CHAPTER THIRTY SIX-“All is Lost, All is Forgotten”

 

After we’d had a nice breakfast in one of the chic, little, French styled café’s around LA; Paul and I sat in one of the tables near the pool in the back of the hotel.  I was surprised at how much I was enjoying his company.  Before I knew it, I trusted him with some of the things that had recently happened.  Including Brian.

 

“You know, we all make mistakes.”  Paul told me.

 

I looked away.  “I know. I should have known better than to…”

 

“No, I mean Brian.  He’s a jerk to do something like that to you.  You seem like such a wonderful girl.”

 

I blushed. 

 

“You know, people act differently when they have money.  Fame and popularity makes people do crazy and stupid things.  They swear they can have and control whoever they want.”

 

“I guess.”  I told him, though I really didn’t want to think of Brian as trying to control me.  Then again, he did use me.  “Let’s talk about something else, ok?”

 

“Sure.  How about…how beautiful your eyes are.”  He said reaching across the table for my hand.

 

I looked down.

 

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to make you blush.”  He told me.

 

“You didn’t.  I was just thinking about how Brian use to tell me that.”

 

Paul sighed.  “Be honest with me Isabelle, I have no chance here, do I?”

 

“I’m just really not looking for a relationship right now.”

 

“When do you think I should come back?”  He joked.

 

I laughed.  “I’m sorry, Paul, you seem like a real nice guy.”

 

“I know, I know…the kind you’d like to be just friends with.”

 

I smiled, and he told me he’d walk me back to my hotel room.

 

As we went back into the hotel, I saw Leighanne sitting in the lobby.  Brian wasn’t too far from her, as he was checking his messages at the reception desk.  Our eyes met, but he quickly moved them away from me to Paul.

 

Paul must have noticed that, because he put his arm around me, as we walked.  Once we were in the elevator, he said.  “Do you think that worked?”

 

I smiled at what he had tried to do, but the truth was he probably hadn’t even cared.  “Paul, we don’t have to try to make him jealous.  He’s got the person he wants to be with.”

 

He walked me to my door, and I said good-bye to him.  I would probably never see him again, since we were leaving early tomorrow morning.  Poor Paul, I thought to myself.  Maybe if circumstances were different, I could have at least given him a chance.

 

I looked at the room trying to focus on what I needed to do.  I was going to pack, when again I remembered Lina’s poem.  I went right to work on it. It didn’t take me long to finish, since I had done most of it before I went to breakfast.  All I had to do now was calligraphy it onto the small piece of rose, parchment paper.  I was looking over the finished product when my phone rang. 

 

“Hello?  Oh yeah, I want to go with you to pick her up.  I’ll be down in a few minutes.  Thanks AJ, bye.”

 

I quickly scanned it one last time, feeling proud of my accomplishment, before I neatly placed it in the small rosewood frame, then put it in a small gift bag.

 

I met AJ and Yvonne downstairs, where they were already waiting in the car.  When we got to the hospital, Yvonne went over to fill out Lina’s release forms, while AJ practically ran into Lina’s room.

 

As soon as he saw her, he wrapped his arms around her and would’ve stayed that way forever if he could have.  She was holding the phone in her hand; AJ had caught her while she was speaking to someone.  She signaled for me to take it from her.

 

“Hello?”  I said into the receiver.

 

“Isabelle, honey, is that you?”

 

“Hi dad.”  I said recognizing the voice on the other end. 

 

“Isabelle, sweetheart, how are you feeling?  Are you alright?”  He asked with much concern.

 

“I’m fine.  Really, I am.  Don’t worry, ok?”  I hated when my father worried too much about me.  It was my fault though.  “I’m sorry daddy, I should have called earlier but I guess I just forgot.”

 

“So everything’s fine?”  He asked one last time to make sure.

 

“Yes, everything’s fine.”  I said with a sigh. I hated lying to my father.

 

“Well I’m glad everything’s ok sweetie…I really miss you.”

 

“I miss you too, dad.”  I said, that’s when I saw my opportunity.  “Actually dad, I was thinking of coming back home early.”

 

“Why?”  He asked alarmed.  I saw AJ and Lina both glance my way.  “I though you said everything was fine.”

 

“It is dad…I just thought, I mean if I come home a bit early that way I can spend some time with you before I go off to school.  I mean, right after the tour is over, I will have to start moving into my dorm.  I won’t even be going back to Canada if I stay till the end.”

 

“I don’t understand Isabelle, I thought you were having fun.”  My dad said, not being able to put the puzzle together.  Of course, how could he when he didn’t have all the pieces.

 

“Isabelle!”  Lina cried snatching the phone from me.  “Don’t leave me here by myself.”

