As Much as You {completed}

Carmen: 13.

                When Carmen was just a normal girl, going through customs took a very long time and then she’d have to wait in the waiting room for three hours before being allowed to board the plane. Now, she could just walk right on through to a private jet – after her bags were sent through x-ray machines – and she’d been good to go.

                Unfortunately, a private jet wasn’t available right now and Carmen wanted to get going, so Heathrow airport in London were very accommodating and sent her through private customs very swiftly, letting her get on a plane half an hour after arriving at the airport. Which was lucky, because very few planes went from Heathrow to Newquay.

                Now, sitting on the plane, Carmen gripped her phone in her hand, looking out the window. They were stationed for a while longer, so people in the economy class could all get seated. Carmen would have been happy to have gone in the economy class herself but people recognised her, and sometimes, fans could be either overly friendly or if they have arrogant personalities, people could be hostile.

                Suddenly, Carmen’s phone buzzed and she pressed the green button quickly, pressing her Blackberry to her ear. “Hello?” she said cautiously, wondering who it was that was ringing because she had forgotten to look at the caller I.D.

                “Carmen?”

                Carmen sighed heavily through her nose. “Adam, what do you want, babe?”

                Adam Sparks still lived at 15, the Vale, Chelsea. He hadn’t moved out of that apartment block and was the only resident left that had been there five years ago. The house still had the black door with the white boarder, but all of the inside was no longer the same and everything was now out of place.

                That wasn’t the only thing that had changed since Ezra’s accident, Carmen’s moving out and new career. Adam was now Carmen’s best friend. He hadn’t replaced his brothers’ position; he just got what she was going through.

                “What happened? I was watching you on the telly just a couple of hours ago. Live. What happened? You looked upset, I know, but then they cut to commercial and you were gone. The presenter said that your agent had called you away quickly with a proposition. That’s got to be complete shit, hasn’t it? Where are you? I thought you were coming over later, anyway? Meagan wanted to see you today. Are you coming over?”

                “Calm down, Adam.”

                “What happened to you?” he repeated.

                Biting her lip, Carmen debated whether to tell him the truth. Would he think – as Ezra’s brother – that this was irrational? That getting on the first plane she could find was irresponsible? Did he think that she should just let go? Or because he knew her, he knew how much Ezra had meant to her, would he understand? As an insider, not a third party outsider without any connection to the situation, he should know why she was doing this? He should be okay with the fact that she’s trying again. Or would he? He watched her recover from depression after Ezra moved, would he believe it was going to happen all over again?

                “Car—”

                “Do you know how hard it is to go for an interview, talk about your life, and then force the presenter to keep things from the audience? Like, for example, Holly was talking about Kevin, and his job, and then Harrison and she couldn’t even ask about us as a family, because even though we are, Kevin still isn’t the father of my child.”