Tidings of comfort and joy

The next three weeks were the hardest of Nat's life. His dad was busy planning for his wedding and he was getting ready for the big Christmas tour. The band played their version of at least 12 different Christmas songs every year in 12 different states.

That put a lot of stress on Nat in more ways than one. First he had to figure out what songs they were going to play. Then he had to have the band practice those songs. One number was always the same every year no matter what state they were in and that was let it snow. That was Rosalina's favorite Christmas carol and she wrote the harmony for her and Nat to sing.

Alex saw the stress that his brother was under and wanted to help. He was also worried about Juanita and Jesse. Jesse hadn't talked to him in days. He tried to talk to her but she wouldn't answer her phone.

One afternoon during rehearsal Cooper brought up the idea of finding a new base player. Nat stood up and walked out of the room. Alex put his head in his hands and sighed. He knew that the first official rehearsal without Rosalina would be hard on Nat.

Cooper sighed and said "Alex don't worry Nat will come around. I think that's a wrap for today guys. We can't do much to get ready for the tour unless Nat comes back. David could you talk to Nat please I need his opinion before I do anything."

David said "he's not going to listen to me. When he gets upset like this Rosalina was the only one who could calm him down. When he's ready he'll talk he'll come to us. That's the best that I can do. I'm sorry Cooper I want to help but if I try I might things worse."

Alex said "I'll talk to Nat David. I helped him after he came home from being at the hospital with dad. He was a mess after he said goodbye and I helped a little bit. Please let me talk to him Cooper."

Then Nat came into the room and said "Alex Jesse's on the phone. She wants to talk to you about the way things were ended. She feels guilty about hurting you. Do you want to talk to her? I can tell her that the band is rehearsing if you don't."

Alex got up and said "I'll talk to her. Thanks for getting the phone Nat. We're done with rehearsal right Cooper."

Nat gave Cooper a look and then Cooper said "yeah go talk to her. If you need back up we're here for you. Nat if you're up to it I was thinking movie night at my house the whole band can sleep over. I wanted to watch Mystery Girl before I sent it to Spielberg. Since you're the star and the band leader I want you to see it. What do you think Nat do you think you can watch it tonight?"

Nat sighed and said "Cooper I told you I'm fine. Would everybody just stop asking if I'm alright? I get enough of that from dad and Miss. Kelly."

Meanwhile Alex was on the phone with Jesse. Alex sighed Jesse had been crying for the past twenty minutes that she'd been on the phone with him. He had never seen a girl this upset before. He spoke softly and said "Jesse please stop. Please try to understand I don't love you. I didn't want to hurt you. You're making it harder than it has to be. I still want to be friends. So I guess I'll see you at rehearsal tomorrow. I'm sorry Jesse but this isn't going to work. You have to talk to me if you still want to be part of the band."

Jesse sobbed "if that's the way you really feel then tell Nat I quit."

Alex felt tears threatening to spill out of his eyes but he held them back. He snapped "fine if that's what you want! Quit we don't need you! I never want to see you again Jesse!"

Alex hung up and ran into the room where the band was crying. Nat saw Alex crying and pulled him into a hug. Tomas sat down on the floor and set his hand on Alex's shoulder. Nat said "Alex take a deep breath. There that's better now calmly tell us what happened. We're all here for you man. What did Jesse say that got you this upset? Sometimes that girl has the brain the size of a peanut."

Alex sobbed and took another deep breath slowly. Nat rubbed his brother's back and sighed he hated it when Alex was like this. He didn't know what to say to help Alex when he cried.

David said "Alex please just take a few deep breaths and calm down. We can't understand you when you're crying like this. I know that this isn't fair but sometimes life isn't fair. That's when you just have to take things as they come."

Alex swallowed and said "Jesse said that she quits the band. I was so angry that I told her that I didn't want to see her ever again. I don't know what to do David I really hurt her."

Nat said "what did you say that made her quit? Jesse wouldn't just quit the band for no reason."

Alex said "I told her that she couldn't be in the band if she wasn't going to talk to me. I wasn't trying to hurt her but things just got away from me."

Tomas said "you need to think before you speak next time. You made it seem like you didn't want her in the band anymore. I would have been upset to if I was Jesse."

Nat said "instead of watching our movie where we have to think we should go watch a movie in theaters."

Alex said "that sounds like a great idea Nat. I'll see if dad will take us guys."

