Bück Dich [Revising]

Chapter 8: We had to know

OLIVER'S POV

It had been several days since we heard from the other band members. Christoph and I have been seizing the opportunity to explore more. Life has been very busy for all of us. It is nice to take a break every once and a while.

RESTAURANT

"Hey, Olli. What do you think happened to every one else?" Schneider asks as he pokes his food with his fork.

"They still haven't returned my calls either. With those guys, there's no telling. Strange of Richard to ignore us though. That man was practically born with a cellphone!" The two of us laugh a bit before continuing our meal.

"Hey, Olli?" Christoph's bright pale eyes turn to focus on my own eyes.

"Ja, Schneids?" I ask while keeping eye contact with my friend.

"Thank you for not ignoring me like the others." He laughs a bit, but I could hear the hurt in his voice. I smile at him and shake my head.

"Don't take it so personally, Chris. I'm sure they're...busy...without us." I hesitate a bit before continuing with, "Yeah, that doesn't make too much sense. Thank you for not being such an Arsch like the others." Schneider giggles a bit and shakes his head. I miss when we used to hang out as a group. Now, it's only Schneider and me. The two of us are not even sure what happened to Till. Last we heard he was okay. If he truly was then why is everyone other than Doom acting so weird?

After a few minutes of chatting and eating, I receive a text message from...Richard? It says, "Come to my house and bring Schneider. It's urgent." I squint my eyes a bit and re-read it several times. Urgent? Why does he want us now of all times? I frown and roll my eyes.

"Is something the matter, Olli?" One eyebrow lifts as the other lowers in concern.

I groan before responding.

"Well, guess who texted me?" I smile at this point. Both of us smile widely before saying, "Richard." We laugh because, without further information Schneider, already knew who I was talking about.

RICHARD'S TEXT

"Riedel, be here at 6. It's urgent. Bring Christoph too."

I show Schneider the text and he leans foward while flattening his smile. He is evidently thrown off by something said in the text.

"He...called me Christoph...that's-"

"Unusual, huh?" I interrupt while keeping eye contact.

"Ja. That's not something he'd normally do." Christoph seems to be rather hurt by the distant name. All of us refer to him as Schneider. Calling him something other that Schneider meant 1. They were mad or 2. They felt distanced from him. Schneider lets out a sigh before sitting properly in his chair. He turns and faces the floor in an emotionless manner.

"Schneids, it's okay. He called me Riedel. That's pretty rare." Schneider makes no effort to look in my direction. He appears to be lost in thought. "We should probably get going then. God forbid us be late in the presence of Kruspe." A smile forms on his face before he lets out a small chuckle. I grin and reach for my wallet in my pocket. "I'll pay."

"Olli, are you sure?" He helplessly looks at me before trying to reach for his own wallet. I motion for him to stop and give him a small smile. I nod before pulling out my money. I never mind paying for the two of us.

"It's okay! You don't always have to pay. It's nice to have someone else do that for a change."

"Thank you, Olli." He folds his arms and shakes his head slightly. His tangled mess he called his hair covers his face, but through that thickness I could see him still smiling.

"It's not a problem. Now we should get going." I abruptly say as I leave the money on the table and walk out alongside the drummer.

RICHARD'S POV

I know telling more people is a bad idea, but they have to know. They shouldn't be left in the dust like that. Poor guys are probably wondering what the heck is happening to this band. If Paul told me, then they deserve to know the truth too.

"Paul, should we tell Olli and Schneider?"

"I don't think that's a good idea." He confesses as he folds his arms.

"But you told me. They might as well know too." He lets out a long sigh before placing a hand on his forehead.

"Fine then. Do what you want to do."

"Please, Landers. Don't be like that."

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm just really stressed about all of this." I see the look of frustration on him. I decide to pull him into a hug. He hugs back and rests his head on my chest. I forget how small he is sometimes.

"It'll be okay. Just...remember this. We don't confront them, okay?" He nods and nothing more is said from either of us.

OLIVER'S POV

RICHARD'S HOUSE

I knock on the front door a few times. There is no answer or even any noise at that point. I glance over at Schneider who's giving me a confused look.

"Text him, maybe?" Schneider suggests as he places his hand on his neck.

"Alright. Maybe this time he'll answer-." Just the door opens. Christoph and I both stare in shock at the pale-faced Richard. His eyes are bloodshot and devoid of any hope.

"Come inside, please..." He hesitantly says before moving out of the way.

"Richard, what's going on?" I ask before immediately regretting it. The look on Paul and Richard's faces are one that remains unmatched. Both are hiding a horrible secret that Schneider and I know nothing of. The awkward silence begins to eat away at me as I keep glancing over at Doom. I could see Richard mouth the words do you want to tell him to Paul. Paul is evidently thrown off by the sudden pressure to tell what happened. He lets out a long sigh before widening his eyes exaggeratively.

"Well...um...wow...where to even start with this." Paul nervously blurts out.

"Well...Till uh...he..."

"He raped Flake and now the two are on bad terms." Richard abruptly interrupts. It is clear he was tired of waiting on Paul to spill the beans. Schneider and I have no immediate reaction to this sort of news. We could not believe what we had just heard.

"Are you sure?" I ask, hoping this was some sick prank and that our careers weren't about to just end. Not only that but why would Till feel the need to do such a thing to poor Flake? He already gets constantly tormented by Till in our shows. I cannot believe what I have just heard. I've known them for years and this? This happens! How?

Paul and Richard don't give a proper response. I sigh and look at the floor. Through my peripheral vision, I could see the look of disgust that plagued him. Schneider is clearly still in shock over the news. I frown and bite the side of my cheek.

What more can be said?

-

Originally written: November 12, 2018