Sad_Girl
Blue Crack Supplier
*Disclaimer: Though inspired by (some) real people, this story is just SOOOOO not true it’s utterly ridiculous! It’s all make believe.
The Promises we make pt 6
“Let’s work on that duet for a bit.” Bono suggested after lunch that day. Cat was tired, and they were all getting frustrated. They’d spent the morning trying to record the first track for their first full length album, but they hadn’t recorded anything useable.
“Maybe just a change of pace will help.” Krash agreed, seeing a familiar look on Cat’s face. It was the look she got when she was ready to give up, freak out, run away or do something else equally stupid and unproductive.
“It’s not even finished yet.” She complained, tossing an empty water bottle across the room and into the garbage. “I mean it was, but you decided to change everything last night…” She teased him, since they still hadn’t settled just who would have more to sing on their duet.
“I think we rushed into recording way too early.” Larry said, rubbing his nose with one ring-clad hand as he leaned against the counter in the little kitchen area where they had eaten lunch. “We assumed because they’d been performing several of their songs, those ones at least would be ready to record. I don’t think that was true.”
“It’s not that we aren’t ready.” Cat argued, her green eyes flashing with irritation. “We’ve just been thrown for a loop. Again. We’ve gone through three bass players in the course of just over two months!”
“All the more reason to postpone recording while you get your bearings.” He told her. She scowled at him, not wanting to give up and simply walk away now. In her experience, things people postponed tended to end up canceled altogether.
“I say we just work on it for a bit.” Bono told her, draping a comforting arm around her shoulder and pulling her up against his side. She couldn’t help but smile. How could anyone not smile when this man was trying to help them? “Let’s just see if we can’t run through the basics, first. We’ll just see how it goes, what feels right.”
“Yeah. All right.” She agreed with a nod. She picked up the bass and let Alex count it out.
“You see the shadows in my eyes and want to chase them away. You think you can save me and baby, I’m so afraid! because I been down this road, I know how it goes! You’ll give me your everything
But those shadows still show…”
“Wait. Wait, wait.” Bono said, waving his hands at the band as he approached her.
“What?” She asked, exasperated at his early interruption.
“What are you thinking about when you’re singing?” He asked, stepping in close to her, head bent slightly and cocked to the side so that his face was close to hers. It was a casual enough pose, but somehow seemed more appropriate for two people who had been friends far longer than they. There really was no good reason for it to set people’s nerves on end the way it did, but nonetheless, it raised a common tension amongst the band members and Larry, as well.
“What am I thinking? I don’t know.” She replied with a shrug.
“I can tell.” He told her with a crooked little smile. “You sure aren’t thinking about what the words are saying. You’re declaring that you love someone so much that you would rather take the pain of never knowing them as a lover because you are so afraid you’ll hurt them. There’s absolutely no passion in your voice! You need to imagine having all of this overwhelming desire for someone who you can’t have. Not really. Not the way you want; the way it sure as hell feels like you need.”
“Like a starving child would look through he window of a restaurant.” She said, having heard the words before, when Gunnar had started writing the song.
“Exactly!” He said, and Cat looked over his shoulder at the control booth to see Larry standing, leaning forward with his hands on the control panel, frowning at them. She felt a surge of guilt, even though she knew there was nothing to feel guilty for. They weren’t doing anything wrong. They were working.
Every time Larry looked at her, she could feel him waiting for the moment she would do something to ultimately destroy the bonds between himself and his bandmates. He’d been suspicious of her from the beginning. He met her eyes for a long second before looking away, and she felt the strange stirring in her belly she had felt every time she had been around him since the day in Las Vegas when he had told her as much.
Stubbornly, she looked back at Bono, gazing through his dark glasses to meet his eyes. It was ridiculous to think there was anything but friendship between them, they had established that long ago. Hadn’t they?
“Ready?” He asked her, raising his eyebrows at her. She nodded and turned back to Alex, who once again counted them into the song. This time, she looked directly at Bono rather than into the microphone or the control booth. She remembered the crush she had on him, back when he was just a rock star, and not a friend or even a real person.
She let her eyes take him in, looking at him from someone else’s perspective. She wasn’t Catalina Clayton, but she was the mysterious woman inside the song. She was so much in love she would sacrifice her own happiness to protect the object of her desire.
She sang the lead in, her eyes locked with his. There was a light there, like a low burning flame. Simmering. He approached her in what she could only describe as a strut; something he had become so accustomed to over the years on stage that he didn’t even know he was doing it.
He stopped on the opposite side of the mic and leaned in close, his lips nearly touching it. His eyes remained locked with hers, and the sexual tension which was clearly mounting between them even before he hit her with that warm, smoky voice exploded when he began to sing.
