Author's note: Thank you all so much for reading! Please keep your reviews coming, they're what keep me writing. Make sure to check out my other story, "Gonna Get Caught," if you haven't already. Thanks!

Chapter Three

"Do you have any queens?"

"Go fish!" Mitchie rolled her eyes, reaching into the nearby pile of cards. She'd been playing mindless games with Jason for hours, trying to pass the time on the seemingly endless bus ride.

"Do you have any sevens?"

"Jason, could we maybe take a break? I'm feeling kind of tired," Mitchie fibbed. The truth was that she was bored out of her mind. She had expected Connect Three to lead more exciting lives aboard their tour bus, but the place was honestly pretty dead.

"Aw, are you sure you don't want to play a little more?" Jason asked, the look in his eyes telling Mitchie the bus had no better options for her. She took a quick glance at her surroundings and came to the conclusion that Jason's eyes told the truth. Nate was perched in the corner scribbling away in his notebook of songs, while Shane and Tess sat intertwined on a couch, flipping aimlessly through channels on the wall-mounted television.

"I promise I'll finish the game later, okay?" Mitchie set her handful of cards down gently on the table and then rose to her feet, shuffling towards the back of the bus to her bunk.

"Maybe agreeing to all of this wasn't my best idea," Mitchie said to herself as she stared at the very small quarters she'd been assigned. The thought of sleeping in the tiny bunk creeped her out-it reminded her of a coffin. She couldn't even sit upright on the bed comfortably, forced to hunch forward slightly in order to fit.

"You know, those weren't really designed as benches," Nate informed as he appeared in front of Mitchie.

"Yeah, well, I don't have a lot of options around here."

"There's a giant couch out there! Why would you want to hide back here?" Nate motioned towards the front of the bus with a puzzled look.

"Did you miss the fact that Shane and Tess are sitting right in the middle of it?" Mitchie scoffed. "I think this is the safest place for me right now."

"Good point," Nate agreed. "So I'll just take this as an opportunity to talk to you a little more about the plan." He flashed a grin and took a seat beside Mitchie without waiting for an invitation.

"About that, Nate, I'm not sure-"

"Trust me, it'll be fine! You don't even know what I have in mind."

"That's the point, Nate! I agreed to take part in this, but I have no idea what I got myself into." Mitchie threw her hands up in frustration. Her life felt like it was spinning out of control, the stress of her new career only heightened by Nate's scheme.

"I've got everything all sorted out, and it's going to be a piece of cake!" Nate tapped the notebook in his hands. "I've got it all broken down in simple steps, so you don't have to worry about anything."

"Except for the whole problem that is Tess…. She'd have my head if she found out about this. And I'm not even going to think about Shane, but I know he wants nothing to do with me." Mitchie shook her head and let out a sigh.

"Don't be so sure! Shane might be a real jerk on the outside, but I know you've seen the other side of him. Honestly, I don't think Tess has even see that; you've got the advantage here." Nate's words sounded so sincere, like he truly believed success was possible with his plan. There were so many questions Mitchie had, especially about why Tess was even with Shane in the first place, but she knew Nate was too focused to on his plan to give her the answers.

"Fine, I'll try your first step, but only because I owe you for saving me from that awful van," Mitchie finally caved. "But if anything goes even a little bit wrong, you can forget about it."

"Of course!" Nate exclaimed, throwing his arms around Mitchie and giving her a squeeze.

"Are you going to tell me what the first part of your little plan is?" Mitchie sighed, shrugging off Nate's embrace until only one loose arm remained around her shoulder.

"Oh, yeah, absolutely! But Jason should be a part of this, too. Jason, get back here! We need you!" Nate yelled out in the direction of the front of the bus. The sound of feet could be heard shuffling down the hallway before Jason appeared in front of the bunk.

"More cards?" Jason asked hopefully, the deck tucked safely in his front jeans pocket.

"Not yet, man." Nate shook his head. "Mitchie agreed to try out the first part of our plan."

"Sweet!" Jason hopped onto the bunk, the three of them crammed together like sardines in a can.

"Why are you both so excited about this?" Mitchie questioned from her spot in between the two boys.

"We all stand to gain from this," Nate explained. "You get the guy, we get out friend back, and we all get away from Tess; it's an all-around good plan."

"Yeah, well, you're all talk, but I still don't know what this 'plan' is. Besides, what makes you think Shane is the guy I want??" Mitchie wondered if she was really that obvious.

"We see the way you look at Shane when you think no one is watching." Nate and Jason nodded together. "The way you were so into him at camp an dhow it just ended with no closure? You don't get over that." Yep, Mitchie was really that obvious.

"Whatever, just spit it out already: what do you want me to do?"

"Talk to Shane," Jason stated.

"Talk to him?? Really, guys, that's the big plan you've been obsessing over?" Mitchie couldn't believe such drama had been wasted on that.

"Mitchie, you need to get your foot in the door! It might seem like nothing, but it's a huge step. Just find him when the time is right-"

"When Tess isn't around," Jason offered.

"-And test the waters. We need to see his reaction so we know how to act next." Nate mad it all sound so simple, but he obviously had no idea what he was asking.

"No, it definitely doesn't seem like 'nothing;' it seems impossible! What am I even supposed to say?!"

