If You Only Knew

Kaley's POV

Waking up in the arms of someone that you love is one of the best feelings you can ever experience. As I slowly woke up, feeling Darren's arms wrapped snuggly around me, I couldn't help but feel happy.

Today is going to be a good day, I smiled to myself as I opened my eyes. Since I was facing towards Chris' bed, I instantly noticed the fact that it was empty. I slowly sat up to look around the room, trying to see where Leah and Chris could be.

"Noooo," Darren moaned as I shifted, trying to tighten his grip on me so that I couldn't leave his embrace.

"Time to wake up, Dare," I giggled, trying to push his arms away.

"Five more minutes..." Darren mumbled, pulling me back down beside him and nuzzling his face into my neck.

"No, Darren," I replied lightly. "Chris and Leah are already up. We need to get up too."

"Don't wanna," he groaned. I lightly broke out of his embrace and sat up, ignoring his cries of displeasure as my body left his side.

"Time to get up, sleepy head!" I said as I stood up and stretched. As I did so, I noticed that the cot where Mark had been sleeping was also empty.

Where is everyone? I wondered as I slowly bent down and picked up my clothes from where I had left them on the floor last night.

And then I heard it. The shower was running.

I slowly moved towards the bathroom, lightly knocking on the door. When I didn't get a response, I knocked again, but a little bit harder.

"Yeah?" I heard Leah's voice call out and I smiled. Turning the doorknob, I found it to be unlocked, so I opened the door and walked in.

"It's just me, Leah," I said as I moved towards the sink. Since our apartment only had one bathroom, we were used to sharing a bathroom and using it at the same time. I frowned as I looked in the mirror, seeing the horrible mess my hair was.

"Where's Chris and Mark?" I asked as I set down my clothes and picked up the hairbrush and started to comb my hair.

"Kevin came and got Mark a little while ago," Leah replied from behind the dark shower curtain. "They have to fly out at noon."

"And Chris?" I repeated when she didn't continue. There was a sudden thump from within the shower and Leah let out a small squeak. I quickly set down the brush as I turned towards the shower. "Leah? You okay?"

"Yep!" she replied instantly. "Just slipped on some soap! I'm okay!"

"Careful," I laughed, picking up my clothes again and starting to change into them. I paused again to wait for her to continue, but when she didn't, I asked again. "So where's Chris?"

"Oh, umm, I think he went down to the pool," Leah said. "He said something about going for a morning swim."

"Oh, okay," I nodded. "Well, I'm gonna get Darren up and we're gonna go downstairs and get some breakfast. Do you guys want to come down and join us once you're done and Chris gets back?"

"Sure!" Leah replied quickly. "Sounds good to me!"

"Alright," I smiled. "We'll see you down there then." I walked back over to the door and quickly slipped out of the room, leaving Leah to have her privacy.

I'm surprised that she didn't go down to the pool with Chris, I grinned to myself. I'd never imagine that she would have passed up the chance to see Chris shirtless!

Wiping my teasing thoughts away, I returned to where I had left Darren to find him still snoozing. Grinning mischievously, I slowly crept forward and launched myself onto the bed, yelling "WAKE UP!" as I did so. Darren's eyes shot open and he let out a surprised little yelp. His wide eyes fell on me as I collapsed onto the bed in a fit of giggles.

"You should have seen your face!" I laughed, holding my sides. Darren suddenly launched forward and tackled me, pinning me to the bed. My breath caught in my throat for a second as this position reminded me of what had happened with James, but I forced myself to be calm. Darren wasn't James. He wasn't going to hurt me.

"Never start a battle that you can't win," he warned as straddled me. He suddenly let go of my arms and started tickling me viciously. I squealed with alarm. I was very ticklish.

"Darren, stop!" I begged, trying to knock his hands away as I squirmed beneath him. "Don't! That tickles! Please, stop!" I could feel tears starting to roll down my cheeks. Darren noticed them and abruptly stopped tickling me.

"Kaley, I'm so sorry!" he said, alarmed. "I didn't mean to-"

"I'm very sensitive and very ticklish," I cut him off. "So ticklish that it will make me cry." He grinned suddenly and leaned down close to my face.

"Then let me help with that," he whispered, softly pressing his lips to the tear spots on my cheeks. I smiled as I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him closer, pressing my lips to his.