 

“You’re not by yourself. You’ve got AJ, and everybody else.  I just don’t feel comfortable here anymore.  I want to go home.”  I said sounding like a child.

 

“Isa, I’m sorry about Brian…” she lowered her voice, and covered the phone receiver with her hands to block out what we were saying. “I’m sorry about Brian, and I know this is really hard for you Isa, but please don’t leave now.”  She begged. 

 

“Lina I just…”

 

“Please, Isa.”  Lina continued to beg.  “Who’s going to help me to get Nick back one last time.  I need you.  Stay, for me”

 

I smiled thinking of how obsessed she was to try to outdo Nick. Honestly, I didn’t have much faith in us.  He was too good.

 

“And for me.”  AJ put in with a smile.  “You leave now you’ll give us bad luck for the rest of the tour.”  He kidded.  “You don’t want to see Angelina bawl all over me again, do you?”

 

I laughed, “Like you guys believe in that superstitious stuff anyways.”

 

“C’mon Isa…Please, I promise if you stay you won’t even have to look at Brian, let alone talk to him.”

 

I looked at her doubtfully.

 

“Ok, you might see him once in a while, but I swear, I’ll be with you at all times.”  She promised.

 

“Well I hope not at all times.” AJ said, then grinned.  “Then again, that wouldn’t be such a bad thing.”  He said wishfully.

 

Lina and I both looked at him with an appalled expression.

 

“I was kidding…kidding!”  He laughed.

 

“As if…” Lina said then she turned to me.  “C’mon you promised me I wouldn’t be alone.  Don’t leave me, not now.”  She said seriously looking into my eyes.

 

I sighed, then grabbed the phone from her.  “Hello?”

 

“Hello?”  Came my father’s voice.

 

“Sorry.”  I apologized for making him wait.  “Dad, about that stuff I said, about coming home early…forget it.  I’ll just stay here for the rest of the tour.”

 

“Are you sure hun, it’s up to you.  You can come back home whenever you want, just let me know and I’ll send you the ticket.”

 

“Thanks dad, but I’m sure…I want to stay.”  I said looking at Lina.

 

“Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!” she mouthed as she was practically jumping up and down, grinning from ear to ear.

 

 I smiled, then rolled my eyes, and continued to talk to my father for a short while longer before we left and took Lina back to the hotel.

 

The following morning I woke up to the sound of a telephone ringing.  It was the front desk; we were to be in the tour bus, in 90 minutes.

 

I hung up the phone and threw the covers over me.  I still had a couple of minutes before I had to get up.    Then I remembered, Lina had spent the night in my room.  We’d talk all night, well at least till one of us felt tired, of course that was me.  I also gave her the belated birthday present I had been working on.  It put tears in her eyes, and I let her know every word of it was true.

 

I looked around the room, and she was gone.  “Lina?”  I called out, but no one responded.  I got up from the bed, and walked out to the other room.  I looked around, and it took me a while before I spotted her.  She was standing near the balcony.  I couldn’t see what she was doing because her back was to me.  For some reason, a chill ran down my spine, and I thought the worse.  “Lina?  What are you doing?”  I called, but she still didn’t respond.  Was she lost in the nightmares of her mind again?  I walked over to her and slowly brought my hand to her shoulder.  She turned around with a jump.

 

“Isa, oh my God, you scared me.”

 

“I’m sorry, I was calling you but you didn’t seem to hear me.  How did you sleep last night?”

 

“Just fine.  Not a single dream…or nightmare.  I’m sorry I didn’t hear you calling, I guess I was too caught up in what I was reading.”  She said, smiling at me and showing me the framed birthday present.

 

I smiled, glad that I had only overreacted.  “I’m glad you like it.”

 

“I love it.  I’ve reread it like a million times now.  I think I know it by heart.”

 

I laughed.  I didn’t even know it by heart.

 

“It’s so beautiful, Isa.  Thank you again.”  She said wrapping her arms around me in a warm embraces.  “Thank you again for everything.  I owe you so much.”

 

I hugged her back, letting her know she didn’t owe me anything.  It was done out of friendship. 

 

“Oh Yeah!”  We heard someone call from down in the courtyard.  “Can I come up and watch!”  Nick cried as he was walking towards the busses with some of the stage equipment.  He was helping the roadies out.

 

We both laughed.  “Is there anything that doesn’t turn you on Nick!”  Lina cried out to him.

 

“Nope.  I’m like a lamp…just pull the cord baby!”

 

Again we laughed.

 

“So can I come up and watch?” 

 

“No!”  We both cried.  “Besides,” I said, “we need to go shower before Yvonne starts pounding on the door.”

 

“Oh Please let me watch.”

 

“No!”  We cried out between giggles.

 

“Well can I at least get a hug.”

