Chapter One

"Erm, Wasn't That Britney Spears?"

Rain. Streaming down the windows, little rivulets patterning the glass panes like Silly String on the wooden concert hall floors of last year's Albertane Tour. Reflecting the light like Waterford crystal, the raindrops clouded his vision. Not that there was much for him to see.

Jordan Taylor Hanson scanned the street, but it was empty. Neither wonder. The rain seemed to be keeping everyone inside. It had been continuously falling in huge, gusty sheets all day, showing no signs of relenting, and now Taylor was becoming restless. And he wasn't the only one.

His eighteen-year-old brother, Isaac, had been sitting strumming a guitar, modulating between C major and the relative A minor for hours on end, until five minutes ago, when he'd excused himself and disappeared off the face of the earth. His thirteen-year-old brother, Zac, was moping around the house, seemingly spreading his time equally between moaning at Isaac and Taylor and kicking his feet off his bed. Currently, he was engaged in a "Simpsons" marathon with ten-year-old Jessica, who'd been mooching around like her cat had died. Only the three youngest Hansons seemed to be happy, year-old Zoë being sound asleep and eight-year-old Avery and five-year-old Mackenzie cooking up a storm with their mom and a packet of Slice 'n' Bake cookies.

Taylor himself had just been sitting in front of his bedroom window, in a little world of his own. He'd already dreamed up about a zillion different scenarios involving himself and either Cameron Diaz or Cindy Crawford and, once or twice, Jennifer Love-Hewitt. But he could only imagine gorgeous women proclaiming their undying love for him so many times without becoming extremely depressed that none of them really did love him.

So he'd turned to writing songs. He looked down at the pad in front of him and what was written.


When I was in love with you, nothing could ever make me blue, I know you felt the same way too, because you said you would be true.


Taylor smirked. Those lyrics were terrible. He ripped the page off the top of the pad and scrunched it into a ball, throwing it in the corner of the room. He knew he and his brothers had a 'never throw anything away, it might be good later' policy, but that would never, ever become good music. No way, no how. It was pathetic. Where was he getting these lyrics from anyway? He sounded like a lovesick fifty-year-old, not a sixteen-year-old.

He stared at the Spice Girls poster on the other side of his bedroom. It was an old poster; Geri was still in it, sticking her tongue out. Taylor wondered why it was even up there. Sure, they had been fans at the start, but not so much anymore.

He averted his gaze to the B*Witched poster, finding that even more disconcerting. He had a feeling he wasn't one of the girls' favorite people after Hanson dropping them as their Wembley Arena support act in London. Taylor liked B*Witched, he truly did, but the management had it written into the contract that there had to be a live band supporting them, and the promoters had gone on ahead and booked B*Witched without confirming it with Mercury first. He could still remember Chris Sabec telling the girls' manager that they had been dropped. The screeching from the phone had been audible from the opposite side of the room. So they'd had the Hillman Minx as their support act, which had not gone down well with the audience. Instead of "C'est La Vie" it had been more a case of "C'est La Who?"

The door creaked open and Zac drifted aimlessly in, flopping down on his bed, grunting in acknowledgement to Taylor.

"Hey, Zac."

"Tay."

Taylor rolled his eyes. Obviously, today was not going to be the day Zac chose to work on his conversational skills.

"Whatcha been doing?"

Taylor shook his head, caught off-guard by Zac's surprise question. "Just thinking."

"Cindy Crawford?" Zac looked at his brother knowingly.

"Yeah…" Taylor's eyes took on a dreamy look.

Zac chucked a pillow at his brother. "God, Tay, snap out of it! She's married!"

"Do you think that matters to me in my dreams?"

"I guess not…"

"Anyway, she's hotter than Britney Spears!"

"Ah, ah, Britney, baby! She can hit me one more time anytime she likes!" Zac grinned widely, wiggling his eyebrows.

"Zac, honestly, control your hormones!" scolded Taylor, wagging his finger at his brother.

