If Tomorrow Never Comes

14. You're Acting Like A Silly Little Boy

When Miles called back, Alex could hear the fake calmness in his voice, and immediatly panicked. The past few minutes had been torture, with Miles ending their conversation a second after Alex had heard how a angry male voice had shouted at him. Worst-case-scenarios were racing through his head.

Miles had been in a fight, and the man came back to finish it

Miles had been locked up by a crazy gang who were going to torture him

Miles was having sex with this guy

He had told himself to stop. It was probably a simple misunderstanding. Miles was alright. He'd call back in a few minutes. No need to be paranoid. No need to worry. You're acting like a little boy who lost his mum in the supermarket. Miles is a grown man, he knows how to look after himself. He'll probably call back soon.

Miles did, indeed, call back after a few minutes, although they felt like several hours to Alex. He'd already accepted the call before his phone had time to ring.
"Miles? Is everything alright? Who was that man? Did he hurt you?" he rambled, his voice high with worry. On the other end of the line, Miles let out a nervous laugh.
"Really, Al, I'm fine. Don't worry about it. I'm just sorry that I had to interrupt your story. Tomorrow night, you said?"
Alex pretended not to notice how fast Miles had changed the subject. He could fret about that when the phone call had ended. For now, he just tried to sound as enthusiastic as he had before, filling Miles in on the details of their upcoming performance. As he heard the other boy's excited responses, Alex started to feel hyped up again. Sure, they would just be playing in a little pub in his hometown, but it was a start, wasn't it?
"So, will you pick me up from the station, or do you think you'll be too busy rehearsing?" Miles asked, shaking Alex from his reflection.
"What?" he asked surprised, not sure he'd heard it right.
"I'm coming, you silly puppet! You really think I was gonna miss your first gig?" Miles said indignantly, though Alex could hear his smile beaming through the phone. "I'll grab the 10 o'clock train, so I should be there around... noon, I think? Should I just take a cab to your place? That's probably best innit? Saves you the ride."
"No, no, don't be silly, I'll pick you up!" Alex said hastily. "The cabs here charge like two fifty for a yard, and I wouldn't want you to spend all your savings for a ten-minute drive. Besides, I'll have to take a break at some point anyways. Might as well pick you up then."
"Thanks mate, that would be great," Miles responded. They fell silent for a bit, Alex listening to Miles' breathing on the other end of the line.
"Alaina lives somewhere in Manchester, right?" Miles asked finally. "I could pick her up and we could come together. I'll probably be a bit later though, it's a little off the way."

***

"Fuck," Alex muttered under his breath.
"Are you okay, Al?" Miles asked, curiously.
"I forgot to tell Alaina about the gig. I just- I completely forgot." Alex sounded pretty desperate, and Miles felt bad for the odd pride rising up in his chest. He chuckled. "How can you forget that?" he teased.
"I don't know, I was just too busy preparing everything. I mean, I didn't even call you until today-"
Miles froze. What is that supposed to mean? He let out a nervous laugh, glad that the other boy couldn't see his flushed face.
"- and she doesn't even like my music," Alex continued.
Of course. How could I be so stupid as to think he'd call me before her because he likes me better. She's his girlfriend, for god's sake.
They were silent again. After a few agonizing seconds, Alex cleared his throat. "I better go call her now. I'll text you whether she wants to come or not."
Miles nodded in agreement, before realising Alex couldn't see him.
"Yeah, sounds like a good plan. See you tomorrow, then!"
He couldn't completely banish the sadness from his voice, but Alex probably wouldn't notice anyway. He's far too busy thinking about Alaina. Stop acting like some silly lovesick boy.
"Yeah, see you tomorrow," Alex responded. "Oh, and Mi?" he added quickly.
"Yes?"
"Happy New Year," Alex said, his voice inexplicably tender, the voice that made Miles feel like he was melting into a puddle of sorrow and longing, and useless hope that maybe, this coming year would indeed be happy...
"Happy New Year, Al," he whispered back, but the call had already been ended.