"Oh man, it's good to be home! If I miss my home after 3 days, think of how the boys...." Dee stopped herself realizing she was talking mainly about Brian. She flopped down on the couch and closed her eyes. She opened them and glanced at the poster on the wall. She groaned, got up, took it down, rolled it up, and threw it into Vanessa and Shelly's room.
"Luke, wanna help me?" she asked.
"With what?" he asked.
"Just follow me to my room." As soon as they entered her's and Kris' room, he knew exactly what she was talking about. Her side had reminders of Brian everywhere. There were two big posters; the one of him in the blue, with yellow striped, sweater was on the ceiling above her bed and the most recent "SEARS" one was on the wall over her bed.There was a pic of them at the "pj party" on her night-stand and various other pics of them around her room. Kris' side looked the same, but with Nick pics. Normally, people would have thought she'd rip the posters down, but she took them down carefully, rolled them up, and put them in her's and Kris' closet. (Note-Brian's in the closet! Come out of the closet Brian!! AAAAAAAHHHHH!!! Just kiddin', I love Bri!! Please don't kill me, peeps, I was playin, it was funny that I put Brian [pics] in the closet! I know I have a warped sense of humor!) Her room wasn't covered in BSB memorbilla, just stuff to remind her of her man, or rather, her ex man! She didn't want any reminders of him right now! The others would just have to understand about the tour poster. After all that was done, she flopped down on her bed and turned on her 3 disc CD player. Just her luck, her "Millenium" CD was in, so she switched to CD 2 and it was her "Everybody" single-her and Kris always blasted that song! She switched it yet again, and her "Faith Hill" CD was in. As soon as "This Kiss" came on, she switched it to radio where 98 degrees' "Hardest Thing" was playin.
"Are they trying to torture me!" she yelled as Luke looked at her sympathetically.
"Let's watch some TV," he suggested. She followed him to the livingroom and flopped on the sofa with him. He surfed through the channels quickly.
"Oh, Real World, I love this show!" he said.
"Me too," she agreed as they proceeded to watch Colin and Amaya argue through most of the show. By the time she realized how late it was, it was 11:00 p.m. She had to call the girls!! She went to the table at the side of the couch and dialed the first # she found, hoping it wasn't one of the guy's, mainly Brian's, cell phone.
"Hello?" Kris answered.
"Hey Kris!"
"Dee, where have you been, I've been so worried."
"Sorry, I forgot to call. I'm so sorry!"
"That's okay. We all miss you already."
"Aww, thankz. Tell the others I said hi! So, um, how was the show?" Dee asked knowing it was already over. She knew she shouldn't have asked it, but it slipped. She was a glutton for punishment, I guess.
"It was good. To tell you the truth, I know you don't want me to bring up Brian, but he, well it sucked to put it lightly. He wasn't into it tonight."
"So," Dee said stying to play it off that she it didn't bother her, but it really bothered her a lot!
"Dee, you don't mean that. I know you better. He read the letter." Kris said. Dee responded with silence. She didn't think he'd read it. "Yeah, he read it. It really hit him hard, esp. when he found the phone and necklace. Dee, please talk to him."
"Kris, I can't."
"Yes, you can, he's right here. Please, Dee. Please," Kris begged.
"No," Dee answered, but she heard silence and noise like the phone was being passed. As much as it hurt her, she hung up.
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Brian grabbed the phone expectantly. He really wanted to talk to Dee and work things out. He wanted her back so bad; he missed her so much!
"Hello?" he said into silence. Then the dial-tone beeped in. He slowly pulled the phone from his ear and handed it back to Kris. She watched sadly as he walked away forlornly. She put the phone to her ear and heard the dial-tone. "She hung up!" she thought to herself, "That is so not a Dee move." She felt so bad for both of them. Although Dee was her best friend, she didn't agree with the way she was treating Brian. It was, well, unfair!
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Dee threw the phone across the room onto the chair. Tears were stinging her eyes.
"Are you okay?" Luke asked, rubbing her back. Her reply was to grab him and hug him and cry onto his shoulder.
"Hold me, please," she said as he sat and held her. She cried for most of the night as he just held her, then both fell asleep.
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Jo sat by her phone debating whether or not to call Brian and tell him the truth. She saw the Dallas show and how terrible he looked and performed. She felt so awful she was the cause of his hurt, even though he didn't know that. As much as she wanted to, she couldn't pick up the phone. Brian could get back together with that dumb Dee, and Jo, even though she didn't want Brian, couldn't see him with a flirty ditz.
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-------------A couple days later, the Tampa show----------------------------------
"Brian, please call her," Vanessa pleaded.
"Yeah, please," Dawn echoed.
"Why? She'll just hang up on me. It's hopeless, I should just move on with my life."
"No, Brian, please try," Shelly pleaded.
"Insist her not to hang up," Kris said.
"Okay, I'll try, but don't say I didn't warn ya'll," he said as he grabbed his phone and dialed her number. After 3 rings, he was gonna hang up, but Dee came to the phone.
"Hello? Sorry I was in the laundry room."
"Um, hi Dee," he started.
"Brian?"
"Please don't hang up, please. Let me talk to you." When she didn't reply or hang up, he continued. "Um, I read your letter. I'm so sorry! My actions were so stupid! I love you!"
"Brian, do you know how many notes I got today? 5 to leave you alone and 2 were happy we're through. It upset me alot, Bri."
She called him Bri! "I know, I'm sorry."
"It's not about the note, Bri, it's not even the fan's. I can handle all that. It's the fact that you didn't trust me! Without trust, what is there?"
"I know. I'm really sorry! Please, please, forgive me!"
"Brian, I think we need a little more time apart to think things over. I mean, we really rushed into this relationship."
"Um, okay, if it'll make you happy and it's what you want."
"It will not make me happy and it's not what I want. It's what we need."
"Okay," he said sadly.
"I'm sorry, Bri, but I feel we need to work on our trust issues. You're in the perfect position for me to be untrusting and jealous. You're around tons of other women all the time and some of them are all over you. But the first time I hug a guy friend and give him a friendly kiss on the cheek, you hear about it and freak out!" Brian was silent. "Oh, I'm sorry, Bri, but my washing machine is banging out of whack. I've gotta go."
"Okay, bye," Brian said quietly.
"Bye," Dee said. Both wished they could've said "I love you", but it was better this way. They needed time apart, they needed to think things over. Even though Brian disagreed, he was willing to do anything to get her back. But, besides this "time apart" he had a plan brewing!