Celebrity Status

Chapter Ten

It had been three days since Ross and Laura had last spoken to each other.

Three days since Laura went over to Ross's house and gotten mad at him for changing her song.

And even though both of them tried to ignore their internal emotions, that 72 hour separation was taking its roll on both of them. They pretend that wasn't true. They kept themselves busy so that they could ignore the fact that they were upset about it.

Ross had spent his time isolated from the rest of his family. He locked himself in his room, only coming down for dinner. And even when he came down for that, he got his food and immediately went upstairs.

His family didn't notice- or rather, they didn't think much of it. It was typical Ross behavior. He'd get upset over something, stay upset about it for a few days and ignore the rest of them, then he'd get over it and move on. It was the cycle of Ross Lynch. The family was too invested in their own personal affairs to worry about Ross and his PMS.

The rest of the siblings sat around the dinner table. Stormie and Mark had left to run to the pharmacy to fill Stormie's prescription. So Riker, Rocky, Ryland, and Rydel sat at the table in silence.

Ryland seemed to ignore the tension filled atmosphere as he scarfed down helping after helping of food.

Rydel scrunches her nose up in disgust at her younger brother's eating habits. She looks down disdainfully at her own food and pushes it around with her fork.

Riker is eating his own food at a slow pace, trying to act as if everything is normal. He observes his younger sibling from across the table and quirks an eyebrow.

"Who are you texting?" Riker inquires. "It's not like you have friends."

Rocky's eyes dart up from his phone screen to the older boy. He flips Riker off and before going back to texting under the table.

"Geez," Riker says, his hands up in surrender. "Someone's in a pissy mood tonight."

Rocky glances up to his brother again with a cold stare, his eyes narrowed and his jaw clenched. He grits out through his teeth, "Fuck you! It's none of your damn business anyways."

This causes Ryland to stop eating. He stares wide eyed at the two of them. He swallows the lump of food in his mouth and then goes back to gaping at them.

Rydel bites down on her bottom lip. Tears prick her eyes. "Please stop, guys," she squeaks out in a small, strained voice. Neither one hears her though.

"Dude what are you getting so upset about?"

Rocky doesnt speak. He doesn't even look at his brother, or anyone. He just stares blankly at his phone screen.

"We're in this mess because of you anyways. If any of us have a reason to be upset, it sure as hell isn't you."

That's all that it takes before Rocky slams his hands down on the table and stands up. "Shut the fuck up! We weren't even talking about that! But, of coarse you had to drag it up again! Because you always have to justify that you're somehow better than me! That you're better than all of us! But, dude, just give it a rest! I know I messed up! Stop rubbing it in my face! Stop blaming me for all your problems!"

"I'm blaming you for all my problems because you're the source of all my problems! You're the source of everyone's problems! You're the reason I'm not happily married right now!" By now, Riker is standing up as well.

"You know I could blame all my problems on you too right? You're the reason my son and girlfriend had to be kicked out of this house!"

Riker is seething with anger. "You're girlfriend was my ex-fiancé. She cheated on me with you and ended up pregnant."

Rocky opens his mouth to retaliate, but before he can, Rydel screams at the top of her lungs.

"STOP IT! BOTH OF YOU! JUST- JUST SHUT UP!" Her shriek rips through the air.

Rocky and Riker remain silent. They both slowly sit down in their chairs and eye their sister carefully.

Rydel is breathing heavily, gripping onto the table with all her strength and tears slip down her porcelain cheeks.

Ryland places a comforting hand on his older sister's arm. "Delly, calm down... it's okay," he whispers assuredly.

Rydel breaks away from his touch and runs upstairs, crying her eyes out.

Riker and Rocky stay quiet as their youngest brother gives them both dirty looks.

Riker avoids his brother's stare while Rocky goes back to texting.

"For god's sake you two..." Ryland grumbles and follows his sister. "Rydel!" He yells after her, following her up the stairs. "Rydel! Wait!"

