Spending a week with Nick wasn't as much fun as most fans would expect. They hardly slept at all, spending most of their time in the studio, and getting drunk at night.
He called Natasha and explained what was going on without going into too much detail. He explained that he wasn't going to answer the phone and if it was important to leave a message and he'd call her back. Once that was settled he and Breanna pulled out the sleeping bags and threw them down the stairs that led to the studio. "This is going to be crazy!" She stated happily.
"Got the pizza?" She asked.
"Of course! It's downstairs waiting for us. I also have the pizza man on speed dial down there, too!" Nick said.
"You sure are proud of yourself, aren't you Frack?" She teased.
After a while Nick and Breanna went over all the lyrics she had stored on her computer. Nick was eating pizza but Breanna was nauseated by the smell.
"Bree? Can I ask you something?" He asked while still staring at her computer screen, munching away.
"You just did." She smiled back.
"No, seriously!" He shouted taking his eyes off the screen to look into hers.
"I know. What's up?"
"Your lyrics. They're completely dark and gothic. Are they all like this?" He asked while hitting the page down key. Breanna looked back at the screen as the happy feeling she had been having all day drained away. She nodded her head when she realized all her lyrics had an edge to them. They weren't happy or even close. They were all about losing. Losing in life, losing to death, losing love, losing hope.
"Lauren Christy. Massive Attack. Even Cirque Du Soleil. I think I see a pattern and I think we can copy them but there's a problem." He stated. Breanna sighed in relief. She was waiting for Nick to ask her why her lyrics were so dark but instead he was trying to figure out a sound to go with the words.
"What's the problem?"
"All of those artists use a lot of layering. We have the equipment but I don't think we have the experience with computers to layer all of this especially with the time frame we have." Breanna looked at Nick and started laughing.
"What's so funny? I'm serious! We don't have the experience or the time." He stated.
"Nick, Nicky, Nicky Boy! Time is not a problem. Neither is experience. Do you have a Mac down here?" She asked looking around the studio.
"Yeah, the Mac's over there. Why?"
"What kind of programs do you have on it? Do you have the full version of Cool Edit?" Nick looked at her and shrugged.
"I think so. But I've never used it."
"Cool! I've been using it since I was 17. So, problem solved. What's the next problem?" She asked.
"There isn't one." He replied.
"Yes there is...That pizza is making me sick." Breanna got up and ran towards the bathroom.
After 6 hours of going over all of her songs, Nick and Breanna finally decided on one song that wasn't as dark. Breanna had titled it "Softly Dying". Nick and Breanna argued for an hour over the name but in the end Breanna won.
"I pick the title and the lyrics. You pick the music and you get full control over the recording process. I'll do the layering and then we'll burn it onto a CD. Cool with you?" She asked as Nick moped around the studio.
"You serious?" He asked, his face turning from a frown into a smile.
"Geez boy! You're a sore loser. I'm sorry you don't like the title of the song but that's the nicest thing I could call it. Suicide Song sounds too depressing anyway." She teased. "And yes I'm serious. You're the producer of this song so you get free reign." She added.
By the end of Monday they had the song picked out. When 11pm approached they agreed to call it quits for the night. "I've got Play Station down here and movies too. We can just kick back here and if any ideas spring to mind we're in the right place!" Nick said, walking around the studio cleaning up.
"You sure you don't want any pizza?" He asked. Breanna placed her hand over her mouth and ran to the bathroom.
"Guess not." Nick shrugged. After she got out of the bathroom Nick gasped.
"You look like shit!" He shouted.
"Thanks." She said with little enthusiasm. "I've got the flu thanks to your girlfriend."
"Hey don't blame my little angel!" He said in a sweet voice.
"You two make me sick." Breanna teased before picking up the phone. She sat on a couch in the studio with the phone in her hand, unsure if she should actually dial. She dialed the first six digits but quickly hung up. She picked up the phone again and finally dialed all seven digits. By the fourth ring his voice mail picked up. She decided to leave a message to show him that she still kept her word.
"Hey D it's Bree! Just wanted to see how you were doing. It's 11 o'clock and I'm in Nick's recording studio working on a secret project. No one else knows about it, so hush! Damn, I gotta go! I'm still feeling like crap with this damn flu. Take care and call me sometime. Don't call this week though. Me and Nick aren't answering the phone. We're even sleeping in the studio in sleeping bags! Haha! I'll talk to you later. Night!" When Breanna hung up the phone her hands were shaking. She felt like crying but knew it would probably make her sick. Nick had been watching the entire time and knew she was tearing herself up over what to do about Howie. Nick walked over to Breanna and sat down on the couch with her. He put an arm around her shoulder and turned the TV on with the remote. She cuddled up with Nick, not saying a word about the phone call he obviously heard. By midnight Nick started to tell her jokes and stories about some of the crazy things he and Brian did in the past. Breanna was in stitches by one AM.
"Want a drink?" He asked her.
"YES! Vodka! Tequila! Scotch if you have it!" She shouted.
