"Does anyone feel as pathetic as me?" Kate asked, grabbing the popcorn bowl.

"Whatever do you mean?" Sara asked.

"This has never happened before, we're all single at the same time," Olivia whined.

"Some of us CHOOSE to be single, it's not a bad thing Liv," I said, grabbing the popcorn bowl back from Kate.

"Who are you? What are you smoking Natalia?" Kate said. Oh god.

"Kate if you don't want to be single, go talk to Scott. He'd take you back with open arms," I said.

"I don't want to look desperate and before you say anything, shut up," She said, yanking the bowl back one more time and putting it on the coffee table out of my reach.

"So why are we all single again?" Olivia asked us.

"You tell us Liv. What the hell was wrong with Clint that you felt you had to break up with him?" Sara asked.

"Good question. He told Scott something I'd rather he didn't tell people," Liv said. Kate started laughing, I guess he told her already.

"Well Liv, this is you we are talking about, are you sure you aren't overreacting?" Sara asked. Kate shook her head and tried to stop laughing. Olivia whispered what Clint had said into Sara's ear.

"OH! Bad mental picture! Bad mental picture! Olivia I can't believe you!" Sara said.

"I wouldn't be one to talk Sara. We all know what you guys did last year," Kate said, still laughing.

"Yeah I admit what we did. But Olivia, you just, oh god, bad mental picture," Sara put her hands up to her head.

"Hello! I still want to know what she said, I haven't heard yet," I said. I'm always the last to know.

"I'll tell you," Kate said, "Well, in Clint's description, Olivia's mouth resembles, um, a Hoover vacuum," I looked at Olivia with a blank face.

"What?" She asked. I just shook my head.

"Ok, so why aren't you back together with Dave? Lord knows he wants you," Olivia said snidely.

"I want to make him squirm," I said, smiling.

"Oh, you're so bad!" Sara said. "That's so mean."

"You guys can't tell him, cause that would ruin things," I said. "And I've heard from Bob, you broke his heart. Care to comment on that?" I asked.

"Not really," She said.

"Oh come on. What was he doing wrong that made you want to break up with him. I thought he was perfect," Kate said.

"Too perfect. He was just moving too quickly," She said.

"What do you mean like he was pressuring you or something?" Olivia asked.

"No, not like that. I mean, he was telling me he loved me. I don't know if I love him. So I told him I wanted some time to think about my true feelings for him," She said.

"Oh, well in the process you've managed to break his heart and now he'll never be able to love again," I said, giggling.

"Oh shut up. I'll make it up to him," Sara said, narrowing her eyes.

"Well, I just don't know what to do about Scott," Kate said, changing the subject.

"What?" Olivia said.

"He wants to get back together, I don't know how I feel about getting together after Shane. It's just too early, I'm afraid of being with him," She said.

"Do you want to be with him?" I asked. She just looked at me. "Do you feel good when you are around him? Does he make you feel loved?"

"Yeah, I guess so," She said quietly.

"Well, you have to figure out your feelings about him. Forget Shane, everyone has their mistakes. You just have to just get over him. Brooding upon it doesn't help. Scott wants to help you, just let him," I said. She just gave me a blank stare. Oh, well that's encouraging.

"Thanks..." she said. We went back to watching 'Sleepless In Seattle'.

DAVE

"WHAT THE FUCK DID I DO WRONG?!" Bob screamed as he fell back on the bed.

"Hey! Don't scream," I said.

"Shut up Dave, if you were feeling as shitty as me, you'd be screaming too," Bob continued.

"Oh what you're going through doesn't even compare to the way I fucked things up with Natalia," I said, picking him up from the bed.

"Well at least she didn't tell you that she didn't love you," He said.

"Hey, I'd be grateful for her to even SAY that. She doesn't even talk to me," I said, slumping back in the chair.

"Has anyone talked to Olivia?" Clint said, coming in from his room. We just looked at him.

"You know that the day after dump is usually from the GUY Clint, not the girl," Bob said, rubbing his eyes. Clint charged at him and began to strangle him.

"Hey! Get off him! Stop it!" I said, trying to pry Clint off Bob. Clint just flung me to the ground. I stood back and watched them kill each other.

