Me: My first M rated story. This is an idea I've had for years, but I've never had the time or patience to write. I know I shouldn't be posting anymore multi-chapter stories considering I've got about two I (desperately) need to update, but if I don't write this now I'm going to go insane. Do you know how hard it is to take a final exam when you're completely freaking crazy? This chapter's pretty long.
Disclaimer: I do not own Gwen or any other Total Drama characters.
WARNING: There are going to be some serious adult themes in this story! DRUG USE, STRONG LANGUAGE, and SEXUAL SITUATIONS are just a few of them, but if you have a problem with any of these things, I strongly suggest you click the back button. This story's Rated M for a reason, people!
The audience went completely insane as Gwen plucked the final notes of her new song on her acoustic guitar. She could feel her heart pound faster as she listened to her loyal fans cry her name, clap their hands and shriek with pleasure as she serenaded them. She'd done this a million times before, but it never seemed to get old. They loved her voice, the way she could make something as simple as the alphabet sound beautiful. They loved her music, the way it was different from all the new shit, how you could listen to it and not want to rip your ears off. But more importantly, they loved her; every gothic, anorexic, eight-nine pounds of her. What more could she ask for?
The young starlet handed her guitar to the stage-crew member who had rushed up to her and asked her if she needed anything. She simply shook her head at him and smiled at the young boy. When he left, she turned her attention back to her fans.
"We love you Gwen!" She heard one of them scream. Gwen gave her biggest smile, put her hands in the air and belted out into the microphone:
"And I love you, darling!"
"That was amazing, Gwen! See, I told you doing New York City was a good idea!"
"Ha. Yeah ya did, didn't you, Chris?" Gwen gave her manager a half smile. He had indeed said that preforming in her hometown would not only get her major props, but the ticket sales would have them "rolling in dough!" And as usual, he was right on both parts. People went mad when they heard Gwen would not only be preforming there, but would also be holding an autograph session the day after.
"What a great way to spend your birthday, huh?" Chris asked, flopping down on the expensive couch. "Singing in front of your fans, making people's minds explode, making me millions."
"It's a lot different from how I used to spend my birthdays." The goth girl admitted. "It'd be better if I, ya know, had a cake?" She looked over to her manager, and the look on his face made her day.
"Aw shit! I told that dumb ass to be here before the show was over!" Chris leaped up out of his seat and grabbed his cell phone from his pocket and put it to his ear.
"Hello? Trent! Where the hell are you? I don't care if there's traffic! Your girlfriend's sitting over here wondering why I didn't get her a fucking cake!"
Gwen gave a true smile as she listened to her ever stubborn boyfriend and her even more stubborn manager playful banter. It reminded her of when she and her younger brother Dylan would argue. And thinking of her and her younger brother arguing, made her miss her him and her mother, and all the things she left behind, even that godforsaken apartment of theirs.
'It's hard to believe that nine years ago, on this exact day, I was struggling to get by in this very city. Now I'm living large and I don't have to worry about a thing…' She thought. Her life had been terrible before she found Chris McLean that one unforgettable day. It had started out so horrible, and ended up being the highlight of her life. The day when everything changed, and the day she became a star.
Flashback
October 19th, 2003
Burger World, 9: 54 P.M
"C'mon Gwen, let's go already!" Seventeen year old Sierra Johnson hollered over her shoulder. The petite Burger World drive-thru worker was Gwen's only form of transportation, her best and admittedly only friend here in this damned city. The goth girl plunged her mop back into the bucket full of soapy water. Why did she get stuck with both cleaning duty and her regular shift at the cash register today of all days? It was her birthday, for God sake. Not that her boss gave a shit about that. Gwen sighed and looked over at Sierra.
"Sorry Si, I'm going to take a while. Why don't you just go? I'll walk home tonight." She offered. Her friend scoffed and threw her long braid over her shoulder. Like Gwen, Sierra hated her original hair color (which was black) and had dyed it pink. Gwen's once brunette hair was now black and teal. The difference was, Sierra's colored hair made her popular, while Gwen's hair made her stick out like the weirdo she was.
"You want me to let you walk home by yourself? At night? In New York? Your fucking crazy, ya know that?" Sierra grabbed a chair and thumped down in it backwards, resting her head on the back of it. "Go on, mop your damn floors. I don't see why you can't just pretend to do it like me and Tyler do."