"Damn Alchy, calm down." He teased. He walked over to a small cabinet and pulled out a bottle of Absolut Vodka and handed it to her. She pulled off the top and drank as fast as she could. Nick laughed for ten minutes straight at Breanna. He'd never seen a girl drink so fast in his life.
"But this is Breanna! The girl from Vegas!" He reminded himself.
By the end of the night Nick and Breanna had passed out from drinking too much. When they woke up, it was already noon. "Shit, Bree! It's noon! We're never gonna finish this song if we don't start now." Breanna woke up with the worst hangover she had ever had in her life. The first thing she did was crawl off the couch and walk over the bathroom. She was always sick lately. The flu was draining all the energy out of her.
Tuesday seemed to have come and gone quickly. Nick was experimenting with different drum beats while Breanna stayed near the console to do the recording. They had 6 different drum beats all together that they liked. Breanna ran them through the computer and layered them, adding different effects here and there. When she was done she presented it to Nick who was in awe. "I did that?" He asked. She nodded her head enthusiastically, grinning at him. He was impressed with what he had done.
"So what's next?" She asked him.
"Bass, I guess. They kind of go hand in hand." He stated. Breanna picked up the bass and played around with it trying to find a beat she liked.
"I'll play each drum beat that we recorded and you try to copy each one. Then you can run 'em through the computer and work your magic, k?" Breanna agreed and did as she was told. After four hours she was done. By the time it was midnight, the drums, bass, and guitars were already recorded. "Tomorrow we'll probably spend all our time doing the keyboards since they have the most effects. Then I want to try to record your vocals tomorrow night. Hopefully we'll be done with recording by tomorrow and we can spend all of Thursday fixing everything." Nick explained.
"This is going to be the fastest song I've ever recorded." Breanna stated.
"Me too! I hope this comes out okay. For spending only a few days on it so far, it sounds pretty killer."
That night they decided to play video games instead of drinking. "I don't think I can handle another hangover like the one this morning." She joked. Two AM rolled around and Breanna was already in her sleeping bag asleep. Nick continued to play video games when he heard her cellphone ringing. He ran to her duffel bag and rummaged through it until he found the phone. Call ID stated Howie as the caller.
"Hey D, she's asleep." Nick said in a slight whisper. "Want me to wake her?" Nick asked.
"No, Nick! Don't wake her. She's been sick. So, what's this project you two are working on?" Howie asked, unsure if Nick would talk to him about it.
"Oh man, it's so killer! She's like this amazing artist. This song is going to blow everyone away." Nick was gushing about the song. He couldn't believe how much the music swelled around his head every time he played it. Just the guitars, bass and drums took him into an alternate universe.
"But?" Howie finally asked when he realized that Nick's voice had trailed off.
"But it's dark. D, it's almost suicidal. The lyrics are just, I don't know." Nick sighed trying to think of a word to describe the words.
"Haunting?" Howie conjured.
"Yeah! That's it. They're haunting. It's like you're in a haunted house but you know for sure that you're not going to survive, but you have to try anyway. I can't explain anymore. You're just going to have to wait." Nick teased.
"What are the words?" Howie asked, ignoring Nick's taunting.
"The songs about losing love and hope. Losing everything important to you. Just losing, basically. D, out of all her songs, all *30* of them, this was the most positive." Nick explained.
"How's she doing?" Howie didn't want to discuss what Nick was obviously trying to get at.
"She's fine. Sick as a dog. I can't eat pizza around her without her getting sick to her stomach. We got blind wasted last night after she got off the phone with.... She was...I guess not in a good mood." Nick offered. "Sorry, ignore what I just said." Nick kicked himself for telling Howie as much as he did.
"Okay, well Nick. I'm gonna go. I have some things I have to do. Watch her for me, please?" Howie said almost in a whisper.
"Sure man! I'll tell her you returned her phone call. Later!" Nick hung up the phone and looked at Breanna who was sleeping peacefully.
"Oh c'mon Bree! Just get back together and stop making the rest of us miserable!" Nick whispered as he crawled into his sleeping bag.
"I have no clue why we're in sleeping bags. What was I thinking? I have 9 rooms upstairs and here we are on the hard floor sleeping in my studio....And.."
"Stop your bitching and go to sleep! You can go to your room if you want but if I leave the studio I won't want to come back here tomorrow. I need to stay in my frame of mind. Now shut up or I'll have to hurt you." Breanna shouted, not opening her eyes. Nick mumbled under his breath but was stopped as soon as Breanna kicked him.
All day Wednesday Breanna and Nick were on the different keyboards experimenting with different sounds. "This would be a lot easier if Kevin were here." Nick stated.
"I got it!" Breanna shouted happily. She replayed what she thought sounded cool but Nick wasn't sure if he liked what he heard. "Nick, listen to me. Once it's layered and altered with computer effects it'll sound totally different!" Breanna recorded what she just created on the keyboard and ran it through the computer, layering it 8 different times. When she played it, Nick was impressed. She recorded the same thing from the same keyboard with a different sound effect. She opted to try a violin effect. When she ran it through the computer, adding it to what was already layered, she became happy. She could already here the song in her head. She added the keyboard rift to the music they had recorded over the past few days. When she played it for the first time, she used headphones so Nick couldn't here. She wanted to surprise him. She was finally completely happy with the raw version of the song. Nick walked around the studio trying to think of something to do to add to the song. "Hey Bree, would you consider some background vocals?" He asked. Breanna thought for a moment before responding.
