Something In Between: Sequel to On The Edge of Tomorrow

Chapter 45

It didn't feel like it at the time, but Tim's wedding was a last hurrah in many ways. We stayed in near-daily communication, but visits were few and far between. Not even milestones could pull us together.

"She said yes," Billy announced a few weeks after Tim's wedding.

"Of course," I said, unfazed by the announcement.

"We're getting hitching in three weeks," Billy continued, as though that was a common amount of time between getting engaged and getting married.

"What?" This time I was shocked.

"We want to lock it in before I go on tour and she heads to Europe for work," he explained.

"Three weeks! Did you knock her up?"

"Classy, Lil. No, she's not knocked up; we just want to get it done. You can make it, right?"

"Yeah, of course," I absently spoke as I tapped through my phone. "Wait, three weeks from today? Like on a Thursday?"

"No, the Saturday after," Billy corrected.

"Oh, no," I groaned.

"What?"

"That's Sam's cousin's wedding. We RSVP'ed like three months ago, as people normally do for a wedding," I chided.

"Fuck," slipped past Billy's lips, ushering in a heavy silence.

"I can ask Sam..." I began.

"No, this is on me, Lil. You made a commitment. We'll see each other soon," Billy sighed.

But Billy was wrong. I was next a couple of months later when the stress of planning a traditional wedding, Sam and I broke.

"I'm getting married this Friday," I announced unceremoniously on a group call with Billy and Tim.

"What is wrong with you two?" Tim groaned.

"Lil, we're literally in Germany. We can't get back by Friday," Billy added. "Did he knock you up?"

"I deserve that," I acknowledged my response to Billy's shotgun wedding. "The whole wedding thing was just too much, and the thought of a bunch of people I barely know watching me walk in heels makes me want to vomit. We're just going to have our parents with us and get married at city hall."

"You two don't know how to have a good time," Tim complained.

"I'm sure we'll see each other soon, and we can celebrate both marriages," I offered.

But I also was wrong. Days slipped to weeks, then to months, and suddenly years passed us. Billy and I were removed enough from each other's day-to-day lives that we could be honest, sometimes painfully so. Still, Billy led an amazing life. He navigated an onslaught of notoriety for his music and thrived under pressure. He had a conviction to the complexity of the work but forged a simplicity to the craft. He was devoted to tangible instruments, fulfilling a need to feel the noise. But with more success came more fame, and he was not good at people. His skin was too thin, and veins ran too close to the surface for any protection. He knew not everyone would like his work, but the attacks on his person, or worse, his family and friends, took a heavy toll. Sarah was right for Billy. By his side, she helped carry that burden with a grace that I envied. He would always praise her handling of fans. She was patient and kind even when people were intruding.

I was walking into a different world when I finally made my next visit to Duluth.

"He's perfect," I cooed as Tim gently placed his three-day-old son in my arms.

"James, after James Brown," Tim offered.

"Tim, he's named after your father," Tess corrected.

"Yeah, him too," Tim acknowledged.