Adrenaline

28 | late night

The promotional tour commences with the announcement of Escape Velocity, official name omitted.

        At the moment, we're making appearances around LA at radio stations to play our two singles from the album, The L and Overnight Rush, both of which have been well-received.

        All of the hustle distracts from everything else going on. The pictures are losing traction, but it doesn't mean it's completely gone away. I still get a large handful of comments under every picture I post to Instagram about Bruno or Brendon.

        Regarding the latter, our friendship grows with more and more attention as photos of us in New York have surfaced as well. They're not as "scandalous" as the photos with Bruno, but there's enough intrigue to spark conversation. Those comments are easier to handle, though.

        I've come to the point of appreciating even the bare minimum of human decency.

        There's also the matter of my mother. All roads eventually lead back home, and she's attached as concretely as one can be to the idea of home.

        It's been radio silence on both of our ends, but Marty's checks are still getting cashed so I'm not sure what to make of it or how to feel.

        I stay at Brendon's house the night after my explosion, and the rest of the remaining nights Brendon is in Los Angeles. By the time he leaves, she's already gone after having Rami rebook her flight for the next day. He texts me on the way to the airport to let me know but I allow those to go unanswered. Thankfully, Rami is understanding, though he does send Jun over to get after a couple of days.

        Lauren and I stand in front of the mirror, readjusting our outfits.

        "I would get my period an hour before," I groan. I turn to the side and rub my hand over my bloated belly. Curse being a person who menstruates. "Do you think I have time to rip out my uterus before the show starts?"

        Pulling her braids over to one side, Lauren shoots me a look. "Might stain your suit. And that's a pretty suit."

        Too bad I have to return it to the stylist tomorrow. "I'm not afraid to go nude in front of yall."

        "I don't think we have enough towels to clean that up," Jun adds from the couch. "And the process might actually be more painful than the cramps."

        "I'm not sure it will be."

        Someone knocks at the door and we all turn to catch Andy, the talk show host, peeking around the corner. "Hey, everyone! Just want to check and make sure you're all doing okay."

        "We're all excited," Jenny chimes in with her car salesman voice, MARS being the shiny new car she's introducing. "First live performance of the new single and the first time here."

        "We're honored to have you here." He glances down at his watch. "Show starts in a few minutes so I gotta go but I'll catch you all on stage, alright? Let one of our production assistants know if you need anything."

        Jenny nods. "Will do. Thank you."

        I take a final sip of my hot tea and place the empty ceramic mug down on the table. An empty container of watermelon sits inside the trash can from where I tossed it earlier.

        "Last chance to perform a spontaneous hysterectomy."

        Jenny taps her phone. "They want to do a final check of the soundstage, make sure it's good for you guys to go on later. I need at least two volunteers or I'm calling out names."