by JL Paul
Ally nodded and fell into the computer chair. “Maybe I’m over reacting. I mean, just because Dad is going to work with Rhys Redden doesn’t mean he’s leaving the band. Rhys Redden still toured when he first started Redden Records.”
“Exactly,” Jeana said. “Why don’t you call the guys?”
Ally nodded, still a little numb. “Yeah, I think I will.” She got up and searched through her bag until she located her phone. She flipped it open and hit Cole’s number. She nibbled on her thumb nail as she waited for him to answer. She cursed and slammed her phone shut when she was put through to voicemail.
“I’m going to have to go to the music room,” Ally said as she grabbed her coat. “They’re probably all there.”
***
Cole shoved his drumsticks in his back pocket and grabbed a bottle of water. He twisted off the cap and took a long slug. Jamie lifted Parker’s bass guitar from his hands and was showing off the little bit of skills Mark had taught him before Jamie had decided he liked sports better. Ren and RJ were going over a certain section of a new song – comparing notes – when the door flew open and admitted Ally, face flushed and hair in disarray.
“Al?” Cole said as he set his water bottle on the piano bench. He rushed to her. “What’s wrong?”
RJ, Ren, and Parker lifted their heads while Jamie set the guitar on the stand and furrowed his brow at his cousin.
“I just heard on the VideoMusic News…” she said as the ache hit her heart again and floated up to her throat, preventing her from speech. She sniffed and moved past Cole to sit on the piano bench.
“What did you hear, cuz?” Jamie said.
Before Ally could respond, the door opened again and Stephanie ran inside, straight to Cole. She grabbed his arm. “Cole, it’s all over the VideoMusic News that Jay is going to head up a new branch of Redden Records in Chicago.”
“What?” RJ said as he hurried to Stephanie’s side. “Are you sure?”
“Yes,” she said, clutching Cole’s arm tighter. “Did they say anything at all?”
“Not a word,” Jamie said as he sat next to Ally. He nudged her lightly. “Did your dad say anything to you?”
Ally still couldn’t find her voice so she shook her head. Jamie put an arm around her as he looked at Stephanie. “What exactly did they say on the news?”
Stephanie took a deep breath. “They said that Rhys Redden was opening a new branch of Redden Records in Chicago and that Jay had agreed to run it. They also said that Tight Control was still on tour and hadn’t made any sort of announcement about their future.”
RJ cursed colorfully and turned back to his guitar. He carefully packed it into the case as Ren hovered at his shoulder.
“Shouldn’t we find Alec or something?” Ren asked, his face pale.
“Damn,” Ally finally said. “Yeah.”
“I’ll go find him,” Ren offered, obviously anxious to escape the tense music room. “Um, where should I take him?”
“To our room,” Cole said as he gently pried Stephanie’s fingers off his arm. “We’ll call the parents and demand answers.”
“They’ll just say the same thing as always,” Ally said dismally. “They’ll say they’re just rumors and we shouldn’t listen.”
Stephanie shook her long mane of luscious hair. “No, Ally – they’re not just rumors. They said that Rhys Redden announced the new branch opening. They said that Rhys said that Jay was going to run it.”
Ally ducked her head, knowing Stephanie was right but she didn’t want to admit it. She didn’t want to believe that her dad would abandon his band mates – his friends. She desperately wished she could speak to her parents alone – without the guys around. She wanted to beg them to tell the truth. She wanted her father to explain it to her himself.
“Let’s go,” Cole said as Stephanie grabbed his arm again. Ally looked up, a little surprised to see her acting so possessive but couldn’t worry about it at the moment. She allowed Jamie to take her by the arm and guide her out of the room.
***
“Dad?” Ally said as Jay answered his cell phone. “Um, can we please talk?”
She glanced at the guys – and Stephanie – hovering closely, listening to her every word. They’d decided that Ally should telephone Jay and call him out, hoping he’d tell her the truth.
“Princess,” he said with a long sigh. “Listen, okay? I know you heard the announcement about Redden Records and I want to explain.”
