Disclaimer: I don't own anything to do with Camp Rock or Starbucks.

AN: This is the second to last chapter. The next and final chapter won't be up until the weekend at least because I broke my promise - to make sure that I had sent the next chapter to my beta before I posted one up. I just didn't want to leave it too long for an update...so hopefully, this story should be finished by this weekend.

Anyway, this one is to prompt no. 94 - Independence and it is the one everyone has been waiting for - Nate's chapter. There will be one chapter after this and that's it. Thanks to everyone for reading/reviewing/favouriting/alerting so far.

Something I forgot to mention last time - Thank you to LaPaige for her help with me trying to figure out what Caitlyn and Tess's relationship would be like - I'm glad you all liked how it was portrayed and it couldn't have been done without Paige.

A huge thanks to suburbs for being such a great beta and for really encouraging me with my writing.

Chapter 6: Independence on Friday

I awoke very early on Friday morning, barely having had any sleep at all. I'd spent most of the night tossing and turning because my stomach had been turned into a country for butterflies. I couldn't believe I was so excited and nervous at the same time about spending the day with Nate.

I looked at my alarm clock and noticed it was only half past six. There was no way I was going to be getting any more sleep so I dragged myself out of bed. I had packed up most of my stuff, even though I still had a few days before I had to move out. I decided to drop some things off at Mitchie's on my way to Nate's to make the move next week slightly easier. After looking at my closet, I put on the outfit that Tess had bought me yesterday because she had gone for something that was actually me. But it wasn't like Nate would know it was new, right?

At seven I had finished loading my car and was on the way to Mitchie's. I sent her a quick text before I started driving, knowing it would wake her up because she was such a light sleeper. Sure enough, when I got to Mitchie's fifteen minutes later, she was standing outside so she could help me unload. I grabbed the boxes from the boot while she grabbed the ones in the back seat. Luckily, I had decided to go for the lightest boxes today, saving the heavier ones for when I had more help so we were finished in that one trip. By the time I had put the last box in my new room, Mitchie had collapsed on the couch.

"Mitchie, it wasn't that much work!" I exclaimed as she sat up.

"I know but it's early! And I went to sleep early because I knew you were going to turn up because Tess called me last night and told me you were meeting Nate today," she said in one breath.

I took a seat opposite her and saw the smirk on her face. I swear she was spending too much time with Shane – it was like that smirk was ever present on her face now.

"I'm so nervous, Mitchie," I said, voicing my thoughts for the first time. "What if I say something stupid? What if I tell him I like him?"

Mitchie smiled at me reassuringly. "Cait, I don't think Nate would ever think anything you said was stupid. And you just have to act like you havealways done with him, and he won't know how you feel about him." She paused before adding, "Although, you know if you did tell him then everything would be out in the open," she finished.

I had already started shaking my head. "There is no way Nate is going to find out, Mitchie," I said.

"But what if he feels -"

"He doesn't feel the same. I just need to get over him and then everything will be fine."

Mitchie looked slightly disappointed but smiled nonetheless. "You better get going then, Cait," she said, gesturing to the clock.

I sighed. "If you wanted to kick me out, Mitchie, you just had to say so!" I stuck my tongue out at her as I let myself out of her apartment and I heard her burst into laughter.

I started the car and made my way to Starbucks, relishing the fact that this was the last time I would have to do that for some time. This Sunday, for our usual get together, we were meeting at Mitchie's so everyone could help me get settled.

I pulled into my usual parking spot outside Starbucks and made my way into the café. Surprised by the fact that there was no queue, I made my way to the counter and ordered two cappuccinos. The order took no time at all and I soon found myself leaving, holding the two cups in my hands. They felt a lot lighter than usual cups of coffee but I guess that was because they were mostly milk foam.

I didn't hit any traffic on the way to Nate's house even though I had hoped for some traffic to give me time to settle the butterflies in my stomach. Barely ten minutes later, I pulled into the driveway and got out of the car taking the coffees with me. The door opened before I got to it and Shane stepped out to take the coffees from my hands.

"How did you know I was here?" I asked as I followed him through the door and into the kitchen.

"I didn't, I was just about to go and see Mitchie," he said, grinning at me, and fiddling with his car keys.

"So how have you been, Cait? Nervous about today?" He asked, and as predicted, the smirk was on his face.

"I've been fine, and no, why should I be?" I said, now standing against the worktop.

He raised an eyebrow. "You should know I've already spoken to Mitchie."

I groaned. "My best friend sucks."

He chuckled, before looking at me strangely. "Just… be yourself, Cait. There's no need to change anything about you and…N- people like you just the way you are."

I looked at him and was just about to ask what he had meant when he raised his hand in farewell and walked out of the house. As soon as I heard the door close, I heard footsteps on the stairs and seconds later Nate walked into the kitchen. I sucked in a breath.

"Hey Caitlyn," he said walking over to me and giving me a hug. I sighed. This guy gave the greatest hugs and that meant something coming from me because I really didn't like to hug that much.

"Is that a new outfit?" My mouth dropped open in shock. I nodded, still not believing that he actually noticed.

"It looks really good on you," he said, and I couldn't control the slight blush that covered my cheeks.

He let go of me slowly and turned to sit at the breakfast bar. I walked over to sit opposite him and was reminded of my very first attempt at this challenge – with Shane in this very same kitchen and now I was at the last part of the challenge.

I watched as Nate took both cups and added one sugar to each one. He looked up at me whilst smiling. "How did the challenge go then, Caitlyn?"

"It was really good – and I'm not just saying that," I replied.

He took a sip of his coffee and passed the other cup to me. "So do you want me to pretend that I don't know what you're doing? Or do you want to talk about everyone else's coffees first?"

