A Rock & Roll Romance (6 page)

“Aubrey, I’m going to sit down next to you.” I moved
very slowly. “Is it about the messages? I’m sorry. I didn’t think about the effect it would have on you. I’m so used to it that it’s normal. I’m so sorry.” I felt like an inconsiderate asshole.

Her chest heaved up and down as she sobbed.
I felt utterly helpless and was seriously starting to freak out until she reached for my hand. I precariously rubbed my thumb across her knuckles hoping that it was okay. I was relieved when she finally seemed to relax a little. I used my other hand to rub her back soothingly since she seemed to like that. I don’t know how long we sat like that until she finally lifted her head to look at me. She looked like a beautiful hot mess. Her eyes were red and puffy, and her mascara had strewn all down her cheeks. I reached over to the end table and picked up a tissue to wipe her face. She looked solemnly at me. I needed to hold her. I wanted so badly to tell her that everything was going to be okay. I’d make sure everything was okay. The feelings that I already had for this girl were downright ludicrous. Something about her just grasped at me and pulled me in. It was like a vortex.

“
Aubrey, I really need to hug you right now. Is that okay?” I asked her, feeling completely wretched.

She
sat up slowly and opened her arms. I leaned in and wrapped my arms tightly around her and breathed her in. This had to do with more than just a couple of messages. There was obviously something else.

“
What happened? I don’t want to pry, but that was really scary and I need to know what to do in case that happens again.”

“I can’t,” She choked
and started getting upset again. “I don’t want to taint you with it.”

“How about I tell you my story and
then you can decide if you want to tell me yours. I’m already tainted Aubrey.”

“The wounds we have reveal us
.” She whispered.

“I was born to a teenage prostitute turned junkie. I spent my entire childhood rummaging dumpsters for scraps while my
mother
, who let’s just call her by her name since she was never a mother. So, while
Crystal
spent our grocery money on cocaine and heroin, I had to figure out how to get by. My father was one of her many Johns. I have no idea who he could be, and I don’t care either. When I was eleven she OD’d and the police found her body in a dumpster downtown. I was taken in by child protective services and put into foster care. That’s where I met Ron through an outreach program. He ended up becoming my mentor. He was the one that got me into music. He saved me, and now I’m here.”

I got emotional just talking about Ron
and what he did for me. He was like my dad. I couldn’t even imagine what fate would have had in store for me if he didn’t come into my life.

“That sounds like it was harrowing.
My story is nothing like that.” She shook her head.

I knew she wasn’t going to
divulge anything. I decided to let it go until she was ready and felt less vulnerable. I moved so that she was next to me and leaned us both back until we were flat on the bed. I curled into her hoping to give us both a little solace. I counted her breaths and felt the rise and fall of her chest against mine. I was able to get a closer look at the tattoo across her shoulder blades since she took her jacket off. It was an array of birds and stars with a quote underneath:
It’s always darkest before the dawn.
I absentmindedly traced my finger over it and wondered why she picked that particular quote. It was even more ironic that I had a similar quote around the same spot.

Our cuddling was interrupted
when my stomach growled embarrassingly.

“Come on,
it’s lunch time and before you try and protest I know you barely ate. I saw your plate.” I sat up and stood.

I took her hand and pulled her to her feet. The room service was no doubt cold and
gross by now. I decided to chance it and take her out. I knew the perfect place where I was less likely to be recognized. Even if I were to be spotted no one would dare mess with the owner. I told her to grab her jacket. I went into the living room and asked Brett to make arrangements with the hotel to allow us leave out the back. They happily obliged and after Brett gave the all clear we headed out through the kitchen. We climbed into a regular taxi instead of the hire car to avoid any suspicion.

Brett gave the cabbie the address
, and we headed into Harlem to Bee’s Waffle House. A friend of mine, Big Mike introduced me to this place years ago when I was just starting out. I tried to stop in every time I was in the city. We walked in and were greeted by Mama Bee herself. It was a small, charming little place. There weren’t any booths, instead there were several mismatched tables and chairs. The walls were painted sunshine yellow and plastered with pictures of her and her family. My picture was among them, which always earned a laugh. It was almost like eating in her kitchen.

“Look what the cat dragged in.” She cooed wiping her hands on
the front of her apron. A couple of patrons raised their heads but quickly looked away. She was a boisterous, fun loving woman with at heart of gold. She was short and rotund with short, dark hair and a smile that could light up a room.

“Mama Bee.” I smiled brightly.

She pinched my cheek.

“Oh, you’re getting
scrawny, boy. Sit, I’ll fetch ya’ll some grub. Who’s the beautiful lady?” She asked, looking at Aubrey.

“This
Mama, is Aubrey Thompson. I’m trying to make her my
girlfriend,
but we’re friends for now.” I winked.

“Honey-child, when you gonna learn? You need to
start the pursuit off nice and slow and let her figure it out on her own. Ain’t no sense pushing, ya hear?” She raised her spatula.

“Yes ma’am.”
I said bashfully.

“Good. Now whatcha
want to eat, Aubrey?” Mama beamed.

“I’ll ha
ve whatever he’s having.”

I bit
back a laugh. She had no idea what she was getting herself into. Mama Bee shrugged her shoulders and smiled. She started working away at the stove.

“I like her Jake.”
She yelled.
So do I Mama. So do I…

Mama
came over and placed our plates down in front of us. There were two pancakes, two pieces of French toast, two waffles, two eggs over easy, a large portion of corned beef hash, and two pieces of toast. She winked at Aubrey and plopped a container of syrup and a pitcher of orange juice on the table. She whistled on the way back to the kitchen. Starving, I dug in starting with the waffles because they were out of this world. I worked my way through the rest of the plate wiping up the last of it with a piece of toast. I was impressed that Aubrey was able to put a small dent into hers since it was a lot of food. I took out my wallet and pulled out five $100 bills. I left them under the plate since she always refused my money. I kissed her cheek.

