Instant Star 1. Finding A Roommate

Hello again! I know I have like two other fics out there, but this is something a little different from the other two. It's an AU and there are a few things you need to know. Jude is now 19 years old and is going to college. She never competed in Instant Star, but she _does_ know Tommy. Also, Tommy was never in Boyz Attack, but he is making his way through the music business. I'm not going to say how they know each other yet because that's all apart of the plot, so you'll just have to read and see. The beginning is a little slow, forgive me. But I promise, it will pick up. Please give it a chance and I hope you all like it! Comments are love.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Instant Star. Unfortunately.

* * *

_**ACCIDENTALLY IN LOVE**_

Chapter 1

"Finding A Roommate"

"So you're leaving?" Jude asked as she stood in her kitchen. "Thanks for giving me all this notice, dad." She replied as she rolled her eyes.

"Honey, you're getting ready to start college now. It's not that big of a deal."

"I was planning on commuting, dad. It's the whole cutting costs concept. But I guess you wouldn't know anything about that."

"Jude, again, it's not that big of a deal. Just apply for a dorm room."

"The dead-line's passed already! I can't apply anymore."

"So look for an apartment off-campus. It's about time you started living on your own, anyway. Look honey, I gotta go. I'm late enough as it is." Jude rolled her eyes again as she watched her dad leave for work. Typical. He was so irresponsible sometimes and as she watched him walk down the driveway to his car, she wondered how he managed to keep his marriage together for as long as he did.

She was getting ready to walk out the door to start looking for apartment fliers on campus when her cell rang. "Hey Sades. How's New York?"

"The best! Oh I love it here and I'm getting ready to start my new fashion-design internship this fall."

She smiled and felt very proud of her sister. She had been working all of her life to become a fashion designer and it looked like it was finally going to happen for her. "That's great Sadie. I'm so excited for you!"

"Thanks, I'm pretty excited myself. Anyway, the reason I was calling was to check up on you and see how all the prep stuff was coming for school."

Jude groaned and leaned back against the counter. "Don't ask."

"Hon, what's wrong?"

"Dad."

"What did he do this time?"

"Stranded me with no place to go. He's moving and the deadline to apply for a dorm-room has come and gone. So now I have to find a place off campus within the time span of a week. How great is that?"

"I swear I could kill dad. You know something… you could always transfer to NYU. I've got extra space. I know for a fact that they're still accepting applicants who are going to be living off-campus."

"Don't tempt me, Sades."

"Come on. You know you want to. Your grades are beyond good enough, so there's no doubt in my mind you'd get accepted."

"I'll think about it. Look, I have to run. I need to see if there's going to be some sort of miracle for me. Hopefully there's still _somebody_ looking for a roommate."

"Oh! Maybe you'll luck out and get a hottie."

"Only you would think something like that."

"What? It could happen."

"Not in this life, Sadie."

She heard her sister sigh and instantly regretted saying that. "Jude, you've got to let that go."

"Sadie—"

"You can't keep doing this."

"It's not like I haven't had boyfriends Sadie! So quit nagging!"

"You've had boyfriends, yeah. And they've all lasted like a nanosecond."

"I'm not listening to this. I'll talk to you later."

"Jude—" she hung up the phone before she heard another word that Sadie had to say. She loved her sister to death, but honestly, she couldn't stand the constant nagging for her to find somebody to sweep her off her feet. She wasn't ready for a relationship and didn't know if she'd ever be ready for another one.

Jude sighed and grabbed her purse and car keys; she supposed she better go see if anybody needed a rommie.

Fifteen minutes later, she was at York University looking at all the fliers that were hanging on bulletin boards. She was in luck! Yes! There were plenty of people still looking for roommates. She grabbed as many phone numbers as she could and started looking. She called the first number, which belonged to an Amber Benson. The place sounded promising and it was pretty close to campus. Jude was startled when she heard the person on the other end of the phone pick up. "This had better be important."

Jude's eyes widened and suddenly felt intimidated. "Is this Amber Benson?"

"Yeah, what's it to ya?"

Jude gulped. Maybe she should rethink this one. "I, uh, saw your flier. It said you were looking for a roommate?"

"No such luck. Sorry," and she heard the dial tone. It was just as well. That girl did not sound like somebody that was very friendly; she actually felt a wave of relief wash over her and she quickly threw that information away. Moving on to the next one, she saw that some guy named Matt Pearson was looking for another roommate. She called and he agreed to have her come see the house, so he gave her directions and she was on her way, feeling hope that maybe she would have a place to live after all.

When she got there, her hope died instantly. The place was a wreck and Mr. Matt Pearson was just a little _too_ friendly. She'd have to constantly make sure her bedroom door was locked to keep this guy tamed. And she had a feeling that he probably would have managed to sneak his way in there anyway.

Jude met with two other people that day and was let down again. Her frustration was rising and she couldn't help but feel like maybe this was all a bad sign. Why was it so hard to find a roommate?

She decided she would take a break and start looking again tomorrow; tomorrow came and went and her hope was waning. Classes started in five days and she had no place to live. Panic began to well inside of her as the week progressed and she still had no luck, so she thought she would go back to the university to see if there were any fliers she missed.

She looked all over the place and found nothing. Fighting the urge to cry, Jude slapped a column that was full of fliers for different activities and clubs and leaned forward, cursing. "It figures. Just my luck. Two days until classes and no place to live," she mumbled.

"I'm looking for a roommate." She froze. She'd know that voice anywhere. Jude turned around and saw a beautiful man with brown hair and piercing blue eyes smiling at her. She, however, did not return the smile. She was staring at the bane of her existence… Tom Quincy. And there wasn't a chance in hell she was going to live with him.


	2. A Proposition and First Day of Classes

So this chapter turned out incredibly longer than I had expected. It ended up being about eight pages in Word and I was shocked out how much I ended up putting in it. It sets up the beginning of everything, and I hope its okay.

HUGE thanks to the reviewers. I was so giddy with excitement when I saw how many review I got just for the first chapter. I loved them all, so thanks!

love2burn4tim- The idea is very appealing, yes indeed. Jude, however, being the stubborn girl that she is, is quite reluctant to give into his request, so you'll just have to wait and see. And perhaps archenemy is a bit of a strong term and I should probably change that in the summary, but for all intent and purposes, yes, they are enemies. Thanks for your review!

squinTfrown- Thanks! Hope you like the next chapter, too.

chocolateelephantz- Yeah, Stuart's a bit of a flake in this. Lol. As for Tommy convincing Jude to be his roommate... can't say much on it. You'll just have to read and find out. Thanks for the review. Hope the next chapter is okay!

predatorynature- I'm actually just kind of writing this at a leisurely pace. I just got finished with this chapter a little while ago and looked over it, so that's how I work usually. I just post a chapter at a time. Hehe. And thanks for the review!

Mcdreamylvr- Lol. Thanks for the love. And Jude being hostile, I actually find it amusing. She's this tiny little creature, but she's a hellion. Hehe. Her hostility, unfortunately, does not really ease up in this chapter I'm afraid.

funnechick- Well the story between Jude and Tommy will unfold in spurts. It's not a very happy one, I'm afraid. Tommy was kind of an ass... shocker. Lol. Thanks for the review!

JommyIS4ever- Yep. I am definitely going to elaborate. Not in this next chapter, but as I said to funnechick, the story will unfold in spurts. The hate is kind of a one-sided thing, though. Jude hates Tommy; Tommy...he knows how to push her buttons and sometimes he takes it a little too far. Anyway, thanks for the review!

Addicted2IS- Well, in this post, it's kind of revealed how they know each other. Not much is said on the past because both do not really like to talk about it. So you'll just have to wait and see. Thanks for the review! Hope you enjoy the update!

And now without further ado, chapter 2!

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Chapter 2

"A Proposition and First Day of Classes"

Jude glared at him and wanted to slap him because that damn smile never even left his face. "Keep looking, asshole."

"Tut, tut, Jude. Is that any way to speak to an old friend?"

"Friend? Are you kidding?"

Tommy rolled his eyes and Jude had to take a deep breath. _One, two, three…_ "Counting to ten, Harrison?" Her eyes snapped open. How was it fair that he still knew her so well? She let out an exasperated sigh and began to walk away when she felt a hand grab her by the arm and stop her. She felt tingles pulse through her body at his touch and hated him that much more for still having that affect on her body.

"Jude! I'm being serious. I do need a roommate. Kwest bailed on me at last second."

"How sad for you, Quincy. Find another roommate. I'm not interested," she yanked her arm out from his grasp and started walking away when he gave her a very intriguing proposition.

"Your half of the rent would only be about two hundred bucks a month." Jude stopped dead in her tracks and slowly turned to face him.

"You're joking, right?"

"Do I look like I'm kidding?" he said with a serious look on his face. Jude bit her bottom lip, not noticing him fidget as she did so. She hated him. Why did the perfect living situation have to be with _him_? She turned back around, frustrated at the situation. This was so unfair. The one man she truly loathed was making her an offer that was too good to pass up.

"I don't know, Tommy…" He inched closer to her and before she knew it, she felt his breath tickling her ear, sending shivers down her spine.

"You're calling me Tommy again. There's hope yet."

She whirled around and glared at him. "Don't bet on it, jackass. I'd rather live out of my car than live with you for five minutes."

Tommy scoffed at her, "Right. Let me know how that goes for ya."

"I will."

"The offer's not going to stand forever, Harrison. I'm sure I'd be able to find a willing… roommate in no time."

Jude shook her head and laughed bitterly, "See Quincy. _That_ right there is why I'm not going to even consider the possibility of living with you."

Now Tommy laughed. "Girl, you're already considering it."

Jude froze and felt her heart constrict at the word 'girl'. Why did he still have this affect on her? It wasn't fair. Especially after what he did. "_Don't_ call me that. You have no right to call me that. Not anymore."

He let out a resigned sigh. "So you're really going to live out of your car to spite me?"

She eyed him suspiciously. Why did he care where the hell she lived? "Why do you even want to live with me anyway, Quincy?"

"I don't. But I need a roommate and my options are kind of slim here."

Jude snorted and rolled her eyes. "You really know how to butter a girl up."

"You're not toast, Jude." He smirked out her and she scowled at him. She turned away from him and hated that he was using their past relationship as a tool to sway her. That had been one of her favorite lines in _Saved by the Bell_ and she had always laughed when Lisa told Zack that she wasn't a piece of toast and to quit trying to butter her up. "You remember, don't you?"

She spun around, glaring at him. "Stop it. You don't get to do this, Tom. Not after what you did."

"It was a long time ago, Jude!"

"And time makes it better?! God Tom, you're still the same. You haven't changed a particle, have you?"

She felt the anger over their past bubbling up inside of her and she tried her best to squash it. He still managed to grate on her nerves and she hated that she even let him get to her. He shouldn't matter enough for her to care one way or the other. It didn't help matters that he caught her completely off guard; she hadn't seen him in over a year and for that, she was grateful.

"Nope, and neither have you!"

Jude gritted her teeth in frustration and started walking away from him. "Yeah, go ahead Jude. Walk away—it's what you're good at!"

She froze, dead in her tracks. _Oh he did not just go there._ "I learned from the best Tom. You taught me how to walk away, remember?"

"Jude, just stop this! You need a place to live; I need a roommate. What's so complicated about that?"

"Really? Seriously? What's complicated about it? Are you really that dumb?"

Tommy sighed, "At least stop by and see the place and think about it."

"No. Like I said, I'll live out of my car first," and with that, she turned and walked away not looking back once.

* * *

Tommy watched Jude's departing figure and kicked at the column filled with fliers in frustration. That girl seriously knew how to hold a grudge. Not that he could blame her, what he did was pretty shitty, even for him.

His past with Jude was not something he liked to talk about, let alone think about and he tried his damnedest to keep thoughts of her at bay, but nothing seemed to work. She would pop into his head at the most random times and there was nothing he could do about it and it killed him, though he'd never admit it to anyone else.

He sighed and started walking towards his car when his cell rang. He took it out of his pocket and groaned when he saw it was his brother. No thank you. He promptly hit "ignore" and continued walking to his car. His brother… what a character. Nathan was an even bigger playboy than him and he somehow always managed to make Tommy feel less than adequate.

Growing up, it had always been about Nathan and Nikki. They were the golden children and Tommy was the family screw-up. He didn't really have anything against Nikki, in fact, they normally got along great, but Nathan and he just did not fit. They were like oil and water and it wasn't going to change any time soon. Which is why he was left feeling baffled that he was even calling in the first place. They didn't exactly part on good terms last time and he was not in a very forgiving mood.

When he got to his car, he groaned in frustration as he thought about all of the crap he had to do. He still needed his books for his grad classes, he needed to kill Kwest for bailing on him at the last second, cover up the murder and make it look like an accident, and then get a new roommate. Sounds easy, eh?

He pulled out of the university and went back to his apartment, trying to figure out what the hell he was going to do about his current living situation. He could cover most of the costs of rent and utilities, but he the rent was still about two hundred dollars over what he could afford. He was counting on having a roommate and could have strangled Kwest when he decided to live on his own.

His mind flew back to his meeting with Jude. He let out a grunt and chided himself for even thinking that she'd agree to living with him. He knew better, yet he still asked her anyway. He wasn't exactly serious when he had asked her to be his roommate. Geez, he knew she hated him but he didn't think she'd rather live out of her freaking car than live with him.

If only he had a little more time with her… he could see that she was getting ready to crack and cave into the idea of having a place to live, but then he'd gone and said something stupid, _shocker_, and she clammed up again and resorted back to the whole car scenario. He didn't doubt for a second that she'd rather live out of her car.

He had done just fine ignoring her this last year and now here she was, going to his school. Out of all the schools in Toronto, she just _had_ to pick York. Oh well, she was an undergrad, which meant he didn't have to worry about having any classes with her and it was a big campus… she could easily be avoided. Tom laughed at himself and shook his head. An hour ago, he was asking the chick to live with him, and now he was coming up with ways to avoid her? Wait, did he just think 'live with'? No! He did not ask her to live with him, he asked her to be his roommate. Big difference.

_Geez, get it to together Quincy._ The last time they tried a relationship, they fell apart and here he was, thinking about phrases that suggested less than platonic innuendos? His screw-up practically guaranteed that there would be no 'living with' him ever; and he was just fine with it. She was a problem he didn't need or want at the moment. He needed to focus and with her around, it didn't seem likely that that would happen.