"I can't. I'm thirteen."

"Point taken." Taylor climbed down off the windowsill and joined Zac on the bed. "Where's Ike?"

"He went over to see Rhia," replied Zac.

"In this weather?"

"Yeah, she called him. Something about a busted fuse box."

"A busted fuse box and she called Ike?" Taylor raised his eyebrows incredulously. "That boy couldn't tell the difference between a screwdriver and a sledgehammer!"

"Sure he could, Tay. He just has to hit himself over the head with them both and see what one knocks him out."

Taylor smiled. "Remember when he did that?"

"Well, it wasn't quite a sledgehammer, but, yeah! Oh, God, that was funny!"

"Yeah, he's a doofus!" Taylor traced the pattern of Zac's duvet cover with his finger. "I wish it would stop raining!"

"Why?"

"I'm bored! I wanna go kick a soccer ball about outside or something."

"Kick it about in here," suggested Zac. "Just don't even think about knocking down my Lego sculpture!"

"Yeah, right…What's it meant to be, anyway?"

"I could tell you, but then-"

Taylor cut him off. "You'd have to kill me, right?" Zac's obsession with that phrase was becoming slightly boring.

"Yup." Zac grinned broadly and folded his arms behind his head. "What's your preferred means? Strangulation or suffocation?"

"I've always fancied poisoning myself," kidded Taylor.

"I'll bear that in mind." Zac closed his eyes.

"Are you going to sleep?"

"What else is there to do?"

Taylor thought. "Hey…fancy a Grand Theft Auto playoff?"

Zac snapped his eyes open. "Sure! You want your ass whipped?"

"We'll see about that."

"Oh yeah?" Zac shoved his brother playfully.

"Yeah!" Taylor shoved Zac back, and the two of them toppled off the bed.

"Fine then. Come on."

And so the two brothers headed off to the Playstation, both determined to kick the other's ass.

***

"And if I just push this…hey presto! We have light!" Isaac pressed the light switch, and, sure enough, light flooded the room.

"Oh, Ike, my hero!" Rhiannon Davidson pretended to swoon, falling backwards onto the sofa.

"That's me! Isaac Hanson - the rescuer of damsels in distress."

Promptly, there was a buzzing noise and the light went out.

Rhiannon snorted. "Obviously!" she laughed.

"Aww, dammit! I thought I had it that time!"

"What, tenth time lucky?" Rhiannon raised her eyebrows.

"That was not the tenth time!" argued Isaac, sitting down in the armchair.

"Was so!"

"Well, what do we do now? I don't think there's much point in me trying to fix it!" Isaac crossed his arms in front of his chest, pouting in the darkness.

"Oh, Ike, don't go in the huff! Sorry if it's bruised your macho ego."

Isaac shrugged. "So, are we gonna sit here in the dark until your family gets home or are we gonna find some candles?"

"You get the candles, they're in the basement, in the cupboard beside the pool table. I'll phone the electricity company."

"Rhia?"

"What?"

"Make us some coffee while you're at it? Please?"

"Ike, get the candles."

"Fine, fine," mumbled Isaac, getting to his feet and feeling his way about in the darkness. "Ow!"

"What?" Rhia's voice came from the direction in the kitchen.

"I stubbed my toe," moaned Isaac. "Since when to you have a table at the door to your family room?"

"Aww, gee, Ike, I forgot about that one. It's a new addition. Only been there, what…ten years or so?" Her voice was practically dripping sarcasm. "Now remember!" she called. "There is actually a door before you get to the basement stairs! It's only been there since the house was built, so I thought I'd better remind you!"

"Very funny, Rhia." Isaac pulled open the doorway and promptly tripped over something, clattering all the way down the concrete stairs. "Ohh…" he moaned.

"Ike? You okay?" Rhia appeared at the top of the stairs, a flashlight illuminating her pale face, giving it an eerie glow. She shone the flashlight down on him, lying in a heap on the floor.