I'm so in love with you, I thought as I looked up into his golden brown eyes. He slowly moved his hand to move a strand of hair behind my ear. I instantly leaned into his touch, sighing contently. I could easily picture spending every morning for the rest of my life like this.

"Darren, I-" I started to say, but was cut off as his stomach growled loudly.

"Way to kill the mood!" I laughed as I pushed him off of me and stood up. I walked over to his dresser and pulled out some clothes for him, which I quickly tossed at him. "Come on, let's go get some breakfast."

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

Darren's POV

We held hands as we walked down to the hotel restaurant, swinging them happily between us. Though Chris and I had been staying in this hotel for the past two weeks, we had never actually gotten a chance to check out the restaurant, so Kaley had suggested that we try it since it was our last day here.

"Party of four, please," I smiled at the young woman standing at the podium by the door.

"Right this way," she nodded, picking up four menus and gesturing for us to follow her. She led us over to a booth in the back, where it was secluded enough that we would not be disturbed by other guests.

"Thank you," Kaley smiled sweetly at her as we sat down on opposite sides of the booth. The woman, whose name tag read Cathy, just nodded, used to having to deal with celebrities.

"Your server will be with you in just a moment," she said before leaving us to return to her post by the door. Once she was gone, Kaley picked up one of the menus, licking her lips hungrily. I copied her actions, picking up my own menu.

"What are you going to have?" she asked after a couple of minutes of looking at the menu in her hands. "Everything just looks so good!"

"I'm thinking of doing the Hungry Man's Breakfast," I replied, showing her the menu item. It came with three eggs, however you wanted them, three pieces of bacon, three pieces of sausage, home fries, and two slices of toast.

"Ooo, that looks good!" she exclaimed, looking back at her own menu again. "I might have to get that too!"

"Are you going to be able to eat all of that?" I asked, chuckling lightly. She set down her menu and looked up at me with a serious expression.

"You do not understand my love for bacon, sausage, and home fries," she said. "I could devour a mountain made of them. The eggs, however, I could do without. I'm not a huge fan of eggs."

"I'll take your eggs if you don't want them," I offered.

"No!" she exclaimed quickly. "What would I dip my toast in then?"

"What?" I gaped. "You dip your toast in your eggs?"

"Yes," she replied defensively. "You get over easy eggs, break them open, and dip your toast in them. It's delicious!"

"That's weird," I laughed.

"You're weird," she retorted. I opened my mouth to make a witty remark back, but our server suddenly showed up, so I closed my mouth and smiled.

"Hello, my name is Teressa," the brunette said with a bright smile. "I'll be your server today. Can I start you off with some drinks?"

"Can I get a glass of orange juice?" Kaley asked sweetly. She was so polite.

What a Canadian, I grinned to myself.

"I'll have orange juice as well," I said, flashing her a charming smile.

"Alright, two orange juices, coming right up!" Teressa nodded.

"Actually, you might as well add two more orange juices to that," Kaley told her. "We're expecting a couple more people."

"Alright, not a problem," she nodded again, jotting down the order on her notepad. "I'll be right back with your drinks."

Just after she left, I spotted Leah walking into the restaurant. I stood up slightly, as best as I could in a booth, and waved at her. She smiled as she spotted me and quickly came over and joined us.

"Where's Chris?" I asked her as she slid onto the bench beside Kaley.

"Oh, he's taking a quick shower," she explained. "You know, to wash off the chlorine smell. He should be done soon."

"Speak of the devil," Kaley laughed, spotting Chris walk into the room. Leah quickly waved him over.

"Morning," he smiled, sliding onto the bench beside me.

"Morning," we all chirped.

"So, what looks good?" he asked, picking up the menu in front of him.

"Everything," Kaley laughed lightly.

"I know what I'm getting," Leah smiled, setting her menu down.

"What?" Chris asked, raising an eyebrow at her. Leah and Kaley exchanged a glance and smiled.

"PANCAKES!" Leah exclaimed happily.

"With a side of bacon," Kaley added.

"With a side of bacon," Leah agreed, smiling widely.

"I take it you like pancakes," Chris laughed.

"Indeed," Leah nodded.

"Well, maybe I'll have to get pancakes too," Chris said, setting his menu down. "With a side of bacon."

"No!" Leah exclaimed. "You can't copy me!"

"Why not?" I laughed. "Kaley's copying me."

"Am not!" Kaley argued.

"Are too," I grinned.

