Reunion Chapter 3: For My Prom Queen, a california dreams fanfic

A/N: Kim, there are eight chapters in total and an epilogue. Thanks for your comments! Here's Chapter 3!

Disclaimer: Refer to Chapter 1

Chapter 3: For My Prom Queen

Tiffani splashed another handful of water over her face and stared at her reflection in the mirror. She could barely recognize the girl looking back at her. Just a few minutes ago, she desperately wanted to see Jake again. But now that he was here, in the flesh, she wished he hadn't come. Especially right in the middle of a song that, ironically, was exactly how she felt about breaking things off with him. It was then she noticed her hands were trembling. She grabbed the edge of the sink to steady herself as she let out a shaky breath.

"Tiffani?"

Spinning around too quickly, Tiffani almost lost her balance when she heard her name.

"This is so much nicer than the little boys' room."

"Sly?" she exclaimed when she realized who it was. "This is the women's bathroom!"

"I know that. Look, we're all worried about you."

"I'm fine," she bit back.

"Right," replied Sly, before putting on a British accent. "And I'm the Queen of England."

Tiffani smiled weakly.

"Now there's the Tiffani, I know and love."

Letting go of the counter top, she faced Sly. She nervously rung her hands together, keeping them from shaking.

"I-I didn't think seeing him again would do this to me," she said timidly. "What's wrong with me?"

Pulling her into his arms, Sly placed a gentle kiss in her hair.

"There's nothing wrong with you, Tiff. You and Jake loved each other."

"But I don't want to be in love with him anymore," she cried. "It took me all these years to move on and when he looked at me, he looked at me and... And, everything just came flooding back."

Sly held her by the shoulders and stared into her eyes.

"I hate to break it to you, but you haven't moved on and neither has he."

"And how do you know that?"

"He told me."

Her eyes widened at Sly's confession. Before she could ask, he began his explanation.

"A few years after the Dreams split, I really didn't know what to do with myself. Lorena was pursuing her career off in Europe and Mark joined the New York Symphony Orchestra. Then, you know, he got married and had his boys. I really didn't have anybody."

"So, you and Lorena…"

Smiling sadly, he nodded his head.

"It's really over this time. It just wasn't meant to be."

"Oh Sly, you could have called me."

"Thanks Tiff, but I didn't want to impose. Besides, when Jake fired his manager after fighting over his second album, I got a surprising call from him. Long story short, he helped me start my own record company."

"Congratulations, Sly. I still can't believe Jake has three albums under his belt," she whispered proudly, as a thought dawned on her. "Hey, I thought nobody had talked to Jake since our last gig."

"He promised me not to tell anyone and technically speaking he isn't signed with BaBoom Records."

Tiffani laughed.

"Jake thought it would be a good name."

"It's very you, Sly," she beamed, before carefully asking. "So, how has he been?"

"Maybe that's something you should ask him yourself."

Vehemently shaking her head, Tiffani leaned her head against his shoulder.

"I can't."

"You have to, Tiff, you owe it to him. Hell, you owe it to yourself."

She took a moment to digest what he had just said.

"You're right," she admitted.

"See that wasn't so hard to say, now was it?"

Clasping her hand tightly in his, Sly pulled Tiffani through the bathroom door. Ignoring the knot forming in her stomach, her eyes fell on a set of familiar leather clad shoulders. Tiffani took in every detail of Jake's face. His hair was slightly shorter than she remembered but other than that he looked exactly the way he did when they said goodbye years ago at the pier. He was smiling and talking animatedly with the rest of the band. Seeing that Tiffani looked like a deer caught in headlights, Sly decided to break the ice.

"Jake, my man!" he boomed with outstretched arms.

Jake chuckled as he turned around. The smile immediately fell from his face when he noticed Tiffani. The pair stared from across the room while the others uncomfortably moved away allowing them space. After what seemed like an eternity, Tiffani moved out from behind Sly. He gave her a reassuring look and walked towards Jake.

"It's about time you showed up," Sly said.

"You know me, I like to make my grand entrance," replied Jake with a smirk.

Glancing back at Tiffani, Sly clapped Jake on the shoulder.

"You're one lucky guy."

"I know."

Sly smiled as he rejoined the rest of the band. Turning back to Tiffani, Jake took a slow step forward. She followed suit until they were standing right in front of each other.

"Hi," she said meekly.

"Hi," he echoed.

Lifting their arms simultaneously, they gave each other an awkward hug. It was short-lived when a teenage girl tugged on Jake's sleeve. She looked no more than fifteen years old with long auburn hair and shiny brown eyes with bright pink braces lining her teeth.

"Sorry, but uhm," she eyed a group of girls giggling in a corner booth. "Are you Jake Sommers?"

He didn't get a chance to answer when she thrust a camera at Tiffani.

"I'm Melanie and I'm a huge fan! Can I take a picture with you?"

Reluctantly, Jake nodded his head. Melanie screeched as she posed beside him.

"Smile," Tiffani said.

The flash went off and Melanie giddily grabbed the camera from a bewildered Tiffani.

