The band continued, though now none of the notes were recognizable songs, so the crowd’s eagerness bled into random shouts of “I love you, Remi.”
He cut the strange connection between them and turned to strut to the front of the stage.
Remi just stood there, holding the microphone stand, staring broodingly into the crowd as he got into the moodiness of the next song.The band’s loop seamlessly faded into the opening notes of the most popular song on the album, and the crowd erupted.Remi’s voice boomed through the speakers, lulling everyone—including Skye—into a trance.
She might have stayed in that trance for the rest of the show, except one of the crew grabbed her arm and pulled her aside.
“We have a problem,” the guy said.
Skye sighed.“What now?”
“Lief went to the hospital after their show.They have mono, and Georgina and Kansas both have fevers too.”
Skye squeezed the bridge of her nose and looked up at the ceiling.“Are you telling me my entire opening band has mono?An illness that only teenagers are supposed to get?An illness that can take months to recover from?”
“Well, technically, Lief only turned twenty last month, but yeah, it’s bad luck.”
“Bad luck,” Skye repeated.Her sanity felt as though it was slipping through her fingertips.“Right.Because what else could it possibly be.”
The smell of smoke tickled her nose.She turned toward the source and watched a demon walk out of the flames.
It wasn’t Zara.
Bad luck, indeed.
Chapter Fourteen
Sometimesitfeltlikemusic was the only thing separating Remi from the world.And sometimes it felt like music was the only thing binding him to it.
Like everyone was asleep, living life within a fishbowl that distorted what was real.But when Remi made music, it lifted the fishbowl from his head.The distortions were gone; the muffled sounds of truth were made clear.He was finally in the world, fully embodied.
It’d been isolating at first, because it felt like he was the only one who could see, hear, feel the truth.But then he introduced West to the alternate reality, and they made music together.Then Liam and Ollie joined, and together, Tilted Haze lifted the veil for everyone in the crowd.
Their music resonated through the venue and created a vibration that cracked the glass of their collective fishbowl.
He put on a show, sure.He sang and danced and thrust his hips.He joked and flirted with the crowd to make clear how much he loved them.He loved them, and they loved him, and together, they created a space in those stadiums where anything felt possible.It was better than any drug.
After coming off stage, Remi and the rest of the band were riding a high that they were jonesing to keep going.Anything to avoid the inevitable crash.The sick, depressive chokehold that would climb up his throat.It was worse than running out of coke.The way his body was still jittery, while the rest of the world was still.The way his mind bounced around, desperate to escape the fishbowl that was rebuilding itself.Everything softened and everything hurt.Everything seemed pointless.
Yeah, Remi needed to avoid that feeling tonight.He didn’t want to replay the moment on stage when he’d looked back and saw Skye—really saw her—and felt like she was there with him, like she’d been recruited into the fishbowl-cracking, reality-shifting atmosphere that he and his band created.He didn’t want her there—and simultaneously, he wanted to wrap his arms around her and never let her leave.
But really, he just didn’t want to be sober enough to sort through those feelings.
So he accepted the towel a roadie handed him to wipe the sweat off his face and scanned the backstage area, searching for someone who looked like they had a substance that would offer a little reality-shifting good time, but his gaze snagged on Skye in the back corner.Her arms were flying around like she was reprimanding someone, and when he focused on her, he could just make out the tone of her voice, the anger and incredulity in it.
Remi marched over.He wasn’t sure why.Maybe he’d scold her for yelling at his crew.Maybe he’d just stand and watch if she was yelling at the venue owner.Maybe he just couldn’t stop from inserting himself into her life.
Nah, not that last one.
Remi crossed his arms over his chest as he stood behind Skye’s shoulder.She was talking to a tall, thin man with long white-silvery hair.He was smirking down at Skye in a way that made Remi feel like aluminum foil was crinkling and cutting into his insides.As Remi settled behind Skye, glaring at the man, the intruder’s eyes snapped to him.
His smirk grew, and Remi curled his lip in distaste.A warning signal flared in the back of his head.Danger dripped from the man’s impossibly pale, almost translucent skin.
“Who the fuck is this guy?”Remi snarled.
Skye jolted like Remi had startled her, which was odd since Skye seemed to be preternaturally aware of everyone and everything around them; he assumed it had something to do with her demon powers.She heaved an exhausted sigh and waved a dismissive hand.“He’s no one.Do you need something, Remi?”
“No,” Remi said but made no move to leave.
