POV Christine
Sophie had come over to my house one morning and we made our way to Paul's house. I wanted to see Joe and she wanted to see Steven. I knocked on the door when we got there Paul opened the door. Immediately, I could tell something was off and it concerned me.
"Hey Christine, Sophie. Steven is in the kitchen if you want to see him." Paul said. Sophie walked into the house and found Steven.
"Everything okay?" I asked.
"We should talk, come in."
"What's wrong Paul?" My instincts were right. Something was wrong and it worried me.
Paul looked down at me as he closed the door and then took my hand. "It's about Joe."
My heart started to pound and I immediately reacted. "Is he alright?"
"Joe is fine but the prison that his mother is in had a riot and he needed to go and see if she was alright. He made me promise I would give you this." Paul said as he passed me a letter.
"Why wouldn't he tell me?"
"I'm not sure, but just know that he loves you very much."
"Why are you making it sound like he isn't coming back?"
"He said he didn't know when he will be back and that it's likely going to be a long trip." Paul said looking at me. I felt him embraced me and all I could do was hug him back. Tears started staining my cheeks as they streamed down my cheek. Paul cupped my cheeks and wiped my tears.
"He'll be back as soon as he can."
I nodded softly. "Let's go get some dinner, my treat." Paul said as he took my hand and we walked out the door.
Paul took me to his favorite diner and did everything in his power to keep me smiling. It was hard not to smile when in his presence. There wasn't a moment where his eyes weren't on me and it made me blush many times through the night. If Joe wasn't involved there was no doubt in my mind that I would be Paul's. I knew deep in my heart that I would always love Paul and want him, but we both made mistake and are paying the prices for those mistakes. Paul ordered me whatever I wanted and we ended up ordering a couple things that we agreed to share. After dinner, we walked around the park until we reached my home. I looked at Paul and wrapped my arms around him, hugging him tightly. Paul's strong arms wrapped around my small, thin body and I closed my eyes. It had been so long since I had been in his arms like this. I almost blurted out that I loved him but I contained myself.
"Parents gone again?" he asked.
I nodded as I looked at him. "I'm used to it by now."
"I'll see you tomorrow."
"Thank you for tonight, I really appreciate it."
"You know I would do anything for you Christine."
I looked up at him and our eyes met. Paul lowered his forehead and rested it against mine. We both closed our eyes and opened them to look at each other. Our lips got closer and closer by the second. I could feel his breath on my lips. I sighed softly. We both knew we couldn't do this. Especially not with what just happened to Joe's mother. I opened my eyes and looked up into his soft blue eyes. I placed my hand on his cheek but didn't move away.
"I love you." I whispered.
"I love you too Christine, so much, and I always will. I don't care how long it takes, I will wait forever if I have to." Paul said. I bit my lip and closed my eyes to stop from crying. I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him close again. I never wanted to let go nor did I ever want him to let me go. Eventually, we did and I went inside.
Once I was ready for bed I pulled out the letter and opened it. I took a deep breath and then proceeded to read it's contents.
Christy,
First and foremost I want to apologize for leaving so abruptly. I needed to know if my mother was okay. It's not something I can just let go and even if my first encounter with her wasn't so pleasant she's still my mother.
I love you so much and even though I don't know when I'll be back I promise I'll be back as soon as I can. I want you to promise that you'll keep the boys in check cause God knows what they'll be up to in my absence. I wanted to let you know that you are the most amazing thing in my life and I am so grateful for the happiness you've granted me. I feel so lucky to be yours. I promise you that this will all get better soon.
Pray for me and for the healing I'm going to possibly need upon discovering what has happened in this whole "riot" business. I'm going to miss you so much while I'm gone but I'll be thinking about you the whole time. You give me peace of mind. Take care of Paul and I made him promise to be there for you in my absence. He cares about you deeply. I love you Christine, I'll see you soon.
All my love,
Joe
I clutched the letter to my chest and looked out the window with tears threatening to spill. I understood his reasonings but I couldn't understand why he couldn't tell me directly. It hurt deeply but I wasn't angry. I re read the letter over and over again trying to process every single word. One thing was sure, him and Paul had found ways to reach inside the deepest voids of my heart. I thought about his words and what he said about Paul. Why did my love tales always end in heartbreak? That wasn't the only troubling thing on my mind. I had a secret that only I knew. It had been haunting me for a couple of days and I haven't told anyone yet. I wasn't sure if I was ready to.
