Rock Star Life
By: Karilicious123
Chapter 3:
Peyton and Mia both arrived at Peyton and Lucas's house at about the same time, Mia feeling embarassed for making, what seemed like, a big deal out of nothing simply because she backed out of telling the real truth, and Peyton feeling curious and as if something big was going on and it was her mission to find out what, exactly.
"Hey," Peyton said opening the door for Mia and herself, "Well, here it is. Let me show you your room." Then, Peyton led Mia to their guest bedroom.
Stunned by the beautiful deep, scarlet red walls, chiffon curtain, and a beautiful, cream, quilted blanket on a beautiful deep, black wooden bed, all Mia could say was "Wow". Since Mia's mother had been in her own world since Mia was 9 years old, she had never had a really pretty bedroom since she was a baby in her nursery. Mia had told herself while she was on tour, that she would redo her room with the money she made from all of her success, once she returned. Fate, however, had other plans, I guess.
"Make yourself at home, Mia." Peyton said with a smile, as she left Mia to unpack.
Just as Peyton entered the living room, she heard Lucas come in from the backyard.
"Hey Babe !" Peyton cooed, sealing her words with a kiss.
"Hey ! What's with all the suitcases? You finally leaving me?" Lucas joked with a wink."
"No." Peyton laughed, "Mia is just staying here for a while until some gas leak gets fixed in her house." Peyton finished as her smile faded.
"Well that should be fun !" Lucas started cheerfully, until his eye caught Peyton's morose face. "What's wrong then?" he aid as he lifted her chin towards him and stared in her sad eyes.
"I just get the feeling tha Mia is in some sort of bigger trouble and she won't tell me what it is. I though she could trust me by now." Peyton softly said as a tear slipped out of her eye.
"Babe, maybe she's just afraid..." Lucas started, as he attended to his phone that had beeped. "Look, I have to go meet Nathan. I promise everything will be okay, just let her know that you're here for her, and then she will come to you when she's ready." Lucas finished as he kissed her and walked out of the front door.
In higher spirits, Peyton started reading a magazine. Boy did her man always know the right things to say.
***
Other than coming out for dinner, Mia had been in her room all evening, so Peyton went in to check on her.
"Knock, Knock!" Peyton said playfully, as she came into Mia's room. "Haven't seen much of you since dinner, everything okay?" she said, taking a seat next to Mia on the bed.
"Yeah, I'm fine." Mia said, "I just, uh, I'm just tired, that's all." She finished with a weak smile that shortly became blank.
"Alright, well I'll let you get to sleep then. Goodnight, Mia." Peyton said as she got up to leave.
"Night..." Mia said, "-Wait, Peyton!"
"Yes?" Peyton stopped at the door
"Thank you. Thank you for letting me stay here."
"It's no problem, I promise." Peyton started as she narrowed her eyes into complete focus to Mia's. "Listen, Sweetie, I know I've told you this a thousand times, but if you need someone to talk to, you can talk to me. I'm here for you forever, whatever you need. I know that there is something else going on here, and I'm worried about you, and Haley is worried about you. We all are. We're all a big family, so talk to one of us. It could be me, Haley, Brook, or Sam. It could be Lucas or Julian, or even Nathan. Don't let this eat at you, or one day you will just lose it and explode !"
"Okay, Peyton. Goodnight." Mia said shortly.
Shocked by the vast amount of information that Peyton had figured out about Mia's situation already on her own, Mia just lay back on her bed, not even bothering to unpack. She just wanted to sleep, and hopefully wake up and have this all be a dream. As much as she didn't want to admit it, she knew that it wouldn't be. She knew that this was her life now, and she just had to figure out what to do about it. She also did not want to admit that Peyton was right.
About everything.
*Mia's Point of View
The reason I hadn't come out much is complicated. For one, I really was tired. For another, especially after that speech about talking to people about my existing (VERY existing) problems that Peyton had given me, I was afraid that Peyton would find out more of the truth with everything that I did. I also just felt so numb by the whole situation and I didn't feel like even breathing, nor did I have the emotional, or even the physical, energy to do so. At the back of my mind, my guilt reared it's ugly head again, but this time, it was actually for a different reason. I felt guilty, extremely guilty, that, while I was here in a nice bed worrying about my stupid and selfish problems, my mother lay, possibly dying, in a hospital bed. It just didn't make sense. Right then and there, I realized that I needed to see my mother. Tomorrow. Whether it be for closure, for my own selfish purposes, to settle my guilt, or even maybe (slimly) to reconcile. Whatever the reason was, I knew that I needed to see her, before it could be too late.
***
The next day, Mia woke up bright and early to go and see Emily in the hospital. Just as she was about to step out of the door, she remembered that she hadn't said good morning to Peyton and Lucas. She figured she had better do so, so Peyton wouldn't worry even more, and so Lucas wouldn't start worrying. After all, he was Peyton's fiance. She found Lucas and Peyton sitting at the kitchen table when she walked in and sat down, on the edge of her seat, next to Lucas.
"Good morning, Mia" Lucas cheerfully boomed.
"Good morning, everybody." Mia said with a slight attempt to smile.
"You seem cheery. Getting an early start I see?" Peyton asked.
"Uh, Yeah, some guy wants to talk to my about my house or something, so I better go now, actually." Mia said roughly as she stood up and started to make her way to the front door.
"What about our recording session today?" Peyton stopped her and questioned.
"I'll be back before then, I promise." Mia smiled and said as the left the house, and nervously started her trek to the hospital.
***
When Mia arrived, after she had signed in and received information on her mother's whereabouts and conditions, her spirits were slightly lifted because she had found out that Emily had woken up, but because she still felt nauseated and fearful right before she entered any room containing her mother in it, this time was no exception. She then pushed through the haze and entered the room.
