Guess what today is folks...It's my birthday! and I have to work all day after a night of debaucherous partying...isn't that just lovely? It's just before 4 AM, and I just got home and figured I'd post this since I meant to do it before I left..So, you know what I want for my b-day don't ya? Reviews! Hope ya like the chapter, I'm quite fond of it myself...Read, Enjoy, oh you know the rest, I gotta go to bed, hopefully i wont be a total zombie at the job...

Chapter 24...

Jeff tried not to stare at Raquel as she laughed when he finished telling the story of how he pantsed Matt in front of his first girlfriend after they all got out of a cold pool.

"Yeah, that's real funny," Matt glared. "She dumped me like a week later."

"That's not my fault," Jeff shrugged.

"You're not still bitter, are you Matt?" Raquel smirked.

Matt rolled his eyes, turning his attention to his food.

"You know, she asked me out a few weeks after that," Jeff told Raquel and Sabrina.

"What?" Matt looked up.

"I didn't tell you that?" Jeff asked, surprised. He was sure he told Matt years ago.

"No," Matt shook his head.

"Don't be mad at your brother," Sabrina advised Matt. She smiled at Jeff, "It's not his fault he's so good looking. It's just genetics."

Jeff looked away, a little uncomfortable under her gaze. She'd been staring at him since he sat down and it was starting to freak him out a little.

"Listen to her Matt," Raquel smirked. "Since she's so obviously an expert on looks and genetics."

Jeff laughed at Raquel's comment, noting that Sabrina looked a little irritated. Well, as irritated as she could look.

"Well you should know something about good genes Raquel, what with your mother being a famous model and all," Sabrina said. "Granted she was a lot taller and her breasts were bigger but you're still very pretty."

Raquel looked incredibly annoyed but she forced a smile, offering up a snide "Thank you Sabrina."

"Oh you're welcome honey," Sabrina smiled.

Jeff frowned, looking back and forth between the women. He didn't like the self satisfied look on Sabrina's face. He could insult Raquel to her face until the cows came home but he didn't like seeing someone else do it and Sabrina was throwing out bitchy comments like they were going out of style. Raquel was giving them right back but Jeff didn't care about that. Sabrina started it.

"Excuse me."

They all turned when they heard an excited female voice. Jeff nodded at the blonde standing behind him.

"You're Jeff Hardy," she giggled.

"Last time I checked," he nodded. "And you are?"

"Cammie," she smiled, extending her hand.

"Nice to meet you Cammie," Jeff said. "This is Raquel and I'm sure you know my brother Matt."

Jeff heard someone clear their throat loudly and he smiled, "Oh right..and that's Sabrina."

"Hi," she waved at all of them, her attention focused on him. "Can I get your autograph?"

"Sure," Jeff nodded. "What do you want me to sign?"

She tried for a seductive look but her face was so stretched from her smile that it didn't quite work. She played with the bottom of her tank top, "Could you sign this?"

Jeff looked over at Raquel who looked like she was a little annoyed but trying to hide it. Then, he looked to Matt who gave him a nod of encouragement.

"Sure," he shrugged as she handed him a sharpie. She leaned forward, obviously wanting him to sign on or around her breast. For some reason, he was compelled to look at Raquel again. She had her fork in her hand, pushing her food around roughly. He took the cap off the pen, turning back to Cammie and gently taking the bottom of her shirt and pulling it toward him just enough to sign it. He signed his name then handed her the marker back, "There you go."

She seemed disappointed that he hadn't signed where she wanted him to but she smiled nonetheless, "Thanks Jeff."

"You're welcome," he said.

"I guess I'll go now," she started to back away. "Thanks again."

"No problem..See ya later," Jeff said, giving her a quick wave before turning back to the rest of the table.

"What am I? The hunchback of Notre Dame today?" Matt looked around.

Jeff laughed, patting his brother on the shoulder.

"You must have women throwing themselves at you like that all the time," Sabrina noted.

Jeff shrugged, "Not all the time."

"Oh come on now, don't be modest," Sabrina said. "Someone that looks like you must have quite a following."

