"You don't take this and you're fired. It's simple as that." Lilian Bradford lets me know menacingly from behind her desk, her hands folded neatly on the table in front of her. 

"Fired? You can't fire me, I'm your best asset!" I yell back.

"Yes, and that is exactly why you were chosen for this! So if you don't take it, we lose a major client and do you know what I do to people who lose me a major client?" she cocks an eyebrow at me.

I choose not to answer because I knew what Lilian did to her people already. She treats them like crap with little to no consideration for their lives or their wishes. She gives them the job if they're qualified and then they are stuck with her for life until they forget her coffee or dry cleaning.

"I fire them." She says anyway, making me roll my eyes. I had made Addy drive me here straight after the crew meeting, determined to turn this job down for good and be done with it all. 

"Look, Lilian, I can't possibly describe to you why I don't want this job okay? But I cannot take it. Give me something else, anything! I'll do anything."

"I want you to do this." She replies sternly. I was angry and hopeless, those two were never a good combination.

"Why can't you put Celeste or Addy on this? Why me?" I ask, my question coming out a whine.

"Let me tell you something Sierra, I do not hire twenty-year-old children to do my bidding. My company is not a joke. I do not take my work lightly and it is my duty to find the right people for my clients."

I nod. Trying to show her that I was all ears.

"I hired you because I saw your potential. I saw in you what I haven't seen in anyone for years and that is why I have put you in the place I have today."

"I know this might seem like a small job to you. Being a designer and makeup artist for some band but this is bigger than you think. This is the era of detail, every last one is scrutinized. Every single thing that's going to make those men look good up on those stages are going to be observed, excruciating detail by detail and so I chose my best when they came asking."

This was the first time that Lilian has ever said anything nice to me. My anger and desperation aside, I wish I had a recorder right now.

"Thanks, Lilian but..."

"No let me finish," she holds up a hand. "I want you to take this. I need you to. I don't know why you're refusing this and I am sure you have your reasons but if you don't take this, we're losing a big opportunity here."

"I appreciate your kind words Lilian, I really do and I'm thankful for everything you have done for me but I can't. Any of the other girls would do a good job too and even better than I could." I try to reason further.

"I saw the way you stormed in here. I know this is a rash decision you're making. Take this job for the first month of the tour, till I can find a new one."

"A month? I don't want to spend a day with them!"

"Can't you spare a month for me, Sierra? After all I have done for you? Not even a month?" Her voice loses all its edge, seeming like she really did not have a choice. 

"Fine. A month. Exactly a month and I'm done. It starts September sixteenth and ends October sixteenth. Not a day more." I grumble, unable to refuse this woman even though she has made my life a living hell most days. 

"Deal." She grins, passing me a stack of papers to sign. "You'll get everything you need for the tour, I promise."

"I don't need anything. I just need to get this over with." I frown, signing all the sheets of paper and standing up.

"Thank you for doing this, Sierra," Lilian says before I leave.

"It's what I do Lilian. I sacrifice."

---

When I get home my house is full. Adelaide, Montana, and Troye are all seated around my dining table, discussing something in hushed tones. "Don't remember giving any of you, my house keys." I joke, putting my purse and keys down on the counter.

"What happened?" Addy questions, ignoring my joke.

"What do you think happened Adelaide? I signed the damn dotted line."

Montana who is clicking a pen nervously pauses. "I thought you were going to quit?"

"Yes, I was. But then Lilian decides to give me this huge speech on how much she needs me to do this and I agreed to tour with them for a month until she can find a replacement for me."

"Oh." Addy mutters, looking a bit annoyed. 

"That's great news but I think you should come take a look at this first." Troye motions at the laptop in front of him and I walk over, peeking at the screen over his shoulder.

E! News Exclusive

"Check out all the exclusive pictures HERE! From the engagement party of the unexpected but lovely new couple, Burberry's new face, Ana Sacoma and NBA Star player Jamie Jackwall."

"What the hell?" I gasp, reaching over and clicking on the pictures.

"Our reaction exactly." Montana points out.

I scroll through the pictures, a bit overwhelmed at what I was seeing. Didn't she just break up with Luke a while ago?

"This means she was cheating on him. That's probably why he's so depressed." I frown, looking at the others and trying to put the pieces together in my head.