"Kinda like Enya? She uses a lot of layered vocals as sound effects." Nick nodded his head.
"Yes, I want to do that! Want to record some vocals?" She asked Nick.
"Me? I was referring to you." He stated in disbelief.
"Oh...okay. But if the song sounds like it needs a male voice, would you consider doing it?" She asked. He moved his head from side to side.
"Is that a yes?" She asked.
"Sure. But we have to record your vocals first."
Breanna recorded the entire song in one try. Nick suggested she record the entire song again in a deeper voice then again in a higher voice. Once that was done Nick ran the vocals through the computer and layered them. Breanna had taught him how the edit program worked and he was off and running experimenting with anything he could get his hands on. He had a lot of fun working with Breanna's vocals but decided that she did need a male voice in the song.
"Yea! I get to record you this time!" She teased. Nick only sang the bridge and chorus of the song in two different pitches before Breanna was satisfied. She played around with his vocals for a few hours on the computer before she decided to add them to the almost complete song.
"You do realize that we recorded this song like complete amateurs, right?" Nick joked to Breanna.
"I know, but that's what makes it so much fun. The time factor put a lot of stress on us but we managed to record one killer song in a week! How many artists can do that?" She said proudly.
"Okay, the moment has come..." Breanna stated as her finger hovered above the mouse button.
"Okay! C'mon! Play it!" Nick shouted.
"You're so antsy!" She teased as she pushed play. Once the song was over both were quiet.
"Ohmigod!" Nick shouted, picking up Breanna in a large hug.
"I'm guessing it came out okay, in your opinion?" She asked laughing.
"Bree! This song is amazing! I can't believe we recorded this in less than a week!"
Breanna crawled out of her bed and walked towards Nick's room. She sat on the edge of his bed and stared at him while he slept. No matter what, he would always remain the little brother she never had. He finally woke up and saw Breanna staring at him.
"Morning!" He smiled sleepily as he stretched. Breanna was sitting on the bed shivering from the cold air but managed to smile at him.
"I'm not getting out of bed anytime soon. C'mon." He said as he pushed the blankets back gesturing for her to get in bed. Breanna crawled under the blankets and cuddled up to Nick. "Hey Bree. I never told you this cause I didn't want to ruin what we had going in the studio, but D called you back the other day. You were asleep." He said, hoping Breanna wouldn't get mad at him.
"I'll see him tonight at the party." She stated, still cuddled up with Nick.
"So you're not mad?" He asked.
"Nope! You're right, it probably would have ruined the recording process. Thanks!" She said, as she kissed his forehead.
"Now, I gotta go take a shower and head back to Brian's."
"Man, it's only 9am. You're crazy, Bree!" Nick stated as Breanna giggled at him.
"You're just lazy!" She teased, tickling him in the ribs.
"I know, I know. Whatcha gonna do about it?" He asked in a husky voice. She looked into his eyes but quickly jumped off the bed, running towards the bathroom. "I just love making women sick." He said sarcastically to himself. Breanna walked out of the bathroom a little while later. "Again, I know you already know this, but I feel I should remind you that you look like shit." Breanna laughed slightly, flipping Nick off.
"I'm gonna go take a shower and try to get home before everyone wakes up."
By ten o'clock Breanna was easing her key into the front door. She quietly walked up the stairs to her room trying not to wake Brian or Izabel in the process. Thomas heard steps on the stairs and opened his bedroom door.
"Bree!" He shouted, running towards her as he wrapped his arms around her legs.
"Hey munchkin! How ya doin?" She questioned.
"I've missed you! Want to play with me?" Thomas asked, with a pleading look in his big blue eyes.
"Sure! Let's play in my room." Thomas followed Breanna to her room and jumped on her bed. "Do your parents let you jump on the bed?" She asked. Thomas' face fell when he realized that Breanna wouldn't let him jump on the bed either.
"No." He stated in a sad voice, looking at the ground.
"Well that sucks! As long as you're in my room you can jump on the bed, k?" She stated. Thomas' face lit up when he heard what Breanna had to say.
"I can?" He questioned, with his infamous pleading look.
"Yup! C'mon!" She said, taking Thomas by the hand. They both crawled on top of Breanna's bed and started jumping. After a little while they started to sing songs together as they continued to jump.
"One, two, buckle my shoe. Three, four, shut the door...." they sang on the top of their lungs without a care in the world.
Izabel was down stairs making breakfast while Howie and Brian were in the adjoining living room talking about the new car Brian was planning to buy when they heard the singing. "What's going on up there?" Brian asked Izabel.
"I don't know. I'm assuming Breanna's home. I saw her car in the driveway. She and Thomas are probably playing." She commented. Howie looked at Brian with a twinkle in his eye.
