Chasing Stars

Chapter 20

Gerard was escorted over to me and with every step I shrank a little further into my seat. I hoped it would swallow me whole. Gerard pulled up the seat next to me and sat down. I could feel his eyes on me and if looks could kill, I'd be with my mom right now.

"Rylynn, it looks like you ran away one other time. Is that correct?" The cop said from behind his desk. I nodded unable to find my voice. "In New Jersey?" I nodded again. "How did that turn out?" I knew I had to speak at this point and it was killing me.

"Not to well," I muttered. The cop nodded again gaining my eye contact.

"Here's the thing, I should be turning you over to a judge, this isn't the first time you've runaway and you ran from a police officer." I could feel the tears welling up in my eyes as I bagged them not to fall. "I think you're probably a good kid that did a stupid thing and well I called the other police officer that saw you last time, just to see if anything was left out of the report. He has convinced me to let you leave with your dad." I heard a sigh of relief from next to me. "Officer DePre said you tend to do stupid things, that you push your parents to the limits. He also said you are a good kid, one that would know when you've gone to far. One that has done a lot for your home community and he has no doubt that you'll go on to do great things. All that being said, I must ask how do you know Officer DePre?"

"He was my mom's best friend," I said softly.

"Well I'd thank him next time you see him. I'd also keep in mind that this is the last time you'll be saved by Officer DePre. Next time you are looking at going in front of a judge and community service at the very least. Keep both feet in line, got it?" He asked. I nodded. He stood up and assisted me in standing and removed my hand cuffs.

"Thank you officer," Gerard said extending his hand. They shock hands. Gerard gripped my upper arm to led me out as we were escorted to the front. As the large doors shut, Gerard's hand did not loosen. No words were spoken and I knew I was in some serious shit. Gerard led me to the car and opened my door, not releasing his grip until I was fully seated. He slammed my door shut. I sighed, placing my seatbelt on. We pulled onto the highway heading back towards the house. The tension was beyond thick.

"I'm sorry," I muttered barely above a whisper.

"Is that all you have to say?" he said with venom.

"I'm really sorry," I attempted only to receive a glare.

"Try again," Gerard said still pissed. I sighed in defeat.

"I fucked up okay, I know. I did something I shouldn't have and I'm trying to apologize for it."

"You could have died! You could have been kidnapped! God Rylynn you had me terrified!" he shouted.

"I know. I have no excuse," I said looking at my feet.

"Is this all because you didn't want to go to school?" I was silent. "You got pissed that I said no so you decided to take it upon your own volition to do what you wanted? God Rylynn, what the fuck where you thinking?" He was yelling at this point and I couldn't blame him. We pulled off of the high way and on to the main road that led to the house.

"I wasn't thinking," I said quietly in reply.

"Well that much is evident," he shouted. "What was your plan? Huh? Skip school and what, go to the movies? The mall? Go do drugs?" I was quiet to his questions. "Runaway? Leave me worried? Wondering if you're alive or dead?" I let the questions be shouted with no retort. No anger, no anything. I laid my head back against the headrest and closed my eyes. His questions and accusations continued as we pulled into the garage. He shut the car off and turned towards me. I allowed my head to roll to the side.

"What am I supposed to do Rylynn?" His question took me by shock. Not because of the question or the emotion behind it. It took me by surprise because it wasn't the first time I had heard those words. My mom said that exact phrase to me the last time I ran away. My hand came to the door handle clicking it to open the door.

"That's exactly what Mom said." My voice was strong. It held more strength than I knew I contained. I stood up from the car and shut the door. I opened the door to the house before I heard Gerard exit the car. I set my bag down and kicked off my shoes. I began to walk toward the stairs.

"Where are you going?" I was asked. I turned around to see Gerard looking very upset. His hands clenched the sink as he leaned on the counter facing the window. He made no eye contact with me. Just shut his eyes attempting to keep some exposure.

"I assumed you were grounding me, so I was heading upstairs," I slowly said the truth. He turned towards me opening his hands in anger.

"What you did Rylynn," he stated making eye contact. "It's beyond grounding."

"Then what is it?" I asked confused. I had been grounded all the time but I had no idea what Gerard was planning now. All I knew is that he was livid and as much as I didn't want to admit it, he had cause to be.