“I’ll see you next time I’m in town.”

“Take care my sweet boy. Good meeting you Aubrey.”

             
Aubrey nodded shyly.

“That was really sweet.” Aubrey s
aid once we were back in the cab.

“Mama Bee is
an extraordinary woman. She’s suffered a lot of loss and hardship, but you would never know. I’m going to tell you something, and it’s not to boast. I just want you to get a better idea of who
I
am.” Aubrey nodded. “Mama lives in this teeny, tiny house on Avenue B, it’s the nicest one on the block. It’s also a gathering point for her family and friends. Two years ago, Big Mike called and told me that it was going into foreclosure. Battlescars had just signed their first
really
solid deal, and I used a majority of my advance to pay off her mortgage, anonymously. She worked too fucking hard to lose her house. She only fell behind because she’s always taking care of everybody else. Mama always puts herself last. If you go there to eat and you don’t have any money, she feeds you anyway.”

“I think that’s amazing! That’s exactly the kind of thing I would love to do if I had a ton of money.”
She said thoughtfully.

“I have a ton of money.” I teased
, and she pinched me. I was glad pre-meltdown Aubrey was back. “Just saying… Anyway, I have to get to sound check. I was kind of hoping that you would come along since you’re coming to the show anyway. It will be painless, I promise.”

“I guess.” She shrugged.

I grinned excitedly. Brett told the cabbie to head over to Terminal 22. We pulled around to the stage door and hopped out. I took Aubrey’s hand, and pulled her inside. I grabbed Brett’s stage pass off his neck and gave it to Aubrey since the crew already knew him. He shook his head bemused. I introduced her to a couple of our roadies and some of the stage crew. I led her out onto stage, my home away from home. I stood on the X and grabbed the microphone.

I wanted Aubrey to see the real me, not the rock star.
I started singing and dancing the Macarena. I was gyrating my hips and waving my hand around flamboyantly. I knew that I looked ridiculous, but when I looked at Aubrey laughing hysterically it only added fuel to my fire. When I finished I did an exceptionally theatrical bow and put the mic back in its stand. I walked over to her.

“Do you think Los Del Rios will pick me up if Battlescars
ever kicks me out?”

“I think you should stick to your day job.” She teased.

I put the back of my hand to my forehead feigning hurt. She leaned in and kissed my cheek.
Hell yeah!

“If that’s all it takes to get a little of your attention little lady
, I reckon I’ll be partaking in a lot more foolish activities.”

“Oh
, shut up. You’re annoying me now.” She rolled her eyes.

She’s so hot when she does that.

Since we had a little bit of time to kill before the show started, I took her up to the rooftop to show her the view of the pier. We stared wordlessly out at the boats and the approaching sunset. I put my arm around her shoulder and pulled her closer to me. She turned and looked at me.

“
Jake…” She stopped.

“What is it Aubrey? Just come out with it already, I know you want to.”
I pleaded.

“I’m scared. I want to
try and let you in, but the last time I let someone in it ended
very
badly. For some reason you can touch me and I don’t shy away. That has never happened with anyone that isn’t my family, or someone I’ve known my whole life. It scares me, Jake.” She whimpered. That sound fucking killed me.

“Aubrey, I don’t know what happened
. I won’t hurt you, at least not intentionally and never physically. Is that what you’re worried about?” She nodded. “We’re going to take this one-day at a time, as friends. I’ll earn your trust. You’ll see.” I vowed.

Aubrey

I was standing off to the side of the stage watching the opening act finish their set. I actually found myself looking forward to watching Battlescars play tonight. I always loved the aura of concerts. It was crazy to think that all these people came here to listen to Jake sing. He was turning out to have more depth than I originally gave him credit for. I thought back to this morning, and how compassionate he was during my episode and then his interaction with Mama Bee. He looked at her with fondness and respect. It was sweet. He was sweet. It was so easy to remember how he looked in the tabloids and the things they said about him. There was more than one side to Jake Parker and now I had a decision to make. Could I let him in?

He
came and stood next to me with a huge grin on his face.

“I figured something out.” He exclaimed.

“Oh yeah? Is it how to tie your shoes?” I looked down at his boots that had the laces tucked in. He looked at me dumbfounded and shook his head.

“What? No.
I figured you out.” He said proudly. I felt myself tense.
Did he know?
“You, my sweet Aubrey, are like a Tootsie Roll Pop. You’ve got to get through all the layers before you can get to the sweet inside.”

Whew!
If he only knew…

I wasn’t ready to bare my scars just yet.

“Right.” I said sarcastically.

“Anyway, we’re up
. How about a kiss for good luck?”

He leaned
down and placed his cheek in front of my face. I leaned in. At the last second, that rat bastard turned his face. Just as my lips were going to touch his cheek I met his lips instead. He was clearly proud of himself. I secretly liked it, but I’d never disclose that little tidbit.

“Jake Parker!” I yelled. “You are in so much trouble!”

“Later, my sweet Aubrey.” He winked.

He blew me a kiss and stepped onto the stage. The rest of the
band followed closely behind giggling at our display. The roar of the crowd was deafening. Each member took their place, and prepared to start.

“How’s everyone doing tonight?” Jake yelle
d into the mic. The crowd cheered in response. “What are we fucking sleepwalking out there? I said, HOW’S EVERYONE FUCKING DOING TONIGHT?” His voice reverberated through my bones. The response from the crowd was ear-splitting. “Then let’s get this party started!”