Caretaker

By angellwings

Ella finished up the very last stitch on her very last repair of the day. Why were the guys so rough on her beautiful tour wardrobe? She glanced at her watch and groaned. It was 7 PM. How had it gotten so late? She packed up her stuff and pulled out her phone to call security and ask them to send someone over to pick her up. Being on tour meant she had to rely on others for transportation. Just as she was about to dial she heard the distant sound of the piano as it drifted down the hall from the main auditorium. She didn't know that there was anyone else still here.

She walked toward it and found Nate sitting at the grand piano on the stage with his music spread out and a pencil tucked behind his ear.

"Well, hello, Maestro," Ella said teasingly as she approached.

Nate looked up in surprise and then smiled. "Ella, what are you doing here?"

"Finising up the knees in everyone's pants," Ella said with a chuckle. "Rips, tears, stains. What did you guys power slide into? A riding mower?"

Nate chuckled at her. "No. No riding mower. Just a crowd full of hormonal girls."

"What are you still doing here?" Ella asked.

"Working on these arrangements for the album," Nate said with a sigh. "The deadline's closing in and we still have a lot to do."

"I see," Ella said with a nod. "And there's no piano at the hotel."

"Exactly."

"Do you have security here with you?" Ella asked as she glanced around the stage.

"Yeah, somewhere," Nate told her.

"Well, good. Pack up and let's go. I need food and sleep," Ella told him.

"I can't go to bed now," Nate said with a furrowed brow.

"Yes, you can. You just go back to the hotel, lay down on your comfy bed in your nice hotel room, and close your eyes. See? Simple."

He grinned at her in amusement and shook his head. "You knew what I meant."

"Nate, you cannot stay up all night," Ella told him with a sigh. "Last time you did that you were a grumpy zombie who spent the day snapping at me. I'd like to avoid that if at all possible."

"You kept trying to make me take a nap," Nate muttered defensively.

"Because you looked like the walking dead," Ella said. "I just told you that."

Nate chuckled. "I get it, Ella. I do."

"Okay, good. So pack up your stuff and let's go. I'm hungry and you owe me dinner," Ella said as she linked her arm through his and pulled him up from the piano bench. "You need your sleep so you'll be rested for tomorrow night's show."

"Wait, wait, wait. How do I owe you dinner?" Nate said as he quirked a brow at Ella.

"You and your brothers are the reason I was here working so late. You owe me dinner because you made me hand stitch the knees in nine pairs of pants," Ella told him in a flat tone. "I stuck myself numerous times."

Nate chuckled. "Okay, fine. I owe you dinner."

"Okay, then let's go. And don't take this to mean you can stay up all night working in your hotel room," Ella said sternly. "Sleep tonight. At least 6 hours."

Nate smirked at her, and spoke up sarcastically. "Geez, mom, you're so mean."

She smacked his arm. "Do not call me mom. It weirds me out."

The next morning there was a knock on Ella's door and she answered it to find Nate standing on the other side. Her eyes widened in surprise. "Well, hello there."

"Good morning," Nate said brightly. "You were right about getting sleep, by the way. I went to bed early and then woke up early. I was much more productive this morning than I would have been last night."

Ella smiled boastfully at him. "Told you so."

"Yes, you did. Are you ready to go?" Nate asked.

"Definitely," Ella said as she ducked back in her room to grab her massive tote bag. Nate smiled in amusement as he caught sight of the bag and smirked at her as she shut her door.

"You got a big enough bag, Mary Poppins?" Nate asked.

"Oh, please, I wish I had her magic carpet bag. I would carry it everywhere," Ella said with a smirk. "It would come in very handy."

"What all do you need to carry around with you that you need a bag that big?" Nate asked.

"I have anything I might need in this bag, Nathaniel. It's my entire universe," Ella told him. "Shall we go?"

Nate nodded and motioned down the hallway. "After you, Ells."

They got to the venue and the guys immediately headed for their sound check while Ella settled into the floor seats. It wasn't until everyone was in place that they realized they were missing Caitlyn.

"Did anyone see her get into the van this morning?" Jason asked in concern.

"I haven't seen her at all this morning," Shane said with a shrug. "I thought you'd know where she was."

Jason shook his head. "After dinner we finished dinner she headed straight up to her room. She said she needed to work on stuff for the album."

