Chapter 25: I’m Movin’ On

            The days flew by as Darren sat beside Chance’s bed, waiting for her to awake from her deep sleep. He talked to her in hopes of getting her to respond. He read to her, sang to her, even told her the things that were running through his head. But she never responded, making him slowly begin to lose hope that she ever would.

            The more time that passed, the more Darren’s life began to fade. He stopped writing music and going outside. His time revolved around Chance’s bedside where he spent most of the day thinking about what life would be like without her. Darren missed seeing her smiling face when he woke up, he missed her dulcet voice singing the chorus to her favorite song. Moreover, he missed her deliciously sweet kisses. Darren longed to feel her lips just once more.

            A soft knock came at the door. Darren looked behind him to see Ian standing outside Chance’s room with an old couple and a young girl behind him.

            “Darren, could you come here for a few moments?” he asked. Darren stood and walked out into the hall amongst the newcomers.

            “Yeah?” he replied, placing his arm on the frame of the door.

            “These are Chance’s grandparents, Celia and Jack,” Ian said. Darren quickly straightened up and held out his hand to introduce himself.

            “You must be the boy who saved my granddaughter,” Celia supposed as she warmly stared at him.

            “Yes, I am,” Darren bashfully replied. He hadn’t expected to ever meet Chance’s grandparents.

            “I don’t know how to begin to thank you,” she continued. “After our son and daughter-in-law died, we were devastated. I don’t think we could live through seeing our only grandchild pass before we did.”

            Darren nodded. He didn’t feel like speaking. It was hard enough to stand there and talk to Celia and Jack without telling them that Chance was so close to dying. An awkward silence passed between them before Ian decided it was time to step in and break it.

            “You should go in and see your granddaughter. Darren, I still need to talk to you,” he said. Darren got the hint that he should stay out of the room for a little while as Celia and Jack spent time with Chance. Once they walked into the room and the door was closed, only Darren, Ian, and the young girl stood out in the hall. The girl nudged Ian and he looked down at her with a smile.

            “Darren, this is my granddaughter, Jamie. She’s been pestering me to meet you ever since you gave her that autograph because she thought I was lying to her,” Ian joked. Darren smiled. He loved being around kids. Maybe someday he’d have his own family, but for now his career prevented him from being able to.

            Darren looked down at the young blond girl standing in front of him and said, “I’ve heard a lot about you, Jamie. I’m very pleased to meet you.”

            “The pleasure is mine,” she replied in a strong southern accent. Jamie held out her tiny hand for Darren to shake, but instead he bent down and kissed it, his eyes never breaking contact with hers. At that instant, she became putty in his hands. A goofy grin appeared on her face as her bright green eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. Darren’s knowledge of women was the secret to his success. He knew how to charm them and used it to his advantage.

            Darren’s face became less aged with worry when he saw the delight in the little girl’s eyes. He liked making other people feel good even though he was in pain. It gave him the strength to endure the time Chance was in her coma.

            Ian tapped Darren’s shoulder and said, “I have to get going now. I need to check on a few patients. I’ll see you tomorrow, Darren. Jamie, let’s go.”

            “But…” she began, unable to take her gaze off Darren. He knew she wanted to stay a little longer to talk.

            “You know what? Why don’t I take Jamie out today?” Darren said as Ian was pulling Jamie away.

            “Are you sure you won’t mind?” Ian asked.

            “No, not at all. It’ll be better than sitting in Chance’s room all day hoping that she’ll wake up.” Jamie looked at Darren with wide eyes. She couldn’t believe she’d be spending the day with her idol.

            “Well, okay. Just make sure you get back before five, young lady. Dinner’s at six, and you don’t want to anger your grandmother if you’re late,” Ian warned.

            “I know, Gramps. I promise I’ll be home at five. You don’t have to worry. I’m almost 16,” she anxiously replied.

            “All right. I’ll see you then. Bye.” Ian soon walked off leaving Darren and Jamie still standing at the door of Chance’s room.

            “It’s almost 12, is there anything you want to do?” Darren asked her as they began to walk down the hall in the opposite direction towards the exit.

            “How about lunch?” Jamie suggested. “I’m starving.”

