“I hate packing!” Brooke cried, causing a startled Alyssa to appear in her doorway. “Sorry,” she mumbled, turning back to her suitcase.
“What’s wrong?” Alyssa questioned, amused, as she sat down on the edge of Brooke’s bed.
“I’m not really sure that I should be going,” Brooke replied. “I’m upset because this tour is happening at the wrong time.”
“You’re going on tour with five hotties and you’re upset? I would give anything to be in your position.”
“Cause you’ve got nothing keeping you here,” Brooke shot back. “It’s not that I don’t want to go. I love choreographing. But I’m just scared about leaving Kevin. I have a bad feeling about this.”
“That’s ridiculous, Brooke.” Alyssa rolled her eyes. “Kevin loves you. You love him. Nothing is going to happen.”
Brooke closed her suitcase and sat down on the bed with Alyssa. “But what about the wedding?” she asked after a few minutes. “How they hell am I supposed to plan a wedding on the road? I want everything to be perfect, Lyss.”
Alyssa smiled and wrapped an arm around Brooke’s shoulder. “Of course you do, Brooke. Everyone wants their wedding to be perfect. And yours will be. You have me and Sarah and Lanie and Ang working on it for you. You trust us to do a good job right?”
“Yeah.” Brooke sighed. “Am I overreacting?” Alyssa laughed. “No you’re not overreacting. Everyone gets pre-tour jitters. Everyone gets pre-wedding jitters. You just happen to be getting them at the same time. But there’s nothing to worry about. Kevin is not going to find anyone else and you’re not going to fall in love with Justin Timberlake, remember?”
Brooke nodded, smiling. “Thanks Lyss. I guess I needed someone to tell me I was being ridiculous.”
“Come on,” Alyssa said. “Finish up what you’re doing and then get ready. We need to go to Nick’s tonight.”
“Yeah yeah,” Brooke said to Alyssa’s retreating back. “I’ll be ready.”
***** ***** ***** ***** ***** *****
AJ nervously glanced up at the building in front of him. He really couldn’t believe he was doing this. Here he was, in New York City, staring up at the apartment building of the girl he was once so sure he would have spent the rest of his life with. He couldn’t make his feet move yet and move towards the entrance. Maybe he really shouldn’t be here. Maybe he should just turn around, get in a cab, go back to the airport, and get on a plane back to Florida. Yeah, that’s what he’ll do. Just as he was about to turn around someone crashed into him from behind. He turned around, ready to help whoever it was that was sprawled out on the ground. “I’m sorry…” he trailed off when he saw who it was. “Krista?” he whispered.
“Yeah?” Krista asked, looking up from her mess of books and papers. She got a good look at the face of the man trying to help her up and was absolutely stunned. “AJ?” She couldn’t do anything but stare at him. “What are you doing outside of my apartment building?”
AJ bent down and helped her gather her things. “I didn’t know that it was your building,” he lied. They gathered all of her things up off of the ground and he handed them over to her. “Well, it was nice seeing you.”
He went to turn around and walk away when she reached out and grabbed his arm. “It’s been three years and that’s it? You’re just going to walk away?” AJ’s heart broke at the tears in her eyes. “No,” he whispered.
“Why don’t you come up?” Krista successfully blinked back her tears. It was her that left him after all. “Are you busy or anything?”
AJ shook his head. “No. Thanks. I’d love to come up.” He followed Krista in to the apartment building towards the elevator. They rode up to her floor in silence, both contemplating what they were going to say to each other after so many years.
***** ***** ***** ***** **** *****
Katelin knelt down in front of the head stone and placed her bouquet of flowers at the base. She ran her fingers over the engraved writing. Michael Thomas Taylor. It was hard to believe that he was actually gone. She felt bad. Like she hadn’t grieved enough for him. With everything that had been going on with Nick and Aidan, she had let her mind be occupied by other things.
“Hi daddy,” she said, quietly. There was no one around who could hear her but she said it quietly, just the same. “I guess you’ve seen everything that has been going on. I saw Nick again. I’m still as in love with him as ever. I guess all of your rules couldn’t change that. But he’s not in love with me anymore. He has someone new. Her name is Lanie and as much as it kills me to admit it, she’s a really sweet girl. She really cares about Nick and I guess that’s all I could ask for."
Katelin reached up to wipe her tears away and glanced around as the wind picked up. It was a typical fall day in New York City. Rainy and cold. “Nick found out about his son. Finally. After all these years. I just wish I could have told him myself. I wish that we could have had those two years with Aidan. So does he. And he blames me that we couldn’t. I guess it really was my fault. I should have stood up to you more often. I know that you always wanted what was best for me, but didn’t you want me to be happy daddy? That’s all I ever wanted. It wasn’t about breaking the rules. It was the fact that I was so in love with Nick and now all I’m left with are memories. Sure, I have a beautiful son. And I’m finally going to be able to be a part of his life. But it’s not the same. The three of us should be a family. A real one. And we could have been if it wasn’t for you.”
Katelin stood up and wiped her tears away, staring at her father’s head stone. “I miss you so much, daddy. And I love you. But from now on, I’m going to do what makes me happy. Well, as happy as I can be since I lost the one person that brought me the most happiness.”