Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Ava's P.O.V.
"Are you okay, girl?" I hear her ask.

I bring up my arm to cover my face and ears, the question ringing loudly in my ears.

"Can you talk any louder?" I ask, feeling last night's drink in my throat.

"Sorry, just want to know you're fine." she shrugs. "You did kind of drink a lot last night."

I sit up slowly as my stomach does flips, making me nauseous.

"Of course, I drank, it was the last party before school starts again." I say, resting my arms on my knees and my head in my hands.

"The guys definitely missed out." she laughs.

The thought of him sends me running to the toilet.

"What the- Ava?!" shrieks Jennie.

I flush the toilet and lean back against the cabinet, as she brings me a wet rag.

"Never. Drinking. Again." I moan.

After a minute, I sigh and bring my head down to look at my friend, who looks at me with a furrowed brow.

"What?"

"Just... this isn't the first time you've been sick this week." she says.

"So? Maybe now that finals are over, it'll stop." I shrug.

"Are you sure you're not sick because of something else?"

Huh?

"What are you saying?" I ask, furrowing my own brow.

"Before the guys left for L.A., didn't you and Logan hang out?" she asks, leaving me in disbelief.

"I'm gonna stop you right there." I say, getting up to rinse my mouth. "We hung out, yes, but we didn't..."

And that's when it hit me.

"Ava?" she asks, crossing her arms. "When was the last time you had your period?"

Oh no. No, no, no, no, no.

"Let me see a calendar, now."

"Ava." she says, in disbelief once more. "You and Logan?!"

"Can you shut up?! I can't think!" I say, pacing around the bathroom.

"At least take a test or better yet, go to the doctor just to be sure."

He couldn't have gotten me pregnant, right? I mean, he doesn't even have experience in that department! And I'm only fifteen!

Days Later
I skim down the aisle and see a box. 'Clear Blue'

Better take three to be safe, right?

Grabbing what I need and a juice, I make my way to the cashier and lay them down. She immediately looks at me with pity, which makes me roll my eyes.

After I pay, I stuff the tests in my backpack and go home. Thankfully no one is home.

I go up to my room and lock my door. I dump my backpack on my bed and rip the tests out of their box. The juice works fast, so I was able to take it quickly.

My heart pounds as I lay the test on the counter to wash my hands. I set the timer on my phone as a million thoughts race through my head.

It can't be positive, right? I mean, no one ever gets pregnant on the first time, right? Then again, when he comes back in three months, I can just give the kid to him.

I jump out of my skin when my cell phone rings. It couldn't have been three minutes already, right?

I pick up the phone to see a text from Jennie.

'want to check up on you. anything?'

'taking test right now'

'coming over'

I leave the test on the counter and go sit on my bed, burying my head in my hands.

Those tests can not be positive. I'm not ready to have a kid right now, hell, I'm still a kid!

I hear the door open and close downstairs.

"Ava!" I hear.

"Up here!" I answer.

Soon, Jennie's footsteps come closer and closer until she's at my door.

"You really took a test?"

"I took three." I sigh shakily.

As if on cue, the timer on my cell phone pings.

I look up to my friend as my heart races.

"Hey, whatever the tests say, I will be with you through thick and thin, okay?" she says, holding my hand.

I slowly get off the bed and walk into the bathroom. My heart sinks when I see the same thing on every test.

"They're all positive."

Chapter Text

Weeks Later

Ava's P.O.V.
What have I done?

A silent tear runs down my face as I look down at the sonogram picture in my hands.

Mom is going to kill me when she finds out.

As if the test wasn't enough, I now have a sonogram of an innocent little baby in my hands. And now it's only a matter of time until the whole world knows due to my big fat belly.

I look up and stare at the moon from my bedroom window. The stars and moon are covered by some puffy white clouds.

"Ava, honey?" says mom.

My heart sinks at the thought of having to tell her the truth.

"In here." I choke out.

"There you are." she says, coming in, sitting on my bed. "I feel like I haven't seen you all day."

I can't bear to look at her. Only silent tears keep trickling down without permission.

"What's wrong?" she asks in a motherly tone.

I'm pregnant.

"Ava, I can't help you unless you tell me."

"I'm having a baby." my voice cracks.

"...who told you you're having a baby?" she asks, standing up.

"The three pregnancy tests I took and the sonogram my doctor gave me." I cry, showing her the picture.

Mom's mouth drops but no words come out. In fact, the room is silent for what feels like an eternity but was probably only a minute.

"This says you're about three months pregnant, Ava."

"I know." I whisper, sniffling.

"But you're as skinny as a board." she says, looking me over. "Who's the father?"

No way she'll believe me if I say. Or anyone for that matter. It took me by surprise he even made a move in the first place. The baby may as well be a stranger's.

"I don't know." I mutter.

"Ava, how can you be so irresponsible?!"

"I didn't think it would get this far!" I cry.

"That's not an excuse, young lady!" she says. "And if you keep acting the way you have with those other kids in school, you and that baby are going to be in more trouble, you know that, right?"

"We don't even do anything bad!"

"You don't think alcohol is bad for a fetus?" she asks. "Have you not been taught about that in school?"

I lean back and try to stop myself from crying even more.

"Do you have any idea how much this is going to change your life and the life of the baby's father?"

"Well, he's out of the picture because he moved." I say.

"Then you're going to have to do this yourself because that innocent little baby cannot grow up without a mother."

Days Later
As if things couldn't get any more complicated. Logan and his friends came back to Minnesota after three months only to completely move to Los Angeles.

He wasn't even home long enough for me to tell him about the baby. Well, I can tell him at some point and if Kendall's band takes off one day, maybe me and the baby will be taken care of after all.

3 Years Later
"Nellie, stop it!" I jump, running to grab her before she destroys my apartment.

I grab my daughter and bring her to her new room.

Maybe I should rewind and explain some things.

I need my space back and Nellie is getting too big for her crib. It blew my savings, but I got her a bed, her first bed, that is.

The guys never came back, so it's obvious I never heard from Logan again. However, they were able to form the band and put out some albums.

"What this?" she asks.

"This is your new room. You sleep here from now on, okay?"

"But I want to sleep with mommy." she says, as her lip starts to quiver.

I roll my eyes and cross my arms.

"Well mommy wants her room back."

I stand up and leave before she asks anything else. Soon I heard little feet run after me. But, like, when did she even learn to walk?!

"Mommy!"

"But nothing! Go to sleep." I turn off her light and shut the door.

Seriously, why did I ever think it was a good idea to have a baby?

Chapter Text

(time jump to Nellie being around 8 years old)

Nellie's P.O.V.
"Why do you wear the same clothes every day?" asks the kid sitting next to me.

"Yeah, everyone else always wears something different."

"Do you even shower? You smell."

"Class, that's enough!" says my teacher. "Everyone put away your stuff, the bell is about to ring for lunch."

Finally, they'll leave me alone.

The bell rings and all the kids run to get their lunch bags or lunch cards. Mom never gives me anything, so I just grab my math workbook and walk to the lunch room with everyone else.

I walk to the back table like always and do my homework. When I'm close to finishing, somebody comes to sit in front of me.

"Where's your lunch?" she asks. I recognize her as one of the kids in my class. She's the only one who never says anything mean to me.

"I'm not hungry." I lie, as my stomach rumbles.

"I think you are." she says, opening her lunch box. "Do you want some dinosaur shaped chicken nuggets? We can share."

"I don't need your sympathy." I say.

"I know but at least somebody should be nice to you in school." she says. "I'm Macy."

"I'm Nellie."

Years Later
"Thanks for walking me home." I say.

"Of course! What are best friends for?" says macy.

"What are you doing this weekend?" I ask.

"Hanging out with my dad." she says. "You know, you never talk about yours."

"My dad?"

"Mhm." she nods.

"I don't know who he is. Mom never talks about him. Ever."

"Maybe you should try asking." she shrugs.

As if on cue, we get to my house.

"Alright, see you later." I say, as she hugs me.

I wince and bite my tongue, trying to stay quiet.

I walk up the steps and pry the door open, then shutting it closed.

I go up to my room and raise my shirt to look at my bruise.

Mom had a little too much to drink the other night and she might have pushed me against the counter and now I have an ugly bruise on my rib, just underneath my armpit.

Though to be fair, that was kind of my fault. I should know better than to cross mom's path when she has a drink in her hand.

I drop my stuff in my room and grab a towel, then going to mom's room to shower. The hot water felt nice when it hit my neck. When I finished, I wrapped myself in a towel and find my way to my room. I quickly dry off and change into a fresh pajama set when I hear the door open.

Soon, I hear mom's door close, which is what she usually does when she's about to shower. I start to prep my backpack for tomorrow when something calls my attention.

"Are you kidding me?! Nellie!" mom screams.

"What happened, are you okay?!" I ask, running to her room.

"Did you finish all the hot water?!" she asks, completely ticked off.

"I didn't think I-"

"Your bratty ass knows better than to come in my room and touch my stuff!" she says, grabbing my arm, walking me out.

"Mom, you're hurting me!" I wince.

"Your father had the right idea in leaving before you were born." she huffs.

"What?! What did you say about dad?"

"Nothing."

"No, mom! It's about time you tell me about my father, don't you think?!" I ask.

She rolls her eyes and shakes her head.

"Your father died before you were born. Now will you quit pestering me?"

~BTR~BTR~BTR~BTR~

"She said that?" asks Macy.

"Yep." I say, focusing on the snowflakes falling on my hand.

"Then why didn't she just say that in the first place instead of-"

"I already knew better than to keep pushing." I sigh. "What time is it?"

She picks up her cell phone and touches the screen.

"Nearly three."

I run a bruised hand through my hair.

"I should get going." I say, standing up.

"Hey, what are you doing tomorrow?" she asks.

"No clue." I say. "Probably going to the rink for a couple hours after school. Why?"

"No reason, just wondering."

"Kay, see ya."

Chapter Text

Nellie's P.O.V.

"Where have you been?!" I hear when I step in the front door.

"I was just-"

A hand grabs me by my ear and drags me to the kitchen.

"I told you I want you home right after school ends!"

She pulls my ear down and I lose my balance, landing on my arm.

"Oh!" I yelp, holding my arm in pain.

"You big baby." she slurs.

I hang on to the counter to stand up and that's when I notice a half empty bottle of alcohol.

"If anyone sees, tell them you fell. Got it?" she asks, taking the bottle from the counter. "Got it?!"

"Yes, yes, got it!" I exclaim.

"Don't talk back to me!" she says, grabbing a tight hold of my jaw.

She lets go and I lean against the counter to catch my breath.

"Why do you keep doing this?" I ask, my eyes welling up.

"Quit talking back, I'm not going to ask again." she says, striking my jaw once again.

My jaw starts throbbing as she steps away. Mom takes the bottle and walks away to her room. When I hear the lock click, I pick myself up from the floor and limp my way to the kitchen. I wash my hands and grab some ice, shoving it in a Ziploc bag.

After sealing the bag, I hold it close to my jaw and grab my backpack, going off to my room I lock my door and get started on homework.

Next Day
I turn in my sheets and the sun hits my face. I bury my face in my pillow, then I realize there's shuffling going on in the apartment. Soon, I hear a door slam shut. I let go of my breath, knowing mom isn't home anymore.

Wincing, I roll out of bed and trudge to the shower. When I'm dry, I change into a plain gray tshirt and old ripped jeans. I jump into my converse and grab my backpack, making my way to school.

"Hey, there she is!" says Macy, hugging me from behind, making me wince in pain.

"What's wrong with you?" she asks.

"Nothing, just sore." I lie.

She furrows her brow.

"What, I spent a couple hours at the rink after school yesterday."

"No, you didn't." she says, crossing her arms. "I was there yesterday and I didn't see you there."

My mouth drops.

"I-uh-"

"You know what, forget it." she says. "But it has been a while since we both went to the rink. Want to check it out after school?"

"Yeah, sure."

~After School~

When the bell rang, I gathered my things and went out to my locker. I grabbed some spare clothes and went to the girl's locker room. This is where I usually shower when I don't want to be home.

After cleaning up, I grab my bag and walk towards the exit, where I find Macy.

"You don't have gym last period." she says, confused.

"I got my clothes dirty so I wanted to change into a fresh outfit."

Technically I'm not lying.

"Alright, well, let's go to the rink!" she says, leading the way.

The rink is about a mile away from the school. When we come in, we're able to grab a table to put our stuff.

"This is for you." says Macy, smiling brightly. "Happy Birthday!"

Wh-

"My birthday is on the tenth?" I point out.

"And today's the tenth!"

I smile and hug her tightly, then open the box.

"New sneakers?"

"You know I love you, but please give your feet a break." she jokes, making me laugh. "How come your mom never does anything for your birthday?"

"You know, mom's always working or something." I say, looking at the floor. "It doesn't matter, growing up we never celebrated birthdays. Come on, let's skate!"

The day ended up being just the two of us with Macy's parents. They were kind enough to show up with cupcakes and balloons. We all ate dinner together and then skated some more. It was actually fun! Or, it was until-

"Nellie, get over here!" I hear a voice that makes me freeze in my tracks.

I skate to the door as fast as I can to meet my mother.

"What part of come straight home do you not understand?!"

"I was just skating with Maci-"

"I don't want to hear it." she says, making sure no one can hear her. "Return the skates and let's go."

The entire ride home was spent with us going at it back and forth.

"I don't understand why I can't just spend one night out with my friend." I say, slamming the front door shut behind me.

"I didn't know where you were all day, do you have any idea how worried I was?!"

"Since when do you-"

"Don't finish that sentence!" she says, wrapping her hand around my throat.

"Can't... breathe..." I gasp.

"This is all your fault. You made me do this." she says, letting me go, dropping me on the ground. "I should just ship you off to live with..."

"To live with who?!" I ask, getting back to my feet.

"To live with your father in L.A!"

Chapter Text

Nellie's P.O.V.

I turn the water on slightly and quickly shower, then let hot water go down my back.

