*James*

I boldly kissed Julia on the plane and I know for a fact she is still feeling the same things I feel. She didn't back away. Well, not at first. But eventually. And then went through her usual song and dance about how we can't do this, kisses me on the forehead, then removing herself from the situation all together. Once she is gone, it's Trisha to come check on me and my headache. She sits on the armrest of the recliner and brushes my hair away from my forehead. 

"Feeling any better?" She asks.

"Yeah, the meds are starting to kick in. I've never had a migraine before."

"Well, hopefully it was just a one time thing. A fluke. Do you need anything?" Trisha is always trying to be helpful and making sure everyone is ok.

"Nope, I'm good. I may try to get some sleep soon."

"Yeah.." 

"Are YOU good?" I ask, sensing something is on her mind.

"I just don't want to see Nate get hurt. I saw you and Julia kissing." Trisha stands up and takes the seat next to me now but doesn't look at me. Is she mad at me for kissing Julia?

"Yeah, well obviously it was a mistake. Julia just reamed me out for it and walked away. What's going on Trish?" I can't seem to read her right now.

"Nothing. You're always gonna be in love with her. That's all."

"Just like you will always be in love with Nate. Don't deny it. You know full well if Nate were to kiss you right now you'd kiss him back." I whisper.

"I guess we both want something we can't have, huh?"  She pauses. "Think it'll always be like that?"

"What do you mean?"

"What if we never get over them and can't move on? I don't want to be single forever." She laughs a little but that's a question I have been asking myself a lot lately. What if Julia moves on with Nate and I'm always stuck in the background as the runner up? Never moving on? I can't live like that.

"Guess we just gotta try and move on and see what happens."  I pick up Trisha's hand and kiss it then look at her.

"Are you flirting with me right now, James the Receptionist? After your lips were just on hers? Are you that much of a player?" Trisha smirks at me and shakes her head.

"Possibly." I laugh and close my eyes.

"You're something else, you know that Gallo?" I hear Trisha say and laugh again with my eyes still closed before I finally fall asleep.

******

*Trisha*

James falls asleep fairly quickly so I leave his area to let him rest. But my mind is doing anything but resting. What  was he trying to say to me? Will we never be able to let go of Nate and Julia?

 Should I think about the real possibility of moving forward....with James? 

I grab my book and get comfortable in one of the recliners but I pay no attention to the words on the page. Now I can't stop thinking about what it would be like if I finally let go of Nate. I just don't know if I can. I've always loved him in one way or another. We've been best friends forever. But then again, James and Julia are best friends and he can't move on from her either. Maybe this would be good for both of us.

But the reality is- Julia is not good for Nate. She's stress and I will never stop being overprotective of Nate.

"I'm surprised Moretti isn't going stir crazy yet."  I overheard Paul saying to Nate.

"We've still got time. She's sleeping right now. Hopefully, she'll sleep for a while." Nate replies.

"If she doesn't, you're gonna have to find a way for her to pass the time."

I look up and Paul and Nate and roll my eyes.

"Yeah, you discharged a psychiatric patient from a mental institution and put her on a plane for 10 hours. You're an idiot." I laugh and look back down at my book.

"What exactly do you not like about Julia? I'm asking sincerely, Trish." Nate asks.

 I put my book down with a sigh and look at him seriously now.

"It has nothing to do with her, Nate. And I don't dislike her. It has everything to do with you and your stress level. Julia is needy."

"She's not needy." Paul chimes in. "She can't help having mental health issues."

"I know, Paulie. But she's a stressor. Nate can't help his weak heart either, and the biggest concern is his stress level."

I look right at Nate now. "You're supposed to limit your stress. Instead, you're gonna marry it."

"You think you're so funny." Nate snaps at me and I raise an eyebrow.

"You're gonna tell me she's not stressful Nate? C'mon now. Let's be real here." I sit up straight.

"Trisha, I think you need to put yourself in her shoes for a change. Imagine what it's like to live in her body, go through what she goes through in that head of hers."

"Hey, I'm not saying I don't sympathize with her or feel bad for her. You know I do. Right now I'm talking about you and that big ol broken heart of yours that can't handle stress. She's stress. God, I hate to say it but you were much happier with Mila.. even if you two couldn't hold a conversation. You need to be around someone that is positive and outgoing and-"

I went to far. I can tell by the way Nate reacts right away.

