A/N Prepare for a super long chapter! I feel like it will be a good one with a lot of loveee. :) Hehe. Thanks for all the support, everyone! Enjoy this! I loved writing it, as I always do. Very, VERY sorry about how late it is. I feel so ashamed. D: Hope you all can forgive me. :) It's my longest chapter. I was aiming for at least 5,000 words and I just barely made it. :) Many, many things are happening, so be sure to keep up. ;D Haha just kidding. I know it won't be that hard to keep up with. Leave me a review after and tell me what you think! I really appreciate support, and there is for sure going to be a sequel. :) However, the sequel chapter won't be posted as fast as the chapters for this story, and probably it won't be as long, either. I'm still working it out. The end of this one is coming up in just seven more chapters, guys. :( Oh, well. Also, I didn't have time to spell check or anything so forgive me for any mistakes. Enjoy!

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Austin&Ally nor am I associated with it in any way. All characters belong to Disney, however, I created Ian and Tenley. All I did was twist the story line. I also don't own the song "Never Say Never" by The Fray, nor am I associated with The Fray.

I've never seen Austin so speechless. He gripped my hand as if he never wanted to let go, and then he pulled me in to a hug. "Times Square!" He breathes, "It's here. Right in front of me."

And it was.

We all smile along with Austin, because his excitement is getting to us all. "Imagine me in a few years, right up there, singing... To millions of people." He gripped my hand even tighter. "Wow."

It was our first day in New York City, and although we had only been out and about for nearly three hours, we loved it. I loved it. I couldn't wait to snatch an opportunity to go tour the MUNY campus. By myself, of course. I loved Austin, and my friends, but this was something I wanted to do alone.

We snapped a ton of pictures together in Times Square. We were finally able to drag Austin out of there to go do something else, because we only has seven days in the Big Apple, and we didn't want to miss a thing. I was a firm believer that Austin would play Times quare someday. I'm sure it will be many years from now, but I will live for the day when I can watch him on my television and say "He's mine." Either that or, "He was mine."

Austin is being extra sweet to me, but I'm not complaining. I loved the attention from him. I love love! Sometimes I feel so odd, because earlier in my life, I would have never counted on a boy for my happiness, but now, I wasn't so sure. I better live up the rest of this summer while I can.

"Hey, Ally..." Austin murmurs in a childish voice. I giggle. "What?" He grins and bends down to kiss me on the cheek. "I love you." I wink at him. "I love you too."

I watched Ian and Tenley swinging arms as they walked and held hands ahead of us. Ian was laughing about something that Tenley had said, and I grin.

I felt my stomach growl as I became aware that we had skipped lunch. "Hey, guys, let's get something to eat." I decide, and they all nod eagerly. Dez looks really thankful that someone has mentioned eating.

We stop by a McDonalds, since it will be pretty cheap, and we decide to take the food back to our hotel, because the place is packed. Unable to flag a taxi, we have to walk all the way back, which takes at least forty-five minutes, maybe longer. We all eat in the guys' room, sitting on the floor in the circle, taking off our shoes because our feet fell as if they were going to fall off. Walking around everywhere was tough stuff.

"Been a good day!" Trish exclaims, "I'm glad we came here. This was a good idea."

The truth was, we all felt very independant, I think. Here, in the big city, without our parents or anything like that. Free to do what we wanted, without supervision. Sure, that's pretty much how it was all summer, but here, we were far, far away from our parents or anyone we knew, for that matter. All we had was each other. I loved it.

I wonder what it would be like going on tour with Austin with this group of people? Not that it would happen, but wouldn't it be nice? We could go to so many different cities, not just this one. Wow. That would be living the dream.

We finish our food and dispose of our trash. I am really eager to get out there and see MUNY, but I know now is not the right time. It's beginning to get dark, and I'm sure that the rest of them will want to get out and go walk around some more. Either that or just crawl in the bed and sleep forever, seeing as how sore my feet were. That would be my top choice, even though I really did love New York, and I wanted to see the city lights at night. But, right now, I think it would be best to just stay put.

I think the others agree with me, too, because no one is making an effort to get up and do anything.

Eventually we split up and went to our seperate rooms. I let Trish go first for a shower, because I know she gets grumpy. Tenley isn't arguing either.

