Brittany could not believe the day had finally come when she would be evaluated to determine whether she would be able to perform again or not. She had just had a whole bunch of x-rays taken a couple of days ago and figured her orthopedist must have been looking over them right now. Every nerve in the Chipette's body was on edge at this moment. She knew this news was either going to make or break her.

She gingerly rubbed her knee in an attempt to ease her anxiety. Another thing she was seriously hoping for. She really hoped that Dr. North was going to tell her she would no longer need to wear her knee brace to bed. She was so sick of sleeping with that thing on! Just one more inconvenience on top of everything else she had going on.

She remembered being so thrilled when she was told she wouldn't need to wear it full time anymore just a few months ago. It was a good day. But her happiness didn't last long of course. Could it ever while she was still struggling with binging and purging?

As Brittany was sitting on the table in the cold, sterile examination room, every minute that passed felt like hours. She had already filled out about a million forms asking for updates on her condition and answered all the questions the nurse had for her. Now she was just waiting on the answer she was dying to know.

And the same question kept playing in Brittany's mind over and over again. What if her knee still hasn't healed? What if she still couldn't go back to performing with her sisters? What if she could never be in another school play again?

Or what if she couldn't go back to being a cheerleader? Even though none of the girls from the squad had been acting like Brittany's friend throughout her struggles, she still hated the idea of never being a cheerleader again. If anything, the squad's treatment of her had only made her feel more determined to get back into action there.

She needed to reclaim her position as cheer captain from Missy Snootson. She needed to show those girls that she was the one in charge of the cheerleading team, as well as the school. She'd make every last one of those girls sorry for ever excluding her from everything the way that they did!

Then there was the whole matter of getting back to school plays. Not just to be in the plays though. But to get the parts of the lead female characters like she always had in the past. So that Brittany Miller could go back to being the star that she knew she was born to be!

Right now, Lindsay Piper had taken her spot as the female lead for all the school plays. As well as the solos Brittany should've been getting in the school choir. As if her snatching up Alvin didn't sting bad enough!

She wasn't sure how Lindsay kept getting all these roles and solos anyway. Sure, she may have had a decent singing voice. But she was dumb as dirt! She'd constantly stumble over big words during rehearsals back when Brittany was still active in school plays and the choir. So why would anyone trust her to be able to properly read or memorize anything?

The teenage Chipette definitely had some big goals in mind for when she was cleared to go back to her old life. However, this all required being cleared by Dr. North to begin with. Was that actually going to happen? Worst of all, what if she actually would need surgery after all?

She then shook her head and tried to remember exactly what Kristina had told her in physical therapy on Saturday. How she's made amazing progress in PT and how her range of motion has improved so much since she started working with her last year. How she believed there was a good chance of Brittany being told she'd be back on stage performing with her sisters again real soon.

She needed to try to hold on to that. She needed to try to stay positive. But it had been so difficult to be optimistic about anything lately. Especially when she was so tired all the time. She needed to take a nap as soon as she got home from school pretty much everyday the last few days. And the headaches were not getting any better either, even with Tylenol.

She continued to sit there on the padded table in the tiny room she was sent to, wondering what was taking Dr. North so long anyway. Judging by how crowded the waiting room was, he was probably busy with other patients. Brittany sighed, knowing she was doomed to continue being bored and stuck with her own thoughts. She knew she should've brought one of the magazines from the waiting room into the examination room with her.

After what felt like about a million years, the door to the exam room finally opened up. In walked a tall, slender middle-aged man with salt and pepper hair. He was wearing a white coat and a photo ID badge around his neck. He was carrying a clipboard and a manila folder in his hands. This was Dr. North.

It's a good thing he showed up when he did, because the intrusive thoughts Brittany had been having were really starting to spiral out of control there. The interruption was more than welcome.

Brittany tried to read Dr. North's face to see whether he would have good news for her today or not. Although he maintained the kind of balance between professionalism and warmth in his demeanor that you would want a doctor to have, Brittany couldn't tell what he was thinking at all. His expression was totally unreadable.

The tall doctor took a quick look at the pink-clad Chipette's knee right after walking into the room. He asked her to bend it, and also had her do a few other simple exercises to demonstrate her range of motion. Once finished with this assessment, he sat down in the chair right across from the table Brittany was sitting on. He looked carefully at the chart on the clipboard in his hand, as he placed the folder on the counter next to his chair.

"Well, Brittany," Dr. North started off. "I've just taken a look at your most recent x-rays and compared them with your earlier ones. I've also reviewed all information that's been provided on your progress."

Brittany tensed up at his words, desperate to know her fate. The suspense was killing her.

The doctor continued. "It looks like you've made good progress in your recovery. Your knee is healing quite well."

The Chipette let out a breath she didn't even realize she had been holding in.

