Okay, so here's the deal, if I don't update, you know why. But it's 2:51 in the morning and I couldn't sleep because I had the story on my brain, as has happened many a time. I know if I didn't write a new chapter, I wouldn't have gotten any sleep. So, this chapter is dramatic, to say the least. I hope it doesn't jump around too much. I think it flows from subject to subject fairly easily, but I know some parts are a bit choppy. It's almost 3 in the morning, forgive me. Lol. And don't hate me for the end of the chapter. I have my reasons. And I've come to the conclusion that LKG will be roughly 40 chapters. Maybe less, maybe more, but… roughly. Don't worry, I still have plenty to fill AINE with.
Chapter 31:
The media really hates us, I believe. Our little clique if you will, came under a lot of fire over the next few weeks. It started with the Riley/Nicky problems on Sunday. Monday, the world had read Shane's blog, as well as Nate and Jason's. Each brought their own problems. Yes, even Nate's hilarious diary entry.
Nate Frances hates Russians? According to his tour diary, it seems that way. When meeting bandmate Jason Bishop's future in-laws, Frances seemed rather uncomfortable around the part Russian grandfather of Anastasia Dragomir. How are Russian fans going to react to this? Hopefully, they'll forget by the time the members of Connect 3 make it to Russia after their Christmas break. That is, if President Belikov allows the trio into his country. It wouldn't be the first time Russia has banned entertainers from performing.
See? A simple statement based on a childhood fear, twisted way out of proportion. Nate tried to fix it. "I didn't mean to offend Russia, or any of our Russian fans. I promise. When I was a child, my grandfather who was a World War II vet, told me a bedtime story that my mother forbade him doing so. It was a war story, of course, about the Communist Army. Since then, I'd had a fear of the Communist Army. It was meant as a joke, because meeting Stas' grandfather brought back my old fears, and the guys were making fun of me for it. I sincerely didn't mean to offend anyone." Yeah, that didn't go over much better.
Frances continues his anti-Russian remarks, blaming his statement on a childhood fear. His problem seems to be with Communism only. This could cause more problems for the members of Connect 3 if other Communist countries start revolting. Although, most of the countries are currently in Asia, it could put a strain on the possibility of an Asian tour for the group.
Yes, Shane, Nate, and Jason were threatened about an Asian tour without our prior knowledge. Shane tried to help Nate this time, though. "Nate doesn't have a problem with Communism or Communists themselves. He really did have a fear of them as a child because of his grandfather. I've woken him up out of nightmares when we were teenagers about them. It subsided until Mr. Dragomir spoke in Russian, saying something that sounded similar to a quote mentioned in Mr. Frances' story many years ago. Most likely, to our unaccustomed ears, the Russian words sounded alike, though Stas' cousin assured us it wasn't the same. Nate's diary entry was solely for humorous purposes."
Well, that got the press off of Nate, mostly. Sadly, it turned the press onto Anastasia and Jason. But at the same time all of the drama with an anti-Russian Nate, there was the Anastasia-Jason long distant argument. That was fun to witness.
Anastasia barged into our dorm room -we're still not sure how- and started talking a mile a minute. This was early Monday afternoon, the day after Jason's rambling entry.
"So, I've been trying to rationalize this for like, 3 hours now. I've missed both my morning classes, and I'm going to be missing my afternoon class." I wanted to interrupt and ask what possessed her to have that many classes on one day, Monday no less, but kept quiet. "Did you read his blog?" She asked. We nodded, not wanting to speak. "What am I supposed to say to that? Not even a month ago he tells me he's not ready to get married-" It was more than a month ago. "And then out of nowhere he's worried about how our names sound together? I know he can be insane at times, but this? This is really insane." Caitlyn and I shared a look, deciding who would speak first. Before we got the chance, though, she started speaking again. "I mean, does he really think I wouldn't marry him because Anastasia Bishop doesn't sound good? And it does. To me. Mrs. Bishop." She got this giddy look on her face as her mind drifted. I imagine the look was similar to how I looked the night before my wedding.
"Stas? You feeling alright?" I asked, casting a worried glance at Caitlyn.
"What?" She asked, coming out of her day dream.
"What's the problem if you clearly aren't against the idea of marrying him?" Caitlyn asked.
That started her up again. "Because he hasn't even called me and mentioned anything about it. The whole world knows he wants to marry me before I do? And we aren't ready to get married. He was freaking out about where we would live, how can I expect him to handle this?"
"Um, exactly?" I offered. "It's Jason. Serious thoughts aren't good for him. He's probably still rationalizing everything with Shane and Nate first. Making sure he isn't freaking out for no reason or something. And he's still with your family."
"Yeah, that'd be an awesome conversation. Jason, Grandmother Dragomir wants to know why you look constipated?" Caitlyn began.
"Oh, because I just realized I want to marry your granddaughter and you are still watching me like I'm your prey." I replied.
"Oh. Grandfather Dragomir says he's going to kill you." Caitlyn teased.
"My grandfather would not. I don't know why Nate's so afraid of him. He's like, the sweetest man I know." Anastasia argued.