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Two Days Later

First day of classes and still no place to live; great. Just freaking great. She felt like a bum and she had no idea how she was supposed to live out of her. She rented a storage place for all of her stuff until she found some place to live. Her dad didn't even question her when she said she was staying at friend's place until she could find one of her own, hence the storage unit. Sometimes she couldn't believe how gullible her father was.

She sighed as she walked into her first class, Music Appreciation. _Like I need a class to tell me how to appreciate music._ She hated that she had to go through all of these stupid opening courses; they were pointless and she never learned anything in any of them. In high school, she had taken some classes similar to this course and it was the most boring thing in the world to her. The only thing that saved her from screaming out of pure frustration was the fact that she completely ignored her teachers and wrote songs throughout the whole class.

It wouldn't be that easy in this class though. She'd had a hard time writing and she couldn't seem to overcome this huge wall she had built. Part of her would love to say that it was all _his_ fault, but she knew that she would be lying if she said that. It wasn't entirely his fault that she was going through the worst period of writer's block that she had ever experienced in her life.

She took out her notebook, not even noticing when the professor came in. The only time she was paying attention was when the professor took attendance and she had to let him know she was there. She stared at her notebook, trying to come up with something, anything to let her know that she still had it. She began scribbling lines down and of course, she ended up scribbling out all the lines she had written, ending up even more aggravated than she was to begin with.

She ran a frustrated hand through her hair and wondered why she was even majoring in Music. She definitely didn't have it anymore… she couldn't produce one stupid, simple song. She shook her head as she continued to stare down at her notebook and yelped in surprise when the professor got in her face.

"Miss Harrison! Class is over," she looked up and felt sheepish when she saw that the entire class had cleared out of the room.

"How long has class been over?"

He smirked at her and Jude felt her breath hitch in her throat. Why hadn't she noticed before how incredibly gorgeous this man was? He had brown hair that was perfectly styled, stunning green eyes, and muscles to die for. _Wait. He's your professor. Those thoughts are bad, Jude. Very bad and you need to get them out of your head right now._ "Class has been over for about ten minutes now, Miss Harrison. Would you mind telling me what was so fascinating that you didn't even notice that my lecture had ended?"

"Oh," she felt her heart drop at his question and she really wasn't prepared to answer it. "I just… well… would you believe me if I said I was reeling at how good your lecture was?"

He laughed and crossed his arms over his chest, "Really? That might possibly fly if you could tell me a single word I said the entire lecture."

Crap. Why hadn't she paid attention at least for _some_ of the class? "Um… you said you loved music?" she offered hopefully. _Right, that was lame even for you, Jude._

"While that's true, I'm sorry to say you failed, Miss Harrison." He walked over to her desk and she immediately tried shutting her notebook and failed miserably on that account as well. Instead of the book shutting, it fell of her desk and she went to pick it up, but he beat her to the punch. "Ah, an aspiring songwriter, I see?"

"Hardly. I'm not any good."

"Why don't we let me be the judge of that? What's with all the scribbles?"

"Blocked."

"Oh. That's tough. How long?"

Jude shrugged, not really remembering how long it's been since she's been blocked. "I don't know, to be honest. Look, I'm sorry Professor…" shoot. What was his last name? She really needed to start paying attention more!

He laughed at her again, his green eyes twinkling with amusement. "DuTois, Miss Harrison. It's DuTois."

"Thank you. Professor, I really have to get going. I've got another class coming up and knowing my luck, I'm probably not going to get there on time."

"Of course. Have a good day Miss Harrison." She was getting ready to head out when he stopped her. "Oh, and by the way. I fully expect you to pay attention next class," he said with a wink and Jude felt her heart flutter a little at the sight.

She was out the door when she thought of something that confused her, so she stopped and went back in the room and cleared her throat, causing Professor DuTois to look up at her, grinning. "Unbelievable. You didn't pay a speck of attention the entire class and now I can't seem to get rid of you. What seems to be the problem, Miss Harrison?"

"That. How'd you learn my name so quickly?"

"If you'd have been paying attention in class, you would know that I'm a fan of The Beatles," and with that, he gathered his belongings and swept by her. "Wednesday afternoon, Miss Harrison. Don't be late."

* * *

Tommy was walking through the halls of the arts center and was making his way to his next class. As a grad student, he needed to get some experience under his belt and so he went to one of his professors to ask about becoming a T.A. last semester and to his relief, he was able to start right away.

The class he got assigned to, he couldn't have been happier with; he was helping Professor Tilson with Seminar in Composition I and II. He couldn't believe his luck, really. This professor was incredible and this was his favorite subject, so it worked out great. The class was originally supposed to be a grad class, but this semester it had been offered undergrads, so they would be getting an interesting mix and he was dreading the change. Some of these students were going to have absolutely no skill at all, he was certain of that. He lived for writing music and loved helping people, but he had seen some of the work that the undergraduates had offered the last time this was an undergrad class and it wasn't pretty. But, he had some confidence in himself that he could get the job done. He was actually getting really good at helping people get structure to their music and songwriting technique and had started climbing his way up in the music industry. Right now, he was currently at an engineer's status… practically the next best thing to producing.

He reached the lecture room and felt his nerves getting the best of him. This was a big deal; along with Composition came private lessons and he and his fellow T.A., Kwest, got to help in that department. The professor, Kwest, and himself would be assigned students to work with and Tom's stomach was in a slew of knots. He couldn't ever remember being this nervous and when the students started filing in, it didn't help matters much.

Professor Tilson wasn't even here yet… terrific. Now he wouldn't have time to ask him any questions about what is he was supposed to be doing. He turned his back to the class, unable to focus on the students that were filing in one-by-one. He was getting ready to start scribbling some lyrics down in his notebook when he felt somebody bump into him. He turned around to see Kwest grinning widely at him and Tommy tried his best to keep his jaw set in a grim line.

"Aw, come on T. Are you still pissed about the apartment thing?"

"What would you say if I were?"

"I'd say quit being a punk-ass baby and get over it," he replied grinning wider still.

"And I'd say that's why you're one of my best friends dude. Gah, I wish this stupid class would hurry up and start already."

"Nervous, are we? Well, well, well… I never thought I'd see the day where Tom Quincy was nervous."

"Ha ha. And I'm not nervous, either. Just," he paused, trying to think of an appropriate word to mask his lie. "Anxious."

"Riiight." Kwest and Tommy started talking about plans for the week and of course, Kwest, who has the attention span of a five year old, was promptly distracted and turned towards the door when a student came in. A female student to be precise. A student that Tom didn't even bother looking at because as soon as he saw Kwest drooling he knew a girl walked in the room. "Okay, who in the _world_ is that fine piece of—?"

"Kwest! She's a student—got it? Out of bounds."

"Seriously, Tom. Look at her. You'd be thinking the same thing if you would get your head out of your ass for five minutes."

Tommy rolled his eyes and promptly ignored Kwest, and thankfully, the professor walked in, giving Tom a much-needed distraction. "Good afternoon Professor Tilson."

"Kiss-ass," Kwest muttered under his breath. Tom frowned and took a seat in the front of the room, waiting for Tilson to start lecturing. He knew that they were getting assigned their students today and he was anxious to see who he got.

A few minutes later, Kwest finally joined Tom after he stopped flirting with some of the girls in the front row and mumbled something about how much it sucked that he was teaching assistant. Tilson finally began lecturing and passed around index cards for students to indicate that they were present and to give contact information. For the first time since he had been in the room, Tommy allowed himself to relax and actually look around the room to try and start knowing faces.

His eyes scanned the room and he had to suppress a chuckle at the mess of people that were in the room. There was such a variety that he knew he was going to have a hard time keeping names and faces straight, so he decided to start assigning nicknames to everybody. He failed to stifle a laugh when his eyes fell on a kid was picking his nose and trying to make it look like he was scratching it. He shook his head and thought about this kid's nickname and in the end, decided that 'Nose' would be his name. Clever, eh? His eyes next fell upon some girl that looked like she stepped straight out of the Valley. Short white skirt, pink top, the works. She was even curling her blonde hair and chewing her gum obnoxiously loudly. 'Val,' he thought. He had thought briefly about calling her something along the lines of airhead, but thought that would be rude and would probably get himself in trouble if he let that slip out one day.

He felt his stomach get nudged Kwest motioned to Professor Tilson, who was now frowning at him. "Sir?"

He rolled his eyes, causing a few of the students to laugh nervously. "Great way to start out the year Tom. I was saying that my T.As were going to introduce themselves and Mr. Taylor has already gone, so that leaves you to go."

"Oh. Right." He glanced nervously about and shot the class a sheepish smile. "So obviously my first name's Tom, as you just heard, and that is what I'd prefer to be called. No 'Mr. Quincy,' or anything like that please. There's not much you need to know about me except that I live for writing music and that I'm going to help you grow and harness your skills in any way that I can. Feel free to come to me when you're having problems. That's what I'm here for," his eyes narrowed as he finished his speech. They fell upon the girl sitting in the third row up, right smack in the middle. How had he not noticed her before? And what was she doing in his class? He had no idea she had an interest in writing music.

The professor began speaking and he was vaguely aware that he was now assigning the students to each. He was going through Kwest's list and Tommy prayed that he got the one girl that he did not want to have to work with. As he continued listing off names, Tom's hope began to wane and he knew what was coming. When it came time for Tommy to listen to who his list was, he took out his notebook and started writing the names down. "Abbot, Carson, Zambowski, Thompson, and Harrison." Tom's eyes closed and before he could stop himself, he found himself protesting.

"No!" But to his surprise, he wasn't the only one protesting. He looked over to Jude, who now had a horrified expression on her face.

"Professor, please. Don't make me work with him."

"And why's that Miss Harrison? No offense to Mr. Taylor, but Mr. Quincy here is an amazing songwriter and you should feel privileged to be working with him." Tom couldn't help but smirk at Jude's disgusted expression with Mr. Tilson's praise and he found himself re-thinking his protesting. This could be fun. "And now that I think about it, why did you protest, Mr. Quincy?"

"I didn't," he declared adamantly.

"Yes you did. You and she said 'no' at the exact same time. It was quite startling really. I take it you two know each other?"

"Professor, remember we talked about this already," Tom sighed and was prepared to give the best performance of his life right now. He was never really good on his toes, but he could be when he had to be. He walked up to the professor and whispered, "You're doing that thing again."

"What thing?"

"Remember when you kept hearing things, sir? You kept thinking somebody would say something and the class repeatedly told you that nobody said anything?" Tom was trying his best not to crack up. He knew if he looked back at Kwest, he'd lose it and that was something he couldn't afford to do. His class had played an awful prank on Tilson; they all made him think he was going crazy on April Fool's Day. Somebody would say something and then the professor would say 'yes?' without looking up and when nobody responded, Tom could see that he was growing paranoid. The class was somehow never caught and they managed to not laugh during the entire period. The thing that baffled Tommy the most was the fact that the guy wasn't even that old, how he could be that gullible was beyond him.

The professor was giving him an odd look and understanding suddenly dawned on him. "Oooh, I remember. Thank you Tom, perhaps you're right. I was probably just imagining it."

Tommy looked over at Jude whose expression was priceless. "Of course, I would never protest to working with Miss Harrison. In fact, I'm looking forward too it!"

Jude looked murderous and Tommy had to try his best to contain his laughter. The professor spoke next, indicating the debate was over. "Excellent. Now Miss Harrison, I don't know what it is you have against Mr. Quincy, but I'm afraid you're just going to have to deal with it. If this were a studio, you wouldn't get to choose, so look at it as a first learning experience." Jude started to open her mouth to protest some more and the professor interrupted her, causing Tommy to laugh. "It's final, Miss Harrison. You'll be working with Tom, so I'd suggest getting used to the idea."

While Tom may have been keeping up a nonchalant attitude about the whole situation, inside, his nerves were a mess. Writing songs could get messy enough as it is… and with Jude Harrison, he was afraid at just how messy things _would _get. 


	3. A Deal With The Devil

Hey everybody! Thanks so much for all the reviews! I loved all of them! Sorry it took me so long to get the update out. I've been extremely busy and I've been working like crazy to try and get this out here for everybody. I hope everybody's had a safe holiday and I hope you all enjoy this New Year's present! Stay safe tonight everybody!

Princess of the Rogues- Glad to see the readers getting excited. That is the idea. Hehe. Hope you like the update!

Love2burn4tim- I'm pretty sure that was in another fiction. That also happened on the show as well, so the storylines probably seem blurred. I'm not exactly sure when I'm going to reveal what happened between Tommy and Jude, but I will say that you probably won't like him very much. Lol. (And no, he didn't pressure her into sex. I'll stop that theory before it gets started. Hehe.)

Letitrain810- What's going to happen with Tommy and Jude will be interesting. That's for sure. Hope you like the update.

Chocolateelephantz- Glad you liked that quote! I love writing Tommy/Jude fights. They are a lot of fun, mainly because there's always a lot of hostility and fire in them. So that definitely makes it fun to write. I'm almost positive you'll like this chapter if you really want those two to live together. Lol. Just be careful what you wish for m'dear. That's all I'm sayin'. Hehe. Thanks for the comment!

Madisonko- Thank you! I'm glad you like it. It will be interesting with them together, so you'll just have to wait and see what happens. Thanks for the comment!

Live4music92- Thank you! I'm glad you liked it and I hope you like the update as well!

Funnechick- Fate is so cruel? Nah, just the author. Hehe. I love putting those two through torture, so this seemed pretty fun. Their past is definitely rocky and they definitely have leftover chemistry. That certainly never died. And I'm glad to see I have a careful reader. Professor DuTois is an interesting character of sorts. He will most certainly add layers. Thanks for the comment and I hope you enjoy the next update!

Addicted2IS- You're sort of close. He did hurt her…bad. Hence, the reason why she would rather live out of her car. She didn't really mean that though… she was saying it as a front and she would never admit that she would take living with him if it meant avoiding such a scenario as living out of her car. She doesn't want to depend on him, so she said that out of frustration. Thank you for the comment!

101ISFAN- Glad you thought it was a funny chapter. I like having a little bit of humor in my chapters, so I'm happy to see that my sense of humor is not lost on readers. Hehe. Thanks for commenting and I hope you like the next chapter!

JommyIS4ever- Thanks! I intend to keep going with it, so no worries on that front. It certainly will be a drama-filled story and I hope it lives up to expectations. Thanks for commenting! I love seeing comments. They help keep me inspired.