"I guess your boyfriend doesn't get that kind of attention at his age, does he?" Raquel asked.

"Well I'm sure we'd all love to have a little fun with someone that draws attention like Jeff," Sabrina said, giving Raquel a look. "Even you Raquel."

"Actually, she already has," Jeff blurted.

Everyone at the table stared at him. Raquel looked confused, Matt looked like he was thoroughly enjoying the show and Sabrina just looked surprised.

"What?" Sabrina asked.

"Raquel and I had sex a while back," Jeff said.

Sabrina recovered quickly, her annoying little smirk returning, "A while back? Well why'd you two stop? Did someone lose interest?"

"Raquel did," Jeff answered quickly.

Raquel stared at him. He could see she was trying for a neutral expression to cover her confusion. He gave her a quick wink.

"Why?" Sabrina stared at Raquel.

"Um.." Raquel searched for a response. She looked back to Jeff.

"It's kind of embarrassing," He said, looking down at his food. He took a deep breath then looked back up, offering Sabrina a sheepish smile, "I got a little…clingy."

He looked over at Raquel for confirmation.

She smiled, "He did..He wasn't a stalker or anything but..I think he just got attached faster than I did."

"But we're past that," Jeff said, looking over at her. "We're friends now, right?"

"Yeah," she said, looking surprised by his actions. "I think we are."

---------------------

"I cant believe he did this," Paula paced back and forth, phone pressed tightly to her ear. After John told her to leave, she went to the apartment of an old friend, Michelle. Fortunately, Michelle was on a business trip in Toronto so she just told her where the key was and that she could stay for a few days without any question. She didn't need anyone knowing she may have gotten dumped.

"He'll come around," Candice said. "John's got a temper. Once he calms down and realizes how bad he messed up, he'll call you and beg you to come back. He loves you."

"He better," Paula said. "I haven't been laughing at his completely unfunny jokes all this time for nothing."

"I have an idea…Maybe you should give him a little surprise tonight," Candice suggested. "Show him what he's missing."

"What do you mean?"

"You've still got your keys to his apartment, right?" Candice asked.

"Yeah," Paula said.

"So use 'em," Candice said. "He's probably out. Slip in while he's gone, put on something hot and wait for him."

Paula's smile stretched from ear to ear, "Candice, has anyone ever told you you're a genius?"

Candice smiled, "What are friends for?"

---------------------

That night…

John found his way back to his seat in the dark theater holding two drinks, a box of gummy bears, sour patch kids, nachos, M&Ms and a Snickers bar. He sat down carefully, not wanting to spill anything. He could see Brianna's eyes go wide when she looked over at him, "I thought you were just getting a refill."

"I was," he whispered back. "But then I got hungry."

"You just ate a bag of popcorn and a pretzel with extra cheese," she whispered.

"So?" he shrugged.

She smiled, shaking her head.

"Don't worry," he smiled. "I got you something."

She smiled. It never failed, even if it was nothing but candy, Brianna just lit up when he told her he got her something. She always had.

"What'd you get me?"

He handed her one of the drinks, "Root beer."

She frowned, "All that and you got me a root beer?"

He picked up the sour patch kids, "Be nice or I wont give you these."

She smiled, "Okay I'll be nice."

"Actions speak louder than words," he whispered, shaking the box at her. She reached for it and he pulled it away from her.

She leaned close to him and for a second, he thought she was going to kiss him. He was almost right. She kissed him…on the cheek. He handed over the candy, and she smiled, "Thank you."

"That was wrong, you know that right?" he asked.

She smiled innocently, "What?"

He shook his head, not bothering to answer. She had been messing with his head all day. He didn't think she was doing it intentionally, she wasn't that mean, but it was confusing. She'd been smiling at him and giggling, touching him. The girl in the ticket booth at the front of the theater thought that they were a couple and Maya was their daughter. He was enjoying the flirting but he knew that at the end of the night, he had to take her back to her fiance. He shook his head, trying to wipe those thoughts from his mind. He didn't want to think about later, he wanted to focus on the moment. He smiled as a sleepy Maya leaned against Brianna, her eyelids drooping. Bri smoothed the young girl's hair, then put her arms around her, looking back up at the movie. John put his arm over the back of her chair and she looked over at him, smiling. Somehow that smile managed to clear his head and confuse him even more, all at the same time.