"Just because I happen to be getting the same menu item as you doesn't mean that I'm copying you," she huffed.

"Alright, whatever you say," I shrugged. "Copycat." Kaley stuck out her tongue at me and I couldn't help but smile smugly.

"Here are your drinks," Teressa suddenly said, appearing at our booth and setting our drinks down in front of us. "Are you ready to order or did you need some more time?"

"I think we're ready," I said, looking around the table and seeing everyone else nodded. "I'll start. I'll have the Hungry Man's Breakfast with over easy eggs-" Kaley kicked me under the table at this point. "-and whole wheat toast."

"I'll also have the Hungry Man's Breakfast," Kaley started to say. I quietly mouthed, "Copycat," to her, earning another kick to my shins.

"But instead of whole wheat, I'll have white toast, please," she finished, shooting me a sharp, defiant smirk.

"Alright, over easy eggs as well?" Teressa asked, to which Kaley nodded. "Alright, and for you?" She turned to Leah.

"Can I get the Pancake Special with a side of bacon?" Leah said.

"Me too," Chris grinned, suddenly wincing afterwards as Leah grinned smugly.

Looks like we have both fallen victim to under-the-table kicks, I chuckled to myself.

"Alright, so we have two Hungry Man's Breakfasts, both with over easy eggs, one white, one whole wheat," Teressa started to list off our orders. "And two Pancake Specials with sides of bacon. And that's everything?"

"Yep," we all nodded.

"Alright, I'll be back with your food shortly then," she smiled, tucking her notepad away as she turned and headed towards the kitchen.

"I'm surprised that you didn't order any sausage," Chris commented to Leah. "Don't you like sausage?"

"I prefer bacon," Leah shrugged. "If you wanted sausage, then why didn't you get some?"

"Oh, I don't want any sausage," Chris shrugged. "I've found that it's not to my liking anymore. But if you're ever in the mood for sausage, you'll have to try mine. It's to die for."

Leah had been in the middle of taking a sip from her orange juice and almost ended up coughing it back up.

"Went down the wrong pipe," she explained quickly, wiping away the juice dripping her chin. "So your sausage is the best, is it?"

"Yes," Chris grinned. "I'm quite the cook."

"He is," I nodded. "He made breakfast for the cast once and it was delicious."

"Well, you'll have to make us breakfast when we come visit you guys sometime," Kaley smiled. A sudden sadness fell across the table as we were reminded that our time here was almost over.

But we'll be back to visit, I reminded myself. And they'll come visit us. This isn't our last day together. It's just the beginning. I looked over at Kaley, who was laughing at something that Leah had said, and smiled. There was no way that I'd let this end.

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

Kaley's POV

After receiving and eating our food, which Darren watched me eat with surprise and fascination as I finished my plate off, we paid for our food (or tried to pay for, but the manager insisted that it was on the house if Darren and Chris would sign an autograph for his daughter) and headed back to their room. I quickly jumped through the shower as Chris and Leah went back to our place to get the scooters since we decided that we were going to go site-seeing today. As soon as I was done, Darren hopped in the shower to freshen up as well. I quickly pulled on my jeans then looked at my shirt, which I realized had a huge ketchup stain on the front of it.

Crap, I thought, frowning. I don't want to wear this out now... An idea popped into my head and I walked over to Darren's dresser and opened one of the drawers. The instant I saw the shirt, I knew that I had to wear it, so I quickly pulled it on. And then I sat down on the bed and turned on the TV while I waited for Darren to finish.

"I like your shirt," he grinned as he walked back into the room. I looked up from the TV screen and my breath caught in my throat as I saw him. He was leaning against the wall, wearing nothing but a single white towel around his waist. Water droplets trickled down his chest, glinting magically as the light hit them. He was gorgeous!

"Oh, this old thing?" I grinned when I finally found my voice again, looking down at it. It was a deep navy blue t-shirt with the word MICHIGAN written across the front in yellow.

"It's kind of funny," I said softly as I traced the lettering. "I lived in a town that bordered Michigan growing up. We were only a state away from each other. How crazy is that?"

"It just shows that we were meant to be together," he smiled, coming over to me. My heart slipped a beat as he leaned down and kissed my forehead.

"Do you believe in fate?" I whispered, almost unable to breathe due to the closeness of his bare chest.

