Seven Minutes in Heaven

"There is a thin line that separates laughter and pain, comedy and tragedy, humor and hurt." ~Erma Bombeck

Brittany Miller

I wake up on a cold, hard surface, with my head pounding. I rub my temples slowly, sitting up. Then, I open my eyes wide and stare at my hands. They're thin instead of my pudgy child hands. I look down at the rest of me… I'm tall, curvy and defiantly seventeen again. I smile broadly, looking around me. It looks like I'm in some sort of park with L.A shining brightly in the distance. It would only be a matter of getting up and heading back to Miss Miller's house and to forgive Alvin like I always do. I laugh a little, that sorry brat will be crawling on his hands and knees after the way she left him at the hotel.

Wait!

What if what Alvin said is true… what if they never met at all? I turn my head around, searching the bushes. If we really never made it, we would be homeless. "Eleanor!" I call out. "Jeanette! Where are you?"

"Brittany, dear," I turn to see an old woman coming towards me with a cane in one hand and a small burlap sack in the other. I stare at her for a long time, almost thinking that it was Miss Miller herself. But her voice is lower and her face is different. All of her gray hair is tucked into a hat and her dark clothes hang loosely around her large body. I look down at myself. I'm wearing something similar and I'm covered in dirt. Oh no. "Brittany, why are you calling to your sisters?"

"W-well," I stutter. "I need them. Why aren't they here?"

"Your sisters left long ago," she says. "They were delightful girls… I can see why you miss them. Did you hit your head darling?"

I nod, making her give me a halfhearted smile. She leads me back to the bench that I woke up on, opening the burlap sack to pull out birdfeed. She throws it to the sidewalk and I watch as birds of all kinds come fluttering to the meal. "What happened to me?" I almost beg her.

"Oh honey," she says softly. "You must have hit your head hard… I'm sorry I can't take you to the hospital."

"Just please tell me," I whisper. "Where's Eleanor and Jeanette… where's Alvin?"

"Well, about eight years ago you and your sisters came to the west coast to perform at a small hotel in order to make money and provide for each other. But consequently, no one showed up to perform and your sisters and you resumed life on the streets of Las Angeles. But soon, since you had pulled them out of the hotel, you girls began having horrible fights, mostly blaming you for all the misfortunes that occurred over the years. Jeanette and Eleanor left, finding odd jobs until they were had enough to get a home. I remember you running to me, saying that they wouldn't let you in," the old woman sighs. "You're sisters eventually meet a solo artist named Alvin Seville and he signed on your sister Eleanor. According to the tabloids, they're in an off and on relationship at the moment…"

"W-what?" I feel like I'm on the verge of tears. "Alvin was always supposed to be with me."

"Yes," she woman says in a distant voice.

"What happened to Alvin's brothers?" I ask, yearning for more knowledge.

"Well," she rubs her chin. "I don't think that Alvin Seville has seen his brothers since they were at least thirteen. Simon Seville, the middle brother, continued to live with their father, David Seville. But soon after Alvin left his family to live uptown in his penthouse, Theodore Seville committed suicide-"

"What?" I scream. "Not Theodore!"

"The poor child got bullied relentlessly after his older brother left because he had weight problems… His brother Simon tried to stand up for him, but ended up getting thrown in a dumpster making his little brother feel even worse about himself… he hung himself in the gym of his high school."

"No," I breathe. "You have to tell me how I can find Alvin Seville… or at least Simon… o-or someone!"

"I don't know about Alvin," she whispers, rubbing her chin again. "He's heavily guarded and rarely makes appearances if it isn't for concerts or press conferences. But David Seville still lives in suburbia with is son Simon, you could look there."

"Thank you!" I hug her torso. She takes me by the cheeks and kisses my forehead. She wishes me luck and I sprint off towards home. Rain starts pouring as I make it to the front of the suburb, making my bare feet bitter cold. I glance at Miss Miller's vibrant house as I make it to our street, wishing I could run in and feel her warmth again. I shake it off though, heading for the Seville's. I knock on the door and wait.

"Hello?" I hear Dave's voice on the other side. "Is that you Alvin?" he opens the door with a wide smile only to frown when he sees me. I can tell that Dave is hurt, and it makes me want to burst into tears all over again. But I take in a deep breath and say hello. "Who are you?" Dave asks.

"Well, my name is Brittany," I say softly. "I came to see Simon."

"Oh," Dave smiles a little. "Simon doesn't get very many visitors, so I'm sure he'll be thrilled!" Dave holds the door open so I can come in. "Would you like to come in and dry off? Your clothes are soaking wet and we have plenty if you'd like to borrow something."

"Sure," I smile, following Dave up the stairs and towards the boy's, well, Simon's room. Dave directs me to Simon's dresser and opens the very bottom drawer. Instead of blue sweatshirts and sweaters, the drawer is full of red clothing. Dave sighs sadly. He pulls out a red sweatshirt with a yellow A on it and a pair of black sweats. "These should keep you much warmer."

"Thank you," I take them gratefully. I head into the bathroom and shed my clothing. I pull on the clothes and open the door to reveal Simon. He stares at me for long time before shaking his head. "I know you probably don't want me wearing these," I finger the red fabric. "But I was on the verge of freezing…"

"It's okay," Simon sighs, his shoulders dropping. "B-but who are you? I don't remember you from school."

"This is going to sound crazy," I warn him. He nods. Even though he doesn't see Alvin anymore, he knows all about crazy. "My name is Brittany Miller."

"As in Miss Miller, the babysitter?"

"Well, where I come from she's my mother," I say. Simon looks confused as I speak. "Well, this is going to sound crazy, like I said, but I'm not insane so hear me out," I tell him and he nods. "Where I come from, I live with my sisters Eleanor and Jeanette across the street from here and we're best friends with you and your brothers, Theodore and Alvin."

"Theo's alive where you come from?" Simon asks and I nod. "Wow," he sighs.

"And, well, we went to this party together and me and Alvin got sucked into the past. We made a mess of everything and now we're here. The Alvin you know isn't here; it's the Alvin I know. And I have to find him and fix everything."

"I don't think I can get you in to see him," Simon admits. "I haven't talked to him at all since he went solo," he shrugs. Suddenly, an idea seems to have gone off in Simon's head. "Hey! You said your sisters are Jeanette and Eleanor… are they the same girls who live with Alvin?"

"Yeah," I smile, following his train of thought.

"Okay," he says. "I think I know a way to get you in, but you have to trust me, okay?"

"I'll do anything," I tell him, relieved that he doesn't think I'm crazy. He nods, looking grateful. He slips his hand into mine and leads me down the stairs and to the front of the house. He scribbles a note to Dave, who is asleep under a mountain of paperwork on his couch. I frown, feeling sorry for him.

Simon opens a closet and pulls out two pairs of shoes and I slip one of them on. They actually fit since, as Simon explained, they were Theodore's when he was twelve. I nod, feeling that pain of Theodore being gone… I never appreciated him and now he's gone off and killed himself. But I'll see him again soon, I think happily.

Simon and I catch a taxi and go all the way uptown until we reach an expensive looking apartment building. The place is swarming with photographers and reporters at the bottom of the building. They're held back with security guards and men who work in the building. Simon leads me around the building until we find a fire escape. Simon jumps up to grab the ladder and allows me to go first. I stare up, realizing that we have to climb all the way to the top, which looks about thirty floors up.

It's worth it, I tell myself.

~I wonder what Alvin's up to... we'll see soon :)

Poor Theodore :'(