Ryan's palms were becoming moist as the band prepared their equiptment before taking the stage. This was the biggest gig they had ever played, and the nervousness was well understood amongst the group. MuchMusic was there to interview them, since it was their first American gig after all, and since they were officially the youngest band to ever play Woodstock.

The guys were worried about how the audience would recieve them, since the odds that most of them had never even heard of Serial Joe were pretty high. Even so, the crowd of people waiting at the Emerging Artist stage was pretty big, about five thousand or so. This was it, this is the peak of the mountain for them, or at least at this point in their career. Things seemed like they couldn't get any better.

Melissa had begun to e-mail Dan on a regular basis, sometimes up to twice a day. The love they shared was still there, but both were happy enough just being friends. They had learned to cope, and tried to grow and move on with their lives, without having to completely let go of each other.

Jon was living the single life, he was starting to enjoy being unattached again, but he still dated frequently. Not that he was a player by any means, just not ready for a steady relationship, like most guys his age.

Stever finally found a good match. . .in Maureen. Nicci had tried to interfere in the beginning, of course, but Maureen found something deep inside her to stand up to the brat and tell her off. The shell of insecurity she had surrounded herself with when she was young was starting to crumple, and it was thanks to Stever. And of course, Stever was beginning to have more faith in life because of Maureen. With them, everything was a win-win situation, and the two couldn't have been happier.

"Hey Dan!" Ryan called from the curtain at the corner of stage right. "Come and check out this crowd. . .this is so wicked. Beyond wicked even."

"I can hardly believe all these people are here to see us, I mean, they're American," he replied once he was by his friend's side.

"I'm pretty sure we have some Canadian faithfuls in there," said Jon as he approached his bandmates. "I mean, you know how some of the fans can be. They'll go anywhere."

". . .right," Ryan replied, somewhat dazed.

Dan put a hand on Ryan's shoulder. "Hey, you okay man?"

Ryan didn't answer for a second, just stared into the crowd. ". . .yeah, I'm cool, don't worry about it. Just. . .staring into space I guess. . .sorta."

"Hey Ry, don't go passing out on us again," Jon said. "I'd hate to see history repeat itself."

Ryan turned to Jon, and let out a laugh. "Dude, that's not cool," he said as he playfully punched him in the stomach. "And I said I'm fine, you guys have nothing to worry about." He looked over his shoulder at the swelling crowd once more, and smiled. "Are you guys ready to kick some serious ass?"

All four guys grinned. "Hell yeah!" They yelled together.

"What are we waiting for then? Let's take the stage, shall we?"

It was at that moment that the MC announced the band, and the crowd let out a roar. It was a roar of faithful fans, and of people eager to hear the next big thing. Dan took his place behind the drums, Stever eagerly slung on his guitar, and Jon picked up his bass. Ryan jogged to the microphone stand, made his last second stand adjustments, and took the microphone in his hand. This was it, this is what they had waited so long for. This was the gig of a lifetime. The band started playing behind him, the opening song they had decided on was Skidrow. Ryan barely noticed, because in the midst of the opening bars, he spotted her. She was standing near the front row. She looked just like a dream, in her ripped jeans, boots, and white muscle tank. His eyes locked with hers, and they both shared a knowing look.

'I've missed you,' she thought in her head. 'Congratulations on all of this.'

'I can't believe you're here,' he thought. 'Thank you.'

It wasn't necessary for the words to be spoken, they knew exactly what the other was thinking. They knew that everything was going to be okay. Fate brought them together for a reason. They knew that they would find each other again, someday.