Chapter 14: .See.You.Tonight. "Dont be so hard on yourself...it wasn't...that bad!" Zac told Tay.
"Yeah, right. I really messed things up. I'm sorry." Tay said as they made their way home on the plane.
"It's all over, don't worry about it. It happened two days ago. When you get your memory back, everything will be fine, and we can fix it," Ike said rolling his eyes. Tay had been proclaiming he was a failure ever since the end of the show, and frankly, he was sick of hearing it.
"When i get my memory back. Everyone keeps saying that! How do you know i WILL be getting it back?! You DONT! What if I spend the rest of my life trying to figure out who i was, and what i could have been? Then what?! The band goes down the drain. I'm not Taylor Hanson, guys. I'm just the empty shell of him. He makes one third of the band...not me!" he said, slightly raising his voice.
"The chances of permanent amnesia are very slim for you, Tay. You will remember. Maybe it's not definite, but you have to stay positive. Have faith in yourself," Ike solemnly spoke.
"I'm sorry..." Tay whispered.
"Don't be, there's no reason for you to be..." Zac countered.
To this remark, Taylor didnt respond, and rather, he stared out the airplane window wondering why it hadbeen him. Why couldn't it have happened to anyone else? "Because you're strong. You can handle it, you can fight for the weak," a female voice answered him. He sat up straight and looked around him. He wondered if it had been Drew, but he quickly decided against this because her voice had been too...pure.
"Did you guys hear that?" asked Tay.
"Hear what?" Diana asked returning from the bathroom holding Zoe.
"That girl talking..." Tay muttered.
"The flight attendant? She's at the back of the plane..." Walker answered.
"No, nevermind. I think I'm just over tired. I'm going to take a short nap. Wake me up if anything exciting happens, 'kay?" Tay said, obviously in a state of severe confusion.
He reclined in his chair with a not-so-comfortable pillow cushioning his head. Slowly, the voices of his family faded from hearing and for a few seconds, all that was audible was a silent void as he once again entered his dreams.
"What a surprise, Taylor!" Drew exlaimed giddily.
"Is it really a surprise? I'm beginning to think you call me at your leisure and wait so you can torture me. I don't know who you are, and I don't know why you're bothering me...but I do know I dont like it," Tay spoke through clenched teeth.
"Not all the time," she smiled.
"Not all the time what?!" Tay questioned.
"I don't call you at my leisure all the time. I didn't expect you here. You were the one who took a nap, remember?" she said in a flirty manner.
For the first time, Taylor observed his surroundings. They werent pleasant to say the least. It was dark and damp, but a beam of light shone through a hole in the ceiling. "Where am I?"
"This is my house, Taylor," and her eyes flashed with fire.
"You live in a sewer?!" he said, disgusted with the situation.
"No, I wouldn't call it a sewer," she laughed evilly.
"Well what would you call this stench-driven hole?!" he quickly retorted.
"Nevermind that. i don't live here, but it's my home..." she said.
"That makes no sense!!" he exclaimed, frustrated.
"Sure it does. I'd explain it to you now, but it looks like you should be waking up soon..." she calmly stated. "Listen, I'll see you tonight when the darkness falls upon the breath of land and the inhabitants lie still in their slumber."
"What if I don't come?" He defied.
"I don't believe you have much of a choice. Go ahead, stay awake the whole night. Don't go to sleep the next night either. You can't avoid sleep and sooner or later you must face it. When you do, I'll find you, Taylor. I'll be waiting," she explained in a nonchalant manner.
"Why are you doing this? Why won't you leave me alone?" he questioned.
"I have an assignment, and I must carry it out. I'll help you. Don't fight me, Jordan," she said, cooly.
"It's Taylor. Don't call me that," he corrected.
"Well, Jordan," she ignored him, "you can fight me and resist my knowledge if you'd like to make things far more difficult on yourself than they should be. I'm supposed to bring your memory back and I can do it if you let me. Please, I care for you, and I know I seem cold at times, but I have good intentions for you. Come to me tonight, and I will fix everything," she told him, giving him an expression that seemed to say "would this face lie to you?"
"My...memory...will be the same as it's always been? If I go to sleep tonight?" he asked with hope.
"You got it, kiddo," she smiled.
"Well I can feel myself waking up. I have to go, so um...I'll see you tonight," he said a bit uncomfortabely.
"Yep, I'll see you later!" she said in a perky voice. She sat and watched him fade from her vision, returning to his physical world. "Why do they always make it easy for me? Sometimes people can be so greedy and gullible...losers!" she laughed hideously.