A few days later she was packed and ready to go. Staff at ACS were ready to handle everything while their boss was gone. They threw a farewell party for her, even though she said she'd be back. She wasn't quitting ACS and would check in occasionally from afar but would be back every few months to run things and bring it back up to speed, just like she did when she had school, except the breaks would be shorter and the absences would be longer. She didn't tell many people where or why she was leaving but she assured them everything was fine. Liam, Aaron, Sam and Heather, her closest friends knew though but promised to keep it under wraps. If all went well, eventually she would make headlines anyway.
Back at home, the time came to take off. Her parents drove her to the airport, saddened their little girl was leaving, but proud and totally willing to let her have this. She brought a lot of stuff with her, but at the same time not enough. She left her beloved pets behind, unable to take them with her but she did take some other personal items. Sharing the backseat, was Carlos' dog Bullet. He was a happy, rehabilitated and well behaved dog now. He wasn't quite perfect and he still had some quirks but he'd be the perfect bus mate for everyone now.
Carlos went through all this trouble for her and she was going to surprise him with his best doggy pal. James would be the first to know though, he was meeting her at the CT airport to ride over with her, just some company on the long trip to California. The guys were coming back from a quick promotional tour in Germany and James took a different plane to meet her in her hometown. The others would be waiting in Cali.
The flight was long and the time zones made it longer, she slept a good portion of the way, waking up 2 hours before they landed to find James asleep next to her. He was sitting up but his head lay peacefully to the side, his arms were crossed and legs apart. He was so cute as he slept, she couldn't help but snap a couple pics. She was still star struck to be perfectly honest but she tried super hard not to tick them off and at the same time try to fit in.
She pulled out her computer to do some work, typing up a story to go along with her adventures so far, like a diary for herself. When she finished she checked her email and face book before uploading the pictures she snapped of James moments ago. She was quiet but couldn't help to smile at the pictures she took as she saved them to a pass word protected area of her computer.
"He's a good looking guy." she heard James say sleepily. She looked to him, completely embarrassed and scared that she was in so much trouble. "Relax, I'm not mad. I'm used to all sorts of pictures floating around. Besides, you got my good side." he smiled, half asleep.
He his head bobbed back over to the window before Katie could respond. He was still smiling but it faded quickly as he fell back asleep. The plane soon landed and Katie gently nudged him awake. It took a little bit but she didn't want to hit or shove him. He stretched and was a little grumpy and groggy but he grabbed his bag and left the plane, Katie right behind him.
In the airport terminal he began to wake up and was more friendly, apologizing for his grumpy self. Katie had never flown before at all so she had no idea how an airport worked. James showed her the ropes by doing everything and luckily their bags didn't get lost. She grabbed her luggage off the baggage carousel, the one thing she did know and then headed to large baggage and live animal claim to pick up Bullet who was rather agitated on his way out of the chute but soon calmed himself seeing the familiar faces. It wasn't long, as they started wheeling all their belongings out, when 3 familiar goof balls started to create an uproar as they ran through the terminal, running late due to traffic.
"Katie!" Carlos yelled as he tackled her. Laden with baggage she and him both crashed to the floor with a thud.
"Ow!" she moaned. Carlos quickly got off her and helped her to her feet, Logan helping out.
"Carlos, man, be careful!" he chastised but in a friendly way
"I'm so sorry Katie! I'm just so glad you're here. Are you alright?!"
"I think so, I hit my arm on the cage on the way down but I'm fine."
"Cage?" Carlos said curiously.
"Stay quiet about it, don't get excited or worked up." she warned before pulling back the blanket covering Bullet's cage.
Bullet was laying down peacefully, well aware of his surroundings and lifted his head to see what was going on. He wagged his tail lightly at the sight of Katie and turned to see Carlos and Bullet got up to a sitting position. Carlos knelt down to the cage and put his hand up to the bars and Bullet licked him furiously. Carlos was so happy to see his dog but as Katie instructed he made it short and sweet. The guys helped Katie load up her things into the car before driving to Kendall's place, where she would be staying.
At Kendall's house, Katie let Bullet out where he played gently with Kendall's pets and James' dog Pepper. The guy's were amazed at Bullet's transformation in such a short amount of time. It had been just over a month and yet, despite Bullet's long list of behavior problems, he was like a brand new dog. Katie gave all the guys a quick over view of how to act and handle Bullet or any dog they might come across.
"Bullet's training needs to be continued. He's learned all he needs to know but it's up to you to see it through. He will revert back to his original behaviors if you don't stay consistent and firm. He's not going to do what he is supposed to if you don't make him do it or praise him for doing it." she explained. Carlos got the full lesson later on as she explained her notes and instructions. She watched him practice handling and being around Bullet and corrected any problem areas but he picked it up quickly.
"I cant wait to take Bullet on the road again. I can take him right?" he asked.
"Sure. I suggest keeping him in a cage at night or when you cant be around For a few more weeks or months. He's not going to mind being in the cage at all, most dogs actually like to have a quiet space all their own. Just be sure to often invade his space otherwise he will be come dominant over it and we don't want that." she explained.
With the lessons done and Bullet safe and sound and Katie's things inside her knew room ready to be unpacked it was time to leave. Katie assumed that she'd have the rest of the day to herself, just coming off a plane and all but nope, she had other things to do as Kendall, James and Logan brought her to Roque Records to get right into discussions with Griffin and Gustavo. Carlos went home to drop off Bullet and would meet up with them later.
The guys were going to be her support and also kind of like her lawyers. Katie knew quite a bit about law but the guys had been in the entertainment business for a while now and knew what to ask for. Katie had a few things she'd like to add but she didn't want to sound greedy so she waited to see what she would be offered and then ask for what she wanted and see where it went. Gustavo didn't want the guys and Katie in the building together for several reasons, for starters he was concerned about distractions and 2nd he was only 1 person and wouldn't be able to devote time to the 2 artists at once.
