Seashell Eyes

[audreykins]

Hey everyone! I'm finally posting a fic on here. I've been working on this for a little while, but I'm no where near finished. (I'm working on another fic for the Beatles at the same time.) I'm not as good as some of you, but I hope you all like it and leave comments! Thanks everyone! (And this is more of an introduction, so not too much JoBro action yet.)

CHAPTER ONE

"Julia?" Mrs. Jacob called from the kitchen to the den downstairs.

"Hm?" Julia responded, staring into space.

"I forgot to tell you that I talked to the Jonas's last night." Mrs. Jacob walked down into the den. Julia sat up straighter and was more alert.

"What did they say?" she asked, trying not to sound too interested.

"They're actually going to be in town for a couple of days for Thanksgiving. Christmas too."

"Oh, really? They're coming by here then?"

"Well, of course. Denise has only been my best friend for the past twenty-five years. Where else would they go?"

"The sarcasm wasn't necessary, Mom."

"You know what they say--I'm the queen of sarcasm."

"Who said that?"

"Oh, never mind. That was before your time."

"Clearly. Thanks for letting me know, Mom." Julia turned her attention back to what she had been thinking about before--which really wasn't much. Julia had been in a daze a lot and she really hated the way it felt. She couldn't seem to focus on anything properly anymore.

She ran her fingers through her long, blonde hair and turned on the TV, hoping it would take her mind off whatever her head couldn't wrap itself around. The Disney Channel. Julia actually felt ashamed for watching so much of the Disney Channel. She felt that at fourteen--almost fifteen--years old, she should have been watching MTV or VH1 or something like that. But she found a certain comfort in the Disney Channel that she couldn't find anywhere else. Plus, her best friends were shown on there all the time. She still felt connected to them through the Disney Channel. The Jonas family had been in her life for as long as she could remember and their four boys had become a big part of who she was. But that year, circumstances just wouldn't let them be together even though that was when Julia needed them the most.

They had actually gotten their big break and were world famous after they had tried so many years. Their first album titled "It's About Time" really suited their story. And Julia was ecstatic for them. Their talent had finally been recognized and they deserved every bit of success they had. The Jonas Brothers were not only talented but were clean and professional, young men. Julia didn't know any other teenage boys like that and she treasured the Jonas brothers. Not just the band or the group, but each individual family member. However, she hadn't seen the boys very much in that past year since they started to be more famous and has more work to attend. That was the one thing she didn't like, but she knew it was all worth it. They were living their dream.

The story of Julia and the Jonas family goes back to 1982, twenty-five years ago. Julia's mom, Sandra Jacob (Sandra Carwile at the time) had fair hair and brown eyes. She was a beautiful, young girl. Denise Jonas (Denise Mitchell at the time) had dark, curly hair and dark eyes. Her smile was stunning and she was a natural beauty. The two met at Stanford University where they both had entered the nursing program. They instantly became best friends and did everything together. They even lived with each other for a year when Sandra couldn't keep up with her rent and school loans.

They shared the same Christian faith and found comfort in one another. They knew this wasn't a friendship that would end. Both graduated in 1986. Denise met Mr. Jonas, also dark-haired and dark-eyed, and moved to New Jersey. Sandra met Mr. Jacob, with fair hair and piercing blue eyes, and moved to Pennsylvania. The Jonas family immediately started to reproduce and had Kevin soon after getting married. Two years later, Denise gave birth to Joe, which was a little after they had moved to Arizona.

Sandra and Timothy Jacob, a businessman by day and musician by night, decided to wait a couple of years before starting their family. They wanted to settle down and become financially stable before they started to have children. After living in Pennsylvania for a few years, they moved to Wyckoff, New Jersey, Timothy's hometown. It was close enough to New York for him to have plenty of gigs on the weekend.

Sandra and Denise kept in touch during those busy, six years. They frequently had conversations that weren't easy on their phone bills. They had an inseparable bond and found it easy to tell each other their problems and worries. Denise and her family moved around quite a bit--from New Jersey to Arizona and from Arizona to Texas. Part of this was for Kevin Jonas Sr.'s job and the other part was that they couldn't find a "home" anywhere. They found plenty of houses, but no homes. Denise told this to Sandra and this got her thinking.

In 1992, the Jonas family moved to Dallas, Texas. Not long after, they found out that they were having another baby. During this year, the Jacob couple finally decided to start their own family. Sandra and Denise found out they were pregnant around the same time. The two were ecstatic to know they would be experiencing the same things at the same time (even though Denise had been through it two times before.) She made sure she gave Sandra tips and advice along the way. On September 16, Denise gave birth to the third Jonas boy, and they named him Nick.