I thought about it and realized that I wanted to know about his coffee first so I pulled the cup towards me and took a sip. It was really hot, almost burning and I knew that was because the foam kept the heat in. I could taste the strong undercurrent of coffee accompanied bythe taste of milk and the foam that sat on the top.

"So when did you first try a cappuccino?" I asked, and he seemed to get my message straight away.

"I think it was after Connect 3 got signed. We had all these random meetings with people that we didn't really know then, and we were always asked if we wanted to drink something so I started getting cappuccinos." He stopped to take a sip of his coffee.

"But you were quite young then. How did you like it?" I asked thinking about how old Nate would have been when Connect 3 got signed.

"I didn't really at first but I got used to it really quickly. And it helped me stay up when we had concerts because otherwise I used to fall asleep really quickly," he explained. "I felt really professional and independent drinking my coffee, especially next to Jason drinking his frappuccino," he added.

I don't know why but the word 'independent' caught my attention. "You'vealways had to be pretty independent though, haven't you? Like when you first got signed and then when Shane wasn't really himself?" I asked. I was sure Nate had more to do with the technical side of things than Shane and Jason did.

He shrugged slightly before answering. "I guess. I mean I've always been careful on what to sign and stuff like that because that's how you should be right?"

I grinned. Nate had been much easier to analyse than I thought. "I'm done, want to hear the analysis?" I asked.

He looked surprised. "Go on then."

"I'll go through everyone else's first and leave yours until the end," I said and he nodded.

I took a sip of my coffee before starting. Strangely, it was beginning to grow on me. "We'll start with Shane. A latte with a shot of cinnamon and one sugar. Slightly bitter because he wasn't able to do what he wanted at certain points in his career. The cinnamon adds the bit of excitement Shane always cravesand the sugar not only represents Mitchie but the fact that even though he tries not to be, he is still a sweet guy. Most of the time," I added as an afterthought.

Nate smiled. "You got Shane perfectly. Who's next?"

I grinned at the fact that he agreed with me. "My best friend, Mitchie. Hot chocolate with two sugars, which I found out remind her of her grandmother. Mitchie Torres is the sweet thing in everyone's life, always there if you need her. And like a hot chocolate, there is something about her that is really comforting. Everyone loves hot chocolates and everyone loves Mitchie," I finished, smiling at the thought of Mitchie's sweet hot chocolate.

He grinned. "You did better with that one than I did. I didn't link the hot chocolate and Mitchie to comfort food."

"That's because you're a guy," I said matter-of-factly.

He smiled and gestured for me to continue.

"Jason. A caramel frappuccino, even in winter. It's almost like a kid's drink but with a touch of adult because of the coffee. It's just like him – his was probably the easiest."

He laughed. "I agree; it was definitely the easiest to figure out. Okay, Tess next."

"Tess. Espresso macchiato with one sugar. The most disgusting drink I have ever tasted in my whole life. Exactly like her Mom's drink except Tess adds sugar– bitter but with a touch of sweetness that I think Jason is responsible for. She wanted to be exactly like her Mom, but she's making changes, even if they are really small," I concluded.

Nate looked slightly impressed but then he smirked. I think he was picking that up from Shane too. "Okay, and what about me?"

I took a sip before I started. "You. Cappuccino with one sugar. You drink cappuccinos because you are a really practical person. You take your coffee as simply that – your coffee – it should give you that caffeine when you need it and allow you to have something in common with whomever you might be having a meeting with. A cappuccino is a simple coffee – no shots and no extra twists of anything. I think you're a pretty straight forward person too. Most of all though, your cappuccino represents your independence. You started drinking it after you got signed and that was when you began to show that you were your own person and you were capable of taking care of yourself." I paused to take another sip. "Oh and the whole practicality thing again because your coffee should stay warm throughout your meeting," I finished and I found Nate was staring at me with his mouth slightly open.

"How did you get all that from the little conversation we just had?" He asked.

I grinned, unable to help myself and stated, "Simple Nate. I pay attention." And then I burst out laughing at the look on his face.

"I've got to say Caitlyn, you did a really great job. You found out some stuff that I didn't manage and it sounds like you had a lot of fun doing it. Especially spinning around with Jason," he added and I froze.

How had he seen me do that? I thought no-one was watching! "How..?" I couldn't even form a full sentence. I couldn't believe he had been watching!

He looked at me and I could see that he was slightly embarrassed. "I heard you laughing so I came to see what was so funny, I guess."

I avoided his gaze and chose to take another sip of my coffee. I heard Nate clear his throat and I looked up hesitantly. "Anyway, the only thing I can't figure out is why you thought Shane was sweet. As far as I know, you two live to wind each other up," he said, and I could tell he was trying to get the conversation back to normal.

I shrugged. "Yeah, but then he called me his sister, so I guess -" I broke off realising what I had just said and I could almost hear Shane's voice.

"Because my sister has a crush on you!"

I looked at Nate and saw that his mouth had dropped open. Crap! I can't believe I said that! Okay, I had to leave. Now. I began to stand up from the stool I had been sitting on when he decided to speak.

"Caitlyn, did Shane..? I mean did -"

"Nate, I'm sorry to interrupt but I've got to go," I said, trying to make this conversation less uncomfortable. I turned to go and began to walk towards the door.

"No, Caitlyn, wait!" I nearly stopped but I couldn't bring myself to hear him let me down so I sped up.

"I can't Nate. I've really got to go!" I shouted over my shoulder, as I opened the door and let myself out. I jogged over to my car, threw open the door and began to pull out of the driveway. I wasn't ready to have my heart broken but I couldn't help the tears that overtook me as I drove as far away as I could from Nate.