Chloe sighed, and plopped down at the table on the bus. Melanie looked at her friend across from her smiled. "Howya doing?" Chloe shrugged. "Hayden made me feel a lot better. He believes me." Melanie set down her pen and sighed. "Lance and Joey believe you. Chris and Justin don't know what to think. If you've noticed, no one's been openly hostile to you about it� except for Cynda and JC." Chloe shook her head. "I feel so worthless, Mel. I don't want ANYONE to hate me. Or be unsure of me, for that matter�" She fell silent, typing away on her computer. "Are we almost there, yet?" Melanie nodded. "We should be getting to the hotel any minute. Are you heading home to stay?" Chloe nodded. "Yeah. I want to see my mom and dad� talk to Tobey about all this� get away for a bit."
Melanie nodded. "Understandable. Just as long as you're here for shows, meetings, etc. you're all set."
Chloe nodded. "Yeah. I'd better get everything put away and ready to go."
"Chloe!" She grinned and fell into her dad's arms. "Daddy." He squeezed her tightly. "Oh, hon, I'm so glad to see you. Get in here!" She laughed and reached down to pet her puppy. "Hey Sammy."
"Chloe! Oh, you're home!!! Finally!!" Chloe smiled. "Hi mom." She hugged the older woman tight, not wanting to let go. She'd missed her parents. "I feel so bad� I need to get out here more often." Her dad nodded. "Can't argue with ya, there." She smiled. "It feels really nice to be home." Her mom put her arm around her daughter. "Come on into the kitchen and sit with me while I make dinner." Chloe nodded. "Ok mom. Let me go call Tobey first, ok? I need to talk to him." Her mom nodded. "Of course, honey, go ahead� I'm so happy about the way you two turned out� You're so close� it's wonderful." Chloe smiled at her mom and retrieved the phone, dialing her brothers number. "Hello?" Chloe frowned, confused. "Um, I was looking for Tobey�"
The girl on the other line, giggled. "Is this Chloe?" Chloe nodded. "Yeah� is this Kirsten?"
"Yeah, here he is." Chloe smiled, knowingly as her brother's familiar voice rang out through the phone. "Chloe! Howya doin' kiddo?" She sighed. "Actually, real bad. That's why I called. I wanted to talk to you." He winced. "Uh-oh. Ok. Shoot, kiddo."
Chloe took a deep breath and launched into full detail of the events that had taken place a few weeks before. He sighed. "Chlo'� that's awful. Who would do such a thing?" She shrugged. "Dunno."
He sighed. "Ok. Focus. Who was the LAST person alone with your computer?" She sighed. "I don't� wait� it was the night I went to the Christensen's. But, I left it with Melanie, so it's fine." Tobey sighed. "I know, Mel would never do such a thing� but, you should still ask her if she let anyone else in the room, etc." Chloe nodded. "I'll do that." He smiled. "Ok good. Tell mom and dad hey for me, ok? And that I love them." She nodded. "Sure thing. Tell Kirsten I said hello." He sighed. "It's not what you're thinking." Chloe smiled. "Suurre. Love you, Tobes." He grinned. "You too, C. I hope everything gets straight. Call me. Later."
She sighed and walked downstairs. "Need any help, mom?" Wendy Maguire turned around and smiled at her daughter. "Nope. You just have a seat and keep me company." Chloe smiled and did as she was told. "So, tell me everything about this new job of yours." Chloe sighed. "Well. It's great, I love it� but there's sorta been a situation." Her mom nodded, attentively, as her daughter launched into the difficult story once again that night. Her mom smiled, sympathetically, before coming around to give her daughter a hug. "Oh, sweetie. I'm sorry." Chloe sighed. "I just don't know what to do mom� JC's a really nice guy� and a really good friend� and now he hates me."
Her mom frowned. "If he was such a good friend� don't you think he would believe you?" Chloe sighed, rubbing her eyes. "I know, mom, I know� And I've been telling myself that over and over. If he were such a good friend, he'd be on my side, blah blah� but then I know how much he's been hurt in the past, and how people close to him have lied and done basically the same thing to him, and I can't blame him one bit if he hated me." Her mom sighed. "You're in a tough spot. But always remember, that you can overcome it� that it WILL get better."
She sighed. "I hope so, mom." Her mom smiled, and kissed her daughter's cheek. "We'll talk more, later, ok? Let's eat some dinner. Vincent? Dinner!"