One hour later everybody was in Mr. Wolf's truck. They were half way to theater when a car swerved and hit them. Mr. Wolf and the others were fine but Alex was unconscious. Mr. Wolf called 911 and waited for the ambulance to take Alex to the hospital. Then Mr. Wolf called Jesse to take everybody home and then he and Nat climbed into the ambulance with Alex. Nat sat in the back beside Alex. He sighed and held his little brother's hand.

When the ambulance stopped at the hospital the doctors carefully removed Alex and took him into the emergency room. Nat and his father waited for hours before they were told that Alex was stable and they could go see him.

Nat went into the room first. Tears filled his eyes when he saw Alex hooked up to a bunch of machines and monitors. Nat didn't know what to think sure sometimes Alex was annoying but he still didn't want to loose him.

Mr. Wolf came into the room and said gently "Nat the doctors just told me that Alex will be fine but he'll be in the hospital over Christmas. Since it's his favorite holiday I don't want him to miss anything. I picked up a tree in the gift shop and we still have those tiny angels that your mom made. Help me put up this tree so your brother has something to look at when he wakes up."

Nat couldn't take it anymore it was bad enough that he'd just had to say goodbye to Rosalina. Now that Alex was in the hospital his anger boiled over he snapped "dad what is the point? He's not going to wake up until Christmas day if he wakes up at all! The doctors are just giving you false hope so you won't take him off life support! I'll take a cab home don't worry about me!"

Nat stormed out of the hospital room tears burning in his eyes. He was walking down the sidewalk so he could hail a cab to get home when he heard someone crying. He followed the sound and was shocked to see a girl tugging on her mother's dress.

That wasn't what shocked Nat. What shocked him was that the mother was laying face first in the pavement and wasn't making any attempt to get up. When Nat got closer he saw that this was little Grace the girl that Alex had become close with in New Orleans.

Nat knelt down and saw why big Ella wasn't moving. He covered his mouth when he realized that big Ella had been shot. He sighed quietly when he realized that big Ella was dead.

Little Grace looked at Nat with fearful eyes and said "Mr. is my mom going to be ok? I'm really scared my mom said not to leave until she said it was safe. Then I heard gun shots and heard her scream. A man dragged my mom here and told me that she was sleeping. I've been trying to wake her up but she won't answer or move. I don't understand what's going on."

Nat said "I really don't know. You cold you're shaking? Here take my coat I'm Nat Wolf by the way."

Little Grace said "Nat Wolf that name reminds me of someone. I can't figure it out though. Mommy told me never to take things from strangers. She said that no matter how nice they might seem that they could still hurt me."

Nat said "I'm not a stranger Grace. You and I met a long time ago in New Orleans I'm the leader of the Naked Brothers Band. Here take my coat Grace you're going to freeze to death out here."

Little Grace buried her face in her hands crying. Nat pulled her into his lap and rubbed her back. Then he said "Alex has missed you Grace. It is really going to mean a lot to him to know that you're safe. He's always asking if the money he gave up did anything for you and Ella. Now I can answer him that it helped a lot and that you're here in New York now."

Grace lifted her head and said "can you help mom Nat? I'm really scared please let her be ok."

Nat said "I'll do what I can for your mom but you need to be safe first. Where do you live so I can take you home?"

Grace said "I live about three hours away from here. I really don't want to stay home by myself tonight with my baby sister Mary."

Nat thought for a minute and then said "you won't be by yourself Grace. You're coming home with me and spending the night there. We'll think about what to do in the morning. Let's get you into some warm and dry clothes first I don't want you to get sick Grace. You grab your sister and some clothes for her I'll wait outside and then you can relax after we get to my house where it's safe."

Grace gave Nat a hug and said "thank you so much. No one has ever been this nice to my family. I never thought we'd be safe anywhere after the hurricane. Alex changed that for my family. We were able to get out of New Orleans and be safe."

Nat sighed and said "you go get your stuff and your sister I'll worry about getting help for your mom."

Once they reached Grace's house Nat had Grace go inside and grab her things. Then he called the police and told them where Ella's body was lying. He then called his dad to let him know about Grace staying with them.

When Grace came outside with Mary Nat took her things and Grace carried Mary. Grace asked "Nat can we go check on my mom? I want her to know that I'm safe before I leave where she told me to stay."

Nat said "Grace I'm not sure how to say this but your mom has gone to a better place. You and Mary are safe which is what she wanted you to be. You ok Grace? I know what its like to loose your mother at a young age. It's never easy but I, dad, and Alex will help you the best we can."

