Chapter 1
“Do you like chocolate or rainbow sprinkles better, Rachel?” Taylor reached into the kitchen cabinet and pulled out two jars of sprinkles for the sundaes they were making.
“Rainbow, of course. I don’t think anyone likes the brown ones better.”
“Ike does!” With this comment the kitchen was filled with childish laughter.
“I’ll get the spoons,” Rachel replied, trying to be helpful.
“Thanks, they’re in the draw by the sink.”
“I know that silly,” Rachel practically lived in the Hanson house ever since Taylor and her had started dating, almost a year ago. They were completely inseparable these days, doing everything together, from rollerblading to making ice cream sundaes. They were meant for each other, or so everyone said, and it was so hard to survive the long months of touring Taylor went on with the band. It was days like these, the long lazy days of a Tulsa summer, that touring in far off places seemed to be the farthest thought from their minds.
“Hey, ice cream!” Ike exclaimed as he entered the kitchen. Rachel and Taylor had just sat down at the small round kitchen table and exchanged glances as Isaac headed for the freezer. The numerous toppings were still spread over the counter and Ike helped himself to them. “Hey, what happened to the chocolate sprinkles? Did you guys eat them all?”
At the thought of eating the entire container of chocolate sprinkles Rachel burst out laughing. She had a beautiful, but highly contagious laugh, and soon Taylor was cracking up, too. In between laughs Taylor managed to explain that the sprinkles were still in the cabinet and Ike’s weird looks at the two made it so much funnier. “Whatever you guys,” was the best reply Ike could make as he added his sprinkles. He gave them one last weird look as he headed out of the kitchen with his ice cream.
“I told you he likes the brown ones,” Taylor said as soon as his brother was far away enough not to hear. Rachel nodded in response and the two ate their ice cream.
“I’ll wash and you dry?” Taylor questioned as he headed to the sink with two bowls and two spoons. Rachel replied in the affirmative as she grabbed a blue and white towel off of the oven handle and joined Taylor at the sink.
“Whoa! Ice cream and I wasn’t invited?” Zac raced over to the freezer and grabbed the carton of Breyer’s. “I’m hurt,” his “hurt” act was completely fake and just got smiles out of Rach and Tay. “Hey, who used the chocolate sprinkles? Why would we even buy chocolate sprinkles?”
“Ask Ike,” Rachel replied and started to laugh. Taylor handed her a bowl and caught the infectious laugh.
“Did I miss something?” Zac asked absentmindedly as he dug through the countless amount of toppings in search of something yummy. The laughing had stopped and Zac turned around to get a spoon to find Taylor and Rachel standing by the sink kissing. “Seesh guys, I get the point, I’m leaving,” he stated as he grabbed the spoon and exited but they hadn’t heard him; they were too deeply involved with each other to notice anything else.
When they pulled apart, they continued to stare at one another for the longest time. Taylor looked deep into Rachel’s dark brown eyes and his fingers played with her curly brownish-blondish hair. “I love you,” he whispered.
“I love you too,” she replied. They slowly leaned closer to each other until their lips met. It was a dog day of summer, the kind that drags on for god knows how long, when time seems to stop and the air is still and oppressive, it was a classic summer day in Tulsa. The kind that Rachel and Taylor were so used to but now paid no attention to because it was a rare occasion when they were together and all that mattered was here and now, this moment in time.
Chapter 2
The leaves out side of Rachel’s window were a multitude of magnificent colors. Replacing the monotonous green, were reds, yellows and oranges, the beautiful colors of a sunset. The air was still warm, not to cold and not to hot, but pleasant and enjoyable. The seasons, like so many other things, had changed. Hanson was now on tour, trotting the globe, doing interviews and concerts, in a different place practically every night. Taylor called when he could but it was hard with time zones, and he was always so fatigued from performing and traveling. Rachel missed him so much that the pain was unbearable and she knew in her heart that he missed her too.
Things at Rachel’s house had changed, too. Her mother had died when she was only four, and her father, Sam, had taken care of her. She was an only child but her father’s girlfriend, Maureen, and her two children had lived with them for what seemed to be an eternity. Maureen was divorced and had two girls, Kira and Eve. They were Rachel’s closest friends and were like her sisters. They had grown up together and it seemed they had always known each other. A week after Taylor had gone off on his tour; Maureen and Sam had had a huge fight. Rachel wasn’t sure what it was about, but Maureen, Kira and Eve had moved out leaving no means of contacting them. They might as well have dropped off the face of the earth.
