Free Exit Stage Six: A Contemporary New Adult Romance Novella by A.J. Downey Page B

half incredulous and half wonder. He recovered quickly.
    “I snapped. I just wanted to be normal again. I felt
like if we’d never gone big that Drake wouldn’t have… That he would still be
alive.” He grimaced. I pursed my lips and struggled to remain silent, to let
him tell his story. Hal shifted in his seat and the other man looked grim. I
think they all had similar thoughts on it at one time or another. I squeezed
Evan’s hand and waited patiently for him to pick up his story.
    “I packed all my shit I had left from before the madness
into a box truck, rented that shitty studio and pulled out. I wanted to
disappear and so I did.” He palmed the back of his neck with his free hand.
    “The night I moved in there was this girl.” He pinned me
with his gaze and gave me a crooked smile.
    “The box holding, of all things, my porn collection ,
gave way and without even thinking about it here she is on her knees shoveling
my spank material into her freaking grocery bags.”
    I laughed a little.
    “Then later she took my picture…” he scowled and looked at
me. “I thought you were the Pap’s that you’d caught up with me but then I saw
you standing there blushing looking all embarrassed and I couldn’t yell at
you.” He swallowed some water and closed his eyes.
    “I gotta piss.” He said and I wrinkled my nose.
    “Attractive.” I stated.
    “Stay here? Let me finish?” he pleaded. I nodded. I could
hear him out.
    He got up and went the direction of the VIP toilets.
    “You know you’ve caused a Hell of a mess don’t yah?” the
unknown man said.
    “Carl, I’d shut the fuck up if I were you.” Hal said, he
gave me a sideways little smile that I think was meant to be reassuring.
    “I’ve caused a mess? I’ve caused a mess!? Just who
the Hell do you think you are?” I demanded. I’d had just about enough bullshit
for the time being. I stood up.
    “L.B. come on sit down…” Hal said.
    “My name is London !” I snapped.
    “London…” he said calmly, “This is Carl, he’s the band’s
manager but if he doesn’t shut the fuck up in the next ten seconds he’s going
to be the band’s ex -manager.” Hal glared at the man.
    “I miss something?” Dorian was returning looking from me to Hal.
    “Just Carl being Carl.” Hal grunted. Dorian glared at the
seated man.
    “He say something to upset you?” he asked me.
    “Just that I’ve apparently caused a mess.” I crossed my
arms.
    “No babe, you cleaned one up.” Dorian gestured and I sat
down. He sat down beside me, his thigh along the length of mine and I closed my
eyes for a second.
    He smiled at me a little and it reminded me of a little boy
who thought he was getting one over on his parents. I scowled. He rushed on,
picking up his story where he left off.
    “So I was headed out to buy a metric fuck ton of drugs so I
could follow my brother into the great beyond when I open the door and there’s
the girl standing there with a plate of cookies in one hand and a glass thing
of milk in the other.” He pinned me with a stare and I blinked, his words
sinking in. Hal and Carl looked equally stunned by the admission.
    “I blew past her, was pretty much a total dick to her, but
you know what? I got back with the drugs and there’s this plate of fucking
cookies sitting on my doorstep. I went into my apartment and stared at this
plate of god damned cookies and this pile of pills looking from one to the
other for I don’t know… hours?” He picked up my hand and smoothed his thumb
over the back over and over again. His hands were cold. Damp from having washed
them.
    “I ate a cookie and it was the best mother fucking cookie I
had ever tasted. I ended up flushing the drugs.” He stared at me and I stared
back at him.
    “I don’t understand…” I said.
    “I didn’t either.” He said.
    “Why’d you choose the cookies?” I asked and it was too soft
over the thump and thrum of the music.
    “What?” he asked.
    “Why did you