((A/N: Hey, first of all, thanks for the reviews, they make me happy. :-) About the transistion from Drake to Alexis being weird... sorry about that. I had astrisks seperating it, but for some reason, this site took them out. Which was annoying. Anyways, I tried to fix it. Hopefully, there's a clear division now. Chapter 2 will be up shortly. Unless I find something more fun to do tonight.))

Drake Parker didn't believe in love. He believed in beautiful girls. He definitely believed in making out. But love? It didn't exist, unless it was in reference to music. Now that was his true love. It was the reason he'd spent the last 3 days in his car, driving cross country so he could attend college in New York City. Not that he wanted to go to college. What he wanted was a record deal, but the only way he could get his parents to agree to help him was if there was some sort of formal education involved. So college it was.

Drake reached down and adjusted the volume on his car's CD player. He leaned his head back against the seat wishing he were already in the Big Apple. This trip was dragging on way longer then he had thought it would. On the map New York had looked so much closer to California then it really was. Even he had to admit he was getting a little sick of his CDs. You can only listen to Dashboard so many times before it starts to get a little old. Drake rubbed the back of his neck, willing the hours to go by quicker. A green sign flashed by, announcing he only had 90 miles to go before he hit the city. He sighed, half relieved the long trip was almost over, and yet still dreading the next hour and a half.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Alexis Parker pulled an oversized sweatshirt over her head, walking into the living room of the cramped two bedroom apartment she shared with her best friend, Jorja. "Hey, Jo! Where are you?!"

"Out here!" Came a slightly muffled voice from the fire escape.

Alexis walked to the window, pushing it up, and leaning her head out. Jorja sat cross legged, a guitar was leaned against the building beside her, and a worn notebook was balanced on one knee. "Writing?" Alexis asked, raising her eyebrows at her friend, "You know, there's gotta be a more comfortable place to do that."

Jorja shrugged, "I like it out here. It's peaceful."

Alexis laughed out loud at that, "Yeah, peaceful. That's how I would describe the constant sounds of traffic, mixed in with the occasional siren. Peaceful."

Jorja stuck her tongue out, "It's still nice. I like being outside!"

"Hey, whatever works for you. Listen, I'm going to meet my cousin, remember the one I told you about, who just moved here from Cali? He's coming in to town tonight, and I told him I'd treat him to dinner. I think I'm gonna take him to that little diner off 99th. You wanna come?"

Jorja looked tempted, but shook her head, "I would, but I'm finally making a breakthrough with this chorus. If I leave it now, it might not come back to me."

"Alright, well, I'll bring you a burger home. Oh, and you might wanna check in on the store… Adam called in sick, and Everett's taking his place… Not that I don't trust him… Ok, that's a lie, I don't trust him."

Jorja wrinkled her nose, "Great. I swear that kid's as dumb as a box of rocks. Dumber, even. How he's managed to survive this long beats me."

Alexis jumped as her phone began vibrating in her pocket, she pulled it out, and checked the caller id, "That's Drake. I'll see you later tonight."

"Goodnight," Jorja answered, as Alexis disappeared back into the apartment.

"Hey, Drake," Alexis said, opening the phone with one hand as she grabbed her keys and her purse with the other, "Are you here?"

"Yeah, I just go to the dorm. We still gonna get something to eat? I'm starved."

"Yeah, I'm on my way, I'll be there in 15 minutes." Alexis closed the phone, and slipped it back into her pocket, jogging down the stairs, and pausing at the back door to the small music store she helped Jorja manage, which was located just beneath their apartment "Hey, Everett, I'm heading out, Jorja's upstairs, and I have my cell phone if you need me."

Everett lifted his head from the comic book it had been buried in, and looked blankly at her, "K."

It was all she could do to keep from rolling her eyes, before she allowed the door to swing shut, and headed out onto the street. It was cool for late summer, the autumn breeze already picking up. Alexis buried her hands into the front pocket of her sweatshirt, and quickened her pace, excited to see her cousin, who had been one of her best friends until her family had moved to New York, just a few weeks after her tenth birthday. She walked the 10 blocks to his dorm, easily avoiding people and cars who seemed determined to run into her. When she reached the front of his dorm, she pulled her cell phone out again, scrolling through her phone book to Drake's name, and hitting the send button. He answered on the first ring, "Hey, I see you, I'll be right down."

Alexis glanced up, using her hand as a shield against the sunlight and scanning the windows of the building. "Where are you?"

"Well, now I'm on the stairs," Drake answered, his voice echoing in the cement stairwell.

Alexis dropped her gaze, looking instead to the double glass doors of the building. She grinned, hanging up the phone, as she saw Drake appear, and moved to receive his hug. "Oh my gosh! Look at you! You're not even gawky any more!" Alexis exclaimed, finally pulling back from the hug.

Drake looked offended, "Hey, I was never gawky!"

"Trust me, you were gawky."

Drake shrugged, giving in, "Well, I seem to look fine now. Or at least the chicks seem to think so." He added, grinning, "Now, what about this food, I haven't eaten since eleven. I just wanted to get here."

"Yeah, follow me." Alexis said, turning and leading the way down the street, "I bet the drive sucked."

"I actually started getting sick of my music. Me!"

Alexis chuckled, "Yeah, I remember when we drove out here. It was horrible."

"So, tell me about New York," Drake said, pushing his hair out of his eyes, and looking down at his cousin, "How do you like it here?"

"It's amazing. I mean, It has it's bad parts, I guess, but mostly, it's pure energy." Alexis pushed open the door of the diner, smiling at the man standing behind the counter, "Hey, Bobby!"

"Alexis! It's been a while, I thought you'd been avoiding me!" The old man smiled, his eyes crinkling in the corners, "Where's Jo? I've never seen you here without Jo."

"Back at home, watching the store."

"Ah, well, have a seat, I'll send Annie right out with a menu for the young man."

Alexis smiled at him again, moving to slide into her usual booth, as Drake sat across from her.

"Wow, first name basis with the diner guy. Impressive."

Alexis grinned, rolling her eyes at him, "Yeah, what can I say, I know all the VIP's of this town."

"Good, maybe you can get me in with a record company or two."

"Yeah, right."

Annie, a waitress who appeared to be somewhere in her mid thirties came over, carrying a glass of Sprite in one hand, and a menu in the other. The Sprite she placed in front of Alexis, and the menu she handed to Drake. "What, no Jo today?" she asked.

Alexis shook her head, taking a swig of her Sprite.

"Well, what would you like to drink then?" Annie asked Drake, her rough New York accent making her sound tougher then she really was.

"Uh, I'll just have a coke."

"One coke, coming right up," Annie said leaving the table and heading to the back of the diner to get his drink.

Drake looked back at Alexis, raising his eyebrows, "So, Alex, who's this Jo guy everybody's always talking about, do you have a boyfriend now or something?"

Alexis almost spit out her Sprite, "No!" she choked out when she finally had herself under control, "Jo's my roommate. And she's a girl."

"Oh," Drake responded, already having lost interest as he studied the menu, "What's good here?"