Mitchie could feel Shane shooting daggers at her with his eyes. His gaze burned into the side of her face, but she didnt turn to watch him fume. She suddenly felt the desire to stab Nate with one of the many knives placed on the poshly decorated table the Gray family were seated at.
"Nate" Mitchie sighed, her eyes taking a quick glance at the table. "Look, I'm going back to the hotel. I'll see you then."
"No, Mitchie dont go." Nate called. "C'mon it's just lunch and you've been with me for hours, I'm sure you're hungry."
"I.."
"Mitchie, join us for lunch. You'll be amongs everyone over here for the next three months, so the sooner you get used to it the better it is for everyone." , who also happened to be Mitchie manager suddenly spoke up. His tone was harsh, but Mitchie sucked it all in. She was all too used to him being this way anyway.
She almost barely nodded as she watched a waiter add another chair to the table, her being an unexpected additon. She placed her shopping bags neatly next to her chair, Nate doing the same as she took a seat between him and Frankie. She looked at the menu she had been handed with concentration, although she had suceeded in reading nothing. She had never felt more out of place in her entire life than she had at that moment and she pulled her menu higher, covering her face as tears started stinging her eyes. She knew every eye was watching her. She didnt need anyone to tell her so and she also knew how unwelcome she was at such a family gathering. She had attended too many of these with the exact same people in her past, none of those had made her feel as miserable as she was feeling now.
It felt like hours, but in reality a couple of seconds later conversations started once again amongst the Gray family members. Mitchie felt slightly more at ease knowing that everyones eyes were now no longer on her, but she couldnt stop feeling out of place. She mumbled her order to the waiter once he came around and was forced to look back at the rest of the people as her menu was taken from her. was busy conversing with Nate, asking him about where they had been. You could imagine the shock on her face when she heard Nate had been shopping and rewarded her son with a pat on the back. Frankie sat obliviously next to Mitchie not contributing to any conversation, busy playing on his PSP.
When her eyes landed on Jason, she couldnt help but try and remember the last time he had spoken to her. She couldnt remember it. It was months ago, she remembered, but she couldnt remember when. But then again, he blamed her for everything that happened - all the bad press, all the hatred, all the accusations that had been thrown at them. He blamed her for the band nearly breaking up. Danielles head jerked up, looking at Mitchie who was sitting opposite them, offering her a kind smile to which Mitchie was too dazed to return because her ears caught attention of the conversation about furniture occuring between , Franchesca and Shane. Furniture.
Even though Shane was still talking to his father and his girlfriend, his eyes would dart towards Mitchie who was still watching them every now and then. His almost menacing gaze didnt scare her and she knew he was still fuming about seeing her with Nate from earlier. When she eventually caught onto what they were talking about her heart sank to the bottom of her stomach. Shane and Franchesca had been out shopping for furniture to ship off to LA. They were moving in together.
"Would any of you two care to explain why every news channel has either a picture or video of you.." pointed towards Mitchie who had shifted from Shanes lap to the space next to him. "grabbing my sons crotch in public?"
Mitches cheeks turned red in embarrassment and her body shuddered at the words coming out of Shane fathers mouth. Not something you'd like to hear form you'r boyfriends father.
"Dad, I-"
"No, Shane let me finish." added quickly. Shane took Mitchies hand in his, bringing it to his lap as she sat there with her head hanging downwards, afraid of the tears forcing its way out of her eyes. "Do you even have any idea how bad this looks right now? People are saying all sorts of things. Why dont you two keep it in your pants every 90 seconds, at least it would lsave me all of this trouble!" He said angrily, throwing his hands in the air. "You cannot go around in public doing such things when you are Shane Gray and Mitchie Torres! You cannot do that when little kids look up to you and you are in the public eye! Do you understand!" He yelled, causing Mitchie to look up in fear.
In the years she had known the Grays, had never been so outraged at her before. Then again, she hadnt pulled such a stunt before. Yes, he had raised his voice at her many times but never like this and at that moment all she wanted was the ground to open up and swallow her.