"What's going on?" Scott asked.

"Oh, they're just getting out the frustrations of being dumped," I said, walking over to Scott. We watched them kick the shit out of each other.

"Ok, ok. That's enough. Come on," Scott said, as he pulled Clint off Bob.

"Get away from me, dick," Bob said as he swaggered to the bathroom to wipe up the blood streaming from his nose.

"Clint, you've got a black eye! And we've got a fucking SHOW tonight! What is wrong with you guys?" Scott screamed at them. They just looked at him and went back to what they were doing.

"Fuck that. Clint, if Dad asks, we were playing football in the room and you got hit in the eye," He said.

"Or you could just say Olivia punched him," Bob said from the bathroom. Clint got up to smack him again but I held him back.

"Just forget him," I said.

"I'll have Kate come by and try to do your makeup later to cover it," Scott said. Out of all of us, he was the only one still talking to the girls.

"Fine," Clint said, laying back on the bed and closing his eyes to sleep.

KATE

"Liv, here's the outfits we bought. We only got a few, cause we figured we could mix and match or something," Sara said, handing her the purple dress. "I'll put the other bags in the closet or something."

"Thanks," Liv said, getting ready for the concert in an hour. It was the first concert of our tour; we were ready for anything.

"Guys have you seen my flares? They were in the closet yesterday and now I can't find them," I asked. Nothing is ever where I leave it anymore.

"I had to move them earlier. They're on your bed," Natalia said. Thanks for informing me.

"Oh okay," I said picking them up. "I'm gonna wear them with that new tank top I got the other day."

"That's nice, Kate," Sara said.

"Are you guys ready? I mean it's the first time we've ever performed in Europe," Olivia asked.

"We'll do fine. The sound check went great so there is nothing to worry about," Natalia assured her.

There was a knock on the door. "Is everyone decent?"

"That's got to be Scott," Sara said.

"No, come on in," I said. He opened the door and smiled at me. "Hey Kate."

"Hi Scott. What's up?" I asked him, as cool as can be. Natalia gave me a look.

"Hey, we need your help for a second ok? Bob and Clint got into a little fight. I need you to do Clint's makeup," Scott said to me.

"Wait! What happened to Bob?" Sara said, nervous.

"Oh, he's ok. He just got a bloody nose and a couple bruises. Clint's got a black eye though," He said.

"WHAT?!" Olivia whipped around at him and then caught herself. She turned back around again.

"Uh, yeah. So can you come?" He asked me. I nodded and grabbed my makeup kit.

"I'll meet you guys back stage, ok?" I said, shutting the door.

"So what went on with Clint and Bob? Why were they fighting?" I asked Scott when we were finally alone in the hallway.

"Well, I'm not quite sure, I wasn't there. I think they were fighting about the girls. I don't know. But Dave was there, you can ask him if you want," He told me.

"Oh. Ok," We went into the boys changing room and Scott got Clint out of the bathroom.

"Clint, Kate's here to do your makeup," He said, through the door. It opened and I stepped in. Clint looked like shit. His face was swollen and his eye didn't look that great either.

"What the hell...did you put ice on it?" I asked him, opening my case.

"Yeah, it actually looks better than it did," He said. I began to apply concealer and try to make his eye less noticable.

"Oww. Careful ok?" He said, wincing.

"I'm sorry," I said. "I'm not quite sure how well this will come out, but it's the best I can do, ok?" I said, putting powder on his face to make it even.

"I don't look like I'm dead, do I?" He asked.

"No, it looks pretty good. Don't worry, I don't think it'll show that well. No one in the audience will be able to tell, but after the show, be sure you have a good story," I told him, putting the finishing touches on it.

"Thanks Kate. It was really nice of you," He said, giving me a hug. Aww, what was going through Liv's mind when she gave him up?

"Come on you guys, we've got to get going soon," Scott interrupted us. Jealous much?

"Ok. Oh shit, I've got to run, we're on in twenty minutes. Bye guys," I said, waving to them.

"Say Hi to Natalia for me," Dave said. Poor guy.

