Nick woke up the next morning to his cell phone ringing. He glanced at the clock that was on Alana’s dresser. 8:30a.m. Who had the nerve to call him at this hour?
He decided to answer it so that it didn’t wake up her up.
“Hello?” He answered groggily as he got up and went into the kitchen.
“Good Morning Sweetie!” said a familiar voice.
“Hi mom,” he said as he started to make some coffee. I really don't want to talk to her right now, not with all the shit I have been putting up from her lately.
“How was your tour?” Jane asked.
Nick enlightened his mother with all the details about his six-month tour.
“Are you in Florida Mom?” He asked. “Because I know you don’t call me in the morning unless you are in Florida.”
“Okay, you caught me,” Jane answered. “I’m in Orlando with Aaron and Angel. Aaron has a taping for the Nickelodeon show All That today. So I wanted to know if you wanted to come and eat some lunch with us today.”
Nick sighed. He wanted to spend time with Alana, let alone his family too.
“Mom I just got back from tour last night. I woke up to a cell phone ringing in my ear. I’m tired and really don’t feel like doing anything,” he said honestly.
“Nickolas, I know you just got back. But Angel, Aaron, and I would like to see you.” his mother said bluntly.
He thought of Alana. “Do you mind if I bring along a friend?” he asked.
After turning his cell phone off completely, he went to wake Alana up. He found her sleeping on her stomach with her hair flowing around her. He didn’t want to wake her up because he knew that she needed to sleep. He sat on the edge of her queen size mattress on top of the blue satin comforter and ran his hand through her silky light brown hair. She stirred a little, but didn’t wake up.
“Lana,” Nick said shaking her a little.
“Hmmmmmm…?” She asked sleepily, opening her eyes, squinting just enough to see him.
“My mom called,” He answered. “She’s in Orlando and wants me to meet her for lunch at 1 this afternoon. I want you to come with me.”
She rubbed her eyes. “Okay,” She said. “I’m gonna go back to sleep.”
Alana had finally gotten out of bed at 10:30 a.m. Nick had decided to let her sleep for a while longer than he intended. She got out of the shower and wrapped herself in a big fluffy yellow towel. She went back into her bedroom (the bathroom connected to her bedroom). Nick had gone into the other bathroom to shower and to get changed.
She hadn’t seen Nick’s mom, Jane, in almost over a year, let alone his other two younger siblings as well. She decided on wearing white Capri pants, a pink lace trim camisole, and basic neutral slip on sandals with a slight heel. She brushed her hair, blew dry it, then pulled it back into a low ponytail. She quickly put on some foundation, mascara and a pink lip gloss. Spraying herself with her normal perfume, Vanilla Fields, she went out to the kitchen to wait for Nick.
Nick took a quick shower and wrapped a towel around his waist so that he could brush his teeth. He finished drying off and got dressed. He dressed in tan khaki pants that were a light material, a light blue short-sleeved button-up shirt, with a white tank top underneath, and brown sandals. He looked in the mirror and ran his fingers over his chin, rubbing his rough goatee. Even though it was blonde, he gave him a more masculine appearance, he thought so anyway.
He wasn’t sure if Alana saw it or not or what she thought of it. He quickly threw some mouse and gel in his hair, styled it messy, then went to meet Alana in the kitchen.
Nick saw her sitting at the table reading a newspaper, he liked what he saw.
“Ready?” He asked, startling her.
Alana let Nick drive her car, so that his truck wouldn’t be recognized by any of the media. Her windows in her grand am were tinted just enough so that they were legal, but so no one could see through the windows. The ride to Orlando was about an hour and a half. They were meeting Jane, Angel, and Aaron at The Hard Rock Café in downtown Orlando. Nick parked Alana’s Pontiac into the parking lot of the restaurant.
Nick’s bodyguard, Frank had parked next to them in a black Jeep Cherokee. He was there for protection from the media and to prevent a mob of fans. Nick waited for Alana to get out of the car so that they could go into the side entrance of the restaurant to meet his mother and siblings. They hurried inside and found their table.
During lunch, Nick noticed that Alana was drinking an unusual amount of water. She was on her third glass.
“Are you okay?” He asked leaning toward her.
She finished her third glass of water and set it down on the table.
“Yah, I’m just really thirsty,” she answered.
Their dinner arrived about 20 minutes after they ordered. Jane ordered the Hard Rock Caesar Salad with decaffeinated coffee. Angel ordered the HRC’s Famous Grilled Fajitas with a diet Pepsi. Aaron ordered the HRC Burger with a regular Pepsi. Nick ordered the HRC Classic Bacon Cheeseburger with a Mountain Dew. Alana ordered the Herb Grilled Marinated Chicken Breast with yet another glass of water. She ate a few bites and then took a long slip of water. Nick looked over at his best friend. Her face was all flushed and she looked really sweaty with dark circles under her eyes.
“Lana, are you alright?” he asked looking really concerned.
She looked at Nick as she set down her glass of water on the table in front of her. He read her eyes like a book. She needed to get to the doctor or the hospital.
“Come on Lana, let’s get you to a doctor,” he said.
After he said that, she passed out in his arms.
~**********~