"I believe that things happen for a reason," he replied, smiling. "There was a reason that we both happened to be there that first night, that we had that... unpleasant first impression. If that hadn't happened, would our bond be as strong as it is? No one's ever made quite the impression on me as you have."

"Really?" I breathed.

"Really," he grinned, lightly tracing the outline of my cheek with his finger. "I've never met anyone like you, Kaley. You're amazing, incredible. You make my heart race and it's not hard to see why it was so easy for me to-"

"We're back!" Chris announced as the door burst open. He and Leah stopped short in the doorway as they noticed our intimately close position. "Did we... interrupt something?"

"You have impeccably horrible timing, my friend," Darren laughed as he moved away from me and towards the dresser to grab some clothes. "I'll be ready in a minute." He quickly slid past them and went back into the bathroom to change. I couldn't help but feel a little bit sad that his beautiful bare chest was gone from my sight.

"Well, didn't you two look cozy!" Leah joked, jumping onto the bed beside me as she tossed me my scooter keys.

"We were until somebody interrupted us," I replied, nudging her hard in the side as I slid the keys into my pocket.

"Well, maybe it's a good thing that we showed up before things got too carried away..." she gave me a mischievous grin that I just rolled my eyes at.

"You know I'm not the kind of girl to do that," I scoffed. "Especially in a hotel room! I mean, how tacky is that?" I glanced over at the bathroom door to check for Darren. I had told him that I wasn't ready for that kind of step in our relationship yet, but, truth be told, I'm not sure when I will be ready. The idea of being intimate with someone had always unsettled me. And I think that having parents who instilled the morals of saving yourself until marriage could have also played a role in my reluctance to take that next step.

It's like choosing between following my head or following my heart, I sighed to myself. Listen to reason or listen to love. I was suddenly very thankful that Darren was understanding of my need to wait. It gave me more time to try to decide what path I should choose for when the time came.

"Alright, I'm ready to go!" Darren announced as he exited the bathroom. I smiled as I stood up from the bed and went over to the table to grab my camera.

"Took you long enough!" I joked as I slid it into my pocket. "We're losing daylight here, people!" I quickly headed towards the door, but Darren beat me there, opening it for me while giving me a low bow.

"After you," he smiled.

"Why thank you," I smiled back, mocking a curtsy to him.

"Come on, keep it moving, love birds!" Leah exclaimed, pushing me through the door.

"He was being a gentleman," I reprimanded.

"He was being slow," Leah remarked. "Didn't you just say we were losing daylight?"

I didn't respond to her. Instead, all I did was stick my tongue out at her as I gave her a light shove, then quickly booked it down the hallway to the elevator.

"I want to push the button!" Leah called out after me.

"Too bad!" I laughed as I reached the elevator and pushed the down button.

"Meanie," Leah pouted as she caught up, crossing her arms over her chest and sticking out her bottom lip.

"Maybe next time," I grinned, flicking her extended lip with my finger, which just annoyed her even more.

"Kaley!" she exclaimed as the elevator doors opened. I quickly dashed inside and hit the garage button before she could, making her glare at me even harder.

"Too slow," I laughed, grinning like a Chesire cat as I stuck out my tongue at her mockingly.

"Okay, break it up, ladies," Chris laughed as he moved into the elevator and stood between us. He put a supportive arm across Leah's shoulders, attempting to comfort her. "You can push the buttons when we come back."

"But then when do I get to push them?" Darren pouted as he came to stand beside me.

"You could push the close button," I suggested, which he instantly did with a proud smile on his face.

You're such a five year old, I thought with a smile. The second we hit the bottom floor and the doors opened, Darren leapt out of the elevator and started running.

"Shot gun!" he exclaimed, racing over to the scooters and hopping onto my shiny black one.

"But it's my scooter," I argued.

"But you always drive!" he pouted, giving me adorable, pleading puppy dog eyes. "Please, can I drive?"

"Don't do that!" I exclaimed, covering my eyes to block his pleading ones. "You know that I can't resist the puppy dog eyes!"

"I know," he grinned as I peeked through my fingers.

"Fine," I sighed, tossing him the keys. "You can drive."

"Yes!" he cheered, pumping his fist into the air triumphantly. I laughed as I slid onto the scooter behind him and wrapped my arms around his waist.

"But this means that I get I choose where we go first," I told him, grinning widely.

"Deal," he grinned as well. "Where do you want to go?"