On October 25, Sandra gave birth to Julia Marie Jacob. She was named after Timothy's favorite Beatles' song--"Julia" which is John Lennon's ode to his mother and can be found on the White Album. Timothy worshipped the Beatles. He often sang the soft ballad to Julia to get her to fall asleep when she was a child and it was a popular song at most of his gigs. From the beginning, Julia had a lot to live up to.

After Nick and Julia were born, the house next door to the Jacob family was put on sale. Sandra knew that Denise and Kevin still weren't happy with their home and the neighborhood they were living in was very friendly and safe. How wonderful would it be if she could get her best friend to live next door to her? Sandra suggested just that. She called Denise and told her all about the wonderful house next door for sale. Kevin and Denise loved the idea of living in New Jersey as well as living close to family friends, so they went to New Jersey immediately and looked at the home. They fell in love with everything about it and soon the Jonas clan packed up their belongings and moved to Wyckoff, New Jersey where they finally found that feeling of home they had been looking for.

Even better, they were finally reunited permanently, their kids had someone to play with, and their husbands had their musical interests in common. What more could they ask for? They spent hours catching up and spending time together and it was almost like being in college again for them. This was the right move and it looked like it was their destiny to be best friends.

Julia and the Jonas boys quickly formed a bond. Kevin, being the oldest by five years, was like Julia's own older brother. He became very protective of her even from the start when their time was spent on playgrounds. Joe, the middle child, was always joking and pulling pranks. He was the funny, crazy, and wild brother, and was always getting in trouble. Joe was like Julia's annoying, older brother. The two argued the most and tended to disagree on things. But he also made her laugh the most and when she needed to be cheered up, she would go to him. Nick, being barely a month older than Julia, was her equal. Both were fairly shy and sensitive. Nick was the one she could relate to the most--her best friend. They shared many experiences together: walking for the first time on the same day, losing their first tooth on the same day, having the same kindergarten teacher. They literally grew up together and would always have that special bond with one another.

A few years later, when Julia was seven years old to be exact, Denise gave birth to the fourth and final Jonas boy: Frankie. Frankie quickly became Julia's play toy and she got great joy out of dressing him up and playing with him. He was the little brother she would never have.

The five of them had birthdays within four months of each other: Joe-August 15, Nick-September 16, Frankie-September 28, Julia-October 25, and Kevin-November 5. They were always thrown a huge group birthday party every year, each having an element they wanted to add. One year when Frankie was turning two, Nick and Julia were turning ten, Joe was turning twelve, and Kevin was turning fifteen, they had a Barney-'N Sync-Baseball-Car-Guitar themed party. It was one of the many things they looked forward to each year. Their whole class, neighborhood, and church were always invited. It was a community event and created many fond memories.

As the Jonas brothers grew, it was easy to tell they had inherited their mother's natural good looks: dark hair and dark eyes. They had that Italian look about them. Nick and Kevin even got the curly hair gene, making them easy targets for the elderly women at church to poke and prod. Joe, although mischievous, had a personality like no other and he was able to charm his way out of any situation. Frankie had the cute factor and no one could resist the face of that sweet kid.

Besides looks, the boys had inherited their father's love of music. Following in the footsteps of Kevin Sr. and Timothy, Julia's father, they quickly developed a talent for music. Nick had the most drive for it, though. He started out on Broadway at a young age and went on to release a CD. For a young boy, he had an amazing set of pipes. Kevin also showed signs of musical talent when he stayed home sick from school one day and taught himself to play the guitar. Joe had talent, but he was more interested in making people laugh. Between the three of them, they could sing, play the guitar, piano, and drums. They easily impressed everyone.

Julia, in terms of music, had a love for the Beatles just like her father. She also started to take piano lessons when she was in second grade and somehow had gotten her father's singing voice. She frequently joined the Jonas brothers when they performed during the holidays for family and friends. Besides music, she'd also taken dance lessons since she was four.

Like the Jonas boys, Julia had her mother's beauty: blonde hair and a 1,000 mega-watt smile. Her eyes, however, definitely came from her father. As a child, adults frequently commented on her cornflower blue eyes. Her dad always called them "seashell eyes"--another lyric from "her" song. She took pride in them because she felt like she had something that connected her to her father.

