Chapter 11-15

CHAPTER 11

So I lied. I thought that chapter was really long, but compared to this one…its just a itsy little thing. This will probably be the last long one unless something major happens and I can’t get my brain to end it at a certain place ;)

I opened my eyes, finding it was still dark out. I felt a sheet over me, and I had a very painful kink in my neck. I sent my hand to rub the back of my neck, my vision finally completely coming into view. I was on a roof. I was on a roof. Confusion settled in on me, and I rolled to my side, nearly having a heart attack when I saw the face next to me.

Shit. For a second I had forgotten completely where I was and what was going on. And then I remembered. I let out a sigh of relief, glad it wasn’t the same way I woke up in his bed last week. I smiled at his sleepy face, a few beads of sweat still on his forehead. Something about him looked so, peaceful. His lips were slightly pursed out, his cheeks pressed against the blanket that lay beneath us.

I stared at his complexion, taking in every detail of his features. From the chicken pox scar in the middle of his forehead, to his perfectly round button-nose. I wonder if he inherited the nose from his mom or from his dad. My expression immediately froze, my smile dropping. Of course, I wouldn’t even know anything like that. I sat up, fear settling in over me.

I grabbed the thin sheet that seemingly appeared out of nowhere, wrapping it around my body. I walked over to the table that sat by the edge of the building. I looked over the edge of the building, deciding it couldn’t be any later than 3 or 4. I quickly grabbed Bruno’s phone that sat on the table. It was only 2:21 am. I’d only been sleeping for an hour or so. I rested my hands on the side of the barrier before me, looking out across the still busy L.A. And all at once, my thoughts swarmed me.

Sex, on the second date. How classy. I thought, the truth just beginning to settle in on me. Matter of fact, unprotected sex. Shit Abby, what the fuck were you thinking? I felt myself become slightly hot. Shit, shit, SHIT! What the hell have I done? I brought my hands up to my head, rubbing the growing pain in my temples.

I looked back at Bruno who was stirring in his sleep. I don’t know you. I thought, feeling sick to my stomach. I wasn’t like this. I was never like this. I wasn’t the kind of girl who gave herself up to people like that. I just couldn’t bring myself to do things like that to guys I believed to be strangers.

There was only one other time I had a one night stand with a guy. One time. Getting heartbroken from a man I’d known for less than 24 hours. And I promised myself I’d never let it happen again. Yet here I was, setting myself up for another complete disaster again. And I’m not going to risk that again. I need to get out of here.

I suddenly felt a body behind me. Bruno. His arms wrapped themselves around my shoulders, sharing the view I had of the city.

No, I thought when I felt his touch. No. I won’t let this happen. I’ve already done enough damage, I can’t risk any more.

“Deep thoughts?” He asked in a soft voice, his vocals so charming.

I took a swallow, repeating the sentence over and over in my head. I need to get out of here. I slightly shrugged his grip off of me, repeating the words out loud. “I need to go.”

He was taken aback from my response. I saw the look on his face as I turned from the ledge, walking back to the blanket to gather my things.

“What’s wrong?” he asked, running a hand through his sexy curls.

I shook my head at his words, quickly getting dressed. “It’s nothing.”

I grabbed my phone and purse and made my way for the stairs. I felt his grip around my forearm.

“Don’t just tell me it’s nothing.” He said, turning me towards his face. “I may not know you a hell of a lot, Abigail, but I know that there’s something going on.” He looked at me with a half concerned, half hurt look in his eyes. Oh his eyes. Why do I have to leave him?

“Exactly. That’s just it.” I said, leaving him to his thoughts as I quickly sped down the stairs. I don’t know you. You don’t know me.

—

“You fucked?!” Ally’s voice screamed into the phone.

“Yep.” I said flatly, not really in the mood.

“Abby! That should have been the first thing out of your mouth when you called me!”

“Oh sorry.” I said sarcastically. “I’ll remember that one next time.”

“So right there on top of a fucking roof?!” She sounded a bit shocked by her tone.

“Uhh, yeah.” I said, scratching my head.

“Wow Abby. You’re pretty bold for that one. Did you even think about if anyone were to see you?”

Shit. She was right. I really wasn’t thinking at all.

“You know, if the media got that one, you’d really be fucked…no pun intended!”

I shook my head at her attempted bit of humor. She had a point. I hadn’t even thought of that possibility. I could see the headline now, ‘Bruno Mars caught doing the dirty with fashion designer Abigail Midley.’ The thought made me sick. Just another reason why I wouldn’t see him again. I’d forever be pronounced as his ‘fuck buddy’.

“Fucckk.” I said with a sigh, flopping down on my bed. “I clearly wasn’t thinking.”

“So,” Ally said, dragging out on the O’s. “How was it?” She spoke in a lowered voice, slightly making me laugh despite the way I was feeling about the whole thing.

