A bar. That's where the four of them ended up. After a long day filled with pointless research and unnecessary arguments over the useless research, the four of them needed to take the edge off, at least before one of them gets so frustrated that they start throwing punches; and by the way Emma meant James. It was his idea to head to a bar, go figures, but she and Stephanie were behind it one hundred percent.

The four of them sat at the front of the bar, each nursing their own beer. The bar was filled with old drunk men trying to hit on the busty blonde bartender, along with any other woman that came into sight. Luckily she was with Hunter, Stephanie and James, most men in their right mind wouldn't dare start something with either of them. Emma felt safe with the three of them beside her.

"I don't know what we are going to do. It has never been this hard to find something on a spirit," Hunter said as he took a long swing from his beer.

"Well we still have to find something soon, someone else is going to get hurt soon," James replied as his eyes wandered around the smoke filled room.

"I think tomorrow we should try looking at it from a new angle. Maybe that will help," she suggested.

"I think you're right, Emma. Besides, I could use a little fun tonight," James winked as his eyes caught the tall, blonde bartender's face. He got up from his seat and made his way over to her, leaving Emma and Stephanie and Hunter to themselves.

"Typical James," Hunter scoffed. Yeah he was right, James did this every time she went out to the bar, leaving her Stephanie and Hunter usually without a vehicle to get home. Emma loved James, more than she'd care to admit out loud to anyone, even herself.

Emma was a college student, she had always been a student. This life didn't have much room for love or even a committed relationship. She was already in too deep by loving James.

She knew it wasn't going to work out, people die in this life. Both Stephanie and Hunter knew that, they both knew everything about it. Emma was just setting herself up for a heartbreak that could have been avoided completely.

She watched him flirt with girl after girl, most of them blonde, but he did go after the odd brunette and maybe even a redhead or two. Each of them twirled their finger in their hair as he worked his Douglas charm on her.

Emma watched how his hand was somewhere on her body, whether it was her leg, or around her shoulder, or her hand was in his.

Each girl would completely melt in his touch, who wouldn't though. Whenever he's so much as touched as her, it sends a spark throughout her body. That's why it was best if she pushed down her feelings for him, maybe one day they would just disappear.

She turned around to find Stephanie talking to a tall brunette. Stephanie rarely left her alone to talk to men, but when she did; she was happy for her. Even if it meant her by herself for the next little while.

Emma ordered herself another beer as a stranger took a seat next to her. He was younger than the rest of the crowd in here. He was dressed up in a suit, his hair short and dark brown, along with his eyes. He smiled softly when he glanced over at her.

"Hello beautiful, what's a girl like you doing at a bar all by yourself?" He cooed at her. Emma's body instantly tensed up at the sound of his voice.

"I'm here with some friends," she said, trying to sound as confident as possible. Emma peered around the room, James was paying attention to the bartender and Stephanie had her back to her. Helpless, she was helpless. She could feel the hairs on the back of her neck sticking up, her body shivered slightly. Emma swallowed hard as the other bartender handed her, her beer.

"I don't see your friends around anywhere," he bellowed. "Let me buy you a drink."

"No thanks. I already have a drink thank you very much," she stated.

"I can respect that. The name's Daniel, but my friends call me Dan," he told her as he unbuttoned his jacket completely.

"Nice to meet you, Daniel."

"What's your name, gorgeous?"

"Emma," she said coldly, hoping he'd receive the hint that she was uncomfortable and didn't want him near her, but he definitely wasn't the sharpest tool in the shed.

"That's a beautiful name, suits you well," he grinned widely as the bartender brought over his drink.

"Thanks."

"So what do you do for a living? What's your job?" He questioned her, his body inching closer to her as he spoke. Emma's instincts were screaming at her to get away from him as quickly as possible, but it felt as though her legs were going to give out the moment she got up from her seat. Emma took a deep breath, closing her eyes momentarily to compose herself. She could do this, she repeated herself.

"I'm on the run, I'm wanted in different parts of the country and I'm here with my fellow partners. See we just ganked some guy because he was abusing his wife," Emma said subtly. He didn't even budge.

"Yeah, and I'm the sixth *NSYNC member they forgot about. Seriously baby, what do you do for fun?" He winked, his arm nudging hers. Her body was on high alert now. She needed out and away from him before he got the opportunity to even look at her again.

"Binge watch Seinfeld, which is what I'm going to go do right now," she told him as she threw a couple of bills on the counter.

"Don't be like that, baby. We were just starting to have fun. Why don't we head back to my place and I'll show you a good time," he said lowly in her ear, sending shivers up her spine. His hand wrapped around the small of her back, pulling her into him. Every fibre in her body froze, she couldn't move, her heart was racing uncontrollably and she could barely breathe. Emma didn't have the strength to push him off of her.

