by Ema Bancroft
Fortunately, he hadn't seen me yet, and I stepped aside in Ethan's shadow as he tried to figure out what to do.
My father.
Here.
My father.
One look at me, and it would be over. There was no way to convince him it wasn't his daughter when he saw me up close. And Brad didn't hide his reactions. Police or no police, his emotions were always evident in his face.
I got a little closer, hitting Ethan's back as he was looking for a place to hide.
"What the hell are you doing, B? " he muttered on his shoulder.
I did not answer, because I had finally seen my salvation - a narrow corridor on the right, a few feet ahead of us. I judged the distance with Cecil and his group. Could you do that before my father saw me?
I had to do it.
My eyes ran from one side of the dark hallway to Brad, chatting and laughing with an older man beside him. He hadn't looked at us yet, and we were still hiding in the shadows. I crouched behind Elijah as we approached a bright higher light, knowing that we had to pass through the circle of illumination before we could bend down in the hallway.
Elijah looked at me curiously.
I made a big mouth,"My father," slowly, my eyes pointing in Brad's direction as Elijah widened.
"Shit,"he muttered.
"Yes."
He got a little closer to Ethan, creating a barrier to protect me, on the pretext of asking him something about the new choreography. With each step, my heartbeat quickened a little faster... my breathing accelerated as I struggled with the urge to turn around and run away...
Yeah. As if that didn't attract attention.
So instead, I walked in the shadow of Elijah and Ethan, waiting for my time until the hallway finally... blessed... appeared before me. I ran towards him, quickly realized it was more of a bedroom than a hallway when I ran into a door that was lurking under the arched entrance. Praying quietly, I turned the knob, almost collapsing relieved when it opened easily.
I stumbled upon the darkness beyond, silently closing the door and squeezing his ear. I could only see low murmurs, but the voices moved, and soon they were clearer - and came from a different direction.
Confused, I finally took a look at the room I was hiding in, making a sink... a shower curtain?
Was he in the bathroom?
The voices grew louder, and I noticed a light passing under a door on the other side of the room.
Crap. I was in the dressing room bathroom.
Who in the world has ever heard of a bathroom with two entrances? It was a security risk.
Maybe you need to talk to Craig... or Brick?
I tiptoed around the dark bathroom, stopping in my tracks when I heard my name.
"Where's Tim? " Cecil asked.
It was Elijah who answered. "He said something about going out to make a phone call."
"Did he? " Ethan asked. "He was right behind me until a minute ago. He just disappeared."
I could almost imagine Elijah shrugging his shoulders. "I don't know what to tell you, man."
"Doesn't matter,"Cecil said. "I just wanted to introduce you to the additional security tonight. This is Jason, Mark... and Brad."
A chorus of greetings whispered through the doorway, and I imagined the boys were shaking hands. I thought I heard Elijah say,"Pleased to meet you, sir, but I could have been mistaken.
That would have been a little weird.
Then I heard a sound that panicked me: the doorknob turning.
Why didn't I lock the door?
Of course, why would the bathroom door be locked?
How could I explain why I was hiding in the bathroom?
Shit.
Shit. Shit. Shit!
With superhuman speed, I jumped into the shower, closing the curtain and praying that whoever entered would not want to take a shower. I forced my breath to be silent while the light was flashing back against the tile, so that my silhouette would not show through the semistatic plastic.
My eyes widened in front of the shadow that passed by, half waiting for someone to open the curtain to the side, as Psycho's music screamed across the room.
Then I heard his voice... humming spicy candy as he lifted the toilet seat. I peered out the back of the curtain.
"Elijah?
He leapt, sprinkling pee on the wall as a girl's scream erupted from his lips.
"Jesus Christ! You scared the hell out of me! " he shouted, before he realized he shouldn't be shouting.
Someone knocked on the door. "E? " Raul. "Are you okay in there?"
"Uh…yeah. "He quickly buckled his pants, grimaced at me before pulling out toilet paper to clean up his mess. "Shit,"he muttered quietly before shouting,"I just... I thought I saw a..." His eyes moved in a hurry, looking for something that would make him scream. "Mouse?"