“I dunno.” I said, just to piss her off.

“Shut up, Abby! Tell me!”

“It was good.” No, it was great.

“Did you at least say, ‘Oh my god, this is great!’?!” She laughed into the receiver.

“No, actually I didn’t.” I returned a laugh back to her; of course she was the one to think of something like that.

“So good? That was it? Nothing special, just…good?” Damn, I swear this child.

“I don’t know!” I said, which was actually true. What am I supposed to tell her? Although I’m sure if I wanted I could have said a few things. I chose to keep to myself. It was such an odd thing to talk about in the first place…

“Man, well I’d of thought since he’s, you know, famous, the sex would be great!”Believe me…

“Not like there’s much to say about it…this is getting awkward Ally. I don’t ask youabout your sex life!”

She laughed. “Yeah, well that’s different. I don’t go fucking around with Bruno Mars. Obviously I want to know!”

I got silent, her words reminding me. Fucking around with Bruno Mars. Of course.

“Abby?” She asked after a few moments of silence.

“Hmm?” I asked, snapping out of my trance.

“Are you alright?” She sounded slightly concerned.

“I’m fine. Nothing’s wrong.” Lies.

“Don’t go telling me that you’re fine. I’ve known you for fifteen years; I’m not going to accept that as an answer. Tell me what’s up.” I loved Ally, I really did. She’d been with me through my up’s and down’s. I met her at the age of nine, and we’ve been friends ever since. But I didn’t think I really wanted to tell her.

“I swear. There’s nothing going on.” Lies again.

“Well things with you and Bruno are alright? Aren’t they?” She sounded optimistic, although she probably knew that they weren’t.

No response.

“Abby? What happened?”

I let out a deep sigh. “I don’t know, Ally. I don’t really want to talk about it.”

“Well have you talked to him since?”

No response.

I had at least six missed calls from him since this morning, all which I chose to ignore. And I didn’t exactly plan on talking to him, either. He seemed persistent. I was actually surprised he didn’t come running down the stairs after I left last night, by that sad look he had in his eyes.

“Abby!” She sounded even more concerned.

I forced myself to answer her, slightly wishing she wasn’t so concerned. “Not exactly.”

It was her turn to let out a sigh. “I’m sorry, Abbs. He’s just a fucking asshole! I told you he was like that! The goddamn guy’s gone and fucked you over! Oh, I swear, if I ever get myself a hit man—“

“Ally.” I broke her from her ranting. “It wasn’t like that.”

“Then what is it?”

I gave up. I let my shoulders slouch, giving in to her. She was my friend, I couldn’t hold this from her. I needed to talk to someone about it, and if it wasn’t her, I don’t know who it would have been. “I left him, Ally. I haven’t talked to him all day, and I don’t plan to.” My voice almost sounded pleading, as if wanting her to help me.

“Abby,” She began in a soft sigh. “Is this because of that Logan thing?”

I nodded although I knew she couldn’t see me. It was exactly what this was about. Logan was his name, the guy I’d only seen for one day of my life. I met him at a bar two years ago, and he was such a gentleman. He was caring, sweet, compassionate; everything I could have imagined. I don’t know what had gotten into me that night, whether it was the tequila or the lust, I didn’t know. I gave myself fully to him in a four-star hotel we’d rented for the night. When I opened my eyes in the morning, he was nowhere to be found. All I had from him was a first name: Logan.

It wasn’t the fact that I had lost him; it was that I had been used, manipulated. He was definitely the devil hidden behind a pretty face, for sure. I felt embarrassed that I actually believed in everything. All he said to me just made me fall for him more. It wasn’t until weeks later that I realized I didn’t even know him when I had taken such drastic measures.

The thought haunted me, constantly reminding myself to not trust guys. And I had been pretty good about that. Even before Logan, I wasn’t some easy slut who slept around. It was one time; and it only took one time for me to learn.

I didn’t want to risk getting hurt again last night. So in all simplicity, I ran.

Ally took my delayed response as an affirmative to her question. She let out another sigh. “Abby, you don’t even know if he’s like that.”

I ran a hand through my dirty blonde hair frantically. “I know, I know. But I panicked, Ally. I was scared. I figured if I left him before he had the chance to realize he didn’t even want me, that I’d save myself from a repeat. I didn’t know what else to do.”

“I know its hard for you to trust him after such a small time, but you could at least try and give him a chance. Odds are if he calls you, then he does want to see you again.”

“No.” I said flatly, not wanting to discuss it. “I’ve already fucked it up enough already; I’m not going to try and win him back because I fucked him.”

“Maybe you won’t even have to win him back, Abbs. How do you know he wouldn’twant to be in a relationship with you?”

“Because, he’s a celebrity, Ally. He’ll forget about me and this whole thing by next week. He can get any woman in the entire world with just a simple movement of his finger.” She was beginning to piss me off; she didn’t understand the facts that I had so clearly in my head.