Rydel runs into her room and falls onto her bed, sobs racking he body. Seconds later, Ryland enters her bedroom. He sighs when he sees the state his sister is in.

"Rydel," Ryland sits down on the bed beside her, "please stop crying."

"H-How can I s-stop crying, when our f-family is being ripped apart?" She cries, barely able to get a word out of her system before she falls to pieces again.

"Our family's gonna be fine, Della. That's just Riker and Rocky being stupid," Ryland assures his older sister.

Rydel sits up, wiping her face free of tears and cradling her knees into her chest. She rests her chin on top of her knees and blows her bangs out of her face. "You don't know that Ryland. Mom and dad are...," she sniffles and swallows down her sobs, "they're getting a divorce." The words leave her lips in a ghostly whisper. Saying it out loud, admitting it was true, it brought a whole new heartache. She was being stabbed in the chest repeatedly and their was no relief. The knife blade burned through her tender flesh like a fire blazing through the open wilderness.

"Oh, damn! It hurts!" She yells and throws herself back on the bed.

Ryland however is skeptical to this newly acquired information. Whether he just refuses to believe it or not, he looks at his sister like she's crazy. "Why would you say that?"

"Ross told me!" She shouts, her words being muffled by the pillow she'd smashed her face into, but Ryland still caught them audibly.

"Ross makes stuff up," he supplies.

"He's not lying RyRy, he saw the divorce papers in dad's coat pocket. Why would he lie about something like this?! Dad's gonna divorce mom and leave us!"

Ryland pauses, trying to come up with the right thing to say. Rydel was sensitive, especially when she was already in such a vulnerable state crying her eyes out. Usually he'd be against the nicknames, but he could let that go now. The truth was though, 'RyRy' had nothing. He wasn't used to being the one Rydel came to in a time of need. He wasn't use to being the one anyone came to in a time of need. Usually Riker would be her go-to brother, he was like her best friend, but he was part of the problem at the moment so obviously that wasn't gonna happen.

Then after Riker, it was usually... Ratliff.

Ryland sighs. If he could somehow teleport Ratliff in Rydel's bedroom to help him out right now, he would, but after everything that went down in L.A., they hadn't heard from Ratliff since before the move back to Littleton.

So, it was RyRy to the rescue this time.

'What would Ratliff do?' He thinks, drawing a blank. He's sick of having to counsel to people. He feels like he's the only one around here who hasn't completely lost it.

"Ross is kind of an attention whore." All that thinking and that's the best he could come up with. "If you hadn't noticed, he's parading around the house nowadays all gloomy because his girlfriend yelled at him."

Rydel doesn't say anything, and it doesn't sound like she's crying either. Maybe she fell asleep? Ryland feels the weight of the bed shift, as his sister turns herself around so she's laying on her back. She pouts and snuggles with her pillow. "I want what they have."

Ryland laughs (though this is hardly the time for it) "What are you talking about?"

"Ross and Laura. I want it. I want what they have."

"They don't really have anything right now. I'm not sure why, but she's pretty pissed at him. They haven't spoken in a couple days."

"Yeah, but they'll make up. They're Ross and Laura. They always do."

Ryland nods in agreement. "She's a keeper, that's for sure. Ross is such a pretentious bitch, who else is gonna put up with him?"

"I want what they have," she repeats, this time more quietly and to herself.

"And you'll get it. Someday. I promise you, Della," Ryland says and genuinely means it. He looks down at his sister and she catches his eye. She smiles warmly at him, sending her thanks.

Rydel subconsciously scratches her wrist, playing with the silver bracelet on it. The one she got for her twentieth birthday. The one a certain brunette drummer had given her.

'I thought I had it in L.A, but I guess I was wrong," she thinks miserably.

"I miss him," Rydel says. He may have been her brothers' best friend, but she was certain he meant more to her than he did to them.