"Tyler and I," "Grammar-Nazi Gwen" (Sierra's own personal nickname for her) corrected, mopping away whatever sticky substances were on the ground. "And I prefer to do things by the book. I know it might not seem like it, but I actually, ya know, don't want to get fired. Unlike you and your boyfriend." Gwen grinned when Sierra's face reddened. She knew about her friend's little crush on the jock and teased her about it as much as she could. Sierra stood up and crossed her arms.
"Maybe letting you walk home isn't such a bad idea after all." She joked, causing Gwen to roll her eyes. Sierra's cell phone rang then, and the goth busied herself with cleaning. She wasn't much of an eavesdropper, but when her best friend's voice went up an octave, she listened in.
"She's in the hospital? Why?...Broke her what? How? Ohmygod, I'll be there as soon as I can!" Sierra's face had paled as she spoke on the phone. She looked over at Gwen. "Gwen, I'm so sorry, but I have to go! My mom she's…she's in the hospital! There's been a car accident and…I don't really know what happened, but it's really serious and I have to…"
"Go Sierra." Gwen said calmly, dropping her mop and placing her hands on her friend's shoulders. "I'll be alright here, just promise me you'll call and tell me what's going on, alright?" Sierra nodded and rushed out the door. Gwen watched as she frantically got in her small Volvo and turned the ignition on, speeding out of the parking lot and onto the road. She sighed.
'Overtime at Burger World and my best friend's mother in the hospital. What a birthday…' Gwen thought as she continued her work. She never would've took this damn job in the first place if her mother hadn't of gotten fired from the office…
'It wasn't her fault! That guy purposely spilled coffee on her keyboard! I swear if I ever find him I'm gonna…! No, no. I can't get mad. Remember what the guidance counselor said. "Do something that makes you happy."' This was easier said than done. There were only a few things in Gwen's life that made her happy. Hanging out with Sierra was one of them, but she obviously couldn't do that now. Drawing was another, but she had left her notebook at school in her haste to get to work. The only other option she had was singing, but she hated doing that in public. But why the hell not? She was alone, and she had nothing to lose. If anyone walked in on her belting out tunes, they'd just laugh and tell her she would never amount to anything.
'Just like Daddy Dearest said…' Thinking of her father only increased her anger, so she shut down her mind and closed her eyes. Using the foul-smelling mop as a microphone and the radio as her band, she pictured herself on stage, dancing around in front of millions of people. She took a deep breath and sung as loud as her voice would allow her too.
"She's got eyes of the bluest skies
As if they thought of rain
I hate to look into those eyes
And see an ounce of pain
Her hair reminds me of a warm safe place
Where as a child I'd hide
And pray for the thunder
And the rain
To quietly pass me by…"
She quickly wiped the tears away from her eyes. It had not been the first time she'd cried while singing along with Axl Rose. She was a fan of many classic rock bands, but Guns N' Roses seemed to understand her pain the most. Plus, Slash was yummy.
"Oh, oh, oh
Sweet child o' mine
Oh, oh, oh, oh
Sweet love of mine
Oh, oh, oh, oh
Sweet child o' mine
Oh, oh, oh, oh
Sweet love of mine!"
Gwen's heart leaped in her chest when she heard someone clap. She spun around, almost slipping on the still wet floor. Standing in the doorway, was a young thirty-something year old man. His hair however, made him look middle-aged, as there were grey streaks everywhere. He gave the shocked teen an award winning smile.
"That was very good, young lady." He said sincerely. Gwen blinked and shook her head.
"N-not really…" She whispered. "I'm…I'm not that good."
"Maybe not, but with some vocal training you could be someone!" The man looked around and wrinkled his nose in disgust. "What's a talented girl like you doing in a place like this? You're way too pretty to be working here." At first Gwen thought he was coming onto her, but when she saw him fondly gazing the wedding ring that he wore she knew she was wrong.
"I…I'm working here for the time being. I…need the money." He wouldn't understand. That Rolex he was wearing told her that. But instead of sneering at her and laughing, like most people would've, he simply nodded and looked her the eye with a smile.
"Well, I guess it's better than working the pole, isn't it?" He chuckled, and the sound was so comforting that Gwen relaxed a bit and let out a small laugh. "Oh, where are my manners? I'm Chris, Chris Mclean. Who are you, if you don't mind me asking?" He held out his hand. Gwen cautiously shook it. Her mother always warned her about strange men before she left for school and she had never heeded these warnings until now. But this guy seemed…okay. A little weird, but if he was going to do something, he would've done it by now.
"I'm Gwen…" No matter how okay he was, there was no way Gwen was giving out her last name. She wasn't stupid…Despite the fact that she was walking home at night.
