The Autograph

Eddie Duran passively wondered if it was truly possible to die of complete and utter boredom as he stared sightlessly in front of him at an endless line of screaming and crying teenage girls Eddie's career had catapulted him these past three years from an up-and-coming musician to a bona fide international rock star at the pinnacle of fame. For the most part, Eddie had seamlessly made the transition to celebrity fairly well, but he still resisted the need to develop and to promote the "Eddie Duran" brand, which Jake Madsen, his best friend/manager stated was imperative to a long-term successful career. Eddie knew that when he performed on a live stage that he was alive and his most authentic self, so he didn't really understand why he needed act the role of a 'rock star," when he legitimately was one. However, Eddie numbly decided to save that battle with his formidable manager for a different day as he carelessly signed whatever paraphernalia was thrown on the table in front of him at a well renowned bookstore in Los Angeles while randomly flashing his well-practiced "Eddie Duran" grin periodically.

Jake Madsen sat to the right of Eddie furiously typing into his laptop and barking orders into his cell phone at some unknown "schmuck" on the other end. Every few minutes or so, Jake would impatiently look up at the nearby bookstore attendant, clear his throat, and silently motion for her to keep the line moving. It was Jake's brilliance and dedication at making business deals that had literally made Eddie's simple love for music into a demanding career that was lucrative beyond Eddie's wildest dreams.

When Eddie's debut album had hit the market three years ago, it had been one of the fastest ascending albums on the Billboard charts of all time by a brand new artist. Eddie's follow-up album, which had just recently just hit the stores a few months ago, was already on track to surpass its predecessor. As Eddie continued to sign the never-ending paraphernalia thrust before him, he suddenly wished that Jake wasn't quite so good at his job.

Eddie's restlessness with the meet and greet was nearing its peak, and he was on the brink of suggesting to Jake that he cultivate an excuse to cut the event short when he abruptly stopped as his attention was suddenly caught by an movement by the entrance of the bookstore. A beautiful and diminutive girl with flushed cheeks and curly brunette hair that flew wildly behind her as she forcefully pushed open the entrance door clumsily stumbled into the room almost falling on the floor in front of her before she was able to steady herself at the last possible moment. Eddie's eyes drifted appreciatively over the girl's casual black tank top, skinny jeans, and knee-high boots as the deceptively conservative outfit outlined her slim yet curvy body like a well-fitted glove. Not only had Eddie's interest been awoken but certain body parts of his were also beginning to come alive as well.

As Eddie continued to watch the girl, he saw her body visibly relax when she saw the long line and nearly jumped out of his skin when her emerald green eyes unexpectedly looked up directly into his. Eddie stifled a real grin as the girl looked over her shoulder with confusion to see what he was looking at. As the realization suddenly dawned on her that Eddie had witnessed her almost blunder, her face gave way to an adorably embarrassed smile. Eddie was about to politely look away to prevent her from feeling any further discomfort when she abruptly looked back up at him with humor, smirked, and unabashedly did a small curtsey and a bow. Jake's head jerked up and he looked at Eddie with barely concealed annoyance as Eddie barely contained his laughter. Eddie tried to forcefully to stop staring at this confident and irresistible beauty, but he was completely and absolutely mesmerized. If he didn't know better, he would almost believe that there was something in air.

The girl began to comb her fingers through her long curly mane of hair but eventually gave up. Eddie observed the girl's long curly hair falling wildly behind her and wondered if was how she looked in the morning after she had just woken up and was getting out of bed. Before Eddie's mind began to continue down this path and he started to imagine how else this girl looked when she got out of bed in the morning, he intentionally made his mind come back to the piece of paper he was signing that had just been placed in front of him.

When Eddie had regained his composure, he glanced up again and the girl was casually waving to him and winking at him as if they were best friends who had just shared a private joke. Eddie's heart skipped a beat. Eddie was about to return the girl's smile with a crooked grin of his own when a young fan distracted him by squealing and thrusting a poster in front of Eddie. When Eddie looked back up, the line had shifted and the girl had been herded to the back of the line by the book store attendant. Eddie knew at that moment that he was not leaving this bookstore until he had spoken to the girl who with a simple look had taken his breath away and who had completely made him forget about the "Eddie Duran" he was supposed to be playing.

