Nobody Puts Baby In The Corner

Patrick walked into the dressing room, jumping when he saw someone else was already in there. “That’s right…the interview.” He thought, straightening up and smiling. The woman looked up from the couch and smiled.

“Patrick, right?” She asked, holding out her hand. He nodded and shook it, sitting down across from her. “Wonderful. I’m Ellie, and I’m here to interview you.”

Patrick nodded, getting comfortable. “Sure, ask away.”

Ellie smiled, and Patrick smiled back. She was cute. Ellie got her tape recorder ready and pen ready. “Well, first off, where’s your twin? You and Pete are usually joined at the hip.”

“He’s catching up with an old friend, so he didn’t come with me.” Patrick replied, leaning back. Ellie nodded, writing down the answer even though this was being recorded.

“And that sort of leads me to my next question, what’s it like starting a tour from home? Have you met any of your friends yet? Run into fans that have been with you boys since the beginning? What’s it like?”

Patrick shrugged, leaning back. “I haven’t run into anyone yet. Andy, Joe, and Pete have, but not me. When I was coming here, I did bump into a few girls I remember from our earlier shows, and it’s always great to see the older fans that still stick around.”

Ellie smiled, nodding as she wrote. “Awesome. Are you excited for this tour? I got to hear the two opening bands, they’re pretty good.”

“Yea, this should be a fun tour. The two bands – Angels Falling and The Rejects, haven’t been on tour, so this is their first big gig. We’re hitting the states right now, and if all goes well, we’ll see about taking them on a world tour.” Patrick said. “Angels Falling, they have a great sound, sort like of The Beatles. And The Rejects, they sort of have this Nirvana meets Blink 182 with a bit of old AFI thrown into the mix. I think this line up is going to be pretty amazing.”

Ellie wrote it all down, smiling and nodding. Patrick smiled as well, watching her do this. “So, one last, rather silly question, are you still single? Or is there a lucky lady in your life?”

His thoughts went right to thinking about Luci, but he shook his head. “No, no. There really hasn’t been a ‘lucky lady’ for several years now. And since that ship has sailed, I’m glad to say I’m single. For now, that is. Hopefully I’ll meet someone who isn’t a heart breaker, you know? Hopefully I’ll find someone who’ll like me for me, and not my ‘rock star’ status.”

There was a noise of feet shuffling and someone calling a name. Patrick just shrugged it off while Ellie closed her notebook. “Well, thank you for the interview, Patrick. I’m pretty excited for the show tonight.”

Patrick stood up and nodded. “Hey, why don’t I get you a backstage pass? I mean, if you want. We can get a bite after the show or something…” He felt his cheeks burn after he stopped talking. To his relief, though, Ellie smiled.

“Sure, sounds good. I’d love to go out with you tonight. We can go to this awesome 24 hour diner I know that’s nearby. They have excellent food.”

///

Pete grabbed Luci by the arm, pulling her into a corner. She was crying, after hearing what Patrick said.

“I am horrible, aren’t I?! I… I shouldn’t do this tour, Pete! It’s just going to be full of fucking drama!” She cried, slumping against him. “He fucking hates me, so why should I even try to talk to him?!”

Pete sighed, leaning back against the wall as he held her. He’d heard a similar rant from Patrick years ago, after she broke up with him. “Hey, relax, babe.” He began, rubbing her back. “Trick…well, he’s complicated. He was pretty torn up after what happened. He didn’t eat for nearly a week, or sleep very well. We managed to slap sense into him before anything bad could happen. But it was bad, Lu… he was so hard on himself before he met you…” He sighed, wondering if there was even a point to continuing.

“Yea, I know. He didn’t think he was good enough for me, and our first date, he was paranoid it was just a joke you and I were pulling on him.” Luci mumbled into his chest, sniffing. “I asked him on a second date and that’s when he finally relaxed.” She lifted her head, looking up at him. “I didn’t tell him I was pregnant, Pete. I th-thought… if I did, he’d leave the band… and I didn’t want to be the reason that happened! I didn’t want to ruin you guys!”

“Yea, I understand your reasons, Luci… I really do. And knowing Patrick, he probably would have done that. But he does have every right to be angry with you. And I’m sure seeing you tonight opened up some old wounds.” Pete explained, looking down at her. “So, just… I don’t know. Don’t leave, please? While Patrick might be mad and pissy with you, the rest of us aren’t. We want to hang out with you, and I wanna hang out with your kid. She’s adorable.”

Sniffing, Luci nodded, leaning into him still. “Fine, I don’t think I can back out of my contract or anything.” She hid her face in his chest again, rubbing her eyes on his shirt. He let out a groan and shoved her playfully while she just smirked. “And besides, I think Katy has fallen in love with you already, and I think having you and the other guys in her life will be great.”