In a panic, Aaron Peterson tapped his good friend, Gabby, on the arm. Jerking
slightly, she sleepily asked, “What’s wrong Aar?”
A degree of panic blended into his voice, he hissed, “Gabby, you gotta wake up.
Come on hun..”
Her eyes fluttering lightly open, a confused look crossed her attractive features,
“What’s the matter Aar?”
“The plane. Technical difficulties,” her confidant choked out.
In the past months, 19 year old Gabby Reynolds had grown a great deal. It was
then the end of August, and her album had skyrocketed to number one on the Billboard
charts. More in love than ever with Justin, the fans were finally beginning to accept the
two as a couple. Her face had graced the covers of Teen People, Time, People,
Seventeen, YM, and Rolling Stone.
Aaron had become Gabby’s closest friend next to Justin, and thus, he was
promoted to bear the title of “Personal Assistant.” It was a whirlwind, and Gabby was left
trying to catch her breath.
Four weeks, three days, and 6 hours... Gabby was left counting the days since she
had last seen Justin. The *NSYNC tour has ended too quickly for both of them. If it
meant being with Gabby, Justin would have toured for the rest of his existence. It broke
his heart to see her off at the airport when she left to embark on a tour with, none other
than, Faith Hill. Now, after a long separation, the two were able to meet up again.
“Technical difficulties??” Gabby screeched, digging her recently manicured
fingernails into Aaron’s arm as the plane hit a patch of turbulence.
Before he had the opportunity to answer, a woman in a prim blue uniform stepped
in the front of the first class section, bracing the door for balance. Her voice firm, she
spoke loudly, “Ladies and Gentlemen, I regret to inform you that due to extreme technical
difficulties, we are going to be forced to make an emergency landing.” She went on to
explain the position that they all were required to be in, in event the worst occurred. As
Gabby listened, her head between her legs, she ran her finger over the ring on her finger,
thinking back to a happier time.
She grinned, and then Justin’s face became serious. “I.. I saw you onstage there
tonight, and heard all the fans screaming your name.. and I woke up Gabby. To tell you
the complete truth, I’ve been carrying this in my pocket for quite a long time now, just
waiting for the right moment. I think it’s the right moment now. “ He pulled out a small
navy velvet box, and opened the lid. There was a star-shaped ring inside, encrusted with
garnet stones, and opals (Justin and Gabby’s birth stones). “A promise ring. I can’t
pluck the stars out of the sky for you, but if I could, you know you’d have one already.
This is as close as it gets. I love you Gabby. I want to stay with you. I want us to be
real.”
Rapidly the plane began to decline, and Gabby braced herself. All she hoped for at
that moment was to see Justin’s smiling face.
A wide grin spread on his face, Justin shook the girl’s tiny hand. “Hi Justin! It’s
very nice to meet you!” she gushed, looking at him lovingly. Knowingly, Justin thought to
himself, “Leukemia...”
The guys in *NSYNC had been to so many hospitals in their history that they
could practically diagnose the children simply by looking at them. With a dazzling grin,
Justin answered, “And it’s very very nice to meet you, Kristin.” He had seen her name on
the chart when he walked in the door.
Her skin was so pale that it was obvious when she became flushed, and Justin tried
to ignore it as she continued to speak to her idol, the man that was kind enough to visit
her.
“Stay away from me.” The young woman growled harshly, turning her back to the
nurse that came into her room.
It was a scene that played out nearly everyday. The nurse took in the young
woman’s appearance. Dark brown hair fell beyond her shoulders, and crystal blue eyes
were laced with a look of disdain. Had the circumstances been different, the nurse would
have simply thought that she was a gorgeous girl that was so self centered, she despised
not having a crowd of admirers. However, Virginia, the nurse, had been in the emergency
room the day that they had brought Macy in, not even able to breathe on her own. That
had been that day that her world was taken away from her. Virginia did her homework on
Macy’s life, and found out that the girl had the world at her fingertips.
At the age of 22, Macy was already a major name in the writing community, with a
fabulous array of published stories. She had just achieved her first number one novel in
the New York Times. But, she had nothing left to write about. No one left to make
proud. A terror filled car ride had claimed the lives of her parents, and her little sister now
lay in a bed two floors above her, with little to no chance of survival. Macy couldn’t walk
any longer, and wasn’t even willing to try. She hadn’t picked a pen up to write in her
entire hospital stay, and refused calls and visits from her editor. In a way, it broke
Virginia’s heart. The once loving girl was now turned into a shell, no emotions inside
except for anger.
Morning after morning, Virginia was the only nurse that was willing to go into
Macy’s room. The young woman had an intriguing air about her that made her want to
pull her out of bed and force her to go to physical therapy. That, however, was something
that she was not allowed to do. Finally, that very morning, Virginia tried to take a
different approach.
With a firm tone to her voice, Virginia asked, “When are you planning on trying to
recuperate, Ms. Walker?”