“He’s no more a celebrity then you are.” Her statement sounded so matter-of-fact, it scared me. “Stop making excuses to try and prove every guy is out to get you. I hate seeing you always turning a blind side to decent guys just because you’re afraid it’ll come and get you in the end. You’re making such hypocritical statements, it’s insane. He hasn’t done shit to you; you at least owe it to him to actually talk to the guy.”

“I don’t owe him shit, Ally. You said so yourself. He hasn’t done anything to me. So why should I owe anything towards him?” I was stressed. I just wanted to forget about this and move on. I swear I was a better relationship counselor than Ally was, and I hadn’t ever really been in a serious relationship like she had.

“What don’t you understand about this? You keep trying to make him sound like the bad guy,” Ally began, her voice slightly raised higher. She was sending herself in defense of him, which further pissed me off. “You’re ignoring the facts, Abby! If you keep ignoring him, then that makes you the one who fucked him over.”

 

 

CHAPTER 12

Ally’s words really did hit me. I was the one fucking him over. I couldn’t shake that specific thought from my head over the next couple of days. Yet I still continued to not return his phone calls or texts. I honestly didn’t want to deal with it, no matter how hard Ally’s words nagged at me. He would forget about it soon, and I could go on with my life peacefully. And hopefully next time I’d realize my mistake before I mess it up.

It sounded as sure of a plan as it could ever be. If I never talked to him, he wouldn’t have any other choice but to leave me alone. Besides, musicians always had tours and things like that to keep him busy. That thought reassured me. I wanted him to forget me.

But it was easier said than done. I was constantly reminded every time I looked down at my phone to see a missed call. He only called once or twice a day, and after a week, he seemed to slow down on trying to contact me. Ally continued to pester me each day, threatening that she’d call him herself just to force me to talk to him. And to make things even harder to forget, some tabloid managed to get ahold of some ‘source’ that claimed we were seen together. Lucky day.

I had first seen it on a magazine rack in a 7/11 just two days ago. I was bored waiting in a long line, so naturally I flipped through the pages. Then I saw the headline of a small article in one of the corners. That really caught my attention. It read:

                ‘Has Bruno Mars Found Himself A New Love Interest?’

                Los Angeles, CA – Bruno Mars was spotted Saturday evening this last weekend at the Grand Rose
                Hotel with another familiar face. Sources say Mars was seen with none other than the 24 year 
                old fashion designer, Abigail Midley. They claim Midley had met Mars just inside the lobby doors
                of the Rose. The source claims ‘Mars appeared to be on a date’ with Midley, giving her ‘a small 
                embrace’ when she arrived. Now from previous knowledge, Midley had confirmed that she was 
                working on a project with Mars earlier this month. She was also the designer behind Mars’
                production team, the Smeezingtons’ apparel at the Los Angeles Fashion Gala also earlier this
              month. By the sounds of how things are going, it looks as though Mars has already moved on 
              from his previous relationship with actress Brynn Eastwood. Although no claims have been made
              publicly by Mars, it appears that the couple split sometime in the past two weeks.

I would never understand where these tabloids got their information. Things seemed to be pretty spot-on, which was what really worried me the most.

Nobody at ’Midley’ mentioned anything of us. That is, if they even knew anything at all. I was fairly sure a few of the younger interns heard about it because when I walked in this morning, I saw them giving me curious glances. They didn’t say anything. I continued on to my office, ready to get on with the day.

About an hour into working, my phone beeped from the secretary. “There’s a phone call on line seven, Abigail.” I nodded my head, as if she could hear me. “Who’s calling?” I asked into the speaker phone, jotting down some notes on a paper. “Umm, I’m not really sure. Some guy named Peter. He didn’t give me his last name, but he sounds familiar.” I looked up for a second, thinking. Peter, Peter. Peter? Who the hell do I know named…of course. Bruno. “Er, tell him I’m unavailable.” I replied, not wanting to accept his call. “You sure? Would you like me to take a message?” “No, that’s fine. Thank you.”

I sat in thought for a minute. I needed to get this sorted out. Deciding I’d eventually figure it out, I grabbed my purse and keys, walking out my office door.

Seeing Twitch in a main conference room, getting some presentation or another together, I walked in. He looked up from his laptop, giving me a nod.

“Hey, Twitch. I think I’m gonna take the rest of the day off.” It was only eleven, but I really needed to get my thoughts sorted out. There was no way I would be able to focus the rest of the day if I stayed.

“You sick?” he asked, giving me a questioning look.

“No. Just some family problems is all. My brother called…” I said, shrugging my shoulders as I lied.

“Alright…” Twitch replied, not looking all that convinced. I really didn’t care if he knew I was lying; it’s not like he could exactly fire me or anything. Although I probably would get some shit from my uncle. Hopefully he didn’t get the bright idea into asking my uncle about my “family problems”.

