A/N: This is it! This is the final chapter, and I feel like crying OMG WHY?! Even though this is NOT the end, because like I've mentioned before there will be a sequel! WHICH I can assure you all will enjoy! ;)
But I want to thank all of my reviewers, I've had this idea for years in my head, and I finally got the chance to get it out of my system and share it with other LU fans. I really appreciate all of the support I got from all of you, including my some of my DA readers as well! Thank you! And this is only the first part of my project, I still don't know if this will be converted into a trilogy, the third story's idea is there, it's just that it's very raw, and I would have to work with the second one and see if I can make it happen... If not I'll make it a separate story in the future because I still like the concept... But there is a sequel for sure! :)
Another thing I wanted to ask you guys is to please go to my profile and answer a poll that I'm running, it has to do with the sequel's title... And I really need your help! There's also a link to a mini Soundtrack I made for the Story, including all of the songs that I used in the story, and others that I didn't use but fit with the story.
Also I wanted to let you guys know, that I will take a month off from writing, the reason being... Because I'm a little behind with my artwork, I guess I got too focused on writing and now I have a bunch of piled up artwork, including a couple of art requests and art trades. But don't worry I would never abandon this project, I will work on it from time to time, and as soon as I'm done with all of my art list I'll be back with writing the sequel. For other updates, including an upcoming cover for this story please visit my DA page, the link is on my profile.
Other than that... Please enjoy the final chapter of "Star Of My Heart" And thanks for reading guys! =')
They've been riding for almost an hour and he decided to descend towards the streets, signaling her with a finger as he pointed towards the ground. He felt her nod as a reassurance that she was holding on… Even though he already knew that; since he felt her arms around his torso.
The bike started to descend and once close enough to the ground he touched a button and the bike carefully switched into road mode, the four hovering disks started to slightly turn and slowly form themselves into two wheels… They finally touched the pavement of the streets and he was now heading towards the Acmetropolis Central Park…
He stopped once they arrived to his desired destination.
She straightened herself in her seat and let go of him, preparing herself to dismount the bike, once out she used the opportunity to stretch her muscles, Ace doing the same.
The sky was orange and the sun was getting ready to set if not already started to set. They sat on top of a small hill and watched the children as they played with the fallen brown leaves of the trees.
He turned to her and admired her presence, not a word had been said since they left the tower. And he was afraid to speak, he didn't want to ruin this moment, this sudden safe and peaceful moment with her.
Her gaze was still fixed on the kids. She smiled and softly chuckled to herself, "You know… There's something about Fall that I just… Fills me, I don't know if it's the leaves, the color or it's amazing smell." She commented.
Ace furrowed his eyebrows and smiled at her, "Yeah… I know what you mean…" He replied. There was a brief silence, but enough for her to forget about her recent subject, the air was strangely filled with awkwardness. "So… Paris huh?" He carefully started.
She faced him; surprised at his sudden suggestion, she softly frowned and slowly nodded.
"When?" Was all he asked.
"Friday…" She dreadfully answered.
He frowned as well, disappointed at her answer, but mostly at her reaction. "Lex… This is a once in a lifetime opportunity, you know that right?"
She nodded apprehensively.
"Then why do you look as if you don't want to go? I mean it's something you've been wanting for years! And well… I mean is it him? or what?" He asked curiously.
"No, it's not him… He's actually been nothing but good to me." She reassured him.
Ace nodded, a bit relieved about her answer.
"This actually means a lot for him… It's his job and he really wants me there, and he also wants me to spend the holidays with him and his family in London. It's all too flattering… A dream come true if you could call it that. My dream trip to Acme Europe…" She said with a bit of sarcasm in her tone. "I was so determined… And you're right it's been my dream to go, but I just can't leave you guys like that… I just can't go on vacation while you guys are here risking your lives because you're one person short!"
Ace stared at her unconvinced, "Lex… Try again! You know we've worked short handed before and it's been fine. I mean it can be a challenge sometimes, but it's not something that'll jeopardize anything. I know you Lex, so what's really going on?"
She sighed at his answer, "It's just…"
"Lexi?!" Called a voice from afar.
Her ears perked up at the mention of her name, frantically looking around for the voice's owner. Ace noticed her sudden reaction and raised an eyebrow at her, curiously looking around in question.
She stood, and again. "Lexi!"
"Lex! What wrong?" Asked a worried Ace as he stood and gently placed a hand on her shoulder.
"It sounded as if someone's calling my name…" She trailed staring at the group of kids that played with the leaves.
