Adam knew the second he saw Jeff's face that afternoon when he looked at his phone that something was wrong. Again.
"Our flight was cancelled," Jeff sighed. "It's not safe to land a plane because of the high winds in Denver. We have to fly out tomorrow instead."
"Dammit," Monroe shook his head. "Martin is going to hit the roof. The trucks are already on their way. I hope they can get through okay."
Neither one of them said anything for a few seconds after that, both fully absorbed in their phones. Adam took his own phone out to text Brent. They were supposed to be leaving for their first tour, the very first show they would perform in front of a packed audience, that day.
"Okay, well, I guess we're going out for dinner since we just emptied the fridge," Jeff looked at Adam. "Are you brave enough to try sushi yet?"
"Is it gonna be slimy?"
"No, it's not slimy," Jeff smiled. "We'll get you some veggie and cooked rolls too."
"Hey, what if we grab all the guys and go by that networking thing at Scooter's house?" Monroe suggested. "It could be fun."
"Actually, we really should," Jeff nodded.
Which was how, just 5 hours later, Adam found himself staring at none other than Maddox Bieber. At first he wasn't sure it was really him, but then Dax smirked at his phone and Adam know. Only Maddox could make that face.
"Oh my god, where is Brent?" Zack demanded. "Do you see who that is?"
"I see him," Tyler looked around. "Shit. Where did Brent go?"
"We should wait for Brent," Adam's mouth went dry as he spoke. As much as he wanted to meet Maddox, he wasn't ready to see Brent with him. Not yet.
"Boys!" Jeff came out of the crowd and motioned for them to follow him. He took them over to where Monroe was standing with someone Adam didn't recognize.
It was the same way all night. Every time Adam and the rest of the guys found themselves standing alone, either Jeff or Monroe would drag them away to introduce them to someone else. Adam was surprised how tiring it was talking to all those people.
"Hide," Tyler said when they escaped a few hours later.
"Oh my gosh, there he is again," Zack gasped.
"Who?" Jimmy looked around.
"Maddox Bieber," Zack whispered.
"Just go say hi," Jimmy told him.
"I can't, I'm too nervous."
"We should wait for Brent, you know he'll be so mad if we meet Maddox without him," Tyler pointed out.
"We've waited all night, just go talk to him," Jimmy argued.
"You go!" Zack protested.
"I'm still a person," Maddox looked up from his phone, stopping Adam's heart instantly. He could hear them? Oh no. "Hi, I'm Maddox Bieber."
"Hey, I'm Jimmy. This is Zack," he added, giving Zack a push toward Maddox.
"Hi, I'm a big fan," Zack looked like he wanted to keep talking but he didn't.
"I'm Tyler," Tyler shook Maddox's hand like it was no big deal. Adam tried to stop staring at Maddox but it was just so crazy that they were actually talking to him.
"Are you from that boy band?" Maddox looked at each of them.
"Yeah, that's us," Jimmy agreed. "Complexx, with two xes."
"They never stop playing your song," Maddox laughed. "Uh, which is a good thing, I mean."
"We think so," Zack nodded. "This is Adam, by the way," he pointed to Adam, giving him no choice but to move.
"Oh, yeah, I'm Adam," Adam reached forward to shake hands with Maddox, his hand shaking so stupidly hard there was no way Dax could miss it.
"It's great to meet you," Maddox gave Adam's hand a little squeeze. He'd definitely noticed.
"We've wanted to meet you for so long," Zack sat down next to Maddox. "We keep trying but there was always something that came up."
"I hope that wasn't my fault."
"No, no, like our schedules just didn't work out," Jimmy insisted. Maddox nodded and looked at each of the guys again. Adam made himself look away. He had to stop staring. Had to.
"Wait, which one of you is the gay guy?" Maddox asked. Adam was pretty sure his heart couldn't beat any louder. "Oh, sorry, that's rude," Maddox corrected himself.
"We get that a lot," Zack bit his lip.
"Sorry, it's probably annoying," Maddox shook his head.
"It does get old," Tyler spoke up.
"Sorry," Maddox said again.