“Hey, I’m leaving.” I said to Ally as I walked past her.

“Wait, what?” She looked confused. “Where are you—“

“I’ll just talk to you later.” I replied with a smile, walking out the doors.

When I got home, I flopped myself down on the sofa. I’m going to call him, and I’m going to apologize. Then he’ll stop bothering me. I took out my phone, looking down at the screen. But all I could manage was to stare at it, not making any movement. What the hell am I supposed to say? ‘Hey, I’m calling to apologize about leaving you naked on the roof the other night. Just stop calling me and we can both move on with our lives.’ I shook my head at my thoughts; I was so ridiculous.

I sat in the same position for over an hour, contemplating on whether I should or shouldn’t call him. Every time I got to the point of dialing, my hands froze as I suddenly changed my mind. I figured I wasn’t getting anywhere, so I decided to tidy up the place a bit. When that was done, I swore I would call this time. I didn’t; I had to go get groceries. The excuses began to pile up, and before I knew it, it was already 4:30.

Well, the day’s practically done. I’ll do it tomorrow. I figured I would take a shower; I’d end up going out with Ally or someone tonight anyways.

A slight  pounding disrupted me from blow-drying my hair. I turned off the hairdryer, trying to figure out what the noise came from. It was silent for a second before I heard the knocking again, sending off on my feet.

“Coming!” I yelled to whoever was at the door. The knocks sounded slightly impatient, and I figured it must have been Ally, wanting to know why I’d left work earlier.

They knocked right when I reached for the handle again, slightly irritating me.

“Holy shit, calm—“ I stood in shock at the figure in the doorway.

“Bruno.”

 

 

CHAPTER 13

He simply smiled at me, knowing he’d outsmarted me. “Hey, Abigail,” he said in a calm voice. I stared at him, still in shock. I was lost at words, not having a clue of what to say. “Are you going to invite me in?” He asked, slightly chuckling.

I stepped back from the door, reluctantly letting him in the door. He looked around, turning his head at every angle of my apartment.

“Holy shit.” He said looking towards my living room. “This is your apartment?”

“Yes. What did you expect it to be, a dump?” I asked, crossing my arms with a raised eyebrow.

“No,” he simply replied, looking down at me with a slight grin. “I just didn’t expect it to be this nice.” I felt my cheeks becoming a bit hot from the look he gave me.

“How did you find my house?” I asked, suspiciously.

”Midley” he flatly stated.

I narrowed my eyes. “They wouldn’t just give out my address to some random stranger.” I stated.

He held up his arms at both sides. “Well I’m really no stranger!”

“Seriously. Where’d you get it?” I asked, now slightly curious.

“Your friend, Ally. I arrived at your office and a very nice secretary said you left for the day. And your friend was more than happy to give me your address.” He smiled at me like a little boy. Oh god, please don’t look at me like that, or I may just end up fucking you again.

Of course Ally gave him my address; it was Ally. I stood in silence for a moment, feeling slightly awkward. “Why did you come?” I finally asked, although I knew the answer already.

“Well, I figured this was the only way I could get to you, beings as you’ve ignored every phone call.” He said in a surprisingly calm tone. Why wasn’t he pissed? He acted like I hadn’t done anything to him even when we both know I had been ignoring him. It was strange. He even had the slightest grin on his lips.

I shifted my body uncomfortably, not replying. “What’s going on?” He asked softly, sounding concerned. “What happened the other night?”

I shrugged my shoulders, looking at the ground.

“Seriously, Abigail. I just want to know. Was it something I did? I didn’t mean to hurt you at all.” He sounded sincere, as if he were the one apologizing to me. What the hell was wrong with him?! Technically it was something he did, but in a pretty odd, twisted way.

I looked up at him into his deep auburn eyes. He searched my face, just like the other times he looked at me like that. I stood for a second, opening my mouth to speak, only to close it again. I finally managed to gather up the courage to speak. “The other night, when you brought me up on the roof. Did you know what was going to happen?”

He looked in thought for a moment, scanning his eyes across mine. He finally shook his head. “No, I didn’t. Honestly, I can say I didn’t plan on…er—“ He stumbled over his words, trying to find the best ones to use.

“Fucking me?” I said, finishing his sentence. “You can say it, Bruno. It won’t change the facts.”

He shook his head once more, reaching a hand up to adjust his hat. “I prefer the term ’making love’.”

It was my turn to shake my head. I tilted my head, half in thought as I spoke. “But you see,” I began, slightly pointing my finger. “You can’t really say that when you’re not in love.”

Bruno looked completely confused. He scratched his head once, shaking it. “I still don’t see how this is relating to anything…why did you leave me that night?” His eyes had a mixture of hurt and a slight bit of empathy. Oh gosh, I’m going to give in, I know it.