---------------------

"Well this has been quite a day," Sabrina said.

Jeff nodded, looking around the lobby. He was standing with Raquel and Sabrina near the door. Matt had rushed up to his room the second they got back because the food he ate at the restaurant wasn't agreeing with him.

"It was great seeing you hun," Sabrina said, hugging Raquel.

"You too," Raquel rolled her eyes before releasing the hug.

"We have to do it next time you're in town," Sabrina smiled.

Raquel nodded, "Of course."

Jeff felt uncomfortable watching this exchange. He didn't understand why Raquel subjected herself to being around this woman. He'd known her for a day and knew he didn't want to be around her again.

"Come on Jeff, you get a hug too," Sabrina smiled, moving toward him.

Before she could get to him though, Raquel took his hand, lacing their fingers together. Once again, Jeff found himself staring at her hand, completely losing focus on the conversation.

"We should really go check on Matt," Raquel said.

"Of course," Sabrina said, taking her car keys out of her purse. "Tell Mark I hope he feels better."

"Matt," Jeff corrected.

"Right," Sabrina nodded. "I'll see you two soon," she waved before walking away. Jeff turned, walking toward the elevators and Raquel followed.

"So, what is this about?" he asked as they reached the elevator and he pressed the button to go up.

"What?" she asked, looking confused.

He held up their still clasped hands, "This."

She quickly let go and took a step away, creating some space between them, "It's nothing."

"Right," Jeff nodded. He didn't want to push. He had some more questions but he would just ask them later. He looked up at the lights above the elevator doors signaling the car was slowly making it's way to the lobby. Very slowly. He looked over at Raquel and she seemed to be thinking the same thing.

"Let's take the stairs," he suggested.

She nodded, following his lead.

He held the door to the staircase open for her and she walked inside. He usually took stairs two at a time but he kept a normal pace, knowing she would probably get annoyed.

"So," he said, growing a little impatient. "How long have you and Sabrina known each other?"

"I've known her since I was about 16," she answered. "Why?"

He shrugged, "It just..doesn't seem like you like each other much."

Raquel sighed, "I don't really want to talk about that..Let's just go check on Matt."

---------------------

John waited, holding a sleeping Maya as Brianna tried to quietly pull her keys out of her purse. It probably would have been an easier task if she didn't seem to have her entire life on her keychain. Finally, she got the keys out, unlocking the door and slowly pushing the door open. John walked in, looking back at her to ask where he should put Maya down. She had fallen asleep in the car on the way back from the theater. Before Bri could instruct him though, Maya yawned, slowly waking up. He set her down, keeping his hands at her sides for a few seconds to make sure the sleepy child had her balance.

"Hey sweetie," Brianna knelt in front of her, brushing her auburn curls out of her face. "Go upstairs and put on your pajamas and I'll come tuck you in, okay?"

"Okay," Maya nodded sleepily before making her way up the stairs. Bri stood up, squeaking as she yawned. She walked over to the phone that was resting in it's charger by the stairs and picked it up, going through the messages. John sat on the chair a few feet away from her. He was pretty tired himself but he didn't want the night to be over yet. He didn't want to go back to his apartment. He had to though, there wasn't any other option. Although, it was nice knowing that, aside from Maya, he and Bri were the only people in the house. She'd informed him earlier that Nick was working a very late shift and Gia left before they went to the movie to meet a friend and she was staying at her house for the night. John could see Brianna's eyelids drooping as she checked her messages. He knew she hadn't been sleeping very much and it bothered him. She worked herself too hard. He couldn't say much considering her did the same thing but he wanted her to get some rest. She deserved it. She hung up the phone and looked over at him, giving him a tired smile.

He was about to say something when Maya appeared at the top of the stairs clad in brightly colored pajamas, "I put my PJs on."

"You want me to tuck her in?" John offered.

