Page 69 of Still Her
“Sweetheart,” he toughens his tone to match mine, “we release this song, we’re going to do it right. All the way.” He pins me to the bed with his stare, daring me to challenge him on this. He’s not backing down.
I let out a defeated sigh. “Fine. A cameo then.”
His smile is relaxed but victorious.Brat.
“You just keep giving me reasons to love you,” he rasps, planting a light kiss on my lips.
“Well… you make it pretty easy for me too, you know.”
Epilogue
Ten Months Later
MAYZIE
I’min yet another bathroom, in another dressing room, in another venue, but fortunately, not another city. The band is wrapping up yet another tour, but in our hometown, which is an amazing feeling. It’s going to be so nice to already be in the comfort of our own home tonight. We should end every tour here. Thankfully, we don’t have to worry about that for a while because this is the last tour for some time as the guys decided they’d like to take a break, and so are in no hurry to put out another album. Which… is kind of perfect timing. They will keep writing songs and making albums, but they’ve reached a point in their success that there is no longer that urgency to keep the momentum going. The feeling gives me a sense of contentment as I stand up and flush the toilet I was just squatting in front of.
After brushing my teeth, fluffing my hair, and putting my backstage lanyard back on, I take one last look in the mirror. Smoothing my black and white paisley top down over my still flat stomach and adjusting it around my bare shoulders. I’m satisfied with my appearance, and whip around to head out the door. My grin is unavoidable as I make my way down the backstage corridor toward the stage, nodding and waving at the crew members I pass.
The last year has been quite the ride, overcoming what we have. Eli keeps appealing his case and that’s perfectly fine. He can keep right on draining his bank account, especially since every time he does, he seems to lose a lawyer from his army and gains another accuser that has decided to come forward.
As I get closer and closer to the stage, I get a little more nervous; in a good way. I’m excited to tell Jack he’s going to be a dad. I found out a week and a half ago, making me nine weeks along today. I haven’t been scared to tell him, I just knew exactly how I wanted to: tonight, right before the encore, when he sings the last two songs of the tour.
As I approach the corridor at the bottom of the stairs that lead up to the stage, the intensity of the crowd is palpable. I feel it in my chest. Ending a tour in a band’s hometown is sentimental for both sides, and the guys and the fans are like two tsunamis of energy colliding in the arena.
Kelly is waiting against a wall, holding towels and water bottles to hand off to the guys when they come down. I hold out my arms and flex my fingers at her, signaling her to give me one of each to me for Jack. She smiles and hands them over, and I lean against the opposite wall to wait. Jack and Matt do the whole bit, acting like that’s it for the show, shouting ‘thank yous’ and ‘goodnights’ while Chris bangs out a rapid beat on the drums, matching the lights that strobe across the crowd, before bringing his sticks down with a final crash.
When the music ceases, the fans go ape-shit, obviously cheering for more. The guys come clambering down the stairs, having handed their guitars off to the techs, their faces flushed and their breathing rapid. While the other guys swarm Kelly, Jack gives me a surprised smile when he spots me and comes over to where I’m standing before leaning down to give me a kiss.
“Hey baby” he greets me, his tone sweet and adoring. I hand him the water bottle and he unscrews the top while I pat at the side of his face with the towel. After taking a slug of the water, he sets it down on a nearby folding chair and takes the towel from me to let out an exhausted breath into it.
“Just think, you’re almost done,” I say positively, my smile bigger than I mean it to be.
He throws the towel over one shoulder before pulling me to him and bringing his face down to mine.
“That’s right,” he says, speaking to me between kisses. “Two more songs… and that’s it… we go home… and it’s just you and me.”
Oh, about that…
“Well… for a few months anyway,” I bite down on the side of my lip, letting the other side continue to smile. He smiles too, but his brow furrows.
“What do you mean? You know we don’t have another tour planned.”
“I know,” my voice comes out an octave higher than usual.
“So what’s this ‘for a few months’ talk?” he teases.
“Well… it will be just you and me, but only for a few months. Like… seven.” I lock my eyes with his as the butterflies rise up from my stomach and into my chest. He looks back at me and after a moment, I see the lines in his forehead smooth out and his eyebrows lift slightly as the crowd continues to chant, getting louder by the second. He continues to stare, and I can see realization start to replace the confusion in his eyes.
“Maze…” he starts, and I can see the question in his eyes as he leans his face a little closer. “Baby, are you pregnant?”
I feel a few tears well up in my eyes. I blink them away so that Jack can come back into focus as I take in a deep breath.
“Yeah,” I answer, keeping my smile hopeful. Jack’s eyes close and his lips part as he brings his forehead down to rest on mine.
“Oh my God,” he says on an exhale, a completely different smile slowly spreading across his face. “Oh my God baby,” His arms come around my waist and lift me up so that I’m slightly higher than his eye level. “Really?” he asks, as I wipe a tear away from my eye before putting my arm back around him.
“Yeah,” I nod, smiling brighter. “Really.”