“You think you’re a lost cause, a sad case; you think I should be scared of what I loved in the first place… Oh Let me love you! Let me show you the way, bring the light back to your eyes!” He sang.
“I don’t want to love you because I don’t want to break you! I don’t want to see you cry, Really don’t want to make you!” She brought in the chorus of the sad love song. Her voice resonated a sorrow, and an intimacy they hadn’t heard from her before.
“I wanna share your pain, let you share my bliss; I’ll be strong enough for two, If I can know your kiss” He completed the chorus.
“Please go, before it’s just to late… don’t let your love turn into hate…”
“Let me Lo-o-o-ove you!”
They sang, their faces inches apart as they took their turns singing, their voices finally raised together at the end, the words feeling as if they were being ripped from their chests, their voices stronger than ever. Their voices dropped to a low, intimate level, assuming an air of defeat.
‘Oh, I lo-o-ove you…’ they harmonized, dragging the words out and letting the volume fall as the final notes were played. Catalina smiled broadly across the microphone at him, her heart was racing, her palms sweaty, she was short of breath. That guilty feeling flooded through her again, and she looked at the floor shyly.
The sound technicians all rose from their seats and cheered, already saying the song was definitely going to be one of the strongest on the album. Now she had to imagine performing it in front of a crowd, and felt a bit faint. She hadn’t had serious stage fright for years, but singing this song, with this man? It was just like making love.
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“Hey.” Larry greeted Trine shortly as he entered the house through the garage, finding her in the kitchen. She stood in front of the refrigerator, staring into it as if hoping to find the meaning of life hidden on the shelves next to the bottled water.
“Hey.” She replied, not nearly as enthused to see him as usual. In fact she rolled her eyes at him in irritation. “Did they tell you to come check up on me?” She asked, obviously disgusted at the thought that Cat and Adam did not trust her. It was true, but Larry felt no need for her to know that.
“Who? I was just looking for your Da. Guess he’s not here, then?” He asked her, his hands in his pockets, his shoulders shrugged up in the pose he assumed so often, and which lent him an air of innocence which was so appealing to so many.
“He and Cat went to some movie premiere in London with Bono, Angel, Edge and Tessa.” She complained, still staring into the refrigerator. It wasn’t clear if she was addressing Larry or the jar of pickles directly in front of her. He was surprised she didn’t ask why he wasn’t with them. After all, every one else had asked him at least once. He just didn’t feel like being the odd man out, all alone.
“I take it you wanted to go?” he asked, leaning one hip against the cupboard.
“I couldn’t. Two weeks ago, I was in an up-and-coming rock band about to record our first album, and now, thanks to Adam, I’m just a baby-sitter.” She told him dryly.
“Well, Adam didn’t make you steal the car and run off to places you don’t belong. He just got the honor of punishing you for it.” Larry replied seriously. She turned and stuck her pierced tongue out at him. He hoped this meant her crush on him was fading. To say it made him uncomfortable would have been a huge understatement.
Larry could hear familiar music in the background, his eyebrows drawing together as he turned toward the living room, doubting his ears.
“What are you watching?” He asked, gesturing toward the living room and the source of the sound. Trine turned and looked at him, rolling her eyes.
“It’s not me, it’s the kid. I figured he’d be like, y’know, a normal kid and watch Spongebob squarepants and Fairly Oddparents or whatever. But oh, no, not this kid. He has a thing for, get this, Elvis movies! Can you believe it?” She asked, turning her attention back to the refrigerator without waiting for or expecting an answer. Larry turned and moved to the doorway to peek in at the boy who was, indeed, standing in front of the large screen TV watching a scene which Larry recognized from ‘Blue Hawaii’.
“Ito is an eating boy; He never get enough from fish and poi; He eat everything he don't care what; He even eat the shell from the coconut ; Eat Ito eat all the night and the day” Elvis sang on screen, with the energy only Elvis could have brought to such a song.
Pauley was dancing to the music and trying to sing along, although he did not recognized many of the words and so simply imitated the sounds as best he could. It was obviously not the first time he’d watched the show.
“See.” Trine said, coming to stand next to Larry, a bowl of popcorn in one hand and a soda bottle and two glasses in the other. “He’s just weird.”
“Why is that weird?” Larry asked, his lips pursed into a thin line as he looked down at the girl.
“Elvis? C’mon, who likes Elvis?”
“There are a lot of people who like Elvis. Including me.” He told her, and she blinked at him in silent disbelief. “What are you doing with that? It’s nine o’clock at night and you’re gonna fill the kid up with caffeine?” Larry asked, taking the soda bottle out of her hand and turning back into the kitchen.
