Miles of Pleasure (18 page)

"Colton," Kaylee gasped, trying to get his attention. When he didn't answer her, Kaylee called for him again, a little louder this time.

He finally came into the room, hesitantly, to see what she wanted. He looked from her shocked face, to the statue in her hands, to the baggies in her lap. "No shit!" he said, never thinking for a minute that Brittany would be involved with drugs.

Before either could say anything, they heard a door slam, and voices calling out hellos to Noah and Brittany. Both looked at each other, panic-stricken, as they scrambled to put everything back into the statue. Neither one was having much luck with their fingers since they were so nervous. They finally got everything back into the ape, and closed it up. Kaylee told Colton to go stall them while she put the room back as she found it.

Looking around, it appeared that everything was back in the right spot as she calmly walked out of the room towards the kitchen. As she passed by the bathroom, she reached in and flushed the toilet, intent on using that as her excuse for being in their hallway.

No matter how calm she looked on the outside, Kaylee was freaking out inside. Drugs! She just hoped that Noah wasn't involved. She smiled at the group when she walked into the kitchen and said hello to everyone. Ashton grabbed her by the waist and kissed her, whispering in her ear and asking her what was going on. She smiled at him, and gave an almost imperceptible shake of her head. He knew right then that something was wrong, but that she would tell him later.

Before long, they sat down at the table, ready to eat the meal that Ashton and Jayden had prepared. Not wanting to get into a fight while Brittany was there, no one mentioned a word about the missed recording sessions. They knew that it was something they needed to speak to Noah about when she wasn't around.

After dinner, Kaylee excused herself and went to her room. Ashton followed not too far behind, needing to know what was going on. Once they were in Kaylee's room, they turned on some music to drown out their voices, and sat on the bed, close together.

"What the hell is going on?" Ashton asked anxiously.

"Well, I went into Noah's room to see if I could find anything on Brittany, and did I ever find something!" Kaylee shook her head, almost unbelievingly. "I found a bunch of drugs in her suitcase."

"What?" Ashton said. "She had drugs lying around in her suitcase?"

"No, they were hidden in a statue, but I found the way into it. There was a cooked spoon and some needles too." The thought of it all made her sick.

"We need to find a way to get rid of this chick!" he said, his head lowered into his hands. "If she tries to get Noah hooked on that shit, we're in huge trouble."

"No kidding!" Kaylee sighed. "What are we going to do?" She refused to lose her brother to drugs. There had to be a way to get Brittany out of their lives for good. One way or another, she'd make sure that happened.

"
S
o here's the deal...we need a way to get Brittany away from Noah, at least for a little while so that you can talk to him," Kaylee told Ashton.

"And how are we going to do that? The girl is a leach and she doesn't leave his side for a minute," he reminded Kaylee.

"Just leave it to me," Kaylee said, grabbing Ashton by the hand and dragging him to the living room, where Brittany and Noah were watching television.

"Hey Brittany, I was thinking. We really don't know each other all that well, and since you're so close with my brother, I was wondering if maybe you and I could go to lunch today to change that?" Kaylee asked so innocently as she sat down on the love seat across from Brittany and Noah.

Three sets of eyebrows rose. It was no secret how Kaylee felt about Brittany, so everyone was surprised when she was not only speaking to her civilly, but also extending the friendly offer of lunch.

"Um, sure. I guess," Brittany muttered, after she got over her momentary shock.

"Hey, maybe you and I can get something to eat too, Noah," Ashton interjected before either he or Brittany had a chance to figure out what was going on.

"Sure man. Let's go," Noah said, rising from the couch. He figured that he'd better get out of there before anything else weird happened. And besides, he had hoped that Kaylee would come around - now that she appeared to be, he didn't want to stand in her way.

He leaned down and kissed Brittany on the cheek. "I'll see you later. Have fun."

"Let's hope," Brittany said softly.

Half an hour later, Noah and Ashton sat at a booth in a sports bar. Both were silent, feeling the tension between them.

Ashton knew he'd be the one who had to start, so he figured he'd just go for it and put all his cards on the table. He cleared his throat and waited for Noah to look at him before he spoke.

"Why are you doing this man, not only to yourself, but to the band too?" he asked. "What kind of hold does she have on you, that you're willing to throw away everything the band has accomplished and is on its way to accomplishing, as well as all your self respect?"

Noah sighed. Not only did he know that this talk was coming, he knew that Ashton was right. "You don't understand man. I finally have another chance with Brittany, and I can't mess up this time."

"So you're willing to risk the future of the band on some girl who treats you like shit?" Ashton bit back.

"You guys just need to understand..." Noah started.

"How can we understand if you don't tell us? You don't talk to us anymore, you don't show up for recordings...how are we supposed to understand?" Ashton implored.

