"Taylor, Christopher came by and spoke to me, he and the label feel it would be best to keep your public exposure with Will at the smallest right now," Diana said.

"What," Tay replied in a calm cool tone.

"You left just a little bit before Christopher pulled in, so we weren't able to tell you, but Island doesn't want you to be seen with Will everywhere, they are afraid it will effect your image," she replied.

"Mom, you and I both know that Will saved my life, if it hadn't been for him I'd be dead this very second and there wouldn't be 'Hanson.' I already told you that I love him, and that I'm not going to let anything come between us whatsoever, he's going with us even if he has to ride in my lap," Tay replied quietly.

"I'll even opt for overhead compartment if I have to," I replied trying to alleviate the tension.

"Well Tay, you know I had to try, I understand and here is another ticket so Will doesn't have to get a stiff neck on the way," Diana said as she handed me a ticket.

We both hugged her and headed back to the main hallway where Ike and Zac stood waiting looking a little confused.

"Ok, dude's let's go, Ike you don't mind if Will bums out of our suit cases until he gets a wardrobe do yah, great let's go," Tay said not allowing Ike time to reply.

I looked back at Ike with a kind of embarrassed look on my face. He smirked and winked. I realized Ike wasn't the kind of guy to sweat the small stuff. We had just gone out the door when we heard Christopher storm out behind us. He looked very pissed and got into his car. Just before he pulled out he rolled down his window.

"Taylor, you're only going to make this more difficult than it already is," he said as he pulled away not allowing Tay enough time to reply.

"Screw him," Tay replied to the departing car.

"Dude, don't let him get to you," Ike replied to his brother.

"No man, he's trying to split us up and I'm not cool with it one bit, he knows how much Will means to me," Tay said slamming the limo door.

"Yeah I know but he's just thinking about the Hanson image," Ike replied.

"Hanson image my ass, we are the Hanson image, what we are is what the image is, it's not as if we are some invented sound or group that had no talent to begin with and is hiding under a facade. We are real, what we do is us," Tay almost roared.

"Chill man, I've never seen you get this riled up over something this silly," Zac commented.

"Zac, something this silly, this is my life, I don't see anything silly about it," Tay snapped.

"Silly was the wrong word," Zac muttered to himself.

"Tay, calm down, I'm here, we're together, that's all that should matter, you know. I mean I understand where you're coming from, I'm in the same boat with you, so just relax, we're together, and that's all that matters," I consoled him.

The rest of the ride to the airport was quiet. Tay and I sat together as Ike and Zac quietly looked out the window. I felt horrible, like the element in this wonderful family that was slowing tearing it down. I wanted to cry but held in the tears. This wouldn't have been a good time. We arrived at the airport and boarded the plane without incident. It was a quiet peaceful flight. Tay and I fell asleep in each other's embrace and were awakened as we prepared to land in LaGuardia.

There wasn't much of a crowd outside the plane. It was probably due to the fact that this was a last minute booking and the fans hadn't had the time to gather. It was chilly and damp, a drizzly rain fell on the shiny black runway as we ran down the stairwell to the waiting covered transport.

After we had all piled in we were brought over to the private exit area where a black van waited with the MTV logo on it. Standing by the van was Christopher Sabec, Hansons manager.

I got out and followed behind Tay as they hopped in the van, Chris jumped in front of me and told me to use the other side and pulled the door shut. I walked around to the other side of the van and my stomach flip flopped. There was no other passenger door. The van pulled away as I heard Tay yelling inside. I turned around and two guys which I figured to be Mercury reps were standing behind me.

"Mr. Quest, we have your ticket back to Miami, we are supposed to make sure you board your plane safely," they said as they began to lead me away from the van which sped off and back toward the airport.

My mind was reeling. I couldn't think.

"Is this actually happening, no it can't be, I mean there's no way in hell," I thought to myself.

It wasn't until they tightened their grip on my arms that I realized that the space between myself and Tay was rapidly increasing. I had no proof of who I was, and that Tay and I were together. I had no way of letting someone know what was happening. I began to panic.

"Mr. Quest please don't cause a scene," the tall man on my left said as his grip grew tighter on my arm.