"Oh no, D! What are you up to cause ya know I'm all game."
"Where's your camcorder?" Howie asked. Brian motioned with his head that it was in the other room. Howie walked back towards the living room and came back with the camcorder. "The battery's fully charged and there's a new tape in it. Let's go!" Howie stated, feeling like his old self again. Brian and Howie walked up the stairs slowly as they heard Breanna and Thomas.
"New song, new song!" Thomas shouted.
"Okay! Pick a Barney song. I know 'em all!" She shouted.
"You know Barney songs, too?" He asked.
"Yup! That show was the only English show on at 6am in most of Europe." She explained. Thomas giggled and started the infamous "I love you, you love me" Barney song. Breanna and Thomas were singing the song on the top of their lungs as Howie and Brian recorded their voices from the hallway. Brian finally turned the doorknob slowly so no one could hear them entering the room. When the guys entered the room Breanna and Thomas were giggling, singing, and jumping on the bed. After five minutes of video taping, Breanna stopped jumping and climbed off the bed, running right into Howie and Brian.
"Move!" She shouted, as she ran towards her bathroom.
"She's still sick." Brian replied. Once she returned from the bathroom she looked at the guys with a sheepish grin on her face.
"Sorry! I didn't want to get sick on you guys." She stated. Thomas had already jumped off the bed and was downstairs having breakfast.
"No problem. I didn't want you to get sick on me, either." Brian joked. Breanna was about to talk to Howie when she saw Nick come up from behind him.
"Nick!" She squealed, giving him a welcoming hug.
"Hey you! Here. I think you want this." He stated handing Breanna a blank CD. She stared at it then looked back to Nick giving him a knowing smile.
"Thanks!" She replied.
"You're welcome. See you at the party. My fingers are crossed." Nick left the room as Breanna continued to stare at the CD. Brian grabbed it from her hands and read the label.
"'Softly Dying'....sounds morbid." He stated with a smile.
"It is." She replied, giving Howie a quick glance.
"I heard a little bit about it from you and Nick. When do we get to hear it?" Howie asked.
"Tonight." Breanna replied, looking him in the eyes for the first time in what seemed like years. She became lost in his eyes but Brian brought her back to reality.
"Breakfast! C'mon Bree. You've lost a lot of weight this week. It'd do you good to try and eat something. At least try to keep it down." Brian replied. Breanna looked down at her body then back up at Brian.
"I have not lost weight." She replied.
"Yes you have." Howie confirmed.
"The flu is taking it's toll on you, girl." Brian added.
By 7pm, Breanna was dressed in her evening gown that she planned to wear to the party. It was the black dress that Howie had bought for her two years ago in Santa Monica. She had never worn it before but decided to wear it that night since she filled it out a little better. Over the course of touring, she had built up a little muscle in the right places and she wanted to show it off at the party. All the guys had agreed to meet at Brian's house and take a limousine to the party. At 8pm everyone was downstairs waiting for Breanna to hurry. Brian and Izabel looked striking. He wore a dark gray suit while Izabel wore a white Armani gown. Kevin wore a Versace suit that he had made especially for him. He was going alone because Eve was too tired from the baby kicking her all night long. Nick wore a Navy Armani suit with a white undershirt while Natasha wore a ice blue Gucci dress that had slits up both sides. It suited her dancers body perfectly! Nick couldn't keep his eyes off her all night. Howie wore a black Armani suit that Breanna had picked out for him when they first got together. He never wore it before but decided that it was collecting dust in his closet.
"What's taking her so long? Iz, go upstairs and see if she's okay." Brian complained. Izabel walked upstairs and knocked on Breanna's door.
"Come in!" Breanna shouted as she stared at herself in the mirror. When she turned to see who was at the door, Izabel's chin dropped to the floor.
"Good Lord girl, you're gonna come out of that dress if you even laugh!" Izabel shouted, not realizing that everyone could hear her downstairs. Natasha quickly let go of Nick's waist and ran upstairs to see what Breanna was wearing.
"Holy Shit! You can't come downstairs. Nick and the rest of the guys won't notice that other women exist after they see you!" Natasha shouted. "Where the hell did you get that dress? I love it!" She added in a more normal tone. Breanna laughed at them before replying.
"If you must know, D bought this dress for me over two years ago."
"Damn, D! Good taste!" Izabel shouted as all three girls giggled.
"What are they talking about?" Nick asked Howie.
"I have no clue." Howie replied as he stared towards the staircase waiting for them to come downstairs.
"I think I remember." Kevin stated. Howie looked at him wanting an explanation. "Those two dresses from Santa Monica. You got Breanna the black one and I got Eve the white one." Howie thought back for a moment and realized what he was talking about.
"What? She can't go to the party wearing that!"
"Wearing what?" AJ asked as he entered the house.
"Fashionably late, like always." Kevin stated giving his friend a handshake.
"Wearing that!" Nick shouted, as Breanna, Izabel, and Natasha walked down the stairs.
"Oh my Lord..." Brian said under his breath.
"You said it." AJ stated.
"I have an idea." Breanna stated.
