"Oh, really, Jay- please. You're embarrassing me. Oh stop-" Rick gushed, sitting before his vanity mirror while rehearsing for his first late night television appearance.
Ever since the mad acclaim he'd received from his MMVA performance, Rick had been aptly riding the train of success. He'd been getting one booking after another, but seeing as how Dawn was temporarily out of the picture, it had taken a handful of grueling days to place things in order. But now, here he was, ready to embrace the world and all the praise it had to offer him.
Indeed, life was sweet. And to top it all off, he'd just received the grand-daddy of all offers: a Pepsi commercial!!
"Really, I'm flattered..."
Putting a halt to his self-adoration, there came a knock at the door.
Since Rick felt that his recently discovered celebrity would require extra security to insure his well-being, he had requested a full time personal body-guard at his side.
"Who is it?" he sang, depositing the brush he had been using as a makeshift microphone.
"It's Laurel, sir. Should I allow her in?" Blasted George's voice through the door.
Rick's face lit up like a Christmas tree. "Yes, of course" He permitted.
The door clicked open, and in walked a rather sour looking Laur.
"Right, so you're Ali-Baba now? Gotta have a password to get within five feet of you?" she flayed.
Ever since his return, Rick had been acting like a high and mighty cocky dimwit, and no one could even bare being in his presence for more than five minutes, because all he did was ramble on and on about how he was God's gift to the music business. But of course, none of them dared to utter a word about it to him. They just figured it would pass...Like bad gass.
"Oh, you're too precious" he giggled, leaning in to place a superficial peck on the side of her cheek "So what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?"
"Riiiight", Laurel began, using all her might to restrain herself from gagging "I just wanted to ask you if you wanted to come with me to grab something to eat?"
"Oh gee" Rick pouted, reaching out to take Laurel's hands in to his own "I would, but I wouldn't want us to get mobbed."
Rolling her eyes, Laurel lurched away from his grip. "You're some piece of work, aren't you?" she snorted.
Confused, Rick's brow hooked.
Laurel merely shook her head as she turned away from him "Forget it" she cackled.
"Oh, I see what it is. You're jealous!"
Before she could even fully digest his words, Laurel's face wizened and she shot him an icy glare
"Care to recapitulate on that there, buddy?" she said through gritted teeth.
A buoyant Rick chuckled gleefully. Why hadn't he seen it before? No wonder people were so squeamish around him lately. They were all green with envy! It was all so clear now... "Laur, there's no need to be resentful about my success. Don't worry, sooner or later you and your little bandmates will get their just deserts as well"
Already on edge, that final comment simply blew her last fuse "Oh please, don't flatter yourself! Us? Jealous of you? Give me a break!" she snarled "So you think having your own Pepsi commercial is reason enough to be behaving like such a bombastic brat? Well news flash buddy- most artists who hit the market as fast as you have don't live to see their second single hit the top 100!"
Her statement simply bounced off Rick like rubber. He was on much too high a pedastle to even be scrapped by Laurel's attempts at a catty assault. "Come on Laurel, I know that you don't have a fraction of the success I do, but there's no need to be spiffy about it " he retorted maliciously.
Laurel's lips pursed bitterly before storming off in a huff.
The door slammed angrily, making one of the cheap frames on the wall slant. Rick couldn't fathom what could possibly bring Laurel to such a jealous state. "Oh well" he shrugged, glimpsing up at the clock "It's Leno time"
**That Evening**
You don't come near the girl, Doc.
I don't smell a soul anywhere on you... why do you even care?
I made a promise to a lady.
Oh.Well I'll send the lady your regrets.
No --
"Nooooooo!!!" Alyssa and Naila scram desperately while watching in horror as Spike's body was violently hurled off the platform.
"Aah, Naila, omigod, they killed Spike! They bloody killed off Spike!" Alyssa cried, prying her eyes away from the screen for the first time in the past hour.
Banging his head on the wall, Kevin let out a loud grunt of despair "Look- He's not dead! He just moved. Besides, he's a vampire, isn't he dead to begin with?"
