Chapter Thirteen, Night Work
Posted by DiF on Saturday, August 13, 2011
Title: Love Runs Deeper: Chapter Thirteen, Night Work
Rating: R [drugs, alcohol, language]
Summary: Lily comes to a realization about the studio. Lindsey and Stevie have a discussion.
With nearly a week of studio activity, Lily and Lindsey fell into a routine. They would head to the studio after dinner. Lindsey would leave Lily to drink and hang out with the band, supposedly working on music, while she shifted through months and months of paperwork from the band. He would surface a few times a night to spend some time with her, normally when he sobered some. They would return to the hotel at sunrise, breakfast, and then sleep until repeating their schedule once more.
For the most part, Lily spent the night trying to figure out what Mick had been attempting to do with the band and its finances for the past few months. She might not have been an expert on accounting or especially band management, but she knew she had a lot of work to do. A lot of it would require phone calls and perhaps actual visits with people – and that she could not do at one in the morning. The all night partying was going to have to end.
Deciding upon this as she stared down at yet another stack of papers to organize, Lily sighed, hoping that Lindsey would be stopping by the lounge soon. Stevie had breezed in at one point, ignoring Lily’s existence as had become normal. Chris had chatted and smoked two cigarettes before leaving upon John’s arrival. Even Mick had visited Lily. However, Lindsey had been a no-show that evening. It was beginning to increase her anxiety.
Stepping into the lounge, cigarette in hand, Chris’s eyes went to the petite woman. A bit soused, she could still see that Lily was agitated. She quickly poured herself a drink and sat next to the quiet blond woman.
“What’s the story, morning glory?” she asked in her husky voice.
Lily’s golden eyes went to the songstress, “I can’t keep up with these overnights.”
“I thought you worked overnight shifts at the diner?”
“Oh I did. It’s not the hours. It’s more of the fact that a lot of what I need to do for the band, I can’t do in the middle of the night. Creditors and such work… daylight hours,” she stated.
“Ah yes,” Chris nodded and sipped her drink. “Have you spoken with Lindsey about it?”
“No… I haven’t seen him tonight since we got here,” Lily responded.
“Perhaps if the two of you left the hotel…”
“I couldn’t stay here even if I wanted.”
“Why not?” she ground out her cigarette in the ashtray.
Her eyes flicked to the door, “Stevie.”
“Stevie will not bother you.”
“She will too.”
“She won’t. Besides you would be living different hours than her.”
Lily shook her head, “I’m not walking into the lion’s den. And the guys are sleeping here in the studio. I would never see Lindsey at all.”
She sighed, “It’s never easy.”
“Do you think maybe… you could find Lindsey and let him know I need to talk to him?”
“Sure, chickadee. I’ll see if I can find him.”
After a five-minute search, Chris returned to the lounge sans Lindsey. Fully expecting to have to explain to Lily that her boyfriend was MIA, she sighed in relief. She never liked giving bad news to anyone, especially someone as sweet as Lily. But her absence erased that issues, so Chris sat down at the table with a new drink and lit up another cigarette. Idly she reached for the nearest pile of papers and pulled it towards her. Flipping through them, she tried to figure out what the pile meant. It made no sense to her at all. Shrugging, she pushed it back in place and focused on finishing her drink.
The door to the lounge opened again and in stepped Lindsey, “Oh, hello, Chris.”
“Hi, Lindsey,” she glanced up.
“Where’s Lily?”
She shrugged, “I went looking for you and when I came back she was gone.”
“Oh. What did you need me for?”
“Lily wanted to talk to you,” she responded.
“About what?” he asked, pulling a beer out of the fridge.
“It really isn’t my place.”
His blue eyes looked at her over the edge of his bottle as he sucked on it, “She’s unhappy.”
“What makes you say that?”
“That’s how you women work. You tell each other your complaints and sometimes it makes it back to the one its against,” Lindsey declared.
“Lily isn’t like that.”
“Then where is she?”
The door opened, “There you are.”
Lindsey turned around, “Lily.”
Her eyes flicked to Chris, before connecting with Lindsey’s, “I was looking for you.”
“How come?”
“We need to talk.”
Lindsey looked over at Chris, “About what?”
“Excuse me,” Chris stated and got to her feet, leaving the lounge.
“I can’t keep doing this, Lindsey.”
