But as the words left my mouth, I realised I didn’t know for certain whether they were true.
17
THEN
Ash: ‘Girl From Mars’
The music was loud, the bass thumping through the sticky floor as Erin, Rose and Sam pushed their way through the crowds towards the bar. The pub was packed and Erin felt a ripple of pride at the thought that all of these people were here to watch her boyfriend playing tonight.
‘I’ll get the beers, you find us a good spot to watch from,’ Sam yelled, turning towards the bar to battle his way to the front. Erin and Rose elbowed their way to the back of the room and squeezed themselves next to a table where they could at least rest their drinks.
‘What time are they on?’ Rose yelled.
‘Not sure.’ Erin pulled a leaflet from the back pocket of her jeans and squinted at it. This was the first time Adam’s band The Night Crawlers had headlined at this pub – they were usually second on the bill – and Adam had been really excited about it.
‘This is a big deal Erin,’ he’d said the previous night, pacing up and down in his parents’ outbuilding where the band rehearsed.
‘It’s brilliant,’ she’d said, reaching to hug him, but he’d pushed her away, agitated.
‘Not now.’ His body fizzed with anticipation and she took a step away, trying not to show she was hurt. He ran his fingers through his wild curls and crouched down, elbows on his knees. ‘What if we fuck it up?’
‘Why would you?’ She squatted down beside him. ‘You’ve played there loads of times. You’ll smash it.’
He’d leapt up and picked up his guitar. ‘You’d better go; we’ve got to get some more practice in.’
She’d left then, dismissed. Now she felt nervous about seeing him again.
‘It doesn’t say,’ she said, folding the flyer up carefully and shoving it back in her pocket. ‘They’re usually on by nine though, aren’t they?’
Rose glanced at her watch. ‘Half an hour then?’
They turned to face the small makeshift stage the current band were playing on, and settled in to listen. But Erin wasn’t really paying attention. Instead, she surveyed the room. It hadn’t gone unnoticed that, dotted among the usual crowd were huddles of young, leggy girls, hovering around in their tiny cropped tops, tight jeans, high heels and back-combed hair. They were The Night Crawlers fans, and although she knew they existed, this was the first time she’d seen them in the flesh, these young women who followed Adam and his band round the country like lemmings.
She knew, too, that they were really only here for the charismatic front man, that Adam’s dark good looks and deep, throaty voice were the main draw.
‘Stop it E.’ Rose nudged her in the side and she snapped her head round.
‘Stop what?’
‘Stressing.’ She nodded towards the crowd. ‘They’re just groupies; you don’t have anything to worry about.’
Erin nodded. ‘I know.’ She wasn’t going to relax that easily though. It wasn’t that she didn’t trust Adam. She did, of course she did. He loved her, even if he didn’t say it very often. But it was these girls who weren’t to be trusted. She knew they’d throw themselves into bed with her boyfriend without a backwards glance if they got the chance.
She was here to make sure they didn’t get that chance.
‘Here you go.’ Sam slammed three pints down, sloshing beer over the sides onto the already sticky table. He removed the crisps that were clamped between his teeth and threw them down too. Erin tipped half a pint down her neck and wiped the back of her hand across her mouth.
‘Blimey, thirsty?’ Sam smirked.
‘Just needed a drink.’
‘She’s upset about the groupies,’ Rose said.
Sam snaked his arm around her shoulders and gave her a squeeze. ‘E, you know you’ve got nothing to worry about, don’t you? Even if they throw themselves at Adam, we’re here to drag them off him.’ He grinned and she gave a weak smile back.
They sipped their beer and munched the crisps. The first band’s set came to an end and they bought more beer. Erin could feel herself pulsing, both excited and nervous about seeing Adam on the stage. She wondered if he would spot her here, right at the back.
‘I’m just nipping to the loo,’ she said, disappearing before anyone could object.
