The party was winding down, most everyone had left. Coretta had spent the last hour avoiding Joey. In her mind she knew the kiss meant nothing, but she just couldn't get the image out of her mind. Luckily Joey sensed the tension and had given her space for the remainder of the party. After saying goodbye to his family, Joey figured he'd given her enough time to chill out. He made his way over to where Coretta was standing just a few feet away from where Chris and Lance were giving Carson one final interview. Joey prayed the conversation would go smoothly.
"Hey, what's up?"
"Nothing." Coretta answered turning away from him
"Great show tonight, huh?" he asked hoping for more of a response
"Yep." She was tired and not really in the mood for conversation, least of all with Joey.
"I know why you're upset, but there's really no reason to be. Can I at least explain?"
"Whatever" Coretta said completely uninterested
Joey fought not to be a little upset. As much as he liked her, he hated the attitude she sometimes tried to throw people. Acting as if the world owed her something for all her pain and heartache.
"I'm tired, and you're tired. It's been a really long day, and we're both a bit on edge. Can't we just talk? Preferably with sentences containing more than one word."
With a sigh she turned to him and said "So talk." in a tone dripping with sarcasm.
"Two words. Cute. Should've known that was coming. What you saw was not what you think."
Coretta had to laugh at that. "Let's see here. What I think I saw was you, Angela, and a kiss."
"Alright technically what you saw was exactly what you think, but I guarantee that what you think you saw didn't mean what you think it meant, for only being technically what you saw."
For a minute they both looked at each other before laughing.
"You totally lost me on that one." Coretta said while still laughing.
"You?? My brain is still trying to figure out what my mouth just said. Seriously though, what you saw was nothing more than goodbye. We're still friends, but anything else is over."
"How can you still be friends with that spoiled manipulative thing?"
"It's not like that, she just wants to still be friends, that's all."
"She wants something. People like her just don't go away. In my experience, everyone wants something."
"If that's the case, what do you want?"
Caught up in the moment, she said what she had been thinking not only all night, but ever since she had first seen him in the club a few months back. "You."
*****************
Kathy entered her apartment exhausted from another day at work. Kathy was a radio DJ, it had always been her dream to be on the radio and play the music she liked. That was the reason she loved her job so much, for a few hours a day she could be in complete control of the airwaves. So far her radio show was one of the most popular in the country. After checking her messages, and finding nothing of extreme importance, she sat down in front of the TV. She was looking for something for her favorite part of her show, a segment she called the "Hot Topic." During that segment she posed a question, an issue, or just commented on some gossip she heard, to her audience then let them call up and voice their opinions.
"Ooh, just in time." she said as she flipped to MTV where the latest news segment was just starting. She got even more excited when she saw Lance and Chris on the screen with Carson. She had always liked NSYNC, but even more so now that her friends were working with them.
"These guys are always good for some airtime." She thought to herself. She watched as Carson was live with the end of the showcase. Mainly it was stuff she had already heard from Becca or Coretta. It was what was going on in the background that really caught Kathy's attention. Most people probably wouldn't have noticed, but she definitely did. She first saw Coretta and Joey almost out of camera range, but not quite. At first they seemed to be arguing, then the camera cut them out of the shot for a close up on Lance.
As the camera panned back out for a full shot, Joey seemed to be bent over as if embracing someone, but at first glance, a person wouldn't be able to tell for sure. Kathy, however, knew exactly what was happening and nearly choked on her drink as she put two and two together. She shook her head. "That girl is just asking for trouble."
*****************
Justin turned to Becca with an amused look on his face. "Becca did you hear that?"
"Justin you are obviously up way past your bedtime. Hear what?"
Pointing to Joey and Coretta "I think that would be the sound of Coretta...how did you put it? Oh yes, dropping everything and giving in to him." He smirked and walked away.
"So I take it this means you two are together...again." Justin said interrupting Joey and Coretta
"I don't mean to be rude J, but this is kind of a private moment."
"Here's an idea, " Lance said as he joined the group. "Why not try somewhere...private??" Everyone laughed and they went to say goodbye to the few remaining people, and prepare to head out themselves.