I realize we have a balcony. A small one, but a balcony. I make my way out the sliding doors and sit down right there on the ground, leaning against the bars and looking across the skyline, hearing the honking car horns and what not. Tenley had soon joined me.

"So," Tenley sighs, making conversation, "have you gone to look at MUNY yet?"

I shoot a look at her. How could she know?

She laughs and rolls her eyes. "Come on, Ally. We all know you want to go to MUNY. It's your dream."

"Y-Yeah," I mumble, "but how did you guys know?"

She grins. "You're an open book to me, Ally. I can tell what you're thinking, kind of. Not in a creepy way, but... I can."

I nod, kind of dismissing the conversation. Okay, so, they knew I wanted to go see MUNY. I didn't really mind, I guess, but it did slightly aggarvate me. Oh, well. When Trish gets out of the shower, I let Tenley go next, and I pull my Book out of my suitcase. I don't really know why. I guess I just need to read some lyrics to calm myself down a bit. It's been a very busy day.

When I finally get myself showered, I come out to find Tenley and Trish already alseep. I, myself, crawl in to my own bed, and am soon out too.

Morning comes way too soon. Still, I'm eager to see more of this beautiful city. My eagerness is sudenly gone when I realize... It's raining.

"Trish, Tenley!" I groan loudly from the balcony window. The mumble in their beds, and Trish even pulls the covers over her head. "It's raining." I whimper.

Tenley sits up quickly and frowns. "What? I didn't know it was going to rain..."

"Me either." I huff, and I cross my arms. Seconds later, there was a knock on the door. I walked across the room and opened it to reveal Austin in his boxers and a tshirt. "It's raining!" He cries frantically. "I know." I say with a sigh. "How about going to put some pants on?"

He looks down, and his face gets red. I wink at him, and we quickly walks back to his room.

Since it was raining, and didn't appear to be clearing up, there would have to be some indoor activities for today, I suppose. Although, today would be a perfect time for me to sneak away without the others wanting to catch up with me.

I slip in to the bathroom and pull my hair back in to a high ponytail, not worrying about makeup, because I know it will smear out in the moisture. Once finished, I come back out and get on some skinny jeans, a white blouse, and some black and white polka dotted rainboots I just happened to pack. I was grabbing my wallet and my black coat, heading for the door, when Trish said, "Ally, where are you going?"

I realized I had given my roomates no explanation for my actions.

"Uh..." I mutter. The truth is, I really do want to see MUNY in private. I don't even want Austin with me. I feel that, if I'm with my friends, it could some how influence my decision, for the good or bad. I didn't want that. I wanted my decision to be purely my own. "Out." I answer simply.

Tenley obviously sees what I'm up to. I bite my lip, because Trish looks oddly suspicious. "In this weather?" She asks, and I just nod.

"Ally is going out to think of some new lyrics. She doesn't want a distraction. She was gonna go to a cafe I think, right Ally?" Tenley asks, raising her eyebrows. I relax and smile at her, grateful for her help. "Yeah... Yeah, she's right." I realize I don't have my Book in my hand, and I crossed the room to grab it off my nightstand. "Forgot this!" I say with a nervous laugh, and cross back towards to door once more. "Bye, guys! See you all later!"

Once I finally think I've made it to safety, I haven't. Austin is just returning to our room when I shut the door. I hold in a sigh.

"Where you going?" He asks, looking me up and down. "To a cafe down the street," I answer, "to write some lyrics."

He smiles. "Cool," he replies, "I'll come with you."

I hold up my hand. "No, no." I murmur. "I don't want any distractions."

He frowns, obviously hurt. I sigh, suddenly guilty. "Austin... I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that."

He shakes his head. "No, it's okay." He says with a weak smile. "I was afraid this day was coming, but I guess I'll have to face it."

I raise an eyebrow at him. "This day? What do you mean by that?" I ask accusingly.

"The day when we began to, even the slightest bit, grow apart." He runs a hand through his hair, and I'm aware that we're awkwardly standing in the hotel hallway. "If you're feeling the need to get detached from me because I'm going away, then just tell me... I can handle it."

I wrap my arms around his waist, breathing in his scent, and he hesitantly wraps me in a hug. "No, Austin..." I whisper, "No, that's not it. I still love you. I don't want to get detached." I pause and look up in to his brown eyes. "I'll wait for you."

