Oreos
for Breakfast - Chapter 3
By
The Paperbag Princess and The Pumpkin
Coach
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July 6, 2001, 2:35 am
Nick: Rache?
Nick: Rache?
Nick: RACHE?
Rache: Sorry.
Rache: I can't even decide where to begin on the anti-Willa sites!
Damnit.
Nick: Don't. My fans are a little hysterical.
Rache: Did you go to the groupies site?
Nick: How was your show tonight? Why do you and James have to share?
Let's change the subject, please.
Rache: My show was fine, dear, and yours?
Rache: James and I have to share because we had car trouble.
Nick: Show was fine. There was this amazing moon hanging over the crowd, I kept getting distracted.
Nick: Kevin's all pissed at me, tho.
Nick: I don't understand why car trouble makes you sleep with James.
Where is she?
She's finding out about Mandy, I can just feel it.
Totally unfair that I couldn't find out anything about her and that Damon guy. Maybe I could email Kate. I think I owed her an email. She and Jarvis were friends with Em, right? Certainly she knew all the dirt. Kate was a good gossip. Did I have her email address here?
Nick: Rache? You still there?
Rache: Here. I have too much running on the computer, it's slow.
Rache: Hey, where are you, anyway? Shouldn't you be on your way to Boston?
Rache: Did you go to that groupies site? I'm sure surfing the web and chatting with me won't crash *your* computer.
Nick: How many programs are you running?
Nick: I am on my way to Boston.
Rache: I was running chat, email, Netscape and Quicken. Screw Quicken. I'll do the books tomorrow when I'm not half drunk.
No, no, no, get out of Netscape. You don't need to do research on me!
Rache: If you are on the bus, how are you chatting with me?
Rache: Are there questions I should be answering? Chat can get confusing.
Nick: I have a connection on the bus.
Rache: I note you haven't answered my question about the groupies site.
Nick: Car trouble and James?
Rache: You have a connection on your BUS??? How is that possible?
Hell, the groupies thing is probably better than talking about Mandy.
Nick: Yes, I've read that groupies site.
Nick: Wireless modem.
Rache: We had the cool moon here, too. Show inside, tho, not distracted.
Rache: Is the groupies site true? Is any of the Willa stuff true?
Do I have to answer that?
Rache: Had to pay to fix the van, only enough money for two rooms for the rest of the tour. Have I mentioned how much I can't wait until next week when I'm home????
Nick: Groupies… the AJ stuff is probably true. I never asked him.
Rache: Wireless modem? You BASTARD! You have all the best toys. What kind of laptop are you running? Or do you have a server on your bus or something?
Nick: Yes, you've mentioned that you can't wait until vacation. You said you don't want to talk to anyone, does that include me?
A week, she said. I might go insane if I can't talk to her for a week.
The screen was quiet for a moment. Damnit, where is she?
Nick: Cool laptop. You probably know more about it than I do. I can run like 10 things at once and it doesn't crash. Wireless modem, recordable CD drive.
Nick: Did I tell you I once shorted out a hotel room floor by plugging in too many computers to one outlet?
Maybe I could distract her with stupid Nick tricks?
Rache: Hey, you said you were eating all my chocolate!
I breathed a sigh of relief. She was just reading email.
Rache: Closed email, all the more resources to see about Willa.
Rache: You shorted out an entire FLOOR? What were you trying to do… destroy the universe?
DAMNIT. Ah! Here was Kate's email. She'll give me the gossip.
Date: July 6, 2001, 2:55 am
From: Nick
To: Kate Sutton, KAS Designs
Subject: Queen of gossipHi Kate,
I know I owe you like 3 emails. Sorry. Tour is just killing us. I think we get a day off next week during a run in Boston. On my way there now.
And I'm chatting with a friend of a friend of yours right now. Rachel Connor of Sudden Silence. Long-ish story, but met her a couple weeks ago at a hotel somewhere in North Carolina, I think. One of those states between Florida and here.
So she's digging up all this dirt on me and I have no ammunition. I figured you might have some gossip on her. Know she's friends with Em (did her CD cover pix) and used to date Damon from that band that Em's husband is in. Blush? Blur? Whatever. Tell me more about that please!?!?
And btw, where is that present you promised me last time we talked? You know I have no fashion sense!
-Nick
Is it possible that Kate is online and will respond before Rachel finds out everything about Mandy? Damn, what's Rachel saying…
Rache: So the groupies were right about AJ, what about you?
Nick: Not all your chocolate. Just some. Did you ever see those 5 pound Kisses? I almost got one of those for you, but how are you supposed to eat that?
