A/N: I first off want to apologize if Chapter 8 disappointed any of you. I'll be the first person to point out that it was not my best writing. I did try, but I just couldn't feel it like I usual can. I was going through a lot of stuff. A break up, family drama, etc. I let it effect me too much, and it had an effect on my writing. I want to thank IHEARTJOMMY, who reviewed the last chapter for the honesty. Obviously, I felt the same way. I hope you like this chapter better. I know I do.

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Instant Star. And the song featured in this chapter is by Ingrid Michaelson. It's called Corner of Your Heart.


Chapter 9

It was the next day, and both Tommy and Jude were sufficiently excited for the collaborative album. Jude had called Tommy the previous night, and they had talked in detail about the album. Darius, for once in his life, was giving them a good amount of free reign artistically. If there's a time to experiment, Darius had noted, it was now, on a collaborative album. Tommy and Jude had settled on putting both "Wild Horses" and "Tiger Lily" on the album.

Jude walked into G-Major immediately after school and was immediately hounded by Sadie.

"You're doing an album with Tommy?" she nearly-shrieked. "Actually with Tommy? As in, Tommy is recording again?"

Jude eyed her sister with honest concern. "Calm yourself, Sades. It's not like he's releasing a new Boyz Attack CD. No need to release your inner fan girl."

Sadie rolled her eyes. "I was just…surprised. Though it would figure that you would be the one to bring him out from his musical shell. Was there force involved?"

Jude ignored Sadie's ending remark. "I'll just take that as a compliment."

"Take it as you will," Sadie responded with a grin, taking a sip of her diet soda.

"I, for one, am excited about this," Jude spoke with sincerity. "I think this will be good for both of our careers," she quieted her voice, "and for our relationship."

"The tabloids will have a field day over you two," Sadie commented. "There have always been rumors about you two, but now with the collaborative album? It's going to be chaos."

Jude simply smiled, unfazed. "I really, truly, don't care."

"Good," said Sadie, pleased with the response she had gotten.

The two went their separate ways, and Jude headed to the studio.

"Hi," Jude entered the door, meeting Tommy, who sat in his chair.

"Hey, girl," he greeted her in his usual, raspy voice he always seemed to use around her.

Jude glanced around to make sure no one was peering through the glass and pressed a quick kiss to Tommy's lips.

Quincy grinned. "Hi, indeed!"

Jude chuckled a bit breathlessly.

"So, what are we working on today?" Tommy asked.

Jude took a deep, relaxing breath. She rubbed her palms on her jeans to ease her tensions. "I think it's time to break open my journal."

Tommy gazed at her quizzically.

"I wrote a few songs while you were gone," Jude elaborated, "I'm finally ready to share them with you."

Tommy's smile didn't quite reach his eyes, but Jude knew that he wanted to hear them.

She entered the recording booth and took a seat at the keyboard. Jude breathed in a sigh and placed her fingers on the keys. She turned to Tommy, feeling the need to give him fair warning.

"They're good songs," she told him, confident in that at least, "but they're not happy."

"I didn't expect them to be, Jude," Tommy replied earnestly.

Jude nodded silently and turned back to the keys. She closed her eyes for a moment, deep in concentration. When she reopened them, she began to play.

The notes of the piano were almost painful. The deep feeling coming from the music was practically corporeal. The notes were both dark and light, and undeniably sad. It was a song written by someone who had been lost. Lost in a lot of ways, and lost for a long time. Jude had reflected on times past with Tommy – her feelings for him before and after he left. She had always loved him, of course, but for a long time, she didn't know if the feelings were reciprocated. Sure, he had kissed her on her sixteenth birthday, but nothing came of it. Despite her dating others, Jude had never gotten over Tommy – that much was blaringly obvious at anyone with eyes or ears. Then, of course, came the pain of losing him when he left for all those months. She tried not to think about those times – it brought back memories she would rather not revisit – but much of the sadness of the song was drawn from it, and Jude simply couldn't help but remember the anguish.

Finally, after a long intro, Jude began to sing. She really sang it, the emotion distinctly pure and raw in her voice.

"There's a corner of your heart for me
There's a corner of your heart just for me
I will pack my bags just to stay in the corner of your heart
Just to stay in the corner of your heart"

Jude's voice was needy. Desperate. She couldn't look over at Tommy. Making eye contact with him would only make singing the song all the harder. Her fingers nearly shook as she stroked the keys of the piano, playing them with all the heart she could muster.

"There is room beneath your bed for me
There is room beneath your bed just for me
I will leave this town just to sleep underneath your bed
Just to sleep underneath your bed"

She had missed him while he was gone. If it hadn't been apparent to Tommy before, it sure was now. She had been needy and desperate and lonely, and she absolutely hated it. But Jude couldn't help what emotions she felt, and those had been a big part of her life in regards to Tom Quincy.

"There's one minute of your day
There's one minute of your day
I will leave this man just to occupy one minute of your day
Just to occupy one minute of your day"

Jude thought back to her time with Spiederman. What a mess of a relationship that had been. She had liked him in her own way, but her feelings for Tommy overpowered any feelings she may have felt for her band mate. For a long time, Jude had resented the deep feelings that she held for her producer. They simply hurt too much. But when she wrote this song while he was gone, Jude finally came to terms with the feelings that she couldn't control when it came to him. At this point, she didn't want to.