"Lexi!"
Now there was no denying it, even Ace heard it loud and clear. They both turned since the voice came from behind them.
Lexi's eyes widened at the discovery of the voice's owner. "Jake?!" She asked confused.
And there was Jake, standing before them; staring at both loonatics in disbelief.
"Jake? What's going on? Wha-What are you doing here?" Asked a confused Lexi.
Jake glanced at the ground and shook his head, he glanced back at her, "What am I doing here?! What are you doing here Lexi?! I've been calling you for the past two hours!" He angrily informed her.
His tone surprised the female bunny; she has never heard him this upset before. Automatically she glanced at her waist and noticed that she had forgotten to bring her bag, "Oh… Babe I'm sorry I guess I left my bag at HQ." She informed him. She then furrowed her eyebrows in a questionably way, "Wait! How did you find me?" She asked suspiciously.
Jake scoffed before he answered, sarcasm could be sensed in his features, "Oh how did I found you? Well that's a good question love… Have you not noticed that you've been surrounded by paparazzi for hours?!"
Both Ace and Lexi's eyes widened as they frantically looked at their surroundings, but to their surprise they didn't see anything.
"No… Behind the bushes! Inside cars! Helicopters! Under-covered people around you! You two have made quite the headlines… My phone has been ringing non-stop for me to make a quote about my girlfriend's affair with her teammate!"
It was then that they did noticed a couple of odd things, a couple of cars parked near their location, all of them occupied by people; their windows half opened and a camera lens pointed at their direction. A shuffling could be heard near some of the bushes; which indicated that something or someone was behind them. A couple of people walking around with cameras in their hands, but to anyone it may seem as a normal person who practiced the art of photography, and lastly a helicopter that Ace noticed ever since they arrived was surrounding the areas, he just didn't really associated it with being the paparazzi.
"Woah! Jake, you need to calm down buddy! Nothing happened!" Said Ace.
"Jake! Nothing happened!" Added Lexi supporting Ace's words. "I mean yes, I lost track of time and I know I was suppose to be at your house 2 hours ago… And I left my phone back in HQ! But I didn't know we were being followed! I swear nothing happened we just took a ride!"
Jake sighed in frustration, "Do you know how bad this is for me? Do you know how bad this is going to make me look?! It doesn't matter if something happened or not, this is enough material for the tabloids to work with! I'm in the process of filming a movie! My first bloody movie Lexi! You know how much that means to me!" If anything, he sounded more hurt than angered.
Ace was starting to get annoyed at the way Jake was talking to Lexi, he glanced at her and noticed she had a guilty look on her face. But he didn't say a word, he decided to stay out of it as much as he could, he knew nothing happened so he had nothing to worry about, right?
Lexi's eyes started to water with fresh tears; she just couldn't help but feel guilty about the whole thing, even though nothing really happened, "I'm sorry…" She expressed.
Jake once again let out a sigh, he walked towards her, "Lexi… Why don't we go to my car and talk there and get away from the cameras. Oh and I need your answer ASAP, turns out production is running behind schedule and we need to leave tomorrow night instead of Friday." By now Jake had started to walk towards his car assuming Lexi would follow him.
She sniffled a bit, "No…" she responded, not moving from her spot next to Ace.
Jake stopped and turn towards her surprised, "No? What do you mean no."
"No, as in I can't do this anymore, everything! US!" She replied giving him a hurt look.
Jake was speechless for a couple of seconds, his jaw dropped at her answer. But something hit him all of a sudden, he turned towards Ace and started to shake his head in disbelief, "You! What the hell did you say to her?!" He angrily asked walking towards the Loonatic's leader.
"He had nothing to do with this Jake!" Said Lexi, defensively standing in front of Ace. "But yeah I'm glad you care that me and Ace had started talking again!" She added.
Ace couldn't help but to feel proud of her sudden defensive actions. "Listen Doc, I would never come between you two, I swear I had nothing to do with it, if anything I was trying to encourage Lexi on going on that trip with you!"
Jake was just confused; he could tell Ace wasn't lying, and now his expression read something beyond hurt. "I don't understand love…"
She walked towards him and hugged him, when she broke the hug she nodded to him, "Yeah, why don't we go and talk in your car?" She gently asked, tears were now starting to slowly escape her emerald eyes.
Ace gave her a worried look, but she gave him a reassuring nod, "It's ok…" she added. And he replied by giving her an understanding nod.
Lexi grabbed Jake's arm and walked towards his car, when they reached they both mounted and close the door behind them, leaving nothing but a tense silence between the couple.
