[1.4]

"whoever that was back there, he wasn't my bobby"

Bobby could hear quiet snickers coming from his sister's room. He had been tuning his guitar in his room when he had noticed Reggie climbing in Mickey's window, as he so often did — one would think he'd get more graceful at it over time, but he continued to struggle to lift himself through the frame. But it didn't take long before Mickey had cheered Reggie up and they began to goof off.

In the short months that Mickey had known all the boys from Sunset Curve, she had become the closest to the bass player. In almost no time at all, Reggie had opened up to Mickey about everything in his life. He trusted her and she was always there as a friend and shoulder to cry on. It made Bobby happy, just knowing that Reggie had someone as wonderful as his sister in his life.

While Bobby didn't mind that Reggie now spent so much time in his sister's room — he trusted both of them together — the same couldn't be said for their parents. They made it no secret that they didn't like Mickey hanging out with a bunch of guys in a rock band. They'd rather she make more friends in her ballet program, despite how hard she tried to explain to them that all those girls were horrible.

So, while Bobby was happy that Mickey had cheered Reggie up, he knew he needed to put a stop to their constant giggles. There was no telling how angry their father would be if he found out Reggie had been staying the night in his baby girl's room at two a.m. on a weekend.

Bobby lightly knocked on Mickey's door, effectively cutting off whatever Reggie had been muttering to her. He chuckled and rolled his eyes when he heard shushing from the other side of the door, and he could just picture Mickey trying to shove Reggie under her bed or in her closet. After a few more moments, Mickey poked her head out of the door.

When she saw her brother, her shoulders relaxed and she smiled. "Hi, Bubba. What can I do for you?"

"I can hear Reggie from the hallway," he explained. "Dad's gonna flip if he finds out that Reg is in your room."

Mickey pouted up at him, worried that Bobby was going to make him leave. "Well, I'm not letting him go home tonight. Not while his parents are like this."

"I'd never tell you to kick him out, Mickey," Bobby assured her, putting a hand on her shoulder. "Just try to be quieter so you don't wake them up. Or play a movie to cover up his voice. I don't want you to get in trouble."

"Well, we were thinking about watching Ghostbusters. You wanna join and make it one big sleepover?" she asked, rocking back and forth.

Bobby grinned down at her and she quickly copied his smile. "I'll make the popcorn."

"Awesome! I'll go grab the tape from the living room."

"And maybe tell Reggie he can get out from under the bed. I know how messy it is under there," Bobby told her.

"How'd you know he's under the bed?"

"I can see his sneakers poking out the end."

Mickey giggled and rolled her eyes. "He can hang there until we get back. There's a Doodle Bear and a slinky somewhere under there to keep him entertained."

Mickey went to the living room and grabbed the VHS tape of Ghostbusters, as well as Raiders of the Lost Ark, knowing it was one of Bobby's favorites, so they might watch it after. Then she made her way to the kitchen and slid on top of the counter while waiting for him to finish the popcorn. Bobby got down the bowl to pour it into and then smirked at her.

"I'm kinda surprised you invited me to join you guys," he said.

Mickey tilted her head, confused. "Um, why wouldn't I invite you? You're my favorite person on the planet."

"I just thought you would've wanted some alone time with Reggie," Bobby said in a teasing tone.

She quickly scoffed, but he could see how her cheeks heated up. "Shut up, Bobby."

"So, are you not even gonna deny the fact that you totally have a crush on him?" he asked, laughing. Mickey tried to kick his shins, but his reflexes were accustomed to dodging her. "Just promise not to be as nauseating as Luke and Alex are about their relationship. All the cute makes it hard to come off as a super cool rock band."

"We're not gonna start dating, Bobby," she mumbled shyly. "I mean, I'm just your little sister in his eyes. I'll get over this."

Bobby smiled and wrapped an arm around her. Of course, he knew Reggie also had feelings for Mickey but knew he needed to tell her in his own way. "You are so much more than just my little sister, and Reggie would have to be blind not to see how fantastic you are."

"What'd I do to deserve such a sweet brother?" she asked, hugging him back.

"It's simply my job as the older sibling to make sure you're happy."

"You're only older by twelve minutes!"

"And I'll never let you forget it, Mickey Mouse."

"What's that burning smell?"

