Cora sighed as she glanced at her watch. 10:30 am - it would be at least another three hours before they arrived in Portland, longer if the traffic caused by construction didn't let up. There were more honking horns. Cora rubbed her forehead lightly and looked back down at her book. The words of Stephen King blurred together, then cleared into a story which Cora couldn't concentrate on.
She threw the book down on the empty seat next to her. It was possible she could sleep, but probably not. Every time she closed her eyes she saw Nick's head whip back and the hurt look on his face. Normally she didn't hit guys. It went against her better judgement to whack someone who would never in a million hit her.
‘Of course, I don't know for sure that he would never hit me,' Cora thought to herself. ‘Yes, yes I do know he would never hit me - or he would have whacked me back - oh shit . . .'
"Hey husband beater!" Lara laughed, as she plopped down beside her friend. She sat on the Stephen King book. "Owe!" Lara complained. She picked up the book and opened to the back cover. There was a picture of Stephen looking sideways. "Loser!" Lara criticized with her mouth wide open. She started to do a small Spice Girls dance toward the picture. "I said, uh, Who-o-o-o do you think you are? I said, uh, who-o-o-o, some kinda superstar! You have-" She paused when she saw Cora giving her a hateful stare. Lara bit her lip. "Uh oh!"
"You're not funny," Cora told her with a deadpan expression. "Not even remotely."
Lara's lower lip began to tremble. She pretended to glance around anxiously and unsure. Then she burst into fake tears. "Cora! You don't love me anymore! You and Alison and Victoria all hate me! I knew this day would come! Oh no-o-o-o-o-o!" She made huge fake sobs into Cora's shoulder.
Cora brushed Lara's head off. "Not that I have time for you - but why are they mad?"
Lara pulled back. "Vic's mad cause I questioned her judgement, Al's mad cause I snapped at her and you're mad cause I'm annoying you . . ."
"Questioned Vic's judgement?" Cora's eyebrow creased. "About what?"
"I don't know - nothing!" Lara shrugged quickly. "Gotta go!" Lara stood quickly and hurried back to her seat.
"I can't believe she hit you!" Howie commented, examining Nick's eye. "She really gave you a whack, didn't she?"
"Nick got beat up by a girl!" Brian teased.
"Quiet!" Nick snapped. "This is all your fault!"
Brian gaped at him, from his seat. The boys had formed a kind of semi-circle in the back of the bus and were talking about what had happened between them and their fine, female friends. "My fault! How is this my fault?"
"The cake was your idea!" Nick rolled his eyes.
"Was not!"
"Was so!"
"Was not!"
"Was so!"
"Was n-"
"Guys! Shut up! You're all responsible for being idiots!" Kevin told Brian, Nick and A.J. harshly. "And you better work it out, too. You know this is one of the reasons for the ‘no- relationships' suggestion!"
Brian crinkled his nose. "You mean they made that rule in case band members saw their opening act near naked and then sent them a funny cake saying they were sorry and then the girls didn't believe them and got really pissed? They made up the rule for that?" His friends glared at him.
"How could you guys do something so dumb, anyway?" Howie laughed. "I just - it was so - uh - stupid!" He paused and added more seriously, "And honestly guys, it was pretty mean too . . ."
"Yeah, while all of you losers are talking about this, I'm going to chat with Alison," A.J. informed his friends.
"Hey, A.J.," Kevin's voice stopped him. "You know there is the matter of us having a semi-large and very live gig tonight . . ."
A.J. kept walking and brushed Kev's comment off with a wave of his hand. "Whatever."
"I'm really, really sorry," A.J. told Alison honestly. "It was dumb and it was inconsiderate and it was stupid. We were just trying to break the ice on a kind of uncomfortable situation - we thought you would find it funny. I feel really badly that we insulted you guys . . . I don't want this situation to come between is having a . . . a meaningful relationship . . ." A.J. studied Alison's face, trying to decide how angry she was. Her expression was blank. "Do you forgive me?" He added finally.