“Doing what, baby?”
“Working all night.”
He instantly frowned, setting his beer down, “Are you tired? Do we need to go back to the hotel?”
“No. It’s not the sleeping, because I’m sleeping now more than I have in years,” she stated. “I can’t take care of the work that Mick needs me to do during the night.”
“What do you mean?”
“There are accounts that need to be settled and dealt with. Most of the world isn’t functioning during the hours we are, Lindsey,” she explained. “I need to be working banker hours.”
“So you’re not going to come to the studio with me anymore?”
Lily sighed, “Not every night.”
“But some of the time?”
She considered it for a moment, “Yes.”
“Okay,” he smiled slightly. “I can handle that.”
“Do you still want to stay here with the band?”
He rubbed the back of his neck, “It would make things easier for me.”
“But harder for me.”
His eyes widened, “We won’t stay here, Lily. I don’t want things to be harder on you if I can avoid it.”
“If you say so…”
“Lil, I know this is hard on you already. If I can alleviate even a fraction of that by remaining at the hotel, instead of staying here with the band, I will,” he declared, stepping over towards her and caressing her cheek. “You have to know how much you mean to me.”
“I do, but I don’t want you to put your band at risk because of me,” she declared.
He kissed her quickly, “We’ll make it work, Lil. I have no doubts.”
He had lied. Plain and simple. He had told her it would be fine if she stayed in the hotel half of the week to take care of whatever business needed to be taken care of. But it was all a lie. One that he did not truly face up to until he climbed into the car without her. After a week of going to the studio every evening after dinner with Lily, Lindsey did not like sitting in his car alone. He could still smell her scent in the car, but that was not enough.
He had half a mind to turn the car around and return to the hotel where she was. Instead, Lindsey dug a blunt out while at a stoplight and lit it. He would calm his separation anxiety so that he could face Stevie and the rest of the band with the air of being at ease. Stevie would likely see through it, unless she was already high herself upon his arrival. He hoped that would be the case.
Arriving at the studio, Lindsey remained in the car for a few minutes and smoked another blunt. Feeling about as calm as he imagined he could get, he climbed out of the car. He wandered into the lounge firs and pulled out a beer. As he cracked it open, Stevie stepped into the room – without her gaggle of girls. Finding that amazing and odd, he watched her move about the room. He had the feeling Stevie wanted to talk to him but for some reason was avoiding the confrontation.
“Stevie, what’s going on?” he finally muttered, halfway through his beer.
“Where’s your little fuckbuddy?” she asked.
He blinked, “Excuse me?”
“That girl that you’ve been bringing here to suck your cock whenever you can’t right anymore,” she stated.
“You do not even know what you’re talking about, Stevie,” Lindsey stated.
“Don’t deny it. She’s your rebound fuck. I get it.”
“Stop it. Right now.”
“Does she remind you of me? She’s got hair like–”
“ENOUGH. Lily is not like that at all. Yes, she is my girlfriend, but she is not my fuck buddy. We aren’t even having sex.”
“Like I believe that.”
He sighed and rubbed the back of his head, “Stevie, I know this is hard for you, but I am with Lily now. And it’s a good relationship. It’s not all about sex, like you seem to think that it is. We aren’t even having sex – not that it’s any of your business. I’m sorry that we’re not together, but we both know our relationship was dying when we joined this band. The way I see it is this: you can either relax and get over it or leave this band.”
“I’m not leaving this band. If anyone should do it, it’s you.”
Lindsey chuckled, “You seem to have forgotten that I’m the reason you’re even in this band.”
“Fuck you,” she seethed.
“You wish.”
Stevie rolled her eyes, “So where is your fuck buddy?”
Lindsey rolled his eyes and turned away, “I’m not going to do this. If you choose to stay in this band, then at least be civil. Lily is a good sweet girl. You should be nice to her. She’s going to be around a long time.”
“I’m not going to be friends with your fuck buddy.”
He sucked down the rest of his beer, “Pull back your claws, Stevie. Lily isn’t going anywhere.”
Tossing the empty bottle into the trash can, he hurried out of the lounge room and headed to find his guitar. He had a melody in his head that he needed to play. It might become nothing, but he did not believe that. Some of the best songs came out of the most intense emotions. Fighting with Stevie tended to bring up intense emotions.