"I know," Ryland responds. "I do too."

…

Laura on the other hand, had chosen to spend her time focusing on her schoolwork. She dove into it, and used it as a distraction from everything else and everyone else.

Her parents never said anything to her. They were glad she was focusing so much on her studies. Her mom didn't know what had happened between Ross and her, and if she did, she never said anything. Which meant she probably didn't know anything.

But her dad was pretty intuitive, and he knew his daughter well.

"If something's bothering you, you're mother and I would like to know about it," he said the other day when she was washing the dishes and he was drying them.

She just shrugged, but refused to look at him. "Nothing's bothering me."

"Well, when you're ready to talk about whatever it is he did," then he gives her that smug smile that father's are so good at, "I'll be here, mia figlia."

Laura rolled her eyes and shot him a look that said 'I have no idea what you're talking about.'

The only other person who had taken notice was Brittany, and Laura may have sort of kind of left out the part about being friends with Ross since she was little.

Because to Laura, he was just Ross Lynch, the goofy guy who either made her smile when she wanted to cry or made her cry when she was trying to smile. He had broken her heart so many times, but he also fixed a few of her broken hearts in his lifetime. He was her best friend.

But to the rest of the world, he was the Ross Lynch. Famous guy in a family band called R5 (*snort* Laura had been there when they were just a garage band with big dreams and lots of talent) who had millions of fans that loved -and were in love with- him. He was a celebrity. He was the an icon. He was on the cover of magazines. He played sold out shows in other countries that Laura could only dream of going to.

In comparison, he was the whole world and Laura was just a little street corner in a small town in Colorado.

He was a household name in houses across the country. She was barely a household name in her own house.

Laura groans in frustration. She throws her 'Public Speaking and Speech Making' textbook on the ground and is about ready to pull her hair out.

"I can't do this anymore!" She shouts. She gets up out of her seat and starts pacing around the room, trying to blow off some steam.

But she knows the best way to blow off steam isn't to pace around the room like a maniac, it's too write a damn song. To let the creative juices start flowing so she can bury her frustration and sorrow into something productive.

She grabs her guitar and sits down on the bed. Laura begins to strum it lightly, the melody draws an easy smile into her face. She feels a release of stress. Is this how people on drugs feel?

"There's no gravity,

When you're next to me

You always break my fall

Like a parachute..."

Laura frowns. Was that all she could write songs about anymore? Stupid Ross Lynch?

"Ugh," she says. "I hate everything!"

Then she begins playing an angry tune on her guitar.

"I hate Ross

I hate Ross

I hate Ross

I really hate that nothing else rhymes with Ross

I hate words

I think I'm at a loss

Have I gotten my message across?"

Honestly, she'd written worse songs.

She puts the guitar down and goes over to the keyboard in her room. Her preferred instrument.

She notices the piece of paper laying on the surface of the keyboard. Her song. The one she'd shown to Ross. The one that he'd changed. The one that stayed untouched since that very day. She didn't even want to look at the damn song. It dispised her. It mocked her. It was just evil. Just purely, purely evil.

"Feeling my way through the darkness

Guided by a beating heart

I can't tell where the journey will end

But I know where it starts

They tell me I am too young to understand

They say I'm caught up in a dream

Life will pass me by if I don't open up my eyes

Well that's fine by me"

She sighs and runs a hand through her brunette tresses. When did life become to complicated? Was this just how it was to grow up? Was she just now starting to grow up? She felt liked she'd been doing a lot of growing up in the past five years.

Why did she suddenly care what people thought? What happened to the Laura that liked to lay low? The tough exterior Laura? Where the hell was that girl? She'd spent all those years building a barricade around her heart, as he seemed to be breaking her yet again.

He made her so mad that she couldn't even think clearly sometimes. They were so different and they always butted heads. It was a wonder they had maintained a friendship all those years.

