Sam was able to get a 1:15 p.m. flight to Reno to meet the band. He waited at the gate for the next two hours, propping his feet on his duffle and kicking back in his seat.

He kept his glasses on to cover his bloodshot eyes. He had a lot of thinking to do.

Sarah was moving on with her life, while he had put his career in jeopardy over her. It was time to start focusing on his future. He had to get his act together.

As he sat there, Sam took out his pencil and paper that he always carried in his bag. His mind was overflowing with lyrics.

When he boarded the plane two hours later, he pulled out the two Valium that Trish had given him. He bought a small bottle of whiskey from the stewardess to wash them down. Then he laid back his seat and slept for the entire five hour ride.

***

Pete held Sarah in his arms and rubbed her back while she cried. His muscles were still tense from the encounter with Sam, but his anger had waned. He knew that Sarah was suffering, more than ever, now that it had ended completely. He hated to see her in any kind of pain.

But he was feeling relieved, the ordeal was over and she could start the healing process.

"Baby, it will be okay." He said soothingly. "Can I make a suggestion?"

Sarah nodded against his chest.

"You have two choices here. Either you can stay cooped up in here...or we can go do something. I talked to my dad and he agreed that I should stay with you. We have to stop in at the restaurant anyway." Pete heard Sarah's crying slow down.

"We burned the bacon." He added, wryly.

Sarah gave a watery laugh. "Leave it to you to think of your stomach!"

"I can hear it growling!" Pete's stomach obligingly made a rumble, causing Sarah to lift her head and laugh, wiping her eyes.

"Ok, let's get breakfast." She sniffed.

"Maybe after breakfast we can go look at couches." Pete stopped, looking at Sarah, quizzically.

"I guess, that is, if you still want to move in? I mean, now that..."

Sarah looked at him and thought about it for a second. "Pete, there were a lot of times, in the past few weeks, that I've needed to you to comfort me. I've missed that safe feeling, and here, with you, I have it back." She laid her head down on his chest. "You've always come to my rescue. From keeping me from falling out of trees to helping me recover from falling in love."

"Alright, then after breakfast, we'll look at couches." Pete smacked her butt. "Let's get dressed. I'm starved!"

Pete was deep in thought as he chewed on a strip of bacon. Washing it down with a gulp of coffee, he spoke up. "You know, I've been thinking." He narrowed his eyes at Sarah. "Why don't we check with Dave and see if there are any two bedroom apartments for rent?"

"What about when I go back to school?" Sarah asked.

"I could still live there, your bedroom will be there whenever you come home." Pete said, logically.

Sarah sipped her coffee as she considered it. "Ok." She said. "But while I can, I'll split the rent. I'll be going back to work for my dad next week."

Pete stood up and reached for her hand. "Let's go see Dave about an apartment."

Dave shook his head when he heard their request. "Nope, sorry, I haven't heard of any two bedroom places. Most of the apartments around here are in the old duplexes, second floor with only one bedroom." He sat back in his chair. "Why don't you try that apartment complex on Lake St.? They have two bedroom units, balconies, even a pool."

"Might be out of our price range." Pete muttered.

"Doesn't hurt to look." Dave said.

The rental agent from the apartment complex unlocked the door to the model, sweeping it open for Sarah and Pete to enter.

"As you can see." She motioned to the left, "This is the kitchen and dining area. It's open to the living room. The appliances are included. Everything is electric, that's included in rent. We have the laundry room on the bottom floor, I'll show you that later."

Sarah and Pete followed her from the small foyer, straight into the living room.

"This is the living room, not all of them come with a balcony, and down this hall," the agent walked into a small hallway, off the side wall of the living room, pointing to the doorway on the right. "This is the main bedroom."

Sarah and Pete walked in to the room and turned in a circle, looking around.

"This room is 12 foot by 12 foot. You can see there's the closet with double doors."

Sarah went to look in the closet. "This is a nice bedroom." She said, non-commitedly.

"Yes, see it has the same neutral carpet." They both down looked at the tan carpeting, then followed her back into the hall, stopping at the next door and looking in.

"Here's the bathroom. It has the shower/bath combo and vanity. And don't forget, water is included, also."

The agent led them into the last room. "This is the second bedroom. It also has the double door closet."

Pete and Sarah looked at each other, and nodded.

Pete cleared his throat. "Is there one of these available?"

"Yes, you're lucky. One will be available the first of July. We're working on it now, getting the carpets cleaned and the walls painted. You would sign a one year lease. If you want, we'll go back to the office and get the paperwork done."

One hour later, they walked out with the signed papers in hand.

"We'll pick up the key on your birthday. How's that for a birthday present?" Pete teased.

"I can't believe we're doing this. Will we be able to afford $200 a month for rent?" Sarah was in disbelief at how her day was going.

