Diamonds Are Forever

4: Posted on Friday 1/16 at 5:29 PM

whenever I watch one of her early videos I want to yell at her to PUT DOWN THE GUITAR!!! She might be decent if she wasn’t attacking the poor instrument through every song!! At least in her recent ones she has someone else playing for her.

5: Posted on Friday 1/16 at 5:34 PM

You all are such bitches. Have you listened to her sing? She has perfect pitch. I’m telling you, that girl has natural talent and is going somewhere. You’re all just jealous.

6: Posted on Friday 1/16 at 5:41 PM

Perfect pitch doesn’t give her a personality. And whats up with her eyeshadow? She puts so much on it looks like she got punched in the face.

7: Posted on Friday 1/16 at 5:55 PM

hahahahahahaha you would think that considering how much money her dad has, she could afford to get her makeup professionally done for her videos!

8: Posted on Friday 1/16 at 6:09 PM

You all know the only reason she’s so well known is because her daddy paid One Connection to perform at her sweet sixteen and tweet about her YouTube channel. ANYONE would be famous after that!!

9: Posted on Friday 1/16 at 6:58 PM

she thinks shes a hell of a lot hotter than she is, too. she looks like every other blonde teenage girl around here! nothing special. people only put up with her cause she’s a Diamond.

chapter 5:

(#u01493745-e5ac-55e2-aa17-888f46495271)

Courtney and Peyton still had no idea that Savannah had broken their pact and talked to Mom and Grandma, and Savannah planned on keeping it that way.

So when Grandma had asked them to visit over the long weekend in January for Courtney’s birthday—using Aunt Sophie’s illness to guilt-trip them into saying yes—Savannah had been relieved. Soon her sisters would be forced to talk to Mom and Grandma. Savannah wouldn’t have to feel like she was going behind their backs anymore.

The limo got on the freeway—it wouldn’t be long until they reached Grandma’s new home in Napa. Courtney was staring contemplatively out the window, while Peyton had her headphones in, listening to a ’90s rock band so loudly that they could all hear it. Savannah scrolled through Instagram to pass the time. She was commenting on a photo by a popular YouTuber when the phone buzzed with a text from Perry Myles. She smiled and opened it, having a good idea about what it would say. She was right:

We go on in 10! The crowd rocks tonight :) xx

Ever since Savannah had texted Perry after the meeting with her agent, he’d been texting her every night of the One Connection world tour. On days when they played a show, it was always when he was waiting in the greenroom. When he first did it, Savannah had thought it would be a one-time thing. But he’d continued with every stop, and the texts had become something special between them. She’d even looked his tour up and memorized where he’d be every night that week...although she made sure never to let him knowthat.

Where are you now?? :)

Belgium... I’ve been craving waffles since we got here :P

I love waffles!! :)

I thought pancakes were your fave?

Yeah, they are :) Especially the ones at the Grand Café at the Diamond. They’re the best pancakes EVER!

Is that an invite for me to visit so I can try them? ;)

Savannah’s fingers froze, and she stared at the text. What was the right reply? She wished she could ask Peyton, but the vibe in the limo was so awkward—Savannah could feel her sisters’ anger toward Grandma and Mom. She didn’t want to make things worse. So she would have to try her best at channeling Peyton herself.

If you ever get a break in your crazy schedule ;)

She pressed Send, and reread their conversation. Hopefully her response was okay. She didn’t want Perry to think she was throwing herself at him, but she also didn’t want to sound uninterested.

I always have time for you. Anyway, my manager’s yelling at me to put my phone away...time to hit the stage! xx

Her heart flipped at the first line. He would always have time for her. It was hard to believe that Perry Myles was interested in her, but he did text her every night before performing. That had to mean something. But he also had to put his phone away, so she had to reply quickly.

Good luck tonight! I wish I was there <3

I wish you were here, too ;)

Savannah smiled at his reply, then returned to scrolling through Instagram. One of Perry’s bandmates, Noel, had posted a picture of the five of them backstage, and while they would never see it because they had so many fans, Savannah liked the picture. She couldn’t wait to see them live when they played Vegas this summer. In the meantime, Perry would text her when the show was over to tell her how it went. Although she’d come to learn that One Connection shows always went well. With seats that scalped for thousands of dollars, it was to be expected.

Eventually, the limo exited the freeway. Courtney was biting her nails—something she did only when she was really nervous—and Savannah tossed her phone into her bag. She wanted to say something to make Courtney feel better, but what? The guilt over her secret rose up in her throat once again, so Savannah stayed quiet, looking out the window and playing with the ends of her hair.

Peyton paused her music and took out her earbuds. “Are you guys ready?” she asked, looking mainly at Courtney.

“No.” Courtney stopped chewing her nails and lowered her hands to her lap. “I have no idea what to say to them. I wouldn’t even be visiting this weekend if Grandma hadn’t sent us that email about how Aunt Sophie wanted us to come, and that this might be one of our last chances to see her before...”

She let the sentence hang, not needing to clarify what she meant. Aunt Sophie had stopped chemo at the start of the New Year, since it wasn’t working. The three of them didn’t knowAunt Sophie that well—she’d moved in with Grandma right before they’d come to Vegas, and prior to then they’d only seen her a handful of times when she’d visited during the holidays—but how could they refuse to come to Napa with Grandma holding Aunt Sophie’s illness over their heads?

“Maybe it won’t hurt to listen to them?” Savannah twisted her bracelets. “We can’t stay mad at them forever.”

“But I can’t forgive them, either,” Courtney said. “They lied to us. For our entire lives. I can’t just get past that.”

“You don’t have to ‘get past it.’” Peyton blew a bubble with her gum and sucked the air back in. “I sure as hell won’t.”

“I don’t know.” Savannah bit her lip. “Will you really never forgive Grandma? You’re her favorite.”

“No, I’m not.” Courtney rested her head in her hand and sighed.

“I just keep worrying that Mom will relapse,” Savannah said. “If she does, and it’s because we haven’t forgiven her...it’ll be our fault.”

“It’s not our fault,” Peyton said sharply. “Besides, Grandma would have said something if Mom were drinking again. But it seems like quitting her job, moving to the country, and doing yoga every day was cure enough. Oh, and us moving out so she didn’t have to take care of us anymore. I’m sure that had something to do with it.”

Savannah flinched. “I don’t think that’s it. I mean, the other stuff must have helped. But she misses us—I know it.”

“How?” Courtney asked. “None of us have talked to her since Thanksgiving.”

Savannah’s heart stopped. “Right,” she said, her sisters’ gazes searing into her as she grasped for an excuse. “But before then, when we talked to her on Skype, I could tell she missed us. And when we saw her the day before Thanksgiving, she was really happy to see us. She tried cooking for us and everything.”

“She did try,” Courtney said, her forehead creased. “But being back in that house after what happened there, and seeing Mom and Grandma again...it’ll be so strange. I don’t think I’ll ever look at them the same way. I’m just so grateful that the two of you have stood by me through all of this. Thank you.”

“Of course,” Peyton asked as the limo passed through the gates of Grandma’s neighborhood. “We’re all three in this together.”

Savannah’s stomach dropped. What would her sisters do if they knew about her secret phone calls with Mom and Grandma?