If You Only Knew

Darren's POV

I could see my friends in the audience and I waved at them as we gave our final goodbye thank yous and bows. Their little group almost got as much attention as we did on stage, half because of who they were but mostly because of the loud screams and cat calls coming from their section. I couldn't help but roll my eyes and laugh at them.

"Thank you all for coming!" I said, holding up the mic to my lips to say my part. "We hope that you had an awesome time with us today! For us, it was totally awesome!" I couldn't help but grin like a madman. I had successfully snuck in an AVPM reference, which made the audience go crazy.

As soon as we finished our goodbyes, we all quickly moved back to let curtain close and as soon as it did, I let out a huge sigh of relief. I had made it through the show without screwing up in front of my friends. I know that they wouldn't have judged me if I had messed up, but they sure would have teased me about it!

"So are we still taking the scooters out?" Chris asked me as we walked back towards our dressing rooms.

"Oh shoot!" I exclaimed. "I totally forgot about that! Some of my friends came up to see the show and me and Kaley were going to go hang out with them for a while."

"Oh," a frown flickered across his lips. "I guess it'll just be me and Leah then..."

"You guys can come too, if you want," I replied instantly. "I don't know what we're doing yet, but the more, the merrier!"

"I'll see what Leah wants to do," Chris replied. "Maybe we'll scooter for a while and then come join you guys later. She really likes her present." A huge grin spread across his lips. He was clearly proud of himself and the choice he had made for her birthday gift.

"Sounds like a plan," I laughed as we arrived at our rooms. "I guess I'll see you later then!" I quickly went inside, hoping to change quickly so that I would have lots of time to catch up with my old theatre buddies.

After a couple of minutes, there was a knock on my door.

"Just a sec!" I called out, grabbing a shirt to put on.

"We've really got to stop meeting like this," I heard her laugh from behind me. I spun around to face her and smiled.

"What, you don't like the view?" I asked playfully, slightly flexing my exposed muscles.

"It could be better," she teased back, coming closer and placing a gentle hand on my chest. "The view's much better up close."

"It's even better when you look up," I said and when she looked up, I leaned down and kissed her.

"Mmm," she smiled as she gently pulled away. "I think you're right."

"Well that's not something that we hear often!" a familiar voice exclaimed, making us both turn towards the door. "Darren being right? That's just crazy talk!"

"Oh, you're so funny, Joey," I rolled my eyes at him.

"I know," he grinned. "And whenever you two are done locking lips, the rest of us are ready and waiting to go!" I leaned down and kissed Kaley once more before looking back up at him with a big grin.

"Ok, we're ready," I grinned, gently pulling away from her to put my shirt on. "So where did you guys want to go?"

"I have an idea," Kaley smiled, her eyes twinkling slightly as she looked up at me. "And I think it's the perfect place to go."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Kaley's POV

Darren instantly agreed with my idea, so we all piled into the limo and ten minutes later we were walking through the small doorway, setting off the bell's chime.

"Kaley!" Talia's voice instantly filled my ears. "You came back! And you brought more people!" I expected to get another tackle hug from her, but instead, the hug was given to someone else.

"Darren!" she squealed, attaching herself to his waist. "Is it true? Is it true? Is it true?"

"Is what true?" he laughed, trying to detach her from his hip.

"That you two are dating!" she exclaimed excitedly.

"Talia May Dover!" Grace exclaimed, coming out from the back room. "What did I tell you about people's personal space?"

"Sorry," Talia mumbled, hanging her head slightly as she stepped away from Darren.

"That's better," Grace smiled. "Hello, Kaley, dear! Hello, Darren! It's good to see you again! And who are all of your new friends?"

"Oh, this is Joey, Bonnie, Jaime, Joe, Brian, and last, but most certainly not least, Lauren," I smiled, pointing to each of them as I said their names. "Or, as they're better known as, the-"

"StarKids!" a deep voice exclaimed. I looked up and smiled as I watched Joe hurry over to us.

"I can't believe that the StarKids are in my shop!" Joe exclaimed excitedly. "I've seen all of your shows and I am a huge fan! It's such an honour to meet you guys!"

"It's nice to meet you," Brian laughed, extending a hand to him, which Joe eagerly took and shook. I couldn't help but laugh at the awestruck look on his face. He was in Heaven.

"Careful, Joe," I whispered to him. "Your fangirl is showing!"

"How are you not freaking out right now?" he asked me with wide eyes. "We used to spend hours watching and singing along to their shows!"

