by J. O Mantel
“Really? I don't think so, Jake. I know how much Sienna means to you, you've been around her most of your life and it's only natural that you'd have feelings like this. I just don't think it's fair that she and I are with someone and we're happy and you're not.”
The water in the bathroom stopped, Ivy and Jake looked at one another, “Look, why don't you go to the Dark Falkon concert with Sienna. She was meant to be taking me, but I'm not really fussed if I don't go, you can have my ticket.”
“Seriously? That's the last place I’d want to go. I'd rather watch One Direction in concert. That guy is the reason I'm feeling like-” he stopped short and turned away.
“What? Who are you talking about, Jake?”
“No one, forget it.”
Ivy stared at him, after a few seconds she clicked.
“Oh my god! Jake please tell me you're not seriously jealous of Lukas Dark?”
His silence answered her question.
“Jake that is the most absurd thing I have ever heard.”
“Is it?”
“Yes!”
“Why?” He asked.
“Jake, he's a rock star. Yeah sure he's great looking, but he's a rock star, Sienna wouldn't stand a chance.”
“Why not?”
“It's a crush, Jake. Sienna has no hope of getting with Lukas. How many fans fantasize about their idols? Millions! But they are just fantasies, nothing more.”
“That doesn't mean she doesn't stand a chance. You hear about it all the time on the news, celebrities marrying ordinary, everyday people who aren't in the spotlight. I know I shouldn’t be jealous, but it’s a bit hard not to be. I just wish it was me, that I was the one that she wanted to be with. You know, just an ordinary, everyday guy.”
“That's like one in a million...a billion even. Trust me Jake, you have no reason to be jealous. If anything, Jesse is the one you should be jealous over. He's the one she's with, not Lukas. But like I've already told you, you can change that, all you have to do is tell her how you feel,” Ivy explained.
“Wow! You're giving me relationship advice? I never thought I'd see the day, Ivy.”
The bathroom door flung open, Sienna walked out wrapped in a towel, her hair was soaking wet.
“Oh, hey babe, give me a couple of minutes to get ready,” Sienna acknowledged Ivy. She closed the door to her room and Ivy and Jake were alone once more.
“It's killing you isn't it? Seeing her practically naked in front of you.”
“You would think, after all these years it would get easier, Ivy.”
“But it's not, is it? It's only making it harder for you,” Ivy could see the disappointment that had suddenly appeared on his face. Lately, he wasn't the cheerful and chirpy Jake that she knew. Although he had said he was happy for her, Ivy knew too well that he was only saying that so that she wouldn't worry about him.
A few minutes later, Sienna's door opened. Her hair was loose, and neatly combed. She grabbed her handbag and phone from the sofa and headed to the door.
“Ready?” She asked Ivy.
“Yep!”
“You two have fun, enjoy your day off and the “girl talk,” Jake said, sarcastically.
“Oh, we will. What are your plans for the day, Jake?” Sienna asked.
“I'm actually meeting with the band today. The album is officially ready and we are picking it up this afternoon.”
“Wow! That's awesome, congratulations,” Sienna replied.
“Congratulations, Jake. That's awesome news,” Ivy said.
“Thanks, guys. Now, go! Have fun.”
They exited and closed the door behind them, leaving Jake alone with his thoughts. The girls sat at their regular cafe where they had lunch. Sienna enjoyed a Greek salad, while Ivy chose the Porterhouse steak and a bottle of wine between them.
“So, babe! I haven't seen you in a while, how's things with Dick?”
“Pretty good I must admit. We're both really happy.”
“You're looking happy, I did notice that. I'm so happy for you and proud of you too for moving on from Jake. I'm glad you didn't wait around for him to make up his mind, otherwise you would have missed this opportunity with Dick.” Sienna continued with her salad while Ivy struggled with her steak.
“I think Jake has a lot going on at the moment. He did say that the band had finally finished their album. I'm no rock star, but I can imagine the kind of stress he's going through. The last thing he needs right now is a relationship to make his life more stressful.”
“And yet, you gave me a hard time when I told you that I didn't have time for a relationship because I was concentrating on my career. I see how it is,” Sienna said.
“It's not like that, you know what I mean. It's different for us females. Speaking of which, how's Jesse?”
“He's great. Everything's going really well. He and a couple of his mates have gone to Boston for the weekend, some motorbike show or something.”
“Don't you get scared riding on the back of that thing?” Ivy asked.
“Well, first I was afraid, I was petrified...” Sienna said, singing the lyrics to Gloria Gaynor's I Will Survive.
“Hun, I wouldn't hold my breath on winning a Grammy based on that performance,” Ivy laughed.
“You're such a bitch!”
“Yeah, but what are friends for, right?” Ivy teased.
“In all honesty, it's actually not that bad. Yeah, at first it was terrifying, I would scream at the top of my lungs, and wrap my hands around Jesse's waist and squeeze him tight. I would swear and curse Jesse for making me get on. But then after a while I got used to it. Now, each time we ride down the highway I just sit back, relax and enjoy the thrill of it all.”
