From the Rock Bottom of my Heart (Joel Hokka)

1.

Suitcase...check. Camera equipment...check. Crazy, probably unrequited feelings for one of the guys I'll be trapped on a bus with for the next six weeks...check.
I sigh and turn to check my appearance in the mirror, admonishing myself for the 86th time that I let myself fall for Joel bloody Hokka! We've been friends for years, but about four months ago, after what felt like a lifetime of flirting and one too many glasses of wine, we started sleeping together. It was great, but with their tour coming up and me booked as a photographer on said tour, we decided it was best to go back to just being friends. In theory, this was great as it saved on complications and as far as the other Blind Channel boys were aware, we'd never been anything other than things. In practice however, it was proving to be difficult, for me at least to pretend everything was 'normal.
The beginnings of another mental downspiral about my situation was thankfully interrupted by a knock at the front door. I sigh again and head out of my bedroom, pulling open my front door, I can't help but smile at Tommi, who is wearing a sequin covered cowboy hat and the dumbest grin I've ever seen.
   "America, baby!" He exclaims, opening his arms to give me one of his trademark bear hugs. "Are you excited?".
   "Not if you're gonna wear that hat the whole time!" I laugh, returning his hug. Tommi was the first of the Blind Channel boys I'd met, he'd seen some of my photos of a Lost Society show on social media, borderline stalked me and we'd struck up a firm friendship. He'd soon introduced me to the rest of the band, we all immediately got on amazingly well and before long I'd been booked by their management to photograph their shows, this would be my fourth tour with them.
   "You should see Joel's hat." Tommi replies, my stomach turning like a washing machine at the mere mention of his name. "Right, shall we get this show on the road? It's not every day a band starts their first headline tour of the USA!".
Smiling at his obvious excitement, I grab my huge bag of camera equipment and dump it unceremoniously into his outstretched hands.
   "Let's do this!" I say, trying to sound like my excitement matches his, wheeling my stuffed suitcase out of the door.