Arriving earlier to catch their show would have been the polite thing to do, and they really were an outstanding punk band, one of the best in the world. Unfortunately, she had had to perform herself in another club, so it wasn't even possible to catch the tail-end of their gig, despite jumping on her Kawosaki to cross town the moment her own show ended. Besides, it was just as well since she couldn't bring herself to mill around with a crowd of strangers who were boozing it up and partying the night away.
Especially the booze part. She would have drowned herself in the drink by now, if it hadn't reminded her of Cowboy. The expression of worry and disappointment on his face when he had pried a half-chugged bottle out of her hand was etched in her mind now, since every memory she had of him had been on constant replay in her head since she heard the news.
He had told her once the best way to honour the dead was to live your life.
Ironically, he had to die to get that point across.
She shuttered and swore and told herself he wasn't dead yet.
Actually, he could very well be dead by now and it was just unconfirmed because the body was missing.
She swore again and hated herself for how coldly she was arguing the semantics of death --with herself, of all people-- while waiting at the rear exit of the club.
She should have picked up some cigarettes. That would have killed the time (and her lungs) more pleasantly than the self-argument she was having at the moment.
The rear door creaked open, flooding the back alley with some pre-recorded music, the kind used to fill the intermission between bands.
When Sylvia saw who had stepped out, she was on her in a second.
"Beth!" They both nearly fell over from the force of her hug. "God, Beth, I... god..."
With the other woman still in her arms, he began shaking and forced back her tears. Only four people had ever seen her cry like this before. She wasn't sure she was ready to add a fifth person to that list, but at this point, she wasn't sure it could be prevented either.
Wild Horses (Aniela)
-
Sighing, Aniela leaned into Goliath, resting her chin on her folded arms as
she lay them against the crest of his neck. His ears twitched as he
detected he...
14 years ago
Beth clutched at Sylvia, tightly. Tears fell around her cheeks as she tried to get her bearings.
ReplyDelete'I'm so glad to see you...' Beth said through sobs, not wanting to let Sylvia go even for just a second.
'How you doing?' Beth finally asked, as she composed herself. 'How's Faith doing?'
Hearing Beth cry on her shoulder, she couldn't hold back anymore and began sobbing herself. It was as if by crying, her friend had given her permission to cry too, and she gladly accepted it.
ReplyDeleteWhen they were both done, she dried her eyes with the back of her hand and managed a quiet chuckle. "Is it weird that that actually felt kinda good?" She gave Beth another quick hug. "Thanks for that."
She took her friend's hand and led her over to her Kawosaki, as she continued. "Faith's actually okay. She stayed behind in Rio." She allowed herself a small grin as she added, "I actually think she's taking all this better than I am. She actually wanted to come back on tour with me, to make sure I was going to be okay." She shook her head. "I swear I put that girl through too much sometimes."
Picking up her motorcycle helmet, she bounced it between her hands as she turned back to Beth and went on. "So how are you and the kids? Deargod, how many of them do you have again? I swear you're going to have to write all their names down for me one of these days. I can't remember them all. And how do you handle them all? I can barely keep up with my one!"
Then with a grin, she handed Beth her helmet. "Here," she said, then straddled her bike and motioned for her to get on behind her. "I saw a coffee shop on the way here. Don't worry, it's only a few blocks and I promise I won't go as fast as Ne--" Her smile dropped before she finished the name. She paused, almost out of respect, then re-phrased her words. "I promise I'll go slow."
Beth smiled.
ReplyDelete'That would be nice.' She said swinging her leg over the bike. Sylvia revved the engine and they were off.
It was only a short ride and they were at the coffee shop. The two walked into the coffee shop and made their orders.
'My kids?' Beth laughed. ' Well... they are okay. As you know, Luc passed away last year and everyone seemed to deal with it as best as could be expected. Jack is in his own band now, he is 16. Mellie is studying hardcore between Stockholm and London, she is 14 now. Mia is almost 12, she is in New York City studying. Zachary is 11, and he is in Melbourne studying. Tilly, Belle, Zoey, Mila, Aiden and Max are all on tour with John and I. Tilly is almost 10. Belle is almost 9. Zoey is almost 5. Mila is four and Aiden is three. And of course, Max is only little, but is definitely a very sparky little man.' Beth took a deep breath. 'Holy shit I have a huge family!' She laughed.
'Wouldn't have it any other way though, yanno? It just... feels right.' She grinned.
'Faith enjoying being with her cousins in Rio? I mean, given the circumstances it must be a source of comfort' Beth asked, nodding at the waitress who put her coffee down and taking a sip.
Her head began spinning half way through Beth's recount of her children, and Syl got lost in the names, places, ages and activities that her friend listed off. When Beth had finished, she stared at her blankly a moment, then laughed in amusement and embarrassment. There was no way she could keep track of all that.
ReplyDeleteLeaning an elbow on the table, she rested her chin on her hand and grinned. "Okay, you really need to write all this down for me. My brain was not made to hold all that information. You sound like mi tia when she'd tell me news about my family."
She chuckled as her English tongue stumbled around the Spanish words for 'my aunt'. It had been awhile since she last attempted the language, probably since the last real trip to see her familia in Mexico. Not just passing through while on tour and dropping by the old family panderia to say a quick 'hi', but a real visit. She needed to change that.
Thanking the waitress as the woman placed her coffee on the table, Syl let it sit a moment to cool down a bit.
"Faith..." She paused, a thoughtful look on her face, then shook her head. "Faith, I think, is too much like me when it comes to people. She's just..." She trailed off, unsure of how to explain.
She picked up her mug and took a sip to hide her frown. "Faith actually spent the first few days on her own in our condo in the city. She didn't join her cousins at the house 'til later, and only when Ryan practically tripped over her while she was alone at the beach. Even then she was nervous when they let her stay in one of the spare rooms."
Sighing, she shook her head again. "I'll admit she hadn't seen her cousins in years, but you'd think she'd be comfortable around family."
She sipped her coffee again and lowered her mug to the table, grinning at something she'd noticed. "Ya know, I think you're the first person to actually refer to Neil's kids as Faith's cousins. Most people don't consider me and Neil as family 'cuz well, it's obvious we're not in the genetic sense. I mean, 6-foot Canadian eye-candy and petite half-Mexican chica? We couldn't be more different if we were night and day," she chuckled.
Looking at Beth, she smiled with a knowing grin. "But it takes more than DNA to make family."
Then she sighed, a mix of frustration and resignation. "I guess, that's what makes this so hard. Harder than it should be. Everybody's running to his wife and kids, giving them all the love and support. His 'real' family. Like me and Faith aren't included in that definition." She shrugged and took up her coffee again, as she looked away.
"God, I sound like I'm jealous or something. No wonder people always got our relationship confused." She rolled her eyes. That was a whole other issue she didn't want to get into right now. Besides, it would be all moot if... when... she didn't want to think about him dead.
She felt a lump forming in her throat, and took a sip from her mug to try to wash it away.