by Tia Siren
“Bailey’s got a new single out,” Wayne said.
“Yeah, it was playing on WCHR when we were pulling in,” I said.
“She’s so talented,” said Bailey’s father. “I can’t even put into words how proud I am of her. She’s done more in her twenties than I’ve done my whole life.”
“Yeah,” I said. My stomach knotted up.
“She was always so scared that she wasn’t gonna make it,” said Wayne. “I knew she would. I knew she was going to make it big. I only wish her mother was still here to see it.”
“I’m sure she wishes that, too,” I said.
“She’s a real sweet girl,” he continued. “Have you two talked lately?”
“No,” I answered. “I haven’t talked to Bailey in a long time.”
“She asks about you sometimes,” said Wayne with raised eyebrows. “Just so you know.”
I hated the idea that my name even entered her thoughts, let alone escaped her lips. I couldn’t look at Wayne whenever he spoke about her.
“You should call her sometime,” suggested Wayne. “Or, you could even go see her. Tennessee isn’t so far away.”
“Maybe,” I said. I really meant no way. “I am happy that she has found success. She deserves it.”
“You could’ve found success too, you know,” said Wayne.
I chuckled. Gina came back once she saw that my glasses were empty.
“I’m good for now,” I told her.
“How long you two been working at Mel’s, anyway?” Wayne asked.
“About three years,” I replied. “You still working at the paper mill?”
“Sure am,” he answered. “It’ll have been thirty years for me next February.”
“Wow, congrats,” I said.
“Cheers!” Garrett added.
“You know,” I told Wayne. “If you wanted, I could come by sometime next week and check out your A/C and heat for you. No charge. It’s on the house.”
“That’d be so nice,” he said. “That’s so generous. Thank you, Darren.”
“Of course!”
“Or, and you can say no,” said Wayne. “maybe you could come on by tomorrow for dinner? It shouldn’t take long to look my system over. Let me pay you back with a good home-cooked meal. I’ll grill us up some steaks. What do you think?”
Part of me felt like I couldn’t say no. “Okay. Sounds good to me!”
Wayne didn’t stick around for much longer after that. We all had a few more drinks, shook hands, and he departed.
Garrett and I kept our eyes on the screens, watching the games in progress. I couldn’t stop thinking about Bailey and our past.
Fortunately, I didn’t have to think about her for much longer. My eyes soon found a woman sitting on the other side of the bar, nursing a margarita and glancing at me.
“Wayne’s a good guy,” Garrett said. “You think he’s onto something about reconnecting with Bailey?”
“Eh,” I said as I stared at the woman.
“You know she’d get back with you if you asked,” he said. “Even if you two didn’t want to try and work things out, you know you could always try and be friends again. There’s nothing wrong with friends.”
“I ain’t looking for friends,” I said as I downed my last shot. “I’m gonna go end my drought.”
I left Garrett and went to talk to the woman. Garrett and I often floated around bars and clubs whenever we saw girls we liked. So it wasn’t like I was abandoning him.
Truthfully, I wasn’t really talking to the girl at the bar because I was horny and absolutely needed sex. I couldn’t stand to have any more conversations centered on Bailey. I didn’t want to spend any more time reflecting on our past. Especially since I’d put in a lot of effort to forget about her.
Chapter 2
Bailey
Even though I’d been putting out music for several years, and some of my songs had gained a certain level of popularity, I would never grow tired of hearing my songs being played over the radio.
I was driving through downtown Memphis on a beautiful Saturday afternoon as I heard “Where Are You Now” playing through my car speakers. I didn’t enjoy hearing my song for some perverted ego gratification. I loved knowing how far I’d come. It was still surreal to hear my voice coming over the same airwaves as many of my favorite artists.