On Sunday mornings, the Jonas family and the Jacob family attended church together. They all had a deep faith in God and the five children ended up with purity rings--a ring symbolizing the promise made to them and God that they would remain sexually pure until marriage.

During the holidays, the two families spent a lot of time together: they ate dinner, sang, opened presents. They were almost like one big family unit themselves. The holidays were a magical time for them all when they were younger. They had so many presents piled under the tree on Christmas mornings. They spent the day playing with their new toys and were allowed to stay up late into the night.

When Julia was in the fifth grade, the Jonas family made the decision to have the boys homeschooled--Nick's solo music career became a group project and was starting to get serious. Julia was jealous that they got to stay home all day long and she was sad that her friends didn't go to school with her anymore. But she decided to stick the school year out.

When the time came to move up to middle school, Julia didn't think she'd be happy attending public school anymore, so she asked her mom if she could try homeschooling like the Jonas boys. From then on, Julia found it more effective to learn from a program, tutor, or her mom than from a crowded public school classroom.

When Julia was thirteen, the Jacob family found out that Timothy had a brain tumor. He submitted himself to the hospital after he started having trouble remembering things and he started to limp. An x-ray showed his fate. Within a few weeks, Timothy went from eating cheeseburgers and fries to pureed carrots and mashed potatoes. He lost a lot of weight and became very emotional whenever Julia and Sandra visited. The doctors performed radiation treatments, but nothing helped. On July 7, 2005, roughly four moths after finding the brain tumor, Timothy Jacob died.

Julia was devastated. Sandra was devastated. The Jonas family was devastated. It was hard to believe that such a great man died so soon and so quickly. The Jonas's did all they could to show their support for the family, but at the same time, they were starting to work on an album. To make things worse, during their school tour, Nick found out he had diabetes in November. However busy they were, though, the Jonas family made time for the Jacob family and helped them through their hard time.

After struggling with a difficult record company, Nick, Kevin, and Joe, appropriately named the Jonas Brothers, released their first album in August 2006, a little more than a year after Julia's father died. The album wasn't a big success at first, but Julia loved it. She would stick it in her CD player at night, turn up the volume, and open her window. She would dance along as the boys, in Nick's room right across from Julia's, danced along as well.

Their music started to pick up popularity when the Disney Channel started playing the "Year 3000" music video frequently between shows. The boys started traveling more than ever and Julia saw them less and less. By January 2007, the Jonas family made the difficult decision to move to Los Angeles. Out of everyone affected, Julia seemed to be the most upset. Her second family left for a better life in a big city and she was left in a small town, seemingly alone and had just lost her father. She hated the Jonas family for moving, but she hated herself more for being so selfish.

She didn't know that the Jonas boys felt the same way. Sure, they were happy and felt so blessed to have the opportunity to live in L.A., but they had moved from their second mom and home. Kevin had lost his little sister, Joe had lost his biggest critic, Nick had lost his best friend, and Frankie had lost his big sister. It was bittersweet.

More than six months later, Julia and her mom still talked to the Jonas family at least once a week, making special calls on someone's birthday. Julia's birthday was in a week and she hoped more than ever that the boys would remember and call her. Or better yet, they would make a special trip to her house in the midst of their huge tour with Miley Cyrus. Sometimes Julia dreamed too big.

She had Thanksgiving and Christmas to look forward to. She hoped that they would make the unlikely decision to move back to Wyckoff and things would go back to the way they used to be. Whenever Julia started thinking like that, she longed for her dad. She was still grieving.

"Hi! We're the Jonas Brothers! And you're watching the Disney Channel!" Julia tuned back into the television commercial in front of her. It was surreal seeing her best friends on TV.

[audreykins]

CHAPTER TWO

Every time the phone rang, Julia hoped that it was the Jonas boys calling her. It never was. However, on the night of Julia's birthday, October 25th, the phone did ring and it was for her.

"Julia," her mother sang. "Someone called to wish you a happy birthday."

"Ok, mom. I'll get it in here," Julia called from her room. Her heart was hammering because she had a pretty good idea of who it was. She took a big breath before she picked up the phone. "Hello?" she said, trying to sound cool.

"Julia!" a male's voice exclaimed into the phone.

"Joe?" Julia asked in bewilderment.

"No! It's Nick!"

"Nick? You sound so old!"

Julia heard Nick laugh on the other end of the line. It was definitely Nick. She'd know that laugh anywhere. "Thanks?"

Julia laughed as well. "...You're welcome."