"Oh, shit! The popcorn!"

|||

Bobby, or Trevor's, house was pretty much the last place that Mickey wanted to be. But she was really too choked up to voice her opinions. Instead, she stayed by Reggie's side as he moved through the vast mansion. He intertwined his fingers with hers, and in between gasping at the ridiculously expensive decor, he would turn back to check on her, always placing a gentle kiss on her forehead or neck or hand to comfort her.

The only part of the Wilson house that Mickey had seen was Carrie's bedroom. Based on how large and well decorated it was, she wasn't surprised to see that the rest of the house was just as fancy. However, it looked nothing like what any of them would've expected.

Bobby's walls had been decorated with posters of his favorite bands and polaroids of Mickey and the guys taped to his wall. Trevor decorated these walls with huge self-portraits and art that looked far too fancy for any of their liking. The house was huge and it screamed luxury, something that none of them had ever experienced growing up. It left a bad taste in all of their mouths.

"Bobby's house is ridiculous," Alex stated, looking around in disbelief. "Have you seen these platinum records?"

"Platinum?" Reggie asked in shock.

Luke was crouching down to read the name of one of the songs. "He recorded My Name Is Luke. My name is Luke!" he exclaimed, pointing to his chest.

And then the moment that Mickey had been dreading happened. Trevor Wilson walked through the door. Mickey took in a sharp breath as she looked at him — really looked at him. Not a short glance like the first time she had seen him. Gone was the Bobby that used to intentionally dress like he shopped exclusively from the sales wrack at the thrift shop. He was wearing a velvet biker jacket and sunglasses despite the fact that he was inside.

"It's him," Reggie said, holding Mickey tighter.

"Hey, Carrie. I'm gonna meditate," Trevor called to his daughter.

"He wears sunglasses indoors," Reggie said, rolling his eyes.

"I'm in the den!" Carrie shouted back, letting him know where she would be if needed.

"Cool." Trevor headed up the stairs, the four ghosts watched him leave, all with various sad and angry looks on their faces.

"I can't stand him," Reggie said, glaring at his retreating back.

"Time for his past to haunt him," Luke whispered, following Trevor up the stairs.

Reggie moved to follow him, but Mickey had stayed put. He looked down at their hands then back up at her. "Mick? You coming?"

Mickey wiped under her eyes — though it was pretty pointless, as she kept crying — and unenthusiastically nodded. No, she didn't want to take part in messing with her brother, but she'd stay by Reggie's side as they did. He gently tugged on her hand again and this time she joined him on the stairs.

"Wait!" Alex said suddenly. They all looked back at him, confused. "Let's not rush this. You know, it's my... my first time haunting someone. I wanna make it special."

Even Mickey, in her distraught state, couldn't help but look at Alex as if he'd grown a second head. It sounded ridiculous, and the other three shared a look before just letting the odd request go.

"Okay, Alex," Luke told him, before he, Reggie, and Mickey kept going up the stairs.

"That was weird. Okay," Alex whispered, following after them.

While Trevor changed into his meditating clothes, the guys bounced ideas off of each other. By the time that Trevor came out in a ridiculously pretentious outfit and a man-bun, the ghosts had a solid plan for their first haunting. Trevor lit some candles and turned on some calming music before sitting down to meditate.

He only had a few calm seconds before Luke licked his finger and stuck it in his ear, giving him a wet willy like it was the old days. Trevor cringed and covered his ear, not sure what had happened. Meanwhile, the guys were having the time of their life.

Alex blew out the candles, while Reggie took Mickey over to Trevor's stereo and he changed it to a rock station. Trevor got up to turn it off, but Reggie quickly switched it back on. By then, Luke had run into the bathroom and turned the shower on.

"Carrie?" Trevor asked, slowly making his way there to investigate. He checked the bathroom and turned the shower off when he noticed that Carrie hadn't been in there.

The bathroom mirror had fogged up from the steam, so Reggie walked over to write on it. Trevor heard the squeaking and walked over.

Mickey kept her eyes glued to her brother's face as Reggie wrote "hello Bobby" in the fog. He paled at the sight of his old name. Then he quickly ran to leave the room. However, the four ghosts had poofed to the other side of the door and Alex held it shut, causing Trevor to run right into it. Trevor panicked and tried to pry it open while the guys stood back and laughed.