I was on my way to Gracie’s, a nice little diner that was open all day and night. I was meeting up with Leah Samson, my manager and also my best friend. I realize that most people think you shouldn’t work with your friends, but my philosophy when picking out a manager was to find someone who I could trust. Leah had been one of my closest friends since college, and we trusted each other completely. Luckily for me, she was going to school to make a career in entertainment management. While she’d been looking for “the big client,” she started helping me in her spare time. Now, years later, I turned into her big client.
Leah already had a booth for us at Gracie’s when I arrived. She was smiling wide and looked like she was ready to burst.
“I thought you were never going to show up!” said Leah.
We gave each other a quick hug and plopped down in our booth.
“I was playing around with a new song I’m trying to perfect,” I told her. “Sorry I’m late.”
“Please, if you were working, then don’t apologize,” she said. “Help me help you.”
“Why do you look so happy today?” I asked.
She smiled. “Why wouldn’t I be happy? Why aren’t you happy? You’re the one that’s climbing the charts!”
“As if!” I said. “ ‘Where Are You Now’ was just released. We haven’t had time to get plays or views let alone climb the charts.”
She slid her phone over to me. I took it and looked. Sure enough, even though I didn’t believe what I was seeing, my song and I were on the Billboard Top 100.
“Get the hell out of here,” I said in disbelief.
“You debuted at number 72.”
“This is so surreal.” I hadn’t blinked since I saw the chart.
“Your last single reached 91,” she reminded me. “And, that took weeks. We just put out ‘Where Are You Now,’ and you’re up higher than Luke Bryan, Rihanna and Maroon 5. I’m telling you, this is going to be the hit that makes you.”
I could feel my cheeks flushing. “You really think so? Maybe it’s a fluke. I’ll probably drop down into the 80s by next week.”
“I’m the one that’s supposed to be pessimistic, not you,” said Leah.
Our waitress came over to take our order. Neither of us had to look at the menu to know what we wanted.
“I’ll have a Cobb salad with a side of avocado,” I requested. “I would like the special herbal tea with it. Thank you.”
“Turkey and cheese panini,” Leah said. “I’ll also have a small bowl of tomato soup. And, I’m good with water, thanks.”
As our waitress went to take care of our order, I found myself staring at my song appearing on a chart alongside some of the most popular artists and songs.
“Isn’t it amazing?” said Leah as she watched my continued bewilderment.
I laughed. “I still don’t believe it. Wow.”
“It’s only going to get better from here,” she said. “Have you decided which track to release next?”
“I just put out a single. Where’s the fire?”
“You’re the fire, Bailey,” she said. “You’re hot right now! We need to keep the fire going so that you’ll go full mainstream.”
“Landing this high on the charts is definitely helping with the mainstream goals,” I said. “I’m not sure which song I should put out next. I’m leaning toward either ‘Beast Coast’ or ‘Candlelight.’”
“I vote ‘Candlelight,’ ” said Leah. “Also, we should really get your tour dates lined up.”
“Leah.”
“Hear me out. For starters, I’ve read lots of fan mail and comments online saying how you should tour. Not only that, but
most people assume you’re touring anyway.”
“Leah,” I said. “We’ve been over this a dozen times.”
“And, it’ll be a dozen more until you pick some dates and commit,” she said. “You need to give the people what they want. It’ll boost you up even higher.”
“I don’t want to tour just yet,” I said. “My fanbase is mostly here, anyway.”
“You’re too humble,” she said. “You have fans all up the east coast. You could sell out places in Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, and Virginia.”
“I think it’s a little premature,” I said. “We’ll go over tour dates another time. In fact, I promise we’ll talk about it if this song makes it into the Top 25.”
“I’ll hold you to that,” she said. “I understand why you don’t want to tour yet. But I’m telling you—not just as your best friend, but as your manager—I think it’s something you should seriously consider.”
“I’ll think about it,” I told her.
“In the meantime, be excited,” said Leah. “You did good. I told you that song was going to be a hit. Glad you listened to me.”
“Excuse me,” I said. “You said to not even release that song! You told me to wait and save it for the album release.”