"Hey guys! Pick up! I'm talking to Julia right now," Nick called to Joe and Kevin.

Julia heard a click and someone that was rummaging around in the background. "Julia? My favorite blondie!" Joe exclaimed.

"Your favorite?" Julia asked. She felt a lump in her throat. She missed those boys so much.

"Well, duh!" Joe said in a mock-valley girl voice.

"Hey Jules!" Julia heard Kevin say. "We miss you."

"I miss you guys so much too! You have no idea!"

"We don't?" Joe asked, testing Julia's meaningless statement.

"I think we would," Kevin filled in.

"I agree," Nick added quickly.

"I'm so glad you called," Julia said, wanting to keep the boys on the phone as long as she could. She had talked to the boys on the phone before. At least once a month. But it was never enough.

"Oh yeah. I almost forgot why we called!" Nick said. "Ok, guys. One, two, three..." he whispered.

"Happy birthday to you!" the boys sang together. "Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday dear Julia! Happy birthday to you!"

Julia laughed, truly enjoying the boys' version of "Happy Birthday."

"Yaaaay," Joe said in an over-exaggerated and drawled voice.

"Thank you!" Julia exclaimed, giggling.

"Our pleasure, Ocean Child," Kevin slipped in, calling Julia one of her nicknames from "Julia," amongst the chaos.

"Now we're both fifteen," Nick said. Julia barely heard him.

"My mom said you guys are going to be in town for Thanksgiving."

"Oh yeah! We're going to come down after we perform in the Macy's Day Parade," Nick said.

"Oh my gosh! I don't know if I can wait until then."

There was stifled laughter on the other end of the line.

"What?" Julia asked, feeling self-conscious.

"You won't have to wait," Joe said.

"What do you mean?"

"As our birthday gift to you..." Kevin began.

"You're coming to LA to see us in the AMAs!" Joe said in a hurry.

"What!? Are you serious?" Julia asked in disbelief.

"Dead serious!" Joe exclaimed, using his valley girl voice again. "You'll catch a flight here on November 15th and stay that whole weekend."

"I'll stay at your house?" she asked, still in disbelief.

"Is that ok?" Kevin asked with concern in his voice. He was always the one to make sure that Julia was happy with a plan or decision.

"Is that ok?" Julia repeated. "It's more than ok! That's the best gift ever!"

"I told you she'd want to," Julia heard Nick mutter.

"You didn't tell me anything!" Joe said much louder.

Kevin cleared his throat. "Guys, we're talking to Julia here." There was laughter. "How are you doing, Julia?"

"We've been thinking about you," Nick added.

"Oh, I've been fine. I have good days and bad days... It's lonely without you guys."

"Aw, Julia..." Joe said. "We're lonely without you too."

Julia laughed. "Thank for trying to make me feel better, Joe."

"Well, hey, you're going to be here soon," Nick said, trying to console Julia's sadness. He hated that he couldn't really be there to comfort her. She was his best friend and he knew her well enough to know that it took a lot to get her down.

"Yeah, not soon enough, though..."


Julia sat at her computer, aimlessly clicking around. She had just finished her work for the day on the homeschool computer program she had. All of a sudden, an im popped up on the screen. It was Nick! Julia felt a rush of butterflies and excitement. Nick didn't get on very much lately. It was always a treat when he did. Julia quickly read the im.

SaintNicholas16: hey julia!

Julia smiled at the screename she helped Nick think up. They were about eleven when they both made their AOL accounts.

juliaXoceanXchild25: nick! why r u on? u never get on!
SaintNicholas16: we didnt really get to talk earlier, and i knew u'd be online
juliaXoceanXchild25: how r u?
SaintNicholas16: i've been really good. missing u. how r u?
juliaXoceanXchild25: i miss u too! things have been boring around here.
SaintNicholas16: i think its about to get better very soon

And it did. Before she knew it, Julia had packed her bags frantically with the sound of her mother calling off things for Julia to remember.

Julia worried about leaving her mother alone. Had her father been there or any other siblings, maybe she wouldn't have thought about it so much. But she almost felt bad for going to California to have a good time and leaving her mother in New Jersey by herself. It didn't help that Julia had been suffering from separation anxiety since her father's death. It was just a looming feeling in the pit of her stomach that she hoped would get better with time. She knew she'd have to grow up one day.

Sandra was sad that her daughter was going to be away for awhile, but she didn't want to hold her back. Julia loved the Jonas family and Sandra could see how it was tearing her up not having her best friends next door anymore. Sandra herself would have gone on the trip, but there was no way she could get off from work--the hospital was short on nurses.