I don't get it. She said dad died before I was born. How could she ship me off to live with him if he's not even alive? She hasn't even told me who he is.

Honestly at this rate, I'd be surprised if she even knew who he is.

I turn the water off and dry off, quickly changing into my spare clothes. I take the dirty clothes and stuff them back in my locker.

After cleaning up, I grab my backpack and walk upstairs to the library. Thankfully the librarian never locks the door.

I go to the back couch, my usual spot, and lay down for a minute before starting on homework.

~Later~

I toss a bit to find a better spot, but I quickly realize I'm not in my bed. Wait.

My head snaps up quickly and I remember where I'm at.

Oh no. Oh no, no, no, no!

I throw my backpack on and run out the door, out of the building and run home.

"Where the hell have you been?!" she slurs.

She's drunk. There's no use arguing when she's like this.

"I told you to always let me know where you're at!"

Mom comes closer and grabs my arm, dragging me to my room. Only, she grabs my arm so tight as to cut off my circulation.

"Mom, it hurts!"

"You think that hurts?!" she says, throwing me on the tiled floor. "Try not knowing where your daughter is for more than twelve hours!"

I was at school, come on!

"Don't just lay there, answer me!" she says.

I scooch back as far as I can and cover my head while closing my eyes tightly, waiting for her to strike.

Soon, I feel kicks to my thighs and back. I wince and dig my nails into my skin, trying to stay quiet.

"Scream all you want, twerp." she huffs. "It's not like anyone is going to hear you."

She keeps kicking me for a good five minutes before it finally stops.

I lay on the floor, trying to catch my breath.

"Remember, you're the one who made this ugly." she says, taking a drink from her bottle. "From now on, you go to school and you come home or don't bother coming back."

Tears run down my face. I try to catch my breath as I hear mom lock herself in her room. I don't know how much longer I can do this.

I pick myself up and run out of the house. It's sunset, just enough to get to Macy's house. There's no car anywhere near the house, clearly nobody's home.

I step on their front porch and curl up into a ball in the corner, silently crying to myself.

"Hey, you can't be here." says a voice. Macy.

"Seriously, you gotta go." she says, coming closer.

It pains me but I manage to look up at my best friend but despite my best efforts, I couldn't bring myself to say anything.

"Oh my God." she whispers, coming down with me. "What happened?! Mom!"

"I didn't know where else to go. I'm sorry." I sob, holding on to her hand.

"Mo-"

"No, don't!" I shush her. "Please don't tell anyone."

"Wh- have you even seen yourself in the mirror?!"

"Macy, if your mom knows, my mom's gonna know I told someone and then she'll kill me!" I say. "And she may actually kill me this time."

"Your mother did this to you?!"

She closes her eyes but holds my hands tightly.

"Fine." she says. "I can try and hide you in our guest room."

"What about your parents?" I ask.

"Don't worry about them, I got you."

~Next Day~

"I understand you want to help her but the best thing to do is-"

"If we do that, she'll be in even more trouble with her mother!"

"But we could try to..."

Huh?

It's not long until I hear footsteps coming my way. I sit up against the headboard just as the door opens. It's Macy.

"Everything okay?" I ask, quietly.

She bites her lip and sits on the bed with me.

"Basically, my mom knows you're here and wants to talk to you." she says.

"What?!"

"Maybe she can help-"

"My mom's going to kill me!"

"Not if we-"

We both look up when the doors opens to reveal her mom. I quickly cover my arms to cover any bruises.

"Am I in trouble?" asks Macy.

"Breakfast is ready. Then we're having a talk." she says, closing the door again.

I groan and bury my head in my hands.

"Hey, you're my best friend, okay?" she says. "I'm going to make sure everything turns out good for you."

I clean up a bit and we both go downstairs to the kitchen.

"Sit and eat. Both of you." her mom says, serving a huge stack of pancakes with orange juice.

Breakfast was mostly silent. Actually, not a word was said for at least an hour.

"Macy, please clean up." her mom says. "Nellie, sweetie, you and I are going to have a talk. Come with me, please."

I follow her to the living room and sit on the couch next to the recliner.

"It's nice outside for once. You can take off your jacket if you like." she starts.

Oh no, no, no, no.

"Um, I'm okay, thank you." I hoarsely say, bringing the zipper higher.

"I wasn't asking, honey." she says bluntly.

And here comes the end of everything.

I take the zipper and bring it down, gradually slipping it off and revealing my bruises.

"Um, I play a lot of hockey-"

"Save it." she says. "Macy already told me everything."

"You did what?!"

"Nellie, I never-"

"Girls, I grew up in the rink, too." she says. "I know for a fact those are not hockey bruises. Please, I want to help you, Nellie, I do. But in order for that to happen, I need to know what happened."

I sigh and close my eyes.

"My mother is an alcoholic and when she has a little too much to drink..."

"She comes after you." Macy guesses.

"And your father?"

"I don't even know who he is." I admit. "All I know is it's my fault he left."

"Your mother tell you that?"

I nod as a tear escapes my eyes.

"Okay, here's what's going to happen." she says, looking at both of us. "Nellie, you are more than welcome to stay in our guest room for as long as you need until we figure something out."

"And you can have whatever's in my closet." says Macy.

"But I will have to get in contact with Social Services to find your father." she says. "But I promise we will do everything in our power to keep you safe meanwhile."

"Everything's going to be okay, Nellie." says Macy. "Everything's going to be just fine."

Chapter Text

Nellie's P.O.V.

1 Week Later

"Do you have ANY idea what you've done?!" she screams, as I try to turn my face away. "Do you have any idea how this is going to look for me?!"

I simply cower away in my seat and cover my head with my arms, waiting for her to start striking.

Perhaps I should explain. Remember how I hit my breaking point a while ago and ran away to Macy's? And how her family found out my mother had been using me as a human punching bag for... basically my entire life?

Well, her mother put her foot down and called child services. For the past week or so, I've been dealing with legal stuff and who knows what else. Last I heard, my father is flying in to meet with us.

"Haven't I taught you that wanting attention in any way is wrong and shameful?" she huffs. "Besides, you hit the lottery having me as a parent and not him. Your father's family and friends are the worst."

"W- you literally said you wished you could ship me off to live with him the other day!" I point out.

"Yeah? Your grandmother lives in Shakopee and doesn't even know you exist." she says, leaving me in shock.

"I've had family here this whole time and you never said anything?!" I ask.

Mom quickly pulls into the diner parking lot and turns to look at me.

"Will you shut up for once, please?!" she bursts. "When we go in, don't go anywhere, don't speak, don't ask for anything. Got it?"

So sit down and shut up. What else is new?

"Whatever." I mutter.

"Hey!" she grabs my arm, tightly. "Don't screw this up."

She lets me go and I rub my arm up and down. I follow behind her into the diner and down the booths. It's fairly empty, except for two or three other couples.

Mom walks down an empty aisle of booths, except for one guy who's facing away from us.

"You showed up." she says, sitting across from the dude.

"All these years and you never said anything?" said a voice.

Where have I heard this guy before?

"Me?! You were supposed to come back after three months!"

"We did." he says. "I want to meet her."

Mom sighs and rolls her eyes.

"Get over here." she says, moving to the other end of the booth.

I take my place beside her but I completely freeze up when I see the man on the other side.

"Oh my goodness, you're Logan from Big Time Rush." I say, speechless.

"Yeah, nice to meet you." he smiles. "You know my name, what's yours?"

"Nellie." I say. "I didn't know you two know each other?"

"Oh, you can't be serious." he says, looking at my mother in disbelief.

"You wanted to know who your father is so bad, here you go." says mom, making me drop my jaw. "You're a Mitchell by blood."

"Hello there and happy mother's day!" smiles the waitress. "I'll be your waitress today, here are your menus and I'll be back in a minute to take your orders."

We immediately ordered anyway.

"You didn't order much." says Logan.

I feel mom kick me under the table as he says this.

"Yeah, um, don't have a big appetite right now." I lie, looking at the table.

"They look painful." he says, causing my eyes to shoot up at him.

"What do you mean?"

"You have some mean looking bruises all over." he says, pointing a finger at me. "How'd you get them?"

Again, mom kicks my already bruised shin, making me wince in pain.

"Hockey." I lie.

"Nice." he says, though his smile fades. "The guys and I play hockey whenever we can in L.A."

"Enough about her." says mom, as the waitress came back with our orders.

"Are you sure I can't get you something more, sweetheart?" the waitress asks me.

"Get anything you want, it's on me." he says.

Another kick.

"Really, I'm okay like this." I say, squirming in my seat.

"What about you?" asks mom. "What's your life become?"

"I actually got married." he says.

"To who?" I ask.

"What did I say?" says mom, glaring at me.

"An actress, Camille Roberts-"

"Like, Camille from Rock Camp 9?!" I ask in shock.

"The one and only." he smiles. "We have a daughter together, she's about your age, too."

"I bet neither of them like the fact you had a child out of wedlock." smirks mom.

Logan ignores her and looks over at me.

"Don't listen to her." he says. "It caught everyone by surprise but it is what it is."

"How long are you in town?" asks mom.

"We'll see." he says, sipping his coffee.

Chapter Text

Nellie's P.O.V.

2 Weeks Later

"You won't even have time to spend with her, hell, you're always out doing something!" yells mom.

"I'll take her with me! Beats having to live in this hell hole you call a life!" argues Logan.

"You didn't even know she existed until ten days ago!"

"Have you even looked at your daughter?! She's a walking bruise!" he says. "I said what I said, I'll see you in court."

Two seconds later, I heard a door slam.

Mom and Logan have been arguing like that for the past couple hours. How they could keep screaming for so long is beyond me. I've been holed up in my room studying for finals, wanting to stay out of the way.

From what I heard, they both want custody of me, though I'm not so sure how Logan can do that since he's never been involved in my life until literally two weeks ago. Not to mention, I don't even know if I'm biologically related to the guy. He's not even listed on my birth certificate!

To be fair, I've seen my birth certificate and there isn't anyone listed under father.

A Week Later
Life already blew up once when I found out who my father was, which was confirmed after the paternity test. It blew up once more when people started to talk at school, though so far they're only rumors.

As much as I tried to take my time to finish my final exam in class, I quickly finished in less than an hour.

We've been dealing with family services as well, and they've asked me to be home as much as I could during my case.

I turn in my test and start walking home. When I come up the driveway, mom, Logan and the social worker all come out the front door.

"What's going on?" I ask.

"For your case, a judge will interview you today." says the social worker.

I bite my lip and take a step back.

"It's nothing to worry about." says Logan. "She just wants to talk to you. All you have to do is answer honestly."

"Who else is going to be there?" I ask.

"During the interview, just you and the judge." says the social worker. "And for legal reasons, I will be driving you."

The next thing I knew, we were arriving at the courthouse. I was shown to a room with a mirror and a table with two chairs. After waiting a few minutes, the judge walks in.

"Hi, there." she says. "I just have a few questions."

I nod, looking behind her to the mirror. I'm assuming it's two way glass.

"Can you tell me what's going on at home?" she starts.

Mom's probably watching this, right?

"How do you mean?" I ask.

"How are your parents in the house?"

"My mom..." I start. "She gets stressed out a lot."

"Does she do anything when she's stressed?"

"She... she tends to drink to calm down."

"Does she calm down when she drinks?"

I zip up my jacket a little more.

"You know it's summer." she says. "Most people don't wear hoodies unless they're going to the ice rink. You're more than welcome to shake it off."

I dig my nails into my hand and slowly take off my jacket, revealing my bare arms.

"How did you get those bruises?" she asks.

"Hockey."

"My kids play hockey, they get rough." she says. "But their bruises are never as bad as yours. How did you really get them?"

My eyes well up with tears. I try to suppress them but they fall anyway, making me sniff.

"When mom asks me to do anything, if I take a little too long to do what she asks..."

"You can tell me, honey. You're in a safe place." she says.

"She gets physical." I sob. "But that's on me for not doing what she asks the first time."

"What about your father?"

"Mom never told me who he was until I met him a couple weeks ago." I say.

"So you have no relationship whatsoever with your father?"

I shake my head no.

"In the time you've spent together the last few weeks, has he laid a hand on you?" she asks.

"Not a finger." I answer truthfully.

A Week Later

That was probably the longest day of my entire life. While the case was worked out, I wasn't allowed to stay with either mom or Logan. Macy's mom was gracious enough to lend me her guest room meanwhile.

I was ordered to get a full physical done. Both mom and Logan came with me, though they spent the entire time arguing.

"I'm going to start by taking your vitals." says the nurse.

"Aren't you supposed to be back in LA by now?" I can faintly hear mom.

"I'm not going anywhere without her." he answers back.

"Your blood pressure's a little high." says the nurse, releasing my arm.

"Yeah, the past few weeks have been... intense." I say.

"Don't worry." she says. "Whoever you're worried about, they can't get to you here."

Mom ended up leaving but since Logan was calm, they allowed him to be with me while the doctor checked me out.

"Can you lean back and lift up your shirt, please?" she asks.

Uh...

"It's okay." says Logan. "If you show us where you're hurt, we can know how to treat it."

I sigh and lean back on the bed, lifting up my shirt to reveal more injuries.

"How did you get these?" ask the doctor, lightly pressing on the bruises, making me wince.

"The cut on my ribs was because I was stupid." I start. "The cut under my breast was because I was born and the bruise over my heart is because no one will ever love me."

I didn't realize I was crying until tears spilled down my cheeks.

"Come here." says Logan, taking me in his arms, tightly. "As long as you're with me, no one will ever hurt you ever again. Got it?"

Even though he reassured me, I could tell he was seething.

Chapter Text

Nellie's P.O.V

1 WEEK LATER

It's been weeks of going back and forth. Weeks of mom and Logan having never ending screaming matches.

I chose not to go to court. Instead, Macy and I spent our time at the rink.

I had just skated past her and scored a goal when her parents called for our attention.

"What's up?" asks Macy.

