Connor - Burgers and Guys
“So? You gonna tell us what that kiss was about, man? Looked pretty intense.” Johnny waited about three seconds after we got back into the studio before letting his curiosity get the better of him. “You guys a thing now?”
“I wasn’t going to say anything but when I got here this morning they were sleeping all snuggled up in a pile of blankets out on the deck.”
“Fuck Devon, really?” I throw him a dirty look. “We haven’t really talked about it yet, Johnny. I’m hoping to spend some time with her after you all fuck off today.”
The door swings open and Ryder walks in.
“I really like her,” he says. “She’s legit a nice person. You did good choosing her, Connor.”
“Uh, thanks, man.” I look around at the other guys, confusion apparent on my face. “When did you get here? No one could get a hold of you this morning.”
“Oh yeah, I was ignoring you. I was way too hungover to deal with you assholes today.” He tries to make it sound like he’s joking, but there’s at least some truth behind what he’s saying. “But then Alex sent me a text telling me to come for breakfast and now here I am. She’s easy to talk to. I’ve claimed her as my friend.” He looks me dead in the eye as he says this last part, and I can tell that he’s serious. “If you fuck this up, I’m going to take her side. Just so you know.”
“That’s great, Ryder. I’m happy she could get you to join us. And that you guys have found a friend in each other.” I give him a warning look. “But if you try to take it further than friends, there will be trouble. I’ve been obsessed with her since I was a kid and I’m not losing her again.”
He actually laughs at me. “You don’t have to worry about that, man. I have my own love life to worry about.” He looks around at the rest of the guys, a little more seriously. “And I know I’ve been a huge asshole lately. I’ll get it under control.”
He stuns us with that, and we’re all silent for a beat. That’s as close to an apology as we’re likely to get. When we gather our wits, everyone gives him a nod or a word of approval. We’ve been talking about it a little and he has been out of control. But if he says he’s got it, then we trust him.
“Are you all ready to get started? I’ve been doing a little writing and I have some stuff to share with you.” I pull out my notebooks and we start piecing together some new material. It feels like something big is happening here.
We spend most of the day locked away in the studio. The guys have some great ideas and we get three new songs nearly complete. We have some things to work through regarding composition, but lyrically, and mostly musically, we are confident that they are some of our best songs to date. The new album is going to blow all of our others out of the water.
Sometime around mid-afternoon, we break for lunch. Alex is out somewhere and not answering her texts, so we decide to go out to eat at a local diner known for the best burgers in town. I don my customary disguise of a long-sleeved shirt and baseball cap, and the other guys put on similar stuff. We don’t get recognized all the time, but it’s happening often enough now that we all have to disguise ourselves a bit when we don’t want to be disturbed. Sometimes it’s nice to just eat our food and not be interrupted with requests for autographs and selfies. I plan to enjoy relative anonymity for as long as I possibly can.
Devon drives us all to the restaurant in the Escalade and we take up a couple of tables in the back of the place. No sense in calling more attention to ourselves than necessary. The hostess gets our drinks and sends our server over. She takes our orders and we sit around and talk for a bit.
“Does that server keep looking over here?” Johnny asks while darting his eyes over in her direction. “I think she recognizes us.”
“It’s been happening a lot more. We’ve done way more press recently, so it only makes sense that people will know who we are.”
I look over to see if I can get a look. She’s looking right at me when I look up, and I’m met with a big, somewhat familiar, smile. I think maybe I recognize her, but I’m not positive. I smile back politely anyway.
“Hey Devon, does our server look familiar to you? Isn’t she that groupie that you walked out of the venue after the show? The one who was half naked in the bathroom?”
Devon barely glances over before confirming that it is her. Before anything can happen, she comes over to the table and explains that she is going off shift and someone else will take care of us. She tells us all to enjoy our lunch and to have a great day, and then she’s gone. She doesn’t even show that she knows who we are, though I’m sure she does. I thought that was going to be way messier than it was. She must remember how she behaved that night and be embarrassed. I know I would be if the situation were reversed.
After our new server brings our food, the conversation turns to me and Alex.
“So what are you going to do?” asks Devon. He seems to have a soft spot for her, just like Ryder does. I love the fact that she gets along with my friends. These guys practically live with me, so it’s important to me that they can be friendly with her.
“I’m not sure.” I think about while I eat some of my burger. “She told me a little about her past relationships and they were all pretty bad.”
“What does that mean, exactly? She wasn’t hurt or anything?” Aiden’s concern shines from his face. He has experience with domestic violence and it is a cause that is dear to his heart. He even volunteers with a shelter in town and does a lot of fundraising for them.
“No, nothing like that,” I clarify. “All the boyfriends she has had have cheated on her.”
“You cheated on her?” Ryder nearly jumps out of his chair. “Why would she want anything to do with you now?”
“No, no. Not me. We didn’t sleep together. Hell, we didn’t really even break up. We were trying the long distance thing, but my stupid mother changed our phone number. I thought she’d decided not to call, and she thought I didn’t want to deal with her grief. It was a big clusterfuck.” That reminds me, I still need to confront dear old mom about that. I’m not sure it’s the time for that just now though. She might be using again, so it’s not like I would get a straight answer out of her, anyway. I really need to check on the girls again and see if they can give me an idea where Mom’s head is at.
“Ok good,” Ryder is visibly relieved. I should be concerned, but I actually like that he is already so protective of her. “She’s way too nice for anyone to do that to her. And she’s pretty hot too. Why would anyone want to step out on that?”
“You’re asking the wrong guy, man. She’s not really even mine yet and I already can’t see me wanting anyone else, ever.” Even I’m a little surprised at the truth in my words. But I can’t deny that I feel serious about her. Might as well embrace it.
“Maybe she’s a terrible lay?” Johnny adds in what I’m sure he thinks is a helpful way.