"Mila was a mistake, Trisha." Nate doesn't fool me, though. He was starting to fall for her and we all know it. "You know what? Why don't you and Paul go over the agenda for the week or something productive. This conversation is anything but productive." He shakes his head and walks over to his recliner now. I shrug and take his seat, loading up my laptop to go over the agenda.

"Touchy subject apparently." I whisper to the bodyguard who laughs under his breath. We get to work and a good ten minutes go by before Nate breaks up our conversation.

"You need to shut the comments off on that Instagram post."

"Really?"  I get up and head over to Nate to see what he's talking about. Oh no. His fans are bashing Julia online. A ton of comments calling Julia Nate's Bad Luck Charm and wanting to see Mila with Nate on tour, not Julia. 

"Shit. Yeah, ok. Let me get on that." I quickly head back to my laptop to change the settings on that post so no one can comment. "All set, Nate. Good catch. That's all we need is for her to see that shit." I say and look over at Paul. We share a look, thinking of all our inside bathroom renovation jokes we say to eachother. 

"God, imagine if she saw this? She'd destroy this aircraft within minutes." I say so only Paul can hear me. He agrees. The last thing we need is Julia having one of her crazy mental breakdowns while in the air.

******

James catches my eye now. I watch him stand up and stretch his legs, then look over to the bathroom. I know he had trouble with that lever on the door when we toured the plane. Hell I even had trouble with it. Before I have a chance to get up and help him, Nate does.

I'm impressed. Nate, once again, is helping James. He puts all his frustrations between James and Julia aside and only looks at James like a friend in times like these. It is really sweet and not many guys would go above and beyond for their girlfriend's exes. Though are Julia and James ever really gonna be exes?

*******

*James*

Nate helps me with the bathroom door and I'm very grateful to him for that. I hate not being able to do things and he caught on right away. When I'm done, Julia is awake and at the door waiting for me. She hugs me right in front of Nate without a second thought. Are they really that solid in their relationship where she can do things like this and he doesn't flinch now?

"Your headache is gone, I hear?" Julia pets Maggie while talking to me.

"Yeah. I don't know what that was all about. Hey, you should eat something. They saved you a plate."

"Of course they did." She sighs and sits at her recliner since Trisha and Paul are working at the table. I sit across from her and Nate sets up the table that pops out of the side wall.

"How much more time do we still have?" Julia asks Nate while stalling to eat. 

"About four hours left, love."

Four hours. We still have four hours to go. It's like Nate is a mind reader today.

"We can watch a movie. Or I know Trisha stocked the plane up with different things. I think there's a pack of cards here somewhere."

"Babe, eat." I raise an eyebrow at Julia.

"I'm going, I'm going. You're just as bad as Jonah." She gives me a funny look making me laugh. Once Nate sees her eating , he sits on the couch to join Trisha and Paul. It sounds like they are going over travel plans.

"You have the three days of sightseeing and visiting with your aunt, and then we start right up."  Trisha slide her laptop over to Nate to look at as well.

"You know the drill. Leslie and I have tweaked things here and there, but for the most part, your agenda looks like this- The concert, after party, and then we go right on the tour bus. London to Cardiff is a three hour drive. Then Cardiff to Manchester is a four hour drive to AO Arena. That's the first three concerts."

I study Julia's face while she stares at Trisha as she eats. What's going on in that head of hers?  She looks so sad while watching Trisha work. Julia takes a bite of her food and then tears roll down her face. I immediately get up and sit with her on the recliner.

"Why are we crying?" I look down at her plate of food. "You don't have to finish everything." 

Julia wipes her eyes and I wrap my arm around her.

"It's not that. I don't know why I'm crying."

She's lying. I can tell. I give her a look and Julia knows she needs to talk to me.

"She's seven years younger than me and look at her." She frowns. She's jealous of Trisha right now? They are two completely different women. There is no comparison. Why is she suddenly jealous of her?

"Stop comparing yourself to Trisha. You've been through a lot, sweetie. You've been a little preoccupied with bigger things than balancing a checkbook." I laugh trying to cheer Julia up.

"Do people still do that?"

"I certainly can't anymore." I look down at my hands. I can't even fricken hold a pen correctly without help never mind write a check. My mind is still here. I can do math and read and all of that. Aside from getting confused sometimes and  jumbling my words, my  knowledge is the same as before. I think.

"Nate and Trisha - this is their world." Julia looks around the cabin. "We don't fit in this world, do we? I don't fit in Nate's world." She bites the inside of her cheek and I nod while resting my head against hers. She's just catching on to this now? This has never been our world.

"No. We really don't." I say softly.