"I want to go to the Statue of Liberty!" I beamed.

"The pistachio of what?" Leah asked, looking very puzzled as she settled onto her scooter behind Chris, allowing him to be the driver as well.

"I said statue!" I laughed. "Not pistachio! And it's not just any statue! The Statue of Liberty!"

"Well, they're both green," Leah commented with a shrug. "Though pistachios taste better."

"Oh, you want taste, do you?" I laughed. "Well, how about you eat our dust! Go, Darren!" I tightened my grip around his waist as he twisted the gas handle and we zoomed out of the parking garage. I could hear Leah screaming after us, something along the lines of them beating us and her telling Chris to go faster. I threw my head back and laughed freely, partly in amusement at their beliefs that they could beat us and partly for the pure joy of it. I loved the feeling of the wind blowing through my hair.

Crap! I realized suddenly. I forgot to put my helmet on! I brought my head back up and leaned up closer to Darren, praying that he wouldn't crash as we whizzed in and out of traffic.

Please don't die! Please don't die! Please don't die! I chanted in my head almost the entire drive to Battery Park, where we left the scooters and got on the ferry that would take us across to Liberty Island. I couldn't help but smile as I watched the statue grow closer. Leah and I had only come out here once since we moved here and I thought that this visit was well overdue.

As soon as we landed, I dragged Darren over to the base of the statue and handed Leah my camera.

"Take our picture! Take our picture!" I said excitedly, jumping up and down. I wanted to get as many pictures of us today as I could so that on days that I was missing Darren, I could look at them and remember all the fun times we've had and be reminded that there were only more good times to come.

"Smile!" Leah said as she took our picture. After we took a few more pictures and took some of Chris and Leah and then me and Leah, we finally headed towards the stairs.

"Last one up's a rotten egg!" I declared as I suddenly started to sprint up the stairs. I could hear my friends' footfalls on the steps behind me as we made our way up the tall statue, pushing me to go faster. I didn't even make it a quarter of the way up when my feet started to ache and my lungs started to burn. I started to slow down, allowing time for the others to pass me, though they were slowing down too.

"We should have taken the elevator," I gasped, wearing down. I'd never liked taking the stairs. To quote Po from Kung Fu Panda, "My old enemy: stairs!"

"Come on, Kaley," Darren laughed, coming back down a couple stairs to where I was. "We're almost there." He held out his hand, which I took, giving me a bit of renewed energy as we continued to climb. Way too many steps later (354), we reached the Crown. We had decided to bypass the normal Observatory platform and go straight up to the top.

"Wow," I exclaimed as we looked out through the glass windows. It was beautiful. "I've never seen anything like it."

"Me neither," Darren whispered, though I had a suspicious feeling that he wasn't talking about the view. I snuck a glance at him to prove that I was right. He was staring right at me.

"Oh, stop!" I laughed, shoving him lightly. "I'm not that great!"
"You don't know, oh oh," he suddenly started to sing in my ear as he wrapped his arms around my waist. "You don't know you're beautiful!"

"Really?" I laughed. "One Direction? You're such a dork!"

"And your point is?" he replied, smiling. I would have given him a witty remark in return if a sudden scream hadn't filled our ears.

"OHMYGOSH! IT'S DARREN CRISS!"

We both looked up, startled. This was the first time today that Darren had been singled out.

Did it have to happen now? I sighed to myself as we turned towards the owner of the voice. She was an older teenager, perhaps a few years younger than me, with bright blonde hair and ocean blue eyes. She had way too much make-up on, making her look less pretty than I'm sure that she was going for.

"Darren!" she squealed excitedly. "Can I get a picture?"

"Sure," Darren smiled, hesitantly removing his arms from my waist as the girl stepped closer and shoved her camera at me.

"Sure, I guess I'll take it for you," I remarked slightly sarcastic. In just five seconds of knowing her, I already hated her. She was one of those I-get-what-I-want type people, thinking that they're better than everyone else.

"Smile," I said through gritted teeth as the girl beamed like a wildcat as she stood next to my boyfriend with her arm latched tightly around his side. The camera could not go off fast enough.

"There you go," I said, handing her back the camera as she reluctantly stepped away from Darren. I instantly moved back to his side, his arm wrapping protectively around my waist. I didn't miss the annoyed glance I got from the girl but I didn't care. Darren was mine, not hers. This was one thing that she was never going to get.

