Adonis

The night of the awards had arrived. There had been a buzz of excitement from the start of the day. We managed to get in a practice in mid morning and we were ready. This was what I lived for. The lights, the screams and the music.

I was just about to grab my leather jacket my phone started to ring. I had just spoken to Lacey so I knew it wouldn't be her. It was Trisha.

"What's up?" I asked.

"Sorry," she said. "I'm not feeling well and I wanted to asked you a favor."

"Sure," I said. She sounded awful.

"I can't go to the awards tonight and I don't want my sister, Katie, to miss it ..." She paused for a moment. "Would you mind taking her for me?"

Trisha did a lot of stuff for us so when she asked me for a favor I didn't hesitate.

"Sure," I assured her. "We'll take her."

"Thank you," she said, sounding relieved.

It wasn't a big deal. Between the three of us we could keep an eye on her and make sure she enjoyed herself.

"She'll be a little starstruck," she warned me again but I shrugged it off. We could handle it. Besides she was Trisha's sister.

**********

Early evening Katie joined us in the limo to take us to the event. I took a deep breath before we walked the red carpet. While I sometimes enjoyed the interaction with reporters I loathed it when they asked personal questions I'd rather not answer.

It shouldn't have surprised me when I got cornered by an aggressive reporter. She flashed me a devious smile as she bombarded me with questions about Lacey. I watched as my bandmates and Katie stopped at the next reporter.

"Has your friend recovered from her surgery?" Was the first question she threw at me.

"Yes, she's fine now." But I knew it wasn't going to end there. I kept my features relaxed.

"There are rumours that she's more than a friend."

I stiffened but tried to keep my facial expression casual. If she suspected I was uncomfortable with the question she would keep at it. I wasn't ready for the world to find out about Lacey. This side of my life wasn't easy to handle and I wanted to give her time to adjust before she was thrown into magazines and gossip mags.

I smiled, my signature dimpled one as I shook my head.

"No, she's only a close family friend."

"Really?" The reporter persisted but I wasn't going to give her the answer we both knew was the truth.

"She's the little sister of my best friend. Nothing more." I shrugged my broad shoulders.

"You two seemed much closer than that." She wasn't giving up.

I shook my head. "I'm unattached. There is no special girl."

"But what about your heartfelt speech at the concert a few nights ago."

Damn. I'd forgotten about that.

I smiled casually as my mind grasped at a way to explain it away. "It was a infatuation," I replied. "It didn't last long."

"What about the girl who arrived with you guys tonight?" she asked, she held the mic to me.

I could tell her she was just a friend but it suited me to give her the impression that she could be more to me. It would keep her off the subject of Lacey. I just smiled and shook my head.

The reporter let the subject go and asked me a few other questions about our tour and the awards we were nominated for.

I breathed a sigh of relief when the interview was over. But I wasn't getting off that easy. There were a couple of more reporters determined to dig deeper to find out what my connection to Lacey was but I was more determined to protect her. I wanted to have time with her, just the two of us, without the world watching our every step.

I smiled to myself when I thought about her now. No longer was there a tinge of sadness of everything that could have been, because I had it now. I had everything I had ever wanted.

But not matter how happy I was I couldn't shake that slight feeling that because everything was going so well something was going to happen to ruin it. We had over come too much to allow anything to stand in our way. I shoved the unsettling feeling away determined not to allow it to ruin my night.

I watched Katie as she struck up a conversation with Link. She held nervously onto her wine glass taking a few sips. Her fingers white as they tightened around the glass. Her eyes were fixed on my bandmate as he told her a joke. She laughed nervously and took a sip of her wine.

I kept an eye on Katie and she was enjoying herself. For the first time in a long while I felt like my old self. Not the guy that was constantly worrying, or stuck in a state of limbo. That night I performed on stage with my bandmates, we were totally in sync and I forgotten about everything other than the feeling I lived for when I sang in front of a massive audience.

To top the evening off we won a two awards. By the time we left we'd had a few drinks. Katie stumbled slightly and I caught her by the elbow before she face planted on the ground.

"I think you had too much wine," I told her putting my arm around her waist to steady her.