That had been weeks ago and her father had taken it badly. He would leave, without saying where he was going, and come home in the middle of the night. He often smelled of booze and when Rachel had tried to talk to him, he hit her. This was a new experience for Rachel, she had never been hit before, and her father was the last person she had ever thought would do it. She didn’t blame him for it, she blamed the beer, vodka, whiskey, or whatever it was he had been drinking. But the weeks went on and the abuse became worse. Rachel had nobody to tell now that her best friends were gone and Taylor was on tour, and besides, if she told, they would probably put her in a foster home and that wasn’t what she wanted; she still loved her father.
Chapter 3
Rachel was on her way to the airport, in her father’s car. He was passed out in the dining room and hopefully wouldn’t wake until she was home. Taylor had sent her a postcard from Sidney saying he was coming home today and couldn’t wait to see her. She couldn’t wait either and had to see him as soon as possible, when his plane landed. She arrived at the airport a half hour before the plane was due, but already; there were humongous crowds of screaming girls, some with posters, all over the place.
She made her way through the mob, and up to the window. It was a beautiful fall day, almost like Indian summer, but not so warm. The blue sky sparkled and reminded her of Taylor’s loving eyes. A large United Airlines plane pulled up to the terminal and she knew it had to be Taylor’s. Girls around her began to scream, or cry, and hysterically confessed their love for Ike, Tay, and Zac. Airport security had pushed the crowds back past a divider to make room for the exiting passengers. Rachel stood against the divider and waited as passengers began to unload.
She waited and watched as an elderly woman with a walker inched her way forward. Inch by inch, it was more like millimeter by millimeter, she made her way forward. And there, behind the human snail, wearing the red leather jacket and Oakley shades, was Taylor. She cried out to him, but so were the rest of the scream squad and her yells were lost. He continued to move forward behind the inchworm and he searched the crowd for Rachel. Finally, their eyes met and he pushed past the old woman (almost knocking her over) and ran over to her.
“Rachel! Oh, I’ve missed you so much. Life was torture without you. Don’t let me ever leave you ever again!” He helped her over the divider as the on looking fans began to yell and cry.
“Taylor, I’ve missed you, too! I love you so much!” Right there, in front of all the fans, they kissed, a deep passionate kiss.
“Guys, the fans are getting upset.” Zac walked up to Tay and Rachel and tried to make them stop. They didn’t listen and were lost in the moment. “Guys, Stop IT!” Zac was becoming ever more frustrated with them. He grabbed Rachel’s arm and pulled them apart.
“Ow! Zac that hurt!” Rachel yelled holding her arm.
“I hardly touched you, Rachel.” Zac retorted in self-defense.
“ZAC! You hurt her!” Taylor was trying to get a look at Rachel’s arm but she wouldn’t let him. “Come on Rach, I just wanna see how bad it is.”
“I swear I did not hurt her! I couldn’t have!”
“Zac, can’t you see you did? She’s crying and it’s your fault. Will you just go away?” Zac was hurt and confused. He had barley touched Rachel’s arm and now she was crying from pain; it just didn’t make sense. He picked his carryon off of the floor and walked off towards his parents.
“Rachel, I can’t help you if you don’t let me see your arm. Please,” Taylor was practically begging. Rachel was scared. She didn’t want Taylor to see the bruises her father had caused and all those stupid fans were staring at them.
“All those people are staring at us,” she tried to explain to Taylor. “It’s creepy being watched.”
“Well, then we’ll go somewhere private, ok? Did your dad drive you?” She nodded no and handed over the keys to the white 96 Honda. He drove the car to the park and turned off the engine. He didn’t know what was going on with Rachel. When he suggested going to her house, she started to cry again. So, they ended up here, the park where they used to play as kids.
“Rachel, I don’t know what is going on but I know something is. I love you and I want to help you but I can’t if I don’t know what’s going on.” He looked deep into her eyes and she looked down and stared at the leather interior. “Can I see your arm?” She nodded and he reached out to pull up the sleeve of her shirt causing her to wince in pain. “That hurt? I hardly even touched your arm.” Taylor was scared now; he knew something was terribly wrong. He carefully pulled back the sleeve to see her pale white arm covered in immense black and green bruises.