"Can we take a picture together?" Zack asked suddenly.
"Zack," Jimmy rolled his eyes.
"What? I'm allowed to ask," Zack insisted.
"Yeah, let's do that," Maddox agreed, standing up. "Come here," he looked right at Adam. It took Adam a few seconds before he could move but he made himself stand next to Maddox and prayed he wouldn't pass out.
"We need someone to take it for us," Zack looked around.
"Nate!" Maddox shouted at a random guy walking by. "Take a picture of us?"
"Okay, move in," Nate coached. Maddox reached for Adam's hand and moved Adam's arm around his waist, then put his arms around Adam and Zack.
"Wait!" Brent rushed forward, pushing his way through the crowd of people.
"Oh, Brent," Jimmy sighed. "Wait for Brent," he told everyone.
Adam was sure he would pass out then. There was no way out of it anymore. He was going to have to see Maddox and Brent together.
"I can't believe you were gonna do this without me," Brent huffed. He pushed his way in between Zack and Maddox.
"We waited all night," Zack pointed out. They had to stop talking to smile for the pictures.
"Thanks!" Jimmy said when Nate was done. Maddox gave Adam a little squeeze before he started to pull his arm away. Adam took his time letting go of Maddox, a little afraid that when he wasn't holding on anymore his legs would give out.
"I like your shirt," Maddox said, sliding his hand over Adam's stomach.
"Um, thanks," Adam caught Maddox's hand. Why was he still touching him?
"I bought him that shirt," Brent tried to interrupt but Maddox ignored him. He was still looking when Adam looked up and for a few seconds Adam couldn't look away. Dax was...perfect. Maddox smirked at him.
"I um," Adam couldn't make himself speak but he knew he had to say something. Anything to get out of there.
"Isn't it time to call your girlfriend?" Brent interrupted again, saving Adam.
"Yeah, I really should," Adam looked down and Maddox turned away. He got his phone out to call Ainsley. She'd texted a few times but he hadn't replied so he had a good excuse to call her.
"She's a nice girl, but she's kind of high maintenance," Brent was saying as Adam walked away.
By the time Adam finished talking to Ainsley, the party was getting loud. Tyler and his girlfriend were leaving. Jimmy and Zack were sitting with some older girls - way older, in Zack's case - who looked like they were mostly just laughing at them instead of taking it seriously.
"Hey, where did Brent go?" Adam asked, sitting next to Zack.
"I think he left, he said to tell Jeff and Monroe he wasn't feeling great," Zack shrugged. "Are you gonna go see Ainsley?"
"No, she's filming in Atlanta," Adam told him. He got his phone back out to check on Brent but Brent didn't text him back.
Adam didn't hear from Brent at all before he went to bed that night. He really hoped it was because he was at home asleep but Brent usually woke up every time Adam texted. The longer it took, the more Adam worried.
It wasn't until breakfast the next morning that Adam heard back. Jeff and Monroe had taken him out for breakfast and they were waiting for their food when Brent texted.
Brent: Um, random, I know
Brent: But could you come get me? I need a ride.
Adam: Like to the airport?
Brent: No, um, now.
Adam must have made a weird face because Jeff asked him what was wrong.
"Um, can I go get Brent?" Adam asked. "He says he needs a ride."
"Now?" Monroe looked at Jeff.
"Yeah," Adam waited for Brent to explain but he didn't say anything else.
"Well, yeah, go ahead," Jeff handed over the keys. "We'll wait here."
"Oh my god, this is like the closest you and I have come to a date all year," Monroe laughed, reaching for Jeff's hand.
"Drive safe," Jeff warned. Adam nodded and texted Brent that he was on the way.
Brent: I'll send the address, just text when you get here.
Adam already knew where Brent would be but that didn't stop him from feeling sick as he pulled up to Scooter's house. Brent came outside a few minutes later, still in his clothes from the night before and grinning like crazy.
"You stayed here all night?" Adam knew that was a stupid question.
"With Dax," Brent sighed, fastening his seat belt. "Oh my god, Adam, I am in love with him."