So, Sandra drove Julia to the airport, feeling quite sad, but wearing her best happy face. Julia was also trying to wear her happy face too, but with great difficulty. The two went into the airport together and Sandra waited while Julia got her bags tagged and classified. Then, it was time for the moment they had both been dreading.

"Now you be careful, sweetie. Don't put your bags down anywhere and leave them. Especially don't lose your ticket," Sandra started to ramble.

"Ok, mom," Julia said sadly, a lump rising in her throat.

"And call me when you get to Chicago for your layover flight. I think you'll have enough time to get something to eat."

"I will."

"Do you have your money? Is there enough?"

"I think so."

"Well, you should double check before you go. And are you sure Denise knows what time to pick you up from the airport? LAX is very busy and I don't want you waiting around by yourself for too long."

"She knows, mom. You told her about six times on the phone."

"Do you have all of your gadgets?" Sandra asked, referring to Julia's iPod, digital camera, cell phone, etc. "Please don't lose those."

"I won't."

Sandra took a breath and then wrapped her arms around Julia. "Be good, ok? I'll miss you."

"I'll miss you too, mom," Julia squeezed out of her throat. Sandra hugged Julia for just a bit longer before letting go. "All right. You should go now. I love you."

"I love you too, mom."

"Good luck. Call me."

"I will. Bye." Julia picked up her back pack and kissed her mom on the cheek before turning around and beginning her voyage across the country. She wiped away the tear that had fallen from her eye, not knowing that her mother was doing the same thing. It seemed that both of them had some growing up to do.

[audreykins]

CHAPTER THREE

"Julia? Is that you? My, you've grown up since the last time I saw you! When was that? Three months ago?" Denise exclaimed after seeing Julia walk towards her from the airport terminal. She spread her arms out wide to embrace Julia.

"Denise!" Julia exclaimed in return. She started to shuffle toward Denise faster, dragging her large suitcase behind her. She finally made it and dropped her belongings dramatically. Julia allowed Denise to wrap her arms around her, just like her own mother would. She took in Denise's scent and was instantly comforted, no longer fearing what was in store.

"How is my little Ocean Child?" Denise asked, using Julia's nickname that was derived from "her" song.

"Oh, I'm tired. But excited! How's Mama Jonas?" Julia and Denise, ending their embrace, giggled at her nickname.

"I'm excited too. The whole family is excited. We've been waiting for you to visit for sometime now."

Julia felt her cheeks turn pink. "Well, where are the boys?"

"They're back at the house. Less chaotic."

"Oh, right."

"Let's go, then. I'll help you with your bags."

"Thank you!"

And the two girls walked out of the airport with their arms linked. They looked just like mother and daughter.


Denise pulled her Range Rover into a driveway in front of a large house. The house was much larger than anything Julia had expected. "Wow," she remarked.

"I know. Isn't it something?" Denise asked while she opened her door.

"It sure is."

"I bet the boys are about to explode from excitement." Right when Denise said that, the front door swung open and closed with a bang.

"Julia!" a chorus of male voices yelled.

Julia snapped out of her trance and remembered why she was there. She quickly got out of the car and ran towards the commotion. She saw Kevin, Joe, Nick, and Frankie barreling down a steep sidewalk to her. It was the one thing that could have taken away all the sadness she'd felt for so long. Seeing the boys in their T-shirts and Converse sneakers made her feel like she was her old self again. She didn't want to let that feeling go.

Joe made it to her first. He ran toward her and wrapped his arms around her shoulders, pulling her toward him tightly. Julia instinctively wrapped her arms around his torso and hugged him like she would never let go. Just like she used to. He smoothed down her hair as she started to laugh uncontrollably. "Joe!" she finally exclaimed. She couldn't think of any other words to say.

"Hey, what's so funny?" Joe asked Julia.

"I'm just... really happy," Julia croaked out of her throat. She shook in Joe's arms, who started to laugh too.

"My turn!" Kevin said, pulling Joe and Julia apart. Kevin pulled Julia against him, wrapping his arms around her shoulders, just like Joe had done. It was so comforting. Julia immediately felt a sense of home and comfort.

Julia saw Frankie out of the corner of her eye. "Hey buddy! You've grown!" Julia let go of Kevin and knelt down to hug Frankie.

"We've missed you," Frankie said into her ear.

"Yeah, it hasn't been the same," Nick said.

