A/N: Howdy! Like I keep saying, the story will end soon, so I need everyone's feedback because I'm still not completely sure how I'm going to close this. After this story, I'm going to work more on my other fics and a possible sequel. So again, thanks so much for your positive feedback and constructive criticism. Y'all are too nice! Luv ya bunches :)
Disclaimer: I don't own anything.
Chapter 30: Stringing Me Along
Gustavo wanted everyone to get in a little more practice before the big show, but Jennifer Knight and Nova insisted that the kids had been working to hard and had to relax. They wouldn't be as likely to mess up. Gustavo surrendered and let everyone have a few hours to themselves. Nova and Mrs. Knight high-fived, having already known women are always right.
Mrs. Knight decided to take Katie to a new movie she'd been "literally dying" to see. Nova decided to go get in touch with her NY roots. Kendall and Jo were going to a small old arcade place Scarlett had pointed out before. Carlos, James, and Sutton were going to explore the Plaza. That left Camille, Logan, and Scarlett.
Scarlett was with Camille in the girls' hotel room, threading a red ribbon through her curls in front of the mirror. Camille watched Scarlett start to tie a knot in the ribbon, smile vaguely, and then shake her head and pull the hair tie out again. She was obviously thinking about Logan.
Scarlett pulled at the strap of her dress and smoothed it out for the millionth time. She was clad in a Union Jack-print dress that hung off one of her shoulders. It was belted with a gold braided band and it halted a couple inches above her knees. It was partly hidden under Logan's cardigan. It was way oversized on Scarlett's tiny frame, but she was in love with it. It smelled like him and it felt like he was holding her when she wore it.
"So when are you going to go on that date?" Camille sighed, fixing a strap on her denim Sweetheart Blue dress. Logan loved it on her.
"In a few minutes," Scarlett replied absentmindedly. Camille huffed and crossed her arms; Scarlett had said the exact same phrase ten minutes before. That meant Camille had exactly ten minutes to flirt with Logan. She stood up and announced she was going to see what Sutton was doing. Scarlett barely registered that Camille had even left the suite.
Camille tiptoed down the hall towards BTR's suite and knocked on the door softly. After some shuffling, the door opened to reveal Logan. His lips curved into a smile when he saw Camille and then peeked down the hall. The coast was clear.
"Come on in," he whispered, opening the door a few more inches. Camille crept into the room and closed the door behind her. Then she wrapped her arms around Logan's neck. His hands were secured on her hips. Camille wasted no time; she went straight for the lips she'd been not-so-secretly eying all day. Their mouths fit together perfectly, like it was meant to be.
Camille backed into a bed accidentally, letting out a squeal as she landed on the comforter. Logan fell right on top of her, smiling goofily. She sat up and arched her neck as Logan planted kisses all over it. She slipped her fingers underneath Logan's button-up shirt and squeezed his shoulder blades.
The door suddenly creaked and Camille and Logan separated, but it was too late. James had witnessed them. His eyes jumped from the guilty method actress to his band mate and former friend. His hands turned to fists and his jaw clenched.
"You son of a bitch." James stormed over to Logan, who had stood up and froze. James swung his arm aimed his punch at Logan's face. Logan ducked and grabbed James' arms so he couldn't hurt anyone (namely himself). Camille had backed to the edge of the bed, watching in fright.
"Don't you dare call me out on this! You kissed Camille and I forgave you," Logan yelled. James faltered; Logan had a point, and a good one at that. He shook his arms free from Logan's grasp and tried to restrain himself.
"Still, how could you cheat on Scarlett? She's, like, a goddess! She's way too good for you!" Logan winced at the last part of James' comment. That was a bit unfair. But maybe it was true.
Camille marched up and jabbed James in the chest with her pointer finger. The height difference was almost laughable, but James almost seemed intimidated. "James, we love each other! I know cheating is wrong, but Scarlett doesn't have as much love in her heart for Logan as me." James just sneered at her.
"You know, Scarlett isn't perfect. Her life just looks that way on the outside. You don't know her, James. You don't know her at all." Logan almost blurted out some secrets about Scarlett, but he decided she deserved her privacy. "She's got a bunch of problems that nobody but me knows about and you just think she's living the life. She isn't, okay!"
James watched Logan inhale and exhale as he finished his screaming. Maybe he didn't know anything about the pop star's life, but at least he wasn't about to break her heart. "If she really had problems, you wouldn't betray her like this and give her even more. That isn't like you at all. And if you do care about her at all, you would tell her that you don't love her. If you don't, I will."