Nat hugged Grace and walked with her to his house. When they went inside the house Mary started to cry. Grace took a bottle out of the cloth bag and handed it to Nat. Nat warmed the bottle up and handed it to Grace so she could feed Mary.

After Mary had been put down for a nap Nat had Grace sit down. Nat could see the pain in her eyes and wanted to do something for her. He grabbed his keyboard and began to play everybody cried at least once. Grace climbed into Nat's lap and laid her head on his chest.

A while later Mr. Wolf called. He asked if Grace and Mary were alright and said that he'd be home soon. Nat asked how Alex was and if he'd woken up yet. Mr. Wolf sighed and said no. Nat set his hand on Grace's back when he heard her sobbing.

Nat hung up and asked "Grace you ok? I know it's hard but you need to remember all the good times you spent with your mom. Look at me Grace the most important thing is to remember is that it's ok to cry."

Grace sobbed "when people didn't listen to Alex he didn't cry. He was strong and just hugged someone close."

Nat said "Alex did cry remember Grace. I had to have Tuffy drive me to the superdome so I could pick him up. Then when I got back I told him how proud we were of him."

Grace sniffed and said "why would someone do this to my mom? I don't understand Nat I really don't understand why people hated her."

Nat said "Grace I don't have an answer but I wish I did. Try to think of something happy Grace. Tell me something that you and Alex did that day you ran away from us when the band was trying not to kill each other."

Grace said "I remember when Alex was all excited and told me that Mary, mom and, I would get our house back. When I told mom that she was so happy she said that you guys were our family's guardian angels. That was the first time after the hurricane that I saw her smile."

Nat said "Grace you know that my brother wasn't always planning on giving that money to your family. He wanted to use it to save the polar bears remember. He did it because he liked you and your mom Grace not because it was the right thing to do."

Grace ran into the guest room sobbing. Nat put his head in his hands and sighed. He wanted to do something nice for Grace but he didn't know what to do. He stood up and walked into the guest room. He sat on the bed beside Grace and put his arms around her.

Grace said "you really don't care. You're just here because you feel sorry for me. That's why Alex helped me. Please go away Nat. If there's one thing I can't stand its people who only help others because they feel sorry for them I thought you and your brother were different."

Nat spoke softly and said "Grace that's not what I meant. Alex helped your family because you guys made him realize what was really important. Alex always wants to help his friends and that's what you were his close friend."

Grace said "I'm sorry Nat I just miss my mom so much. It was very kind of you to rescue me and let me stay with you. I didn't mean to sound ungrateful I just don't know how to take care of Mary. I'm scared that whoever shot my mom will try to shoot me and Mary."

Nat said "Don't worry about that now. I want you to try to get some sleep its really late Grace."

Grace said "please stay until I fall asleep. I don't want to be alone I'm afraid."

Nat said "Grace you're safe now. No one or anything is going to hurt you again. I won't let anything happen to you. I'm just going to check on Mary I'll be right back. You just get dressed for bed ok."

Nat gave Grace a hug and left the room. He went into his room and heard Mary crying. He picked her up and rocked her. When she didn't stop crying Nat carried her over to the purple couch and grabbed a bottle out of the bag in the kitchen.

After he fed her he sang a soft song to her. After Nat was sure that Mary was asleep he lied her down on Alex's bed again and left the room. When he went back into the guest room Nat saw Grace sitting up in bed crying.

Nat said "Grace please try to go to sleep. I just had to feed Mary I'll be right here the rest of the night I promise. You need to go to sleep I know you're scared Grace and its ok that you are. How about I tell you a story Grace? Will that help you forget what you went through today?"

Grace said "yes Nat my favorite book is in my bag. Will you read it to me it's the Nutcracker I know its kind of a girly story but my mom read it to me every year. I promise that if you read to me I'll go right to sleep."

Nat said "If I didn't want to read it I wouldn't have offered. Just grab the book and I'll read it. Grace the only condition is that you go to sleep as soon as I finish reading."

Nat read Grace the story and tucked her in. He turned out the light and sat on the end of the bed. He had started to fall asleep when his dad came home. Mr. Wolf called "Nat could you come here please. Alex woke up but he's still really tired and he hurts a lot. He asked about you Nat. He's really scared Nat and wanted to know where you were."

Nat said "dad did Alex like the tree? I feel really bad that he's in the hospital over Christmas."

