Hello, my name is Dalikins. Just a brief rundown before you start reading: This story is a joint effort between myself and the author Carys Valerian (who has her own account on the site). Cary's writes from the point of view of Gwen and I write from the point of view of Rorie. We take turns writing the chapters so for this story she will write all of the odd numbered chapters and I will write all of the even numbered.

We hope you enjoy the story and please read and review :)

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Chapter One – Just a small town girl

Don't Stop Believing
- Journey

Gwen

"Joy, another Oryn Jacoby CD – and we all know what that means, screaming fan girls and admiring prostitots." My co-worker Stacy lamented as she fastened her Music-Mart nametag on her black, mesh t-shirt. I couldn't help but see that she had put it on upside down, most likely on purpose. It seemed I wasn't the only one who noticed, as our boss Randy, or King Randy as he preferred to be called in the workplace, rushed over to the front counter where we were stationed.

"Stacy Chen, put that name tag on correctly this instant or I'll have you fired more quickly then you can say !" He commanded, pushing his round glasses up higher on his face.

"Correct me if I'm wrong Randy, but the sincerity of your comment was lost when you picked the longest word ever to be uttered in the English language." Stacy muttered sarcastically back to him with a slight wave of her violet manicured hands – which also happened to be against store dress code policy. It was a slight miracle that the 17 year old hadn't been fired yet, but somehow, despite the amount of time he's turned a putrid shade of plum because of her, she's still on staff.

In this case, like all others before it, Randy chose to pick his battles and left Stacy to her constant state of PMS. Instead, he turned to me.

"Gwen, have you given my offer any further thought?" He asked in a voice dripping with ooze.

"Thanks Randy, but I'd rather not become the 'Queen' of the Music-Mart just yet." I replied with the most kind-hearted smile I could muster. Since he had to deal with Stacy all of the time I figured he could use the break from any incivility on my part. About a month ago Randy had offered me the assistant manager position, but I refused to accept for several reasons. Firstly, by accepting it, I would be underhandedly setting myself up for a career in the retail business at just over minimum wage – a fact that didn't appeal to me whatsoever though I could certainly use the raise. Secondly, being assistant manager would require me spending more time with Randy and at the store when I needed to be at home.

My living situation left much to be desired, and though I knew I was fortunate in many respects, by way of wealth I was not. I lived in a small one-story bungalow with my older sister Rorie and my mother Ruth. My mom was really sick, and as much as she tried to deny it Rorie and I knew the truth of the matter. The worst part is she refused to check in to a hospital with the knowledge that medical bills were far beyond our price range. When Rorie was 8 and I was 5 my father left us for, who my sister, who enjoyed classifying everyone she met, referred to as 'the strip-club bimbo.' He also conveniently chose to take my mother's complete life savings, every penny of it, to spend on cheap booze and cheaper motels along the way to his self-realization. It wasn't like we had a whole lot of money before, but things just got worse after that.

My mom was a secretary at an elementary school, but with education cut-backs she got laid off. Ultimately she started working two jobs at McDonalds by day and a scummy bar at night just to make ends meet. I think it was working so hard that made her get sick, and soon she couldn't work at all since she just didn't have the energy anymore. It was like her life was completely sucked out of her. Her face was grey, her hair even greyer and she looked far older then her age of a mere 52. Now she required nearly constant attention from either Rorie or me. It wasn't as if we were unhappy to do so, since my mom had worked so hard for us it was the least that we could do, but it had meant a great deal of sacrifice.

Normally someone at my ripened age of 22 would be attending university or collage and becoming attuned to the world of adult-hood, whereas my sister and I had been adults for as long as we could remember. Even with grants we couldn't afford to have a higher education since no bank would front us a loan. Rorie had gone for a semester, but the financial strain, alongside the stress of being away and worried about mom and I 24/7 had caused her to return home, where she was now employed at the Stop and Go mini-mart on the main stretch of town. I always felt so sorry for her. My sister was brilliant- a bonefide genius in my not so professional opinion. She was an expert at calculus and physics and all the sciences that I couldn't wrap my head around even if I'd tried. She deserved to go to school so she could become a famous scientist and discover the cure for Swine Flu or some such disease, not to make $9.50 at the Stop and Go working for Frankie 'the tub of lard' DiAngelo – who I might add liked to feel up her rear end. And I thought Randy was bad.

In the end though we were fine, we had each other. So what if we were low on groceries, high on bills and out of luck.

That day at the Music-Mart passed by as slowly as any other, and as usual, just before my shift was to end, Rorie waltzed through the door. Since we lived in a less-then reputable neighbourhood, mom and Rorie were always worried about letting me walk home on my own. For Rorie it was never much of an issue, since if she ever ran into trouble she'd probably be more terrifying then whoever it was trying to rob her. If someone so much as looked at me oddly on the street I'd probably hand them over my usually empty wallet and run away crying like a baby.

Waiving, Rorie came up to the counter where I was serving a customer and grabbed one of the free lollipops out of the bin, opening the wrapper noisily. I ignored her while I handed the teen her bag, complete with the new Oryn Jacoby CD and a giant poster - because everyone who listened to his music must like to look at his perfectly formed abs too. Jumping over the counter, Rorie made herself comfortable on one of the employee chairs, thus automatically setting of King Randy's no socializing in the workplace alarm.