Loren said a silent prayer of thanks to the universe as she ungracefully stumbled into the entrance of the bookstore and struggled to catch her breath. Typically Loren hated long lines but today she was grateful that there were still legions of fans still standing in line to get their chance to speak to Eddie Duran.

Loren had just sprinted six blocks, in boots with four-inch heels no less, to the local bookstore from a nearby café where she worked as a waitress. As Loren breathed a sigh relief and resisting the urge to collapse into a heap on the floor from pure physical exhaustion, she instinctively felt the gravitational pull of someone watching her. When her eyes looked up, she unexpectedly looked into the amused chocolate brown eyes of Eddie Duran that were directly fixated on her. Loren's face flushed with mortification as she realized that Eddie Duran had just witnessed her rushing into the store like a bull in a china shop and that she had almost face-planted on the carpet minutes ago. This was not at all how she had envisioned her first epic encounter with the famous rock star going at all. Earlier that morning, Loren had meticulously selected an outfit to wear for this afternoon. However, another waitress at the cafe had been late for her shift and not only did Loren not have enough time change her clothes and look presentable but she barely had enough time to run across town to get to this meet and greet at all. Loren looked to the heavens with exasperation and wanted to ask the bitch karma what she had done to deserve this but then mentally laughed at herself for being ridiculous. Eddie Duran was a famous rock star, and there wasn't an outfit in the world that Loren could wear that was going to make him notice her. The guy had dated super models, and she was nowhere near that type of girl. Loren decided that she was never going to see Eddie Duran again after today, so she might as well just write today off as a funny story that she would tell her best friend Mel tonight on the phone. To make it an even funnier story, Loren decided that she would just be silly and do a curtsey and a bow. Eddie would think that she was nuts but she didn't care. He would be gone in an hour or so. Loren noticed that Eddie Duran was still watching her immature antics and gave him a friendly wave and wink, and ran to get in back of the line. She couldn't wait to tell Mel tonight how the first time she met her celebrity crush how she had acted like a complete dork.

As Loren studied Eddie Duran's dark ebony hair and bulging biceps and chiseled chest from beneath a black skintight t-shirt, she thought that he was so gorgeous that he would make a Greek God jealous. To Loren's dismay, Eddie Duran's good looks literally had nothing to do with airbrushing. Loren has a poster of Eddie Duran on her bedroom wall that she had purchased at his last concert. Frequently, as she would struggle to fall asleep, she would lie in her bed and envision what it would be like to run her fingers through Eddie Duran's shaggy black hair. There was this one piece of hair that always fell right in front of his yes that she wanted so badly to tuck behind his ear. Loren had cynically hoped that the Eddie Duran in the poster had been airbrushed because she wanted to stop indulging in such unrealistic and silly fantasies. However, after seeing the real Eddie Duran in person, she knew tonight she would be dreaming about touching more than just Eddie Duran's hair.

Realizing quickly that her mind was traveling down a dangerous path and that she needed a reality check, Loren decided to employ her favorite distraction, music. Loren fished her IPOD out of her purse, popped her ear buds into her ears, and immediately transported herself to a different place in her mind as she became one with the beats and lyrics of the songs. After what felt like merely minutes, Loren jumped at the impatient voice of the bookstore attendant as she was informed that she was next in line and needed to hurry it up or miss her opportunity to speak with Eddie Duran.

Loren resisted rolling her eyes at the unhappy attendant but instead stammered an apology and returned her IPOD to her purse. When she looked up, she was again surprised to see the beautiful brown eyes of Eddie Duran again focused directly on her. Loren couldn't believe that she had caught the amused attention of Eddie Duran twice in one day, and she looked around the room in confusion to see why Eddie was openly laughing at her. Understanding did not register with Loren until she looked behind her, and once she did, she had to laugh at herself as well. While Loren had gotten lost listening to her music, everyone else in line had literally passed her and she was now standing in the middle of a large room all by herself. Eddie was sitting approximately 20 feet in front of her and was practically waiting for her to realize that everyone else she was literally the only person in the room except him and Jake and that everyone else had come and gone and that she had no idea how long it had been since she had actually moved forward.

