Here Comes the Sun

We landed in Jersey five hours later than we had originally planned. The airports had been bursting with fans running and following us around like madmen. Security was barely enough to keep them all under control. Honestly, I couldn’t blame them for being so happy to see us. They had no idea if we were even alive for nearly three days. I answered as many of their questions as I could, letting them know that everything was alright and Kevin would explain more later on his Twitter. After that, they seemed to calm down a bit. We blew them kisses and apologized countless times, but they told us not to worry and that whatever was going on, we would be okay because they were on our side.

They were really growing on me.

In Wyckoff, we got yet another hotel and settled in. Every hotel in town was run down and tiny; nothing compared to the luxuries in Seattle and L.A.

Nick stared at the two miniature-sized beds and dusty furniture and groaned.

“Why can’t we call Mandy and stay with her? It’s closer to the station anyway,” he said, attempting to clean up.

“We can’t do that,” Joe said quietly, throwing the suitcases on one of the beds and sitting down.

“And why not?”

“Well, first of all, it’s too predictable. Her house would be swarming with paparazzi. And second…”

He paused and hesitated for a moment before speaking.

“Mandy doesn’t talk to me anymore,” he sighed, “Not after what I did…”

“Oh,” said Nick, “Right. Sorry, I forgot…”

I gave Nick a puzzled expression and he mouthed that he would explain later. I nodded and looked over at Joe, who had his head in his hands. It must have been really bad for him to be that upset about it. Last time I saw Mandy, they were dating. I guessed something had happened during those five months they were away.

After that, we didn’t even bother unpacking – there was no time. We just freshened up, changed our clothes, and ran. Wyckoff was a small, secluded town, so there wasn’t much paparazzo. But I knew the news would spread fast and more would fly in.

I tried to close my eyes and pretend none of it was happening. I didn’t know if I would be strong enough. I doubted that I could hold myself together in such a delicate situation, one that hit me so close to home. But something deep inside me told me that after the truth came out, I would feel safer. I would know that we did something to help the world and my brother didn’t die in vain.

We left the car in the parking lot and ran into the police station. Nick kept an arm around me at all times. He was releasing a vibe that made me view the place as dangerous, especially when Officer Johnson saw us in one of the windows and greeted us at the door.

“Hey, kids. Back in Jersey so soon?”

We ignored him and used the other door to go in. I could feel his eyes burning holes through my skin as he stared me down.

He knew.

We went straight to the front desk where a young officer with blonde hair and bangs was standing, talking to her deputy.

“Excuse me, ma’am. We need your help,” Joe said to her. He began telling her our story as she listened intently.

Shawn Johnson wouldn’t stop staring at me. I looked away from his gaze and hid in Nick’s chest, clinging to him. Joe talked to the lady for a long time, showing her the file from Seattle and Max’s death certificate. I wasn’t paying much attention though. I was still shaking violently.

Nick noticed my reaction to Shawn and took me out to the car, away from him and all the drama. We sat inside for a while so I could calm down. I felt like such a wimp.

“I’m sorry,” I whispered to him.

“What are you talking about?” He put the key into the ignition and started the heating. Winters in Jersey were much colder than sunny Los Angeles.

“I’m always giving you problems like this,” I said quietly, looking at my feet, “I made you leave your life behind, made you put everything on hold.”

He sighed deeply. “You are my life.”

He took my hand in his and I blushed.

Suddenly, there was a hard knock at the window and I jumped. I was so on edge, thinking it was Shawn – or someone even worse. I turned and saw it was only Joe.

Nick opened his door.

“They want you,” Joe said to his brother, shoving his hands into his front pockets and jumping lightly to keep warm.

“Me? Why?”

“I don’t know, but you better hurry. That Shawn bastard is giving me the creeps.”

Nick sighed. “Alright.” He turned to me. “I’ll be right back. I love you,” he said, kissing my lips.

Joe and Nick switched places and I stared into the rearview mirror carefully as Nick walked into the station. Despite the heated car, I suddenly felt cold without him next to me.

