When You Read Between the Lines

With the awkward filled Thanksgiving dinner behind him Joe was ready to return to work for the next few weeks until the holiday break. However, the fog of Faith’s pregnancy lingered in the air with every breath he took. No one in their family was going to be able to rest easily until they know who the baby’s father is. Even when they all find out things won’t be calm for awhile.

As these thoughts clouded in his mind he walked through the familiar office hallways until he came to Charlotte’s door. He knocked on the door and waited for her to open it, hearing the click-clack of her heels as she walked across the room. She pulled the door open and instantly smiled when she saw Joe.

“Hey stranger,” she said. “What’s new?”

“Things have been pretty crazy lately,” he said as he stepped in, closing the door behind him and heading to one of the chairs.

“My ears are wide open,” she said, sitting in her chair and crossing her legs. “What’s the latest drama?”

“Well, my mother suggested Faith invite her sister for Thanksgiving,” he started with a sigh.

“Did she come?” she asked and Joe held up his hand.

“No, Lizzy did not come. She’s a seventeen year old high school student whose father has Huntington’s disease and who feels abandoned by her older sister. She’s lost; hurt, confused… anything a teenage girl could feel I’m sure she’s feeling right now. Especially with her parents here and not at home with her… I feel sorry for her.”

“Wow, yeah, I do too. Does she know about Faith’s situation?”

“Yes, her response? I thought high school was full of fucked up drama,” he said, crossing his arms and leaning back in the chair.

“Intense,” Charlotte sighed.

“No kidding. I feel awful because it tears Faith apart to hear her sister say she hates her. I just wish there was something I could do.”

“Well, there is,” Charlotte said, shrugging her shoulders and looking up at Joe.

“And that would be…”

“Call Lizzy yourself. Try to talk to her, make her listen to reason. See if she’ll come out for Christmas. At least just try talking to her and see if you can get her to talk to Faith.”

“That’s a really good idea,” he said smiling, “Why didn’t I think of it?”

“Because you have too much on your plate. Call her tonight after you eat dinner. I’m sure you’ll have no problem.”

“Yeah, we’ll see about that. Thanks, Char. I’ll let you know how it goes,” he said, standing up and heading towards the door.

“What else is bothering you?” she said as he twisted the cold metal doorknob in his hand. Slowly he turned towards her, his hand still on the knob.

“What makes you think I’m bothered by something?”

“The look in your eyes.”

“You can tell by my eyes?”

“Sure,” she said, standing up and walking around her desk. “So tell me, what is it?”

He was silent as he looked down at the floor. Charlotte stood a few feet in front of him with her arms crossed over her chest. He shifted his weight before looking up at her. He could tell by the changed expression in her face that his eyes looked as sad as they felt to him.

“What if I’m not the father?” he whispered. She let out a small breath before walking over and wrapping her arms around his neck.

“Whoever the father is won’t change Faith’s feelings for you, Joe. Sure, things will be difficult if Nick’s the father since he’ll still be majorly involved in her life but you can make it through. You’re the one she chose.”

“But if the baby’s Nick’s I feel she won’t want to marry me right away like I hoped would happen.”

“So you’ll have to wait a few months,” she said, shrugging her shoulders. “You have eight and a half months to see what happens so for right now just pray. Pray that this baby is yours.”

“Yeah,” he said, nodding his head. “Yeah, you’re right. Just keep hope alive.”

“That’s all I’m saying,” she said, a smile appearing on her face. “Now, go, you have to meet your brother at the bar in an hour.”

“What?” he asked, his head snapping up.

“Oh no, you forgot…” she said, putting her hand over her mouth. “You’re supposed to meet Nick at Buster’s Bar to do the album cover shoot for the new CD.”

“Oh man, I completely forgot. Shit, shit, shit,” he said, pulling the door open and racing down the hallway. “Thanks, Charlotte!” he called over his shoulder before skidding around the corner.

“Anytime!” she called after him. She shook her head with a smile on her face as she watched him make a fool of himself.

“Shit!” Joe cried, shoving his office door open and racing around his desk.

There, displayed on his computer screen, was a pop up reminder flashing in his face the fact that he was supposed to do a photo shoot for the new Nick Jonas and the Administration album. And the kicker was that he was supposed to be there in twenty minutes. It would take at least thirty for him to get there and another ten to fifteen minutes to set up.

He grabbed some extra things before racing around his desk again, knocking his pencil holder over in the process. Leaving the mess on the floor he pulled his door shut behind him and locked it before sprinting down the hall while trying to call Nick and not drop anything expensive.

“Where are you?” was Nick’s response after the third or fourth ring.

“Sorry, I’m just leaving the office now. I’ve been so busy and distracted I completely forgot,” Joe said breathlessly as he ran down the three flights of stairs out to the parking lot. “I’ll be there in half an hour.”

“Well we’ve been here for twenty five minutes already and we’re in our outfits so just hurry up,” Nick said bitterly, hanging up the phone.

Joe paused once he hit the sidewalk and stared at his phone in disgust before twisting his arm to put it in his pocket. He walked around the side of the building and over to his car, delicately placing a few items he was carrying on the trunk as he searched for his car keys. Stuffing everything into the back seat he climbed into the front and started the car and peeled out of the parking lot.

As Joe made his way through the slight traffic to the bar he thought about what could happen at this photo shoot. It would be the first time he and Nick would be in a room together without any other family members since the night of the big blow up. Faith had told Joe of the conversation she and Nick had later that night. How Nick said he wouldn’t be able to treat Joe as his brother until they found out who the baby’s father is and that made Joe nervous. It also made him sick to his stomach. The last thing he needed was for his brother to hate him but then again he couldn’t blame Nick.