Nick: It was actually a computer, hairdryer, CD player and something else. I forget now.
Rache: Not talking to anyone for at least two days. You can email. Phone will be off.
Rache: What do you call Willa? Willa? Amanda? Mandah? What's up with the 'h' on the end? Pretentious much?
Nick: Not even me? Can you live without my cuteness?
She thinks I am such a dork.
Damnit, groupies or Mandy?
Nick: Mandy.
Nick: Pretentious? That sums up Mandy, yes.
Rache: I have wondered the same thing about those massive Kisses!
Rache: I will attempt to live without the cuteness for a few days. You won't be able to survive without my smoldering sex appeal, will you?
No, actually.
Nick: I think you would need a sledgehammer to break apart the Kiss. It then becomes a less romantic gift.
Rache: Nick, do you KNOW that your fans think that Willa beat you?
Rache: Is the groupies site right about you or not??????
Nick: My life will be empty without your smoldering sex appeal.
I am such a dork.
She's not going to let this go, Mandy or the groupies. Whatever happened with Damon it is not going to be as embarrassing as Mandy. It's just not possible for anything to be as embarrassing as my relationship with Amanda fucking Willaford.
Nick: Yes, I know about the whole domestic violence campaign. They tend to exaggerate things.
Rache: Your MOM went to the National Inquirer? Oh, that has to be here somewhere…
Nick: Dunno, do you think the groupies site is real? Does it sound real?
Rache: Your mom wrote a book about you???? Is it terribly embarrassing? I must own it.
I had nothing on her. Besides an affair with a perfectly respectable British rock star, I had nothing on her. This is all my fault, she got annoyed with me for digging that up, and now look at her. Shit! What if Kate tells Em that I was asking and she tells Rachel? Shit! Can I unsend that message?
It's over. She's going to find out everything embarrassing in my life and never take me seriously.
Rache: Yes. Groupies could be right. You don't like to talk about yourself much. You can be pushy, but accept no for an answer with excellent grace. AJ looks like a shit, but you sounded sweet.
I just blinked at the screen for a moment. Mandy had found that webpage and almost killed me.
Of course, I was dating her at the time that I was sleeping with that girl in the Bahamas.
But Rachel thought I sounded sweet? I'd take sweet.
Nick: Mom wrote a book about me. It could have been worse.
Rache: And I imagine you are that hot in bed.
Alright then!
Nick: It's true, the groupies thing.
Rache: How much did the fans exaggerate Willamanda stuff?
Nick: Why is there nothing about you on the groupies site?
Was there? Never thought to check there. I found the link she'd sent and ignored my page, searching on 'Sudden Silence'
Rache: We can never have sex, tho, we're both rock stars.
Ooh, a hit!
Rache: Because boys don't kiss and tell. There's stuff about Jeremy and Darien up there, tho.
Damnit, just on the boys.
I looked back at the screen. Oh, she'd already told me that.
Nick: Why can't rock stars not have sex with each other?
Rache: Did you get Mandy or whatever her name is that record deal?
Rache: She sucks, have I mentioned that?
Rache: I hated her before I knew you dated her.
Nick: Damnit, boys need to kiss and tell. When I sleep with you, I'll post it up there.
Rache: Rock stars can't have sex with one another because we both feel that we have a god given right to receive oral sex and not give it.
Rache: I can never date you, I will be compared to Willa, and I had enough of that sort of thing with Damon.
Nick: Oral sex with you? No problem.
I was hard just typing the words. God. Anything, I'd promise her anything, if she was half as good as I imagined.
Nick: What comparisons with Damon? I didn't see any of that!
Rache: Nick, honey, you told your FANS that Mandy hit you?
Nick: STOP IT!!!!!
I knew where she was, I knew exactly what site. I couldn't breathe. I hadn't learned yet not to tell everyone all about my life, and it was going to haunt me forever.
Rache: Baby, I know you were young and all, but no wonder these rumors have gone out of control.
Rache: And what's this next bit? She made you write that, didn't she?
Nick: RACHEL. PLEASE STOP.
I started to tease him about something else, but hesitated at the caps.
Rache: I'm just teasing.
Nick: PLEASE DON'T.
Shit. It's true. At least truer than I thought it was.
Rache: Turn off the caps, sweetie.
Rache: ::shutting down Netscape::
The screen was silent.
Rache: I'm sorry. I don't like being teased about Damon, either.
Nick: I couldn't even find anything to tease you about! What comparisons did you mean?