            “Great. I know the perfect place,” he replied, leading her to a waiting limo parked on the outskirts of the parking lot. It was there just in case Darren needed a ride home or to pick up Dan from the airport when he came in every weekend to see Chance.

            “Oh, sweet!” Jamie squealed as the driver opened the door for her to get in. Darren grinned. He loved seeing fans get ecstatic over little things like limo rides.

~~~~~~~~~~

            Zlata Praha was quiet that afternoon with very few customers sitting at the widely spaced tables outside the small restaurant. It was a warm October day with the temperature in the mid 60’s and the sun shining overhead, perfect weather for eating outside. Darren chose the place remembering how much he had enjoyed it the last time he was there with Chance. Even though it brought back old, somewhat painful memories, the culture rich restaurant seemed to fit his mood.

            Jamie sat across the table from Darren, her eyes shining in his direction. He smiled at her and lay back in his chair to find a comfortable position.

            “I’ve never been to a place like this before,” Jamie said, looking out at her surroundings. Even though they were outside, the little window across from their seats was decorated with strange letters and symbols. “What kind of restaurant is it?”

            “Serbian. My friend Chance took me here once. It’s very different, but I guarantee you’ll have a good time,” Darren responded.

            “Chance? The girl in the hospital?” she asked. Darren only nodded, and suddenly it him Jamie. Darren was somehow involved with Chance. “Ohhh…” came her response along with a goofy grin.

            “You’re giving me that look,” he quickly noticed, his eyes watching her intently.

            “What look?” Jamie innocently replied. She couldn’t contain her laughter when she saw the sly expression on Darren’s face.

            “That look people get when they make some odd connection about a person they have just met.”

            “No, I didn’t!”

            “Yes, you did! I could tell by the way you said ‘Ohhh…” Darren mimicked her. “What have you associated with me?”

            The piercing question was hard for Jamie to avoid. She tried changing the subject, but Darren wouldn’t let her. She squirmed in her seat as his intense blue eyes stared down at her. Jamie finally gave up and said, “All right! I kinda got the impression that you are somehow involved with Chance because you said that you came here with her once, so I immediately assumed that it was a date, and I’ve seen too many movies with this kind of plot.”

            Darren just kept staring at her blankly. “Can I be honest with you?” he finally asked.

            “Sure, go ahead.”

            “I’m not involved with Chance in any way. I’m just a friend who lives with her. But obviously everyone is beginning to suspect that she’s more than my friend. In her mind, I still am. Unfortunately in my mind, I’ve fallen so in love with her it hurts. You probably have no idea what I’m feeling, so I’d just better stop all this crazy talk about love before I dig myself into a deeper hole.”

            “No, go on. I know what you’re feeling. I may be only 15, but I have a boyfriend back home in Tennessee, and I’m in love with him the way that you’re in love with Chance,” Jamie confessed. “Except my case gets even more complicated. My parents have forbidden me to see him because he’s so poor. We’ve been dating each other for the last few months secretly, but I’m beginning to think that my lies don’t cut it anymore when I want my parents to let me out when I wanna see him.”

            “I guess we have something in common,” Darren observed. Jamie looked at him questionably. “Forbidden love,” he said.

            Jamie smiled realizing Darren wasn’t some superstar with the perfect life. He was human like everyone else. It was the first time she noticed the pain in those bright blue eyes. She had been blind when they first met, but after opening up, there were so many hidden traits that finally came into focus.

            “I’m sorry Darren,” Jamie said quietly as she placed her hands over his. “I’m just happy that we have something in common. At least I know I’m not alone in the world.”

            “Same here,” Darren replied with a smile.

            “Is there anything else you wanna get off your chest? Anything you wanna talk about?” Jamie asked.

            “Not really,” he said, then turned his head towards the other side of the street and began to stare at the building the recording studio was housed. Darren’s mind began to think about all the time he had spent there with Chance, especially the exceptional kiss they shared that one strange afternoon a week before her birthday. It all felt so fresh in his mind.

            Darren could feel the warm tear that dripped down his wind swept face the more he thought about Chance’s soft, delicate lips and the way they parted when she smiled. His heart sank lower in his chest when he realized that he’d never taste their sugary softness again.

            “What’s wrong?” he could hear Jamie ask. “Darren, why are you crying?”

            He wiped the tear from his cheek and shook his head as if to say he didn’t want to talk about it. Darren knew the only way to get away from this pain was to leave and never look back. Before Jamie could get in another word, the waiter came to ask for their drink order.

            “I’ll have a Sprite,” she told the tall man with the strange accent that towered above her.

            “Double martini,” Darren quickly added.

            Jamie shot him a look once the waiter left to get their drinks. “I thought you didn’t drink,” she said.

            “Well, there’s a first time for everything,” Darren retorted.

