Boy Band (22 page)

“What?  Make out backstage?” 

“Yeah.  Isn’t that what all the greats do?”

“I have no idea,” I laugh.  Then I pull him back into another kiss.

CHAPTER 21

“And I love that look in your eyes

When you tell me that you love me

And that smile on your lips

When you say that I’m the only one

Now it’s you and me girl

It’s you and me forever

And I’m never gonna let you go...”

Song: “Forever”

Artist: The Kind of September 

From the Album
:
Meet Me on the Midway

Here’s the thing about being in a relationship with the guy you’ve been in love with for practically your entire life.  It’s really hard to keep it a secret.  Even if you don’t come out and say it, you suddenly give off this ridiculously happy glow that your friends that really, really know you couldn’t miss even if they tried.  I’m pretty sure even a complete stranger could count the stars in my eyes.  

It was probably the singing that gave me away.  Unlike Sam, who likes to sing and radiates this almost insane sense of joy and life on a regular basis, I’m not one to hum or whistle or anything of the sort.  But in the days following my evening with Sam, I can’t stop singing.  Joni finally confronts me about it while the guys are preparing for their final interview on a talk show that will air later tonight.  

“Okay, what is going on with you?” she demands.  

“What do you mean?”  That sounded so false.  Hopefully she won’t notice.  

“I mean you can’t stop smiling.  You’re like a puppy with a new squeaky toy.”  

“That’s an interesting simile,” I remark.

“You know what I mean.  Something is going on.  So spill.” 

“Well, I found out that I passed my exams.”

“Oh please, you’ve never care
d
tha
t
much about schoolwork.”  She’s got me there.

“I guess I’m just really happy for the guys,” I tell her.  

And why wouldn’t I be?  We just found out that their album shot to the number one spot in the charts in almost record time, not to mention they released the “Meet Me on the Midway” video last night at midnight.  Sam and I spent the first part of the evening with the rest of the group, but then, claiming exhaustion, we excused ourselves and snuck back to his room for a more private celebration.    

It was probably one of the best nights of my life. These past few nights with Sam hav
e
al
l
been the best nights of my life.  And I imagine they’re only going to get better once we’re back home.  

Oh!  That’s another reason to be happy!  We’re going home today.  

“I’m also super excited about having some time off,” I add, hoping I don’t sound like I’m trying too hard.   

“Oh God, me too,” Joni sighs.  “One last interview for the guys and then we are out of here.  I swear to you, I’m going to sleep for like, two days.”

“I’m going to sleep for like, two weeks,” I say.  Except for when I’m making out with Sam.  Or eating.  I’ll definitely wake up for food.  Other than that, there will be a lot of relaxing going on this holiday season.  

Alas, we’ve still got a few more hours to go before that blessed flight home to San Francisco.        

About half an hour before they’re scheduled to go on, Sam emerges from the dressing room, nonchalantly takes my hand, and leads me to an empty stairwell inside the studio.  

“Hi.”  He smiles at me. 

“Hi,” I respond, taking his shirt in my hands and pulling him closer to me.  “Don’t you look handsome.”  He does, too.  His hair is parted off to the side and styled to perfection and he’s wearing dark jeans and a blue button-down shirt.  

“Oh, stop.” He pretends to be embarrassed.  Then he says, “Okay, you can keep going.”  

I laugh and kiss him.  I’m not sure if you’ve ever kissed a guy in a place you’re really not supposed to be, but let me tell you, it is exhilarating.  Sam must feel it too, because he wraps his arms around my waist and lifts me right up off the ground.  I’m glad my mouth is preoccupied, otherwise I probably would have shrieked and ruined the whole moment.  And possibly our whole secret relationship as well.  

“I can’t wait to get home,” he murmurs.  “No rehearsals, no interviews, no god-awful hair and make-up.  Just you and me.  And maybe a movie night here and there.”

“How about an evening stroll down by the pier?” I ask.

“Or a midnight drive across the Golden Gate Bridge?”

It’s almost too much to look forward to.  There’s nothing I can do except wrap my arms back around Sam’s neck and kiss him again.  

One more intervie
w
, I tell myself.  One more interview and then we all go home. One more interview and then he’s all mine.  

“You know, Joni was asking me why I was so happy earlier,” I tell him, twirling a stray lock of his hair.  

“Oh yeah?” he grins.  “What did you tell her?” 

“Something about your album going to number one and your music video being all good and stuff, I don’t really remember.” 

“It’s the little things,” he comments.

“Exactly.”

I’m about ready to lean in and kiss him yet again when he asks me, “So uh, do you think Oliver’s ever going to tell her how he feels?”  

And just like that, the spell is broken. 

“You know about that?” 

“We all do.  That was another reason I was kind of amused when the world thought Meliver was a thing.”    

“Aw, poor Oliver.”

“Poor Oliver?  I was the one who had to watch the Internet pair up the girl I like with one of my bandmates.”

“Oh yeah, you were utterly devastated.” 

“I was.  On the inside.”

“Oh, whatever.” 

We make out for about five more minutes before he regretfully has to meet up with the rest of the guys for the interview.  I linger in the stairwell for a few additional minutes, just in case someone happened to see him emerge.  I wouldn’t want anyone to think we were doing exactly what we were actually doing.  Thankfully, we both emerge from the stairwell with our dignity and reputations (or what remains of them anyway) intact. 