"So does this mean I can go back to performing with my sisters?" She asked eagerly, but also cautiously.

She was a little afraid of getting her hopes up too much. After all, she had been facing one awful event after another pretty much every day since the day Miss Miller died. That's how it felt to her anyway.

"Yes." Dr. North nodded, though his expression now turned to a noticeably more serious one. "But with some restrictions."

"Restrictions?"

This was not exactly the answer she was hoping for. What kind of limitations was Dr. North going to have for her? And would she even be able to dance with them? Dancing was a huge part of performing for The Chipettes! What if she had to be limited to just singing?

Sure, she knew she was an amazing singer. But she needed to be able to dance if she wanted to continue stealing the show! Otherwise, she was at risk for being upstaged by her sisters and The Chipmunks. She was not going to let Alvin steal the spotlight from her again! Especially after everything that had happened between them these last few months.

"So you can start to ease your way into performing again, but keep your dance routines simple. I'm afraid if you start pushing yourself too much by going right back to all those complicated routines you're used to, you'll risk re-injuring your knee. Then surgery will become a very real possibility."

Brittany gulped. She certainly didn't want that to happen. That would mean being sidelined for even longer.

"Also," Dr. North went on. "Pay attention to your body. If you feel any pain or discomfort, stop what you're doing immediately. And watch out for any swelling. I recommend you continue to use ice on your knee at least once a day. I recommend continuing with physical therapy until further notice as well."

Brittany let a small smile cross her face. Her ice blue eyes lit up with ambition. This was definitely good news!

Naturally, she would've preferred being able to do all the advanced dance moves she was known for. The teenage Chipette loved showing off her skills like that. But hey, this was better than nothing.

Continuing with physical therapy wasn't so bad either. She'd get to keep seeing Kristina every week! Still, she had some more questions for him based on this recent update.

"What about cheerleading? And being in plays? Can I go back to all that when school starts up again in September?"

Sure, that was six months away from now. But it was too late in the school year to be on the squad or be part of the current play. However, maybe this could give Brittany something to look forward to. She definitely needed some hope to cling to.

"We will continue to monitor your progress." Dr. North responded. "But at the rate you're going and if you follow my advice on not pushing yourself too soon, I see no reason why I shouldn't be able to clear you for going back to all your regular after school activities come September."

Brittany's smile grew even wider now.

"And do I still have to sleep with the knee brace on?"

Though at this point, the auburn-haired Chipette almost didn't care if he told her she had to wear the knee brace to bed every single night for the rest of her life. She could perform on stage again and that was what mattered to her the most. And going back to cheerleading, plays and choir at the beginning of the next school year was looking like a strong possibility as well.

"I think we can start to wean you off the knee brace." The doctor replied. "Try sleeping with it every other night instead of every night for the next month. Then come back for a reevaluation one month from now and we'll determine if you could go without it altogether by that point."

Brittany was absolutely ecstatic now. Tonight would be the first night since her injury that she would finally be able to sleep without the knee brace. This just kept getting better!

She was so grateful for everything Dr. North had told her that she thanked him several times in a row with a huge grin on her face. As Dr. North was leaving the room, he instructed her to go to the front desk for some home care instructions he had for her, as well as a letter clearing her to perform.

Even though this wasn't for school, she knew Dave was going to insist on having it in writing that it was ok for Brittany to start performing again. He wouldn't allow it otherwise. That's how protective he was of all six chipmunks.

After getting all the papers she needed from the receptionist up front, Brittany stood in the waiting room bursting with joy. She could not believe she had finally been cleared to perform again! She was so excited and couldn't wait to tell her sisters, as well as the Sevilles.

As happy as she was to receive this incredible news, it was kind of bittersweet for her too. She remembered everything being so much better in her life during the last show the Chipmunks and Chipettes did together. They had gone to Disney World for this particular concert to perform songs off of their When You Wish Upon A Chipmunk album.

It had been the beginning of summer before their sophomore year of high school. Just a couple of weeks before Brittany had gone to cheer camp that year. It was definitely one of the best summers of her life! Maybe even the best. Though not exactly quite as crazy as the summer she traveled around the world in a hot air balloon with her sisters in a race against the Chipmunks.

This was back when Miss Miller was still alive. Brittany and Alvin were still together as well. She was also still the head cheerleader back then, and she wasn't making herself throw up all the time.

But then Brittany started laughing to herself. She couldn't help it. She had just remembered the little argument she and Alvin had about seating arrangements before they got on the plane to Florida that summer.

Flashback - A year and a half ago

Simon handed out a plane ticket to each Chipmunk and Chipette. They were all standing in the living room of the Seville house discussing plans for the flight the next day, as well as details for their performance in Disney World.