Zanessafangrl- Yup. This is a Jommy. Here's a new update!

Without further ado… chapter 3! As always, comments are appreciated and loved! Thanks!

* * *

Chapter 3

"A Deal With The Devil"

Tom was anxiously awaiting the class to end; he wanted to meet his students that he'd be working with and he wanted to set up their first meetings. Luckily for him, Professor Tilson just ended the lecture and Tommy decided to use this as his opportunity to get to meet with his students. "Before you all leave, I would like the students that have been assigned to me to meet with me briefly after class. Incase you weren't paying attention when names were being called, my students are Abbot, Carson, Zambowski, Thompson, and of course, Harrison," he smirked as he said her name and she fumed at him. It took every ounce of strength he had to fight the urge to laugh at her. The only reason he showed any self-restraint was because he needed to get this meeting over with and didn't feel like listening to Jude bitch about him.

As the rest of the students filed out, his five students came to see him, though Jude lingered at her desk for a little while. When he saw who is 'artists' were, he had to suppress a chuckle. Miss 'Val' herself was one of them… apparently her real name was Amy Thompson. He glanced over at Jude and noted that she was still in her seat and sighed in frustration, "Miss Harrison, we don't have all day. I'm sure the rest of my students have places to go."

"I'm getting my stuff together. Chill Quincy, we wouldn't want our oh-so-wonderful songwriting teacher to drop dead of a heart attack. Well at least I'm sure _they_ wouldn't," she replied with a smirk.

"Nice Jude. Quit screwing around so I can get meeting times," he paused and thought better of the command he had just given her. "Please," he added with a false sweetness.

Jude rolled her eyes and finally made her way over to the group, however reluctant she may have been. "Okay, now that we're all present, we're going to go over some ground rules. The only person that you will be allowed to discuss your song with is me. No exceptions. I don't want any outside opinions jeopardizing creative integrity," he was getting ready to continue when Jude let out a small grunt. He felt his patience thinning and decided to ignore her. "Now, I'm going to need all of your schedules including any extra curricular activities. So if you'll all please pull out a sheet of paper and write your available schedules, that will be all I need."

Tommy was getting ready to start going through his own schedule when Val raised her hand. It took everything in him to suppress an eye-roll, but he put on his best face and flashed a smile at her. "Yes Miss…?"

"Thompson."

"Right, sorry. I'll learn the names eventually. Please forgive me."

"Oh it's okay," she replied with a flirtatious smile. Normally, this would be the kind of girl he went for… no challenge at all. But there was something about this girl that made him want to spew. "I was actually just wondering what we would do if we don't have any free time during the day or the evening."

His eyes narrowed. Surely nobody could be _that_ busy. "Well I'm sure we'll be able to work something out. I'm going to be giving everybody my school e-mail address and this will be our way of communicating normally. After you all hand in your papers, you're free to go."

Tom started collecting papers and noticed that Jude had a confused look on her face. "Can I help you Miss Harrison?"

Jude shook her head and simply handed him her paper. He watched her walk away as looked down at her paper and felt himself fuming. _This is going to be a long semester_, he thought to himself as he rushed out of the classroom trying to catch up with her.

* * *

Jude couldn't believe her bad luck. Of all the classes and all the T.A.s, she had to get stuck in this class and she had to get stuck with _him._ She didn't even _want_ this class this semester. Okay, well maybe that wasn't entirely true. She had been completely psyched when she saw that this class was being offered to undergrads and didn't expect to even get in. People fought like crazy for this and she had to wonder why she was 'lucky enough' to get this class. Who would have thought that she would be cursing her luck as soon as she got in the classroom?

Why couldn't she have gotten to work with Kwest, or even Professor Tilson? Why did the fates have to be cruel enough to pair her with Quincy? Ugh, she was _not_ going to be bearing her heart to him. Not ever again. She smiled to herself as she remembered the piece of paper she shoved at Tommy; she doubted he would be pleased with her, but she really didn't care.

She thought she was home free as she sped, practically ran, down the hallway and muttered a small, 'damn,' under her breath when she heard her name being called.

"JUDE!" She didn't bother stopping or looking back. She just kept walking and she had to keep her laughter in check as she heard him mumble a string of curses. Her laughter faded, however, when she heard him barreling down the hall after her. Why couldn't he just give it up? "JUDE!"

Her face fell when she realized he had finally caught up to her. Hell he was standing right in front of her. Just great. "What do you want?"

"Is that even a serious question?" She tried not to smile as she watched him fuming. "What the hell is this?"

He shoved the paper back in her face and she glanced down and then back up at him, feigning innocence. "I don't have any idea what you mean, Quincy."

"Jude, I'm _not_ in the mood for this. If you want to hate me, fine! Hate me. But this is class and it's my job, so quit trying to screw this up!"

"I don't have to try. You'll screw it up on your own just fine. You always do," she tried walking past him, but he held his hand out, pushing her back slightly.

She knew she had crossed the line when she said that; his personal life he always screwed up, but when it came to work he was as professional as they came. "Look, I know we have a lot of baggage and I know that it's my fault, but come on Jude. This is class and our personal lives should be just that. Personal."

Jude scowled but knew he was right. If he could suck it up and act professionally, then why shouldn't she be able to? She snatched a pin from him and was getting ready to write down her real schedule when she closed her eyes and shook her head. Something inside of her snapped when she was getting ready to write her schedule down and she was forced to deal with a flood of memories that she really didn't want to be bothered with anymore. She worked so hard to keep him out of her head and out of her heart and she wouldn't be dragged back in again. "I can't do it, Tommy. I'll write the song myself."

"That won't work, Jude. Part of the grade is working together."

"So lie. You're good at it," she responded bitterly.

She noticed that he flinched a little at her words. Maybe she was being a bit harsh, but she really didn't care. He deserved every bit of her anger and then some. "Okay, I deserved that. And I would love to lie for you, believe me. I'm not crazy about having to work with you either. But the truth is, is that I can't. He's going to sit in on one of our sessions Jude."

"What?"

"Yeah, we weren't supposed to tell the students, but I thought you should know. It's going to be a surprise evaluation so we _have_ to work together."

Jude felt her heart sink at his words. "He's going to sit in on a session? Can he do that?"

Tommy gave her a small smirk and nodded. "He's the professor Jude. He can basically do whatever he wants."

Jude turned away from him and let his words sink in for a moment. She was confused and angry and frustrated. Why did she have to get placed with him? Was she a bad person in a past life or something? She let out a sigh as a thought occurred to her. He told her the truth for once. Her eyes narrowed as she turned to him. "What's your angle?"

Tommy furrowed his brows in confusion. "Angle? What do you mean?"

"I mean why did you tell me the truth? Lying is like a favorite pass-time of yours, so why on earth would you tell me the truth, especially when it effects your job?"

He sighed and leaned against the wall. "Jude, I know how hard this is going to be. And don't think that it's going to be hard only on you, because it won't be. I just figured if it would be easier if you had a heads up about the whole sit-in thing. I know that I normally love tormenting you and all that, but this is different. Writing music is different," he added softly and for a moment Jude couldn't believe her ears. Was this really the same Tom Quincy that she was now sworn enemies with…the same Tom Quincy that obliterated what was left of her heart?

She studied him, trying to figure out if he was being sincere. She didn't know if she could do this. Was she strong enough to handle this again? While she was looking at him, she noted how nervous he looked and she begrudgingly found herself feeling sorry for him. She let out a resigned sigh. "So this really means I have to work with you?"

"'Fraid so."

"Fine," she mumbled as she found a hard surface to write her schedule down on.

"So how's the car situation workin' out for you?" she looked up at him to see him smirking at her, looking rather smug and she wanted to slap the smirk right off his face.

"That's none of your business."

"So—"

"Do you _want _me to keep my original response to your schedule question?" She fought hard not to laugh at him as he sighed and shook his head. "Good."

* * *

Tommy shook his head as he watched Jude walk down the hallway. She had finally filled out her real schedule and even though he was pissed as he looked down at her original writing, he couldn't help but laugh. This was so Jude:

_Quincy, _

_If you really think I'm going to give you the time of day, you're sadly mistaken. If you're interested in my schedule, figure it out yourself. And by the way, even if you do figure it out, don't bet on me working with you. _

_-J. _

He sighed as he turned away and walked back to the classroom. Tilson had gone, but Kwest was still in there waiting for Tom. "What took you so long, dude?"

"I had business to take care of," he replied as he was gathering his things together. Kwest walked over to him and gave him an 'I-know-better' look. Tom felt his frustration rising at his best friend. He loved Kwest like a brother, but sometimes, the guy knew how to grate on his nerves like no other. "What?" he snapped angrily.

"Who was she?"

"Who was who?" he replied, feigning dumb.

"You know who I'm talking about. That girl you just chased after, the one that you protested working with, the really fine blonde—"

Tom angrily cut him off. "Back off. She's none of your business."

He looked up to find Kwest raising an eyebrow at him. "Bad blood, I see?"

"Look, just drop it. She's part of my past, let's just leave it at that," he grabbed his things and began walking out the door. "I'll see ya later, dude."

He made a beeline for the door in hopes to avoid Kwest and thankfully when he left, Kwest didn't follow. He was walking down the hall when he heard his cell ringing. He let out an annoyed huff when he saw that it was Nathan. Again. He gritted his teeth and was very tempted to hit 'ignore' but he figured if he didn't answer, Nathan would keep calling. "What the hell do you want?"

"Well geez little brother. Do you answer all of your calls like that?"

"No, just yours. We haven't spoken to each other in the last two years and now you're calling me twice in a matter of three days?" His eyes widened as a horrible thought occurred to him. "What's wrong? Is mom okay?"

Nathan chuckled, "Mom's fine."

"Then what the hell do you want?" he asked again. "I don't have a girlfriend, so you can't possibly want her," he replied with an eye roll.

"Good Lord Tom, are we still on about that?"

"She was my girlfriend for almost a year, Nathan. You expect for me to just forgive you like that?"

"That happened nearly seven years ago dude. You need to let it go."

"And you need to forget that I'm your brother. Forget this number. Forget me. Later," he replied and he hung up before Nathan got the chance to respond.

Tom gritted his teeth and hurried out of the arts center and made his way out to the gardens. He needed to get himself calmed down and that place always calmed him down. He found an unoccupied bench and sat down, allowing himself to take a deep breath.

This wasn't supposed to happen. He was supposed to be over it by now; he wasn't supposed to care enough to let it get to him anymore. God he hated his brother. Nobody that knew him now really knew about the falling out he and Nathan had… they just knew there was a falling out and let the subject of his family drop any time it was brought up. He sighed and looked around and he immediately wished he wouldn't have. "Great," he mumbled.

Jude was sitting on the bench next to him and he couldn't believe he didn't even recognize her when he came to sit down. He frowned when he saw that she was wiping away what appeared to be a tear. Reluctantly, he got up and walked over to her and sat down. "Jude, what's going on?"

"Tom? When did you get here?"

His frown deepened when she asked that. He walked right in front of her; how could she not have seen him? "I just walked right in front of you. Are you okay?"

"I'm great. I'm fine," she responded with a nod.

Tommy let out a grunt, "Right. And my brother and I are best friends."

Jude raised her brow at him. "Where'd that come from?"

He shrugged and looked away from her. One of the reasons he had pushed her away to begin with was because she was always able to read him so well and he doubted that time would change that. He never let people get close to him. Not after what happened with his brother. And right now, he didn't feel like telling her about his lovely brother. "Come on Tommy. What's going on with you? You never mention your brother willingly."

He felt his anger at their situation getting the better of him. Why, he had no idea. It was his fault that they were the way they were, but he couldn't understand her sudden concern. "Why do you care?" He snapped at her. She looked taken aback and part of him felt guilty for snapping at her like that.

"You're right. I don't care. I'll see ya around Tom," she bent down to pick up her bag when he put his hand on her arm. He noticed that she tensed at his touch and he hated himself for still feeling that same spark with her that he had always felt.

"Jude, why were you crying earlier?"

"It's nothing I can't handle," she shoved his hand away and started to walk away.

"You still don't have a place to live, do you?" Tommy watched as she stopped dead in her tracks at his question. "Damn it Jude! Stop being so stubborn. I'm offering you a place to live and the rent is reasonable. Please. At least just stop by and see the place."

He had fully expected her to turn around, laugh at him, and say hell no, which is why he was surprised at her reaction. She slowly turned around, "You're still offering me a place to live?"

His eyes widened at her question. What could have happened in this short time frame to cause her to give into him? She never gave in. "I am. That extra room is yours if you want it."

"Can I see the place?"

Tom smiled and nodded. "Sure."

* * *

Jude shook her head as she questioned her sanity. What was she doing? Was she on drugs or something and didn't know it? She hadn't wanted to give him the time of day earlier and now she was following him to his Viper to look at his apartment? She was seriously screwed up in the head.

_"Why were you crying, Jude?"_

His question plagued her mind as she mindlessly followed him to his car. Why was she crying? She sighed as she thought about the last week. Everything was so screwed up and it finally just got the better of her. She had just gotten finished talking with Quincy and she had decided to tour the gardens. She found a bench and sat down and she just lost it. Thankfully she was just finishing up her sob-fest by the time Tommy had come into the picture.

She was homeless. The reality of her living situation had hit her hard and fast when she realized she was finished with her classes for the day. For the last two days she had been living out of a cheap motel room and she couldn't stomach the idea of doing it again.

When Tom had confronted her about her living situation, she had no idea why she caved. She didn't want to live with him under any circumstances, but he had caught her in a moment of weakness. Damn him. He always managed to do that and it still irritated her to no end that he possessed the ability to do so.

They had finally managed to make it to his car and that's when it hit her. If she got into that car, could she still back out? He had walked over to the passenger's door and opened it. "You coming or what, Harrison?"

She bit her bottom lip and contemplated the idea of staying behind. She wasn't ready for this. This was going to end badly. She knew it as well as she knew her name. "Jude?" It was as if her feet had a mind of their own. She screamed at them to stop but they refused and just kept moving her towards his car.

She stopped when she got to the door of his car, "Don't make me regret this, Quincy."

"I wouldn't dream of it Harrison," he responded with a smirk. And damn her lips, they smirked right back at him as she climbed into his car.

