"Tulsa!" she cried, hugging the big puppy affectionately. "How did you know that I was awake?" she asked. Tulsa just stared at her with his big golden eyes and panted, his tongue hanging out of the side of his mouth.

"That's it!" she cried to herself. "Ike, Taylor, and Zac are coming up from Tulsa today! That's what I couldn't remember." Then she realized that she was talking to herself, for Tulsa had run quickly out of the room when he heard Nicole's mother pouring dog food downstairs.

Nicole waited in restless anticipation all day, until finally she heard a door slam outside. She jumped up from her chair and almost tripped over Tulsa, who was asleep at her feet. She gave the dog an apologetic smile and rushed out the door to greet the guys, who she could see through the window. They certainly looked better than they had upon arrival last weekend, when they were tired beyond belief. Now, after a week of rest, the were bright-eyed, cheerful, and smiling.

"What took you guys so long!" Nicole joked as Ike grabbed her by the waist and swung her around. Taylor just shook his head, grinning at the fact that they were actually about an hour earlier than they had thought.

"Nic, check this out," Zac said, running up to Nicole, holding some sort of brightly colored sticks. "Some girl, a fan, sent these to me! For like, no reason! Aren't they great?" Nicole agreed that they were as Zac performed some tricks by holding two of the sticks and bouncing the other around between them.

"Yeah, we've been getting all kinds of presents since we've been home," Taylor said. "Tons of fan mail too. Like, bags and bags per DAY!"

"You should see this Nic," Isaac agreed. "We could pour all of it out in our garage and be buried alive! I don't think we'll ever have a chance to read it all, but Zac is determined too. He got a marriage proposal the other day."

"Too bad she didn't send a picture or anything," Zac said, as if he was seriously thinking about marrying this girl. Nicole, Taylor, and Isaac burst into laughter. "What?" Zac asked, confused. They just shook their heads and walked inside, Zac wandering in behind them, the thought of the proposal still in his head. He just couldn't figure out why a complete stranger would want to devote her whole life to him. That struck him as very strange.

"I'm so glad that you guys get to stay for the whole week this time," Nicole said. "Last weekend was great, but now you guys can really settle in and relax here. Like we used to," she added. "So where are you guys going next week?"

"Back to London for video number three," Isaac said. "We're releasing 'I Will Come To You' in October. And we're also-"

"Making a Christmas album," Zac exclaimed excitedly, cutting his brother off.

"And a home video!" Taylor cried. "It's going to be great.....maybe we'll put some footage of you as a little kid on it," he said wickedly. "Like that time when you were six and I was five, and we decided to 'skinny-dip' in the sprinklers in the yard!"

"Oh, you wouldn't dare do that!" Nicole cried in horror. "Oh, please please please say that you wouldn't!"

"Hey, I remember that!" Isaac said. "Sounds like a good idea Tay - all of our adoring fans can see you in the buff-"

"Okay, maybe not!" Taylor cried. "Let's just forget about that little memory....."

"I will, gladly!" Nicole said, grinning at Taylor. "It never happened."

"You know Ike," Zac said, rubbing his chin, "you should make copies of that, for you know, blackmail or something. These two could be our slaves for life!"

"Oh, would you do that Zacky-poo?" Nicole asked sweetly, standing from her place on her bed.

"You bet!" he joked.

"Oh, I see," Nicole said. Then she signaled Taylor, who had also risen. "GET HIM!" she cried, and both she and Taylor began to tickle Zac, who was helpless.

"AAAA!" he cried in mock-horror. "Stop it you guys! PLEEEE-ASE Stop! You're killing me here!" Zac continued to rant and rave until his giggles finally took control. When they saw him turn purple with laughter, they finally stopped. "Man, you guys are harsh!" he cried, grinning. "Okay, okay. I won't blackmail you with that video."

"Good," Taylor said, leaning back on the bed.

"I'll surely find another one that's just as good!" Zac cried. Then Nicole raised her hands as if to tickle him again. "JUST KIDDING! Just kidding!" he yelled, shielding himself jokingly as she sat back down on Isaac's lap.

"I know," Taylor said. "That was a great restaurant - I love Mexican food." They had finished off their afternoon by driving to a small Mexican cafe on the other side of town for dinner, and were almost thrown out for being too loud and obnoxious. It had been wonderful.

"Hey, I'm thirsty," Nicole said. "I think I'm going to go downstairs and get a coke. You want one Tay?"

"Sure," he said. "I'll come with you." They gently climbed off of the bed as to not disturb Ike and Zac, and made their way downstairs to the kitchen. Nicole grabbed two cokes from the refrigerator and Taylor sunk down onto the couch in the living room, flipping through channels on the TV. Nicole sat down at the other end of the couch and passed him a drink. "Thanks," he said.

"No problem," Nicole replied, focusing her gaze on the television. "Does anything come on this late?" she asked.

"Not much," Taylor said, "but they do play some good videos on Mtv."

"Cool," Nicole said. "Turn it there. Maybe 'MMMBop' or 'Where's The Love' will come on. It's channel thirty-nine."

"Oh man," Taylor said, turning to that channel, "I hope we aren't on it. Well, I hope we are, but I hope I'm not watching then."

"Why?" Nicole asked as a Fiona Apple video came on.

"I don't know," Taylor said. "It's just.....weird to see yourself on TV. It's funny actually, 'cause you notice all of this stuff that others would never notice, like the faces you made, or what you were thinking when that part was taped. It's wild."

"I'm glad I've never been on TV," Nicole said. "I wouldn't even watch it. I'd be afraid that I had looked like a total idiot." They sat there for a minute, and then a familiar moan came over the ending of the Fiona Apple video.

"Speaking of idiots--," Taylor joked as he flashed onto the screen. "Give me the remote! Quick - I can't take this!"

"No way!" Nicole cried, ducking his outreaching arm. "I love the 'MMMBop' video! We're definitely watching this!"

"Noooo!" Taylor teased, tackling her and grabbing the remote. Just as he aimed it at the tv, Nicole jumped on top of him and snatched it away. They wrestled on the couch until Taylor was on top of Nicole, trying to grab the remote, which was behind her back.

Taylor grabbed at the remote by reaching under her back and grabbing at it, but soon Nicole laid back on his hands, and they were trapped behind the small of her back. Taylor struggled to remove them without succession, his face inches from hers. Before they even noticed what was happening, Taylor's soft, full lips came down upon Nicole's pushing against hers hungrily. Nicole slowly responded to Taylor's kiss, opening her mouth and meeting the electric currents that were passing through both of their bodies. This was the most awesome thing that Nicole had ever experienced. Then a vision passed through her mind, causing her to sit straight up, the static of the kiss falling short.

"Isaac," she whispered, a vision of her boyfriend's dark eyes clouding her thoughts. Taylor looked at her expectantly and then, realizing what they had done, dropped his forehead into his hands. "Oh god Taylor," she whispered. "What did we just do?"

"Nic, I'm sorry," Taylor whispered. "I didn't mean.....it's my fault.....you didn't........," he trailed off, not knowing what to say.

"What just happened Taylor?" Nicole asked. "Why did we......we kiss?"

"Nic," Taylor whispered, "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have.......I should have told you this Nic. I should have told you this so long ago. I was just too.....too shy. Too stupid. Too something......I don't know. This is all my fault."

"Taylor? What are you talking about?" Nicole asked curiously.