Alison considered this for a moment. It was kind of fun to make him sweat. Then a smile lit up her face. "Ah, sure - why not? I mean, you are kinda cute!"
A.J. gave Alison an overly exaggerated ‘Oh you silly - you shouldn't have!' face and pretended to blush. He fanned himself with his hand. "Oh you!" He smiled.
Alison burst out laughing and, in her joy, gave A.J. a small hug.
"Lara?" Brian asked cautiously. She glanced up at him.
"Oh it's you," She said flatly. "I don't want to talk to you. Go away."
"Um, I really want to talk to you. It won't take too long," Brian promised.
Lara gave him a hesitant glance. "Okay, you've got two minutes," She told him.
Brian sighed in relief and sunk into the seat next to her. "Great! Okay, here it goes. I'm sorry we acted like idiots and we made things worse. I like you a lot and I feel badly that I hurt you, so can you ever find it in your heart to forgive a fool like me?"
Lara's face was completely blank - much like Alison's had been. Then she burst into to tears. "That's - that's -that's -" She started to sob. Brian felt a moment of panic sweep over him.
"Oh my God! Lara, I'm so sorry - please - please don't cry!" He pleaded with her.
Lara continued to sob. She threw her arms around Brian's neck. "Of course I forgive you!" She cried. "That's the sweetest thing anyone's ever said to me!"
Brian gave a sigh of relief and pulled Lara close. He glanced at her pretty face. "You're a mind trip, you know that?"
Lara bit her lip and began to giggle - a sound which drove her friends nuts. Brian thought it was incredibly endearing.
Grace and Andrew were sitting together chatting. They talked about what had happened the night before, their lives back home, how they felt the tour was going and would be going and, of course, about their love lives.
"So, since Howie had nothing to with the, little cake thing - Are you mad at him?" Andrew inquired.
Grace shook her head. "No, of course not! That wouldn't be fair. Howie's a nice guy - at least - he seems that way."
Andrew nodded. "I've been working with him for a while. I haven't really talked with him much, but he seems like a really good guy - I mean - from my point of view, anyway."
"Do you think - I mean - would you - if you were me - would you - uh- consider-," Grace stumbled over her words.
"Yes, but I think you should be careful," Andrew interrupted, knowing exactly what she was trying to say. "With famous people, relationships get more complicated and it's not usually them who end up crying. But . . . there are always exceptions. These guys maybe one of them - at least - Howie."
"What do you mean?" Grace's eyebrows crinkled. ‘What could be wrong with the other guys?' She wondered to herself.
"I don't know," Andrew shrugged. "I've just heard rumors."
Grace nodded. Her new friend seemed a bit uncomfortable with the subject, so she didn't push him any further.
Victoria glanced out the window, then back down at the sheet music she was working on. Her new Ralph Lauren reading glasses hung around her neck, being their useless selves. She ran her fingers through her wavy blond hair and began to think about Kevin and what had happened last night . . .
"Hey girl!"
Her thoughts were interrupted by Cora's intrusive voice. "What's up?"
Victoria gave her friend a blank glance. "Nothing, Why?"
Cora sat down next to her. "Just wondered - Lar said that you're pissed at her."
Victoria shook her head. "Nah - she was just being her usual annoying self and I just wasn't in the mood - you know?"
Cora nodded. "Oh totally! I just, you know wondered - she said she questioned your judgement."
Victoria nodded. "Yeah, sort of, but you know? It doesn't even matter - I forget exactly what it was about . . ."
"So you've mellowed?"
Victoria nodded again. "Oh, for sure," She paused. "Um, I don't mean to tell you to get lost, but I kind of need to work on this." Victoria gave her friend a smile.
Cora dismissed her with a wave of her hand. "I'm gone! See ya tonight Vic!"
With that, she walked back to her own seat, leaving Victoria to wonder how she and Kevin were going to tell them.
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