I Remember The Day She Told Me It's Over

When I got home I tossed my keys into the glass bowl on the small dark wood table just inside the front door. With my purse and my shoes in the other hand I walked barefoot across the cement floor through the kitchen and living room then down the hallway to my bedroom. Unlike a lot of houses that donned rugs, wall paper, color, and random knick knacks, my condo was basically all cement. I liked simple and minimalistic.

My bedroom featured two long dark wood dressers as well as one tall one, a walk in closet and the master bathroom. My bed however, was the key piece in the room and the feature I loved the most. The base was built out of cement and like a pyramid it featured four steps up to it, and the bed, was actually sunk in, and level with the top step.

I headed straight for my walk in closet to put my shoes back in their place. I then emptied out my purse and put it back with my others leaving everything that had previously been in it on my jewelry stand in the middle of my closet. There I also removed my dress, placed it in a bag for the dry cleaners and slipped into a pair of pajama pants and a tank top then grabbed my cell. After closing the door I headed to the bathroom where I removed my make-up, brushed my hair and put it up into a pony tail then brushed my teeth before heading back down the hall to the living room.

The living room was the only bit of color in my house. I had white curtains covering the sliding glass doors that lead onto a balcony over looking the city. I also had white leather furniture, an oak coffee table, a flat screen TV, and a couple pieces of art I'd purchased from the artist who'd tattooed the stars on my hips.

Scrolling through my contacts on my phone I sank down onto my couch at the far end. When Terra's name appeared I pressed the dial button and held it up to my ear.

A mere ring later she answered, "hello?"

"Hey," I smiled even through she couldn't see me, "what are you up to?"

Terra laughed softly before replying, "I'm...spending time with Jamie."

I cringed slightly. I knew exactly how that time was being spent and I hadn't meant to interrupt them, "sorry, hon, I just need a moment to check over a few things."

"That's fine," Terra replied, "he just got in the shower anyway. What do you need?"

"Just wondering about tomorrow night," I said.

"Oh yeah," she paused for a moment as I listened to her rustle through some paper, "I called and confirmed the club and the DJ. They've also had the advertisement board running for a few days, and people have been asking about it so they think it's going to be a full house."

"Excellent," I smiled as I mentally checked it off my list, "have you talked to Stephany?"

"Yeah, she managed all the RSVP's. We have room for some celebs to just show up which is just as well. She also booked the hotel and all the rooms."

"So would you like me to do the transportation?"

"Oh, no don't worry about that Steph said she was on a roll so she organized that as well. We were able to get most of our limo's from one company. Those we couldn't, are the ones that we're riding in. But they're going to pick up and drop off at the hotel."

I was amazed at how much they'd done, "wow, thank you guys."

"No problem," Terra replied, "hey what time is our flight tomorrow?"

I thought about it for a moment, "umm, the plane leaves at seven am, so I will meet you ladies there between five and five thirty?"

"Sounds good. I'll see you in the morning."

"Night," I hung up and released a sigh of relief. There wasn't too much left to do, and what needed to be done wasn't do-able until we actually got to Vegas anyway. I had to double check security, make sure the venue was set up properly, look over the wrist bands, go over details with the photographers I'd hired, and then it was the girlie stuff - hair, nails, make-up, stylists. After all, impressions in this business were everything.



The next night approached way to fast for my own liking.

"Fuck, Baker, what are you doing?" Jimmy was pounding on the door to the bathroom on the bus as I tried to get ready.

I ignored him and squirted a bit more gel into my hands and ran it through my hair, spiking a front piece upwards until I was finally satisfied. I leaned in closer to the mirror, checked out the guy liner, then rinsed off my hands, dried them, and then pulled on my fingerless gloves before opening the door.

Rev was about to bang on it again but he dropped his arm.

"About time," he huffed impatiently and turned around and walked away from me. I followed him between the bunks to the front of the bus where the rest of the guys were having pre-game party shots while they waited.
After pulling on my shoes and tying them up we headed out and met the 69 Eyes crew and the Cradle Of Filth crew outside and we all piled into the limo their tour manager had rented.

When we got to the club the driver parked at the front door in front of their black carpet and ropes leading to the front doors. Shadows opened the door and climbed out first. The paparazzi flashes began going off and even though it was painfully obvious they were expecting someone other than us they continued to take pictures like crazy none the less. If they did their homework they'd find out who we were before printing them anyway. A few girls must've recognized us because they began screaming and calling us towards them by our stage names. Soon it was utter chaos. By the time we made it to the actual doors I was nearly blind; flash bulbs in the dark were never fun.

We got in with relative ease and my heart started racing. What the fuck was I doing? Bailey wasn't going to want to see me, and I was pretty sure I didn't wanna see her either.
I watched the guys carry on, oblivious to my hesitation just inside the door.
Well fuck..
They probably wouldn't notice right away if I turned around and left. But I also knew they wouldn't let me live it down either. Plus...part of me wanted to see if Bailey was really as happy as she looked in the picture, or if it was all fake. I was a bit of a prick that way. I liked Karma.
Before they completely disappeared from sight I followed the guys from an empty booth, to the bar, then back to the booth. After a few drinks, everyone decided to get up and mingle.

I chatted with a few random people. Some boys from Korn. A couple from Metallica. Craig Mabbitt from Escape The Fate, Christine Dolce, Tila Tequila, and James Hart, formerly of Eighteen Visions. But when James excused himself, I froze. There she was, large as life.

The minute my brain was sure my eyes weren't deceiving me, the past came rushing back...

