Spark Into a Flame

Lin

A/N: Hola!  I've been pretty busy in NYC so haven't been writing much.  I've gone back to the main set at 175th/Audubon a couple times but haven't seen Lin again.  I did see Luis, Luz, Luz, and Alejandro I believe.  They all seemed super proud of what was happening.  On another note, I've posted the first chapter of a series of one-shots from all the universes I've created.  The most popular request was more Nora, so that's the first chapter.  The story is cheesily entitled, "Not Throwing Away My One Shots".  Open to requests!

I woke up Tuesday way earlier than I expected to because my phone kept buzzing on my nightstand. Pippa kept telling me to put it on Do Not Disturb until a more acceptable hour, but I was way too attached to my Twitter feed. After my phone finally buzzed off the nightstand and hit the hardwood floor I groaned and turned over. Sleepily, I scooped up the phone and looked down at it with bleary eyes. Four missed calls from my agent. Dozens of texts. Thousands of Twitter alerts.

I pushed myself up to seated in bed and Pippa stirred beside me. Still half asleep, my worry began to kick in. What could possibly be so important? What the hell had happened? I soon got my answer.

One of Joey's classmates had blabbed to the press about her drug use and subsequent suspension. It was all over social media. My heart pounding, I pressed on a couple of the links, showing pictures of my daughter - ones she'd posted herself on social media - along with statements from various anonymous classmates. My eyes scanned the words.

....suspended from Hunter College High School....behavior issue at school...out of control...drug addict...using her father's influence...

I was pissed. Instantly I was on my feet and walking fast down the hallway as I dialed my agent's number. She picked up when I reached the kitchen, already way past amped to even need coffee. I didn't even wait for her to talk before cutting her off.

"We need to get that bullshit down," I told her tersely. "Now."

She sighed. "Lin, I'm working on it," she told me. "The problem is that these kids who made the statements are minors, and-"

"I don't care if they're minors!" I shouted, pacing the kitchen. "She's a minor and her school records shouldn't be public. And she's not a behavior problem at school. It's all bullshit."

"I know that, Lin, but she's also put her life out there," she reminded me. "This will be hard to keep under wraps now that it's out."

It was true. I felt she was entitled to have social media like any other teenager, but I'd made her set all her accounts to private. No one should be able to just click on her account and see her personal pictures. The problem was that the kids she was friends with could just right-click any image she posted, save it, and share it anywhere themselves. I knew it would get harder as she got older and this was one of my worst nightmares.

"Just, please," my tone changed to that of a desperate father. "Do what you can. She doesn't deserve this."

I had wanted this life. Not necessarily the fame, but I wanted to write musicals and act and compose for a living. But because of my success my kid wasn't able to have a normal life. She wasn't allowed to mess up like a normal teenager and not have it be a newsworthy event.

"I'll get in touch with the legal team and I'm sure we can threaten the websites that posted the story with lawsuits," she offered. "They posted private information of a minor."

I finished up the conversation and saw Joey wander out in her pajamas, eyeing me suspiciously. I'd tried to keep my voice down but I sensed she'd overheard at least part of what had happened. I'd taken her phone and laptop so she was cut off from the web, clueless about the storm that had been brewing overnight. I set my phone face down on the counter and went for the pantry.