It's Been A While

Tegan and Sara go to Montreal

They had been recording for a month and a half. They had finished all the vocals and most of the instruments. It went by without too many issues. Ted had come back a few times to record guitar and some keyboard. Jason had worked his magic on the drums. Now it was time for Chris to mix it all.

"Hey girls," He said when Tegan put him on speaker, "I won't need any more from you guys in the studio."

"Really?" Tegan was relieved, the stress from recording was getting to her.

"Yeah," She could tell he was happy, "Unless you want to be involved with the mixing process."

"Nah," Sara answered, "I think we'll leave that to you."

"Okay, sounds good."

"Awesome."

"One more thing." He said before hanging up.

"What's that?" Tegan was dreading his response, she was done with recording and she didn't want to go back just yet.

"Album art. What do you guys have in mind?"

"Oh…" Sara hadn't really thought about that.

"I know an artist who would be thrilled to help out." Tegan answered seeing how nervous Sara was.

"Okay, just give them my number and have them call me." Chris was the best in Tegan's mind. Even though he was the producer he was giving them almost complete control over the album.

"Awesome." Tegan smiled, "I'll call her immediately.

"Great," She could tell he was relieved, "I'll talk to you guys soon."

"Yeah," They answered in unison, "Bye."

Tegan pressed the end call button and smiled at Sara, "I need to call someone real quick."

"Who?" Tegan wasn't going to tell her, and she knew it. Tegan always loved to tease her.

"A friend." She smirked and grabbed the phone to make the call.

After a couple of rings there was an answer and Tegan pressed the speaker button.

"Hello?" A familiar voice came through the speakers.

"Emy!" Tegan smiled, she hadn't talked to her friends in a while.

"Tegan?" Emy sounded shocked, maybe even concerned, "Why are you calling? Is something wrong?"

"Yes Emy." Tegan bit her lip to hold back a laugh.

"Oh God! What happened?" Sara glared at Tegan, not appreciating the unnecessary torture.

"We need someone to come up with album artwork." Tegan let out a short laugh.

"You bitch!" Tegan could hear Emy chuckle, "You had me worried. Why are you telling me about this?"

"Come on Emy," Tegan rolled her eyes, "I know you're an artist. I've seen some of your work, and it's incredible. I'd…We'd really appreciate if you could do this for us." Tegan bit her lip, she knew that Emy didn't normally display her artwork.

"I'll do it." Emy was smiling widely now, but she sounded shaky "I'm nervous though."

"Don't be, you'll be great."

"Yeah?" Emy's voice returned to normal, "What's the album name?"

"The Con."

"Like convict?"

"Yes and no." Sara spoke this time, "More like the act of a con…not like prisoners in striped suits."

"Got it."

"We'll talk to you more when we get back to Vancouver." Tegan couldn't wait to see her friends again.

"When will that be?"

"Not for about a week." She heard a disappointed sigh, "We're heading to Montreal to see some of Sara's old friends."

"Oh?" Emy returned to her happy self, "Well have fun in Montreal."

"We will Emy." Tegan smiled as another thought popped into her head, "Does Lindsey still have that photography hobby?"

"Yeah," Emy answered, "Why?"

"Well," Tegan's grin widened, "We'll need a photographer eventually."

"Oh my god!" Emy shouted, "You'll have to tell her as soon as you get back!"

"Will do Emy!" Tegan laughed, "Goodbye!"

"Bye."

Tegan jumped excitedly, "It's like we're a real band now!"

"I know!" Sara was definitely excited too, "I can't wait to tell Courtney and Shaun!"

"Who's Courtney?" Tegan couldn't recall if she had heard the name before.

"He's a very close friend of mine." Sara smiled, "You'll love him."

"Then I can't wait to meet him." Tegan smiled and planted a kiss on Sara's nose.

The next day they were sitting in an airplane, waiting for takeoff to take them to Montreal. Tegan was able to sleep, a restless sleep, but it was still sleep. When she woke up they were minutes from landing.