“Hey, ok, I won’t give any to the kid, but I still want some!” Trine objected, trying to grab the bottle out of his hand, but he was far too quick.
“Trine?” They heard a small voice call from behind them. Pauley padded out into the kitchen on bare feet, walking with the not-quite-grown-up gait of a child who’d been mobile for some time, but whose legs were still far shorter than those of the people around them.
“Hey, buddy.” Larry greeted the boy, who smiled and returned the greeting.
“Hi. Trine and I are gonna have a snack.” He informed him, climbing up onto one of the bar stools as like it was a ladder.
“I see that.” Larry replied, hiding the soda as he put it back in the fridge. He pulled out a gallon of milk and Trine rolled her eyes at him.
“Would you rather have pop and popcorn?” She asked, confident the boy would want the sugary, carbonated drink badly enough to whine and complain until he got his way.
“Or milk and biscuits?” Larry suggested, reaching into the cupboard, finding a package of McVities Gingernuts and a package of Jacobs Jaffa Cakes.
“Biscuits?” The boy repeated, wrinkling his nose.
“Yeah, you know, ‘cookies’?” Larry told him, and his eyes lit up with understanding.
“Those ones!” He said, pointing to the ginger flavored cookies.
“Good choice.” Larry said, suspecting the chocolate in the jaffa cakes would be just as bad for the boy as the cola would have been.
“Cookies? How are cookies better than pop?” Trine demanded.
“We’re only going to have a couple.” Larry told her, winking at the boy and making him smile. He poured two glasses of milk and the biscuits and led the way back into the TV room. Trine defiantly retrieved her soda and popcorn and joined them.
“Do those hurt?” The boy was asking, pointing to the earrings which dangled from Larry’s ears.
“No. They did at first, but not anymore.” He replied, sipping his milk.
“If it hurt, why did you do it?” Pauley asked, big green eyes gazing up at him, shining with the light of curiosity.
“Well…” Larry started, chewing on a bite of gingernut thoughtfully. “Because I liked the way it looked. I guess I thought it was worth a little hurt to look the way I wanted.” He informed the boy who considered this carefully, chewing noisily on a cookie.
“So, Adam and Cat won’t be back until tomorrow…” Trine said, not so subtly letting Larry know there was no reason he should be staying.
“They left you alone for the night?” Larry asked suspiciously.
“No, Simone is going to stay when she gets off work.” Trine replied.
“What time is that?” He asked.
“Closing time is two-thirty, so she’s usually here by a little after three.” She replied with a sigh, suspecting she was going to have company for the rest of the night.
“She comes here and picks him up and drags him out into the night?” He asked with a frown, looking down at the little boy who was sitting companionably beside him on the couch.
“Well, what choice does she have? Those are the hours she works.” Trine replied.
“Why don’t you watch him at hear house?”
“Then Adam or Cat would have to come pick me up and drag me out in the middle of the night.” She replied smartly.
“You could stay there until morning.” He suggested.
“Stay where? The kid has the only bedroom, and Simone sleeps on the sofa bed in the living room. I’m not exactly a big fan of sleeping with strangers.” She said, and Larry smirked at her.
“So, you and Colin are old friends then?” He asked, and her eyes grew wide, her mouth agape in shock. She didn’t know whether to laugh at him, slap him, or sink into the crack in the chair and hide in embarrassment.
“I… but, well, what… I can’t believe you just…” she stammered and he waved a hand at her, chuckling to himself.
“I’m just teasing you.” He assured her. “You set yourself up with that one; be more careful how you say things if you don’t want people to make jokes.” She fought a smile, her crush returning full force at the sight of his gorgeous smile. It completely transformed his face, and made a man who was already very handsome downright irresistible.
Pauley started singing along with the movie again, and Larry’s attention was drawn back to him.
“You really like this show, don’t you?” He asked, and the boy nodded enthusiastically.
“Yeah, all he watches are Elvis movies and Dean Martin/Jerry Lewis shows. He likes dumb old movies with people bursting out in song every few minutes, apparently.” Trine said.
“This is one of my favorites.” Larry told Pauley, who turned and smiled at him.
“Have you seen roustabout?” He asked, and Larry had to laugh at the level of maturity with which the boy was conversing. “I like that one, and Viva Las Vegas.” He said, the words on Viva Las Vegas running together as if one word. ‘Vivalasvegas’
“Those are both good.” Larry told him with a nod, trying not to laugh out loud and hurt the boys feelings. “GI Blues is my favorite.” He added, and the boy scrunched up his face thoughtfully. “Have you seen that one?” Larry asked, and Pauley shook his little head.
“Maybe sometime I’ll have to bring my copy over for you to watch.” He told him and this clearly pleased the boy a great deal. He nodded enthusiastically.