"Time to go." says her mom, gathering her purse.

"But it's still early?" I say confused, while Macy quietly talks with her mom, smiling brightly.

"Yeah but we have dinner reservations." says Macy.

For what?

"You guys don't really celebrate anything in June." I point out.

"No, but sometimes it's nice to take a night out on the town." her mom says. "And you're coming with us."

"Oh but that's-"

"No ifs, ands or buts." says Macy. "You're coming."

We ended up getting ready at Macy's house. Her mom drove us to a really fancy restaurant I've never heard of before.

"Hi, we have a reservation under Megan." she says.

"Yes, you are right here." smiles the waiter. "I have you in the back corner booth."

"That's perfect." they both say.

We all walk to the booth and the waiter lays down several menus.

"You know what, how about me and you take the chairs so mom can have the booth to herself?" says Macy.

"That's fine." I agree, sitting next to my best friend.

A while later, a waitor comes over with a tray of drinks... four of them?

"Wait, there's only three of us." I say.

"Are you sure?" they ask.

"Is there room for one more?" says a voice.

I look up and see Logan walking towards us. Macy moves to sit with her mom, making room for Logan to sit next to me.

"I thought there was court today?" I ask.

"Judge reached a verdict." he smiles brightly, showing me folded papers.

"And?" asks Macy and her mom.

"If I won custody of you, would you be willing to move to Los Angeles with me?"

My mouth dropped. All I could do was look at the man before me.

"Y-y-you..."

"You got full custody of Nellie?" asks Macy, also in disbelief.

"Signed and finalized." he says, showing me the document.

My eyes well up in tears, as Logan takes me in his arms.

"I promise no one will hurt you as long as you're with me."

1 WEEK LATER

I didn't have a lot to pack. One large box at most. And of course, it nearly killed me to say goodbye to Macy but she just about shoved me into the car.

"You're making the biggest mistake of your life!" spouts mom.

"Don't listen to her." says Macy, walking me to the car. "If I were you, I would've left hours ago."

"I don't want to leave you behind, though." I say, sadly.

"That's why God invented FaceTime." she says hugging me tightly. "Don't forget, there are people who love you and no way is Logan going to let any harm come to you."

"Thank you for everything." I cry into her shoulder.

"Absolutely." she sniffles. "Now go. Before I decide I want to go with you."

"Don't even think about it." her mom jokes, hugging me as well. "Have a good time in LA, sweetie."

"Thank you for everything, too." I tell her.

"It was nothing." she says, holding my hands. "Now go, a new adventure awaits you."

We drove down to the airport where dad had a private jet waiting for us. I leave the car but I stay in my place.

"Whenever you're ready." says Logan, grabbing my bag.

Shakily, I nod my head yes. He waits for me to start walking. The plane takes off a little after we settle into our seats.

5 Hours Later

There was a moving van waiting for us when we landed. LA was definitely a lot hotter than it ever gets in Minnesota.

I guess dad left his car here when he flew out because it was here when we arrived. He was driving in the direction of the beach.

"Your house is by the water?" I ask.

"Yeah, by the beach." he says. "My wife and daughter love it there. I really think you'd get along with them."

"Your daughter?" I ask.

"Her name is Lyndsay." he says. "Actually, I'm pretty sure you two have the same birthday. See, you have something in common already!"

A gate opens and Logan drives the car in, parking the driveway. A bunch of guys and two girls walk out the front door. Unsure of what to do, I look at Logan.

"It's okay." He says. "The girls are my wife and Lyndsay. The three guys are my bandmates."

"Come take a look inside." calls his wife.

Logan walks me up the driveway to where the two girls are.

"Nellie, this is my wife, Camille and our daughter Lyndsay."

"Come inside, we can give you a tour." says Camille.

"Um, that's okay but thank you." I say.

"You know what, it's been a long day." says Logan. "I can at least show you to your room."

Huh?

"My room?" I ask.

"Yeah, where did you think you were going to sleep?" asks Camille.

"Curb or backyard?"

"Why would you do that? We have a ton of rooms here." says Lindsay.

"Come on, I bet I know what room you'll like." says Logan, guiding me inside.

The house is somehow bigger inside than it appears on the outside. I follow Logan up the stairs.

"Bathroom's here, this is Lindsay's room, the one across is mine and Camille's and the room next to ours is yours." he says, opening a door.

I take a step inside and struggle to fight back tears.

"This is too much, I can't-"

"Too much? This is the bare minimum." he starts, showing me around the room. "My house is your house."

House? This room isn't a bedroom, it's a freaking apartment!

"Bed, tv and closet."

"Closet?" I ask.

"Push the button on the wall there." he points to a red button.

I hit it and the doors next to them slide open, revealing a walk in closet.

"I-you-we-"

I am utterly speechless.

"Guys, dinner." says Camille, walking through the door.

"You hungry?" asks Logan.

"Not really." I say.

"You don't need to eat if you don't want to, but it'd be nice if you sat down with us." says Camille.

I push back tears as they walk out.

Chapter Text

Nellie's P.O.V.

Only a matter of time until she comes running in. Three... two... one.

Nothing. What?

I peep an eye open to find myself in an unfamiliar room. I sit up and look around. That's when yesterday comes flooding back.

So it wasn't just a dream. I'm really living with my father now. Mom is now hundreds of thousands of miles away from me.

I walk into the bathroom and take a quick shower, the hot water doing wonders for my body.

Wrapped in a towel, I leave my bathroom and walk into the closet. There are endless racks and boxes of clothes and jewelry and who knows what else.

I grab a simple black t shirt and blue jeans, quickly changing into the outfit and the new sneakers from Macy. Man, I miss that girl.

I step out to my room and clean up a bit. I open my bedroom door but I stay in my place, quietly listening to whateve3r's going on downstairs.

"...but the word on the street is Big Time Rush's own Logan Mitchell is a teen father to not one but two girls from different women. Fans all around-"

I close the door and lean against the wall, futility pushing back tears. I haven't been here one full day and I'm already ruining Logan's career.

"I'm going to go see if she's up yet." he says.

I close my eyes and sigh.

I open the door fully and meet him in the hall.

"Hey! Did you get any sleep last night?" he asks, smiling.

"Yeah." I quietly nod.

"Come on, breakfast is ready." he says, guiding the way downstairs.

"Thanks, but I'm not really hungry." I say.

"You need to eat something, sweetie." says Camille, offering me a full plate of food.

I look across the room to see the tv on mute. Logan's picture is on the screen with the caption 'Illegitimate Child?' And it's not until now that I noticed everyone's cell phones constantly ringing with notifications.

"Yeah, you're definitely going to need your strength today." says Logan, pouring me a glass of orange juice.

"What for?"

"Well, you don't really have anything to say it's yours." says Lyndsay. "And everything I have fits you super baggy."

"So we thought we'd take you shopping for your own things." says Camille, smiling brightly.

I nearly choke on my juice when she says this.

"No, I can't ask-"

"We want to." he says.

"The three of us will go to the mall, shop around a bit and it'll be a good time." says Camille.

"But the tv-"

"Don't worry about that." says Lyndsay. "Dad knows a guy who can let us have our privacy while we shop."

Hours Later

While the paparazzi managed to find us anyway, I was able to find some things. I felt terrible about spending their money but whatever I touched, Camille or Lyndsay immediately took it to the cash register.

Back at home, there were reporters waiting at the gate.

"Um..." I start.

"Don't worry about them. They can't get into the house." says Camille, parking in the garage.

I grab as many bags as I can, with help from both Camille and Lyndsay, and walk into the house.

"Can you guys give us a minute?" asks Logan. "Nellie, I wanted to show you around the house."

"I can take these." says Camille, freeing my hands.

The house was pretty big but Logan and I walked our way through, with him pointing out whose room is whose and where I can find something, shall I need it.

"Whose house is this?" I ask.

"Ours." he answers. "And it's yours now, too."

I open my mouth to ask something else but immediately shut it.

"What's up?" he asks, as we continue to walk through the house. "You know, whatever you want to know about us... just ask."

I sigh and look down.

"What happened?" I ask, turning my head up to look at him.

"What do you mean?"

"Why didn't mom tell you about me?" I ask, a tear rolling down my cheek.

He sighs sadly, and wipes my tear away with his thumb.

"We were never really friends. We never dated." he starts. "About fourteen, fifteen years ago, the guys and I were moving to Los Angeles, you know, from the auditions."

I nod.

"And I went over to hang out with her one last time as a goodbye. One thing lead to another aaand what was supposed to be three months turned into this." he says.

"She never told you about me." I conclude.

"Had I known about you, I definitely would have done things differently."

A Month Later
I still don't really feel comfortable with the whole idea of going out and about. Dad's friends have come over often. So has his boss, I think they said his name is Gustavo? He has a kid about my age, Alex and we really hit it off.

"You know, you're going to have to come out of your room eventually." says Logan, walking into my room. "Come on, go out and do something."

"Tired of me already?" I somewhat joke.

"Never." he says.

"Actually, I was going to ask if it's okay if Justin comes over?"

"That was quick." he chuckles.

A while ago, I met a new friend, Justin. We hit it off almost immediately and he asked me out on a date. Soon after that, we became official but he hasn't really had the chance to come over and get to know dad.

"You know what, it's fish stick Friday." he shrugs. "That way we can all meet him together."

Fish stick Friday is kind of dad and Camille's way of having family dinner with me and Lyndsay, like Sunday dinner is their way of everyone getting together, you know like with uncle Kendall and them.

"I'll let him know." I smile.

Later

"Are you sure about this?" asks Justin, as he pulls up to the house.

"Absolutely." I say. "Besides, I don't really want to start anything behind his back."

"Alright, for you, I'll try." he says, kissing my cheek.

We exit the car and I guide him to the house.

Dinner was full of laughs, with everyone telling stories from the past. My past isn't exactly the best, so I chose to stay quiet on my end.

"Who knew being in a band could be soo..."

"Soo life threatening?" jokes dad, making us laugh.

Soon, it was time for Justin to go.

"You think he likes me?" he asks, as we walk to his car.

"Honestly, I don't know him well enough to read him." I say.

"Hey it's me. Everyone likes me." he smirks, making me laugh. "Good night."

"Good night." I say, as he leans in to kiss me.

After Justin drives off, I close the gate and walk back to the house. I lock the front door and sit in the living room with dad.

"So?" I ask.

"Honestly?" he asks. "I'm not a fan."

Huh?

Chapter Text

Nellie's P.O.V.

Just when I think life couldn't get any stranger, something else pops up.

As it turns out, the band Big Time Rush has been working on a reunion and now they're going on tour. I mean, I'm excited. I've been a big fan since forever and I bet the whole world is excited as well.

"Nellie." says Lyndsay, knocking on my door.

I leave my bathroom and go open my door.

"It's not locked, you can just come in." I chuckle.

"You never know." she says, stepping back. "Uh, dad's looking for us. Says he wants to talk about tour?"

"What does that have to do with us?" I ask, confused.

"That's what I said." she says. "He's waiting for us in the living room."

We both start walking downstairs and see dad on the phone in the living room.

"I'll let you know in a few minutes. I'm about to talk to them now." he says, hanging up.

"Everything okay, dad?" asks Lyndsay.

"Take a seat." he says, sitting down.

We both sit on the two spaces next to him.

"I wanted to know what you two think about going on tour with me."

My jaw dropped down to the floor.

"No, seriously." says Lyndsay.

"Seriously." he says. "I already talked to your mom about this. She's okay with it."

"Me, too?" I ask, in disbelief.

"Yes, you, too." he says. "Though, with you, it may be a little tricky."

"Tricky how?"

"Well, you've been outed by E! but you haven't really been going out." he says.

"Oh..." realizes Lyndsay.

"What?" I ask, still not knowing what they're talking about.

"Nellie, if you come on tour with us, the whole world's attention will be on you."

Realizing this makes me speechless.

"What happens if that gets out?" I ask.

"Well for starters, you'll be able to go out with guys who are famous." jokes Lyndsay.

"On a serious note, you will have to give up your privacy." says dad. "You will also be recognized literally everywhere. And you may be treated differently."

I sigh and lean back.

"Nothing is set in stone right now." he says. "You can think it over."

~Later~

Tour starts in a week. It's a two week tour, actually. But... things have been weird all around. Like with Justin. I don't know what happened but he's just stopped calling and coming around.

Dad parks the car next to Gustavo's Porsche. I follow him inside the studio to where rehearsal is taking place.

"Late again, Mitchell!" jokes Alex.

Alex is now my best friend and this year's tour opener. And also Gustavo's son.

Alex and Gustavo live alone. What happened with his mom... nobody tells me anything but I hope it's not like anything that happened with me. He doesn't deserve that.

"Not late, you guys were early." says dad.

Rehearsals are going on all day today and the setlist was officially finalized. I know that made dad and the band relieved to have.

"Logan, are you too old to do your backflips?" jokes uncle Kendall.

"Ha ha." says dad, then doing a perfect backflip.

"Nice." I smirk.

"Hidden talent." says dad, pulling me closer to him. "Yo, how's the lighting coming along?"

"All worked out." says uncle James, hitting a switch.

The switch turns the room into a dark blue and white like setting.

"Not bad." I say, looking around.

"Just wait for the actual show." says Alex, walking up to me. "Feels a lot different with a screaming room."

"I bet." I say, as dad comes closer to me.

"Phone call from Justin." he says, handing me his phone.

"Thanks." I say, as Alex and dad go back on stage.

I walk to the side to take the call. Only to realize it's an accidental call.

"I love you so much." says his voice.

"Me, too." says a girl's voice, as the sound of kissing can be heard. "Won't your girl be upset?"

"She doesn't have to know."

I push back tears as my heart sinks to my stomach.

"But I do have to go soon. I'm meeting her after dinner."

I hang up and walk back to the room.

"Thanks." I say, returning the cell phone.

"All good?" asks dad.

"Yeah." I flatly say, meeting up with Alex.

Later

"That's a wrap!" I hear.