As Loren approached the table, Eddie was looking at her with raised eyebrows and smirked, "Glad you could join us. I hope I didn't keep you waiting too long."

Loren fought back a smile at Eddie's playful teasing, gave him one of his trademark peace signs, and bantered back in a playfully arrogant tone that mimicked Eddie in an interview that he had recently given on Entertainment Tonight, "No worries. My fans mean everything to me. Would you like an autograph Mr. Duran?"

Eddie was caught off guard at Loren's spot on impression of him and was speechless for a minute as he gave Loren an impressed look. When he finally was able to think of a coherent thought, he smiled up at Loren and said shyly, "I'm just Eddie. Mr. Duran is my dad." Loren smiled back, "Well just Eddie, I am Loren Tate." Eddie grinned at her "It's nice to meet you Miss Loren Tate."

Jake started to stand up from his seat and was putting away his laptop away when he gave Eddie a pointed look, "Hey, come on Eduardo; let's move it along you're a busy boy."

Before Eddie had a chance to growl at Jake to hold on, Loren shyly and sweetly smiled at Jake. "Hi Jake; It's Loren. You probably don't remember me."

Jake glanced up when his name was mentioned and was about to nonchalantly shrug off the interruption when he looked back up at Loren and gave her a big monumental grin. Eddie was startled by Jake's abrupt laughter as he called out to Loren, "Hey girl, I know you. So have you and your friend been arrested for breaking and entering yet? I am afraid I left my get-out-of- free jail cards."

Loren started to blush a deep red, and Eddie glanced between the two clearly puzzled. Loren then smiled fondly at Jake and said, "I'm so glad that I have an opportunity to see you and to thank you in person for allowing Mel and I into the Avalon to see Eddie's last concert. It was literally the best night of my life."

Eddie completely engaged in the conversation abruptly interrupted, "Okay, so I understand that Jake somehow got you entrance into to my last concert, but how does breaking and entering play into this whole scenario?"

Jake's eyes began to twinkle as he recalled, "well, let's just say that I caught this one and her friend attempting to scale the wall at the Avalon in an attempt to reach the fire escape and break in through a small window in order to see your concert. I was about to call the cops, but once Loren told me that I was the most amazing manager in the world, I had a moment of generosity and provided Loren and her friend entrance into the concert. I am glad that it all worked out for you and your friend Loren."

Loren giggled adorably and without realizing it gently placed her hand on Eddie's hand as she looked sweetly into his eyes and told him the story. "My friend Mel and I had legitimately purchased tickets to see your concert from her brother Phil. However, Phil is dating the Spawn of Satan, Adriana Masters. Adriana also wanted to go to the concert, so Phil used the tickets Mel and I had purchased to get entrance to your concert and then provided us with counterfeit ones. We had just been denied entrance to your concert when Mel had the great idea of trying to get entrance through an open window."

Loren spoke with obvious love when she talked about her friend, "I love Mel dearly, but she tends to get me into some crazy situations. Have you ever had a friend that tends to get you into trouble a lot?"

Eddie completely forgot about keeping a professional distance and started to speak to Loren as if they were old friends catching up, "As a matter of fact, my friend Ian has that exact same quality. Great guy, but there are more than a few times I have gotten myself into certain situations when I was with him that have been a little complicated to get out of."

Jake gave Eddie a semi-serious glance, "Eddie, you really do need to wrap it up here shortly. I'm sorry Loren, but we really do have a tight schedule."

Eddie was oddly disappointed when Loren removed her hand from the top of his but chuckled when she rolled her eyes and exchanged a secret look with him that jokingly communicated to him that he better do what Jake wanted him to do before they both ended up in hot water.

