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Chapter Eleven

Adonica stared at Rich with her mouth hanging open. The room started to spin a little as she drew in a deep breath. She was stunned and couldn’t find her voice. She hadn’t had the slightest clue that he was going to ask her that. She’d had a feeling in the end, but decided that her fairy tail ending fantasies were taking over her brain again, shaking the thought from her head. Her daydreams were actually becoming a reality. Adonica tried to speak, but couldn’t.

“Baby,” Rich said after a long moment, laughing nervously. He stared into her eyes, sweat beading his forehead with anticipation. He could feel dozens of eyes staring at him, waiting to hear her answer, “Please, say something.”

Adonica took in a deep breath, a smile forming on her face. At first she just nodded, but then found her voice.

“Yes,” she whispered, then said more loudly, “Yes, I’ll marry you.”

Rich smiled, slipping the ring onto her finger. Tears of happiness formed in Adonica’s eyes as she stood up, throwing her arms around Rich. He hugged her back, tears of his own coming. A soft applause had started, surrounding them. Rich felt slightly foolish for interrupting the meals of everybody, knowing that he could have proposed between the two of them, but, he’d planned the whole night out way ahead of time. Besides, he figured that it was a little more romantic to do it in front of the restaurant as well.

“Thank you,” Rich whispered, “You’ve just made me happier that you could ever imagine.”

Adonica pulled away, looking deep into his eyes, and seeing that he was being truthful. She kissed Rich on the lips hard. Rich kissed her back, feeling victory. He loved Adonica, and now, they were going to get married. He couldn’t wait to see the look on Kevin’s face when he found out that the girl, which he was crushing on, was now way out of his reach. Kevin would never have her. Adonica was all his.

“What do ya say we get out of here and celebrate?” Rich asked her, taking out his wallet and setting three hundred and forty down on the table, tip included, all in cash.

“Wasn’t this to celebrate…ahead of time?” Adonica giggled

Rich shook his head, “Not enough. We’re going out to a dance club,” he stopped when he saw Adonica make a face, “Or anywhere else you want.” He added, “Tonight is your night, baby.”

“Dancing is ok,” She said, “But I do it all the time. On my days off, I’d like to do something else.”

Rich nodded, understanding what she was saying. He didn’t blame her, but then again, he wasn’t sure what else they could do.

“How about a movie?” Adonica suggested, “A romantic comedy sort of thing. That way, we can just…sit really close…make out…”

Rich smiled, “Okay, if that’s what you want to do, then, I’m all for it, Ms. Adonica Cronin.”

Adonica laughed at his silliness, but she loved the sound of the new name that she would take on within a few months time.

“Not quite yet, babe,” she said with a wink, to let him know that she was joking around with him.

Rich faked a pout, acting wounded. Adonica loved the way that they could joke around with one another. He was so easy to get along with.

“Let’s get out of here,” Rich said, grinning at her.

She agreed. Rich pulled his cell phone out of his pocket, dialing his limo driver and telling him where to meet them. Then, taking her hand in his, they walked out of the restaurant to get on with the rest of their evening.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

“Damnit,” Nick yelled, slamming the phone down onto the receiver.

He used such powerful force the phone fell to the ground. He didn’t even bother picking it up though. Instead, he crossed his arms over his chest, falling onto the bed. He glared up at the ceiling, muttering unkind things to himself. Nick knew that he was acting childish, but he didn’t care. It wasn’t like anybody was there to witness his immaturity. He was completely alone.

“Everything okay?” he heard somebody ask, as he walked into the room.

Or not.

Nick sat up, and saw Kevin standing before him. He looked concerned, but also a big angry. It was apparent that he’d heard Nick’s outburst. Or maybe he saw the phone lying on its side on the ground, the operators voice coming out muffled on the other end

“No,” Nick stated, his voice coming out harsh and blunt, “Everything is not okay. People suck.”

Kevin chuckled, trying to stifle it. It was obvious that Nick was in no mood to be laughed at.

“Care to share?” he asked the blonde.

Nick looked straight ahead of him, his face scrunched up in anger and frustration. His eyes were narrowed, staring at no one thing in particular. He didn’t answer Kevin for a moment. Kevin sat down next to Nick. This could take awhile, he knew. Nick was as stubborn as a bull.

“Nick,” he asked, making sure that his friend was still on this planet.

Nick turned to Kevin, letting out a big huff of air. Kevin wondered what had caused the easy-going boy to become so upset. He was shocked when Nick actually opened his mouth to speak and answer.

“I called the hospital today,” he said, “They wouldn’t tell me anything. I’ve called four times. They still won’t tell me anything.”

“What did you say to them?” Kevin asked, almost afraid to hear what Nick’s response would be. He loved Nick like a brother, but he didn’t always have the best of common sense.

“I asked how the kids were,” Nick replied, “They just paused and then said that they couldn’t give out that kind of information.”

Kevin bit his lip, trying hard not to laugh at the innocence of Nick. He just looked so defeated. He couldn’t help it though. Turning his head to the side, Kevin let out a soft chuckle, and then drew in a deep breath to compose himself before looking back to Nick, a forced semi-serious expression on his face.