"Mouse"? I gave him back his mouth, fighting a little laugh. He shrugged. It wasn't like I had any better ideas.
"Are you afraid of mice, E? " Raul laughed. "Do you need someone to come and take care of that for you, buddy?"
Elijah cleared his throat. "Nah. I'm good. False alarm. He was not a mouse... just a..." He grimaced at me in pain, and I raised my hands in defeat. I had no idea what I could have seen that looked like a mouse, but it was not.
As I always say: when it comes to lies, it's best to keep it simple.
Elijah rubbed his hand over his mouth, a look of panic on his face. "A…pile…of hair! "he finally exclaimed. I grimaced, I was disgusted.
"What? " Raul knocked through the door.
"You know," said Elijah, pulling on the toilet chain and waving behind the curtain as he broke the door. "Some asshole cleaned his brush or something and left his hair on the floor. Fucking disgusting."
"Gross, man! " Raul replied, turning. "Cecil, my friend. You need to talk to these guys about the cleaning crew."
"It's no big deal,"Elijah said quickly. "I got rid of him. " I could see him leaning against the door through a crack in the curtain. "We'd better get ready for the show."
Cecil seemed to understand the hint. "Yeah, E. C. 's right. I just wanted you to meet these guys. You'll probably see them around tonight, and you shouldn't have any surprise visits from crazy fans,"he added.
I assumed that they finally came out of the locker room, because Elijah told the other kids that he would come out in a minute and closed the door, just to pull the shower curtain.
"He's gone. It's safe."
"Shit,"I whispered as I was coming out of the shower. "What the hell am I gonna do?"
"I don't know. " Elijah walked in the little room. "We'll have to watch him. Keep out of sight."
"How am I gonna do that while I'm on stage? " Panic came back in again and my heart hit my chest. "He's going to see me and all hell is going to break loose!"
"Just... just calm down for a second,"he rubbed my arms gently. "Let me think."
"Hi, E! " Ethan knocked on the door. "How long you gonna be, man? I have to pee!"
"Wait a minute! " Elijah shouted at me before he bowed to whisper in my ear. "Go back to the locker room and get in the dressing room. Keep your eyes open."
I nodded, blinking with tears of frustration. Elijah covered my face, kissing me gently. "I'll think of something. Don't worry, okay? " With another kiss, he rushed me to the hallway door when Ethan knocked again.
"Fuck off, Ethan! I said, give me a second! " I heard him screaming as he closed the door.
I tiptoed towards the arch leading to the main room, peeping quickly in one direction and then in the other. Seeing no sign of Brad, I hurried to the dressing room door, only releasing my retained breath once I was inside.
"B! All right? " Raul asked as I walked toward the costume rack.
"All right? " I echoed, my voice squeaking. "Yes. Sure, everything's fine. Why wouldn't everything be okay? " I walked, slipping over hanging pendants shaking to the side.
Smooth, Daisy.
"Okaaaaaayyyyy," he replied. "Elijah said you h
ad to make a phone call. I thought something might be wrong.
"Oh, no,"I replied, trying to sound casual. "It was no big deal. I just had to check... something. "I made a derogatory gesture with my hand."
Raul looked at me curiously. I quickly turned away from him, only to find Roland looking at me the same way. Elijah was doing everything he could to make it look like he was ignoring the conversation, although I knew better.
"What? " I asked defensively, leaning against the wall with my arms folded across my chest.
"B,"Raul said quietly,"Are you high?"
My mouth opened up, just as Ethan came in from the bathroom. "Who's high? " he asked.
"Nobody! " I screamed. "I mean. No, I'm not high."
Raul lifted his hands, shaking his head mercilessly. "I'm not judging, B. I mean, I'm known for pleasing myself with a little weed every once in a while..." Roland snorted underestimation, but Raul was on a roll. "But you don't want to get into the hardest things, Tim."?
"I'm not! " I was speechless, completely nervous. "I swear!"
"Well, then, why all the secrecy? " ironed. "Running to make phone calls? All that sneaking around and hiding things? I know that. I have a sixth sense about this kind of shit.