Iwatch Julia take another bite but tears still run down her face. This shit is really bothering her and I hate that.

"Babe, you're still crying. Are you sure you're ok??" I kiss her tear off her cheek.

"You're so sweet to me. All the time. Even when I'm a mess." She hides her face in my chest and I hold her until she stops crying. I'm starting to think this trip wasn't a good idea and we haven't even landed in London yet.

*****

*Trisha*

I'm trying to go over the agenda and Nate is fucking staring at Julia, paying no attention to me now. I lost him to her and we need to get shit done.

"You listening to me, or did I lose you?" I look back at my laptop and keep typing while I talk.

"I'm listening. Hey. We haven't been home in a while. Did you have someone clean out the apartment?"

"What do you mean?" I look up at Nate, not understanding what he's talking about.

"I was just thinking... this is the first time I'm going home....sober." 

Oh no. 

"Shit." Nate's apartment is loaded with booze. And if I know his cousin Caleb, probably drugs too. "I could call your cousin Caleb to go by and clean out the cabinets and fridge, but I can't text till we land. We'll just do it with Casey and Julia before allowing you guys up. We'll sweep the whole place, ok?" I look to Paul who nods.

Shit shit shit! How could I forget something so important? Nate fidgets with his hair nervously now thinking about his addiction. This tour is going to be difficult for him which means it will be difficult for me to babysit him. He can't relapse. His body can't handle it. I need to do everything I can to make sure he isn't around alcohol. On top of that, I need to fucking making sure Moretti doesn't get her hands on anyone's pills. Things were so much easier at home when she was only going to the Avalon and back. Now she's gonna be around a ton of people. Many who have some bad habits. Their habits are not my concern. Nate is my concern. And if Julia  fucks up, Nate fucks up and his heart pays for it.

******

*James*

Before descending, Paul preps me on what to do. Julia helped change me in to my bodyguard uniform.  Like Paul,  black pants, black shoes, black belt, white button-down shirt, black tie and black suit jacket. And my earpiece so Paul can talk to me. He trained me well over the years working for him. I know what to do. I also know there will be a ton more bodyguards waiting at the airport terminal, as well as fans and reporters. I wonder if Julia is aware of all this It's gonna be chaotic.

The seatbelt sign goes on, and Casey helps me get Maggie into her crate to prepare for landing. We all head to our seats, all of us now sick of this plane, as luxurious as it is, ten and a half hours is a long time. Jonah already gave me two pain relievers in case I get a headache while landing. The minute the cabin air pressure fluctuates a shooting stabbing pain runs through the side of my head. I close my eyes tight from the pain. Shit. This is gonna happen every time I fly, isn't it?

"Is it bad? The pain?" Julia asks just as the dog begins to bark. Maggie can sense something is wrong with me. I keep my eyes closed and feel Julia hold my hand, letting me squeeze it the whole way down. Once we land the pain goes away  and I relax a little.

"You ok now?"

"Yeah. Weird. But yeah." I take a deep breath.

"Gallo. Are you ready? Showtime." Paul unbuckles his seatbelt Julia unbuckles mine. Here we go.

"Here we go. Everyone stay close together. Nate, you know what to do. Julia- keep your head down." Trisha reminds us.

Once off the plane Paul walks in front of Nate and Julia. I stand behind Julia and keep my hand on her back while she keeps her head down. Before we walk down the terminal, four more bodyguards surround them to serve as a barricade while we walk.

The crowd is enormous. To be expected. But the amount of fans that dislike Julia catches me off for a moment. They are calling her Nate's "Bad Luck Charm"? One teenager yells out, "Mila Giovanni should be holding his hand, not her!"

Shit. This must be tearing Julia apart inside. Just the mention of Mila Giovanni alone kills her, now to hear fans wanting to see Nate with the model instead of Julia? Awful.

"Taking a quick left." Paul talks into the small microphone on the collar of his shirt and I grab Julia's shoulder to turn left as a police officer holds an elevator door open for us. Trisha has a different route that she will take Jonah, Casey and the dog, and will meet us at the cars. Once in the elevator we know it's almost over. Pau gives e a little nod to say job well done and the first time since my coma I feel useful. I feel proud of myself. I had forgotten what this feeling felt like and I smile a little.

 Paul and I walk Nate and Julia to one of the two Suburbans parked in the empty private lot. Just seconds later, we see Trisha, Jonah, Casey, and the dog hustling down a set of stairs and pile into the second vehicle.