“Nick,” Kevin said, “Did you say anything else...anything at all?”

Nick shook his head, “I just asked how the kids were. I figured they would know who I was talking about.”

“Nick,” Kevin said, “I think that they might need to know more information than that. I mean, do you know how many kids are in that hospital right now?” he chuckled good-heartedly out loud, “They probably thought that you were some crazy person.”

Nick took his knowledge into consideration. He supposed that Kevin was right. The truth was, it was three days since the accident happened, and he was still feeling so at fault for the whole thing. His mind wasn’t exactly thinking clearly when it came to that particular subject.

Kevin picked up the phone, and placing it back on the receiver, then picked it back up again so that he would have a dial tone, asking Nick for the number. He punched in the number that Nick knew by heart. He knew how much it meant to Nick to find out how the two boys were. To be honest, he wanted to know too. He also knew that if they were some of the lucky ones that were alive, that he and Nick would definitely be paying them a visit. Kevin’s thoughts were distracted when the phone was answered.

“Hi, um, yes,” he said, “I’m calling for information on two of the victims of the coaster accident a few days ago.”

Nick watched Kevin in awe, jealous at how well he handled things. He was definitely the professional one of the group. There was absolutely no doubt about that. He was glad that at least one of them knew how to take control.

“Hmmm,” he heard Kevin say, “They were two boys, around thirteen I would say.” There was a pause, “Uh huh…oh.”

Nick could see Kevin’s face fall, and swore that he had paled a little bit. He wasn’t all too sure though.

“Can you tell me where we can find him?” Kevin asked.

Nick was dying of curiosity wondering what was being said Kevin and whoever was on the phone. He was obviously getting farther than Nick. Then again, he wasn’t yelling at the people either, and throwing out threats.

“Thanks you,” Kevin replied, and then hung up. His eyes were glazed over, staring off into space. Nick raised an eyebrow wondering how Kevin had zoned out so quickly.

“Kev,” Nick asked.

Kevin turned his head, looking at Nick blankly, “Huh?” he asked.

Nick couldn’t help but laugh for a second. He didn’t think that he’d ever seen Kevin like this before. Normally, it was himself.

“What happened?” he asked.

“Well,” Kevin begun, “We’re aloud to visit the one boy. He has a broken leg and collar bone and suffered a concussion.”

“What about the other,” Nick asked, almost afraid to hear his answer. He could tell that Kevin was afraid to tell him too, by the look that crossed over his face.

“He, um,” Kevin began, “The other one was in a coma when he arrived.”

“At least he’s alive,” Nick said, part of the guilt lifting from him, “That’s always a plus. I mean, he could wake up and be fine.”

Kevin looked away, saying something that was muffled. Nick strained to hear him, but couldn’t. He then asked Kevin to repeat it for him so that he could understand. Kevin sighed, and turned to Nick.

“He died a few hours later from internal injuries.”

Nick drew in a deep breath and held it, not sure how to take the news. He couldn’t believe that out of seven people that had died, the one boy was one of them. Suddenly, he wanted to get to the hospital at that very instant, to visit with the one that had lived. He wanted to see for himself and be reassured that the one really was okay. It would at least clear his conscious of guilt partially.

“Did they tell you where the one is?” Nick asked.

Kevin nodded, trying to recall the information that he had been given. Was it the sixth floor, room five-forty three, or the fifth floor, room four-fifty three? He couldn’t remember

“Let’s go,” Nick said, determination in his voice. He grabbed his room key off of the nightstand and headed towards the door, with Kevin following closely behind him.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Alaura, Adonica and Dulcia all walked through the local mall towards Dulcia’s favorite store: Hot Topic. They were leaving the next day for Europe and wanted to each find a few new outfits to take with them.

“So,” Dulcia asked, “Whatever happened with Devin? He was acting like a pretty big prick at the park.”

Alaura sighed. She hadn’t spoken much with her friends over the past few days. To be honest, the only times they were really together anymore was before and after shows. Other than that, they were with their boyfriends. Things had changed since the start of this tour.

“We talked and made up,” Alaura told her,

She bit her lip nervously. She wanted so badly to tell her best friends about what had happened with A.J. She knew that she couldn’t though. It would cause questioning that she couldn’t answer, not to mention if word got back to Devin himself. There was always that risk. If Devin ever knew about what had happened between her and A.J. a few nights ago, they would be over.

“What?” Dulcia asked, smirking, “You are so holding back on us. What aren’t you telling us?”

Alaura shrugged, “Nothing. He yelled at me a little. I yelled back a little, using the famous Dulcia sarcasm. Then, we decided that we were both being stupid, so we made up. End of story.”

“That’s great,” Adonica smiled, giving her friend a huge hug, “I knew that he couldn’t stay mad for long.” She paused, “Wait, what was he mad at you for anyways.”