~~~~~~~~~~

            Chance could feel Scott pulling away from her slowly. She watched him as he stood up and began to walk away. “Scott, wait!” she called out to him. “Where are you going?”

            Scott turned to her and said, “I’ve been here too long. I have to go, and so do you. I’m sorry.”

            “But can’t we stay a little longer?” Chance begged. She ran to him and took his hand.

            “No, we can’t. Too much time has passed.”

            “It’s only been about half an hour. How could that be so much time?”

            “Because every minute you spend here is a day in earth. You’re spent only half an hour here, but down there it’s been a month. You have to go back. Darren needs you,” Scott tried to explain as he slowly faded away into the sunlight.

            “Scott!” Chance screamed out. “One more kiss, please.” She wrapped her arms around him and pressed her lips upon his. Scott held onto her even though he was being called back. Just as the kiss ended, he was nearly completely transparent.

            “I’ll always remember this,” she whispered.

            “No, you won’t. It was all just a dream,” he whispered back.

~~~~~~~~~~

            It had been nearly a week since Darren and Jamie had gone to lunch. He could barely remember what happened that day since he drank two martinis, vodka on the rocks, and three glasses of wine. He had been buzzed for the rest of the day prompting Jamie to take him home so he could sleep it off. He clearly remembered the next day when he awoke with an atrocious hangover. That was the day he decided he needed to get away from New York and go home to Australia to forget about Chance and all the pain he had endured.

            Darren was able to pack his things in less than a week and find a flight home. He walked into the hospital two hours before the plane left to see Chance for the last time. He knew he’d miss her, but at least he wouldn’t have to watch her whither away and die. Quietly walking into her darkened room, Darren made his way to the empty seat beside her bed. He sat down, his eyes staring at Chance’s lifeless body on the mattress.

            “I wish you could hear me. I want to tell you so much,” Darren said quietly in the dark room as he took her cold hand and held it to his face. He brushed it across his lips and kissed each one of her fingertips. A single tear rolled down his cheek as he watched her lying in the bed, lifeless.

            “Why can’t you just wake up so I can tell you this in person?” Darren asked. “It’s been so hard to watch you slip away from the world. I miss you, and I need you more than I could ever need anyone. I’m scared that I’m going to lose you like you’ve lost Scott. I just wanted to tell you that I love you, and I’m sorry I didn’t tell you this sooner. Maybe if I had told you, you wouldn’t be here, and I wouldn’t be leaving. I’d give my life in a heartbeat to see you wake up. I’d do whatever it took to make you see that we were brought together for a reason. But seeing you so near death, I can’t take it, and I have to leave. I don’t want this to be a memory that haunts me for the rest of my life. I don’t want to watch you slip away. I don’t want to see you die. I’m so sorry.”

            Darren took a deep breath to remove the lump in his throat. “Goodbye, Chance. I’ll never forget you,” he whispered, kissing her fingers once more before standing up and leaving the room, never looking back.

            Chance had awoken upon hearing Darren’s voice and managed to catch every word he said. She wanted so badly to let him know she was listening, she was still alive, and she hadn’t given up yet. Hearing the words “I love you” come out of his mouth eased the pain she felt in her heart. All Chance wanted to do was give him a sign that she was there, but her body wouldn’t respond. Her muscles were too weak to move, but she tried. It wasn’t until he had left the room that she was finally able to stir her finger.

            Another presence entered the room. Chance hoped it was Darren realizing that he had just made the biggest mistake of his life, but it wasn’t. It was only a nurse that had come in to check on her. Chance slowly began to move her finger to show that she was awake. It took a while for the nurse to notice, but when she did, she quickly ran out of the room to get a doctor.

            Two people entered the room as Chance began to open her chocolate brown eyes. Slowly but surely their lids fluttered to reveal a blurry world of darkness in front of her. It soon came into focus after a few minutes of blinking. An old man stood in front of her wearing a white lab coat. He had a stethoscope in his ears and was listening to her heart. She tried to say something, but a big tube running down her throat prevented her from making even the slightest noise. The old man looked down at her and smiled.

            “Welcome back,” he greeted. “I’m Dr. McAllister. It’s good to see that you’ve woken up. It’s been nearly a month since you were rescued from nearly drowning in a river.”

            ‘Where’s Darren?” Chance’s mind frantically called out. ‘Darren! Don’t leave! I’m here!’

            Chance could feel her heart drop three floors below her when she realized that Darren wasn’t coming back. She could feel the hot tears form in her eyes, but was too exhausted to cry them. She closed her eyes once again and fell into a restless sleep.

