Without You

Birthday

*Chapter Nine*

Angel almost wished she took Nick's advice and ignored the call from her mother. It was always the same thing. The only reason she ever called was to nag about her brother. That was all their conversation ever consisted of anymore. Ever since he decided to cut all ties from the family, she was the one that had to hear it since she was the only one that stayed in touch with him. She wished so badly she could fix everything; she wished her family wasn't so messed up. She would often cry herself to sleep, the only thing her family did now was fight. Why did she have to get stuck in the middle? Even Aaron, her twin brother would bombard her with questions or he'd demand that she talk to Nick and straighten him. No matter what she said, no matter how much she begged, she knew Nick has made up his mind and as much as it killed her, she almost didn't blame him. Ever since he joined the Backstreet Boys, it seemed the only thing their parents could see were dollar bill signs. She understood how used and taken advantage of he felt and it wasn't right. A parent should never do what hers has done. She slowly even began to distance herself from the family. Her longtime boyfriend, Benny's family has become hers. She didn't realize what it was like to have a normal family until she met his.

"No, mom!" She growled into the phone, "I haven't talked to him..." she let out a heavy sigh as she listened to her overbearing mother hound her about her older brother yet again. Jane felt he deserted the family and Angel was the only one who had contact with him; so by her not helping the situation and force Nick to rekindle things, she was just as much to blame. She inhaled deeply as her eyes stung and she cleared her scratchy throat, "I need to go," she choked out. "Benny and I have plans...we'll talk later. Bye." She then sat down on the white recliner chair and ran her hands through her dark long hair. She hated this; she hated being reamed at because of the choices Nick made. She felt liquid slowly rolled down the sides of her face, she jerked up when she felt a hand gently squeeze her shoulder. She looked up to see a pair of blue eyes from her loving boyfriend. She weakly smiled, "Hi," she muttered.

"What happened?" He asked as concern filled his deep voice.

"Nothing," she replied as she stood and wiped her chocolate eyes, "It's just my mother. You know how she is. She's pissed off that Nick won't take her calls and that he's treating her like the plague. Aaron told her I still talk to him and now she thinks I'm siding with him."

"Well...are you?" He asked with caution, hoping the question wasn't too blunt.

She leaned against the white wall and folded her arms and shrugged, "I don't know...maybe...kind of. I mean, I saw how her and my dad treated him. They acted like he was a gold mine and it took him awhile, but he finally caught on. The only thing my parents ever cared about was money...we struggled a lot before he joined Backstreet and once the dough came rolling in, that's all they ever seemed to care about. Hell, my mom even managed Aaron and stole from him..." she let out a heavy sigh and shook her head, "He forgave her, but Nick...he can't." She forced out a rough laugh, "God, my family is so fucked up." The heels of her hands pressed against her eyes as she felt more liquid escape.

He watched as she tried so hard to contain her sobs; she never liked to cry....not even in front of him and they've been dating nearly four years. He walked over towards her and gently pulled her into his embrace, "Hey, it's okay," he uttered in a soothing voice. She clung to him and her face pressed against his firm chest and he squeezed her tight. "Everyone's family is fucked up one way or another. Hell...my dad walked out on mine."

She swallowed the lump that formed in her throat and looked up at her handsome boyfriend; he was perfect in every way possible. He was taller than her, she just reached his chin and when she looked up into his face, she could feel herself get lost in his blue eyes. She wondered if he was created from one of her dreams. His strong jawline looked as though it was chiseled perfectly to where it would put Channing Tatum to shame. Benjamin Landford was absolutely flawless. Angel thanked God everyday for bringing him into her life. Who would have thought that blowing a tire on the freeway would bring him to her? When she saw the black Jeep pull up behind her after waiting on the side of the road over an hour, she was certainly wasn't expecting a man that could be seen on a Playgirl magazine cover.