"Yes?" The guys asked, as the other two girls laughed at them.
"They're drooling." Izabel told Natasha.
"How about you stop drooling and let's go! We're late and I'm supposed to perform." Howie laughed.
"How are you supposed to perform in that?" Breanna gave him a glare, before bursting into giggles.
"Chill out! I'm not going to actually perform live." She said nudging him in the ribs.
"Wait, isn't Jannie supposed to come with you tonight?" Howie looked at Breanna like she was crazy.
"No, I never invited her."
Once they all left the house and entered the cool air Breanna felt a shiver run up her spine. "Here." Howie said quietly, slipping off his jacket and slipping it over her shoulders.
"Thanks." She whispered.
"Oh I hope this works." Brian mumbled.
"What works?" Izabel asked.
"Nothing." Nick replied. Howie and Breanna sat next to each other in the limo, making small talk. They danced around the things that were really bothering them. Once they made it to the party, everyone sat at a table together. Every major Jive artist was present that night. Breanna was less than thrilled considering she couldn't stand half of them. Their fame went to their heads and Breanna wanted nothing more than to be as far away from them as possible.
Two hours flew by for Breanna. She danced with almost everyone that night and her feet were already tired. The only person she hadn't danced with was Howie, but she wanted to wait until the perfect song came on. Her mind was telling her to avoid him at all costs but she was voluntarily letting her heart do the talking. When the song finally came, she decided she had to ask him to dance. He was talking to Izabel and Brian who were taking a breather from the dance floor. She stood next to Howie but he was in such a deep discussion with them that he never noticed her.
"Um, this song is almost over and I'm still standing here waiting for you to stop talking." She said sarcastically with a laugh. "Let's dance." She stated. He got up slowly and lead her by the hand out to the dance floor.
"Man, they better get back together. She's slowly starting to realize that she made a mistake and wants him back."
They were about to start talking when the song came to an abrupt end. "Hey everyone. We have a song up here that we want to play. Just to let you all know, it's not like all of our regular artists. This is a totally different type of music. But, it's by our own Shy Rose and Nick Carter so we're going to play it right now. Shy couldn't perform anyway, that dress won't permit it." There was laughter all around as Howie and Breanna stood next to each other. He noticed that she was nervous. She was shaking slightly and very pale. He grabbed her hand and squeezed it slight. She looked up at him and smiled. Nick walked over to where Breanna was and put an arm around her waist.
"This is it!" He stated.
"I'm nervous." She replied. Finally the lights dimmed down a little bit and the intro to the song started. Howie stared at Breanna trying to read what she was thinking but couldn't see anything there. After the song was over everyone in the room was cheering.
"So you all liked it?" The CEO of the company asked. It seemed to have gone over well.
"Nick, you and Shy recorded this song in less than 4 days in your studio, right?" Nick walked up to the small stage with Breanna's hand in his.
"Yeah, that's right. And Shy and I played all the instruments and remixed it and edited it. The entire thing. We did everything in four days." He stated.
"Even wrote it?" He asked.
"No, I wrote this song about 2 months ago after an experience. You can't tell by the lyrics what the experience was because everything is written in metaphors." Breanna explained. She looked out into the crowd of artists and saw Howie staring at her with a questioning look. Breanna felt her world start to spin. She grabbed a hold of Nick's arm as he caught her.
"I don't care, you're going to the hospital." Howie stated to Breanna after she woke up. She was sitting in a chair at their table while all the other artists in the room surrounded her. Howie was crouched down on one knee holding on of her hands, arguing with Breanna. "You're so fuckin' stubborn, my god!" Howie shouted while dropping her hand, walking away.
"Bree, he's right. You passed out up there. You should get checked out. He's only trying to show you he cares." Brian replied. Whatever plans he had to try to get them back together that night were no more.
"I'll take you." Nick whispered. Breanna looked at all her concerned friends and nodded her head. Nick slipped his jacket over her shoulders and escorted her outside to the waiting limo.
"We'll send the car back for you guys." Nick shouted as they left. Walking towards the limo, Breanna saw Howie walking around the small theater kicking dirt around on the ground. She started to walk towards him, but turned on her heel and walked back towards the limo.
"He needs time to cool off." She explained to Nick as she crawled into the limo.
"How about we go back to my house and take my car? We can send the limo back for everyone else." Nick asked. Breanna nodded her head. She was in no hurry to go to the hospital. Once they arrived at Nick's house he ran up to the garage and punched in a security code near the garage door. The garage opened up to reveal two cars.
"Which one?" Nick asked with a cocky smile. She laughed quietly before pointing to the smaller of the two cars. "What's up with you and fast cars?" He asked as he opened the door to his silver Porsche.
"They're fast. I like speed." She stated. Nick shook his head and closed the door. He walked around the car and got in.
"I thought only guys liked fast cars." He stated as he started the engine.
"I'm not like most women." She replied nonchalantly.
"No shit..." Nick mumbled.
"So why do I have to go to the hospital?" Breanna finally asked they were two blocks away from their destination.
