| *Written by Sammy* �Kate! Where are my socks?� JC called out to his cousin as he rummaged through his bags, making quite a mess on the bathroom floor of the hotel room. She dropped her magazine she was reading down onto her lap and rolled her eyes. �Do I look like your maid?� she yelled out to him from the bed she was sprawled out on. JC came out of the bathroom and grinned as he held up the pair of socks he was searching for. His grin became bigger as she let out an exasperated sigh and abruptly pulled her magazine back up, covering her face. He sat down on the side of her bed and started putting on his socks. �Someone�s PMSing today.� She lowered the magazine down to give him a glare. �I�m not in the mood today.� He finished putting on his other sock and turned to her. He took the magazine away from her and she gave him a look like he was crazy. �I was reading that.� �I don�t care. You�re going to tell me why you came on this tour in the first place. And nothing is going to interrupt us this time,� he said giving her a small smile of cockiness, unhooking the phone. Kate looked back between JC and the door and decided on making a break for it while he was completing his task. �Oh no you don�t,� he said catching her by the waist and bringing her back down onto the bed. She gave him a pout and looked up at him with pleading eyes. He wasn�t about to let it slid this time no matter how pathetic she looked. �Spill.� She closed her eyes for a moment and memories flashed in her mind. She slowly brought her hand up to cover her mouth and she looked at anything, but the man in front of her. JC waited for her to speak and was about to say something when she didn�t respond, but then he heard the first words of her nightmare. �My dad...� she started, but quickly covered her mouth again trying to hold back the salty tears that were threatening to come out at any moment. �He beats us.� Her words were silent, but JC heard them loud and clear. He was down right shocked to say the very least and it was natural for him to reject it right away. But the look in her eyes told him that this wasn�t a lie. This was real even though he didn�t want to accept it. He thought back to the comments she made since she arrived on tour and...the bruise. Anger started to rise in him and he tried his best to control it. It wasn�t often that he got mad, but when it came to the one�s he loved the most, he would go to any length to protect them. Her story was enough to tell him that this was no joke, but the bruise she had gotten was the physical proof that he needed. Shock was still written on his face as he stared off looking nowhere in particular. He turned toward her and saw drops of tears roll down her face one by one. He drew her close to him and placed his chin on top of her head as she snuggled closer to him looking for a sense of comfort and protection. He kissed the top of her head and slowly rocked her back and forth as if she were a baby. JC thought back to the days he had spent over at her house. His uncle always seemed to be a good man and he would have never thought that he would abuse Kate or his aunt. He was the perfect example of a loving father, but now JC guessed it was all just an act. He tightened his embrace around Kate at just the thought of her father now. JC was the first person she told about her father abusing her and her mother. She felt somewhat relieved that she finally released her secret to him, but she hated to let people see her cry. It was a personal thing for her. She always thought that if she let others see her cry, then she would be letting down her guard. She would become vulnerable and that was the last thing she needed to be... especially with her father. But right now, she didn�t really care. She had always been open to JC and it lifted a great weight off of her shoulders to tell him this. After her crying had subsided, JC pulled away and put the phone back on the hook. He picked it up from off of the receiver and dialed a few numbers. �Yeah, Johnny? It�s JC. I�m not going to be able to attend the appearance ...I know it�s important, but there�s a little family crisis going on right now and that�s a little more important...I know I can�t just take off whenever I want to, but this is family we�re talking about here. Put yourself in my shoes...thank you sir.� He put the phone back in its cradle and sat back down next to Kate. �You okay?� Her head was lowered, hair slightly disheveled, and her eyes puffy and red from the tears she shed. She gave a small nod and rubbed at her eyes. She heard JC pick up the phone again and she didn�t make anything of it until she heard his words. �The police station please...� Kate�s head snapped up and she slammed down on the phone. �No...� �Kate what are you doing?� he asked, dumbfounded and shocked. �No you can�t.� �Honey, you need help. Who knows what he�ll do next.� She gave him a terrified look, her eyes tearing up again. �He�ll just get even more mad and THEN who knows what he�ll do.� JC saw the fear in her eyes and gently lowered the phone back down. His heart went out to her and he knew that this had to be stopped so nothing worse could happen. She pleaded with him more and he finally gave into her pleas. He took her in his arms again, this seeming the only way to protect her at the moment. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- �Where is he?� Justin asked impatiently. �He was supposed to be here over twenty minutes ago.