.:Chapter Fifteen:.

"Now, Katie, do you have an idea of why we're meeting here today?"

Katie lifted an eyebrow. "Because I'm forced to be here and you're getting paid the big bucks to try and pry into my head and figure out what's wrong with me," she replied sarcastically. Then a thought came to mind, and she leaned forward, looking her new therapist up and down. "How much do you make in an hour? Like $100? $200?"

Marnie Williams laughed lightly. "I don't make that much, but I think we all wish we could."

"So how much do you make then?" Katie crossed her knees the other way, glancing around the eerily sterile office. Weren't there supposed to be degrees or pictures of cats and vases filled with flowers all around the room? There was nothing on the walls except a few pictures—or paintings—of mountains and a cabin. She stretched over to try and see Marnie's desk.

Any pictures of family?

What was a therapist's family like?

"I make around $30 an hour," Marnie replied, still smiling gently at her. Her face screwed up as she thought. "Though I think it's time for me to raise my prices a little bit. I've been working very had lately. There seems to be a lot of Hollywood Fever going around."

Katie's eyebrows rose. "You know about that?"

A light snort escaped Marnie. Even a light roll of her eyes. "Hollywood Fever isn't just homesickness, it's a bit of a compulsion. I've seen people come out here and get completely changed by everything that they think LA and Hollywood is supposed to be." She shrugged. "It just means you have to be really careful of who you let into your life and who influences you."

"Yeah, I guess," Katie agreed.

"Do you think Regular influenced you in any way?"

Katie rolled her eyes at that. What did Marnie think? That she was just going to immediately turn over and say how things for her went downhill the moment she started talking to Regular? Honestly, it was probably the truth, it was when she started to hide things and act differently and push her friends away. When was the last time she hung out with her friends and actually had a good time? Didn't have to turn to her phone every few seconds?

"That was smooth," she said sarcastically. "Is there any other way you get people to talk?" Katie folded her arms, leaning back in her seat. "Just blindside them and make them feel like idiots?"

"I don't mean to make you feel like an idiot," Marnie said, still calmly watching Katie closely. "I never want any of my clients to feel like idiots." She lifted a finger. "Notice how I said client and not patient. I don't think people are patients, I think they're clients sine we're in a partnership to help everyone."

"It's not a partnership when you're forced to be here," Katie pointed out. She shook her head. "I don't think I'd be here if I wasn't forced to."

"You have a thing against therapists?"

"No, my boyfriend goes to one." Katie paused, lowering her gaze. She still hoped she had a boyfriend. Things seemed to be okay now. They hadn't said anything about breaking up, and he'd been really nice lately. Maybe a bit too nice. But neither of them knew what they were doing. "It helps him a lot."

"You have a boyfriend?" Manie seemed to be writing things down without writing them down. Mentally keeping track of everything. Nevertheless, she kept her eyes on Katie as they conversed.

"Yeah, his name's Patrick." Katie rolled her eyes lightly. "He's a goofball, but I…" she stopped, suddenly unable to say she loved him. That was weird. She'd said it to him before. It had been a big deal when she did. They'd kinda spit it out at the same time, talking in circles around it until finally came out. Where they then giggled like little kids, unable to say it again until a few weeks after. "I like him a lot."

"How long have you been together?"

She had to think about it for a minute. Had it been that long? "A little over a year, maybe two."

"He must be a good sense of support for you."

"He tries. Sometimes he gets busy, he's in a band and it takes up a lot of time. But I've been busy, too, with my auditions and school and stuff."

"That's right! You just had a graduation! Congrats, that's always a big feat!"

Katie shrugged. She never felt things like that were really important. Her mom made a big deal about her middle school graduation, too and that was nothing. She just finished eighth grade, who cared? She was just moving to another grade level. What was so great about that? And now, she got a high school diploma. So what? It's what everyone did at one point, or another. Whether they got their high school diploma or a GED everyone got it.

Why was everything always a big deal when she did it?

"Thanks, I guess," she said.