"Because Nate has a fear of Communists." I explained quickly. "And maybe to his granddaughter, he's the sweetest man in the world. When a young, American, entertainer wants to marry his young, beautiful, unfortunately raised American granddaughter… he's probably not going to be too sweet."
She huffed as she sat on my bed. "Whatever. I still can't believe he wrote that. It's not like he couldn't delete what he wrote and posted something else." She mumbled.
Caitlyn sighed. "They're trying to give their fans a true inside look into their lives. And do you honestly expect Jason to think that much?" She asked.
My phone rang before she could answer. "Hey, babe." I answered.
"Hey. Did you read-" He began.
"Yes. Stas is here now, freaking out." I explained.
"Jason's the most on edge I've ever seen him. He just told her family he wants to marry her." Shane sighed. "Accidentally."
"He what?!" Anastasia yelled. "Give me that phone, now." She demanded. I was scared, so I did without hesitance. "Shane, put him on the phone now." She put the phone on speaker, knowing she'd be screaming and yelling a bit.
"Hello?" Jason answered hesitantly.
"YOU TOLD MY FAMILY?" She yelled. I winced, and I was sure Jason, Nate, Shane, and anyone within a 15 foot radius of the phone did as well.
"Accidentally." He replied in a small voice.
"You told your fans, the media, and my family before you even mentioned this to me." She continued yelling.
"It's not like it was on purpose!" He yelled back. "I was just thinking of how cool your last name is… and it got me thinking. Shut up, Nate!" He yelled as Nate tried to conceal a laugh. "It's not like I've been sitting here thinking about it and just told the world, so I've been thinking about asking Stas to marry me. It was more of I realized, I want to marry you. I never said I was proposing anytime soon. Nate told Cait he wanted to marry her. Do you see him proposing? I don't." He argued.
"Exactly, Jay, told Cait. Not the WORLD!" She yelled.
"I'm sorry, okay? What would you like me to do about it?" He asked. "It's not like I intended on doing any of it. It just happened. I can't undo it, so what is the point of this conversation?" He asked in desperation.
"That you didn't tell me." She answered dejectedly. "You should have talked to Shane and he should have told you to talk to me, and you should have talked to me. You shouldn't have let me read it on your blog." She admitted.
"You've never read it before. You said you didn't have time. That I tell you everything when we talk anyway." He said softly as well. "I didn't think you'd read it." He admitted.
"Yeah, well, Mitchie said you were kind of hurt and stuff, so I read it, hoping she was wrong. I don't want you to be mad at me while there's an ocean between us. I just, I didn't want to risk us having nothing to say when you called. If I already read it, then you wouldn't have anything to say. And once I told you, yeah, I've been busy with this paper and that project, oh I hung out at so and so's dorm for a little while to relax, the conversation would be over. I really don't have a lot of time to talk to you, so I want to make sure I can make the most out of when I can." She explained.
It was shocking to see real emotion coming from Anastasia. That explained a lot about the first break up as well. Anastasia was afraid of the distance taking its toll and tried to prevent it by keeping their time to talk short.
"Oh." Was Jason's only reply. "I never thought about it like that. Why would you ever worry that we'd run out of things to say? We talk about nothing all the time when we're home."
"When we're home, that's okay. Because you're holding me while we're having random conversations about the Power Rangers or why ice cream gets named the way it does." She sighed. "It's not the same when you're miles away."
"It makes me feel like I am home when we have those conversations." He replied.
"But that empty feeling I get when we get off the phone after them kills me." She whispered back.
"I know." He agreed. "I'm sorry, Stas. I didn't mean to not tell you. I just, I didn't want to freak you out."
"I know. I'm sorry I freaked. Do you honestly think I wouldn't want to marry you because you think Anastasia Bishop doesn't sounds as cool as Anastasia Dragomir? Who do you think I am, Tess?" She questioned, lightening the mood.
He laughed. "God, I hope not. I don't know what I was thinking. That's just me for ya."
"Yeah." She smiled. She groaned playfully. "What did my grandparents say?" She asked.
"That I seemed like a decent young man, but that they didn't quite trust me yet to marry their granddaughter." He sighed.
"That's my grandparents for ya." She imitated him. "Now, if you were Serbian or even Russian, they'd love you."
"But Nate would be afraid of me if I was Russian." He replied seriously. Nate began objecting, but it didn't do much good.
Now, you must be wondering. I said Shane brought the heat onto Anastasia and Jason, right? Well, Jason already started it with his entry.
Do we hear another set of wedding bells for the members of Connect 3? Jason Bishop, through a very confusing tour diary, came to the conclusion he wants to marry his on-and-off girlfriend Anastasia, Stas, Dragomir. The two split in November of last year, after a nine-month relationship, and reunited a few months later. After Bishops endless string of girlfriends, that is. The true reason behind the split was never found, so we can only question how long they will stay together this time. Will they make it through Dragomir's school year again? Or will they not even make it to an engagement? One thing is for sure, though. Michaela Grey does have a nice ring to it.
Of course, I rolled my eyes at that last part. But, that was just the beginning of Jason and Anastasia's problems. At first, they opted to not address the story. Let people think what they wanted. But Shane's comments brought the attention back, in a very unwanted way.