"I'll walk you backstage," Scott said. We walked down the long corridor to the main backstage.

"Kate, I was wondering about tonight," He said. Oh god...

"Yeah Scott?" I asked him, smiling.

"Well, I was kinda wondering if you would like t-to join me for dinner after the concert," He said, stuttering slightly.

"Are you asking me out, Scott?" I asked, smiling sweetly. "Yeah, I guess so. Would you?" He said, taking my hand.

"Sure. After the concert. But I gotta go right now. They'd kill me if I'm late," I said, inching my way towards the door.

"Ok, then, come by my dressing room after the concert. Good luck," He said, kissing my cheek. I smiled and joined my friends.

"Well that took long enough," Olivia said.

"Shut up," I said, still in a daze.

"Hey, what just happened here?" Sara asked.

"Not much really. I'm going out to dinner with Scott afterwards," I said, trying to stay calm.

"You're WHAT? You traitor! " Olivia shrieked.

"No, I'm not. Just cause I'm going out to dinner doesn't mean we're going out. It's not a date," I said, lying through my teeth.

"Yes it is! Are you crazy! He's buying you dinner!" Olivia squawked.

"No it isn't. It's not a date," I said, shaking my head.

"Ok, ok. It's not a date. It's a 'rendezvous'," Sara said, rolling her eyes.

"Whatever," Olivia said.

"Oh, Natalia, Dave said 'Hi'," I told her, making my voice deeper to mimic his.

"Did he really?" Natalia asked.

"No, I just made it up for your enjoyment," I said sarcastically.

"Ok, well then that's great," She said.

"Will there be a reply?" I asked her.

"No, I don't think so," She said, shaking her head.

"Natalia you are horrible. You've got to say something back to him," Sara said.

"I guess I owe him that. Tell him I'd like to talk to him soon," She said, shocking us.

"Natalia, are you breaking under pressure?" Olivia asked.

"No, I just want him to think he is gaining brownie points," She said, smiling.

"You are actually going to talk to him right?" I asked.

"I want him to think I am," She said. "No, I will. I do need to talk to him."

"And Olivia, you need to talk to Clint. Poor baby, his face is so swollen. He and Bob got into a fight about you and Sara. Something about who got dumped harder," I said, waving my hand.

"Oh, well that's endearing. Is he gonna be ok?" Olivia said with concern.

"I think his eye needs to be amputated," I said. Olivia shrieked. "I'm just kidding you moron. He's gonna be fine. It's not like he hasn't gotten a black eye before. Well, probably," I said.

"You guys, time to go on," Sara told us and we were ushered into the wings.

DAVE

"Well that was interesting," I said. It had been a few years since we had played the UK. Things sure have changed.

"Yeah Dave. The girls are a bit wilder," Clint said. Twice we were pelted with random undergarments. Haven't seen that since the US tour.

"A BIT?" Scott said, eyebrows raised. Ok, so a lot.

"That was fun," Bob said. Well, at least they aren't fighting anymore.

A knock came from the door. "Who is it?" Clint asked.

"It's Kate, can I come in?" I opened the door for her and she stood there smiling.

"What?" I asked her. Do I have something on my face?

"Nothing, poor Dave. Scott, are you ready to go?" She asked him. What's going on here?

"In about five minutes, I just have to get changed. Sit down, make yourself at home. If my brothers bother you, feel free to kill them," He said, stepping into the bathroom with an armful of clothing. Hehe, he's got a date.

"Hey Clint, how's your eye?" She asked.

"It's doing better. No one in the front row obviously shrieked from it," He said, laughing.

"Oh Dave, I've got a message for you," She said, turning to me.

"Yeah? From Natalia? What is it?" I asked her excitedly.

"Let me think...now I know it's from Natalia, I'm trying to remember. Something about talking or whatever? I don't know. But it doesn't matter does it?" She said, giggling. I'm gonna kill her.

"Kate! Don't tease me! Tell me, I know she said something to you. Talking? About what?" I said, getting right in front of her.

"About dolphins? No, that can't be it..."She said, tapping her chin. I shook her shoulders.

"KATE! Tell me damn it!"