Rache: He used to be with another rock chick. They wrote albums about one another and everyone in England loved them and they ruled the Britpop scene.
Nick: No one would ever compare to you Mandy. Willa. Whatever. You are far more talented.
I smiled at the computer.
Rache: Not saying much, hon! She's a talentless hack!
Nick: Why didn't you get to rule the Britpop scene when you got together with him?
Rache: Britpop was dead.
Nick: With a vocorder, anyone is talented.
I giggled, then glanced over to James. Still sleeping. As I should be, I had to be up in a few hours.
But I was talking to the Cute One, about ex's and stuff. Fuck sleep.
Nick: Britpop is dead?
Rache: How talented is she, Nick? I'm thinking there had to be *some* reason you were with her that long.
Rache: Britpop is dead. Keep up, hon!
Nick: Um… many reasons I was with her that long.
Rache: One word. Hoover?
Quiet for a moment, and I giggled to myself.
Rache: You can tell me, sweetie. I'm not there to see you blush.
Nick: Sex may have been part of it.
Rache: Were the dogs the other part?
Nick: :laughing: Yes. No. It was very complicated, Rache.
He was so young. I knew exactly what it was.
Rache: She was the first love, wasn't she?
Nick: Yeah. Who was yours?
Rache: She was the first everything, wasn't she?
Rache: Jeremy.
The screen was silent again.
Rache: Or did you lose it to some cute groupie at the age of 15?
Still silent. Did the magic wireless modem die on him? Should I call him? Has he died of embarrassment?
Nick: Jeremy? Jeremy in your band Jeremy?
Rache: You didn't find that on a website anywhere?
Nick: JEREMY?????????
Hmm. Guess he didn't know that.
Rache: Jeremy in my band Jeremy. Blah blah BLAH whine whine WHINE Jeremy.
Nick: JEREMY???????????
Rache: Oh, c'mon, he's not worse than the psycho-whore Willamanda.
Nick: JEREMY??????????
Rache: YES. JEREMY. My first love, my first time that sex mattered, my first band boy who couldn't keep his dick in his pants.
Nick: I'm not saying Mandy was better. I don't even know Jeremy. I'm just shocked. You hate him!
Rache: I don't hate him. He just annoys the hell outa me.
Nick: How long were you with him?
Rache: Four years.
He was quiet again, and I sighed.
Rache: I bring this up because I understand, maybe, about you and Mandy.
Rache: First love is supposed to be forever, right?
Rache: And you do a lot of stupid things to keep it going, because you can't imagine that you'll ever feel that way about someone else.
Wow. Is that what I did with Jeremy for four years?
Nick: Wow.
Rache: I get deep at 3am, I guess.
Nick: What stupid things did you do with Jeremy? Did you feel the same way with Damon, can you love again?
Rache: You melodramatic fool. ;->
Rache: I'm not telling you anything unless you spill, too.
Silence.
Yeah, I hated talking about Jeremy or Damon. Made me feel like a fool, both of them.
Nick: She hit me. She didn't abuse me, it wasn't like that. But she smacked me pretty often.
Rache: Did you hit her back?
Nick: I have three sisters. No. You don't hit girls.
Did I think about it? All the time.
Rache: I have two older brothers, no hitting allowed.
Nick: See, we're perfect together!
Nick: Now spill.
Rache: So she was as big a bitch as all these sites make her to be?
Nick: Oh yeah. Really mean to fans.
Rache: We cheated on each other like mad, Jeremy and I. He started it, I know he did, a long long time ago, and for about two months I cried about it.
Nick: You were in the band together then?
Rache: Then I picked up some cute boy from the front row and thus began my career as a true rock star.
Rache: Yes, in the band together.
Nick: So it's all Jeremy's fault?
Was there a point in her life when Rachel didn't exude sex?
Nick: I don't get it.
Rache: Get what?
Nick: That he was with you, touring, whatever, and he was sleeping with other girls.
Rache: Is what Jeremy's fault?
Rache: Yeah, I didn't get it either.
Nick: The fact that you're a wanton sex goddess.
Silence for a minute.
Did I piss her off?
Rache: Damn, I woke James up, laughing.
Rache: I'm changing my business cards to 'Rachel Connor, Wanton Sex Goddess'!
Rache: You know how to make a girl's night, Cute One.
Oh, good. She doesn't hate me.
Nick: Just telling the truth, ma'am.
Rache: James here. Please stop, or she's going to start believing her press.
James? Fuck! Don't scroll up, please oh please, don't read anything.