Jake didn't dare to look at her, he was afraid of loosing her; and now he regretted his previous hostile encounter with them.
Lexi stared at him in thought, she then shifted herself to face him. A tear streamed down his eye, and she gently wiped it with her thumb, the action caught the actor's attention as he turned his position towards her.
She took a deep breath to try and calm her own emotions, "Jake… I love you. I really do!" She started, and even though he's been dying to hear those words coming from her, he knew that this wasn't going to end the way he wished it would. "You've been nothing but amazing for me, and you've given me so much… So much love Jake. You make me feel special and wanted, you make me feel safe. And I know your feelings are genuine, I know that you truly love me and I have no doubt in that."
He softly smiled at her, but his smile faded at the thought of loosing her, "But…?" he carefully asked.
Her eyes were starting to water again, "I can't do this right now. I… I don't really know what I want now! I can't really explain it, and I feel horrible for hurting or disappointing you Jake, I do!"
He wrapped her in his arms as she sobbed, he gently wiped her hair away from her face and kissed her forehead. A few tears escaped from his own eyes as he consoled her. And he could tell she was confused, he knew exactly what this was about. This was something he was afraid of ever since they started dating, of loosing her over her undiscovered feelings for Ace. But none the less, he knew it could happen seeing as how close the two were.
He broke the hug and gently wiped her tears, her wet green eyes scarred into his turquoise orbs. He gave her an understanding nod, "It's ok love, I understand. And I want you to be happy Lexi, that's all I really want; for your happiness."
Lexi just stared at him, sniffling in between sobs.
"Don't cry love, because it makes me cry as well… It makes me sad to see you sad. You have a life ahead of you love, you're an amazing girl you know that right? You're laughter is contagious and you're the most beautiful girl I've ever laid eyes on. And I want to thank you for the lovely time we spent together, I will never forget it love. You've been nothing but understanding with me…" He softly chuckled, "Now what am I gonna tell my mum? She's been dying to meet you!"
She chuckled at his last words, and she couldn't help but to feel a bit guilty about it. "I'm sorry…" She sadly added.
"Don't be love… I'll always cherish what we had."
"So will I Jake…"
She nodded, and sighed… There was nothing else to talk about and for some reason she was dreading to get out of the car. It's not that she suddenly regretted her decision, but she did love Jake and she just wasn't ready to say goodbye, to officially detach him from her life. "Well… I guess this is goodbye…" She started.
He softly nodded as a sad expression took over his features, "I guess it is." He added.
"I'm going to miss you Jake…" She said embracing him.
"So will I love."
"At least write to me from time to time! You know fill me in with how the filming is going on." She suggested.
"I will, even though it's not going to be same without you… As long as you do me a favor in return." He replied.
She looked at him in question and raised an eyebrow at him, but none the less nodded and responded. "Anything."
"I want you to be happy love," He gently placed a finger on her chest, "Follow your heart love, listen to it and follow… And I can assure you'll be forever happy." He gently kissed her forehead and embraced her once again, this time giving her his final goodbyes.
His words… For some reason brought a bit of shock to her. They broke the hug and she gave him one last nod before she opened the door and stepped out of the car, she shut the door behind her; leaving Jake alone fore a couple of seconds… "I'm sorry I got in the way…" He said to no one in particular. He stared out his window and saw Lexi walking towards Ace who was now sitting in the grass patiently waiting for her. He nodded to himself and opened the door to his car and stepped out.
Lexi had a few tears still streaming down her cheeks, but nothing too dramatic. She finally reached Ace, and when he noticed her broken features he started to worriedly walk towards her, and automatically she wrapped her arms around him; a small sob escaping her lips.
"I'm so sorry Lex… I know how much you wanted this." He cooed her, gently stroking her back.
Their embrace broke at the sound of someone clearing their throat, curiously they turned towards the source and found Jake once again staring at them; but this time his expression was more soft.
"I uh… I'm sorry, I was wondering if I could speak with Ace." He said. Both Ace and Lexi gave him a careful look, but all assumptions were cleared once Jake waved his hands in a dismissive manner. "Oh… Uh, it's nothing bad I promise love." He said looking at Lexi who reluctantly gave both male bunnies an approving nod as she stepped away from them and walked towards the bike were she would wait for Ace.
Ace and Jake walked a bit farther so that they could be out of reach from Lexi's super hearing, "So what's up Doc? What do you want to talk to me about?" Asked Ace with curiosity.