"Rorie! How many times do I have to tell you? You do not work here; your sister does -and still will be for the next 5 minutes. You can wait outside for her or browse through our selection, but do not go behind the counter under any circumstances. Authorized personnel only!" He demanded rushing over towards us like a rat to cheese.

"Don't be such a stick in the mud Rand, you just want more Gwen time." My sister joked while she pointed her lollipop at me. Randy's nearly bald head turned bright, tomato red while Stacy and I held our breath so we didn't laugh too hard. Leave it to my sister to brighten up even Stacy 'the teenage goth's' existence. It was by no means an easy feat.

While I waited for the last 3 minutes of my shift to pass I heard the squeals of what seemed like a thousand 13 year olds, though I think there were only 4. Stacy rolled her eyes in mild annoyance.

"What's going on?" I wondered aloud. Rorie got up from her chair and climbed back over the counter to get a better glimpse of the aerial television the entire store had now crowded around. She waived me over to her, and so I went to see what was going on.

"It seems like that pretty boy pop idol has made another idiotic move." Rorie commented as I cast my gaze upwards to the screen. The entertainment news reporter was on the screen alongside images of Oryn Jacoby in his flamboyant sports car, a bottle of beer in one hand and three half naked women in the other. Which hand was driving the car I was unsure.

"What a jerk." I muttered shaking my head in disgust. "He has so much talent and he cuts himself short like that. It's ridiculous."

"Not to mention all the money he has being blown on physical pleasures. I'd sure like to have even a tiny portion of what he makes in a day. It would feed us for months, plus cover mom's medicine." Rorie scoffed. We sat and watched the report for a moment longer, learning that the pop star had even bailed on his court hearing this morning. Sighing, Rorie tore her gaze away from the TV and at the clock on the wall. "Whatever. I hope it gets busted for it big time. Come on Gwen you're off now." She said grabbing my hand and leading me out of doors. I barely even had time to throw on my winter coat first. I'm sure Randy would have a fit since I didn't correctly clock out.

Rorie and I had a schedule worked around caring for mom. While I was at work during the day, Rorie would be at home. The only time she was left alone was when Rorie came to pick me up, and that was only for a short while. Rorie worked the graveyard shift at the Stop and Go, and so during the evening and overnight it was my responsibility to keep the house tidy and look after our mom. Such a schedule meant that I wasn't really able to see my sister as much as I'd have liked. We had always been close, even as small children and we never fought like siblings generally do because we didn't really have any material possessions to argue over. My mother had raised us with the knowledge that everything we had must be shared since for the most part we didn't have enough to go around.

We walked towards home rather quickly. The Music-Mart wasn't overly far, and for the first half of it we travelled through a really nice residential area where my sister and I would each pick our favourite houses that we swore we'd live in some day. Suddenly, I heard a loud yelping coming from one of the most beautiful homes on the street, one that I had often admired. A man, who must have been the owner, was throwing around an enormous black dog and kicking it rather forcefully. It was the biggest dog I had ever seen, so much so that it was almost the size of a bear. I must admit that dogs terrify me. There really wasn't a historical reason behind it. I had never been attacked by a dog in my childhood or anything, but if you've ever looked at a dog's teeth – I mean really really looked at them without the bias of it being your cute and loveable family pet, it is easy to understand why. Those teeth could rip you apart without a second thought. Perhaps my fear is foolish, Rorie certainly thought it was, but I couldn't really help it.

Nevertheless, I couldn't just stand and watch the poor beast get abused, and I knew for certain Rorie wouldn't either, so she'd have my back.

"Hey Mister! Treating an animal like that is illegal you know!" I yelled towards him in as forceful of a tone as I could muster – Which admittedly was not much. That's why I needed only to initiate the conversation since I knew my sister could handle the rest.

"Mind your own business! It isn't even my dog – just some stray that thought he could wander into my home and make himself comfortable." The man shouted back.

"Then call animal control, at least they handle things civilly. Or maybe you'd prefer it if I called the police on you?" Rorie retorted angrily. The man gave her an inappropriate hand gesture, which she returned in full force, but at least he left the dog alone. Feeling like our work was done we continued along the route home, and had just about made it there successfully when out of the corner of my eye I could see the dog following us home. I poked Rorie since I had no desire to confront the animal myself.

Rolling her eyes, as if to tease me a little bit, she spun around to face the monster directly.

"Okay puppy shoo! Go away! You can't come home with us! We have no room for you." Rorie said, urging the dog to leave with her hands. The dog was either incredibly stubborn or incredibly stupid, since it didn't listen to her. Instead, it took a running leap towards me – like it could sense fear, like it knew that I was the weak link. Screaming like a baby I made a dash for home, Rorie laughing like a maniac behind me, while the dog remained tight on my heels.

"Make it go away!" I cried when I reached the door to my little home. When I stopped, the beast did too, and it looked as if it was evaluating its surroundings. With a huff, the dogs ears flattened and he walked in the other direction. Frustrated with the creature I stomped my foot.

"So what, you're just going to walk away now after giving me all that grief? Nice doggie, real nice!"

Rorie came up behind me, doubled over in laughter, she had to lean on me for support.

"I guess the puppy wasn't a fan of our oh so humble abode huh?" She asked between snickers, and then more seriously added "I hope the poor thing finds somewhere to spend the night. The news said it was going to drop below 30 degrees with wind chill tonight." She said, the very thought causing her to wrap her arms around herself in order to keep warm.

"I'd say it served the thing right, but I'm not that harsh." I replied, and opened the door to finally be home, safe and sound.