"Just to make sure everything's okay. I mean, I know you have the flu but you can't even keep water down and look at all the weight you've lost! Bree, you passed out on the stage. If I wasn't there you could of hit your head." He stated. Breanna nodded but still felt like she didn't need to go to a hospital yet.
"Why can't I just go home and rest and tomorrow you can take me to my doctors?" Breanna pleaded. Nick shook his head no.
"I don't feel like having D and Bri killing me just yet. I'm still young." He replied.
Once they entered the hospital doors a nurse quickly recognized Breanna and Nick. "Miss Rose! We were expecting you. Please follow me." The nurse stated. Breanna looked at Nick with large questioning eyes.
"Hey, I didn't call!" Nick swore, placing his hands up in defense. Breanna gave him a slight glare before turning around to follow the nurse.
"I'll be in the waiting room!" Nick shouted to Breanna. She threw her hand up in the air to show she could care less.
"A Mr. Littrell called to inform us that you would be arriving." The nurse filled Breanna in.
"Brian." Breanna stated.
"He seemed genuinely concerned for your well being. He told us that you've been suffering from the flu, you've lost a lot of weight because of it, and that you passed out tonight at a party. Must have been some party!" The nurse mussed when she turned around to see Breanna taking off Nick's jacket.
"Oh, yeah, it was a company party." Breanna mumbled, staring down at her dress. She felt inappropriately dressed all of a sudden.
"Well, let me take your temperature." The nurse smiled to Breanna. The nurse placed an external thermometer in Breanna's ear and waited for a minute. When she pulled it out she read 98.9. "Your temperature seems normal. How do you feel?" She asked Breanna.
"I feel fine. I'm kind of fatigued but that's because I just got back from Europe and I had to adjust to this time zone again in less than a day. And I've been on the go since I got home. I haven't had a chance to rest, that's all. And being sick doesn't help." Breanna explained. The nurse listened sympathetically while writing down everything Breanna was saying.
"The doctor will be in shortly." The nurse replied before leaving the room.
"Oh nurse, could you please send Nick in? Mr. Blondie?" Breanna joked. The nurse smiled in agreement.
Nick knocked as he walked into the room where Breanna was waiting. "Hey you." She smiled. Nick was speechless for the first time in a long time. He didn't know what to say or what to ask. He was very concerned for Breanna but she looked fine, almost normal.
"So?" He finally asked.
"Like I said. Just the flu. I don't even have a fever." She stated.
"So, you can leave?"
"No, I have to see the doctor first then I can leave." She replied, dangling her short legs from where she sat.
"So you haven't seen the doctor yet? So that doesn't mean you just have the flu. You could be sick with..."
"Nick! I'm fine, honestly." She replied. There was a slight knock on the door.
"It's the doctor. I'll be outside waiting." Nick stated as he got up to leave. The doctor smiled at Nick as he walked out of the door.
"Nice looking boy." The doctor replied to Breanna.
"Yeah, but a major pain in my ass." She commented. The doctor stared at Breanna's face which looked familiar.
"Boyfriend problems?" The doctor asked while reading over her chart.
"He's not my boyfriend. Just a friend." She stated. Breanna stared at the doctor trying to get a feel for him, and how he worked. She guessed that he was about her father's age which would explain the fatherly concern towards Nick.
"So you think you have the flu." The doctor stated.
"I know I have the flu. My entire crew and dancers were sick with it in Europe right before I got sick." She stated. The doctor looked at her, studying her face.
"I'm a singer. I was on tour." She replied.
"Singer? Oh, I see. You're name is listed as Rose, but there isn't a first name. What do I call you?" He asked.
"Patients confidentiality?" She asked. He nodded his head in agreement.
"Then don't call me Shy Rose. Just call me Breanna." She stated. He realized where he had seen her. He had seen her everywhere. In his daughters teen magazines. On his sons walls. On TV and in every magazine around.
"My kids love you." He replied. She smiled back.
"Okay, back to business. Here comes the normal doctor questions. I believe you do only have the flu but anything is possible so here we go. Symptoms?" He asked.
"Tired. Sick to my stomach. Grouchy. No energy. Mood swings, wait, that's normal for me." She joked.
"And I'm assuming by your occupation that stress is high, little sleep, lots of pressure, jet lagged, and lots of physical activity." He stated while Breanna nodded.
"Okay. When was your last menstrual period?" He asked.
"Oh God, I don't remember. My life has been such a blur lately that I never keep track of it anymore. Last month, I think." She stated.
"Are you currently sexually active?" The doctor asked, staring down at his notes. He hated asking her that question considering everyone in the world knew who she was dating.
"Actually I'm not at the moment." She said. The doctor quickly looked up at her then back down at his notes.
"Birth control?" He asked.
"No, I forgot to reorder my pills before the tour started but I figured I didn't need them because I was too busy with the tour and at the time I wasn't involved with anyone, anyway."
"Well, you do sound like you have the flu but I'd like to run a few tests to make sure you didn't pick anything up while in Europe." She nodded her head in agreement.
"The nurse will be back to draw blood in a few minutes." He replied, walking out of the room to go speak to a nurse.