Eddie envisioned one last time this lovely girl in front of him attempting to break into his concert and crawling through a window and said with a twinkle in his eye, "Miss Loren Tate you are definitely full of surprises. I am glad you decided to enter through the front door this time."

Loren responded to Eddie's teasing by unexpectedly sticking her tongue out at him. Eddie laughed out loud and was about to say something about rock stars generally getting more respect when Loren turned her back on him and started to address his friend.

"Jake, I know I'll probably never see you again, but can I give you a hug? I am so grateful for what you did, and I truly did have the best night of my life. Managing one of the biggest rock stars of our generation has got to be difficult"

Loren paused and winked at Eddie, "Especially since it sounds like this one tends to get into quite a bit of trouble with his friend Ian" Eddie couldn't help himself, he grinned back at this completely fearless girl.

"I wanted to come here to meet Eddie today, but I also came because I wanted to thank you in person for being so incredibly kind to me and my friend when you didn't have to be. My mom always tells me that you can tell the true character of a person when they are kind to another person when there is absolutely nothing in it for them. And, no one would have blamed you, if you had simply walked away and pretended to have never seen two crazy girls trying to sneak into a sold out concert. So, thank you very much. I admire and respect you so much for helping me and my friend out that night. "

Eddie could tell by the gentle and fond expression on Jake's face that he was touched by Loren's simple recognition as he opened his arms to embrace her. When Jake stepped back from the brief contact, Eddie noticed that his friend's eyes were moist and realized that that Loren had just turned one of the most feared negotiators in the business world into a puddle of mush. Jake was known throughout the music industry to be a ferocious pit-bull that even Eddie was reluctant to go into battle with unless absolutely necessary. Loren hadn't even noticed Jake's brusque temperament and had somehow not only tamed the beast but had completely disabled all of his defenses with simple, heartfelt gratitude. Eddie guiltily wondered when the last time he had actually thanked Jake for all the sacrifices he had made for him as both a manager and as a friend. The fact that Loren had made it a point to attend Eddie's event with the purpose of thanking his friend, truly humbled him.

As Jake started to walk away, he cleared his throat and sternly addressed Eddie as he softened his eyes for Loren "Just a few more minutes, we really need to get going Eddie. I'll wait for you in the car. Oh, and Eddie, throw in one of those signed photos or whatever, we want to make sure to keep OUR fans happy." And, with that Jake hurriedly left the building.

Loren said softly, "Eddie, you don't need to give me anything, but I would like to ask something from you. Please feel free to say no. I promise I won't be offended."

Eddie's back straightened and he became a little more guarded. This was more like it. This is more what he expected from "fans." Most people that were nice expected something from him. For a moment, he was angry at himself for letting down his defenses. He had thought that Loren seemed different, but he should have known that Loren Tate was simply too good to be true.

Eddie put on his game face, and he gave Loren his best practiced award-winning "Eddie Duran" smile and charm when he said, "Sure, you can ask me anything."

Loren noticed that Eddie's authentic sweetness had changed to something forced, and changed her mind about asking anything from him.

Loren looked at Eddie earnestly, "I'm sorry, Eddie, I didn't mean to impose. I really don't need anything, and it was great meeting both you and Jake today. Take care of yourself."

Loren smiled a secretive smile to herself as she looked at Eddie one last time and sighed, "Dang, I was hoping it wasn't true."

Eddie looked at Loren with genuine confusion, "You hoped what wasn't true?"

Loren said with resignation, "I was hoping that you really weren't as gorgeous in person because it just seems so unfair to us mere mortals who try to resist you."

Eddie thought that he had become used to fans commenting on how attractive. So, he believed himself to be immune to these types of comments by fans. But to Eddie's chagrin, here he was now blushing and fighting back a grin at Loren's offhanded innocent observation. Loren hadn't been attempting to flirt with him, and as a result, the "Eddie Duran" was obliterated and its place stood Eddie, and he was just a normal guy who was being completely charmed by a very pretty girl. However, before Eddie could process his thoughts, Loren had already started to make her way to the door.

