Chapter 6:
Mason was perched behind the desk when Taylor stumbled into his hotel later that night, a more than necessary amount of alcohol coursing through his system as usual. It was nice to walk in and see a familiar face at the end of the day, a feeling Taylor had taken for granted up until now.
Mason looked up from the computer screen she was working on when he entered the large glass doors of the lobby and smiled. "Guess what I heard on the news today?"
"That Taylor Hanson is officially a missing person?" he said as he approached.
"So you saw it too," she leaned forward, elbows resting on the counter. "What are you going to do?"
"I don't know," he sighed, running his fingers through his hair. "I actually turned on my phone after I saw that and received a text from Ike saying they know where I am and they're coming to New York to find me. And with it being all over the news, I'm sure it's only a matter of time before my hiding spot is blown."
"Don't you think you should just talk to them and let them know you're safe and everything, but that you need more time alone to sort things out?"
"My brothers would never accept an answer like that. They want to talk," Taylor said. "They won't just let problems sit - they need to solve them immediately. They won't understand me just wanting to be hiding out in a different state and doing nothing."
"So are you going to go somewhere else?" she asked, a note of sadness in her voice. She had just gotten Taylor back in her life and didn't want to lose him again so soon.
Taylor just shrugged, the wheels in his head clearly turning.
"Well, I'll have to talk to Alexa about it, but if you need a place to stay and want to hide out at our apartment for awhile, you're more than welcome to," she offered. "It's less public than a hotel, and you won't have credit card charges that can be traced to your location."
"I'll think about it. Thanks," Taylor said with a nod. "I'm going upstairs to get some sleep. I'll talk to you later."
Mason smiled. "Okay, let me know if you need anything. I'll be down here all night."
"You can divert my brothers if by chance they walk through that front door," he said over his shoulder as he headed toward the elevator.
"Tay, wait," Mason called after him. Taylor turned around after pushing the elevator button. "I'm having a small get-together tomorrow evening at my place. You should come...bring some drinks."
The elevator dinged and the doors opened.
"Sounds good," Taylor replied before stepping inside.
Once he was showered and rid of the bar filth that had started to cling to his body like a second skin, Taylor climbed into bed and grabbed his phone. He scrolled through all of the text messages he'd already read through. About fifty of them were from his family: Mom, Dad, Ike, Jessie, Mom, Zac, Mom, Avery, Mac, Dad, Mom, etc. Each of them were becoming more and more frantic and pleading, until the most recent decisive one from Ike: We know that you're in NY. We're coming to find you.
Taylor hit the reply button and stared at the blank screen that awaited his response. Should he just tell him where he was and get it over with?
Deciding he wasn't ready, Taylor turned off his phone and set it on the nightstand before reaching over and clicking off the lamp. How would they ever find him in New York anyway?
* * * * * * * * *
Taylor climbed the stairs to Mason's apartment, a six-pack of beer in each hand. He wasn't sure this whole party thing was a good idea. After all, he had no idea who else would be there, and he didn't want to risk being recognized. But he trusted Mason and believed that she wouldn't put him in a situation that would cause him trouble. Besides, there would be alcohol there, which was becoming more essential than oxygen to Taylor these days.
Right as he was about to knock on the door, it opened and Alexa appeared in the doorway with a large trash bag in her hand.
"Well, here we go again," she laughed, "practically running into each other."
Taylor chuckled. "We just have perfect timing, don't we?"
"Come on in, I'm just running this out to the dumpster. Mason is in there somewhere." She waved her free hand toward the living room with a smile.
"Thanks," Taylor said, stepping aside so Alexa could move past him and out of the doorway.
Taylor headed into the sea of unfamiliar faces. There weren't a ton of people in the apartment, but the small size of the place made it seem like it was packed. Mason was in the kitchen with a few other girls, piling drinks into an ice-filled sink as well as a large cooler on the floor.
"Tay! You made it!" Mason smiled when she spotted her friend.
"I made it," he said, holding up the beers. She motioned for him to join her by the sink, and several moments passed in silence while she worked.
"You won't regret coming - I promise. I have a lot of great friends who I think you'll really get along with," Mason said as she dug Taylor's beers down into the ice.
Taylor quickly learned that Mason was right. He enjoyed the crowd she surrounded herself with and was pleasantly surprised to find that they were all creative souls like her; like him. A little crazy and off-the-wall at times, but people who didn't judge and who felt with their whole hearts and every bone in their body. This was a group he could see himself being a part of. One person he found himself bonding with more than anyone, though, was Alexa.
"Call me crazy, but you two have been tucked into this corner for like...all night," Mason walked up to where Taylor and Alexa were standing, slightly slurring her words. The party had been in full swing for a good three hours, and many of the partygoers were noticeably intoxicated.
"You've been busy, being the amazing hostess with the most-ess that you are," Alexa smiled. "Someone has to entertain him."
"Isn't she the sweetest?" Mason said, slinging an arm around Alexa's shoulders and planting a kiss on her cheek.
"Mason gets touchy feely when she drinks," Alexa explained with a little laugh.
"It's just 'cause I love you so much!" Mason said dramatically as she swooped Alexa's small frame into her arms and placed multiple kisses on her cheeks while spinning her around.
Taylor was greatly amused by Mason's inability to hold her alcohol. Unlike many of the others, he wasn't drunk yet. He had been building up quite a tolerance to the stuff, but Mason was long gone and poor Alexa was getting assaulted in the process.
"So, what were you guys talking about?" Mason asked after she finally set Alexa down but kept an arm around her shoulders, practically leaning on her.
"Alexa was just telling me about her writing..." Taylor began.
"Or lack thereof," Alexa finished.
"Lex is ridiculously talented at like, everything she does," Mason said. "It's annoying. She's probably the most creative person on the planet."
"Oh, stop it," Alexa said, embarrassed.
"She's a lot like you, Tay. Maybe that's why I adore her so much!" Mason gushed.
"How much have you had to drink, Mas?" Alexa raised her eyebrows.
"Ummm...that's a good question. Jacob over there was making me do shots with him, and I lost count," Mason slurred.
Taylor and Alexa both laughed as Mason got distracted by someone else and scampered off.
"Has she changed much over the years?" Alexa asked as she watched Mason flit across the room.
"You know, she really hasn't. Not at all," Taylor laughed.