His smile seems genuine as he reaches down and kisses me softly. "Good luck with the song." He murmurs. I blush, and as I make my way to the elevator, I'm suddenly feeling very good and very bad at the same time. Austin thought I wanted to detach myself from him... It hurt me, but I suppose it's my own fault. I wanted to feel closer to him. I bite my lip as the elevator descended. I would need to have some alone time with him soon. We hadn't had alone time in a long time.

As I walked out of the lobby of the hotel, a shiver went down my spine and I pulled the hood of my jacket up over my ears. It had been a while since I had been genuinley cold from being outside.

I waves my arm by the sidewalk for at least ten minutes before a taxi finally came. "Music University of New York's campus, please." I say quietly as I climb in, and the taxi driver nods.

The ride is considerably long, since it is raining and no one wants to walk. The roads are clogged, and my taxi driver curses under his breath at the traffic. Once finally arrived, I pay him, and excitedly step out of the vehicle.

I was on the campus.

I inhaled the moist New York air as rain drops fell on my head, reminding me to put up my hood again. I looked around. Nothing but beauty everywhere. It was a small school, with only about 3,000 students. They walked happily down the sidewalks with drumsticks, instrument cases, and journals in their hands. They all smiled at my as I passed them, and I returned the favor. If anything was perfect, it was the atmosphere. Even on a dreary day like this, everyone was happy. It was odd, because the headmaster of the school was quite a harsh guy... Or so I've heard. I find a bench to rest on for a few minutes, tightening my ponytail and checking the buttons on my blouse.

The buildings were small, but music pulsed from a few of them. There was a statue of a grande piano in the center of the campus, where not many people were. I wondered if it was because of the weather, or because it was a good time for people to be in their classes.

I walked past some dorms, that looked reasonably sized. Even better, all of them were private. There were no roomates in this campus. That was good, because I never was all that great at meeting new people. After all, my junior year of high school, the only real friends I made were Dez, Austin, Ian, and Tenley. Trish doesn't count, because I knew her before all of them.

After about two hours, I had seen it all. And I loved it. I knew that this was the college I wanted to attend now. I couldn't even express any of my other options now. My senior year, this was, I decided, where I would apply.

It was beginning to get close to lunch time, and I knew that, to make my story realistic, I needed to be at that cafe writing. Some new inspirations had come to mind after hearing all the lovely tunes on campus.

After flagging down yet another taxi, and getting stuck in traffic yet again, I found the cafe Tenley spoke of earlier to cover my story. It was tiny, but crowded. I knew I wouldn't really get much accomplished here, but I would feel guilty if i told them I was coming here and then didn't even do anything for a song. I orded a frappe after waiting in line a while, and managed to find a spot on a sofa. I am about to pull out my Book and get to writing when I realize... I don't have my Book.

My Book is gone.

My... Book... Is... Gone.

MY BOOK IS GONE.

Panic, panic! Okay, try not to panic, try not to panic. I tried to remeber the last place I had it... I didn't have it in the taxi on the way over here. In fact, I don't think I had it with me most of the time on the MUNY campus.

The bench... Of course! When I sat down on that bench to rest, I laid my Book next to me... and I never picked it up.

I forced the tears back down in to my throat. I wasn't going to cry. Not here, not now. I knew I couldn't go back to that campus today. I didn't have enough money in my wallet for another taxi ride, and it was too far to walk. I would have to wait until at least tomorrow and hope and pray that someone turned it in to a lost and found or something, anything where I could find my Book. The precious Book my mom got me as a birthday present seven years earlier. The Book where I wrote all my lyrics, all my songs. So many memories were wrapped up behind that worn leather cover, and if I didn't get it back, I didn't know what I would do. If no one got it out of the rain soon, it would rot away, and all would be lost.

I discard my frappe, knowing I wouldn't drink it now, and head back towards the hotel. I ride the elevator up to the room, not looking forward to having to tell my friends where I had been all day, and how the Book was lost. I decided to tell them that I had gone over to just look around for the heck of it, and that it had not been my original plan. It wasn't like me to lie, but I had kind of already lied to them, anyway.

I took a deep breath as I opened the door to my room. Everyone was in there, laying across the beds scrolling through phones and talking secondhandedly. They looked up as I shut the door behind me. Austin flashed me a smile, then frowned when he saw the immienient panic on my face. He slowly got up and approached me. "Ally," he murmurs, "what's wrong?"