Frantically, Alyssa pounced on the remote and rewound the tape. "Oh, what a relief" she breathed, confirming with her own eyes what Kevin had just alluded to.
Ever since they'd been on tour, Alyssa and Naila scarcely had time to watch television, much less keep up with their favorite program, Buffy the Vampire Slayer. So after having caught an info-mercial for the VHS box set of season 5, Alyssa had her credit card out and ready to order before she could even conceive of deliberating.
"I really don't see why y'all are trippin' over this Spike dude. He's nasty, if you ask me" commented A.J cantankerously from across the room. He'd been keeping a vigil over his girlfriend who'd been gawking at some stupid bleach headed nincompoop for the last 45 minutes, and he just couldn't endure hearing yet another remark about how "fiiiiine" he
was.
"Shhhhh" Naila shushed, tossing a pillow in his direction as her eyes remained glued to the set. "Keep it to yourself. Me watch now."
Kevin and A.J both rolled their eyes, and without so much as a peep, exited the room. They knew when they were unwanted.
The girls remained unflinched, still entranced by their program.
… She could have killed me.
No she couldn't. Never. And sooner or later, Glory will re-emerge and make Buffy pay for that mercy, and the world
with her. Buffy even knows that, and still she wouldn't take a human life. Because she's a hero, you see. She's not like us.
Naila and Alyssa remained mesmerized as they watched Giles' hand coldly clamp over Ben's mouth as he frivolously struggled against his own death.
"Ooooooooh" they marveled.
**Noon, Earlier That Day**
Garbbed in sweatpants, a light coat and a Yankees baseball cap, Kristy and I nonchalantly trotted in to the quaint bistro a few blocks away from our hotel. We had the day off, and Kristy insisted that I accompany her to get some fresh air. Ever since the incident with Nick, I had been feigning a mild cold in order to evade get-togethers and dreary discussions. I now had far too much on my mind to be bothered by other people's petty problems. As selfish as it might sound, I simply needed alone time for once in my life. I needed to reflect. I needed to ponder. But most of all, I needed an answer. It was now clear to me that my relationship with Nick was headed down a dangerous downward spiral. Despite his infinite apologies and attempts at seeking my forgiveness, his drinking and doldrums were spinning further away from his control, and I was well aware of how any minuscule spark could set him off again. Staying with him was certainly not the answer, but leaving him wasn't even an option.
"Aaah, this place smells wonderful!" Kristy breathed blissfully as the tantalizing odor of freshly baked croissants and cinnamon buns wafted by our noses. "Laurel doesn't know what she's missing."
Laurel! Curse her! She was the reason Kristy had dragged me out here in the first place. Apparently, she and Rick had some sort of spat earlier that day, and she was too upset to leave her room. So the pressure Kristy was imposing on me had freagin quadrupled.
Inhalling, I nodded in agreement. I may not have been myself, but my senses were still fully intact, and it sure smelled mighty inviting.
Kristy's mouth began to water as she carefully browsed through the wide assortment of fine pastries and other nummy treats exhibited at the counter. "Easy girl" she mumbled, patting her churning stomach "Gotta keep you flat now that I'm ready to get back on the market." And ready, was she ever! It was amazing how unaffected she was by her short fling with Brian. She had come to the resolution that not only were they a definite no-no together, but that, until a few days ago, she still wasn't ready to move on with her feelings of dejection caused by Rick. (Author's Note: x-bf, for those who've forgotten) But now, she was more than willing to welcome with open arms whomever Aphrodite deemed worthy of her affection.
Feeling a light tap on her shoulder, Kristy was drawn away from the tempting delectables. "Yeah?" she grumbled, slightly peeved by her raging appetite.
Discretely, I pointed my index finger to the corner of the crowded room. I couldn't help but smile. "Looks like you have an admire"
"Huh? Where? Whatcha talking about?" Kristy pressed, flagrantly elongating her neck like a giraffe.
Smacking her on the arm, I stifled her. "Try not to be so obvious, Kris." Slowly, I rotated her head in the direction I had been indicating to. At that moment, the young man that had been staring at her since we'd walked in immediately ducked his head back in to his novel.