The one question still remained in her mind though. Why did she care so much? Why was it that he could flash those gorgeous eyes of his and she turned into a puddle of Laura goo? She wasn't a fangirl. She'd known him since they were babies. Even before his celebrity status he'd had the power to do that to her.

But why?

No other guy had been able to charm his way into Laura's heart. She wasn't the type to take bullshit from anyone. What made Ross so different? What made Ross so special?

"When you're holding me

So weightless I can barely breathe

You always break me fall

My fall

Like a parachute"

She sings out quietly, feeling goofy and pathetic. This was so teenage-girlish of her.

"You're my parachute."

Laura bangs her head against the keyboard. It makes a horrid sound when one of the keys comes in contact with her forehead.

"I will not fall in love with him," she tells her, it's a command too. "I will not fall in love with him. I've made it this far and I can't run down that road now."

…

Ding-Dong!

Laura's heart swells up with anxiety. She shouldn't be here. This was all his fault. Why was it that when he was the one who made a mistake, she was the one who ran like a pathetic little girl to apologize? Why did her friendship work that way?

"Laura," Stormie's greeting interrupts Laura's thoughts. The woman is smiling at her, but her eyes are full of pain. She looks like she carries the weight of the world on her shoulders.

"Uh, hi Mrs. Lynch." Laura cringes at her awkwardness. She'd never called her "Mrs. Lynch" before. Always Stormie. After all, the women was like a second mother to her, but she feels like things are different now. Like times have changed.

Stormie shoots her a strange look. "Since when did you get so formal on me?"

Laura ducks her head in embarrassment. "I, uh, I..."

"Come in, sweetheart," Stormie says and ushers her inside. Laura is grateful for the change of subject. Though her relief soon turns to nerves again. "Ross is upstairs. He's been up there all week actually."

Laura bites the inside of her cheek. "Yeah, I guess it was pretty obvious why I came over."

The older women nods. "Pretty much."

"Well," she scratches her arm uncomfortably, "it was nice seeing you again."

"Same to you."

Laura shuffles up the stairs and timidly paces to Ross's room. She doesn't have a plan formed in her mind yet, which maybe she should have done before coming over here in the first place, but her mind wasn't functioning very properly at the moment. All she knew was that she couldn't do this with him anymore. She was desperate for something. Some sign that this was bothering him just as much as it was bothering her. She needed reassurance.

She raps her frail knuckles against the door, but no one answers. The door is parted slightly, so she peaks in through the crack. Impulsively, she pushes the door open and enters the room.

Ross is sprawled out on his bed, asleep and music blasting out of his headphones. Laura giggles at the sight. He resembles a giant compared to his bed. His arms and legs are outstretched and his feet dangle over the edge. A snore escapes her large friend and it scares Laura in the process.

She shakes her head, remembering the reason for her visit. Laura yanks the headphones out of his ears.

"Ross!"

The giant boy is startled, and falls out of bed. A loud thud resonates through the room when he comes in contact with the floor. Laura suppresses the urge to giggle and instead clears her throat, with a stoic expression on her face.

"Damn," Ross says when he finally gets up off the floor. "What the hell was that for?" He glares angrily at the brunette.

"Someone's grumpy in the mornings," she mutters with a smirk itching it's way onto her face.

He snorts. "This coming from the girl who threatened to kill me if I texted her before eleven."

Laura smiles, but then clears her throat again. The expressionless look returns to her face. "None of this playful banter, Mr. Lynch. I came here strictly for business."

"Oh, I'm sorry, did I receptionist not inform you? Mr. Lynch doesn't see anyone without an appointment," Ross teases as he picks up his comforter off the floor and returns it to the bed.

"No, no she did not," Laura plays along.

"Dammit Sophie!" He pretend to bang his hand on an imaginary desk as he curses his imaginary receptionist. "That woman can't do anything right, I swear!"

"Oh, dear, I hope I didn't get your receptionist in trouble?"