Mr. Wolf said "Nat I'm proud of you. What you did today wasn't easy and you rose to the challenge. Are Grace and Mary asleep? Does Grace want to talk about what happened?"

Nat said "I'm supposed to be sitting at the end of the guest bed right now so Grace will sleep. I just can't stand to see anybody hurt like this. I've been there and it's hard to keep yourself together when things get this messed up."

Mr. Wolf said "Nat get some sleep ok. I'll stay with Grace you just go get some rest. I love you son."

Nat went upstairs to bed and fell asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow. He was emotionally and physically drained and he hoped that sleep with calm his juggled mind. He had a dream about Rosalina. That dream made him relax even though he missed her like crazy. He woke up to Grace leaning over him saying "I had a nightmare and a strange man was holding my hand. Can I sleep with you and Mary Nat?"

Nat said "that was my dad Grace. He's really nice I promise. We had a deal that you would go to sleep after I read you a story."

Grace sniffed "Nat please let me sleep here. I'll be good I promise."

Nat gave in and picked Grace up and had her lie down beside him on the bed. He wiped away her tears and rubbed her back softly until she fell asleep. In the morning it took Nat a minute to realize that Grace was sleep with her head buried in his chest. Then he remembered what his dad said about Christmastime and went downstairs to talk to his dad.

Mr. Wolf sighed and said "Grace didn't trust me. I was holding her hand and when I woke her up she started crying for you. Did she sleep ok or did she have more nightmares?"

Nat said "as far as I know she was fine. She slept with me last night her head was buried in my chest in the morning. I think I figured out how to help her dad. Would Alex like to see Grace? It might cheer her up to see him. I know he's in the hospital but it might relive some of his pain if he knew that money that he gave away several years ago helped Grace."

Mr. Wolf said "that sounds like a good idea. Visiting hours are at noon so I'll just take her with me then. You really think on your feet when someone is in trouble Nat. Did you sleep ok?"

Nat said "yeah I slept ok once I knew that Grace was alright. I feel so bad for her dad she had to see her mom shot. Ok maybe she didn't see it but she heard it. She's only nine that's not something a nine year old should have to see or hear."

Mr. Wolf said "Nat Christmas is a time for comfort and joy. Just think about how happy Grace will be when she sees Alex."

Nat sighed and said "I wake her up and tell her dad. I just hope she doesn't freak out when she sees that he's hurt."

Mr. Wolf said "Nat don't tell Alex anything just yet. I don't want him to know about Ella until he's doing better. He might freak and that could cause him to get weaker then he already is. The nurses told me that he's lucky that he had his seatbelt on or he'd be dead."

Nat said "I'll go wake Grace and tell her we're going to go see Alex. That might put a smile on her face."

Meanwhile Alex was lying in his hospital bed thinking. His back and neck hurt badly and he was scared. His dad ran out pretty quickly after he woke up. A nurse came into the room and took a look at him. The nurse said "well you seem to be doing much better today. You're very lucky to be alive. How are you feeling Alex?"

Alex said "my back and neck still hurt but not as badly as last night."

The nurse said "I'll go get you some pain medication. I want you to try to get some sleep."

Alex lied down and tried to sleep but he kept thinking about Nat. He wondered why his brother hadn't been next to his bed when he woke up. Alex was just about to fall asleep when there was a knock on the door.

Alex sleepily called "come in"

Alex sat up and saw his dad and Nat enter the room. Nat climbed on the bed beside Alex and hugged him. Then Alex heard a young girl's voice say "Alex thanks for helping my family."

Alex gasped he never thought that he'd see Grace again. He smiled at her and said "how did you get here? Nat is big Ella alright?"

Nat sighed and said "Alex we can talk more about Grace being here after Christmas. Right now I want you to try to rest. You seriously scared me bro I thought I was going to lose you."

Grace said "Alex I brought you my paper dolls so you could play with them. How are you feeling?"

Alex said "Grace I'm feeling much better. Seeing you made my day Grace I'm glad that you and your family are safe."

Mr. Wolf said "Alex we should go so you can rest. I love you son I'm so glad that you're alright. I'll come see you later tonight but Nat has to stay with Grace."

Alex looked at Nat and his dad and said "I'm scared dad. I don't want to be here alone at night. Could you stay with me just for tonight?"

Mr. Wolf said gently "Alex I would stay but I can't. Someone needs to stay with Grace and it's not right for me to ask Nat again."