Julia looked up from where she was bending down. Nick looked at Julia with his hands shoved in his pockets. Nick, her best friend. He smiled a crooked smile and Julia grinned. She stood up and threw her arms around Nick. Nick wrapped his arms tightly around Julia. He was taller than she remembered. His voice sounded deeper too.

"It hasn't been the same," Julia finally said, repeating Nick. She let go of him and looked at all four of the boys.

"Duh. We're living across the country," Joe said.

"Oh, thanks Joe," Julia said sarcastically, throwing Joe a look. "Speaking of, how can you guys live out here? There's no trees!"

"Or snow," Kevin added.

"I miss the snow," Frankie said.

Julia ruffled Frankie's hair. "Aw! You're going to see it again soon, Frankie." She noticed the boys staring at her. She stood up straight. What? She was worried that there was something on her face.

"We're just so happy you're here!" Nick said, pulling Julia into another hug.

She laughed. "I bet I'm happier to see you guys." She ended the embrace and wrapped her arm around Nick's waist.

"Nooo," Joe said. "We missed you more."

Kevin crossed his arms across his chest and nodded. "It's true."

"Oh, you guys. You're going to make me cry," Julia said, beaming. She was actually trying to will her tears of joy away. "But really, I've missed you the most." She laid her head on Nick's shoulder.

"Ok, you win!" Joe said, suddenly bounding up the steep sidewalk to their front porch. "Come see the house!"

"Yeah!" Nick exclaimed, taking Julia by the hand. He ran after Joe, dragging Julia along behind him. Julia could hear Denise laughing at them as Kevin and Frankie ran after them.

On the way through the foyer, the group passed a stunned Kevin, Sr. "Hi Kevin!" Julia exclaimed as she passed.

"Hey Julia!" She heard him call after them.

Finally Joe stopped. "This is the living room," he said, waving his arms around. They were standing in a very large room with big windows. Everything was decorated white: white walls, white couches, white carpet... You get the picture.

"As you can see, we don't really use this room," Kevin added.

"I think we could, but Joe couldn't," Nick said, a smile playing on his face.

"Hey, I'm offended," Joe said dryly.

Nick laughed and looked at Julia out of the corner of his eye to see if she was laughing too. She was.

The boys showed Julia the rest of their house. She was amazed at how big it was. She used to think their houses in Wyckoff were big, but they were nothing compared to this house.

"There's one more room we have to show you," Kevin said, looking at his brothers.

"What's that?" Julia asked, thinking of the laundry room or garage. By that point, the group had navigated to the second floor.

"Follow me," Kevin said. He walked down the hallway. Julia felt odd that the boys were following her closely, watching what she was doing. Kevin stopped just before he reached the end of the hallway. Julia watched him in bewilderment. He reached up toward the ceiling and took hold of a chain that was dangling in front of his eyes. He pulled. The chain brought down a small staircase leading to another level of the house.

Julia looked at all four brothers, bewildered. "An attic?" she asked.

"Well, why don't you go see what's in the attic, silly," Joe said in a funny voice. He nudged Julia from behind. She turned around and looked at the brothers suspiciously before starting up the stairs.

When Julia was all the way in the attic, what she saw took her breath away. The walls were painted yellow (her favorite color). A canopy bed stood against the wall on the far side of the room. The words to "Julia" were painted on the ceiling, the letters looping around in one continuous stream. The hardwood on the floors shined and had clearly been polished. On the nightstand next to the canopy bed were two pictures: one was a Jacob family picture taken a few years before. It was from their family vacation to the beach. The three of them had on blue jeans and white T-shirts. Julia's father stood in the middle and Julia and her mother stood on either side of him, their arms wrapped behind his back. The three of them look so happy together and sport wide, toothy smiles. What really makes the picture is the setting sun over the ocean in the background. The second picture was of Julia's father and herself. It was taken when she was about eight years old. Her father is shown sitting in a chair, playing his guitar. It's clear that he's into the music he's playing at that moment. In the picture, a young Julia is sitting in front of her father on the floor, cross-legged. She's looking up at him with such admiration that you'd wonder what this mad did that was so great.

There was a window seat facing the front yard. Yellow and white pillows were placed on the cushion. On the wall, next to the window seat, was Julia's favorite part of the room. Covering the wall from floor to ceiling were pictures of Julia with the Jonas family over the years. Pictures with Denise, pictures with Kevin Sr., pictures with Kevin, Joe, Nick, and Frankie, and pictures with all of them together. The pictures ranged from Julia's birth to the last time she saw them a couple of months ago.