Approximately half an hour later Joe was headed around the back of Buster’s to park. He shut the car off and slammed his door as he attempted to grab all of his equipment. Hurriedly he hung things on each shoulder and grabbed others in each hand, shutting the door with his foot and heading to the front door. Through the window he made eye contact with John Fields who quickly dashed to the door and pushed it open for Joe.

“About time you showed up,” John joked, a smile on his face.

“Yeah, thanks man,” Joe said, walking in sideways through the door. He got to the nearest table and set his stuff down.

“Finally,” Nick said, hopping up from the bar stool he was sitting on and walking towards Joe. “Where do you…”

“Head over to the jukebox while I get set up. We’ll move around once we get started,” Joe said, taking out what was necessary and preparing to set it up while Nick and the guys headed over to the jukebox area. Joe glanced up to see where the guys were positioning themselves and quickly rearranged them in his mind before barking out orders. “Nick, stand in front of the jukebox and lean up against it. Cross your arms and your legs and look straight ahead. The rest of you surround him and touch the jukebox in some way. Someone can jump up there and sit or you can all just rest up against it or lean an arm on it and stand against the wall. Anything and I’ll let you know how it looks when I’m ready.”

He heard shuffling as all five men arranged themselves around the jukebox. Nick stood in his spot, staring straight ahead at Joe, a hint of malice in his eyes. Once Joe was all set he turned and looked at the setting in front of him. Pleased with the result he put his camera to his face and zoomed in some.

“Nick, relax your face. You don’t have to smile but try to not look so angry.”

“I’m not angry,” Nick said through his teeth.

“I didn’t say you were,” Joe sighed. “I just said you looked angry.”

“Sorry,” Nick grumbled as he tried to relax the muscles of his face.

Joe looked back through the view finder and still didn’t like what he saw. Nick just didn’t seem very into it.

“Nick, come on, work with me man,” Joe joked, pulling the camera away from his face to give his brother a smile.

“I could if this set up weren’t so stupid,” Nick spat as he shifted his weight.

“I think it’s fine,” Tommy said, shrugging his shoulders.

“Will you just let me take the picture?” Joe asked.

“No, I don’t like the pose,” Nick said, crossing his arms.

“Then what is it you want, Nick?” Joe asked, taking a few steps towards his brother.

“I think we should all be sitting at the bar.”

“For the cover shot?” Joe asked, his eyebrows furrowing together.

“Yes. Is there something wrong with that, Joseph?”

“Well, no, but I think this shot would look better for the cover,” he said, turning to face Nick who had silently stepped closer.

“It’s not what I want,” Nick said through his teeth.

“Whoa, guys,” John said, stepping towards them, his hands in the air. “Why don’t we do both and then we can vote on which shot would look best for the cover?”

“Fine,” Nick said.

“Fine,” Joe agreed, stepping back as Nick went back to the jukebox to pose. Joe took a deep breath before lifting the camera to his face and framing the shot.

****

After the shoot Joe went back to work for a few hours before heading home. He had to admit he was feeling slightly smug since the guys chose his cover shot idea over Nick’s. Now as he drove home he pushed Nick’s look of disappointment and anger out of his mind as he thought of how he would talk to Lizzy later. While at the office he had called Faith’s house to ask her mother for their home number. In his mind he was running through various situations as he took a left here and a right there. He could feel the slip of paper with the number scrawled on it in his pocket like a weight. After pulling into his driveway he brought everything inside and set it by the door.

The couch seemed so warm and inviting to him, as if knowing the thought looming overhead like a storm cloud. With a heavy sigh he grabbed the phone from the side table and decided to skip Charlotte’s advice. He’d rather call Lizzy now and get it over with than eat dinner and waste time. Reaching into his pocket for the number he put his thumb to the phone and punched in the numbers. The ringing on the opposite end sent his stomach turning.

“Hello?” a younger female voice asked and Joe assumed it was Lizzy but at this point in her life who knew.

“Hi, is this Lizzy?” he asked.

“Yeah. Who’s calling?”

“I’m Joe… Jonas. I’m Faith’s…”

“I know who you are. You’re the brother-in-law turned boyfriend and possible baby daddy,” she said calmly and Joe knew he had to say the next few words with caution.

“Yupp… that’s me,” he said, making the sound of the p pop when he said it.

“Listen, I’m trying to do some homework here. I have a report due before Christmas break so… what do you want?”

“I called to talk to you about your Christmas break, actually,” he said, putting his free hand on the top of his head.

“What about it?”

“Well I was wondering… since you have what is it? A few weeks for break?”

“About two, yeah.”

“Well I was wondering if you would want to join us here. In Texas. Especially since your parents are out here and all, they’d really love it if you could join us.”

“Faith put you up to this,” she said slowly and Joe took a breath.

“Actually, she didn’t,” he said, somewhat relieved at how calm her voice was. “She has no idea I’m talking to you. This is my thing and I’m saying I… we… really want you here, Lizzy.”

“I don’t know,” she said finally. “It’s a long trip and I’m scraping for money for things I want anyway. I’m trying to save for college.”

“I’ll pay for your airfare. Both ways,” he said automatically.

“I have to think about it.”

“That’s all I’m asking,” he said, a smile creeping onto his face.

“Is that all? I really need to get back to my homework.”

“Yeah, that’s all. Thanks Lizzy,” he said and he heard her say goodbye before hanging up the phone.

Feeling accomplished Joe set the phone on the coffee table and stood up to make his way to the kitchen. He decided he wouldn’t tell anyone about his talk with Lizzy, except for Charlotte, until he heard something back from her. He wasn’t going to pressure Lizzy at all. Things needed to fall into place with her and that’s what he was going to let happen.