"Oh my, my, my. I don't know how we missed him all night, but looks who's headed this way." Charetta exclaimed.
"I don't know how we did either. Damn he's fine." Coretta added
"Oh you think so, do you?" Joey said from behind Coretta
"No, I uh...what I meant was....he....sorry Joey, he is what he is, and that is a fine man."
Joey didn't answer as he turned to greet Nick Lachey. "Hey man what's up? I hear congratulations are in order. What brings you here? I thought you guys were stuck in L.A.?"
"Actually Jess had a show in Miami last night, so we thought we'd stop by. She was here a minute ago, I'm not sure where she went."
The group chatted for a few minutes and introduced Diversity and Kat and Charetta. The guys talked and joked about old times. A short time later Jessica Simpson appeared with a huge smile on her face. After introductions were done again, she turned to Nick.
"I have the best news!! You know how I've been looking for opening acts, and no one seemed to fit?? I know who would be perfect. I want Diversity to open. I just got off the phone with Paris, and he thinks it's a great idea. So what do you think girls? The tour starts in a month."
Coretta and Becca fought to contain themselves. It was no use, everyone around them was so excited, and there was no way they could remain calm.
"I can't believe we're going on tour! There's so much to do, we don't even have dancers."
"Or a bus."
"Or security."
"Who cares! We're going on tour! We should probably discuss this with Mike, where is he?"
"At this point, who cares?" Coretta said rolling her eyes at the mere thought of Mike.
"I haven't seen him for a while." JC said
"Me either. Actually the last time I saw him was right after you got done singing. He went storming out of the room muttering something about someone having some nerve. He didn't look too happy." Justin added
Becca looked at Coretta. "I knew I'd regret that. I just didn't think it would be so soon."
"I'm not sure what's going on, but I think some should explain, and now would be good." Chris said. All eyes drifted toward Coretta.
*****************
"So let me get this straight." Chris said wanting a complete understanding of the situation. "You and Mike used to date??"
"Yeah, for a little while."
"Then you broke up because he thought you were getting too serious."
"Yep" Coretta said nodding
"And then you wrote the song? Well that still doesn't explain why he got so upset."
"Actually, I wrote it before that, it's one of the reasons he thought I was getting too serious."
"I get it now. Knowing he was already mad, you decided to sing that song to prove it meant nothing to you anymore." JC concluded
Coretta looked down in embarrassment at her childish actions. "Yeah, something like that."
"He was already mad about what?" Joey asked since he had missed the earlier drama.
Chris pulled him aside and caught him up on all that had happened prior to the show starting. Coretta watched the emotions cross his face ranging from shock, to anger, and ultimately to sadness and disappointment. The entire night he believed she sang the song for him and she had done nothing to prove otherwise, until now. Suddenly he had to get out of there, and away from her. She called Angela manipulative, but at this point she too had shown manipulation was something she was familiar with.
"I think I'm gonna head out now." Joey said grabbing his jacket and keys. He was glad Steven thought to drop his car off earlier in the day.
"Already? I thought we were going to go for a walk later?" Coretta was confused by Joey's sudden change in attitude.
"I really don't feel like it. I'm just gonna go home to bed. I'll see y'all later."
"Well, I'm flying out tomorrow night. I'll be gone for a few days." She reminded him, hoping he'd change his mind about leaving.
"I guess I'll see you when you get back then." Without so much as a second glance, he turned and left the room.
"I think someone better go with him." Lance said. Again all eyes turned to Coretta.
"What?? I know you don't mean me. Was I the only one paying attention to the fact that I was just openly shot down? I'm pretty sure I'm the last person he wants to talk to."
"The last person he wants to talk to is Angela, but I guarantee she's out there waiting for him." JC stated
"No she's not. I saw her leave hours ago." Coretta told him
"I didn't mean out there in the literal sense. I just meant she's waiting for things to fall apart so she can be there to pick up the pieces. The first sign of trouble, you know as well as I do, she's gonna be ready."
"Good point." Coretta turned and headed for the door. She made it outside just as Joey pulled out the parking lot. "Damn" she said to herself, and hoped by the time she returned things would be okay. "For two people that have barely been together, we have more drama than a soap opera." She said into the night air.