"Mitchie.." spoke much more softly this time. "Look, you're new in this industry. You're still working on your second album, and all you want is for people to focus on that - on the music. Make sure it's nothing else okay?" He spoke as Mitchie nodded.
"Hah.." Caitlyn sighed, breaking the think air in the room as left. "Well, that went good."
"Ah-mazing." Shane muttered under his breath.
-X-
Mitchie rode down the familiar path, a wide grin plastered on her lips and her face ever so often looking up at the shining mid-July Californian sun in awe. She missed this, she missed home, she missed California the two months they had spent touring North America and she was so glad to be back home even if it was for a week before she had to go back to start the South American and Europian leg of the tour.
She randomly rang the bells of her bike as she continued biking down the empty street, laughing at herself and observing any changes that had occured in the gated neighbourhood she resided in in the days she had been away, but no significant change was noticed.
Being on tour made her value time, value her sleep, value her home. She missed it all so incredibly much and even after two months of touring she still had to get a hang of the whole thing. After all it was her fist time. Her first time on tour - it made her so happy just by the thought and on most days she'd just wonder if everyting happening to her was real. It all seemed too surreal for her, and the most unbelivable part for her?
She'd be seeing the whole world with the man she loved.
She smiled at just the thought of Shane, but almost instantaneously her thoughts drifted to the back forest cake she had made earlier that day. She turned her bike around, racing out of the pavement and into the empty road she knew no one would pass by. After all it was a gated community and no strangers were allowed to be roaming around hence she'd been able to actually leave her house wihout being swarmed by paparrazzi and more than half the people residing in the area were out of town due to work anyway.
Her ears caught the sound of screeching tires as she rode her bike to the side of the roda, trying to avoid being hit by the passing car. But it never passed. She looked to her right and smiled as she stopped to observe what was happening.
"Hey, stranger." Shane winked.
Mitchie laughed at the gesture and rose her eyebrows as she watched him from the rolled down window of his car. "What are you doing here?"
"I was missing you and Caity's over, and theres weird noises coming from Nates room. I dont even wanna imagine whats going on in there." He made a disgusted face.
Mitchie Bursted out laughing again. "C'mon then." She waved. "Lets go home, I made cake."
"What kind?"
"Black forest."
"Oh my god, Mitchie, I love you! You know it's my favourite." Shane exclaimed excitedly like a four year old, his face suddenly lighting up.
"Nah-uh.." Mitchie shook her head. "Liar. It was my favourite first. You just stole it from me."
"Guilty." Shane held his hand up from the steering wheel in surrender. "Now, can we go? I really want cake." He whined.
"I'll race you there."
"You really think your bike can get you there quicker than my car?" He asked, amused.
"No." Mitchie shook her head. "I bet my bike can get me there faster than that box of a car you have."
"Mitchie, can I get you any more salad?" Danilelles vice cute through Mitchies thoughts and she looked up at Danielle kindly holding up the bowl for her.
"Um...no thanks. I'm done."
"Okay." Danilelle smiled, placing the bowl back down.
She was the only person in the table that had actually spoken to her throught the whole lunch. Nate had been too occupied by all of the food to speak and she was happy because for the time being she prefered being invisible, that is before Danielle talking to Mitchie caught everyones attention on them.
"Uh.." Nate cleared his throat, breaking the awkward silence that had around the table once again. "What does eveyone want for desert?"
"Black forest cake." Shane and Mitchie instantly replied. They locked eyes the second they heard the same answer come out of the others mouth and that awkward silence once again found everyone else until the waiter was called to take their orders.
-X-
Being wedged between so many bodies was almost suffocating. Mitchie tried to take a deep breath, but the air in the dance floor didnt feel enough. Her brain was distracted fom the continuous on and off of the disco lights as her eyes frantically tried to locate the bar once again. Once she spotted her destination, she walked off, leaving her dance partner for the last three songs at the floor without another word.
He was the third guy to have asked her to dance once she had entered the club at the ground floor of the hotel they were staying at. Naturally, that was nothing shocking because she was afterall Mitchie Torres. Everyone wanted a piece of her. She had come with her new stylist and best friend, Dana who had now dissapeared somewhere in the mass of dancing bodies. She ordered a beer, ditching the idea of a fourth promegranate martini as she leaned against the bar and scanned the place once again.