“An’ you an’ me an’ Mom can watch it at my house.” He said, obviously eager about this possibility. Larry shrugged and uttered a non-committal ‘maybe’. He told himself he was sitting here with this charming little boy simply because he didn’t trust Trine to take care of him, and that it had nothing whatsoever to do with his mother.
He’d run into Simone a few times in the past two weeks, and the jolt of excitement in his stomach each time he’d seen her wasn’t a welcome feeling. He had been through enough with women lately, he was not even going to think about another woman for a good long time. It wasn’t worth it. Besides, she wasn’t what he wanted in a woman, anyway.
He wanted a woman who was more feminine, more soft spoken. Simone was more on the rowdy side, more rough around the edges. Too much like Cat in those ways, and he certainly didn’t need another woman like Cat in his life.
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Tessa felt ancient, standing there with these two considerably younger women on either side of her. Angel couldn’t be more than thirty three, and Cat wasn’t even thirty yet! What was she thinking, agreeing to go with them to this premiere? She didn’t belong here, with the wife and lover of two of the men. She worked with them now, but that was it. She didn’t have any sort of personal relationship to Edge, the last remaining member of the group attending the show that night.
She wouldn’t have complained about having one, but that was neither here nor there. She’d barely had a chance to see him in the two weeks which had passed since he had turned her life over on its ear. She really liked Paul, liked the work she was doing, and God knew she loved Ireland, but if she was honest with herself, she had to admit she had been hoping for something more.
“I cannot believe they’re making us wait for them.” Cat complained, tapping her foot against the ultra soft carpeting in the hotel lobby. She began to pace, and Angel sighed and checked her watch. They had all had their own agendas earlier in the day, different things which needed to be attended to while they were in London, and so had agreed to meet in the lobby at seven, rather than chase each individual member of their troupe down.
It was nearly seven thirty now. Tessa looked at the younger women and felt not only old, but overdressed. She had opted to wear a simple black dress, with quarter sleeves that rested low, exposing more skin on her shoulders than she was used to and dipping down sort of low on her back. For her, it was daring, and when she had looked at herself in the mirror in the room, she had thought it was lovely.
Now she looked at Cat in her leather top which tapered off under her breasts until it came to a point over her navel, exposing the smooth skin of her sides and the little gold hoop which pierced her belly. She wore a pair of silvery-stretch pants which hugged every curve and toeless sandals exposing painted toenails. Angel was even more casual in a green, sleeveless turtle neck, worn out jeans and cowboy boots.
She heard the ding of the elevator and turned hopefully. The three of them stepped out of the lift, followed by three of the bodyguards, whose names Tessa had not yet memorized. Now she had to laugh, thinking what a mix and match bunch they must appear to be. Bono was in his leather jacket and shades, a black button down shirt (which was only buttoned about halfway) and black trousers which were a bit too snug, in Tessa’s opinion.
Adam, on the other hand wore a soft, (possibly silk, she thought, having the strongest desire to reach out and touch it to find out) light blue shirt under a white suit jacket with matching pants. Even the glasses he wore matched the suit, and she could imagine why the guys referred to him as the ‘posh’ one of the group.
She nearly didn’t recognize Edge, without the skull cap he almost always wore. In fact, she realized, she had never seen him without it on. Not that he was hatless, but still, she sort of thought the slightly old fashioned hat he wore was charming. He wore a simple white button down beneath a brown leather jacket, and a pair of well-worn jeans.
She felt her face flushing red, and blamed it on the feeling she was too dressy. At least she had a convienient excuse this time. Every other time he looked at her and she flushed red, she had been unable to explain the reaction. At least, in a way which she was ready to accept.
“Wow, look at you. You look beautiful.” He told her, and she thought she must look like an idiot, with the way she couldn’t restrain her smile.
“I’m over-dressed.” She told him, shaking her head as she looked shyly down at her feet.
“I think we need to switch dates, to make us match a bit better.” Adam joked. “Tessa, looks like you and I are the only ones who know how to dress for the occasion.” He told her, holding out his arm for her. She laughed out loud, accepting his gesture gratefully by sliding her hand into the crook of his elbow and letting him lead her out to the waiting limo.
“I think I’m going to have to steal your girl, in that case.” Edge told Bono with a nudge, wrapping a friendly arm around Angel’s shoulder and following Adam’s lead. Cat stared after them, turning to look at Bono anxiously. This wasn’t happening. She had been looking forward to tonight being a reprieve from the sexual tension that damned song had awakened between herself and Bono.
“Looks like it’s you and me, babe.” He told her with a wicked smile, wrapping an arm around her waist and patting her playfully on the butt. Cat forced a smile and drew a deep breath, suddenly longing for the night to be over.