Nat said "dad I'm willing to stay with Grace. Alex needs you to stay with him. Grace and I can take a cab home."

Mr. Wolf spoke gently said "It's not Grace I'm worried about. I don't know if I should leave you alone over night with a baby. If I do stay then Jesse has to spend the night and baby sit."

Alex sighed and said "dad Jesse's mad at me. I said something that made her quit the band."

Mr. Wolf said "Alex Jesse came to see you last night before you woke up. She brought Juanita with her. Both Jesse and Juanita were crying their eyes out and holding your hands. I think that Jesse will forgive you no matter what you said."

Grace scooted closer to Alex and hugged him. Tears filled her eyes when she said "I missed you so much."

Alex put his arm around Grace and said softly "hey don't cry. I'll be home by Christmas day and then we can spend time together."

Grace said "merry Christmas Alex. I never thought I ever get to see the big city at Christmas time."

Alex said "I'm glad I made your dream come true Grace. You've been a real trooper you lost everything and you still had enough hope left to dream."

Nat smiled at Alex and said "you are just as strong. The doctors said you might not wake up and you proved them wrong. I'm glad that you're safe Alex. I don't think that I could have handled loosing my girlfriend and my brother."

Alex started to cry and Nat hugged him. Mr. Wolf said "Alex what's wrong?"

Alex sniffled and said "I just can't believe that Rosalina's gone. The band will never be the same dad. I miss her so much it hurts all the time."

Nat gently said "Alex I miss her to."

Alex sobbed harder and Nat rubbed his back. After Nat was sure that Alex had stopped crying he gently said "Alex the pain will get easier over time. Will it help if we remember the good times we had with her? That's how I deal with the pain of loosing her. When ever I feel sad I think about something fun that we did together."

Alex sadly said "it's worth a shot Nat. I want you to go first though she was your girlfriend."

Nat said "alright I remember the night she wouldn't kiss me. I was really hurt but then she did kiss me and I felt like I was flying. Now it's your turn Alex remembering her might hurt a little but happy memories make her seem closer."

Alex said "I remember when she taught me how to play drums. She didn't get mad at me when I tried to spin the drum sticks the first time and it hit her in the eye. She had a black eye for a week and she still worked with me until I got it right."

A nurse came into the room and said "Alex needs to rest you can come see him later."

Nat hugged Alex again and said "feel better bro ok. The band needs you for the tour."

After everyone left the room the nurse said "how are you feeling? The medication I'm going to give you will make you sleepy."

Alex said "I'm feeling a lot better. I just saw an old friend who I thought I'd never see again and she remembered me. I'm just really tired that's all."

The nurse said "this will help you sleep it might sting a little. Let me see your left arm Alex."

Alex said "I hate needles."

The nurse said gently "this is just a little one I promise. I'll count to ten and then I'll give you the shot."

Alex closed his eyes and let the nurse have his arm. He held his breath and tried to think about relaxing things. Then the nurse said "that's it Alex see I said it would just be a little one. Now try to get some sleep I'll come check up on you later."

Alex lied down and tried to sleep. He kept thinking about Rosalina and he felt tears fall down his cheeks. Then Alex felt a warm hand ruffle his hair. He blinked when he heard a soft voice say "You were very brave I know that you hate shots. I'm not mad at you anymore. I'm just glad that you're safe Alex."

Alex said in a weak voice "Jesse I'm sorry."

Alex touched Jesse's cheek and felt hot tears falling from her eyes. He sat up and wiped them away with his thumb. Jesse said "Alex your dad asked me to stay the night with you. He's staying with Grace and Mary plus something came up with wedding plans."

Alex hugged Jesse and said "please don't leave the band. I didn't mean to hurt you. That wasn't the best way to break up with you. I know you must miss Rosalina to. I'm sorry for ending things the way I did."

Jesse said gently "I'd never leave the band. You guys are my family and family sticks together. I want you to go to sleep Alex."

Alex yawned and said gently "will you hold my hand until I fall asleep?"

Jesse said in a soft voice "I'm going to hold your hand and I'm not letting go of it. You've been a very brave boy Alex. Your mom would be proud of you but I want you to go to sleep now."

Alex fell asleep with Jesse sitting beside him. Before Jesse left she kissed Alex lightly on the cheek. Alex stirred but he didn't wake up. Jesse was glad to see a peaceful smile on his face she stared at him for a while and then left the room.