"You're awake." Sara smiled over at her, "I thought I was gonna have to carry you out of the plane."

"Hi angel," Tegan smiled sleepily, "If I had still been asleep you could have woken me."

"But I kind of wanted to carry you." Sara pouted.

"I'm sorry I ruined that for you." Tegan gave her a kiss on the cheek, "I really am looking forward to meeting your friends. Who am I meeting first?"

"Courtney." Sara smiled, "He'll be getting off work soon."

After they gathered their luggage they went and hailed a cab. Tegan was a little surprised when the taxi stopped in front of a hospital.

"Is this where he works?"

"Yeah," Sara smiled, "I met him because he works here."

They walked through the door and made their way to the lobby. Sara sat down watching the elevator, waiting for Courtney's shift to end.

When the elevator arrived a man stepped out of it. He was average height, had short brown hair and he had a very nice, youthful looking face. Tegan felt very at ease just looking at him.

"Courtney." Sara called out as he walked toward the door.

He turned, looking around for who had said his name.

"Courtney."

He looked at Sara for a second before realizing who it was, "Sara?" He ran up and pulled her into a hug, pulling her off the ground and spinning a couple times, "What are you doing back?"

"I'm here to visit," She smiled at him, "And Tegan is here to meet my friends."

"Hi." Tegan smiled at the man, offering him her hand.

"It's great to meet you Tegan," He shook her hand, "I'm Courtney."

"It's nice to meet you Courtney." She almost melted when he smiled, it was the sweetest, most comforting smile she had ever witnessed.

"Can we buy you lunch?" Sara asked, "I'd love to talk for a while."

"Sure," He nodded his head slowly, "But you really don't have to pay."

"I want to," Sara's expression turned serious, "It's the least I can do to repay you for what you've done over the years."

"I don't need you to repay me Sara," He tried to convince her, "Seeing you happy is the only payment I need."

"I'm buying you lunch." Sara laughed, "You can't stop me."

"Fine," He laughed and shook his head in defeat, "Where do you want to go?"

"Is that café a few blocks from here still in business?" Sara's eyes looked hopeful.

"You mean Alexander's?" He asked with a small smile, "They'd stay in business even if I was their only customer, I'm there enough."

"Yeah?" Sara let out a relieved sigh, "I used to love that place."

"Let's go, I'll drive you guys."

They got in the back of his car and made the short drive to the café.

"So Tegan," Courtney spoke to Tegan for the first time since saying hi, "Sara told me that you guys were recording an album together?"

"Yeah," Tegan smiled, "We just finished all the vocals and…well, pretty much everything the two of us had to do."

"Did it go well?" He asked, glancing briefly at Sara who was looking out the window at the once familiar city, "Was anything…tough to get through?"

Tegan knew he was concerned about Sara and not the actual recording time, "It started out a little rough, but things got better." She smiled and he gave her a small nod.

"Glad to hear it." He smiled, a sense of relief washing over his face.

They rode the rest of the way in silence, before pulling up in front of a small restaurant.

"I missed this place." Sara smiled as she exited the car.

"Yeah?" Courtney walked toward the door.

"We used to go here all the time when you were on break." Tegan could see pain in Sara's eyes for a brief second, but it was quickly replaced by a smile.

Courtney spent most of the meal time asking Tegan basic questions. He was making an effort to get to know her, but he also could tell she had a painful past and kept the questions simple. Tegan enjoyed talking with him. He had a genuine smile on his face the entire time he talked. His blue eyes seemed like they were pools of joy; at least that's how Tegan perceived them.

"Are you sure you don't want me to pay?" He asked, obviously not wanting to make Sara spend her hard earned money on him, "I really don't mind paying."

"I've got this." She smiled at him, "Besides, we're about to be super stars, I think I can afford an inexpensive lunch."

"Right," He laughed, "I completely forgot you were on your way to superstardom."

