You're Not What I Was Expecting To Find

“Babe? Have you seen my bandana?” Matt called from somewhere downstairs. Charlotte was upstairs in the bathroom, finishing her make-up. A few days after their fight, Matt and the boys had gone back into the studio. Everything was going smoothly so Matt had invited Charlotte to come in and see what was going on. They were both excited.

However, they still hadn’t really talked about their fight. Their lives had settled into a rhythm and neither one wanted to disturb that. Charlotte had gotten a job as a receptionist at a law firm close-by. The commute was easy, which was good because Matt was becoming busier and busier with the band. Sometimes, when the boys were working late, he wouldn’t even bother coming home until the next day. But Charlotte knew that the band meant a lot to him.

Charlotte sighed as she set down her mascara, now finished her face, to walk out of the bathroom, through the bedroom and into the hall. As she descended the stairs, she saw Matt standing at the bottom looking aimless.

“You have so many bandanas, I can’t keep track. Which one are you looking for?” she asked. He looked over at her as she spoke and looked her up and down. She wore dark jeans and a white v-neck under a gray cardigan.

He held up a black hat. “The one that goes with this hat,” he told her.

“The red one?” she asked. He nodded. “It should be in the closet. Want me to look?” she offered. He shook his head and sprinted up the stairs himself. Moments later he was coming back down the stairs as he situated the bandana on his shaven head. As he reached the first floor he threw his hat on and looked to Charlotte.

“You ready to go?” he asked.

“Yeah, I just need to grab my purse. I’ll meet you in the garage,” she told him, making her way back upstairs. Once she heard the door open and close she made a beeline for her purse and reached inside. She pulled out a pill bottle and took one, hoping it would suppress her appetite enough so that no one would noticed she didn’t eat today.

Not wanting to make Matt wait, she grabbed her bag and went outside to the garage.

Matt and Charlotte spent the 20-minute ride to the studio simply listening to the radio. Charlotte wasn’t sure if it was because they were so comfortable with each other or if it was because neither one of them knew what to say. Hoping it wasn’t the latter, she turned her attention out the window.

“Will any of the other girls be there?” Charlotte asked, as the two of them stepped out of the car once they had arrived. They had both made their way to the front of the car before Matt answered.

“I think that Jimmy said Leana might be in around her lunch. She works in a salon around the corner.” He explained. Charlotte tucked that little piece of information away; she was looking for a new hairdresser. “Michelle usually stops by but she’s been pretty busy at work lately. I haven’t really heard anything else about the others.”

Charlotte just nodded as they made their way towards the building. It was simple and low-key and Charlotte would never have thought it was a studio. As they entered they walked through a simple kitchen/dining room and into a lounge area before finally walking into a room full of boards and switches. She saw the other band members sprawled on the couches and chairs around the room, but there were a couple men she didn’t recognize.

“Charlotte,” Matt turned to her, “This is Joe and that’s Eric. They’re helping us out with the album.” As he spoke he pointed to the two men sitting closest to the equipment. One man had long hair in a pony tail, Joe, and Eric was tall and lanky, his body stretched out on the chair he was sitting in. As they were introduced, they waved at Charlotte.

“Charlotte!” Jimmy called. “Why don’t you come sit beside me while we watch Matt screw up his lyrics,” he suggested, patting the cushion next to him on the couch. Charlotte glanced at Matt but he was over by the piano starting to warm up. She just shrugged and followed Jimmy’s suggestion.

“So, how’s the new job?” he asked. Charlotte smiled softly. Jimmy was so nice, always asking about her jobs, what she was doing, and if Matt was treating her right.

“It’s alright. I mean, I just answer phones and get coffee. But everyone is really nice,” Charlotte told him.

“That’s cool. Has Matt said anything about it?” He asked, knowing that Matt disapproved of Charlotte having a job at all.

“Honestly, he’s been too busy to even notice I’m gone. He leaves before I leave in the morning and I’m already in bed by the time he gets home.”

Jimmy nodded, “Yeah, Leana is worried we’re all working too much. I think I might suggest a trip up to Big Bear so everyone can relax.”

“Matt’s told me he wants to take me up there one day but then we both got so busy.”

“Well, maybe in a couple weeks we’ll take you up there with us. We can make a weekend of it, bring all the girls.”

“That sounds like fun,” Charlotte agreed.

The afternoon passed without much fuss. Matt did some vocals and she watched Jimmy lay down some drum tracks. She eventually had time to catch up with everybody since she saw them even less than she saw Matt. Brian even told her that Michelle had been mentioning something about another shopping trip. He told Charlotte to call her sometime when she’s free.

“So,” Matt started as they made their way back to his truck, “What did you think?”

“You guys work well together,” she told him, climbing in and watching as he did the same. He didn’t say anything as they pulled onto the road. But once they were well on their way he turned off the radio, signalling he wanted to talk.

“Look, Char, I’m sorry I’ve been so busy lately. I promise I’ll make it up to you in a few weeks,” he explained, hoping she would understand.

“It’s okay, I understand that the band’s important to you,” she said, not looking in his direction. The truth is, she was hurt. Sometime, when she was alone in his bed, she felt abandoned. New couples were supposed to be together all the time. But they were always apart.

“That’s not an excuse,” he sighed. Then an idea struck him. “Do you want to do something this weekend?”

“Aren’t you supposed to be in the studio this weekend?” she asked, looking over at him sceptically. If coming home every night a midnight wasn’t enough, he was gone for most of the weekend, too.

“I’ll tell the fuckers I can’t come in. They can handle themselves for a couple of days.” He told her, watching as a ghost of a smile came onto her lips.

“You’d do that for me?” she asked, looking over at him hopefully.

He stole a glance at her quickly before turning his eyes back to the road. “Yeah, babe. Anything for you,” he said and he reached for her hand. Once their fingers entwined he smiled and knew she was smiling, too.