A/N: Just watched Monday's episode and I am so . . . exasperated with Eddie. He needs to see Ch – Cynthia for what she is. For the purpose of this story, Max did not tell Eddie that he had a private investigator following Chloe and he didn't confront Chloe either. Tyler did force Chloe's hand by sending Jackie (sp?) to Chloe's place forcing her to reveal her version of the truth and Jackie still went along with it. I am saving that for something special. Hope ya'll don't mind. Lastly, the Eddie in this story won't be as easy on Chloe as he was in the show.

Disclaimer: I do not own Hollywood Heights, If did Eddie wouldn't be much of schmuck (and I say this with love) and fall for Chloe's tricks. Eddie would have been shirtless already

****** ***************So Addicted to Hollywood Heights********************************

Loren was having a hard time processing how she felt at the moment. The residual effects of panic attack that Loren had were still around shaking some of the newfound confidence Eddie had instilled in her. Loren also felt embarrassment from having a panic attack in front of Eddie in the first place. She had not experienced a panic in years after coming to term with the fact that her father was not in her life through no fault of Loren's.

The initial shock of Eddie's words coupled with her internal debate distracted Loren so much that she did not notice that Eddie moved from across the booth to sit right next to her on her side of her booth. Loren looked down to see Eddie's hand entangled in hers grounded her and willing her to come out of the haze of her panic attack and back to the present with him.

The sight of concern flickering in Eddie's eyes and the way his hand held onto hers was too much for Loren. They caused Loren to launch herself in Eddie's arms. Eddie though surprised quickly wrapped his arms around Loren understanding her need to have something real to anchor her to this moment and help shake away her doubts. With that in mind, Eddie brought Loren closer and buried his nose in her hair and inhaling her unique scent of lavender, peaches, and brown sugar. Though the moment may have seemed intimate but in this moment, it was simply one friend seeking comfort from another friend at least for now.

Before the moment had the chance to become awkward, the two were interrupted by someone clearing their throat. The two slowly – very slowly – extracted themselves from one another and turned around to face their server.

"Who ordered the chicken gnocchi with cheesy polenta" asked the waiter who looked embarrassed at interrupting such an obvious moment.

"That would be mine" said Loren who seemed to have found her voice. "So that leaves the turkey pancetta meatloaf with creamy mash potatoes for the gentleman. "

"Would you like some parmesan for you soup miss?" the waiter inquired politely. "No thank you" Loren replied in kind offering up a small smile to the waiter. "I'll be back to check on you too later to see when you're finished with your meal so I can serve you your dessert. " the waiter replied smiling in return and leaving the two alone.

Eddie turned to Loren to say something but Loren simply raised her eyebrow in a gesture that seemed to say eat first ask questions later. Eddie quickly decided that assertive Loren (he had taken to naming all of the "sides" of Loren after he saw them) was not someone who you wanted to cross. So he dove in and decided to try the food which admittedly smelled really great especially since Eddie hadn't eaten anything since breakfast.

Loren quickly decided that out of all the facial expressions that Eddie had made so far during their interactions with one another, the look of pure unadultered bliss on Eddie's face was one of her favorites. The two ate and laughed into the night bonding over their mutual love of music and sharing little stories with one another. Once the two were finished with their meal, they finished off their meal with some Zeppoli (think Italian donuts) which Loren dubbed as the last bit of legal fun for those under the age of twenty one. And if either of them noticed that Eddie never moved back to his side of the table, well they never said anything.

After dinner, Eddie insisted on driving Loren home after they retrieved his car from "their" place. He insisted that he wanted to make sure that she got home safe. At least that's what he told Loren, the truth was that Eddie was having a really good time with Loren and was not ready to have the night end. It had been a long time since Eddie had someone in his life who was genuinely interested in him as a person and not what he could do for their career. Loren didn't have to take the time to ask Eddie what was wrong or make the effort to cheer him up. But she did because she wanted Eddie to be happy. Because Eddie mattered to Loren Tate. While it was true that he had his dad who loved him, Max was often so consumed from the grief of losing his wife that it prevented him from being there for Eddie at times. Loren was different than any other person he had ever met though. Loren Tate was different than any person Eddie had ever met and Eddie desperately hoped that was one thing that never changed.

The two arrived at Loren's house but not before they made plans to meet up at a local studio where Eddie often practiced so that Loren could help Eddie with his dance moves (after Eddie attended a meeting with the Hollywood director as he said he would. Because Eddie was honorable and felt that if a man did not have his word then he had nothing). And not before Eddie could pull Loren close into another hug and whisper reassurance of his continued friendship and presence in her life softly into her ear.

************************ So Addicted to Hollywood Heights ********************************

When Loren stepped into her darkened living room, she strongly resisted the urge to pinch herself. Spending the day with Eddie and having him opening up to her like that felt surreal. The word surreal seemed to be a word that she used a lot lately considering how much things had changed these past few days. Loren was so caught up in her pondering that she failed to notice the two silhouettes ensconced in darkness. That is until one of the figures spoke up.

"Would you care to tell us why you ditched us after we made plans for a girl's day?" one of the figures said. The figure was revealed to be none other than her best friend Melissa once her mom flicked on the lights.

"It wouldn't have anything to do with the cute pop star named Eddie Durant? The same pop star whose car you just pulled up in, who gave you what looked to an incredibly intimate hug before you floated into the house back from Mars?" asked her mom, Nora, in her best imitation of a detective in one of those old school films.

"I'm so sorry you guys. I completely spaced and then I went out for a walk and ran into Eddie. You guys aren't made, are you?" asked Loren worriedly.

"We're not mad. But we will be if you don't tell us everything and not leave anything out" replied Nora.

This resulted in Melissa and Nora squealing and pulling Loren onto the couch with them and handing her a cup of cocoa. The truth was that the two were secretly excited about this new development, this was way better than sitting and watching bad made for tv films on lifetime.

*********************** So Addicted to Hollywood Heights ****************************

Once Eddie got home (he decided that he needed some space from Chloe at the moment to sort through his feelings), he turned his phone back on and saw that he had multiple messages from both Chloe and his dad. So he fired off a quick text message to his dad telling him not to worry and another to Chloe telling him that they would talk tomorrow but for right now he needed space.

A/N: A little longer than I anticipated but I'm pleased sort of with this chapter. I wasn't on planning on updating this soon simply b/c I had nothing to upload. But I got inspired by all of you who reviewed. Also thanks to everyone who favorite and/or followed the fic. I am truly humbled and honored as well as appreciative of your support. I have an internship at a local hospital so the next update may not be until next week. Also any title suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Also I'm writing the story as I go so please be patient with me. Also any suggestions of what you would like to see would also be appreciated. Constructive Criticism is welcomed as always.

So what do you guys think?