"Don't forget again." She laughed along with him, "Although, pretty soon our faces will be everywhere, making it impossible for you to forget."

"Too true."

After paying they piled back into his car.

"Where to?"

"Um," Sara's eyes were full of deep emotion, "I need to visit Jessie."

"Okay," He rubbed her shoulder gently, "I'll just wait in the car when we get there."

"Okay."

The cemetery wasn't far from the café. Tegan realized that Sara had probably spent a lot of time at these three locations.

"Do you want me to go with you?" Tegan asked as Sara stepped out of the car.

"Give me a few minutes alone first." Sara gave her a half smile and walked toward the middle of the cemetery.

Courtney waited until she was out of earshot to talk, "Did she tell you why we're friends?"

Tegan shook her head.

"She used to call me pretty much every day." He kept his eyes on Sara, "I was the one who had to deliver the unfortunate news," Tegan had a wave of realization hit her, "I've helped her through some very tough times. And I was terrified when she moved. She didn't tell me ahead of time, she just left. I found out she left from Shaun. So when she called me and told me about you I was relieved."

"She ran away?" Tegan was a little shocked at that.

"Not exactly," He shook his head, "It was the only way she knew how to cope. So, it was more a moving on than it was a running away. At least, that's what she thought."

"Why didn't she tell you though?"

"She didn't want me to tell her not to." He gave Tegan a half smile, "She was afraid I would disagree with the choice to leave. But it was what she needed. She wasn't doing well here."

"In what way?" Tegan was getting concerned.

"She was starting to get worse emotionally," His eyes darkened, "I think if she hadn't moved she'd either be living alone, locked up away from all human contact, or she would have ended it. You're her saving grace, Tegan. You can't hurt her. If you do," He gave Tegan his full attention, "It will ruin her entirely."

"Trust me when I say this," She met his concerned, protective stare, "I can't afford to hurt her, because if I do, I will die. She's my whole world. I can't lose any more people in my life."

"Thank you." He looked back over at Sara.

Sara stood in front of a simple tombstone.

"Hey Jessie," She paused, trying to keep from breaking down, "I've really missed you. I know I said I'd visit at least once a week, but I had to leave. I apologize for the length between visits. It's not because I didn't care about you. It's because I cared too much. I couldn't bare Montreal without you being in it. It was too much for me. But I needed to come back. I needed to see you and Shaun." She was crying freely, letting out the emotions that had built up over the last month and a half of recording, "I miss you so much." She turned and looked back at the car, beckoning for Tegan to come and join her, "I brought a friend with me, I'd love for you to meet her." Tegan was only feet away, "It's Tegan." She smiled at the grave stone.

"Hi angel." Tegan wrapped Sara up in a hug.

"Can you just hold me for a while?" Sara sobbed into her shoulder.

"I'll hold you for however long you need." Tegan rocked slowly, back and forth, as she held Sara tightly.

They stood there for a few minutes in complete silence, other than the muffle sobs coming from Sara. Sara finally lifted her head up and wiped away a few tears.

"Let's go meet Shaun." She smiled, and it warmed Tegan's heart.

"That sounds like a great idea." Tegan smiled back.

Tegan was nervous; she didn't want to leave a bad impression on Shaun. All she knew about him was that he was the older brother of Sara's best friend, and that he at least used to listen to Tegan's music. Sara could tell Tegan was nervous about it, so she sat in the back seat of the car with Tegan and held her the entire car ride.

Courtney pulled up in front of a small, cozy looking house. Sara slowly got out of the car. She held Tegan's hand and walked up to the door. After knocking a few times the door opened.

"Oh my god!" Shaun's mouth was hanging open, "Sara?"

"Hey Shaun." He pulled her in for a huge bear hug.

"What are you doing in Montreal?" He had a smile on his face, but he was in complete shock.

"I needed to see you," She smiled at him, "And I just visited Jess."

"I was there last week," His expression became serious, "I always make sure her stone is clean and shining. Because I know that's how she would want it." He smiled again.