She felt her nerves swirling inside of her as she heard her door shut and she gulped out of trepidation. She hadn't been this physically close to him for over a year. She didn't know if she'd be able to handle the heat that was sure to come from this ride.

She nervously glanced over to the driver's side as Tommy finally made his way into the car. "Rule number two in my car: seatbelt," he said smugly and motioned for her to put her seatbelt on.

She quirked an eyebrow in his direction as she begrudgingly put on her seatbelt, "And what's rule number one?" She asked as she reached to switch the radio station.

Suddenly a hand enveloped her own and she felt her heart rate speed up as her breath hitched in her throat. She swallowed as she willed herself to look up at him and was shocked to find that he looked confused as he released her hand, almost immediately. "Don't touch the stereo," he said with finality.

Jude rolled her eyes. "Men and their rules with their cars."

"Like you don't have rules with your Mustang," he scoffed as he pulled out of the university.

She'd never admit to him that she did, in fact, have rules to her car. And she'd _never_ admit that her rule number one was the same as his. She wouldn't give him the satisfaction. "How do you even know that I'm still driving the Mustang?"

Now it was his turn to roll his eyes. "Please. You'd never give up that car willingly. Even if it were in shambles, you wouldn't let anyone take it away from you. You'd insist that it could be fixed."

"And you don't feel the same way about your Viper?"

"I never said I didn't. You'd have to kill me first before prying me away from this car. I've had it—"

"Since you were twenty. I know," she responded and she suddenly realized what she did. He must have noticed her tense because she hated what he said next.

"Jude, we have history. It can't be helped that we're going to have _some_ pleasant memories."

"Just drive to the damn apartment, Quincy." She shifted in her seat so that she was staring out her window and as she did so, she heard him sigh in frustration. Maybe she was being difficult, but she didn't care. She was not going to have a trip down memory lane with him; it was too hard.

The car ride was virtually silent, with the exception of the radio. Neither one of them said anything, mainly out of fear of causing another fight. Jude fidgeted in her seat and kept glancing at the clock in his car, which he seemed to notice. "It's not going to make us get there any faster, Jude."

"Stop doing that," she snapped at him. She was getting annoyed that he could still read her and the small movements that she made. She found herself resenting it by the minute that he could still do that and she wanted to scream.

"Doing what?" he yelled angrily. "I can't help it that we know each other!"

"Correction, I don't know _you._ You made it a point to make sure that I never did!"

"Let's just drop this," he muttered.

"Fine by me," she readily agreed. Normally she would have trudged up their age-old argument, but for once, she didn't feel like fighting with him. She didn't need a reason to back out of having a place to live and she knew if she kept fighting with him, she'd manage to talk herself out of it.

She barely noticed when they pulled into an apartment complex's parking facilities. "We're here."

Jude only nodded and undid her seatbelt, stepping out of the car. He led her over to the entrance and she looked around at her surroundings, suddenly feeling uncomfortable. She hadn't really been paying attention to the area, but now that she did, she noted that they were in "Posh Park," as she liked to call it.

Tommy led her into the lobby and she quirked an eyebrow in confusion. She was definitely in Posh Park and she didn't know if she wanted to be here. Jude bit her bottom lip as they walked over to one of the elevators. If the lobby looked like _this_ she could only imagine what his apartment looked like. She noticed that he hit the '12' button on the elevator. The last floor. She rolled her eyes and shouldn't have been surprised, but somehow, she found that she was.

The ride in the elevator was uncomfortable to say the least. She could still back out. She kept telling herself that she was only here to look at the place. It was not set in stone that she had to live here. She looked over at Tommy and saw that he was smirking at her. "What?"

He shook his head and looked away, "nothing."

"Whatever," she mumbled.

"You do know that I'm not holding a gun to your head, right?"

"Really?" she replied sarcastically. "I had no idea."

"I'm just saying. Nobody's forcing you to be here."

"Wrong again, Quincy. I blame my father."

"Ah, taking the easy way out I see. The old 'blame-the-parents' route," he replied with a chuckle.

"What?! It _is_ his fault. He's the one that stranded me with no place to go." Finally, it was as if the Heavens decided to show some mercy on her. The elevator dinged, indicating that they were finally at their final destination.

Tommy stood aside, waiting for her to step out of the elevator. She seriously didn't understand him. He was the world's biggest jerk, and yet he still had manners. He led her down the hall way and stopped outside of his apartment. "I wasn't expecting anybody, so I have to apologize. It's a little messy."

Jude rolled her eyes at him. "I bet. I remember your 'messes' Tom. Your idea of messy is if there are a few dishes left unwashed in the sink," she replied and he scowled at her.

He shook his head and opened the door, motioning for her to come inside. She sighed and hesitated before going in. "Why do I feel like I'm making a deal with the devil?"

She looked up to see Tommy grinning at her. "I can assure you that you're not. I'm just the spawn."


	4. Roommates

Hey, hey, hey! It's that time again… time for a new update. Sorry it took me so long to get this out. I've just been so freaking busy it's ridiculous. I'm surprised I'm getting this out tonight to be honest, but I felt so horrible for not having an update sooner.

I'll be perfectly honest with everyone… I'm not a fan of this chapter. I was going through writer's block as it was being written, which seriously depressed me since this was so early on in the fic. I tried my best to make it come out okay, but I don't know if everyone will like it and for that I feel so incredibly horrible. My early apologies if this stinks up the joint. But I promise, I'm slowly worming my way out of the block. So hopefully the next chapter won't blow chunks. sighs I suppose I'll leave the judgment up to you guys, so please let me know what you think! Feedback is a huge source of help for me.

Anyway, I guess I'll stop talking and get to thanks portion of this…

Funnechick- Thank you for the review! I loved reading it. Yes, Jude does realize that living with him is going to take away the much needed space from him, but you have to remember that she accepted his offer when she was weak and vulnerable. She realized that she was in fact homeless and it scared her. Not only that, but she also knew that she couldn't live out of the motel she was staying at forever. Also, there is a reason that Jude is so reluctant to work with him. I've already mentioned something about it in a previous chapter, you just have to read carefully to pick up on the hint. At the moment, I'm not exactly sure how old Jude and Tommy are. LOL. I have it written somewhere, but I'm too tired at the moment to go look… not to mention lazy. Hehe. But I will let everyone know in at the beginning of chapter 5. My brain's a bit fried right now, so please forgive me. I love your theory as well… it could be true and it might not be true. We shall just have to wait and see, eh? Don't worry though… Professor DuTois will be back. Thanks again for the review. I love reading long reviews! They're very helpful. Hugs

Alexzrules- Thank you so much! Glad you like the story. The title actually is from a song, which I forgot to mention. Hehe. Whoops. It's 'Accidentally In Love' by the Counting Crows. I love that song and seemed to fit my story, so I used it! Glad you like it as well :D

Letitrain810- More will be revealed on the drama that went on between Tommy and Jude. It's a very sensitive subject for both of them and it is unlikely that either one will be willing to talk about it in the near future. I'm glad you liked the last line. I like making people laugh, so I'm glad to see my sense of humor isn't lost on everybody! LOL. Thanks for the review. I'm happy you liked the chapter and I hope you'll like the next one as well!

Love2burn4tim- Wow. I didn't really expect anybody to think they were engaged, especially since Jude would have been relatively young while they were together. So I will say that they were _not_ engaged. They _were_ dating though. Again with the living situation… Tommy wasn't necessarily the greatest guy in the world back when Jude dated him, so she's extremely wary around him now, as she should be. However, he has changed since they were last together, but she is protecting her heart, which is understandable. Thanks for taking the time to review. Hope you like the next chapter!

Driver picks the music- New reader! Yay! I'm so happy you liked it. I'm afraid I don't really watch ER all that much. That would my mother's territory. LOL. I actually don't watch a lot of television anymore, so I'm afraid I don't really know what scenario you're referring to, but I'll take your word for it. Hehe. Actually… hang on a sec. That's Shane West's character right? And then the girl is the chick from Bend It Like Beckham? I've caught a few episodes here and there while my mom's watching it, but it's honestly too much drama for me. Anyway, thanks so much for commenting! I appreciate it and I hope you like the newest update!

Chocolateelephantz- Thank you so much for the compliment! I actually am not a fan of my writing, but I like to anyway. It's my creative escape, I guess… I had a lot of fun writing that last chapter, so I'm glad you enjoyed reading it. This newest chapter, however, I did not have as much fun with. In fact, it downright frustrated the hell out of me. Anyway, I hope you enjoy the new installment. Thanks again for the feedback. Love reading the reviews:D

* * *

Chapter 4

"Roommates"

Tommy led Jude inside his apartment and tried to hold back a grin as he watched her jaw drop. "Okay, there's no way my half of the rent would only be 200 dollars."

"But it is."

"There's no possible way, Quincy."

He was getting frustrated with the blonde that was standing in front of him. Why couldn't she ever just accept anything and not question it? _Oh yeah, you had a part to play in all of that, dumb ass._ He knew trust was a big issue for her and quickly realized that that probably had a great deal to with her skepticism. "Jude, I'm serious. It's the price you're being given and I won't budge on it."

Jude rolled her eyes and scoffed at him, "You never did anything simple, did you?"

He couldn't help the smirk that was forming on his lips. "I dated you, didn't I?"

"Ha ha. You're really hilarious."

He didn't know why, but he felt like they were in a somewhat good place right now. They were joking without being bitter or cruel, just like they used too. He had always planned on apologizing to her for being an ass, but he knew she would never listen too him, not when she was still so bitter and resentful and hurt. He decided to press his luck and he took a cautious step forward and proceeded to take a deep breath. "Jude, I'm—"

She put a hand up, motioning for me to stop as if she already knew that he was getting ready to apologize. "Don't."

"Why?" he was feeling agitated that she wouldn't even let him explain. Not that he was planning on going into a deep explanation or anything, but still… she could at least let a guy the full sentence out!

"Because. I know you. I know you won't mean it, and I don't want to hear empty words, Tommy."

He blinked, not really knowing how to respond to her statement. Perhaps she did know him better than he thought she did. He silently berated himself for nearly making things potentially worse between them; as if he didn't have enough problems to deal with, he was getting ready to pass off some random, meaningless apology to her. He didn't really know what he was thinking. Of course, that was his problem most of the time… he never stopped to think things through. He was far too impulsive for his own liking. If he weren't so damn reckless to begin with, he probably could have avoided this mess in the first place.

Tommy nodded reluctantly and cleared his throat, "So, do you want to see where you'd be sleeping?"

"I guess," her words were short, indicating that she was not interested in anything other than the apartment. Well that was fine by him. He was done walking on eggshells around her. Not that he really was before, but a part of him knew he had been holding back… mainly because he didn't want to hurt her anymore than he already had.

So he nodded and started walking up the spiral stairs, not even bothering to see if she was following him. He made his way to the left at the top of the stairs and then down two doors, the first door being her bathroom. He paused and opened her door before yelling, "Hurry up, Harrison. We don't have all day."

He heard her mumbling curses up the stairs and he couldn't help but chuckle. However, as soon as she came back into view, he made sure any sign of laughter was gone from his face. That was one thing he prided himself on… masking his face. He had once let his face betray his emotions and it had gotten him nowhere. It had only lead to pain. So he had perfected the art of covering up his real emotions. People only saw what he wanted them to see, and that's the way it was going to stay. Nothing and nobody was going to change that. Not even her.

"You're such an ass, Quincy."

"Yeah, well this ass is offering you a place to live, so shut it Harrison," he quipped somewhat playfully.

Jude ignored him and brushed past him, stepping directly into her room. He tried his best to contain his smirk as her jaw nearly dropped to the floor at the extravagant spare bedroom.

"So what do you say, girl? Interested?"

"Hell yes!" She blushed at her own words and he was desperately trying not to laugh at her when she tried to cover up her sudden outburst of interest in the place. When she began stumbling over her words, he couldn't help it; he doubled over with laughter, earning the infamous Jude Harrison death glare. Normally it would be enough to shut him up, but this was just too funny to let go.

"All right Quincy. It wasn't _that_ funny!"

"Actually," he tried to spit out between fits of laughter, "it was."

"Ha ha, laugh it up."

His laughter finally calmed down and he shook his head, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I promise I'm done now."

"Are you sure about that?" she replied, quirking her eyebrow in part amusement and part annoyance.

"Yes," he made sure his laughter died down and turned to head down the stairs.

"Where are you going now?" she quipped.

"It's not just me. You're coming too."

"Where are _we_ going, then?"

"To get your stuff." When he noticed that she wasn't following him, he stopped in the middle of the staircase and began grumbling to himself. Turning around, he began hauling himself back up the staircase. "Space cadet! Why aren't your feet moving? Let's get going!"

She had a thoughtful expression on her face and he fought to keep from laughing at her again. "Jude! What is it?"

"Why are you helping me? We don't even like each other!"

He sighed and walked over towards her. It figured. She had only agreed to move in less than five minutes ago and she already doubted her actions. He actually wasn't sure why he was trying so hard and he sure as hell wasn't sure why he felt the need to reassure her, especially after his commitment to being done 'walking on eggshells'… but he just couldn't stand seeing the doubt in her eyes. "Jude, we don't need to like each other. We're just going to be roommates, okay? I'm rarely here anyway, so just think, you won't even have to put up with me very often." He inched towards her, leaned forward and whispered in her ear, "Sound tempting yet?"

She turned her face towards his, shocking him in an instant. He felt his breathing still at the sudden nearness of her. Her body still managed to do strange things to his sense, which baffled him. Normally when he broke up with a girl, he was done. There was no turning back. But this just seemed… different. There was a brief moment when he thought that she was going to let him kiss her as he started to move his lips towards hers. Disappointment soon followed, however. He sucked in his breath as she brought her lips to his ear, as he had just done seconds ago to her, and whispered, "More than tempting… especially the part about not having to put up with you very often."

She pulled away and started for the stairs, obviously refusing to let him have the last word. He still felt the tingling jolts of electricity that had fluttered through every cell in his body at her closeness and it was confusing him. He did not need this now. Confusion was the last thing he needed.

Sounds of The Eagles' "Get Over It" filled the air, the source being his phone, and that instantly put a smile on his face. "Hey Kwest, what's up?"