Isaac glared up at Rhia. "You had a flashlight and you made me wander about your house in the pitch darkness?"

"Well, I needed it to see the numbers on the phone, didn't I? God, Ike, you would have thought you would have known your way around here by now! We've only been friends, what…seventeen years?" Rhia climbed down the stairs, offering Isaac her hand and pulling him to his feet.

"I've never had to do it blind," grumbled Isaac, dusting off his jeans and fingering the tender spot on his forehead. He would be black and blue tomorrow; that was inevitable. "Now where's these candles?"

Rhia bent down and pulled open a small cupboard, emerging with a packet of candles and a book of matches. "Was that really so hard? Ike, you're a klutz!"

Isaac tutted and rolled his eyes. "Rhia, I did not come here to get insulted!"

Rhia looked puzzled. "Ike, I was kidding." She slugged him lightly on the arm. "What's up?"

"Nothing," sighed Isaac. "Come on. Let's go get that coffee."

Shrugging, Rhia followed him upstairs.

Ten minutes later, Isaac and Rhia were settled on the couch with steaming cups of coffee, a packet of Oreo's and a bowl of cheddar popcorn. Candles were situated strategically around the Davidson's family room, allowing maximum light.

"So where's your family gone?" asked Isaac, sipping his coffee.

"They've gone to visit my aunt. I stayed because I had an English paper to write for tomorrow."

"How come Neil didn't? You're in the same class."

"Yeah, but unlike me, my twin brother has brains and decides to get it done early." Rhia laid her head back on the couch, her long blonde ponytail spilling over the back.

"Neil? Brains? You’re kidding me, right?" laughed Isaac.

Rhia smiled. "That's my brother and your friend you're talking about, klutz boy!"

"Sheesh, Rhia, I was kidding! Why so touchy?"

"That's exactly what I was about to ask you." Rhia narrowed her eyes, looking at Isaac pointedly.

"Me?"

"Yes, you! You've been cranky ever since you got here! Now, are you gonna spill, or are you gonna keep getting depresseder and depresseder-"

"Depresseder?" smirked Isaac.

"Yes, depresseder." Rhia carried on, oblivious. "Until you bottle it all up so much that you turn into a crazy mad axe murderer!" She snapped herself back upright, her fringe falling in front of her eyes.

"Calm down!" laughed Isaac.

"Well, since you've got here, you've been a crabby, moany brat," she added matter-of-factly. "Is it Honey Perkins?"

Isaac looked down at the sofa, suddenly taking a great interest in it.

"Aww, Ike!" groaned Rhia. "She's a total bimbo! I mean, her name's Honey, for the love of Pete! Honey? Can you get any more saccharine?"

"But she's beautiful," murmured Isaac.

"So thinks Scott Allcorn anyway! She's been seeing him for the past three months. That's a record for Rent-A-Slut."

"Rhia!"

"Well, she is! Have you any idea how many guys she's screwed in the past week? Probably half the school!"

"Oh, stop exaggerating. This past week?" Isaac raised his eyebrows.

"Maybe not, but she's been around. She did a freshman not so long ago. I mean a senior and a freshman? God!"

"You just don't like her because you have a crush on Josh and he has a crush on her."

"I do not have a crush on Josh Waterman!" Rhia's green eyes flashed hotly in denial.

"You do too. You think I can't tell?"

"Isaac, don't tell me what I feel."

Isaac ignored her. "Well, you're home free, Rhia. Honey wouldn't even look at Josh."

"I don't see why not. Josh is a sweet guy."

"Aha!"

"Aha what?" Rhia rolled her eyes.

"I knew you liked him!"

Rhia threw her hands up in frustration. "She's plastic, you know."

"Who?" asked Isaac, thoroughly confused, as he often was when Rhia was in this sort of mood.

"Honey. She contains more plastic than your average Tupperware sales rep's suitcase!"