After dad comes out of wardrobe, we walk to his car.

"You got quiet after that phone call." says dad. "Everything okay?"

"Yeah." I sigh. "Why wouldn't it be?"

"Nellie, I know we barely got into each other's lives, but that doesn't mean I haven't figured out how to read you." he says.

"I'm okay." I say. "I just... I need to see Justin."

"You're not hanging out with Lindsay tonight?" he asks.

"No, we are." I say. "There's just something I need to clear up with Justin first."

"Okay." he says, pulling up to the house. "You know you can talk to me about anything, right?"

I lean back in my seat, staring straight ahead.

"I'm not like her. We're not like her." he says. "You have a family you can rely on here."

"Guess it takes time to get used to." I say.

~Later~

I walked over to Justin's house while replaying the phone call in my head over and over again. When I reach his house, I sit on the bench they have next to the front door.

It doesn't take long for the door to open, making it easier to hear Justin and whoever the girl is.

"Call me later, babe."

"You know it." he says, kissing her.

"Oh, I think there's someone at your door, too."

The girl leaves and Justin comes out, then freezes in his tracks.

"I can explain."

"Who is she?" I ask, as he quickly sits next to me.

"Nellie-"

"I'm not stupid, Justin. Who is she?" I ask again.

"It wasn't meant to go this far." he says, as a tear drops down his eye.

I stay silent, as my own tears begin to fall as well.

"We're done." I say, leaving.

Chapter Text

One Week Later

"Okay, I think I have everything I need." says Lindsay. "You need anything else?"

"Nope, I'm good."

"Come on, you barely got anything." she says.

"I'm good with what I have, really." I laugh.

She links my arm with hers and we start walking home.

"So, if we're not even part of the band or anything, what are we going to be doing on tour?" I ask.

"That's the beauty of having the opener as your best friend." she says. "Alex is gonna hang with us on his downtime. He won't be as busy as dad and the rest of the guys."

"Nellie!" a voice calls out.

"Is that Justin?" she whispers.

"Stay with me, please?" I ask, as Justin comes up to us.

Justin and I broke up about two weeks ago. He's spent almost every day after trying to call me or trying to see where I'm at so we could bump into each other.

"Nellie, hi!" he says.

"Hey!" we say.

And just like that, the air is filled with awkward silence.

"Great to see you going out." he says.

"Yeah, we thought a day out would be good for us." says Lindsay.

Again, awkward silence.

"I'm sorry, I meant to call." he says.

"No worries, we've been busy anyway." I say.

"Yeah, are you guys going to the concert tonight?" he asks.

"Yeah, we're leaving in a couple hours." says Lindsay. "Are you?"

"I wanted to but I couldn't get any tickets."

"Yeah, concerts in LA tend to get sold out pretty quick." she says.

"Okay, well, I'm gonna go but it was good seeing you both." he says.

We start walking home again, not letting each other go.

When we get home, we both quickly finish packing. Just in time to grab a quick shower and change into a fresh outfit. An off the shoulder top with blue jeans and sneakers. I've always wanted to go to a BTR concert, but never in a million years did I think it would happen like this.

"Ladies, it's time to go!" calls dad.

I meet Lindsay in the hall and we both head downstairs to meet dad.

"One thing." he says, giving us backstage passes. "It's very important you do not lose these."

"Got it." says Lindsay. I simply nod in understanding.

We ended up having a driver take us to the venue. The concert doesn't start for a couple more hours, yet the line was already ridiculously long.

"A guard is going to walk you guys in. Do not let go of him." says dad.

He opens the door and we are met with screaming fans. I follow Lindsay and meet with a huge bodyguard, who leads us inside.

"Wow." I say, when I see one of the girls faint.

"You ladies can come to the lounge area backstage." says the guard.

We start walking down the hallway until we see a room with a couch, snack table, and a TV screen. There are also curtains which I'm assuming leads to the stage.

"Check out all these posters." says Lindsay, looking around the room.

"Hi, girls!" says a woman I've come to know as Kelly. "BTR to warm ups, please!"

"You made it!" says a voice.

"What else are we gonna do tonight?" jokes Lyndsay, as we meet with Alex.

"Alex, to preshow rehearsals!" calls Kelly.

"You guys can hang out in your dad's wardrobe in the meantime." says Alex.

"Sweet!" says Lindsay, guiding me in a different direction.

We walk until we see a couch facing a screen of the stage.

"Is it okay for us to be here?" I ask.

"Sure it is!" she says. "We're out of the way and still have a good view of everything going on."

"BTR to mic check!" Kelly calls out.

"And don't forget you have access to the snack table!" says Alex, walking past us to a table full of goodies.

"Check this out." laughs Lindsay. "They literally have something for everyone."

"Toast for dad?" I ask, looking around.

"The table is in fact covered with food. However, five are labeled with names. Pink smoothies for uncle Kendall, baby carrots for uncle James, mini corndogs for uncle Carlos, a pile of toast for dad and cookies for Alex.

"Alex, time!" yells Gustavo.

"Coming!" says a voice.

Alex comes up from down the hall, his hair dripping wet, his signature move. He takes a microphone and runs out to his music.

"Hey, you know what the world would love?" asks Lindsay, taking out her cell phone. "A picture of the two of us with Alex performing in the background."

"The two of us?" I ask, surprised.

"Yeah, did you not want to be in the picture?" she asks.

"I just... no one really includes me in anything."

"Well, you are now." she says. "Now, smile!"

We snap the picture and she uploads it to her social media.

"You know, you should think about joining ScuttleButter." she says.

"Thanks, but I'm okay without it." I say.

"Hey, you girls okay back here?" asks dad, coming up to us.

He's changed into his performing clothes.

"Yep!" says Lindsay.

"Thank you, Los Angeles!" Alex says into his mic. "Big Time Rush will be right up!"

The crowd goes crazy as Alex looks back at us, then winks while smirking.

"Somebody's got his eye on you." teases Lindsay.

"No, he doesn't." I wave off. "Besides, didn't he just get out of a relationship?"

"Um, you just did, too." she says.

"Are you Nellie?" asks the guard who brought us in.

"Why?" we both ask.

"There's someone looking for you." he says, confusing me. "Says his name is Justin."

"Concert is sold out, how the hell did he get back here?" asks Lindsay.

"I'll be back." I say, getting up.

As I start walking, the lights go off for the concert to start and the audience starts cheering rather loudly.

I meet with the guard and he walks me to where other fans are trying to come backstage.

"Justin?" I ask, spotting him. "How did you get back here? What are you doing here?"

"We need to talk about us, Nellie." he says, not being able to get over the line. "I messed up, I'm sorry."

"You've said all this before." I say.

"Nellie, these past two weeks without you made me realize I love you and you're the one I want to be with." He says, stopping me in my tracks.

I sigh and run a tired hand through my hair.

"Will you give me another chance, please?" he begs.

"Found her." I hear.

Lindsay and Kelly walk over to us with a bunch of papers.

"What's going on?" I ask.

"I know you're minors but you guys need to sign a consent form stating we've gone over some ground rules while you're on the road with us." explains Kelly, lending me a pen.

I sign where I need to and return the document.

"Hold on, what just happened?" asks Justin.

"He doesn't know?" asks Lindsay.

"We broke up and then we got busy." I shrug.

"What don't I know?" he asks.

"Come on, we can talk in the hall." she says, getting Justin backstage with us.

The three of us walk towards wardrobe, where we can talk much better.

"Nellie and I are going on tour with dad." explains Lindsay.

"You're what?!" he asks, in shock.

"Not only that, you know that picture we took a minute ago?" she continues. "Yeah, you're a hit. Everyone is asking if you have your own social media."

"Wait, what about us?" asks Justin. "What about our relationship?"

"Hold on." says Lindsay, getting in between us. "You cheat on my sister and you still think you're in a relationship with her?"

"Lindsay, Nellie can speak for herself." says Justin, not taking his eyes off me. "Nellie?"

"Nellie?" asks Lindsay. "Come on, all he did was use you! Don't you see that?"

I sigh, realizing she's right.

"You're awesome, Justin." I say, making Lindsay scoff. "But I'm not anybody's second choice."

"Yes!" she cheers, as Justin backs up.

"You're making a mistake." he says.

"No, she is not." says Lindsay, as a guard comes for Justin.

Chapter Text

Tour Day 1

"Is everyone done packing, or almost done?" asks Camille.

Everyone hums a yes, still working on dinner.

Tonight is the official tour kick off. Everyone is finished packing and because Camille and Jo aren't coming on tour with us, dad and everyone had the idea to have family dinner before leaving.

"Girls still have a backstage pass?" asks uncle Kendall.

"Yep!" we say, showing our land yards.

"And bags are packed in the car." says uncle Carlos.

"And now we..." pauses uncle James, looking at his watch. "Um, we were supposed to be at the loading dock ten minutes ago..."

There's a pause filled with silence.

"Go!" we all say.

After quickly cleaning up and saying our goodbyes, we were on the road to the busses. Dad takes all the bags from the trunk while Lindsay pays the cab driver. We meet up with everyone, trying to stay out of the way.

"You're late!" yells Gustavo.

"Does he yell a lot?" I ask.

"You haven't heard anything yet." says Alex, appearing out of thin air.

"I mean, we are leaving in thirty minutes, so..." says Kelly, walking by.

Yikes, kind of cutting it close.

"Um, so you don't know who's bus is whose?" asks Alex.

"Not a clue." says Lindsay.

"Left to right," starts Alex, "bus for staff, bus for me and dad, you can tell cause my name is on the side. And the others are Kendall, Logan and you guys, James and Carlos."

"Speaking of which, Alex, please don't go running off again." pleads Kelly.

"Huh?" I'm confused but Alex and Lindsay are laughing.

"Sometimes before performances or trips, I like to mess with dad and hide from him." he laughs.

"Why?" I ask.

"I make my fun where I can." he shrugs.

"Come on, let me show you our bus." giggles Lindsay, walking towards the bus in the middle.

We climb up the steps and are met with a curtain. Behind the curtain is a lounge area type thing.

"Wow, like an apartment on wheels." I note, looking around.

"I know right?" she says. "Lounge is here, bathroom in the middle and bunk beds in the back."

We walk all the way through and choose a bunk each, leaving the actual bed for dad.

"Not bad." I say, looking around. I even spotted a mini fridge and a microwave.

"Good or it would've been a long two weeks on the road." jokes Alex.

"If Gustavo knew you were on this bus, he'd kill you." smirks Lindsay.

"Why's that?" I ask.

"Um, we're kind of hot in the news right now for lots of reasons." says Lindsay. "Last thing the band needs now is a scandal."

"And if they find me in a bus that's not mine and filled with girls..." completes Alex.

"Five minute warning!" we hear.

"And that's my cue!" says Alex, as we all head outside again.

"There you guys are." says dad, walking up to us. "Is the bus okay?"

"It's huge!" I say, making them laugh.

"Cool, let's go." he says, as everyone finds their own bus. "By the way, you guys should check out rehearsal if you're down."

"I didn't know we were allowed to." says Lindsay, as the bus engine turns on.

"You can, just-"

"Stay out of the way." she finishes.

Chapter Text

Tour Day 2

Beep! Beep! Beep! Be-

I bring the blanket up higher and rub my eyes.

"Lindsay! Nellie! Rise and shine!" I hear.

I run a hand through my hair and sit up.

"What's going on?" I yawn.

"We arrived in the middle of the night." says dad. "You don't wanna miss breakfast."

When I come to, I realize dad already showered and changed. We just put on our shoes and grab our bags, following dad outside.

"Hey, girls! Sleep well?" asks Kelly, with a bright smile like usual.

"Yeah, actually." says Lindsay.

"Listen up!" says Kelly. "Roadies and crew, set up and sound check! Hair, make up and wardrobe, we have a meeting tomorrow at eight in the morning. Everyone else, use this time to get some food and R and R. We have a sold out show tomorrow night, then we're hitting the road at eleven pm sharp."

"Yikes." I whisper.

"It's really not as bad as it sounds." says uncle Carlos, giving us hugs.

"Yeah and if at any time anything bothers you, and I mean anything, let me know. That goes for both of you." says dad.

"Or one of us." says uncle James.

"Got it." we say.

"If you guys are doing sound check all day, what are we doing?" asks Lindsay.

"Whatever you want as long as you stay out of trouble." says dad.

"You can spend the day with me." says Alex. "Dad's letting me rent a suite for a bash. We can hang there."

Dad gets a funny look, which piqued my interest.

"What's up?" asks Lindsay.

"Logan, relax." says Alex. "It's just some band members kicking back with some fans. It's no big deal."

"Fine." he says. "Call me for anything."

We got some breakfast with dad, then headed to the room. While dad left for work, we got ready for the party. Alex's suite was down the hall and already live with music and fans.

"That was quick." I mutter.

"You made it!" he says, running up to us.

"Oh, I think I know someone here!" says Lyndsay. "I'll catch you guys later."

"And then there were two?" laughs Alex.

"Who does she know here?" I ask.

"When dad and Logan were introducing us to the business, we met some people. A lot of them happen to live abroad." he explains. "Want to go some place quieter?"

"Totally." I agree.

We ended up getting lost in the suite. After trying some doorknobs, we found an empty bedroom.

"Finally. Any more loud music and I'll get a headache." I joke, stumbling into the room.

"Says the one on a concert tour." he laughs, steadying me.

The moonlight shines bright on Alex's features. He doesn't move his hands from me, just to pull me closer. We fill the gap between us and instinctively, I jump into his arms as he carries us to the bed.

"We don't have to-"

"I do if you do." I say, holding his face in my hands.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

Next Day
I hate when I'm comfortable and my brain starts waking up. I try to turn to my other side but that's when I feel the weight of someone's arm draped over me.

Wait, what?

Shielding my eyes, I slowly open them, the bright light making my head hurt. I turn to my right to see someone laying next to me, shirtless. I rub my eyes and try to sit up, though it is pointless.