I take a deep breath as I begin, deciding to just tell them the truth. "I lost my Book..." His eyes get big, and I continue, "I went to look at the MUNY campus before going to the cafe... And I set it down on a bench over there and forgot it. I realized when I got back to the cafe what I had done, and it's too late to go back today. I didn't get to write a new song or anything at all." My eyes drop to the floor as the tears well up behind my eyes, and I blink them back. I'm aware of my friends staring at me.

He holds my shoulders gently. "We'll go back tomorrow and see if we can find it. Maybe it's still there? Or someone turned it in?" He states. I'm glad he's not upset about me going to see MUNY. But, truthfully, he doesn't have a right to be upset. He's going to California, I should be able to go wherever I want. I just nod, and he holds my hand and we go and lay down on a bed. "I'm sorry, Ally." Trish whimpers, and I shrug, knowing there's really nothing I could do about it. Tenley is giving me a pained look, too.

The rest of the day is long and the night is restless. Austin and I go to catch a cab to MUNY before anyone else is even awake. He holds my hand in the back of the taxi cab. "We'll get it back." Austin murmurs. I sure hoped so. Third day of this trip, and something had already gone wrong.

We arrived, and we immieniently headed for the bench. I wasn't surprised when my Book wasn't there.

Austin sighs and runs a hand through his hair. "Let's go to the main building and ask if anyone has turned it in." He suggests, and I nod solemnly.

I walk in to the building and am not surprised to hear music coming out of a sound system overhead. It loosens me up a bit. "Excuse me," I murmur to a lady behind a desk. She looks up from a page of notes to look at me. "Yes?" She asks, and I swallow. "This may be an odd question, but... Has anyone turned in a book with a leather cover, it has lyrics and stuff written inside of it? I lost it here yesterday while I was looking around campus and I really need it back..."

She studies me for a moment before rising from her seat. "Stay here." She orders, and I nod as she walks around a corner. "Do you think they found it?" I whisper hopefully to Austin, and he just shrugs and squeezes my hand.

A moment later, the woman returns with a man whom I assume is the headmaster. He has a permanently grim look on his face, but at the same time, he looks... Hopeful? "Ma,am," he says, "would you come back here for a moment?"

I glance at Austin, confused. He nods at me, to tell me to go. Maybe they have my Book.

I follow the man down a long narrow hallway with offices on both sides. Finally, he turns in to a much larger room, and my assumptions are correct. On a desk in the corner of the room, a name plate reads "Headmaster of MUNY".

He tells me to take a seat in one of the two large leather chairs in front of his desk. I do, and I take in my surroundings. A lot of books and music notes painted on the plain white walls. Very... Calming, almost?

"What is your name, Miss?" The headmaster asks me, and I reply nervously, "Ally Dawson."

He holds out a hand for me to shake, and I do hesitantley. "Where are you from?"

I'm slightly confused and a bit concerned at this point. "Miami, Florida, sir. I'm up here on a road trip with my friends and boyfriend" I say with raised eyebrows. "Is there a problem?"

He shakes his head, then reaches for a drawer on the side of the large wooden desk. My heart skips a beat when he pulls out my Book and hands it to me. I gasp and hug it to my chest. "Oh, sir, thank you so much! You have no idea what this means to me!" I give him a genuine smile, and he returns it.

"You're quite an amazing songwriter, Miss Dawson. I am beyond impressed." He comments, leaning back in his chair. I shoot him a look. "You read my Book?" I gasp, suddenly a bit offended yet very happy at the same time. After all, the headmaster of MUNY complemented my songwriting. I doubt he would say that to just anyone.

"I had to, ma'am." He explains, "a student turned it in, and we went through some of it to try and find a name, but there was none printed anywhere. It was such a shame, becase we were all admiring the work you have done. How old are you, Miss Dawson?"

"Seventeen," I murmur absentmindedly, studying the cover of my book where I had noticed the lether starting to crack because of the exposure to the weather, "I'm going to be a senior in high school this year."

"How would you like a scholarship to MUNY?"

My heart stops. I jerk my head up and look at him. "What?" I breathe, "That's my dream, t-that would be amazing!"

He chuckles. "Well, Miss Dawson, your work is extraordinary. How is your singing voice?"

"Pretty good," I blush, "I have always written songs but my boyfriend convinced me to get over my stagefright."