He was shocked at what he saw and stared at the bruises for the longest time. He then turned and looked out his window. There were two kids playing in a sand box, having the time of their lives, and their happiness mocked him. “Who did this to you? Was it Sam?” She was too afraid to speak and could only nod in response. “How long has this been going on?” His voice had become shaky at the thought of all the pain she had suffered and how he hadn’t been there to help.
“It, it started a week or so after you left. So, I guess it’s been two months.”
“What did you do about it? Who did you tell?”
“Nothing and nobody. I just couldn’t tell anyone; you’re the only person I really trust.”
He turned and looked at her. She was so scared that she was almost shaking. How could he have let her go on like this? She had needed him and he wasn’t there. “I won’t let him hurt you anymore, I promise. I’ll do whatever I have to but that bastard won’t lay another finger on you ever. Do you understand?” She looked up at him and nodded. He slid over to her seat and carefully hugged her, so not to touch the bruises.
Chapter 4
Taylor never really had a plan on how to deal with Rachel’s dad. He knew he couldn’t confront him because he would just deny it all and Rachel didn’t want him to contact Child Welfare. He did the best he could to keep her away from him as much as possible. He would come and pick her up early and keep her out late. It was the best he could do, after all he was only 17.
And for the most part, it worked all right. Most of the time Rachel was near her dad, he was passed out or Taylor was with her. Around Christmas time, Hanson was going on a four-day mini promotional tour in New York City, and no matter how many ways he had tried to be left behind, Taylor had to leave Rachel’s side.
He called every day but always got an answering machine. He didn’t know what to make of this. It might mean that Rachel wasn’t home or she was being beaten. He didn’t know and it disturbed him to think of it. The hardest part was acting happy on television shows and at appearances when his insides were crying out for Rachel.
When they arrived at the Tulsa airport, the crowds of fans were present once again, but Rachel was not. Taylor became instantly worried and searched the crowd over and over while the fans went wild.
“Tay, come on we gotta get home. You can call her when we get there,” Ike was tired and impatient with his little brother. She obviously hadn’t come today, but they had only been gone for four days. He just wanted to go home.
“She might just be late. Five minutes Ike, five minutes.”
“Taylor, she isn’t here and she isn’t coming. Let’s go.” Taylor reluctantly followed his brother out of the airport. The ride home was way too long. It wasn’t long because he was tired or because he missed the house, it was too long because he was worried about Rachel. The second they pulled into the driveway Taylor jumped out of the van and headed toward the road.
“Jordan Taylor Hanson, come back here and help put the luggage away!”
“But dad, I-”
“No buts Taylor. Luggage now.” Taylor slowly headed back up the driveway to the van where his dad handed him some heavy suitcases. He trudged into the house and up the wooden stairs. He walked to the door of his room and fumbled with the luggage to open the door. He entered the messy room that was exactly the same as when he left it except for Rachel, sleeping on his bed, the lower bunk.
He dropped the luggage and ran over to her side. “Rach, Rach, wake up.” He gently shook her until she woke up. “Rachel, are you okay? Why are you here?”
Rachel was shaking out of fear. “Taylor!” She yelled and almost fell out of the bed in her attempt at hugging him. She was crying on his shoulder and he knew something bad had happened.
“Rachel? Is that you? What are you doing here?” Zac had entered the room and was standing in the doorway quite confused. He put down the bags he was carrying and looked at Tay, who looked back at him with the same confused look. “Um, I’ll leave you guys alone.” Zac shut the door and walked away wondering.
“Rachel, tell me why you’re here,” Taylor looked at her face as she sat up in the bed.
“I was scared and I had to get away from my dad. He, um, he,” and she stopped and looked at Taylor. He coaxed her on and she continued with a shaky voice and teary eyes, “raped me.”
“What?” Taylor’s voice was so soft it was hardly audible. Rachel was crying heavily and she stared at her hands. “Rachel, I’m so sorry I wasn’t here for you. I won’t leave you alone with him again. I swear it. I’m gonna get you as far away from that bastard as possible.” She looked up at him and tried to smile. “I love you,” was the best he could do and the two sat and hugged for the longest time.
Chapter 5
“Where are we going?” Rachel asked as she played with the radio dial.