"I don't know, sit down," he said in an irritated manner. I silently listened. It was silent as Gerard began to move about the kitchen and make lunch from the looks of it. I had pissed him off, I had made him angry and I'm fairly certain that I disappointed him. A plate of food appeared in front of me. "You better actually eat that," Gerard said leaning against the counter holding his plate as he ate. I picked up the fork and began to eat.

"Thanks for picking me up," I tried to say softly. Gerard looked at me in awe and rubbed his face.

"What was I going to do? Leave you in jail?" He finally asked.

"Mom said you would have," I admitted taking another bite.

"What the last time you ran away?" he asked frustration still in his voice. I nodded.

"I really don't know why I did it okay. I didn't want to be in school, I didn't want to be at home, I didn't want to be anywhere. It wasn't like the last time, I didn't have a plan. I just… I want to get away," I said continued to eat.

"What did you do last time?" he asked setting his empty plate in the sink his voice calming a bit. I shock my head and set my fork down. Gerard turned around and grabbed my plate. "Oh yes this is going to be part of your punishment. You actually have to tell me about your past. No exceptions," he stated with a slight smile. I groaned and looked at him for a moment.

"Last time I had a plane ticket. They picked me up in the terminal right before I boarded the flight," I admitted.

"Are you fucking kidding?" he asked upset. I could see the frustration behind his eyes.

"Nope that's pretty much how it went." His eyes gaged me.

"Where prey tell where you headed?" This question was not one I was expecting. It was not one that I wasn't ready to talk about. My mother found out where it was going and we never talked about it. Not really anyway. "Tell," he demanded.

"California," I said quietly. Confusion struck his face.

"Why I thought you said you hated this state." He was standing in front of me with a coffee cup in hand. My cheeks reddened. "What, you embarrassed?" he asked with a smirk. I bit my lip.

"It doesn't matter," I stated standing up to walk away.

"Oh no, don't even think about it, sit your butt back down. I just picked you up from a police station, now answer." I sighed and sat back down.

"I wanted to see you," I said to soft for him to make out.

"What?" he asked leaning in.

"I wanted to see you," I stated louder. Silence engulfed the room yet again. I didn't lift my eyes to look at him. I knew without a doubt, he was hoping I would.

"How did you…" he began to ask, unable to find the words.

"Well looking back now… I'm sure Mom got your address somehow for her will. Back then, I wanted to be me at any cost. I wanted to do what I loved and I wanted to be who I wanted to be. I just found a paper in the desk that said Gerard's address and I went with it. You asked earlier what type of trouble I used to get into. What trouble was big enough for my mom to make deals with me. This is it. It terrified her, the idea of not having me. That's why she never told you. That's why she kept me a secrete."

"I would have never," he began but I cut him off.

"Would you? How can you say 100 percent that you would have never tried to take me from her?" It was an accusation. One I could not prevent from speaking.

"Rylynn, I love you. I want you in my life more than you could even imagine but I would have never pulled you away from your mother." He statement held an urgent plea for understanding.

"I really didn't mean to worry you today. I didn't mean for any of this to happen." Gerard nodded. He leaned on the counter I was sitting at and brought his face towards mine.

"All of your actions have consequences, good or bad. All of your actions." I nodded unable to argue. He stepped back setting his coffee mug down. He folded his arms and leaned back against the wall, releasing a sigh. "You're a lot like me Rylynn, more than I'd like to admit. When things get to hard, you run. I'll be frank with you, that is not an attribute to be proud off. That's part of the reason your mom and I never worked out. I ran. There where tons of reasons and it probably should have ended before it did but I still ran. Which looking back that's probably why your mom hated me."

"Why don't you want me to be like you?" I asked.

"You deserve better. I want more in life for you than going through what I went through when I was a teen, shit when I was in my twenties. Rylynn, the sky is the limit for you but everything you do either increases that or limits it. You ran away from a cop today. Still not sure why you did, you didn't have drugs on you, you didn't have a weapon. You are beyond lucky that the other cop in Jersey that they talked to convinced them not to have to appear in front of a judge. Once that happens, there is no going back. No starting over. Once you have a record, it's there, the rest of your life. It will prevent you from going to college, having jobs. It would prevent you from achieving your full potential." By the time he was done I was slouching on the counter.

"Are you done with the lecture?" I asked.