"Just to sleep underneath your bed

Just to stay in the corner of you heart"

The song finally drew to a close, and Jude ran a hand through her frazzled hair, trying to regain her composure. She didn't want to look at Tommy. She didn't want to meet his impending gaze. Jude was terribly afraid of his response to the song. With the only ounce of courage she had left, she finally lifted her head and looked towards him.

His expression was unreadable. Completely, utterly unreadable.

Jude panicked.

"Say something!" Jude exclaimed, frantic.

He said nothing. Moments passed, and still he said nothing.

Jude knew then and there that she must have hurt him. Hurt him somehow with the honesty and vulnerability of her words. She let out a small noise of fright and ran from the studio.


"I played it for him," Jude blurted out. She had just entered Studio B where Spiederman was recording some guitar was recording and stolen the intercom from Kwest.

Spied's eyes widened and he exited the sound booth quickly. "How did he take it?"

Kwest rolled his eyes. "I'll just leave then!"

"Sorry, Kwest," Jude apologized.

The engineer-turned-producer simply shrugged and went off to make one of his well-known, sumo-sized sandwiches.

"So, what happened?" Spiederman questioned. "How did he take it?"

"I don't know!" Jude replied helplessly.

"How do you not know?" he asked. "It's pretty simple, Jude."

Jude's frustrations bubbled to the surface. She snapped at him irritably, "Because he didn't react!"

"Not at all?" he questioned, shocked.

Jude shook her head.

"Well, then what happened?" he asked her.

"I up and left. I couldn't stay in there. He wouldn't say anything. I couldn't take it, so I ran," Jude sighed, "…and now I'm here."

"Don't you think maybe you overreacted, dude?" Spied spoke hesitantly.

"I don't know. I wasn't exactly being rational when I left. But Spied…I was so scared to play that song for him. So scared. And then he just…said nothing! I freaked."

"I think," Spiederman began after a long pause, "that maybe you just didn't give him a chance to react. Not enough of one, anyway. You just need to talk to him, Judith. Then you'll be on the road to sweet romance in no time."

Jude gaped at him and began to insist that she and Tommy were nothing more than friends, but her band mate interrupted her.

"Dude, don't even try it. I know when my favorite bud is hooking up. And you, my fair Judith, are hooking up with Lord Squinty Frown."

"We're not 'hooking up'," Jude defended.

"Maybe not in that way…yet…but you and your producer man have something going on now-a-days."

Jude bit her lip.

"See, Harrison? I know all." Spiederman grinned. "And I haven't seen you this happy in a long time. So don't let it pass you by."

Jude let out a long sigh and nodded. She pulled her band mate into a hug. "Thanks, Spied."

"Anytime, dude."


Jude walked into the lobby of G-Major a few minutes later, after giving herself a moment to draw her thoughts together. There, she found Tommy sitting on the couch, apparently lost in thought. She sat down next to him.

"I'm sorry," she spoke quietly. "I overreacted. I freaked out. I was just so…nervous."

"I was in shock, Jude," Tommy replied seriously.

"I realize that now," Jude murmured. "I'm sorry I ran out. I was just panicked."

"It was a good song, Jude," Tommy spoke, "It was a great song. I just don't think I was prepared for the…emotional onslaught."

Jude smiled and held back a small laugh at his terminology. "Yeah. I was nervous to play it for a reason."

"And for the record, Jude," Tommy caught her in one of his stares, "I felt the same way."

Jude smiled softly, longing to touch him at that moment. But they were in the populated lobby of G-Major, and it simply wasn't possible. The two settled for speaking what needed to be spoken through their eyes. The gaze held every touch, every caress that wanted to be expressed.

"I'll see you in studio in a few minutes?" Tommy inquired.

Jude nodded her head in response. He got up from the couch, lightly brushed her shoulder with his hand, and left. She sat there for another moment until Sadie came up next her, sitting in Tommy's previous location.

"You and Tommy need to be more careful."

Jude turned to her sister, her mouth parted in a small "o."

"What do you mean?" Jude asked.

"Just a few minutes ago you guys were being completely obvious," Sadie replied.

"We weren't even touching!" Jude exclaimed in her quietest voice possible. She was dismayed.

"You didn't have to be, Jude," said Sadie. "With you and Tommy…it's like gravity. Something draws you two together in this captivating way. People can't help but watch. And the emotion on your faces couldn't be any clearer."

"How do I fix something I don't realize is happening?" Jude asked.

Sadie smiled but shrugged. "Have the talks in private."

Jude chuckled. "Thanks, Sades."

"See you at home?" Sadie asked.

Jude nodded and headed off to the studio, intent on having a few private moments with Tommy.


End of Chapter 9. I hope you enjoyed.

Just so everyone knows I accept anonymous reviews, so if you don't have an account, please don't let that stop you from telling me what you thought. I appreciate every review and enjoy hearing what my readers thoughts are.

School starts for me next week, so I won't have quite as much time for writing, unfortunately. But I'll make sure I get the chapters out there. Wish me luck on my final year of high school! Yikes.

-Laura