"You're late," the overweight, greasy, balding man behind the counter grunted.

Katie glanced at the clock on the wall above his head and apologized, "Personal problems, sorry.  It won't happen again."

She jammed her car keys into her purse and stuffed it under the counter.  Pulling her apron from the hook on the wall, she quickly tied it on and went to her first table.  She took the couples drink order and moved on to the next table.  The lunch rush had already begun at the small diner Katie worked in.

She went non-stop for the next two hours.  She hadn't even had an opportunity to say hi to her co-worker and good friend Ben.  They'd passed each other hurriedly numerous times, but neither could slow down for a greeting.

Finally the diner cleared out enough that Katie could breathe.  She could feel the beginnings of a headache creeping on.

"Order up Katie!" the cook through the window leading to the kitchen rang the small bell.

Katie groaned, "Oh will someone just put me out of my misery?"

Ben watched her grab the plates and walk them over to the correct table.  When she returned he turned to her, "You okay there sugar?"

"Holy sh..." Katie began, but cut herself short in fear of a customer or her boss hearing her, "I'm fine.  I just wish everyone would stop asking!"

"It's only because we're worried hon.  You look like poo," Ben told her.

"Gee thanks.  Nice to see you, too.  I slept like crap last night, that's all."

"Missing the new beau?"

A small smile played across her lips as she thought of AJ, "So you saw?"

"Honey, I'm gay, I live for the pre-shows to see what everyone is wearing!  You looked hot, BTW."

"BTW?" Katie raised her eyebrows, "What are you, twelve?"

Ben laughed and rolled his eyes, "You got a table.  You want me to get it, you can take a break?"

"No, it's fine.  No need to give Greasy McBalderson any more reason to yell at me."

Ben laughed at the nickname the two had given their boss as he watched Katie walk over to the table.

"Hey there, what can I get you to drink?" Katie asked without looking up from her small order pad.

"Hey there Kitty Kat."

Katie froze.  He's in jail, she told herself.  You're hearing things.

Slowly Katie looked up from the pad to see who she was dealing with.  The only person that ever called her Kitty Kat was Dane.  And sometimes a few of his friends.

"What, nothing to say Kitty Kat?"

Katie took a deep breath, "Hi Glen.  What can I get you to drink?"

He grinned, "Coke.  Not going to sit down and talk with me, Kitty Kat?"

"I'm working.  And I really have nothing to say to you."

"You put my boy in jail.  We've got plenty to talk about Kitty Kat."

The nickname sent shivers down her spine every time she heard it.  It only brought the memories of him flooding back.

"Please stop calling me that.  That's not my name.  Someone will be over to take your order in a minute."

Katie turned to walk away.

"What the hell is your problem?" Glen yelled.

Katie froze.  Her boss looked up and raised his eyebrows at her.  The few other customers in the diner looked over at the scene.

Swallowing the lump in her throat, Katie turned back around.

"This is my job, please don't make a scene."

Glen grinned and watched Katie turn away again to walk back to the counter where Ben was standing.  She was trying to keep her breathing under control, trying to force the tears back to keep them from falling.

"Is that who I think it is?" Ben asked.  When Katie nodded Ben continued, "You take my table, I'll finish with him."

Katie nodded, went back to the bathroom to fix herself and then went back out to wait on the couple that had just sat down in Ben's section.  She didn't even look back over at the table Glen had stationed himself at.  Even after he'd eaten, he still hung out at the table watching her.

"I think he's waiting for your shift to end," Ben suggested.

"Wouldn't surprise me.  He'll be out of your hair in three minutes.  I just have to wipe down my last table."

"You want me to walk you out or something?"

"No, I'll be fine.  I'll just go right to my car, I'm parked close."

"If you say so...but I'm keeping an eye on you until you are safe in your car.  I'm calling the police if he even touches you."

"I'll be fine Ben.  Thanks," Katie hugged him and went to wipe down the table.

A few minutes later she'd hung up her apron and gathered her purse.  She pulled out her car keys before she walked out, intending on making a bee-line to the car and getting right in.

Just as they had suspected, Glen followed Katie out of the diner.  He grabbed her arm as he caught up to her, "We need to talk Kitty Kat."

"I asked you not to call me that.  We still have nothing to talk about," Katie pulled her arm out of his grasp.

"Ahh, getting tough now, eh?" Glen grinned as he poked at her.