"You got that right."
"JC, you scared me. What are you doing out here?"
"Sorry, I didn't mean to. I came out to get some air while everyone got ready to go. I think Becca and Justin are taking Charetta and Kat to the airport. Lance is headed home, and so are Chris and Dani."
"What about you? Aren't you tired? I figured you of all people would be ready for sleep."
JC laughed "Usually I would be, but tonight I'm just wired for some reason. Still feel up to that walk? I know it won't be the same as with Joey, but I'm good company."
"Sounds good to me. I've got so many things on my mind right now, I couldn't sleep if I tried."
They made their way back inside to say goodbye to the others. Everyone looked a little surprised to see Coretta return. "No one ask, I don't want to talk about it. I just want this night to be over. I think we've all had enough excitement tonight." She turned to her sister and Kat, and hugged them both. "Thanks for being here, it means a lot even if I hardly saw you all night."
Justin looked at Becca knowing he had lost the bet. He simply shrugged his shoulders and smiled. He waited to hear what he would be doing now that she won.
"Well, well, well." She said walking toward him as the others talked. "Looks like the time for me to collect "anything" has come."
"You are right, I said anything, and I meant it. So what's it gonna be?" Justin asked curious as to what she could possibly think of.
"Alright well, I thought a lot about this tonight, and I'll sum it up in four words." she stated
"Only four words? I can't say I'm not interested in finding out what tricks you have up your sleeve."
"Come home with me." She said simply waiting for him to back down as she figured he would.
"You got it." He said and went to get the car
*****************
After all good-byes were said, everyone went their separate ways. JC and Coretta had been walking for about 30 minutes talking about anything and everything. Coretta loved talking to JC, he always looked at things in a completely different was than she usually did.
"If I ask you something, will you be completely honest with me?"
"Have you ever known me not to be?" he questioned.
" No. In that case, I want to ask you something else too. First I want to know if you think that Diversity can really make it. I mean with all these new flash in the pan groups surfacing, can we survive?"
"Wow" JC stopped walking. "That's one hell of a question. Why would you even ask? Do you like what you do?"
"Of course I like what I do. I LOVE what I do. I get to sing, work with great people, and go through it all with my best friend. What more could a person ask for?"
"With all that going for you, why would you even ask? Personally, I don't see Diversity as one of those types of groups at all. Chris obviously doesn't either. Sure, most times he's a goofball, but when it comes to music, he knows his stuff. You wouldn't believe how many groups he auditioned, but he saw something special in you and Becca. I think him having the chance to see your personalities at the club helped a lot too."
Coretta groaned. "I really hope he's forgotten about that by now. I was definitely out of control that night."
"Not really. It was cool to just hang out with girls that weren't screaming in our faces all night. Y'all acted like we were normal guys. We don't get that very often. So what else is on your mind?"
"I want to know what you really think about me dating Joey. Don't just say what you think I want to hear either. Be totally honest. I know you've been friends with him for a long time, so your opinion means a lot."
"If I were to tell you I hated the idea and I wanted you to stay away from him, would it make a difference?"
"Absolutely not. Well besides the fact that I'd have to slap you down, it wouldn't matter.." She joked. "You're not saying that are you?" she asked cautiously
"Not at all. I just don't see why it matters what I, or anyone else thinks. What matters, is that you both are happy. It seems like you are. To answer the question though, I don't think anything at all about you two. It's a little..no it's really gross to think about your best friend and his girlfriend."
"You are a real smartass."
"Takes one to know one."
*****************
Becca and Justin entered the house. Becca thought it seemed even quieter than it usually was. She was suddenly nervous around Justin. They had been in the house alone together plenty of times, but the events surrounding this time were of course very different.
"Not ready to back down are you?" Justin asked as he stood behind Becca, his face buried in her hair.
She turned around to face Justin "No way buddy. You lost and now I'm ready to collect, you've been messing with me all night and I'm tired of it."
Justin could only laugh. " I can't wait to see what that means." He said as he stepped closer to her closing in the remaining space between them.