“No, that’s what I said about ‘Beast Coast,’” Leah said. “But, now that we’ve seen how you’re doing already, I think you could put almost anything from the album out, and it would climb the charts.”
“Let’s not get carried away.”
Our waitress came by with our food in record time, catching us by surprise. While we ate, we stared down at our phones. I kept going back to the Billboard charts to make sure I wasn’t dreaming.
Occasionally, I looked up from my phone and plate and noticed two girls at a nearby table looking over at me. At first, I ignored them. Then, after a while, it began to make me feel weird. I could’ve sworn I saw them taking pictures of me with their phones.
“Leah,” I whispered. “Am I tripping, or do those girls keep staring at me?”
She turned around to look at the girls, who both nervously looked away when they saw her looking at them.
“I don’t know,” Leah replied. “What’s up?”
“It’s probably nothing,” I said. “They were just kind of weirding me out.”
The surreal tidal wave I was riding only continued. The two girls got up from their table and approached us anxiously. Leah and I both looked up at them, waiting for one of them to speak.
Neither of the girls could summon words, so I did it for them. “Hello.”
“Hi,” said the youngest of the two. “I might be totally embarrassing myself right now, but are you—you’re not Bailey Wright, are you?”
And then, it was I who became embarrassed. “Uh, yes.”
“Oh my God,” the other one said, giggling. “Wow. Okay. Yeah, we knew you lived in Memphis, but we had no idea that you went here.”
“I did,” said the youngest. “I follow you on Instagram, Bailey.”
“Really?” I said as I felt my cheeks growing warmer. “Well, thank you!”
“You can totally say no,” said the other girl. “But, would it be possible, if it’s not too much to ask, could we maybe get a picture with you?”
“Absolutely!” I said without thinking. “Sure. Get your phones out!”
Our waitress was able to take the pictures for us. We were all happy for different reasons.
“You know, I just have to say,” I told the girls. “Y’all are the first people to recognize me like this.”
“What?” they both said in shock. “You’ve been making music for years!”
“Wow, you’re real fans!” I said growing more embarrassed. “I get a lot of ‘Where do I know you from’ and ‘I’ve seen you from somewhere.’ This is the first time someone’s known who I was without me having to tell them. Y’all just made my day and made me feel like a real celebrity.”
I hugged the girls, and they returned to their table. We all stayed smiling during the rest of our meals.
“What did I tell you?” prodded Leah. “Go on tour.”
“That was really special,” I said. I couldn’t believe it. “I really feel famous now.”
Even though I wouldn’t admit it to Leah, I did get a rush from that feeling. Now, the idea of performing for a large number of fans seemed more sensible to me. I’d had a taste, and I was ready to have more.
I headed to the studio so I could record the song I’d be dabbling with. I’d thought of calling my dad on my way over to tell him about my blossoming celebrity status.
Before I could call him, he called me, as if he knew he was on my mind.
“Hey, Dad!” I answered.
“Hey there, famous pop star!” he greeted. “Heard you on the radio this morning!”
“So did I!” I said. “I can’t believe it.”
“When are you releasing your next song?” he asked. “I want to hear more.”
“I’m really not sure,” I answered. “I haven’t made up my mind on which one to put out when.”
“Well, I can’t wait to hear it.”
“I can send you all the tracks on the album now if you want to hear them,” I told him. “You’re my dad. I think I can get away with giving you an exclusive preview.”
“Great! Send them to me!”
“Hey, so guess what?” I said. “I got on the Billboard Top 100. I debuted at number 72! That’s the highest I’ve ever gotten!”
He laughed. “Hot damn, superstar! Good things I’ve got your signature on all sorts of stuff lying around the house. I’ll be sitting on a gold mine by the time your new CD comes out.”
“Ha, ha,” I said. “If I became rich and famous, you wouldn’t need to sell my autograph. I’d move you into a big house here in Tennessee.”
