A very large part of Aaron's heart was happy to see that the ugly bruise that had marred Erin's features was faded away to nothing by the time they met once more for her next lesson. And it seemed that she was feeling a bit freer than normal, since she was wearing a sunny smile on her lips when she opened the door to greet him that afternoon.

"Aaron! You're on time!"

He nodded and stepped inside, closing the door behind him. "I know that you prefer punctuality, Erin. And I know how important your lessons are."

She looked away from him as they started to make their way to the living room. "I was a little lonely, since David is away in New York, talking with his agent. At least the girls are here this time, though I think that I have you to thank for that."

He ducked his head a little, not wanting to agree or disagree with her. After their last lesson, he had been furious with Dave, wanting to slug him, and cause as much pain to his body that he had inflicted on Erin. But he also knew that that would be very stupid of him and might get Erin hurt worse in the long run. Instead, he had come up with a very small compromise, one that would please Erin to no end. "I think that your husband may have had a come to Jesus moment, Erin."

She giggled a little as she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "Well, whether it was you or God, I am immensely glad to have my babies with me this time. Even if I sent them to the park with Bernice for our lesson. I wanted a little privacy for this."

Her cheeks were bright red as she spoke, and Aaron chuckled a little as he followed her into the study, smiling to see that his Bach Chorale book was set up on a music stand, with tabs sticking up on certain pages, indicating that Erin had been playing through and finding pieces she liked. "It looks like you've been busy since our last lesson."

"Yes. I felt inspired, after listening to you playing some of these. Though the ones that you're best at are not easy under my fingers right now, so I had to find some that felt right to me. Penelope even said that she thinks I'm sounding a little good."

"Oh? When was she over?"

"The night that David left on his trip. She brought Chinese over, and humored me. I mean, I can't have the same people as my audience all the time. Anyway, she was very enthusiastic about my progress, and that bolstered my confidence so much. And then we watched Moulin Rogue!, and I think I found the next song I'd like for you to teach me."

The words poured from her lips, almost as if she knew that if she was to talk slower, they might not come out, and he nodded a little before reaching out and resting his hand on her shoulder. "What song would that be?" he asked quietly as they went over to the sofa and took a seat.

"Your Song. I mean, I loved all of the music in there, more than I thought I would, and while I would love to learn how to play Come What May, but I really don't think that I'd be able to make it through the piece without bursting into tears. And after our last lesson, I really don't want to cry on your shoulder for a while."

Aaron nodded before unconsciously starting to rub her knee, trying to soothe her frazzled nerves. "Well, you're in luck, since I know that song quite well. Haley was quite fond of Elton John, so his music is some of my most familiar."

"Good," she murmured as she scooted away from him, as if she realized that the touch of his hand on her knee was a little more intimate than appropriate in that moment. "You really loved Haley, didn't you?" she asked quietly as he started to tune his guitar.

"I did. We were high school sweethearts, and I always thought that love would conquer all. I might have had unrealistically high standards, though, since I wanted to have a marriage that was nothing like my parents."

He began to play the opening chords to Your Song, needing to focus on something other than his travails, since he didn't know if telling Erin about his marital issues and his parents' marital issues was a smart idea. "I imagined that Alan and I would be together until one of us died. I wasn't counting on becoming an alcoholic, and neither was he. It ruined something between us, and I lost the first love of my life. Maybe that's also why I'm holding on to David so tightly."

He paused and looked at her, seeing that the sunny look on her face had been replaced by a haunted, sad, one. "You have to keep in mind that love is like sand. The tighter we hold onto it, the more that slips through our grasp. I forgot that with Haley, and with Beth. The next time I fall in love, I hope that I remember to hold on lightly."

Erin nodded a little as she picked up her own guitar, strumming the strings lightly as she looked down at her hands. "I'm starting to wonder if this love isn't more out of obligation at this point."

The words were whispered, and Erin refused to look up at him, so he pretended that he hadn't heard them as he went back to playing the song. Soon, they were both singing the words to the song lowly, and Aaron found himself relaxing more and more in her presence. Looking up at her as he strummed along, he took in the fact that her eyes were closed, a sad smile on her lips, even as she sang the lovely words in unison with him.

They reached the end of the song, and an anticipatory, heavy, feeling surrounded him as her eyes slid open, and she looked at him expectantly. Not really certain of what he was doing, Aaron leaned forward at the same time Erin did, the space between them closing even as Erin's breathing picked up a little. And then, their lips were touching, and Aaron let her kiss him, let her hook her arm around his neck and pull him closer to her as the kiss lingered on. Everything felt right and wrong at the same time, and he wondered if Erin felt the same way.

Pulling back a little from her, Aaron smiled to feel her warm breath wash over her face. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have done that. Please, don't tell David. Please?"

He nodded a little before bringing his head forward again, resting his forehead against hers as they began to breathe in sync once more. "It was just a kiss between friends. It didn't truly mean anything, other than me offering you comfort when you were hurting. And that is the way we'll think of it. Always."

Erin sighed deeply, and he felt her nod against his skin, even as her hand tightened around the back of his neck. "I hate to live a lie, but I'm not certain which lie I'm living right now."

He started to card his fingers through her hair, and she shuddered beneath the touch as he continued to do it. Once more, she angled her body closer and closer to his until there was only a hairsbreadth between them. Erin slid her head down to rest her head on his shoulder, her fingers starting to play with the fabric of his shirt. "Sometimes it seems like our lives shift direction when we don't look carefully at what's happening. Maybe what happened isn't a lie, but revealing the truth long buried."

"But what does that mean for us? I don't want to lose this time we spend together, Aaron. It means the world to me. You are starting to mean the world to me."

He hummed lowly as he slid his hand down to rest on her lower back. "Those are dangerous words, Erin."

"Don't you think I know that? Alan cheated on me, I know what it's like to be the cuckold. But I want to retain our friendship, even though I know how thin of ice we're walking on." Erin sighed deeply as she moved her head a little, pressing her lips to the side of Aaron's neck before pulling away from him and going over to her guitar. "All right, will you listen to me play a few of these Bach pieces? I need to know if I'm getting any better or not, after all."

"Of course," he said lowly, never taking his eyes off her as she started to play through the first of the tabbed pieces. He was pleasantly surprised to hear just how much she had improved in the short time that he'd started giving her lessons, and he smiled with real pleasure as he relaxed back against the sofa and listened to her play, knowing that this was most likely the calm before the storm that might very well destroy them all.