"I was planning to do it this afternoon," Logan said in a small voice. He sounded heartless, and he knew it. "I feel bad, but I realized that I wasn't as comfortable around Camille as I am with Scarlett. Plus, with Camille I'm with someone familiar. I know what's gonna happen. Things could end badly if I stay with Scarlett." Camille ran her hand up and down Logan's back comfortingly.
"And I thought she was going to dump you," James muttered, smiling humorlessly. "Guess I was wrong." James reached to twist the doorknob just as it turned itself. James stepped back to let the person come in. It was Scarlett. She was smiling, so obviously, she'd heard nothing.
She looked great, as usual. Her hair was tied back and her face was glowing. She was bouncing on the heels of her red suede pumps in excitement. There was a chain around her neck that held a fancy skeleton key and an old scratched locket. James wondered what was inside.
"Hi guys…Camille," Scarlett greeted. Camille blanched and formulated an excuse for her presence.
"I was stopped by James in the hallway and we came in here." Scarlett bought the story and stepped around James to get to Logan.
"You ready to go?" she asked, looking eager. Logan gulped and his Adam's apple bobbed up and down. It took all of Logan's strength to scrounge up a smile. He pitied her so much. Scarlett was strong, but she was really fragile at the same time.
"Let's do it," Logan replied. They walked past Camille and James and made their way out of the room. The two of them hurried down to the lobby, where Freight Train was waiting for them. He was in charge of keeping their date on the D.L. He covered the both of them as they ducked into a limo at the curb. The windows were tinted so whoever was in the vehicle could see out, but no one could see in.
Freight Train got into the driver's seat and put his hands in the 10 and 2 position on the steering wheel. "Do you guys want me to pull up the separator?" Scarlett smiled and leaned against Logan's shoulder.
"I thought you'd never ask," she laughed. A dark, tinted sheet of glass slowly came up from the middle of the limousine as Freight Train held down a button. Then they were all alone... for about a second. Freight lowered it back down an inch.
"What's the address?" he asked. Scarlett pulled a piece of paper from her purse with an address scrawled down on it. He observed it for a minute, and then zipped the divider back up. The limo started to move and Scarlett snuggled into her seat.
"So where is it we're going?" Logan asked. Maybe he could plan out how he would break the bad news to Scarlett. Unfortunately, Scarlett made a zipped lips motion and smiled flirtatiously.
"It's a surprise, Logan." Wherever Scarlett had sent Freight Train to drive them to, it certainly wasn't far away. In less than twenty minutes, the car stopped in front of a house painted in a brick red shade. There were a bunch of white-framed windows and a row of steps that led up to a tall, Victorian-style doorway.
Freight Train let Scarlett and Logan out of the car. Logan gaped at the house and Scarlett spread her arms out towards it, like Vanna White. "Welcome to my humble abode." She grabbed Logan hands and pulled him up the front stairs. She unhooked the key around her neck and held it in her palm. It was old and beautifully carved. Her mom and dad had been obsessed with random stuff like that.
She stuck the key into the shaft of the vintage Mortise door knob and pulled it open. Scarlett looked back at Freight Train and told him she'd call if they needed to be picked up. He placed the items Scarlett had packed into the trunk of the limo next to the staircase and took off.
Logan picked up the picnic basket Freight Train had put near the curb and hoisted it over his shoulder. Scarlett took the lightweight items and followed Logan into the house. She inhaled and froze when she saw the inside. Things looked like they'd never changed. Only a few items were rearranged or gone.
Scarlett realized she was still holding her breath and exhaled slowly. Logan wrapped an arm around her, trying to calm her down. Scarlett walked over the corner of the living room, stopping when she approached a massive, blanketed object. She pulled the sheet off by the hem and uncovered a white Steinway piano.
Logan put down his basket and crossed the room, running a hand over the lid of the second-hand baby Grand. He remembered learning to play piano in elementary, but his skills were less than superb. He watched Scarlett carefully lift the piano key cover.
"This piano's been here longer than I've been alive," Scarlett stated, patting the lid of the instrument like an old friend. "My dad had bought it as a present for my mother when they got married. Then he started teaching me to play when I was four." Scarlett's lips curved into a tiny smile. "I could barely reach the pedals."
Outside, Logan looked calm and caring. Inside, he was a nervous wreck. He needed to break up with Scarlett, and soon, but she was making it difficult. She was kind enough to take the place where she'd grown up and she trusted him enough to tell him all about her family and other private stuff no one else knew. Logan felt like the worst person in the universe. His mouth went dry and he swallowed loudly.