A small grin crept on to the corner of her lips "Oooh" she smirked, watching as the boy's eyes shyly deviated back up, just as soon sinking back down when he realized that he was being observed.
"Do you think he recognizes us?" I queried quietly, a tad concerned about blowing our cover. After all, we had come unaccompanied, and thus making us completely vulnerable to any psychopath.
"Maybe" Kristy shrugged "But don't worry, he looks harmless".
Once again, the guy peered up, but this time long enough to notice Kristy's ogling. That was the extra push she needed...
"Come on, Eli" she announced, grabbing me by the wrist "I've got me a man to meet!"
**Meanwhile**
Sitting motionlessly in the large floral armchair, Howie continued to stare vacantly into space for the third straight hour. Time held no significance to him any more- Dawn had vanished, and that was all that mattered. He'd put all his energy and strength into tracking her down, but to no avail. It was like she'd fallen off the face of the earth.... Even the record company had yet to hear from her. A weary sigh escaped his lips as he vainly tried to keep thousands of terrible thoughts from flooding his mind. Suddenly, the phone rang- the sound being the first to ricochet off the walls in hours.
Instictively, his hand reached out to the night table at his side.
"Yes?" he spoke groggily into the receiver. He was answered only by a tone. Confused, he heard another ring.
Growling, he hung up and stood to pick up his mobile which was laying on his bed.
"Hello?" he bleated, this time in to the correct phone.
There was a short pause. "Howie?..." A sweet, angelic voice finally questioned.
Howie's voice caught in his throat. It couldn't be.... could it? "Dawn?"
There was yet another brief interval. "No, uh, Howie; this is Dayna Huynh."
"Oh..." Howie trailed, his heart sinking. Why bother getting his hopes up?
"I'm sure you've already forgotten, but we bumped into each other at a club about a week and a half ago. Remember? The girl from the "I'll Never Break Your Heart" video?" Dayna tried to jog his memory.
It took a few short moments for Howie to regain his composure "Yeah, I remember" he said rather fallaciously. The name rang a bell, but he was too distraught to put one and one together.
Getting the impression that he was somehow elsewhere, Dayna went on with her spiel. "Well, I'm sure that you're busy and all, but, like, I happen to be in town for a photo shoot, and well, I thought maybe we could meet up for a coffee or something?"
"Meet", "for", and "coffee" were the only words that registered in Howie's head. "How did you get my number?" he asked, shaking himself to chase away the dizziness.
Dayna felt ill-at-ease. He wasn't giving her the responses she was aiming for. The least he could give her was some clue to whether he was still with that blonde she encountered that other night. "Umm, well, when we worked together on the video, you gave it to me and told me to call. I've spent days looking for it" she laughed "After you ran out on me, I got kinda worried. Actually, that's sorta the reason why I'm calling. Is everything alright?"
"Oh" Howie remarked, slowly returning to the land of the living "I'm... good" he fibbed. No sense in working up a total stranger over something that didn't concern them.
"Awesome!!" Dayna chirped with pep "So, like, I'm free any time..."
Howie went on partially listening to the loquacious young woman. He relied on a few key words to keep up with her rambling, as his thoughts kept drifting back to Dawn. Dawn/Dayna; Dayna/Dawn. Perhaps spending some time with Dayna would succeed in helping him keep his mind off Dawn... Either way, what else could he do?
**A Bit Later**
"You're on in 5, McLaughlin" echoed a loud voice through the hall.
Proficiently adjusting his ear piece, Rick bent down to pick up his bottled Evian. He'd gone through soundcheck, and was now eager to get out there and show the world just what Richard Joseph McLaughlin was made of: a lean, mean, singing machine!
With a flick of the wrist, he gestured for his assistant to quit toweling his brow. "Leave me, I need to get in to my zone"
Nodding obediently, the man snapped his fingers and made sure everyone would comply to his boss' will.
Now alone, Rick inhaled and began his focusing ritual. "Concentrate, concentrate" he repeated over and over to himself as it became increasingly challenging to remain focused on his breathing due to the whaling emanating from the studio.
Just as he was on the verge of entering his "zone", he was whisked off to the set.