He chuckles heartily, a ridiculous over zealous chuckle and shakes his head. "We only keep her around the office for eye candy."

"Okay, seriously, I did come over here for a reason," Laura breaks off their weird improve and composes herself back to a professional state.

"I assumed that reason was that you missed me?" He asks hopefully.

She says nothing, because technically that wasn't untrue. She chooses to ignore his comment and continue with her business proposal.

"You say that you're a performer, an entertainer, a rock star if you will. Is that correct?"

Ross laughs and mocks her tone of voice. "Yes, yes that's correct."

She glares, not finding it funny. "And you say that I am not such a thing. I'm merely a composer. What I lack in flair, I make up for in talent. Is that also correct?"

"I don't think those were the exact words I used..."

"Is that is or that not correct?"

"That is correct."

"Good." She smiles, and this only confuses him further. "Mr. Lynch, I'll be frank with you. I hate your song. I think it's overrated and desperate for attention. I think it tries to hard to be good. And well... It's not my song.

"That's why I don't want to perform it in the talent show. I just can't for the life of me, imagine myself going out on stage and performing that song and people actually believing that that's who I am. Because that's not me. That song does not represent me as a song writer at all."

"Did you only come over here to tell me you hate my song again? Laura, we already cover this. Remember, we had that big fight over it?" Ross says dryly.

"Let me finish, please," she snaps, annoyed that he interrupted.

Ross holds his hands up in surrender. "By all means."

"But on the other hand, I've reevaluated my own song as well, and have come to the conclusion that I don't want to perform that one either."

"So, you're just not gonna perform any song?"

She pinches the bridge of her nose and lets out a deep breath. 'If he interrupts me one more time...' She thinks threateningly.

"I offer a compromise. I think you have a lot of good ideas and definitely know what you're talking about, but I don't think that, independently, you could write a song that I would approve of. I think that if we work together, our work would be something we could both be proud of."

"What is this I hear?" He places his hand on his heart dramatically and furrows his eyebrows comically. "The great Laura "Master Of Melodies" Marano giving up complete creative control to work with me? Do thy ears deceive me?"

"I'll have none of your sass, Shor!" She sticks her tongue out at him.

"Same rules apply to you, Marie!" Then he frowns and adds, "Your nicknames no fun to tease you with."

She laughs. The tension from earlier has dissipated from her body into thin air. The frustration melts away. A sense of easement takes over her whole being. She slides her arms around his waist and hugs him tightly. This is definitely what she needed.

His hands wraps around her back and he brings her closer to him, afraid she'll slip away if he doesn't hold onto her firmly.

"I missed you, Mister." She says quietly, her nose poking his chest.

He laughs, because that height difference sure was something. "I missed you too."

Ross's stomach churns with guilt. "And all that stuff I said..."

"It's okay," she moves away from him to look up at him through her thick lashes. "We both said things we regret."

"You know I don't think you're inadequate, right? I don't think that there's anything wrong with you and you need to be a different person. I wasn't trying to change you."

"I know that."

"Good. Because that's so far from the truth. I respect you so much Laura. As a songwriter and a person. You're one of the most amazing people I know and... and I was just mad that you didn't like my song because I wanted to impress you by writing it."

Laura stares back at him after his confession, unsure of what to say. "That was the sweetest thing ever Ross. Thank you." She encompasses herself in him once again. He's warm and sneers nice, and as this strange -yet not unpleasant- feeling overwhelms the pits of her stomach, she can't help but want to live in this moment for the rest of her life.

She feels safe and protected in his arms.

She feels at peace; at home.

She feels loved.

Laura steps away from him timidly. Ross, unaware of her hesitance, just smiles warmly back at her. Her cheeks blossom with a rosy hue and she bites her bottom lip gently.

This is dangerous territory Miss Marano.

'I will not fall in love with him. I will not fall in love with him. I will not. I will not. I will not.'