Page 41 of Beyond the Blues
“Do you mind if I grab something from my suitcase in the back?” I ask Scarlett.
“Nigel, can you pull over for two secs?” She says to the driver. She jumps out of the car and slams the door. Oh god, I hope I didn’t upset her. Before I know it, she’s back in the car, a dress in her hand. She hands it to me and I stare at it.
“This isn’t mine?”
“Yeah, it’s mine. I thought you’d suit it.” Scarlett says, not looking up from her phone. It is a nice dress, a maxi bodycon black dress. At least it will hide my trainers. Scarlett presses a button and the window between the driver and us darkens. I slip the dress on. Getting dressed in a car is another level of difficult.
“Just in time, you look gorgeous.” She says.
“Right, when we leave the car, it’s gonna be a lot. Just hold my hand, smile and wave.” Scarlett warns me. I nod and latch my hand onto hers like a scared child. The door opens and there is a crowd of screaming people and flashing cameras. Scarlettweaves through the crowd, waving, bouncing with energy. I attempt to seem less awkward by waving a little to the crowd, but their faces display confusion as they try to figure out who I am.
We walk into the back rooms of this arena, filled with music equipment and tech guys. Even from here, I can hear people cheering in the arena.
“Right, I’ll take you to the VIP and then after the show I will come get you!” Scarlett says, she drags me into this booth on the side of the stage, giving me a perfect view of the side of the stage. Scarlett waves goodbye and runs out of the booth. Then the music starts, pounding drums and fans even louder than before. The band walks on stage and there she is. Nora. Her hair is a bit longer, and she’s wearing baggy jeans with a cropped racer vest. If
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anything, she’s just gotten more attractive. I want to run onto the stage and plant my lips onto hers. She picks up her guitar and picks the strings, her hand effortlessly moving. Scarlett sings and her heavenly voice fills the arena, almost silencing the cheers. The other band mates are just as well, although I don’t remember their names. The show goes on and I can’t stop grinning. Everything is so perfectly done. After a couple of hours, they’re all sweaty and bowing to the crowd. The roars of the crowd are deafening.
I’m too eager to wait for Scarlett, so I leave VIP, weaving through people to find Nora. I see the band huddled together, minus Nora. Where is she? I reach the band and they all face me, their faces a little awkward, as if I’ve interrupted something. I have. Nora has a blonde girl pushed up against a railing, her lips all over her like she did with me. The girl is laughing, flaunting her perfect teeth. My Nora has another girl laughing, just like I did with her. My stomach drops and I feel sick. I face Scarlett. Why would she bring me out here knowing Nora is seeing other girls? I know we aren’t official, but we still loved each other. Well, at least I do. I love her. Rather than questioning it, I walk away. I lightly jog, getting hotter by the second, desperate for fresh air.
“Ophelia!” I hear Scarlett yell out to me, her chunky boots clunking on the floor behind me. I try to ignore her. I can’t do this right now. I feel her hand grasp my wrist and pull me towards her.
“Please let me explain. I’m so sorry.” “Why would you humiliate me like this?”
“I thought if Nora saw you, she’d change her mind over this fame whore out there.” She waves her hand around.
“She hasn’t been the same ever since she’s been back. I know she misses you.” Scarlett says, as if it’s reassuring. If she missed me, why would she do this? She didn’t even tell me she was seeing someone new. I can’t stay here.
“Sorry Scarlett, I have to go.” I storm out into the fresh air, the loud chaos of Las Vegas filling my ears.
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Chapter 24
12 hours earlier
Nora
I feel like I’ve been on this tour for years now, and all I can think about is Ophelia. I have never ached to be with someone as much as I do with her. If I close my eyes, I can just about smell her sweet scent. I keep opening up my phone to text her, but every time I go to do it I feel like I’m boring her. How many times can someone hear ‘I miss you’ till it becomes annoying? I just resort to short messages, to hold myself back from professing my love repeatedly. To distract myself, I usually just go out, get completely black out, and sleep with the first girl that throws themselves at me. I feel disgusting. The next morning, when I wake up with that sickening headache, I sit down in the shower for at least an hour, trying to get rid of the night before. But it’s another day on tour, and I must get through it the same way I have for the past couple of months. I can tell everyone is worried about me, but I just can’t stop. Even when I got so drunk, I fell asleep behind some trash cans outside a club. Luckily, Scarlettgot to me before the paparazzi. She was crying and begging me to get help, trying to lift me up from the ground. Eventually, she had to get our driver to help me back. Scarlett got so concerned she spoke to my parents. I was angry at first, but I understood her point of view. She thought maybe they weren’t such cruel people that they’d want to help their daughter through this, but nope. They told her to never phone them back
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again and hung up. No concern, nothing. Ah well, fuck em.
I crawl out of bed, looking over to my side to see a blonde girl naked and spread out in my bed. I tap her shoulder and her eyes flutter open.
“Sorry, love, but you’ve got to go.” Her face screws up in annoyance, and she huffs, getting dressed quickly and heading out the door. I sit in the shower for a while before I hear Scarlett’s voice outside the bathroom.
“Nora darling, are you almost ready?”
“Yeah, give me a second.” I yell. I get dressed quickly and unlock the bathroom door, to reveal all my bandmates. Scarlett, my best friend and the lead singer, her ginger flaming curls and contagious smile. Alora, our bassist in the band, her electric bohemian braids and unbelievable fashion sense. Then Avery, our drummer, they have an even better mullet than me and almost always wear sunglasses.