“I’m not really sure. I was thinking we’d drive as much as we could in a day and we’ll stay wherever we end up for a while, then keep moving in all different directions.” Taylor had to get Rachel as far away from her bastard of a father as possible. The best thing he could think of was to run away, and here they were in Ike’s car, that Taylor had “borrowed”. It was still pretty early in the day and the car shouldn’t be missed for a while.
“Sounds good,” Rachel replied. They were pretty far away from Tulsa now; they had lost reception of all the local radio stations. They were headed west. Rachel had never been to the ocean, and that’s where Taylor planned to take her. He was so worried for her, from all she’d been through, and all the pain she’d suffered. In the back of his mind, he knew they couldn’t really run away, they’d be found and she’d be sent back to her father but this would buy them time. He just kept telling himself that it would work and they’d never be found but he knew it was all a lie.
They traveled all day and well into the night. They were somewhere in Arizona, Taylor wasn’t quite sure where, but it was as good a place as any to stop. Rachel had fallen asleep hours ago and her head rested on the window.
“Rachel. Rachel, you awake?” She turned and looked at him and grumbled. “We’re in Arizona, I don’t know where, but we’re in Arizona, and I’m gonna find a place to stop.”
“Ok.” She looked out the window and saw miles of nothing. Sure, there were some cactus but that was about it. They kept going for about fifteen minutes before coming to a hotel.
“How’s this place look, Rach?” Taylor pointed to the only building in sight, a one level dumpy looking motel.
“It’s as good as any place, I guess.” They parked Ike’s car and took what little luggage they had into the place.
An elderly man sat behind the counter reading Time magazine. He had beady little eyes and wore a cowboy hat on top of his large head. Taylor and Rachel exchanged weird looks as they approached the counter. “We’d like a room,” Taylor announced to the man who suddenly became aware of their presence.
“You’d like a room would ya?” He put down the magazine and looked at Taylor and then at Rachel and finally back at Taylor.
“Yes, we’d like a room,” Taylor repeated.
“Don’t ya think yous a little young to be rentin hotel rooms?”
“No, I don’t think I’m too young to rent a room. Look,” Taylor reached into his pocket and pulled out his wallet, “I’ve got money if that’s what you’re worried about.”
“So, ya do sonny.” He picked up the magazine and went back to reading. Taylor looked at Rachel who looked back at him confused. “Don’t ya think it’s amazing Madonna’s a mother?” Asked the man from behind his magazine.
“What? Look, I could care less about Madonna! I just want to rent a room! Are you gonna give me one or not?” Taylor was so fed up with the funny little man that he wanted to scream.
“Well, well, well, aint’t we pushy? I’m a getting your key, sonny.” He slowly handed them a room key and pointed them in the direction of the room. It was a small room, but it had two beds, with a color TV.
“Thank god for TV!” Cried Taylor as he plopped down on a bed and grabbed the remote. Rachel headed into the bathroom and returned in five minutes in pajamas and ready for bed. She crawled into the other bed and quickly fell asleep. Taylor flipped through the channels looking for a local station, to tell them where they were, but only found news after news after news. Then he realized why all the stations were news. They were all showing a breaking story, one that was unfolding before his eyes, the story of his life.
“It has just been confirmed by local authorities that Taylor Hanson, of the pop trio Hanson, has run away with his girlfriend, Rachel Stein. They have been missing since this morning and police are asking for your help. If you have seen either of these teens please call the Tulsa police at…” Taylor had had enough. He turned and looked at Rachel sleeping across the tiny room. He knew from the start they would be found sooner or later but this was much sooner than he thought.
Chapter 6
Taylor woke early in the morning and wanted to get as far away from this place as quickly as possible. He had woken Rachel and they were gathering their stuff when there was a loud knock on the door. Taylor looked at Rachel and motioned for her to be quiet. He snuck up to the door and peeped through the peephole, to see Rachel’s father staring back.
“Let me in you little bitch! I know you’re in there!” A look of absolute horror crossed over Rachel’s face and Taylor ran to the window. The hotel was only one level and he pulled open the window and kicked out the screen. By now Rachel’s father was attempting to break down the door.
“Rach, climb out the window and get to the car.” Rachel ran to the window and was struggling to get through, when a loud bang sounded and a gun shoot whizzed through the door. Rachel screamed and Taylor pushed her through the window. She was running across the parking lot and Taylor was close behind her when the door flew open.
