Page 3 of Chronicles of a Rockin' Mess

“I know. But…I just have a lot on my mind,” he confides.

“I’m sure. This is the biggest tour you guys have ever done. That’s a lot of pressure,” I say.

He nods. “Yeah, if I’m being honest, I’m looking forward to the tour ending and going back into the studio for a while,” he admits.

I nod, and then a yawn escapes my mouth.

“Why don’t you sleep for a bit?” he suggests.

“Just for a little while,” I agree. He motions for an airline attendant, who brings us blankets. I curl up and fall asleep.

Chapter 3

Iwake to the sound of laughter. I open my eyes. It takes me the better part of a minute to realize I’m sleeping with my head in Lincoln’s lap, and I’m drooling. Oh no! Not good! To make matters worse, Harry is now standing in front of me stifling laughter as he takes photos with his phone.

I go to sit up, only I don’t realize that Lincoln has also fallen asleep and his head is leaning over mine, so when I go up, I run right into his chin.

Apparently, everyone else sees this coming, because they all burst into laughter.

“FUCK!” Lincoln yells. I turn to see him clutching his chin.

“Sorry,” I squeak. “Here, let me see. Are you OK?”

He brushes my hand away, but Harry manages to pry Lincoln’s hand off his chin.

“You’re fine. Don’t be such a pussy,” Harry says.

I look at Lincoln’s chin. It’s a little red, but he’ll be fine. I’m more than slightly mortified. I try my best to cover it up with my concern for him.

“You’ll live,” I announce. He glares at me, and I give him my best batty-lashes sorry face. He rolls his eyes.

For the remainder of the trip, I do work. Lincoln puts his headphones on and falls back asleep after eating a sandwich.

By the time we arrive, I have triple-checked everything. We go through customs and get whisked away to our hotel.

In the lobby, I hear someone call my name. I turn. When I see who it is, I take off running and jump into the arms of one of my favorite people to hang out with in the industry, William Cooper, or Coop to those who know him. He’s a bit over the top, but we always have a good time.

“What’s happening, hot stuff?” he asks.

I grin. Coop has been one of my favorite party people since the day we met, which also happened to be my third day on the job.

He and I are two of the longest-serving employees of Voltage Drop. Coop studied theater design at university and met Harry. Somehow over time, he became their stage manager, so I typically only see him daily when we are on tour. Otherwise, he shows up periodically at parties. But we maintain a constant text conversation that is mostly just gifs and emojis. We are completely not each other’s type, so keeping a platonic relationship has been easy.

“When did you get here?” I ask him, trying to remember what his schedule is.

“A week ago,” he says. “The concert is going to be off the charts. I have to say that I have completely outdone myself this time.”

I roll my eyes.

“Drinks?” he asks.

I pull out my phone. “Give me a few hours,” I say. “I gotta take care of some stuff for Lincoln.”

Coop laughs. “Well…uh, good luck with that,” he says as he glances past me.

I turn and look to see what he’s staring at. I groan. Lincoln is already flirting with the woman at the front desk. I sigh. “See you later, Coop,” I say. He ruffles my hair, and I walk over to retrieve my boss.

I somehow manage to get Lincoln up to his suite. Gwen goes over a plethora of media events for the tour, while I continue to confirm transport, hotels, venue details, and a million other insignificant details. My phone pings with a text, and I look down to see a message from Coop.

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