So I will.
After a deep breath, I make my way out of my room, joining the rest of my band as we line up near the stage. “Are you fuckers awake?”
They shove me playfully and begin to file out, the crowd growing louder as they spot each member through the fog heading to their spot on the stage. When it’s my turn, I wait until the intro music reaches its crescendo and yell for everyone to get on their fucking feet just as I make my entrance, fireworks and screams erupting in tandem to fuel my soul and everything else fades away.
This is what I was made for.
I spot my girl before the opening track:Death By Splintered Woodis finished and watch her sing my lyrics back to me,something inside me settling into place at the sight. I’m going to marry this woman.
As promised I kill it, and in the end the entire festival screams for me so loud I can’t even hear myself as I try to thank them. I promised them I’d give them a night to remember, and based on the noise, I can confidently say I delivered. But one woman’s screams can be heard over the rest, and suddenly I want everyone here to know she’s mine. I went down and flirted with her a couple times, but that isn’t enough. I don’t want there to be speculation or rumors about it, I need them all toknow.
As my bandmates toss out their guitar picks and Levi tosses out a couple drumheads, the crowd finally quiets enough for me to talk to them. “Hey, ghost girl. Come here.”
I wave at security to go help her and she waves them off with a laugh, squeezing through and climbing up the front of the stage like a spider monkey. Taking a bow when a few people cheer, she stands tall and wraps an arm around me. “Hi.”
“Hi,” I say only for her, then kiss her lips as I hold up my hand to wave goodbye to the crowd. These photos will beeverywhere before I even get backstage, and I smile knowing the world will soon know I’m officially hers.
Taking her hand, I drag her offstage with me and grin at her over my shoulder when we’re out of view. “I hope you’re ready for everything that comes with what I just did.”
Paparazzi will follow us around and try to use the past to hurt us, but we’ve got a handle on that shit. Alaina is solid. “Ahh, let them come. It’s not like we’ve really made a secret of it, I mean... we live together.”
That’s true. She asked me to stay and we’ve been glued together ever since. If anyone was paying attention, this isn’t news, but the ones who weren’t sure just got their questions answered. And it felt damn good to do it. I wanted to show her off. “Thank you for finding me,” I add as I tug her to face me. “When we were kids, when you came to my show... we came together because of you.”
“You gave me something worth chasing,” she says simply, rocking up on her toes to kiss me. “And I can’t say you don’t come with perks.”
“Are you using me for my body, baby girl?” I reply teasingly, lifting her up so I can carry her to my dressing room. “Or is it for my french toast? It’s the breakfast, isn’t it?”
“It’s definitely for the breakfast, and the constant entertainment of watching Levi ruin poor little Sidney. Do you think Sid will ever admit to anyone else how he feels?”
Chuckling, I kiss her neck and pin her against the door as soon as we enter. “Probably not. He’ll suffer in silence before he admits he’s dying. I used to be like that too, and he’s the one that told me not to bottle shit in. Funny how we rarely take our own advice, huh? We should make it our mission to get them together before the next tour.”
“Or, we could find someone better for him,” she offers. “Someone who won’t take advantage of him and play his little heart like a fiddle.”
She loves Levi so I know she’s mostly kidding, but she’s also got a point. I fear Sidney moving on will cause Levi to spiral to a place there’s no coming back from, but there’s always the possibility that it would do the opposite. “Maybe. If hewanted Sid he’d fight for him and nothing would stand in his way. It might be what he needs to wake his ass up.”
“Maybe. I just want them both to be happy. Hell, I want all of them to find what we have.”
“Me too.” But enough about them, I’m on top of the world with my whole world in my arms, and I don’t want to waste a second of it. “We have something pretty special, baby girl. I’m never letting you go.”
“Is that a threat?” she gasps playfully, covering her heart with her ring-less hand. I really have to change that soon. “How dare you.”
“Threat, declaration, promise, it’s all of the above. I’ll dare as long as there’s air in my lungs, Alaina. You’re mine.”
I crash my lips to hers and let the world around us fade away. I used to demand solitude after a show so I could bring myself back down to earth and let the chemicals subside, but now all of my chemicals are drawn to her. I don’t want to be alone anymore, I want to be alone with her.
I think it’s time we build ourselves a treehouse.
Epilogue:
YOUtopia
Alaina
A sense of calm washes over me as I touch the base of the tree trunk. “I told you,” I whisper. “I told you one day I’d bring him back and make him remember everything. I did it.”
The bark gently scratches my palm as I flatten it out, glancing above my head to see the re-built treehouse. This is what it’s all been for. Not a love story, not a redemption arc. Not just mind-blowing sex and beautiful tension, but this. Building something that will last generations and really make a difference.
I can’t say for sure that our first attempt at a youth center will take off, but we havetime. And choosing this house — the house where Bash endured living with parents who suffered from ideologies bordering on religious psychosis, the house that I ran to when I was starving or scared — as our flagship seemed like a no-brainer.