"Do you play?" Logan looked up and met Scarlett's gaze. She was staring at him the way Camille used to when the two of them had first started going out. Like he could do no wrong.
"Just a little," Logan answered. He put his index fingers on two keys and started playing "Chopsticks". Scarlett laughed and pushed Logan away from the piano.
"You're unworthy of playing this instrument," Scarlett giggled. She saw Logan was now looking at a framed photograph of her mother sitting next to an empty vase. She lowered her eyes and touched a black key with her pinky. "My mother and I wrote a song with this piano. It was actually more of a chorus, 'cause we never finished it. You wanna hear?"
Logan figured it would be rude to say no, so he nodded. Scarlett tapped on the empty side of her piano bench and Logan sat down. Scarlett put her hands on the keys and closed her eyes in concentration. Then she started to play.
Her fingers flew across the ivory and black keys, making a few mistakes from time to time, but never stopping completely. After the intro, Scarlett's lips parted and she sang a few words:
"There is no upper hand, I'm giving you mine
It doesn't have to end up wasting your time
There's things that I could say, but here in my way
I want to let you know that it's all okay."
Scarlett opened her eyes and looked at her mom's photo for a minute. She could've sworn she saw her wink.
"Shelter my eyes from the sun
And wait for the birds to fly by
Trying to reach every one
And know what you're feeling inside
Deep in my head now, it's like I'm dreaming."
Scarlett ended abruptly, removing her hands from the piano. Her hair had fallen in front of her face, but it was obvious that she was tearing up. She fumbled with the locket hanging from the chain around her neck.
"If you were capable of writing a song like this," Logan said quietly, "Then why do you settle for the shit that Meredith writes?" Scarlett didn't answer. She continued to stare into space as her eyes watered. "I doubt this is the direction your mom would've wanted you to take with your music."
Scarlett's head turned quickly, sending her curls all over. She glared at Logan with scary, narrowed eyes. "You can't assume what my mom would want. You're not her!" Logan held up his hands in surrendered, leaning away from Scarlett.
"I'm sorry," Logan said in a rattled voice. "I didn't mean to upset you." Scarlett's expression softened and she buried her face in her hands.
"I'm sorry I raised my voice," she apologized. "I just don't want to talk about that right now." Her situation with Meredith was... complicated. It wasn't really something anyone was supposed to know about. It was part of her contract.
"Scarlett, you have to talk about it sometime. The issue's not just going to go away!"
"Can we just talk about something else? Please?" Scarlett looked irritated. "I just wanted us to have some fun today." Logan sighed and nodded reluctantly. Scarlett gave a half smile, but her eyes were stormy. "Do you wanna take a tour of the house?"
When Logan said yes, Scarlett took him upstairs. She showed him all of her favorite places: her used-to-be playroom, her mom's songwriting nook, and more. Lastly, she headed to her bedroom. Just like the living room, nothing in her room had been touched either. Her canopy bed was still intact. The dent that Scarlett had made when she'd made the mistake of practicing her hapkido kick on the wall was still there.
Scarlett looked at the photographs facing down on her white pine bureau. The frames looked freshly dusted. Someone really was taking care of the house.
Logan observed the several Marilyn Monroe posters pinned up on Scarlett's walls. Some were black and white while others were in color. She even had a poster of a shot from the Seven Year Itch, where the skirt of her iconic white halter dress flew up under a sewer grate.
"I take it you're a fan of Marilyn," Logan observed. Scarlett shrugged, touching the picture of Marilyn performing "Diamonds Are A Girl's Best Friend".
"My mom got me obsessed with her when I was younger. I started basing everything I did off of her, even her breathy voice." Scarlett closed her eyes, grinning. "Norma Jeane's still one of my favorite movie stars, but I'm not as crazy about her now. Which reminds me…"
Scarlett dug her hand into the purse hanging from her shoulder. She pulled out a crumpled, pale yellow sheet and attempted to smooth it out the best she could. "Meredith gave me this earlier. It's about the wrap party for the music video. I convinced Meredith to make the party my prom. The theme is Old Hollywood in New York." Scarlett reached out and touched Logan's shoulder. She just barely noticed him flinch and assumed it was his adorable shyness. "You can be my date. You could be Joe DiMaggio and I'd be Marilyn Monroe."
Logan's stomach turned and he bit on the inside of his thumb nervously. Hadn't Joe and Marilyn ended tragically?
"So where'd you get the key to the front door?" Logan asked, deliberately changing the subject. He was leaning against the door, slightly hunched over with arms crossed over his chest. He reminded Scarlett of a bad boy from a movie she'd seen a long time ago. The funny thing was that Logan was so not a bad boy.
