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Part I Chapter 21

That night after karaoke, AJ walked Win back to her room, but not before he asked her something. Pulling her close to him and putting his lips to her ear he whispered.
“Come stay the night with me.”
“Oh AJ,” Win replied in an exasperated tone.
“Come on, please.” He whispered again, clinging tighter to her.
“No AJ, not yet. I got to stop giving you ideas.” Win said shaking her head.
“That was really nice, you sitting in my lap.”
“I hope you enjoyed it, cause it ain’t gonna happen again for a while.”
“Come on, please, please. I’ve been good, I haven’t asked to kiss you for a whole day.”
“So you figure I’ll jump right in the sack with you, no way, go to bed. Good night.” Win replied, patting his forehead and slipping into her room. AJ walked slowly back to his room muttering,
“Damn, damn damn damn.”

Another month passed and Win found herself celebrating three months on tour and two months with AJ. What this month also meant that Brianna was due to give birth. Brian was on the edge of his seat, he was nervous all the time. Upon the arrival at every venue he found out the whereabouts of the nearest hospital and the quickest route to get there. Brianna’s hysterics had calmed, she no longer burst into tears at the drop of a hat. Now she usually sat back and dreamed up baby names while patting her stomach.
AJ was around Win constantly. She hardly knew a moment without work, or his arms around her, threatening to never let her go. The guys had noticed a dramatic change in him, he was his old self, joking around with the guys and the crew, laughing all the time, generous with everything he did and had. Even Brian who was having kittens over Brianna had commented to Win about AJ.
“I haven’t seen AJ and Nick get into a pretend fight since the Millennium tour.”
Not only was AJ happier, but his mood was contagious. Work was not work anymore, it was fun. AJ was constantly playing jokes on the crew, especially Gina, a very tall Jamaican woman who chased him around the stage after she found a life-like rubber snake in one of her toolboxes.
Despite all the efforts AJ had made, he still would not take the hats and glasses off. Win did not ask him anymore, she’d stopped after the one evening. It was now his choice when to stop hiding.
Since the Karaoke night, AJ as well as the rest of the crew were constantly begging her to sing for them. Win had always been a little shy of her talents, but slowly her inhibitions were melting away. Occasionally she’d sing a little something for them, Kevin playing at his new piano while the rest of the guys and crew gathered around to listen. Her voice always sounded best when she pulled out the long lilting notes from the songs. Daemon threatened constantly to turn her in to his boss and have her signed to the music label.
“Yeah right, that’ll happen the same time the hair grows back on your head.” Win had replied laughing.
“Win really, you could be a superstar, with that voice,” Howie remarked.
“Yeah, but you also have to be a show-off, beauty queen that’s willing to take your clothes off to get attention.”
“And who says you are not a beauty queen?” AJ asked coming up behind her, snaking his arms around her neck.
“I’m an average looking girl from Belltown, PA. Nothing more, nothing less.”
“You have star quality,” AJ replied.
“Oh please, I couldn’t deal with the life you have, scaled down of course.” Win replied.
“What do you mean ‘scaled down’?” Kevin asked.
“You guys have been doing this for what, over ten years? I’d never be this popular.”
“Oh yes you would.” AJ replied.
“Knock it off would you, I don’t want to talk about it anymore.” Win replied throwing AJ’s arms off of her neck and going back to work.
The constant attempts to make her believe that she could be a star were annoying. Sure she had a little bit of talent, but that had been for the church choir, the choir that had saved her life. There was no way she’d make it out in the real world of music. Besides, she didn’t want that much attention and she did not like performing in front of strangers. The guys, the crew, the parishioners on Sundays in church, maybe crowds in the hundred number, that was fine, but big strange crowds, forget it. Everyone bringing up that she could sing was irritating, and sometimes she would have liked to forget it.
After she finished with her part of the stage set up she went back to the hotel to eat lunch. She was just thinking of taking lunch in her room to avoid the guys when they came traipsing in the dining room. She now had no choice, once they saw her she’d have to sit down and eat with them.