"B's not high,"Ethan said, falling on the couch. He turned to me, his eyes narrowed. "Are you?"
"No! " Before the silent eyes that looked at me carefully, I insisted. "I'm not!"
My denial resounded in the room for a heartbeat, followed only by the sounds of my increased breathing, and Ethan's silent leg wrinkle moving on the leather sofa.
How the hell was I supposed to get out of this? And why wasn't Elijah helping me? I struggled against the urge to cast a damning glance at him, instead of turning the imploring glance upon Roland... then Ethan... and finally Raul...
Why wouldn't they believe me?
Um... maybe because I was a big liar?
Then, just when I thought it couldn't get any worse, Raul laughed... followed quickly by the others.
"What? " I shook my head a little, confused.
"Shit, B, you're too easy,"said Raul, lying in his chair and shaking his hairy mane. " I am not! I swear! " he mimicked himself, raising his hands defensively.
"Seriously,"Ethan crossed his arms behind his head, still smiling. "Unbutton, Tim. We're just joking with you.
"We just spent every hour together for a week,"Roland added, turning to the mirror to get his hair done. "I think we'd all know if you were pinching."
"Adjusting"? Elijah crossed me, touching me on the shoulder, but discreetly allowing his fingers to swerve down the back of the neck gently. "Shit, Roland. Anybody say' adjusting' yet?"
Roland shrugged.
"Whatever."
Finally, as I reached me, I looked at them all - Elijah included. "You're assholes."
Raul kept laughing. "Do you realize that?"
I shook my head, and I finally smiled. "I always suspected it. I have just received confirmation.
The laughter rang out again and I put my clothes in the bathroom to change.
E. C.
Seattle was turning into a fucking nightmare. I mean, between Spiderfan's madness and Twicher lurking around every corner, it was bad enough. But then Daisy's father had to show up - as part of our security team?
Fate really wanted to catch us.
So, just when things were completely tense and stressful, Raul had to mess with his whole body. thing. Yeah, I knew he was messing with B. There was no way she would know. I was hoping she'd manage on her own until I told her the joke.
Idiot.
I knew she was mad at me, of course. But what could I do? To be honest, I was a little engrossed in the whole Keep Daisy's Dad Away From Daisy so he wouldn't recognize her plan.
If there was such a plan, that's it.
I was still working on it.
So, I wasn't really in my game with the whole drug thing. Anyway, it all went away and Daisy seemed fine.
Well, aside from being mad at me, that's it. Which I hated. That's why I followed her backstage while 4-squares were making their premiere. I had finally approached Cecil and suggested that one of the new security officers be placed on the Spiderfan patrol. It took a bit of subtle finite work, but he finally put Daisy's father on the job.
It wasn't perfect, but at least we always knew where he was. I could see the back of his head at the far end of the stage, near where Ruby was jumping and screaming. If there was one thing I knew Daisy had told me, it was that he took his job seriously. I would be watching Ruby closely, which meant he was less likely to be watching the stage.
With luck.
The music was pounding and the flashing lights barely penetrated the area behind the thick curtains that ran along each side of the stage.
J. J. was singing her new single, and I finally saw Daisy standing in the shadows, her fingers tapping nervously against her legs as she scanned the area.
"Are you all right? " I asked her, approaching her and approached her so that she could hear me through the music.
She nodded. "Just watching, you know?"
"Well, I talked to Cecil and your father is in the service of Spiderfan,"I said. "At least it'll make it easier for you to keep an eye on him and get away from him."
She nodded. "Thank you. " She wouldn't look me in the eye, and I knew she was still mad at me. I grabbed her by the hand, throwing her into the darkness behind a large closet.
"B, I'm sorry about before,"I said. "I know you're angry because I didn't get into the drug thing. I knew Raul was joking, so I thought it'd be better not to make a fuss, you know?"
"Did you know I was kidding?"
"Sure. " I shrugged my shoulders. "I've known Raul forever. I knew you weren't in trouble."
"You could have warned me,"she said irritated.