Eddie hadn't expected to follow Loren, but when she has seen through his "Eddie Duran" smile and had touched his authentic self, Eddie realized that he needed to know why this specific girl had come to see him. Eddie was still cautious, but for some reason, he really liked this girl and wanted to postpone her leaving his life quite for as long as possible. Eddie also thought to himself that he could not remember the last time that a girl had walked away from him, and he knew that Loren would do so again if turned on the "Eddie Duran" persona. Loren had suddenly changed the rules of the game, and for the first time in a very long time, Eddie wasn't confident about what to say or how to act. There was no longer a script to go by. The only things that Eddie knew was that he didn't want to give Loren any more reasons to walk out of his life again. She would be walking out of his life too soon as it was.

Eddie texted Jake to give him five more minutes and then he sprinted to catch up with Loren before she could leave.

Loren was standing at the entrance of the bookstore's coffee shop and appeared to be browsing the menu. When Eddie finally caught up to Loren, he gently touched her shoulder. Loren was so startled by his touch that she jumped and clapped her hand over her mouth to muffle an involuntary shriek. The barista behind the cash register gave Loren an annoyed look and once again Eddie tried not to laugh at this delightful girl. Loren attempted to glare at him with admonishment but then quickly gave up as she herself was struggling not to laugh at herself. Eddie playfully threw up his hands in air to surrender, and she playfully slugged him in the arm. Eddie couldn't believe that she had just hit him. Not only could he not stop from smiling when he was anywhere near this girl, but she just kept on capturing his heart beat by beat by just being her sweet unfiltered self.

Eddie looked Loren sincerely in her eyes and asked, "Loren, you never told me what you're favor was. Can we sit for a few minutes and you can at least tell me what you wanted to tell me before I go into "Eddie Duran" mode?"

Loren scrutinized Eddie's face to make sure that Eddie wasn't trying to talk to her out of some distorted rock star obligation, but all she could see was Eddie staring back at her with his puppy-dog eyes. Loren hesitantly nodded. "Would you mind if I grabbed a coffee before the book store closes? I have a ton of studying to do tonight for upcoming finals, and I am pretty much running on fumes."

Eddie knew Jake was going to kill him, but he was literally unable to resist anything Loren Tate asked of him and said, "Sure, I'll go find us a table."

Eddie selected a small table in a quiet corner of the store and sat down to wait for Loren. This was the exact type of situation that "Eddie Duran" would avoid with one of his fans and Eddie had no idea what the hell he was doing here with a girl he barely knew. Eddie knew that the smart thing to do would be to politely tell Loren that he had to leave and attend to urgent rock star business, which in actuality was the truth. However, Eddie had absolutely no desire to go anywhere and knew with certainty that being with Loren at this moment was exactly right where he wanted to be.

Loren the table holding two hot beverages and a couple of cookies in her hands and carefully set one of the steaming cups down in front of Eddie along with one of the cookies. The action briefly stunned Eddie into silence and before he muster up the words to respond, Loren sat down on a seat across the table from him and said apologetically, "I'm sorry. It occurred to me after you left to go and find a table that you have been here for hours and are also probably hungry and exhausted. I wasn't really sure what you would like. I think I read somewhere that you had a weakness for hot chocolate with marshmallows and a hint of vanilla. I hope it tastes okay."

As Loren handed him a warm cookie, Eddie observed for the first time that this pretty girl had barely noticeable dark circles shadowing her green eyes. Eddie thought to himself, out of nowhere, that he wanted to give this Loren Tate the world. With exhaustion clearly written on her face, Loren had been more concerned about whether or not he was hungry or tired. The carefully crafted emotional distance that Eddie had been hanging onto up until now was now completely nonexistent thanks to Loren's innate thoughtfulness. No one, with the exception of his Dad, ever wondered if Eddie needed anything. Most people thought that as a rich and famous rock star that Eddie had no worries or problems. Sadly, Eddie also could not remember the last time that he was eating with anyone in a public establishment where it was not expected for the rock star to pay the bill.