“KC, are you alright?” Joe asked me from the driver’s seat.

I nodded weakly. “Yeah, Joe. I’m alive.”

“Everything’s going to work out in the end,” he said, “And all of this will be worth it. You’ll see. That lady in there, her name is Officer Alyssa. Not only is she smokin’ hot, but she’s also really passionate about your case and said that we might actually have a chance if we fight really hard.”

I laughed. “Thanks, Joe. Good to know you’re getting some eye candy.”

“No problem,” he said, grinning.

There was silence for a moment as he warmed his hands and rubbed them together.

“Are you hungry?” he asked after a while, “Because I’m starving. Airline food does not do me justice.”

I shrugged. “Yeah, I guess.”

“Alright, let’s go get something.” He put the car in reverse and began backing out of the parking space.

“What about Nick?” I asked, looking eagerly at the station.

“It’ll only take a minute. I’ll text him and ask if he wants anything.”

“Oh,” I said, “Okay.”

We drove down the street and around the corner to Burger King.

“Aw, man,” Joe sighed, parking the car, “The line at the drive-thru is gigantic. We’ll have to go in. Ugh…”

He reached into the dashboard in search of some disguises, but all he found was a few pairs of sunglasses.

“Think they’ll be enough?” he asked.

I laughed. “Not a chance.”

“Didn’t think so…” He groaned and threw his head back. “The things I do for a cheeseburger.”

He handed me a pair of white Ray Bans and put on his own blue pair before we stepped out of the car and walked casually into the restaurant, trying not to draw attention to ourselves.

“Hello there,” Joe said politely to a perky, blonde cashier, turning on the Jonas charm, “I’d like three cheeseburgers, please.”

She giggled and blew a big pink bubble with her gum. “Just the sandwiches or the meals?”
He leaned in to her. “Do you come with the meal? Because if you do, then yes. The meal." He winked at her, making her blush.

I rolled my eyes and stepped on his foot.

He let a tiny moan escape his lips that only I could hear. He cleared his throat before speaking again. “Yes. Three meals, please. That’s it.”

“What would you like to drink, hot stuff?” asked the girl, blowing another bubble. It seemed to turn him on.

He tried his best to keep a straight face. “Three Cokes. Make one of them diet.”

“Alright, coming right up.” The girl winked at him before going in the back to get our food.

“Jeez, KC!” he whispered loudly, “That actually kinda hurt!”

“Joseph! Why do you insist on flirting with everything that has boobs?” I asked him, crossing my arms.

“That’s not true,” he said, smirking, “I don’t flirt with you.”

“Thank God for that.”

He laughed. “I don’t know. I guess it’s just my nature. Maybe that’s why Mandy won’t speak to me.”

He tried not to look upset, but I knew him too well.

“What happened with her, Joe?”

He bit his lip, leaning on the counter.

“After we left for the record deal, I was always with other girls. I didn’t even flirt with many of them. Most of them were actually kind of annoying. But she would get mad and think I was cheating on her. And I guess it was my fault. I mean, I thought long distance would work for us. We were really strong. But it didn’t…”

He paused for a moment and sighed deeply.

“Just a few weeks after we left, she called me and ended it. I was surprised. But she was really upset. She was always afraid she would open up a magazine and see me kissing some girl. I don’t blame her for being upset…But she should have trusted me, you know?”

I nodded slowly, taking his hand. Seeing Joe in pain was hard for me.

“Oh, hold on. I feel vibrations.” He dug into his pocket for his cell phone and brought it to his ear.

“Hello?”

“JOE, WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU? WHERE DID YOU TAKE KARA?”

Nick was screaming so loud that Joe had to hold the phone away from his face to stop himself from going deaf.

“Nick, chill!”

“CHILL? YOU DO NOT GET TO TELL ME TO CHILL AFTER YOU KIDNAP MY GIRLFRIEND!”

“Will you just relax for a second?”

“NO! I WON’T! WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU?”

“I took Kara to Burger King. We were both hungry. It’s not a big deal!”