Jake nodded and stuffed his hands into his pockets since it was getting a bit more colder out, "First, I wanted to apologize for everything, even though I already have… And second, I wanted to ask you for a favor." Ace stared at him and nodded, to let him proceed with his request, "Take care of her mate, I know it's your duty to always look after her, but what I'm asking is to love her… To be passionate about what you love the most. She truly loves you mate, she just doesn't know it yet. She's such an amazing girl Ace, don't loose her."
Ace was surprised at his words, he nodded apprehensively as he spoke, "It's been quite a ride for us that's for sure… But I would never hurt her, just as you took your word of not doing her any harm, I stand by them as well. We've had our little misunderstandings, but I've learned from them. We've been best friends for so long Jake, she knows me as much as I know her. And even if we don't end up together they way I wish, her friendship will always be the best thing that has ever happened to me." He replied.
Jake nodded and gave him a warm smile, he extended a hand to him which Ace gladly took and shook before they each parted to their respective way.
Lexi was sitting next to the bike, fiddling with her ribbon. Her expression was still a bit uncertain as it read a bit of sadness in it.
Ace walked towards her and sat next to her, "Hey what cha doing?" he started.
She glanced up at him and forced a smile, she didn't question him about Jake's intentions instead another tear escaped her emerald eyes. He gently wiped it away giving her a concern look. She sniffled a bit, "I'm sorry… It's just that it's been a very emotional day for me."
"I know… It's ok Lex." He said extending an arm around her shoulders and scooted her closer to him, she rested her head against his chest.
There was a couple of minutes of pure silence and by now they didn't care if they were being watched or not. And to be honest this is something that Lexi wasn't going to miss at all from her glamourous life with Jake.
She shivered a bit since the temperature was dropping more and more as it got darker, he gave her a concerned look and slightly rubbed her arm, "Hey you want to go and warm up a bit before we head home? I mean I ain't no millionaire to take you to some fancy 5 star coffee shop or anything…" He started to stand up, and once up she lend a hand to help her stand.
Lexi chuckled at his words as she took his hand and pulled herself up, "Ace… Jake might've been Acmetropolis Super Star…" her cheeks started to reddened as she thought about her next words, "But you're the Star of My Heart…"
A wide smile grew on Ace's face, even though he felt more than anything to make a move on her… She had just broken up with her boyfriend, and he could tell she was still a bit vulnerable about the subject, so instead he hugged her. The hugged surprised her, but at least it made her smile.
"So… Chai Latte's then?" Suggested Ace as he broke the hug.
"Sounds Perfect!" Responded Lexi.
They both smiled to each other before they mounted the bike.
/
He rode as careful as he could, he made himself believe that the more cautious he rode the more he would protect the delicate girl that hugged his torso. He rode careful, not fast… To enjoy this moment with her, to savor the closeness as much as it lasts.
Her arms around him, she didn't want to let go… Her heart broken but slowly restoring itself as new undiscovered feelings slowly grew inside of her. It was this friendship that made it all worth for her. She lost Jake; no, she didn't loose him, she let him go because that's what she felt was right, but she regained what was important for her, what her heart told her what was right.
She looked up at Ace, she couldn't help but to admire him; after all, after everything that has happened he was there for her, and she didn't doubt that it wouldn't be the last time, this was forever.
And something warm grew inside of her at the thought, he was here to stay… For her. She softly smiled as the wind gently blew against her face, she softly closed her eyes and whispered to the wind. "I'll follow my heart."
THE END
Stay
All along it was a fever
A cold sweat hot-headed believer
I threw my hands in the air, said, "Show me something,"
He said, "If you dare come a little closer."
Round and around and around and around we go
Oh now tell me now tell me now tell me now you know
Not really sure how to feel about it.
Something in the way you move
Makes me feel like I can't live without you.
It takes me all the way.
I want you to stay
It's not much of a life you're living
It's not just something you take – it's given
Round and around and around and around we go
Oh now tell me now tell me now tell me now you know
Not really sure how to feel about it.
Something in the way you move
Makes me feel like I can't live without you.
It takes me all the way.
I want you to stay.
Ooh the reason I hold on
Ooh cause I need this hole gone
Funny you're the broken one but I'm the only one who needed saving
Cause when you never see the light it's hard to know which one of us is caving
Not really sure how to feel about it.
Something in the way you move
Makes me feel like I can't live without you.
It takes me all the way.
I want you to stay, stay.
I want you to stay, oh.
Song by Rihanna ft. Mikky Ekko
Remember to always follow your heart! Thanks for reading! And please review! :)
