Disharmony

Strum

                  

She was panting heavily as she stepped off the elevator into the hotel's penthouse suite. As it was the morning of the opening show of her tour, she'd managed to talk herself into going for a jog. Under normal circumstances, she hated most forms of exercise, but being on tour required her to be in shape.

There was no way to maintain the stamina needed for three hour shows which included a fair amount of dancing and running around without any cardio at all. So she settled for running, as she found it the most relaxing.

Pulling her headphones from her ears, she wrapped them around her music player and tossed it on the nearest couch, only to have a heart attack when the couch responded.

"Damn, will you watch where you throw things?"

She rolled her eyes at the familiar voice, pressing her palm against her chest and breathing deeply to slow her heart rate.

"Don't you have your own room?" she spat out, dragging down the zipper of her hoodie and draping it over her arm.

Xavier smiled sweetly as he sat up and shook his head. "But you're here."

Once again, she rolled her eyes. "You're legitimately going to scare me to death one day."

"I'll try my best not to," he said earnestly, sitting up and crossing his long legs beneath him. "After all, what would the world be without Kasia Stevens?"

"Damn right," she muttered, walking towards the bedroom, kicking the door closed behind her and tossing her hoodie on the bed.

She plugged the drain in the bathtub and turned on the water, letting the tub fill as she stripped off her workout clothes. A long, hot bath was exactly what she needed to be at least somewhat relaxed for the rest of the day.

Concert days never had interviews. Henry didn't want her to be overly stressed, and she much appreciated him keeping away the reporters for one day. Interviews afterwards were fine, but it was nice to have only a few things to worry about beforehand.

Once the water was sufficiently warmed, she stuck in one toe before sinking in her entire foot and climbing into the tub, sighing contently as she leaned back against the edge and shut her eyes. The heated liquid soothed her muscles, relaxing her entirely, if only for a few minutes.

She had precisely twenty-three minutes of solitude before her lunch arrived and she was forced into her strict pre-show regimen. It consisted of a large meal before she headed to the venue for a final soundcheck and rehearsal. Next, she would go to hair and makeup, which would take approximately two hours, and then, a light meal, final vocal warmups and checking to make sure all the mechanics of the stage we working before Xavier began his set.

For the rest of the day, she'd have to be extremely focused, so she let her mind become blank as she soaked in the warm water.

Unfortunately, the serenity only lasted what felt like two minutes before she heard her name being called through the bedroom door.

"Kasia, are you done yet?" Xavier shouted.

She rolled her eyes and groaned. "What's wrong?"

"I'm bored," he called out, as though that was a legitimate reason to disturb her few moments of peace for the day.

Sighing heavily, she lifted herself from the still warm water and climbed out of the tub, pressing her feet to the cool tiled floor and grabbing a nearby towel. She dried herself off quickly, rummaging through the closet for a loose pair of athletic shorts and an oversized t-shirt. She tossed them on after she pulled on clean underwear and pulled her hair out of its messy ponytail to let it air dry a little.  With great frustration, she pushed open the door to the bedroom.