While the doctor was out of the room Breanna grabbed her purse in search of her cellphone. Once she found it she dialed Mitchell's phone as quickly as her fingers would allow.
"Damn, I need to program his number." She told herself as she listened to his phone ring.
"Argh!" She growled when his voicemail picked up.
"Hey Mitch, it's me. Just to let you know, I'm at a hospital getting checked out by a doctor. I know he's going to tell me I have the flu. The real reason I'm calling is to let you know that I passed out in front of everyone on stage at a Jive party tonight because of the flu. I'm sure something will be in the papers or news tomorrow. It might look good if you were to fly down here. It'd be nice to see you anyway. I miss you and hope filming is going well. Call me later. Bye!" Breanna hung up the phone in time for the nurse to come back in with a long needle. Breanna grimaced at the needle as Nick walked into the room.
"I asked him to come along. Figured you weren't into needles. Having a friend along always helps." The nurse stated with a smile. Breanna nodded her head and held out her hand for Nick to hold it.
"Just squeeze if you need to." He replied with a comforting smile. A Nick Smile.
"Man, why did I never notice him?" Breanna asked herself. "Damn hormones." She said aloud without realizing it.
"WHAT?" Nick sputtered with a slight laugh.
"Shit. Nothing. Forget it. I really need sleep." Breanna said in response, feeling her face turn a shade of crimson. Ten minutes later the nurse was gone with Breanna's blood work on it's way to a lab. Breanna got off the table with Nick's assistance. "Let's go!" She stated, heading for the door.
"Don't we have to wait?" He asked.
"Nope. They'll call me tomorrow. Now, let's jet!" She shouted, walking ahead of Nick.
During the car ride home Breanna and Nick discussed doing more songs together. She was giving him an idea about a song she wrote while in the studio with Nick when her phone started to ring. "Probably Bri." Nick replied.
"Hello? Mitchell! What? Tonight? I guess. Bye!" Breanna hung up the phone laughing.
"What was that all about?" Nick asked.
"Mitchell's flying in tonight. He got my voicemail about tonight and he's already on a plane." She said, laughing.
"He's only staying for two days cause he's already missed a lot of filming while he was on tour with me." She explained.
"So, who's going to pick him up?" Nick asked.
"I will. We'll probably go to a hotel while he's in town." She stated.
"We?" Nick asked laughing.
"Yes, we. I told you that we're not really dating but no one believes me. We're just friends. The best of friends, but none the less, friends."
"I know you are. Don't worry, I believe you." Nick smiled, nudging Breanna in the arm.
"Seriously!" She shouted.
"Uh huh." Nick teased back.
Breanna and Nick arrived at Brian's house and were surprised to see everyone already home. They walked into the living room to find everyone and then some sitting around talking. Brian was the first to notice Breanna and Nick. "Hey. How are you feeling?" He asked, walking towards Breanna.
"I'm fine. The doctor says I have the flu and I'm probably stressed out too, but they're doing some blood work anyway." She explained to Brian while the rest of the room listened.
"I'm going to go change and then I have to leave." She said to everyone in the room.
"Why? Where you going?" Kevin asked.
"Mitchell found out about what happened so he's flying down." She explained, trying to make the light of the situation. Howie grimaced at the thought of Mitchell as did most of the room.
"Just to make this clear to all of you, Mitchell and I are *only* friends. He's helped me deal with everything that's been going on in my life. He's kept be sane, but the whole fuckin' world thinks we're dating. I'm not dating him. I'm not dating anyone. I'm not ready to date anyone." She stated in a loud voice. Before anyone could reply she had already gone up to her room to change. Once she came back downstairs, Breanna was wearing a pair of Levi's and a tight v-neck shirt. Natasha approached her smiling.
"Don't worry about what the world thinks. Do whatever makes you happy." She smiled, giving Breanna a hug.
"Thanks, Nat. I'll call you from the hotel. Brian! I'll be home in two days. Later everyone." Breanna shouted as she walked out of the house towards her car.
The two days that Mitchell was in town came and went. Breanna and Mitchell made sure that the press saw them together to kill any rumors before they started. Breanna discussed to Mitchell that she wanted their 'relationship' to be known to the public as just friends. Nothing more, nothing less. She couldn't handle hurting Howie the way she was but she wasn't ready start anything with him. Her head was telling her one thing, her heart was telling her something all together different.
After Breanna dropped Mitchell off at the airport she headed back towards Brian's house. When she entered the door Brian was quick to tell her to call the doctor back for the results of her blood work. She dialed the doctors number that Brian had scribbled onto a notepad when she heard the front door slam. She leaned back away from the phone to see who had slammed the door.
"He was late for the studio." Izabel informed Breanna. Breanna was about to say something to Izabel but the doctor had answered the phone.
"Dr. Mercer? This is Breanna Wintersonova. You had my blood test results?" She tried to remind the doctor.
"I could tell you over the phone or I could tell you in person. But, yes, you do have the flu." Breanna sighed with relief. The doctor went on to explain to her some other information. Half an hour later Breanna hung up the phone and walked slowly up to her room.