Is Connect 3 connecting with Communists? While one member of Connect 3 seems to fear them, another seems to be embracing them. Jason Bishop's soon-to-be-fiancée is possibly related to Russian communists still holding a grudge from the Cold War, perhaps?
Jason attempted to stop these thoughts as well. "Stas was born and raised in America. Anything her family in Serbia does is their business. They aren't Communist's bent on brining back the glory days of the Russians, though."
More political drama was written, but we ignored most of it. Especially Shane and I. Nicky and I still weren't speaking, and Shane had also slipped in his blog that we were fighting.
Drama in the Grey family already? The newlyweds have only been married for roughly 5 weeks and Grey's sister isn't happy with her sister-in-law. The cause of the fight is believed to have steamed from the recent discovery of Nicky Grey's relationship with pop star Riley McCartney. While McCartney seems relieved to have his relationship out in the open, Grey seems to be highly upset over the fact. Clearly, sister-in-law Mitchie disagrees with her. Mitchie and Shane have had their relationship out in the open almost from day one. Though they didn't out-right state it, they didn't do much to hide it, either. Mitchie embraced the media butting into her relationship and the couple promptly sat down for an interview to discuss their relationship. Nicky, however, doesn't seem to be following big brother's lead. Grey and McCartney have been hiding their year and half long relationship from the world. Nicky is reported to be acting like a spoiled brat over the entire ordeal, and only Mitchie is calling her on it. With problems like this so early in their marriage, we're worried how long Smitchie will manage to stay together. In the end, will Shane side with family or the woman he loves? Only Shane has that answer, and we're dying to know.
Shane refused to comment on anything being reported about Nicky and I fighting. The boys tried to focus on their tour and only their tour. The girls and I tried to focus on our school work. We were prisoners of our campuses, as reporters were staked outside the gates, waiting for us to leave. Campus security and local police kept them off campus for security purposes, but we could see them. It was upsetting and stressful.
My system had really been off lately. I honestly couldn't tell you what day it was in October, just that it was October. Did our teachers care that our lives were being pried apart? Nope. Most teachers ignored it, some gave looks of sympathy as they handed back the C paper we were trying so hard to get an A on, and others just told us that was life and to deal with it. School was getting to me, the reporters were getting to me, and missing Shane was getting to me.
My only outlet? Allowing Brown to take me to the recording studio on campus. He managed to convince the director to let him use it since it was too dangerous to take me off campus. I didn't care what I was singing at that point. I just needed to sing, and let out everything that was stressing me out.
I recorded basic tracks of all eight tracks that day. My throat was sore and I was exhausted, but I felt a lot better than I had. I went to the bathroom while Brown finished up. When I came back, I overheard his phone call.
"All 8." He said. "I swear. She did. Her throat has to be sore, believe me. Her voice will definitely be hoarse later." The other person spoke, thought I couldn't hear. "Yes, Shane, I swear. She has no idea you wrote the songs. She thinks Shayna did… I may have slipped up and said Shane and corrected it…" He continued speaking as he turned around to move something. "Honestly, she has no… idea…" He trailed off as he realized I was listening to him, glaring. "Or, she might."
"What?!" I clearly heard Shane yell.
"Good luck, mate." Brown handed me the phone. "Let him explain." He quickly scurried off.
"Start explaining, now." I demanded. I was upset, I was stressed, I was hurt, I was tired, and I was angry.
"Baby, calm down, please." He begged slightly. "It's not what it seems like-"
"Really? Because it seems like my husband and his uncle tricked me into singing again." I cut him off.
"We didn't trick you-" He began.
"Yes, you did, Shane. Brown said Shayna wrote the songs. Not Shane Adam." I replied. "Why would you do this?"
"I just wanted you to sing again." He exasperated. "I wanted you to sing because you wanted to. I was hoping that if you had songs to sing that maybe you would sing more and that maybe you'd start writing songs like your old stuff." He sighed. "I tried to write them like you would have."
"Why didn't you just ask me? Or tell me? It wouldn't have been that hard. Baby, I wrote a song I want you to sing. Not that hard, Shane." I explained.
"Yes it is! It is that hard. You won't sing. You would have said no. Tell me you didn't enjoy singing today? Tell me you weren't smiling when you finished? Tell me that you being mad it me isn't worth knowing you were happy for a little while?" He demanded.
"I did. I enjoyed myself. I was smiling. But you should have asked me." I replied.
"I'd rather you sing and get mad at me than you say no and stay miserable, Mitchie." He replied. "I just want you to be happy." He sighed.
"I am happy, Shane. Yeah, I'm miserable because my husband is away on a tour, but I'm happy as I possibly can be. You aren't here to make assumptions on my moods." I snapped at him.
Then Shane did something I never thought he would. "You're right, I'm not. Forgive me for caring." He hung up the phone. I stood in shock as I looked the phone blinking with the words call ended. When the screen cleared, I saw what the date was. Shane's Birthday.
Oooh, cliffhanger. Ya'll hate me. I know it. But once again. I gave you an update when I said I wouldn't.