She didn't even look guilty in any of the pictures. She looked like a girl that just got landed the entire world. I wanted to wipe the smug smile off of her stupid face. "You can't really be mad at Luke now, can you?" Troye asks me.

"I know he must be hurting but why is he taking it out on me?" I question no one in particular, going to grab a juice carton from the fridge. My heart was breaking for Luke. I never held things against people, no matter how badly they treated me. Life was simply too short. His words from this afternoon still resonate through my head.

She will ruin me!

"Maybe he likes you." Addy blurts out.

"Ha! Sure because that's what he said in front of an entire crew meeting today." I laugh with a mocking look her way. 

"You never know child, you never know." She shrugs, blowing air out of her mouth.

Troye shuts his laptop loudly, "Okay ladies, let's not ruin our day further. Others relationships aside, we should do something tonight. You guys are leaving in like...Ten days and I won't see you for a whole month? Two? Who knows?"

I sigh again. "What do you suppose we do? Not like I'm in the mood to come up with something crazy."

"Hey! I can come up with crazy too okay?" Addy pretends to look offended, making us all laugh. I didn't know where I'd be without these guys. They only needed a few short minutes to change my bad moods into good ones.

"I... can't really stay, sort of have a date with Calum tonight." Montana gives us her excuse, mumbling the name of her date probably wishing we wouldn't catch on. 

"You what?!" We all shout at the same time, making her jump in her seat. 

"He asked you out?!" I ask, excitedly pulling her up out of her chair. 

"Yess!" She squeals and we jump around the kitchen shrieking like teenagers who just got asked to prom. 

"I need to go and get ready. You guys, however, should do something tonight since our darling girl here signed the contract of doom." Montana jokes, wrapping her arms around my shoulders.

"Let's have a movie night!" Adelaide suggests.

"I'll get the popcorn," Troye adds, standing up.

"I'll order Chinese." Addy walks off, winking at me. She knew how much I loved Chinese food on my bad days.

"Alright, have a good night love. I knew he was into you the second he saw you." I grin, walking with Montana to the front door.

She smiles faintly. "I'll call you as soon as it's over and give you all the details."

"Can't wait!" I chuckle, hugging her as my cell phone starts ringing loudly in my pocket. I pull it out and check the screen.

Incoming Call: Mom

---

Ashton's Point Of View.

"I miss you." I text Addy and throw my phone back onto the bed.

"Does this tie go with this shirt?" Calum asks, coming into the room from the bathroom. We had dragged Luke back to the hotel, given him Advil and put him to sleep without saying anything. He was a complete mess and we didn't want to add to it by blaming him for ruining the meeting today or for saying all those things in front of our new tour crew. We will have to have a long talk later.

"Hmm, I like it mate, what do you think?" I ask Michael who is sitting next to Luke on the bed who is fast asleep, brushing Luke's hair aside in a soothing motion with one hand and typing away on his phone with the other.

Michael looks up from his phone screen and gives Calum a critical eye. "I like."

"Alright good. So I'm gonna head out uh... Hope you two will be okay babysitting Luke for a couple hours. I'll be back after my date with Montana." He grins, but hides it quickly, scratching the back of his head. He was already so whipped no matter how much he denied it.

"We got this man. Go have fun." We didn't have much of the thing called fun these days. Ever since Luke's been screwing up, we've been fixing his mess and looking after him the best we can. Management couldn't care less about our mental states or health, they just wanted work. We were family and we didn't leave each other behind so we dealt with it ourselves.

I turn to Michael on the bed when Calum leaves "So... Kate eh? Got over that Sara girl too fast mate." I joke, making him shoot a glare at me.

I remain quiet as Luke stirs, mumbling something. "Ana, don't do this." I close my eyes and lay by his feet on the bed as my heart breaks for my brother for about the tenth time that day.

---

"But mom, I'm heading to LA in a week and then I'm flying to Brazil for the tour. I don't have time to come home!" I drop my free hand to my side with exasperation as I hold the phone close to my ear with the other.

"I thought you weren't taking this job?" She complains at the other end. 

"I have no choice. I have to." I say monotonously.

"All you do is work. You don't spare a second for your family now." She says in a mocking tone like I was trying to keep my job out of spite for her or whatever that was making her so mad. 

