Howie sighed hard as he began to hop into his car, he had never felt so guilty. Deep down he knew that Anita wasn’t a bad person. Mumbling to himself his eyes flew open as he saw the familiar face in front of him, standing on the other side of the car was, Anita.

“I thought you were already gone?” He said a surprised expression on his face.

“I can’t! I can’t just leave…and I hate thinking that I have to go to my old life.”

Howie smiled and nodded unlocking the door and letting her hop in with him “So where too?” he asked starting the car and driving off.

She shrugged hopelessly “I don’t know where to go? I don’t have anyone here!” she muttered looking out the window, remembering the earlier confrontation “He’s going to hate me forever isn’t he?” she turned to look at Howie, who turned to give her a sympathetic look.

“I doubt it, he will get over it. We just have to prove to him somehow that it was all a misunderstanding. Not sure how we are going to do that, but we are.” Howie gave her a wink as he drove off.

AJ knocked on the door softly, Nick had closed himself in his room a while ago. “Hey man can we talk please…” he waited for a response as he leaned against the wall, trying to find a way of explaining and actually convincing Nick that Anita was a good person.

The door opened abruptly and before AJ could defend himself he was pinned to the wall, Nick holding him by the collar of his shirt “What the fuck do you want?”

“Ouch…is there…a…need for violence” AJ tried speaking while wiggling free from Nick’s tight grip. Slowly he loosened his grip “Look it’s our fault, the poor girl was accompanying her…”

Nick let him go, AJ fell to the floor hard. He stood up, fixing his collar “I don’t want to here you. Why didn’t she have the decency to tell me that you were such a prick. This is it AJ…we are done…we are no longer friends.” Nick grabbed his bag from the bed and headed to the door.

AJ following him with caution “Oh come on man, this is all a big misunderstanding I did this for you…” with his last word Nick opened the front door and then turned to let AJ have another fist in the face. Howie entered the house, flinching at the sight of Nick and AJ on the floor. Nick glared at Howie “I don’t hit you, cause I’m hoping that this asshole had a lot of influence over you.”

He stormed down towards AJ’s BMW “Nick, please listen would you stop being so stubborn.” but Howie only got a finger and then just saw the dust from the car zooming off “Well there goes your car…don’t be upset if you never see it again.”

AJ mocked laughter as he cleaned his lip with the his shirt “Man there is never any reasoning with him. So how was poor Anita? She must have gone home sad huh?” AJ’s voice trailed off as he walked down the hallway and into the bathroom.

Howie stood in the door way as he watched his friend spitting blood into the sink “Uh…what if I told you that she didn’t leave?” AJ turned to look at him a surprised look on his face.

Anita sat at the hotel bed, flipping through the newspaper circling the jobs that were interesting. Xing out each one that asked for experience in certain things that she had no clue how to do. Which were most of the them on the pages.

“This is what happens when you don’t know how to do shit.” she mumbled to herself. Howie had paid her room at the Ramada for two weeks with the money she didn’t take from them. After a lot of begging and pleading the hotel gave into his request.

After a long warm shower, she stood staring into the bathroom mirror, missing the one from her room at AJ’s house. That one had given her confidence and a certain calm. Now she was back to feeling like a pile of shit, that was going nowhere but down the toilet. Sighing hard she took out the clean pair of jeans and T-shirt that AJ had given her.

Anita laughed at the thought that AJ’s clothes would fit her perfectly “He’s so feminine” she laughed out loud, her laughter suddenly becoming a sob. Covering her face with her hands, she sat on floor of the bathroom.

Nick entered the familiar apartment it was utterly silent and totally dark. He flicked the light on and threw the bag on the couch. He made his way to his room, his shoulders hunched as if he were old. “She lied to me…” he sat at the corner of the bed, as he ran his hand through his messy hair.

Scenes of every single thing that he had done with her, erupted in his head. He took a deep breath as a single tear rolled down his cheeks. He had thought she was different, that she was the girl for him, because she was honest and real. It had just been to good to be true.

“I hate you…Anita…I hate you” he mumbled as he threw himself back on the bed and closed his eyes, trying not to think anymore.

Anita awoke the next morning with a headache from all her crying. Her eyes were red and swollen and their was tissues everywhere. Although all she could do was think about Nick, she washed her face, and lectured herself in the mirror. She would go out and look for a decent job.

