Benji would be the odd man out. Except not really, because he still had a years-old connection to Joshua. Their frequent separations had withstood the test of time.
Van went to bed cranky, and woke up Friday just as grumpy. He spent the day on the couch, streaming episodes ofGlee, fielding the occasional texts from Benji and Joshua, and ignoring Melody’s curious looks. He’d told her what was going on, but was not looking for advice on how to handle things going forward. The three of them had to figure this out.
Their Friday night crowd at Off Beat wasn’t as big as expected, so they didn’t need two bar-backs. Beatrice let Lincoln off early and kept Emmett. Lincoln hung around at the bar with Bobby, near Van’s station, chatting about stuff Van didn’t pay much attention to.
Not until he overheard Benji’s name in conversation.
He inched closer under the pretense of cleaning the bottles in his well.
“—too busy to bother with the gossip channels this week,” Lincoln said. “They’re making a bigger deal out of your sudden vacation than it really is, considering you’ve got a new schedule starting tomorrow night.”
Making a big deal why? People took time off from work, even traveling indie bands trying to get their big break.
Van had seen thousands of performers at Off Beat over the years, and only two had ever made it big. Fading Daze had potential, and they were on the cusp of great things. Bobby and Lincoln’s tense conversation was kind of baffling.
“And so far so good he has no idea why the sudden vacation.”
Only two other guys could be “he”: Andy or Benji. And Van was pretty fucking sure they weren’t talking about Andy, so he butted right into the discussion. “Why aren’t you tellingBenji the real reason why you’re all on vacation this week?” he snapped.
Lincoln's ever-present sunglasses guarded his eyes, but Bobby couldn’t hide his surprise as easily. Or his guilt. Van had no pending drink orders, so he planted his palms on the bar top and leaned forward. Waiting.
Bobby finally said, “Because he’ll take it personally, and it’s not his fault. Not really.”
Van could be intimidating when he wanted to be, and right now, he wanted to be. He drew on his superior height and loomed over Bobby. “What’s not his fault?”
“The fact that some people are homophobic assholes,” Lincoln replied. “After those pictures of Benji making out with a guy were posted online, a few venues cancelled. Their manager had to scramble to readjust the schedule, so he gave the band a week off while he fixed things.”
Anger burned deep in his gut. “Benji’s never hidden the fact that he’s gay. He was in XYZ for two years, for fuck’s sake.”
“Knowing it and having it shoved in your face are two different things,” Bobby said, with a touch of hostility that raised Van’s hackles.
“You can’t seriously blame Benji for a couple of bigoted owners cancelling your appearance at their shitty nightclubs.”
Bobby frowned, and his lack of response made even Lincoln take a harder look. “Dude, seriously?” Lincoln said.
“Look, he wants to suck Joshua’s dick in private, that’s his business,” Bobby snapped. “It doesn’t need to be part of Fading Daze’s image. I’ve worked too fucking hard on this group, to make it what it is.”
“Benji’s worked his fucking ass off too, you little shit, and he’s got one hell of an amazing voice,” Van said, his voice so cold he barely recognized it. “If you think he’s ruining your precious band’s image, you say so to his fucking face.”
A warm hand on his shoulder made him jump. He met Beatrice’s concerned gaze, saw the barely perceptible head shake.Don’t do this here,she said without saying.
Van switched stations with Sasha so he could work without wanting to put his fist through a wall—or Bobby’s nose. Bobby and Lincoln left a while later. Somehow, Van made it through another video call with his guys without letting them see how upset he was. He didn’t want to bring it up over the phone, and he wanted to give Bobby a chance to come clean on his own. Say what needed to be said before Benji went on the road with them again.
Beatrice refrained from commenting on the near-fight the rest of the night, and even through closedown and cleanup. They went upstairs together, and she finally stopped him near the front door. “What was all that about?”
He wasn’t going to patronize her by asking for clarification, so he gave her the condensed version of what he’d heard and said. Her eyebrows were high on her forehead when he finished.
“I never would have taken Bobby for a homophobe,” she said. “Both of his lead male singers have been gay. First Coop, and now Benji.”
Van grunted. “Bobby’s one of those straight guys who wants to be cool about having gay friends, but he’s also convinced our cooties might rub off on him if he gets too close.”
“Tolerates without accepting. Hmm . . . I still expect Danielle would smack him upside the head for acting that way.”
“Probably.” Danielle had known Trey Cooper was gay long before he came out to everyone, and they’d been best friends for years.
“It’s good that you stood up for Benji, but please, don’t cause another scene in my bar?”
Van hung his head as shame hit him hard. “I’m sorry. He pissed me off.”
