It's the 12th and I'm flying out to spend a couple days with Pookie overseas, to surprise her. I should be there soon, maybe an hour and Johnny knows other than Lance. I know Johnny didn't agree at first, but I argued that I was going to check on her and he caved. I get to Valencia, finding out that their plane is late once I check my voicemail and she said Karl is to blame. I call her and ask what hotel, jumping in a cab to get there. I hang out in my room for a few hours, a call comes in that tells me that she's landed and tell her that I'll call when I 'get home'.
They go to the arena the Boys perform at tonight and I leave the room with just enough time to get there as they do, maybe security will let me slip in unnoticed since most of them know who I am. I walk up to one of the security guards and smile, his hand grabbing hold of my shirt collar. This guy doesn't know me, obviously. "Miss Cassie, I got a trouble maker."
She sighs into hers. "Is it one of the Boys or Aaron?"
"No, miss."
"Thanks, Karl. I'll be right there."
He releases me and I step just far enough away that he can't reach me, I'm upset to say the least. The door opens and she spots him (Karl?) first, hearing him out before looking at me. Her jaw drops, hugging me moments later and I wave like an asshole. "He didn't recognize me," I tell her grumpily.
"I'm sorry." She turns to Karl and smiles. "This is my cousin I told you about, Chris."
"I'm sorry," he apologizes.
"Just remember me."
"Who could forget the pitch of your voice, sir?" he jibes, trying to remain serious and fails when a smile cracks his face.
"Cassie?" a small kid's voice calls through the walkie.
"Aaron?" she fires back.
"What happened?"
"It's nothing big, just an unannounced visitor."
"Okay."
"Take Tay to the stage with you, Lil Bear."
"Will do, Cass."
"Tay? My baby sister?"
"Yes, she got to me yesterday."
Keep in mind that I'm talking about April 11 in the States and the 12th according to Spain. They got here with a couple hours to spare before the show. We go backstage and I spot Howie, talk to him for a moment. We plan to go out when we get the chance and plan to hang out over the next few days I'm here, saying hi to the other three guys on the way to Nick and Aaron's dressing room. We get to the door and the sound of Tay laughing brings a smile to both of our faces, knowing Aaron is the reason for it. We see him and Nick trying to do a Stooges' routine, making her laugh uncontrollably. Pookie laughs at it herself for a minute, breaking it up by tickling them and I see that Tay had cried from laughing so hard with her arms wrapped around her body. "Oh, my sides hurt," Tay forces her mouth to work so that we know.
"I deal with it everyday," Pookie jokes.
They go onstage and she calls Johnny, informing him that I arrived safely before requesting the other four guys know she's doing good. I wait for her to hang up before calling her bluff, catching her in a lie. Her cell slips across the marble dining table top, coming to a rest in the middle and I look at her. "Why did you bullshit Johnny about how you feel?"
She scoffs and rolls her eyes. "Chris, I don't want them to stress about my health. l will be fine. I'm just tired is all."
"Are you sure it's not a symptom of something other than exhaustion?" I query, pushing her for the truth.
"Yes, Howie has already had me do a physical before we left."
"That was 3 1/2 months ago." She groans, tensing up her body in frustration. "Just when you're home again, get checked."
"You'll stop pestering me about my health?"
"Yeah, until you look like shit again."
She purses her lips, shaking her head and her eyes rolling simultaneously. "Fine," she sighs.
"You know I'd rather hear it's nothing than let something big go untreated, maybe something like Scarlet Fever," I fire back.
"I said I'd get checked."
We get Stateside and she makes an appointment for 11:30, two hours from now. I'm praying that they don't find an underlying cause of her exhaustion, only having been working too hard and not sleeping enough. I keep Tay with me, knowing she's stuck with Pookie otherwise. "Chris?"
"Yeah?" I softly reply to my baby sister, looking at how grown up she's become in the past 8 years and realize her birthday is in a little over 2 months.
"You're too quiet."
"I'm worried about Pook."
"Tell me how she got that nickname again." She always makes the perfect distraction at just the right time and I can't explain my gratitude about it so that you understand.
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