Becca took his hand and led him down the hall. She stopped as she got to her room. She looked at him silently questioning what was about to happen. Justin only nodded his head. Becca opened the door and entered her room with Justin close behind her. She sat on her bed and looked up at him. As he leaned down she closed her eyes in anticipation. Justin placed a kiss on her head.
"Goodnight Becca." He turned and headed for the door.
Becca sat on the bed with her eyes closed for a second before jumping up and going out the door. "Goodnight?? What the hell? "
"I'm tired and I'm going to sleep. It's been a long night."
"What happened to doing anything?" Becca questioned
"You asked me to come home with you. If I'm not mistaken, this is your home, and here I am. What did you think was gonna happen?"
Becca looked at him waiting for the realization to hit him.
"Oh...OH!! You thought I...that we would..."
"No, I didn't think THAT, but you know I thought there would be something, the way things have been going on all night."
Justin walked back down the hall. "Becca." He whispered. "When something happens, if something happens between us, I want it to be when we're both ready, not because of some stupid bet. I'll see you in the morning." He left Becca standing in the hall.
"Damn that boy." Becca said to herself before turning to go to bed.
*****************
"I'm gonna have to draw that boy a map to his own house. I don't think he remembers where it is." Coretta joked referring to Justin, whose car was once again parked in the driveway.
JC laughed, "I just know he better not be on my couch."
"Oh Lord. You too? What would you guys have done if we hadn't moved here?"
"Sometimes it's just easier to hang out here. Especially after nights like tonight where fans know we're home. There's no telling how many are staked outside our houses right now. This has become our safe haven, so to speak."
"Becca and I are gonna need a bigger house if all of y'all start showing up at the same time."
*****************
When Coretta woke up the next morning, the sun was shining brightly into the room. She noticed the house was quiet which she found strange for it being a day in which both JC and Justin were there. The red glowing numbers on the clock showed it was just after 9 am. She sighed happily at the thought of a few more hours of sleep. Just as she was about to roll back over, she heard a voice.
"Not so fast, you need to get dressed, we have to go somewhere."
She was so startled, she rolled right off the bed and landed on the floor with a thud, in a mass of pillows and blankets. Once she was sure no serious damage had been done, she climbed out from under the bedding and came face to face with Joey.
"What are you doing here? By here, I mean my room specifically. More importantly, where is everyone?"
Joey didn't answer because at that time the phone rang. After tripping over the pile on the floor Coretta made her way to the phone.
"Hello?"
"Just when did you plan on telling us about Joey?"
Not quite awake and unsure of what her friend was talking about, she had to ask. "Kathy, how did you know he was here?"
"I didn't. What do you mean he's there?? Now?? I was talking about you two on MTV last night, but I guess if he's still there, no more explanation is needed."
"He wasn't here all night. I'm not really sure what's going on. I was about to find out when you called. What could you possibly have seen on MTV?"
"It was only a quick shot, but I could tell what was going on. I guess that's one way to let everyone know about you two. Not quite what I would have suggested though."
Coretta sat on her bed. "Are you serious? Do you think a lot of other people noticed?"
"I've been checking message boards, and stuff, but so far it doesn't seem like anyone caught it. You know NSYNC fans though, it's only a matter of time before someone spots it, so you better be prepared."
"Thanks girl. I gotta go take a shower now. I'm leaving tonight, so I'll call you when I get in."
"Okay. Enjoy that shower. Is that a shower for one or two? Kathy asked
"You are just bad. It's for one thank you very much."
"Yeah sure it is. Talk to you later."
"Later."
Coretta hung up the phone and turned to Joey. "We have a slight problem. It seems MTV caught us together in one of the camera shots."
"We'll worry about that later. We've got other things to deal with now."
She didn't say anything, just looked at him strangely and headed to the shower. He looked around the room and noticed a book on her desk. A closer look revealed it was a photo album. Most of the pictures were fairly recent. He laughed as he flipped through the first few pages that held pictures he assumed were from the trip to Orlando when he initially met Coretta and her friends. He never imagined at that time how much she would affect his life. The rest of the pages contained pictures of him as well as the other guys and Dani that had been taken over the past few months.