“I was, I was just trying to protect myself.” I said with a shrug. I felt bad for him now, looking into his eyes. I really hadn’t got past the fact that he was famous, yet he still got hurt. And this time it was me who hurt the guy.

“Protect yourself?” he asked, scrunching up his forehead in confusion. “I don’t understand. I may be wrong but I don’t think I came off as threatening to you or anything.” He said, smirking slightly at me. And of course, this is all just a joke for him.

“Exactly, that’s just it. You didn’t do anything wrong.”

“Wait, I don’t—“

All mental barriers broke. I knew this was going to happen. Before I had even gotten the chance to organize my thoughts, my mouth was already moving faster than my brain could comprehend. “You didn’t do anything.” I said, cutting him off. “The other night, we, er, did some things. That’s just not who I am. I’m not that kind of girl who goes fucking around with a different guy every night.” He gave me look as if I was blaming it all on him.

“Well by the way things are looking now, it sure seems like it.” He said with a suspiciously sly smirk.

I chose to ignore his comment, and before long, my mouth was off and running again. “A couple of years ago, I met this guy. He was sweet and caring, and I thought he might have actually been into me. It was late at night and I was completely wasted; so we sort of hooked up.” I shrugged my shoulders. Bruno’s expression had soon changed back into a serious one, and he seemed to actually be listening. My voice got slightly softer. “He was gone the next day when I woke up. I promised myself I would never let myself do that again, no matter what the circumstances. And yet here I am, falling head over heels once more. The other day, I figured maybe if I ran away, then I wouldn’t get hurt like last time. I would be able to forget about it. And not be humiliated by my own mistakes…and from the rest of the world if they ever found out what went down—And oh my god, why did I just tell you all of that?” I brought my hands up to my head, running a hand through my hair, and the other to rest on my temple. I shook my head in my hands, feeling like a complete idiot. I just blabbed off my entire story to Bruno Mars. How pathetic.

I felt his hands grabbing my wrists, bringing them down from my head. I looked at him with an apologetic look, sorry for what I had done. To my complete surprise, he simply smiled at me, shaking his head.

“You don’t get it, do you? I’m not that kind of guy, either. I’m not trying to run away from you, or planning to in the near future. Instead, you’re the one who’s fucking me over.”

“Yeah, but it’s different.” I said, trying to think of an excuse. “I mean you could easily target any woman in the world, and you’d have her just like that.”

He smirked again. “Not exactly. I’m sure a good handful of my exes wouldn’t want me back…” he raised both his eyebrows at his words. He drifted off for a second, staring somewhere behind me, almost in thought about what he just said. “…and what if I told you I don’t plan on pursuing any other women?” He asked, snapping back into it. He smiled sweetly at me, making me melt inside. Maybe he really wasn’t so bad. “You know I don’t go through the trouble of getting dinner on a fucking roof for just some hookup date.” And holy shit, let the rosy cheeks commence.

“You’re lying.” I said with a smirk.

“Swear.” He said in a soft voice, almost like a whisper.

I stared in his eyes for a moment, realizing that he really was telling the truth; about not just that, but everything. He wouldn’t be anything like I expected him. He really was genuinely sweet. And I loved it.

“I’m really sorry for leaving.” I said with an embarrassed look. “…and for ignoring you…and for not calling back.” I gave him the best ‘sorry’ look I could manage, slightly swaying on my feet.

“It’s fine.” He said with a smile. “As long as you promise to never leave me stranded on top of a building naked ever again.”

“Promise.” I said with a slight laugh. He leaned in, giving me a soft, gentle kiss. Pulling back from the kiss he added, “Now please accept my invitation to dinner tonight. And I promise, no roofs.” He winked at me with the same smirk he always had on his face.

I said yes.

 

 

CHAPTER 14

Over the next few days, things seemed to be going pretty well. I’d given in to the thought that maybe Bruno really did like me. It was still a strange thing to think about, and I tried my best to not let thoughts like that get in my way. I hadn’t seen him since the night he’d come to my apartment, but I still talked to him throughout the week. We were busier than ever at work, and I believe Bruno’s crew was busy planning and rehearsing for the upcoming tour of theirs that had required the suits.

On Wednesday, I’d finally gotten a free time in my schedule to meet up with Bruno again in the afternoon. The Hooligans and him were rehearsing for a show later in the week in L.A. Beings as it was the only other time that he claimed he’d be free, he asked me to come to the venue near the end of their rehearsal.

It was interesting watching how they did things, and I was sure they must put on one hell of a show. I watched, shaking my head, having no clue that this guy was really that good live. I wished I had come earlier so that I would be able to see more of how their shows worked, but they wrapped up ten minutes after I came.

We stayed, chit-chatting for a while, nothing particular on the subject. By the time it was nearing six o’clock, I realized I had made dinner plans with a few girls at work, and claimed I had to leave.