"Aww, I'm touched!" Joey exclaimed, hearing Joe's comment.

"Joe, I'm dating one of Glee's biggest stars," I laughed. "I think that I've gotten pretty good at controlling my fangirlingness."

"Not completely," Darren whispered in my ear as he wrapped his arms around my waist and nuzzled my neck playfully, making me blush.

"So it's true then?" Joe asked, raising his eyebrows. "You two are dating?" I smiled and nodded as I hugged Darren's arms that were wrapped around me.

"I knew it!" Talia exclaimed, jumping up and down.

"Inside voice, Talia!" Grace scolded.

"Sorry," she mumbled, hanging her head again.

"It's okay, honey," Grace sighed. "You just need to watch how loud you are being."

"So... is anyone else hungry, or am I the only one with a growling stomach?" Joey suddenly asked, making us all laugh.

"What can I get you?" Grace smiled, returning to her spot behind the counter. Joey followed her over there and pressed his face up against the glass to look at all of the flavour options.

"Hmm, can I get that one- No, wait! That one! Wait, never mind, I want that one!" Joey exclaimed, pointing at the different flavours. "Wait, wait, wait, no, I want that one! Or maybe-"

"You can have more than one flavour," Grace informed him, trying not to laugh. Joey's eyes widened, twinkling with delight.

"I can?!" he exclaimed happily. "In that case, I'll take a bit of that and that and that and that..."

I turned my attention away from Joey and back to Darren whose arms were still wrapped around me.

"You're friends are amazing," I told him with a smile. "They are exactly like the kind of people that I would have hung out with."

"Well, you did say that you were a theatre person," Darren smiled back. "So it makes sense that you would mesh well with other theatre geeks."

"Kaley! Come help me pick a flavour!" Lauren exclaimed suddenly, grabbing my hand and pulling me out of Darren's arms.

"Alright," I laughed, letting her pull me away, over to the counter. I could picture Darren pouting behind us, his lip sticking out slightly and his eyes looking hurt and dejected.

"What kind do you suggest?" Lauren asked, looking at all of the flavours.

"Hmmm," I mused, looking as well. "Gold Medal Ribbon has always been one of my favourites."

"Alright," she smiled. "I'll get that one then!" She told Grace her order, which the older woman quickly handed her. I continued to look at all of the different flavours as everyone else ordered, even though I knew the list by heart.

"I'll have a random," Darren told her when it was his turn, giving me a flirty wink. Though he did that often, I still couldn't help the small blush that rose to my cheeks. Maybe it was the fact that he was doing it out in public, in front of his friends and the people who were practically my family that made me blush. Grace smiled at our interaction as she scooped out some Birthday Cake ice cream for him. He thanked her as she handed it to him before turning back to me.

"What are you going to have?" he asked me.

"I don't know," I shrugged, looking back at the flavours again. I'd usually just say something random, but I didn't feel like doing that today. I was craving something specific, but I didn't know what that was. I turned back to Darren and gave him a mischievous little smile before I quickly stepped forward and licked his ice cream.

"Hey!" he exclaimed with a laugh, pulling his cone away protectively. "Get your own ice cream!"

"Fine then!" I pouted playfully, turning back to Grace. She gave me the 'I-want-to-talk-to-you-privately' look.

"Why don't you go find somewhere where everyone can sit down?" I suggested to Darren. "I'll be over there in a minute. I just need to talk to Grace about something."

"Ok..." Darren replied, giving me a questioning look, to which I just shook my head, implying that it was nothing to worry about. He shrugged in response before turning away and leading everyone over to the tables near the window. I watched them walk away before turning back to face Grace.

"So this is usually the part when you say 'I told you so'," I informed her with a sigh.

"And why would I do that?" Grace replied teasingly.

"You were right," I sighed, turning my head slightly to look over to where Darren had sat down. "We both had feelings for each other, but neither one of us were brave enough to say anything. We were too afraid that the other person wouldn't feel the same way."

"Mothers always know," Grace just smiled. "We notice things that not everyone else does. Like, for instance, I've noticed how much happier you look now than you did the last time that I saw you. I can tell that you are falling in lo-"

"Don't say that word!" I cut her off more sharply than I intended to. She looked at me with surprise.

"Why not?" she asked gently.

