One Step Above Guest List

Things Unspoken

Melvin continued. "Everyone was upstairs in a large L-shaped dressing room waiting for the show to start. The UpSideDown went on first, and everyone started to head down to the stage to watch; Almost everyone. My manager called me, and I answered. I couldn't hear well, so I walked to the L part of the room, which was quieter. After I hung up, I walked back into the main part of the dressing room and saw Logan lock the door. My heart sank. I felt the little hairs on the back of my neck stand up, and I wanted to run, but I didn't want him to see me panicking, and I didn't have anywhere to go. I started for the door and told him I had to watch my band, but he grabbed my hand when I reached for the doorknob. He moved me away from the door and pushed me back toward the wall. He told me that he saw me looking at him at the in-store event and that I was flirting with him when he introduced himself. He was delusional. Just because a female is nice to you doesn't mean she wants to hook up.

 I told him I wanted to go downstairs and meet Lidia. He said, "Come on, it's cool just stay here for a while." That's when I said no. I said, "No, I want to go downstairs." The more I said no, the harder his grip was on my hand and hip. He pushed me until my back was against the wall and started to unbuckle my belt as he continued to hold one of my hands. I said no again, using the other hand to try and push him away. This made him angry. He dropped my hand, grabbed and squeezed my neck, and said, "NO ONE SAYS NO TO ME." He pushed his body against mine, and I could feel tears spilling from my eyes and onto my cheeks. I felt helpless as I tried to get him off of me. He didn't budge. I can't tell you how scared I was. The music was so loud at that point no one would hear me yell. If they did, they would think it was someone in the crowd. I thought it was over. I thought, "he's going to rape me, and I can't stop him."

A moment later, I heard someone trying to open the door. They banged on the door and shouted Logan's name. I couldn't tell who it was, but Logan let me go and unlocked the door. Dillon stepped inside and saw my tear-stained face. He grabbed Logan by the shirt and said, "Dude, you better get downstairs you're going on soon." Dillion never broke eye contact with me. When Logan left the room, Dillion walked toward me. "Did he hurt you?!" He yelled over the music. I shook my head no because I knew he couldn't hear me. Plus, the shock and the pressure on my neck had made me hoarse. I was shaking so badly I could barely speak. 

He took my hand and led me down to the side of the stage, where I found Lidia bopping around to her favorite TheUpSideDown song. Dillion reluctantly let go of me and joined his bandmates. I nodded and mouthed thank you. Lidia finally saw my face and asked what was wrong. I made her go outside with me and told her the story. She responded, "Oh, that didn't happen. I think you took it the wrong way. Plus, he's married." I was shocked that my good friend, I thought she was a good friend, didn't believe me, but back then, there wasn't much of a me-too movement, especially in the music industry. Harassment was a part of the job. There were more consequences for speaking up about the act than the act itself. Although, I guess it's still the same today in most cases. 

I want to tell you that was the first and last time something like that happened, but it wasn't. Although, I got better at trusting my instincts. Never forget to trust your gut, Sadie."

Sadie nodded. "Did you ever tell anyone else?"

"No," Melvin said. "I didn't think anyone would believe me, that it was my fault, or that I could ruin the careers of everyone in the band if I reported him. I often feel guilty that maybe it happened to someone else and they wouldn't have someone like Dillon to save them." Melvin looked out the window forcing the thought from her head. 

Sadie let Melvin have a moment and said, "Can you keep going?" 

Melvin shook her head yes and continued. "When A2A went out on the stage, Logan was still angry. He ran to center stage and screamed into the microphone, "Don't you hate bitches that are just a tease? They mess with your head, man. Fuck them!!!" Everyone in the audience cheered without knowing what had just occurred. They only reaffirmed to him that he was justified in his actions. Unfortunately, I still had to see him after that at other shows, but I avoided him and was always in the company of others. I knew eventually, I would become just another faceless person to him, but I never took that chance.

After the show, I stopped Dillon before he got back onto his bus to say thank you again. He grabbed my hand and wrote his number on my palm with a sharpie. "Call me if you want to talk," he said. I walked back to the venue to collect the UpSideDown. As I waited for them to pack their gear, I looked at my palm and wondered how many girls would envy me for having Dillion Dillinger's phone number. I put the number into my phone, but it would be ages before I would call it.

"Why?" Sadie asked.

"I didn't want him to think of me as another starlet," said Melvin. "I didn't want to seem like an eager showgirl wanting to be friends because he's a rock star. It just didn't feel right." Melvin said. "Don't worry" she said, seeing the disappointment on Sophie's face. "The time will come."

"I started walking back with TheUpsideDown to their bus and called the reporter who was meeting us at a local bar to let her know they were ready for their interview. It was already an eventful night, and I hoped it would have a peaceful ending. Brent, the drummer of TheUpsideDown thought he was being funny and yelled something to a passing showgoer. The guy, about 6' and 250 lbs, found whatever he said insulting and ran straight for 5'4" and 100lb Brent. Brent screamed like a toddler and started running down the street, the guy chasing after him. Brent made a circle, ran back to the rest of us, and hid behind his manager John (one of the sweetest but most intimidating people I know). The guy immediately fled, and John picked Brent up and carried him like a baby back to the bus. I then coordinated with the reporter and asked them to come to TheUpsideDown's bus for the interview instead. Melvin laughed, and her gaze wandered over Sadie's shoulder as if she had relived the moment.