He smiled at the memory each picture brought. He was about to close the book and put it away when something caught his eye. There was one more picture tucked away on the last page. Though he had never seen the picture before, he remembered the scene vividly. The picture was from the first time they had gone to Disneyworld. It had been taken during the fireworks display. He was jostled from his thoughts by a phone ringing. It was a few more seconds before he realized it was his.
After he answered it, he listened patiently to the caller on the other end. His heart sank with the news he was given. He was already having trouble with the reason he was there. Now the new information made things harder.
"Who was that so early in the morning?" Coretta asked fresh from her shower. She had dressed and was eager to find out what was going on. She looked through her open suitcase to be sure she hadn't forgotten anything.
"It was Justin." Joey said absently
"What did he want, and does it have anything to do with why you and I are the only ones hers? Come to think of it, that's not such a bad thing." She looked at Joey for the first time since entering the room. His eyes were clouded with emotion. "Joe what's wrong? Something happened didn't it?"
Joey took her hand and led her to one of the chairs in her room. "Yes something happened. I was here to tell you, but now it seems things are worse than originally thought."
"Now you're scaring me. Tell me what happened, don't just leave me wondering."
"There was an accident, and Mike was involved."
"Mike in a car accident? Haha!!! That proves there's someone else that drives worse than me! I have yet to be in one car accident since I've been here. So, what did he do? Rear-end an old lady? Hit a parked car? I gotta call Justin, now he has one less thing to torment me about."
"Baby, he already knows. He was calling from the hospital."
"The hospital? Mike probably just has some bumps and bruises, he always was a big baby. I guess we should go see him, maybe get some flowers on the way. The hospital probably has a gift shop. Nevermind, we'll just get them there."
"Listen to me, it's pretty serious, the damage was extensive. They're surprised he survived at all."
"No, that can't be true. I know Mike, he's probably milking this whole thing. I bet there's a cute nurse he's got his eye on. He just wants to make sure she's hooked before he checks out."
"We really need to go." Joey shook his head at her denial as the walked outside to his truck.
Coretta talked practically non-stop all the way to the hospital. Even though she tried to cover it up, Joey could see the fear in her eyes. She paused to look out the window at the passing scenery. She thought about her last conversation with Mike....argument was more like it. She remembered the look on his face when she sang his song, their song. "The doctors could be wrong, couldn't they? Maybe Joey got the message wrong." she thought. "After all we've been through, he promised he would never leave."
They pulled up to the hospital and there were tons of reporters and camera crews surrounding the front doors. Hospital security was doing their best to keep them at bay. Joey and Coretta tried to slip in unnoticed, but to no avail. Reporters immediately began asking if it was one of the members of NSYNC as it had been rumored. Others shouted out questions wanting to know if the tow were together. Still other reporters, going off the rumor that it was an NSYNC members, began asking about drug and alcohol use.
They rode the elevator in silence. Joey took Coretta's hand to give her the comfort he knew she needed, but would never ask for. When the doors opened, nothing prepared her for the scene she entered. Justin, Lance, JC and Chris sat in chairs all around the room. Though she had seen them no more than nine hours before, they looked as if they hadn't slept in days. Dani and Becca stood huddled in a corner.
Finally Coretta spoke, "Lighten up guys, you look like someone just died. Mike's gonna be fine. It was just a little car accident." Everyone looked at her strangely. Becca broke down again. Justin pulled Joey off to the side.
"You did tell her didn't you?"
"Yeah, of course I did."
"Why is she being like that? They way she's acting, you would think he just bumped his head."
"Maybe if she went in to see him or something, that would help. Are they letting people in his room?"
"Yeah" Justin said sadly, "To say goodbye. We've all been in. They were trying to get his family on the phone since they knew there wasn't enough time to get them here."
A doctor came from one of the rooms and stopped to talk to Chris and JC. After a few minutes Chris walked over to where Justin stood with Joey.
"The doctor said there probably wasn't much time left and anyone else that wanted to go in should do so soon. How is she?" He asked nodding to where Coretta stood looking out the window.
