A/N: Okay Austin and Ally fans, get ready for some fluffy fun cuteness! I did my best to capture our Fearsome Foursome. Welcome to Storybrooke, my friends!
PART 1, CHAPTER 1
"What are the chances / that there'd be this magic / when we touch."
The tour bus whizzed its way down the small rural road in Maine, on its way to Canada. Ever since leaving Massachusetts early that morning, there had been almost nothing but trees and grey skies for miles as the bus headed north.
Austin, Ally, Trish and Dez were lounging inside the tour bus together, having a quiet and lazy day. The sound of light rain puttered soothingly against the roof. Despite it being almost noon, they were all still in their pajamas. It had been a full four months on the road now with the Austin-and-Ally Duo. After the incredible, jam-packed show in Boston the night before, the four of them were exhausted.
Trish was plugged in to her laptop with her earphones in, watching the latest episode of her favorite crime show. Every once in awhile she would laugh aloud and curl her blanket more tightly around herself. Dez was lying with his back on the floor, his feet propped up in the air against the side of the couch. He was making mini paper airplanes and tossing them upwards, trying to make their noses stick to the ceiling. Meanwhile, Austin lay on the couch, absentmindedly plucking the strings of his acoustic guitar while Ally slept soundly out on top of him with her head on his chest.
Things were going great for Austin and Ally these days. Better than great. Amazing. It was almost two years ago to the day that they had gotten back together on the Helen Show, and everything in Austin's life had seemed to fall effortlessly into place since then. He and Ally had signed a joint contract to become an official duo, they'd put together a fresh new repertoire of songs, and now they were touring North America for more fans than ever — and they had another tour planned for Europe in three months. If Austin could spend the rest of his life on the road with his friends just like this, he would. He was doing exactly what he loved with the people he loved. Every performance was like a dream, and every moment on stage with Ally felt like magic.
Austin looked at Ally, whose dark hair was strewn over his arm. Her face pressed softly into his grey long-sleeve shirt. She looked so peaceful, and the flush of her cheek was absolutely perfect right now. With his free hand, Austin gently ran his fingers over the side of her head down to her shoulder blade, which was exposed in her thin purple tank top. He let out a contented sigh and closed his eyes.
This was his forever, Austin knew it. He had always known it, really. But these days he had been thinking about making that forever a bit more permanent. Their lives were finally on the same path, and there was no way Austin could risk letting her slip away from him again.
Almost as if she could hear his thoughts, Ally sleepily dragged her left hand across his chest. Her bare ring finger glared up at him tauntingly.
The bus jerked abruptly on the road, causing Ally's head to lull sideways. She shook awake suddenly as the bus rocked some more, and Trish looked up in surprise from her computer screen when the bus rolled slowly to a stop. Dez's feet clunked down on the floor and he sat up.
"Why are we stopping?" Austin asked, pushing himself up onto his elbows. Ally adjusted herself into a sitting position and rubbed her eyes.
Trish shook her head and closed her laptop. "Not sure," she replied. "The next rest stop isn't for another hour."
She kicked off her blanket and stood up, walking over to the front of the bus to talk to the driver.
"Does anyone else smell smoke?" Dez asked, sniffing the air.
Austin sniffed as well, picking up a distinct whiff of burning gasoline. "Oh no," he groaned. "Please don't tell me that's us."
Trish poked her head back from the cockpit of the bus. "Bad news guys," she told them. "That nasty smell of a broken-down bus is our broken-down bus."
"Aw man!" Dez threw up his hands. "Now we have to walk all the way to the next rest stop?"
"No, Dez," Trish rolled her eyes impatiently. "Now we call a tow truck."
The bus really was steaming. Austin, Ally, Trish, and Dez put on coats and stepped outside to check the damage. Though it was only drizzling, a thick October fog had settled low to the ground, making the air feel wet. Their driver stood out by the open hood trying to figure out the problem, while Trish was on the phone with the mechanic talking rapidly in Spanish.
When she hung up she huffed loudly. "More bad news," Trish told them. "There isn't going to be a tow truck coming for another twenty four hours. If we don't find another form of transportation, you're going to miss your concert in Montreal!"
Austin and Ally exchanged worried looks. "Where are we, exactly?" Ally asked, trying her best to stay calm. "There's got to be civilization somewhere nearby with a person that can help."
"Nope," Dez assured them unhelpfully, checking his GPS. "The next town isn't for another one-hundred and six miles."
That didn't sound promising. Austin took Ally's hand and looked out at the empty road in front of them. The dreary weather made the light bounce off the pavement in a strange way, and the grey fog made everything look mysterious and spooky. Ally gave his hand a warm squeeze. As she did so, the fog momentarily dissipated, and Austin noticed a small wooden sign that he hadn't seen before.