"Thank you," the girl exclaimed, shaking Jake's hand.

"No problem."

She giggled all the way back to her friends who all cooed and fawned over the hand that Jake touched. Jake uncomfortably ran a hand through his hair.

"I'm sorry about that," he apologized to Tiffani.

"Don't be. I always knew you'd make it big."

"Tiff, I…"

Trailing off, he noticed more and more people in the now full restaurant were pointing and staring at them. He noticed from the corner of his eye, Sly bounding towards them. And before Jake knew it, Sly dragged them onto the stage.

"What do you think you're doing," Jake demanded, through gritted teeth.

"Saving you," Sly whispered as he turned his charm on the crowd. "Ladies and gentlemen, we are in for a very special performance. Here for you once again are the California Dreams with the one, the only, Jake Sommers!"

The booth of girls erupted into a frenzy of screams. The rest of the band exchanged weary looks before being waved onto the stage by Sly.

"You are so dead, Wimple," Jake threatened.

Sly gulped uneasily as Mark and Matt held Jake back.

"Easy Jake," Matt warned. "He was just trying to help."

"If he wanted to help, he could have kept his big mouth shut," Jake growled as he tried to lunge towards Sly.

Letting out a yelp, Sly flew off the stage and into the audience.

"Let's just play a song," suggested Tony. "For your fans."

Jake took a deep breath and relaxed.

"Okay, one song."

He shot Sly another dirty look, causing him to sink further in his seat. Jake was so occupied with Sly that he didn't even notice Tiffani was no longer by his side. She had crossed over to where Sam was standing and even though he was trying to get her attention, her gaze averted his. After giving her one last glance, Jake hoisted his electric guitar from its stand and adjusted the strap onto his shoulder.

"Hi," he said into the microphone.

Another round of screaming exploded from the girls, who had moved right to the front of the stage, while the rest of the band was settling down with their instruments.

"This is Whenever I Think of You."

Jake waited for Mark and Sam, who played the first few bars, before he sang.

What was I waiting for
The minute you walked in the door
There was nothing more
I would even need

Looking for the right time
To lay my heart on the line
When I make up my mind
I get weak in the knees

Before another hour goes by
I want to look into your eyes
Oh girl, let my love fly free

Whenever I think of you
All I can tell is the truth
Now if I could just tell you
You know how I feel
Whenever I think of you
You shine in my mind like a jewel
And I'm ready to play the fool
To make this dream real
To make you feel like I feel
Whenever I, whenever I think of you

I can feel my heart race
Trying to read the look on your face
See if there's a place
In your heart for me

Something inside me moves
Pulling me closer to you
I know what I want to do
And where I want to be

Before another hour goes by
I want to look into your eyes
Oh girl, let my love fly free

Some things are beyond words
But there's one thing I've got to say
Before you fly like a blue bird
I'm gonna try and find a way

Jake had moved across the stage and stood right beside Tiffani. He played his solo as if she was the only person in the room.

Whenever I think of you
You shine in my mind like a jewel
And I'm ready to play the fool
To make this dream real
To make you feel like I feel
Whenever I, whenever I think of you
Oh whenever I, whenever I think of you
Yeah whenever I, whenever I think of you

Even before the song had ended, the group of teenagers exploded into chants of, "Jake! Jake!" He gave them a quick wave and was about to descend from the stage when Sly stood in his way.

"They love you Jake, maybe this is the start of your big comeback!" Sly exclaimed, before turning to the audience. "How about another song?"

More cheering filled the room.

"You selfish, little…" Jake began.

This time it was Tiffani stopped him, placing her hand against his shoulder.

"Forget about Sly," she said softly. "I want to hear you sing."

The rest of the band quietly slipped into the audience, leaving Jake and Tiffani alone on the stage. Taking the electric guitar from Jake's hands, Tiffani switched it with his acoustic one.

"Knock 'em dead."

He watched speechlessly as she rejoined her friends. Clearing his throat, he strummed a few notes.

"I, uh, like to dedicate this song to… to, well, my Prom Queen," he said, his eyes never leaving Tiffani's.

She listened intently as a familiar melody followed by Jake's smooth voice filled the hushed room.

Bright lights
Big stars, big dreams
This town
Ain't what it seems
Where was I going when I left you
What did I think I was gonna do

I had too much to dream last night
Hey now do you know what I mean
It's all different in the daylight
Just had a little too much to dream
Had a little too much to dream

Too high
Too fast, too far
No one
Can catch a falling star
Where was I going when I left you
What did I think I was going to do

I had too much to dream last night
Hey now do you know what I mean
It's all different in the daylight
Just had a little too much to dream
Had a little too much… to dream

Tiffani desperately wanted to look away, but she couldn't move as his eyes kept her frozen in place. Ignoring his fans, Jake maneuvered through them and dropped his guitar unexpectedly into Sly's lap. He took Tiffani's hand and pulled her out of her seat. The couple gazed at each other for a brief second, before Jake wordlessly led her out the back door.

TBC