"Oh, Rhia, she does not!"

"Oh yeah? Well, how come she went in for knee surgery, and when she came out, her chest had grown from a B cup to a D cup?" she challenged.

"Erm, wasn't that Britney Spears?"

Rhia laughed, chucking a cushion at him. "I wish we could watch TV," she moaned. "We're just going to end up killing each other if we only sit here."

Suddenly, the phone jangled loudly beside then, causing Rhia to jump. "Holy crap!" she gasped. Reaching for the receiver, she took a few deep breaths. "Hello? Oh, hey Martin…uh-huh…sure, sounds like fun…yeah…oh, he'll be there, you know Neil…uh-huh…sure, I've got the number, but Ike's here now…sure, I'll tell him…okay…yep…who else?…okay, I'll do that…yeah, tomorrow…uh-huh…right…I will…okay…bye."

Isaac raised his eyebrows questioningly.

"That was Martin," Rhia told him.

"Oh, you don't say! You know, when you said 'oh, hey, Martin,' I thought it was Karen!"

"Aren't we the comedian this evening?" Rhia rolled her eyes. "Anyway, if I can get a word in between your wisecracks, Martin and Katie are throwing a party tomorrow night. You, Tay and Zac are invited."

"Cool," nodded Isaac. "I can't speak for Beavis and Butthead, but I'll be there."

"How are Tay and Zac, anyway?"

"Oh, they're fine. Tay's been-" Isaac stopped, cut off by the doorbell.

Rhia jumped up off the seat and ran to the door. A minute later, she reappeared with the most beautiful girl Isaac had ever seen - besides Honey Perkins. "Ike, this is Gabriella Young - known as Gabbie. Gabbie, this is Clarke Isaac Hanson, known as Isaac or Ike. Never Clarke, unless you have a death wish."

"Hi." Isaac held his hand out.

Gabbie took it and shook. "Hi, Isaac. Nice to meet you." She smiled, revealing white, even teeth. Her skin was tanned and her curly hair a lustrous brown color, with hints of red. Her eyes were bright blue, even brighter than Taylor's. She was tall, about five feet and nine inches and slender, but with curves where they should be.

"Same here." Isaac grinned stupidly, finally letting go of her hand. He glanced at the clock. It was only seven o'clock. He would be here for at least another two hours. He just hoped he could make it that long without making a complete and utter idiot of himself.

***

Taylor juggled the bowl of popcorn with his bag of chips and can of Dr Pepper, making his way back through to the living room and laying it all down on the coffee table before collapsing on the sofa once more. He hit play on the remote and watched Michael J Fox walk into a diner, sitting down next to a geeky looking kid.

"Hey, Tay. Whatcha doin'?" Zac ambled in, his hand dipping automatically into the bag of chips.

"Watching 'Back To The Future'," mumbled Taylor through a mouthful of popcorn. "Want to join me?"

"Sure." Zac sat down in silence for a few minutes, before speaking. "Remember how we used to do this, like, all the time?"

Taylor smiled fondly. "Yeah. You and me here, and Ike in the armchair."

"God, how many movies did we watch? Must have been well into the hundreds…"

"Probably."

"Tay?"

"Hmm?"

"Remember how we used to lie?"

"Sure."

"Can I lie like that now? Please?"

Taylor looked over at Zac and smiled, ruffling his hair. "Sure," he said again.

"Cool!" Zac swung his legs up and rested his bare feet in Taylor's lap.

Taylor smiled. He and Zac hadn't lain like this for a long time. It wasn't as comfortable as he remembered; in fact, things were a bit cramped. Maybe the sofa was getting too small. Or maybe, he and Zac were getting too big.

Zac wiggled his toes happily, glad to have finally found something to do to occupy his mind. He pushed his head further back into the arm of the sofa, trying to get comfy. He looking at Taylor, examining his brother closely. Taylor looked exhausted. Darkness rimmed his slightly red eyes and his skin was pale. He appeared to be deep in thought. "Tay?"