"We raised you better than this." She is sure to add to the mix of hurtful things. 

I don't answer back to that. I have practiced endless patience throughout the years when it came to dealing with my mother. She was a very ignorant woman. "Listen, I do not have the time, mother. This is only for a month and when I'm done, I'll fly back there." I explain to her calmly.

"Is there something that you are hiding from us? What are you up to over there? I knew we shouldn't have let you live there alone after university." I loved my mother. Because you love your mother, it is a natural thing for a child but if she was someone I passed on the street and had a conversation with, I wouldn't have spent another minute in her presence.

"I'm not hiding anything, mom. I'm just very busy." I plead, ready for this phone call and day to end.

"Too busy for your own family? It's your brother's birthday this week and remember how I told you we were throwing him a big birthday party?" She stubbornly reminds me, ignoring my pleas.

My family was big on birthdays. No matter how much we fought or argued or didn't like each other, my parents always found the need to have huge extravagant birthdays every year, including a huge cake enough to feed half the population.

"No, I—I don't want to miss Danny's birthday. I'm sorry but this week leading up to the tour will be hectic." She stays quiet for a second. Her silence was never a good thing.

"That's it then, we're flying there, tomorrow. I have to see what it is that you're doing."

I start to panic a little. "You don't have to do that. I'll be there in mid-October!" I tug at my hair as Addy motions at me, asking me what was wrong.

"No! We are coming to see you and that is final." My mother says in a stern voice and the line goes dead.

Breathe Sierra, breathe.

---

Three years ago

"I want to go to fashion school in New York City," I tell my parents, sitting across from them on the couch in our living room. 

"New York? That is too far away." My mother protests immediately. 

"That is exactly why I want to go there, mom. I want to leave this place. I have to get out of here." I reason, looking at my father who was more understanding of the two.

"You know we can't come with you, right?" Dad asks. Their whole lives were here in London and they couldn't move now even if they wanted to. I knew they couldn't come with me.

"I know. But Addy is there and so is Aunt Rose, Troye is leaving in a month too. Let me go, Dad, please. I can't stay here, not after all this."

"Aunt Rose who we haven't seen in sixteen years." My mother mutters under her breath. Dad stares at the wall behind me for a while without saying anything, deep in thought.

"Go upstairs and check on your brother. We'll decide this later." Mother orders finally, dismissing me and my problems.

"No, I want to know now." I protest.

"Young lady! We are not discussing this right now! So if you want us to consider this then go check on your brother!" She yells just like she does when things don't go her way. I get up and stalk off, climbing the stairs two at a time. I'm eighteen years old for crying out loud! I had the right to decide my own future. I have been through way too many things in the past year to be treated like a child. I had to grow up too fast so now I had to keep growing.

I stop in front of my brother's room and take a deep breath to calm myself before walking in. "Danny? Hey, what are you doing?" I coo because my initial reaction is to coo at my baby brother. 

"Racing." He replies, not looking up from his little tablet that was most likely frying his budding brain. Technology was ruining childhoods.

I sit down next to him on the bed. "Do you want to be a racer one day?" He contemplates this for a second and then nods at me happily. I missed my childhood, nothing was hard then. 

There's a slight knock on the door after a while, pulling me back from my thoughts. "Danny, Mom has a treat for you in the kitchen." Dad points, walking into the room.

My brother groans but goes anyway, his tiny footsteps receding down the staircase.

"Sierra, honey, I know this has been hard for you. I know you want to get away from all this and I'm glad that you have pulled yourself together the way you have. Your mother and I are very proud of you. Even though she doesn't show it."

I pick at the seams of my pants. "Thanks, Dad."

"If you really want to go to New York, then we're not going to stop you."

"Really? I can go?" I squeal, jumping up to hug him.

"Yes, you can, but promise me you'll be safe. I'm letting you go because I trust you and I know you are capable of achieving great things."

"I promise I will. I love you."

"I love you too, sweetheart." He pats my back, turning to walk back out. 

"I'll work hard I promise." 

He stops mid step and turns around, smiling faintly at me.

"Heath would have wanted you to be happy."

A/N:

Hope this established that Sierra is, in fact, taking the job and a little insight into her family and how she feels about them.

Your support has been incredible and it means so much to me so thank you so much.