She wanted to have fun and when Dana invited her to go to the club with her, Mitchie didnt need to be asked twice. It wasnt new that when she was observing the place she found most of the girst staring at her. There was always three reasons for that. 1) The next day they'd go out, maxing out their credit cards to find an exact copy of what she was wearing. 2) She was with Shane Gray and they wanted to see what she had that they didnt.
You'd think that with Franchesca now in the picture, people would be eyed the same way by those girls. And she was. She was eyed, she was envied, but not like Mitchie was because even though all those strangers in the crowd knew 3% of what was happening in their lives, they knew that Franchesca didnt have Shane the same way Mitchie had.
"You're such a dick, did you know that?" Mitchie asked, picking herself up from the kitchen floor and gigling at the same time while she kicked Shane who was on the floor with her. "Why'd you trip me? You do realise I know where the cake is so if I died you'd get no cake today?"
"Stop being so dramatic." Shane said, taking Mitchies outstretched hand to get himself up. "You deserved that. You tricked me. I won! I got here before you did."
"No." Mitchie pointed, her lips forming an 'o' shape. "But I was in the kitchen before you. You may have got to the house before me, but I was IN the house before you, so technically I win."
"Fine. Then, I'd like to give you your prize." He leaned in closing the distnace between their faces and softly kissing her lips. Mitchie brought her hands up around his neck as she kissed him back and felt him smile against her lips. "Geeze, finally. I've been waiting for you to kiss me since you were in your stupid car." She confessed, giggling.
"Hey." Shane spoke up, preteneding to be offeneded. "Why always insult the car?" He mumbled againt her lips again.
Mitchie rolled her eyes, but smiled. "Cause I like your face when you're annoyed."
"Baby, you like my face any how." He stated cockily.
"Really? Because when you're moaning 'mmm Mitchie, yes! Right there, baby. Mitch..ohh' it's pretty amusing. Just saying."
"I do not sound like that."
"Oh, really?" Mitchie smirked. "I guess we'll just have confirm that." She walked out the kitchen and towards the stairs with Shane closely behind her.
By the time she finished her second glass of beer she spotted Dana in the crowd, dancing with a blonde who Mitchie hadnt seen before that night. Mitchie shook her head at her best friend who was obviously drunk and totally out of it. At least someone was having fun.
She adjusted her eyes to the light as they widened to make sure she was seeing right. Danielle approaced her with a smile on her lips and Mitchie looked behind her spotting Jason, Shane and Franchesca sitting at a small booth enjoying their drinks before Franchesca was successful in pulling Shane to the dance floor. There was no Nate with the gang and she wasnt surprised. He was never for these things anyway.
"Hi, Mitchie." Danielle spoke. Mitchie always wondered how Danielle managed to be so sweet all the time and replied "Hey, Danielle." as she came and stood by her.
"Why are you here alone?" She asked gently as Mitchie took another sip of her beer. Danielle looked behind her shoulder towards the table she was sitting at to see it only occupied her husband at the moment. "You wanna sit with us? He's dancing now, and I dont think he'll be back soon. Come sit with us." She urged.
Mitchies eyes searched the crowd to find Shane and his lover and sure did she find them. She kept her eyes glued to their grinding bodies for a moment and then back to the table Danielle had been gesturing about. "Nahh...I think I'm fine here. I'm gonna go soon anyway and plus, I dont think Jason would be too pleased with the idea."
"You know that, no matter how much you think he hates you, he really does love you. You were like his little sister."
"Well, I dont think I meant that much of a little sister to him since he doesnt even talk to me now." Mitchie pointed.
"Have you tried?" Danielle questioned knowing the answer anyway. She gave Mitches arm a gentle squeeze and smiled at her before walking away.