Suddenly the door burst open and Caitlyn came running toward the stage. She threw her bag down, took a sip out of her mug, and then raced onto the stage. Ella noticed Brown watching Caitlyn as she situated herself at the keyboards. Brown was the band's music director for most of the year.

"You're late, Caitlyn," Brown said from the side of the stage.

"I know!" Caitlyn said a little too loudly. "I worked late in the studio last night and lost track of time. But I'm here now, okay? Can we move on?"

Jason's eyebrows rose at her snappy tone. "You okay, Caity?"

"I'm good. I just…I'm late. I'm allowed to be late once right?" Caitlyn asked with a huff. "Can we get this over with?"

"You stayed up all night, didn't you?" Nate asked knowingly.

She rolled her eyes. "I'm a big girl. I can do what I want."

Ella noticed Nate's eyes widened and his eyes landed on her and he smirked deviously. He leaned toward his microphone and spoke, "I just want to say thank you to Ella Pador for making me actually sleep last night or else that—" he paused and pointed teasingly at Caitlyn. "—could be me."

Ella rolled her eyes and chuckled at him before shouting a response at the stage. "You're welcome!"

Jason shook his head and glared at his brother. "Leave her alone, Nate. We're all stressed about the album."

Shane sighed. "Jase, he means no offense. He's just teasing."

"I'm not in the mood for teasing, right now," Caitlyn said with a glare.

"Alright, alright," Brown said. "Let's play through some things now, please."

Ella bit her bottom lip as she looked at Caitlyn. She looked exhausted and yet there was a frantic energy in her eyes that worried Ella. She glanced at the mug Caitlyn had left beside the stage and wondered just how many cups she'd had so far.

Once the sound check ended Caitlyn raced to her travel mug and left the group. Ella brow furrowed as Nate approached her. "Cait was in a hurry."

"You know, Cait, she just has to have her caffeine," Nate said with a smirk.

"She's a little touchy this morning, huh?" Shane asked with a sigh. "One little joke and she gets all crabby."

"Well," Ella said with a shrug. "When she stays up all night she's never the friendliest person."

A group of crew members raced through the door and a flurry of activity picked up in the auditorium. Nate immediately looked at Ella and Shane. "We should head to the warm up room. There's more privacy."

Ella nodded and followed Nate and Shane toward the warm up room. Once they were inside they shut the door behind them.

"So," Shane said as he nudged Ella's shoulder. "You two stayed at the venue late last night." He winked at Ella. "Anything I should know?"

Ella rolled her eyes shoved Shane. "I've never met a guy who gossips as much as you do, Shane."

"Mitchie's not here to find these things out for me. I have to ask these questions myself," Shane said with a grin.

Nate smiled weakly at Ella. He almost looked disappointed. It was like he knew she'd dodged the question on purpose. She didn't mean anything by but how could she answer that? They'd never talked about how they felt about each other. Ella certainly had a strong attraction to him, but she didn't know if he felt the same. There's no way she could have answered Shane without it becoming awkward.

The door to the warm up room opened suddenly and they looked up to see Jason leading Caitlyn to one of the cushy arm chairs. He turned to look at the three of them. "Who's got a snack with them? Something healthy?" He turned back to Caitlyn. "What have you eaten today?"

Ella didn't hear her answer but she remembered something she had in her bag. She fumbled through her bag looking for the snack she knew she had. Finally her fingers grasped the top of a Ziploc bag. She held the bag with the banana in it out to Jason. "Will this work?"

Jason smiled softly at her and nodded. "Perfect."

He sat Caitlyn down and then took the banana from Ella. He peeled it and placed it in Caitlyn's hands. "Eat it. You need it."

Shane gave Ella an amused look. "Why do you have a banana in your purse?"

Ella blushed. "Just in case."

"In case of what?" He asked with a smirk.

"Well, you never know when Nate might need something for his blood sugar so I carry a few items around," Ella said shyly. She'd been around to see Nate with low blood sugar before. It had scared her and she wanted to make sure they were never unprepared for it again. So she carried snacks when she knew she'd be with him.

Nate smiled warmly at her. "You carry that around for me?"

"I also have a Ziploc bag full of Snickers in here," Ella told him shyly.

His smile widened. "You hate Snickers."

"Yes, but…you like them," Ella admitted. She knew they were his favorite. "I just like to be prepared in case you need sugar."

