I nod. The guy did seem like he would go on a rant on just about anything. The elevator door soon opens to a large, tinted glass hallway. Anu takes a card out of her purse and taps on the scanner. The glass slides open to a room, and I hear the loud music. Andrea is sitting, talking to Jordan They are giggling about something.
“About time you showed up,” he says soon as he sees Anu.
“Sorry, I’m late,” she says to him. He scowls a bit when he sees me.
“Hey,” Andrea says to me. “Nice to see you again.” She turns to Anu “We didn’t know you were coming with a friend.”
“I wanted to see her in action,” I say, wanting to correct the friend part, but I’ll let it lie for now.
“You won MAK in the auction, right?” Jordan says to me.
“Yes, I did.”
He gives me a suspicious nod and a raised brow to Anu. She averts her eyes.
“Let’s get to work,” he says to Anu.
Everyone moves to their spaces, and Andrea pulls me to come and sit with her.
“So, I’m guessing you two are dating,” she whispers.
“I’d like to think so, but she’s not quite ready to say that quite yet,” I answer in a low voice.
“Well, dating isn’t easy for people with sickle cell, especially her and Jordan”
She whispers.
“Because of their disease?”
Andrea nods. “They feel like they are a burden to people.”
I didn’t think of that.
"What do you mean?”
“Jordan has it too. He’s SS”
My eyes widen. “I had no idea.” That must be the bond between them.
Andrea continues, “Sickle Cell makes them feel like they are a burden to others, which makes them people shy. They often feel people will break up with them when they see that they are constantly sick. Took Jordan a while to realize that I’m not going to bail on him.” She says
“I already know about her disease.”
“It’s one thing to know, it’s another thing to live with the constant of it. It’s not easy for them or their partners, so I don’t blame her for not being quick to let you in.”
“Guess I have to stay close.”
“That all sounds good for now, but time will tell how close you are staying.”
I nod but I know I’m not going to leave. The thought of her in pain that I can’t lessen or save her from is scary too.
“Let’s watch them make magic.” Andrea looks forward, and finally smiles.
I nod again and turn to watch Jordan; Anu and few other guys make their magic.
Andrea picks up a magazine, and I just watch as Jordan starts to sing, and the producer presses the buttons. Anu is quiet most of it but has headphones on, listening. She signals to the producer from time to time and he does whatever the signal means. She doesn’t speak but the producer seems to understand all her hand signals. I watch in amazement as they work. Jordan sings repeatedly. It sounds perfect to me but to them, something is missing. After Jordan stops singing, Andrea moves closer to me.
“This is when she does her magic,” she whispers. Jordan comes out of the room and sits quietly next to Anu.