"Done. Good job, James." Paul pats my shoulder and then buckles me in as I take my earpiece out, letting it hang around my neck.

"Why were some of them chanting "Bad Luck Charm?" Julia asks Nate. 

"It was an Instagram comment that spread like wildfire, even after we changed the comment preferences and deleted it." He explains.

"They are calling me your bad luck charm? Why?"

"Don't listen to them. Never take that shit seriously." Nate tries to end there but I can tell that's not enough for Julia.

"Someone called you that online, rattling off all the bad things that have happened since we met. It's stupid, and it's been deleted, but not before it was seen by five million viewers."

"FIVE MILLION?!"Julia bursts and I look back at her now. "And the Mila Giovanni thing?"

"Silly shit, Julia. Jesus Christ. Fucking drop it, ok?" Nate snaps and lets go of Julia's hand. Is this dickhead for real right now?! Julia asked one question. A valid one at that. I don't like the way Nate responded and can feel my blood begin to boil. It got to Julia too.

"I was just asking." Julia says under her breath and keeps her eyes focused out her window. I can't believe Nate right now. What the hell has gotten into him? He can't just talk to Julia like that and get away with it. 

I can already see the tears forming in Julia's eyes and it breaks my heart to watch. She literally asked one question. But talking to Nate about Mila is apparently a sore topic.

The minute we pull into Nate's parking garage Julia gets out of the SUV.

"Nice, Nate." Paul grumbles. 

I scratch the stubble on my jaw and look over at Julia. She leans against the car with her back towards us. I lean over to Paul and ask him to help me unbuckle my seatbelt and then quickly get out of the car to be with Julia.

"Hey." I lean against the door of the SUV next to Julia.

"Hey. How's your head?" She asks.

"Julia...."

"James."

"You don't have to fake it around me. C'mere." I pull her in and hug her.

"I should know better to ask questions." She sniffs.

"You're not serious, right? Julia...you did nothing wrong. He was being a dick. He always acts like that when anyone talks about that model. You asked a simple question because someone was shouting it through the airport to you."

"It's fine. He didn't mean it. Everyone's tired."

She is making excuses for Nate's poor behavior. I would never talk to her like that. EVER. The disrespect he shows towards her that he gets away with is unbelievable and leave a bad taste in my mouth.

*****

*Trisha*

"Alright, Casey. You ready? We've got our work cut out for us." I say as the elevator door opens. We have one job. Clean Nate's apartment out of any and all drugs and alcohol. The place is spotless like always but Nate has a huge bar full of all sorts of poison.

"Oh my GOD look at this place!!" Casey's eyes look like they are gonna bug out of the girl's head. 

"Case...focus!" I snap her back into reality and grab a garbage bag from under the sink. "Fuck, we're gonna need more than one garbage back aren't we?" I say when I open the fridge. It is completely stocked with  beer and wine and all sorts of alcoholic beverages.

"Ummm.." Casey looks over at the coffee table.

"You've gotta be kidding me. I'm gonna kill Caleb. Kid needs to grow up already." I say as I see a small opened plastic bag and remnants of cocaine and weed on the table. Nate's cousin is a party animal. So wasn't Nate the last time he was here. Casey and I go through the entire apartment. It takes about twenty minutes to sweep the place clean.

"He really had a problem, huh?" Casey looks at the two full garbage bags.

"Yeah. It just got worse  over the years."  I reply. "Lets go get these to the dumpster so everyone can come up."

We give everyone the go ahead that it's clear to go up.

"You all go up and check out the place. We'll be up in a sec." Nate says.  I give him a weird look but then head back to the elevator with everyone else. Nate grabs Julia's arm and walks in the opposite direction.

"Now what the hell is going on between them two?"

"Nate being Nate." Paul grumbles.

"Your best friend's an asshole sometimes." James adds.

"Well I coulda told you that one. Why, what he do now?" 

"Nate snapped at Julia in the car. She asked why fans were calling her the bad luck charm and all that shit we saw online. Then someone said something about wanting Mila with Nate so  Julia asked him what that was about. He told her to 'fucking drop it' and acted like a prick.

"Nate said that? Jesus Christ. He needs to get over this whole Mila Giovanni shit. I can't believe he snapped at Julia. Is he TRYING to remodel his bathrooms??" I huff.

"It was very disrespectful, Trisha." James  says and I can tell the way Nate talked to Julia got to James. That's all I need, Nate with a broken nose. Once again I gotta clean up another Hollan mess.

"Ok, ok. I'll talk to him."