Taylor jumped, the voice cutting through his thoughts. "Yeah?"

"You okay?" Zac frowned in concern.

"I'm fine."

"You sure?"

"Yeah."

"You promise?"

"Zac, I'm okay. Let's just watch the movie, okay?"

"Okay…" Zac didn't quite believe his brother, but let the subject rest for the time being.

***

Taylor and Zac were already in bed when Isaac finally got home from Rhia's. Gabbie had gone home a few minutes after she'd arrived, after confirming that she would be at Martin Gibson's party the next night. Rhia had explained that Gabbie had moved into the neighborhood while Isaac was away, and had got quite friendly with her. Isaac didn't have problem with that. Another older kid could go down quite nicely… especially if things didn't happen between him and Honey.

Isaac said a quick goodnight to his mom and dad, after assuring them that Rhia was fine and her family were back, then disappeared upstairs to his room. Zac was lying in bed, supposedly asleep and Taylor was lying in his bottom bunk, absently flicking though a magazine.

"Ike! You’re back!"

"Miss me?"

"Like a hole in the head," grinned Taylor.

"Charming, Taylor. I love you too."

"So, how's Rhia?" Taylor closed the magazine, rolling over to talk to Isaac.

"Ah, she's okay. Rhia's always okay."

Taylor chuckled. "I see what you mean. Did you fix the fuse box?"

"Uh, not exactly."

Taylor punched the air triumphantly. "I knew it! I win!"

"You and Zac had a bet that I wouldn't fix Rhia's fuse box?"

"Nah. We were gonna, but we both voted that you couldn't."

Isaac sighed. "Nice to know you guys have faith in me."

"We have faith in you, Ike…faith in you to muck things up…" mumbled a sleepy voice.

"Thanks, Zac." Isaac, having changed, hopped up into the top bunk. "Were you asleep?"

"Nope." Zac yawned, sitting up in bed and rubbing his eyes.

"Zac, what are you wearing?" asked Isaac.

"Hmph! I've already had this discussion with Tay," moaned Zac.

"Well, please tell me that's not a Barney T-shirt you’re wearing?"

"It was a present for Jess from Aunt Helen. It arrived in the mail," explained Taylor.

"Jess doesn’t like Barney." Isaac frowned. Jessica was ten. Why would she still be into pre-school TV shows?

"Yeah, and it was too big for her, anyway, and Avie and Mackie, so Zac got it."

"And I ran out of T-shirts cos they're all in the laundry, so Jess was kind enough to loan me this," finished Zac. "And I will be eternally grateful," he added, rolling his eyes.

Isaac laughed. "I'm sure you will, Zac."

"Yeah, Zac's always found big purple dinosaurs attractive, haven’t you?" teased Taylor.

"Oh, definitely. Who needs Britney when you got Barney?"

"Hey, guys, you busy tomorrow night?" asked Isaac.

"No," replied Taylor and Zac in unison.

"Good. Martin and Katie are throwing a party."

Taylor groaned. "Katie Gibson has a crush on me."

"Taylor, half the population of the world has a crush on you," retorted Zac.

"Half the population of the world is not going to be at that party tomorrow night," shot back Taylor.

"That's a good point," mumbled Zac. "Just eat plenty of garlic and wear your crucifix and she'll stay away."

"And don't forget to bring Giles, Xander and Willow," Isaac added seriously.

"That's not funny, Isaac."

"What? Even Buffy can't kick total ass on her own!"

"Yeah, well, I'm not Buffy," muttered Taylor.

Isaac snorted. "You can say that again."

"Okay, I'm not Buffy."

"I didn't mean literally… So, you guys coming?"

"Sure," replied Taylor. "I wanna see you make an ass of yourself over Honey anyway."

"I'll come," mumbled Zac sleepily. "But, please…shut up now. Me and Barney here want to sleep."

Chapter Two
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