He had strategically chosen this song as his ringtone because of one night they had gone to a bar. Kwest had gotten hammered and was annoyed with listening to everybody bitch and complain, so he had braved the microphone, as it was karaoke night, and belted out this song, using it forever as his mantra. Needless to say, people stopped complaining to him. Even just recalling that night put a huge smile on Tommy's face because for once, Tom was taking care of Kwest and not the other way around. It had been nice being useful for a change.

"Checkin' in dude. What's going on for tonight?"

Tom paused, unsure of how to answer that, seeing as how he didn't really know himself. "Uh…"

"Tommy Quincy doesn't have plans?" Tom rolled his eyes, picturing the raised eyebrow on the other end of the phone. He could just imagine the look of intrigue Kwest had right now.

"It _is_ a school night, man."

Laughter vibrated through the speaker and his ear hurt so bad that he had to pull the phone away from it. He made a strangling motion with his free hand as the laughter showed no signs of dying down. Deciding to chance damaging his hearing, he placed the phone back to his ear and shouted, "DUDE! Shut it!"

The laughter eventually subsided to broken chuckles before Kwest tried speaking again. "Okay. I'm sorry. My laughing fit is over. But that was just too hilarious. If you already had plans with a chick, why didn't you just say so dude?"

"I don't have plans with a 'chick' Kwest. I was thinking about just maybe relaxing for a change."

"Are you for real?" he sounded genuinely shocked at the thought of Tommy just staying in for the night.

Tommy laughed, "Yeah. I'm for real." He paused a moment. "Actually, I'm helping my new roommate move in today, so…" His face fell as he quickly realized that he had offered to help Jude move in and did not have an appropriate vehicle to do the job. A viper was hardly a good enough car for the job… one of the few things it was useless for. He grew thoughtful as he tried to avoid this sudden hitch in his offer to Jude. Something as simple as an inadequate vehicle (he could not believe he just had to use 'inadequate' and 'viper' in the same sentence… what was the world coming too?!) was not going to defeat him.

Suddenly a thought hit him, and the disappointment and frustration masking his face was quickly replaced with a mischievous grin. If he could look at himself in the mirror right now, he would guess his face probably resembled that of a Cheshire cat. "No. No. Absolutely not. Whatever it is you're thinking Tom, count me out." Tommy shook his head at how well his friend knew him. He wasn't even standing in the same room with him and Kwest could see the wheels in his head spinning. Tom Quincy's mind was surely a dangerous place indeed. He really couldn't blame Kwest for wanting to back out before even hearing the offer. He wasn't deterred though. He could be very persuasive when he wanted to be.

* * *

"Thanks for helping me move Kwest!" She looked at him in confusion as he grumbled a rather vulgar response under his breath. _Well, that's rude. I thought he wanted to help._

She looked over at Quincy, who was desperately trying to hold back his laughter. _I should have known he had something to do with this._ She sighed, walked over to him, and smacked him on the back of the head. "Ow! Geeze, Jude. What did I do now?"

"Why did you blackmail Kwest into coming here if he didn't want to be here?"

Tommy looked amused at her inquiry and folded his arms. "What makes you think I blackmailed him?"

"Considering the obscenities he just muttered under his breath, I can gather that this wasn't his idea!"

"Again, I ask why you think I blackmailed him into coming?" Okay. So he was going to play stupid, huh? Well, two could play at that game.

"You do know if you don't tell me, I could tell Kwest about that uh… 'problem' you had back when we were dating," she replied with a smug smirk. Tommy's eyes widened in horror as his arms fell to his sides.

"You wouldn't?"

Jude cackled, "Oh believe me, I would. Never underestimate the power of the bitter ex Tommy." He stood in silence and she knew he was cracking… but she still had one more thing she could dangle in front of his face. "You do know that you'd never live that down right? It would be a constant source of amusement for Kwest, not to mention blackmail… and who knows? He might let it slip one day to your peers…"

"Okay! Fine! You win. But I'll have you know that I didn't blackmail him. I… persuaded him, is the terminology I would prefer to use, thanks very much."

"So let's use your terminology then. Why did you 'persuade' Kwest into helping and how?"

He laughed, "Because my viper sure as hell wasn't going to get the job done, and Kwest had a truck… plus, I can get him to do some of the heavy-lifting with me so it's not all on me. It's a win-win for me. As for the how, that's between Kwest and me."

Now Jude laughed, "Fair enough. And while it might be a win-win for you, it's a lose-lose for poor Kwest over there."

An annoyed voice interrupted the two. "Hey! You two wanna quit standing around jabbin' your jaws and actually, I don't know, _HELP_?" Kwest's outburst caused the pair to jump. Jude felt horrible for leaving him hanging like that.

"I'm sorry Kwest. I promise I'll make this up to you."

Kwest developed a look of pure interest on his features. "What'd you have in mind?"

"Food?"

Tommy laughed, "Jude. You just said the magic word." Suddenly he started laughing even harder, causing Jude to scowl. "As long as you don't cook it."

"Hey! I'll have you know I'm a very good cook, thanks very much!"

Kwest watched the two in amusement, not saying anything as Tommy spoke next. "Since when is a good cook capable of burning water?"

"I didn't burn the water!" she declared stubbornly. Although at the time, if it was even possible to burn water, she would have been the one to do it. But she had taken classes since then and had actually developed really good cooking skills.

"Okay, maybe not literally, but that was the most disgusting thing I've ever put in my mouth!"

Jude snorted, "Somehow, I find that hard to believe."

Kwest chuckled, "I'd have to agree with her there Tommy. I mean you—"

"Okay, that's enough." Jude couldn't help but notice that Tommy noticeably looked uncomfortable at the implication she had given.

"Somebody's grumpy now that the tables have turned," Kwest noted and Jude snickered. If somebody had asked her five days ago if she would be laughing and having a good time with Quincy and his best friend, she would have called them crazy. She couldn't believe she was having an actual conversation with him and not feeling any hatred towards him. She questioned herself as she became conscious of the fact that she was having fun with the pair of guys standing in front of her. Even Tommy.

As this information wormed its way into her brain, panic began to settle in the pit of her stomach. She hadn't even moved in yet and her resolve was already starting to slip around the guy. No! She would not become that girl again. Not ever again. She needed to get away from him. Right now.

So she grabbed a box and a bag to sling over her shoulder and abruptly turned away from the two and started heading towards the door of the complex. She knew she was being childish, but she couldn't chance letting her walls that she had so carefully built crumble down right in front of her. There wasn't a chance in hell she was going to do that… not if she had a fighting chance to prevent it.

She heard Kwest asking Tommy what her deal was and she couldn't hear his muffled response; not that she was really interested in what he thought of her right now. She was pretty sure he probably thought she was insane. And she could definitely venture to guess he was frustrated as hell at the moment. But she didn't care. The only thing going through her mind right now was getting away. Which, she had thankfully accomplished. Relief coursed through her body as she stepped inside the elevator. Distance.

Distance was such a good thing to be had from Tom Quincy. It was a known fact that if you were close to Tom Quincy at all, it would end in disaster. She had already experienced that truth first-hand. And she was in no hurry to experience it again any time soon.

* * *

Tommy sighed as he watched Jude leave and eventually disappear into the building. Kwest gave him a look, asking what her deal was. "It's a long story and I'm really not in the mood to get into right now."

"But she was just laughing and having a good time with us and then all of a sudden she ran out of here like her ass was on fire or something. What's going on?"

"Look, I screwed up, okay? Like I said before, I'm not in the mood for this conversation right now."

"Yeah, well you weren't in the mood earlier when I asked you about her after you chased her down the hallway. Are you ever going to be in the mood for this conversation, Tommy?"

He gave Kwest a solemn glance before shaking his head. "The only way you're probably going to get any information out of me is if I'm completely trashed. I'm not interested in reliving this, thanks."

Kwest shrugged and grabbed some more stuff, and Tommy gratefully noticed that the pile was diminishing quickly. She really didn't have a lot of stuff, which was good for him and Kwest. The less manual labor he had to do, the happier he'd be.

He hopped up on the back of the truck and started pulling the items towards the end of the trunk and nearly fell face-first when he attempted to move one box in particular. "Jesus Jude, what the hell do you have in here?" he mumbled to himself.

"So should I have mom look into a shrink Tom?" a voice came from behind him and he nearly jumped out of his skin at the sudden noise. "The last thing we need is to have it leaked that my little brother is talking to himself." His eyes narrowed as he realized that it was Nathan standing behind him. When did he get here? Surely he would have heard his car pulling up into the apartment complex?

"What the hell do you want Nathan?"

"Really, is that any way to greet your favorite brother?" he remarked with an unbelievably smug smile. He hated Nathan. He had always had everything and Tommy could guess that nothing had apparently changed as he eyed his brother's attire. Tommy rolled his eyes in disgust. Armani suit. He shouldn't be surprised really. Nathan never settled for anything but the best.

Tom didn't say anything, nor did he accept the outstretched hand in front of him. He clenched his jaw and turned away from him, going back to moving the boxes and other various items in front of him.

"So where's your car? Surely you didn't walk here in _that_?" he asked, referring to the suit.

Nathan grunted, "I've been trying to call you for the last three days Tom. I decided a sneak attack was the best method of getting in touch with you. My car is well hidden. The last thing I need is to have you key my car, thanks."

"Where's the faith Nate? I wouldn't do that," he mused as he turned back around to face Nathan. He noted the look of disbelief in his brother's face.

"Really?"

"Really," he said as he grabbed a box and hopped down from the truck. "I would probably take a baseball bat to the windshield. Keying a car is far too amateur for me."

He started walking for the building when Nathan stepped in front of him, blocking his path. "I don't think so. I came here to talk, and that's what we're gonna do."

"Get out of my way," Tommy said through clenched teeth.

Nathan chuckled as he crossed his arms, "That's right. I'm always in your way, right? I'm always a roadblock, huh?"

Tommy forced back the memories that were trying to force their way through at Nathan's statement. He always felt inadequate around Nathan and the feeling was starting resurface as he heard his brother's words echo in his head. He had worked hard to get as far as he had and he'd be damned if his brother was going to get to him like this. This was _his_ place and he could have him tossed if he wanted. Instead, he decided a subtle threat would work better.

"Now," his voice was dangerously low and Nathan quickly sobered at the tone of his voice, as Tommy knew he would. Nathan may be a fair bit bigger than him, but Tommy grew up fighting and could kick his brother's ass any day of the week. And Nathan knew it. He also knew when to back off.

"Really Tom. Don't you think it's time we put this ridiculous feud behind us?"

Tommy gave Nathan an amused smirk, "Forgive and forget, right?"

"Exactly."

Tommy pretended to ponder over the offer but then started laughing at the stupidity of his brother. "God Nate. Did you really think it would be that easy? You made my life hell!"

"Hey! I was looking out for you!"

Now Tommy really lost it. He set the box down on the pavement and clapped his hands together, mockingly. Nathan was not amused. Yeah, well… neither was he. He finally stopped clapping and cocked his head to the side. "Really? So you were looking out for me when you were screwing my girlfriend, is that it? Remind me to thank you later."

He bent down to pick the box up again and sighed in relief when Kwest came barreling out of the doors to the complex. Apparently Kwest wasn't any happier to see Nathan than he was. "You okay Tom?"

"Oh look, it's the girlfriend. What fun," Nathan remarked sarcastically. Tommy clenched his fists, ready to throw a punch, when he felt Kwest grab him by the shoulders and shake some sense into him.

"What's that gonna accomplish, Tommy? Huh? For once, would you please think with your brain and not your fists?!" he yelled at him.

"Thank you Kwest," Nathan chuckled. "I've been trying to tell him the same thing for years."

Kwest nodded with a shrug and before Tommy could blink, Kwest punched his wonderful brother right in the face. Tommy howled as Nathan yelped in pain. "Don't ever show your face around here again! If you do, I swear you'll get worse than a black eye," Kwest literally growled at Nathan as he said that. Kwest's hatred for Nathan ran about as deep as Tommy's.

Nathan stretched his jaw out in obvious pain and quite honestly, Tommy found the entire situation comical. Normally he was the one throwing punches, not Kwest. "You heard the man, _bro_. I'm not interested in whatever bullshit story you came to tell me."

"Fine! But don't bite my head off when you get the shock of your life and I supposedly didn't try to tell you about it." He started laughing at the look on Tommy's and Kwest's faces. "Hey. You're shit outta luck, now. I already came here trying to tell you what was up and you tried to punch me in the face," he said nodding towards Tom, "and you _did_ punch me in the face. So I'm done trying. I'll see ya around, Tom." He turned around and started walking away, much to Tommy's relief. Though he hated to admit it, Nathan's statement didn't bode well with him. In fact, it downright unnerved him. What the hell was he talking about?

"Look, man. Don't listen to him. You know as well as I do that your brother is full of shit. He was probably just trying to psych you out or something. He loves playing games with you, remember?" Kwest told him as he walked over towards the truck. Tommy merely nodded, opting not to say anything. He could feel himself reverting back to that pathetic kid that Nathan had always forced him to be. He didn't understand why he let his brother get to him this much. He rarely saw him and didn't get that when he did see him, he turned into some wimpy younger brother. "Tom! Do NOT let him get to you again, okay? He's an ass. Everybody knows that! Hell, even _he_ knows that! You've gotta let this go before it eats you alive… and that's exactly what it's going to do if don't stop letting him get to you like this! You're already shutting down!"

"I am not," he offered weakly.

"Yeah you are. I get that there's bad blood between the two of you, okay? I get that. But it's in the past. Let it stay in the past, Tom." He grabbed some boxes and started for the complex once more. He yelled over his shoulder before disappearing completely, "Besides, what are the chances that you're going to see him again any time soon, man?"

Tommy thought about that and smiled. Kwest was right. He rarely saw Nathan, and when he did, he was only around for a day or two, so why should this time be any different? It wouldn't, right? Right.

He took a minute to collect himself, unable to believe the fact that he had let Nathan get to him _again_. He had sworn he was done being the inferior kid. He hated that person and he wasn't about to let himself fall apart just because his ass of a brother stopped by his apartment.

A thought occurred to him as he was deep in concentration… where was Jude? She had been gone a long time and he hadn't seen her come out of the building. He knew she had probably realized that she was letting herself have fun around him for once and it killed him that just the mere idea alone scared her as much as it did. He hung his head back and took a deep breath. He was going to fix this. He had no idea how and he had no idea if anything would even work. But he had to try. After all, he wasn't one to admit defeat.