"Can I get an autograph too?" she smiled sweetly at Darren, pulling a picture of him out of her purse.

Who does that? Carries around a picture of someone in chances that they might meet them?

"Who should I make it out to?" Darren asked as he took the picture and pen from her.

"Becky," the girl beamed. "And can you put 'To my number one fan' on it too?"

"Sorry, no can do," Darren shook his head as he signed the picture. "Cause my number one fan is right there." He pointed at me, making me blush. The girl, Becky, just glared daggers at me, but I didn't care. Darren was mine and I was his. No one could break that apart.

"Well, it was nice meeting you, Becky," Darren said, giving her back her things. "But we've got to get going now. Have a great day!" He took my hand and led me away, leaving behind the sulking girl, hopefully for good.

"Where'd Chris and Leah go?" I asked, looking around the room and not seeing them.

"Maybe they went down to the gift shop," Darren suggested. So, we started our decent back down the stairs, which I found to be a lot easier than going up.

"Kaley, look what I got!" Leah exclaimed the second we walked into the store. She was wearing a green Liberty crown on her head. I couldn't help but giggle at her excitement.

"Don't you have one of those already?" I laughed.

"Yes, but this one's special," she grinned. "This one's signed by a famous person!" I blinked in surprise as I tried to figure out who she could have seen that she could have gotten a signature from.

"Who?" I asked, still puzzled.

"Me!" Chris laughed, joining us while wearing a crown of his own. "Some fans found us and wanted me to sign some of their things, so, for good fun, I sighed Leah's as well."

"And I'll treasure it forever," Leah sighed happily before breaking into a fit of giggles.

"Did you want a crown too?" Darren asked, holding up a couple of them.

"No," I shook my head. "I want something else." I moved over towards the checkout, as that's where they usually kept what I wanted. The second I spotted it, a smile lit across my face.

"A keychain?" Darren asked, following me over to the display case.

"It's a new thing I've been doing," I explained as I plucked one of Lady Liberty off the shelf. "I'm collecting keychains from the different places that I visit. Someday, I want to travel the world and I'll get one from each place that I go as a memento."

"That sounds really cool," Darren smiled, suddenly plucking the trinket from my hand. "Allow me to help in your endeavor." Before I could argue, he took it to the checkout and paid for it for me. When he came back, he had two of them.

"Now we both have a memento from today," he grinned as he handed mine back to me.

"You didn't have to do that," I frowned.

"I wanted to," he insisted. "Cause then when you look at that, you'll not only remember that you came here, but that you came here with me and that I bought it for you."

"Thank you," I smiled, lightly pecking his cheek. "I love it."

"Hey, guys! The elevator's leaving!" Chris called out to us from the open doorway of the elevator.

"My thanks to whoever installed this!" I whispered as we rushed over and got in the slightly crowded elevator. Thankfully, it didn't take us too long to get down so we weren't stuck in there for long.

We got down just in time to catch the ferry before it left, claiming a few open seats near the front to watch our return to the city. The ferry stopped at another island along the way back, but we opted out of going to it, deciding to just stay on the boat and get back to the city instead so that we could go out for supper, as it was nearing dinner time.

We decided to stay in Battery Park and go to a little Italian restaurant in the Financial District by the name of Caracello. Darren was the one who had pushed the idea of going there as he was, "craving good Italian pasta." We were seated almost immediately and given a round of waters. It only took me a second to find what I wanted from the menu.

"Buonasera, my name is Carlos," our waiter smiled at us. I couldn't help but notice the slight accent to his voice. "I will be your server this evening. Did you still need a minute or would you like to order some appetizers to start?"

"I think we're ready to order," Darren said, looking around the table at each of us to check and make sure that he was correct. We all nodded, so Darren smiled and looked back at Carlos. "I guess I'll start. I'll have the penne all'arrabbiata e bruschetta." I couldn't stop the giddy feeling I got hearing Darren's voice enunciate the Italian words.

"I'll have the cappelletti soup, please," Chris said, handing him his menu.

"I'll have cappelletti soup as well," Leah mumbled softly, shooting a glance at Chris, who just laughed and mouthed, "Copycat."

"It's my favourite!" Leah argued. "It's what I always have when I come to Italian restaurants! I am not copying you!"

"Of course not," Chris grinned. Leah just grumbled unhappily as she handed Carlos her menu.