Before Eddie could thank Loren for the hot chocolate, Loren's train of thought had already taken her in a different direction and she said, "I had a great day. I met you and spoke to Jake. Eddie, I am honestly content with that. Before today, I would never have thought it possible to get close to you much less to have a conversation with you."

Loren smiled at Eddie to let him know that she was teasing, "You may be a fabulous musician, but you're acting needs a little work Rock Star. It was pretty obvious that despite flashing me the brilliant "Eddie Duran" smile that you hated having to listen to another person who wanted to get close to you only so that they could request something from you."

Eddie looked down guiltily and blushed with mild embarrassment that he had been that transparent. Eddie had suspected that Loren had walked away because she hadn't been fooled by his Eddie Duran smile, but he hadn't expected for her to actually bring him to task for it. Although it was a little unsettling to be on the receiving end of Loren's truthful observation, it actually made him like and respect her even more.

Loren saw that she had made Eddie uncomfortable and immediately softened the tone of her voice and put her hand on his. "Eddie, it truly wasn't a judgment. I can only imagine what it must be like for you when people are always wanting a piece of you and you can't tell if someone is getting close to you because they care about you as a person or if they simply want something they think you can give them. You wouldn't be human if you didn't question everyone's motives in wanting to get close to you. I understand that. I am truly honored that I was allowed to get a glimpse of the real you. Please, don't feel obligated to give me any more than that. "

Eddie felt a lump forming in his throat as looked into Loren's understanding eyes. Eddie knew in that moment with absolute certainty that she Loren could ask him to walk off a cliff, and he wouldn't be able to refuse her. "Loren, please just tell me what the favor is that you wanted to ask from me."

Loren all of a sudden became nervous and stammered out, "Here's the thing, I write poetry and songs"

Eddie interrupted her. He had heard this request before many times. He had hoped it would have been a more original request from such a special and intuitive girl. "And, you want me to help you to get them published, or introduce you to the right people."

Loren looked at him startled, "Oh, god no! I think I would faint if anyone actually saw them. To be honest, I am pretty sure they really aren't all that good."

Eddie looked at her confused, "Okay, now I am totally lost."

Loren looked at him shyly, "It's actually something a little more personal."

Loren inwardly contemplated what she wanted to say, "You already know part of the story. My best friend, and I were at your last concert at the Avalon, and we were able to force our way up to the front row." Loren's expression became dreamy as she recalled the night in question, "It was epic. You were so close. We were dancing and singing at the top of our voices. Mel caught it all on video."

Loren looked at Eddie with an expression of pure joy and continued, "If the world had ended at that moment, I would have felt as if all my dreams had come true and I would have looked back on my time on Earth with no regrets. But, then it got even better." Loren suddenly became shy as she recalled, "You were singing 'Something in the Air,' and when the bridge of the song slowed down, I just happened to reach my hand toward the stage and then my whole world became surreal when out of thousands of fans in the concert your eyes locked with mine and your hand reached randomly out into the crowd and grabbed onto mine. I felt this inexplicable connection."

Loren rolled her eyes to the heavens, "I know I am probably sounding like every other one of your crazed fans, but I'm not delusional. I know that in that moment, I was just another fan in the crowd and somehow I got lucky. But in that moment, something clicked for me. Up until that moment, you were just some abstract thought. It's like when you have this idea for a song in your head, but it's just an idea and then the next thing you know out of the nothingness lyrics, chords, and a rhythm are formed into a song which then becomes this tangible thing. I had literally thought about you for years, but they were just thoughts. And, somehow, when you grabbed my hand during the concert, you became real to me you were like a song. You became tangible.

Loren laughed at how absurd she must sound to Eddie, "So, are you starting to regret being a genuinely nice rock star yet because I am pretty sure that I probably sound like a lunatic right about now."

Eddie said honestly, "No, actually I am really fascinated. I completely understand what you meant by how it feels to write songs and how incredible it feels to create something unique out of nothingness. Eddie smiled gently, "So, you still haven't told me what your favor is."