"You're not going to get away with this," I snapped, suddenly feeling more strength as I realized that soon I'd be on a plane to Miami adding hundreds of miles between me and Tay.

I jerked my arm away from the man on the right and kicked the other in the knee and turned back toward the exit gate and ran as fast as I could. I heard them scuffling behind me trying to get a foot hold on the wet tarmac beneath us. Luckily I was wearing a pair of Ikes thick soled boots and the traction was excellent. I ran as fast and as hard as I could. My heart beating a million times a second. The air in my throat stung as it hit my lungs which exploded and collapsed over and over desperately trying to oxygenate my blood as fast as possible. I glanced back to see the larger man gaining on me. I put my head down and tapped in to the last bit of adrenaline that was in me and ran as fast as I could. Up ahead lay the exit gates and some busy street in Manhattan.

Two guards glanced up from their note pads and saw me running toward them. They glanced behind me and saw the two men chasing after me.

"God help me they are trying to kidnap me," I screamed as loud as I could, drawing the attention of a few people on the outer sidewalks.

I bolted passed the guards which gave me no trouble. I turned out on to the sidewalk and high tailed it down the street. Glancing back behind me both men had been stopped by the guards and were arguing heavily.

Suddenly I slammed into someone and fell down on the sidewalk with a painful crash. A younger woman cursed as her groceries exploded from the damp brown paper sack all over the sidewalk and into the gutter. She was very attractive, in her mid to late twenties. About five foot seven, long wavy strawberry blond hair. Icy blue eyes a heart shaped face with a defined jaw line, nose so sharp she could cut cheese, pale skin and the kind of smile where you could see every one of her upper teeth. She was quite stacked too, I guessed at least a double D cup.

"Oh my God, mam I'm so sorry," I exclaimed as I brushed my hair back out of my eyes and tucked it behind my ears.

"Shit," she replied as she scrambled to pick everything up.

"Let me help, gosh I really didn't see you, some guys were trying to kidnap me," I explained as I gathered up a loaf of bread and some apples from the pavement.

"You better be glad I find you cute, otherwise I'd have probably decked you, besides you look pretty damn scared," she replied with a light smile.

"My name is, Taylor," I said extending my hand.

"Cassandra," she replied shaking it.

"Nice to meet you, um I need some help, I have to get to Times Square as fast as possible," I exclaimed.

"That's easy just get a cab," Cassandra replied as she piled the last item back into her tattered bag.

"That's just it, I don't have any money," I said looking down at the ground.

"You're alone in New York, Queens actually, and you have no money," she said slightly amused.

"Yeah, I was separated from my friends and I've got to catch up with them before it's too late," I replied.

"What's in Times Square," she asked.

"MTV," I said plainly.

"Your friends are going to stand out side MTV," she asked.

"Not exactly.'

"Well what then, if you want my help then you'd better be honest with me."

"Well, my boyfriend," I started.

"Boyfriend," she asked.

"Yeah, he's actually going to be on MTV, his manager doesn't want me around, and I got separated from him at the airport and now I've got to get back with him before he gets swept off back to Tulsa.

"What's his name," she asked.

"Does that really matter, it's not something we've really prepared for yet," I replied defending Taylor's identity.

"Well not really, I guess not," she replied glancing off.

"Well you could make it there in about two hours walking," she replied.

"Which way do I go," I asked eagerly.

"Actually there are a number of ways to go, you could take the Triboro Bridge, but I've never seen anyone walking on that. You could go through the Mid Town Tunnel, or you could take the 59th Street Bridge into Manhattan," she continued.

"You just tell me the fastest way and I'll go," I replied standing up.

"Kid, it's not really safe, you could easily get mugged out there," she said looking down the street. It was nearing three in the afternoon. The stormy weather wasn't helping matters and it was becoming more overcast by the moment.

"I have to go, which way is it," I asked.

"Shit, just a second," she muttered as she trotted up a front walk to her left and went inside.

She returned with something in her hand.

"I don't know why I believe you, or why I'm doing this, but here," she said handing me a hundred dollar bill. She stepped out to the curb and waved her hand. Not more than a second later a large yellow cab rolled up and stopped.