"It'll come to you in the moment, trust me. Besides, you don't want it to sound scripted." The trio sat in silence for a long minute as Mitchie contemplated what was being asked of her. There was a part of her that wanted to say 'no,' push her new friends away and run to the van she was supposed to be in a the moment. However, there was another part of her that felt willing to take the risk. Nate had been right when he had spoken of Mitchie's lingering feelings, and she was feeling braver than she ever had.

"So, you guys really think this'll work? I'm nervous," Mitchie sighed at last, resting her head on Jason's shoulder.

"We knew we could count on you, Mitchie!" Nate pumped his free arm in the air triumphantly as he realized Mitchie was giving her complete acceptance of the plan.

"Wow, Mitchie!" Mitchie's gaze shot forward as she heard a voice say her name.

"Oh, hey, Tess," Nate snarled, the disdain evident in his voice.

"Both guitarists at the same time? Forget what I said earlier; it looks like you've got your hands full." Tess said as she eyed Mitchie's position, the way Nate's arm was draped around her as she leaned against Jason. Tess gave the three a cruel grin before turning and heading back to the front of the bus.

"See, isn't that reason enough to try and get rid of her?" Nate asked once Tess was out of earshot, wrinkling his face up in disgust.

"Oh, no, I had plenty of reasons; I could've done without that one," Mitchie groaned. "Now get out of my bed!" She grabbed Nate and Jason by the shirts, roughly pushing both boys out of her bunk.

"Tomorrow, phase one!" Nate exclaimed, pointing at Mitchie as he pulled his band mate away.

"Yeah, tomorrow! Wait, what's tomorrow?" Mitchie stifled her laughter, realizing Jason was the same clueless guy she'd met at Camp Rock.

"Tomorrow," Mitchie whispered to herself as she laid back and pulled the curtain tightly shut. She wasn't sure she was even close to being ready for the task of speaking to Shane, but she had no other choice. One thing she'd learned in her short life was the importance of telling the truth and keeping her word, and there had never been a better time for her to prove that to the world.

The following day came quickly, leaving Mitchie no time to prepare for her chat with Shane. By the time she awoke the bus had reached it's destination for the day, and she was whisked off without a chance to talk to Nate or Jason for support.

"We've got a very busy day ahead of us," Alexandra explained to a still-sleepy Mitchie, the phrase all-too familiar.

"What's going on?" Mitchie asked between yawns.

"Outfit fittings, an extra-long rehearsal, a couple phone interviews," Alexandra rattled off engagements from her trusty clipboard. "And then a late dinner with Connect Three." Mitchie let out a deep breath, thinking maybe the world was working in her favor: it didn't seem like she'd have a moment alone with Shane all day.

"Well, alright, let's go get started!"

Mitchie survived the jam-packed morning, trying on outfit after outfit as she answered the same boring questions from a never-ending slew of reporters. After that torture she was forced to spend several hours practicing each song in her set list, striving for perfection. She only had three days until the first show of the tour, and the record label wanted her performance to be flawless.

"That was amazing!" Alexandra cheered, handing a breathless Mitchie a bottle of water as she finally stumbled off stage.

"Right," Mitchie gasped in between gulps. "That's why you're the only one watching." Her eyes scanned the empty auditorium.

"Oh, Mitchie, come on! Connect Three never shows up until two minutes before their turn to rehearse; you can't take it personal." Alexandra shrugged, but Mitchie wasn't convinced.

"I'm going to go get some air, okay? I'll be back in five." Mitchie handed her half-empty bottle to Alexandra and made a speedy exit out a side door. She reveled in the feeling of the fresh air hitting her tired lungs, closing her eyes as she took several deep breaths.

"Mitchie? Are you alright?" Mitchie opened her eyes to see Nate rushing towards her with a look of concern.

"What? Oh, I'm fine."

"Good, because Shane is right over there, and he's all alone!" Nate pointed to his friend who stood just off in the distance, clicking away on his cell phone.

"I, um, well," Mitchie stammered, feeling insanely nervous.

"Don't even start! This is your chance, there's no turning back now!" Before Mitchie knew what was happening Nate gave her a little shove, and it was as if her feet had a mind of their own. They carried her right to Shane, sending her mind into a panic. She only had a brief second to speak before she looked like a fool, but what to say?

"Hey." Shane's voice was cool and calm, shattering Mitchie's frenzy and removing a weight from her shoulders.

"Hey," Mitchie started slowly. "How's it going?" She wanted to hit herself; was that the best she had?

"Not too bad. How was rehearsal?" Mitchie couldn't believe that after everything she was standing there, talking to Shane. His eyes were just as piercing as she'd remembered, looking right through her.

"I'm exhausted; I don't know how you do it."

"You get used to it after a while," Shane assured. "So, how have you been?" It seemed too good to be true: he as actually expressing interest in her.

"I can't complain." Mitchie knew it was too soon, wasn't at all what Nate had in mind, but she needed to ask about Camp Rock while she had the chance. "Shane, I really need to talk to you about-" Shane's ringtone cut her off, his phone lighting up with Tess' picture.

"I really have to take this, but we can finish this later." Shane stated before answering the call and strolling away. The promise was disheartening, sounding so empty to Mitchie. She was ready to go claim defeat to Nate until a thought crossed her mind: the dinner Alexandra had mentioned. Sure, there no was no doubting Tess would be there, but she still felt hopeful. Shane had made thee first move in their conversation, and Mitchie knew there was no way she'd give up just yet.