	5. The Challenge

Yay! Time for a new update! I'm still so excited to see the response that this story is getting. I do like writing this story, so I'm happy that you all seem to like it as well! Thank you all so much for taking the time to read and comment. It makes my day.

Okay… now this chapter is kind of interesting. It gets into a little of the back-story of how Tommy and Jude met. I am nervous to post this, because I'm not sure how it's going to be received. But, if I get some positive feedback on the format of this particular chapter, that is how the rest of the story is going to work. In most chapters, I will probably place a flashback of when they were together, trying to explain what happened and what caused them to fall apart.

Somebody had asked how old Tommy was. Well, Tommy is around 24 or 25. I should explain that Jude was _not_ with Tommy when he got the Viper. Somebody had brought up his age when I had the line about him having the Viper since he was 20, so I thought I'd make it a little clearer. I will explain how she knows about that later, though. No worries.

So without further ado… chapter 5!

Chocolateelephantz- Yeah, normally it is Tommy's fault, which is why I was wary about writing it this way. But it seemed to work better and I'm hoping it's a little more different than what readers are used too, so we'll see! Fingers crossed! And I love Kwest too. Nathan's got the potential to be a very dynamic character. He more than likely won't always be so predictable, but as of right now, he's the typical ass, so it's only fitting that Kwest punched him. Well thank you for the compliment, but it's true. I've always struggled with my writing and for a long time I took a break, so I'm happy that people seem to be enjoying this. And I'm also glad that you liked the chapter. I was very pessimistic with this chapter because it was so hard to get the finished product out, so thank you for the confidence boost. Lol. Sorry they didn't kiss. Hehe. Eventually that's going to change, because well, this is a Jommy after all. And I will say right now that Jude was _not_ the girl that was involved with Nathan way back when. The girl was, as a you put it, a random. Thanks for taking the time to write the review! I appreciate it!

Love2burn4tim- Well, you will find out eventually what happened to make them break up. This chapter starts to unfold their past so I hope you like it!

Carlz02- Well I'm glad you were bored too! Lol. I know that sounds bad, but… hehe. I'm glad you like it. I also likd it when Kwest punched Nathan… mainly just because it's so out of character. LOL. Thanks for reviewing and I hope you like the next chapter!

JommyIS4ever- Well thank you! I actually like the background stories for each of the characters for this story, so I'm excited you do as well! I hope the next chapter doesn't disappoint!

Plosergurl- Ah, well don't worry. There will definitely be more brotherly interaction and as for whether or not Jude will cause any of the friction… I can't really say. It's a secret. Hehe.

Letitrain810- What Nathan said will come into play soon. It will be a major shock for Tommy, but in reality it's nothing _that_ huge. To him, it's a big deal, but to any oustsider, they wouldn't see the big deal. And I guess you'll find out if you were right or wrong about Jude. Hehe. Thanks for the review!

Bubblebuttsbabe- Thank you! Yeah, I was a little unsure about that part, so thanks for bringing that bit up. LOL. The reason why Kwest does not know about Jude will be revealed in later chapters. I don't really have an outline or anything like that planned, so I can't even give you an educated guess as to when that will come out, but I will bring that into play. Hehe. I thought that might make for some amusing comedy… as for Jude blackmailing, well yeah. I thought it would be a nice use of irony. Hehe. Jude is very hot and cold, but it's like that for a reason. As you said, she's struggling with everything. She knows she shouldn't have moved in, but she agreed to it in a moment of weakness. Unfortunately, this type of behavior from her will continue for a little while. I'm not a fan of Nathan either. He's such an ass. And of course it's going to cause drama. LOL. You'll just have to wait and see how bad. Well, Tommy has the best of intentions to fix things with Jude… but he's off to a pretty crappy start in this chapter. Lol. Thanks for the review and I hope you like the update!

Driver picks the music- Eh. Once you've experienced drama, it kind of takes the novelty out of it. LOL. So for me, there's definitely such a thing as too much drama. The deal with his brother will eventually be revealed, so just keep reading… said in the singsong tone of Dori from _Finding Nemo. _"Just keep reading, just keep reading." Lol.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Instant Star… obviously.

* * *

Chapter 5

"The Challenge"

Jude stood at the window, remembering the scene that had just played out a few moments before. She hadn't really gotten the opportunity to see who the other man was, but if somebody like Kwest punched him, it must have been bad. She didn't know Kwest very well at all or anything like that, but from what she could see so far, she knew that he was not a violent person in the slightest. She sighed, wondering what could have been so bad that would have resulted in Kwest punching that guy.

She shrugged it off, trying to tell herself that she shouldn't care about the goings-on in Quincy's life. But she couldn't get rid of the nagging feeling in the pit of her stomach that something wasn't right about that visit from the mystery man. She wished she could have seen this guy's face. She didn't know what good it would have done, but she just couldn't shake the little voice in the back of her head that was telling her something was wrong with the whole situation that had just played out in front of her.

She groaned in frustration and kicked at her new bedpost. She should not be worrying about what just happened down there. Not at all. Tom Quincy was not her problem and she was growing more and more frustrated by the fact that she was letting that display out in the parking lot bother her.

She sighed and sat down on her mattress. She needed something to get her mind off of this, but she had no idea what to do.

As she stared at the ceiling, a thought occurred to her. It was such a ridiculous thought that it just might possibly work. She hated to think about it though. It was like a four-letter word to her.

However, the dirty word entered her brain before she could even blink. Cleaning. _Did I really just resort to cleaning as a method to get Tom Quincy out of my brain?_ She grunted as she fell backwards. _Well, if I stay in here, then I won't have to go out there… and in here is safe. So get your ass up off the bed and start unpacking, Harrison._ She started mumbling to herself as she got up off the mattress in an attempt to argue with… well, herself. She hated cleaning. In fact, she hated doing any physical work of any kind unless she was getting something out of it, like money. But the work had to be done and she'd rather get it over with.

The boxes on the floor seemed to create a maze for her to work through. She really hadn't remembered packing that much and was amazed at the mess in front of her. She quickly decided that music would be the best remedy to help her get inspired to clean, so she fished through her CDs that she had brought in, hooked up her stereo, and pushed play, cranking the music up so loud that she wouldn't even be able to hear herself think.

Yes. This was just what she needed.

No thinking about him or his problems.

From here on out, it was going to be smooth sailing as far as she was concerned.

Jude rolled her eyes at the thought. _Yeah right._ When he was involved, nothing was smooth sailing.

* * *

Tommy and Kwest made their way back in the building with the last of Jude's things. He was relieved to not have to deal with anymore of her stuff, especially after his run-in with Nathan. Though he was determined to fix the situation at hand, right now he just needed his space. And some quiet. 

He couldn't wait to get into his apartment and kick back and relax, maybe watch a little t.v. As he and Kwest were exiting the elevator, sound started vibrating through the hallway. He furrowed his brow in confusion. That never happened here; it was one of the reasons he liked this building so much. "What the…" Tommy trailed off, unable to determine where the sound was coming from. As long as it wasn't coming anywhere near his place, he didn't care. He glanced at Kwest, trying to see if he had an idea of where the music was coming from, but he merely shrugged his shoulders.

"Whoever it is has great taste in music, even if the decimal levels are a little obnoxious."

Tommy grunted and began making his way into the apartment. The closer he got to his door, the more his frustration built. He quickly realized the offensive noise (he didn't care if it did happen to be one of his favorite bands blaring through the hall—it still annoyed the hell out of him) was coming from his apartment. As soon as he opened his door, the sound got considerably louder. "Oh hell…" he set Jude's stuff down on the floor and Kwest started laughing. "Dude, shut up. She is blaring that crap so loud that it can be heard from the freakin' hallway! I'm not getting booted for noise complaints!"

He marched upstairs, groaning as the music grew louder with each step he took. By the time he reached Jude's door, he got the full effect of the sound waves, even in the hall. It was amazing to him that she still even possessed her hearing capabilities. He banged on the door endlessly, trying to get a response from her. "JUDE! Open the damn door!"

He pounded again, angry that she was ignoring him. There was no way she couldn't hear him. "JUDE!" He was getting read to hit the door again, his fist in mid-knock, when the door opened with the music blaring from the inside.

"What?" she barked at him. He blinked. She was pissed at him? He was growing more and more frustrated by the second and the fact that he was still peeved because of the visit from his lovely brother didn't help matters much.

Tommy stood at the door, taking in her defiant stance. They were getting along just fine in the parking lot and now she was back to _this._ He had forgotten how temperamental she was.

"You need to turn that damn music down, that's what!"

Jude nodded and as he turned around, he didn't notice the smirk she had forming on her lips. He thought it was strange that she didn't fight him on it, that she agreed so quickly. She fought with him on just about everything so why was this any different? He decided not to question his stroke of good luck and he was halfway down the stairs when the music got louder, stopping him dead in his tracks. _Of course. I should have known there would be a catch. It was too easy._ Kwest was there and he was silently laughing at the scene playing out before him.

Tommy glared at him with a look that said, 'don't even go there or I'll kill you.'

At this look, Kwest started laughing out loud, doubled over at the look on Tommy's face. "Please, I just punched your ass of a brother. You won't kill me," he stated, a little too cockily for Tommy's liking. Sometimes his best friend could have a little too much confidence, even if this time he happened to be correct in what he was saying.

He sighed and headed back up towards the stairs. This was going to be the living arrangement from hell; he could tell already.

As he ascended the stairs, he could feel the anger in him stewing at her childishness and it took every ounce of strength in him to try and keep it in check. But he had always had a short fuse.

He knew going in there would probably be a mistake because Jude knew how to rile him and make him lose his temper, but he wasn't going to roll over and play dead.

If she wanted a fight, he would give her one.

* * *

Jude was going through more boxes as she thought about how much she probably just pissed him off. She allowed herself to laugh a little at how beyond angry he was going to be at her juvenile antics. 

Yeah, she knew she was being childish and un-reasonable, but she honestly couldn't care less. Tommy Quincy was used to having everything his way and she was going to change that.

She was putting some clothes away in her underwear drawer when Tommy came bursting through the door, his face seething with anger. She glared at him as he walked over to the stereo and turned it off.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?!"

"Turning the noise down, which I asked you to do the first time I came up here!"

"What right do you have to just barge in here?!"

"It's MY apartment Jude! That's what gives me the right!" he yelled right back at her, angry that she thought she had the right to be the angry one.

"It may be _your_ apartment, but this," she pointed around the room, giving extra emphasis on the space they each occupied, "is _my_ room, which means PRIVACY!"

She watched him work his jaw, a sure sign that he was beyond pissed, but she didn't care. "Well when your damn stereo cuts into _my_ privacy, that takes away the right to your own!"

"Who the hell made up that rule?"

"It's called courtesy Jude! We could hear this crap all the way out in the hallway! If we get noise complaints, guess what! That means you're out of a place to live. Again!"

"I hardly believe that if you get one measly noise complaint they'd kick you out!"

"In this complex, the noise policy is extremely strict, so do me a favor and listen to your angry girl music at a reasonable decimal level!" he paused and looked around the room for a second. "Why was that so loud anyway?"

Jude felt her face flush. She immediately turned away from him and stared out the window, trying to think of a response to his sensible question. Normally she didn't listen to music that loud and because of the time they spent together when they were dating, she was pretty he knew that.

She couldn't very well tell him that she had the stereo cranked so loud so she could ignore her own thoughts that _he_ happened to be invading.

She could already see the smug look on his face if he were to know that.

Yeah, that's definitely out.

She grinned, thinking of the perfect response. Turning around, she stared him down and said in a slightly seductive tone, "What can I say, Quincy? I like it loud," he had been fiddling with a trinket from one of the shelves and upon hearing her response, he nearly dropped the item on the floor. She rolled her eyes at the predictability of his actions. "Perv."

"W-what? I wasn't—"

She started laughing at the look on his face, "Please! You have a one-track mind Quincy. You always have, you always will."

His face turned from a slightly embarrassed look to an indignant look. He scoffed as he started to walk towards her, "Like you weren't trying to gauge that kind of reaction from me."

Jude rolled her eyes and laughed, "I don't need to _try_ to get that kind of reaction from you. You live in the gutter, so it's not that difficult to—" she stopped herself as she realized that she was admitting he was right; that she was trying to provoke him.

She hated the smirk forming on his lips and was mentally kicking herself for being so careless.

"So you weren't trying to get a reaction, huh?" He took another step forward, "You do realize you're playing with fire here, right?"

She narrowed her eyes in confusion. "What are you talking about?"

He continued walking towards her and she scurried away from him as far as she could. Bad things happened when he was in close proximity.

Of course, she only had herself to blame for getting into the mess in the first place. She never stopped to take the time to think about anything before she spoke.

She was too damn impulsive.

And that's what had attracted her to Hurricane Quincy in the first place.