Julia looked at the room, taking everything in while her mouth hung open. There were no words she could even think of that could describe how she felt at that moment.

"You guys..." she finally croaked out, tears coming to her eyes for the millionth time that day.

"Do you like it?" Nick asked.

Julia's jaw dropped even more. "Like it?! This is unbelievable!" A tear trickled down her cheek.

"Then why are you crying?" Frankie asked.

Julia wiped the tear away. "Because this is the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me." Julia moved into the attic a little further. "But what is this for?"

"So you can stay with us whenever you'd like," Kevin answered.

"You'll always have a home here," Joe said.

Julia grinned as far as her cheeks would allow. "I wish I could hug all four of you at one time!" she exclaimed, bounding down the steps into the boys' arms.

After Julia hugged and kissed each one of them as many times as she thought was needed, she entered her new room. She didn't even have her luggage in there yet, but she would take care of that later. She moved to the bed slowly, not wanting to mess anything up. She pushed back the canopy and sat on the edge of her bed, looking to the nightstand. This, inevitably, is what made her cry the most. She picked up the picture of her father and studied it, holding it close to her face. Julia hugged the framed picture to her chest as a few more tears leaked from her eyes. Finally she looked at the picture again. She kissed her index and middle fingers and placed them on her fathers face. "I love you daddy," she whispered.

[blatentlyobvious]

Audrey its sooo good!
I love it.

[Anna]

"I'm not as good as some of you..." completely wrong, audrey. there are some amazing fanfics on here, this ones definitely one of them. i really love it, i can relate to it a lot. its so much like my moms friends family

[audreykins]

Ya'll just made my day with your comments. You have no idea.

[audreykins]

CHAPTER FOUR

Julia dried her tears, brought her luggage to her room, and called her mom soon after looking at her father’s picture.

“Mom! They made a whole room for me! In their house!” Julia exclaimed into her cell phone.

“Did you thank them? That is so nice!” her mother replied.

“Oh, believe me. I made sure they know how thankful I am.”

After talking about Julia’s trip, the two said their “good byes” and “I love yous” and hung up. Julia missed her mom, but having her own room made her feel more at home and less homesick.

Julia decided to go exploring. She walked down the stairs and into the hallway where the boys’ rooms were located. They hadn’t exactly shown her the inside of them. Hmm. Julia went to the first open door and looked inside. That was obviously Frankie’s room. A small bed shaped like a car was in the corner of the room. Toys were all over the floor and an empty toy box was against the opposite wall. A model airplane hung from the ceiling and hand-drawn pictures were hung on the walls.

Julia moved to the next door and took a step inside. Kevin’s room obviously. The double bed was neatly made. Three guitars sitting in their stands were in the corner. Posters of Kevin’s favorite singers and bands decorated the wall in an organized fashion. His DVD collection sat in its rack, most likely alphabetized. Julia noticed his closet door open. All of his shirts were color coordinated and his boots and sneakers lined the bottom of the floor neatly. Julia thought it was adorable how well Kevin took care of his belongings. He’d been like that for as long as she could remember.

The next room presented another open door. This had to be Joe’s room. The comforter on the double bed was pulled back and half of it was lying in the floor. Socks hung from his ceiling fan like decorations. Joe had posters on his wall just like Kevin, but his were crooked and the corners on some of them were hanging off the wall. Stacks of CDs and DVDs lay in the floor in front of his CD player. Shoes were all over the room as if he managed to slip off a pair in every possibly location. Finally, a pile of dirty clothes lay at the end of his messy bed. That was Joe for you. His mind was always moving from one thing to the next.

That only left one more room and Julia was eager to see what was inside it. She moved to the end of the hallway where there was a closed door. Julia turned the handle and let herself in. She was surprised to see Nick sitting in his computer chair talking on his cell phone. “Oh, I’m sorry!” Julia exclaimed, a bit embarrassed. She started to close the door.

“It’s ok, Julia!” Nick said, standing up. “Come back in.” Julia hesitantly came back into his room. Her cheeks were flushed and she didn’t want him to see. He put his phone back to his ear. “Hello? Oh, no. It’s Julia. I’ve told you about her before. Yeah, from New Jersey. My best friend, remember?” Nick winked at Julia “I’ve got to go. I’ll talk to you later. Bye.” Nick hung up.

“Who was that?” Julia asked.

Nick threw his phone on his double bed. “Miley.”