"Don't touch me," Katie demanded and she turned to walk towards her car again.

Again Glen grabbed for her arm.  Katie swung around and punched him square in the jaw, "I said don't touch me!"

Glen stepped back in shock, not saying anything at first.  He watched Katie walk quickly to her car and called after her, "Drop the charges, Kitty Kat, or you'll be sorry."

Katie ignored him.  There was nothing she could do, even if she wanted to.  The DA had pressed the charges, not Katie, so Katie couldn't drop the charges.

She got in the car and struggled to stick the keys in the ignition.  She didn't want him to see how much he had upset her so she forced herself to calm down enough to start the car and drive out of the parking lot.  She didn't want to talk to anyone either though.  Katie knew that Beth would probably be home and she wasn't interested in telling her what had happened.  She'd had enough of everyone constantly asking her if she was okay.

Katie decided to take the long way home, driving through various neighborhoods as she listened to the radio and tried to cool down.  It hadn't really worked...especially when the Backstreet Boys latest single boomed through her radio.  All she succeeded in doing was upsetting herself even further.  All she could think about after that was how much she missed AJ, how much she wanted to be back in New York with him, still making out on that hotel bed.

She didn't even remember driving home, but she soon found herself parked in her spot in front of their apartment building.  She dragged herself up the stairs and forced the front door open.  She attempted a bee-line right for her room, but just as she'd figured, it hadn't worked.  Joe and Beth were cuddling on the couch, talking and laughing, when Katie walked in.

"Katie what's wrong?" Beth asked, extracting herself from Joe and going over to her friend.

"Nothing.  Long day.  I'm tired."

"I'm not surprised, you barely slept last night," Beth said to Katie's retreating back.  She looked back at Joe and when he signaled for her to follow, Beth did, "Katie...I know you...there's something more, but I won't push it."

"I appreciate that."

"I have to tell you something though..."

"What is it?" Katie asked, a little worried at the tone of Beth's voice.

"Please don't be mad at me...I talked to AJ this afternoon while you were at work."

Katie glared at her friend, "And?"

"We're really worried about you."

"There's nothing to be worried about."

"Obviously there is if you are coming home in tears from one afternoon at work."

"I don't want to talk about it."

"That's fine.  Doesn't make me any less worried though.  AJ said that he wants you closer."

"You sound like you're going along with this..."

"Normally I'm not sure I would be."

"Okay, so why are you now then?"

"Well, that's kind of the other thing I have to tell you..."

"Shit, just tell me already."

"Joe got a new job."

"I know I'm exhausted, and I've got other things on my mind...but I'm not seeing a connection between Alex, and Joe's new job."

"Would you let me finish!  It's an amazing job, huge step up for him, and it's in Orlando."

"So...you're moving?"

"Yeah.  That's why I'm going along with AJ wanting to move you closer to him."

"You make it sound like I'm a kid splitting my time between divorced parents or something."

"Sorry.  I just...I think he's really good for you.  He said that he's busy with work stuff the rest of the week, but then he has a few weeks off before they go to Europe."

"Wait, wait...what?"

"Joe has to be at his new job in two weeks.  We're flying out there this weekend to look at houses."

"So if Alex hadn't gone along with your little plan...you were just going to up and leave me?" Katie said angrily.  The tears were welling up in her eyes again.  Things had gotten out of hand awfully fast, "I can't move next week!"

"I was never going to just leave you!" Beth yelled, her anger rising, too, "I would never do that to you.  And AJ didn't just go along with it.  It was his damn idea!"

Katie stopped, her mouth dropping open to form a small "O".

"I was talking to him about how upset I was that I might be leaving you here!  I wasn't sure if you'd be interested in moving with us."

Katie sat silently watching her friend explain; crying tears of fear, excitement, joy...her body was running the gamut of emotions.

"Do you know how much that man already loves you?  I had to convince him not to drop everything to fly out here because you had a damn nightmare last night.  I knew you'd be so mad if he'd have done that!  You should've heard him when he mentioned you coming with us.  He was so excited at the thought of you living in the same city as him, let alone the same house!"

Unsure of her voice, Katie just smiled.  She'd thought so many times in the last twenty-four hours of quitting her job and just leaving.  She just hadn't been sure of where to go.  Now her best friend was moving across the country to the very same city that her boyfriend lived in.  It was all going to be great.