And then it was my turn.

"Vorrei che la tortellini al formaggio," I told him, adding a slight accent to my voice. Darren looked at with me surprise as I smiled at Carlos and handed him my menu. "Grazie."

Carlos smiled as he finished taking our orders, giving me an extra pleased look, before leaving to put our orders in.

"You can speak Italian?" Darren exclaimed once he left. I smiled, knowing that he would react like this.

"I took a course in university," I shrugged. "It was one of my favourite classes. That's probably why I passed at the top of my class." I paused a second, debating whether or not to continue, but I decided to just go with it and said, "With a mark of ninety-six."

Darren's eyebrows shot up with surprise.

"Ninety-six?!" he exclaimed. "Holy cow!"

"What can I say?" I smiled. "I'm good at picking up languages."

"How many language classes have you taken?" Darren asked curiously.

"Four," I replied. "French in high school and Italian, Spanish, and Mandarin in university. I like learning new languages. It's fun."

"You're insane!" Darren laughed.

"And you're just catching on now?" Leah commented teasingly.

"Thanks," I replied sarcastically, rolling my eyes at her. "At least I'm not alone in my asylum. I have an even crazier roommate!"

"Who? Your monkeys?" Leah remarked with a grin.

"Yeah, yeah, you keep laughing," I said, picking up my butter knife and fiddling with it menacingly. "I know where you sleep at night."

"I would hope so!" Leah exclaimed. "You've only been living with me for the past year now! I'd think by then you'd know where my bed is!"

"You think you're so funny, don't you," I replied dryly.

"It's a gift," Leah shrugged.

"Okay, children," Chris broke in. "No fighting at the dinner table!"

"Aww, but it was just getting good!" Darren whined, earning himself a sharp glare from Chris, which made him instantly shut his mouth.

"Party pooper," I heard him mumble under his breath, which made me want to laugh. It's ironic that Darren was the oldest one of the four of us, yet he acted like the youngest.

"Cheer up," I said, looking at the approaching waiter behind him. "It looks like our food is here." His eyes instantly lit up as he turned in his seat to watch Carlos walk over balancing multiple plates in his hands. A pleasant aroma filled the table as he set the plates down in front of us.

"Enjoy!" he said with a smile before leaving us to devour our meals. Which we did. I never used to be a huge pasta fan, but over the past couple of years I'd come to love two specific kinds of pasta: lasagna and tortellini. Add lots of cheese to that tortellini and you have yourself a very happy Kaley.

I was one very satisfied customer.

But that satisfaction did not last long as we realized how quickly our time together was slipping away. We did not have much time left until Chris and Darren had to leave.

One we were all finished and dinner was paid for (which Darren refused to let me pay for half of), we reluctantly headed back to the hotel, and yes, Leah did get to push the button to go back up. Once we reached their room, Leah and I helped Chris and Darren pack their stuff back into their suitcases which had been hiding in the closet for the past two weeks. I think that we were all feeling reluctant to actually pack their suitcases because that just made the fact that they were leaving that much more real. But we had to because their flight was scheduled to leave at four am, meaning that we had to be at the airport at by midnight, since you had to be there four hours before your flight.

Which came way too fast.

By eleven, we were on our way downstairs to where Steven was waiting with the limo to drive us to the airport. It was a silent drive, no one really saying anything, rather just enjoying being in each other's company. I cuddled into Darren's side, trying to breathe in as much of his scent as I could. I didn't want to have to say goodbye to him.

It's only temporary, I reminded myself. You'll see him again next weekend.

The plan was that Darren would fly back here early Saturday morning. It was a six hour flight so he would be catching a midnight flight to be back here for about nine am (accounting for the three hour time difference), giving us the whole weekend to spend together.

But that was a whole week away.

"Here we are," Steven announced as we pulled up to the JFK airport. "It's been a pleasure driving you gentlemen. If you ever are in need of a ride when you are in town, please don't hesitate to call me." He passed each of them a business card.

"Thank you," Darren smiled. "We will be sure to take you up on your offer. You've been such a wonderful driver for us. I couldn't have asked for a better man for the job. It's been a pleasure having you drive us."

"We'll be back shortly, if you don't mind waiting for us," Leah told him as we all started to exit the limo.

"I don't mind at all," he smiled, settling back to wait.

As we slipped out of the vehicle, Darren took something out of his bag and placed it on one of the back seats before closing the door behind him.

