The three of us walked into the house and found Jordan, Garrett, and Mitch sitting in the living room playing video games.
Finding them like this, you would think nothing was wrong. A case of beer sat opened on the coffee table. Jordan and Garrett were cussing each other out as they tried to shoot each other while playing some combat role-playing game. Mitch was strumming one of Garrett’s acoustic guitars and none of them seemed overly concerned that their music career was set to implode.
But there was one major change in this familiar scenario. Cole was noticeably absent. Typically he would be right there with his best friends, shouting inappropriate commentary or getting wasted.
The void I felt by his absence was intense.
Garrett looked up when we entered and lifted a hand in greeting and then promptly let loose a string of curses when Jordan shot his character on the screen.
Maysie dropped her purse on the pool table in the corner and went to sit in Jordan’s lap.
“Hey ladies. Guess you weren’t expecting to see us around so soon,” Jordan said wryly, kissing the side of his fiancée’s neck.
I guess he was going to acknowledge the giant elephant in the room before it had a chance to trample us.
Gracie seemed oddly uncomfortable and I couldn’t help but notice the way she and Mitch purposefully didn’t look at each other. There was something definitely going on between the two and when I had a chance I would be finding out.
Gracie sat down on the Lazy Boy across the room and I made myself comfortable on the couch beside Garrett.
“Yeah, I was pretty stunned to find Maysie on our doorstep at ten-thirty on a Sunday morning. My first thought was she had wised up and left your sorry ass,” I teased, trying to lessen the tension.
“Not a chance in hell,” Jordan growled, kissing Maysie long and hard on the lips.
“Ugh, see what you’ve started, Viv!” Garrett complained, tossing the game controller on the coffee table and handing me a beer. I took it with a “Thanks” and gave him a pointed look.
“As if you and Riley are any different,” I challenged.
“I wish Ri would let me put my tongue down her throat in public!” Garrett joked, smacking Jordan on the back of the head, interrupting him as he devoured Maysie’s face.
“Maysie told us what happened,” Gracie said, her eyes flitting over to Mitch who was looking stanchly at the guitar in his lap.
“Yeah. We’re in deep shit right now. Even more if the label decides to not release our album,” Jordan muttered, releasing Maysie who slithered off his lap.
“So if Pirate Records decides not to release your record, what will happen then?” I asked.
“We have no f**king clue. Except that the music on that album will never be heard by anyone. Ever,” Mitch said bitterly.
“It’s bullshit,” Jordan said sharply.
“So what’s the next step then?” Gracie asked, accepting a bottle of iced tea that Garrett had thoughtfully offered her with a smile.
“We just have to wait and see what the label says next week. We’re flying up to New York next Tuesday. Until then we’re supposed to ‘sort our shit out,’” Garrett mimicked, obviously unhappy with the idea.
“And how exactly are you planning to sort your shit out?” I asked, noticing that throughout this entire conversation, not a single one of them had mentioned Cole.
Jordan shrugged. “We’ve got a lot to talk about. Things we have to work through. I’m not really sure where we’ll end up at the end of all this.” He said it lightly but I could tell he was worried. Maysie rubbed his back, leaning her head on his shoulder.
“Do some of the things you need to work through include Cole?” I asked bluntly. Sitting there in Garrett’s living room without one of the main players felt strange and more than a little wrong.
I was frustrated on his behalf. Hurt and secondary betrayal stung my veins. Not that he deserved any consideration on my part, but I couldn’t help it.
Here were his best friends, his bandmates, and they existed in their group as if he were already gone.
Garrett gave me a strange look. I couldn’t quite decipher his expression. Garrett was a hard guy to read. He hid his emotions behind a blasé demeanor. Until Riley came into the picture, I hadn’t been entirely sure he was capable of feelings it all. He had spent most of his time numbing them with weed and booze.
“Cole is a big part of the problem, yeah,” Garrett said after a beat.
“Really? Why is that?” Gracie gave me a look that clearly said I needed to shut up. It really wasn’t any of my business and the glance Mitch and Jordan threw my way said as much.
But I wanted to know. I wanted to hear from them what exactly the problem was.
Garrett popped the cap off his beer and tossed it into the now empty case on the table. “Let’s just say some people forget too quickly where they came from.”
I felt my face get hot and an unreasonable irritation spread wildly through my insides. It wasn’t right that they were sitting here gossiping like old bitches behind Cole’s back. It wasn’t cool that they were holding onto their anger without having the decency to talk to him about it.
I didn’t know what went down except through secondhand knowledge. I had no idea what it was like on the road with Cole. But I did know that he had been friends with the three guys sat in front of me for years. They had built a band and created music together. They had started a journey together and there were always two sides to every story.
Given my recent anger towards Cole, I was surprised with how quickly my heart and mind had jumped to his defense.
“I think the same could be said for everyone. Don’t you think?” I asked, chugging the rest of my beer and putting my empty bottled on the ground by my feet.
“You don’t know what you’re talking about, Viv. You, of all people should know exactly what we were dealing with. How you can sit there and be all morally disapproving when not two weeks ago you were telling Cole to take a hike,” Jordan threw at me and I knew he was right.
But. . .
“I just think it’s sort of screwed up that you’re placing everything on his shoulders. Cole can be a handful but he’s still a part of this band. So where is he?” I asked, giving each of the remaining members of Generation Rejects a pointed look.
“At his apartment, I guess,” Mitch shrugged.
“Why isn’t he here? Why aren’t the four of you figuring shit out?”