Loren closed her eyes tightly and spoke really quickly so that her emotions wouldn't rise to the surface and so she wouldn't do something embarrassing in front of Eddie Duran, like cry. "My father left my mother and me when I was four. I loved him with my whole heart, and he just went to the store one day and never came back. I learned quickly to put how I really felt behind emotional walls so that I could be strong and focus all my energy into getting into a great college and get a great job so that my mother would never feel that I had suffered by not having a father around."

Loren looked at Eddie who was now completely engrossed in what she was saying, "In my real world, my father just doesn't exist. The only place that I ever let myself miss my father or to let myself cry or hurt is when I write poems or sing songs. I have always enjoyed your music, but when your mother died in an automobile accident two years ago, and you dedicated your album to her, I empathized with you even more than I had done previously. My father hadn't died, but it still felt like a death to me."

Loren admitted with embarrassment, "There were times when I was missing him so much that I didn't want to get out of bed, and the idea of writing one more paper or taking one more test became too much to bear. In those moments, I would turn on your music, and it would give me strength and inspire me. In those moments, I would allow myself to wonder about you and if you were somewhere in the world lying in your bed too not wanting to get out of it because you missed your mom like I missed my dad. I would think about what I would say to you if I ever had the chance to meet you, and my thoughts would turn into poems and my poems into lyrics."

Loren pulled a notebook out of her backpack, "This is the journal that I wrote my poems and songs into. I never expected to share them with anyone because they are so personal to me. But, when you grabbed my hand at your concert and you became tangible to me, I realized that it wasn't just the music that gave me strength and inspired me, it was the person writing it. So, since the night of the concert, I have had this inexplicable urge to share with you what I had written. I'm not really sure why, but if I had to guess, I think it's probably because you're the inspiration behind most of my songs and poems."

Loren smiled flirtatiously at Eddie, "And, I kind of get a kick out of the idea that somewhere there is a really sexy rock star lying in bed somewhere thinking about me."

Eddie laughed and thought to himself, he was pretty sure that even if he didn't have Loren's journal in his hands that he would be thinking about her while lying in his bed tonight.

Loren interrupted Eddie's thoughts, "The last poem in here was written the night of your last concert at the Avalon. So, my favor is for you to please read it. I guess maybe I feel a little embarrassed asking you to read it because I know you must get requests like this all of the time. Honestly, I can't even imagine how my thoughts and ideas would ever truly impact you in any significant way. I'm just one fan of millions. But sometimes in my room when I am writing to you in my journal, I think that if things were different that we might have made really good friends. "

Eddie tried to swallow the raw grief and pain that consumed him every time he thought about how much he missed his mom, and thought to himself that he would have liked to have someone like Loren in his life to share how difficult these past two years had been since she had died. Loren gently touched his arm "Eddie, I'm really sorry about your mom, she was really beautiful. My mom took me to a concern she and your dad put on shortly before the accident. Your mom and dad actually knew my mom's name. You actually remind me a lot of your mom."

Eddie gave Loren a surprised look "Really? Everyone always mentions how I seem to resemble my father more."

Loren was thoughtful as she responded, "It's true. I can see a lot of Max's physical features in you, but your essence is more like Katie. The way you laugh, the way you study people when they talk to you, the way you measure what you're going to say before you say it; those are all things that Katie did too. The one time that I met her, Katie had this way about her, and I couldn't stop myself from liking her immediately. You have that quality too."

The vice grip that had been constricting his heart for the past two years began to loosen, and Eddie smiled as he began to his mother through Loren's eyes. Eddie realized too that this was the first conversation he had had about his mother with another person since she had died. Most people avoided that topic of conversation at all costs. It was another thing that made Loren special in his eyes.

Loren looked at her watch stood to go. Eddie knew that this time with Loren was only meant to be temporary, but he didn't want for it to end. He searched for something to say, but he was at a loss for words. Loren grabbed her purse and was about to make her way to the door when she stopped mid-step, turned around and returned to Eddie with a grin, "I'm sorry, but I have to ask one more crazy favor from you and then I promise you that you will never have to see me again."