"I forgot to eat," she mumbled as I steered her behind the rest of the group into the waiting limo. Link hung back and waited for us to catch up.

Once we were seated in the limo she gripped my hand.

"I'm so sorry," she mumbled drunkenly, as her eyes tried to focus on me.

"You have nothing to be sorry about," I told her. She was wasted and in not state to drink anymore. The only place she was going was back to her hotel.

Even though the guys wanted to go out clubbing I made them stop by the hotel first. I lifted Katie out of the limo. Her body was heavy and uncooperative.

"You need help?" Link offered.

I gripped her around the waist securing her to my side.

"I'll put her to bed and then meet you guys at the club."

Link studied me for a moment. And I thought he might argue with me but he nodded closing the limo door. I helped Katie to her room which was next to Trisha's room. It wasn't easy trying to fish her key for her room out of her purse while trying to hold her up.

Once I got her in the room I lifted her off her feet and put her on the bed. I took of her shoes.

"Are you going to be okay?" I asked. I wanted to leave but she was so drunk I hesitated.

"I need.."

I frowned as I stepped closer to the bed.

"What do you need?" I asked.

Her eyes were glazed over as she looked up to me. She looked paler.

"I need..."

She tried to sit up. I helped her. She got to her feet and leaned toward the bathroom. Her hands clamped over her mouth and I realized what she needed. I lifted her swiftly and she made it to the toilet in time to throw up. I held her hair while she threw up again and again.

There was no way I could leave her in the state she was so I stayed with her. After a while she stopped being sick and I wiped her face with a damp cloth.

"I'm so sorry," she kept mumbling and I assured her it was okay. I hadn't planned on baby sitting someone for the night but I couldn't just leave and Trisha was in not state to watch over her sister.

Once I got her in her bed she went to sleep. Deciding it was best to sleep on the sofa I kicked my shoes and made myself comfortable. I got my phone out and contemplated calling Lacey but she was probably sleeping. I decided to call her in the morning.

**********

Lacey

Reece and I were seated on the sofa in front of the TV to watch the awards live. A ripple of excitement ran through me as I glimpsed Adonis in the throng of celebrities walking the red carpet. My heart fluttered as he smiled at the reporter he was talking to. I stuffed another mouthful of popcorn into my mouth.

I had watched so many of these events before but this time it was different. Instead of pinning for him I watched with satisfaction and happiness that he was mine.

"And there is lover boy," Reece said with disdain, scrunching up her face in a frown.

"Hey, just because your love life is a mess at the moment doesn't mean you get to rain on my parade," I threw back at her with a raised eyebrow. She let out a heavy sigh.

"You're right," she said taking one of the pillows and hugging it to her. "It's not your fault I'm in the mess I"m in."

I felt a pang of sympathy for her. Leaning over I squeezed her arm gently.

"Sorry."

"It's okay," she replied with a shrug, giving me a weak smile. "I made the choice and I have to find a way to live with the consequences."

And boy were there consequences.

"It'll be okay," I assured even thought no matter who she chose, someone would be walking away with a broken heart. I had thought she'd been pretty serious about Max but a momentary lapse with Aiden had dissolved their friendship, and they'd gone from best friends to strangers who could barely look at each other.

Apparently without me knowing Aiden had become close friends with Reece. Aiden had needed someone to talk to about the loss of our friendship when I'd lost my memories. He had taken it hard and Reece had helped him deal with it. They had grown closer and things had happened.

It would be easier if Reece knew which one she loved so she could release the other one from the love triangle that seemed to be tearing them apart.

All I wanted was for my friend to be happy, even if it wasn't with Aiden. I was biased. I wanted both of my friends happy and the only way that would happen is if Reece chose Aiden.

"Enough about me. Talking about it isn't making it any easier," she said, her eyes fixed on the TV in front of us. "Turn up the sound."

She was right. We'd spent so much time talking about Max and Aiden she was sick of it. There was no way to figure it out by reasoning it out, she had to figure out who she really cared for and that was easier said than done. She needed to take time out and forget about the two of them for a while, hence the invitation to watch the awards with me. I probably should have taken her out but she'd been opposed to the idea of going out to a club.