"I don't know man." Joey replied. "She doesn't want to believe this is real."
"Poor girl." Chris shook his head and went to console Dani and Becca.
"Well," Joey said looking around the room. "I guess I'll go in now. Keep an eye on her will ya?" He said to Justin before he went down the hall to Mike’s room.
Justin walked over and stood next to Coretta at the window. "You okay?"
"Yeah, why wouldn't I be?"
"You mean besides the fact we're in a hospital and Mike was in a terrible accident?"
"I really don't see why everyone is so upset. He'll be fine. He has to be fine." She added
*****************
Joey cautiously entered Mike's room. Mike was propped up and looking out the window. At first glance he seemed to be the same old Mike. "Hey can I come in?"
Mike turned away from the birds he was watching to face Joey. "Oh, so now it's your turn to wish the dead well."
"C'mon Mike." Joey said uncomfortably. "You're not dead...." He caught himself before he finished the sentence.
"No, go on and say it. I'm not dead yet. I've accepted it, so all of you might as well accept it too. Then again, it's not like there's much choice in the matter is there?"
The silence between them was deafening. Joey just wasn't sure of what to say or do. He had never been in this position before. He had seen a lot of things in his 23 years, but this was a first for him. He reached over and hugged Mike, it was all he could do.
"I'm gonna go now man. There's still someone out there that I know wants to come in." He turned to leave, just as he got to the door something Mike said stopped him.
"Take care of her Joe, she means a lot to me. Both of them do, they deserve nothing less than the best."
"I will, you have my word."
"She loves you, you know. She doesn't know it yet, but I can tell. I think you feel the same way."
Joey thought for a minute before answering. "Yeah in a way maybe I do." He went back down the hall to join the others.
*****************
Coretta reached the door of Mike's room, but she couldn't make herself cross the threshold. She stood thinking of all the things she and Mike had been through, both good and bad.
"You can come in, dying is not contagious." Mike called from his bed.
"Oh, I didn't want to bother you. You need to get your rest."
"Sweetheart, the next time I rest, it will be permanent. I'd like to put that off for as long as possible."
"Stop it Mike, that's not funny."
Mike looked at her standing at the foot of his bed. There were so many things he was going to miss about his life. She was definitely one of those things. Their relationship had gone though every extreme imaginable. They were more than people just working together, more than friends, they were soul mates. No matter what happened in their lives the last few years, the end result was always the two of them together in some way. It saddened him that it took the end of his life to figure that out.
"It wasn't meant to be funny. Did anyone explain to you what happened?"
"Yeah you were hit by a drunk driver. Obviously there were some cuts and bruises, but other than that, you seem okay. Although I should probably tell the doctors any brain damage they find has always been there." she joked through the tears that had begun.
"That's the least of my problems. It seems there's an extreme amount of internal bleeding. Too much for them to stop. In short, I'm bleeding to death from the inside."
"They are so obviously wrong. How could you be so alert if that was the case. Not that I've seen to many dying people, but I'm pretty sure they don't look like you. We need to find a new doctor. Yeah that's it. We'll get a second opinion, or a third, or how ever many it takes." She cried.
"Hon, don't cry. They've assured me everything possible has been done, and I believe them. I was given some drugs to make me a little more comfortable. Let me tell you, I wish I had these when dealing with you and Becca sometimes. I'm feeling no pain." Mike joked
Coretta remembered the events of the night before. "Oh God Mike, I am so sorry. You know I didn't mean the things I said last night."
"I know. It's really not what you said so much as what you sang that bothered me." He said referring to the song she had written for him.
"I shouldn't have done that either." Coretta said as she started to cry again.
"I'm actually glad you did. You wouldn't sing that song for such a long time. Last night you sang it with more passion and feeling than I've heard since the very first time you sang it for me. Even though you weren't singing it for me anymore, it was good to hear it again."
"What do you mean I wasn't singing it for you? You are the one and only reason I wrote it to begin with."
"I may have been the reason you wrote it, but last night someone else was the reason you sang it. In all the times you've been mad at me, and there were a lot, you've still never been able to sing that song. Joey was the reason you sang it. I'm glad you have him, I would hate to leave knowing you would be alone."