POV Paul
That night in bed I was thinking about that moment I shared with Christine. I should have kissed her but it wouldn't have been right. Steven and I stayed up talking. We decided to stop performing until Joe came back. Without Joe there was no Runaways. During his absence Emily and John spent more time together and Steven shared the same luxury with Sophie. David and Sherrie were practically inseparable. Christine and I didn't spend some much time together but we did meet up from time to time. One night the guys accompanied me to Serpent Cove. I hadn't realized how many shot I had consumed until I got up. I could barely stand. Steven and David cut me off and carried one of my arms on their shoulders to keep me standing.
"Jesus Paul, it hasn't even been two hours and you are already shit faced." Steven said in a scolding tone.
"Sorry...but not everyone can be like you two and have perfect relationships." I said in my drunken state.
"Steven, don't he's drunk." David said trying to reassure Steven that my words were out of rage and hurt. I barely remember them getting me home but they did because the next morning I woke up with the world's biggest hangover. Christine would be so ashamed if she knew about this. I was even ashamed of my actions. I looked over at Steven who was still sleeping. I felt awful for getting so fucked up the night before. I probably ended up ruining their night and making them play baby sitter.
"Shit." I said trying to sit up. I sat down and grabbed my phone. I had a couple of texts from Joe. Joe had texted me to let me know he had arrived and that he was in his hotel room. Thank god he got there safely. I put my phone back down and sighed. I jumped down from the bunk bed I shared with Joe and walked over to Steven's bed across the room. I was about to wake him up to ask him something but decided not to wake him. I walked over to the computer and played some games for a few minutes to see if this hangover would go away. I started to get hungry so I walked out to the kitchen to make some coffee and breakfast.
"God damn it's bright." I said as the sunshine from the window poured into the kitchen. I poured myself a cup of coffee and started thinking about Christine again. I sat down on the couch and sipped my coffee slowly. I thought about her and what Joe was going through currently. I was hoping he was doing okay. I started flipping through the channels of the TV until I reached a channel that was showing a marathon of music videos from The Beatles. I left it on and listened contently. The Beatles was honestly one of my top ten favorite musicians of all time. The number one spot had to Michael Jackson. Music was a great distraction that's for sure. I heard a knock on the door and went to open it. When I opened the door I saw Sophie.
"Hey Sophie." I said yawning. "You're early, I'm pretty sure Steven is still sleeping."
Sophie didn't seemed to surprised. Steven was a heavy sleeper and loved his sleep. I let her in and closed the door behind her.
"You can go wake him up if you want." I said as I sat back down on the couch. Sophie looked over at me and could probably tell that I looked like hell. Sophie walked over and sat next to me. "Are you ok?" she asked with a concerned voice.
"Why does everyone always ask me that?" I said shaking my head.
"Because everyone knows you love Christine."
"Look, thanks for caring but there's nothing I can do." I replied.
Sophie raised her eye brows and then rolled her eyes. I looked at her
"Sophie, you know Joe is my best friend and I can't do that to him." I said.
"Which is exactly why he would be the most understanding if you told him. I think deep down he knows you two love each other but is trying to convince himself that Christine may stop loving you one day but we all know that will never happen."
"It might." I said.
Just then another knock was at the door and I got up to get it. It was John.
"Hey buddy, Emily is in her room, you can go in." I said as John smiled and headed to her room.
I looked over at Sophie again and wondered if she would ever stop talking about me and Christine. That thought proved to be false. "I'm very good at reading thoughts Paul and no I will never stop talking you and Christine. You guys have an epic love and whether or not you want to admit it doesn't matter. It's still true." Sophie said calmly. "You both deserve to be happy."
"Christine is happy Sophie." I murmured.
Sophie rolled her eyes. "She'd be much happier with you."
"Sophie I really appreciate how much you care but this is just something that I have no control over." I said.
"How long do you really expect to play this game?"
"It's not a game, Joe is my best friend and I am not going to hurt him."
Sophie got up. "I love Joe too we all do but he might get hurt worse if you don't be honest with him."
I sighed.
"You know, I'm right. Just think about it."
Sophie walked away and into my room so she could wake up Steven. Sophie was pretty much the person in our group that was always right. Sometimes it sucked. She had valid points but I could never bring myself to hurt my best friend. Joe had been there for me through thick and thin and I wasn't going to do something like that to him. I refused.
POV Steven
I was awoken up by the weight of a light body on top of me. I opened my eyes slowly and Sophie had my arms pinned above my head and was smirked.