“I was thinking maybe a nice beach house in Florida would be better.”
I laughed. “You can live wherever you want! I’m actually on my way to record some new stuff at the studio right now. I’m about to pull in.”
“Okay,” he said. “Remind me to talk to you about something. I ran into somebody at the bar yesterday, and I’d like to talk to you about it.”
“Okay!” I said. “Also, I want you to know I’ll be coming back to Rome for your birthday next month. I can’t wait to see you.”
“Well then, it’ll be the best birthday ever,” he said. “Darling, I’m so proud of you. And, I’m so happy that you’re doing so well. I knew you were gonna make it.”
“Ah, shucks,” I said. “Well, listen. I don’t want to rush and get off the phone, but I’m like a minute away from the studio and I need to hurry.”
“Okay, honey, no worries,” said my dad. “I’ll talk with you later.”
“All right! Love you, Dad.”
“Love you too, Bailey-bug.”
I hung up, giving myself just enough time to reapply makeup and brush my long sandy blonde hair. As I looked in the rearview mirror, I tried to imagine what I might look like on the cover of my album.
I felt bad about only talking with my dad for a few minutes, but I was happy to have heard his voice. I planned to set aside some time the next day to call him back and have a better, thorough conversation.
Chapter 3
Darren
I was lounging around my house all day on Saturday, recovering from a hard week of work and a long Friday night of drinking and sloppy-drunk sexual acts. I was either in my recliner or on the couch relaxing with Bo, my golden retriever.
My house was small, but it was comfortable. It was a perfect fit for Bo and me. There was plenty of room for both of us, even though I was a tall guy, and he was a big dog. I’d made sure there was also a decent backyard for him to romp around in.
My plan was to wait for Wayne to give me a call whenever he was ready for me to come on over for dinner. However, as the afternoon turned into evening and the sun had finished setting, I began to wonder if Wayne had a change of heart and didn’t want me t
o come over after all. I’d never known him to blow someone off without a call or text, so I tried texting and calling him. He didn’t respond.
“Wonder what’s up,” I said to Bo. “Why isn’t he calling, bud?”
Bo’s expression remained the same.
I sighed. “Yeah, I don’t know either.”
I tried calling Wayne again, petting Bo as I did. After getting his voicemail again, I grew concerned.
“I’m probably over-thinking it,” I said. “But, for some reason, I feel like something’s off.”
Bo cocked his head and began to pant.
“That’s what I thought,” I said. “Let’s go over and make sure he’s okay.”
I assumed he wouldn’t mind seeing me arrive unannounced, considering he was expecting me anyway. He wasn’t expecting me to bring a canine companion with me, but Bailey had dogs growing up, so I figured he wouldn’t mind me bringing Bo along.
We hopped in the Focus and took off down the street toward Wayne’s house. I avoided turning on the radio for fear of what I might hear. It didn’t long to get to his road. It was unusually slow for a Saturday evening.
His truck was parked out front, and his grill was out in the driveway. It didn’t appear to be on, but he was certainly preparing to use it.
Bo and I both hopped out of the car and walked up to the front door. I knocked once. No answer.
I could hear a TV on inside; it sounded like a football game was playing. I didn’t hear any activity going on other than that, so I wondered if maybe he was in a sound sleep.
I knocked again, louder that time in case he was passed out. Bo and I waited for about a minute, but still, there was no answer. I pulled out my phone, considering making another call.
Bo started to whimper, making peculiar noises as he stared at the door.
“What’s up, pal?” I asked him. “What’s bothering you?”
Bo looked up at me, keeping his whimpering going. I couldn’t read him, and my concern only intensified the longer I waited.
I knocked again. “Wayne?” I called out. “Wayne, you home?”
Nothing. I wasn’t sure what proper protocol would be, but I felt compelled to push my boundaries. I grabbed his doorknob, slowly twisted it, and thankfully, the door was unlocked.