"Yeah," Sara fought against her emotions, "Shaun, this is…"

"Tegan Quin," He smiled and hugged her, "I love your music."

"Yeah?" Tegan smiled.

"I listened to it a lot after…" He paused, trying to keep his composure, "It helped a lot."

"I'm glad of that."

"So," He returned to his smiling state, "How's recording going?"

"We're done." Sara smiled, "Chris Walla is just finishing all the mixing. But we're done recording."

"That's awesome," He opened the door completely, "Come on in."

Tegan walked in shyly. Sara was holding her hand and it was comforting to her. But she felt nervous being in a strange city, in a stranger's house. It reminded her of when she used to go to her parent's friends' houses. The uneasy feeling of not knowing the people there, and being surrounded by pictures and paintings that were unfamiliar. They sat on a couch in the small living room.

"Do you guys need anything to eat?" Shaun offered.

"No," Courtney answered for them, "We had lunch not too long ago."

"Okay," Shaun walked around a corner, "Anything to drink?"

"I'd like some coffee." Sara called out to him.

"What a shock." He laughed from the kitchen.

"I'd like coffee as well." Tegan called out timidly.

"Cream? Sugar?"

"Black," Tegan half blurted before adding a somewhat shy, "Please."

"Coming right up."

Tegan looked around the room while she waited for Shaun to return. It was painted in neutral colors. There were a few pictures up, of what Tegan assumed was his family, and one on the wall across from her of a teenage girl.

"Is that her?" Tegan asked while looking at the picture.

"Yes." Sara nodded and smiled, "That was not long after graduation. The three of us were camping near a lake. She was the only one who really enjoyed the outdoors, but we went along anyway. It was one of the best summer vacations I ever took."

"She was really pretty." Tegan said after several seconds' silence.

"Yeah," Sara chuckled to herself, "She turned down a lot of guys on a regular basis."

Shaun walked into the living room holding two mugs, "Here you are." He smiled and handed them to the girls.

"Thanks." Tegan gave him a small smile and sipped her coffee.

"So," Sara grinned at Shaun, "I'm feeling really confident about our album. Ten thousand sales will be a piece of cake."

"Ah," Shaun returned the grin, "So you really want me to play bass, eh?"

"Yes."

"Alright," He looked at Tegan, "Do you want me to play bass?"

"We don't have a bassist." She shrugged.

"Okay then," He smiled back at Sara, "Let me know when you plan on touring."

"Thank you!" Sara jumped up from her seat and hugged him.

"I'm doing it for Jessie," He hugged her tight, "But I'm also doing it for my best friend."

"Thank you so much Shaun." Tegan could see a few tears trickle down Sara's cheeks.

They spent the rest of the afternoon talking. Shaun told a few embarrassing stories of when Sara was a teenager. To which Sara retaliated with equally embarrassing stories of Shaun. Courtney and Tegan sat, as the outsiders, and just laughed at the stories, both enjoying the friends being on such friendly terms with each other.

They left Shaun's house at around four pm. And Tegan and Sara were exhausted from the plane ride.

"Do you guys have a place to stay?" Courtney asked as they got in the car.

"We were just going to go to a motel or something." Sara shrugged.

"Unacceptable," He smiled at them, "I have a spare room."

"We don't want to intrude." Tegan felt guilty.

"You're not intruding." He reassured her, "I would love to have you guys spend the night, or the weekend, or however long you're in Montreal."

"Thanks." Sara smiled back at him, "We really appreciate it."

"Don't mention it." He turned the key and pulled away from Shaun's house.

They stopped at Courtney's apartment building and he led them up a couple flights of step. He showed them the guest room and he said goodnight. He had worked the night shift and had been up for eighteen hours.

Tegan immediately fell asleep in Sara's arms. Sara watched her sleep.

"I love you so much Tegan," She murmured to the air, "Sleep well."

She fell asleep soon after. They both slept peacefully, dreaming of only good things, comforted by each other's touch.