"Wow," Adam wondered if he should be driving. He was lightheaded and still felt sick.
"I know, that sounds so crazy," Brent kept making the happiest sighs. "He's just more amazing than I ever knew. He's such a strong person and so...normal, if that makes sense. I could talk to him for hours and never get tired of it. Oh my god, and the sex was...wow, he definitely knew what he was doing."
"You had sex with him?"
"Twice! I know, I broke my rule, but Maddox gets a pass," Brent insisted. "Just this once."
"Hm," Adam couldn't think of anything to say to that. He really wanted Brent to stop talking about it but of course he didn't.
"Oh, wait, don't take me home!" Brent protested. "I told my mom I was staying with you last night. She's going to drop my stuff off at Jeff and Monroe's."
"You did?"
"I couldn't tell her I was staying with Maddox!"
"Okay, I just...what if she says something to Jeff or Monroe?"
"We'll just keep them apart," Brent insisted. "It's fine. Oh my god, Adam, I can't even tell you. That was everything. He's better than I imagined in like every way."
Adam gripped the steering wheel, trying harder to keep from pulling into the oncoming traffic on the other side of the road than he did to listen to Brent going on and on. He could taste soap in his mouth, which made no sense, but it gave Adam something else to think about.
After a few more minutes, Adam heard Brent stop talking suddenly. He glanced over to see why he'd stopped. Brent was asleep. He'd actually fallen asleep in the middle of his sentence.
At least that meant the car was quiet for the rest of the drive. Adam pulled into the restaurant where he'd left Monroe and Jeff, not at all interested in the breakfast he'd ordered anymore.
"Oh, you didn't," Monroe gasped when they walked up.
"Hm?" Jeff glanced at Adam and Brent.
"He told his mom he stayed with me last night," Adam couldn't take it. Brent shoved him but Adam ignored it and sat down. Brent scooted into the seat next to him.
"Were you with Maddox?" Monroe looked at Brent and then at Jeff and back at Brent.
"Am I in trouble?" Brent looked worried. "I was, I was safe the whole time. Scooter was there. He didn't know I was there until this morning but-"
"Shh," Jeff shook his head. "As long as no one knows but us, you're not in trouble."
"No one knows," Brent insisted. "I only have one picture of us together and it's totally boring but he looks so cute."
"Oh, you two are really cute together," Monroe grinned, looking at the picture which, of course, was already Brent's lock screen.
"But you have to take that off your lock screen," Jeff shook his head. "No one can see that."
"We're barely even touching! We have all our clothes on!"
"I know it doesn't make sense right now, but please," Jeff sighed.
Adam could feel his appetite returning and reached for his plate, hoping his food wasn't cold. He tried not to notice the look on Brent's face when he changed the picture back to the same plain Complexx logo all the other guys had on their phones.
"Can I have a bite? I'm starving," Brent asked, taking Adam's fork without waiting for an answer.
"I'll get the server," Jeff offered.
"Has he texted yet?" Monroe asked. "I have so many questions. I do not miss random one night stands, ugh."
"No, but he probably won't," Brent sighed. "I don't know. He said he would but..."
"He probably just fell asleep," Adam huffed. "He'll text you. Why wouldn't he? You just gave him birthday sex or whatever."
"You think?"
"Yeah, I do," Adam had to choke the words out. He couldn't force himself to smile, not even when Brent hugged him a second later.
"I hope you're right," Brent put his head on Adam's shoulder. "You're such a good friend, I don't know what I'd do without you."
Adam bit his tongue and kept his eyes on his plate. He couldn't think of a worse way for the day to start. Maybe his dad would show up and then it could be an extra bad day.
Jeff and Monroe didn't say a word to Brent's mom when she thanked them for letting Brent stay with them. She cried when she hugged Brent goodbye and kept crying when she hugged Adam.
"Will she be okay?" Adam asked as they carried their stuff to the car.
"Yeah, she does that all the time," Brent shrugged. "It's a mom thing."
"I wouldn't know," Adam dropped his suitcase in the trunk. He checked his backpack to make sure he had headphones with him for the plane. The last thing he wanted was to be stuck listening to Brent tell the story again when they met the other guys at the airport.
