(Note: many thanks to @chloe_coolio9 for helping out on this one!! Go check out her page and her end of the collab!)
I was taking a walk through the countryside for the first time in a very long time. It had been years since I had been in the area, but somehow I remembered every path and trail I had explored as a child. I had been lost in my own thoughts until I heard a faint clip-clop of horse hooves from behind me. I turned around to see who it was. A handsome young man I didn't recognize was riding my way, and he stopped his horse as he approached me.
"Lovely day, isn't it?," he grinned, hopping off his horse.
"Just perfect for a stroll." I smiled back.
"Bit of an out of towner, aren't you?" He gave me a cheeky smirk.
"Just a bit. I'm American," I giggled.
"What brings you out to the middle of Scotland?"
"It's a long story, but I used to travel here all the time when I was little. My parents had family here, we used to come here for summer and winter vacations. I'm studying at uni not too far from here."
"I remember having an American friend as a boy," he responded. "Emma. She was lovely. We used to play around here with my siblings from dusk til dawn." He looked ahead, a nostalgic gleam in his eyes.
I studied his face, raising an eyebrow.
"So did I. Are you Alan or Derek?"
He looked back at me with wide eyes.
"What do you mean?"
"I'm Emma. It can't be a coincidence that I used to play with another family in this exact area. So out of the boys I knew back here... are you Alan or Derek?"
"Alan."
"Oh, my god... Alan." I hugged him, hoping my eyes would stop watering before he'd notice. "I never thought I'd see any of my old friends again."
"I never thought I'd meet you again, either. Life is so funny." He let go of me and gazed into my eyes. "Now that I look at you, you've hardly changed."
"Come to think of it, I still see old Al in your face, too. It's like I've traveled back in time."
"I wouldn't say that. You've turned into such a lovely young woman, I can't possibly see us skipping rocks and playing with the animals the way we used to."
"Wanna bet? I'm always up for skipping rocks and playing with your animals. I'm still that same girl you always had fun with."
"I am, too." He chuckled. "Do you have time to head down to the creek for a bit?"
"I've got all day."
"Would you like a ride?" He gestured to his horse.
I giggled.
"I'd love one."
He helped me into his horse, then hopped on behind me. As he wrapped his arms gently around my waist, steering the horse, I couldn't help but feel butterflies in my stomach. My childhood friend had matured into quite a looker, and I felt so comfortable and safe in his arms.
It wasn't long until we were at the creek. Soon, we were wading in the creek and tossing rocks around just like we were children again. Before either of us were ready for it, the sun was beginning to set.
"I should head back home," he sighed, sounding disappointed. "Would you like to come back to the house and dry up a little with me? You can say hello to dad, if we're lucky Derek might be in too."
"I'd love to. Do you think he'd recognize me?"
"I'm not sure, but we'll see!"
We climbed back on his horse and headed back to the old Longmuir farm house. I hardly recognized it at first- the house itself hadn't changed, but there was a swarm of people surrounding it that I could see for miles before we approached it.
"Fuck," Alan sighed under his breath.
"What on earth is going on? Why are all those people at your house?"
"Tam must've leaked our address. We'll have to go around the back way so no one sees us."
Alan led the horse into the nearby trees, far enough in so that we were obscured from view.
"Who's Tam?"
"Our bloody bastard of a manager."
"Manager? Of what?"
"You're kidding me."
"What?"
"You've got to be the only woman in Scotland- nay, the world- that's never heard of the Bay City Rollers."
"Bay City Rollers? That was YOU?"
"And Derek. I left a few months ago, it was too much for little old me. Lots of pressure from Tam to present us a certain way, and our fans are sweet, but..."
"They don't have boundaries."
"Pretty much. Normally I'd say hello to them, but with you here, I don't want to upset them. They'll probably take one look at me hanging out with a beautiful woman and immediately panic." He chuckled.
"You're not so bad looking yourself. It's no wonder you've got so many fans."
"Why thank you," he chuckled softly.
We rode to the back entrance to his house, where he helped me down.
"I'll take you inside, then I'm going to put Nellie back in the barn. I'm going to say hello to the fans out front, hopefully they'll head back home soon. I'll be with you again as soon as I can," he explained as he tied his horses's reigns to a post.
"Sounds good."
He led me inside, straight to the living room. Nothing had changed inside the house, and I was immediately hit with a wave of nostalgia.
"Are you in, dad?," he called.
"I'm here!," came a very familiar voice from the living room.
Alan led me into the living room, where Duncan Longmuir was sitting in his favorite chair.
"I'll be back in a few minutes, dad, but I wanted to drop off my friend safely with you first," Alan softly began.
Duncan looked up at me, cracking a smile after a moment.
"You're that little girl the kids used to play with," he responded.
"I am! It's so good to see you again, Mr. Longmuir."
He stood up and gave me a hug.
"Call me Duncan." He sat back down. "Have a seat, and we'll chat about what you've been up to lately."
Alan smiled proudly at us as I took a seat, then headed out to the front door. I could hear a roar of fans when he opened the door.
"Does that ever bother you?," I gently asked.
"It's a mixed blessing." Duncan chuckled. "It's nice to see how much love the boys get. But it does get exhausting."
"I can imagine."
Alan's meet and greet with fans lasted quite awhile, but I didn't mind chatting with Duncan. He was still the same sweet old man I remembered as the boys' father. We talked about what had become of his family- his daughters had grown and were married already, and his wife had passed away just two years prior- as well as how I had been and what I was planning for my career. We were almost lost in conversation when Alan poked his head back into the living room.
"I'm making tea, would either of you like a cup?," he softly asked.
"Sure," I responded.
"I'll be off to bed soon," Duncan added, standing up and stretching. "You two kids have a good night."
"Thanks, dad," Alan chuckled.
"It was great to see you again, Duncan," I added.
"Don't be a stranger, now that you're studying here."
"Something tells me I won't want to be a stranger." I locked eyes with Alan from across the living room. He gave me a reassuring smile, then turned to the kitchen as his father headed upstairs.
In a few minutes, Alan returned with two teacups in hand. He set them on the coffee table in front of me and sat next to me.
"Your father caught me up on how everyone's doing," I softly began. "I'm very sorry about your mom, I always loved her."
Alan modded, staring solemnly into his teacup.
"I wish she'd seen how big we got. She probably wouldn't believe it." He gave a halfhearted chuckle. "I don't regret leaving the band, though. I'm happy to spend more time with dad while I still can."
"I can imagine. Was it hard, being on the road as a Roller?"
"Sometimes. There were some incredible moments, but we didn't have a second to ourselves. It gets taxing very quickly. I much prefer a quiet country life, now that I've had a taste of success." He took a sip of his tea.
"I would, too. I'm glad you're happier now."
"I'm so much happier. I'm free." He set his teacup back on the coffee table and laid his arm across the back of the couch, just over my shoulders. "You know, I've been thinking about settling down. I wouldn't have had that luxury in the band."
I looked into his eyes as he gazed into mine. I had the feeling I knew where he was taking this conversation.
"Anyone in mind?," I coyly responded.
"Well... there IS this one girl," he began with a sly smile as he stared back at his teacup. "I'm not sure how she feels about the idea of seeing me. But she's quite lovely, and so easy to be around. We've known each other for years."
He looked back into my eyes, and it took every ounce of willpower I had to not break into a stupidly wide grin. I instead tried to play it cool.
"Something tells me she'd love to get to know you better," I sighed as I leaned in closer to him. I could feel his hot breath against mine for the split second we lingered before he planted a tender kiss on my lips.
After our lips parted, I held him and looked into his eyes once more.
"See? I told you," I softly chuckled.