"My dad gave it to me before I left home for California. He said if I ever wanted to come home, I was welcome. I guess I just never lost it." Logan nodded. He had been picturing Scarlett's dad as a jerk from the little information he had, but now his opinion was changing.
"Well, that was nice of him," Logan offered. Scarlett just shrugged. "So isn't the housekeeper supposed to be here?"
Scarlett grinned wickedly. "The housekeeper only works once a week, and her work day's tomorrow. That's when I'm supposed to go with Meredith, but I wanted to be here first with you and you only." Something sour surged in Logan's stomach.
"Scarlett, I have to tell you something," Logan murmured, rubbing the back of his neck.
"Hold on, I wanna show you something." Scarlett went to the far end of her room and kneeled down next to her carpeted window seat. She undid the gate style latch on the window and pushed the window to the side. "Ta-da!" Scarlett squeezed her tiny body through the opening and land on the small, red cedar deck. Then she gestured for Logan to come out. With no objections, Logan slipped through the window to the deck. His feet landed with a thud! Logan looked around for a flight of stairs, but instead, he found a rope ladder leaning against the wall.
"Ready to go up?" Scarlett asked, her eyes shimmering. She grasped the rope and pulled on it to test the sturdiness. Logan eyed the ladder nervously, tapping his fingers on his thigh.
"Remember when I said I had that fear of heights?" Logan asked. Scarlett just smiled and grabbed his hand. She tugged on it gently.
"Now's your chance to get over it." Logan stepped onto the first rung and squeaked like a mouse. He peered up and saw Scarlett was silently giggling. His mouth dropped open and his eyebrows rose.
"Are you laughing at me?" Logan asked, feigning anger. Scarlett shook her head vigorously, clamping her right hand over her lips.
"No!" But there was no hiding it. Scarlett ripped her palm off of her mouth and burst into laughter.
"My disability is funny to you?" Logan continued, trying not to grin. "You'd better look out. I'm coming up to get you." Scarlett squealed and hurried her way up. She flung herself over the side when she reached the top. Logan followed in suit, completely oblivious of how high up he was.
Logan lifted Scarlett over his shoulder, despite her hysterical pleas and shrieks. He tackled her to the ground and pinned her down. Logan wrapped his fingers around her wrists and made sure her legs were secured. Scarlett breathed heavily, exhausted from running and screaming. Her chest rose and sank, moving Logan up and down.
Logan realized the position he was in and hastily separated himself from her. He wiped his palms on his jeans.
"I'm gonna go grab our picnic basket, 'kay?" Logan darted away, eager to get the hell out of dodge. Scarlett frowned and looked towards the rope ladder Logan had disappeared down with a what-just-happened?-look on her pretty little face.
Instead of dwelling on it, Scarlett just waved it off. She looked over the rooftop for the first time and gasped. There was a gorgeous, lush garden filled with roses, tulips, chrysanthemums, bleeding hearts, and even more flowers that Scarlett couldn't name. When Scarlett had been younger, she and her father had set out to plant a rooftop garden, but it had never happened.
Scarlett got down on her knees and inhaled the sweet smell the flowers gave off. Her eyes smarted with tears as a wave of nostalgia hit her. She rose to her feet and waited until her vision cleared. Scarlett squinted at the flowers again and backed up a couple of steps.
The flowers were arranged in a strange way. Whoever had grown them had tried to spell out something by putting the blooms together by color. Scarlett squinted and eyed the arrangement closely. She gasped when she realized what the flowers spelled out: S-C-A-R-L-E-T-T.
"What's wrong?" Scarlett whirled around to see Logan coming over the edge of the rooftop with a picnic basket.
"Nothing," Scarlett replied. Logan watched her smile vaguely, but he didn't ask. "Do you see anything in the basket you might want?" Logan opened up the top and looked through the basket. He glanced up when Scarlett didn't make a move.
"Don't you want anything?" Logan asked. Scarlett gave him a look and he sighed, remembering Meredith's ban on carbs. "Well, if you can't eat, then I won't." Scarlett looked down at her heels, blushing slightly.
"You don't have to do that, Logan."
"I want to!"
Scarlett's blush got redder and she ran a nervous finger through her hair. Logan was the kind of guy that you could bring home to your dad and be assured that he'd love him. Brett had been the opposite. Scarlett walked towards Logan and sat down next to him.
Logan licked his lips anxiously. Why did he have to be so nice? He had to tell her. And now. "Scarlett, there's something I need to tell you…"
Scarlett turned her head towards Logan, whose normally alabaster complexion was now paler than usual. He pulled at his collar and held his breath. "What's up?" Scarlett pried.