"Your ass is about to be in even more trouble if you keep that up."

"Why because you know I don't care just like you?" I asked in a smart ass voice. He picked up his coffee again with a smirk.

"Nope, that," he said pointing at me, "is all your mom." A small smile came to my face. "Here is the deal, at this point I'm not sure what your punishment is but I can tell you this. You are still in serious trouble and since you are so damn intent to leaving. Think about this, I want three reasons why you should stay both now and why you should have stayed back then."

"Fine," I said playing with my sleeve.

"Now I have to a meeting for my next record and right now I'm not sure you wont try to leave here. So put you're shoes back on and we'll head out." I gave a frustrated groan. "Oh yeah? That's about how I felt about your stunt. I told you not today this morning. I have things to do as well Ry but I can't delay this meeting any longer." I stood up and walked over to my shoes pulling them on in frustration. We walked back to the car and climbed in. As we began to pull out of the drive Lindsey pulled up. Gerard stopped the car and rolled my window down as Lindsey approached the car.

"Hey what's going on?" she asked looking between Gerard and myself.

"Well Ry, why don't you tell Linds what you did," he said looking gat me. I shot him a 'are you kidding me' look. "Think of this as part of your punishment." I groaned and stomped the floor. I knew I didn't have a choice in the matter so I rolled my eyes and gave up.

"I left school walked downtown and the cops picked me up," I stated looking at Lindsey.

"You did what?" Lindsey said with a mix of shock and frustration.

"I ran away," I muttered quietly. Everything was silent for a moment before Lindsey exploded.

"What the hell where you thinking? You could have been kidnapped, someone could have hurt you, god what where you thinking?" she shouted at me.

"I don't think I was," I said simple. Gerard and Lindsey exchanged a looks.

"Are you okay? No one did anything did they," Lindsey said softly. I nodded.

"I'm fine," I said bitting my lip and looking down at the floor.

"Oh please don't leave out my favorite part," he said smirking.

"Seriously?" I asked.

"Yup," Gerard said. Lindsey looked between us again. I was quiet for a moment and groaned again.

"I kinda ran from the cop," I elongated the words as they where spoken. "I mean it really wasn't a big deal," I quickly added. Lindsey's face sat blank for quite sometime before she spoke again.

"Are you fucking kidding me?" she said with anger. I slouched into the seat. I was a bit terrified. I had never heard her speak quite like that before. "Rylynn Marie!" she shouted and turned around walked back a few steps. She turned back facing me and quickly closed the distance again. This time leaning on the side of the car to talk directly to me. "Are you trying to hide something?" I was quiet. I was in complete shock at how upset she could get. "Answer me," she demanded.

"No I wasn't, I'm not," I fumbled through the words.

"Did you do something illegal?" she questioned.

"No," I said still fumbling.

"Then why the fuck would you run from a cop?" she asked with frustration.

"I..I…I don't know. It seemed feasible at the time," I admitted confused. Lindsey looked at Gerard and pointed at me.

"She sounds like Mike," Lindsey said to Gerard causing him to smile slightly. "What did you do ground her?"

"It's still up for debate," Gerard said.

"Well then lets debate it down," I interjected. They both ignored me.

"What time do you have to be there?" she asked Gerard.

"An hour, I have some time still," he answered.

"Do you want me to take her?" Lindsey offered.

"You guys do know I'm right here and that I'm 15, I can take care of myself." Once again they ignored me.

"No it's fine, I want to keep an eye on her," Gerard said looking at me. I put my hands up in the air.

"15," I stated again. Lindsey opened my door. She nodded toward the garage.

"I want to talk to you for a moment," Lindsey said. I quickly looked at Gerard who in turn pushed me out of the car. I followed Lindsey reluctantly. "Your dad would freak out if he heard this which is why we are over here. Is this about a boy?" I looked at her shocked and laughed.

"No," I said with confidence.

"Have you ever skipped classes with a boy?"

"No," I said.

"Even that time I came home and the machine said you had missed an hour?" she asked. I blushed.

"Yeah that was a boy," I admitted. She nodded.

"You swear this has nothing to do with that same boy," she asked again.

"Yeah I'm sure."

"Is it me?"

"No."

"No drugs?" she asked.

"No drugs," I stated.