Marnie looked at her curiously. She was silent for a moment then dropped her hands into her lap, mimicking Katie's stance. She took in a deep beath, looked at the clock propped p on her desk, then looked at Katie once more. "Something tells me that you downplay your achievements a lot…" she trailed off then tapped the side of her leg. "No, you feel that they're downplayed. Your brother is in a band, too, from what I've heard. That must be hard to live with."

Katie rolled her eyes again. "Try living with a bunch of muscle-bound hockey heads who are in a band. I have to deal with both of it, and these idiots are always getting into something and it's so annoying!" She clenched her hands into claws and found a sense of relief with the exposition that exploded from her. "Do you know what it's like to live with a bunch of boys who are idiots?"

"Unfortunately, no, I don't have any brothers." Marnie laughed. "But it seems to be something you enjoy if it's not what you've been trying to get away from."

"Yeah, I love these guys, they're just…"

"…Idiots?"

Katie laughed. "Yeah."

"Were they still idiots when they were hockey players? Playing their games all over Minnesota?"

"I think all the knocks to their head from the games is what made them idiots, honestly," Katie said, still laughing a little. "Or else they would actually start to make some good decisions. The only good choice they've made, so far, is deciding to do this band. It's brought a lot of cool stuff for us…" Katie lowered her gaze. "The money's good, too. Mom used to be so stressed all the time, wondering what she was going to do to get food on our table, if our lights were going to stay on."

"I can understand that" Marnie said. "My mom was a single mom, too. My father left us when I was young."

Katie lifted her gaze, hearing the way Manie said 'father' and not 'dad', like Katie called her own dad. There always seemed to be a distinct difference in that. Especially in the way she referred to their dad and the way Kendall did, with nothing but malice. Kendall always said he'd understood why she wanted to try and keep her relationship with her dad, but she didn't think he really did.

They didn't argue about it a lot but…

"Why don't you tell me about your childhood?"

"I just did," Katie said evasively. "Me and my brother, dad left, single mom, nothing but hockey games."

"That must've been hard for you."

"Not really." Katie shrugged. "I like going to his games. Watching the guys play hockey is really fun."

"But it must have been hard to have to constantly be taken around to those games. To consistently have your own life and what you wanted to do to be pushed to the side so that Kendall could do what he did. I'll admit I looked him up a little, he's an amazing hockey player. He could've gone to the All-Star team, maybe be able to get into the NHL if that's the focus he really wants to make it."

"Make him decide between the two loves of his life?" Katie snorted. "Good luck with that."

"What would you do?"

Katie blinked, taken aback. "What do you mean?"

"If you have to choose between two things you loved? Or rather, let me be more specific." Marnie's face turned from friendly to serious. She leaned forward to look Katie in the eye, to hold her gaze. "You say you love your boyfriend, Patrick, but you were also saying that you loved Regular as well." Katie opened her mouth to protest. "I'm not saying that you can't have a platonic relationship with Regular and that you don't love him in that way, but the way you've reacted to things with him, it seems that you were starting to fall for him. And it makes me wonder what it was that you weren't getting out of your relationship with Patrick that you needed to find in Regular."

Katie pressed her lips together once more. Unsure of how to answer. She wasn't sure how to answer the question, honestly. There wasn't really anything that had him stand out from everyone else except…that he hadn't treated her like she was a celebrity. Patrick didn't either. Lizzie didn't either. No one around her did. So what was it that he'd done that…Reaching up a hand, Katie ran it through her hair, letting out a hard sigh. She didn't want to talk about it anymore.

She didn't even want to be there! It was forced on her from her mom, from the police, wanting to make sure that she was mentally okay. God, she hated what they were doing to her. She broke down and apologized, wasn't that enough? Was anything ever going to be enough? How much more did she need to do to get everyone to just…treat her like Katie again?