As the door closed behind Lindsey, Stevie sighed, staring at it, and whispered, “I still love you.”
Rating: R [drugs, alcohol, language]
Summary: Lily comes to a realization about the studio. Lindsey and Stevie have a discussion.
With nearly a week of studio activity, Lily and Lindsey fell into a routine. They would head to the studio after dinner. Lindsey would leave Lily to drink and hang out with the band, supposedly working on music, while she shifted through months and months of paperwork from the band. He would surface a few times a night to spend some time with her, normally when he sobered some. They would return to the hotel at sunrise, breakfast, and then sleep until repeating their schedule once more.
For the most part, Lily spent the night trying to figure out what Mick had been attempting to do with the band and its finances for the past few months. She might not have been an expert on accounting or especially band management, but she knew she had a lot of work to do. A lot of it would require phone calls and perhaps actual visits with people – and that she could not do at one in the morning. The all night partying was going to have to end.
Deciding upon this as she stared down at yet another stack of papers to organize, Lily sighed, hoping that Lindsey would be stopping by the lounge soon. Stevie had breezed in at one point, ignoring Lily’s existence as had become normal. Chris had chatted and smoked two cigarettes before leaving upon John’s arrival. Even Mick had visited Lily. However, Lindsey had been a no-show that evening. It was beginning to increase her anxiety.
Stepping into the lounge, cigarette in hand, Chris’s eyes went to the petite woman. A bit soused, she could still see that Lily was agitated. She quickly poured herself a drink and sat next to the quiet blond woman.
“What’s the story, morning glory?” she asked in her husky voice.
Lily’s golden eyes went to the songstress, “I can’t keep up with these overnights.”
“I thought you worked overnight shifts at the diner?”
“Oh I did. It’s not the hours. It’s more of the fact that a lot of what I need to do for the band, I can’t do in the middle of the night. Creditors and such work… daylight hours,” she stated.
“Ah yes,” Chris nodded and sipped her drink. “Have you spoken with Lindsey about it?”
“No… I haven’t seen him tonight since we got here,” Lily responded.
“Perhaps if the two of you left the hotel…”
“I couldn’t stay here even if I wanted.”
“Why not?” she ground out her cigarette in the ashtray.
Her eyes flicked to the door, “Stevie.”
“Stevie will not bother you.”
“She will too.”
“She won’t. Besides you would be living different hours than her.”
Lily shook her head, “I’m not walking into the lion’s den. And the guys are sleeping here in the studio. I would never see Lindsey at all.”
She sighed, “It’s never easy.”
“Do you think maybe… you could find Lindsey and let him know I need to talk to him?”
“Sure, chickadee. I’ll see if I can find him.”
After a five-minute search, Chris returned to the lounge sans Lindsey. Fully expecting to have to explain to Lily that her boyfriend was MIA, she sighed in relief. She never liked giving bad news to anyone, especially someone as sweet as Lily. But her absence erased that issues, so Chris sat down at the table with a new drink and lit up another cigarette. Idly she reached for the nearest pile of papers and pulled it towards her. Flipping through them, she tried to figure out what the pile meant. It made no sense to her at all. Shrugging, she pushed it back in place and focused on finishing her drink.
The door to the lounge opened again and in stepped Lindsey, “Oh, hello, Chris.”
“Hi, Lindsey,” she glanced up.
“Where’s Lily?”
She shrugged, “I went looking for you and when I came back she was gone.”
“Oh. What did you need me for?”
“Lily wanted to talk to you,” she responded.
“About what?” he asked, pulling a beer out of the fridge.
“It really isn’t my place.”
His blue eyes looked at her over the edge of his bottle as he sucked on it, “She’s unhappy.”
“What makes you say that?”
“That’s how you women work. You tell each other your complaints and sometimes it makes it back to the one its against,” Lindsey declared.
“Lily isn’t like that.”
“Then where is she?”
The door opened, “There you are.”
Lindsey turned around, “Lily.”
Her eyes flicked to Chris, before connecting with Lindsey’s, “I was looking for you.”
“How come?”
“We need to talk.”
Lindsey looked over at Chris, “About what?”
“Excuse me,” Chris stated and got to her feet, leaving the lounge.
“I can’t keep doing this, Lindsey.”
“Doing what, baby?”
“Working all night.”