"Get your hands off of her," a voice yelled, to her it sounded more like a mutter. Suddenly, his hands weren't on her body anymore. Emma could hear some commotion going on in the distance, her heartbeat was the loudest thing in the room.

She was being engulfed in someone's arms, James' arms. She could tell his touch from anyone else's instantly. Emma buried her head in his chest, his scent filling her nose, comforting her in a way only he could. His grip on her was tight as the two of them made their way out of the bar and into the cold night. He hugged Emma tightly, whispering "you're okay" over and over, along with "just breathe, I've got you." His warmth, and the soothing sound of his voice was enough to calm her down.

He opened the car's door for her, letting go of her so she could get in. He quickly rounded the car, starting the engine and speeding off on the smooth, black road.

Emma was quiet, still trying to calm down from what had happened. She kept telling herself that she was being stupid. Nothing happened and she would have gotten out of that situation sooner if she would have just gotten up from the chair and left like a normal person would. Her stupid anxiety got the better of her, again.

"How are you holding up, sweetheart?" James' voice broke the silence.

"I'm okay," she mumbled.

"How are you really?" He replied immediately. His grip tightening on the wheel and his speed increasing slightly.

"I just want to go back home," she told him, smiling sheepishly.

"Okay, deep breaths okay, sweetheart. You are safe and everything is okay now. We're not going back just yet," he mentioned to her. Emma simply nodded her head, her eyes focused on the road ahead.

James stopped at a gas station a couple of miles from her aunt and uncle's place. He told her that he had to stop and get some gas, even though his tank was half-full. She sat in the car, looking through his old cassette tapes. He came back in the car with a white bag in his hand.

"I got us a few things," he smiled widely. He opened the small bag and pulled out two containers of ice cream, her favourite flavour too. He handed it to Emma along with a spoon. He also picked up some peanut M&M's and a bag of licorice. She smiled at the gesture, thanking him quietly before making herself comfortable. Usually, James would be completely against her eating anything with his baby, especially ice cream, but here both of them were, indulging in the cold deliciousness that it was.

He drove back home, parking in front of Aunt Caroline's house. He sat there, eating his ice cream slowly. He had no intentions of getting out of the car, not yet at least.

"I'm sorry," he muttered to her.

"For what?"

"If I would have stayed with you, this never would have happened," he said as he ran his hand over his face.

"James, it's fine. I should have been able to handle it," she stated.

"But you shouldn't have to handle that. I didn't even know you suffered from anxiety, Emma. I wish you would have said something about that to me," he brought up. He moved over, closing the space between the two of them. He wrapped his arm around her shoulder, pulling her into him.

"It's not something I like to share. Most of the time it's over stuff that doesn't even matter. I guess I just overthink too much," Emma told him as she ate a spoonful of ice cream.

"But you don't have to go through it alone, sweetheart. I'm always here for you," he voiced quietly. He pressed his cold lips to her forehead, leaving them there for a moment. "Anxiety isn't something you should hide. We will figure out a way to deal with it, together. Just like we always do."

"Promise?"

"I promise," he smiled. "Now let's take your mind off of what happened. Tell me what you would do with your life if you weren't in college?"

Emma paused for a moment, thinking about what exactly her answer would be. "I think that I would have a family. That's something I've always wanted a family, maybe even be some sort of nurse. It sounds kind of weird saying it out loud," she confessed.

"It usually does. But you never know, it could come true for you someday."

"What about you, James?"

"For a while, I wanted the white picket fence, apple pie life but now. I think maybe this life ain't so bad. I've got my family, I've got my friends, my car, and I've got you. That's all I need, that's good enough for me," he squeezed her shoulder tightly, bringing her to him. "But hey, maybe you and I could start a family someday. You can be a nurse to my parents and I. So maybe you will get what you wanted after all?"

Emma turned to face him, his expression was soft as he looked at her. Her eyes met his blue orbs, he slowly began to inch closer to her face, his chocolatey breath mixed in with hers. His hand came up to her face, his fingers brushed a piece of stray hair behind her ear.

She could almost feel his lips on hers, it was the only thing she could think about. Emma closed her eyes, seconds later, his lips brushed softly against hers.

Goosebumps covered her body, but this time for a good reason. His lips moved slowly with hers, never pushing her too far. The taste of his chocolate ice cream mixed with the flavour of hers, a delicious taste she would now forever associate with James.

He pulled away slowly, his forehead pressing to hers. The kiss was breathtaking in the good way. Emma could still feel his lips on hers moments after it was over. It may not have been her first kiss, but it definitely was her best kiss. Why was her brain over analyzing it?

"I definitely wish I would have done that sooner," he breathed out, causing her to smile.

"Me too," Emma whispered. He grinned widely before pressing his lips to hers once more, making her forget everything that had happened.