"What about that town?" Austin asked, pointing to the sign.
"What town?" Trish asked, looking in the direction Austin was pointing. "There's literally nothing here."
"Welcome to Storybrooke," Ally read the words, pointing as well. "On the sign."
A perplexed expression fell over Dez's face. "Guys, I don't see a sign," he said. "Where are you looking?"
Trish seemed confused as well as she tried to peer through the fog. Austin chuckled.
"Come on, guys," he said. "It can't be that far of a walk."
"Seriously! I don't see anything!" Dez insisted.
"Then I guess you'll just have to trust us," Ally told him good-humoredly. "Let's go, Trish," she put a hand on her friend's shoulder and began walking down the empty road. "Maybe they have a mechanic."
"And food," Austin added. He followed Ally's lead and began guiding his blind best friend through the fog. "I'm starving."
-0-0-0-
It didn't take long for the four of them to reach the little town. Dez kept them entertained on the walk as he babbled about Zaliens and zombies and old horror movies ("This is just like when that group of travelers got trapped in a town full of blood-thirsty werewolves!" Dez insisted. "What movie is that?" Trish replied, "I don't want to be eaten by werewolves!")
The town had an old diner that smelled delicious. It was run by a hardy grey-haired woman who rushed around the kitchen much faster than you would expect for someone her age. Storybrooke may have been the size of a postage stamp, but its diner was surprisingly busy at lunch hour.
The old woman sat them quickly at a booth in the back corner of the restaurant. She took their orders and introduced herself as Granny.
"Granny?" Trish asked her. "That's your name?"
"It's what everyone calls me," Granny said.
"But whose Granny are you, then?" Dez responded.
Granny shot Dez a dirty look. "In Storybrooke, I'm everyone's Granny," she replied shortly, before leaving them with waters and a basket of bread.
"Is it just me, or is this little town weird?" Dez asked as soon as she was out of earshot. "You know, I'm pretty sure I saw a dude with a hook for a hand as we were coming in."
"It's just a town, Dez," Ally sighed.
"But it wasn't even on the map," Trish argued. "They better have a mechanic, or we're never getting out of here."
"Relax, Trish," Ally said. "I'm sure we will be back on the road in no time."
By the time they all got their food, most of the lunch crowd had left the diner. Austin chowed down happily on a juicy cheeseburger and fries. Ally, who had ordered a chopped salad, shamelessly snuck a few fries off his plate. Dez and Trish continued to bicker about the likelihood of being attacked by a monster this far out in The-Middle-Of-Nowhere, Maine. Austin was only half-listening. He was distracted by the way Ally's fingers tapped rhythmically against the edge of the table like she was playing the piano. He recognized the pattern — it was the newest song she had written, one that she had only just shown Austin the other day. As she tapped out the notes, he could hear the music in his head. It was truly one of her best; and Austin thought all of Ally's songs were the best.
Austin stared at her hand. He found himself trying to picture what kind of diamond would look best on that finger as she played her imaginary piano.
"You know, there is definitely something bizarre in the air," Dez said, pulling Austin out of his thoughts. The redhead squinted suspiciously and looked around, as if whatever mysterious thing in the air would suddenly show itself. "Maybe we were meant to get stuck here! Maybe it's destiny!"
"Come on, Dez, it's not destiny," Austin rolled his eyes in amusement.
"Oh really?" He replied to Austin sassily, raising an eyebrow. "I saw a jewelry store just down the street. You call that a coincidence?"
Austin's eyes got insanely wide, and his entire body went rigid. Dez instantly realized his slip up and froze in panic.
"Why would you want to go to a jewelry store?" Ally laughed.
Austin did everything in his power not to look at her as he scrambled desperately for an answer. Dez shifted awkwardly as well and then gave a loud psh.
"Because..." Dez responded a little too loudly. "My anniversary with Carrie is coming up!" He covered quickly. "And Austin promised he'd help me find her a gift!"
Austin let out the breath he was holding, and mentally calmed his pounding heart.
"Aww, that's so sweet, Dez!" Ally grinned. "How about while Trish and I find the mechanic, you two can go shopping," she nudged Austin playfully.
He returned the smile with a relieved sigh and nodded. "Good idea," he agreed, and then glared angrily at Dez.
Austin trusted Dez, he really did; the redhead was his best friend, which is why he was the only one that Austin had told. But still, keeping secrets really was not Dez's strong suit.
At least his best friend had the decency to cower ashamedly.
A/N: Thanks for reading! Don't worry Oncers, I am going somewhere with this, I promise! Please leave a review to let me know your thoughts!
