Page 46 of A Dark Melody

“I don’t know.” I say softly.

Maybe he didn’t know what I did.

“I should probably tell Sue, right?”

“Please don’t.” I say.

So, he did know.

“I’ll make you a deal.” He says, turning towards me. “We are getting pizza after sound check. If you come over and have a slice, I won’t tell Sue.”

“Pizza?”

“Pizza. One slice. I’ll make it small.”

“Wes.”

“You are still bone thin, Abbey. A piece of pizza, a bagel, some coffee, a fucking pancake, isn’t going to make a whole lot of a difference. You’ll burn it all off on stage anyways.”

My lip trembles. I want to cry.

“Okay.”

“But I’m not letting you throw it up. I will get a lock for our bathroom door if I have to.”

“I won’t.”

“You cannot use my bus as a puking station, you got it?” He says.

“Yeah.” I nod. My eyes fill with tears, and I try to blink them back, but one rolls down my cheek. “I’m sorry.”

He puts his arms around me, pulling me into a hug. “I forgive you.” He kisses the top of my head before releasing me. “I just care about you too much to allow you to throw your life away head-deep in a toilet. So, pizza after sound check, yeah?”

“Yes.” I nod.

“Good.” He walks me the rest of the way to my bus. “That was fun for a while. Abbey?”

“Yeah?”

“I’ll see you later.”

“Yeah.” I nod.

I walk onto my bus, and Sue looks up at me. She checks her watch.

“Back early.”

“Yeah. Hey Sue. I was wondering if, after sound check, I could go back over for some pizza with his band.”

“Pizza?” She repeats, clearly surprised.

I nod.

“Okay. But you have to eat at least one slice and a sandwich after the show.”

I sigh. “No mustard.”

“Fine. You have about thirty minutes until sound check.”

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