This made the tears fall harder and faster. Soon she couldn't stop them. She finally had come to accept the fact that Mike was dying before her eyes. The thought hurt her more than she ever imagined it would.
"Stop with the tears already. You have no right to cry. After all is said and done, you'll be able to go on. You'll be able to live and make new memories. What's my last memory?? A damn hospital room with people coming in and out afraid to say anything as if it matters at this point anyway."
"As if it matters? How can you say that? Of course it matters. There are people out in the waiting room that care a hell of a lot about you. I won't let you think otherwise."
"And what about you?" Mike asked though a coughing spell.
Coretta quickly gave him his cup and helped him with a few sips of water. "You know I care about you Mike. All of these wonderful things wouldn't be happening if not for you, at least in part. For that I'll always be grateful. Jessica Simpson even asked us to be on her tour next month. How cool is that??"
Mike attempted to smile. "Yeah I know, Becca told me. I'm so proud of you both. I'm so tired now. I need to get some rest."
"Mike, don't leave me now."
"I have to, I'm just too tired."
Coretta put her head on his chest and listened as his breathing slowed. "What am I gonna do without you?" Her tears fell onto the bed in a steady stream.
"You're gonna live and make me proud." Mike said in a voice barely above a whisper. "Remember no matter what, I'll be there, and I love you."
Coretta was openly sobbing now. "I love you too Mike.....Mike??" The only thing to be heard in the room was the continual beep of the now flat lined heart monitor. Soon she felt herself being pushed out of the room.
"NO!!" she cried. "He can't go yet. I didn't get to tell him everything!!"
*****************
"How's she doing?" Justin asked as Joey came back down the hall from Coretta's room.
"She's finally asleep, but for how long I don't know."
They sat around the living room in Becca and Coretta's house. Becca had been worn out and fell asleep right away. Coretta couldn't sleep at all, so Joey stayed with her. He knew the girls would be going through a rough time, made even worse by the fact they still had a lot of work to do and little time to do it. Only JC, Justin and Joey remained at the house. Chris had taken Dani home, and Lance went to make some calls. They had volunteered to pay the hospital bills for the family.
A few hours later, Coretta exited her room, bags in hand. She had been through hell, and looked and felt every bit the part. Still, she knew she had to leave soon if she was still going to make her flight. As she made her way to the door, she felt eyes on her. She turned to see three pairs of eyes on her. Joey was the first to jump up from his seat on the couch.
"Where in the world do you think you're going?"
"I told you last night, I have a plane to catch. I need to, no I have to go home for a few days."
"Can't whatever it is wait? Mike just died and you're leaving? Don't you think we should all talk about it or something?"
"Joey what do you want me to say? Yes Mike is dead, and it hurts like hell, but I can't deal with that now, not yet. I've got something else I have to do first."
"No," Joey shook his head, "You are not leaving until we talk about this."
Coretta rolled her eyes. "I know you know me better than that. I'm gonna do whatever it is that I want to do. We just got together again, and I don't want to start it off by arguing. Sorry, but if you make me choose, you might not be so happy with the end result."
"I'm not asking you to choose anything. I just don't want you going off somewhere by yourself when you've been through so much and haven't really taken time to digest it all."
"Just trust me. I'll be back in a few days, and things will be fine." She turned and walked out the door.
*****************
Joey was still staring out the window where he'd seen Coretta give him a small wave and drive off, when Becca emerged from her room.
"How are you feeling?" Justin asked
"Better I guess, my head is pounding though. What's with him?" She asked as she passed Joey on her way to get some aspirin and water from the kitchen.
"He's been standing there since Coretta left a while ago." JC answered
"Damn I forgot she was leaving, I wanted to be awake. Was she okay?"
"As good as can be expected I guess. He wanted her to stay, but she was insistent on leaving."
"I'm sure she was. You would've had to tie her up four times over to keep her from making that trip."
"I don't get it." Joey finally spoke "What was so important about this trip?"
"This week is the first anniversary of her son's death."