"Let me out!" Trevor shouted. Finally, he pushed hard enough to get the door open, and Alex ran out of his way. Trevor fled the room, scared out of his mind, and the guys all laughed at their success.

The only one not laughing was Mickey.

"C'mon. Let's see that stupid helicopter take off," Luke said, high fiving Alex.

"I gotta go," Mickey muttered. Her voice cracked as she spoke for the first time. She slipped her hand out of Reggie's and stepped back. He immediately frowned and tried to reach for her, but she stepped back again.

"Well, I'll come with—"

"I just need to be alone right now, Reggie," she said, looking at the floor. "I get that this was fun for you guys, but not for me. It just hurt, because that is not my brother. I don't know who that is, but it's not the Bobby I left behind."

"Yeah, that's why we're doing this, Princess," Luke said, smiling at her. "He's gotta pay for what he did to you—"

"I don't want him to pay!" she exclaimed, tugging on her hair. "I just - I want my brother, but he's gone and - and - and I need... I need—"

Reggie reached for her and held her face gently in his hands. "Hey, tell me what you need. Whatever you need and I'll help you," he told her softly.

"I need to be alone."

Mickey flashed out of the house without a goodbye, leaving Reggie staring at the place she once stood with a heartbroken look on his face.

|||

After leaving the mansion, Mickey flashed to the studio. What she really wanted was to curl up on her own bed and cry, but that wasn't an option anymore, so she settled for the bean bag chair up in the loft. Seeing Bobby and what he had turned into only made her feel worse, and she couldn't stand being there any longer.

That was where Julie found her, curled up in a ball and crying with her face shoved in an old sweatshirt that had belonged to Bobby. She lightly knocked on the wall to let Mickey know that she was there, not wanting to spook her.

"I said that I wanted to be alone, Reggie," Mickey said, automatically assuming that the bassist would be the first to seek her out.

"Not Reggie," Julie told her.

Mickey quickly wiped under her eyes with the sweatshirt before turning to Julie — of course, the action did nothing to help, as more tears soon followed. "What?"

"Hey," Julie said softly. "Um, I just, I wanted to check on you. I know this must be hard."

"It - I just—" Mickey sighed and bit her lip, trying to get her words out. "I - I know that the guys want revenge, but I j - just want my brother back. Whoever that was back there, he wasn't my Bobby. I mean, h - how could he just pretend like I never existed, Julie? Like, he just forgot about me?"

Julie sighed and sat across from Mickey. If she could've touched the girl, she would've hugged her tightly.

"I can't even imagine how you are feeling right now," Julie told her. "But I wanted to talk to you."

Mickey scoffed. "If this is about how I'm your worst enemy's aunt or you trying to get me to convince the guys to focus on the dance, then I'd really rather not. I'm sorry, but I just really don't care about any of that right now."

"No. No, of course not," Julie told her, shaking her head. "I - I wouldn't expect you to do that. I, um, I actually wanted to talk to you about Trevor, er, uh, Bobby, I mean."

Mickey glanced at her and wiped under her nose. "What about him?"

"I don't know why he's done the horrible things that he did. And I certainly am not defending him," she clarified. "But... I did grow up around him."

"Yeah, and he didn't say a single goddamn thing about me to you or even his own fucking daughter," she said, glaring at the wall. Her emotions had been flipping from angry to sad and back and forth since Julie had broken the news.

"No, he didn't," Julie said quietly. Then she sighed. "So, you know how I said that none of his albums were as good as his first?"

"Because he stole it," Mickey muttered.

"He, uh, he actually had one other hit. It was on his third album. It, um, it wasn't even released as a single, but it was so amazing that it reached the number one spot on the charts hours after it was released. It held the spot for twelve weeks, and it was the last great song he ever put out," Julie explained. She tried to catch Mickey's eyes, but she was staring at the wall.

"Twenty-five years and he could only write one good song?" she asked, rolling her eyes and wiping under her nose again. "I bet it was a Luke song he had forgotten about. God, how'd he even afford that mansion with just one good album?"

Julie ignored her snarky remarks. "The song is called Michelle."

Mickey bit her lip and a fresh slew of tears welled up in her eyes. "L - Luke never... he never wrote a song about me."

"I don't know why Bobby never told anyone about you. But he didn't forget about you."

