What She's Doing Now (Sequel to The Great Pretenders)

Love or Confusion

by Jimi Hendrix

My mind is so messed up

Goin' round and round

Must there be all the colours

Without names, without sound, baby?

My heart burns with feeling, but,

My mind, it's cold and reeling

Is this love baby,

or is it confusion?

Matt threw his iPad down on his bunk after trying unsuccessfully to FaceTime Val multiple times. She never answered which was odd. She had to know that he'd try to call after the show was done. Maybe she'd gone out with the girls, he thought. Something she seemed to be doing a lot these days. He remembered the days when they first started out, she would come on tour with them. It was almost as if she couldn't bear to leave his side. Lately though, she seemed distant and happy when the guys left on tour. He thought maybe because it was too difficult to have River on the road with them but it seemed River spent almost every Friday night with his grandparents. Something that made him feel immensely guilty. He tried not to think about it. It was already a stressful enough evening.

Walking into the common area of the bus, he could see that the rest of the guys had already started drinking. Matt wanted to join them but he couldn't shake the weird feeling that had settled in the pit of his stomach, something that unnerved him more than his inability to get in touch with his wife. Here in Anaheim, he ran into Lucy Bass' daughter. Damn Lucy. She'd broken his heart without even knowing. She left and never returned to Huntington the day after she'd uttered the words that killed him...she didn't love him. He loved her and wanted to tell her more than anything. But she'd never given him the chance. The thought crossed his mind for the first time that Lucy was somewhere in the city. Had she been so close to Huntington all this time? If so, she never bothered to make contact. Did she play soccer in college? What did she study? Had she married? Probably so if she had a teenaged daughter. The girl, Charlie, had said her father left. Who in their right mind would leave Lucy?

He debated going to find her as he watched the guys drinking and horsing around. They'd be on their way to San Jose tomorrow and then his chance would slip away.

He hadn't thought of Lucy in all the years that Avenged Sevenfold had taken off and he'd married Val. But here he was now considering leaving the damn tour bus to find a girl that had dropped him on his ass 16 years ago.

"Why the fuck aren't you drinking?" Brian asked, tossing a bottle of beer at him. Luckily Matt had great reflexes and caught it before it made contact with his chest.

"I was getting to it," Matt replied using the bottle opener Johnny handed to him to open the top.

"You're taking too fucking long." Zacky chimed in.

"Excuuse the shit out of me," Matt retorted "I had to call my wife. Something you guys forget to do."

Arin chuckled as the others began their protest.

"I'll have you know," Brian slurred " I did call Zoey already. "

"And she couldn't understand you because you were already drunk," Arin said.

"She speaks drunk Brian," Johnny assured the young drummer.

"Hell yeah she does," Brian said tipping his beer in a toast toward Arin. "Ten years of marriage does that to you. You'll learn, young one."

Arin just laughed "That true Matt?"

Matt shook his head "Don't ask me. I can't even get my wife on the line."

Zacky's eyebrows pulled together "She still not answering?"

"Nah," Matt said before pulling a large sip of his beer "I don't know where the fuck she is. Did any of the girls say anything about hanging out?"

Brian shook his head.

"Meaghan is at her parents for her sister's birthday," Zacky offered.

"Lacey is with Kim tonight," Johnny offered and Arin nodded "They were headed to the movies."

"Did you try calling Michelle?" Brian slurred a bit.

"No," Matt admitted. "I'm sure she'll call me later." Or tomorrow as was her current custom.

"Well then let's get this party started," Brian said grabbing another beer from the cooler.

Matt settled himself into the couch as Johnny turned the music louder.

"So what's eating you?" Zacky asked tossing himself down next to Matt.

Matt looked at his friend. "You remember those girls we saw tonight?"

Zacky shook his head "I saw a lot of girls tonight." he admitted.

Matt chuckled "The young ones, in the meet and greet."

Zacky pursed his lips and mentally ran through the evening memories "Nope. Can't remember. What about them though? You thinking bout robbing the cradle?"

"Nah, man...remember Lucy?" Matt asked quietly.

Zacky's green eyes widened. Of course he remembered. He was one of the only other people that knew Matt had it bad for her. "Lucy Bass?"

"Yeah," Matt nodded "One of those girls was her kid."

Zacky sat up, more attentive "No shit?"

"No shit," Matt nodded.

"So what? You still don't have a thing for her...do you?"

Matt thought about it, maybe he did. "No, but I want to know...you know...why she just left. Was it because of me? Did I do something?"

He looked at me sideways "You never tried to find out? Find her?"

"You know I didn't," Matt confessed.

Zacky sat back against the couch "Then this could be your only chance to find out. If you really want to know, I mean."

"You don't think it's fucked up? Going to look for her?" Matt asked.

"A little," Zacky admitted "but if you gotta know, then you gotta know."

"Where do I even begin?" Matt asked.

"Grab your iPad," Zacky replied "I'll make a call."

Matt stood confused looking Zack "Who are you calling?"

Zacky looked at him as if it was obvious "I'm calling Zoey."

Matt was stunned. Has Zoey known all this time where Lucy was and never told him?

He guessed he was going to find out.