“You bastard, Taylor Hanson, I’ll get you!” Roared Rachel’s dad through the window as he tried to climb out.
“Run, Rachel, don’t stop running!” Taylor’s feet pounded the pavement and his heart raced at a gazillion miles an hour. Rachel reached the car and struggled with the door but managed to climb in and Taylor was right behind. He fumbled with the keys, but he started the car and sped out of the parking lot.
Rachel’s father was close to getting in his car when the funny looking owner caught up with him. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?” he asked Sam, who turned around and punched him, climbed into the car and sped down the road.
“He had a gun, Rach, he coulda killed us,” a frantic Taylor rambled as the car flew down the road.
“I know! I’m so scared Taylor, I know he’s gonna follow us!” Taylor looked over at Rachel, who had fear written all over her face. Taylor was trying to convince her that they could out run him when he knew it wasn’t true. Ike’s car was a piece of junk that couldn’t go much faster than 90 miles an hour. “Is that him back there, Tay? Oh my god it is! And look how he’s driving, he’s drunk!”
Rachel’s dad was gaining on them fast. They were on a one-lane highway that was completely void of all cars. Sam’s car was swerving in and out of the lane and sometimes off the road. “What if he hits us? Or he had a gun, he could shoot out the tires!” Taylor was panicking and flipping out. Rachel was scared to death and clung to the door handle as if it would keep her safe. “As soon as I can, I’ll turn off this road and try to loose him. Maybe he’s so drunk he’ll keep going straight.”
They were approaching the outskirts of a city. “We’ll loose him in the crowd!” Taylor sounded almost confident that it would work. As they entered the city, a cop began to follow them with his sirens on. “I can’t stop! I can’t stop! I can’t stop!” Taylor screamed over and over.
“Tay, the cop got between us and dad! Now we’ll be harder to catch!”
“I hope you’re right Rach.” There was another gunshot and Tay glanced into the rearview mirror to see the blood filling up in the non-moving cop car with Sam swerving around it. “He shot the cop! Your dad killed the cop! He’s insane!” Ike’s car was veering in and out of lanes trying to loose the pursuer.
“Taylor! Red light!” Rachel screamed but Taylor couldn’t stop. He ran the light and flew into oncoming traffic. A public bus smashed into the driver’s side of the vehicle and both passengers were thrown through the windshield. Rachel wasn’t that badly injured and she managed to walk over to Taylor who lay in a crumpled heap on the cement. “Taylor,” she called out to him with tears rolling down her cheeks. He was unconscious and she knew better than to move him.
“Where is he? I’m gonna kill that bastard!” Rachel’s father had made his way through the traffic and was fumbling with his gun. He walked over and pulled Rachel up by the arm and pointed the gun at Taylor’s head.
“Daddy don’t!” Rachel struggled to take the gun from his hand when two police officers approached him from behind and took Sam into custody for murder charges. Rachel just stood there watching as they dragged him away.
Chapter 7
Taylor lay confused on the ground in a pile of blood. He looked around and saw nothing familiar. He was in an intersection surrounded by paramedics. “He’s gained consciousness.” An EMT reported and suddenly the group of paramedics rushed around him. “Don’t try to move or to speak.” He didn’t know what was going on; he was so confused. He couldn’t feel his legs and there was a sharp pain in his stomach. The people got him on a stretcher and into an ambulance and drove off to, Taylor guessed, a hospital.
Lying in the back of the ambulance Taylor tried to remember what had happened. How he got there, what he was doing there, and what was wrong with him? There was an EMT riding in the back with him who was frantically writing stuff on a pad of paper. “What happened?” Taylor managed to ask.
The doctor looked over at him. “You ran a red light and a bus hit your side of the car. The other passenger was taken to the hospital already.” Other passenger? This just confused him more. He had a shaky memory of running the light and a vague remembrance of a bus but nothing of another passenger. Was it Ike? It had been Ike’s car wasn’t it? But the one thing that really bugged him was he knew they were not in Tulsa, or anywhere familiar for that matter. He struggled to ask where they were and he was told Phoenix. Contemplating all this Taylor slipped out of consciousness.