Eddie thought the fact that he may never see Loren Tate again was a depressing one, but he turned up to her and asked casually, "Sure, what's on your mind?"

Loren turned a bright red, "Can I run my fingers through your hair? I haven't been able to stop thinking about it since I first saw you this afternoon."

Eddie typically hated it when fans attempted to get to personal with him and resisted giving them any opportunities to touch him, but for some reason, with Loren he didn't mind and actually relished the opportunity for her to touch him. Eddie smiled shyly up at Loren, "It's the least I can do for one of my fans."

Loren took her fingers and gently ran them through Eddie's hair and when she was done she looked at him with humor, "It is so not fair. How is it that touching you is better than any dream I have ever had?" Loren then did something that Eddie's mother had always done, she took a stray piece of hair in front of his eye and tucked it behind his ear. Loren smiled, "that always bugs me." Eddie smiled fondly, "it always bugged my mom too." Loren then kissed Eddie gently on the cheek and walked out of the store. If it wasn't for the fact that Eddie was completely turned on and that he was still holding onto the notebook that Loren slipped in his hand, Eddie would have thought that Loren Tate had simply been a really good dream.

Eddie stood up and walked out of the store to the car that Jake had been waiting in for over 15 minutes and knew that Jake was going to have his head for being late. For once, Eddie didn't care about how Jake was going to react. Meeting Loren Tate had been the best part of his day, and it was well worth whatever bit of Jake's bad temper that he would have to deal with later.

As Eddie opened the car door, Jake started to give Eddie a scolding look as he pointedly tapped his finger on his watch. Eddie with rare forcefulness said, "Not now Jake. I really liked that girl, Loren. She really was something special." Jake nodded with understanding and for once didn't argue, which was also very rare.

After a long grueling afternoon of meetings and press junkets, Eddie finally arrived home to his penthouse apartment on Sunset Boulevard and stumbled face first onto his couch with exhaustion. Eddie was reviewing the day in his mind when he remembered Loren's journal. Eddie was curious about this girl, and he decided he wasn't quite ready to let her go from his mind. Eddie opened the last page of Loren's journal and specifically turned to the last poem as she had requested at the meet and greet. Eddie wasn't expecting much but to just reconnect with Loren's beautiful spirit when he was suddenly drawn in by the very first sentence.

The sky passes over the sea, one as high as the other is deep.

Both are blue, but the two shall never meet.

Yet, they are not so far apart

Each on their own path, yet parallel destinations

When the sky is at peace, so is the sea

When the Ocean is at war the atmosphere cries.

Dreams and reality are like the sky and the ocean

You are my fantasy at night that I must let go of every morning when my eyes awake.

We are each on our own path, yet we share parallel destinations.

We are not so far apart.

You are the my sky and are high above the sea. When you are at peace, so am I.

I am the ocean far below you, and when I hurt I believe you know too the pain that I feel.

You and I are never to meet.

Yet, you know me and I know you.

Eddie sat there stunned. He read the poem several more times. It was beautiful and pure. Eddie quickly read through the rest of the journal. Each poem or song was perfection and each one better than the one before. Before he knew it, hours had passed. Eddie thought that it was seriously a shame that no one had ever seen these, and yet, he felt honored that he was the only one Loren had shared her true heart with.

Loren once again had rocked Eddie's foundation, and he needed to expend his restless energy. There were a million thoughts running through his brain, and yet, none of them were cohesive enough to actually pour into an original song of his own. This simple, unassuming girl had come into his life today and in less than 20 minutes had completely turned his thoughts and emotions upside down. Loren Tate had believed herself to be like the ocean well Eddie thought her to be more like a hurricane that had just completely blown rampant through his life and left only chaos in its aftermath. Never in his life had anyone made such an impact in such a short amount of time. Eddie decided that he needed to go for a walk. He needed space to think, and he had a spot in mind that would be perfect for that right about now.