“Hold on,” Bruno said as I was standing up to leave. I watched as he half-jogged to some man I didn’t recognize, of whom handed Bruno something. He came back over to me, smiling, his dimples deep in his cheeks.

Sticking out what he held in his hands, he winked at me. “You better show up.” He said when I realized they were two tickets to his show the following night.

I raised an eyebrow when I looked at the tickets. “Two tickets? Is the other supposed to be for my hot date or something?” I asked, smirking.

He shrugged his shoulders. “If that’s what you really intend the other for, I guess I’ll just take them back.” He said, reaching his hand out to take the tickets from me.

I pulled them away from his reach, slyly smirking. “Nah, I’m sure I could dragsomeone to come with me.”

He smiled with satisfaction before handing over a lanyard with a card on the end. “For after the show. I don’t think you’ll really need this,” he said when I looked at it, “but just in case Dre gets memory loss, I suggest you bring it.” He slightly chuckled, handing me the back-stage pass.

“Will do.” I said, smiling.

—

The next evening, I sat in my car, stuck amongst traffic of the busy Los Angeles streets. Ally was more than happy to come along with to the concert, and seemed quite happy that he’d actually invited me. She always loved going to concerts, whether it was some unknown band playing at the state fair, or a full-out Maroon 5 concert, Ally was usually the first to announce the concert dates. And she was my best friend, so of course I took her along.

We sat in traffic for what seemed like years until we finally arrived at the venue, late. The opening act was just ending when we got to our seats, and I silently thanked God that they hadn’t begun. I saw some curious looks by people sitting near us, and I knew they must have recognized me. It didn’t really bother me too much except for the fact that I know how brutal some people can be when rumors begin to fly.

We were located in the center, up on one of the balconies. They weren’t the closest seats in the house, but I understood that more die-hard Bruno fans would have wanted the seats more than us anyways; especially since I’d see him afterwards too.

The show went underway, and I continued to become amazed by his voice. I mean, yeah, I’ve heard his records and songs, but I never believed he could actually bebetter live. Their show was full of energy and laughter between the band members throughout the entire time. They all looked like they were having the time of their lives, and it made me smile at the thought.

The show ended, and Ally said Jake was picking her up from the show, since they had, ahem, plans for the evening. I got backstage without hassle, and was led to one of the main lounging areas of the band. They were all laughing and hollering when I came in, and didn’t quite seem to hardly notice I even walked in. There were a few other girls in there, all who either appeared to be a part of the management team, or a band member’s girlfriend.

After recovering himself from some fit of laughter, Bruno saw me, his eyes brightening up as he walked towards me, a towel in his hand. He held his hat in the other, revealing the mounds of curls atop of his head. They were in their natural state, neither hairspray nor product keeping the sweat-dampened hairs perfectly in line. And yet through all of that messy hair, he never looked more perfect.

“Heeyyyyy!” He said as he wrapped his arms around me, giving me a comfortable hug. Heat radiated off his body, and I felt the perspiration from his neck sticking to my own. His clothes were quite frankly drenched in sweat, and his skin lingered with a mixture of cologne and sweat. And for the some strange reason, I didn’t mind.

“So?” he asked as he drew back from the embrace, raising an eyebrow.

“You all did quite amazing.” I said, nodding my head to him and the guys. They all smiled with satisfaction, pleased at my words.

“Gracias!” Bruno whooped, tipping his head back for a second. He then proceeded into wrapping an arm around my shoulders, pulling me to him as he slowly walked. “And now that that’s over,” He said, turning to face me with a smile, “Let’s get out of here.”

His words reminded me of the night outside of his record label’s dinner meeting, slightly making my conscious feel a bit guilty. Great, way to think about the night you left and ditched him, I thought. But I tried to steer myself away from that; tonight will be a great night, and it will go well. I was almost positive about that.

 

 

CHAPTER 15

Who likes long chapters?! I hope you do, cause you’re in for a long one due to my stupidity of not knowing how much I’ve really written. My apologies! Enjoy!

I turned towards him, taking a big sniff near his sweaty shoulder. Wrinkling my nose, I glanced back up at him. “You don’t think you should shower before you go anywhere?”

He looked at me, smirking. “What, I thought you actually liked a sweaty Bruno?” He said in half-whisper before bursting out laughing. “I’m kidding.” He added after he noticed the look on my face. “I’ll just shower when I get home anyways.” He turned back to the door, pulling me along with him. He grabbed a bag from a sofa, slinging it over his shoulder before proceeding to wrap the other sweaty, and stinky, arm around my shoulder.

—

Apparently everyone was going to head over to Bruno’s house later. It sounded a simple enough plan; nothing really complicated, at least. When we got to his home, I actually noticed what it even looked like, beings as this time I wasn’t completely wasted.