"Ok! Ok! Beg much? She said that she wanted to talk to you. Why don't you go over to her and see if you can go talk," She said, dropping hints. Yeah, that's a good idea.

"Ok. Yeah, I think I will," I said, getting up.

"That's good. She really, oh wait, I'm not supposed to tell you that," She said, clamping a hand over her mouth.

"You bitch," I said, smiling. "I think I'm gonna visit her."

"Good," She nodded. Scott came out of the bathroom looking very spiffy. Are those my pin stripe pants?

"Ready?" He asked her. Kate smiled and nodded.

"Make sure you talk to Natalia. Bye guys!" She waved and they left.

"Ok, should I go now? Or should I wait? If I wait, how long should I wait? Should I even go at all? Should I bring her somewhere to talk or will staying there be ok? Shit! This is hard!" I said, getting nervous.

"Ok, first, take this," Clint said, handing me a little pill.

"What's this? I don't take drugs," I said, poking the pill.

"It's aspirin, for me. I want you to hold it while I get some water. You're annoying me," He said, getting up. I put the aspirin on the counter and looked in the mirror.

"Do I look ok?" I asked. Bob came over to me and looked at me.

"You look fine. Now go get her," He said, slapping my ass.

"What the fuck?!" I said, jumping.

"I saw that in a movie once," He said, smiling.

"What movie? 'Debbie Does Dallas'? Don't do that to me!" I said, going for the door.

"Yeah don't do that Bob. It gets him excited," Clint said, laughing. I gave him an evil look and left the room.

Down the hallway was Natalia's dressing room. I stopped right in front of it and paused to knock on it. Should I? Should I go back? Does she really want to see me?

I knocked on the door and waited for a signal of intelligent life. Nati opened the door and jumped back in shock when she saw me.

"Oh, hi Dave," She said. Fuck, Kate was lying. I'm gonna have to kill her later.

"Hi Natalia. I just thought on the off chance you were bored we could maybe go out and talk or something," I said. Were these my words leaving my mouth?

"Ok, so Kate gave you the message," She said. Oh, ok.

"Yeah. Wanna go out to talk? It's a beautiful night," I said.

"Um, sure. Just let me tell them I'm going. I'll meet you on the stage," She said, shutting the door. Well, not a total rejection, so that was good.

I walked to the stage and stood waiting for her. Five minutes went by. Ten minutes. What could she be doing? I can't believe it, she's standing me up. I haven't been stood up since that quadruple date with my brothers. Oh god I haven't been so humiliated in all my...

"Dave, Hi," Natalia came into view. Oh, ok I'm better now.

"Sorry I took so long, Olivia was flipping out because of Clint's face. She needed to calm down. Sara's got her now though. I'm free," She said, smiling.

"Ok. Well, where would you like to go?" I asked her, walking with her to the exit of the building. We left and turned down the alley to the main street.

"I'd like to keep walking, if you don't mind," She said. No I don't mind at all...

"Sure," We walked slowly down the street. Ok, well this is awkward. What do I say to her?

"I wanted to thank you for the flowers. They are beautiful," She said.

"You're welcome. Did you read the letter too?" I asked her.

"Yes. It was really very sweet of you. You really didn't need to send them to me," She said, taking my arm. What was that for?

"Oh, well. It was just a little gift for you," I said, smiling.

"I'm sorry for being a bitch. But you did deserve it," She said. We stopped walking.

"I'm sorry for what I said. I didn't mean it. Really," I said, trying to get out of this bad spot.

"Maybe you didn't but you should have thought of the consequences before you said that. I don't think you know how much that really hurt me. That's why I'm doing this," She said. She walked away and left me standing on the street corner under the bright fluorescent lights, shocked.

I turned around and walked back to the hotel, taking the long route. I felt so incredibly bad. What a bitch. Oh god. What the hell just happened?

I got back to the hotel and sat in my room, brooding upon tonight's escapades. I heard Clint and Bob coming near the door so I grabbed my dog-eared copy of "It" and began to read whatever page I had opened to.

"Hey Dave, back so soon? I thought you would be gone longer," Bob said, bringing in a bag. I shook my head and kept on reading.