Meanwhile Mr. Wolf and Miss. Kelly were talking. Miss. Kelly said "John I'm not going to wear your wife's wedding dress. That would hurt Nat and Alex I won't ever hurt those two."

Mr. Wolf said "Kelly I'm sorry. I should have talked to them before insisting that you should wear Amy's dress. I love you Kelly and I want to make things work this time."

Nat was putting Grace to bed when he heard his dad and Miss. Kelly arguing. Grace said "Nat is Alex going to be ok?"

Nat said "Grace Alex is fine. Jesse is staying with him and on Christmas day Alex will be here."

Grace started to cry and Nat put his arms around her. Grace sobbed "Nat I miss my mom."

Nat said "Grace I know how that feels believe me. It's hard I know but you need to get some sleep. I'm going to be right here until you fall asleep. Now I want you to dry your eyes and lie down."

Nat handed Grace a tissue and she blew her nose. Then Grace lied down and tried to sleep. Nat sighed and wiped a tear from his own eyes. He missed Rosalina and the tour was in two days. Mr. Wolf heard Nat crying and came into the guest room. He gently said "Nat you really miss Rosalina don't you. Cooper called earlier and asked if you had given any thought to finding a replacement bass player."

Nat sniffed and sadly said "I can't believe she's gone dad. I miss her so much dad it kills me."

Mr. Wolf said "son the band needs a bass player. I know this is hard but you have to pick a new bass player in two days."

Nat couldn't hold his tears back any longer and he threw himself on the bed. Mr. Wolf set his hand on Nat's back and said "Nat you can do this. Cooper already has the girls who are interested on a list for you. All you have to do is pick one."

Nat felt like his heart was broken. He swallowed and said "Cooper doesn't get it. I just lost the girl of my dreams and he expects me to replace her in two days! I can't let her go dad."

Just then Miss. Kelly came upstairs and said "John let me talk to him. I think this needs a mother's touch."

Miss. Kelly sat on the bed beside Nat. Then she ran her fingers threw his dark hair and softly said "Nat are you ok sweetie?"

Nat sobbed harder and said "I can't think straight and my best friend expects me to replace my girlfriend."

Miss. Kelly sighed and said "Nat its ok, hush it'll be ok."

Nat said "why does Cooper expect me to replace her?"

Miss. Kelly spoke gently and said "Nat Cooper gave you time to make this choice on your own. Now he needs an answer he put all the names on a list for you all you have to do is pick one. I love you Nat now try to get some sleep."

Nat sat up and said "I wish mom was still here."

Miss. Kelly said "Nat I know this is hard on you. All Cooper needs you to do is pick a name from a list."

In the morning Nat looked at the list of girls that could replace Rosalina. He didn't recognize any of the names on the list. Jesse came into the room and put her hand on Nat's shoulder. Nat turned and said "How's Alex? Is he doing any better?"

Jesse said "you're still looking for a bass player?"

Nat sighed and said "yeah and I can't pick one off this list. Replacing Rosalina is hard enough I won't replace her with a stranger."

Jesse said "Nat I auditioned I asked Cooper not to tell you."

Nat said "Jesse you can only sing when you're wet."

Jesse said "Nat give me a chance please."

Nat said "sing the first verse of let it snow. If you can do that I'll pick you."

Jesse sang "Oh the weather outside is frightful. The fire is so delightful. Since we've no place to go let it snow, let it snow, let it snow. Oh the fire is slowly dieing and my dear we're still saying goodbye. When we finally kiss goodnight how I'll hate going out in the storm. If you really hold me tight all the way home I'll be warm."

Nat was shocked for a second he actually thought Rosalina was singing. Then Nat said "Jesse that was beautiful! For a second I thought I heard Rosalina. I'll let Cooper know that you're going to be our bass player."

Jesse said "Nat I get nervous when I sing in front of people I don't know. I can only sing when I'm either in the shower or just in front of you and Alex."

Nat said "Jesse all you have to do is sing let it snow with me. The rest of the time you just play with the rest of the band."

Jesse said gently "Nat thanks for giving me a chance. Alex is going to be so happy that I'm singing with you guys."

Nat smiled and said "you're my friend Jess of course I'm going to give you a fair chance. You sing really well when you're not scared or nervous. What is your code name on this list so I can circle it?"

Jesse said "I'm not on the list Nat. I didn't think you'd pick me so I didn't put my name down."

Nat smiled at Jesse and said "I'm glad you talked to me about trying out."