Just as she was making her way to the door, their was a knock. She opened carefully and smiled followed by a cry. Howie and AJ took her in their arms as she sobbed silently on the bed. “We are so sorry Anita…this is all our fault.” Howie caressed her hair as she rested her head on his lap.

AJ paced back and forth, moving his hands from his head, to his chin, then to his waist. “I just can’t think of anything. I mean this is going to take a while. Shannon did him so wrong and now it looks like you did the same or worse. He wont answer his phone and he hates me!” AJ bit his nails as they all exchanged looks.

“Well for the meanwhile we are going to be leaving on tour soon. We came by to tell you that!” Howie informed as she sat up now, wiping the remaining tears from her eyes. “We’ll be gone for almost three months straight.”

“Its ok guys, I will find some kind of job, there has to be something I’m good at. Right?” she said looking for reassurance from one or both of the guys. “You don’t think I know anything, I’m not and wasn’t a dancer guys. My family is so screwed up and all I wanted was to make my mother happy and I got mad and carried away…that night.”

“I’m really sorry, for treating you the way I did at the beginning. For judging you. I’m an asshole sometimes I know. I am going to keep thinking of how to make this better I promise. We got to get going.” he kissed her forehead and headed out.

“Call me if you need to talk” Howie said handing her a paper with his number. She smiled and kissed his cheek then waved them down as they disappeared down the hallway. Anita sighed hard and grabbed what little money she had and headed off to find a job, there had to be some job waiting out there for her and she was determined to find it.

After hours of looking, asking and filling out applications. Anita made her way into a small restaurant in the middle of the Hollywood/Highland mall. The place was buzzing with people and it was very fancy. She smiled at the elegance the place had and then realized she didn’t fit in.

“Hello, is there something I can help you with?” the young girl asked. Her long blonde curly hair in a ponytail, she pierced Anita with her light blue eyes. She wore what seemed to be the uniform a white button shirt and some black slacks. She had just the right amount of make up on and she was very smiley.

After realizing that she was staring at nothing, Anita cleared her throat and spoke up “Oh yeah, I noticed there is a position opened for a waitress here.”

“Oh yeah, just a moment let me get Larry to help you out. One second.” she said as she made her way into the kitchen area. A minute later she came a tall slender man with a mustache trailing behind her.

He extended his hand and Anita clasped his hand and shook it. “Hello…I was informed that you are looking for a job? Do you have experience?” he asked never breaking his seriousness.

“Actually no sir…but I’m a fast learner and I really need the job. Please!” she knew that begging wouldn’t really help her, but she didn’t have anything else. “I’ll work whatever hours you need me and uh…”

The man inspected her, she knew she should have dressed a little more appropriate but all her things had stayed at AJ’s. Looking down at her band shirt and her stonewashed jeans she stuck her hands in her back pockets, waiting for an answer.

“Fine, as long as you don’t dress like that to come to work. Dress code, white button shirt, no cleavage…with black slacks during the week. On weekends we have different themes…come in early tomorrow morning and I will get you a badge, and your paperwork.”

She wanted to hug the older man, but opted by shaking his hand continuously until he pulled away “I’m sorry. I’ll see you guys tomorrow morning.” she bit her lip and turned back around “How much does it pay?” she blushed with the question.

“It’s eight fifty an hour! Is that ok with you?” he stared at her. It wasn’t exactly ok but after a long day of no luck, she had to be happy for anything.

“Yeah it’s great thanks.” she looked at the girl “Thank you” she nodded and then Anita was off to explore the rest of Hollywood Boulevard.

Brian waited for the threesome that walked up to him, all with straight faces. Nick walked onto the bus first “Hey man…” he grunted taking a seat on the sofa and starting up his game on Xbox ignoring everyone.

“What in the world got into him?” Brian asked concern all over his face, as he looked at the Howie, AJ and then Nick. “Well?”

“It’s a very long story…that we can tell you later…” AJ said making his way to his bunk.

Nick began to laugh like a crazy person in front of a blank screen “Tell him…what you two assholes did to me. You want to know Bri…they hired a fucking prostitute to have sex with me and idiot me fell in love with a whore.” He flung the control across the buss “Fuck!” he stormed to the back of the bus.

Brian stood his mouth open and his eyes wide “What in the hell is he talking about?”

Howie cleared his throat as AJ made his way back to the sofa “You might want to take a seat for this one.”