"Okay lets go," she said turning back toward Gerard's car. Before I could climb in, Lindsey grabbed me and pulled me into a hug. "I'm glad you're okay but please, please, please don't ever do that again. I may not be your mom, but I do care about you," she said in my ear before she let me go. I climbed into the car and Gerard waved goodbye as we drove away. I heard my phone ring as we got on the highway. I dug it out of my pocket to see it was Derek.

"Hey," I said into the phone.

"You're coming right?" Derek quickly asked me.

"No, I'm in California not New Jersey," I spoke.

"Fine, have you told him?" Derek asked referring to me telling Gerard that there was a benefit concert I was supposed to preform at. I performed there every year. I glanced at Gerard who caught my eye.

"No, I haven't told him," I muttered.

"You probably should… like now," Derek demanded.

"Yeah I'll tell him later," I stated irritated.

"Why not when he picks you up from school?"

"Because, I'm already in trouble because I skipped school and got arrested. I'll tell him later Der," I stood firm in my statement.

"Fine, do it soon and get out of this funk you're in. At the very least you need to make an appearance here."

"Got it. Listen I'll talk to you later okay?" I asked.

"Yeah. Love you Rylynn."

"Love you too Derek." With that I hung up the phone. I sighed leaning my head back. I wasn't ready to deal with my past life running full speed into this one.

"What are you supposed to tell me?" Gerard asked.

"Nothing it's fine, it can wait," I said looking at the surroundings pass by.

"Rylynn honesty. We already talked about this," Gerard said in a parental tone. I groaned at him, shooting him a quick glare that he didn't see.

"It's just about what day he wants to know if I can go back to Jersey. It's nothing huge," I stated as we pulled off the highway.

"Okay, what date?" he asked.

"I don't know I'll have to look at a calendar."

"Don't forget Frank and Ray are coming tomorrow. I'd like it if you can manage to stay out of jail and in school if possible."

"Oh is that already happening?" I asked playing with my window button.

"Yeah, so thank you for sparing this from me tomorrow. Hey, stop playing with your window," he said the last part annoyed.

"Is it bugging you?" I asked with a smirk and continued to play with it. He started laughing and put the lock on it rolling it up and not allowing me to roll it back down.

"God, Lindsey is right you are like Mikey," he chuckled as he parked the car. I looked up to see a very tall building that I had not been to yet. I stopped opened the door and climbed out. Gerard walked around the car as his phone rang. "Hey, yes I'm about to walk in," he answered into the phone while extending his hand for me to grab. I did as he wished as we began to walk forward. "Yes, if you send it to my email I can set it from there. Then I'll send you the roughs back," he spoke into the phone. We approached a tall desk. The receptionist behind the counter handed him a pass. "Rylynn Way, my daughter," he stated fast as he pulled the phone slightly from his mouth. He continued to talk as the women handed me a pass that I grabbed. I looked at the attachment and had difficulty opening the clip and dropped the pass. I picked it up, taking three quick steps to catch up to Gerard who was walking fast. Gerard hung up just as we approached the elevator. I opened the clip again using both hands and had the stupid thing fly in my face and back to the floor. "Give me that," he said grabbing the pass from my hands as we climbed onto the elevator. He pushed the floor button and turned me toward him. He clipped it on for me and grabbed my hand again.

"Who exactly are we meeting?" I asked as we waited for the elevator to climb the 15 floors.

"Some representatives of Warner Brothers as well as my lawyers," he answered. "This shouldn't take more than an hour. Just play on your phone, it'll be over before you know it."

"My phone is almost dead," I muttered throwing my head back. The door opened and we entered the floor and walked into a huge conference room. Gerard smiled as we approached our seats.

"Hello, this is my daughter Rylynn. She had a short day at school so she's tagging along this afternoon," he explained my presence. We took our seats as some people said hello. Gerard silenced his phone and handed it to me to play on.

"Well shall we start?" one of the suits asked. Everyone agreed as I unlocked Gerard's phone and stated to search through the apps.

"Well we are looking at doing a 15 week tour in the United States to the 48 states followed by the UK run for 6 weeks and then the Tokyo short tour. Tentatively we have you set to leave in April and return 14 months after," a second suit stated. I looked up from the phone at the man who was talking and then at Gerard who was next to me. He was leaving. He was leaving for over a year. He was leaving and not a word had been said to me.
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~Nailsntacks