hang out in your heart

if i can't make it

Stevie's hands wrap tightly around Lindsey's neck, his hands clutching desperately at her back. There's not even half an inch of space between them, their bodies pressed together as they move as one. Lindsey can't help but run his hands through her hair, the soft strands flowing through his fingers like a waterfall. Stevie giggles in his ear delightedly as his hands travel over the length of her back, pulling her even closer to him. In moments like this, Lindsey wishes he could never let her go.

The cheers rise in volume around them as Lindsey remembers where he is, Madison Square Garden materializing around them as if through a haze. Lindsey places both hands on her waist, pushing her gently away from him as he jumps around the stage, the Tusk music coming to a crescendo behind him.

This little routine that they've added to the end of the song had started out silly, playacting of a fight transitioning into a slow dance, spurned lovers reuniting. It's turned into his respite in the middle of their shows, a moment where he and Stevie can connect and allow themselves several moments of blessed contact in the midst of the chaos. And in the context of the past week, where he and Stevie had had so little interaction offstage, it's been a haven, the one place he can ostensibly get away with touching Stevie, even if it's a mere shadow of what he really wants to do with her.

Kristen has been on tour with them for the last week, and it's been as suffocating as he'd feared it might. She's possibly even more clingy than usual, never leaving his side unless he's physically onstage. She's taken to standing on the side of the stage, greeting him the second he's finished with a show. He's barely had a moment to even speak to Stevie, let alone sneak her a kiss or a whispered "I love you." So they dance. He enjoys every silly second of it.

True to form, after they finish their bows to uproarious applause and turn to head off the stage, he sees Kristen heading straight toward him, her eyes predatory. She grasps his arm tightly in hers, handing him a bottle of water. "I think we need to have a talk, Lindsey." She looks directly into his eyes, her own turned into blazes of fury. While it's not totally unusual for her to be cranky after seeing his antics with Stevie, he thinks maybe they took it a little far with the Tusk dance tonight. He isn't going to apologize, though. They've had this fight multiple times before, and he doesn't care to keep defending himself.

He plays dumb. "Kit, what could we possibly need to talk about the second I get offstage? I have to pee, I'm exhausted, I just-"

"I think you know what we need to talk about. God, could you make it any more obvious?"

Stevie strides past, chatting with Mick as she determinedly ignores the bickering couple next to her, and Lindsey makes a split-second decision. He breaks Kristen's vice-like grip on his arm as he attempts to get Stevie's attention, already forgetting the tone with which his wife had been addressing him. "Hey, Stevie? Can I talk to you for a second?"

He hears his wife scoff next to him, commenting under her breath. "Oh, so you have energy to talk to her after the show..."

He ignores her, calling Stevie's name again. She looks over her shoulder at him, her face a warning. "Lindsey, I don't think now's really the time to-"

Lindsey interrupts her, desperate. "You know, I just feel like your timing was a little off in the Second Hand News verses. I know it can be hard to keep up with the faster tempo we've got going lately, but I really think you should work on it."

Her whole demeanor changes, her face becoming blank for half a second before her eyes turn furious. "You never miss a chance to criticize me, do you? Fuck you. My timing has been perfect, you're the one who's off."

Lindsey snorts, his voice derisive. "Me?? You really think, logically, I'm the one having trouble keeping up?" Kristen looks back and forth between them, all annoyance forgotten as she's barely able to hold back her delight at the return of the contempt between her husband and his ex. "I can't believe you're fighting me on this, Stevie. But of course you are, why wouldn't you? If I'm the one saying it to you, it's obviously wrong."