 

“Maybe” Lina told him.  “If you promise to go away and let us get ready.”

 

“I’m gone!”  He said walking away with a smile.

 

Lina and I both laughed as we walked back into the room.  “What an idiot.”

 

Both Lina and I skipped the traditional breakfast with the guys, we both weren’t in the mood for food.  And I was definitely not in the mood for any kind of confrontation. 

 

Like we’d said, we both gave Nick a hug as we stood outside our tour bus waiting for John to let us know we’d be departing.

 

“If I go away now, can I get another hug later?”  He joked.

 

“No!”  I told him.

 

“No Nick.”  Lina told him.  “Don’t you have a bus to catch?”

 

“Naw, I like this bus.  It always smells better than ours.  And you guys always have food in here.”  He said as he climbed into the bus. 

 

Lina and I just looked at each other, and then climbed up into the bus as well.  Kristin was already inside.  We felt the bus slowly begin to move, and Leighanne emerged from the bunkrooms.  I forgot we would be sharing the bus with her.

 

“Oh well,” Nick began.  “This bus just got a little too crowded, I think I’m a be getting off now.  Our bus doesn’t smell that bad.”  He joked.

 

“Oh my God!!”  I cried.  “Stop the bus!!!” 

 

It came to a complete halt.  Throwing us slightly off balance.

 

“I was just kidding Isabelle.”  Nick told me.  I wasn’t gonna really get off.

 

“No Nick.  My chain.  I forgot my chain back in the hotel.”  I cried as I ran my hand round my neck where the chain should be.

 

“Go back and get it Isabelle.”  Kristin cried.  “Hurry, we’ll wait for you.”

 

I nodded and John opened the door letting me out.  I started to run back to the hotel, when I felt someone behind me.  It was Nick.

 

“We’ll never make our next concert if you run like that.”  He said, then he ran up ahead of me.

 

When I got to the hotel room I saw Nick standing outside the door hitting on a girl who was dressed in a maid’s uniform.  “Thanks for looking for my chain, Nick.”  I said sarcastically.

 

“No problem.”

 

I shook my head and went inside the bedroom, to the small desk table by the bed where I had left it.  I felt my body go numb.  It wasn’t there.  I frantically search all around the room.  Under the bed, behind the desk, in the drawers, on the vanity table.  I just couldn’t find it.  I tried the bathroom and living room too.  Nothing.  “Oh Lord,” I prayed to myself.  “Please let me have not lost those rings.”  Though what they had once symbolized may be gone now, they still meant so much to me.

 

“Nick,” I said walking outside to where he still was.  “I can’t find it.” 

 

“That sucks.”  He said not even looking at me.  “I’ll buy you a new chain when we get to the next city.”

 

“I don’t want a new one!”  I cried, taking them both by surprised.  “Ask her if she’s seen it.  She was cleaning the room just now, wasn’t she?”

 

Nick turned to the tall brunette girl, and said.  “Usted…um.have seen…a chain?”  he asked her while making weird motions with his hands.

 

I looked at him.  “She doesn’t speak English?” 

 

“Nope.” He said with a smile.  “Ain’t she cute though.”

 

I sighed, and then turned to her myself.  “Ha visto usted una cadena de oro, que contiene dos anillos platiados.”  I said using the little Spanish I had learned in high school.

 

“No Senora, no se de lo que usted me habla.”  She told me sincerely.

 

“What did she say?”  Nick asked. 

 

“She said no, she hasn’t seen them.”

 

“Oh ok. Um…how do you say, I think you’re cute in Spanish?”

 

“Nick, not now!”  I said, then walked back into the room to search one last time.

 

When I came back out, unsuccessfully, Nick was standing in the hallway by himself. 

 

“Did you find it?”  He asked.

 

“No, I can’t believe how stupid I am.  How could I have lost it?”  I said more to myself.

 

“Did you search everywhere?”

 

“Everywhere, Nick.  It’s just gone.  Do you think that girl took it?”

 

“No, she left right after you went back in.  She was afraid you were going to report her as a suspect.  She didn’t want to get in trouble, so she reported it herself.  If you want we can go downstairs to their management office and ask them to keep an eye out for it.”

 

I shook my head.  “No, forget it.”  I said, then thought. Maybe it’s better this way.  Just leave it lost, forget about it all together, and move on.

 

“Are you sure?  If they found it they could send it to you.”  Nick tried to help.

 

“I’m sure.  C’mon, we have to get back to the bus.”  I told him.

 

“Is everything alright Miss?”  John asked, as we climbed back into the bus.

 

I nodded.

 

No one asked me if I had found it, since it was written in both our faces. 

 

John closed the door behind us and said.  “Well then, next stop. Atlanta, Georgia.” 

 

 

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