Edgie's cute cap
The Promises we make pt 6
“Let’s work on that duet for a bit.” Bono suggested after lunch that day. Cat was tired, and they were all getting frustrated. They’d spent the morning trying to record the first track for their first full length album, but they hadn’t recorded anything useable.
“Maybe just a change of pace will help.” Krash agreed, seeing a familiar look on Cat’s face. It was the look she got when she was ready to give up, freak out, run away or do something else equally stupid and unproductive.
“It’s not even finished yet.” She complained, tossing an empty water bottle across the room and into the garbage. “I mean it was, but you decided to change everything last night…” She teased him, since they still hadn’t settled just who would have more to sing on their duet.
“I think we rushed into recording way too early.” Larry said, rubbing his nose with one ring-clad hand as he leaned against the counter in the little kitchen area where they had eaten lunch. “We assumed because they’d been performing several of their songs, those ones at least would be ready to record. I don’t think that was true.”
“It’s not that we aren’t ready.” Cat argued, her green eyes flashing with irritation. “We’ve just been thrown for a loop. Again. We’ve gone through three bass players in the course of just over two months!”
“All the more reason to postpone recording while you get your bearings.” He told her. She scowled at him, not wanting to give up and simply walk away now. In her experience, things people postponed tended to end up canceled altogether.
“I say we just work on it for a bit.” Bono told her, draping a comforting arm around her shoulder and pulling her up against his side. She couldn’t help but smile. How could anyone not smile when this man was trying to help them? “Let’s just see if we can’t run through the basics, first. We’ll just see how it goes, what feels right.”
“Yeah. All right.” She agreed with a nod. She picked up the bass and let Alex count it out.
“You see the shadows in my eyes and want to chase them away. You think you can save me and baby, I’m so afraid! because I been down this road, I know how it goes! You’ll give me your everything
But those shadows still show…”
“Wait. Wait, wait.” Bono said, waving his hands at the band as he approached her.
“What?” She asked, exasperated at his early interruption.
“What are you thinking about when you’re singing?” He asked, stepping in close to her, head bent slightly and cocked to the side so that his face was close to hers. It was a casual enough pose, but somehow seemed more appropriate for two people who had been friends far longer than they. There really was no good reason for it to set people’s nerves on end the way it did, but nonetheless, it raised a common tension amongst the band members and Larry, as well.
“What am I thinking? I don’t know.” She replied with a shrug.
“I can tell.” He told her with a crooked little smile. “You sure aren’t thinking about what the words are saying. You’re declaring that you love someone so much that you would rather take the pain of never knowing them as a lover because you are so afraid you’ll hurt them. There’s absolutely no passion in your voice! You need to imagine having all of this overwhelming desire for someone who you can’t have. Not really. Not the way you want; the way it sure as hell feels like you need.”
“Like a starving child would look through he window of a restaurant.” She said, having heard the words before, when Gunnar had started writing the song.
“Exactly!” He said, and Cat looked over his shoulder at the control booth to see Larry standing, leaning forward with his hands on the control panel, frowning at them. She felt a surge of guilt, even though she knew there was nothing to feel guilty for. They weren’t doing anything wrong. They were working.
Every time Larry looked at her, she could feel him waiting for the moment she would do something to ultimately destroy the bonds between himself and his bandmates. He’d been suspicious of her from the beginning. He met her eyes for a long second before looking away, and she felt the strange stirring in her belly she had felt every time she had been around him since the day in Las Vegas when he had told her as much.
Stubbornly, she looked back at Bono, gazing through his dark glasses to meet his eyes. It was ridiculous to think there was anything but friendship between them, they had established that long ago. Hadn’t they?
“Ready?” He asked her, raising his eyebrows at her. She nodded and turned back to Alex, who once again counted them into the song. This time, she looked directly at Bono rather than into the microphone or the control booth. She remembered the crush she had on him, back when he was just a rock star, and not a friend or even a real person.
She let her eyes take him in, looking at him from someone else’s perspective. She wasn’t Catalina Clayton, but she was the mysterious woman inside the song. She was so much in love she would sacrifice her own happiness to protect the object of her desire.
She sang the lead in, her eyes locked with his. There was a light there, like a low burning flame. Simmering. He approached her in what she could only describe as a strut; something he had become so accustomed to over the years on stage that he didn’t even know he was doing it.
He stopped on the opposite side of the mic and leaned in close, his lips nearly touching it. His eyes remained locked with hers, and the sexual tension which was clearly mounting between them even before he hit her with that warm, smoky voice exploded when he began to sing.
“You think you’re a lost cause, a sad case; you think I should be scared of what I loved in the first place… Oh Let me love you! Let me show you the way, bring the light back to your eyes!” He sang.