"I got say this is pretty sexy way to wake up." I said as Sophie started kissing my cheek. We haven't had sex the whole time while we've been in our relationship. I was waiting until she felt comfortable. Sophie was a virgin but I wasn't and I haven't been for a long time. As Sophie kissed my neck I bit my lip. She was turned me on. I wanted her so bad. I rolled over and pinned her down as I kissed her hungrily. After kissing her I pulled away and smirked at her. Sophie smirked as I kissed her neck.
"I want to make love to you but not here. Trust me it's going to be special." I said as I got up and kissed her head. Sophie smiled and blushed.
"Why is your brother so stubborn and Christine for that matte?" Sophie asked.
"Why do you ask?"
"Do I really need to explain?"
"I'm guessing you've been trying to get them back together."
"If I don't who will?"
"They will but they have to do it on their own terms."
"I guess you're right."
"I know I am, for once." I said chuckling. Sophie was always right so I claimed this as a win.
"I can try to talk to her if you want but no promises." I said.
"I'll try Paul again." Sophie said excitedly. I got dressed and then called Christine.
"Hello?"
"Hey Christy." I said.
"Hey Steven."
"How are you?"
"Good, is everything alright?" she asked.
"Yes, I was wondering if you were free for lunch?"
"With you and Sophie?"
"Just us, don't worry Sophie already knows. I just want to speak with you privately."
"Oh, um, yeah that's fine I guess."
"Are you ready now?"
"No but I can be ready in about fifteen minutes."
"Okay, I'll pick you up in fifteen minutes." I said as I hung up.
Fifteen minutes later I picked her up and she looked beautiful. Paul wouldn't have been able to take his eyes off her, Joe too. Christine wore a black mini skirt with a skin tight red long sleeved shirt. Christine wore black fishnet stockings underneath the skirt and black and red heels. I was wearing jeans and my leather jacket with a white t-shirt underneath.
"You look amazing, Christy." I said as I kissed her hand. I have always seen Christine as beautiful. Sunshine was very pretty and Sophie is the most gorgeous woman I've ever seen but I couldn't deny that Christine was stunning. I could see why my brother was so in love with her. Christine hugged me and I hugged her back.
"Steven, it's been so long since we've just hung out, I'm very excited. With you there's no drama and that really is a breath of fresh air."
I smiled and offered my arm for her to take.
"I was thinking some Italian food. Bring the fake ID, we should order some good tasting wine."
"It's already with me."
We arrived at a tiny Italian bistro. I held out a chair for her like a gentlemen and sat across from her when she was settled in her chair. We both looked over the menus and I ordered a pink moscato for us to share. We both ordered and once the waitress walked off I looked over at her.
"What did you want to speak to me about Steven?"
"Christy, how do you feel about Paul?"
Christine looked taken aback. She leaned back against her chair. I studied her reaction and her cheeks turned red as she took a large sip of her wine. It was as clear as the blue sky above that she was still madly in love with him.
"Why do you want to know? Not that I don't want to tell you...I'm just curious."
"I just want to know. Paul is my brother and I love him unconditionally, Joe is also like a brother to me, he's been in our lives since we were little. I just don't want to see you make a mistake."
Christine's expression became to sadden. "I love Joe."
"And Paul, probably more than you do Joe."
"We both made mistakes and have had to pay the price."
"Janet isn't pregnant anymore and the baby wasn't even Paul's."
Christine's expression turned from sadness to complete shock. It was visible in her face that this was new information.
"You didn't know?"
"N-no, he didn't tell me anything."
"Probably for Joe's sake, and yours, it happened right after you were drugged and in the hospital. Joe is great but with everything going on with his mom and dad being alive, he's going to be battling some dark demons, and I don't want to see you get hurt in that whole process."
"Look, I know and that's exactly why I need to be there for him, now more than ever."
We continued to drink our wine. "We don't know how long Joe is going to be gone for. It may get lonely, but Paul will always be here for you."
We eventually dropped that topic of her feelings and talked about how she thinks senior year is going to go. I paid for our lunch and then walked her back home. Christine kissed my back and gave me a soft smile. "Thank you for lunch, I had a good time."
I looked at her. "If you ever need anything don't hesitate to call me or Paul."
"I know Steven."
"I'm going to tell Paul how gorgeous you looked and see how flustered he gets."
"That's very cute I have to admit."
"Have a good one, and if you want to hang out later, we'll be home."
"Okay." Christine said walking inside and waving with a smile.