Marnie seemed to give her a break. She looked at the clock again and removed her legs from the crossed position it was in and started to set her things aside. "I think that's a good introduction for things today. I'm really excited to get to know you better, Katie." She stood, offering her hand toward the young teen, who stood and hesitantly shook it. Looked at Marnie with suspicion as she shook her hand. Marnie laughed. "Don't worry, I'm not going to bite. I know this isn't something you chose to do, and if it's something you want to stop…I think we should get at least one more session and then see how you feel, because you never really know after one."

Katie nodded quietly. "Okay," she said. Hesitated. "I guess I'll see you next week." She went to the door and frowned. Mixed. Confused. She had a good time and yet…she hated it. She hated the way the Detective told her mom it would be a good idea if she went, hated how quickly her mom agreed. Could hear it in the hushed tones over the numerous phone calls that she continued to make.

Sometimes, she could hear her fighting with her dad over the phone, each resulting in blaming each other without actually blaming each other as the conversation went on. Katie simply sat on her bed, reading, or mediating, trying to figure out what to do since she was banned from her phone and computer. She didn't realize how far she'd gone from her usual comforts with how much she enjoyed talking to Regular.

Maybe that's the point they're trying to make, Katie thought as she headed back to the Palm Woods. That you don't know how far you're into something until you're stuck. Like the boys not knowing what they were getting themselves into when it came to starting up a boyband. They joked around and goofed off at the beginning, thinking it was going to be a fun ride. Then they understood all the hardships that went into it and got a harsh reality check. Maybe this is your reality check. There's something you're missing in life and you don't know what it is.

That question had thrown her off-guard. What was it she wasn't getting out of her relationship with Patrick that she needed to get it from Regular? Yeah, she could have other friends, that was never a problem. Yes, there was a moment of jealousy that struck her when she saw how close Patrick and Lizzie were. To know that he mostly had girls had friends. But Lizzie—and Kendall, and James, and Carlos, and Logan, and her mom—pointed out that he had chosen to date her despite having other girls around him and it meant something.

What was it that she wasn't getting out of her relationship with her mom, with her brother, with the guys, with her friends, that made her rely so heavily on Regular to talk to him so much? To allow herself to trust him so blindly so that she would…take a picture of herself like that. She hadn't even gone that far with her own boyfriend. But took a topless picture for a guy she'd never met because he said he loved her?

Shame filled Katie once more, once again followed by a wave of curiosity, wondering what Regular was doing at the moment. If he was still trying to contact her. Trying to find ways to talk to her. She was a pendulum, going back in forth between what she knew wasn't good for her and what was good for her. But who was to say what was and wasn't good for her other than her?

Wasn't she old enough to handle that yet? She'd just graduated from high school, didn't she?

Katie strolled into the Palm Woods, keeping her gaze straight ahead as she always did. People still looked at her. Whispered. Gave pitying looks. Thankfully, Victoria was out of the country or else she knew the Palm Woods Popular Girl would've made her life a living hell. Maybe it was good Katie didn't have her phone, Victoria was probably doing everything she could to slander her online as well. Let alone everyone she didn't know. She couldn't imagine what her fans or even her brother's fans were saying.

And the production of the TV show hadn't said anything yet…things had grown silent since the news broke, since the scandal—as Gustavo and Kelly were referring to it—had broken out.

"Are you ever going to come back into this place and not bring down the mood?" Bitters drawled as she walked by the front desk. She turned toward him and he shook his head, chin resting in his hand, looking her up and down. "It makes me want to off myself."

"I don't know, maybe the Palm Woods would be better without you here," Katie shot back, mimicking his tone. The side of his mouth turned up for a half second, something shooting through his eyes, before it disappeared into a neutral expression. "Are we still doing our Poker Game today? I just got back from something I want to forget and winning your money will definitely do that for me."

"Yup, got a whole new deck and everything," Bitters replied. He pushed himself away from the desk, tapping his hands on top of it, as if nervous. He looked around the quiet, empty lobby. There were a few people nearby, the Jennifers reading scripts in the corner, but no one needing his attention. "You want to see em'?"

"Why, so I can make sure it's not a stacked deck?" Katie asked sarcastically.