Scarlett's big, green eyes widened with anticipation. Her pale blond eyebrows rose a couple of inches and her glossy lips parted slightly. Her expression was innocent and curious. She was like the child you couldn't say no to. "What is it?"
Logan blurted out the first thing that came to his mind:
"I have to pee."
Scarlett looked confused at first, and then disappointed, like she'd expected something bigger. "You need…to pee," she repeated, saying the words slowly. Logan stood up and bounced up and down on the balls of his feet, making his statement more convincing.
Scarlett sighed and gave Logan the directions to her restroom. She took one good look at the rooftop garden and then followed Logan down to the deck. She went through the window again and laid down on her bed in her room and nuzzled the down-filled pillows.
In the bathroom, Logan put his hands down on the sink area. He looked at his reflection in the mirror on the wall and winced. He was totally red. He violently turned the knob on the faucet all the way around. Water spewed all over, some droplets landing on Logan's jeans and shirt.
"Damn it." He rubbed at the stains, only making it worse. Logan sat down on the bathtub ledge and held his head in his hands. What was he to do?
Logan's head suddenly jerked up. Maybe he didn't have to tell Scarlett right then. He knew it was wrong to string her along, but he just didn't have the guts. He could tell her after the prom. That way, Scarlett would still have had the night of her life before it all went down.
He gathered himself, hoisted his body up, and left the tiny, cramped bathroom. He found Scarlett laying down in her old bed. She looked content.
Her eyes were closed, but she opened them when she heard Logan approaching. She smiled peacefully. She stood up in her heels and grabbed Logan by the collar and pulled him to her. Scarlett was confused when Logan's lips seemed tentative. She pulled away from him and stared into his eyes. Scarlett couldn't read them. She'd never been good at that.
"Are you feeling alright?" Scarlett asked. She ran her fingers over Logan's cheek, causing him to redden.
"Yeah," Logan replied slowly, "Actually, no. I'm starting to feel sick." Scarlett made a noise of sympathy and kissed Logan on the temple.
"Yeah, and I'm kinda tired," Scarlett admitted. "Let's just leave now." Scarlett took Logan's hand in her own and walked him towards the door.
"Are you sure?" Logan asked. Scarlett nodded, but she didn't say anything. Their date had turned out nothing like she had imagined it would. There was no denying it: she was kind of pissed.
Logan told Scarlett he'd call up Freight Train to come pick them up and left the room. Scarlett stood in the doorway, tugging her earlobe. She stared at the closet next to her absentmindedly. It suddenly occurred to her to look in there.
Scarlett pushed it open and peeked inside. There wasn't much, nothing too exciting. The few items hanging on the rack were in black garment bags. There was a shelf on the top and Scarlett noticed the corner of what looked like a box sitting on it.
Scarlett reached up, standing on her toes. She tugged on the edge of the box and gasped when it turned out to be a lot heavier than she'd suspected. The box turned out to be a suitcase.
Scarlett gently brought it down and set it on the carpet. It took her a minute to realize that the suitcase was her own. One of the things she'd forgotten to take with her to California and her dad had forgotten (or just hadn't bothered) to send to her.
Scarlett wondered if anyone else had opened the case. She turned it over to the face with the combination lock on it. Scarlett racked her brain anxiously, trying to conjure up the code. She tried her birthday, her mom's birthday, her dad's birthday, even Nova's birthday. None of the numbers worked. Scarlett cursed and ran her hands through her hair.
She wasn't sure why this suitcase was so important to her, but she was set on finding the combo. After some more failed attempts, Logan called from the living room. Scarlett hurried to the other end of the room and peeked out the window. Freight Train was already pulling up to the curb. How long had she been working on the suitcase?
Logan called again and without a second thought, Scarlett scooped up the suitcase and hid it underneath the picnic basket. Scarlett shook under the combined weight.
She met up with Logan by the front door. He held it open for her and made sure to lock it behind him. Freight Train got out of the vehicle and grabbed Scarlett's load, failing to notice the added baggage.
"How was your date?" Freight Train asked, sliding back into the driver's seat. The separator was pulled up, so he couldn't see the teenagers' forced smiles.
"Great," Scarlett and Logan answered together. Yet neither of them meant it.
A/N: First, sorry for spelling/grammar mistakes. Like I said before, I don't check everything thoroughly. Anyways, as you can see, things aren't going to well between Logie and Scarlett. Do you guys think they should break up? I want your feedback! The next chapter will be up at either the beginning of next week or the end of this week.