"Sure," Bri shrugged. "But don't let her talk you into giving her any candy or money or anything."

"I'll try to avoid that," John laughed, walking up the stairs.

---------------------

Brianna waited a little while before walking up the stairs and towards Maya's open door. She leaned against the wall, listening in on the quiet conversation John and Maya were having.

"Brianna takes care of me all the time," Maya said.

Brianna smiled at the way she stressed her words.

"If I go to grandma Helen's, then who's gonna take care of Brianna?" Maya asked.

"You are way too young to be thinking about that," John laughed.

"I do though," Maya said.

"Well you don't need to worry," John said. "I'll take care of Brianna..okay?"

"You promise?"

"Cross my heart," John promised.

Bri smiled. He was so good with kids.

"And I also promise that the day you get back from your grandma's," John said. "We'll all go out just like we did today and we'll have tons of fun..okay?"

"Okay," Maya said excitedly.

"Now get some shut eye," he instructed.

"Shut eye?" Maya asked.

"Sleep," he laughed.

"Oh okay," Maya giggled. "Goodnight John."

"Night Maya."

Brianna could hear him coming toward the door and she quickly walked down part of the hallway, then turned around and walked in his direction so he wouldn't know she was snooping.

"Is she asleep?" she asked when John walked out, gently closing the door behind him.

"Should be soon," he answered as they walked down the stairs.

"You are so good with her," she shook her head.

He shrugged, "She's a good kid."

"That she is," she smiled as they walked to the living room. He flopped down on the couch and she did the same, leaning back, feeling sleep threatening to overtake her. But she didn't want to go to sleep yet. She was finally getting to spend a little time with John. Just her and John.

---------------------

John put his arm on the back of the couch just before she leaned back. When she did, her head rested gently against him and she sighed, her eyes closing for a second. She opened them again, picking up her remote, turning on the TV. They sat in a totally comfortable silence for almost twenty minutes. He wasn't even paying attention to what was on TV. He was just enjoying sitting on an incredibly comfortable couch with an incredibly beautiful woman. He was more relaxed than he'd been in a while and he knew he was probably going to fall asleep soon. He looked over at Brianna just in time to see her yawning again.

"Tired?" he smirked.

"How'd you know?" she laughed.

"Your eye is doing that little twitchy thing it does when you need sleep," he pointed at her and she giggled, pushing his hand out of her face.

"I cant help it," she said. "It's been a long day."

"Yeah, it has," he agreed.

She leaned against him, her head resting on his shoulder. John ran his hand through her hair and a contented sigh escaped her.

"John," she sat up straighter, looking into his eyes.

"Yeah?"

"Thank you."

"For what?" he asked.

"For spending the day with us," she said.

"Are you kidding?" he smirked. "There's no place I'd rather be than with you and Maya getting mobbed in department stores and movie theaters."

She laughed, playfully smacking his lug, "I'm serious..I really appreciate it."

"You don't need to thank me," he said. "I had a good time."

"Me too," she smiled.

Then, she relaxed again, resting her head more on his chest than his shoulder this time. John felt his heart rate speed up a little and he realized things were getting a little too comfortable. If he didn't go soon, he might do something stupid.

"I should really get to sleep," he said.

She sat up slowly, looking up at the clock, "Yeah I probably should too. He got up and held his hand out to her, helping her up. Their hands started to slip apart but a few of their fingers stayed linked together as they walked toward the door.

"Thanks again," she said, stepping close to him and wrapping her arms around him in a hug.