Caitlyn snorted from her seat in the corner. "And she's not just talking about a sweetener."

Ella blushed a deep crimson and tried not to show her embarrassment. Had Caitlyn really just said that? She turned and gave her weak friend a pointed look. "Aren't you supposed to be eating that banana, Missy?"

Jason chose that moment to try and get Caitlyn up and walking. They all watched nervously as Jason got her to lean against him. She was too lightheaded to stand on her own. Both Nate and Shane offered to help them, but Jason insisted they would be fine. He was going to take Caitlyn on a walk and make her drink some water, and then hopefully she'd be fine. Ella watched them go and she couldn't believe neither of them had made a move yet. They were so perfect and Jason cared for her so much.

"If they don't get together after this then there is something seriously wrong with them," Ella said with a sigh.

Nate and Shane chuckled lightly and nodded in agreement.

"Preach it, sister," Shane said with a smirk and a wink. There was a moment of tense silence before Shane pulled his phone out of his pocket. "I'm gonna go call Mitchie. She should be done with her interviews by now."

Shane walked away from them and Ella smiled softly up at Nate. "You think Caitlyn will be okay?"

Nate nodded. "Jase will make sure of it. He'd never let anything happen to her."

"Good," Ella said as she took a deep breath.

"So, you carry around snacks in case I have low blood sugar?" Nate asked with a kind smile.

"Yes," Ella answered reluctantly.

"How long have you done that?" He asked curiously.

She cleared her throat and looked down on the floor. "Do you remember about four years ago, at camp, you and I were helping set up for Beach Jam and you suddenly got really weak and pale and you—"

"I passed out. I remember. I was stupid and skipped lunch that day. My blood sugar dropped and there was no one around with any sort of snacks and there was no time to get to the mess hall. Yes, I definitely remember," He said with a nod.

"Yes, well, it scared me, and I was determined that I would never let that happen again. Seeing you like that and not being able to help you," Ella said as she allowed her sentence to trail off. "It scared me. I mean, terrified me more than anything else that's ever happened to me. So I started carrying snacks whenever I knew we were going to hang out. Just in case."

Nate's brow furrowed. "I'd never thought about—It never occurred to me that you would have been affected like that, Ells."

She took a shaky breath as she remembered. "It did. But it's okay, I'm more prepared now."

Nate stepped forward and pulled her into his arms for a hug. Ella was always so thoughtful and sweet. She gave so much to other people and so many times it was taken for granted simply because they'd all grown accustomed to it. He felt Ella's arms hesitantly wrap around his chest and he smiled softly as she rested her cheek against his shoulder. "You know, I just realized something."

Neither of them pulled away as their conversation continued. They just kept holding each other.

"What?" Ella asked.

"You take care of everyone around you, Ella."

She gulped and nodded. She was well aware of that. She couldn't help it. It was a habit she'd picked up in childhood. There was silence and Ella could practically hear Nate thinking. Finally he spoke up again.

"But…who takes care of you?" Nate asked curiously.

Ella had no idea how to answer that. Occasionally her parents took care of her. Growing up her brother definitely took care of her. But as an adult? She took care of herself. And she was satisfied with that. Or she thought she was. She never really dwelled on it that much. "I—I don't know."

"Well, then maybe somebody should," Nate said softly as he leaned toward her ear. "And maybe that somebody…could be me?"

Ella smiled and flushed a pretty shade of pink. She pulled back to look at him and sighed happily. "And how do you plan to do that?"

"I thought I'd start with dinner and a movie if that's okay with you?" Nate asked with a grin.

"That's more than okay, Nathaniel," Ella told him. "I would love that." Ella smirked and gave Nate a teasing look. "So, does this mean you're going to start carrying around a huge bag full of things I might need throughout the day?"

Nate laughed. "No, I don't think so."

"Darn," Ella said with a grin. "That would have made for some truly hilarious photos. Nate and his man-purse."

Nate shook his head and spoke up sarcastically. "Yeah, it's too bad you won't be able to supply Caitlyn with blackmail. I know she enjoys holding things over my head."

Ella laughed. "I wouldn't let her do that to you."

"No?"

"No, sweetie, I'd just black mail you myself. A girl can get a lot of good things out of it," Ella said with a teasing wink.

Nate laughed and shook his head. "I think I've yet to discover just how evil you are, Ella Pador."