As she predicted the group came over at sat down around her. The group consisted of AJ, Daemon, Brian and Brianna, Kevin and Tessa, Nick, Jen, Taylor and Howie. Win tried to act like nothing was wrong, but she was just a little too visibly upset.
“You okay beautiful?” AJ asked concerned.
“Yeah, I’m fine.” She replied unconvincingly.
“So, where is everybody going for their two week break?” Daemon asked sitting down at the table. Planned in the eight month US tour was a two-week break to accompany the delivery of Brianna and Brian’s baby. After two weeks, Brian was expected back on tour, another separation that he was not looking forward to. The break came up in two weeks, and Win was not looking forward to it.
Aside from the fact that she really didn’t have any family, she had no place to live, and no money to afford a place of her own. She had no one she could bum a room from for two weeks, and the cost of a hotel for two weeks would be outrageous. She’d have to go back to Pennsylvania and find her group of friends who had formed sort of community of homeless girls who all had jobs and kicked in money once in a while to get a hotel room.
“I’m going to visit my parents in LA,” Nick said immediately.
“My girl in Reno,” Howie replied.
“Kevin and I are going on our second honeymoon, we’re going to New York City.” Tessa said.
“Me, got a big ole family reunion down in Louisiana, whole extended line coming from both my mom and pop’s sides.” Daemon said with his mouth full.
“We’ve got an engagement party at my mom’s house in Kentucky.” Taylor said.
“You know where we’ll be,” Brianna smiled, patting her stomach, Brian looked sick.
“What about you AJ?” Kevin asked.
“I’m hoping to take Win to meet my mom.” Win nearly choked on her piece of cucumber.
“What?” she asked when she could breathe again.
“Yeah, I want you to come meet my mom. Would you?” he asked, looking at her with his sunglass covered eyes.
“AJ, I don’t think that, now really, that’s not really appropriate, is it?” she asked looking away, being startled at being asked something like this out of the blue and in front of so many people.
“You got other plans Win, where were you staying? You got an apartment somewhere?” Daemon asked.
“I don’t have anything anywhere.” She said in a small voice.
“Well where did you live before you came here?” he asked again.
“Pennsylvania.”
“Oh really, what part?” Daemon asked.
“Around Belltown area.”
“I have a cousin over there, you met him, name’s Alan Brickman.”
“No, never met him.”
“Nice area though, what street did you live on?” Daemon continued.
“None in particular.”
“What does that mean?” Daemon asked stupidly.
“Man, does she have to spell it out for you?” AJ asked. Daemon looked at him, still not figuring out what he was trying to say. Win put a hand on AJ’s arm and said,
“It’s okay, you don’t have to lie for me. I’ve been homeless for the past seven years Daemon.”
“Oh you mean like drifting, you must have some interesting stories to tell.” Daemon replied.
“No Daemon, not drifting, just homeless.” Win replied, determined not to look at him.
“Oh come on, nothing?”
“No Daemon, nothing.”
“Didn’t you want to go to college?” Kevin asked.
“Yeah, did you just go out onto the road, were your parents okay with what you did?” Nick asked. Questions were flying from all directions at her. Finally she got fed up and slammed her hand down on the table.
“To answer all your prying and nosing questions. I was an orphan, I’ve never had parents, I was out on the street when I was eighteen. For the first three years I used every drug I could find attempting to forget who and where I was. After I got clean I got two jobs, one as a dishwasher, another as a cashier. I’ve never been able to afford a place to live. I got together with four other girls that I used to live with in the orphanage and we banded together. One person would stand guard while the others slept. We slept in dumpsters, alleyways, under bridges, cars. When we could afford it, we stayed a night or two in the hotel. If you want stories I could tell you about the time Melody was bitten by a rabid dog, or when we were robbed at gun point and all our belongings stolen, or how we nearly froze to death every winter, trying to afford coats and shoes.” Win stared down into her lap as she spoke, feeling the eyes pressing in on her bowed head. When she finished speaking she looked up and saw their astonished faces.
“I don’t need your pity.” She said simply, without anger and resentment in her tone, actions or facial expressions, but they were still surprised when she stood up and walked out of the dining room.