See You at the Show

The next morning, Liam sits up in an unfamiliar room glancing around trying to make sense of last night. Beside him, Elle was wrapped up in the sheets resting against his chest. A smile plays on his face as he uses a hand to stroke her hair. She slowly wakes from her slumber causing Liam to mentally kick himself for disrupting her.

‘Good morning.’ She mutters tiredly, ‘you’re in my bed.’

‘I’m in your bed.’ Liam repeats with a raspy laugh, ‘that’s odd.’

‘Last night was-…’ Elle starts only to be cut off by Liam’s phone going off.

He reaches over onto the floor retrieving his jeans and phone. It was Claudia she had left Liam at least eight texts along with four voicemails. Liam feels himself go pale as he unlocks his phone to read her texts. Each one was angrier than the one before. She was demanding to know where he was if it wasn’t home and he didn’t come by her place.

‘I have to go.’ Liam blurts in a scramble to get out the bed, realizing what he had actually done.

‘Go?’ Elle swallows, wrapping the sheets around herself to get up. ‘You’re leaving after what we just did?’

‘I’m sorry. It’s just I’m still with Claudia an-…’

‘Don’t.’ Elle speaks sternly, ‘just go.’

‘Elle, I’m really sorry. I got to figure some things out. Everything’s so fucked up.’

‘Leave, Liam. Save your breath and just go back to your girlfriend.’ Elle storms off into her bathroom slamming the door behind herself.

Liam silently gets dressed, giving Elle her space. He angrily slaps his steering wheel, throwing his head against the seat.

‘Damn it!’

The last thing Liam wanted was to piss Elle off. He also didn’t want to cheat on Claudia, as messed up as their relationship was. He had never, ever cheated on a girlfriend. In hindsight, he probably shouldn’t have left out of Elle’s flat like she had the plague. He just saw all the messages from Claudia and panicked. Elle was great, amazing actually. He didn’t feel like that towards Claudia anymore, so Liam knew he needed to man-up and tell her. Elle sits in her flat hours later, dreading going to work. She did not want to see Liam tonight, after their incident this morning. Even though they just had sex, Liam rushed off to his girlfriend. The feeling sank low in Elle’s stomach making her feel nauseous. She looks out the window, realizing that her car was left at the bar all night. Hesitantly, she picks up her phone, dialing the number she had memorized.

‘Hey, do you think that you could give me a ride to work?’ she pinches the bridge of her nose with her fingertips.

‘I waited for you last night.’ Travis points out as she slides down into his car. ‘What happened?’

‘I just got sidetracked with work and I was so exhausted I went straight home.’

‘Do you think you’ll be able to come by tonight? The band and I finished up with some new songs and we’d love to test them out on someone.’

‘That sounds tempting.’ Elle plasters a smile on her face with a few short nods.

‘So what do you say?’ Travis inquires, wiggling his thick, dark eyebrows over at her.

‘I’m not sure, I’ll let you know.’ Elle thanks Travis for the ride before slipping out of his car.

In the same moment she got out of Travis’ car, Liam’s Range Rover pulls up directly at the door. She glances over at his deep brown eyes through the impeccably clean windshield, instantly regretting it. A tight ball formed in her chest while a lump rested in her throat as if she was bound to burst into tears any moment. Within the few weeks of knowing Liam somehow Elle had fallen hard for him. As soon as she gets into the bar, she slips into the tiny storage room to recover before her shift. From where she hid, she could hear Liam having a conversation with Bobby. With a long, deep breath Elle opens the door bringing out a box of nearby napkins as a shield.

‘There you are.’ Bobby calls, ‘I thought I heard you come in and you disappeared on me.’

‘Just restocking the napkins at the tables.’ Elle chimes in response, deliberately not making eye-contact with Liam.

‘I’m just gonna grab my guitar.’ Liam excuses himself, pushing the bar door open.

He wordlessly leans against the back of his car, wondering what he could say to Elle to make her forgive him. Liam shakes his head, remembering how she just got out of the car with her ex boyfriend a few minutes ago. She gave him one hard, cold look before rushing inside the bar. By the time, Liam killed the engine she had disappeared somewhere inside the small bar. Bobby greets him with a check for the rest of the week, his last shows at Elle’s bar.

‘We’re going to miss you around here.’

‘Honestly, I can’t think you enough for letting me in your bar and play here every night. I enjoyed every night.’ He looks at Elle as she walks from the back room carrying some brown box, ‘I’m going to miss it here too.’

Liam finds the courage to go back inside after retrieving his guitar. Elle sits on the stage while Bobby was hunched over doing inventory before all the people start showing up for booze. Sensing Liam’s presence Elle lets out an exasperated groan.

‘Look, Elle – again I’m really sorry. I didn’t handle this morning well.’

‘You think?’ she scoffs, finally looking up at Liam as he wanted so desperately. ‘We had sex and you run out to your girlfriend like I’m so common, everyday mistress.’

‘You know that is the furthest thing from what I think about you.’ Liam defends sitting down beside her, casually looking over at Bobby to see if he was listening to this conversation. Liam was pretty sure that the musical act wasn’t supposed to hook up with the bartender.

‘Where is your precious girlfriend anyway?’ Elle speaks sarcastically, ‘I’m sure she’s waiting for you maybe you should go run off to her.’

Liam presses his tongue against the inside of his cheek, walking off silently. Clearly, Elle wasn’t ready to talk about what happened. Liam couldn’t believe that she was still pissed off, but partially he couldn’t blame her. He put her second. He unintentionally placed her feelings behind Claudia’s. Speaking of: Liam’s phone buzzes in his tight pocket, it was Claudia. She sends him a text asking him to come outside so they could talk. Liam sighs pushing the bar’s door open to see Claudia twirling a metal bat in her hand. Before Liam could piece the moment together she swings the bat towards the dark Range Rover, shattering the back window.

‘What the hell are you doing?!’ Liam shouts, snatching a hand full of his hair.

‘And now we’re over.’ Claudia holds up her narrow middle finger at Liam walking back to where her friends flipped him off as well.

‘What was that?’ Bobby questions as Liam walks back into the vacant bar.

‘My ex just smashed my back window.’

‘Ouch – been there.’ Bobby bends over getting some tape and a piece of plastic. ‘Let’s secure it.’

‘Thanks man.’ Liam nods following Bobby out to his car, taping the back window up until he could get to a repair shop.

‘I understand if you want to leave, if you have some things you need to work out.’

‘I can’t get it fixed tonight, I’m staying.’ Liam insists, wanting to talk to Elle now that this whole Claudia thing was over.

‘All right. I think we covered it.’ Bobby speaks as he places the last piece of tape on the back of the car.

‘So, you’ve been through this before?’

‘Oh yeah.’

‘How’d that work out for you?’

‘I married her.’ Bobby throws his head back with laughter, leading the way back into the bar.

Liam laughs himself, walking back gazing at Elle from across the room. She glances up at him, before quickly diverting her eyes. Liam smiled to himself at how cute she looked when she was mad.

‘Are you two ready for the doors to open?’

‘Let’s do it.’ Liam grins, making his way to the stage to get ready for another set. He anxiously taps at the microphone, ready to play a new song he had been working on for hours today.