My eyes open wide when I realize who's lying next to me. Alex.

Oh no, oh no, no, no.

Taking a peek under the covers, I quickly realize I'm not wearing any clothes.

What have I done?!

I look around me and find a shirt on the ground. I slip out of bed and quickly put on a white shirt, which I find out to be Alex's. I hold myself up by holding onto the cool countertop and stare at myself in the mirror. My neck and chest are covered with marks. Dad is going to kill me!

I quietly go back to bed, my hands shaking.

"What happened?" groans a voice, bringing me back to reality.

"Um, we may have really screwed up this time." I say, panicking.

"The room is destroyed, dad's going to kill me." he says, going to the bathroom. "Wait..."

Alex comes back into the room and quickly dresses himself from the bottom half.

"Um, did we..?"

"I think we did." I groan, covering my head.

"Oh my god, Nellie-"

"It's okay." I say, trying to sit up. "No one has to know. I know this could ruin you."

"What?" he asks, coming to sit on the bed with me. "That's not what I was thinking at all."

The piercing sound of a cell phone ringing gets me jumping again, though Alex quickly answers the text message.

"Damn it." he sighs. "Breakfast call and everyone is wondering where you're at."

We quickly change and I find my way back to my room. When I enter, I see dad and Lindsay already left. I sigh in relief, then grab a quick shower. I change into a new outfit and meet everyone in the dining commons.

"Hey." calls Alex, meeting me in the hall. "Looks like it's just you and me for now."

"Where is everyone else?"

"Concert prep, interviews and meet and greets." he says.

Ugh. The thought of having to face anyone makes my head pound even worse.

"Breakfast?"

"Please don't." I say. "Food is the last thing on my mind right now."

"We need to eat something. Trust me on this." he says, starting to walk to the elevator.

"Where are we going?" I ask, leaning against the elevator.

"Pizza?" he shrugs.

There's a pizza shop across the street. When we get there, he opens the door for me and lets me choose a booth.

"At least it's empty." says Alex.

"Yeah, until they find out you're here." I smirk.

"Or you." he says, confusing me.

"What do you mean?"

"Everyone knows who you are." he starts. "One could argue this is your first official public outing."

"Oh my goodness, I knew I recognized you!" squeals a waitress, running up to us. "Alex and Nellie, right?!"

"Yeah!" says Alex, smiling brightly.

I just sit and watch silently.

"What's your name, beautiful?" he asks.

"Tina!" she beams. "Can I bother you for a picture?"

"Of course!" he says, standing up.

"Oh, you, too!" she tells me, surprising me.

"Oh, okay." I say, getting up.

We pose for the picture as another waitress takes the shot.

"Thank you so much!" she says. "Your pizza should be right out."

"We never ord-"

"No need!" she says. "I already know how Alex likes his pizza from his Pop Tiger interview."

"Color me impressed!" chuckles Alex.

The girls leave and I'm speechless.

"You were saying?" he asks, smirking.

"I'm-..." I stutter, at a loss for words.

"Hi, sorry to bother you again." says Tina, coming out with a large pizza. "Some of the girls were wondering if you two would come to the back and take some pictures?"

"Nellie?" asks Alex, looking at me.

"Alex?" I ask back, in shock.

"Let's do it." he shrugs.

The girls shriek, making me jump once again.

We get up and follow everyone to the back. There's a chalkboard with a pizza drawn on. We stand in front and pose for pictures.

"We're such big fans!" says a girl. "We even know your astrological sign and everything!"

"Nellie, when is your birthday?" they ask, still taking pictures.

"I was born in April." I say.

"Me, too!" says one of the girls.

"Where's Lindsay?" they ask.

"I think she's with the band." I say. "I slept in a little more this morning."

"Here, you guys can have these shirts!" says a worker, giving us some shop merch. "And don't worry about the pizza, it's on the house!"

"That's so nice, thank you so much!" says Alex, as his cell phone rang again. "And that's dad. Sorry to grab and go but I really do have to go now."

"Thanks for coming!" they say, as we start walking out..

We catch a cab to ride to the stadium. Alex got the both of us in through the back and ran straight to wardrobe.

"Finally, I was starting to get worried." says Lindsay. "You should go see dad."

"Why, did something happen?" I ask, a little worried.

"Um, I came home from the party, you didn't." she points out.

"Oh my god." I lean against the wall and close my eyes.

"What? It's not like you did something you weren't supposed to." she shrugs.

I open my eyes and look at her but stay silent. Soon enough, her eyes pop out and her mouth drops.

"No, you didn't." she says.

"Alex, you're on!"

He zooms by us and we start walking to wardrobe.

"Hey, she's alive." jokes uncle Carlos.

"Glad to see you branching out." says dad. "Where have you been all day?"

"Uh, Alex wanted to show me around for a bit." I say. "I guess lunch took a little longer than I thought it would."

"And you didn't want to go with them?" he asks Lindsay, confused.

"Nah, I figured they could blend in a little more if I wasn't with them." she covers.

"Didn't work anyway." I shrug.

"What happened?" asked dad, now concerned.

"Nothing, just... someone at the pizza place recognized Alex and when they got a little closer to us, they recognized me-"

"And that took up your time." concludes dad. "But you're okay? You're not hurt?"

"My head hurts a little but I'm okay." I say.

"Boys, you have a meet and greet to get to!" calls Kelly.

"Go, we'll stick with Kelly." says Lindsay.

He walks away and meets with the boys backstage.

I let go of my breath and run a hand through my hair.

"Sorry you had to do that." I say.

"You know he's going to make you talk about it eventually." she says.

"Hopefully not today."

Chapter Text

Nellie's P.O.V.

"Thank you, you've been a beautiful audience!" dad says into his mic.

The band comes backstage and into wardrobe. Or at least everyone but dad.

"You guys okay?" he asks, looking more at me.

"Yeah." I say, exhausted.

"Alex has his meet and greet right now." he says. "You should go, check it out."

"Really?" we ask, surprised.

"Yeah, Alex!" he calls out, making my head spin.

"What's up?" he asks, jogging over to us.

"Take them with you to meet and greet." says dad.

"Sweet!" he chuckles.

We follow behind him until we get to the concession space. Girls immediately ran to take a picture with Alex or for him to sign whatever merch they had with them.

"Hey, aren't you Logan's kids?" they start asking.

"Can we get pictures with you, too?" they ask, to my surprise.

"What do you think, Nellie? You up for it?" Lyndsay quietly asks me.

"Sure, why not?" I agree.

I never thought I'd be part of the meet and greet but I'll admit it feels nice to be included in something for once.

"Everyone have their pictures and autographs?" asks Kelly. "The band needs to hit the road."

The room cleared faster than I could blink. I was not expecting that.

I gathered my things and followed Alex and Lindsay back to dad's wardrobe. He quickly packs up and we all walk back to the buses together. After roll call, we have a quick dinner and call it a night, exhausted from the day's events.

~Next Day~

"You know, you should talk to dad about getting a phone." says Lindsay, as we walk the halls of the stadium.

"What for?" I shrug. "I only talk to you, dad and Alex and I see you guys every day."

We grab our snacks and take our seats, watching rehearsal.

"You guys really like the preshows, don't you?" asks Alex.

"What do you mean?" I ask.

"You've been coming to every rehearsal, connected with the fans and even the crew loves you." he points out.

"Wait, does that mean we've been in the way?" I panic.

"No!" he says. "It's good you're branching out and possibly making connections. Which brings me to my next question, how are you guys?"

"We're okay." we say, leaning back.

"Tired yet?" he asks, already knowing our answer.

"Maybe just a little." I admit.

"Alex, come on!" calls Gustavo. "Doors are about to open."

"Duty calls." sighs Lindsay, as we get up.

That's how we spent our time on tour for about ten days. In those ten days, Lindsay's following had greatly increased and so has the demand that I join Scuttlebutter as well. Although I will admit, I was kind of expecting for dad to beat the shit out of me for what happened the night of Alex's party... but he hasn't said a single word. Not even uncle Kendall, uncle James or uncle Carlos.

We're now in the last few days of tour. Dad and the band are booked for an appearance on a morning talk show. I was tying my shoes when the door to the bus opens.

"Lindsay, Nellie, can you come out, please?" calls dad.

"I thought we didn't need to go down until the show starts?" she asks me, just as confused as I was.

We walk out together, joining dad on the lot.

"Kelly's looking for you guys in hair and makeup." he says, confusing me even more.

Dad opens the door to the studio, waiting for us to walk in first.

"Girls, there you are!" she says, smiling brightly. "We were wondering how you would feel about joining your father on the show this morning?"

Our jaws drop in shock, leaving us speechless.

"Are you sure?" asks Lindsay.

"You don't have to answer anything you're not comfortable with." says dad. "And if need be, I can jump in for you. But you don't have to do the show if you're not-"

"I'm in!" says Lindsay.

"Great!" cheers Kelly. "Nellie?"

"What if mom-"

"We're not staying here long and we're not going anywhere near Minnesota." says dad. "Even if we did, we wouldn't let her go anywhere near you."

I close my eyes and take deep breaths. I look up and nod.

"Then let's get going." he says, guiding us through the studio.

Sitting through hair and makeup was surreal. Everyone who worked on the set was running around making sure everything was ready to go.

Soon, the band was doing their segment while Lindsay and I were watching on a screen backstage. They mostly asked questions about what they've been doing on their own time and how this tour came about. After a while, the show cut to commercial.

"Lindsay and Nellie, right?" asks a stagehand, calling out attention. "Your segment is coming up after this commercial is over. Has anyone gone over the ground rules with you?"

"Nobody has told us anything until now." says Lindsay.

"It's simple, really." he shrugs. "No swearing, no removal of clothing, no obscene gestures and please, no plugs or promotions."

"Basic enough." we say, as the music from the show plays.

"And we're back!" says the host. "We left off talking about the highs and lows of tour and now, let's welcome the stars of this tour, Lindsay and Nellie Mitchell!"

Nellie Mitchell. Am I allowed to use the name?

The band's music plays and I walk out behind Lindsay. Both of us sit on the sofa next to dad.

"Ladies, let me say, it is great to have you on my show this morning." says the host.

"It's great to be here, thank you for having us." answers Lindsay.

Lindsay took the lead on most of the questions, which was great because the attention was off me. Or, at least I thought it was.

"Nellie, I'm sure this has been a roller coaster for you." says the host. "Who do you go to for support?"

"Everyone has been amazing but I don't know what I would do without dad and Lindsay." I answer honestly.

"And one last question for both of you from rushers all over the world, any romance on the road?" he asks.

We laugh and shake our heads no.

"I just got out of a relationship, I'm not really looking to start anything right now." I answer.

"Well, there you have it, folks." says the host. "Thank you so much for joining us this morning."

We say our goodbyes and the show cuts to commercial.

"So that happened." I say.

"You did great!" says uncle Kendall. "But we should really be going to rehearsals now."

"Yeah, let's go."

Chapter Text

Nellie's P.O.V.

"Make it count, play it straight, don't look back, don't hesitate..."

"That was great! Let's take a break." they call.

I stand up from the seats and walk to the back to grab some water.

“Hey, you.” Says Alex.

“Shouldn’t you be prepping for your set?” I ask.

“Eh, when you’ve been at this as long as I have…” he shrugs. “How are you?”

“What do you mean?” I ask.

“Even roadies get checked up on.” He says. “How are you?”

“Every day is a new adventure.” I shrug.

“You got that right.” He laughs.

“Let’s go!” calls the choreographer, starting the music once again.

Alex and I spent the rest of rehearsal in his dressing room.

“Are you okay?” he asks. “After… you know.”

“I’m okay.” I smile.

“Because you know I’d never do anything to hurt you.” He says, coming closer.

“I know that.” I say, our foreheads now touching. “Alex-“

We connected before I could say anything. And it was… like nothing I’d ever felt before. It was different, nice even.

“Two minute warning!” calls a voice. “Has anybody seen Alex?”

That’s when we let go for air.

“Wow.” I say, softly.

“Nellie!” I hear.

Immediately, I step back just before the door was thrown open.

“What, what’s going on?” asks Alex.

“Um, you kind of have a visitor.” She stammers, looking at me.

“Huh?”

“She’s right in there.” Says a stage manager.

My heart drops when my ex-boyfriend walks in.

“Justin?”

“I’m sorry for just showing up like this.” He says. “But I missed you. And I wanted you to know that I love you and wanted to know what you thought about getting back together?”

We were all left speechless.

“Alex, final call!”

“Let’s go.” Says Lindsay, taking the lead on this.

We all walk with Alex. He goes on stage while the rest of us stay in the back. The band was also in the back doing one of their warm up exercises.

“Just who we were looking for!” says uncle Carlos, as dad starts walking towards us.

“I saw Justin walking around here.” Says dad. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, all good.” I say.

“Are you sure? If he tries anything, just say the word and-“

“Dad.” I stop him, smiling. “Everything’s fine. I promise.”

“If you say so.” He says. “The band and I thought it’d be cool if you guys could choose tonight’s Worldwide girls.”

“Us?” we say, surprised.

“Yeah, we think two should be good, so one each?”

“Alright!” we cheer.

After Alex’s set, the four of us relaxed on the couch to watch the show. When it came time to choose tonight’s Worldwide girls, Alex showed us the way to the stage.

“We thought we’d try something a little different tonight.” Says uncle Kendall.
He was harmonizing ‘Worldwide’ on his guitar while the stools were set on stage. Six to be exact.

“Lindsay, Nellie, help us get our Worldwide girls for tonight.” Says uncle Carlos, making the crowd roar.

Alex came to my side while his bodyguard went with Lindsay. After looking in the crowd, I spotted a girl about my age with a sign reading ‘Logie Bear’.

“Her.” I said, loud enough for only Alex to hear.

He helped me get closer, close enough to call her out.

“You with the Logie sign.” I smile, making her freak out and start crying.

We gave her a hand and walked her on to the stage.

After choosing our girls, we went backstage and the song played itself out.