"Hey, man, get my friend here to 1515 Broadway in Times Square as fast as you can and you'll get a hundred dollars," she spoke to the cabbie.

"Now listen kid, I've got a feeling you're telling me the truth, and if you are then you won't care what happens to this hundred dollar bill, just so long as you get to your man, am I right," she asked grabbing me by the collar.

"Yeah, I just have to get there," I replied tears filling in my eyes.

"That's what I thought, and I'm sure your man has plenty of money to spare so don't worry about it," she replied glancing down at the drivers name plate.

"Mannie here will get you there as fast as possible, I'm gonna watch MTV and if don't see you on there I'm gonna be disappointed," she said with a smile.

"Don't worry, I'll be sure you see me when I get there," I replied.

"Take care kid," she said as she kissed me on the cheek and shoved me into the cab.

"Get going man, time is wasting," she said as she slapped the roof of the cab.

We sped off with a squeal as Mannie floored it. I glanced back behind us and watched as Cassandra's figure faded in the dim light and the distorted water streaked windshield behind me.

I shifted in the back seat uneasily as Mannie took turns pretty sharp. The old vinyl seat was quite slick and I caught myself almost sliding around like a hockey puck. Not much later the light drizzling of ran turned into a down pour. Mannie's wipers slapped furiously at the sheets of water which desperately tried to impair his vision. I wasn't sure how long we had been driving or what time it was, but it seemed to have grown increasingly dark outside.

"Um sir, what time is it," I asked.

"It's about three forty five," he replied.

I gasped Total Request Live ended at four o'clock.

"Mannie, I've gotta get to 1515 in less than fifteen minutes," I exclaimed.

"Kid I'm going as fast as I can, with this rain and the traffic," he replied.

"Why the hell is it so damn dark out," I snapped.

"This weather is making it dark, but the buildings are blocking out most of the light," he replied.

"Hold on, I can't really tell where we are," Mannie exclaimed leaning up to the windshield squinting through a pair of horn-rimmed glasses.

"Are we close," I asked with anticipation.

"Hold on it's too heavy," he replied rolling down his window looking out as the rain splattered in on him.

"Kid, if you get out and run you can make it, it's just about a block ahead," Mannie replied.

"Thanks man, here you go," I said handing him the one hundred dollars.

"Whoa, she wasn't kidding was she," he replied shocked.

"No," I said jumping out into the torrents of cold rain that plummeted down from high above the dark city.

I started to run, temporarily blinded by the headlights all around me. I finally got my bearings and got onto the sidewalk. Even in the rain there was pedestrian traffic. I ran as fast as I could. Slipping but catching myself quite a few times. Almost running into people as I darted between clusters of umbrellas. I stopped for a breath and glanced up to my right.

There glowing at me from within the sheets of rain was the large Panasonic television screen in the heart of Times Square. I looked ahead and barely could make out the black glass Viacom building, the home of MTV, VH1, Nickelodeon, TVLand and many other cable stations. Ahead on the sidewalk was a crowd of fans all screaming and waving up.

I ran up in front of the crowd and was met face to face with three police officers.

"I've gotta get up there," I exclaimed to them sopping wet with my hair all stuck to my face.

"Yeah right kid, no one goes up, besides it's almost over," a fat short cop smarted off at me.

I backed up and tried to get a look. My eyes stung from the rain that assaulted them every time I tipped my head up to the brightly lit windows of the TRL studio above. I continued to back up until I realized I was in the front line of fans. All around me were teens, guys girls everyone holding limp and bleeding signs written in marker. They had almost all faded in the rain but you could still visibly make out the names 'Ike, Tay and Zac' on most of them. Off to the right and below the windows were sets of televisions showing what was on the air at that moment.

My heart jumped. There on the screen was Taylor. Talking to Carson Daily about something. The screaming was too loud for me to make out a single word, but it was obvious something was wrong. You could see that Tay had been crying and he looked very very detached. My heart ached.

"Taylor," I screamed at the top of my lungs with every ounce of remaining strength I had left in me. The crowd almost completely got quiet when I screamed. I hadn't realized that I had screamed the loudest and longest of any of them.

