The crowd at the dinner table was quite a site. Each person different, with one thing in common...a family and Samantha was the newest member.
Jesse...the hippie boy with an ear for the keyboard, dually talented guitar player, and the perfect harmony to Adam's voice. Not to mention half of the Carmichael/Levine songwriting partnership.
Mickey...the fun-loving bassist who always had his hand in all sorts of trouble and was there through it all. Mickey lightens the mood with his insanely funny jokes and gestures.
Ryan...the responsible older brother who was always just as guilty as the rest, but got off without charge. He met fellow LA boy, Adam, when he was 10 and was the final member of Kara's Flowers. His knack for rhythm and partnership with Jesse's keyboard skills led him to become an excellent drummer.
James...the last member of Maroon 5, but certainly a big part of the family. The Nebraskan with the flying fingers was an immediate welcome to the group and the other boys wouldn't have it any other way.
Adam... a great singer and he's the other half of the Carmichael/Levine partnership, but still...Adam's different. His heartbreaks inspired him to write many of the songs on the Songs About Jane album and he stills picks up his guitar to jam on a track with James.
Ella...the girl with a brilliant mind, but a terrible past. Her need to take care of others and her fears literally pushed her to the brink of insanity. She overcame the biggest obstacle in life and became whole.
Samantha...the sixteen year old girl that is a mystery to everyone, and lately, including her older sister. Sam needs to learn to make the right decisions in her life, but may not be able to because of the pressure.

"I'm not that hungry right now...um, I'm going to go upstairs," Samantha excused herself.
"Sam, ten minutes ago you all but tore the tin apart. Are you okay?" Ella asked.
"I'm fine."
"Samantha..."
"Ella, you're not my mother, okay? Leave me alone."
For the first time since they'd met, the guys saw the look of pure hurt in Ella's eyes as her sister turned her away.
"Sorry," she apologized weakly as she began to pick at her food.
"I'm going upstairs," she stormed out of the kitchen, gathered her bags from the door, and pounded up the stairs.
"Excuse me," Ryan pushed away from the table.
"Yeah, me too," Mickey followed suit as he and Ryan went to the basement door as they opened, closed it and stepped light-footed to the stairs.
"Don't bother going after her," Ella stated blankly as she continued picking at her food, back turned.
"How in the hell..." Mickey turned around.
"I may not see you, but I'm not stupid, guys. I know what you're trying to do. She's acting selfish, like she always does. Do you hear me, Sam? You need to stop acting like a foolish twelve year old and grow up. You're almost 17."
"Sam's in her room..." Ryan shook his head.
"No, she's not, she's right above your head though. I'm not crazy, am I Samantha?"
No answer.
"Ella..." Ryan asked.
"I am right, aren't I, Sam?"
"Ella!" Ryan yelled.
"No, she's right. Ms. Perfect over here is always right," Sam yelled and stormed into her room.
Ryan ran upstairs after Sam and Mickey heeded Ella's warning and retreated downstairs.

"Sam?" Ryan asked the plain white wood in front of him.
"Go away!" the voice replied.
"Sam, come on. You can't just sit there and steam all night."
"Don't be one of them..."
"One of who?"
  The door before him was replaced with a tear stained face belonging to a now pale, young woman.
"The ones that try to control my life," she ran her hands through her messy strands. "They can't make me do anything, they just can't!"
Samantha turned away and ran back to her haven of blue linens.
"Sam, you can't just run away from your problems..."
"I know, I know. Don't be foolish, Samantha. You need to think about your future. Why can't you be more like your sister?"
"I'm not comparing you to Ella. Why would you think that?"
"She ran away from her problems and look what happened to her? She was in a nuthouse."
"That's not fair, Sam. It wasn't her fault."
"She stayed. I never would."
"She had to."
"No she didn't."
"Why are you so damn angry, Samantha? What could she have possibly done that was so wrong?"
 "Did you know that I spent two of my birthdays at that place because Ella couldn't be here? Yep, I celebrated my first two years of being a teen at that horrid place."
 "I'm sure that she wished she could have changed that..."
 "But my birthday is next week and no one has even mentioned it. My parents jetted off to Spain...and I'm stuck here. Alone, like I always am."