Although they wouldn't see each other when working, they could spend all the time in the world together on their days off which was 1-2 days per week depending on deadlines when not touring. When touring, their free time were days when a show or media interview was not scheduled. Katie was granted extended vacations twice a year to check in on things back home, however transportation would not be provided by the record studio. Katie wrapped up her contract signing, content with all the agreements and signed at the bottom. The guys cheered and hugged her and she couldn't help but scream in excitement. Gustavo and griffin let them have their moment before giving them all orders for a bright and early start tomorrow and the rest of the day off today.
Katie really wasn't used to getting up early at all, she usually arrived at ACS between 9-12 depending on what she had to do. Most of the time she didn't arrive until at least 10, so getting up at 6 was hard. She made sure she was up and ready well before hand and arrived at Roque Records so early she had to use her key pass to get into the building. The office was dark so she just sat and waited in the lobby, turning on just the lamp beside her.
It was a while before Gustavo arrived, he was running late himself. Katie had fallen asleep after waiting for about 45 minutes. She tried hard to stay awake, knowing he would be there any minute but she lost that battle as her eyes got heavy. He was surprised at Katie's early and seemingly eager arrival, and although he would tear into the guys about being lazy if they fell asleep, he just sighed calmly and let her sleep for a bit. He wasn't quite ready to start his day yet anyway, so what was the harm?
Something about Katie made Gustavo more easy going. He was never the 'monster' or 'drill sergeant' the guys pegged him out to be, at least not to her. He was always nice, patient and at least trying to understand her. Maybe it was because she was so willing to learn and follow directions or it could have been her gentle smile and calming aura. Either way, no one had the guts to be mean to her, she didn't deserve it, ever, not like anyone could be mean to her. She was always willing to help out, do what she was supposed to and was so down to earth that even when she agreed to being a star, she still treated the guys like gods.
Katie woke up about 2 hours later; Gustavo had been there for about an hour and was talking with Kelly. She was a bit dazed at her knew surroundings but quickly remembered where she was and got up. She got tangled for a second in a blanket that she didn't remember using. She heard Gustavo and Kelly talking in Gustavo's office but she couldn't hear what they were saying. She was worried that it was about her and her display of falling asleep when she should have been ready to work. Her commotion was a little louder then she thought because Kelly came out and greeted her.
"Good Morning Katie, ready to start your day?" she said with a smile.
"I am so sorry! I didn't mean to fall asleep! I woke up at 6 and I'm not used to that I got here as soon as I could and I was waiting for Mr. Roque and I dozed off, please forgive me!" she apologized.
"It's ok, calm down. We aren't mad, not at all, I convinced Gustavo to let you sleep a bit more since you looked so exhausted."
"And you can call me Gustavo." Gustavo said coming out of his office. "Let's get started on your lessons."
"Yes sir, Mr. Roq- I mean, Gustavo!" she said following him quickly.
She did everything he asked and more, always asking for feedback but not always taking a back seat in the process. Gustavo usually liked to run the show but he was more willing to let her take the wheel every now and then due to her success already as well as having had good results with Big Time Rush.
For months it was the same process until it was time for her debut. She was nervous, she had never done a live performance. Even when she did live Q and A's, she usually skimmed over requests to sing or dance to fan favorites. She wasn't sure she was ready for this but she was willing to give it a go. She wanted to prove herself and make a name for herself. She didn't want to be pegged as useless anymore or take all the other bullying she had dealt with so far in life, it was time for her to stand up to everyone who tried to bring her down and prove them wrong. She was alone in this endeavor though, her parents were at home, and she hadn't talked to them in days, weeks even although her phone was riddled with missed calls from them. She just didn't have time to answer the calls or talk to anyone during all her rehearsals.
The guys weren't even here and that's what really hurt. She asked Gustavo why and expressed her concern but he told her that it was his choice.
"Its best if you start off cold turkey. If you have people you know and love watching you, you're not going to learn to do this on your own. They arent always going to be able to be at every show so this is for the best. Just take a deep breath, get out there and work your magic. Pretend that it's just a camera." He lectured, trying to sound motivating but really sounding a tad heartless.
Katie's heart sank and as much as she wanted to do this, she just felt like something was holding her back. She was stuck between 2 emotions and eventually had a panic attack 10 minutes before show time. The show was post poned temporarily as Katie quieted down and paramedics were called in to see if she would be ok. They gave her a calming agent to just relax her and in an hour she'd be back to her old self. If fans were willing to wait, Katie was willing to perform.
After only 30 minutes she was starting to feel less spacey but she took the full hour, even an extra 10 minutes before she gained her composure and ran onto the stage ready to party and have a good time. She was met with screams and she took a quick glimpse out to the crowd, complimenting a person holding a poster that caught her eye: Katie's name in big green glitter letters, her favorite color. She started off with some innocent banter to get the crowd going as she tried to get comfortable on stage.
"This is so much different then singing and dancing in front of a camera. I may have several people watching me but they see me after all the effects and editing and plus I don't have to see their reaction. I am so nervous tonight so bear with me and my nervousness as well as any stupid jokes I say." She said calmly, sitting on one of the speaker stacks sipping some water. She continued as the band warmed up a bit and then she gave the signal to begin and she took a deep breath during the first chords. The time was now, there was no turning back.
She belt out all the lyrics on time and in harmony as she started off a little shaky in her gut and even her legs felt numb but getting into it, she focused on the melody and lyrics as she moved across the stage and it all went away. The song ended and she sighed, glad that it was over. She began to shake again but the deafening round of applause caught her off guard and she couldn't help but shed a tear as her life began it's new chapter in a better direction.