I force out a laugh but it doesn’t quite come out in the way that I want it to. “Erm, actually I have to go…”
“Oh, but you are known for partying!” She pouts. “You guys are wild, aren’t you? You can’t honestly tell me that you’re going to bed at this time.” She runs her finger down my chest. “At least not alone.”
Once upon a time this would have been music to my ears, but that person isn’t me anymore. I slowly peel her hands off and edge towards the door. But she follows me. She’s persistent, but a lot of them are.
“I really do need to leave,” I insist. “I have some stuff going on that I need to be ready for…”
“But the rest of the band are still here. You can stay with them surely?”
“No, this is something that I need to do by myself.”
She continues to stay by my side until we reach the exit of the bar where we’re greeted by an unwelcome but all too familiar sight. Camera flashes. Somehow, the press has found us. Well, I say somehow, the Internet is a bitch for that. Someone posts a picture on their social media with their location turned on and the vultures consume us. The woman by my side clings to me and smiles at the camera like she’s my girlfriend or something, almost as if she planned this. Tomorrow morning, that’s what the press will be saying about us, and it might not even take that long. Things can be uploaded at the click of a button, there’s no escaping it.
Remembering the rest of the boys from the band and the reputation of The Puppeteers, I raise one hand into a wave and smile. I need to keep playing nice for a little while longer.
One more show, I remind myself. Once that’s done, it’s rest time. No matter what Bill says, I’m having time off. I will get as long as I can because I really fucking need a goddamn break right now.
“Aren’t you going to answer the questions?” my companion hisses at me, as if she knows me.
“What questions?” I can barely hear them; it’s all just noise to me.
“They are asking how long we’ve been together.”
“What do you want me to do? Tell them the truth? That we met three seconds ago?”
She tuts and shakes her head, clearly annoyed with me, but I don’t care. I don’t know her; I don’t owe her anything. She clearly wants to cling to me for some fame but that isn’t going to persuade me of anything.
“Okay, so I’ll just stay silent then.” I nod determinedly. “Best way.”
I stay for as long as I can hack it, having photographs taken of me with this random woman wrapped around me, but eventually I peel away and I leave. Thankfully, I’m more interesting with other people than I am by myself so no one follows me. The vultures have what they want, now it’s time to pick it apart.
I sigh loudly and shake my head as I stroll off to another anonymous hotel room where I will spend the night alone just waiting for a call from Billy about the next woman I’ve been pictured with. He used to get really stressed about it, he wanted us to be perpetually single because it gave the fans the illusion that they could actually be with us, but it never worked. We can’t seem to help getting pictured no matter what we do.
Now, he just gets pissy about it and he tells us that no one can stick around for long. Dating is okay, it’s the long-term that’s the real issue. That’s when fans feel really isolated from us.
Ring, ring… I roll my eyes. Just like clockwork.
“Hello, Billy,” I say wearily in to the phone. “Sorry about that.”
“Who is she?” he demands tartly.
“I don’t know, she just started talking to me in the bar and wouldn’t leave me alone.”
“Well, according to this report she’s an upcoming YouTuber so you might want to watch out. She sounds fame hungry to me. She will be one who takes pictures of you naked.”
“She won’t get to see me naked. I’m headed back to the hotel room alone.”
“You’re going back now?” He sounds stunned to the core. “That isn’t like you.”
“No, I know…” I trail off. I don’t really have anything to say to that.
“Okay well… yeah, get some rest and… I suppose I’ll see you bright and early in the morning.”
I almost don’t want to let him go because I need someone to talk to, but since we haven’t ever been exactly the best of friends, I push that thought to once side. I’ll be fine. After tomorrow’s show, I’ll be good.
“Yep, see you then!”
I make it to the hotel room without any more incidents and I collapse onto the bed. There isn’t a crack in the ceiling here, but I know the carpet underneath the chair is stained. The imperfection has been found.