I Won't Let You Close Enough to Hurt Me

Chapter 28

     "Brooke, wake up," Paige whispered in her sister's ear. "We have to get ready."

     Brooke slowly opened her eyes and sat up. Her head was pounding and she felt so nauseous that she could throw up at any minute. "Uhhh," Brooke grunted.

     "Do you want the bathroom first?" Paige asked.

     Brooke nodded and stood up. She felt so dizzy that she almost fell over. What she really wanted was to lay in bed for the next 24 hours, but she had to go to the audition. Maybe if she was lucky, she could be ready and in the lobby before Kelly woke up.

     She shuffled to the bathroom with black spandex and a sky blue tank top to change into. She hopped in the shower and made the water as cold as she could stand it, thinking that maybe it would wake her up a bit more. After she hopped out, she grabbed the blow-dryer. She had it on the lowest setting, trying her best not to wake her mom up. When her hair was almost dry, she put it up in a ponytail and french braided her bangs. After she was completely done in the bathroom, she opened the door slowly and tip-toed over to her luggage to grab her dance bag.

     Unfortunately for Brooke, Kelly was at the mirror doing her make-up. She sighed realizing that she was probably going to discuss last night. She tried to act casual, so once she had her dance bag, she headed for the door. "Well, I'll meet you guys in the lobby," Brooke said while walking out the door.

     "Wait," Kelly demanded, "Paige, why don't you see if you can get ready in Chloe's room. Brooke and I need to have a little talk."

     Paige snickered as she walked out the door, realizing that her sister was in trouble. Brooke just rolled her eyes. When the door closed behind Paige, it was dead silent. "So, what are we going to talk about?" Brooke joked.

     "This isn't a joke, Brooke," Kelly scolded. "I don't know what would make you think that it was okay to go out and get drunk the night before an audition. Or any night for that matter! You're only 14 years old, that is completely inappropriate."

     "Please, like you didn't do it when you were 14," Brooke snapped.

     "No, I didn't. Not when I was a freshman in high school. I just don't understand you lately. Why would you do this?" Kelly asked.

     "Because I wanted to!" Brooke yelled. "How did you even know I was there?"

     "Well, Leslie left dinner early. Apparently, while she was in her room, Payton came home and she could barely stand up. Leslie got the whole story out of her and called everyone's parents, including John's. They're so mad he doesn't even get to audition today. I'm considering not letting you, either," Kelly responded.

     "What? Mom that is so unfair!" Brooke cried before locking herself in the bathroom. She climbed up on the counter and sobbed; everything was falling apart. She knew what she did last night was stupid, but she couldn't undo it. She was stuck with her choice, and she had to live with the consequences.

     A few minutes later, there was a knock on the bathroom door. "Brooke?" Kelly said softly. "Can you come out of there? I want to finish our conversation."

     Brooke slowly opened the door, and then walked over to the bed with her mom to sit down. "I think we both know what you did was wrong, so I'm going to skip that part of the speech. I just want to know why you did this?" Kelly asked sincerely.

     Brooke was silent for a moment. "I don't know. Because Nina wanted me to. Everyone else on the senior company was doing it, and I didn't want to look like a baby. They already treat me differently because I'm stuck dancing on the junior team. Plus, Nick and I got in this fight yesterday, and Nina told me that I would feel better if I had a little bit to drink."

     Kelly put her arm around her daughter. "Brooke, I understand what it's like to feel left out or to get in a fight with a boy that you really like. But drinking isn't the answer. I had no idea all of this was going on with you; why didn't you talk to me? Or talk to your friends? That would have made you feel better."

     "I know," Brooke said as she wiped the tears from her eyes. "I won't do it again. And after we get home, I'll tell you what's going on in my life."

     "Good. You'll have a lot of time on your hands anyways, seeing as you'll be grounded for a few weeks," Kelly smiled. Brooke groaned. "Why don't I get you a few advil before we leave for the audition, I'm sure you're not feeling too well right now."

     Brooke nodded. When they went down to the lobby, everyone was sitting in silence. The little girls weren't really sure why, but there was a lot of tension in the room. Every member of the senior company had their parents sitting right next to them, and they looked mad. But that was nothing compared to Abby's face when she walked in. "Can I please have a word with the senior company and Brooke?" Abby insisted.

     Abby led them into the ballroom. Even though Nick had nothing to do with the previous night's events, he was there, too. Abby lectured them for about 15 minutes about the dangers of underage drinking, and how disappointed she was. After all of the yelling and screaming, everyone headed back to the lobby. Once everyone was there, they all waited outside for cabs.

     When the Hylands got settled in their cab, Brooke pulled out her phone to text Nick.

Brooke: Can we please talk about yesterday?

Nick: Talk about the fact that you really are the whore that Brandon said you were, or about how you got wasted last night?

     Brooke locked her phone and tucked it in her bag. A tear rolled down her cheek. Obviously, Nick wasn't ready to talk yet.