~After the Concert~

Justin stayed with us through out the night. He tried talking during the set, to no avail. When the show was done, he gave us some space though still staying within eye sight.

The show wrapped up a few minutes ago, we were just waiting on dad to come out.

“Now that everyone’s here, how about dinner at Fun Burger?” proposes uncle Carlos.

“You sure that’s what you want to do for your birthday dinner?” asks uncle Kendall.

“Oh yeah!” he says, making us laugh.

We all agreed, getting on our way.

At the diner, dad sat with the band in one booth while the rest of us shared the booth behind.

“Is every show like this?” asks Justin.

“Nope.” We all say.

“This one was different in a lot of ways.” Says Alex.

“How so?”

“This was the first time we got to choose the Worldwide girls.” I say.

“And it’s rare for us to still have energy after a show.” Says Alex.

We spent the night talking about tour and laughing at memories we’d made. More memories were made when the band surprised uncle Carlos with cupcakes.

Toward the end, I volunteered to walk the check back to the counter. I heard foot steps behind me and soon I was alone with Justin.

“Can we talk, just the two of us?” he asks.

“Okay?” I say, confused.

“I just wanted to see where you’re at. Where we’re at in terms of… us.” He says, slowly.

I sigh and sit on the bar stool. He sits on the stool in front of me.

“As far as I’m concerned, there hasn’t been an us since you-“

“I know where I messed up.” He cuts me off. “You don’t need to remind me.”

“I’ve moved on, Justin.” I say. “Maybe you should, too.”

“I’ve tried to move on but nobody is you.” He says. “Do you think… can we try this again? I know I had some issues but I want to show you I’m not the same guy.”

“Even if I believed that… now isn’t exactly a good time.” I say. “We’ve all been crazy busy and there’s a lot I’m still trying to figure out.”

“And I’m trying to tell you that you don’t have to figure this out alone.” He says. “I mean it, just give me the chance to show you.”

My eyes water at the thought of this happening again.

“No.” I sniffle. “I’ve moved on, I don’t want to go back.”

“Nellie-“

Before he can say anything, I jump from my seat and go outside to get some air. I stop by dad’s bus and lean forwards, folding my arms behind my head.

“What happened?” says a voice. The shoes tell me it’s dad.

“When is this going to stop?” I ask, my vision blurry.

“When is what going to stop?”

“People using me as their personal-“

“Come here.” He says, engulfing me in a protective hug. “You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to.”

“Justin says he wants another chance.” I say softly.

“Do you want to give him one?” he asks.

“I don’t know.” I sniffle, still in his arms.

“It’s totally okay if you don’t.” he says. “Ninety six percent of first relationships end in break ups.”

Somehow that makes me feel better.

“Nellie, if Justin or anyone for that matter ever makes you feel uncomfortable or something bothers you, come and find me immediately, okay?” he says.

I sniffle and nod. With his arm around my shoulders, we walk back into the diner.

Chapter Text

Nellie's P.O.V.

Again, today was different and busy for lots of reasons. The main reason being tonight is the last and final stop on tour.

Everyone got together for a final farewell breakfast with fish sticks. Dad calls it fish stick Friday.

After eating, we gave back our backstage passes and went on the busses to finish packing. Lindsay wandered off, I'm not sure where after she finished first. I zipped up my bag and sat down in my bunk to catch my breath for a minute.

Just then, I heard the doors to the bus open and heavy footsteps.

"Nellie?" Alex calls out.

"Back here!" I say.

It's not long until he pops his head in.

"Wanted to see how you were doing." he says, coming to sit next to me.

"Well, my first tour is officially in the books." I say, before bursting into laughter. "Wow, never in a million years did I think I'd ever say that."

"I started out working at Rocque Records, look at me now." he says.

"Wait, serious?" I ask, shocked.

"Seriously. Started as an intern for the summer." he says. "Dad caught me messing around in the studio testing out new microphones and now... here I am."

"No way." I say, in awe.

We sit in silence for a few seconds until one of us speaks up again.

"We should talk."

"Anything in particular?" I ask.

"Sure." We each turn to face each other, leaning on opposite sides of the bunk. "What happened last night with you and Justin? Did you know he was coming?"

"Not a clue." I say. "I hadn't heard from him since we left home. He said he wanted another chance."

"Are you-?"

"I said no and ended things for good." I say.

"Good." he says, surprising me. "I don't want to see you getting hurt like that again."

"So I keep hearing." I say.

We move so we're leaning against the wall but sitting next to each other.

"Besides, I hear someone around here has his eye on you." He says, to my surprise.

"And who might that be?" I ask.

He doesn't say anything. He just starts leaning in, which tells me everything I need to know. I copy him and soon there's no gap between us anymore.

The kiss is short and sweet but is cut short when Alex gets a phone call.

"That's our cue." he says, his forehead resting on mine.

"Let's go."

After Alex's opening set, the three of us stay close to the curtain to watch the show. Soon, they bring out the stools for Worldwide. There are six brought out.

"Tonight, we have two very special ladies we'd like to bring out." says uncle Kendall.

Dad walks off stage and up to us.

"Come on." he tells us.

"What?" we say, confused.

"Tonight, you are my Worldwide girls." he says, offering us both a hand.

Speechless, dad guides us both to the stage. We sit on the two stools in the middle as the crowd goes crazy. Uncle Kendall starts the acoustic version of the very renown song.

Towards the middle of the song, dad and uncle James circle around to hug us from behind and we start singing along.

"Oh, wherever the wind blows me. yes, you're still the one and only girl on my mind..."

I thought I felt dad twitch for a second but I shrug it off. After the song, Lindsay and I walk off the stage, choosing to watch the rest of the show with Alex.

"Tell me that wasn't fun." smiles Alex.

"That was a lot of people." I say, letting go of a breath I didn't know I was holding.

After the concert, we helped pack where we could. The buses went straight to the airport, where Gustavo's private jet was waiting for us to fly home.

1-2 Months Later

I have officially given up on what normal is. I really thought things would settle but it seems tour only made sure my life would have a new adventure around every corner.

Okay, maybe I should explain some things.

School started a couple weeks ago. Alex, Lindsay and I are known around the entire place as the BTR family. What really got me is how crowded our lunch table is.

After school, the three of us went to Fun Burger to relax.

"Welcome back." says the waitress. "What can I get you?"

Alex and I ordered our usuals. Lindsay, however, has been living on the edge.

"Okay, what are you up to?" I ask, curious.

"I want to see if I can get to the end of the entire menu by the end of the year." she says, making me laugh.

"You're on." I say.

When we finished eating, we parted ways and went home. I settled into my room and played music on low volume while I started homework.

Later That Night

I had finally finished the last bit of homework. I put my books in my backpack just as someone lightly knocked on my door. I look up and the door opens to reveal Camille, my step-mom.

"Hey, sweetie." she says, sweetly.

"Hi, everything okay?" I ask.

"Yeah, everything's fine." she says. "I only came to call you and Lindsay down to dinner."

I smile in appreciation.

"I'll be right down." I say.

I set my bag down on my computer chair and meet everyone else in the dining room.

"How's school?" asks Camille.

"People are still freaking out about us." says Lindsay.

"How's that going?" asks dad.

"Good thing for Alex is all I can say." she says, making them laugh.

Dinner was filled with small talk.

"Girls, can you wait for me in the living room?" asks dad, confusing us.

"Everything's okay. There's just some things that should be discussed." says Camille.

After washing up, we go to the living room, still confused. It took a few minutes but dad eventually joined us.

"What's going on?" asks Lyndsay.

"The Teen Choice Awards are in three months." he starts, confusing me even more.

"Okay?"

"Everyone in Los Angeles is looking for potential stars. Would you two be interested in taking a shot for Awesomest Song?" he says, leaving me speechless yet again.

"No, seriously." I say.

"Seriously." he says.

"This is, like, a once in a lifetime opportunity." says Lindsay.

"I know." he says. "We already scheduled you two with a meeting with Griffin on Monday."

Huh?!

"Wait, but I can't sing." I point out.

"Yeeeah." dad and Lindsay slowly say, looking at each other, then at me.

"What?" I ask.

"You were singing along when you were Worldwide girl." says dad. "Trust me when I say, with just a little bit of vocal training, you could be a big hit."

Like I said, I have no idea what normal is anymore.

Chapter Text

Nellie's P.O.V.

After school, Lindsay and I went home to change into comfier clothes. Dad had been waiting for us to take us to the studio.

The drive was quiet but quick. Dad parks the car and shows us around the building.

Walking down the halls, I notice the walls are covered with band posters.

"Boyz in the Attic?" says Lindsay. "What happened to them?"

"They're in the attic." says dad. "Come on."

We met up with Kelly while we waited for Griffin to wrap up his current meeting. She thought it'd be a good idea to tell us about the business.

"If you are signed to Rocque Records, you will officially be part of A.S.P.A." explains Kelly.

"That's the Actors, Singers and Performers Affiliation." dad quickly explains.

"Yes, so during the week, you will have four hours of school and will be at the studio by twelve thirty." she continues. "If you need to come in during the weekend, we will ask you to come in at seven thirty."

Lindsay stops in her tracks and looks at dad.

"We don't even know what Griffin has to say." says dad. "Take it easy."

We look up when we hear a voice.

"Hey, what are the girls doing here?" asks uncle James, coming to fist bump us.

"They have a meeting with Griffin."

"Oh, that's right!" he says, excitedly. "Alex's meeting should be wrapping up."

"Alex is here?" I ask.

"Yeah, he made the shortlist for a Teen Choice Award!"

"That's awesome!" we cheer.

In the midst of celebrating, Kelly had received a notification.

"And their meeting is over. You can go up now." she says, leading the way.

We walk down a hallway just as my nerves start kicking in. However, Lindsay and I were confused when we entered Gustavo's office.

Griffin had somehow turned Gustavo's desk to look as if it was his own office.

"Guys, this is Arthur Griffin. The CEO of Rocque Records." explains dad. "Griffin, this is Lindsay and Nellie."

"And so we meet." he says. "I'll make this short. Jojo on the radio has a hole on his show this Friday and I told him I'd have a new single for him. If your single makes the charts, I'll sign you."

My jaw drops in shock from the timeline we were just given.

"Three days?" asks Gustavo. "You're giving us three days?"

"Yes and it better be good or you're all finished." he says, standing to leave.

Um, what just happened?!

We ran into Alex on our way out.

"I thought I heard you." he says, smiling. "What are you doing here?"

Even I wouldn't believe what I have to say. I stayed behind with Alex while dad and Kelly got into their own conversation.

"Would you believe me if I said we're recording a track this week?" I ask.

"No, seriously." he smirks.

"No, seriously." I say, to his surprise.

"Well, I'm glad I ran into you anyway." he says. "I wanted to see if you wanted to go out this Friday."

"Friday, huh?" I giggle. "I'm down."

"No!!" we hear Gustavo yell.

We immediately run back into the office.

"What's wrong?!"

"We just found out who your competition is." says Kelly.

"Okay?" I ask.

"Curse you Hawk!!"

~Next Day~

Class was let out and everyone exited the building. Lyndsay and I met up with Alex, who would drive us to the studio.

"You ready for this?" he asks.

"I just don't want to screw this up." I sigh.

"Just go with your gut. And if you need help, Logan will be there." he says.

Gustavo had made a flyer about open auditions for a back up band. The immediate responses were ridiculous.

We arrived at the studio and walked up to the third floor.

"We're here!" announces Alex.

"In here!" says another voice down the hall.

There's a bunch of people with different instruments hanging around in the lobby.

"Did all of them really come here for..?" I mumble.

"When you have the right connections..." shrugs Alex.

We walk into the room and take our seats behind a table. Auditions seemed to go on and on. Everyone was looking to play a different part.

"Thank you for coming, we will let you know really soon." says Kelly, showing the last person out.

I lean back and stretch my arms out, exhausted from watching many auditions.

"Don't rest too long, kid." says uncle Carlos. "You have some decisions to make."

"Me?" I ask, surprised.

"Yes! It's your band, you should have the final say in who's in it." says dad.

With everyone's help, Lyndsay and I were able to get several players. Drums, guitar, bass and even back up singers and dancers. Knowing we had a great back up band definitely made me feel confident.

"Great, so I'll start working on a song-"

"Sorry to interrupt." says the bass player.

"What's up?" we ask.

"Um, I really hate to do this considering I was just accepted into the band." she stammers. "A gig I auditioned for earlier just got back to me and she accepted me as her bass player. Considering the pay, I think I'm going to go with them instead."

"Hold on, who's this 'she' you're talking about?" asks Kelly, confused.

"Um, I think the label's name is Hawk Records?"

Chapter Text

Nellie's P.O.V.

School is only four hours long. So long yet so short. I didn't have the stomach to get anything for breakfast, which is why I walked to school with nothing but some orange juice in my hand.

Alex and Lindsay never left my side. As we got closer to the front doors, Alex opened the door for us like the gentleman he is. The bell rings and we all split for Homeroom.

In a way, homeroom is kind of like a free period in the morning. There is the option for like a continental like breakfast while the school plays its morning announcements on the tv.

"...and a big congratulations to our very own Lyndsay and Nellie Mitchell, who have their very first single debuting tonight!"

Huh?

The class erupts in cheers, leaving me in shock. I simply take a deep breath and look down while interlocking my hands between my neck, the cold feeling of my fingers soothing my back.

After school, I met up with Lindsay, who still had an amused look on her face.

"What's up with you?" I ask.

"Me and Alex found the perfect bass player."

"And how do we know this one will stick?"

"Because this girl is the little sister to one of my friends." he says, appearing out of nowhere.

We quickly drove to the studio where everyone was already set up. We recorded our track about three times to be sure it was good and had room for editing.

"Okay, I think we should be good now." says Gustavo.

I put my headphones back on the microphone stand as the room started to spin a bit.

"What was that look for?" asks Lindsay.

"Nothing, just..."

"You need to eat." says dad. "Let's go home."