“I don’t want to love you because I don’t want to break you! I don’t want to see you cry, Really don’t want to make you!” She brought in the chorus of the sad love song. Her voice resonated a sorrow, and an intimacy they hadn’t heard from her before.
“I wanna share your pain, let you share my bliss; I’ll be strong enough for two, If I can know your kiss” He completed the chorus.
“Please go, before it’s just to late… don’t let your love turn into hate…”
“Let me Lo-o-o-ove you!”
They sang, their faces inches apart as they took their turns singing, their voices finally raised together at the end, the words feeling as if they were being ripped from their chests, their voices stronger than ever. Their voices dropped to a low, intimate level, assuming an air of defeat.
‘Oh, I lo-o-ove you…’ they harmonized, dragging the words out and letting the volume fall as the final notes were played. Catalina smiled broadly across the microphone at him, her heart was racing, her palms sweaty, she was short of breath. That guilty feeling flooded through her again, and she looked at the floor shyly.
The sound technicians all rose from their seats and cheered, already saying the song was definitely going to be one of the strongest on the album. Now she had to imagine performing it in front of a crowd, and felt a bit faint. She hadn’t had serious stage fright for years, but singing this song, with this man? It was just like making love.
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“Hey.” Larry greeted Trine shortly as he entered the house through the garage, finding her in the kitchen. She stood in front of the refrigerator, staring into it as if hoping to find the meaning of life hidden on the shelves next to the bottled water.
“Hey.” She replied, not nearly as enthused to see him as usual. In fact she rolled her eyes at him in irritation. “Did they tell you to come check up on me?” She asked, obviously disgusted at the thought that Cat and Adam did not trust her. It was true, but Larry felt no need for her to know that.
“Who? I was just looking for your Da. Guess he’s not here, then?” He asked her, his hands in his pockets, his shoulders shrugged up in the pose he assumed so often, and which lent him an air of innocence which was so appealing to so many.
“He and Cat went to some movie premiere in London with Bono, Angel, Edge and Tessa.” She complained, still staring into the refrigerator. It wasn’t clear if she was addressing Larry or the jar of pickles directly in front of her. He was surprised she didn’t ask why he wasn’t with them. After all, every one else had asked him at least once. He just didn’t feel like being the odd man out, all alone.
“I take it you wanted to go?” he asked, leaning one hip against the cupboard.
“I couldn’t. Two weeks ago, I was in an up-and-coming rock band about to record our first album, and now, thanks to Adam, I’m just a baby-sitter.” She told him dryly.
“Well, Adam didn’t make you steal the car and run off to places you don’t belong. He just got the honor of punishing you for it.” Larry replied seriously. She turned and stuck her pierced tongue out at him. He hoped this meant her crush on him was fading. To say it made him uncomfortable would have been a huge understatement.
Larry could hear familiar music in the background, his eyebrows drawing together as he turned toward the living room, doubting his ears.
“What are you watching?” He asked, gesturing toward the living room and the source of the sound. Trine turned and looked at him, rolling her eyes.
“It’s not me, it’s the kid. I figured he’d be like, y’know, a normal kid and watch Spongebob squarepants and Fairly Oddparents or whatever. But oh, no, not this kid. He has a thing for, get this, Elvis movies! Can you believe it?” She asked, turning her attention back to the refrigerator without waiting for or expecting an answer. Larry turned and moved to the doorway to peek in at the boy who was, indeed, standing in front of the large screen TV watching a scene which Larry recognized from ‘Blue Hawaii’.
“Ito is an eating boy; He never get enough from fish and poi; He eat everything he don't care what; He even eat the shell from the coconut ; Eat Ito eat all the night and the day” Elvis sang on screen, with the energy only Elvis could have brought to such a song.
Pauley was dancing to the music and trying to sing along, although he did not recognized many of the words and so simply imitated the sounds as best he could. It was obviously not the first time he’d watched the show.
“See.” Trine said, coming to stand next to Larry, a bowl of popcorn in one hand and a soda bottle and two glasses in the other. “He’s just weird.”
“Why is that weird?” Larry asked, his lips pursed into a thin line as he looked down at the girl.
“Elvis? C’mon, who likes Elvis?”
“There are a lot of people who like Elvis. Including me.” He told her, and she blinked at him in silent disbelief. “What are you doing with that? It’s nine o’clock at night and you’re gonna fill the kid up with caffeine?” Larry asked, taking the soda bottle out of her hand and turning back into the kitchen.
“Hey, ok, I won’t give any to the kid, but I still want some!” Trine objected, trying to grab the bottle out of his hand, but he was far too quick.
