"So Paul, how is everyone? Sandy, Damon? Hell, even Jacki? And…Nick?" she asked slowly.

"Damon and Jacki are still together and as vile as ever. They are so corny and sweet, they could give a dentist a toothache. Sandy is beautiful, as always. Everyone else is fine. Baby…um, well, Nick…he's not that great," Paul said, setting a chair upside down on a table. Lilia felt her heart drop.

"Baby, what I mean is that he's no worse off that you are. Which is existing in a foul pit of misery, because you know that you can't fool me," Paul said. Lilia stopped what she was doing and burst into sudden tears. Paul crossed the distance between them quickly and hugged her to him and let her cry. After a few minutes of racking sobs, she finished and only a few silent tears trickled down her face. She sat down on the floor, cross-legged. Paul followed suit, prepared to listen to her.

"I miss him so much, it's killing me. Every time some one mentions the name, the band, I flip out. Every time their song comes on the radio, I break down. Every blond head is his, I could swear it. But then a second glance proves me wrong," she said, wiping her tears.

"Baby, then why did you leave him?" Paul asked quietly, letting her know in a way that only best friends can, that she didn't have to answer.

"Paul…I'm pregnant," she said, then her tears started anew.

"Baby! That's why you left?" he asking, taking her into his arms again.

"I didn't know what to do, I was so scared. Scared to tell him, scared of what he'd say. Terrified of what it might cost him. I didn't know what to do," she sobbed into her friends shoulder. "I felt so alone. And all I could think about was my father."

"But Nick isn't at all like your father, Lilia. He really isn't, you have to believe that," Paul said soothingly.

"I couldn't find out, I was scared. And I know that if Nick…reacted like my father did, I wouldn't have been able to stand it. I mean, I'm only twenty! To have lost two people that you love…So I didn't give him the chance to leave me. And now it's too later."

"Oh Baby."

"You won't tell anyone? No one at all, Paul. Promise me?" she pleaded. Paul agreed reluctantly.

* * * *

"Did you get your hours, Jean-Claude?" Lilia asked, as the young waiter made his way to the door.

"Yeah. Lilia, you are such a peach for giving me Sunday off. My mom will be ever thankful that I could be there on her birthday," he said. She smiled and unlocked the door to let him out.

"Who's opening with you tonight?" he asked.

"Anna. We'll cover until Mary, Jack, Lisa and Julie get here to cover the rush, around eight," Lilia told him.

"Well, I'll see you later!" He said, turning onto the sidewalk. Lilia stood and heard sirens blare by and saw the flash of lights. She turned and walked back into the building. She set about replacing the chairs when she realised that it was no longer silent. She could hear strains of music coming from the back office, where Anna was cleaning. And Lilia recognised the song immediately and was about to call Anna out to bitch about her ignoring her request not to play that CD when she paused.

His music is why you gave him up. It's why you are not with him right now. If you can't be with him, then you can at least hear him sing, considering that's all of him you can have, Lilia thought contemplatively.

Anna came into the room carrying her bucket of cleaning supplies.

"This is the one thing I hate about opening. The cleaning," she declared as she dropped the bucket. Lilia's laugh was interrupted as she heard an audible click that could only be the lock on the door. She frowned in thought as she was about to investigate, when sudden movement stopped her.

"No sudden moves. You do whatever I say and no one dies," a gruff voice said harshly. She turned slowly to the sight of a large man who had Anna in his grasp, a gun pointed to her head.

* * * *

"Get down on the floor and don't move. I need to think, so keep your mouths shut!" the man ordered, his sharp voice pounding into Lilia's head. He threw Anna down and the terrified girl crawled quickly over to Lilia. Lilia crouched down with Anna, and put her arm around her protectively.

"Okay, well take your time." Lilia said. The man looked at her with a hard glare and started pacing around.

"Lilia, what are we going to do?" Anna whispered.

"Imaginably whatever he says, okay? Just stay clam, Anna, don't panic and do whatever he tells you to do, and we will be fine. I need you to stay calm, okay?" Lilia said, trying to keep herself calm. She, on the other hand, was strangely detached, fear not quite reaching her. She just felt panic, but she soon quelled it.

"So, are we hostages or what?" she asked defiantly.

"Yes, hostages. That's right," he answered brokenly. Of all the luck in the world, I get stuck with the world's dumbest criminals, she thought bitterly.

"Should you, be like, making demands and warning cops to stay away or we'll die?" Lilia asked.

"Yes, that's what I should do. Do you have a phone?" he asked, waving the gun in her direction.

"Yeah, right behind the bar. No long distance, please. Could we wrap this little party up soon? We open in forty-five minutes," Lilia said, determined the be the bitchiest hostage in the history of the world. Anna jabbed her, pleading with her eyes for Lilia to be silent. Lilia relented.

* * * *

"You heard me. I have two hostages, and I'll kill them unless I get what I want. No, you can't speak to them. I don't care if you believe me or not. They will die if you don't. Fine," the man said, and walked over and grabbed Lilia's hand, yanking her up.

"They want to talk to you," he said, and thrust the phone into her hands.

"Hello?"

"Shit, there really is a hostage. How many are there of you?" the voice on the other line asked.

"Two of us. Listen, as much as this little party has been a blast, when do you think we'll be getting out of here?" she asked.

"As long as it takes to get you out safely. Are there any wounded?"

"Nope. He's not the brightest crayon in the box, if you catch my drift. You shouldn't have much trouble with him. We're not even tied up," said Lilia, and cried out in pain as the man tore the phone away from her and pushed her against the wall.

"I've had enough of your lip, so shut up or I will silence you permanently, got it?"

"Listen. Look at the kid over there. She's terrified. Let her go and I'll shut my mouth. Just let her go and I'll do everything you want," Lilia promised.

"Sit down," he ordered. Lilia sighed.

* * * *

Five hours ticked by. Lilia and Anna sat against the wall and watched their captor become more and more agitated. Lilia leaned her head against the wall and sighed again.

And she heard it. It was the same song that had been playing earlier.

"Did you put it on repeat?" Lilia asked the stoic Anna.

"It's my favourite song on the CD," she whispered back. Lilia sighed. She was worried about Anna. The girl was clearly terrified and sitting there, listening to the same song over and over again was doing nothing to aid her nerves. The young girl's hand had been shaking and she had barely spoken.

"Okay, listen. What the hell do you want that's taking so long?" Lilia demanded. The man turned around and pointed his gun in her direction.

"You keep quiet, remember?" he said, his irritation apparent. The situation was declining rapidly, with his irritation growing, their chances of being kept safe were decreasing.

"Seems simple enough," she answered, ignoring his look of outrage.

* * * *

Paul's heart jumped into his throat as he saw the flashing lights and cars in front of Genuine. He jumped out of the care followed by Damon, Jacki and Say, racing towards the door, screaming Lilia's name until someone pulled him back.

"You can be here, son. We have a situation," the cop said.

"Lilia! My friend owns the place," he stammered. "What's going on?"

"Your friend and another person are being held hostage, as it appears, by a thief that got desperate. No need to worry, unless she does something stupid, this situation should dissipate very shortly," he said.

"You don't know Lilia," Paul said weakly.