AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Go hard or go home.
“It’s not anyone else’s responsibility to give you what you want out of life, Kael. You have to be ready to take it when life presents it to you. If you’re not ready, then that’s on you. You may get a second chance, or you may not.” I shrug my shoulders softly. “But again, that’s on you, and no one else. Life isn’t about excuses; it’s about taking the bull by the horns and running with it.”
Kael’s mouth opens as if he’s about to say something, but then he closes it again. He does this twice.
“Sit down, Kael.”
He sits down slowly, his jaw shifting restlessly.
“Just try and think things through from the band’s perspective. They have to keep promoting themselves, being present in the media. That’s the way business works.”
“Yeah, but—”
“No, there are nobuts… the band can’t stop just because you’re not there. They can’t just put everything on hold because it doesn’t suit you.”
“I, just—”
“Think of it as you taking sick leave. People do it all the time in the real world. They take time off. They go on vacations. They take personal days. They have appointments, or special occasions, and other people fill in for them while they’re away. That doesn’t mean they’ve lost their job.”
“I guess.” Then he shrugs. “I just really miss it, ya know? I miss playing guitar, and I miss making music. Music is my entire life, and, I dunno, it kinda feels like that’s been taken away from me.”
“Meet with the band. Talk to them.”
I cross my legs and lean back against the couch, waiting him out. But he doesn’t say anything for a really long time. I get the impression he’s at a loss for words.
Apparently, there’s a first time for everything.
Kael
Day 30
“Nice of you to turn up, asshat! It’s not like we don’t have a thousand other things to do with our time right now.”
A snort from across the room has my eyes landing on Jaxon, our drummer.Cock-sucker. I’m five minutes late to the visitor’s room. Five. And he’s already busting my balls. It wasn’t my fault. Chad decided today was the day we’d do another urine sample, so yeah, good times were had by all.
“Eat me, Jax.”
“Yeah, you’d like that wouldn’t you,” he retorts, to which I shoot him the finger. I’m about to tell him exactly what I think of him when he follows it up with, “You look fucking good, man. Really good. You’ve put on weight. The good kind. You look stronger, healthier.”
He jumps to his feet, and a ridiculous amount of man-hugging and back slapping follows, and I’m secure enough in my own skin to admit that Jaxon’s reaction leaves me a little choked up.
“Thanks, man.”
Our lead singer, Reed approaches me, too, grabbing my hand to make a fist with his, leaning his shoulder into mine. It feels natural, not rehearsed, and I suddenly realize that it’s not just the music I’ve missed.
Nick Dundas stands on the opposite side of the room, his broad shoulder leaning into the wall. “Your eyes look different. Clearer. It’s good to see you, dude.”
“Nice socks, K.”
I spin around and lift my brows when I notice Dee sitting at a table with her laptop out, tapping her fake nails across the keyboard. Dee works for the band—she does admin type stuff, as well as selling merchandise at gigs, and she handles all the general running of things at concerts and when we go on tour.
She sits back in her seat, crossing her lean, tan legs. She’s wearing her usual denim cut-offs and a tank top that’s so low in front I can practically see her entire bra. Her once purple hair is shorter than it was the last time I saw her, and it’s no longer purple. Today, it’s green.
“What’s wrong with my socks?”
She smiles at me in that same salacious way she smiles at everyone. “You look like you’re in fucking preschool.”
“Feels like it sometimes.”