Bitters held up his hands. "It only happened once. I don't want you to go running around saying I'm a cheat. It'll ruin my credibility." Katie folded her arms, raising an eyebrow. "Okay, so I don't have a lot of credibility, but that's what you're for! Besides, I think you'll like this one."

"Fine. But I only have a minute," Katie said. "My mom's been watching my every move lately and knows how long it takes me to get from the bust stop back to the crib."

Bitters waved his hand. "Trust me. If I need to talk to her, I can talk to her." He waved a hand, indicating her to follow him, not before looking around the lobby once more.

Katie snored once more, following Bitters into his office. Something didn't sit right with her about the way he'd said that, though. She knew her mom was a momma bear, there was almost no chance of Bitters getting away with anything, or even speaking to her rudely. He was being a bit more confident than usual. He must really think he's going to win that game, today, Katie thought. She folded her arms, tapping her fingers against her elbows, glancing around the office.

She'd never been in it by herself before; usually the rest of the Housekeeping Staff were with them. It was…eerie, being in someone else's space when it was just the two of them. Some sort of weird tension that she couldn't quite put her finger on.

"You…uh…want something to drink?" Bitters asked, shuffling through the office, cleaning it up a little. Katie eyed the mini-fridge behind the desk and shook her head. Bitters continued to move around, quickly cleaning up little piles of trash. "Sorry it's a mess in here."

"You don't know mess until you live with four boys," Katie said. She dropped her hands and clapped her hands together. "So, where are these cards? They have to be special if you've got an entire new thing."

"Oh, like you don't use different decks?"

"No, I just use my lucky deck." Katie smirked. "It's made me win against you more times than I can count."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah…" Bitters waved his hand. He pushed his glasses up his nose and continued to clean. He put a hand up to his head, scratching at his hairline. "I know I have it around here somewhere. I had to hide it the last time mother came by; she doesn't know about my gambling." He rolled his eyes, still moving back and forth.

Almost as if he were nervous about something.

"Yeah, there seem to be a lot of secrets going around," Katie murmured. She took a step back when Bitters brushed by her. Suddenly unsure of herself, of even being in the room with him. It was weird, she kept feeling…something from his nervous energy. Something that seemed so familiar, that she couldn't quite put her finger on.

Suddenly, an image of Patrick came to mind, and she had absolutely no idea why.

Or maybe she did…

"You said you were coming from somewhere?"

"Yeah, I just had a therapy appointment." Bitters stopped his movements and gave her a funny look. "Yeah, they think something's wrong with me because of what happened. That I was trying to find something in this Regular guy that Patrick couldn't give me. Whatever…" her voice trailed off, sensing she'd said something wrong. Her stomach churned. "I don't know."

She started to take a few steps back, moving her hand behind her to reach for the doorknob. She didn't have to move far, just a few half-steps, the office wasn't that big. She was surprised there was any space left with the two of them in there. He was a larger guy, she was a tiny girl…if he wanted to…

Bitters shrugged. "Maybe they're right. Your boyfriend's just a stupid boy," Bitters said with a wave of his hand. "He doesn't get it. Plenty of people could treat you better. You deserve it."

Katie's hand froze on the doorknob. She replayed the words in her heads, what Bitters had just said to her. How familiar it seemed. How familiar he seemed. An icy cold wave washed over her, rooting her to the floor. Her eyes slowly, so slowly shifted toward the picture that hung on the wall next to the door, that'd caught her attention—and she hadn't realized it had—when she first entered the office.

A picture of a younger Bitters with his mom, a young guy with a square head, square shaped jaw, a half-smile…if it were blurred out and grainy…as if it were sent to someone, trying to cover the real age of the person in the picture.

As if she would react badly if she truly knew who he was.

Katie slowly turned her gaze back, looked Bitters in the eye, realizing she'd finally gotten her wish.

She was meeting Regular face to face.

A/N: So, how many people guessed it was Bitters?

Cheers,

-Riles