Alexandra showed up at 12:30. Nick invited her inside, which she reluctantly accepted. "I want to apologise for Monroe." He said as he got them each a drink.

She shook her head. "I'm used to it."

Nick sat on the couch beside her and tugged on the gold chain around her neck just enough to cause the watch on the end to fall out from under her shirt. "This is nice. Where'd you get it?"

Maybe she didn't piece it together, or maybe she did and just didn't care. "I found it in my mother's drawer after she died. It was in a little box with a note." When Nick asked what the note said, she pulled a piece of paper out of her pocket, which was faded and warn from years of being read over and over.

Lauren,

I ask that you always keep this necklace as a reminder that I'm always with you.

If you do that, I will never be far away. Though others would protest, remember

that I love you. You can be sure that my own watch will never leave my side. We have

something special, and it's called love. Someday, I hope everyone will understand.

With love,

The only man you'll ever need

Underneath the message was another, to no one in particular, in a different, more feminine handwriting.

Understand just like you understand that our child needs you?

If that's the case, I'd rather they not.

She folded it back up and put it back in her pocket. "That's why I came to Portland. I need to find him, and I have reason to believe he's here. Even if he doesn't want to see me, he should know my mother is dead. He deserves that much." With that, she stood and picked up her little blue bag. "Thanks, Nick. I'll see you around."

Less than a half an hour later, Monroe answered his phone. "You find anything out?"

"Yeah. It was her mother's." He explained everything that had happened earlier between himself and the girl.

Monroe was silent for a moment. "And her father's in Portland?"

"That's what she says."

He nodded, though Nick obviously couldn't see it over the phone. "Cool. Thanks for your help. I'll... Talk to you later." He hung up as he drove past an advertisement for the local talent show. Even at that speed, a name on it caught his attention.

He got there just in time, but there were no chairs left, so he stood in the back. It was better like this, anyway. He wouldn't be seen. The high school auditorium was filled to the brim with people, mostly parents coming to support their kids. Monroe had gotten there just as a seven-year-old boy completely destroyed a simple magic trick. But people clapped anyway to be polite.

Though it was now dark, he could see a piano being wheeled onstage as the MC- whoever he was- spoke. When the lights came up, the instrument was all that was present until a woman came on.

No, it wasn't a woman. It was a teenage girl. But she looked so much older. Her dark blonde hair was piled on the top of her head in an up-do, and she had on a purple silk dress, keeping away from brown for what could possibly be the first time in her life. Monroe didn't recognise her at first, or rather, he recognised her as someone else. If the watch weren't enough, the way she looked right now proved it all. Alex sat on the piano bench and played the intro to her song. He hadn't known she was a fan of Phantom of the Opera, but then again, maybe she'd chosen the song for the meaningful lyrics. She sang it with a pure soprano voice, each word hitting Monroe in a way both wonderful and terrible.

"You were once my one companion

You were all that mattered

You were once a friend and father

Then my world was shattered...

"Wishing you were somehow here again

Wishing you were somehow near

Sometimes it seemed if I just dreamed

Somehow you would be here..."

He was entranced. The way her voice blended with the sound of the piano was enchanting. A true musician. He never wanted it to end.

"Try to forgive

Teach me to live

Give me the strength to try..."

It all fit so perfectly. Every line of it. Was it fate or just coincidence? He'd never been one for believing in fate, but at this moment, maybe he would have to reconsider. Much to his despair, the song eventually had to come to an end.

"No more memories

No more silent tears

No more gazing across the wasted years...

"Help me say goodbye

Help me say goodbye..."

Monroe didn't clap when she finished. He was busy studying the wassermann's face. He knew who she reminded him of. Slipping out of the school was simple. It was driving that was difficult. He was so taken offguard. He managed, and as soon as he got home, he ran to his cluttered closet and began tearing everything out of it. It had to be there.

The longer he searched, the more worried he got. What if it was stolen in the break-in? After all, it wasn't exactly the first thing he'd checked on.

He finally got to the back wall, which was covered with various shelves. He checked in every box, finding nothing. Could he have really gotten rid of it? In his frustration, he picked up an old suit jacket and threw it across the room. But it made a sound as it fell to the ground. He rushed over to it and reached in the pocket. A small white box. He opened it, his heart aching at the sight of its contents. He gently took the gold pocket watch in his hand and rubbed his thumb over the glass that covered the face. Then he flipped it to the back.

L.S

And on its side:

Love Survives

All he could do was sit on the ground, his back against the wall, and hold the timepiece close to him.