Monica sat in the cafe, staring at her food. I guess I should be on my way, she thought, standing up.
"Off so soon?" Karen asked. I have to keep her here, at least for a little while longer, so I can figure out how to use her. Oh, I know. She smiled to herself, then asked Monica, "By the way...what happened with Taylor?" Monica's head shot up in shock; Bingo,thought Karen.
How did she know about that? wondered Monica. She sat back down, unable to help herself. The very thought of Taylor was enough to almost cause her to break down in tears.
Karen stood up and walked around the table to Monica. She put her arm around her, and Monica tried not to flinch. "I know just how you feel," she murmured. "You loved him, and he treated you wrong. Believe me, I know how it feels to want someone back.." Monica remembered that this was Isaac's ex-girlfriend, so of course she would know how it felt. Karen looked down at her compassionately and said, "Monica, why don't you come with me for a while?"
At this, Monica looked up quickly, remembering what Karen had done. "No," she said weakly.
Karen pressed her, "Monica, I can't let you go out alone when you're like this, especially not in this weather. Besides, did you actually have a plan, or were you just trying to get away?"
Monica looked down. "Trying to get away," she said softly.
"That's what I thought," said Karen. "Now, come on."
Half-heartedly, Monica followed her out of the cafe.
Meanwhile, Isaac, Jamie, and Taylor had gone back inside, still devastated by Monica's note. Taylor had flung himself into a chair, still crying, while Jamie and Isaac sat on the couch, trying to comfort him and each other.
All of a sudden, the phone rang. All three of them jumped, then looked at each other, as if asking who should answer it. Finally, Isaac stood up. He picked up the phone. "Hello?"
"Hello, Isaac."
Isaac scowled. "What do you want now, Karen?"
"Oh, this isn't about what I want...it's about something I think you might want to know. Or, to be more accurate, something I'm sure Taylor would want to know."
Isaac covered the end of the phone with his hand. "Taylor, Jamie, get on the other line," he hissed. "It's Karen, and she says she knows something we'd like to know." After they had picked up the other phones, Isaac turned back to his phone. "What is it, Karen?"
"A friend of yours is in my home as we speak...willingly," Karen whispered. Jamie looked at Isaac, then at Taylor, then back at Isaac. "She's very upset, Taylor."
Taylor opened his mouth, but Jamie put a hand on his arm. If he doesn't react, it'll make it that much harder for Karen to know how we're feeling, Jamie thought.
"What do you want?" Isaac repeated.
"Oh, nothing..." Karen laughed. In the background, Jamie heard Monica say, "Who's on the phone?"
Karen covered the mouthpiece with her hand. "Telemarketers," she smiled. "Don't call here again...or bad things will happen."
Taylor listened to the dial tone sound in his ears. Jamie pulled the phone from him and placed it back in its holder. "Taylor, Moni will come around. She knows who Karen is. She's just confused."
Taylor looked Jamie square in the face and said, "I love her, Jamie. I need her."
"I know," Jamie said. "But I know she loves you too."
"She does?" Taylor sniffled.
"She does?" Isaac repeated.
"She does. Underneath all that anger, she's just a confused girl in love. I think we all get that way sometimes," Jamie said, looking down at the floor. "I'm gonna call Moni's mom and tell her everything's okay and that we're just gonna hang out here for a while."
Isaac and Taylor both watched Jamie leave. "Ike," Taylor said.
"Yeah?" Isaac faced his brother.
"Don't lose her."
Isaac looked back towards where Jamie was standing, phone on her shoulder, playing with her ring. "I'm gonna take her out somewhere tonight, Tay. I've just got to be near her. She's trying to be strong, but I can see right through it. She needs me." Isaac looked back at his brother. "We'll get Monica back, Tay...and when we do, all four of us will go out on a double date. How's that sound?"
Taylor managed a brief smile. "That sounds good. Now, go take your girl out. I can hold down everything here."
Isaac smiled and started towards the door. Taylor turned back to the window and whispered, "Monica...I'm confused. I can't live without you. Please come back to me."
Meanwhile, at Karen's house, Karen and Monica were talking. Or rather, Karen was talking, and Monica was trying not to listen.
"Trust me, Monica, I know what you're going through," Karen was saying. "Remember, the exact same thing happened to me. And it was Taylor's very own brother, too! You know what I think the problem is?"
"What?" Monica whispered.
"The problem has gotta be them. Those Hansons are just trouble, that's all. None of them are worth the time and effort it cost us to get to know them. I mean, think about it. You were perfectly happy before you met Taylor, right?" Monica nodded slightly. "But ever since you met him, you've been miserable, right?" She nodded again. "Well, then, there ya go! And here's another example. Your friend Jamie was happy before she met Isaac, is that right?"
"Not really," Monica said.
"Well, okay, so she wasn't totally happy. But still. She was okay before, right?" This time Monica nodded. "But now that she met Isaac, she knows that he's not the perfect guy she thought he was. I mean, come on! What decent guy would say he's taking you on a date, and then in the middle of the date, you find out that it wasn't a real date at all, but that he was just using you to get rid of his last girlfriend, whom I might add he treated the exact same way." Karen stood up. "We have a duty to all the girls out there. All those fans who think Hanson's so perfect. They have to know the truth. We have to let the world know that these three brothers aren't as angelic as they appear. Are you with me?"
Chapter 18
Forbidden Angels
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