Dulcia shook her head, rolling her eyes, “You have selective hearing, I swear.” She told her friend, “You really worry me.” It was then that Dulcia realized that she, too, didn’t really know what the couple had been quarreling over, but did she dare admit that after she had made fun of Adonica? She decided to take her chances, “Okay, so what were you fighting over?”

Alaura’s eyes clouded over as she remembered how Devin had treated her and his accusations. He had perfectly good reason to accuse though. But she had tricked him into believing that he was being a paranoid jerk. Alaura knew that she was wrong, but, unless she wanted to end up alone, she really didn’t have any other choice. It was, after all, a one night thing only. Plus, she had never done anything like that before in her life and never planned to again. It was out of grief, nothing more.

“Devin thought that I had some sort of love interest in A.J,” she said, sounding disgusted with the idea, “He accused me of liking him. He even went as far as to lock me out of our room.”

Adonica’s eyes widened, and Dulcia looked like she was about ready to kick some ass. Both girls knew the kinds of thoughts that ran ramped though their friends head when a male hurt one of them. If the hurt her friends, then they made her list of people to hurt.

“Where is he?” Dulcia demanded, “I think he might get to see that all my jokes about the baseball bat aren’t all that false after all.”

Alaura and Adonica looked at one another, cringing. Alaura hoped that she could talk the girl out of doing permanent damage to Devin. She’d heard stories about the kinds of things that she had done.

“Dulcia, everything is okay now,” she said, as Dulcia picked up a bottle of black nail polish, then decided on the black with sparkles.

“He locked you out,” she said, “He deserves to feel a little pain for a few days.”

“Dulce,” Alaura begged, “Don’t hurt him. He apologized. He’s proved more than enough that he is sorry.”

Another thing that Alaura felt guilty over. Devin was pampering her, treating her, and surprising her with gifts to prove how sorry he was. She didn’t deserve any of it. He was right. She was living a lie.

Dulcia sighed, looking like she was giving this major consideration. Finally, she rolled her eyes, shaking her head. Alaura knew that she had won. Dulcia was going to give up…for now. She walked over to the tongue rings, spinning the display around. She wanted to find a new one, but wasn’t quite sure what she was looking for.

“So,” she asked Adonica, “What’s the latest with you? How did your little date with Richie go?”

Adonica laughed at Dulcia’s pet name for her boyfriend. She smiled, looking down at her finger that held the gorgeous diamond ring. It had a silver band, and one diamond. It was so cute and feminine. She loved it. She had also been trying to hide her hand from her friends the entire day. She wanted to surprise them with it herself.

“Our date was good,” she said, trying to wipe the enormous grin off of her face, but it wasn’t working. She couldn’t hide it.”

“What is it?” Alaura asked, not missing a thing. She had always been good at picking up on things.

“Well,” Adonica began, “Rich took me out to dinner at Brio…”

She was cut off by squeals coming from Alaura, and Dulcia’s eyes widening. They obviously had heard of the place, and knew that it was rather pricey. She, on the other hand, hadn’t heard of it until that fateful night.

“You are so lucky,” Alaura cried out, “That place…wow…Rich must really love your ass.”

Adonica laughed. If only they knew.

“Well, it was really romantic,” she explained in minimal words, “He…um…he proposed at the end of the night.”

This caused squeals coming from both of her friends. This surprised Adonica because Dulcia definitely wasn’t the sqealing type. Looks came in their direction from all over the store, but none of them cared.

“I am so happy for you,” Alaura said, “Oh my god, we have to start planning the wedding. The dress, the flowrers, inventatios…will I be your bridesmaid?”

Adonica laughed at her friends’ enthusiasm. She knew that there was a lot of planning to do, but until her and Rich talked it over in further detail, she knew that the preparations would be best if they were put aside for the time being.

“Slow down,” she said, “Believe me, when the time comes for that, you two will be the first to know. God, I feel like I am floating. Like this is all a dream. I am so happy.”

Dulcia nodded, a small smile forming on her face, slightly smug, but overall, she was happy for Adonica.

“Wow, my youngest friend, getting married,” she said, “I shoulda seen that coming. You always were the one to fall fast.”

Adonica didn’t know if she should be insulted or not. She must have looked it because a huge grin broke out on her friends face.

“Oh, come here,” she said, hugging her friend, “I’m happy for you,”

Adonica hugged her friend back. All she needed was her two friends’ support to know that this was going to work out wonderfully,

“Wow, I can’t wait to see the look on Kevin’s face when he finds out,” Dulcia said, “Priceless. I wonder how he will take it. You two are pretty good friends.”

Suddenly, Adonica’s spirits fell. She hadn’t thought of Kevin until that moment. How would he take it? She didn’t want him to be hurt, but he knew that she was dating Rich. She shouldn’t feel bad about anything. So why was she suddenly so worried about telling him? Why was there a sinking feeling tugging at her heart? She had a feeling that she knew why, but tried to erase the thought. It wasn’t disappearing though, but she knew that it had to quickly. She had her own wedding to plan. She was going to get married, and she was going to be happy. She just had to keep telling herself that until she was convinced. She loved Rich.