"Because..." I sighed. "Because it's a word that really means something. Before we started dating, sure, I would totally say that I... loved him... but now that we are dating... the word just feels so much more important... like it should be saved until I'm totally sure that I am in love with him. Sure, it feels like I am sometimes, but how do I know that that's not just infatuation? How do I know if I really love him? And how does he know if he really loves me?"

"You will just know," Grace replied softly, placing a comforting hand over mine. "There will be a moment, Kaley, when you realize that you cannot live without your special someone, that you would rather die than be separated from them. Trust me, Kaley, when or if you fall in love with him, you will just know."

"It just feels so confusing sometimes," I sighed.

"Love is confusing," she chuckled. "It is one of the most complicated, confusing, frustrating, but yet greatest emotions that you can ever experience. It was the best thing that could have ever happened to me when I met and fell in love with my husband."

Behind me the bell on the door chimed.

"Leah!" Talia exclaimed, drawing my attention over to her. She quickly jumped up from the table where she had been sitting beside Darren and ran over to the door where she quickly tackled the person who had just walked in.

"Hi, Talia," Leah laughed. She was no stranger to this place either. Leah used to come with me here a lot before she started working backstage for shows, but it had been quite a while since she had last visited.

"Ohmygosh! Chris Colfer!" Talia exclaimed, quickly tackling the person with Leah.

"Oh, hello there, ummm, Talia?" Chris looked to Leah for confirmation of her name. Leah just laughed and nodded.

"Talia," there was a warning tone to Grace's voice.

"But it's Chris Colf-" Talia started to object.

"Talia!" Grace cut her off sharply. "Do you need to go to your room?"

"No," Talia pouted, stepping away from Chris.

"It's alright," Chris smiled, crouching down so that he was at eye level with her. "I happen to really like hugs. I would love another one, if that's okay with you?" Talia's eyes lit up as she threw her arms around him. He wrapped his arms around her and gave her a tight squeeze, slowly picking her up and swinging her around playfully. Squeals of joy quickly filled the small shop.

He would make a great dad, I thought to myself as I watched him interact with Talia. He was so kind and gentle with her. I turned my attention on Leah for a moment and noticed that her eyes were glimmering with adoration. Just by that look, I could tell that she clearly shared my unspoken thoughts about Chris.

Chris gently set Talia back down and stood back up, slightly ruffling her hair as he straightened himself. Talia let out another small squeal of delight as she took his hand and pulled him over to the counter where Grace and I were standing.

"Grandma, can I show Chris my room?" Talia asked excitedly. "I want him to see my posters!" Grace started to object, but Chris just smiled and waved her concern away.

"I would love to see your room, Talia!" Chris told her.

"Yay!" Talia exclaimed, quickly pulling Chris through a door in the back. I could picture her dragging him upstairs to her room, where her walls were covered with all of the Glee cast members, especially Darren and Chris.

"You'd better be careful, Leah," I said teasingly as she leaned up against the counter beside me, staring off at the door that they had just left through. "It looks like Talia might be stealing your man away!"

"He's not my man," Leah rolled her eyes at me.

"Liar," I smirked. She shot me a quick glare, squinting her eyes at me in annoyance, to which I just stuck my tongue out at in reply.

"You're a dork!" she laughed, shoving me playfully.

"But I'm your dork, so it's okay," I laughed as well.

"Oh my gosh, are those the StarKids?!" Leah exclaimed suddenly, finally noticing the people seated over by the window.

"Yep," I nodded, smiling as I looked over at them.

Darren, Joey, and Brian looked like the were in the middle of a heated discussion, while Bonnie, Jaime, and Lauren were all lounging in their chairs, eating their ice creams and laughing about something. Joe Walker had his full attention on my Joe, who was animatedly talking about something, probably one of the shows that he had watched. There was a good chance that he was talking to him about his role as Voldemort in the AVPM. He was one of Joe's favourite actors/characters in that show.

"They came up to see Darren in the show," I explained, turning back to look at Leah.

"Man, I am so jealous of you sometimes!" Leah exclaimed, shoving me playfully again. "You're dating Darren, the entire Glee cast loves you, and now you're friends with the StarKids! That is so not fair!"

"Hey!" I exclaimed. "The entire cast loves you too, especially Chris, who has literally almost replaced me as your best friend, and you will be friends with the StarKids too! I just met them, but they've already accepted me as one of their own... and Joe as well, from the looks of it." I snuck a glance back over at Joe, who was staring at his name-sharing idol with a look of awe as he listened to him talk.

"I can't believe that this has become our life!" Leah sighed dreamily. "My only wish is that this two weeks didn't have to end..."

