I have no idea.
My steps are heavy. My ears pound as I walk away from her. Every fiber in my being is telling me to go back. Go back into that room and hold her hand. A simple graze of my fingers against hers would suffice. I’m not asking for much.
Although I know I am.
She’s not ready.
She may never be ready.
Is that something I can live with? Maybe, I don’t know. I’ve never felt this way. All I know is that touching her for that one brief moment, having her hair glide along my knuckles and the look in her eyes when I did it; I felt like I could do anything, all because she didn’t move away, she didn’t look away. She stayed and allowed me one solitary piece of herself and now that moment will burn into my memory until I can do it again.
Liam is pacing when I find him.
“What the hell was that?” I ask him. I don’t like the way he spoke to Katelyn. Yes, being on tour is stressful, but this time it’s supposed to be for fun. We are supposed to be showing our families what our lives are like away from home. Treating Katelyn like she did something wrong is going to make her want to quit, and I can’t have that.
Liam looks up at me with impatience and a self-accusing look. He shakes his head, rubbing his hands over his face before he lets out a frustrated scream. The only thing preventing everyone from hearing him is the fact that DeVon is on stage performing.
“I can’t believe I yelled at Katelyn like that.”
“What was that?”
“Sam all over again.”
“I figured, but this isn’t Katelyn’s fault. She doesn’t know about the things Sam used to do and if she did, she surely wouldn’t do them without asking us.”
“I know.” Liam moves toward the wall and leans back. “Remember that first gig we had? God we opened the door and they were there, every square inch was covered.”
“I remember.”
“What’s all this?” I stand behind Liam and JD, surveying the room. We knew when we signed with Moreno Entertainment that we’d get the star treatment, but this may be over the top. “Did we ask for this?”
Liam turns and looks at us, we both shake our heads. I’m a guy. Simple things amuse me. I definitely don’t need a room full of roses… so many in fact that you can’t see the furnishings.
“Sam thought it would be a nice touch,” Mr. Moreno says. He’s a short, pudgy man. He sort of reminds me of a gangster, always wearing a fedora that covers his balding head. He’s never without a cigar hanging out of his mouth, even though I’ve never actually seen him light it. He looks at Liam and winks.
“I don’t think we like it,” Liam says and JD and I nod. I’m not a flower guy. I mean I’ll send them to my mom, but can’t say I want them stinking up my place. The room looks like a funeral home – a red one to boot. Red roses cover every available inch, leaving barely a space for us to sit down.
“Can we go someplace else, Mr. Moreno? This isn’t us,” I say.
Mr. Moreno rubs his portly belly. “But my Sam did this for you, Liam. She said you’d like it.”
I hear Liam sigh. He pinches the bridge of his nose and shakes his head. “4225 West doesn’t need or want this. Can we please have it cleaned out or go to a different room?”
Mr. Moreno pats Liam on the back. He doesn’t pay attention to us. I mean why should he? Liam is the talent behind the band. I’m just a lowly house-band drummer that he asked to come play with him when he got signed and JD joined after answering an ad in the paper. For Moreno Entertainment – Liam is their prize.
“My Sam did this especially for you, Liam, I think you’d want to accept her gift.”
“Mr. Moreno, with all due respect to you and Sam, this room is supposed to be a place for us to relax before going out to perform. I know for me, and I’m assuming for Harrison and JD as well, we can’t center ourselves in this room when the over-powering scent of flowers is trying to kill us.”
Mr. Moreno chuckles, his belly bouncing up down as his menacing laugh carries on. Liam looks at us, we both shrug. We don’t know what’s going on, but from the sound of Mr. Moreno, we aren’t going to like the result.
“Liam, you’re young and new to all of this. It’s best you let me decide what you like and don’t like. Sam is merely trying to show her appreciation and make you feel comfortable. I suggest you repay her in kind.”
Mr. Moreno walks out, leaving us in the middle of the red funeral room. There isn’t any place for us to sit down, let alone hang our coats.
JD starts walking around, pulling the cards from each bouquet.
“Good Luck, Liam. Love, Sam.”
“You’re the best, Liam. Love, Sam.”
“You’ll be amazing, Liam. Love, Sam.”
“Dude, did you sleep with her?” I ask. Liam shakes his head.