Their flight to Denver was mercifully short. As soon as they landed, they had to go right to work - rehearsing for the show, recording an interview at a local radio station and, of course, doing their required schoolwork for the day.
"Can you just let me take the test to graduate today?" Tyler groaned. "I don't care how well I do as long as I pass. Please?"
"Not a chance," their teacher shook her head. "Keep working."
"At least you guys don't have as much time left as I do," Zack mumbled. He had only just started the high school program so he had a lot longer to go than everyone else.
"Oh my god," Brent gasped. His eyes were wide and his face had gotten really pale. "Maddox just texted me."
"Yes!" Tyler jumped up and ran around the table to look at Brent's phone. Brent flipped it over before Tyler could see. "Are you serious? What did he say?"
"Dick pic," Jimmy coughed.
"Come on," Adam protested. He'd hoped he was done hearing about Maddox Bieber, at least for a few hours anyway. His pulse started jumping around again.
"Seriously, back off," Brent glared at Jimmy, obviously missing that Adam wasn't defending him.
"How about we all focus on our work?" their teacher suggested. "And put away our phones?"
"Sorry," Brent waited until she wasn't looking and typed a quick reply to Maddox.
Adam did everything he could to ignore Brent for the rest of the day. It wasn't hard because as soon as school was done, Brent was on his phone. While Adam tried to distract himself by texting Ainsley, she was busy filming so she wasn't much help.
After dinner, Jeff and Monroe tried to send them right to bed. Adam was happy to go to his room until he learned he had to share a room with Brent. There was just no way to escape.
As the days went on, it all got worse. Every time Adam tried to talk to Brent all he wanted to talk about was Maddox. Brent almost always had his phone in his hand.
"I'm serious, Adam, I can't believe this is actually happening," Brent announced one night. They were each in their own beds, with the lights out, but Brent pretty much always talked until he fell asleep. "Every day I think he's going to get bored with me and stop texting back but he never does. Did I tell you he loves caramel as much as me? That's crazy, right?"
"So crazy," Adam had learned to just agree. It was easier than trying to have an actual conversation.
"I want to see him again, so bad," Brent sighed. "I asked him to come to one of our shows in L.A. but that's so long to wait. When does Ainsley come visit again?"
"Two weeks."
"You're so lucky you can see her that soon. Is it weird to miss someone you've only met one time? Because I miss Dax."
"I don't know," Adam sighed. "I miss my best friend."
He hadn't meant to say it, but it was true. He missed having normal conversations with Brent, ones about anything other than Maddox. Even when they were working Brent found a way to mention how Maddox would do one thing or what Maddox thought about another thing.
"Aww, Adam," Brent moved but Adam couldn't see what he was doing in the dark until he felt the bed sink. "I'm sorry, I know I'm a little obsessed," he hugged Adam.
"You're completely obsessed," Adam was really glad there were blankets between them. Brent wasn't wearing a shirt.
"I know. I've just never felt this way about anyone before," Brent didn't get up like Adam thought he would. He just lay there, his arm still around Adam's waist. "I didn't mean to get annoying though."
"It's not that it's annoying, I just don't know how to talk to you anymore."
"Ugh. I'm still here. I'll try to stop."
"Thanks," Adam waited for Brent to move but he didn't.
"Your hair smells good."
"It should, I just washed it."
"I want your shampoo."
"It's in my bag, just use it next time," Adam took a deep breath. He'd brushed his teeth in the shower so he knew his breath was okay but what if he started sweating? His heart was jumping around.
"How's Ainsley? Do you miss her?"
"A little," Adam nodded. "I think, anyway. She's nice to be around."
"I don't know if I could do it," Brent sighed. "Sometimes even I forget it's not real when I see you two together. Do you ever wish it was?"
"I mean," Adam hadn't thought about it that much. "I don't know. I like the idea but I don't really know how to be in a real relationship. And no one would want me, you know? I'm such a mess."
"You're not a mess," Brent hugged him again, squeezing really tight. "I love you, Adam, anyone would be lucky to have you."
