He was zipping up the bag when the Lockley's door was locked. Since the band was packing up the gear, Marcus called the building's manager, asking if the stuff could be stored somewhere in the building.
There was a lot of things: guitars, drums, miles and miles of cables. And since Hewitt would be playing 8 straight weeks only in the pub, there was no reason to load and unload the whole equipment in the van every Saturday night.
Marcus finished the call and gave Joseph two thumbs up.
"Great news. We have a place," he told the guys, throwing the cable he was holding into the bag.
"Fucking awesome," Howie sat down on the stage and unzipped his jacket. "I always find this annoying," he motioned toward the mess on the floor.
"Who doesn't, but cmon man, this is our job."
"Yeah, a job that doesn't pay us anything." Darius hissed.
That did it.
Joseph knew the band would actually back him up whenever he came out with a friend-related gig offer. They earned enough money with the album sales and touring all over the country. Six-figure payments while they barely did anything and everyone enjoyed their time on the stage, performing, giving a show.
"I asked you guys last year if you'd back me up on this and you said yes," Joseph retaliated. "This is Marcus, we are talking about. My friend, my oldest friend. I never ask money from him. And for the love of God, you are always treated like kings here."
"He's right," Howie said. "We all agreed to do this."
Darius opened his mouth to say something but instantly decided not to. He knew that he wouldn't have a say in this.
Joseph left the guys to finish up cleaning and packing and retrieved to the bar. He sat on the stool she had been and waited for Marcus to come out from the backroom. A picture flashed before his eyes- a girl with brown hair with an attitude. Somehow he felt that he had seen her somewhere. He was almost certain of it. But he shook off the thoughts when Marcus slammed the door behind him and dragged a dirty old wipe across the bar.
"A great night."
"Besides the blond bitch, it was fantastic." Joseph moved his hands away, letting his friend finish up cleaning.
Marcus stacked the clean beer glasses on the towels, placed the half empty bottles of alcohol back to their places and emptied out the trash can behind the bar.
"I am finished, closing up. Take the gear to the basement out back and lock it. Here's the key." Marcus said and slid the small key to Joseph.
"Thanks."
***
Leila couldn't find her apartment's keys from nowhere. She went through the pockets of her coat several times until she felt something cold between the seams of the left hem. There was a little hole in her left pocket and when the key had slipped through it, her heart missed several beats.
If ever she'd lose it, she didn't have a spear one. And that would mean she'd be locked out in the cold with the fear of getting caught.
She slipped the key in the lock and opened it. With her heart racing and hands shaking, she threw the door closed, run up to the bathroom, took off her dress and shoved it into the washer with a Tide pod.
She needed the dress to be clean and dry as soon as possible. He kept an eye on all of her things, obsessively making sure that she hadn't gone anywhere.
She sunk against the bathroom wall, watching the laundry twirl in the machine. It had been a great night.
She knew who he was before she had seen him sing now on the stage.
His voice was as soft and strong she had imagined and seeing him live gave no doubt that he looked more handsome than he looked on the pictures.
Something kept bugging her though. She had slipped in the bar, tried to have a good time and relax, yet while she admired him from afar, she got the feeling that he looked straight at her the whole night.
Was she feeling so lost in the moment that she imagined him giving her a pleasant look of some kind?
Nah, she thought to herself.
Joseph Hewitt was nowhere close to a normal guy standards. He was a famous singer, touring the country, selling tons of albums and having his eyes on the girls in front of his stage, feeling stupid horny while women flashed their boobs at him.
Leila pushed herself up, grabbed the towel off the rack and cleaned her face and body from the makeup. She brushed her teeth and showered quickly before taking the dress from the washing machine.
In her bedroom, two pairs of shoes were beside her bed. She hung the dress to dry on the radiator and placed her things back into the closet, neatly so Mark wouldn't notice.
When she was laying in her bed and turning off the lights, she remembered Joseph singing the lines from his song.
"Hey Beautiful. How did you find me? Did I woke you up too early?"
She smiled, biting down on her lip.
She'd go back to the bar next week, just wishing Mark would leave again for the weekend. After a long time, Leila had a smile on her lips at the end of the night.