He instantly frowned, setting his beer down, “Are you tired? Do we need to go back to the hotel?”
“No. It’s not the sleeping, because I’m sleeping now more than I have in years,” she stated. “I can’t take care of the work that Mick needs me to do during the night.”
“What do you mean?”
“There are accounts that need to be settled and dealt with. Most of the world isn’t functioning during the hours we are, Lindsey,” she explained. “I need to be working banker hours.”
“So you’re not going to come to the studio with me anymore?”
Lily sighed, “Not every night.”
“But some of the time?”
She considered it for a moment, “Yes.”
“Okay,” he smiled slightly. “I can handle that.”
“Do you still want to stay here with the band?”
He rubbed the back of his neck, “It would make things easier for me.”
“But harder for me.”
His eyes widened, “We won’t stay here, Lily. I don’t want things to be harder on you if I can avoid it.”
“If you say so…”
“Lil, I know this is hard on you already. If I can alleviate even a fraction of that by remaining at the hotel, instead of staying here with the band, I will,” he declared, stepping over towards her and caressing her cheek. “You have to know how much you mean to me.”
“I do, but I don’t want you to put your band at risk because of me,” she declared.
He kissed her quickly, “We’ll make it work, Lil. I have no doubts.”
He had lied. Plain and simple. He had told her it would be fine if she stayed in the hotel half of the week to take care of whatever business needed to be taken care of. But it was all a lie. One that he did not truly face up to until he climbed into the car without her. After a week of going to the studio every evening after dinner with Lily, Lindsey did not like sitting in his car alone. He could still smell her scent in the car, but that was not enough.
He had half a mind to turn the car around and return to the hotel where she was. Instead, Lindsey dug a blunt out while at a stoplight and lit it. He would calm his separation anxiety so that he could face Stevie and the rest of the band with the air of being at ease. Stevie would likely see through it, unless she was already high herself upon his arrival. He hoped that would be the case.
Arriving at the studio, Lindsey remained in the car for a few minutes and smoked another blunt. Feeling about as calm as he imagined he could get, he climbed out of the car. He wandered into the lounge firs and pulled out a beer. As he cracked it open, Stevie stepped into the room – without her gaggle of girls. Finding that amazing and odd, he watched her move about the room. He had the feeling Stevie wanted to talk to him but for some reason was avoiding the confrontation.
“Stevie, what’s going on?” he finally muttered, halfway through his beer.
“Where’s your little fuckbuddy?” she asked.
He blinked, “Excuse me?”
“That girl that you’ve been bringing here to suck your cock whenever you can’t right anymore,” she stated.
“You do not even know what you’re talking about, Stevie,” Lindsey stated.
“Don’t deny it. She’s your rebound fuck. I get it.”
“Stop it. Right now.”
“Does she remind you of me? She’s got hair like–”
“ENOUGH. Lily is not like that at all. Yes, she is my girlfriend, but she is not my fuck buddy. We aren’t even having sex.”
“Like I believe that.”
He sighed and rubbed the back of his head, “Stevie, I know this is hard for you, but I am with Lily now. And it’s a good relationship. It’s not all about sex, like you seem to think that it is. We aren’t even having sex – not that it’s any of your business. I’m sorry that we’re not together, but we both know our relationship was dying when we joined this band. The way I see it is this: you can either relax and get over it or leave this band.”
“I’m not leaving this band. If anyone should do it, it’s you.”
Lindsey chuckled, “You seem to have forgotten that I’m the reason you’re even in this band.”
“Fuck you,” she seethed.
“You wish.”
Stevie rolled her eyes, “So where is your fuck buddy?”
Lindsey rolled his eyes and turned away, “I’m not going to do this. If you choose to stay in this band, then at least be civil. Lily is a good sweet girl. You should be nice to her. She’s going to be around a long time.”
“I’m not going to be friends with your fuck buddy.”
He sucked down the rest of his beer, “Pull back your claws, Stevie. Lily isn’t going anywhere.”
Tossing the empty bottle into the trash can, he hurried out of the lounge room and headed to find his guitar. He had a melody in his head that he needed to play. It might become nothing, but he did not believe that. Some of the best songs came out of the most intense emotions. Fighting with Stevie tended to bring up intense emotions.
As the door closed behind Lindsey, Stevie sighed, staring at it, and whispered, “I still love you.”
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