"I don't know," Adam wanted to hug back but he was afraid to move. His heart was racing so fast.
A voice in the back of his head pointed out he probably wouldn't have such a hard time being close to a girl like he was close to Brent right then. Adam sighed. He was so tired of those thoughts, all of them.
"I do know. And one day you'll see," Brent finally loosened his hold on Adam. "One day you'll meet someone who thinks about you like I think about Maddox and then you'll know too."
"I really doubt that," Adam knew it was impossible. There were too many reasons it would never work.
"Trust me," Brent went on, like he was suddenly some great expert. A few months earlier, Adam probably would have believed every word but that night he knew better. It wasn't like Brent and Dax were even dating yet. So what did he know?
It took forever, but Adam finally started to drift off. Brent was still talking, so Adam tried to stay awake but then he heard Brent stop mid-sentence and knew Brent had fallen asleep too. Adam fell asleep trying to remember if he'd ever felt so cozy and safe in a bed before.
Morning was brutal. The alarm went off, shocking Adam awake. He was more startled to see Brent still there, still holding onto him. And worse, Brent didn't wake up. Adam could barely reach the alarm to stop it.
Brent woke up went Adam moved, but he didn't move away. Instead, he started rubbing Adam's side.
"Um, we have to get up," Adam tried to tell him.
"I know," Brent yawned. "Mm, not ready yet."
"Okay, but can you let me go?"
"Just give me 5 minutes," Brent begged, shifting a little. "You're so warm."
That was when Adam felt it. For no reason, other than his pure bad luck, he started getting hard. Adam panicked and pushed Brent's hand away.
"Move," he ordered. "Please."
"Ugh," Brent rolled over and, thankfully, closed his eyes.
Adam made it to the bathroom without Brent seeing him but his heart didn't slow down until they were on their way to breakfast. What was he thinking? What was Brent thinking? Guys didn't just sleep in the same bed with another guy for no reason, right?
The question bugged him all day, especially since Brent acted completely normal after that, like it hadn't even happened. He went right back to obsessing over Maddox, barely putting his phone down except when they were on stage for their show that night.
Even when they were back in their room after the show, Brent was still texting Maddox when Adam went to sleep. Apparently it meant nothing to Brent to sleep in Adam's bed. So why couldn't Adam let it go?
When he talked to his counselor that week she wasn't much help. She just told Adam it was normal to have questions and if he really wanted to know why Brent had done it, he would have to ask him. But Adam had no plans to ask Brent so he figured he would just never know.
A few nights and two cities later, they were all meeting in Monroe and Jeff's room to go over their schedule for the next day. Every show sold more tickets than the one before. Their single was number 3 on iTunes and their album was jumping around in the top 5. They hadn't reached number 1 yet but the managers were sure it was just because Maddox had a new music video out and that they would get there soon.
"We don't have to beat Maddox," Brent insisted when Jeff said to give it another week. "Maybe we never will. I'm okay with that."
"I'm not. We're definitely going to take that number 1 spot," Jimmy argued.
"Dax can take it," Monroe smiled.
"He's not even that good," Jimmy seemed to want to die. Adam prayed Brent never looked at him the way he was glaring at Jimmy.
"Can we not do this again?" Tyler groaned. "Look, there's room at the top, okay? No one can be up there forever. We need to sell albums just as much as Dax does. Probably more because he's already loaded."
"This is not about money!" Brent protested.
"Speak for yourself," Jimmy huffed.
"Okay, calm down," Jeff held up his hands. "Look, you may not care how much money you make but the point is you can't do what you love if no one's listening. So yes, charting matters. Sales follow. It's a cycle. Let's just stay focused on doing our best show tomorrow and the rest will fall into place."
"Besides, your boyfriend should be just as happy to see you at number 1 as you are to see him up there," Monroe added. Adam's heart stopped. Boyfriend?
"I know, and he's not my boyfriend. Yet," Brent's phone chimed just as he said it and he got that smile on his face that shattered Adam's heart every time. God, how stupid could he be? If it hurt him so bad to see Brent happy with someone else, wasn't it obvious?