⋯

“Welcome, to the show gentlemen,” renowned television talk-show host Jack Landon greets the guys once they’ve ambled onstage.  

“Thanks, Jack.  It’s great to be here,” Josh smiles.  

“Now, you’ve just released your third album
,
Meet Me on the Midwa
y
, which has soared to the top of the charts in no time flat.  How do you celebrate something like that?”

“Sleep, mostly,” Sam quips.  The audience laughs.  More than a few girls catcall.  

“I think we’re all looking forward to having some time off,” Jesse says.  

Beside me, someone tries to stifle a whimper.  I don’t have to look to know it’s Tara.  Who has decided to grace us with her presence.  Again.  

Seriously, what is she doing here?  I thought she was still in New York.  Apparently not.  

“Shh,” Joni shushes her.  

“I’m sorry, I’m just - ” she fans her face, attempting to dry tears I’m not sure are even there.  “I’m just going to miss him so much.  I can’t believe it will be a whole month before I get to see him again.”

“Yeah, well, life is hard,” Joni mutters under her breath. 

“Oliver, how about you?” Jack asks.  “Are you flying back home to London?”

“Yeah, actually.  My parents live here, but we fly back every year to see my grandparents.”  

“I bet they’re pretty proud of you.” 

“All of our families are,” Oliver says.  

“Now Sam.  There have been some interesting reports flying around about your love life lately,” Jack says.

“Aren’t there always?” Sam asks, eliciting another laugh from the audience.  “I can tell you that I’ve yet to hear a rumor that’s true.”

“So, you’re not seeing Chloe Conley right now?  Because I’ve got to tell you, that girl is gorgeous.  I mean, you’d pretty much make the perfect power couple.” 

“Chloe’s a friend.  But that’s all,” Sam smiles with that easy grace of his that I’ve secretly always envied.  He’s so good at presenting himself.  He always knows exactly what do say.  I’d kill for that kind of confidence.

“Is there someone else?” Jack presses.

“Let’s just say everything is as it should be,” Sam answers.

“I have no idea what that means,” Jack says.

“Then you’re on the same page as everyone else,” Cory jokes.  

“Now Cory, you’re still with your lady friend, am I correct?”

“Yes, you are correct,” Cory grins like a fool.  The audience cheers and whistles.  It kind of seems like a programmed response by now.  But Tara soaks it up anyway.  

“Any romantic plans for the holidays?”

“Still working on it,” Cory replies.  I guess that means he hasn’t given up on the idea of having Tara come stay with them for a few days.  Hopefully, Mrs. Foreman is still holding fast.  

“I hear you, I hear you.  So what’s next for you guys?  After the holidays are over?”

“The tour,” Josh replies. 

“Yeah, we go into rehearsals early January and then we’re on the road for ten months,” Oliver says.  

“That sounds like a blast,” Jack says.

“It’s going to be great.  The best tour yet,” Sam tells him.  By now, the fans are going wild.  They are clearly more excited about the tour than Cory and Tara’s love life.  Honestly, I really can’t blame them.  

“Well, I wish you guys all the best and congratulations on all your success,” Jack tells them.  

The guys all thank him.  And then it’s over. 

It’s time to go home. 

⋯

Packing up at the end of the season is always stressful, just because everyone has So.  Much.  Stuff.  It’s the same thing every year.  If we’re not scavenging the hotel for every last item in our possession, we’re double and triple checking our luggage to make sure that even if something has disappeared, it isn’t anything important.  Then, without fail, someone will remember something they left in the lobby or in the room and then we’ll have to go back to the front desk, retrieve the key, and hike all the way back up to the room for whatever’s been left behind if for no other reason than to ensure it doesn’t end up on eBay.  

Okay, there are elevators so we don’t actually have to hike, but you get what I’m saying.  

Every year we all vow that we’re going to pack and travel light, but somehow, it hasn’t happened yet.  Maybe next year.  This year, it’s the same old song and dance of scrambling around for everything in order to make our flight.  And let me tell you, we’re cutting it kind of close.  

It didn’t help that Tara was here earlier, distracting Cory and encouraging the rest of the guys not to worry about being on time and that they were so famous and so important that they could call the airline and demand the plane wait for them and so on and so forth.  I may not have made this clear, but I am really not going to miss her at all.  Thankfully, she wasn’t around when Joni discovered one of Sam’s discarded shirts underneath my bed.  

I was fully prepared to lie through my teeth about how the shirt came to be there, but strangely, she didn’t ask, nor did she seem all that surprised by it at all.  I guess that just goes to show how weird people think our relationship actually is.  Or maybe she was too stressed about us potentially being late to really care all that much.  Whatever the reason, our secret is still ours.

For now.  

Within fifteen minutes, Joni and I are locking up our room and heading down to the lobby to check out.  If the guys are down there, they’re probably already waiting for us in the vans.  Security likes to get them in and out of buildings with as little fuss as possible.  

Once we check out and get our luggage loaded into the vans, Josh pokes his head out one of the windows.  

“Hey, is Jesse with you?” he asks.

“No.  He’s not with you?” I ask.

“Haven’t seen him since he brought his bags down,” Josh replies.  “Do you think one of you could go look for him?  He’s not answering his phone” 

Given Joni’s still-rocky relationship with Jesse, I volunteer.  Though to be honest, I have no idea where to start looking.  This hotel is huge.  There are literally a hundred places he could be.