"Anytime," he said, rubbing her back, trying not to notice how good it felt to touch her and to have her against him. It was hard though, especially when he inadvertently pulled her shirt up a few inches and his hand grazed the soft skin of her lower back. He slowly pulled out of the hug but his hand was still touching her back. He could feel himself getting lost in the combination of the softness of her skin and how beautiful she was. Her brown waves were messy from leaning on him, her big green eyes looked up at him with a mix of confusion and something else that he couldn't quite read. Wishful thinking told him that she was feeling the same things he was but wishful thinking could be quite the liar. Without thinking, he smoothed he ran a hand through her hair then let it come to rest at the side of her face. She blinked but she didn't move. She didn't discourage him. John wasn't thinking at all anymore. It was like he was standing beside himself, watching things happen, and he didn't have control over his own actions anymore. He brushed his thumb lightly over her full lips. Her eyes drifted down to his finger and then back to his eyes, searching him for an explanation that he didn't really have. He explained in the best way he could. He leaned forward, pressing his lips to hers. The kiss only lasted about two seconds before he started to pull away, wanting to gauge her reaction. Before he could really pull back, she leaned into him, pressing a kiss to his lips. It was over as quickly as it began. She pulled back quickly, her mouth opening a little. She seemed to be as surprised by her actions as he was. For a second they just stared at each other, looking into each other's eyes. That was all John could take. His will power was gone and he couldn't say he missed it. He pulled her closer, bringing their lips together once again. This time, though, neither of them pulled away. John deepened the kiss, his tongue teasing her lips open. She wrapped her arms around his neck and one of his hands tangled in her hair while the other was still on her back, holding her close to him. She moaned softly, one of her hands finding the back of his neck and pulling him closer as he stroked her tongue with his. He moved his hand further up, until his fingers came in contact with lace. He stopped his hand but the kiss didn't stop. The passion he felt from her just made him hungrier for more. He moved them until her back was pressed against the wall and he couldn't stop a groan from escaping him when her hands gripped his shirt, pulling him so close that there was barely air between them. Then, as quickly as it began, it was over. She pulled away, her eyes wide. They were both breathing heavily and John could swear the ground was tilting beneath him. His head was spinning and from the confused look on her face, he could see that hers was too.

"John…" she searched for words but couldn't seem to find any.

"I..I'm sorry Bri," he ran a hand over his hair. He took a step back, knowing that if he didn't, they were going to end up in the same position in a few minutes.

"I.." she still couldn't seem to figure out what to say.

"I should go," he unlocked the door. "I'll see you tomorrow."

She nodded, her absently bringing her right hand up, her fingers touching her lips. He walked out, quickly closing the door behind him, at least with some sort of a barrier between them he wouldn't jump her again. He sighed, resting his forehead against the door, "What now?"

---------------------

Brianna leaned against the door, running a hand through her hair. She felt like her feet weren't on the floor, she was dizzy and she could swear it was going to take her a week to catch her breath again. She hadn't felt a kiss like that since…she couldn't remember. She heard John walking away and leaned her head against the door, "What did I just do?"

---------------------

"He should be okay now, right?" Raquel asked as she and Jeff walked out of Matt's room.

Jeff closed the door quietly, "He better be. I'm not stayin' in there and watching him puke anymore."

"Hopefully he'll be able to sleep through the night," Raquel sighed.

"That's what he gets for using closin' his eyes and pointing as a way to choose his meal," Jeff laughed. "Bet he wont do that again."

"Probably not," Raquel laughed.

"You want me to walk you to your room?" he asked.

Raquel shrugged, "Sure."

"Which way?" he asked.

She pointed and he followed as she walked down the hall. They walked in relatively comfortable silence, their feet on the carpet and the hum of the ice machine creating the only noise.

"So," Jeff spoke, putting his hands in his pockets. "You gonna tell me why you were so nice to me earlier?"

She didn't say anything, not sure if she wanted to go into it.

"You know, at first, I kinda thought you were flirting with me," he laughed a little.

She rolled her eyes.

"Don't worry, after a little while I figured it had something to do with Sabrina," he said.

She slowed her pace, knowing he probably wasn't going to let this go until she talked to him. She sighed, "I met Sabrina a few days after I signed with my first agency. I was young, never been on my own before, brand new to New York.."

Jeff nodded.

"The agency put me up in a model's apartment with Sabrina and two other girls, Kaia and Elise. Sabrina was the oldest and just..I don't know, she always acted like she had something to prove. She wanted to be better than the rest of us, do more jobs, make more money, buy more, whatever..And she hated that my father had so much money. She felt like I didn't have to work for everything like the other girls. But my first year, my dad didn't even help me. I made all my own money."

