Again

Chapter 6

The end of the winter came and went and before long, as the weather began to change, Kayla felt more strongly than ever that she was ready to face the crossroads she'd found herself at.  She knew she had to confront the situation with Zac once and for all, for the sake of not only her own heart and sanity, but for the sake of their friendship as well.  Kayla knew if things continued the way they were going, she'd eventually not only lose Zac to Kate, but she'd lose him as her friend.  That was something she wasn't sure she'd be able to deal with.

The guys were due back in a couple of days and Taylor's birthday would be a few days after that.  She'd had conversations with him via text messages a few more times while they were still gone and she knew from those conversations that things with their label still weren't going well.  She wanted to make sure the guys came home to peace.  She still hadn't spoken to Zac since they'd left at the end of January, and she missed him more than she had in a long time.  She spent the next couple of days cleaning and trying to create a happy mood in her quiet, lonely home.

Kayla woke up the day the guys were due home with a feeling of anxiety.  She couldn't pinpoint why and it made her nervous.  She decided to ignore it and told her self to try and keep up an enthusiastic attitude.  It wasn't too hard, she did feel happy inside that the guys where coming home.  She missed them, all of them, and was glad that they'd be home for a good chunk of time, opting to record demos in their home studio versus going back to Los Angeles to do so.  Taylor and Natalie had decided to plan the wedding for June, so she knew that at the very least, she'd have them back for the next few months.
She took another deep breath as she laid in her bed for a few more moments before deciding to get up and start her day.  She drew her curtains and let in the warm sun.  She opened up her bedroom window and looked into her back yard.  She could see the boys' tree house from her window and it sparked so many memories.

"Why are you in here?" 11 year old Taylor asked as he finished climbing into the tree house.  He stood over Kayla and Zac who'd been sharing a slice of Zac's birthday cake.  He'd turned 9 years old.
"I told you," Kayla said as she turned to look at Zac.  Zac took another bite of his cake before licking the fork clean and setting the paper plate down on the wooden floor. 
"I told her she could come up," he finally said.
"Why? Jessie and Avery aren't allowed up here.  It was YOUR rule, remember?  How come Kayla can?" Taylor asked.
"Because she's my best friend, and you didn't get me a gift, and it's my birthday so what I say goes," Zac retorted.  Kayla smiled.  She felt badly that they were arguing over her being in their sacred hideout.  Even if it wasn't a "hideout" at all.  At the same time, her 8 year old heart felt happy that Zac was defending her.
"Whatever.  Can I have some of your cake?" Taylor replied sitting down with the two friends.  Zac handed him over the last of what was on the plate before pulling out a new piece from behind Kayla. "Jerk!  You could have given me the new slice!"
"It's MY birthday, Taylor, geez!" Zac shot back.  Kayla laughed as Isaac made his way up the ladder and through the tree house door.
"Well this is new, hi Kayla," Isaac said as he sat down next to Taylor.  
"Hey, Ike, want some cake?" Kayla said as she pulled out another paper plate with a slice of cake on it.
"Seriously?!" yelled Taylor.
"He said hi, instead of trying to kick me out so he gets a whole slice," Kayla said as she handed Isaac the slice of chocolate birthday cake.  Taylor rolled his eyes at them as Isaac thanked her and began to eat his cake.
The four kids sat in the tree house late into the night until Kayla heard her grandmother calling out for her.
"I gotta go," she said as she stood up.  "I'm really happy for you guys, I know you guys are gonna be famous!"

"Whatcha doin?" a voice asked startling Kayla out of her thoughts and causing her to jump slightly.  She whipped her head around and found Taylor standing in her doorway, smiling from ear to ear.
"You're home?!" Kayla exclaimed as she ran to her friend.  He took a few steps forward and embraced her as he spun her around.  "I missed you guys so much!" she said once he'd put her down, "I thought you weren't getting home until tonight?"
"We missed you too.  We were but, truth be told, we were ready to get outta that place.  The vibes were all bad, it was so depressing," Taylor replied.
Kayla could see the sadness and frustration all over Taylor's face.  She was about to speak when she heard her bathroom door open and saw a shadow walking towards her door.  She braced herself, but then relaxed a little bit when she saw Isaac standing in her doorway, "Ike!" she yelled as she ran and hugged him. "Welcome home!"
Isaac released her and took a step back, "Thanks, it's so good to be here!" he said.
"I'm so sorry things aren't going well in L.A. you guys, that has to be so frustrating." Kayla said.
"It is," Taylor replied, "But we're home now and I for one am ready to de-stress and not think about that, at least for a few days.  Come on, let's go grab a beer.  Ike and I stopped at the store on the way home."
"I'll be right there.  I just woke up," Kayla said. "Let me get myself together."
Taylor and Isaac took the hint and excused themselves.  Kayla went to her dresser and grabbed a pair of sweats and a tank top.  She began walking to the bathroom, and paused when she reached Zac's door.  She leaned towards it, trying to listen for any sign that he was in there.  When she heard nothing, she continued her way into the bathroom.  The anxiety she felt when she first woke up quickly returning.