Noah was silent for a minute, then slowly nodded his head. "I first met Brittany back in high school when I was at a low point in my life. I felt like I was such a major disappointment to my parents, and because of that, I fell into a depression.

"I started seeing this new girl in the halls around school, just before Christmas one year, and all the guys were talking about her and how hot she was. I mean, she was absolutely gorgeous, and sad as it is to say, I dreamed about her all the time. But it was just a crush, and I knew I'd never have a chance with her, so I put her out of my head.

"On the first day of the new semester, I was sitting in my art class, and she walks into the room. The object of my desire, the girl I appreciated from afar, walked towards me, and did something I never dreamed she'd do. She sat in the seat next to me, and started talking to me.

"By the end of the first week, she'd asked me out on a date. I couldn't believe she would actually converse with me day after day, let alone do something as bold as ask me out on a date. I didn't know what she saw in me, so to avoid disappointment, I said no.

"Finally, mid-semester, I actually said yes. She had been so persistent that I figured there had to be something about me that she liked. On our first date, it was unreal to be out with her. I felt like I was flying, with this beautiful, sweet girl by my side. She had chosen me, and I never felt worthy of her, but little by little, she began to build my confidence. Brittany was my first everything...my first girlfriend, my first kiss, my first love, my first..."

Noah paused, and Ashton grinned.

"Do go on," he teased.

Noah grinned back, but his smile soon faded. "She was also my first heartbreak," he continued.

"Something happened one day, about ten months after we started dating, and her whole attitude towards me changed. I mean, it was literally overnight that she started treating me differently. There was no warning, no lead up to the change. She started telling me that I would never amount to anything. A week later, she broke up with me.

"It all seemed so sudden, and I guess I never really got over it. There was no explanation, nothing. Just a clean break. She never talked to me again until recently.

"A few months ago, she just showed up again. It seemed like a coincidence, but it also seemed like every time I turned around, she was there. For once in my life, I felt like I was worthy of her. Everything with the band has been going great, and we're finally getting somewhere with our music. I felt like, on some level, I was finally up to par, and was someone she could be proud of."

Ashton shook his head. He never thought that his friend had such a low self-esteem that he would allow this to happen. "So in the meantime, you're going to allow her to rule your life and treat you like crap?"

"Man, I just want the woman back that I fell in love with," Noah said, blinking back sudden tears. Ashton paused and let him get his emotions under control.

"That was so long ago. People change, man. She may never be that woman again," Ashton pointed out. "Don't you see the way she's playing you? You're relying on her to build yourself up, but at the same time, all she's doing is tearing you down lower than you were before. She's just taking your money and isolating you from family and friends."

"I can't help it! She's like a drug!" He exclaimed.

Ashton wanted to say something about that, but decided against it. He didn't want Kaylee to get in trouble for snooping through Brittany's things. It just wasn't the right time to bring the drugs up, so he tried to stick to the subject at hand.

"Listen, you've missed a few recording sessions, and the record execs are all talking lawsuits. You really need to get your head screwed on straight, and get into the studio with us before we all lose out. Do what you want with Brittany, but when it comes to studio time, you better be there."

"I know man. I'm sorry. I'm going to try..."

"No! You need to do more than try, Noah! You owe it to us. Just remember who's always been there for you, and who turned her back on you." Ashton was angry, but before he said something that he was really going to regret, he got up from the booth, threw some money down on the table, and left without another word.

Meanwhile, at an outdoor cafe across town, Kaylee and Brittany sat eating a strained lunch. They were both almost done with their entrees before either one of them said a word. Kaylee was trying to be nice to Brittany, but Brittany was her usual snotty self.

"So, when do you go back to work?" Kaylee asked.

"Whenever I want," Brittany snapped. "Listen, I don't know what your little plan with this lunch was, but don't go trying to get between me and Noah. I'll turn him against you so fast it'll make your head spin. I have plans for him, so stay out of my way."

Kaylee glared at Brittany as she stood up. Now that her plan to get Noah alone with Ashton had worked, she didn't have to sit through this any longer. "I could say the same to you. Watch yourself Brittany, you don't know who you're messing with."

Kaylee left, leaving Brittany with the bill.

"I don't know if it worked or not, Kaylee," Ashton whispered, as they lay together in her bed. "He seems pretty hooked, and I've never seen him look so pitiful."

"Well, I sure as hell didn't get through to Brittany. There was no point in even trying. She's one evil bitch. It's a lot worse than I thought it was going to be," Kaylee sighed. The more she thought about it, the more upset she got. She was tempted to tell Noah about the drugs, but the moment she did, things would erupt into a shower of blame and accusations and screaming, and she had no idea how that would go. She might save Noah, or she might lose him forever.