“Trine?” They heard a small voice call from behind them. Pauley padded out into the kitchen on bare feet, walking with the not-quite-grown-up gait of a child who’d been mobile for some time, but whose legs were still far shorter than those of the people around them.
“Hey, buddy.” Larry greeted the boy, who smiled and returned the greeting.
“Hi. Trine and I are gonna have a snack.” He informed him, climbing up onto one of the bar stools as like it was a ladder.
“I see that.” Larry replied, hiding the soda as he put it back in the fridge. He pulled out a gallon of milk and Trine rolled her eyes at him.
“Would you rather have pop and popcorn?” She asked, confident the boy would want the sugary, carbonated drink badly enough to whine and complain until he got his way.
“Or milk and biscuits?” Larry suggested, reaching into the cupboard, finding a package of McVities Gingernuts and a package of Jacobs Jaffa Cakes.
“Biscuits?” The boy repeated, wrinkling his nose.
“Yeah, you know, ‘cookies’?” Larry told him, and his eyes lit up with understanding.
“Those ones!” He said, pointing to the ginger flavored cookies.
“Good choice.” Larry said, suspecting the chocolate in the jaffa cakes would be just as bad for the boy as the cola would have been.
“Cookies? How are cookies better than pop?” Trine demanded.
“We’re only going to have a couple.” Larry told her, winking at the boy and making him smile. He poured two glasses of milk and the biscuits and led the way back into the TV room. Trine defiantly retrieved her soda and popcorn and joined them.
“Do those hurt?” The boy was asking, pointing to the earrings which dangled from Larry’s ears.
“No. They did at first, but not anymore.” He replied, sipping his milk.
“If it hurt, why did you do it?” Pauley asked, big green eyes gazing up at him, shining with the light of curiosity.
“Well…” Larry started, chewing on a bite of gingernut thoughtfully. “Because I liked the way it looked. I guess I thought it was worth a little hurt to look the way I wanted.” He informed the boy who considered this carefully, chewing noisily on a cookie.
“So, Adam and Cat won’t be back until tomorrow…” Trine said, not so subtly letting Larry know there was no reason he should be staying.
“They left you alone for the night?” Larry asked suspiciously.
“No, Simone is going to stay when she gets off work.” Trine replied.
“What time is that?” He asked.
“Closing time is two-thirty, so she’s usually here by a little after three.” She replied with a sigh, suspecting she was going to have company for the rest of the night.
“She comes here and picks him up and drags him out into the night?” He asked with a frown, looking down at the little boy who was sitting companionably beside him on the couch.
“Well, what choice does she have? Those are the hours she works.” Trine replied.
“Why don’t you watch him at hear house?”
“Then Adam or Cat would have to come pick me up and drag me out in the middle of the night.” She replied smartly.
“You could stay there until morning.” He suggested.
“Stay where? The kid has the only bedroom, and Simone sleeps on the sofa bed in the living room. I’m not exactly a big fan of sleeping with strangers.” She said, and Larry smirked at her.
“So, you and Colin are old friends then?” He asked, and her eyes grew wide, her mouth agape in shock. She didn’t know whether to laugh at him, slap him, or sink into the crack in the chair and hide in embarrassment.
“I… but, well, what… I can’t believe you just…” she stammered and he waved a hand at her, chuckling to himself.
“I’m just teasing you.” He assured her. “You set yourself up with that one; be more careful how you say things if you don’t want people to make jokes.” She fought a smile, her crush returning full force at the sight of his gorgeous smile. It completely transformed his face, and made a man who was already very handsome downright irresistible.
Pauley started singing along with the movie again, and Larry’s attention was drawn back to him.
“You really like this show, don’t you?” He asked, and the boy nodded enthusiastically.
“Yeah, all he watches are Elvis movies and Dean Martin/Jerry Lewis shows. He likes dumb old movies with people bursting out in song every few minutes, apparently.” Trine said.
“This is one of my favorites.” Larry told Pauley, who turned and smiled at him.
“Have you seen roustabout?” He asked, and Larry had to laugh at the level of maturity with which the boy was conversing. “I like that one, and Viva Las Vegas.” He said, the words on Viva Las Vegas running together as if one word. ‘Vivalasvegas’
“Those are both good.” Larry told him with a nod, trying not to laugh out loud and hurt the boys feelings. “GI Blues is my favorite.” He added, and the boy scrunched up his face thoughtfully. “Have you seen that one?” Larry asked, and Pauley shook his little head.
“Maybe sometime I’ll have to bring my copy over for you to watch.” He told him and this clearly pleased the boy a great deal. He nodded enthusiastically.