"Since Dave is taking a later flight and is going to meet us at the Orlando International Airport, he is trusting us to handle this maturely and NOT do anything that will get us kicked off the plane." Simon said while eyeing his older brother.

"What?" Alvin asked innocently. "You know I'd never cause trouble on a plane."

"Yeah right." Simon responded while rolling his eyes. "Anyway, I think the seating arrangements I came up with are fair."

Alvin and Brittany both looked at their own tickets, then at one another's. They realized their seats are next to each other.

"No way!" Alvin shouted.

"Can one of you switch with me?" Brittany begged. "Please?"

"No!" Simon stated firmly. "Jeanette and I want to sit together since we're a couple. And Theodore and Eleanor also want to sit next to each other since they're a couple as well. You guys are also a couple. Act like it for once!"

"But you have no idea what I had to deal with sitting next to Brittany on the flight to New York last summer." Alvin whined.

"Or what I had to put up with sitting next to Alvin!" Brittany retorted.

"We weren't sitting that far from you guys." Eleanor chimed in. "So yeah, we kinda do. You're both fifteen, not eight anymore. I think you should be able to sit together on a plane for five hours without killing each other. Especially as boyfriend and girlfriend."

"You did agree to be together for better or worse." Jeanette added.

"You make it sound like we got married." Alvin grumbled.

Brittany sighed. "Just tell me one thing Alvin. Are you going to eat any burritos in the next twenty-four hours?"

"Why does that matter?" Alvin asked.

"Because I swear," Brittany began. "If you keep farting every ten minutes like you did on the trip to New York..."

"That's nothing compared to what I had to put up with!" Alvin cut his girlfriend off. "I couldn't get any sleep on that flight while sitting next to you. First, you wouldn't shut up for three hours straight. Then when you finally fell asleep, I still couldn't sleep because your snoring was so loud!"

"I don't snore!" Brittany shrieked as her eyes widened.

"You may not be aware of it." Alvin said as he chuckled. "But yeah, you totally do!"

"No I don't!" Brittany yelled. She turned to her sisters, Jeanette and Eleanor.

"The three of us have shared a room our whole lives. You guys can confirm that I don't snore, right?"

"Well..." Jeanette looked away sheepishly.

"I plead the fifth." Eleanor said while trying to stifle a giggle.

"Traitors." Brittany muttered under her breath "My own sisters."

"See?" Alvin said with a smirk. "Told you! Even Simon and Theodore could hear you snoring on that plane."

Brittany peered over at Alvin's brothers.

"I plead the fifth as well." Simon replied while adjusting his glasses.

"So do you guys think we'll have time to eat at one of the restaurants at the airport before our flight takes off?" Theodore asked, in a desperate attempt to change the subject.

Brittany folded her arms across her chest. "Some friends you guys turned out to be."

"But to be fair to Brittany," Simon started. "Your gas does get pretty bad after you eat burritos, Alvin."

Theodore and the Chipettes nodded in agreement. Theodore even jumped in with a comment this time.

"Um, I remember what it was like sharing a hotel room with you in New York after we got off that flight. It was hard to breathe with the amount of times you were farting there."

"Thanks, guys." Alvin muttered under his breath as his face flushed.

Brittany couldn't help but smile. She was so happy she was not the only one being embarrassed anymore.

"Ok." Alvin sighed. "I won't eat any burritos and I'll purchase headphones for when I wanna sleep."

"And I'll try not to talk your ear off for hours on end this time." Brittany agreed.

Although the pink-clad Chipette knew this was most likely a promise she was not going to be able to keep. She enjoyed talking way too much. It was right up there with performing and shopping for her.

"I mean, you and I can always make out since we'll be right next to each other." Alvin said with a wink.

Brittany smiled at her boyfriend. Maybe this flight wouldn't be so bad after all!

"Good thing the third person has an aisle seat." Simon said. "I have a feeling you two will cause them to lose their lunch."

End of flashback

Brittany continued to reminisce as she snapped back to reality. That really was such an awesome summer. The flight to Florida turned out to be one of the rare occasions when she and Alvin managed to not be at each other's throats for once. They even watched and enjoyed the in-flight movie together.

It was rare for Alvin and Brittany to appreciate the same movies. He preferred horror and action movies, while her genre of choice was romance. But this one had the perfect balance of both action and romance, making it entertaining for both the eldest Chipmunks.

Surprisingly, Brittany even remembered laughing at Alvin's jokes. They shared a few kisses on that flight as well. Who would've ever expected these two headstrong Chipmunks to get along so well on a five hour flight when they were both acting like sitting next to each other would be the worst thing in the world just the day before?