~~~~~~~~~~

            Nearly 24 hours and two plane changes later, Darren arrived in Sydney. Dan was waiting for him at the gate with a beautiful blond haired woman wrapped in his arms. He was wearing his usual disguise, the baseball hat and sunglasses, but Darren barely noticed. All he could look at was the beautiful girl in his arms.

            “Hey, Daz. Long time, no see,” Dan said, letting go of the girl.

            “Yeah, long time,” Darren replied. His gaze never left the blond woman. “So this must be the angelic Alexia that I keep hearing about.”

            “That would be me,” she said, her voice almost sounding like Chance’s, especially with the New Yorker accent.

            “Pleased to meet you,” Darren acknowledged. They shook hands and Dan led them away from the gate, looking behind him to make sure that no one was following.

            “Are you still paranoid about airports?” Darren asked him. Dan nodded feeling a little embarrassed about saying so. “Oh, will you just stop that. There is no way anyone will ever realize who we are. We both look totally different from what everyone expects.”

            “Very true,” Alexia joined in. “I didn’t even know it was you when you walked off the plane. You look so different. You’ve grown out you hair a little more, and that five o’clock shadow on your face is a dead giveaway that you’ve spent too much time traveling.”

            “Is it really that bad?” Darren questioned, scratching his face.

            “Yeah, it is,” Dan replied. “So, how was Chance when you last saw her?”

            “I don’t want to talk about her. That’s the whole reason I left, remember? It was just so I could get away from seeing her die.”

            Dan felt awful for bringing back those painful memories. Even his own were bad enough to keep him in nightmares for months. His last memory of Chance would always be that of seeing her in the hospital room, her body taken over by machines and her face as pale white as a ghost. He shivered at the thought and pushed it back into the deepest corner of his mind.

            “Come on, I really want to get home and go to sleep,” Darren said as he began walking a little faster than Alexia and Dan.

            “That sucks. I was gonna invite you to a party tonight,” Alexia replied from behind him.

            “Party?” Darren asked. She nodded. “I’m there.”

            The three headed for Darren’s old apartment, which he hoped hadn’t been rented out to anyone since he had been gone so long. Luckily for him, the landlord hadn’t done anything. All his stuff was still in the same place it had been when he left. All that the apartment was missing was the electricity, the water, the gas, the phone, and not to mention the cable. After making a few calls from his cell, Darren had all them back. He slipped into his bedroom and landed on the bed with a heavy thud. He was even more exhausted than he realized. He closed his eyes and was out for the rest of the day until nearly seven that night.

            Darren awoke to find himself encased in darkness. He stood up, stumbling at first, then found the light switch. He looked around at his room trying to remember the last time he had been there. It was so much smaller than before. ‘You’ve been gone way too long,’ he told himself. Darren walked to the closet to search for an outfit he’d wear to the party later on that evening. He picked out a silky black button up shirt, a pair of gray cargo pants, and a nice pair of Doc Martians.