“Please do,” she said as her cell phone trembled in her hand.
“Yes, I am going to work at the Chicago branch, but it wasn’t supposed to be announced yet. I was supposed to be able to talk to you kids about it first.”
“What’s going to happen to the band?” she asked as RJ cursed and fell to his bed. He slumped near the headboard.
“Well, we don’t know everything yet,” he said. “Ally, that’s the truth. Once this tour is over, we plan to sit down and discuss everything. And once we know for sure, we’ll tell you kids. Okay?”
She nodded, and then realized that he couldn’t see her. “Okay.”
“Tell the others what I told you and tell them not to worry. Things are all right, honestly,” Jay assured her.
“Okay.”
“I love you princess,” Jay said.
“I love you, too, Daddy,” she said as she closed her phone. She looked up at the anxious faces awaiting her words. She sighed and shoved her phone in her pocket. “Well, it’s true. Dad is going to work at Redden Records but they haven’t decided what they are going to do about the band yet. After the tour, they’ll talk about it then tell us.”
“Well,” said Cole in a resigned voice as he sat on his bed. He shrugged. “I guess that’s it, huh?”
Chapter Twenty-One
RJ’s once bright and cheerful demeanor disappeared over the next few days and it caused Cole great concern. Yeah, Cole was bummed at the prospect that his dad might no longer be playing, but it was out of his hands. If his dad decided that he wanted to retire, then he deserved it. He’d been playing music since he was a kid.
Jamie didn’t say much at all about the fate of Tight Control. He went to class, went to practice, and hung out like usual. He was a bit preoccupied at times, but his mood swings couldn’t rival RJ’s.
Ally was a totally different story. She went along with life as usual – not mentioning a thing about the possibility of Tight Control’s demise. It was like nothing even happened. She stayed busy – obsessed really - with strengthening her ankle and playing basketball. They’d barely spent any time alone together and when they did get a second or two, they didn’t discuss their fathers.
“Hey, Cole. Wait up,” Stephanie shouted, breaking his thoughts as he walked along the snow covered sidewalk toward his dorm. He stopped and waited for her to reach him. “Are you going to band practice?”
“Nope,” he said, shifting his backpack up his shoulder. “Parker has a term paper to finish.”
“Oh, well, Coach said we’re having a short practice tonight so maybe we can all hang out or something,” she suggested, hope filling her eyes.
He studied her face, her expression expectant. She’d been trying very hard to fit in with him and his friends and even though he was pretty sure everyone liked her all right, he could see it was a struggle to insert herself into a tight-knit group of friends. But she was his sister, now, and he felt that it was his duty to help her the best he could. He shrugged. “Sure. Where?”
“My room, I guess,” she said with a frown. “It gets awfully lonely in there since I don’t have a roommate.”
“I’ll grab the guys and we’ll come by after dinner.”
“Okay. I’ll tell Ally at practice. See you later.” She grinned and gave him a quick hug.
***
“Hey, Ally,” Stephanie said as they changed in the locker room after practice. “Come by my room after dinner.”
“Why? What’s up,” Ally asked warily.
“Nothi
ng. I saw Cole earlier and asked him to get the guys and come by. I just thought we’d all hang out.” She bit her bottom lip and Ally couldn’t stop the twinge of satisfaction at the other girl’s nervousness. She tried to chase it away, knowing it was wrong, but it just bugged her that Stephanie was bound and determined to worm her way into Ally’s group of friends.
“Okay,” Ally said, resigned to make more of an effort for Cole’s sake. She knew how desperately Cole wanted a regular family like the rest of them. “I’ll be there.”
“Ally,” Coach Morgan called. “Come to my office when you’re done.”
Ally nodded and finished tying her shoes.
“What’s that about?” Stephanie asked, her brow furrowed.
“I have no clue,” Ally said. “Maybe she’s gonna let me play Wednesday.”
“I hope so,” Stephanie sighed. “If we want to make the playoffs, we need to start winning more games.”