And she had fun once they got to Disney World too. It was a remarkable milestone for The Chipmunks and The Chipettes to have been asked to perform there in the first place. But it was also hard not to be swept into the magic of it all once they were there. She had fond memories of taking walks around the theme park with the rest of the group.

She also had fun going on many of the rides. Something the teen Chipette had been extremely reluctant to do at first, out of concern that the rides would mess up her hair. Her sisters tried to convince her to go on a few rides, saying that they didn't get the opportunity to be at Disney World too often.

It didn't seem like she was going to budge initially. But what really got the teenage Chipette to give in was what her red-capped boyfriend at the time had said to her.

"I thought you were a chipmunk, not a chicken!" Alvin had teased her, with that infamous cocky grin she both hated and loved at the same time.

He then told her the real reason she wasn't going on any rides was because she was just too scared and didn't want to admit it. That was what finally got the blue-eyed Chipette to cave. There was no way she was going to let Alvin or the rest of the Chipmunks he had said this in front of believe she was some scared little girl! So Brittany sat next to Alvin on every single ride they went on just to prove to him she was no chicken. They even ended up turning it into a whole competition over who was going to scream first on each ride.

Even though Brittany had been unwilling to admit it out loud, she was actually really glad she went on all those rides after all. It didn't even matter how tangled her hair got from those rides by the end of it. She had a blast. She seriously had no regrets there.

Performing at Disney World was also an amazing experience, as was to be expected. People actually knew who The Chipettes were there, and it wasn't all about The Chipmunks for once! They had certainly come a long way since their first joint tour in Switzerland. Back when Brittany and her sisters had to climb and perform on top of the Matterhorn just to get noticed.

But what was also notable about that trip was Brittany letting her guard down and allowing it to be one of the rare occasions where she indulged in high-calorie foods. As her sisters kept pointing out to her, going to Disney World wasn't something the Miller sisters had been used to doing.

It had actually been the first time there for the three of them. So naturally, the young Chipette had been curious about the different foods offered there and wanted to try them. Stuff that Brittany would currently feel the need to pass on for being way too fattening. It probably didn't help that Theodore kept going on and on about it.

Again, she had no regrets. It had been nice to not think about her weight, even if only briefly. Why couldn't she just turn her brain off like that all the time?

Even if she did choose to let herself go and eat it now, it would immediately be followed by her feeling the urge to find a bathroom and puke it all out. Not doing so would drive her crazy with the fear of gaining weight.

The pony-tailed Chipette suddenly felt tears escaping her eyes. Why couldn't she be carefree like the way she was in Florida again? Why couldn't she let herself go like that every once in a while and simply enjoy junk food when she felt like it?

In fact, she wished she could just enjoy eating food again, period. It didn't even seem to matter if what she was eating was healthy food or not anymore. She just felt this strong need to get rid of every little thing she ate now, no matter what it was. She hated living like this.

Then there was the intense anxiety every time she had to eat in front of someone. Fear of others finding out. Being afraid to be around food in front of anyone at all, because it was so hard to fight the temptation to binge and purge on everything. She just wanted to be normal again.

Brittany used her free hand to wipe away the falling tears and quickly tried to re-compose herself. She didn't want anyone in the doctor's office to see her crying.

She then looked down at the hand she had used to wipe her eyes with and frowned. She had black smudges from her mascara all over it. Great. She wasn't looking in a mirror at that moment, but she knew this meant her eye makeup must be running down her face.

She then quickly looked over the clearance note in her hand. She then closed her eyes and took a deep breath. It was time to focus on the present.

The very thing she had been waiting on all year had finally happened. Now it was time to gather everyone and share the news of being cleared to perform with them. Just as soon as she fixed her makeup. The pink-clad Chipette went into the office's bathroom to do just that, trying very hard to slip back into the determined mindset she was known for.

A/N: Ok, so I know this chapter had some lighthearted moments. I wanted to break up the angst a little bit and also have Brittany nostalgic for the better times in her life. But at least there were plenty of Alvittany moments there!

I finally got some dialogue for Simon and Theodore in there as well, even if it was just through flashbacks. There will be more scenes with them coming up soon!

I had fun writing the dialogue and moments for these flashbacks too. It just felt like exactly what these characters would say and how they'd act to me. And I even got to reference my favorite AATC CD!

And hey, Brittany got some good news about her future in performing! Sure, there might be limitations. But at least it's a start for getting back into the swing of things. Question is, how will her bulimia affect her performance? Do you think it'll make it harder for Brittany to keep her secret from the other chipmunks? What about the media?

Rest assured, there will be plenty of angst and drama coming up! Even for the next chapter, I have a big dramatic moment planned out. We already know Brittany's started experiencing physical side effects from bulimia, after all.

So I hope you guys still enjoyed this chapter. I'm excited to hear what you think! Thank you once again for all the reads and reviews. You guys rock!