Page 32 of Still Her
“Her? Oh, she is just fine. It’smyselfI’m worried about.” His deep voice comes through the line sounding cynical, and heavily laced with sarcasm.
“What are you talking about?”
“I’m scared of her right now, man! If looks could kill…”
“Where are you?”
“Right outside some practice gym at the back of the arena.”
“I’ll be right there.”
I hang up and put the phone in my pocket, following signs that direct me to a gym. Mayzie tends to turn into Ren McCormack when she’s got some negative emotions to work out, and there’s no doubt in my mind that’s what she’s doing right now. When I first learned she did this is when I also learned that she can take care of herself. I however, like to be the one to do that, and she’s happy to let me, ninety-nine percent of the time.
As I come down a long hallway, I find Shane leaning his back against a wall with his hands in his jacket pockets, and his ball cap tilted low. I hold my hands out, as if to ask him what the deal is.
“She in there busting a move?” I inquire as I jerk my chin at the door leading into the gym.
“Man, she’s going to bustsomethin’,” he shakes his head, incredulously. “I wanna trade with Doug now,” he’s referring to the guard assigned to me.
“What is your deal? Weren’t you like Special Forces or something? You’re assigned to her every night we have a show. What’s the big deal?”
He shakes his head and then jerks it over his shoulder in the direction of the door. “I didn’t know she had allthatin her.”
I can’t help myself. I have to take one quick look at my lady in her element, giving the hardwood some hell. I keep my feet planted but tilt my upper body to peek around Shane. And sure enough, there’s my girl, dancing her beautiful ass off, throwing everything she has into every perfectly executed move, fire shooting from her eyes. And I fall in love for at least the twelve thousandth time.
I lean back to address Shane. “I know,” I say in solidarity. “How do you thinkSee Herwas written?” I watch the realization come over his face, and I blow out a breath, chuckling. “Just don’t let her know you saw anything, and we’ll both be just fine.” I give his shoulder a slap before turning and walking back down the long hallway to get ready for the show.
* * *
MAYZIE
Ahhh… this feels so good. I’m going to be so sore tomorrow but it’s going to be so worth it. I’m channeling all of my frustration and exhausting the shit out of it. Last year, I decided to expand my range and learned some break dancing moves in the hopes of subtly incorporating them into an edgy contemporary dance piece. The gym floor is perfect and I had to bust some of them out, though in hindsight, I probably should’ve let myself work up to them a bit. No matter. I’m throwing my body around the floor, song after adrenalizing song. Every thud of a bass, every blare of guitar… I hit it hard.
By the timePrelude 12/21 by AFIworks its way through my earbuds and into my mind, I’m feeling very fucking empowered. As my body moves hard but fluidly toMain Attractionby Jeremy Renner, I’m feeling very fucking motivated. The words are inspiring and I feel my facial expression morph into malevolence as I picture sticking it to Eli, doing my best to channel women like Officer Collins. I know there’s got to be a little Michelle Rodriguez or Elektra down inside me somewhere. If I could just bring her to the forefront of my mind, have some bravery front and center…
By the timeSo Aliveis halfway through, I’m feeling more self-assured than ever, and my body seems to be slowing down and expending the last of its aggressive energies. I slowly come out of a pirouette and let my feet come to a stop. I rest my hands on my knees and catch my breath before straightening up and pulling the buds out of my ears. I walk over to my hoodie that lies discarded in a heap on the floor and slide it back on. I stiffly shuffle my exhausted body toward the double doors and push through one of them before turning right down the hallway to find… Shane. He’s standing about ten feet away. He startles out of his resting position against the wall when he sees me.
“Mrs.- er, Mayzie. Hey there,” he stammers, giving me a wave of his hand.
“Hi Shane,” I return hesitantly as I slowly approach him. “What are you doing here? Wait… forget it, I know.”
“Sorry.” He looks guilty as he presses his lips together and puts his hands in his pockets.
“It’s okay,” I assure him as he falls into step beside me.
“He just cares about you,” he offers out of nowhere, and my heart goes soft.
“I know.” We walk in silence for a few beats as I reflect on all the emotion I just worked through, and like a damn two-by-four, a thought hits me and I stop dead in my tracks.
“Are you okay?” Shane asks me as he stops a few steps ahead of me.
“Yeah…” I answer, as I take in his broad frame, that he most likely acquired through God only knows what kind of training. “Actually Shane, can I ask you a favor…?”
* * *
Later that night, after showering and changing on an empty bus, I walk to the arena to catch a glimpse of the show. Jack and I haven’t seen each other since we butted heads earlier, and I want to see him, just for a minute. Shane is accompanying me, as always, as we make our way through the dark lot in the cool, late November night. My hoodie with a puffy vest and UGGs are doing a good job of keeping me warm. The guys are about a third into their set, the music getting louder and thumping harder as we near the stage.
When I reach the side of the stage where I can see what’s going on, I can tell that the people of Charlotte are getting a treat tonight. The rest of the guys are bringing it like usual, but Jack has upped his game. His stage persona is at full tilt as I watch him wrench and wrangle his guitar, swinging it around like it’s some kind of wild beast that he’s trying to tame. He’s standing in front of his mic stand, belting out the lyrics to their songBreakthroughharder than ever before. He’s unleashing some serious aggression. I guess you could say that while I have the dance floor, he has the stage.