Rachel had survived the accident with only a few minor scrapes and bruises. They had insisted on running tests on her anyway and she was sitting in the waiting room of the hospital. Taylor was still out there; they were unable to move him in his condition. She was so worried and it was her fault they had left Tulsa in the first place.
“Where is my son? Is he ok?” Diana had stormed into the waiting room and was followed by the entire Hanson clan. She continued to drill the receptionist about everything she knew on Taylor’s condition.
In the meantime, the other members of the family were talking with Rachel. When it was realized that Rachel really didn’t know anything about Taylor’s condition they moved on to other topics, all of which made Rachel cry. It was impossible for them to get anything out of her so Zac just let her cry on his shoulder.
Chapter 8
The paramedics pushed the stretcher with Taylor through the doors but they didn’t get much further; nine people ambushed them. Taylor was still unconscious and he needed emergency surgery. Both of his legs were broken and he had major internal bleeding. They pushed him away before anybody had a chance to really look at him. They did the only thing they could, they resumed what they were doing before he came.
A doctor entered the waiting room and cleared his throat. “Mr. and Mrs. Hanson?” Diana and Walker nodded yes and the doctor continued, “Taylor is out of surgery now. He has a few broken ribs, both of his legs are broken and he needs rest. You can go see him but just for a short while, please.” The group rushed up to Taylor’s room but they all couldn’t fit at once. First, Walker, Diana, Jessie, Avie, Mackie and Zoë visited for about five minutes but what seemed like an eternity to Ike, Zac and Rachel. When the first group had finished, they went back to the waiting room and left Taylor to the three.
“Hey, Tay, how ya feeling?” Ike asked as he walked over to the side of the bed. Taylor weakly replied that he had a headache but managed a smile at his brother.
“Hey man,” said Zac. “You gave Rachel here quite a scare!” Taylor looked at Zac and at the smiling girl next to him. He was confused.
“Rachel? Who’s Rachel?” he asked. “Are you Rachel?” he looked over at Rachel like she was a stranger. Ike and Zac looked at Tay in shock. Of course Tay had to know who Rachel was. Rachel looked back at Tay and started to cry. Taylor didn’t know whom this girl was but he was sure that she was Rachel and he felt bad that he made her cry. “Are you my sister?” This was the last straw; Rachel couldn’t stand the fact that she was like a stranger to her own boyfriend. She turned and ran down the hallway crying.
Chapter 9
It had been a month since the accident and Taylor was recovering nicely at his home back in Tulsa. The doctors had made it clear that nobody could tell Taylor anything from his past. If they did, he might just say that he remembered when he really didn’t. He remembered everything except Rachel. It was as if she had never existed, he remembered nothing of her.
Rachel’s father had been given a life sentence for murder and was serving out his term somewhere in a maximum-security prison. Rachel was glad; she wanted nothing to do with him. Rachel had no other relatives who were in any state to take care of her, and so the Hansons had adopted her. She had always been like a part of the family anyway, now it was just on a piece of paper.
It was an early spring day in Tulsa, the sun was shining and the birds were chirping; the world was happy. Walker was working and Diana shopping with some of the kids, leaving Ike, Tay, Zac and Rachel alone for the day.
Taylor had this amazing craving for ice cream. He was sitting in his room next to the window reading a magazine when it hit him, ice cream. It sounded so good and he had to have some. “Hey, Ike wanna go make ice cream sundaes?”
“No thanks, Tay. I got to finish this report.” Isaac didn’t even look up from the computer.
“Fine, I’ll go find Zac.” He picked up his crutches and awkwardly made his way down the stairs. He heard the Playstation and made his way into the family room. “Zac, I’m gonna make sundaes, want one?” Zac was hypnotized by the game and barley muttered no. “Well then, looks like I’ll be the only one eating ice cream.” He turned and headed off towards the kitchen.
He scooped the ice cream into his bowl and went for the toppings. He went crazy adding loads of chocolate sauce and whipped cream. ‘Now what am I missing?’ he thought. ‘Well, duh – sprinkles. What is a sundae without sprinkles?’ He reached into the cabinet desperately trying to find the sprinkles. All that he managed to find were the chocolate ones. ‘Yuck,’ he thought. ‘Only Ike likes the brown ones.’
He stopped searching and stared at the brown sprinkles he held in his hand. There was something strangely familiar about sundaes with brown sprinkles. Then it happened, he had his first memory of before the crash. He could see it all so clearly. Rachel was sitting at the table and he was fishing for sprinkles.