            Satisfied with what he had chosen, Darren walked into the bathroom to take a shower and shave. Spending nearly an hour just getting ready, he was finally out of the house at about 8:30 and heading for Dan’s place a few blocks down in his vintage 1970 midnight blue Jaguar XKE, top down. He missed driving the beautiful car around, especially at night, when no one was around, and he could reach speeds well past 100 mph. Darren decided to take it slowly tonight. He rolled into the driveway of Dan’s new two-story mansion, which Alexia had helped him pick out. Over ten cars were already parked outside, and people milled around the front door holding drinks and talking.

            As Darren rolled up, all eyes were on him. He enjoyed the attention, and savored it for as long as the people were interested. He pulled up behind a black Lincoln Navigator and got out. Immediately he was greeted at the door with hello’s and how are you’s. Darren nodded as he walked past people he barely knew and headed straight for the living room where he could hear the loud music being played by a live band. ‘I wouldn’t be surprised if Dan dragged me over here to sing for a while with the old band,’ Darren thought to himself, smiling.

            “Daz!” he heard a voice from behind him yell over the music. He turned to see Ben Carey waving his arms in the air like a lunatic. “Is that really you?”

            “Good to see you, Ben. It’s been way too long!” Darren shouted back heading towards him in hopes of finding Dan. The two guys shook hands and headed towards the kitchen.

            “Where’s Jonsey?” Darren questioned once they were away from the loud music.

            “Damned if I know,” Ben replied. “I saw him at the bar with his girlfriend, but that was about an hour ago.”

            “Well, it was nice seeing you again,” Darren said as he began to leave.

            “Hey, get back here. You still haven’t told me everything about America. What happened out there? I heard you started recording your solo with some girl, but stopped because she nearly killed herself,” Ben went on.

            Darren instantly became irritated. “I don’t want to talk about it,” he said, grinding his teeth. “I have to find Dan. I’ll see you around.” Darren left to look for his best friend. He searched the other rooms on the first floor to no avail. Returning to the living room, he could hear a familiar voice come over the speakers.

            “Can I have everyone’s attention please?” Dan asked from the makeshift stage in the middle of his living room. Alexia stood beside him, her arm wrapped around his and holding a drink in her other hand. “I have a really big announcement to make.” Darren could see he was exceptionally happy and knew from that moment what the announcement would end up being. He headed for the bar and ordered a martini.

            The noise level in the living room had decreased significantly as Dan cleared his throat before making his announcement. Darren stared at him coldly wondering why he hadn’t told him before everyone else. He took a sip of the martini and pushed the thought out of his head.

            “First off, I would like to say thanks for coming to the party. We hope that you enjoy yourselves, and by we I mean my beautiful girlfriend and I. That reminds me,” Dan paused to put down his drink and kneel in front of Alexia, taking her hand as he continued. At that moment, the room became completely silent. “We’ve been together for nearly two months now, and I know that sounds kind of short, but ever since that first day we met, I knew we were meant to be because whenever I’m around you I feel so wonderful. You’ve made me so happy in such a short time that I hope this is the way it can be for the rest of our lives. I think you already know where I’m going with this, so I’ll just come out and say it. Alexia, will you marry me?”

            Alexia burst into tears as her hand covered her face. Darren tried to distinguish whether she was crying from pure happiness or from extreme sadness since her body language was so off. She seemed to be more saddened by the question that she was happy. Either way, she nodded her reply, and Dan slipped the two-caret diamond ring on her finger then stood up to kiss her. The crowd exploded into loud applause while Darren gulped down the rest of his martini and ordered another one.

            As he stood sipping the drink from the farthest corner of the room, he could see Dan and Alexia make their way through the crowd towards him. Darren stayed put unable to move because of the wall of people in front of him. Dan quickly reached his hiding spot and noticed the drink in his hand.

            “Darren, when did you take that up?” he asked.

            “Maybe a week ago,” Darren replied, feeling a little tipsy.

            “So, can you believe it?” Dan excitedly asked.

            “No,” Darren retorted. He gulped down the rest of the martini within seconds and asked for another one.

            “How many of those have you had?” Alexia question.

            “I think I’m on number three,” he replied, trying to remember how many drinks he had within the last few minutes. Darren was still reeling at the thought of his best friend getting married. ‘This is not fair. Why can’t I find anyone? Why did I have to leave Chance behind?’ he desperately thought, having another drink and scarfing it down without taking a breath of air.