"What was that?" I asked as we grabbed the suitcases out of the trunk and headed for the terminal.

"Just a little thank you gift for him," Darren smiled, draping his arm across my shoulders and pulling me closer to him. "Will you make sure that he gets it?"

"Of course," I nodded, snuggling into his side.

Because it was such an early flight, there weren't too many people wandering around in the terminal, which I was thankful for. Darren's fans could be a bit of a handful sometimes and I wasn't in the mood to deal with them, not at this hour.

Leah and I waited as Chris and Darren checked in their suitcases and then we all walked over to the gate where we would have to part ways.

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

Darren's POV

"Well, this is it," I sighed as we stopped in front of the gate. Kaley and Leah couldn't come with us past this point.

"I guess so..." Kaley sighed as well, looking very unhappy. The four of us stood in an awkward silence for a couple minutes before Chris finally spoke up.

"Hey, Leah, how about you help me pick out some snacks to take on the plane," he said, grabbing Leah's hand and pulling her away. I caught his eye before he turned away and he gave me a subtle wink. I smiled as I caught his meaning. He was giving me a moment alone with Kaley to say goodbye.

"I'm going to miss you." It was impossible to miss the sadness in her voice. I turned back to her and saw tears beginning to form in her eyes.

"Hey! Hey! Hey!" I said softly, gently cupping her cheek as I wiped away a tear that had fallen. "Don't cry! I'm not leaving forever! I'll be back next weekend. And the weekend after that. This isn't goodbye."

"I know," Kaley sniffed. "It's just going to be so hard not having you here. I've gotten so used to seeing you every day. I don't know what I'm going to do without you here."

"You'll start working on your story," I replied encouragingly. "And you're not alone. You have Leah here too. And you can text me or call me whenever you miss me too much. And we can Skype in the evenings when I'm off work. I'll be there whenever you need me, even if I can't be there with you."

"I hate being a woman sometimes," she laughed lightly, wiping at the tears in her eyes. "We get too emotional!"

"Hey, there's nothing wrong with that," I smiled, wrapping my arms around her and pulling her close. "That just shows that you really care about me."

"I do," she said, wrapping her arms around me as well. "Care about you. A lot. I've never cared about someone this much in my entire life. You mean the world to me, Darren. I don't know what I would do without you in my life."

"I don't know what I'd do without you," I replied, softly stroking her hair. "You're just so amazing and beautiful and I am so happy to be able to call you my girlfriend. Kaley..."

I paused for a moment. Should I do it? Should I tell her how I feel? I mean, people always confess their feelings for each other in airports, right? ...well, at least they do in the movies... So it has to be somewhat romantic, right?

Taking a deep breath, I pulled back a bit from Kaley so that I could look her in the eyes.

"Kaley, I l-"

"Darren!" Chris' voice cut me off. With an annoyed huff, I turned towards his returning figure.

"What?" I demanded unhappily.

"Our plane just landed," Chris said. "It's in early and they want to start early boarding as soon as they can."

"Fine," I sighed, turning back to Kaley.

It will have to wait, I decided, choosing to instead express my feelings through actions. I quickly leaned down and brought our lips together, kissing her with a hungry passion which she eagerly returned. There was such a desire and wanting behind our kiss, like as if neither one of us wanted it to end. I certainly didn't. I didn't want to leave. If I could have it my way, I'd either stay here in New York with Kaley or throw her over my shoulder and take her back to LA with me right now. But neither of those options were possible.

"This isn't goodbye," I whispered again as we broke apart, pressing my forehead to hers. "I'll be back before you know it."

"Promise?" she whispered back, clutching onto the front of shirt as if that would keep me from leaving.

"Cross my heart," I replied, which drew a smile from her.

She reluctantly eased out of my grasp and turned to Chris, giving him a tight hug goodbye as I gave one to Leah. I then gave her one last hug goodbye, making it extra tight like as if I didn't want to let go, which I didn't, and I gave her lips one last kiss before letting her go and stepping back.

"I'll see you soon," I promised before turning away and passing through the gate with Chris.

"Until then," Kaley called out after me, making me turn back briefly just in time to catch her blowing me a kiss goodbye. I 'caught' it and held it against my heart lovingly until Chris nudged me and made me continue walking, leaving behind the girl that I loved for a whole week.

A week that would become a torturous turning point in our relationship.