Popstar Chapter Six Three days later, and we're in Salt Lake city. We're planning on going to a club tonight. Dan invited me, as I haven't spoken to Ashley since Denver. A club should be fun, right? I hope so. ******** The show was over by eleven, and we had all showered and gotten ready to go. I met Dan and Jake in the lobby of the hotel. These were the only two guys I had managed to get along with. They seemed.... different. They were more down to earth than the rest of the guys. We got into an SUV we had rented and Dan drove us to a club called "Midnight Sun". It looked pretty decent. When we got inside, I found us a table and a few minutes later, Ashley, Erik and Trevor came and found us. Trevor and Erik already had ladies by their side but Ashley was by himself. He sat down across from me while Dan and Jake went to get us some drinks. There was no show tomorrow and I was happy because I had the sudden urge to drink. By two a.m., I had downed three beer and two coolers. I was pretty tipsy. And that's putting it lightly. On my way to the bar to get another drink, I bumped right into Ashley. I giggled a little before I could stumble away, but he grabbed my hand. "Dance with me." he said, just loud enough for me to hear. Before I could turn him down, he grabbed my hand and led me into the middle of the dance floor. I giggled a bit more. I have to admit, the boy smelled good. His cologne wasn't strong, but it mingled with the soap scent from his shower and he smelled fresh. He pulled me close to him and I giggled once again. "I don't want to be ignoring you for the rest of the tour." he whispered into my ear. His breath tickled a bit. "What?" I asked, backing up from him and dancing some more. "You heard me!" he yelled. "I did!" I replied. Suddenly, I felt light headed and I fell forward into Ashley's arms. "I'm taking you back to the hotel." he said, putting his arm around me and leading me gently off of the dance floor. He told Jake we were going back and had security bring a car around to the back of the club. He helped me into the back of the Expedition, then he went around to the other side and got in. I immediately collapsed into his lap. "Kerr, you have to sit up." he said, sounding a little annoyed. "I can't." I whined. "Kerr." he replied. "Mr. Parker!" I giggled, sitting up. "You've had way too much to drink." Ashley concurred. "Whatever!" I replied. "That's all you ever say." he sighed. "Don't be such a downer! You're the one who told me I should try and have some fun!" I replied. "I meant sober fun." I laughed again. And again. "What would your mother think if she saw you like this?" he asked. I stopped laughing. I stopped talking. I stared out the window for a moment, before turning to look at him. "I don't have a mother." I replied, as the tears threatened my eyes. "I'm sorry, Kerr. I didn't know." "She left me, Ashley. She went to go tour with this guy who was famous when I was five, but he was already married." "I understand." he said, quietly. "No, you don't." I replied, more tears streaming down my face. "I hated this guy, because he took my mother from me. Then, after the tour was over, he told her to leave and he said he didn't want to see her again. And do you know what my mother did?" "No." he whispered, as I continued to cry. "She killed herself." I replied. "She took her own life because she was rejected by this one guy who was so elite and so famous that she thought she could never be loved by anyone. But I loved her." I put my head down in my lap and I started to sob. All I wanted was to be back at the hotel, snuggled into bed so I could cry by myself. I felt a warm hand on my back and I felt Ashley sliding closer to me on the seat. He gently sat me up and wiped the tears from my cheeks. "Shhh..." he soothed. "It's okay, Kerr. It wasn't your fault, it was a mistake on her part. And she loved you." He wrapped his arm around me and I rested my head on his shoulder. We didn't talk or move until we reached the hotel. Ashley came around to my side of the car and helped me out. We walked up to my hotel room in silence. When we finally reached the door, I searched my purse for the key. I found it, but I didn't use it right away. Instead, I leaned against the door. "I'm sorry." I whispered, looking at my feet. "Hey, it doesn't matter." he replied standing in front of me. "Are you going to be alright though?" "I'm fine." I replied, looking away so I wouldn't cry anymore. "Look, I'm sorry too." Ashley said, turning my head to look at him. Without thinking, I did the stupidest thing I could have ever done. I quickly leaned in and kissed him. Next... **********************