Nick: She IS a wanton sex goddess.
"See?" I pouted to James. He rolled his eyes at me and leaned over again to type.
Rache: She is sitting here in boxers and the rattiest, ugliest Duran Duran T-shirt you ever did see. She is NOT a wanton sex goddess.
"Aw, c'mon! I liked the illusion!" I whacked him.
He blinked down at me, half-asleep. "Did you make him read the groupies site?"
Nick: Boxers? Whose boxers?
Rache: Mine! Says Rachel.
"He admitted to it. Said the AJ stuff was true, too."
James nodded, blinking. "I knew it was. He looked for you on there, didn't he? I knew I should have made up something."
Nick: What color?
Rache: No computer sex, little man. Down, boy.
"I half agree with you, he's way too easy to embarrass. Should give him some dirt on me."
James glanced at the screen again, and leaned down to type.
Rache: J again. They are our alma mater, Columbia. I think she's had them since she graduated.
Rache: You need to let her go to sleep now.
Nick: You have a college degree?
"Does he know anything about you?" James asked, and I pouted up at him.
"It never came up! Go back to sleep."
"Touchy, touchy…" he mumbled, falling back into his bed.
Rache: Business administration and accounting. Real fucking rock and roll, innit?
Nick: I thought the band had been together for ages?
Rache: College band. Record contract just when I graduated. Barely.
Nick: Barely? You?
Rache: Yeah, barely graduated. I was… distracted.
Nick: Jeremy?
Man, are we back to this?
Rache: Among other things.
Nick: Complicated? ;->
Rache: Yes. At least I never tried to explain it on my webpage!
Nick: Yeah yeah yeah. And on the internet, things never die.
Nick: I was 19!!!
Rache: You were too young to live with her.
Nick: I know that now. Did you live with Jeremy?
I stifled a giggle, glancing over at James.
Rache: He trashed the place when he left.
Rache: Best thing he did was switch around all my CDs, so that like, all the Duran CD cases contained the techno crap that I hated, and the techno crap had Hole, and Hole had something else.
Nick: Did you kick him out or vice versa?
Rache: I am still finding CDs in the wrong cases, three years later!
Nick: Damn, that's devious. I should kick Mandy out again just so I can do that.
Rache: The last and final time I kicked him out of the apartment. Kicking him out of the band came later. We continued to be dysfunctional for a while.
Nick: You hate techno?
Nick: I was wondering about when he got kicked out of the band.
Rache: Techno is crap.
Rache: He was kicked out of the band when I was with Damon. MY BAND. James and I started it in high school.
Nick: Why did you let him back in?
Rache: How many times did you kick Willamanda out?
I didn't want to get into why Jeremy was back in the band. That was all mixed up with my dad dying, and I was having fun here.
Rache: Story too long to type. Wasn't really my idea.
Nick: She smacked me, I kicked her out. Highly functional relationship.
Nick: James and Darien let him back in the band without talking to you?
Rache: As long as you realize it wasn't a functional relationship. Half the battle and all that.
Nick: Were you and Damon better than you and Jeremy?
Rache: Sorta, they let him back without me. Jeremy's the one with the ambition, he's the manager. The rest of us can't be arsed.
Rache: Why did you keep taking her back? Aforementioned hoovering abilities?
Nick: I thought you did the books and the travel arrangements? You have ambition! That's more than I can do.
Rache: Damon and I not really better than Jeremy and I. But in different ways.
Nick: Hoovering abilities, yes. And she kept taking my stuff when she left, I could only get it back if I took her back.
Rache: Books and travel arrangements easy. Calling record companies? Very very scary.
Nick: How were you and Damon bad?
Rache: Sex fucks everything up. See why I didn't want to sleep with you? Friends is good.
Only I can't stop thinking about him. Damn graphic groupies site. He was a talker? So was I, it would either be really hot or I'd be giggling half the time. Either way could be good.
Rache: Damon and I? He got another woman pregnant. While he was with me. Which was really only the final straw.
Nick: But, Rache, we've learned from our mistakes now! We'd be great together!
Thank god he wasn't here in front of me right now, or I might take him up on that.
Nick: He did what???
Nick: How could someone cheat on you, Rache?
He adored me. Why was I putting him off?
Because he was way too young. He adored me now, he'd get bored with me the moment he got me. And I couldn't let myself like him more than I already did.
Rache: Did Willamanda cheat on you? I know you cheated on her.
Nick: She started it!
Rache: Hmm, just what I said about Jeremy. So did she make you into a wanton sex god?