"Mia," Emily croaked, "Hi"
"Hi, mom" Mia smiled, "How are you feeling?"
"Well, I'm alive, ain't I?" she chuckled, "No, I'm awake, but I feel like I am asleep. The doctors said that I may be out of the coma, but there is still serious damage in my body. They want to keep me here for a while. What about you? Are you alright? Where are you staying?"
"I'm fine, mom. I'm staying with a friend. Listen, I came down here to say that I am sorry. I should have never left you. I almost killed you." Mia cried with a tear breaking through her iris.
"Mia, stop." Emily snapped. She hated when people cried around her. "I don't want you ever to think that this is your fault. What even gave you that crazy idea in the first place?"
"You told it to me right before I left. You said you would die without me and that it's all my fault." Mia said shamefully.
"Mia, listen. I have a problem," Her mother began, "When heroine, or vodka, or even damn nicotine enters my body, I become a different person; a bad person. I know i've hurt you and I am sorry. The doctor says that I have a lot of cleaning up to do, but, Mia, I'm going to do it. For the first time, I am ready to do it. I am ready to be clean. I don't want to hurt myself anymore. I don't want to hurt you anymore. I am sorry." She said in a tone that Mia had never heard her speak in before; a tone straight from her heart.
"It's okay !" Mia said pulling her mother into a hug. "We'll get through this together." Then she stepped back while a nurse cam in to check on her mother's monitors.
"Mrs. Catalano, it is time for some tests." Then she turned to Mia, "I am afraid you will have to come back later."
"No, it's cool." Mia said to the nurse, "I will be here first thing tomorrow. Bye Mom !" She shouted, then said with a serious tone, "I love you. I just want you to know that I really do."
"Bye, Mia." Emily smiled, "-Wait ! Mia" she hollered.
"Yes mother?" Mia stopped.
"We're gonna be okay, you and I. So don't you worry about us." She said with a wink.
In high spirits, Mia left the hospital. She had lost an alcoholic problem and gained a mother. Everything finally seemed like it was going to be okay.
*Mia's point of view
Words could not describe how good I felt walking out of that hospital. For the first time since I was just a kid, I had a real mother again. I mean, Mom smiled at me! She apologized to me, and for the first time in the longest time, she and I had a full conversation where she did not insult me or talk down to me or blame me for anything. I couldn't wait until she got better ! Maybe she could come on tour with me next summer? Who knows !
When I got back to Peyton's house, I still had an hour before my recording session, so I sat on my bed and started to make a list of things that Mom and I would do once she was as good as new ! Life couldn't be grander !
***
At the recording studio, Haley and Peyton were busy getting ready for Mia's recording session.
"She's still coming, right, Peyton?" Haley asked
"Yeah, she said she had to speak to someone about her house first though." Peyton answered in complete monotone.
"And you believe that?" Haley smirked.
"You know, I don't know what to believe anymore." Peyton said as she gazed off.
"So she hasn't said anything to you about whatever is going on?"
"Nope."
Before Haley could respond to that, a very surprisingly chipper Mia walked through the studio doors.
"Hey guys !" She greeted them with a warm, genuine, smile.
"Hey, it's good to see you in such a good mood !" Haley smiled, "What happened?"
"Nothing. I guess I just fixed a lot of things ! Are we ready to record?!" she said with a wink.
"Let's go baby!" Peyton cheered, shooting Haley a subtle shrug and a huge smile!
***
So after about 4 hours of talking about Mia's tour, Haley and Peyton seemed convinced that Mia had worked out whatever was going on, and they couldn't have been happier, and more thrilled that they finally had their rock star back ! That they finally had their Mia back ! So happy, that on the way home from the studio, Peyton said to Mia,
"Mia, I'm so glad that you worked out whatever was going on, but I am going to remind you again; I'm still here. This whole thing could have probably been fixed faster if you had let someone help you!"
"I know Peyton, and thank you again." Mia smiled.
Things were going to be okay, Mia just knew it.
***
The next morning, Mia woke up at 6:50 in order to get to the hospital right at 7, when it opened. Just as she was about to leave her room to go, Peyton knocked and came in.
"Good morning Mia !" Peyton said cheerfully, "Hey, Brooke is having a party at her house with all of us to celebrate the pre-release of her fall line. She invited both of us. Everyone is going to be there! Haley, Brooke, Sam, Lucas, Julian, Nathan, little Jamie," she said with a laugh, "Mouth, Millie, Chase...Victoria, " She sneered as Mia laughed, ", Jack, me, and hopefully you too. You in?"
"I'd love to, but I was actually just about to meet someone. I'll drop by when I'm done though ! I promise !" Mia said as she left the room. "Later P !" she hollered back, while Peyton just stood there for a second, smiling at the old Mia, who was now really, officially back.
***
Mia practically sprinted through the hospital doors, not even bothering to sign in; she just wanted to hug her mother again ! But when she entered her mother's supposed room, it was empty.
That's strange. Mia thought. She was just here yesterday. Did they move her?
"Excuse me, miss, can I help you?" a familiar faced nurse that she recognized to be the woman she saw run her mother's test yesterday as she was leaving, who also happened to see Mia running here, asked.
"I was actually coming to see my mother, Emily Catalano, but I guess she switched rooms. Can you please tell me where her new room is?" Mia cheerfully pleaded.
The nurse's face went sour. "Oh, you're Emily's daughter. I though somebody had told you..."
"Told me what?" Mia eagerly asked.
The nurse took a deep breath and said, "Emily passed. She died last night."