Kevin's P.O.V.
Nick, Joe and I were going to go home for a bit to talk with our parents and to practice over at theirs. But mom wished against it.
Pippa and Frankie were home, so we wouldn't be able to talk and practice with focus.
I had wished my wife Danielle a good day and gave her a kiss before I left. I love her. She's really supportive of everything I do and really is my rock when I feel sad about the whole situation with my family and especially the situation with my brothers.
I know we're making progress, but it's not going to great yet. We hadn't talked for months and if it weren't for Danielle to tell me to reach out, we probably still wouldn't be talking.
I enter the studio where Nick was already softly strumming a guitar, stopping for a moment to tune up a string before continuing to play. I watch him quietly and wait for him to finish.
He's really talented and luckily he knows that. It would be a shame if he didn't see it and didn't use it.
Joe entered the studio a few minutes after me. Right at the moment when Nick ended playing the song.
"Hey." Nick greets us. "Hey. How long have you been here?" Joe asked him. Nick shrugs. "Couple hours."
"A couple hours? What have you been doing?" I ask him. Nick shrugs again. I take a good look at him and I can see he's tired. He's probably been struggling this morning with his blood sugar.
"Playing around on the instruments. Perfecting a few of my solos." Go on till it's perfect or don't try at all. Something Nick lives by.
Something Frankie can learn from. I miss them. I really do. I just can't go home yet to face them. I know they'll be angry and I know the longer I stall, the angrier they will be, but I just can't.
I know Joe and Nick feel the same way. I know Nick feels even worse, because he and Pippa are freakishly close. If they weren't two years apart, you'd say they are twins. They might not look like twins, but they could definitely be.
They can communicate long conversations without using any words and they always know how the other feels. Though Nick is better at reading Pippa then Pippa is at reading Nick.
But Nick is Nick. He barely shares. Which is why it was a real shock when he started the conversation about breaking up the band.
Nick doesn't like to be touched or hugged, but he always lets Pippa. If she needs a hug, she knows he'll give it to her. She's like an exception to his rules. He really cares for her.
"Should we start before mom and dad show up?" Joe breaks our uncomfortable silence. I know we are all thinking the same thing.
We all get into practice mode and play a bit around before we get to the actual practice. Five songs later, Nick takes a break to check his blood sugar.
I see him take out the gear of his backpack and pricks his finger. He lets some droplets of blood on the strip to test. I can't hear the beeps, so I'm not sure if it's out of range. I guess it is when I see him walk over to get a juice box.
"How low?" Joe asks when he returns to the studio.
"68." Nick responds picking up his guitar again.
"Dude, if you need a break just say so. We won't mind." I tell him, knowing he'll go on for himself and for us. He's stubborn.
Nick shakes his head. "I don't need a break. I took a juice box. I'll be fine." He says.
"Check again in a few minutes to make sure the juice box did its work." I tell him. "Yes, dad." He responds.
I sigh, but don't respond to his attitude. I know he hates it when we mingle ourselves with his diabetes. There are some things that can't be done alone. This is one of them. And I care for him. I don't want him to neglect it.
Later on, Nick checked his blood sugar again and he saw it had come up a bit, but not much. He did take a juice box again, but luckily our parents would be here soon for lunch.
Around 30 minutes later mom and dad walked into the studio to come and grab us for lunch.
Frankie and Pippa are in school which is why they couldn't come with us. I don't know if I should be sad or happy about that. On one hand I'm sad, because I really want to see them. But on the other hand, I'm not ready to see them, because they'll be so angry with us.
"How are you guys doing today?" Dad asks us. "We're good." Joe says. "Running a bit low, but nothing too bad." Nick says. "Good. Ready to go?" Dad asks us. We all grab our bags and head out after mom and dad.
"How are Pippa and Frankie?" Joe dares to ask halfway through lunch.
Mom and dad share a look. What is that about? "They're good. Upset, but good." Mom tells us.
"Pippa has been crying a lot, her grades in school are dropping really fast, she's been quiet and barely talks to us." It upsets mom to talk about her. It hurts her to see her daughter in this distress, but I know it's hard on everyone.
"Frankie is strong for her. He checks up on her, makes sure she does everything she has to do. Frankie's grades are alright, he's been doing most of the chores in the house. Makes sure everything keeps running. I'm really proud of him." Dad tells us.
I'm happy Frankie looks after Pippa when she can't do it herself. I'm really upset to hear mom talk about her like that. We really made a mistake. We have to fix it.