What Might've Been (Cricky)

Treading Shallow Water

Another month had passed before our first tour began. I was ecstatic to finally be able to go out and show the country our songs, even if we were only the opening act. So many people have told us how much they love our EP, so I had high hopes for the crowds we'd attract. On the other side of things, Chris had promised that he'd make sure I had the best experience for my first official tour with the band. Since our fourth date last week, we'd decided that we were going to become exclusive. The whole label and everything. Having that with him made me giddy all of the time. My heart skipped a beat just thinking about him. 

TJ had become nothing but icy towards me ever since Chris and I went out a second time. He told me that he'd warned me. Apparently, my faith in someone who was only going to cause me pain was immature. I assumed that he was only jealous. After all, he had asked me out the day after he met me, and I rejected him. 

Even though Chris was my boyfriend though, he still hadn't kissed me. I had no idea if he was waiting for me to take the initiative. I don't know if I can handle that sort of pressure. I've never been one to take a leading role in anything. I'm a bassist for fuck's sake! I bit my fingernails as the thought of it. I was currently sitting on the edge of a curb. I played with the blades of grass next to me. There was a little bit of downtime today, so I was spending it in nature. It wasn't like I had anything else to do. 

I would've hung out with Chris, but he had to go and do an interview instead. That would be only problem with dating the vocalist, they have to talk to all of these people who don't even give a damn about who anyone else is. Someone came up to me, a fan. "Are you in one of the bands playing tonight?" He asked. 

I nodded. "Motionless in White." I stood up so that I wouldn't have to look up at him. 

His eyes grew wide. "Really?"

"Really."

He fumbled around with something in his pockets. "T-then c-can you sign this?" He stammered, holding out a pen and crumpled up piece of paper to me. 

"Sure," I agreed, taking both items. Next to me was a streetlight, which I used as a surface to write on. I handed both items back to him afterwards. 

"Thanks!" He said, running away from me quickly. 

"Wow, you're already giving out autographs before me," A voice said from behind me. 

"Chris!" I exclaimed, hugging him immediately.

"Didja miss me, sweetie?" He chuckled, returning my hug. 

I let him go. "I thought you were gonna be gone for, like, an hour."

"I was, but the interview ran short. Apparently, someone got the stomach flu behind the scenes, and they didn't want for me to get sick too."

I wrinkled my nose. "Well that sucks."

"It's alright," He shrugged. "They got some questions in, it should be enough for a short segment." A smile played on his lips. "Plus, that means I get to be with you."

"You guys are so sweet it's sickening," Josh said, skating past us. 

"Where'd you get the skateboard?" I asked. 

"It was on a curb for sale. Five dollars. Can you believe that?" He turned around and started coming back towards us. "Who just gives away a skateboard for five bucks?" He stopped. "But I do have a concern."

"What is it?" Chris asked, crossing his arms. 

"I think TJ might be trying to leave the band."

Both Chris and my expression fell. "What makes you think that?"

"He went on this long thing about being underappreciated, some shit like that." Josh shrugged. "It could just be for attention though. I mean, you know TJ."

I shook my head. "You really think that he would leave? I don't feel like he's underappreciated at all."

"Oh, he would leave," Chris told me. "He would definitely do that. But right now? Would he really do that to us?"

"I think he's just upset because he went broke last night," Josh explained. 

"What?" I asked.

"Oh, yeah. He went out to Atlantic City and lost like a thousand dollars or something like that."

Chris ran his fingers through his hair. When it fell back down, it looked really ruffled. "This isn't good," He said. "How much are we getting tonight?"

Josh counted off his fingers. "After we pay everyone, I'd say probably.....fifty each?" He counted again. "This is the only show we're playing that it'll be that high. I'd say it's probably thirty for half-capacity, and maybe fifteen for most of the shows."

I bit my fingernails. "He might just leave us."

Chris shook his head. "No he won't. Fifteen's decent wage for a band that's only playing opening act."

"That's a relief," I said. I'm a liar though, I don't think I would've minded if TJ had left the band after the tour was over. Sometimes, he asked for attention just a little bit too much.