"What'd he say? You were on a long time." Izabel asked from the bottom of the staircase.
"I have the flu. My occupation is killing my immune system. He just wanted to lecture me about taking care of myself." She explained before heading back up to her room. "I'm gonna take a nap!" She shouted.
Once Breanna was up in her room she called her brother. Izabel walked past Breanna's room quietly as to not disturb Breanna but heard her inside talking. It was obvious that she was crying but Izabel didn't want to intrude. She simply ignored what was bothering Breanna, figuring that if she wanted to talk about it, she would. Two hours later Breanna emerged from her room with two of her suitcases, her duffel bag and laptop case.
"Where are you going?" Izabel asked in astonishment.
"To visit my brother until the US tour starts. That gives me 3 weeks I guess since we pushed the tour back a little." Breanna explained.
"Here, give me one of those suitcases and your duffel bag." Izabel stated. After Breanna had loaded up her car she ran back into the house to give Thomas a kiss goodbye. "Bree, Thomas and I will take you to the airport so you don't have to leave your car there." Izabel offered.
Once Breanna was in the plane, she felt a little bit better. She turned on her laptop to check her email and giggled when she saw the "Hourly News" on AOL. The entertainment section stated Shy Rose and Mitchell Clark as 'no longer dating, but still friends'.
"Good PR firm!" Breanna thought to herself. She made a mental note to call later and thank him. Another task crossed off her "fix life" list. She settled into her seat, relaxing. She thought about her life and everything else. She had sold over 10 million albums in the US alone. Her bank account stated 26 million dollars and counting. She didn't need any more money nor did she need any more fame. Her US-Canadian tour was scheduled to start in three weeks and last two months. She had convinced the record company that a South American and Asian tour weren't needed because of low album sales in those continents. She calculated everything in her head and decided that the timing couldn't have been better. As soon as the touring and promotion were done, she was planning to call it quits. She still wanted to release songs here and there with Nick but she wanted to release them on an indie label. She didn't want to have the same strings tied to her upcoming projects. Breanna knew that she wasn't cut out for touring life, or fame in general. After much mental deliberation Breanna finally fell asleep thinking about her one true love and what they had created.
Breanna awoke to a jolt. The plane had touched down at LAX and was taxiing in. She stood up and stretched all the muscles in her back. "God, this feels so good!" She stated to herself. Breanna tied her hair into a knot and grabbed her Nike hat, placing it over her hair. She put her sunglasses on and walked off the plane. Alexei was waiting for Breanna silently. Once she saw him she burst into tears. Seeing him made everything a reality. Things weren't alright. Nothing would be the same. Her life was spinning around her and love was barely within her grasps. She ran into his protective arms and cried while he rocked her back and forth, smiling to himself. He was always there to make things better, always there to comfort her. He was the one person she always trusted.
"C'mon. Let's take you home." He urged.
Once Breanna walked into Alexei's house she smiled to herself. She was no longer surrounded by things that reminded her of Howie or her career, except for the few gold records on his wall that she had given him. She noticed a framed photo of Alexei with a pretty brunette.
"So, who's the flavor of the month?" She asked.
"Amana. And, she's not the flavor of the month. I'm actually serious about her. Unlike all the others..." Alexei trailed off as he watched Breanna walk around the house. "Hey, go take a nap. You need your rest. God knows you're never gonna get anymore soon." He teased. Breanna frowned but sluggishly walked towards the guest room. "I didn't mean to make you upset, Bree." Alexei stated.
"You didn't. Don't worry about me." She smiled back at her brother. The one man she totally loved unconditionally, no strings attached.
When Breanna awoke from her nap she felt re-energized. Ideas came flooding to her like a broken dam. She walked quickly down stairs to find her brother going over the Wall Street Journal.
"Wow, you look different!" He commented.
"I feel different. I still feel like throwing up, but I feel better." She smiled to her brother.
"Tell me, Bree. What does that smile mean?" He asked, folding the paper in half and tossing it onto the floor next to his recliner.
"I want to move back here. I mean back to Santa Monica. I want to give up my career, use the money I've made and start a record label. I want to produce local artists and buy a house and start my life over again where I belong." She blurted out, smiling in the process.
"Then do it. You really don't have anything holding you back." He explained.
"But remember Bree, it's not just your life your messing with." He stated, as he walked out of the room leaving Breanna alone to think about her actions.
During her small vacation Breanna met with local realtors looking at
houses
in the area until she finally decided on a 8 bedroom house for 3
million
dollars. It was in the hills overlooking Santa Monica with a view of
the
ocean. Best of all, it was three blocks from her brother. Over the
three
weeks in Santa Monica, Breanna finally got over the flu. She talked to
Nick
frequently about songs she wanted to work on, but she never mentioned
retiring from music all together. She never mentioned it to anyone. Not
even
Eve. Eve was no longer Breanna's manager on account of the upcoming
baby. She
wouldn't have the time or energy. Breanna never told anyone about her
move
back to LA. The only person who knew anything was Mitchell, and he
barely
knew anything at all.
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