Setting: Demi's entry way, Hidden Hills, Los Angeles County, California
A successful recovery
I'll pray for us at night
Trey's hoodie felt like a safety blanket. It wrapped her up in his scent and his warmth, and comforted her in the same way he did, making her insides feel fuzzy and leaving a ghost of a smile playing on her lips, even though they were standing in front of the entrance of her house, which she hadn't entered since the morning of the break in. But she needed clothes, and Batman didn't like sleeping in one of Kane's extra beds, and the last thing she needed was a diagnosis of PTSD, so she was trying to move on. She was trying to be okay. And going inside of her house was the first step. The second was finally contacting her family and friends, but that was a mission for another day.
"I can go in there and grab your stuff," Trey said as he leaned against the threshold of her door, but Demi shook her head. She had to do it by herself. She had to get over this. She had to move on and be okay, even if deep down inside she just wasn't. Just being back on her 6 acres of private property made her body run cold with chills.
"No, it's fine. I'm fine."
Her bottom lip was tugged in between her teeth as she finally stuck the key into the lock and turned it, bracing her shoulder against the door as she pushed it open. She didn't know why she expected her house to be different because it wasn't. It was the same. The broken glass that had littered her entry hall was now swept away. Her marble floors had been polished, making it clear that her cleaning service had come through after the police had finished collecting evidence. Trey must've called and asked for their services because she certainly didn't.
"Come on," Trey urged, placing his hand on the small of her back as they started towards the stairs. Demi started to reach for the bannister but her hand coiled back towards her body when she thought of the way he had ran his fingers over her railing as he walked up the stairs. She held her hand to her chest as if it had been wounded as Trey opened the door to her bedroom.
In theory, everything was in its place and everything was the same but Demi knew that she would never be able to sleep in this room ever again. The thought almost saddened her. She had put so much work into making this home her dream house and now it was all ruined because some vile man that she had trusted to work for her had violated her trust, and her privacy.
The sound of wheels against the limestone floor of her closet snapped her out of her thoughts, and the sight of Trey dragging one of her larger Louis Vuitton suitcases into her room almost made her chuckle.
"Trey, I don't need a suitcase," she said with a light smile on her face, but Trey shook his head in protest.
"I don't want you to have to keep coming back here if you're not comfortable. I can get all of your undergarments and stuff like that if you get the clothes you want," Trey suggested, already opening the top drawer of her dresser where she kept all of her underwear.
"Thank you." She wasn't just thanking him for going through her underwear and picking out all of her favorites, and she hoped that he picked up on that.
"Anytime, baby. Anytime."
Demi stayed still for a few more minutes before finally forcing herself to enter her closet. She started to only grab her workout clothes that she seemed to never run out of but if she was going to move on she would have to go out in public eventually, so she edged towards her day clothes and grabbed a few dresses just in case. Once she had a decent stack she walked back into her bedroom and dropped them in her suitcase.
"Do you want Max to come and clear out the rest of your clothes and makeup and just bring them to my house or...?" Trey suggested, but Demi shook her head as she tucked a few loose strands of hair behind her ear.
"You're going back on tour soon...I don't want to intrude." She didn't know where else she would stay, probably with Kris or someone, but she knew how Trey liked to have his own space and the last thing she wanted to do was take that away from him.
"You are not intruding. Forget whatever we said before about moving in together. I would feel better if you stayed with me. My house is your house for however long you need it, my angel," Trey said as he zipped her suitcase up then walked over to her. She rested her head on his chest as he wrapped his arms around her torso and kissed the top of her head.
"Thank you," she breathed out once again. Honestly, if she didn't have Trey there with her she would probably go insane.
"I love you, my angel." His special nickname for her made her heart flutter as she moved as close to him as humanly possible, inhaling his slightly musky scent as she felt all of the nerves that had been bubbling in her stomach since they pulled in front of her house slowly melt away.
"I love you more."
Setting: Millennium Dance Complex, Studio City, California
"Something is off when she's first walking on. I don't know if she's a beat behind or what but it doesn't look right," Trey said as he stood in front of the wall of mirrors in the famous red studio of Millennium Dance Complex. After a lot of nagging from his management and a little push from Demi, he finally started rehearsing for his BET Awards performance. It was his first performance at an award show in a while and he wanted to do well, even if he was distracted by other things. If the performance didn't turn out as he hoped, it wouldn't be anyone else's fault but his own.
"Well let's just go from the beginning and try to get through this section because we haven't even gotten to 'Animal' yet," Lewis, Trey's main stage director instructed, causing Trey to nod before going to take a gulp of water.
Demi passed him his water bottle and offered him a shy smile. He had suggested that she go to see his dad or Kris – who had gotten into the habit of leaving voicemails every day – but Demi had rejected all of those ideas and decided that she just wanted to stay and watch him rehearse. He didn't mind though, especially since he doubted that she would get to see the real thing on Sunday.
"I think I'm gonna run to the Starbucks across the street, do you want anything?" Demi asked, standing up and tugging down the red crew neck that she had stolen from his closet this morning even after they had brought at least half of her clothes to his house.
"No, I'm good. Are you gonna be okay going over there by yourself?" Trey questioned, causing Demi to shrug as she wrapped her arms around herself.
"Do I have any other choice? You don't have to babysit me, I'll be back in like 10 minutes. I'll call you if I need anything." Demi offered him another half-smile before pecking his cheek and leaving the studio.
He watched her until she was no longer in his line of sight then returned to rehearse. He knew that after sulking for about three weeks Demi was trying to put on a brave face but for what? She didn't need to pretend as if everything was okay, especially when Trey and everyone around her knew that it wasn't. She didn't have to be strong, she had people who could do that for her until she could learn to be strong by herself again. But that's just how Demi was, and that was one of the hard things to accept about her; that she wouldn't say she needed help until she reached the point of no return and it was almost impossible to pull her back.