"Just ask him already," Tyler rolled his eyes. "This is torture to watch."
"Or don't," Jeff gave Monroe a look.
"That ship..." Monroe didn't finish his sentence but even Adam knew what he was going to say. He felt like screaming.
"Are we done? Maddox wants to Facetime," Brent looked like he was so happy he was about to jump out of his chair. "Can you believe that? He actually wants to see me."
"Yeah, we're done," Monroe rolled his eyes. "Go on. Don't stay up too late."
"Ah!" Brent ran, apparently forgetting he had the only key to the room he and Adam were sharing. Adam bit his tongue so he wouldn't start crying in front of everyone.
"Come hang out with us," Jimmy nudged him. "You don't want to be in that room right now, I can promise."
"Actually, I need Adam's help with something," Monroe spoke up. "He'll catch up. Go ahead."
"I don't have a key," Adam reminded Monroe.
"I have the spare," Monroe got up and grabbed a new water bottle. He watched the other boys leave the room and then turned to Jeff. "Don't you have calls to make?"
"Are you kicking me out?"
"Yes," Monroe kissed him. "Give us an hour."
"Alright," Jeff kissed his cheek and picked up his backpack. "Text me when it's safe to come back."
"Will do," Monroe shut the door behind Jeff and turned back to Adam. "So, I have a feeling you've probably figured out by now that I want a baby pretty much more than anything in the world."
"Um, kind of," Adam had no idea what a baby had to do with anything but he did want to know the story.
"Do you know Jeff doesn't want kids?"
"At all?"
"Not at all," Monroe shook his head as he sat back down. "I've been begging for years. He won't change his mind. We were so close to signing adoption papers and then...Complexx happened."
"So it really is our fault," Adam realized.
"No, it's really that I married a man who doesn't want a family," Monroe sighed. "And I can't change that. I can't make him someone who loves kids like I do. He loves music and managing musicians is all he wants to do for the rest of his life."
"But you love babies so..."
"So when you have kids, I'll spoil the shit out of them," Monroe shrugged. "I don't know. I love my job too. Not as much as Jeff loves his. But I love that we can do this together and having a family would mean giving that up. So I chose to let go of my dream, at least for now, because sometimes you have to do that for the person you love."
"That's really sad."
"It is, and it hurts a lot," Monroe nodded. "Probably kind of like how it hurts you to see Brent get excited to talk to Maddox."
"Maybe," Adam wasn't sure the two things were that much alike but seeing how happy Dax made Brent did hurt.
"You love him, don't you?"
"I..." Adam took a deep breath but a tear spilled over anyway. "Do. I love him a lot. And I don't know what that means but...are you saying I have to let go because I love him?"
"Yes. Because right now, Maddox is all Brent can see. If you get in the way of that, you might lose him. But Maddox won't be around forever. You'll get your chance."
"My chance," Adam repeated. He thought back to the night Brent told him one day someone would look at him like Brent looked at Maddox. "I'll never have that."
"You will," Monroe nodded. "If you want it."
"I wish I could. But Brent would never look at me like he looks at Dax."
"He might. He loves you an awful lot and I think he's just put up a wall because he doesn't know he can have you," Monroe shrugged. "Once you tell him you're gay then maybe-"
"What?" Adam interrupted. He was just starting to believe Monroe but hearing that word killed everything. Guilt poured into him. "No, no, no."
"Oh shit," Monroe groaned. "Adam, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to-"
"I am not gay," Adam was shocked when he heard how strong his own voice sounded. And so clear. How long had it been since he'd last been able to say it? "I'm not gay."
"I hear you," Monroe tried to say something else but Adam didn't let him finish.
"Brent and I will never be together, okay? So stop it," Adam went for the door. "And stop trying to be my dad. I already have one."
The look on Monroe's face almost killed him so Adam rushed out of the room. He remembered he didn't have a key just as soon as he reached the door to the room he and Brent were sharing. Instead of knocking, he sat down on the floor.