It was after our lame ass graduation ceremony. I sat down at a table for two at a small restaurant on main street in Huntington Beach. I pulled out the note my girlfriend had handed me for the two seconds I'd seen her in the hallway. She was off to get pictures taken with her friends. None with me.
I was unfolding it when a pretty waitress asked me what I wanted to order. I told her coffee and watched her walk away. I was an ass man, and she'd had a nice one, but it was nothing like Bailey's. I shook the waitress from my mind and continued to unfold the note and smoothed it out on the table top. I read it once and sat back in my chair. The only thing that came to my otherwise blank mind was un-fucking-believable.
I sat forward and started at the beginning again.

Zack,
I was going to talk to you in person today but honestly I don't really have the time. You probably don't either. We both have so much going on right now. I mean, we haven't spent any time together in like, forever. Anyway I just needed to let you know that I think we should call it quits. I mean I'm moving upstate and you have your band. I just don't think it would work between us, as it is we don't spend any time together so why would we have time to spend together in a couple years when everything is about to get so much more hectic. But whatever, if you want to try it we can I guess. Though I don't know why you'd want to. Cassie told me the other day that you and her hooked up and that you admitted you weren't really concerned about making us work anyway.

I frowned, crease lines forming across my forehead. Cassie? She was a friend of Bailey's and I'd turned her down at that party. If that bitch truly told Bailey that, I was gonna fly off the deep end.

So Zack, I think we should call it quits. It's been fun, but we weren't in if for the long haul. Good luck with the band though, you guys will make it big one day, I know it.
Love Bailey

I wasn't sure what I was more pissed off about - what she wrote in the note, or the fact that she'd wrote a fucking note. Though I had to give her some credit. This was the most she'd ever 'talked' to me and the first time she'd ever let me know how she truly felt.
The waitress reappeared and smiled at me sweetly. Her eyes told me she worked way to much for too little.
"Need anything else hon?"
I shook my head, "no thanks."
She nodded and walked away. I never drank my coffee, but I pulled a twenty from my wallet. The last twenty I owned. Being in a band means that you're fucking broke ALL the time.
I folded up the twenty and placed it under my coffee cup. I grabbed my so called note and headed out the door.

That was the last time I'd heard anything from or about Bailey Jenson.

Now, here she was, standing ten feet away from me. Her bleach blonde hair curled and half of it pulled back with a flower. A sexy black dress clung to her toned frame, and she gripped a martini in one hand while she used her other hand to accentuate what she was saying. The people she was talking to were taking in every word.

Though I had to admit I would be to. She was pretty captivating.

"Go fucking talk to her," Syn was by my side suddenly, two beers in each hand as we both stared.

It wasn't hard to tell that we weren't traveling with their girlfriends.

"Fine, here," he tried to shove them into my hands but I knew what he was planning on doing.

I shook my head and grabbed him by the arm, "I'll go talk to her, Brian, just give me a minute."

"Dude, you've been fucking staring at her for the past ten minutes."

It was probably the truth.

"Fuck," I grabbed one of his beers and downed half of it, "here I go."

"Make me happy!" Brian yelled after me as I wandered towards her slowly, she was still deep in conversation so I didn't want to interrupt.

"Zacky Vengeance?"

I turned and saw a group of people sitting in a padded booth that curled around a round table.

"Zacky V."

I recognized the man who now had his hand held out to me. I wasn't a big fan but, not much I could do about it at the moment.

"Pete," I greeted him. We'd met a few times before.

Pete Wentz smiled and gestured to the girl beside him. Ashlee Simpson stretched out her arm and I shook her hand too.

"How are you guys doing?" I asked them. Small talk with them would keep me from having to talk to Bailey.

"Really good man," Pete glanced around, "you want another drink?"

I glanced down at the beer bottle in my hand. I'd drank nearly the whole damn thing in the mere five steps I'd taken towards her.

"Sure you do," he waived over a waitress and I traded her my empty beer bottle for a stronger drink. Pete paid for it.

"Thanks man," I nodded down at him. My eyes scanned the rest of the booth. Mostly girls I didn't know. Probably friend's of Ashlee's.

"So is everyone here?" Pete asked.

I sank down into the booth on the opposite side of him and beside a girl who didn't seem to mind, "yeah, we're actually on tour," I ran my half gloved hand through my black hair, "thought this looked like a pretty wild party."

"Oh it will be, just give it a few more drinks."



I sipped the last of my drink and thanked god the people I'd been subjected to talking to were going to move on their way.

"Having fun?" Terra asked me as she approached my left side.

"Somewhat," I admitted. The thing about hosting a party is that you're the one who never really gets to party.

"Here," she handed me an apple martini and took my empty glass, "now there is a group of hotties near the bar that we need to talk to."

I smiled, leave it to Terra. Even though she had a boyfriend, there was never any harm in scoping them out, or in her case occasionally feeling them up.

"You're not even gonna say hi?"

I turned around to see Ashlee Simpson leaning over the back of the booth she was seated in. I smiled and moved towards her, hugging her awkwardly over the top. Her and I had met a long time ago and hung out on numerous occasions. Not best friends, but really good acquaintances.

"Sorry, babe, I didn't see you," I smiled as I released her.

Pete looked up at me and I hugged him too.

"You know everyone else here right?" he asked as I stood up straight again. I ran my eyes over the entire booth, but my heart stopped suddenly. I couldn't believe my eyes.

There, in beautiful tattooed flesh was Zachary James Baker. My heart fluttered and skipped a beat as I struggled to nod. I couldn't believe it. What were the chances?

"Bailey," he acknowledged as he looked up at me and leaned back into the booth.

"Zack," I smiled in greeting, trying to keep my excitement/nervousness under control.

Well, my night was about to become a whole lot more interesting.