“Do you like chocolate or rainbow sprinkles better, Rachel?” Taylor reached into the kitchen cabinet and pulled out two jars of sprinkles for the sundaes they were making.
“Rainbow, of course. I don’t think anyone likes the brown ones better.”
“Ike does!” With this comment the kitchen was filled with childish laughter.
It all seemed so close like it had happened yesterday. But there was still something he couldn’t remember. He struggled to make himself remember what had happened next. He could remember Ike coming into the kitchen…
“Hey, ice cream!” Ike exclaimed as he entered the kitchen. Rachel and Taylor had just sat down at the small round kitchen table and exchanged glances as Isaac headed for the freezer. The numerous toppings were still spread over the counter and Ike helped himself to them. “Hey, what happened to the chocolate sprinkles? Did you guys eat them all?”
At the thought of eating the entire container of chocolate sprinkles Rachel burst out laughing. She had a beautiful, but highly contagious laugh, and soon Taylor was cracking up, too. In between laughs Taylor managed to explain that the sprinkles were still in the cabinet and Ike’s weird looks at the two made it so much funnier. “Whatever you guys,” was the best reply Ike could make as he added his sprinkles. He gave them one last weird look as he headed out of the kitchen with his ice cream.
He still couldn’t remember what he knew he was just missing. He knew something important was at the center of the ice cream and chocolate sprinkles, something that eluded his brain. The whole afternoon was coming back slowly, in little bits and pieces.
“I’ll get the spoons,” Rachel replied, trying to be helpful.
“Thanks, they’re in the draw by the sink.”
“I know that silly.”
He was so close to figuring whatever it was out that he could taste it.
“Did I miss something?” Zac asked absentmindedly as he dug through the countless amount of toppings in search of something yummy. The laughing had stopped and Zac turned around to get a spoon to find Taylor and Rachel standing by the sink kissing. “Seesh guys, I get the point, I’m leaving,” he stated as he grabbed the spoon and exited but they hadn’t heard him; they were too deeply involved with each other to notice anything else.
When they pulled apart, they continued to stare at one another for the longest time. Taylor looked deep into Rachel’s dark brown eyes and his fingers played with her curly brownish-blondish hair. “I love you,” he whispered.
It hit him harder than a ton of bricks. It all flooded through his brain: her father, the tours, Christmas in New York, the bruises, the rape, the running, the hotel, the creepy owner, the car chase, the cop, the red light. He realized what had been staring him in the face for the longest time ~ it was his love for Rachel. He felt it deep down in his heart, a yearning and burning desire to be with her. He dropped the sprinkles on the floor and they spilled everywhere but Taylor could care less, they were the brown ones anyway. He grabbed his crutches and struggled out of the kitchen.
“Rachel?” he had no idea where she was. Impatiently he yelled out again.
“She went outside,” was the response from Zac, probably still playing video games.
He turned and went, at as fast a pace as possible, to the door. He pulled it open and stumbled down the two steps to his walkway. He looked around his big lawn and found Rachel sitting under a tree in the way off corner of the property, by the garden. Leaving the door wide open, he oddly made his way across the grass. (It isn’t easy using crutches on an uneven grassy yard.)
By the time he reached the tree he was quite out of breath. “Rachel,” he said panting like a dog that had just run a marathon.
Rachel looked up from her book of poetry she had been reading shocked to see Taylor. “Oh my god, Taylor sit down. Are you trying to kill yourself?” He tried to protest but Rachel would not listen until he sat down next to her. “What are you doing out here? You are supposed to be resting in-”
“But Rachel,” he impatiently cried, “I spilled the sprinkles!” He took a moment to take a few more deep breaths.
“And you couldn’t clean them up yourself?”
“No, the brown ones, Rach, I spilled the brown sprinkles all over the kitchen.” The more he looked at her, the more she appeared to be an angel from heaven. The way the sun hit her golden brown curls was irresistible and he leaned in and kissed her. He knew this was it, what he had been missing since the accident. It was his other half, because that’s what she did, she completed him.
“I remembered,” he whispered after their kiss. “Wanna go make sundaes? We still have some rainbow sprinkles left.” She nodded yes and the two headed off towards the house, both crying tears of joy.
THE END
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