He'd finally said it. For the first time in months he'd been able to say the words. I'm not gay. Not only had he said it, but he actually sounded convincing when he said it. That had to mean something, it had to. Especially since he'd just started thinking maybe he was gay.
But Adam had been in counseling for almost 2 months so maybe he was closer to having it all figured out than he thought. Why else would he finally be able to say the words that had choked him for months? It didn't feel like a lie. He wasn't gay. He just loved Brent. Maybe he didn't even really love Brent. Maybe he was just confused because he spent so much time with him.
Adam waited in the hall until Brent was done talking to Maddox. He pretended to listen as Brent went on and on about how great it was seeing Dax, even if it was just over Facetime. And every time he started to feel jealous or sad, Adam pushed the feelings away.
The only problem after that was Monroe. For a few days he barely even looked at Adam. When he finally did start speaking to him, he always seemed annoyed and impatient. As bad as Adam felt about what he'd said, he didn't want to bring it up and make things worse. So he pretended not to notice that Monroe was upset at him. Or tried to.
Ainsley and her manager, Tris, showed up for their visit a week after the conversation with Monroe. Adam had completely forgotten how overwhelming Ainsley could be. They had lunch together that day and by the end Adam wondered how he was going to get through three whole days with her talking nonstop and always finding reasons to touch him.
He had a short break from her while he was performing that night but she was waiting for him when he got off stage. The other guys kept their distance. Adam couldn't tell if that was because they were as overwhelmed by Ainsley as he was or if they were just trying to give them space.
"You were amazing out there," Ainsley put her arm around him. "I don't normally like boy band type music but I'm like, honestly becoming a fan."
"Thanks," Adam wasn't sure what to say to that. "I need to change."
"I'll be on the tour bus," Ainsley kissed his cheek and let him go.
Adam took his time changing but he couldn't avoid it forever. Jeff rushed them through the dressing room and out to the bus so they could beat the crowd getting out of the stadium. Adam was amazed every time he saw people lining up to wait for a chance to see them.
"We'll get used to it," Jimmy put his sunglasses on even though it was dark outside.
"You never get used to it," Ainsley made a face. "It just gets annoying. But I'm always surprised people care what I'm doing."
"I don't want to get used to it," Adam decided. Ainsley smiled at him and put her head on his shoulder.
"You're so sweet," she whispered. "Are you tired? I'm tired and all I did was watch."
"Yeah, I am," Adam had an idea. If she thought he was really tired then he wouldn't have to hang out with her when they got to the hotel. "Changing time zones is really hard too, morning gets earlier every day."
"Aw, poor baby."
That seemed to do the trick. She didn't say anything about spending time together that night on the drive to the hotel.
To Adam's surprise, there were actually fans waiting at their hotel too. 10 girls and a few of their moms were in the lobby. The boys signed autographs for all of them and took pictures. Adam was still trying to figure out how the girls found them when Monroe started passing out their room keys for the night.
"And last but not least, Adam and Ainsley," Monroe held out the key card. Adam just stared at it.
"You mean," Adam looked at Monroe. "We're sharing a room?"
"Yes, that's what I mean," Monroe put the key in Adam's hand. "I'm not your dad, remember?"
Adam's chest was too tight to breathe. Monroe was actually going to make him share a room with a girl? Alone?
"Come on, I know you're exhausted," Ainsley took Adam's hand. He had to follow her but he still couldn't believe it was happening.
"Please do get some sleep though," Jeff called after them.
Adam's pulse quickened when he heard Jimmy and Tyler laughing. Why would Monroe do this to him? Didn't he understand what could happen? Adam tried to keep breathing but when Ainsley opened the door and Adam saw there was only one bed in the room he really started to lose it.
All of his father's warnings, everything their church leaders had drilled into him over and over ran through Adam's mind. Even his conversation with Brent about telling Ainsley they had to slow down repeated for him. Adam heard the door click shut behind him and lost all hope. He had no idea what might happen over the next 3 nights but he knew it wasn't good.
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A/N: After all these years, Comedown is still one of my favorite chapters in this series because it's always the start of Braddox, no matter which book you're in. The new version is up in Haunted as well so go check it out when you have a chance, please!