"How? " I asked. She snorted, wasn't ready to let it go. "Secret code? " I pushed. "Smoke signals? Her lips got weird, and I knew she was getting soft. I reached out to wrap my fingers around her waist, looking over my shoulder and moving into the darkness. "I know. "I could have played it in Morse code with my fingers. " I stroked a hand on her back, hitting her in the spine. She shuddered.
"What's that spell? " she asked breathlessly.
"See? " I said, my mouth floating above hers. "How could I warn you if you don't even know the Morse code? " I put my hand under her shirt, hitting her naked skin.
"Do you? "she asked, licking her lips. Her tongue grazed my lower lip, barely... but it was enough to distract me.
"Do what?"
She smiled, bowed to me. "Do you know the Morse code?"
I smiled with a smile, my fingers slipping under her Hartmann bandage, crawling easily along the edge... floating towards the tender skin beneath her chest. "Every Boy Scout learns the Morse code."
Daisy whimpered as she worked with a finger to mock her nipple. "You're not a boy scout."
"Of course I did,"I muttered, just before I came up to her and kissed her.
Everything around us - J. J. vanished, and I drowned in the sensation of Daisy's lips under mine... her soft skin against my fingertips. I twisted my hand until it rested on her chest, gently squeezing it under the tight elastic bandage. My other hand came up to her ass, working that flesh too, and Daisy wrapped her arms around my neck, tilting her head back while our kiss went deep...
I moved a little bit, lifting her leg around my hip and using the wall behind her to give me the advantage I needed to crush my erection against her roughly.
Daisy moaned. She liked that. Fuck, me too.
I broke the blindfold, pushing it over her tits so I could touch her freely under her loose shirt. Her head fell back against the wall, tapping slightly as she bowed to meet my hand... to meet my hips?
Without wanting to let it escape my mouth, I leaned down to suck her neck, nibbling at the slight rise of her collarbone... licking the soft hollow at the base of her throat. Leaving her boobs for a moment, I grabbed her ass with both hands, wrappi
ng her legs around me as I pushed her against her, grinding my cock against hers. She grabbed my shoulders, biting her lip to contain the screams, her eyes closed in what she could now recognize as a climax approaching?
"Yes, I complained, speeding up the pace.
"Oh, God..."
"Now... shit..."
"Elijah!"
"What the fuck?"
Okay. That wasn't Daisy. And it wasn't me. I froze, while Daisy's eyes were flying. She swallowed thick, her eyes open and scared as her legs slowly slid to the floor and finally focused on someone on my shoulder. I turned my head to follow her gaze.
Ethan.
And Raul.
And Roland and Eddie.
Fuck. Me.
I shielded Daisy from her sight, quickly adjusting her bandage before turning around. They stared at me... then Daisy... the silence between us?
Well, except for J. J. singing Square Peg, Round Hole in his lungs... and the girls screaming... and someone screaming in a headset behind the stage for someone to "fix the fucking spotlight number three"?
Finally, Raul pointed his finger. "I knew it! " I looked at Daisy, only to see myself blink once before turning to Raul.
"Did you do it? " she shouted.
"All the sneaking around, acting weird,"he said, waving his accusatory finger. "I knew there was something going on between you two!"
"How long has this been going on? " Ethan interrupted. "Shit, is everybody in this band gay? " He glided a sideways glance toward Raul, who only turned his eyes.
Gay.
They didn't see everything. They thought we were gay.
"I can't believe you hid this from us,"Raul continued. After all the shit with Roland and Eddie? How could you do this, Elijah? How could you do this to us? The band? To me? Fucking asshole:" His face turned red as his voice grew louder. He was angry.
That's understandable.
"Roland stepped forward, pressing one hand slightly against Raul's chest. "Let's not say something we'll regret."
Raul was carried away by Roland's calm demeanor, understanding instantly. "You knew it,"he said. "You knew that, didn't you? " Roland's eyes fell as Eddie moved beside him.
"It was not for me to say anything,"he said quietly.
"No, it wasn't,"Raul's angry look came back to me. "It was yours. You should have told us, Elijah. I can understand Tim. He hasn't known us for a long time, but you? You should have told us."