"Short for Gwendolyn or something?"
"…Yeah. But I hate that name, so I go by Gwen."
"Well Gwen," Chris smiled again. "You've got quite a talent! I know your probably think I'm some creepy pedophile or something, but last time I checked, I only like girls who are legal." Gwen really laughed that time. Chris smile widened at this. "Look kiddo, from what I've gathered you're having money problems, and social problems, if your wardrobe tells me anything. I want to help you. Now I'm not offering money, because I can look at you and tell you're not some charity case, but hear me out. I'm a manager for this major industry. You ever heard of Blaineley?" Gwen's eyes widened.
"Yeah, of course! She's the biggest pop sensation that's ever grown up in New York City!" Sure, Gwen wasn't down with every new musical sensation that came out, and she was a strict rock'n'roll girl, but even she had to admit that Blaineley was a great singer. Chris smiled and showed Gwen his ring.
"Well not only am I her manager, but I'm her husband." He told her. "She's amazing, her voice, her talent, her dedication to her work." He gushed. "You could be the next Blaineley. Or the next Axl Rose. So ya in?"
"Hell yeah!"
"Great! First things first, you're gonna have to get the parental's to sign this here contract." He told her. "Then we're gonna head over to my studio in Cali and whip you into shape!"
"Wait a minute, if you studio's all the way in California, why are you here?"
"Some guys wanted Blaineley to preform here for something or another. I stopped listening when they told me they wouldn't be paying me."
"What if it was for charity?"
"It wasn't. And even if they had said it was, I wouldn't have believed them. They were shady, and I don't do business with shady rich guys anyways. Now I gotta go, wife's waiting for me at home. Here's my card and the contract, call me when everything signed and sorted. See ya, kiddo."
"Bye, Chris…" Gwen started down at the card. It had every ounce of information she needed to search Chris and make sure he was legit. She couldn't believe her luck…How was this even possible? Was this the world's way of cutting her a break, or was something bad going to happen next? Gwen smiled.
"I don't know and I don't care. I just got a pretty good reason to stay home from school!"
Gwen smiled at her manager. She still couldn't believe that one man could make her this famous. She owed him her life and so much more.
Chris noticed her staring and raised an eyebrow.
"What? Kiddo did you…ya know, snort something before you went on stage? You're acting kind of wonky." Gwen burst out laughing and shook her head. "Alright, but you're taking a drug test when we get back to the house, 'kay?"
"Will you hurry up, you ignorant ass? I mean honestly, it doesn't take that long just to bring a cake up the stairs!" A piercing female voice hissed. Chris moaned and rolled his eyes, Gwen gleefully leaped from her seat.
"There's only one person I know who's that bitchy!" She squealed. Not a moment later, in walked her best friend, clad in her favorite sandals, skin-tight shorts and red halter top, waist long black hair pulled back into a ponytail and expensive Loui Vaton sun-glasses resting carefully in her pocket. Her cold, grey eyes scanned the room for the person she wanted to see. Warmth overcame them when they met Gwen's black-colored contacts. The extremely thrilled singer threw her arms out and ran towards the older girl.
"Heather!" Gwen squealed, clutching the back of her friend's shirt tightly. Heather automatically winced, still not used to this type of affection. But she gradually put her arms around Gwen and hugged back. She had missed her, and even the cruel ballet dancer had to admit life was just a bit too lonesome without her friend by her side.
"Hey there, weird goth girl," Heather cooed affectionately. "Were you miserable without me?"
"You already know the answer to that one, Queen Bee."
"Good. You've got no right to be happy while I'm depressed." Gwen pulled away from Heather and smiled at her again.
"So who were you yelling at out there?" She asked curiously.
"Ya know, Heater, you could've given me a hand. Carrying a cake isn't going to break one of your nails."
"Trent!"
"Oh shut it, Trent." The two best friends exclaimed at the same time as said musician came into the room carrying Gwen's three tier cake. He smiled at said girl.
"Miss me, beautiful?"
Do you hate me yet? If you do, don't feel bad. I know what you're thinking: "Heather as Gwen's best friend? Chris as her manager? Are you out of your mind?" The answer to said question, is no, I'm not. I've done this for a reason, but you're going to have to read to find out. I sure as hell hope this is good enough to keep reading, though. I've been having my doubts about it…:\
Enough with my insecurities! If you liked it, review, favorite all that. If you hated it, politely tell me why and instruct me on how to make it better. And for those of you who don't know, the song Gwen was singing in the flashback was the original Guns N' Roses' "Sweet Child O' Mine".