Strike (Sphere of Irony 2)

“What’s up with him?” I nudge Hawke’s arm and point towards Gavin with my chin.

“Oh, nothing. It’s probably the heat, that’s all.” Hawke opens the passenger door and climbs in next to Gavin.

“Okaaay,” I say to myself.

When I climb into the back seat, I turn expecting Adam to be following me, but I’m alone. I look outside and realize he’s made a few new friends. A group of girls has him surrounded, smiling and taking selfies with their phones. Adam is grinning, playing along and signing whatever scraps of paper they come up with.

“Fucking asshole. Always gets the girls,” Hawke mutters.

“Oh fuck off,” I say lightly. “You get so much pussy you’re buried in it.”

That’s no lie. Women really really like Hawke and his tattooed, skater boy look. Hell, they like all of us, although Adam gets the most attention by far.

He makes it look so easy. You’d never know by his public behavior how miserable the bloke is. Adam’s only sober this morning because we had a meeting with the executives for our new label and if he fucked it up for us, we’d have killed him. Inside that tortured mind of his, I’m certain he’s counting the minutes until he can get his hands on his next drink.

Adam waves, expertly extracting himself from the groping hands. “Thanks ladies. Cheers!”

He climbs into the seat next to mine, grinning like an idiot.

“Can we go now, your highness? Or is your fan club still needing your service?” I ask, pointing at the now very large group of girls he’s left squealing on the sidewalk to take pictures of the SUV.

Before Adam can answer, Gavin slams down on the gas, rocketing the massive vehicle out into traffic. A loud horn sounds as the squeal of breaks echoes up and down the street.

“Jesus, Gav, watch it!” Hawke yells from the front seat. “Fuck! That car almost hit us.”

Hawke is freaking out over the near miss, hurling a slew of insults at his best friend. Gavin mumbles an apology under his breath, which only causes Hawke’s face to darken with fury.

Adam and I exchange glances, but stay silent. Gavin’s been off lately. Edgy, nervous, like a rabbit being stalked by a fox. He looks like something you’d find in the bottom of your bin, not the posh, well-dressed man I’m used to seeing.

Hell, between the four of us, you’d think at least one of us could be a normal, functioning member of society. But no, we’re all equally fucked in the head, it seems.

Bloody brilliant.

Gavin drops us off at Hawke’s place, a nice house he bought up in the hills. We decided to grab a bite to eat and Gavin begged off, saying he had something to do. He tore out of the driveway so fast I’m wondering if he’s stable enough to be behind the wheel.

Whatever is bothering Gavin, that near accident made Hawke shoot him a look so dark, you’d think Gavin went and dropped a clanger on his living room carpet.

“That was strange,” Adam quips, before heading straight for Hawke’s liquor cabinet.

I sigh, rubbing the back of my neck. Telling Adam not to drink does absolutely nothing. If anything, it makes him more determined , even if he does appreciate our concern. Banging my head against a wall isn’t something I enjoy.

“Let it go,” I tell Adam, though it’s more for Hawke’s sake. “If Gavin has something he wants to discuss with us, he will.”

Hawke laughs, “Yeah, because we’re all the type to sit down and have a sharing of feelings moment.”

“Fuck off, Evans.” I flip him the finger, American style, and smile.

Hawke and I set to making lunch, or in this case, pulling out food Hawke’s housekeeper has stocked in his fridge. Adam plops down on the sofa with his drink, singing along with the XM channel he selected.

Miley Cyrus, wonderful.

I glance at Hawke and catch his eye. “We need to hurry,” I whisper. I have to get him back to the hotel before he’s too pissed to move.”

Hawke nods. “I have plans later. I can’t babysit his ass tonight, but he can crash here if he has to.”

“It’s your call, mate.”

Hawke’s dealt with drunk Adam before. Hell, we all have. He shrugs and I take that as a yes.