Chloe grinned as her dad strolled in the room. "I heard someone say food� am I right?" Chloe grinned, as her dad wrapped his arms around her mom. She wanted a relationship just like theirs� after 25 years, they were still so completely in love with each other� and could still get so completely lost in the others' eyes. "Ahem. Guys. I'm hungry." Her mom laughed and kissed her dad on the cheek. "You hear that, Vin? Our baby girl's hungry." He smiled. "Oh, is she? Well, we should feed her then, Wen."
She grinned and sat down to eat a meal with her parents� a family dinner that'd she'd missed for too long.
Chloe smiled, as her and her mom curled up on the couch to watch one of their favorite older movies, "Penny Serenade". Her dad had already gone to bed, having to get up and work the next morning. "Mom� what's wrong with me? I see all these movies and people around me that are so completely in love with each other� what's wrong with me?" Her mother looked at her as if she had grown another head. "Nothing is wrong with you. Just because you haven't found the one your supposed to spend the rest of your life with, doesn't mean ANYTHING is wrong with you. And that JC calling you what he did was wrong and completely untrue. Honey, you're going to fall in love. And when you do, it's going to be completely amazing and all worthwhile. You've experienced the bad. You have to, in order to fully appreciate the feeling of being in love gives you."
Chloe smiled. "Thanks, mom. You have no idea how much better you just made me feel." Wendy grinned. "I love you, baby. And so does your father and brother. Always remember that. You always have a home to come to, when you're lonely, or whatever it is you feel. You're ALWAYS welcome." Chloe smiled. "Thanks mama." Her mom grinned. "Anytime. That's what I'm here for. But you should probably get to bed now. You've got to be at the arena, at what time?" Chloe yawned. "12:30." Her mother smiled and ushered her upstairs. "Go on. I'll see you in the morning." Chloe nodded. "Thanks, mom. For everything."
Wendy smiled and hugged her daughter. "Like I said, anytime. G'night, Chlo."
Melanie smiled brightly, as Chloe walked into the arena, where the guys were setting up for the show that night. "Hey, Chlo'. How's your mom and dad?" Chloe smiled. "They're good. Really good. In fact, they say hello." Melanie grinned. "Your parents always were the coolest." Melanie looked down. "Um, I should warn you ahead of time� JC's not in the best of moods today. So, be careful." Chloe shrugged. "I really don't give a rat's ass, if JC's in a good or bad mood."
Melanie's mouth dropped open, as Chloe went on. "In fact, he can take his selfish, self-centered attitude and shove it right up his ass, for all I care." Melanie shook her head violently, as Chloe ranted on. "I don't care, Mel. I really don't. If he doesn't want to believe me, then fine. Who cares?! I know who's right and who's wrong, and I know what I did do and didn't do. So, everyone else can kiss it." Melanie covered her mouth, eyes wide. Chloe looked at her friend, strangely. "Mel�"
Chloe closed her eyes and sighed, as she heard a voice behind her. "You should give a rat's ass, Ms. Maguire. I can have you fired quicker than you can say backstabbing whore." Chloe shook her head, before whirling around. "I DARE you to say that again, Chasez. I DARE you." He backed off, as she saw hold cold her eyes had become. He rolled his eyes. "Whatever. Put it this way. You give me my space and leave me the heck alone, I'll do the same for you, got it?"
She shrugged. "Whatever." Joey shook his head. "That's it. I've had enough. I'm sick of the talking behind people's backs, and I'm tired of the language being used here. JC, she is NOT a whore, nor is she backstabbing, so you'd better cut it out. Chloe, no more talking behind JC's back. If you need to say something to him, then do it. The fact is, we're all sick and tired of you guys going back and forth between us about this. From now on, you need to say something about each other, say it to each other's face. We don't want to hear it. We're on nobody's side, and we don't have an opinion, so DON'T ask for one. Is that understood? I'm sick of this hostility. We all are. JC, we know you're mad, and Chloe we know that you're frustrated that no one seems to care what you say. But we DO care and we have listened. We just don't know what to think right now. JC does have every right to be upset, but, he has NO right to call you things that we have no proof or basis for." Justin, Lance, Chris, and Melanie burst out clapping and cheering. "Amen, brotha!" Justin yelled, nodding. Chloe and JC shook their heads with scowls on their faces. Only Cynda remained silent. For once. Chloe nodded. "Fine." JC shrugged. "Fine." Joey nodded. "Alright. JC, we have a show to do. Let's go. Chloe, you know what you gotta do. Let's go people! Nothing to see! Let's get to work!!"
Chloe sighed, and looked away, but not before her eyes settled on Cynda and the smug smile she wore on her face. Chloe shook her head, and headed on.
Fourteen