He nods. "Very good. If you will give me your email, Miss Dawson, I will get in touch with you very soon and we can discuss your college plans."

I'm so excited, I can barely tell him the address, shake his hand once more, and prance down the office and back down the hall. I pull Austin out of the building, then screech with excitement.

"You got your Book back!" He says with a smile, "That's great!"

"Austin! They offered me a full ride to MUNY!" I'm gasping and hopping up and down all at the same time.

His eyes get big. "What?" He gasps, "How?!"

I explain the whole situation to him, and he wraps me in a hug and spins me around. This was the best day of my life.

Austin and I walk all the way back to the hotel instead of catching a taxi once more. We hold hands and swing arms, laughing and smiling. I was so happy that he was happy for me. My dreams were coming true.

He gets a phone call from Ian, telling us to meet the rest of them in Central Park. We head in that direction, and arrive not much later since it was realitively close to where we were. We find the others having a picnic in the grass, and they screech and jump up and hug me with excitement when I tell them the news.

We sit in the park and chat, eating cheese and crackers and watching the butterflies go by. It was a beutiful day today, warm and not a cloud in the sky.

Ian is holding Tenley by the waist, and her head is on his shoulders.

"Tenley," he breathes, "you are the best thing that has ever happened to me. I love you so much."

She blushes at his kind words, and looks as shocked as I'm sure the rest of us look when Ian leans away from her, turns to face her, and props himself up on one knee, and pulls out a white gold ring with a small diamond on the tip.

"I can't imagine not spending the rest of my life with you, even though we haven't been together very long. I just know that we're meant for each other. You've helped me through so many hard things in my life... God gave me you, and I'm asking you now... Will you marry me?"

Silence.

And then, a sob of happiness escapes Tenley's mouth, and she hugs Ian tightly. "Yes!" She says excitedly, "Of course I will."

We all clap. I'm pretty sure none of us were expecting this. Not even Austin, by the look on his face. I smile at him. "So precious!" I mouth, and he nods with a grin. Dez is beside himself with happiness, I notice. Ian and Tenley were going to be getting married!

The rest of the day was just totally giddy. We went back up to the room and watched a couple movies before Austin and I realized that everyone else had fallen asleep. He grins and grabs my hand, pulling me out of the door of the hotel room and across the hall to his own, locking the door behind him. The room is messy, I notice. Typical boys.

He goes and plops down on what I assume to be his bed. "Come lay down," he says, "we haven't talked like this in a while."

I blush and join him. We talk for about an hour, giggling and smiling. Austin often interrupted me to plant a kiss on my lips. He was perfect.

"I can't wait til we're both out of college and we can be like Ian and Tenley." He whispers with a smile. I smile back. Even though Ian and Tenley weren't out of college yet, they were together pretty much every day, and I once heard Austin say that they shared an apartment now.

When it's beginning to get late, I hear a knock on the door. I know it's time for me to go to bed anyway, so I hug and kiss Austin quickly before going to let Ian and Dez in to the room and returning to my own. Tenley and Trish are already asleep.

The next four days fly by. Our trip to New York becomes more spectacular every day, touring historical places and just having fun. W even climbed to the top of the Statue of Liberty and went to see a concert or two. Austin and I become closer than ever, having longer conversations and hugging and kissing more often. I'm almost dreading returning to Miami. The day for the plane ride home has arrived, though.

I'm packing up my things when Austin comes in and tells us we need to leave now so that we can make it to the airport on time. I do a double-check through the room, mking absolutely sure I had everything, especially my Book. I say one last goodbye to the room before shutting the door and hurrying to catch up with the others down the hall.

We just barely make the plane, and scurry on to put our bags above our heads and our carry-ons below our feet. Austin is out of my sight again, and I sigh and sit back. Luckily, there is only some little old lady sitting next to me this time, knitting a scarf. She carries on conversations with me absent mindedly the whole way back.

I step off the plane, back in Miami. I can't wait to tell my dad everything that has happened this weekend. I place a hand on my chest, reminiscing. I feel Austin's arm wrap around my waist as we head towards the baggage claim.

A/N I hope you all liked it. :D Took me FOREVER to write! I'm sorry I only fully covered three days, but I tried to fit all the important stuff in close together. Review, favorite, and follow! Thank you so much for being patient. Much love to you all. :)

Shoutout to ausllyraura33 for your support!