“IT IS SO A BIG DEAL! CAN YOU IMAGINE THE HEART ATTACK I WAS HAVING WHEN I CAME OUT AND SAW THE CAR WAS GONE? YOU IDIOT!”

“JUST RELAX!” Joe began to yell himself. He walked away from me so he could talk, but I could still hear him. “I was going to text you and ask if you – STOP YELLING! JESUS! No, Nick. I was just thinking of her. She was hungry! WHAT DID YOU EXPECT ME TO DO? FEED HER GRASS? Dude…Just take a chill pill or something. Fine, I’ll bring her back. Yes, I’m in the car right now. OH MY GOD, STOP YELLING AT ME. Fine. Yes. Fine. Alright. Bye.”
Joe hung up the phone and walked back over to me, shaking his head.

“Your boyfriend is insane,” he said.

I laughed. “He just worries.”

“Oh, I know. Big time.”

The bubblegum girl brought our food to the counter in a brown bag and after Joe swiped his credit card, he couldn’t help himself and gave her one last wink. We walked out of the restaurant, munching on French fries and sipping our sodas. We were almost to the car when someone called out my name.

“Is that…Kara Chanel?”

The voice was much too familiar.

In a bad way.

I turned around slowly and came face-to-face with him.

Taylor.

“It is Kara Chanel. How’s that brother of yours doin’?” He hadn’t changed a bit from his picture. Same dirty blonde hair, same ice cold eyes. His tone was deathly, dangerous. The soda in my hand dropped the ground as my hand shook uncontrollably. Joe noticed and came to stand beside me. I could hear his deep, unsteady breathing.

“Ah, and Joe Jonas. I hear you’re pretty big up in la la land, Mr. Big Shot.”

“What do you want?” Joe’s voice was dripping with anger.

I couldn’t bear to look at Taylor. I kept my eyes down, almost completely shut.

“Just wanted to talk. Catch up. It sure has been a while,” he sighed deeply, “My dad texted me you were at the station. Thought I’d say hi. I mean, the time we spent together last was just wonderful, wasn’t it, Kara?”

I felt my heart sink as he smirked. I heard him come closer to us.

“You’ve really changed, you know,” he went on, “I always thought you were so irresistible. All those times you’d come over to see Mikenna. It would make my day.”

He inched closer and closer to me and I felt Joe tense up beside me. I ignored my soda-filled boots and focused on breathing – I couldn’t even think at that moment. My entire body was numb. There were no words.

“You were always so fine. Those eyes, those curls…”

I felt his eyes wander my body, looking me up and down with a sick smirk on his face.

“Haven’t changed a bit,” he said lowly, “In fact, I think you’ve gotten better.”

I heard Joe almost growl in anger.

“You don’t even regret what you did,” he said, narrowing his eyes at Taylor.

Taylor grinned menacingly. “I have no idea what you’re talking about it.”

“Cut the bullshit. You know exactly what I’m talking about.”

“Listen, Jonas, I don’t think using that tone with me is very wise. We wouldn’t want things to get ugly, now would we?” He chuckled. “Kara knows what happens when they do.”

I gulped hard, desperate to get rid of the hard lump in my throat. He dug his hands into his pockets to purposely open his leather jacket far enough so we could see the small handle on his belt.

The gun.

I froze in fear. If Joe’s hand hadn’t have been placed on my lower back, I would’ve fallen backwards. Even Joe wouldn’t move a muscle. I was almost certain he wasn’t breathing.

“So as I was saying,” Taylor went on, moving even closer. He was clearly pleased with our terrified reactions. My heart sped up. I was a tiny, helpless fish swimming with a shark. “I wanted you bad. And I always get what I want.”

He touched my cheek with a cold, hard hand. My skin began to sting.

“Don’t you dare touch her,” Joe growled.

Taylor snapped. “Shut the fuck up! Nobody is talking to you. Jesus.”

