Are You Happy Now? - Part 2 (Completed)

Chapter 3 - Part 2: "Lie In the Sound"

July 7, 2017

Taylor woke early the next morning, eager to get to the festival and to find Michelle. His head pounded and he regretted those two martinis he'd had the night before. He got out of bed and took a short shower, then quickly dressed and headed downstairs to get some continental breakfast and a good strong cup of coffee.

He found Zac already eating in the hotel's dining hall. He looked up when Taylor approached with a plate loaded with scrambled eggs, bacon and hashbrowns.

Zac raised an eyebrow as Taylor popped an Advil, chugged about half of his cup of coffee, then hungrily dug into his breakfast.

"Hungry much?" Zac remarked, taking a sip of his orange juice.

Taylor nodded. "I'm starving."

"Clearly," Zac muttered.

Taylor decided to ignore his brother's tone, and focus on what needed to get done that day. He and his brother could discuss what happened last night later. Today, they had a festival to play.

"When do we need to be at the festival?" Taylor asked, taking his phone out and trying to locate the email from the festival coordinator.

"7:45 a.m.," Zac said, glancing at his watch. "It's 7a.m. We should probably leave in like 15."

Zac spotted Isaac and their two bandmates across the room, loading up on breakfast. He waved at them.

"Sounds good," Taylor muttered, taking another gulp of his coffee and squinting at his phone.

Isaac and the others came over and sat down.

"Good morning!" Isaac said. "Who's pumped for the show today?"

"You know it," Zac said.

Taylor just nodded absentmindedly.

Isaac gave Taylor a look, but didn't say anything.

The five of them finished their breakfasts and went back to the room to gather their things. Before long, they were headed to the festival. They arrived to see their manager, and their crew already there and unloading their gear onto the makeshift stage. Their manager waved Isaac over and the two discussed something. Zac got on the stage, followed by their bandmates.

Taylor scowled and squinted up at the sun. He dug his sunglasses out of his jacket pocket and put them on. He checked his watch, 7:30 a.m. If he rushed, maybe he could find Michelle and talk to her before they started their sound check.

Trying not to look too obvious, Taylor walked around the stage and around the pop-up green room. No sign of Michelle. He walked around but didn't see her anywhere. Disappointed, he came back and got up on the stage. His brothers and bandmates were waiting for him to start the soundcheck.

"Where'd you go? We were about to call you," Zac asked, clearly irritated. "We're on a tight schedule here."

"Sorry, I had to make a call," Taylor lied, positioning himself behind his piano.

"Well, what's the hold up? Let's get started." he said.

Taylor turned towards his piano, but not fast enough to miss the dirty look Zac gave him. Zac knew exactly where Taylor had gone, and who he'd gone looking for.

Taylor chose to ignore it.

---

Later that day

The sound check had not gone smoothly, mostly due to Taylor's short fuse and being distracted, plus the obvious tension between Zac and Taylor. After the check, they'd all dispersed to get lunch and check out the festival grounds before their set at 2 p.m. As far as Taylor knew, Michelle had arrived and done her soundcheck on the other stage. Michelle had texted Isaac earlier to tell him she'd be free and would love to hang out before their sets. Taylor guessed this invitation didn't extend to him, but he didn't care.