During the walk to the car, the guy who was supposed to pick up the track arrived in the parking lot.

"Game on!" cheers Lindsay.

"Are you sure this is still a good idea?" I ask, suddenly nervous.

"Hey, we did not come this far just to back down before it even starts." she says. "That's not the Mitchell way. Come on, mom text me she's waiting to have lunch with us."

The drive home seemed short. After ditching our shoes and backpacks at the doorway, we joined dad and Camille at the dining table.

"How was school?" she asks.

"Well, everyone at school knows about our song." I say.

"They made a whole announcement and everything." says Lindsay.

"Then why do you look like you're about to toss your cookies?" asks Camille.

"It's just..." I pause to look for the right words. "I might have heard a kid in class say how we have an easy in to the Teen Choice Awards and another say how I had this handed to me and... I don't know anymore."

"Hold on, you didn't tell me this." says Lindsay.

"Bring back any memories?" Camille asks dad.

"Yep." he says. "What you're starting to feel is the pressure from the award and debut. Really the only thing I can advise is... just roll with the punches. Adapt and go forward."

Later That Night

"Staring at the clock won't make time stop or go any faster, honey." says Camille, snapping me back to reality.

"And as it turns out, it doesn't do anything for nerves either." I joke.

There are instantly quick foot steps racing down the stairs.

"What the hell are you still doing home?!" asks Lindsay, shocked I was home.

"I was told I live here?" I say.

"Isn't your date with Alex-"

Crap! I race past Lindsay and jump into the shower.

I dress into my favorite off the shoulder blouse and black tights. Letting my hair fall naturally down by back, I throw together a purse and race downstairs.

"Whoa, who is that?!" they joke.

"Where are you going?" asks dad.

Did I forget to tell him?

"Nellie and Alex are finally going on their first date." beams Lindsay.

"Alex?" he asks, suddenly a little more interested. "Where are you going?"

"He never said." I say. "We shouldn't be back that late."

"I want you back in time for your premiere." he says.

"Got it." I say.

I completely forgot about the last time Alex and I were alone together. Dad never brought it up, he never got mad... he never did anything but I guess it's still a sensitive subject.

Alex pulled up to the gate and Lyndsay walked me out. After getting in the Porsche, Alex drove down to a fancy restaurant.

"Wow, not bad, Rocque." I compliment. "Not bad at all."

"Have you ever been here before?" he asks.

"Not to Chez Fancee." I say.

"Good, cause I've been wanting to take you here for a while now." he says, making my heart flutter. "I wanted to do something special for you, you deserve special."

I turn to Alex and bring him down to kiss me. When he lets go, he keeps holding my hands.

"You know, I'm pretty sure that was supposed to come a little later." he smirks.

"Are we complaining now?" I ask, smirking.

"Not one bit." he says, going to kiss me again.

We walk into the restaurant and we're immediately walked to our table in the back corner.

This restaurant is like, nothing I've ever seen before. There's a stage for an orchestra, there's vendors selling roses... and the food, so much to choose from.

"You didn't order much." he says, a little upset.

"Yeah." I say. "I'm not really used to... it's still a new world to me."

"I got you." he says, smiling. "In this world, the rules are different. Really, whatever you want, go for it."

Dinner was actually fun and full of laughs. We ended up splitting dessert together, which was shared with more laughs.

"You know what, I want to do this right." he says.

"Do what right?"

"This, me and you." he says. "I want to make it official. I want to be able to say you're my girlfriend."

My eyes pop out, leaving me speechless.

"So... will you be my girlfriend?"

"Yes, yes, a million times yes!" I exclaim.

We were interrupted by a text message. Alex checks his phone and he makes a face.

"What?" I ask.

"Um, in light of taking things to the next level, we may have forgotten that your song is about to premiere..."

"What?!"

Again, being the gentleman he is, Alex quickly pays the bill. Hand in hand, we quickly walk to the car and drives to his house, where everyone was together for the song premiere.

"We're here, we made it!" he announces, as we run into his home studio.

"Finally!" everyone cheers.

"Hey, it's on!" exclaims Lyndsay, turning up the radio.

"Yo, yo, yo, what's up!" says the host. "It's your host, Jojo and I'm here with a hot new track from... actually with a debuting single from probably a killer legacy. Actually, I wouldn't even be surprised if these chicks scored a purple rocket for this!"

"Wow!" we cheer.

"That's right, this is the debuting single of our very own Lyndsay and Nellie Mitchell, daughters of Logan Mitchell from Big Time Rush! Here we have 'Fire'!"

Chapter Text

Nellie's P.O.V.

Everyone went home around midnight. Lyndsay and I went up to our rooms to change into more comfortable clothes. As I throw my clothes in the hamper, there's a knock on my door.

I go open it and dad is standing on the other side. He was playing with his wedding ring, a tell I've noticed he does when he's nervous.

"I know it's late but do you have time to talk?" he asks.

It's practically midnight, what could he have to talk about right now?

I settle down on my bed and he takes my desk chair.

"What's up?"

"Gustavo talked to me today when you were out with Alex." he starts. "He booked you and your sister a performance tomorrow."

"Oh wow." I say.

"But it's at the Shakopee Rocktoberfest block party."

My heart drops at the thought.

Perhaps I should explain. Back home, we have a tradition every Fall. Everyone in the neighborhood comes together to make their best dishes and basically has a huge barbecue with the whole block. There's always a stage for music or karaoke and they also have bouncy houses and games for everyone to play.

It was the perfect place for me to lose mom for a couple hours while staying close to home.

"..." I try to speak but I'm at a loss for words. "Am I going to have to see her?"

"Honestly, it's going to be hard to dodge her." he admits. "We don't have to stay long. Just show up, play your piece, maybe spend a couple hours with Macy?"

Damn, he got me there.

"It would be great to see her again." I admit.

"And we'll be at your side the entire time." he says, standing up. "Flight leaves at five am."

~On the flight~

Like before, we took a private plane. Lyndsay and I took the seats in front of dad and Camille. My heart sped up as the plane took off, every second passing getting us closer and closer to... that woman.

"Hey." says dad, using his foot to touch mine, getting my attention. "Want to tell me what's on your mind?"

"I'm good." I say, looking out the window.

"You are not about to start lying to me now, that's not how we are." he says. "You have two and a half hours to spill to your guts."

"Just... this isn't exactly what I thought we'd be doing this weekend." I say.

"Do you remember what I said to you after I got full custody with you?" he asks.

'I promise no one will hurt you as long as you're with me.'

"Sure." I say.

"I said it and I meant it." he says.

"Do I have to stay in her house?" I ask.

"No, we're staying with your grandma."

"Grandma?" I ask.

"Oh my g-, she never told you, you have family in Minnesota?" he asks in disbelief.

"Far as I knew it was just me and her." I shrug.

Dad sighs and looks down, pinching the bridge of his nose.

"Kendall, James, Carlos and I, we're all from Minnesota." he explains. "We all have family here. Actually, you have a whole village here. It's never been just the two of you."

Are you freaking kidding me?!

Before I can say anything, a flight attendant comes to the back with us.

"We're starting our descent into Shakopee." she says with a warm smile.

"Thank you." says dad.

My heart speeds up once again and the room starts spinning.

"Hey, it's okay." he says, moving to sit next to me. "It'll be over before you know it."

"Has she called you since I left?" I ask.

He sighs.

"I haven't heard from her since I brought you to LA." he says.

Like before, when the plane lands there's already a car waiting for us. Dad takes the car and drives us to his childhood home. Although, it wasn't easy considering there was a street fair all over.

After parking his car, dad takes our bags and I follow him up the steps to his house. Dad and Camille took one room, Lyndsay and I took the guest room.

"There's my baby!" I hear a voice.

"And that's grandma." says Lyndsay with a big smile. "Don't worry, we love her."

I followed Lyndsay to the living room. She went to hug dad's mom, while I hide behind the wall.

"Where's my other grand baby?" she asks.

"Hiding behind the wall." says Lyndsay.

"Come on." says dad, coming to grab my hand. "My mother isn't like yours. She's been dying to meet you."

I hesitatingly take his hand and he slowly leads me to the living room.

"Oh my-" she says, instantly taking me in her arms. "You look so much like your father, you know that?"

Being with grandma Mitchell... it was like no other feeling I've ever had. Mom always kept me locked away when we had company. I've always been on the outside when it came to things like this.

"She's not home right now." she says, once again taking me out of my daze.

"What's up?"

"Your mother. She's not home right now if you want to stop by the house for a bit."

"Um, that's okay-"

"Same house as before?" asks dad.

"Yes." says grandma.

"I want to see it." he says, standing up.

Before we knew it, we were back home again. Going up to the door gave me the creeps. I managed to get inside, like usual. Except the inside looked totally different.

"She cleaned up." I mutter.

The furniture was still the same, only she hung some pictures. All of her.

I lead dad to my room. The doorknob was different. I opened the door to see my room had been turned into a home office.

"I thought this was your-"

"It used to be." I say, turning to leave.

She didn't even wait six months to get rid of my stuff.

The doorbell rings. Naturally, I go answer it.

"Miss me?" says a voice.

I throw the door open and hold my best friend in a tight embrace.

"So much." I choke out, trying not to cry.

"LA's been good to you." she says, looking me over. "You look so much better. But I didn't think you'd come back here."

"Trust me, I don't want to be here any longer than I have to." I sniffle, not letting her go.

"Nellie, who's at the door?" asks dad. "Macy!"

"So good to see you, too." she says, smiling wide, as Lyndsay comes into view as well.

"Oh, let me introduce you guys." I say. "This is Lyndsay, my sister. Lynds, this is Macy, my best friend."

"So great to meet you." they say, both smiling.

I don't know how it came to be. We met up with mom and her parents at the street fair thing. Dad, Lyndsay and I sat at the side of one table, mom and her parents sat in front of us.

"It's so good to see you two again." they say.

"Yeah, I didn't think you'd ever want to come home again." says mom.

I don't say anything. I just scoot closer to dad and play with my soda.

"What did you do with what she left behind?" asks dad.

"I needed the space." she says.

"Listen, Logan." says grandpa. "We feel bad and we want to make it up to you."

Some girls run up to our table and freak out.

"It's them! It's really them!"

"What's going on?" I ask.

"You guys sing 'Fire'!"

"Look at that, your first public recognition." says dad.

"Can we take a picture with you?" asks another girl.

"Pleeease?"

"Dad?"

"Up to you but fans love pictures." he advises.

Lyndsay and I stand up and huddle up with the girls for a couple pictures.

"Oh my gosh, thank you so much!" they squeal, running off.

"Looks like you're doing well for yourself." says mom, a little bitter. "How long are you guys in town? Do you think we could meet up tomorrow and talk?"

Wh- all I want is to get out of here and go home!

"I understand if you don't-"

"We'll be there." says dad. "But right now, you two need to prep for your performance."

Our performance surprisingly went off without a hitch. After our turn, we stayed behind to take pictures with tons of fans. I was actually surprised nobody brought anything up about how I came to live with dad.

Chapter Text

Nellie's P.O.V.

"Did you really think you could get away from me that easy?" she spouts. "You're living a fantasy life, this is your real life."

I cower down into my usual corner, waiting for her to strike.

"Let me show you what real discipline is like."

"Don't touch me!" I scream.

I get up to run out but she catches me by my wrist, nearly ripping my arm out of its socket.

"Let me go!"

"Nellie."

"No!"

"Nellie!"

I open my eyes, gasping for air.

"You're okay, it's okay." says a voice, holding me tight. "It's just a dream, you're okay."

"Where am I?" I ask, looking around.

"We're in Minnesota but we're in my house." says dad.

Realizing he's right, I rest my head on his lap and just breathe as he rubs my back.

"It's okay. You're okay." he says, rubbing circles on my back.

"Do we really have to go?" I ask.

"It's only for a little bit and then we fly home tonight." he says.

I try to clean up as best I can. My head seemed to be going around in circles, so I did what I normally would. I made my way to the ice rink.

The place hasn't changed at all. Maybe new hockey sticks but that's about it. After skating for a bit, the inevitable time had arrived and I had to go.

Dad picked me up and we drove down to the diner. Lyndsay was spending the night with grandma.

"Welcome, here are your menus."

"Actually, could we get one more? There's going to be three of us." says dad.

"Of course!" she says, laying down one more. "I'll be back in a minute to take your orders."

~45 minutes later~

"I told you, she's not coming." I sigh.

"Or she's just coming through the door?" asks dad, looking behind me.

I hear footsteps walking towards our way and soon, a whiff of mom's perfume which sends chills down my spine.

"Thanks for coming." she says, coming to sit next to me.

I stiffen as she comes closer. Looking up at dad, he simply puts his hand on the table, saying it's okay.

"I didn't think I'd get to see you again." she says.

Before we can answer, the waitress comes back and takes our orders.

"You are unbelievable." she tells dad, confusing me.

"How so?" he asks.

"Taking your daughter to another state simply to put her name all over the radio." she says. "You're not even fifteen, Nellie. You don't need a career right now."

"It's not a career." I say. "I did it to try something new for once."

"And what was wrong with your life here?" she asks.

I'm at a loss for words. I simply just stare at the table as the waitress comes back with our dishes.

"You don't have to do this, Nellie." says mom. "You can say no and get out of this whole thing right now."

"I'm not making her do anything." says dad. "You can ask anyone."

"You're not even getting sun out there, you're as pale as a ghost!"

How would you know? You spent the first fourteen years of my life beating me to a pulp.

"This is how my skin is supposed to look like." I seethe.

"Look, I'm sorry, okay?" she sighs, rolling her eyes. "I'm sorry for hurting you. But I did the best I could as a single mother."

I raise an eyebrow in shock.

"And you never even responded to my letters." she claims.

"What letters?" I ask, looking up.

"Oh, and I'm the bad guy?" mom asks dad, clearly irritated with him.

"Your mother has sent you letters in the time you've been with me." says dad, confusing me. "But I've never shown you because they all include a threat of some sort."