He had a decent sized house; probably bigger than the average family home. It most certainly wasn’t a mansion, though, and I respected that. By the looks of the outside, it wasn’t a new home; it probably had at least fifteen years on it. It was surrounded by numerous trees and bushes, making it look like a private and almost secluded place.

The inside modeled around what it appeared on the outside. Modern furniture covered the hardwood floors of the living room. I was taken aback at how clean it looked, despite the fact that Bruno was a guy living alone in his mid-twenties. He most likely had a maid or something.

I wandered my way through the oddly set layout of the home, finding a hallway leading to the kitchen. I walked in, admiring the large windows that shot up to the ceiling. Just outside two sliding glass doors laid the moderately-sized backyard, complete with a pool.

I glanced around the kitchen, noticing something that caught my eye. It appeared that an entire corner of the counter had been reserved for the placement of numerous liquors and alcohols. I shook my head, walking over towards them. There were at least twenty full or half full bottles, all shoved into the corner. So that’swhat he spends his money on. He really must be a drinker, I thought, picking up a bottle of Vodka. He mine as well have his own bar in his house.

The shuffling of feet brought my attention away from the area, causing me to turn around. Bruno flopped his bag on the floor of the kitchen. “Really?” I asked, holding up the bottle of Vodka and raising an eyebrow.

He chuckled as he walked over to me. “Never out of stock.” He said, taking the bottle from me.

“That’s obvious. You have enough to keep Captain Jack Sparrow’s crew drunk for a whole month.” I said, slightly laughing. He smiled, watching my expression.

After a few seconds of him staring, I tilted my head, giving him a curious look. “Why do you keep looking at me like that?”

“Like what?” He asked, keeping the same funny look on his face as he continued to stare.

“Like that!” I exclaimed. He smiled, trying his best not to show his teeth.

“There’s nothing strange about that. I always stare at beautiful things anyways.”

I rolled my eyes at him. “Wow, would you like some wine with that cheese?” I asked, laughing.

“No, but I do have Vodka.” He said, holding up the bottle. “But really,” He continued, his face turning back into a serious expression. “You’re beautiful.”

I smiled shyly as silence filled the air around us. I glanced from his eyes for a second, only to look back up at them. I hadn’t realized how close he was until I felt his warm breath inches from my face. I leaned in slowly, mirroring his movements as I closed my eyes. I felt him hesitate for a few seconds before his lips touched mine.

He kissed me gently, with a soft touch that hadn’t been there the night up on the roof. His tongue slowly glided across my own, and he leaned in closer to me. Beings as he had the Vodka bottle still in his hands, I heard a clunk on the counter next to me where he must have set it down. His hands lowered to my hips as he moved himself closer to me, my back pressing up against the counter. I was almost sitting on the actual counter when I pulled away from him, not wanting things to get too heated.

“You should probably go and shower now.” I said with a slight smirk.

He kept his hands on my hips, the distance between us the same. “That’s alright.”

I shook my head, wrinkling my nose. “Besides, you stink.” I said, laughing. “And everyone’s coming over soon.”

“Fine. I’ll go if you join me.” Bruno replied with a seductive smile.

I shook my head again at his typical guy response. “Sorry, I don’t have any other clothes.” I said with a grin, giving him an excuse.

“Yeah? Well I have clothes.”

“Still not going to happen.” I replied, teasing him.

“Fine. Have it your way.” He said, backing away from me. He picked up his bag at the other end of the kitchen, walking backwards slowly to the hallway as he faced me. “But don’t drink my alcohol while I’m gone.” He said before turning to go down the hall and up the stairs.

—

Everyone came a half-hour later, filling up the seemingly empty house. All of the band members were there, along with a couple road managers, Bruno’s body guard Dre, and some of the guys’ girlfriends. It was nice not being the only girl there, although it was a bit odd at first since I hardly knew any of the girls in the first place. But after an hour or two, I’d made decent conversation with a few of the girls.

Everyone mostly stayed out outside, sitting or standing around the porch. Although it was a warm night, no one got into the pool, which gave off a blue-tinted light in the summer air. There were drinks and music; the main basic things that were even needed. It was a pretty chill, do-as-you-please kind of a thing. Everyone just hung around, talking.

Halfway through the night, the guys picked up on the piano, singing drunken tunes of really shitty songs with really shitty lyrics I had never heard of.

“Guns don’t kill people, uh-uh!” They all shouted as Phil unnecessarily jammed on the piano. “I kill people. With guns! HEY!” Whoops and hollers filled the room as they all burst into laughter. When they finally settled, Bruno suddenly turned from the piano, facing me.

“Come on!” He said, motioning for me to come over to the piano. “You’ve gotta play something. You ain’t nothin’ if ya can’t play a tune!” He slurred, still motioning for me to come over.