Ally shrugged and walked across the room to knock on the coach’s open door. Coach Morgan smiled at her and motioned for her to sit.
“Don’t look so worried,” she reassured her as she rose from her chair and shut the door. She shuffled back to her desk and pulled out a piece of paper. “I received a letter from Edgar Menendez, manager of the State Team. You know I’m required to send them reports on physicals and stuff like that.”
Ally nodded, knowing where this conversation was headed. “You had to tell them about my ankle, right?”
“Yes, honey,” Coach said sympathetically. “Especially since it was sports related. Now your doctor will send them an update and the release for you to play, but they still want you to go to Chicago for a physical performed by their doctors.”
Ally leaned forward and rubbed her hands over her face. There were plenty of girls on the reserve list, eager to take Ally’s spot should she not pass her physical or perform well. At the state level, the coaches and managers took everything seriously. If Ally wasn’t one hundred percent, she’d be dropped to the reserves and someone else would take her place.
“And if they deem my ankle not fit then, am I off the team? Even if it will be stronger and better by June?” she asked, hoping for an optimistic answer.
“I’m not sure. But I think they just want to examine you now and then again in the spring.” Coach said, perching on the edge of her desk. “This is a preliminary exam – they want to make sure you’re on the right track.”
Ally set her lips and nodded. “In other words, if my ankle isn’t healing properly or getting stronger, they don’t want to waste their time with me when they could be working on someone else.”
“Yes,” Coach said reluctantly. “That’s about the gist of it, I guess. But I don’t think you need to worry. You’ve been good about it – exercising like the doctor said.”
Ally gazed around the small, untidy office, her mind in a whir. “Do I need to make an appointment?”
“No. They want you next Saturday.” Coach Morgan studied her with concern. “Do you want me to take you?”
Ally shook her head. “Nah. I’ll call my parents.”
“Don’t worry about this, Ally,” Coach Morgan said. “It’ll work out. The doctor wouldn’t release you for basketball if he didn’t think it was healed. And he’s the best orthopedic doctor in the area.”
Ally smiled and grabbed the letter. “I know. Thanks.” She got up and exited the office.
***
“Where’s Ally?” Jamie asked as he sat down with his tray and glanced at the vacant spot next to him.
“Coach wanted to talk to her after practice,” Stephanie told them.
Cole’s fork paused halfway to his mouth. “About what?”
Stephanie shrugged. “Ally thought maybe Coach was going to let her play in Wednesday’s game.”
Cole eyed the cafeteria doors doubtfully. “Well, if that was it, she’d be flying in right about now.”
The words no sooner left his mouth when Ally walked through the doors. She entered the food line, picked out a few items and made her way to the table. She plopped down next to Jamie and offered everyone a weak smile.
“Hi,” she said. She opened her bottle of juice and took a sip, then paused as all eyes were on her. “What?”
“What’d the coach want?” Jamie asked. “Do you get to play Wednesday?”
Ally shrugged and placed her juice on the table. She picked up her fork and toyed with the steaming potatoes on her plate. “I forgot to ask her.”
Cole choked on his broccoli. “You what? That’s not like you. You’ve been chomping at the bit to play since your cast was removed.”
“She wanted to talk to me about the State Team,” Ally said, nonchalantly, smashing her boiled potatoes with her fork.
“What’s up with that?” RJ asked, coming out of his stupor, suddenly taking notice.
Ally pushed her tray away, tired of the charade. She wasn’t hungry in the least and wouldn’t be able to force a bit down to her churning stomach. “I have to go to Chicago next Saturday to have a physical by their team doctors. Coach has to give them reports, you know, and they want to check the progress of my ankle for themselves.”
“But your doctor said its fine,” Cole argued. “And the season doesn’t start until June. Why now?”
“They want to make sure it’s healing okay and stuff,” Ally said, picking up her tray of uneaten chicken. “But I’m not going worry about it now.”
She flashed a smile and left the table, taking her tray to the trash and dumping her uneaten dinner in the can. She placed her tray in the proper place and left the cafeteria.
