do it. After everything I had put you through, I truly believed that you were better off without me. I guess I still feel that way..."

She watched as he turned away from her. She saw a mix of regret and sadness in his eyes, genuine pain behind his words. She couldn't help but feel bad for him, observing how the consequences of his actions still haunted him.

"It's okay," she said, moving her hand on top of the table to rest gently over his. She felt the immediate spark at their contact. She could tell it affected him as well, as he abruptly sat up straighter at her touch.

She continued, leaving her hand there. "What you did, it was terrible, not just for me, but for everybody. And on some level, I don't know if I can ever forgive you for making me feel that way and putting me through all of that…but I know you didn't mean to hurt me. I think, deep down, I always knew that—that none of this was intentional."

"It wasn't," he agreed, staring earnestly into her eyes. "I swear, Jude, I never wanted to leave. I fought my dad's attorney the whole way—I couldn't handle the thought of not being there with everyone. Not being there with you…"

She blushed and hastily removed her hands from his. "You missed a lot, Quincy."

"I know," he said quietly. "I know I can't go back—I can't change the mistakes I've made. But I'm thinking that maybe running into each other twice in one day wasn't just a coincidence."

"Really?" she asked, trying to sound surprised, but secretly feeling the same way herself.

"Yeah—the more I think about it, the more I'm convinced that it's like…fate or something. I know it sounds ridiculous, but maybe this is my chance to mend some of the pain I've caused you. I know I can't take away everything, but I'd like to try…if you'll let me…"

She sat in silence considering his words. The memories of his actions still ached, bringing tears to her eyes. Though she was hesitant to let him back into her life, she heard her sister's voice in her head yelling at her to move on. It had been five years and she could tell that his words were sincere and he genuinely wanted to make things up to her.

She sighed deeply and swallowed back her tears. "Okay."

"Okay?" he asked in surprise, his eyebrows raised.

"Okay," she repeated, more confidently. "I can't believe I'm going to do this, but let's just…start over."

"Seriously?" he asked, still in disbelief.

"Yes, seriously," she confirmed. "That doesn't mean I can forget how you hurt me or how deeply it affected me, because it did. And I can't just trust you again like I used to, that may take some time, but I'm willing to try."

"Wow…" he mumbled, impressed at her response. "You really aren't 15 anymore."

She chuckled lightly. "That makes me feel old."

"You? Hey, I'm close to thirty," he replied with a grin.

"Yeah, but you always were old. It's new to me," she said with a smile.

"Thanks," he responded sarcastically.

They looked at each other quietly, briefly sharing a sense of comfort that their relationship used to have.

She cleared her throat, making the moment disappear, and softly added, "I'm willing to start fresh with you on one condition."

"Which is?"

"If you promise not to push me about leaving the music industry. We've both made decisions—this is mine. And I'd appreciate it if you respect my choice and not pester me about it. Deal?"

He thought for a second, pursing his lips together and scratching his head. "You drive a hard bargain, Harrison…but okay. It's a deal," he agreed, leaning forward and shaking her hand.

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Around 5:00am, they left the diner and started to head back to the corner where they had met. Jude was telling him about Sadie and Kwest's on-again/off-again relationship that had developed into an engagement, as they came to a halt on the edge of the sidewalk.

"So when's the wedding?" he asked curiously.

"Two months. Sadie wanted a spring wedding and Kwest has learned not to argue with her when she gets an idea into her head."

He laughed lightly, thinking about his friend always having a thing for Sadie.

"You should call him," Jude said quietly, noting his enthusiasm when Kwest was mentioned. "I'm sure he'd love to hear from you."

"You think?" Tommy asked uncertainly. "I just feel like…if I start reaching out to people again, they're not going to be happy to hear from me."

"Maybe," Jude agreed, "but Kwest is different. He's not going to hold a grudge."

"I guess," Tommy replied tentatively.

"Besides," Jude added with a grin, "I already told Sadie that I ran into you earlier today so now you have to call him."

He smiled and shook his head. "Okay, okay. I'll call him tomorrow."

They stood at the corner, glancing up at the brightening sky as the sun was about to come up.

"Well, I have to get up and go to work in a couple of hours, so I should probably get going," Jude said softly.

"Yeah, me too," he agreed. "I'm glad we ran into each other again."

"Me too," she said, looking into his eyes.

"Do you think…maybe, we can…meet up on this corner again tomorrow?" he asked tentatively.

She thought for a second. "That depends. Do you mean tomorrow, as in today, or tomorrow, as in tomorrow?"

He sniggered at her question. "Tomorrow, as in later today. Maybe after work? Like 6:30ish?"

She thought for a moment, then nodded. "Sure, 6:30 it is. I'll see you then."

He watched as she turned and walked back towards her apartment. They both smiled to themselves, instinctively feeling a sense of exhilaration knowing that they were back in each other's lives.