* * *

_TWO YEARS AGO_

_"Patsy, what if we get caught?" _

_"We won't get caught. These I.Ds are foolproof." _

_Jude rolled her eyes at her friend. "Pats, this is one of the hottest clubs in town. Do you really think we're going to be able sneak past those big, very scary bouncers?" _

_Patsy sighed and took a swig out of her flask. "Relax blondie." Jude sighed as the familiar nickname rolled off Patsy's tongue. She never understood why Patsy called her blondie, especially since she had red hair. She also thought it best not to ask. _

_"Johnny's the best. He used to do work for the government." _

_Jude's interest was definitely peaked at this newfound information. "Right. And how is it that you just happen to know this guy again?" _

_Patsy hesitated, "Don't laugh." _

_"Why would I laugh?" _

_She scowled at Jude. "I'm serious, if you do—" _

_"Okay, chill! I won't laugh. Now what's the deal, mysterio?" _

_She mumbled something, but Jude couldn't make out what it was because Patsy had covered it up with a lame coughing fit. _

_"I'm sorry, what?" _

_Patsy let out a defeated sigh as she looked anywhere but Jude's way. "He's my brother." _

_Jude knew she promised she wouldn't, but she couldn't help it. She started howling at the news of Patsy's brother. Patsy had always made up some story about how he did something too embarrassing to talk about. _

_Jude heard Patsy growl as she continued her relentless laughing fit, but as soon as she looked up and saw the look on Patsy's face, the laughter instantly died in her throat. "Sorry." _

_They started approaching the front of the line and Johnny was never brought up again, not because Patsy had issues with her brother, but because she hated that she had somebody in her family that had worked for 'the man'. With Patsy being the rebel-type, that didn't exactly bode well with her. _

_When they finally reached the door, Jude looked over at Patsy, who was annoyingly calm as she whipped out her fake I.D. "Care-bear?" She asked, her eyes wide and full of surprise as she eyed the bouncer. _

_"Cupcake? Is that you?" The very muscular bouncer grinned wildly at Patsy and swooped her in for a hug. Jude had expected the punk princess to cringe at the obvious nickname, but instead, she only laughed as she returned the hug with just as much fervor. _

_Care-bear? Cupcake? _

_Did she step into an alternate reality or something? _

_"What are you doing here, Cupcake? And what's with the outfit?" _

_"It's how I roll now, Care. Surely Johnny's mentioned the new lifestyle, eh?" _

_'Care-bear' sighed and nodded. "I was hoping he was lying." _

_Patsy started laughing. "Johnny? Lie?" _

_The bouncer rolled his eyes and shook his head as he looked at the I.D. "The man produces fake I.Ds for a living now, Pats. Lying wouldn't be so unheard of for him." _

_"But it's _Johnny,_ Carey. Johnny Do-right, remember him?" _

_"I know Johnny's work Pats. This has to be his stuff. Nobody's _that_ good." _

_"So? I'm his sister. Remember? Of course he's going to give me this kind of stuff." She sighed and shook her head. "He would never produce fake I.Ds for a living, Care-bear." _

_Carey looked guilty as eyed Patsy warily. "I shouldn't let you in, Cupcake. You're hardly legal and I doubt _she_ is either." He said with a nod towards Jude. _

_"Please Care? What about all those times I got you and Pinocchio out of trouble?" _

_Carey frowned. "That's a low-blow." _

_"Hey. You know you owe me." _

_Carey sighed and reluctantly stepped aside, letting the two pass through. "Tell Johnny and Pinocchio I said hey." _

_Patsy nodded and grabbed Jude by the arm, dragging her through the club. To be honest, the mere fact that Patsy was even here surprised Jude. This was very… un-Patsy. Patsy liked the dingy, holed up bars and this was the complete opposite of that. It was mainstream. _

_"Uh, _Cupcake_, why are we here again, might I ask?" Jude asked with a smirk. _

_Patsy glared at her. "_Don't_ call me Cupcake. Only he gets to call me that." _

_"What's with the nicknames?" _

_"A very long, involved story." _

_"And… Pinocchio?" _

_"Other brother," she stated flatly. "Look blondie, I have some business to take care of, so I'll be back. Go buy a drink or somethin'. Or better yet, use those womanly wilds of yours and get a guy to buy you a drink," she replied with an amused smirk before disappearing into the swarm of sweaty, grinding bodies occupying the dance floor. _

_Jude rolled her eyes and proceeded to head towards the bar direction, finding the perfect seat. Placing her purse on the counter, she hoisted herself up on the barstool and watched the bartender walk over towards her. _

_"What can I get for ya?" _

_"Club soda, please." _

_The bartender gave a small nod and proceeded to fix her drink when Jude noticed a stunningly beautiful man sitting at the opposite end of the bar. Normally she didn't bother with guys. Not after what happened in her last relationship. So it was surprising to her that she even bothered noticing his good looks. _

_But there was something about him._

_Maybe it was his eyes? She wasn't even that close to him and the sea of blue already captivated her. _

_He was engaged in apparent flirting with some redhead. Jude rolled her eyes and forced herself to look away. _

_One look and she already knew he was one of those types. _

_He was the last thing she needed. _

_The bartender returned with her drink and she could only assume he saw the look she passed the mystery man. Was that a sympathetic headshake he gave her? _

_Oh Lord, that was not a good sign. Not at all. _

_

* * *

Tom Quincy was going to kill Vin Spiederman. He told the guy over and over again that he was not interested in going out tonight, but what's he do? _

_He drags Tommy's sorry ass to the 'most happening' club scene in Toronto. Just great. _

_Now here he was, trying to pretend like he was actually interested in this chick that was trying to place herself in his lap. _

_He had to suppress an eye roll because he was not interested at all. _

_She was hot, sure. But she was also predictable. _

_Just like all the others. _

_He wanted something different. _

_A challenge. _

_He let out a sigh as he realized that challenges were hard to find these days. All he had to do was flash his signature smile, spew a few mindless compliments, and the girls were ready and willing. Where's the thrill in that? _

_It was all so boring. _They_ were all boring. _

_This redhead was boring. _

_He had always thought redheads were supposed to be… feisty. _

Guess not_, he thought to himself._

_Despite the fact that she wasn't what he wanted, he was getting ready to use the 'Quincy-charm' and get lucky. _

_That was until he noticed her._

_The girl wasn't achingly beautiful by any means. That was what baffled him. _

_He could already tell she wasn't his type. _

_So why was he so drawn to her? _

_He shifted uncomfortably in his seat, willing the feeling to go away, but it remained… stubbornly so. _

_He felt his breath hitch in his throat as he felt her eyes bore into his profile. What was wrong with him? He hadn't even spoken two words to that girl over there and he could feel her eyes on him without even looking up? _

_That was so wrong; This never happened. At least not to him. _

_It was then that he made a decision. It was time to get rid of the current redhead occupying his time and go over to the new one. The one that looked… like a challenge. _

_He excused himself from his dull conversation, not noticing and not caring about the disappointed look that graced the beautiful features of Laura, Lindsay… whatever her name was, face. _

_As he approached the girl, he felt his confidence rising and got ready to use his million-dollar smile. _

_He sat down next to her, earning an amused glance from her. "Hi." _

_She looked him up and down, her expression implying boredom. He began to feel slightly uncomfortable. "Hi." _

_He cleared his throat, trying to ignore the nervous feeling that was starting to over-ride his confidence. "So, can I buy you a drink?" _

_He immediately shut his eyes at the stupidity of his question. Real smooth, Quincy._

_Almost afraid to open his eyes, he dared to anyway, and saw that she was clearly bored with his presence. "I already have one." _

_"I can see that. What if I buy you the next one?" _

_"What if you don't? Let's see how that option works out, huh?" _

_Tommy blinked. Did she just turn him down? _

_Just as Tommy was ready to throw in the towel, he grinned. _

_She was just what he wanted. _

_A challenge. _

_And he was going to win. _


	6. You've Just Declared War

Oh wow. I'm a horrible updater! I am so sorry! I guess this is what happens when you have too many fanfictions, plus school, and friends to keep happy. Oh dear. I am so, so, sorry. I promise, I will try to be better with getting this updated in a more timely fashion.

In other news, as you will see, I do have an update, but once again… I'm not happy with it. With certain parts of it, I'm almost somewhat satisfied with it, but still, I don't know. I know what I don't really like about it and it's the flashback for this chapter. I'm really trying to get this story to gain momentum, but it just seems like it's taking forever and for that I apologize.

I want to say in general, thank you to all who read. However, if you've read and have yet to comment, please do so. Feedback is appreciated and it really does help me get out of the occasional writing slums I get myself into. Suggestions are always welcome! Also, if you have any ideas about the over-all story, or any theories, feel free to send me a message!

Anyway… on with the individual thank-you's!

Love2burn4tim- I'm glad you find the situation humorous. It's certainly fun to write, so that's a plus for me. More about their relationship will be revealed with each flashback… perhaps with more fights as well. So just sit back and enjoy the ride! Thanks for the comment and I hope you enjoy the update!

Chocolateelephantz- Well thank you! I'm glad you think that this is good and hope that it will stay that way. Lol. As for the Jude picking cleaning over Tommy… It's not so much that she was picking the actual cleaning over him, it was that she was choosing to stay in the room and decided she might as well be productive while she was at it. Plus, it was an excuse to avoid him. And it's always more fun when Tommy gets the upper hand. Duh! ;) Now for the whole Patsy situation and being nicknamed Cupcake, eventually that will get explained. LOL. I just thought it would be amusing to see Patsy have a nickname like that. And yes, Tommy certainly got a challenge. He honestly doesn't know what he's in for. As for the flashbacks, I'm going to attempt to write in a flashback for each chapter and see how it goes. Thanks for the lovely compliments and I hope you enjoy the new update!

Funnechick- I'm glad you enjoyed the flashbacks and I most certainly did pick up with the bedroom scene. Hope you enjoy it and thanks for taking the time to review!

Alexzrules- Yes, Tommy certainly did get what he wanted. And not to worry. Nathan will be back in the picture soon enough and you'll probably wish he wasn't. Haha. And I never really mentioned what Jude was playing. Tommy was just being difficult because Jude was being obnoxious. He did like the band that was playing, but he wasn't about to let that stop him from laying into her. Lol. Thanks for the review and I hope you enjoy the newest chapter!

Letitrain810- Glad you like the music part. I did have fun writing that. And the challenge part was more on Tommy's end. Jude was genuinely trying to stay un-interested. But we all know how that worked out, eh? Hehe. Eventually, all will be revealed about what went wrong. Thanks for the feedback and I hope you like the update!

Ihearttq- I'm glad you like it! Thanks for commenting:D

Addicted2IS- Yup. They met a club—thanks to Patsy. Lol. And the music thing… yeah, I'd do that too because I've got attitude like that. Haha. At least I did when I was teenager. I was a little much to take, so I thought I'd implement that into my writing. Glad you enjoyed it and I hope you like the new chapter.

Driver picks the music- Actually I kind of have to disagree about the television and too much drama. I think there are quite a few shows out there that tend to overdo it. CoughDegrassiCough. Lol. I'm happy you liked that chapter and hope you enjoy the next one as well:D

Bubblebuttsbabe- Eh, most people I know don't mind them, that's for sure. I'm particularly fond of them myself, actually. :D And yes, I've done that too. It really pissed my parents off, too. LOL. I don't know how I got out of being grounded with that one, but some how, I managed. I'm glad you liked the fight. I really enjoy writing fights for Tommy and Jude. It's a lot of fun, so I'm pleased to hear that it resembles them! Thanks! I also like impulsive Jude. I wanted to bring back the fierce, take-no-prisoners Jude from season 1. I loved that Jude :D I'm glad you like the flashback and enjoyed the Patsy scene. I love Patsy myself and was highly disappointed when they killed her off on the show. So disappointing. And I liked that line too. I was rather partial to it when I wrote it. One of the few lines of mine that I like. Haha. Thanks for the review and here's the update! Enjoy :D

* * *

Chapter 6

"You've Just Declared War"

Tommy tried to hold back a smirk as he watched Jude scurry away from him. _She's not very bright,_ he thought sarcastically to himself. She had backed right into the wall and she was on the side of the room that was opposite of the door. All he had to do was take a few more steps and he would have her cornered.

"Go away, Tommy," she squeaked as he took those few steps he needed.

He could tell he was making her uncomfortable. He knew that her body would still react to his touch if he would try it. How did he know? Well, the electricity in the room became almost unbearable as he rested his left hand on the wall just above her shoulder. He also noticed that her breathing became significantly heavier and while he normally would have grinned at the sight, he couldn't. Mostly he couldn't because, in reality, the situation made him nervous himself.

This was new territory for him. Usually after he dated girls, the break-up was final. He almost never had residual feelings.

Jude Harrison would be the second girl, and last if he had anything to say about it, that he had failed to make the spark go away.

"You really should think before you speak, girl. Especially if you can't handle the consequences."

"I don't have any idea what you're talking about," she declared stubbornly. Tommy had to stop his eyes from rolling at her stubbornness. He knew she knew what he was talking about.

He watched in amusement as her eyes fluttered around the room, obviously looking for an escape. Tommy chuckled at the sight, "You have nowhere to go, Harrison," he replied confidently.

Little did he know, his confident remark was about to be shot to hell.

He noticed her eyes roam to his right and that's when he saw the walk-in closet. She wouldn't. Would she?

Before he could even blink, she slipped away and ran straight for the closet, closing it before he even made a move away from the wall. He'd underestimated her. Something he mistakenly made a habit of doing. He really should have learned his lesson by now when it came to her. "Seriously Jude? You'd rather stay in the closet?"

"Yep," she replied stubbornly.

Suddenly a devious thought occurred to Tommy as he realized his golden opportunity. "Okay," he tried to be as nonchalant as he could, but he failed to hide the hint of mischievousness in his voice.

"Tommy… what are you doing?" her tone was very accusatory, which only amused him that much more.

"I'm leaving. That is what you want, right?" he really was having a hard time not laughing, but somehow managing to not make it blatantly obvious that he was chuckling.

He quietly snuck over to the chair that was sitting in the corner of the room and securely placed it under the handle of the door, making sure that Jude wouldn't be able to get out of the closet.

Obviously she didn't hear the door handle jiggling as the chair was being placed under it because she went on with the conversation as though he hadn't just pulled the wool over her. "Of course it is!"

"Have it your way then. Have fun unpacking." He started walking out of the room and heard Jude trying to get out of the closet. The door handle was being moved back and forth and he could venture to guess that it was that moment that she probably realized he locked her in there, she began pounding mercilessly on the door.

"Easy on the door. I really don't want to have to get it replaced," he remarked sarcastically, unable to hold back the grin forming on his lips.

"Damn you Quincy! Open the door!"

"I'm sorry, what was that?" He couldn't contain his laughter any longer. He knew this was adding fuel to the fire, but he honestly didn't care. This was too much fun to pass up.

"You ass! You heard me, now open the fucking door!"

"Language, girl. That's really not very nice."

He chuckled when he heard her mutter words that would make any mother weep. She was still the same. Stubborn, foul-mouthed, and bull-headed.

"You kiss your mother with that mouth, Harrison?"

It was at that point that Kwest came barreling in the room, confusion clouding his features. "What the hell is going on in here?"

Tommy feigned a look of innocence. "Just me complying with Jude's wishes. I was just getting ready to leave, actually."

"Don't you dare, Quincy!"

He laughed as he walked back over to the closet door and leaned against his shoulder. "Now I'm confused, girl. Didn't you just say less than a minute ago that you'd rather stay in the closet than be out here in this nice, spacious room?"

He put his ear to the door, trying to listen to any kind of reaction. He could have been mistaken, but he could have sworn he heard her growl.

"Dude, maybe you should let her out?"

Tommy arched an eyebrow at Kwest. "You wanna go open that door?"

Just as he finished asking the question, there was a loud bang on the door, causing the two men to jump from the unexpected noise. Kwest eyed the door warily and started making his way back towards the main door. "I think I'll pass."