            ‘Stop thinking about Chance,’ another voice popped up in his head.

            ‘Oh, shut up,’ Darren overpowered it, the alcohol taking a desired effect of suppressing those little voices that always seemed to pop up at the wrong time.

            The voice subsided as Darren heard Dan say, “Daz, what has gotten into you? That’s your fifth drink!”

            Darren looked down at his hands to find the margarita he couldn’t even remember ordering. “Hey, you two are getting married, this is getting to be a great party, and I am overly happy tonight. Congratulations! I hope you have a nice life together,” he sarcastically said, then walked off, finishing the margarita and picking up a strawberry daiquiri from the bar.

            Dan stared at Darren surprised that he had walked away so miserably. He had never seen him so upset before, but knew that the combination of liquor and Chance was stirring up feelings and emotions that Darren hadn’t experienced before.

            “Dan, I’m worried about Darren,” Alexia said. She took his arm and led him away from the dancing crowd, up the stairs, and to the master bedroom they shared.

“He has to go back to New York. He’s ruining his life by not knowing whatever happened to Chance,” Dan replied as he sat down on the comfortable bed. Alexia sat beside him and wrapped her arm around his shoulders.

            “He does, but how are you gonna get him to leave? Darren just got back. He can’t just pick up and move out within a matter of days,” she reasoned.

            “I’ll think of something,” Dan said, his head turning towards her to stare into those deep blue eyes. They smiled at each other and kissed, then stood up to leave the room. Moments before reaching the door, it burst open with Rebecca standing behind it barking orders to Ben, Charles, and Walter as they carried an unconscious Darren up the stairs. His body hung limp in their arms as they slowly descended towards the second floor.

            “Where’s the spare room?” Rebecca breathlessly asked as she heaved in a few labored breaths.

            “Down the hall, the last door on your right. What happened to Darren?” Dan quickly replied.

            “He passed out in the living room while he was talking to me and drinking a Long Island Iced T,” she told him.

            “Where are we setting him down?” Ben called from the top of the stairs.

            “Over here,” Rebecca shouted, running to the door at the end of the hall and opening it. Dan ran behind her to usher the three men in. They laid Darren out on the bed and stared at him in amazement.

            “What’s happened to him?” Rebecca sadly asked. She sat down on the mattress beside Darren and gently stroked his forehead with the back of her hand. “It seems like ever since Chance’s accident, Darren has lost all will to live. He hasn’t even recorded anything in the last month. I feel sorry for him and all, but the record company is getting pissed. Darren’s going to get cut if he doesn’t finish his solo project before January.”

            Dan sat down on the floor huddling up in a little ball. Alexia walked into the quiet room and stood at the door to wait and see what was going on. Ben, Charles, and Walter stood at the foot of the bed, their eyes coldly staring at Dan and Rebecca while they faced each other with unspoken questions ready to be answered.

            The initial shock of hearing that Darren would be let go if he didn’t finish his album in three months passed over Dan slowly. He sat on the floor, his eyes distant and his mind thinking up ways to solve this problem. Downstairs the music could easily be heard, allowing the room to fall silent as each person became engrossed in their own thoughts. Charles opened his mouth to say something, but quickly closed it to rethink his words.

            Nearly an hour of stony glances and hushed thinking passed before a word was spoken, and it came from the least likely person.

            “We’re sending him back to New York. I don’t care what he tries to say or do to get out of it,” Alexia said as she pushed herself off the doorframe and walked over to Dan’s spot on the floor. “Any objections?” she added.

            Everyone looked at each other and shook their heads in unison to say no. “Then it’s decided. Darren’s going back to New York on the first flight out,” Alexia announced.

            “Now all we have to do is wait for him to wake up,” Dan replied, looking at her as she towered above him.

            “Great. I’m going downstairs. Anyone want a drink while I’m down there?” Rebecca asked as she stood from the bed and began to head towards the door.

            “Nothing for me,” Dan said.

            “Same,” Alexia added.

            “Water,” Charles replied.

            “Nothing,” Walter chimed in.

