CHAPTER 19
(Kaitlyn's hotel room)
Kaitlyn could barely hear the faint knock on the door as she sat there on the floor of her room crying.
"Kitty Kat? It's me Jenni. Can I come in?" Jennifer said from the other side of door.
"GO AWAY!" Kaitlyn said crying.
"Kaitlyn, I'm not going to let you do this to yourself." Jennifer ordered her.
"Please Jennifer, just leave me alone. I need to be alone." Kaitlyn said pleading through her tears.
"Kaitlyn, just please let me come in." Jennifer begged.
"NO! NOW GO!", Kaitlyn finally said in a soft voice, "just go."
Jennifer knocked a couple more times but decided she should go get Cody since Kaitlyn wasn't the type to deal with stress well.
Kaitlyn sat motionless on the floor with tears streaming down her face. She didn't understand it. She liked Justin, but she never expected more than just as friends. It felt so good to be with him in his arms, but Kaitlyn knew it was wrong. She felt guilty, for kissing Justin, for running away from him, from loving him.
(Kaitlyn)
*NO KAITLYN!!! You don't love himm. You can't! He's seventeen. It's
wrong. But why does it feel so right. What is wrong with me?*
Kaitlyn finally sat up and walked over to the window and saw Justin standing there with the other four guys with a dissapointed expression on his face. Kaitlyn felt a single tear squeeze out of her tired eyes and slowly race down her cheek and onto a picture on the floor. A picture of her and Justin.
Kaitlyn knew what she needed to do and that it needed to be done right away.
____________________________________________________
(Back at the pool)
"I'm sorry Curly. We thought it was going to work out between the two of you. It even looked like it. " JC said patting his solemn faced friend.
"No, it's okay guys. I shouldn't have kissed her anyways." Justin said. But he didn't regret kissing Kaitlyn. It felt right. He knew it was. So why did she run away?
"Look guys, I think I just need some time alone." Justin said looking at the clear blue water in the pool.
"Alright Curly, but if you need us, we'll be inside." Lance said as they nodded.
"Thanks you guys." Justin said as they went back inside.
Justin went over to one of the lounge chairs and sat down, never looking away from the water. He didn't know how he felt anymore. He thought that Kaitlyn liked him just as much as he liked her. At least he thought so. But he didn't know what to think. He was full of mixed emotions.
(Justin)
*What were you thinking Timberlake? How could you think she would like
you? But the signs were always there. So what went wrong? Why did you
turn away from me Kaitlyn? Why?*
Justin turned towards the table and rested his head on his folded arms and closed his eyes.
____________________________________________________
(Back at the party)
Jennifer walked back into the balloon filled ballroom and headed straight for the four guys talking by the food table.
"Hey you guys, have you seen my brother?" Jennifer asked worried.
(Jennifer)
*I really hate leaving Kaitlyn alone in her condition*
"I think he's over by the the tables. How's Kait?" JC asked solemnly.
"Well, she's crying in her room right now. She won't let me in. And for Kaitlyn, that's pretty big. Look, I'm going to go look for Cody, I'm sorry how this has all worked out. But Cody is usually the only person who can get Kaitlyn to open up." Jennifer apologized and explaned.
"No it's alright. We understand." Chris assured her.
Jennifer nodded her head and gave a small wave and smile. She picked up her dress so she could get across the large room without her dress trailing behind her and getting stepped on. She finally found Cody talking to one of the bodyguards at the back table.
"Cody, I really need to talk to you." Jennifer said politely smiling at the tall man standing next to Cody.
"Alright," Cody looked at the bodyguard and smiled, "well it was nice talking to you Tony."
"Yeah, you to. Good luck with that technology scholarship." Tony said shaking his hand.
Cody smiled and shook his hand and followed Jennifer out of the party and into the hallway.
"We have a problem, actually, Kaitlyn has a problem." Jennifer said walking towards the elevators.
"Why? What happened?" Cody asked going straight into protective mode.
"Well, she likes Justin."
"What's wrong with that?"
"Well, she ended up kissing him this evening and she ran away from him in tears."
"Why?"
"That's why I'm got you to talk to her. You're the one she has always been able to open up to." Jennifer explained.
They finally stepped out of the elevator and onto the fifth floor. They walked down to room 525 and noticed Kaitlyn's door was partly open. Jennifer and Cody both looked at each other in horror and walked into the room. Everything looked in place. Almost everything.
"Kitty Kat? It's doodles." Cody said entering the room in front of Jennifer.
"Kaitlyn? Are you in here?" Jennifer said walking into the bathroom, passing by the closet. Just as Jennifer came out of the closet she had a gut reaction and opened the closet.
"Cody, come see this." Jennifer said showing him the empty closet. Everything was gone. Kaitlyn's luggage, bag, and Kaitlyn.
"Oh no." Cody sighed.
"And look at this." Jennifer said holding up a letter that Kaitlyn apparently left on the bathroom counter.
Dear Jenni pie & doodles,
I'm so sorry yo guys. What kind of role model am I to you? I'm probably the worst big sister. Not including Misty and Shannon. I don't know what went wrong. Where and how. But I know that I shouldn't have let Justin kiss me. I know I shouldn't have let myself kiss him. Just please tell him I'm sorry. I have a letter I would like you to give him. It's on my pillow on my bed. I'm sorry for leaving you guys. I know it's wrong of me. But please, have fun in Chicago. And please say sorry to Lynn and Randy for me. Lastly, don't come finding me. You may know where I would go, but I just need some time to think. Love you guys.
Always,
Kitty Kat
"I cannot believe this. I knew I shouldn't have left her alone. I hadn't realized that an hour and a half had already passed." Jennifer said feeling guilty.
"Oh don't blame yourself. She's mature. She's 20. She can take care of herself. I just pray she remembers to take care of herself."
____________________________________________________
(Down by the pool)
Justin hadn't noticed that it was almost midnight until his mom walked out onto the terrace and sat on the chair next to him.
"What's wrong sweety?" Lynn said patting Justin on the back as he slowly lifted his head.
"I don't know. Really, I don't know." Justin said truthfully.
"Well, back when I was on the plane here to see you, I thought of how sweet it was of Kaitlyn to think to invite us to visit you for the weekend. And you know what I wondered, I wondered what you had done to this girl to make her like you so much. Justin, I don't regret meeting your father and marrying him, cause that marriage brought you. The best thing in my life. You're my whole life. Every time you cried, you whined, and smiled, I remember it. I made a memory of it. I'm not going to be around forever, but while I'm here, I want you to have the one thing in this world that I can't give to you in the way you need it." Lynn said now brushing some stray hairs from his forehead.
"And what's that mom?" Justin asked curious and interested in what she meant.
"Love. I've always given you my love Justin. But that's always been motherly love. You've been filled with love but you've never given to someone else. I want to you to love and be loved Justin. And there's a girl I know up in that hotel that loves you. More than you know it. I want you to be happy. You always were a perky child. And now look at you. Follow your heart, it will take you places you never thought possible." With that Lynn stood up and kissed the top of Justin's head and walked off.
Justin sat there for a moment to let what his mother had just said, process in his mind. Her words repeated in his head and became even more louder and clearer each time it played in his head.
(Justin)
*Mom's right. I know Kaitlyn loves me. And I love her. Mom said to
follow my heart, and right now it's leading me to Kaitlyn.*
* * * * *