"Smart choice," Tommy chuckled.

He looked over at Kwest and saw that he looked almost disappointed. "What's up?"

"She was supposed to make me some food, man. I'm hungry!"

Tommy rolled his eyes and started laughing when Jude started shouting at them again to open the door. He shook his head and gave Kwest a pat on the back as he led him out of the room. "Come on, dude. Let's go order a pizza." A thought occurred to him and he realized that she was probably starved, so he decided to mess with her head a little. "I'm thinking some nice, juicy pepperoni… maybe some mushrooms… green peppers."

He smirked as Jude shouted, "You HATE that combination, you dick!" He crinkled his nose in disgust because he did, in fact, hate that combo. He just knew it was her favorite, so he decided to dangle it in front of her.

Kwest raised his eyebrows in amusement, "Has she always been that colorful?"

"Always a handful," he confirmed.

They began walking towards the door and paused when they heard Jude laughing. It sent chills down his spine; he didn't like the sound of that… "Quincy. You just declared war," she laughed through the door.

"I'm real scared, Harrison." He shoved Kwest out the door and swiftly shut the door behind them, but not before hearing Jude utter one last threat to the both of them.

He looked over at Kwest, who actually looked scared. "Maybe we should go let her out," Kwest replied timidly.

Tommy grinned and patted Kwest on the back, "Relax dude. You're forgetting that whatever she dishes out, she'll get back twice as bad. You and I are the prank masters—the girl's got nothing on us."

Kwest laughed, "I suppose you're right. So how 'bout that pizza?"

He nodded and led the way downstairs. "Pizza."

* * *

Jude was seething in the closet. Okay… maybe she _had_ set herself up for this when she locked herself in the closet, but she really wasn't expecting him to trap her in here. 

When she was listening to Kwest and Tommy mumbling through the door, she had come to a decision.

She was going to make their lives hell.

Now, she didn't have anything against Kwest, but he was an accomplice to Tommy's little game that he had just played, whether he realized it or not. So now, he was fair game.

As she thought about all the various ways she could make their lives hell, a brilliant thought occurred to her.

She knew Tommy prided himself on being the master of cranks and pranks, but he had no idea what she was capable of, mainly because she had never engaged in any of the pranks he set up while they had been together. It had amused her, sure, but she found it even funnier that he had no idea how much of a devious mind she truly had. She knew that it would come to her advantage at some point… and this was it.

The fact that she was living in the same apartment with him was going to make her job a whole hell of a lot easier… and harder. She would certainly have to be cautious around him, that was for sure. But she already was, so that wouldn't be a problem.

What would be a problem though was Tommy in general. He played dirty and would do anything to come out as the victor.

So, whatever she gave out, she knew she had to be prepared to get it back twice as bad.

On the plus side, she knew his tactics, so she had an advantage. Tommy didn't even know that she _had_ tactics. Add another point in her favor.

She would always have an advantage because she knew that he underestimated her.

And she was counting on that.

"Prepare yourself Tom Quincy. You're going to wish you never met me… just like I already do with you."

* * *

_Jude had to hold back a laugh at the look on his face when she turned him down. He looked positively stunned._

_However, the laughter that was threatening to come life quickly died down at the sight of the grin that was playing on his lips. It gave her an uneasy feeling. _

_He leaned against the bar, propping his elbow up on the counter-top. "Now I'm not sure I like that option…" he trailed off and tilted his head to the side. "Actually, on second thought, how about we forget the drink for now. I have a better idea." His eyes held a hint of mischievousness, which intrigued her. _

_Jude raised an eyebrow, disgustingly interested in what he had to say. It was those damn eyes… his eyes were her weakness. Damn him. There was something about those sparkling blue orbs that pulled her further to him, as much as she wanted to resist it. She tried not to let it show that she was being affected by his magnetism, but she could guess that she was failing miserably. _

_He smirked, and she inwardly groaned. Jude figured he had taken notice in her sudden change in demeanor. He pushed off from the bar and came around behind her, shocking her when he tucked her loose hair behind her ears. His touch was electric and she felt it in every inch of her veins. "I want you to dance with me," he said it so slowly and so sensually as he whispered in her ear, that it sent shivers down her spine… and she found herself having a hard time saying 'no' to that request. _

_"My name's Tom, by the way." _

_She felt herself being pulled from her barstool, not that she was putting up much of a fight. Not at all. Before she knew what was happening, she saw that he had snaked his arms around her waist and pulled her backside even closer to him. He leaned in further to her and she could practically feel his lips on her ear. "Give in… you know want to." _

_She had almost done it. _

_She had almost caved. _

_And she was so glad that she didn't. _

_"You really are arrogant, aren't you?" _

_He dropped his hands from her waist and had come back around to her right side and was now facing her, once again. She noticed him smirk again. "No," he replied smugly. _

_Fighting the urge to laugh, she raised an eyebrow and folded her arms across her chest. "Really? What would you call it then?" _

_"I'm not arrogant. I'm just… confident." _

_She rolled her eyes, unable to keep from doing so. He would call it confidence. "The way I see it, you're arrogant." _

_Tom laughed. "And the way I see it, you're a snob." _

_Jude's eyes widened at his bluntness. "Excuse me?" _

_He nodded and moved closer to her. "You're a snob." _

_"And you know this how, based on what?" _

_"You're not even giving me a chance. You think you have me all figured out and it's clear that you've already decided that I'm scum of the earth. That's a snob. Not to mention, that's a person who's highly judgmental. You don't even know me." _

_Jude laughed. Maybe she didn't know _him_, but she knew his type. And his type was dangerous. "Okay, so you weren't just flirting shamelessly with that redhead over there a few minutes ago?" _

_He crinkled his nose in confusion. She begrudgingly noted that he looked pretty adorable with his face all scrunched up like that. "What does that have to do with anything?" _

_"I'm trying to prove a point to you." _

_"Which would be…?" _

_Jude sighed, "I'm saying that while I may not know _you_, I know your type." _

_"My 'type'?" he looked like he was slowly growing irritated with her. Which was a good thing for her. Maybe he would give up eventually. "And what exactly is 'my type'?" he mused. _

_"Your type is the type of guy that gets everything he wants. You're probably used to having women fawn all over you, am I right?" _

_He frowned, "That's actually not true." _

_"Right. And I don't judge people." She knew she was judgmental. But she couldn't help it. She had to be. She had been burned far too many times to not be. _

_"I—" _

_The redhead he was with earlier cut him off abruptly, interrupting their conversation. She didn't look happy. "Tom, I thought we were going to go dance together..." she replied seductively, indicating that they would be doing more than 'dancing'. _

_Jude smiled, waiting for him to accept the woman's invitation. That was a girl who was willing to throw herself at this man's feet… that woman was easy. Even she could see it. _

_"Lindsay—" _

_The woman scowled, but was clearly not put off. "It's Sarah." _

_Tommy rolled his eyes and Jude was trying really hard not to laugh. He was just proving her point. And he knew it. _

_

* * *

_

_Tommy groaned. _

_This woman was not making his life easy. _

_Couldn't she see he wasn't interested in her, that he was busy? _

_"I'm sorry Sarah, but I'm kind of pre-occupied at the moment." _

_He watched as the redhead he was currently trying to woo quirked another eyebrow at him. She was really starting to annoy him and he was beginning to wonder if it was worth it. He didn't even know her name for crying out loud. _

_"Oh no, Tom. Don't turn down the lady's offer on my account. Besides, I already turned you down, remember?" _

_Tommy gritted his teeth in frustration, questioning his sanity when he decided he had wanted a challenge. Seriously, what had he been thinking? _

_As he was about to respond, _Sarah_ inched closer to him and tried pull him out to the dance floor. He saw her lust-filled eyes and that was what caused him to remember why he wanted a challenge. It was too easy. _

_He briefly began to wonder if this beauty sitting next to him was the jealous type, but didn't want to chance it. _

_He didn't want to prove her instincts about him right. _

_So he regretfully turned Sarah down, noting the look of disgust in her eyes. She was about to walk away when she turned and whispered something in the other girl's ear. _

_He wished he knew her name. _

_It was driving him insane that he knew nothing about her. _

_As he watched Sarah turn around to walk away again, he noted the look of panic in his mystery girl's eyes. _

_"What's wrong?" he asked, genuinely concerned as to what Sarah said to her. _

_"Nothing." _

_Tommy grunted and instantly knew that Sarah had gotten to her. _

_"What'd she say?" he continued to pry. _

_"Nothing," she repeated stubbornly. _

_His eyes grew wide as he saw she was getting ready to leave. He got up to follow her. _

_"Wait. Where are you going?" _

_She paused and peered over her shoulder. "Is that really any of your business?" _

_"At least tell me your name." _

_She cocked her head to the side, as if pondering the idea. _

_In the end, she shook her head and turned back around. He felt disappointment creep through his veins as she walked away from him. _

_This sucked. He knew nothing about her, so his only hope was running into her again by chance. And he hated leaving things that he wanted up for chance. _

_He hated not being in control of his own life. He hated playing things by ear. It's not that he wasn't spontaneous; because he was… he just didn't like the whole _Serendipity_ concept. He despised the idea of fate. _

_He sighed and turned towards the bartender, reclaiming his seat, and asked for a drink. _

_When the man placed his drink in front of him, Tommy decided to take a chance. "You don't happen to know who that redheaded woman was that was sitting here a minute ago is, do you?" _

_The man shook his head, "Sorry." _

_"Damn." _

_He turned to his drink and began to swirl the amber liquid in a circular motion. As he was about ready to take a drink, he felt an arm drape itself around his shoulder. _

_"How's it going, man?" _

_Tommy glared at his intruder. Vincent. _

_"Why did you drag me here tonight, Vincent?" _

_He tried not to laugh as he saw him wince. "Hated first name usage. Un-cool, dude." _

_Tommy grumbled and Spiederman laughed. "What's up your butt?" _

_"Nothing." _

_"Right and I'm Queen Latifah." _

_"What kind of comparison is that, dilhole?" _

_Spied rolled his eyes. "Seriously, dude. What's got your panties in a bunch?" _

_"I told you already, _Vincent_. I did not want to go out tonight and you drag me here?" _

_"Oh come on. I saw you earlier! You were chatting it up with some really fine looking redheads. Looked like you were about to get lucky, too." _

_"I wish. You couldn't be further from the truth." _

_Spiederman's eyes widened. "You mean you got turned down? By _both_ of them?" _

_Tommy laughed. "Oh no. Not both. Sarah probably would have done me right here at the bar." _

_Spiederman chuckled. "So what's the problem?" _

_He felt his face scrunch up in shame at his question. "The one I was after turned me down. Flat out. She wouldn't even tell me her name." _

_Spiederman was in full-on hysterics by this point and Tommy wanted nothing more than to punch him in the face. "Ha ha, laugh it up." _

_"I'm sorry. It's just that it's not every day that Tom Quincy gets turned down by a chick." _

_"You're telling me. God, I can't even remember the last time that happened." _

_"You must be losing your touch, old man." _

_Tommy growled and playfully engaged Spiederman in a headlock after stepping down from his chair. Vincent was still laughing as Tommy kept in the lock. "I am not an old man Vincent. You better take that back." _

_"I don't know, dude. I mean you said it yourself—you didn't even want to go out tonight. Since when does Tom Quincy not want to go out and party?" _

_"Can it, Vincent. Take it back or I'm going to tell Nikki about that time—" _

_"Okay, you're not an old man! I take it back!" _

_Tommy grinned and finally released him from the headlock. He knew Spiederman's weakness. _

_His sister. _

_As much as it disgusted Tommy to think about it, he could still use it to his advantage when he needed to. _

_Like he had right then. _

_"Right. As fun as this night has been for my ego, I think I'm going to call it a night. I'll see ya later, Vin." _

_"See ya dude." _

_Tommy had made it to the door and was getting ready to walk out when he heard a seductive whisper assault his ears. He also noted the same familiar scent from the woman at the bar earlier. He knew it was her before she even spoke. To be more accurate, his _body_ sensed it was her. "My name's Jude. Old man," she added playfully. _

_Before he could turn around and make sure it was her, she was gone. _

_Tommy grinned. _

_She had seen his little battle with Vincent, which meant that she had been watching him. _

_And that could only mean one thing. _

_She was interested. _

_And he was winning…_


	7. Author's Note

Oh Lordy.

I am so beyond sorry for neglecting this fiction.

For a while, I had gotten hit with a bad case of writers' block for this and then I just got sidetracked with other stories that I was working on and completely forgot about this one.

I will try and update it, but I don't know when it will happen because these next few weeks will be extremely crazy.

But I shall do my best to get an update out as soona as possible.

I love the number of responses that I've gotten to this and I appreciate every single review. You all are awesome, so for that reason alone, you will get another update eventually. I promise.

I just wanted to let you all know that even though I had momentary lapse of forgetfulness regarding this story, it will be back in the game soon...

Once again, sorry for the long delays and I hope I still have readers when the time comes for an update.

Peace and Much Love!


	8. Final Author's Note

Hello all

Yes, I'm afraid this is another pesky author's note. Sorry to fool you all into thinking otherwise.

So I have some bad news. I've scowered my computer and my external hard-drive, and it seems as though everything that I had written out for this story is gone, including the outline I had planned out. Normally, I would say no big deal and start over, but I can't remember what I had planned out for this because it's been so long since I've written anything for it.

That being said, perhaps one day, I'll pick this up and try again, but as of right now, this story is on a permanent hiatus. However, if I do try again, it will probably be a different setup and background information. I do happen to like a lot of stuff I've used, so I'll most likely keep the bits of it I do like, should the occassion rise where I opt to re-do this story.

If you have suggestions on what you would like for me to keep, please feel free to voice your opinions--including things you would change.

I am so sorry that everything got lost. I don't know what happened and I can't apologize enough to the readers who have stuck by the story and even to people that have just picked it up. I know how frustrating it is when you get into a story and it doesn't get finished.

Thank you all so much for the kind reviews and words of encouragement. I appreciate every single review and hope you keep up with anything I should publish here. You all have been great!

If you're interested, check out my latest Instant Star fiction: There and Back Again, which you can access by clicking on my name and finding it in my profile. Haven't quite figured out how to post a link in a document. Anyway, it's quite a bit different than Accidentally in Love and it has tons of drama. I'm rather fond of this story and hope you all will be too!


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Instant Star, Drama, Romance