Mickey sniffed and shoved her head back in the sweatshirt. Her shoulders shook as a sob wracked her body. "Julie, I - I know you mean well, but this is really making me feel worse."

"I think it's gonna be a long time before you feel better," Julie said honestly. "But just don't push your friends away to try and deal with it alone. I did that with my mom's death, and a lot changed because of it. I know that Reggie, Luke, and Alex will be there for you every step of the way so long as you let them. You don't have to be alone."

|||

Mickey was still high off of the adrenaline that came with performing. The opening night of The Nutcracker had just finished, and she had performed perfectly as Clara. After changing from her beautiful costume and into some jeans and a warm sweatshirt, she met her family in the front lobby.

Her parents and brother were waiting for her with a big bouquet of flowers. First, her parents hugged her and congratulated her before passing her to Bobby. He excitedly embraced her and lifted her up off the ground so he could swing her from side to side.

"You did fantastic, Mickey Mouse," he said, grinning down at her. "I'm so proud of you!"

"Thanks, Bubba," she said, leaning on his shoulder. "And thanks for coming. I know the guys wanted to have a rehearsal tonight. So, it means a lot that you skipped it for me."

"Oh, I'd do anything you asked, Mick. Besides, I love watching you dance," he told her. "Anddd I may have brought along a little surprise."

Mickey looked up at him quizzically, but then she was being hugged from behind by three boys. "Mickey!" they all exclaimed.

Bobby smiled happily as his three best friends embraced his little sister — only by twelve minutes, but he liked to rub it in. He and his parents had agreed to get the boys tickets at the last minute and let them tag along to dinner, knowing it would make Mickey happy. Besides, if they left Luke in the house alone, there was no telling what kind of trouble he would cause.

"Thanks so much, guys," Mickey said, taking the flowers that each boy held in their hands. Alex had daisies, Luke had tulips, and Reggie gave her roses. Her arms were full of flowers now and she couldn't wait to put them around her room. "I didn't know you guys were coming."

"Bobby wanted to surprise you," Luke said, grinning. "I guess he can be an okay brother when he wants to."

"He's a perfect brother," Mickey said, standing on her toes to kiss Bobby on the cheek. "Now everyone I love is here."

"You were absolutely awesome," Alex told her. "I still don't get how you managed to get all the way up on your toes for so long."

"Oh, there's like wooden blocks in her shoes," Reggie told him, happy that he had learned that. "I think it hurts though."

"Well, it looks cool," Alex said, shrugging. Luke leaned against the drummer, who wrapped his arm around his shoulder — the two seemed to be testing the waters of a potential relationship, but nothing had been made official.

"We're gonna let you kids ride in Bobby's car to the restaurant," Bobby and Mickey's father told them. "We'll meet you there, but we've gotta get going to make the reservation."

Their mother took the armful of flowers from Mickey to keep in their car, while the kids all headed for Bobby's car. While they normally argued for shotgun, they let Mickey have it since it was her big night, and the three boys crammed into the back seat.

"You, uh, you looked really pretty," Reggie said, leaning forward to compliment her.

Mickey's cheeks heated up, but it was too dark for him to see. "Thanks, Reg. The costumes really are beautiful. I wish I could dress up in them every day."

Reggie sighed, knowing she didn't take the compliment how he meant it. She thought that he was just saying she looked pretty because of the whole Nutcracker dress and makeup. He leaned back in his seat and Luke patted him on the shoulder, whispering that he could try again later that night.

"Mom and Dad can't make it to tomorrow night's show, but I'll be there," Bobby told her, following his parents to the restaurant.

"Bobs, you don't have to come. I know it'll be boring to watch a second time," Mickey said, giving him a small smile.

Bobby playfully scoffed. "Bored? No way. I could never be bored while my awesome little sis is dancing her tutu off. Plus, I'm hoping I can catch Moira glaring daggers at you again. She's still mad you got Clara, and I wanna rub in the fact that my sister is a better dancer than her."

Mickey glanced in the rearview mirror and caught Luke's eye. The pair shared a sneaky look, knowing their plan with the itching powder had been the main reason that Moira wasn't considered for the lead.

"Besides," Bobby continued, "you should have someone there for you every night. You worked hard to be so good. You come to all our shows and don't get bored of hearing the same songs over and over again, so I want to support you just as much as you support us."

"Thanks, Bobby."

"Anything for you, Mick."