� Lance looked around backstage hoping to spot him out somewhere. He had no such luck. He was nowhere to be found and no one had seen him before they even left the hotel. �We go on in two minutes,� Justin stated in a panic. �He�s usually the one telling us to hurry our butts up and now we have no friggin� idea of where he even is.� �Justin, hun,� Erin started. �Calm down. I�m sure he�ll show up.� One of the stage crew called to them to get ready. Justin turned to Erin to give her a glare and she shrugged and smiled innocently. �And three, two, one. You�re on. Go,� the crew member said giving Chris a nudge to step out onto the stage. Smiles were put on the faces of the four men as they faced the Rosie O� Donnell audience. The guys sat down in their assigned chairs and the first question asked was �Where is the fifth member?� �He couldn�t make it today,� Lance answered. �He had to go over some recordings back in Orlando with an artist that might be featured on our next album,� Joey chimed in covering up for JC. �Wow,� Rosie responded. �You�re already working on the new album?� The four nodded their heads before Chris spoke. �Well, we�re just doing little things whenever we have a break for a couple of days.� Justin let out the breath he was holding in and rubbed at his forehead slightly, making sure no beads of sweat would be noticed. The rest of the interview went smoothly and they had to improvise quickly on their performance, only singing one verse of �It�s Gonna Be Me�. The four guys exited the stage after another short interview and Johnny quickly met up with them. Questions were thrown at him all at once and his hands gestured for them to quiet down so he could explain. Justin spoke again. �Where�s JC?� Johnny looked directly at Justin and then shifted his gaze to the rest of the group. �He couldn�t make it. He had some family problems to deal with.� The four exchanged glances with each other. �What do you mean �family problems�?� Lance spoke up. �What happened?� He gave them a sympathetic look and shook his head. �He didn�t explain. I think he�s still at the hotel.� The group gave him one last look before sprinting down the hallway, Lance grabbing Erin in the process. She sighed and ran outside and into the van along with them, not even bothering to ask what was up. They arrived back at the hotel within several minutes and they rushed out of the van and into the lobby without much hassle from the fans. The elevator took them up to the floor their rooms were on, and all five of them rushed out into the hallway and stopped in front of the door of JC�s room. Justin knocked quietly on the door after they all got their breaths back. No response. He knocked again this time a little louder. Chris rolled his eyes and shook his head. �What? Are you some kind of wuss with that knock?� he asked pushing him to the side. He banged on the door and Erin covered her ears as he yelled. �JC! OPEN UP!� The door flung open revealing a very disheveled looking JC. He gave them a glare and stepped out into the hallway, quietly closing the door behind him. �Are you nuts?� he scolded. Justin ignored him and got right to the point. �What happened?� JC waved his hand dismissing the subject. �Just a family problem that I had to deal with,� he casually said trying not to give any hint of what was going on. �Where�s Kate?� Justin asked with obvious concern. �She�s taking a little nap right now.� �Is she okay?� he asked glancing at the door. �She�s just been a little overwhelmed these past couple of weeks with traveling and everything,� he lied. �Wait a minute...didn�t Johnny tell you that I wasn�t coming?� The four looked at each other and then back at JC. �No,� they said in unison. JC sigh heavily and raked a hand through his dark hair. �Great,� he mumbled. �It�s okay,� Joey started. �You almost gave Justin a heart attack, but the appearance went well. We just wished that would�ve let us know too.� JC wasn�t in the mood to argue at the moment so he just gave a small nod retreated back into his room. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- �I found drugs in her sock drawer while I was putting away the wash,� the woman whispered her lie quietly, hoping that this was the right thing to do. �She had what?� the man exclaimed angrily as he looked up at his wife from the kitchen table. She suddenly had second thoughts if this was such good of an idea. But she kept going anyway. She knew this was the only way to get her away from him. �D...drugs.� The large man pushed the table away from him, getting up from his chair in the process. �Where is she?� �John...please,� the woman pleaded, putting a hand on her husband�s arm. He shrugged her hand off of him violently and grabbed both of her shoulders. �Where...is...she?� he growled as the woman could smell the alcohol on his breath. �John...you�re hurting me,� she cried as she struggled to loosen the grip he had on her. The girl stood at the bottom of the staircase in agony as she heard her mother�s pleas. This wasn�t the first time she heard her father yell and her mother cry. The girl gripped the railing tighter as she trembled in fear. This wasn�t how their plan was supposed to work out. She didn�t totally agree to do this, but her mother insisted on it. She even was mad at her for doing this. Her mother would claim to her father that she had found drugs, and she would be sent away to teach her a lesson. Her mother getting abused again was NOT part of the plan. She winced and shut her eyes tightly as she heard the slap of a hand across her mother�s face. When she opened her eyes, a series of tears fell from them. She slowly moved toward the kitchen, her body trembling violently. She gasped when she saw her parents. Her father�s rather large hands were clasped tightly around her mother�s small neck. Her mother gasped for air as she desperately tried to pry her husband�s hands away from her. The girl couldn�t take it anymore. She ran up to the two adults, and grabbed her father�s wrists, tugging and pulling with all her strength to release them from the neck of her mother. �Let go of her!