All the liquiour had hit Mitchie hard by the time the fourth guy asked her for a dance and she didnt need much convincing for him to pull her away from the bar and back towards the mass of dancing bodies. Shane had spotted her much earlier and had seen the exchange between Mitchie and his sister-in-law. He smiled as his girlfriend excused herself to the restroom and awkwardly stood in the middle of the dance floor watching Mitchie lazily wrap her hands around the neck of a brunette he did not recognise. He closed his knuckles as he watched this unknown guys hands on Mitchies waist, being responsible for her already too short black dress to ride up. Mitchie seemed too drunk to even notice as she staggered back towards the bar, revealing her black lace thong to the rest of the world behind her as she walked.
Shane felt himself heating up in annoyance and anger, watching Mitchies tactics as she suddenly decided she needed to stand up on the bar and start dancing, which she did, Showing the whole world her cleavage. Shane got to her just as fast she she got on top of the bar, gaining most people who were some what sober's attention.
"Mitchie!" Shane said between gritted teeth. "Mitchie.." He said again, louder, gaining her attention. Mitchies eyes narrowed into slits as she gave him a dirty look and lowered the top half of her body towards Shane revealing some more skin. Shane pulled Mitchie down from the bar as Danielle rushed to Mitchies side, fixing her dress for her. Or atleast pulling it a little down to cover her.
"What do you want, Shane?" Mitchie asked, innocently.
Shane sighed in annoyance and spoke in a low hushed tone. "I want you to go back to your room. What the hell are you doing?"
"Shut up you douchebag! I'll do whatever I like, it's not your problem." Mitchie slurred.
"Oh, when you're on tour with me and my brothers this is my problem." He crossed his hands over his chest. "Now, stop being a bitch and come with me."
"What if I dont?" Mitchie crossed her arms around her chest stubbonly.
"Then I guess I have no choice becuase we cant risk anone getting a picture of you like this.." and with that, Shane picked Mitchie up and threw her over his shoulder. For a second, Mitchie was too dazed off to even realize what was happening and by the time she did, Shane had walked halfway towards the exit.
"Put me down!" Mitchie yelled, kicking Shane with all the power her drunk body could gather. "Shane, I said put me down!"
"Shut the fuck up Mitchie. You didnt look like anything but a slut back there. " Shane pointed angrily as he reached the elevator and got the two of them in.
"Maybe that's what I am. A slut. Does that make you happy, Shane?" She replied with just as much anger.
"Shut up."
They remained silent until Shane managed to get Mitchie inside her room and safely on her bed. Mitchie digged her head into her soft pillow and sighed as Shane took her heels off of her feet and pulled the covers up. Even if it was summer, winter, spring, autum, no matter what season it was, Mitchie was never able to sleep without any covers. He turned the lights of in silence and made his way towards the door when he heard Mitchie's voice.
"Shane.." She spoke much softer than their earlier exchange. Much softer than he was used to her speaking to him now and he knew it was all the liquour.
"What, Mitchie?"
"Do you miss me."
"I dont miss who you became." He answered thruthfully with a hint of sympathy in his voice.
"It wasnt my fault."
"I know." He said, sadly.
Mitchie said nothing else and he left the room in its darkness.
Heyyy :D
So I gotta say, the only reason Im updating tonight is cause I got a review from LinesVinesAndTryingTimes yesterday and that motivated me to finish this chapter since I only got 3 reviews for the last chapter and I was a little dead on the motivation so thank you to LinesVinesAndTryingTimes.
And this chapter...you guys tell me what you think. There was a lot more of Shane and Mitchie in it. Much more of Shane than the previous chapters in the falshback as well as in the present. Anyway tell me what you think is happening, what you think happened between them. What about the band breaking up and Jason blaming Mitchie and then there was a much more subtle exchange of words between smitchie at the end. What do you think they were talking about?
And there was danielle in this chapter. You gotta love her! Kanielle pones all couples. Kanielle FTW :D
And please review!
SOrry for all the mistakes, its mearly 3 am and I wasnt planning on updating this tonight and I cant check it through cause I have to wake up early. I have my international assesment tests nice and early tomorrow moring, yes on a saturday -_- I need the sleep and maybe your motivation through the reviews. It will make me happy and inspired :)