“An’ you an’ me an’ Mom can watch it at my house.” He said, obviously eager about this possibility. Larry shrugged and uttered a non-committal ‘maybe’. He told himself he was sitting here with this charming little boy simply because he didn’t trust Trine to take care of him, and that it had nothing whatsoever to do with his mother.
He’d run into Simone a few times in the past two weeks, and the jolt of excitement in his stomach each time he’d seen her wasn’t a welcome feeling. He had been through enough with women lately, he was not even going to think about another woman for a good long time. It wasn’t worth it. Besides, she wasn’t what he wanted in a woman, anyway.
He wanted a woman who was more feminine, more soft spoken. Simone was more on the rowdy side, more rough around the edges. Too much like Cat in those ways, and he certainly didn’t need another woman like Cat in his life.
************************************************************************
Tessa felt ancient, standing there with these two considerably younger women on either side of her. Angel couldn’t be more than thirty three, and Cat wasn’t even thirty yet! What was she thinking, agreeing to go with them to this premiere? She didn’t belong here, with the wife and lover of two of the men. She worked with them now, but that was it. She didn’t have any sort of personal relationship to Edge, the last remaining member of the group attending the show that night.
She wouldn’t have complained about having one, but that was neither here nor there. She’d barely had a chance to see him in the two weeks which had passed since he had turned her life over on its ear. She really liked Paul, liked the work she was doing, and God knew she loved Ireland, but if she was honest with herself, she had to admit she had been hoping for something more.
“I cannot believe they’re making us wait for them.” Cat complained, tapping her foot against the ultra soft carpeting in the hotel lobby. She began to pace, and Angel sighed and checked her watch. They had all had their own agendas earlier in the day, different things which needed to be attended to while they were in London, and so had agreed to meet in the lobby at seven, rather than chase each individual member of their troupe down.
It was nearly seven thirty now. Tessa looked at the younger women and felt not only old, but overdressed. She had opted to wear a simple black dress, with quarter sleeves that rested low, exposing more skin on her shoulders than she was used to and dipping down sort of low on her back. For her, it was daring, and when she had looked at herself in the mirror in the room, she had thought it was lovely.
Now she looked at Cat in her leather top which tapered off under her breasts until it came to a point over her navel, exposing the smooth skin of her sides and the little gold hoop which pierced her belly. She wore a pair of silvery-stretch pants which hugged every curve and toeless sandals exposing painted toenails. Angel was even more casual in a green, sleeveless turtle neck, worn out jeans and cowboy boots.
She heard the ding of the elevator and turned hopefully. The three of them stepped out of the lift, followed by three of the bodyguards, whose names Tessa had not yet memorized. Now she had to laugh, thinking what a mix and match bunch they must appear to be. Bono was in his leather jacket and shades, a black button down shirt (which was only buttoned about halfway) and black trousers which were a bit too snug, in Tessa’s opinion.
Adam, on the other hand wore a soft, (possibly silk, she thought, having the strongest desire to reach out and touch it to find out) light blue shirt under a white suit jacket with matching pants. Even the glasses he wore matched the suit, and she could imagine why the guys referred to him as the ‘posh’ one of the group.
She nearly didn’t recognize Edge, without the skull cap he almost always wore. In fact, she realized, she had never seen him without it on. Not that he was hatless, but still, she sort of thought the slightly old fashioned hat he wore was charming. He wore a simple white button down beneath a brown leather jacket, and a pair of well-worn jeans.
She felt her face flushing red, and blamed it on the feeling she was too dressy. At least she had a convienient excuse this time. Every other time he looked at her and she flushed red, she had been unable to explain the reaction. At least, in a way which she was ready to accept.
“Wow, look at you. You look beautiful.” He told her, and she thought she must look like an idiot, with the way she couldn’t restrain her smile.
“I’m over-dressed.” She told him, shaking her head as she looked shyly down at her feet.
“I think we need to switch dates, to make us match a bit better.” Adam joked. “Tessa, looks like you and I are the only ones who know how to dress for the occasion.” He told her, holding out his arm for her. She laughed out loud, accepting his gesture gratefully by sliding her hand into the crook of his elbow and letting him lead her out to the waiting limo.
“I think I’m going to have to steal your girl, in that case.” Edge told Bono with a nudge, wrapping a friendly arm around Angel’s shoulder and following Adam’s lead. Cat stared after them, turning to look at Bono anxiously. This wasn’t happening. She had been looking forward to tonight being a reprieve from the sexual tension that damned song had awakened between herself and Bono.
“Looks like it’s you and me, babe.” He told her with a wicked smile, wrapping an arm around her waist and patting her playfully on the butt. Cat forced a smile and drew a deep breath, suddenly longing for the night to be over.
Edgie's cute cap
edge looks so cute with that cap on