I don’t know if it was the buzz of the alcohol on me or what, but for a moment, Ithought I had a great plan. “Alright,” I said, setting my glass down on a nearby coffee table. I walked over to the piano, sitting down on the bench as Phil slid down, giving me room to sit as well. “I know some of you may not know this,” I said, placing my fingers on the keys. “But I used to take piano lessons when I was a kid.”

“Really?!” Phil asked, sounding drunkenly excited. I swiftly nodded my head, smiling as I looked down at the keys.

I took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. The room around me got silent as everyone watched, waiting for me. I closed my eyes, taking one more breath; setting the mood for everyone. When I opened them, I took my hands off the keyboard, only leaving on my pointer finger. I chicken-pecked the keys, playing out the simplest form of ‘Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star’ there was. I ended with emphasis on the last note of ‘D’, smirking when I was done.

Phil suddenly burst out laughing, doubling over on top of the piano, his head smashing against the high keys on the piano. Everyone else was soon laughing along, clapping as I pretended to look proud. “What?” I asked, looking around. “I thought it was good.”

I felt a hand on my shoulder, and I turned to see Bruno. “You may need work on that one.” He whispered in my ear as he laughed.

The rest of the night was enjoyable, and I kept myself on limiting the amount of alcohol I allowed to ingest this time. By the time I got around to checking a clock, I realized it was already two am. I had to be on a flight at 7 tomorrow to head to Sacramento for some meetings. I looked around outside for Bruno, not seeing him amongst the others. Poking my head through the glass doors, I saw him in the kitchen along with Jamero, Dwayne, Phil, and Eric.

“Bruno.” I said, getting his attention. He turned around, looking at me with a raised eyebrow.

“Yessum?” He asked in a slurred, singing voice. I could tell he was really drunk, his glassy eyes further giving it away.

“I gotta go.” I said with a shrug.

“Nah you don’t!” He said, his forehead wrinkling. “Jus’ stay here.”

I shook my head. “I can’t. I’ve got a flight at 7.”

“So?” He asked, not seeming to understand. This would have been way easier to communicate if he was actually sober.

“So,” I began, “I’ve gotta get my things together and shit.”

He ran a hand through his curls, a hat not on his head tonight. “Finnneee..” He said, giving me a pretend sad look. “But I gotta get a hug!” He added, walking towards me with his hands stretched out.

I rolled my eyes at his drunkenness, smiling. I walked closer to him, allowing his hug. He wrapped his arms around me, rocking both our bodies from left to right. He squeezed me pretty hard, and I laughed, knowing he had no idea how strong his grip was due to his current state of being.

I pulled back after about a minute, really needing to go. “Alright I—“ My sentence was cut off by the feel of Bruno’s lips suddenly pressing against  mine.

He held me close to him, in the middle of the kitchen. I tasted the strong alcohol on his mouth when he slid his tongue into my mouth. After the shock of his sudden kiss got over me, I kissed him back, not really caring that he was drunk. He kissed me deeply, as if we were the only two in the room, and as if he had plans to doother things. His hands slipped down my back and lowered to my, ahem, backside, and he further moved closer to me.

I had completely forgotten that we were in the middle of his kitchen along with all of his friends until I heard whooping and laughing. I heard the guys by the counter making Oooh’s and Ow’s as the apparently watched us. I swear I heard one of them yell, “Yeah, Bruno’s gonna be getting it in tonight!”, making my face feel hot. I tried pulling back, feeling slightly embarrassed of making out with him as if it were a circus show. He only gripped me closer, leaning in further. I felt Bruno shift one of his hands from me, holding it up to his side, towards the guys as he flipped them off. The all laughed again from his gesture until I heard Eric shout out, “Ay, Bruno! Get a room! I really don’t want to be scarred seeing my brother getting It on in the kitchen.”

Bruno finally pulled back at this, loosening his grip on me. I bit back my lips, shifting my eyes at the ground, embarrassed. He turned to Eric, with a fake pissed tone. “Yeah, well ya know what Eric? It’s my house, so fuck off!” He yelled, dragging me down the hall towards the front door.

“Don’t forget ta call me this time!” He said when he let me go to walk through the door. “I may seem outta it, but trust me,” He continued, shaking a finger at me. “I know you were here! No pullin’ any fast ones this time! Uh, uh!” What the hell was he blabbing on about? It was cute, I admit, watching him go off on God knows what.

I finally decided to just nod my head, acting like I understood him. He seemed pleased with my response; he squinted his eyes shut as he made an over-exaggerated grin, making me laugh. He literally yanked me in for another hug, swaying his body side to side.

“I really gotta go now, Bruno.” I said, my voice muffled against his chest. He let me go, holding the sides of my arms as he looked down at my face, grinning like an idiot.

I turned from him, saying my last goodbyes as I stepped out the door.

“Don’t cha get lost, ya hear me?!” He said as I was walking to my car. I turned back, seeing him blow me a kiss. I rolled my eyes. Man, I swear he could’ve been an alcoholic.