My mind got faint and I felt numb all over. I heard muffled voices around me as I felt myself tipping backwards.

"Oh my God, isn't that the guy who saved Tay's life in California," I heard one voice ask.

"I think so, oh shit, look," another voice called out.

I opened my eyes briefly, I was lying on the pavement. All around me were the fans, they had gathered around me and suddenly I felt a hand under my arm. Then under my legs, before I knew it I felt as if I was being lifted up by so many hands. I felt light as a feather, the rain fell down on me from above as I lifted from the pavement. My vision continued to blur, I felt sapped of energy. I heard more voices calling out.

"He needs Taylor, someone get their attention," someone screamed.

"Throw anything you got," some girl yelled out.

Suddenly I heard the sound of keys, purses, chang, and numerous other items smacking against plate glass. The crowd was chanting Taylor's name.

"Oh look," someone screamed.

I struggled to open my eyes. I looked up and saw a figure standing in the window looking down. My eyes drifted downward towards the television sets and I saw Tay staring out the window. The view changed and I saw myself being held up by a crowd of twenty or so fans. I saw Tays face again. His mouth moved I could visibly see him say 'Will' before I knew it he was gone from the view.

I began to sink back into this strange state of confusion when I heard someone yell.

"He's coming out!"

With that I was hit with a final burst of energy. I kicked my legs and struggled to move. The crowd lowered me to the ground and I staggered forward. Ahead of me were the police officers. The held their hands up in a way that I felt meant to block me. Then from out of nowhere I saw Taylor burst between them knocking them back. The crowd went into a single roar. I lunged forward slogging my way to him. His arms out stretched eyes beaming.

This was my Tay, he was back, I was back.

Our bodies slammed against one another. The feeling of his embrace around my cold torso was enough to melt me into a puddle. I felt myself fall limp against him. I looked up into his eyes as my knees hit the pavement. My mind spun as his gorgeous blue eyes twinkled and shined in the neon lights around us. His face framed by a soft glow and the sparkling of rain drops. He leaned down and pressed his mouth against mine and we kissed.

Deeper than I thought we ever had. The noise around us grew quiet, the rain even felt as if it had stopped. Each droplet suspended in mid air. Our tongues rolled and pressed together. Shattering the hurt and time between us. I felt strength enough to wrap my arms up around his neck. His soft warm neck. Slowly I felt the strength returning to my body. I slowly gained control of my legs and stood. All the while kissing him. Our mouths moved and pulsed against one another. My hands ran through his hair, and his through mine. Finally I opened my eyes and pulled my mouth away. I sighed.

It was quiet.

"I love you Jordan Taylor Hanson," I exclaimed.

"I love you Taylor William Quest," Taylor replied.

The silence was broken by a sudden uproar and cheering around us. I felt people patting me on the back. Girls cried and smiled at us. They all rushed in and hugged us and rambled on in words we couldn't understand. Tay looked over and smiled at me. I returned his smile. I knew that things had been severely miss read by his management. What they had thought would be a massive backlash had turned into a flow of support. Soon the crowd was broken up and parted as Tay and I turned back and walked toward the entrance to the MTV studios. Just before we entered Chris stepped out with a snide look on his face.

"We've got a lot to talk about," he snipped.

Taylor looked at me, and at Chris, then back at me. Then without warning Tay spun back and decked Chris square in the face knocking him flat on his ass. My jaw hit the floor and the crowd outside went wild. Tay turned toward me and wrapped his arms around my damp body as we proceeded into the lobby and toward the elevator.

"Ready to break the news to everyone,' Tay whispered in my ear.

"Only as ready as you are," I replied.

"Great, 'cause I'm tired of hiding, I'm ready to live," Tay replied with a gleaming smile.


On to Chapter Eleven

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The Day the Earth Moved is Copyright © 2000 by Taylor W. Quest.
This work may not be duplicated in any form – physical, electronic, audio, or otherwise – without the author's written permission.
All applicable copyright laws apply. All individuals depicted are fictional with any resemblance to real persons being purely coincidental.

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