"This is it" he smiled to himself as the strong spotlights blinded him.
Soon, Jay's voice came blaring through the speakers.
"...Our next young act has been earning rave reviews for his voice and song-writing skills... He's gonna be huge... Ladies and gentlemen, the very talented Mr. Rick McLaughlin"
Bobbing his head to the deep notes of the electric guitar, Rick waited for his cue to the opening verse.
You told me to never give up
I never have and I've never been stopped
Your next generation can't slow me down
The new hearts you steal
Can't top me anyhow...
His confidence mounting, Rick removed his microphone from the stand it had been clasped to and started to boogie down to his own beat.
I've made my way and I've gotten around
But I still look back to find what I lack
But they say; I'll be all right
'Almost at the chorus, and smooth as silk' Rick told himself, gesticulating his arms and clapping his hands over his head to hype up the crowd.
The Power of love We went on, ad-libbing a second word to the line
Of lOOooooOOOooOOOOOOooOOOOOve He belted out, pulling his best Christina Aguilera.
The the room went wild, and oh yeah, he was working em', baby, yeah. Now that he'd illustrated just how powerful a voice he had, it was time for him to showcase his brilliant moves.
Breaking into his fanciest footwork, he cranked out steps that would even make good old MJ blush.
Kicking his right leg forward, he went in for the kill and twisted his foot over his left calf to make a triple twirl. Topping it off with a reminiscent A.J pelvic thrust, he took a step forward
I thought it was trUUuuuEEE Soo absorbed in what a splendid job he was doing, he lost track of his limbs and tripped over his own feet as he went crashing in to the TelePrompTer.
Panick stricken, he tried to regain his cool and backed up to the platform and simply tried to brush it off.
But this one tactless move was enough to set off a domino affect on his performance.
I thought you did what you wanted me to
You're heart will answer when you want it to
Shutting his eyes, he endeavored to drown out the sniggering that had filled the air. He had to win them back. He just had to blow them away with his next verse! 'here we go' he solaced himself as he prepared his lungs for the highest key his voice could attain.
Don't wanna hurt you, but you're hurting me too
Still they say; I’ll be--- oOOookAAaaaYYaaAaaYaaayyY IIiiiiiIIIiii
Mortified, Rick's eyes became saucers at the sound of his own voice cracking like a broken record. He just couldn't believe it! His technique was flawless. He never, ever, ever messed a note. Ever!!
To insure that the rest of his performance ran smoothly, he chose to keep it low key and not go over the top. At this point, anything would be too great a risk.
"Wow, that sure was an interesting show you put up for us, huh Rick?" Jay teased, shaking his hand as the boy took a seat at his right "I can see why people've been talking"
Rick forced a humiliated smile across his face as he futily tried to keep away the crimson that was burning up his cheeks.
Ceasing his raillery, Jay brought forth his "professional" persona. "So, tell us more about yourself, Rick. You're touring with the Backstreet Boys, that must be something?"
Rick, who was normally so fond of tooting his own horn, had now turned mute. He suddenly didn't feel much like discussing his future Grammies, and multi-platinum debut album. Nope! Suddenly, mum's the word.
Not knowing quite what to do with the silent, wide-eyed teenager, Leno moved on to the next topic on his cue card.
"What about that Pepsi commercial, son?"
Abruptly, his ears pricked to the ceiling "Yeah, Pepsi!" he repeated, springing to life. Now that was something he was willing to talk about, regardless of whim! "Yes, I will be shooting my very own Pepsi commercial. I came up with the concept myself, it's gonna be 100% Rick M."
"So I'm assuming that involves a lot of falling on your face and high pitched squeals then" Jay mocked, sending the audience into yet another frenzy.
Wounded by his unintentionally harsh comment, Rick sulked back into his chair and prayed with all his might for the interview to end. Things sure hadn't turned out as he had intended.
