Page 60 of Sky Full of Stars

“We’ll be there,” I hang up and look at my band mates. “Three o’clock at the label. Now get out of my house.”

I walk upstairs to my bedroom as the guys leave. I go into the bathroom and look around. The last few days I’ve been in two different hotels and my sister’s house, none of them had bathrooms like this one with its sunken tub, walk in shower that’s almost as big as Keira’s kitchen, double vanity sinks and a full wall sized mirror. The whole place suddenly pisses me off. I grab a five-minute shower, don’t bother drying myself, and fall face first on to my bed. I’m pretty sure I pass out within ten seconds of doing so.

Chapter Eighteen

Over the next few days, we met with four drummers, went through numerous rehearsals with them and finally found someone who could work with us. He’s an experienced drummer and is quick to pick up some of the music but he’s gonna need a massive crash course in the next ten days to get our whole set down. The press are guessing about a rift in the band, suggesting the three of us are so sick of Jordan’s behaviour, we’re thinking about firing him.

We would never do that but there have definitely been some serious arguments. Amidst all of this Bianca has us doing positive press, we’ve had it drilled into us what the statement about the tour is. Bianca tried to spin the accident but too many people filmed it and know Jordan was being a dick when it happened. She wants us to keep a united front and is scheduling more interviews than are necessary, on top of all the other work she had planned for us to do before I went to New York. I’m physically and mentally exhausted and it’s been a few days since I spoke to Jenna. I feel like she is slipping away from me.

I’m alone for the first time in what feels like years and eat some take out on the balcony outside my living room, watching the sunset. I met with Jordan on my own the day before, I didn’t tell Nick and Arch I was going over. He knows I’m disappointed in him and where he had been lashing out at us a few days ago, now he just looks morose and depressed. I’m a little worried about him. We’re going on tour without him, that has never happened, the whole band has always performed together from the moment we created it when we were teenagers. He promised he would be okay when I left but this time, when he said sorry, I worried even more about his state of mind, it didn’t sound like Jordan. I texted Arch on the way home and questioned whether we should be getting Jordan in some kind of program for his drinking.

I pick up my phone after finishing off a bottle of beer.

Me: Can you talk?

It takes almost fifteen minutes before she replies and I’ve been staring at the phone the whole time.

Jenna: Since I was six months old, I was always an over achiever

She makes me laugh and for the first time in ages, some of the bad feeling lifts.

Me: Did I wake you?

Jenna: Nope, I was in the shower, I’ll be going to bed soon though

Me: Mmm

Jenna: Perv

Me: You know me well

Jenna: How are things going with the drummer?

I shut down my text app and call her. She sounds cheery when she answers.

“Hey you.”

“What are you wearing?” I ask.

“Would it kill you to say hello when you call me?”

“Hello. What are you wearing?”

“An ugly sweater my mom gave me and some sweatpants.”

“Are you naked underneath?”

“Adam,” she mutters but I can tell she is smiling. “Yes,” she adds. I laugh. “I’ve seen you all over TV lately.”

“You’ve been watching me on TV? How do I look?”

“Is this a trick question?”

“Admit it, you think I’m hot.”

“Of course I do.”

She makes me smile. “Tell me something exciting, or boring, anything about what you’ve been up to. I need my head out of this place right now.”

---