Nick: No, that's all just a stage act.
Rache: No it's not.
Nick: What do you mean?
Rache: You were at your most wanton sex god-ness in that white sweater in Philly, singing up at me. That wasn't an act, was it?
Please say no, please. I'm going to carry that image to my grave, I'll show my grandchildren pictures of you and say, "this gorgeous man once serenaded me, your grandma was cool."
Nick: No.
Nick: Not an act.
Nick: ::humming::
Rache: Don't even!
Nick: I'm going to call you and sing to you.
Rache: I'm going to bed.
Rache: This has surely cost me a fortune.
Nick: You fear the power of my song.
Nick: Send me the phone bill.
Rache: No. Going to bed.
Nick: Good night.
Nick: ::KISS::
Rache: Chocolate?
Nick: Tongue.
I had to bite back another giggle, James was snoring.
Rache: Put that thing away!
Rache: Am I seeing you tomorrow night?
I wanted to see him tonight, right now. Preferably naked.
Nick: Yes, where?
Rache: Metro club. I'll email you the address, I don't have it on me. We go on at 11:30, I think. AJ coming?
Nick: Yes to AJ. Can you make it to our show?
Could I?
Rache: Open for Rufus at 8:30, done by 9, pack up stuff, go across town… um, no. Next month, we're looping around you, I'll catch a show then.
Nick: I'll sing to you.
Rache: Please don't.
Nick: 'night, Rache.
Rache: Night, Cute One.
I hesitated a moment, not wanting to disconnect.
But I did.
The screen stopped moving and I shut down the chat function. Was she serious about not wanting me to call her? Yes. Better not push my luck. I was lucky she was still talking to me after reading all that about Mandy. Fuck.
I went back to email. Kate was on line!
Date: July 6, 2001, 10:30 PST
From: Kate Sutton, KAS Designs
To: Nicky Boy
Subject: RE: Queen of gossipNicky!
>I know I owe you like 3 emails. Sorry. Tour is just killing us. I think we
You do owe me a million emails and more phone calls. I was starting to suspect you'd met another older woman and would stop flirting with me. Imagine my surprise to find out my instincts were right.
How could you, Nicky! ::sniff:: LOL!
>I figured you might have some gossip on her. Know she's friends with Em (did her CD cover pix) and used to date Damon from that band that Em's husband is in. Blush? Blur? Whatever. Tell me more about that please!?!?
More about Damon and Rachel????? Where to start. Met on tour - how cliché! - she was rebound girl. Damon and Justine (Elastica, you will hate their music, though) dated for fuckin' ever. Heroin might do a body good, but it completely fucks up relationships, okay, little man?
Anyway, they were breaking up and he met Rachel. She was breaking it off with that Brett-Suede look alike in her band. (Oh, why do I even bother to throw English rock references at you? Go look them up online next time you're bored and NOT WRITING ME EMAIL!)
She moved to London post-tour, I believe. Of course, Damon cheated on her with Suzi (they live together now) and 9 months later little Missy was born. You'd think that'd make her leave right? Guess again. She hung around. Don't know what was going on there. Em does. They are better friends, I only heard Damon's side of things, oddly enough.
Oh… amusing Damon fact, buy Elastica's first album and listen to track 14. That's Damon to a "t" - and before you ask, I know from experience. :: Howie wink::
Enough dirt? What are you giving me in exchange? ::grin:: I will make you model in one of my shows yet. When are you back in the UK?
>And btw, where is that present you promised me last time we talked? You know I have no fashion sense!
You are hopeless. I have half a mind to instruct Frank to burn all of your clothes. Sent you a Fed Ex to the Boston RC last week. Should be waiting for you, darling. See… I'm true to my word!
**kisses**
-Katie
Elastica… didn't Rachel make me buy that in New York? I jumped up and found my CD wallet. It was now all chick rock, thanks to Rachel. It wasn't all bad, I guess.
I found the Elastica CD and popped it into the stereo… track 14. Thrashing guitars started immediately and I bopped my head up and down to the drums. Kick ass.
What was that? I started the track again. Damn, she sang fast. As fast as Rachel, but I couldn't understand the lyrics at all through her British accent.
Is there something you lack when I'm flat on my back
Is there something that I can do for you?
It's always something you ate or it's something you hate
Tell me is it the way that I touch you?
Have you found a new mate and is she really great
Is it just that I'm much too much for you?
I just stared at the CD player, then played the song again. Damon was certainly no match for the wanton sex goddess I knew. What was she like when she was with him?
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