It started out so terrible, but Pete had kept her mind off of it. She was worried now, how they could come up with that much money a month.

"Yeah, I think so. I can always pick up a part time job if we need to." Pete said. "Let's go see Dave and tell him about our new place."

On the drive to the campground, Sarah leaned her head towards her opened window and felt the warm lake breeze on her face.

She wondered where she'd be in a year from now, would she still be feeling the pain?

***

Sam landed in Reno around 6:30 that evening and caught a cab to the hotel. He stared out the window at the bright neon and flashing lights that outlined and decorated the buildings on both sides of the street.

"Welcome to Reno. Is this your first time?" The driver chuckled as he saw the wonder on Sam's face.

"Yeah, it is. This place is something else!" He looked out the side window as he saw the flashing lights on the supports of the neon lit arch that crossed over the street.

"The biggest little city in the world." He read.

"Are you here to win some big bucks?" The driver asked.

"No, I'm in a band, Blood Brothers, we're playing here tomorrow night."

"Yeah, is that right? I'm taking my old lady to that concert." He handed a scrap of paper through the window. "Can I get your autograph? Write it to Janet. You're the lead guitarist, right?"

Sam laughed as he took the paper. "No, that's my brother, Georgie. I'm the singer."

Sam signed the paper and handed it back.

"Shit! My wife has a major chick hard on for you, man!"

Sam laughed and looked around at the people milling around; he could feel the excitement in the air. "I hope there are a lot of ladies out there like that tonight." He said under his breath.

He had to erase Sarah from his mind and the only way he could think to do that was to get laid.

As he took his room key from the clerk he inquired whether the other members had arrived and was told they hadn't.

Sam walked through the casino, checking out the slot machines and card tables. As he got to the elevators, he saw the roulette wheel and decided that would be one of the first things he would try.

Sam turned on the water, letting it get hot and steamy in the bathroom, as he went through his duffle. He pulled out his Harley shirt from Minnesota and shook it out.

The faint scent of Sarah's perfume floated up to him and as he held it out to look at it, he saw that it was obviously hers.

Stuffing it back in the bag, he dug around for his, cussing when he couldn't find it. She had taken his by mistake.

He kept searching and eventually came up with a clean, black tee. Sometime tomorrow he was going to have to do his laundry.

After a good hot steamy shower, Sam felt his energy levels rising. He brushed his teeth, vigorously, then swished a mouthful of mouthwash and spit it out.

He swiped the steam off the mirror and inspected his face. It had been a few days since he had shaved and he was getting scruffy. His mustache was growing in thick and black and he liked the way it hung down the sides of his mouth.

He filled the sink with hot water and lathered up his face, deciding to keep the mustache. The steam in the bathroom brought out the curls and waves of his hair and he ran his hands over it to smooth it down some, then tucked it behind his ears.

He was dressed and just lacing up his motorcycle boots when he heard Georgie in the hall. He crossed over and swung the door open, just as Georgie walked by his door.

"Sam!" Trish ran over to him, grabbing him in a big hug. She leaned back and looked at the tortured look in his bloodshot eyes. She pulled him into his room, calling for Georgie to come too.

Trish closed the door after the brothers entered the room. She pulled a joint out of her bag and lit it up.

Georgie caught Sam up on the business of the band, then there was a lull, while they passed the joint around.

"I'm guessing that Sarah didn't come back with you." Trish said, quietly.

"Nope, she's moved in with Pete." Sam had a hard time saying it around the constriction in his throat. He cleared his throat and shook away the despair that threatened him.

"We're done. That's it. I don't really want to talk about it now. It's time for me to get back into things. I've been too distracted and I can promise you that it won't happen again."

"Well, welcome back, little brother." Georgie gave him a bear hug. "You couldn't have picked a better city than Reno to come to, then!"

Trish gave him another hug, whispering in his ear. "I'm sorry, Sam. If you need anything, I'm here for you."

"Do you have any more of those pills? I could use one right now."

Trish laughed and her curls bounced around as she nodded. "I always have my pills on me."

She watched as Sam took it and swallowed it. "That will get you in the right mood. What are you doing tonight?"

Sam gave her a kiss on the cheek, then announced. "I'm going down to the casino, anyone else want to come?"

Trish giggled as Georgie picked her up and swung her out the door. "No." He said. "Trish promised me a few things on the bus, but I couldn't collect them there. It was a long bus ride, I'm going to get them now."

Sam watched them leave, the pain flaring in his chest, as he heard them whispering and giggling. He picked up his cigarette pack, pulling out a joint.

Lighting it up, he paced the room as he smoked, thinking about all he had gone through today.

Then he went into the bathroom and squirted a few drops of Visine in each eye.