“Miley who?”

“Cyrus.”

Julia raised her eyebrows and she felt her cheeks turn red again. Of course, Miley Cyrus. What other Miley would Nick talk to? “Oh, duh,” she said, laughing at herself.

Nick laughed too. “It’s ok.” He looked down at the floor and smiled. “You haven’t changed, have you? You still walk into people’s rooms without knocking.”

This made Julia grin. “Well, I just wanted to see your rooms. I assumed you weren’t in here.”

“It’s ok. We’re like family.”

“Well, I think I’ll knock next time anyway. You know… just in case.” She laughed and Nick laughed with her. Why did Julia feel all these butterflies in her stomach? It’s just Nick.

Nick’s phone rang again. He picked it up and looked to see who was calling. He sighed. “I have to take this call. I’ll be right back.” Nick stepped into the hallway and closed the door, leaving Julia to do what she came to do in the first place—have a look around.

As she knew and expected, Nick’s room was a mixture of Kevin and Joe’s. There was his laptop (a picture of the New York cityscape as his background), a neat stack of CDs on his desk next to his computer, a laundry basket filled with clothes, and a pile of paper on the floor with lyrics and music notes written on them. Nick’s bed was made, but the covers still seemed sloppy as if he had made his bed hastily. His guitar sat in its stand by his bed and it looked like it had a shining orb around it. On the other side of Nick’s bed was a nightstand. On the nightstand was a lamp and a picture. Julia moved closer to see if she could make it out. Once she was close enough, she instantly recognized it and she sucked in a breath.

It was a picture from last spring. The two families were having a barbecue in the Jonas’ backyard. In the picture, the background was filled with people moving around and preparing the meal. In the foreground, however, Julia and Nick sat side by side with their arms draped around one another. Their heads were leaned in towards each other and both of them had grins on their faces. Julia’s blonde hair was pulled into a ponytail and she was sporting a yellow shirt that made her face light up. Nick’s hair was as curly as ever and he was wearing a bright, red shirt. The shirts combined with the bright, green grass made the picture so vibrant and festive. It was a picture that Julia treasured and also kept in a frame in her own room.

The fact that Nick had the picture framed and had it next to his bed, made Julia’s palms start to sweat. She moved to the nightstand and picked up the picture to study it like she had done with her father’s picture.

Nick came back into his room and Julia looked up from the picture. “I have this in my room too,” she said, showing Nick what she was looking at.

Nick laughed nervously and brushed the back of his neck with his hand. “Really? I like that picture.”

“Me too. It’s a good picture.” Julia placed the photo back on Nick’s nightstand carefully.

“You look really pretty in it. The picture, I mean.”

Julia stood up straight. “Oh, thank you.” She smiled. The two stood in silence before Julia flopped on to his bed. “So, I’m loving your CD!”

“Do you? You really like it?” And with that, the two began a conversation about the boys’ new CD. Nothing could take away their bond over music.


“I come all the way from New Jersey,” Julia began, “and you’re going to play Guitar Hero?”

Kevin and Joe turned to look at Julia. Kevin popped a piece of popcorn into his mouth. “Come on, Julia. It's Guitar Hero,” Joe said.

Julia giggled. “But you play Guitar Hero all the time.” She walked over to the couch and sat between the two of them.

“This is what we do,” Kevin said very seriously. Almost too seriously.

“Mind if I play?” Julia said.

"Oh, bring it on," Joe said, immediately pausing the game and giving the guitar to Julia. Julia had only played a couple of times and she didn't think she was going to have very good hand-eye coordination. She actually did pretty well, though.

"Whoa. When did you learn to dominate, Julia?" Kevin asked.

"Yeah! Last time I checked, you were straight up losing this game," Joe said.

Julia stared at the screen, pushing the buttons along with the music. "I don't know! I must be a natural, I guess!"

“Are you guys playing Guitar Hero?” Nick asked, walking into the living room.

“Yeah, and Julia apparently rocks at it!” Joe said, acting a little more excited than he should.

Nick moved behind the couch and against the back of it. He smiled as Julia continued to excel at Guitar Hero. And for Julia, to be in that room with all three of them at the same time was a blessing.

[nat]

Post moreeee pleassseeeeeeeeeeeee

i still can't wait for that Beatles one btw.

[audreykins]

Haha Nat! I finished the Beatles one! Now I need to get cracking on this one! Trust me, I have not forgotten. The ideas are in my head.

[kaitlynjonas]

please write more[:
i loveeee it