WHAT IF?
Chapter Thirteen
Rachel stood outside her apartment, smoking.
Piper, Lisa, and Tara were there, too.
"Hey, Rachel, did Rose tell you anything
about getting us a record deal?" Piper asked.
"No." Piper sighed. "Hey,
don’t worry. She will. Trust me."
"Dude, that’s what you said the last
time."
"You know what, Piper? Why don’t you ask
her?"
"Fine. I will do it as soon as she gets
back from her vacation."
"Yeah, whatever."
"You know what? I’m sick and tired of
your bullshit. You always seem to have a problem with somebody."
"Oh, really." Rachel crossed her
arms and glared at Piper, who grabbed her coat and left. Lisa and Tara looked
at each other, grabbed their things, and also left.
"Sorry, Rachel."
*****
Taryn was listening to some music when she
heard her door being knocked on. She opened it. It was Garret. "Hey,"
Taryn said, looking at him.
"Hi. May I come in?" She nodded.
"Yeah, sure." He walked in and
looked around. "Sit down. Do you want a drink?"
"No, thanks."
"So, what happened?"
"I...I got a girl pregnant."
"What? Are you sure?"
"I don’t know, because there is another
guy in the picture, but she says that it’s mine."
"Dude. Does she know that you’re Rose’s
brother?"
"Uh...I think so."
"Maybe she just wants the money. You
know how some women are these days."
"Yeah. Maybe you’re right." They
were silent for a moment. "So, does Rose know?"
She shook her head. "Nope."
He sat back on her coach. "Man, I’m
screwed."
"Big time."
*****
Clifford, Rose’s manager, looked through some
magazines, reading about Rose and where she had been for the past few weeks. He
read lots of rumors and gossip, and some other things until he got a call.
"What? But she’s on vacation. All right.
I’ll tell her. Yes, I will. All right. Bye." He sighed, then grabbed his
phone and tried to reach Rose. "She’s gonna kick my ass," he said
under his breath.
*****
Ruth sat at home, looking at pictures of Rose
and Garret. They were adorable, and they weren’t rebellious as they were now.
She looked at their photos--one of Rose sitting, and the other one of Garret
leaning against a chair. She smiled at the photos and looked up. Trudy and
Alice stood behind the kitchen door, hearing Ruth crying. As they did, they
went back to work. Ruth blamed herself for making her children this way. She
wished that John were there to comfort her.