As Demi exited the iconic dance complex, the polluted Los Angeles air assaulting her nostrils, she dialed Trey's number but didn't hit the green button...just in case. Starbucks was literally across the street and the area looked calm enough but Demi just didn't want to take any chances. The light turned green three seconds after she arrived at the cross walk, so she broke into a slow jog to cross the street. A man was kindly holding the door to Starbucks open for her so Demi flashed him a fake yet kind smile as she walked in. The line wasn't that long and Demi pretty much ordered the same thing every time she went to Starbucks, but that didn't stop her from scanning the menu just to see if she wanted to switch it up. A few seconds later, she shook her head and decided to stick to her venti chai tea latte.
"Hi, welcome to Starbucks how may I help you?" The pretty barista with the flowy brown hair greeted with a forced smile on her face.
"Hi...can I please get a venti chai tea latte with soy milk instead of regular? And also a blueberry muffin," Demi threw in at the last minute. It would make Trey happy to see her eat something besides a few saltine crackers or half a bowl of soup.
"Yup, that'll be $4.21. What's the name?"
"Devonne," Demi instantly said. She wasn't really incognito – the only thing different about her today was the fact that she had her glasses on – but the last time she had given them her real name in Starbucks, she had gotten swarmed trying to leave and the police had to be brought in just to clear the place. Oh, the joy of being famous.
Demi moved out of the way, plugging her headphones into her phone and placing one in her ear just as a facetime request from Hailey Baldwin came in. Demi hadn't spoken to Hailey in a while, she actually hadn't spoken to a lot of people in a while, so she felt as if it would be rude to deny her facetime request, even if she wasn't in the mood to talk.
"Devonne!"
Before Demi could hit answer, the request disappeared, so she grabbed her muffin and her drink before finding a table in the back to hide at. As soon as she sat down, Hailey called her again so Demi decided to answer her.
"Demi, I am literally going to kill you!" Hailey threatened, clearly at a photoshoot judging by her silk robe, the large pink curlers in her hair, and all of the people running in and out of her room.
"Hey Hails..."
"Don't you 'Hails' me! Do you even understand how worried I've been? God, I thought Trey kidnapped you and locked you away or some shit until I heard the news about the break in. I've called Kendall and everyone and they said you haven't been answering your phone. What is going on with you?" Hailey ranted, causing Demi to wince and turn her volume down a little bit.
"Hailey..."
"I understand you had a traumatic experience but that's no reason for you to pull away from us. We've all been so worried about you but we don't want to overstep your boundaries and Trey keeps telling us to just give you time but...Demi just...what the hell?" Hailey threw her free hand into the air as Demi took a sip of her drink.
"If I could explain it to you I would but I hardly understand myself..." Demi sheepishly admitted. She didn't know why she had shut everyone out and why she had kept her phone off and why she couldn't leave the house and go visit the people who care about her. Maybe that's why therapy with Arnold wasn't really working, because she didn't know why she was reacting this way.
"What does that even mean?"
"Alright Hailey, chill the fuck out," Demi heard in the background. Hailey yelled something along the lines of "shut the fuck up" while she and whoever else had just said something wrestled over her phone. The screen went black for a few seconds until it was picked up again and Demi saw Justin Bieber's face. She wouldn't call them friends but they talked to each other whenever they saw each other so she guessed they were acquaintances.
"Sorry about her. We didn't stop at Starbucks before we came to the photoshoot and she's a little upset," Justin apologized with a sheepish grin, causing Demi to giggle as Hailey yelled something in the background.
"But ignore her. You don't have to explain yourself to anyone as long as you're handling this situation in a healthy way. Take all the time you need. Your family and friends will understand and welcome you with open arms when you decide you're ready to talk. Right, Hailey?" Justin questioned, then Hailey appeared on the screen next to him.
"Yes. I love you, Demi, and I miss you so much. Say the word and I'll be wherever you are and we can watch the ID Channel and eat frozen grapes and cuddle with Batman and Robin, okay?" Hailey promised, putting a smile on Demi's face.
"Thank you. It means a lot. And I'm sorry for being so MIA. I'll text you later, okay?" They bid their goodbyes before the facetime ended and Demi decided to finish off what was left of her drink and nibble at her muffin. Just as she was about to stand up to throw her cup away, two young looking girls approached her with excited smiles on their faces.
"We didn't want to interrupt your call but we're such huge fans and we were just wondering if we could get a picture or-"
"I'm really sorry girls, but no pictures today. I can sign something for you if you'd like," Demi offered, watching the smiles drop from the girls' faces.
"Oh...that's okay. It was nice to meet you." Demi felt bad as the girls walked away from her but no bad enough to change her mind and take a picture with them. Not only did she feel like shit, but she knew that she looked like shit too.
Her cup was dropped in the trash can and she curled her fingers around the bag holding her muffin as she exited the coffee shop, wrapping her arms around herself as she stood at the cross walk. But just as the light turned green, it was like paparazzi appeared out of nowhere and began closing in on her. And once the paparazzi arrived, the fans arrived. Demi tried to cross the street, she tried to block the flashes, she tried to protect herself but she was literally surrounded and between the sun and the flashes she couldn't see a thing. Then, a single hand touched her arm and she literally felt her entire body go into overdrive. Her heart was pumping erratically fast, her hands were trembling, her lungs were working overtime, and she felt as if she could still barely breathe. And they noticed her freaking out and the tears falling down her cheeks but it was much too late for any of them to do anything about it.