Chapter 12

“Leighanne baby, are you feeling any better?” Brian said as he rubbed her back gently.

“Yeah, just a bit tired.  I probably got the flu, that’s all.  There are tons of stomach viruses going around right now, so that is probably it.” she said.

“Well, you just get some rest, and I will bring you some soup.  Get a good night’s rest and you will probably feel better in the morning.” he said and then kissed her gently.

*** *** ***

“Kevin, do you think we are being too hard on Brian?” Dee asked.

“Hell no, he needs to get over all this.  I am sick of it.  I just want to move on and get back into the swing of things.  Our fans are losing interest because we haven’t been out on tour in quite a while, are album is losing it’s momentum, and if we don’t do something, then we will be out of a job.” he said as he hung his towel up in the bathroom.

The two of them soon turned off the lights and found their way to bed, once again, enjoying each other’s presence.

*** *** ***

Two days later…

“Let’s get it going guys.  Time is flying by.” Fatima said.

“Yeah, that’s fine and all Timma, but we also need to work out the vocals, because if Nick isn’t going to come back, one of us has to cover his part.” Howie said.

“Yeah, so why don’t we take this morning to go over the vocals, then work on the routines again this afternoon.  I think our bodies could take a rest.” Brian offered.

Fatima thought about it, and soon realized that she just wasn’t used to not having Nick around.  “Yeah, I never thought of that.  Well, take this morning to work on the music and then we will practice this afternoon.  I will see you after lunch.”

With that, she walked away and let the four of them talk.

“Okay, AJ and I can cover most of Nick’s parts.  Howie you take the higher descants that he sings, and we should be okay.  Let’s give it a try.” Brian said.

Kevin looked at each of them, happy that everyone was finally taking charge.  He was tired of having to be the mature one in the group and always setting them on the right path.  Hell, he was 30, and the others were all adults, if only they acted like it sometimes.

*** *** ***

A couple of hours passed, and the four of them grew more impatient as time went on.  The vocals just weren’t working like they thought.

“Come on guys, we really need to get it right this time.” AJ said.

“Yeah, well, you try singing two parts at one time and get it right.” Brian grumbled.

“Come on, let’s just get it done.” Howie said.  “Now, one, two, three…” he said as the started singing.

“When the dawn comes, love finds the light it once knew…out of the darkness, our love finds a way…it grows stronger each and every day…when the dawn comes…love finds a way.” they sang in harmony.

The four kept going over the line, not sure of what to think.  It was missing something, although they were giving it their all.

Once again they started singing, hoping to work out the music, making it sound like a whole group.

“When the dawn comes, (when the dawn comes), love finds the light it once knew…(it once knew)…” they sang.

Suddenly, there was this sound, one they hadn’t heard in a long time.  It was that fifth voice that they needed.   The four turned around and saw their friend, Nick, standing in the doorway.

“Umm, guys, I do believe that the descant in mine…not yours.  That is, if you want me to still sing it.” he said with a smile.

Howie, AJ, Brian and Kevin all just stared at Nick, unsure what to believe.

“Your back…” Brian said softly.

“My God Nick, where have you been!?” Howie questioned.

“It’s about damn time you got your ass in here and got to work.” AJ blurted out.

However Kevin did the unexpected, and shocked everyone.  He walked over to Nick, and punched him square in the face.  “That is for leaving us hanging.” Then he hit him a second time, right in the nose.  “And that is for not having the decency to show up to my wedding you bastard!”

Nick fell to the ground, holding his nose and mouth.  Blood poured easily after the nasty blows to his face, while Kevin walked away.  Howie, AJ, and Brian ran to Nick to help, but Nick just pushed them away.

“NO, it’s fine.  I will be fine.  I can see that I was so well missed.” he said sarcastically.   He was just about to say something rude, when a young lady appeared at the door.

“Um, guys, I am sorry to interrupt your brawl, but Katie is hungry and I was wondering if I could feed her?” she said.

Howie and AJ just stared at the girl.  Brian was the first to question.

“Nick, who is that?” he whispered.

“Umm, guys, this is Elizabeth, but you can call her Liz.  She is going to be living with me now and will help me take care of Katie.” he said gently, still wiping blood from his lip.

“Oh, that’s it, you cry about not having Heather, so then you go off to some strange place and sweep up some girl of your dreams and expect her to fall for you?” Kevin blurted.  “Some faithful husband you are.”

“Hey, I don’t know who you think you are, but I am not here to romance Nick.  Are all four of you such assholes?” Liz replied.

Brian was dumbfounded.  Who was this strange girl holding Katie?  And, why exactly was she here?

“Look, I was Heather’s best friend for the longest time.  But we parted ways about two years ago.  It wasn’t until she called when she was sick, that I found out about everything.  She made me promise that I would do everything I could to help Katie learn about her mother.  So, here I am…to help Nick raise my best friend’s daughter.”  she said forcefully, not missing a beat.

“Well, my dear, forgive us.  If you are a friend of Nick and certainly a friend of Heather, than you are most welcome here.  We apologize for being so rude.” Howie said.

Brian immediately walked over to hug Liz and Nick and to take Katie off Liz’s hands for a few minutes.  For some reason, all this felt right, and it was great to have a new family member around.

“Unckie Bwian!” Katie blurted as Brian scooped her up.

“Hey Little Bits!  I missed you and your daddy!  It’s so great to have you back.” he said as he kissed her.

Howie and AJ stood talking to Nick and Liz for short time.  Kevin scoffed and brushed past Liz, never giving her a chance.  It wasn’t until she spoke up that he turned around.

“Yup, you are a bastard, just like Nick told me.  He said that you had a good heart, but that you were overly judgmental.  I know that what Nick did was wrong, but hey, life goes on.  Now I can understand that you are mad at Nick, but what right do you have to treat me like shit?  I haven’t done anything to you, so you just leave me the hell alone.” she blurted out.

“Well, if it wasn’t for Nick falling for a bitch like Heather, than none of this would have happened.  I tried to warn everyone, but no one listened.  And now, we have to start all over again.  But don’t expect me to like you Liz.” Kevin spat and then walked out of the dance hall.

Liz was shocked, yet, she stood her ground.  She knew that Kevin just needed time to adjust, hell, everyone did.   But, she vowed to stay away from Kevin as much as possible, at least until the bickering was over with.

With that, the others decided to cancel the rehearsals until the next morning.  Nick had a lot of unpacking to do, and everyone, with the exception of Kevin and Dee came to help.

It was great to have everyone together again, and great to have life back to where it should have been.
 

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