Rise To Stardom

Chapter 21

Chapter 21

Three months later...

It took a while to get back into the swing of things; getting up early to resume my daily routine of going to work rather than waking up in a house filled with people pursuing the same dream. A week after I left the show, we had a service for my father.

A swarm of relatives dressed in black filled up the space of the church to hear me speak the eulogy I wrote for him and to watch his coffin being lowered into the ground. The realization dawned on me that I would never see him again.

He'd never be able to walk me down the aisle or play with his grandbabies. Mom was a wreck, her face stained with mascara streaks. She postponed all her meetings and ignored all of the calls from her employees. She wasn't going to go back to work for a while.

As for me, my instagram was flooding with supportive DMs sent by my fans. They were completely understanding about my decision and had been there for me every day since. I watched the rest of the show in the safety of my living room to see Brooke win the whole thing.

Despite our feud we had when we first met, I was genuinely happy for her. Kayla was voted off the week after our last performance together – which was exactly what I was afraid of. She didn't seem deterred though as she kept vlogging about family dinner nights and her singing in the car.

One night, I found myself watching the vlogs we filmed together during our experience on the show and I missed the adrenaline I'd feel before stepping on stage. It just wasn't the right time to get back up there though.

There was a bounce in my step as I delivered food to Liam's and Aubrey's table. They were celebrating their third month-anniversary with a dinner date, a bouquet of yellow tulips that he gifted to her sitting in the middle of the table as the centerpiece.

Three months later and he still treated her like she was the only thing that mattered. Not even a second after the plate touched their table, Aubrey dug into the salty fries that our restaurant was famously known for.

Liam didn't even judge her for stuffing her face in a way that was unlady like. In fact, his lips turned upward in a smile.

"Have you heard from Carson since you quit the show?" Aubrey asked as soon as she swallowed.

"No." We texted every so often when he messaged to check up on me, but we hadn't had a full-blown conversation. He was too busy doing his thing and I was too busy doing mine.

Since I got back to work, I'd been working all day for six days a week to make up for all the month's worth of paychecks that I lost. I loved being on Rise To Stardom. It was a dream becoming a reality.

However, thanks to that, my goal to help pay for the medical bills had been delayed. My boss lectured me for burning the candle at both ends. He didn't like the idea that I was working these long hours because I needed time to recover. As thoughtful and sensitive as he was, I needed to keep busy.

"Maybe you can invite him to your birthday dinner." As soon as those words left her lips, for a split second, a mischievous glint touched her eyes. She masked it by taking a long sip of her iced tea, but the curled edges of her lips and meaningful gaze she shared with Liam gave it away that they were up to something. I shrugged it off. Maybe they were high on drugs..

"I'm not sure I wanna celebrate this year. With dad gone..." I wasn't in the birthday celebration mood. Especially since this was my first one after dad passed away. I had a date with my bed, a brand new box of tissues and the movie, Dear John, that I wasn't about to postpone. 

"Come on! We have to do something. Even if we have a little dinner and cake. It doesn't have to be anything too big."

"Can't. I have a date with Channing Tatum and a tissue box."