"That's pretty impressive," Jeff said.

"I know," Raquel said. "That's why it made no sense to me that she was always on my ass. Once we finally moved out of the apartment, we developed this..whatever we have now. We meet up when we're in the same city, we're completely bitchy to each other under the veil of this friendship and I think I'm gonna feel better after I see her because I'm at a better place in my life than she is but I end up just being frustrated."

Raquel realized that she was babbling and looked over at Jeff, expecting him to be staring off into space. He wasn't though. His green eyes were focused on her. He was nodding, waiting for her to continue.

"She always puts down other people's choices and nothing in anyone else's life is ever good enough," she said. "And when she saw you today, she was obviously attracted to you so…"

"So you were using me to compete with her?" he asked.

"Pretty much," she nodded. "I'm so-"

"It's okay," Jeff shrugged. "As long as you let me do the same thing if we run into one of my old friends from high school or something."

She laughed, "I suppose I could allow that…Although I'm not sure anyone will believe that I got all clingy on you."

Jeff laughed.

"Since we're asking each other questions," she looked up at him as they reached the door to her room. "Why did you say that? You made yourself seem like a pathetic loser."

He shrugged, "I didn't like her."

"That's it?" she asked, a little disappointed.

A smile just barely touched his lips, "I didn't like the way she was treating you…happy?"

She shrugged, "I was just curious."

In truth, she was a little touched by his gesture and his admission but there was no way she was admitting that. He didn't need to know.

She pulled her room key out of her purse, opening her door, "Thanks for walking me."

He shrugged, "Thanks for helping take care of Matt."

"Call me if you need more help later," she laughed.

"I will," he started to walk away. "Night."

"Goodnight."

She walked into her room but just before she closed the door she heard Jeff call her name.

"Yeah?" she opened it, leaning out.

He walked back, "I just wanted to say um..you shouldn't let Sabrina get you so frustrated..You don't have to compete with her. You don't need all that surgery and collagen to make you beautiful."

Raquel had to blink and refocus, making sure she was talking to Jeff and not some other person. It just didn't sound like him. He was being so..sweet.

"It's not collagen," she leaned against the doorjamb. "It's restalyne. It's less permanent."

Raquel wanted to smack herself. She had a bad habit of saying something either inappropriate or just spouting useless information when she didn't know what to say.

Jeff laughed a little, "I'll see you later Raquel."

She waved as he walked away, "Bye."

---------------------

John walked into his apartment, still riding one of the most amazing yet confusing highs he'd felt in a long time. He kept replaying the kiss over and over in his head. If he woke up to find this was a dream, he was gonna be pissed. He yawned, dropping his keys in the kitchen and pulling a bottle of water out of the refrigerator. Then, he stopped, sniffing the air. When he left the house it smelled like oven cleaner. Now, he smelled the faint scent of roses. The last time his house smelled like roses was when his mother forced him to have fresh flowers in the house when she visited and he knew damn well his mother wasn't there.

He walked toward his bedroom, frowning when he heard sheets rustling as he gripped the doorknob. He opened the door, stopping when he saw her. Paula was on the bed clad only in a bra and panties. The room was lit only by rose scented candles and she was smiling at him.

"You're home," she beamed.

"Yeah," he nodded. "I am. What are you doing here?"

"I wanted to try and make up for earlier," she said. "We can get past this John. I'm not angry at you anymore and after seeing me like this..I'm sure you're not mad at me anymore…right babe?"

Laughter threatened to escape him but instead he just smiled, shaking his head, "You know Paula…I'm tired and I'm at the end of a damn good day."

"Oh really?" she smiled as he walked closer to her.

He nodded, "Hell, I didn't think anything could make this day better…But now that I see you..it turns out something can."

She smiled as he sat on the bed, "What's that baby?"

He smiled back at her, then reached forward, turning on the lamp beside his bed. "Kicking you out of my house right now," he answered, standing up, and walking over to the door, opening it wider. "So if I were you I'd pack it up and get the hell out…I gotta be up early in the morning."

---------------------