(Author's Note: Once again, big thanks go out to Rick for letting me use his song. Sorry about that scene, hun. lol )
**That Evening**
The day had passed in a blink of an eye, as Kristy, myself and our new found companion, Brice, scuttled around the city in a site-seeing craze. Brice, who we had met earlier that day in the small café, happened to be an art student who was sent out by his university to review our concert in Memphis a few months ago. Nice fellow, he was. He was absolutely stunned to see us walk in to one of the local joints, and he admitted that if he hadn't been so starstruck, he would have presented himself to us, instead of waiting for us to come up to him. Kristy seemed extremely pleased by this, for as the day went on, it became increasingly obvious that Brice was developing a schoolboy crush on her. He appeared to be exactly what the doctor had ordered.
As we exited the theater, Kristy and Brice were still fully immersed in their intense debate over the title of the film. They just couldn't settle on why in some countries it went by "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone", while others called it "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone". It was truly a mind-boggling dilemma...
"Maybe the term 'philosopher' intimidates people?..." Brice pandered.
Looking down at my watch, I let out a small gasp. It was 8:34 PM! "Yikes, I'd better get back to the hotel!"
Distracted by the sudden change in subject matter, Kristy spun back to face me. "You...want to go back?" she uttered softly with pleading eyes.
Glancing back and forth between the two, I just couldn't help but feel guilt for even contemplating splitting them up so soon. They just seemed so- perfect.
I pondered a moment. Smiling, a reached out to hug Kristy, then turned to Brice and told him I looked forward to seeing him again.
"Thank you" she mouthed.
I winked, and just as soon headed back to the Ritz, which was a good 15-20 minute walk away. But what did it matter? At least I was alone...
After Eli had gone, Kristy and Brice, who'd been so effusive since they met, suddenly fell in to an awkward silence.
Brice was so timid that it was almost a handicap, but for some unexplained reason, he felt incredibly comfortable around the young blonde. He just couldn't believe it: He was out with the Kristy Brun from Reflection. Unbelievable!
"It's getting a bit chilly, don't you find?" Kristy said, trying to rekindle the dialogue between them.
On cue, Brice wiggled out of his windbreaker and placed it around her shoulders "Is that better?" he asked.
Shocked by his act of chivalry, Kristy merely tugged his jacket over herself so that it wouldn't slip off. Her eyes met his, and she went weak in the knees at the warmth of his gentle blues.
Brice felt his face flush, so to shift the attention away from his rosiness, he peered up at the night sky. "It's beautiful, isn't it?"
In turn, Kristy's eyes traveled upwards to the scintillating stars. The moon let an orangish mist taint through the cirrus clouds, and she had to pinch herself to make sure this was all real.
"Maybe we should call it a night"
Kristy felt her heart sink.
"After all, you do have a show tomorrow, and I don't want you to be exhausted on account of me" Brice explained sincerely.
"Yeah..." she sighed with a heavy heart. How cruel a life she lead. Just when she found someone that sparked her fancy, her schedule interfered and tore them apart. But that was the sacrifice she had made...
Grinning meekly, Brice took her by the hand and lead her to the nearest pay phone "I'll get you a cab. I don't want you to catch a cold or something"
That was all it took to make her melt, and before either knew what hit them, they were locked in a luscious embrace.
**15 Minutes Later**
Beaming from ear to ear, Kristy dreamily unlocked the door to her room and glided in on cloud nine.
"Wow" she expired as her body plopped down on the queen sized bed "Wow"
Once their kiss was over, she and Brice quickly exchanged numbers before her taxi was to arrive. She'd even invited him to tomorrow night's show. Tomorrow... She sighed. 24 hours to figure out what she would do with him, and time was rapidly ticking away.
Grumbling, she flipped over on her stomach. Something caught her eye, and her brow began to furrow at the sight of two- one yellow, and one white- daisies resting horizontally on her pillow. Her heart began to palpitate wildly against her chest as she stood up to take a better look. There was a note... Again. Something told her that there was a disturbing pattern forming with these anonymous flowers. First, there was the one from Brian. Or at least, who she had suspected was him. Second, there were the petals scattered over the coffee table in Wisconsin. That's when suspicion began to arouse. And now, there were the daisies-
Picking up the small piece of paper, she found nothing more than her name printed in bold letters on it.
"This isn't good..." she breathed in deeply, slumping into her trembling hands.