I gave her a lingering look before I reached for the remote and increased the volume as Adonis appeared on the screen. He was being interviewed alone by a reporter. My heart fluttered with possessiveness. I'd done this countless times before but this was the first time he was mine.

"Has your friend recovered from her surgery?" I leaned a little closer, I'd stopped chewing my popcorn.

"Yes, she's fine now."

"There are rumors that she's more than a friend." I held my breathe a little.

Despite trying to cover it up I could see he was uncomfortable with the question. Years of growing up with him had allowed me to read him better than most people.

He smiled, revealing the dimples that made my knees go week and shook his head slightly.

"No, she is only a close family friend."

I swallowed hard. She is only a close family friend, echoed in my mind.

"Really?" The reporter persisted.

"She's the little sister of my best friend. Nothing more." He shrugged and I swallowed again unable to bury the hurt I felt.

"You two seemed much closer than that," the reporter said holding to mike closer to him.

"I'm unattached. There is no special girl."

That stung harder. He is doing this to protect you, I told myself, trying to reassure myself.

Realistically I knew he was probably trying to protect me from public scrutiny but there was a part of me that wanted to shout to the world that he was mine. I smothered the urge as I sat back and shoved some more popcorn into my mouth.

I was trying to cover up my hurt from my friend but she knew me too well. I glanced in her direction to catch a
sympathetic look before I looked back to the interview.

"But what about your heartfelt speech at the concert a few nights ago."

The moment that had brought us back to each other.

"It was a infatuation," he replied with a casual smile. "It didn't last long."

I pressed my lips together trying to fight the pain in the middle of my chest.

"What about the girl who arrived with you guys tonight?" she asked him and I frowned.

What girl was the reporter talking about? I felt my stomach drop.

"What girl?" Reece asked from beside me.

"I don't know."

My feelings of years of inadequacy gripped me and I put my popcorn down. I waited for him to answer the question but he just shook his head and evaded the question. My frowned deepened.

"You okay?" Reece asked beside me and I felt her hand on my arm.

I swallowed the hurt I felt and smiled at her.

"Yeah."

I shouldn't feel like this. After everything we'd been through I had to trust that he loved me as much as I loved him.

We watched the rest of the show but I still couldn't shake what Adonis had said and what he hadn't said. Reece tried her best to list the reasons why he hadn't revealed our relationships but none of her explanations could shake the unsettledness I felt. There was no logical reason for it because he'd told me earlier that day he loved me and how much he missed me. But what he hadn't told me was that there was a girl going to the awards with the band. It didn't necessarily mean that the girl was with him, but I remembered the way he smiled and evaded the question from the reporter when she'd asked about the mystery girl.

Glancing at Reece sleeping beside me I contemplated calling him but I stopped myself. He was probably out with the guys celebrating. I didn't want to be a clingy girlfriend so I set my phone beside my bed and stared at the wall. After assuring myself multiple times that I was blowing it out of proportion I managed to calm my mind long enough to fall asleep.

**********

I thought by the time I woke up in the morning I would feel better but I hadn't. It was still early. I checked the time and calculated what the time it was where Adonis was. It was ten in the morning. After a late night he would probably still be sleeping but I couldn't wait any longer. I needed him to assure me. I needed to hear him say those three little words and all the anxious inadequacy I felt would go away. It would be that simple.

I bit my lip as I picked up my phone and took a deep breath. My finger hovered over the call button as I tried to organize my thoughts and what I would say to Gray.

Pressing the dial button I waited as his phone started to ring. It rang.

Pick up, Pick up. It continued to ring.

Pick up. I thought. I needed him to answer the call and put my worries to rest. But every ring I felt the anxious knot in the pit of my stomach knot.

Just when I thought the call was going to go to voicemail someone answered it.

"Hello?" the female voice said.

At first I thought I might have dialed the wrong number somehow but a quick look at the caller id assured me it was Adonis' phone.

"Hello... Is anyone there?" the girl asked again. I swallowed hard trying to figure out what was going on.

"Yes..." I said. "Is Adonis there?"

"Yes, but he's still sleeping."

Then the picture formed in my mind. The girl, his phone and my stomach turned.

"Do you want me to give him a message?" she asked but I hung up.