Page 59 of Our Moon
“It sounds awesome,” Joey says.
“Yeah,” Alex nods, but I can tell something is holding him back. The samething that’s probably holding me back, and Trevor.
“What about Ally?” I ask.
Trevor looks at me, relief that someone else is thinking about where she fits into this is clear on his face. “I don’t want to leave her, but she would want us to do this, right?”
I think about it for a minute, and decide that yes, Ally would want us to do this. She would be over the moon for us. “Yeah, she definitely would.”
“She would be pissed if we didn’t,” Joey adds.
“Hell, yeah, she would,” Alex agrees.
“And look at the tour stops,” Trevor points. “Several of them are on the east coast. There’s opportunity to stop by and visit with her.”
“But what if something happens with her condition and we have to come back? What if we have to break the contract?” I ask.
Trevor sighs. “Maybe we can talk to them? Explain our situation beforehand and see if they’ll give us any flexibility for a family emergency.”
“Doesn’t hurt to try,” I say.
We call Mr. Adelson and the remaining suit back in the room, and Trevor doesn’t waste any time. “Look, we have a familycommitment tying us to Charlotte. Our sister,” he gestured to himself and Alex, “is in a coma. If anything changes with her condition, we’re going to need to be there. We want you to know that we’re taking this offer very seriously, but our parents just died, and she’s all we have left. And we’re all she has left. She’s the most important thing to us right now, to all of us. We can’t sign anything that prevents us from going to her if she needs us. And we’re not going to sign anything that penalizes us for doing that either.”
Mr. Adelson looks impressed with Trevor’s speech, but the suit remains expressionless. The room is silent for a full minute before he finally speaks. “Your attorney here was just telling me a bit about you boys and your character while we were standing outside. Said you’re upstanding young men, never get into trouble, and that family was, is, important to you. He mentioned you had a recent tragedy and might not be willing to leave the area for a prolonged period of time. In fact, he said he was surprised you were entertaining the idea of a tour at all.”
Well, this isn’t the direction we were hoping this would go. It sounds like the guy is about to rescind the offer. Thanks a lot, Adelson.
“But,” he starts back up and he has our undivided attention, “you have an impressive talent. We want you on this tour, and we will do just about anything to get you on it. Thinkof it as a long-term audition. If we like what we see, you may just get a record deal out of it.”
We look at each other like we can’t believe what we’re hearing. First a tour, then a record deal? But he still hasn’t addressed our concern. What happens if Ally needs us?
“As for the tour, we will need a contract. That’s non-negotiable in business, as I’m sure you can expect. But I’m sure our legal department can work in some kind of ‘escape clause’ pertaining to your sister. So what do you say? We got a deal?”
We look at each other, able to read each other’s’ facial expressions after spending so much time together.
“Yeah, we’ve got a deal,” Trevor says for the group as he steps forward to shake the man’s hand.
“Good,” he smiles as he shakes the rest of our hands. “I will have our legal team revise the contract immediately, and I will have it back to you to review within the hour. Why don’t you head on down to the cafeteria and have lunch and meet me back up here afterwards?”
“Sounds good, sir. Thank you,” Trevor, our apparent spokesperson, says.
We float down in the elevator on a cloud. We’re going on tour. We’re going on tour with an awesome band that we idolize. We couldget signed to a label, to their label. After the absolute hell we’ve experienced over the past three months, things are finally starting to look up. If only Ally was awake to enjoy the ride with us.
Chapter Twenty-Five
“It’s going to be amazing,” I say as I sit at Ally’s bedside, holding her soft hand, rubbing my thumb across her knuckles. “We’re going to get to visit places we never thought we ever would and always dreamed we could. The only thing that will be missing is you. I know I have to do this, for the guys, for you, for your parents. We owe it to you guys, to ourselves. But I don’t know how to do it without you. I’m going to miss seeing your face, holding your hand, and singing to you. I love you so much, baby girl.”
We signed the tour contract and will meet up with the rest of the bands in South Carolina tomorrow. Trevor and Alex came by to say goodbye to Ally this morning, and I liedand told them I had some stuff I wanted to grab from my mom’s apartment this afternoon, but I was really coming here. I needed to imprint her face, the feel of her skin, and her smell in my memory for the six months we will be gone. I’m not sure how I’ll be able to squeeze in visits at the same time Trevor and Alex are trying to squeeze in visits.
God, I hope she wakes up soon. As much as I want to live out this dream with the band, I want Ally to be by my side even more. If I had to give it all up for her, I would. We all would. Hence the escape clause in the contract.
I lean in and kiss her forehead, my usual parting gift. “I love you, baby girl. And I will see you real soon. We’ll make you proud, Ally. We’ll make you so proud.”
As I’m walking out, I give the nurse, Amy, the same one who was there the day I sang to Ally that first time, my phone number. “Please call or text me if anything happens. I know y’all have her brothers’ contact information, but if you can’t reach them. Please try me.”
She nods and smiles. “Good luck, Chase.”
“Thanks, Amy.”