A scowl on her face, Macy hissed, “Leave me alone. I don’t want to talk to you.
It’s not important.” She turned on her side in the uncomfortable hospital bed, sun shining
in her eyes. Squeezing them tightly, she attempted to shut out the world around her.
Virginia did not stray from where she was standing.
“It’s time to get out of that bed, Macy.” She stated, a soft undertone in her voice.
“Do you want to be in a wheelchair the rest of your life?”
Turning around, Macy glared at her with hatred. “Why do you care?”
Swallowing loudly, Virginia answered, “Why do I care? I care because for the
past month all you’ve been doing is sitting in that bed feeling sorry for yourself. I care
because.. because you’ve got the world at your fingertips. You have immeasurable talent,
and haven’t even tried to get yourself back and in the swing of things since you’ve been in
here.”
Throwing a bruised hand dramatically to her forehead, she announced, “What for?
I have no one. No one left.”
Sick of her attitude, Virginia growled, “Your sister is just two floors above you!”
“Big deal! She’s a vegetable, and I’m not allowed to see her anyway!” She shot
back.
“Nice rebuttal, but I’m unimpressed. The conditions that I set with the nursing
staff upstairs were that after you began your physical therapy you were allowed to see
your sister. Everybody’s waiting on you. It’s up to you to take the first step- literally.”
A frown on her face, Macy muttered, “She can’t see me like this. I can’t let her
see me like this.”
Sensing the inevitable breakdown, Virginia sat on the bed next to her. “Macy.. all
she needs to do is hear your voice. There’s no guarantees that she’s ever going to wake
up, but the doctors think that perhaps if she hears a familiar voice, it will trigger something
inside of her brain.”
A tear silently feel down Macy’s cheek, and Virginia handed her a tissue. “I
can’t... I can’t see her like that... I loved her so much..”
Nodding, Virginia answered sympathetically, “I know. I know it may be hard at
first, Macy. But in time you’ll come to realize that she is the same person deep inside,
with bruises on the outside.”
A sparkle appeared in her eyes at the mere suggestion of her sister, her little sister
possibly coming out of it unharmed. All she needed was her sister. However, Macy
wasn’t ready to be there. Shaking her head, she said sadly, “I can’t. I can’t see her like
that.” The kindness in her face drained, and she once again was left with a frown.
Virginia peered at her sympathetically. “What? Don’t you dare look at me like that. You
don’t understand me. Nobody does.”
Rising from the bed, Virginia replied, “I know you better than you think I do. I
was here all along. I can tell. You want your old life back. You want to write again, and
you want to walk again, and you want to help your sister. But you can’t. You can’t
because you’re too scared. You’re too scared that you’re going to get rejected, rejected
or hurt. Maybe it’s time you took a chance.” With that, Virginia was gone for another
day, but no doubt, she would be back tomorrow.
Nodding his head, about to answer a question, JC took note of the nurse that
entered the hospital room to speak with her colleague. Dressed in a starched white
uniform, she threw a hand to her forehead, “I swear! That girl will not get herself out of
bed! Two months. It’s been two months since her accident, and she still refuses therapy.
She doesn’t even want to write anymore.”
By then, JC had devoted nearly all his attention to the conversation behind him.
“Macy, again, I suppose?” The children’s ward nurse asked.
Nodding the nurse said emphatically, “The other day I set a pen and paper in front
of her. Announced that I thought maybe she should consider writing. It may make her
feel better. What do you do when a writer doesn’t want to write?”
Sadly shaking her head, the older woman with graying hair, and a rounded form
stated, “You can’t do anything. You can’t do anything at all.”
Trying to appear nonchalant, JC slipped into the conversation. “Macy?” he
questioned, a frown plastered on his face.
The older nurse answered, “Yes sir, Mr. Chasez. Two floors above us is Macy
Walker. I trust that you’ve heard of her before?”
With a sparkle in his eyes, he replied, “Oh.. something like that..”
A tear cascaded down Gabby’s cheek, falling onto her dark denim jeans. Tenderly
Aaron reached over in his hunched position, and brushed another tear off her cheek.
“Shh.. It’s going to be okay Gabrielle. Don’t be scared...” Clasping onto her hand, Aaron
tried to stop himself from saying what he was about to. Of course, that was to no avail.
He stuttered, “I.. I just want you to.. to know that.. no matter what happens.. I love you
Gabby. You’re the best friend I’ve ever had.”
Terrified over his anxiety, Gabby could hardly answer at first, then a few moments
later choked out, “Don’t say.. Don’t say goodbye Aaron. We’re going to be fine..” The
thing that Aaron noticed was that she said it as more of a question then a statement.
The plane then picked up more speed as it began to make it’s final landing As the
plane plummeted to the ground, the cabin’s lights went out, the emergency lights failing to
eliminate the plane adequately. Gabby sobbed and screamed out, “Justin!” It was the last
time that she was fated to be in the presence of someone she loved, and she didn’t yet
realize it then.
