The One: Dangerous Lust (The One Series-Book8) (ORIGINAL DRAFT)

Chapter19: Wavering Situations

Chapter19-Wavering Situations

September 28th, 2011

 It's now late September. 7th Anthem are now in Vancouver, Canada for their North American leg of their tour. They have performed in sold-out cities across the United States. Now Canada is also selling out. The last stop will be in Boston for three nights.

 If that's not that tiring enough, they're getting ready to start promotions for two next singles: Somewhere In The World as their international single; and The Heart Beats Again for North America.

 In addition to that, they have their European leg of their tour coming up in October. Then it's Asia, Australia, and Latin America in December. The last leg will be in Britain in early 2012. 7A is pretty much covering the entire world.

 To solidify their position as the world's premier (and possibly the only) pop mixed-gender group, 7A just premiered their exclusive clothing line at H&M. The brand is called #RockstarRoyalty. They themselves modeled the clothes for the store's website. The clothes were a combination of their rocker look (studs, faux leather, slashed clothes, and a lot of sexy black) and their preppy Boston upbringing (light colors). They're being sold in Britain, Europe, and North America, and they're one of the most popular bands in H&M.

 And that's not all. 7A just premiered season three of The Delinquents. The subtitle was Battle Of The Bands. Both 7A and The OutLaws recorded a song together, titled Superstar. Neither band is promoting it.

 To top it off, 7A are getting ready to do a re-issue of their hottest selling album, The Anthem. The re-release is scheduled for the spring of 2012. All this while in pre-production for their NEXT album. At this rate, the 7A members will never get time-off.

 Apparently, their super-hectic schedule was beginning to take a toll on the members. But the only member that was acting out was Bailey. Her hard-partying ways didn't, at first, affect the band, but now it is. She would show up to the tech rehearsals, late, hungover, and possibly high.

 The only bright thing going on was Andyson. After a few weeks of secrecy, Andrew and Alyson announced they were back together. The fans rejoiced once they received the news. Even the tabloids got happy. The Andyson PDA has been endless.

 It was tech rehearsals at the Rogers Arena. Their concert was sold out. Six of the seven members were there, along with their dancers, choreographer, and production crew. As the members were getting ready to go on stage, Brandon approached Andrew.

 Andrew noticed, so he asked, "What is it?"

 He replied, "I've noticed how Bailey is always out partying, and she arrives late and stoned."

 "I know. We all know. We all tried to intervene. Instead, she would blast us on Twitter. I'm pretty sure she was drunk at the time."

 "So you lot give up?"

 "Well, the only way she could possibly stop her is that Justin takes her. But I don't see that happening. I think he's gay now, but I think he's only gay just to avoid dealing with her."

 Brandon was silent for a moment, and soon changed the subject by asking, "So...you're back with Alyson?"

 Andrew smiled as he replied, "Yeah, we are. I missed her so much. To be back into her arms again makes me feel alive. She invigorates me, you know? She's only one who can make me feel this way."

 "What about us, Andrew?" Brandon asked as his voice wavered. "We didn't have anything special? Was I just an experiment to you?"

 Andrew thought for a moment, and said, "You were better than most of the girls I dated, but you are nowhere near what Alyson is to me. You opened doors for me. Because of you, I'm becoming one of the most influential young men in the world. The sex was wild and unique. But it was all shallow. You were a crush during my teen years, but I couldn't find myself to love you like I love Alyson.

 "Alyson, on the other hand, has shaped me into the man that I am today. We had a long, complicated history. When I joined 7th Anthem, I was insecure and scared. I was worried about what the high schoolers would think of me as this Broadway prodigy instead of a basketball jock. But Alyson never gave up on me. She kept encouraging me to sing my heart out. Once she told me that she loved me, I felt like she brought me to life. I had been feeling dead for several years, and she just healed me. Because of her, I slowly gained confidence, and I healed from all the heartache of my past girlfriends. Some of the band-mates would say I'm arrogant. I am, but I wouldn't be if it weren't for Alyson."

 Andrew noticed Brandon was heartbroken. He told Brandon, "I see you're still in love with me. Look, you were kind and loving to me, but I love Alyson. You'll find a guy who'll have eyes only for you. Just make sure he's either bi leaning toward guys, or actually gay. I'm bi, but I lean toward girls, especially Alyson. She's the love of my life."

 Brandon asked as a tear rolled down his face, "Can I have one last kiss from you?"

 Andrew leaned in, and kissed his lips. It was a pity kiss, as he felt nothing for Brandon. Brandon wanted more, but Andrew pulled away. He gave a sympathetic smile, and walked towards Alyson. He gave her a passionate kiss.

 Brandon watched. He was sadden by the fact that Andrew will never love him back. He'll always love Alyson. At the same, he felt a strong urge to tell Andrew the plot he was dragged into by Melissa. Will he tell him?

 It was now past ten. The concert was over. After she changed out of her costume, Bailey immediately left to go to a club. The members didn't stop her, but they were desperate. Even though Bailey was hungover that morning, she gave a stellar performance that night.

 The members drove themselves back to their hotel. In one car was Andyson. Alyson told Andrew, "I saw you kissing Brandon. I thought you were over him."

 He said, "Believe me, I am over him. I saw how heartbroken he was, and he asked him to kiss him. I did, but he wanted more. I had to pull away. I needed to stop falling for other people's kisses. I was not about to lose you again. Trust me, I love you, and only you."

 Alyson gave a small smile, but it quickly faded. Andrew glanced, and saw the seriousness in her face. He asked, "What's wrong?"

 She replied, "It's Bailey. I'm really worried for her. She's affecting the band with her meltdown. I don't want anything bad happen to her."

 "What can we do? We tried talking to Justin. He's not budging. We tried to comfort Bailey. We confronted her. She's fighting us off."

 "There has to be a way. We can't let her self-destruct."

 With that, Alyson started to get teary-eyed. She said as her voice broke, "Bailey is my best friend. I may not have always been a good friend to her, but I always did my best to be there for her. Now she's mess. I wish I could save her, but I don't think I can."

 When he heard her starting to cry, he became emotional too. He could feel tears coming out of his eyes. Then he told her with determination, "We're going to fight for Bailey. We all are. If that means forcing Justin to get on board with this, we'll do so."

 Alyson agreed. They were going to gather the members to fight for Bailey's survival. But can they get Justin on board? Is it too late?