"They do not!"

"You straight up wrote 'choosing to live with a stranger across America is so dangerous, I should have you on house arrest to keep you safe'." he says, leaving me in shock. "What I don't understand is... why didn't you say anything?"

I turn my attention to dad.

"Had I known about her, I could've helped you or taken her since birth."

"We were kids, Logan!"

"Yeah? Yet, she seems to be doing better with me since the last time you saw her." he says. "You know what, Nellie, here's the keys to the car. Wait for me, there's some things I want to talk about with your mother alone."

Chapter Text

A Week Later

The weekend seemed to last forever. I was so happy to come back home but I never expected to become as busy as we did.

'Fire' was hot enough to unseat Vanessa Hawk from the charts, which is exactly how we got to what we're doing right now: officially signing with Rocque Records. And because we are minors, dad had to sign our contracts as well.

"As long as we're on the topic, there are some things you girls need to know." says Kelly.

"Steer clear of bad press and scandalous pictures." says Gustavo, looking up to dad.

"Okay, what's with the look?" asks Lyndsay.

"Um, when we were rising on the charts, we kind of got caught in some scandals and brought some bad press to the company." says dad, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Like?"

"Like celebstigators turning Logan helping a lady cross the street to Logan robbing her." glares Gustavo, leaving me in shock.

"Noted." we say.

"Okay, let's get to business." says Kelly, turning the attention to something else.

"Yeah, the next step after a single is a music video." says Gustavo.

"Really?!" squeals Lyndsay, excited.

"You're on their shortlist, now we need to work on getting you on the final list." says dad.

"We start off by auditioning people to direct your music video." says Gustavo.

"Or we could have Carlos direct." suggests dad.

"That's a yes from me." says Lyndsay.

"He knows how to direct?"

"He directed Crazy For U." says dad. "I can give him a call."

"You know, we could also have Alex as a celebrity cameo." says Lyndsay

"I heard my name and here I am." he says, walking in.

"Now you show up?" asks Gustavo, clearly annoyed.

Alex was supposed to record earlier this week and showed up two hours late. Gustavo was not happy.

"I showed up, didn't I?" he asks. "What about me?"

"We're making our first music video and were thinking about a celebrity cameo." I say.

"I'm in!" he says.

"Good, we shoot tomorrow." says Kelly.

"That fast?" we ask.

"Your single is about igniting the fire for summer." says Gustavo. "When people think of summer, they think beach."

"And we practically live on the beach." points out dad.

"I want everyone there at 9am."

Next Day

"Nellie, we gotta move!" I vaguely hear.

I groan as I sit up in bed.

"It's seven, we gotta get moving if we want to be ready by nine." says Lyndsay.

She leaves the room and I trudge to the bathroom. I quickly shower and change into a robe. Walking out to my room, I notice someone left a black garment bag on my bed. When I open it, I see it's what I'm supposed to wear on the shoot.

Khaki knee length shorts and a loose white button down shirt. I change into the outfit and meet everyone downstairs.

"Good, you're both up." says dad, coming towards me.

There are people everywhere inside and outside the house.

"We're still setting up but Camille wants you to have breakfast before we start."

Someone had brought food from Lucy's Diner.

"Okay, here's the deal." says uncle Carlos, also munching on breakfast. "You're just going to sing your song two or three times so we can edit later. The rest of the day, we just need shots of everyone having fun on the beach."

"Wow, easiest thing ever." chuckles Lyndsay.

12 Hours Later

"That's a wrap! Thank you everyone!" says uncle Carlos.

People cheer as everyone packs up whatever they brought over. Dad and his friends thought it'd be a fun idea to join the shoot as well, which is how every guy on the property ended up shirtless and in board shorts.

I'll be honest, for a couple hours I forgot this was supposed to be for a music video. This was probably the most fun I've had in LA.

However, it does feel weird to be exhausted from dancing around all day instead of from trying to breathe through a beating. And the day had the perfect ending: movie night with Lyndsay and snacks in our pjs.

Chapter Text

Few Days Later

Nellie's P.O.V.
"Welcome back to AMLA, what you just heard is the ground breaking new single 'Fire' by our very own Lyndsay and Nellie Mitchell! Yes, that's right, Logan Mitchell's very own daughters have collaborated together on their first single!' says the tv host. "You may recall Nellie is Logan's illegitimate child-"

"You don't need to be watching that." says dad, muting my tv. "You're not hungry? Lyndsay waited as long as she could for you."

"Kind of hard to have an appetite when people are talking trash about you." I say.

"That's what she said until her mother had to force feed her." he says.

I sigh and lean back in bed.

"Nellie, your video has more shares, likes and comments than anything they've ever done on that show." he says.

"Yet on Scuttlebutter, people are saying how it's the most crap they've seen in years." I say, gesturing at the tv.

Dad sighs and looks at the television.

"Okay, how about that one?" he says, pointing to the screen. "Where they say 'I love you guys! Stay close to your roots."

"Umm, I don't think I want to do that one."

"One could argue you have roots in LA." He points out.

"What does that one say?" I ask, a comment grabbing my attention.

I jump out of bed to get closer to the tv.

'Someone please feed the poor girl, I feel I can see through the girl's bones'

"Okay, that's enough." says dad, turning off the tv.

"Maybe this wasn't such a good idea after all." I sigh.

"Hey, any talk about you guys is good talk." he says. "At the very least, it's getting your name out there."

"That's what I've been telling this one." says Camille, as she and Lyndsay come in the room. "Now, come on, you guys have to get ready for school."

~School~

When we walked in the building, Lyndsay and I were instantly surrounded by... pretty much the whole student body, everyone congratulating us on our music video. Some were... a little offended we didn't ask them to be in it. Lyndsay advised me to shrug them off.

In homeroom we listened to the usual morning announcements. Or, it would have been usual, had they not shown our music video to the whole school. The whole day, we were the talk of the school. Which is why I was relieved when the final bell rang.

"Hey!" I say when I see Lyndsay on the way out.

"Gustavo sent a car for us." she says, holding up her phone.

"That was quick." I say, following her.

"Right? Like, at least give us two hours to breathe." she says, making me laugh.

The black limo was parked on the side of the school. It was a quick ride to the studio.

"Just in time!" says Kelly.

She walks us into Gustavo's office, where dad was waiting for us, too.

"Hey, how was school?"

"Everyone at school knows us even better now." shrugs Lyndsay.

"Good and just in time." says Gustavo. "Teen Choice nominees were announced a minute ago."

"Really, let me see!" we exclaim, having to be held back by dad.

"Or you two could hush for two seconds and let your boss talk?" asks dad.

"Thank you!" he says, turning to look at his screen. "And the nominees for Awesomest Song are... Savannah Silvers with 'My Soul Sings'... Vanessa Hawk with 'Queen Bee'... and Lyndsay and Nellie Mitchell with 'Fire!"

"Yes!" we celebrate.

"Now that you're nominated, we gotta keep you guys in the spotlight until the awards." says Kelly.

"Which is why you two have a guest role in Zombies Zombies." says Gustavo, confusing us.

"What is that?" I ask.

"A new movie they're shooting a Colossal Studio." says Kelly. "There's a scene at a school dance where you two will be performing."

I look at dad and notice he has a face.

"Nice look."

"A long time ago we were making cameos, too and Carlos got involved with the princess's wicked step mother and it was a mess." he quickly explains.

"If you two promise to behave, you shoot your scenes tomorrow after school." says Kelly.

~Next Day

Like yesterday, there was a car waiting for us after school to drive us to the shoot. I used the time during the drive to get some homework done, whereas Lyndsay spent her time on her phone.

"Holy-!" she gasps, making me jump.

"What?!" I look up.

"I've been officially verified on ScutBut!" she squeals, showing me the screen.

Indeed she had! There is a little blue checkmark next to her name. And I noticed a little under were some Scutbuts asking what my handle was or why I didn't have a social media.

We arrived at the shoot and the driver opened the door for us. We thanked him and walked into the set. It was pretty easy to find, considering there were labels everywhere.

"Thank you, ladies so much for joining us. I can't tell you how excited we are to have you here with us." says the director, walking us to hair and makeup. "Here's how your scene plays out: there's a school dance with a special guest performer, that's you guys. Our two main leading actresses have a few lines of dialogue and then run out."

"Sounds simple enough." I say, nodding in agreement.

We walk over to the set and immediately notice the stage they have set up, where our band was getting ready. I follow Lyndsay and take my place beside her, since they have two microphones set up.

"Are these things even on?" I hear Lyndsay mutter, looking hers over.

I simply tap the mics, getting the answer when there's no echo.

"Nope."

"Excuse me, did you not want to do a sound check?" asks Lyndsay.

"Oh, I'm sorry, it completely slipped my mind." chuckles the director. "When filming scenes like these, there really isn't anyone playing any music. You just do as you would if you really were performing and then we edit the music in post."

"Interesting!" we say.

"Yes but thank you for asking." he says, turning around. "Places!"

It didn't take more than five or ten minutes to shoot this scene. We were in and out in under an hour.

"That's a wrap for today!" calls the director. "Start preparing for tonight's premiere!"

"Remind you of anything?" jokes Lyndsay, probably referring to our radio debut.

"How can I forget?" I smile, widely.

"Lyndsay, Nellie!" calls the director, walking in our direction. "Great work, really. How would you like to attend tonight's premiere?"

My mouth drops, leaving me speechless.

"Us? Really?" asks Lyndsay, also in shock.

"Of course! I like supporting aspiring artists such as you two." he says, giving us each a pass for tonight's event. "With your help, we're really kicking off our film with a bang. It's only fair you get the credit for it."

"We'd love to!"

Chapter Text

Nellie's P.O.V.

I'll admit to having to adjust to a lot the last few months or so. But never in a million years did I think I'd spend my Friday night ransacking my closet for an outfit for a premiere of all things. Like, what do you even wear to these things?

Giving up, I walk over to Lindsay's room and knock on her door.

"It's open!"

I walk in and see her coming out of her bathroom, wrapped in a towel.

"What's up?"

"Just... I have no clue what to wear." I laugh.

"I got you." she says, walking over to my room.

As she leaves, her cell phone starts going off with a lot of notifications.

"Lyndsay, your phone!" I call out.

There's no response, so I take a peek at her screen, which seemed to be frozen.

"I got it!" she says, coming back. "I put an outfit together, laying on the chair in your closet."

"Thank you!" I say, starting to walk back. "Oh, your phone keeps-"

"Leave it, it's been glitching all day for some reason." she says, a little annoyed.

I shrug it off and go back to my room. After a quick shower, I blow dry my hair and style it semi wavy. I do minimal makeup and change into the outfit Lyndsay laid out for me. A black, off the shoulder, long sleeve mini dress with matching pumps.

I'll admit, Lyndsay has style!

Soon, there are knocks on our doors. I open mine to reveal Camille, dressed in a beautiful long blue sequined gown.

"Wow." I compliment.

"You, too." she says, smiling.

"The three of you look amazing." compliments dad, looking at all of us.

"Lyndsay was dressed in a dress similar to mine, only hers was strapless. Dad was dressed in a nice dress shirt.

"Better get going. The red carpet doesn't wait for anyone." says Camille.

We drive down to the premiere and have our parking valeted. Soon, Lyndsay and I are facing the security guard at the start of the red carpet.

"Tickets, please."

"I have them." says Lindsay, showing the tickets on her phone.

They let us through the red velvet ropes and onto the carpet. Almost immediately, there was squealing and the two main leads of the show ran up to us.

"Oh my goodness, I didn't know you guys would be here!" they say, hugging us both.

I was instantly blinded by the flash photography from the paparazzi.

"Come closer to the center!" says her friend, pulling us more into the scene. "Fans will love pictures of a Teen Choice nominee!"

I look around and notice celebstigators were being held back by velvet ropes.

"You have no idea how much they have been asking for you two." they say, leaving me shocked.

"Lyndsay, Nellie, over here!" they call out, taking multiple pictures.

"But this is your movie?" points out Lyndsay.

"Yeah but it's not our first." she says. "We've been in other productions before, you are fresh meat."

"Ladies, smile for the camera!" they call out.

I try not to look directly at the cameras, not wanting to lose my vision over this.

"I've never seen these many cameras before, that's for sure." I murmur.

"You're going to have to start getting used to this." they say, laughing a little. "You may be known for Big Time Rush but now you're building your own names, you're becoming somebody!"

"And you can kiss your privacy goodbye, starting with tonight."

"Come on, ladies, group shot!" calls the paparazzi, blinding us with more flash shots.

"Lyndsay, Nellie, how was it performing for Zombies Zombies?"

"It was so amazing." says Lyndsay.

"Totally, we definitely learned a lot." I add.

"So are you all best friends now?"

"I'd say we could be good friends but no, Nellie is my best friend." says Lindsay.

"And no one could take Lyndsay's spot." I agree.

"Wow, even after her phone got hacked?" they ask, confusing me. "All those nasty texts about you? I thought for sure you'd be done."

Huh?

"Lynd-"

"Nellie, remember they will do or say anything to get a reaction out of us." she quickly tells me.

"Not another phone hack." huffs one of the actresses.

"Not just that, what Lyndsay had to say was quite the mouthful." they say, laughing. " 'I really had to put my life on hold until everyone could get used to her moving in with us'."

'She wasn't even here for a few months before she was using the Mitchell name to get boys'

"Ouch." laughs the paparazzi.

I turn to look at Lyndsay, my eyes welling up with tears.

"No, you have to know I would never do anything like that, Nellie-"

" 'Pretty ballsy of her to rush into a relationship with Alex of all people right after getting cheated on.' "

She said what?!

"Nellie, is it true you're in a relationship with Alex Rocque?!"

My face falls at what was just revealed.

"Wow, I'm not sure what story is bigger!" they gush. "That Alex is dating a small town bumpkin or that same bumpkin is Logan's illegitimate daughter!"

I didn't think it was possible but maybe mom was right. This was a mistake.