            “Miller Light,” Ben said. Everyone turned to stare at him as if he had broken some unspoken rule. “What?” he asked seeing their expressions. “I’m not Darren.”

~~~~~~~~~~

            Darren woke up to the worst feeling he had ever experienced. The loud music from the party had stopped and he could feel the soft bed beneath him. His head lifted up off the pillow only to fall back down as the world began to spin. Darren blinked a few times to make it stop, but nothing was helping. On top of the spinning world also came the continuous thump of a migraine beginning to set in. He tried once more to lift his head, but only ended up hitting the body of someone beside him.

            Quickly turning to see how he could have possibly ended up sleeping with someone on a night he could barely remember, Darren discovered Rebecca snoring quietly beside him wearing the same clothes from the night before. He also discovered he wasn’t in his room, but in one he didn’t recognize. The walls were white with specks of purple, and light from a large bay window shone onto his face forcing him to wake up and look around. Besides the bed, a dresser had been placed in the corner next to the window. On the floor, Dan and Alexia slept in each other’s arms while Ben, Charles, and Walter had taken opposite corners.

            Darren gently rolled over remembering flashes of the party the night before, but nothing of how he got in the bed. He could feel Rebecca begin to stir beside him and turned to see her slowly open her eyes.

            “Well look who finally decided to grace us with his presence,” she whispered so not to wake the others as they slept.

            “How did I get here?” was Darren’s first question. “And why are they sleeping on the floor?”

            “You gave us one hell of a scare last night when you passed out in the living room, Daz. I had to get Charles, Walter, and Ben to carry you up the stairs and into one of the extra bedrooms,” Rebecca explained as she stretched out, her joints popping back into place. She yawned and added, “Once the others are up, we need to talk.”

            Taking off her socks, Rebecca began to throw them at each one of the sleeping people, starting with Dan and Alexia. “Hey, wake up. Darren’s alive,” she yelled, her bare foot poking into Dan’s back gently.

            “Five more minutes,” Dan replied in a groggy voice as he snuggled closer to Alexia.

            Rebecca kneeled down beside his head so that she was nearly even with his ear then suddenly yelled, “Fire!”

            Dan jumped, his ears buzzing from the combination of her voice and the previous night’s music. Alexia, Walter, Ben, and Charles were soon up also, and the seven of them headed downstairs to the dining room. They sat down at the large oak table with Darren in the center.

            “What did you have to talk to me about?” he asked as they all stared at him coldly.

            “Rebecca, you brought it up, you finish it,” Dan said as he stretched out.

            “Great, why am I always the barer of bad news?” she asked no one in particular.

            “What’s going on?” Darren questioned, knowing something was very wrong.

            “Darren, you’re not going to like what I’m about to tell you,” Rebecca began. “Just keep one thing in mind, I’m not the only one who’s involved in making this decision. Last night, while you were asleep, we unanimously voted on making you go back to New York and see what happened to Chance.” She could clearly see the look of rejection on Darren’s face after saying what all the others were thinking.

            “Look, Daz, this is for your own good,” Alexia chimed in. “You almost killed yourself last night by mixing drinks and having too many at the same time. It’s clear that you can’t get Chance off your mind.”

            “Your mind is obviously not on your music,” Walter added. “You haven’t recorded a track for the album in over a month. If this continues, the record company is letting you go. It’s your choice whether of not you want to go, but we’re warning you, it might cost you in the long run if you don’t.”

            Darren carefully thought about what his friends were saying. Finding out that he might lose his record deal was the hardest part to comprehend. He sat at the table, his chin on his hands, wondering about what he should do. His head was telling him not to go while his heart screamed for him to go back.

            “I don’t know, guys,” Darren finally said. “I appreciate that you’re all worried about me, but I have to give it some time.”

            “Darren,” Alexia responded politely from the opposite side of the table, “if you don’t say yes in the next few minutes, I’m gonna go over there and kick your ass.”

            “Whoa, calm down, hostile one,” he replied. “It’s bad enough trying to decide by myself. I don’t need you breathing down my back.” Darren rubbed his temples hoping to massage away his throbbing headache, now made worse by the fact that his friends were leading him into a decision he didn’t want to make. “Give me a week to see if I can record anything, and if I can’t, then I’m going to New York.”