Leah's comment startled me. What would happen once the show ended? Would Darren and I stay together? Would Chris still talk to Leah? Would they just up and leave and go back to Los Angeles, or would they still come visit us? Or would we visit them? Or could we visit them?

These new thoughts were starting to hurt my head.

"I'll be back," I said as I walked towards the door. "I need some air." I didn't wait for their response. I just walked out the door, the bell softly chiming with my exit. I looked around the quiet street, once again thankful for how secluded this place was. There weren't any benches nearby, so I just sat down on the curb and put my head in my hands.

A couple minutes passed before he found me there.

"Are you okay?" Darren asked, sitting down on the curb beside me.

"Just a small headache," I lied. Well, it wasn't a total lie. My head did hurt a bit.

"Kaley," I felt his hand touch my chin, turning my face towards his. "What's wrong?" His big, hazel eyes seemed to pierce right through mine, like as if he was staring into my soul.

"What will happen?" I finally sighed, turning my head away from him. "What will happen once your show ends? What will happen to us?"

"Kaley, look at me," his voice was soft but commanding. I slowly turned my head back to him, though I couldn't find the courage to look at him. "Kaley, please, look at me." My eyes slowly looked up at him, meeting his piercing eyes once again. "Kaley, I just got you. I'm not going to let you go that easily... Unless you want me too..."

"No!" I exclaimed slightly louder than I intended to. I quickly clamped my hands over my mouth and looked down again.

"I'm not going to leave you, Kaley," Darren said softly, tilting my head back up again. "I promise." As if to prove it, he leaned down and placed a soft kiss on my lips.

"LA is only a plane ride away," he continued as he pulled away. "I can come back to visit you here and you can come visit me there. We will make this work, Kaley. I want this to work." I couldn't help the smile that was forming on my lips.

"How do you always know the perfect thing to say to make me feel better?" I asked with a light laugh.

"It's a talent," he shrugged as a huge grin spread across his lips. "We should probably get back in there before they come looking for us." He slowly got up and held out his hand to me. "Come on, let's go get you some ice cream." I smiled as I took his hand and he quickly helped me to my feet, pulling me into a hug as he did so.

"But this time," he grinned, placing a light kiss on the top of my head. "I'm paying."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Darren's POV

I flopped down on my bed, laying my head back against the pillows, and reflected on how the day had gone. Having my old friends show up and surprise me like that had totally made my day. I was so glad that they had gotten the chance to meet Kaley and that she had gotten to meet them.

I guess that I can check 'Meet the StarKids' off the Bucket List of things for me and Kaley to do, I chuckled to myself. I was thrilled by how much my friends had liked Kaley. They had instantly welcomed her in as if she was one of their own. Which she kind of is now.

"Well, that was fun," Chris smiled, walking out of the bathroom and crawling into his own bed. "Talia was just adorable. She insisted on showing me every single thing that she owned that was Glee related. And, of course, she had me sign anything that had my name or face on it, but I honestly didn't mind. She was just too cute and I couldn't say no to her!"

"I'm glad that you had fun," I told him with a smile. "It certainly was an interesting and thought-provoking day."

"Oh?" Chris tilted his head questioningly at me. "How so?"

"Kaley brought up the fact that the show going to end soon..." I sighed, running my fingers through my hair, breaking through the hardened gel. "And she asked me what was going to happen to us once it did end. Chris, I don't want to lose her, but long distance relationships are never easy and don't always work out..."

"That's why they invented Skype," Chris laughed. "And texting and emails and telephones and-"

"Ok, I get it," I laughed. "I'm just saying that it will be hard not getting to see her every day."

"You'll make it work," Chris replied, yawning slightly. "If you want it to, you will make it work. I know that I'm not going to break off my friendship with Leah just because we're in different states. Leah's a part of my life now. There's no way that I could stop our relationship because of such a petty thing like a bit of distance. We're going to make it work, just like you and Kaley will."

"You're right," I smiled, feeling more relaxed.

"Aren't I always?" he remarked playfully, yawning again. "I'm beat. I'm going to sleep. Good night!"

"Night, Chris," I replied as he flicked off the light by his bed. I quickly turned off my light too so that he could get to sleep before I snuggled down under my blankets and returned to my thoughts.

We will make it work, I decided as Chris' deep, sleep-filled breaths filled my ears. We have to. Because I'm not going to lose her. I don't think that I could bear to be without her.