Cole grabbed his tray, emptied it ,and slammed it on the stack of dirty trays. He pushed through the doors and hurried after her.
“Al,” he said, snatching her hand and stopping her. “I’ll take you next weekend, if you want.”
Squeezing his hand, she stood on her toes to kiss him. “I’d like that.” She gave him a smirk. “You’re getting better at this stuff, Cole.”
He dropped her hand and draped his arm around her shoulders. “It’s a lot of hard work, but I’ll manage.”
***
They gathered in Steph’s room that evening, just sitting around watching TV. They avoided the music channels and the tabloid programs and focused on sitcoms. Ally sat close to Cole, holding his hand and trying desperately to warm up to Stephanie.
She pushed all her worries about her ankle and the State Team out of her mind as she tried to relax and enjoy the time with her friends. But whenever her eyes landed on RJ, her stomach knotted. She couldn’t stand the pain she could see lingering in his eyes and she ached to comfort him.
“RJ,” Ally said softly, as she left Cole’s side to sit next to RJ. “Please snap out of this. Talk to us.”
He turned his dark eyes to her. “Snap out of it? How can you say that, Ally?”
“There’s nothing we can do about the band,” she said. “And we don’t know that they’re retiring, anyway. Rhys Redden still toured with his band when he started Redden Records. I know my dad wouldn’t desert his friends.”
He stood and moved away from her, turning his back to them all. “Look, Ally, you don’t know everything, okay?”
“What do you mean?” Cole asked. “Do you know something you’re not telling us, bro?”
“I heard things, okay?” RJ said as he whirled around to face them. “I wasn’t sure at the time what it meant but I’m getting a better idea now.”
“What did you hear?” Jamie asked.
RJ shook his head furiously and glanced quickly in Ally’s direction. “No, not with the princess here. I’m not saying a word.”
“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” Ally demanded as she jumped to her feet, fire raging in her eyes. “If you know something about my father then I have a right to hear about it.”
“You don’t want to hear the ugly truth, princess,” he said bitterly, an ugly sneer on his lips. He leaned closer to her and her heart pounded at the hatred in h
is eyes. “Trust me – you don’t want to know the truth.”
“What truth?” Jamie asked as he stepped between them. “What are you talking about?”
RJ peeked around Jamie to glare at Ally. “It always comes down to what Jay wants, doesn’t it?”
“Hey,” Ally protested. “That’s not fair!”
“It’s not? Let me tell you what’s not fair, little girl,” he said, shoving Jamie out of the way. He took a menacing step toward Ally.
Cole shot to his feet and placed a hand on RJ’s chest. “Back off, man. Just calm down and say what you have to say.”
“Of course you’ll stick up for her. I should have known this was coming,” RJ said.
“None of this is Ally’s or Jay’s fault,” Jamie said.
“Of course it’s all on Jay,” RJ argued. “It’s always what Jay wants! Rhys Redden approached him with a job offer and Jay took it. He could care less about my dad or the rest of them!”
“That’s not true,” Cole said. “We don’t even know what’s going on yet. Jay said…”
RJ snorted, interrupting Cole. “Yeah – what Jay says. But what about the rest of them, huh? What about my dad and Jamie’s dad and your dad? Is Jay just going to kick them to the curb because a better offer came along?”
“No,” Ally said, shaking her head. “My dad’s not like that. He’s loyal to the band and to his friends.”
“You think your dad is so perfect, don’t you princess?” RJ said darkly. “But he’s not. And he’s definitely not loyal.”
“You don’t know what you’re talking about,” Ally said anger coursing through her veins.
“I don’t?” RJ continued, voice rising. “I heard my parents talking the last time we were home. They were talking about your dad. Sure, the parents made sure we all knew about Jay’s drug problem, but do we all know about how bad it was?”
Ally sank to the bed, her knees weak. It was the only thing about her daddy that bothered her. She hated that he’d been weak and had once succumbed to drugs. She hated thinking about him living like that – disregarding those he loved just so he could get high. But she was also very proud that he’d beat it. “He’s over it,” she whispered.