He cracked his neck to the side before speaking again. I was trying to think of some way we could escape – I knew Joe was too angry to even keep track of his thoughts. If we tried to reach for the phone, Taylor would shoot. If we tried to run to the car, Taylor would shoot. As long as he had the gun, there was no way out.

I prayed we would at least make it out alive.

“There were a few things standing in my way, however,” Taylor went on casually, “For one, you were my sister’s best friend. Two, your mom was so fucking uptight. And three, you were always around these sons of bitches.” He motioned to Joe.

Something in my heart told me to just keep praying. I thought of Nick and Layla and how I promised them I would return to them safely. It couldn’t end there. I knew there had to be more to the story. Joe and I had to escape somehow.

“So, I made my own plans. Caught ya off guard, didn’t I?” He laughed out loud like it was some kind of joke. “Well, one thing’s for sure. It was well worth it. Every. Last. Scream.”

Joe couldn’t take another word after that. He exploded, yelling out swear words and throwing a hard, loud punch. Taylor moaned in pain as his nose began to bleed.

“SHIT!” he screamed out.

With Taylor leaning over, he was vulnerable. I acted on pure instinct. With the gun, we would be the ones in control. It happened fast – I reached for it quickly. Joe yelled at me not to, but I saw a chance and took it.

I should have listened to him.

Taylor saw me through the corner of his eye and tripped me, causing me to fall on my hands and knees, wincing in pain.

“You little bitch,” he whispered.

Joe exploded into more anger and punched him again, spilling even more blood.

“I hope you rot in hell,” he spat.

We were about to just make a run for it. If we were lucky, we would make it out. We had no other hope but to push our luck and hope it turned out alright. The car was so close – we just had to reach it. But when we heard the gun finally click, we froze.

“Yeah, that’s right, bitches,” Taylor said, gripping the gun as hard as he could. “Funny how a tiny ass bullet can make anyone do anything you say. Even a slut and a faggot Disney piece of crap singer.”

My heart was pounding so hard, it made my chest hurt. The feeling of being held at gunpoint made me want to throw up out of fear. The sight brought back a much too familiar feeling and a memory I wished I could erase forever. But compared to last winter, it was much worse the second time around. I was sharing it with Joe, one of the people I loved most in the world. I had put him in danger. I was more afraid of him getting hurt than getting hurt myself.

If anything happened to him because of me, I would never forgive myself.

“You know, I wasn’t planning on this,” Taylor said, “But you had to make it so fucking hard.”
I continued to shake uncontrollably. I couldn’t understand why it was happening.

“Jonas, get in the car.”

Joe looked almost hopeful. “What?”

“I said, get in the fucking car before I fucking blow your head off!”

After a moment, we both understood what Taylor had in mind. My heart sank. Joe looked into my eyes and I saw tears. He knew what was going to happen.

“Kara,” he whispered apologetically.

“Don’t talk to her. Throw your keys and your phone on the ground and walk to the car.”

Joe continued to stare at me as a tear fell down his face.

“JUST GO! JESUS!”

Joe dug into his pocket and pulled out his car keys and cell phone with a quivering hand, throwing them both on the cold cement.

“Please,” he begged at the last second, “Don’t hurt her. I’ll do anything. I have money. Take whatever you want.”

“Shut up and go,” ordered Taylor, his loud voice making me jump. I had to remind myself to keep breathing.

Joe looked down so I wouldn’t see him crying. He turned around and walked to the car as Taylor followed him with the gun. I watched Joe climb inside and stare at me, ashamed of himself. I knew he would think it was all his fault. Taylor locked him in and walked back to me, smirking.

With the blood smeared all over his face and the hungry look in his eyes, he looked like he belonged in a horror movie.

It was past danger. I was about to die.

He grabbed a bunch of my hair and I whimpered, shaking so violently that it angered him. He pressed the gun to my temple and dragged me forward. All I thought of was my family, the people I loved.

I cried. I cried hard and loud, feeling as though I was falling apart. I could hear Joe crying, screaming my name and banging on the car window in the distance.

History was about to repeat itself.