� she screamed at him as she pulled harder and harder. �You little brat,� he responded with anger and backhanded her across the face. The force sent her backward and she slammed into the edge of the countertop. She groaned in pain as she clutched her side. She looked back up, ignoring the pain and saw her mother still struggling. She was now backed up against the refrigerator as her father tightened his hands. The girl reached up for the cordless phone that was mounted above her and snatched it off the receiver. She ran into the living room, away from the chaos so she could complete her task. Her trembling fingers fumbled with the buttons as she dialed 9-1-1 as fast as she could. After explaining her situation to the operator, she ran back into the kitchen. More tears fell freely down her face when she saw her mother was turning a shade of purple and blue. She looked around for anything and everything in an attempt to help her. Her eye caught the pans hanging above the kitchen sink and she grabbed one off the hook it lazily hung on. The hard metal connected with the back of her father�s head with the swung she took. His head was forced forward and it slammed into the refrigerator with a loud thud causing a deep gash on his forehead. Kate sat up, her breathing rapid, and her body covered in cold sweat. She looked around the dark room and it relieved her some to see her cousin in a deep, peaceful sleep. She tried to collect her thoughts. The dream seemed so real...like she was reliving it all over again. She wiped her forehead with the back of her hand and threw the covers off her well-toned legs which were now drenched in sweat. She silently crawled out of her bed and searched for another pair of pajama�s to wear. She changed out of her sticky clothes and felt somewhat better when she was warmed by her new ones. She made her way back to bed and snuggled under the depths of the warm covers. She clutched at them and pulled them closer to her chin instinctively. She threw the covers off once again and silently scolded herself for being so silly. She knew she wouldn�t have any chance of having a good night�s rest so she decided on exploring the hotel. She crept out of the room making sure to take one of the key cards. She fiddled with the card in her hands as she walked down the empty hallway taking in her luxurious surroundings. She got onto the elevator and thoughts of her dream started to invade her mind like a plague. She shook her head to rid herself of them as she stepped off the elevator and into the lobby. Kate smiled at the young girl who handed her a warm cup of hot chocolate from the small cafe� in the hotel. She took a sip of the hot liquid, helping her calm her nerves somewhat. She traveled down a long hallway, the beautiful notes of a piano seeming to pull her in. She gravitated to one of the large ballrooms and she slowly pushed the door open revealing a dim lighted room. She smiled softly as she saw the boy she remembered first meeting four years ago. She walked up to the black, grand piano and sat down next to him. Justin looked over at her and gave a genuine smile. He finished the piece of classical music he was playing and turned to her. Kate blushed slightly under his stare and turned her head downward studying the black and white keys. �That�s probably one of the greatest pieces ever composed.� Justin turned his gaze to where she was looking and placed his fingers back on the keys. �I fell in love with it after I heard you play it.� She looked up at him, surprised at his response. She found the smile on his face irresistible and couldn�t help but give the same smile back. �Play it again,� she whispered setting her cup of cocoa down on top of the piano. He turned his attention to the piano in front of him and Kate gave him her full attention. She was mesmerized by the way his fingers graced the keys in such a fluid movement. Just by watching him, she would�ve thought this came as natural to him as talking to someone. She let each note lull her into a peaceful state and she found her head gently resting against Justin�s shoulder, making it somewhat difficult for him to play the piece. He wasn�t about to bother her, though. He had noticed in the past few weeks that something was laying heavily on her mind, and it showed when she would just gaze out one of the windows in the tour bus or stare at nothing in particular until someone would bring her back to reality. He knew she had told JC whatever was on her mind today, just by the way JC stole glances at her frequently whenever she was with them. JC also seemed a little more high strung then usual, which was another factor that the �family problem� had to deal with the girl who was now sleeping on his shoulder. He smiled down at the girl and sighed. He rested his cheek against the top of her head and took in the essence of her. Her hair smelt like vanilla flowers and the texture was as smooth as satin as it brushed against his cheek. It gave him a sense of comfort to just have her present. A comfort that he felt he needed more and more each day, but could never achieve it...that is unless she was with him. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- *NOTE: The song featured in here is Pachabel's Canon just in case you all would like to know :) |