“God, I hate when these things are so hard,” Ivy said, carving into her steak.
“Excuse me? Hun, keep your sex life in the bedroom, please. I’m wearing my good top and I don’t want to get it dirty.” Sienna said, looking at Ivy mortified.
“Huh? Oh, and I’m meant to be the perverted one? I was referring to the steak, Sienna.”
“Of course you were,” Sienna replied, still looking at the menu.
By the time Ivy had finished her steak, she had no room for desert, so she ordered a coffee instead.
“You said things were going great with you and Dick?”
“Yeah…they are.”
Sienna looked at Ivy, she knew that tone, Ivy was keeping something from her.
“Ivy?”
“What?”
“What aren’t you telling me?”
“Huh? Nothing,” she replied, distracted.
“Ivy. This is me you're talking to. I know when something’s up.”
“It’s nothing, I’m okay.”
“No you're not, something’s up.”
Ivy took a deep breath, she was really nervous, but she knew that Sienna wouldn’t shut up unless she told her what was on her mind.
“It’s Dick.”
“What about him? Oh no, don’t tell me the two of you have broken up?”
“No, it’s nothing like that. It’s just…” she struggled to finish the sentence, she turned away, avoiding eye contact with Sienna.
“Ivy!”
“The thing is, like I said, things are good between us, great even.”
“So then, what’s the problem?”
“I’m really nervous, Sienna.”
“About what?”
Ivy looked at Sienna, her eyes were serious.
“Sex.”
“What? Wait…Ivy are you telling me that you're still-”
“Oh god no! That’s not what I meant.”
“Phew!” Sienna said, relieved. “Then what’s the problem?”
“The thing is, it’s been so long since I’ve had sex. I mean, the last time I was with a guy I was a lot thinner. I’m a lot more conscious about my body now, I don’t look how I used to, and I’ve put on a few pounds since then.”
Sienna giggled, a little too loudly and Ivy stared at her.
“See, I knew you would laugh, this is the exact reason why I didn’t want to tell you,” Ivy was annoyed.
“Oh, Hun, Shut up! I’m not laughing at you. Is that the only thing that you're worried about?”
“What do you mean, the only thing? It’s a pretty big deal if you ask me. Dick’s going to take one look at my body and be completely turned off.”
“If he loves you, then no he won’t. Babe, looks aren’t everything.”
“Sure, that’s easy for you to say, you’ve been gorgeous your whole life. You’ve never had to worry about your image or getting a man. Dick is the best thing that has happened to me in a very long time and I don’t want to lose him.”
Sienna pulled her chair closer to Ivy and looked up at her; “Ivy, listen to me, Dick likes you, he really likes you. If he doesn’t like you for the beautiful woman that you are, then he doesn’t deserve you.”
Ivy smiled slightly, Sienna always did have a way with words and could always make her smile.
“Thanks, babe.”
“Look, I’ll get this. You and I need to go out and do some serious shopping,” Sienna said.
Sienna paid for their lunch and the two of them walked down the shopping strip.
####FRIENDSHIP####
It was several hours later when the girls had almost finished their shopping. Sienna had her arms covered with shopping bags, they were full of clothes, shoes and more designer handbags to add to her ever growing collection. Ivy wasn’t short of cash, she too made a generous wage at the bank, but unlike Sienna, she didn’t splurge herself. She was saving her money to buy her first home, she loved her parents and all, but there were times when she wanted her privacy, especially now that she was dating Richard.
She hadn’t introduced him to her parents just yet, she wasn’t even sure how serious their relationship was. She had been thinking about what Sienna had told her about her image, and she was right, if Dick didn’t like her for who she was, then he wasn’t worth it.
“Ok, we really need to buy you some new clothes,” Sienna said, suddenly popping out of the lingerie section of the department store.
“Sienna thanks, but I really can’t afford to buy anything at the moment.”
“How about this?” She said, grabbing a denim skirt off the rack and holding it in front of Ivy.
“Um…it’s a little short, and there’s a zipper going right up the…”
“Yeah…der.”
“Who would wear something like this in public?”
“Actually, I have it in black,” Sienna replied.
“Ok then that explains so much.”
Sienna kept choosing random items of clothing for Ivy, many of which she would never dare to wear in public. Even though they had their little “girl talk” Ivy was still uneasy about the whole image thing. No matter how much time she spent shopping with Sienna, she just couldn’t stop thinking about sleeping with Dick for the first time.
By the time they had finished shopping, Ivy’s hands were also covered in bags. They headed out of the last boutique store and sat down at the café located only a few shops away. As they sipped away at their coffees, Ivy looked at her bags and then at Sienna.
“I seriously can’t believe you bought me all this stuff, I mean, I won’t even wear most of it.” Ivy pulled out the leopard print bikini that Sienna had picked out for her and placed it over her chest.
“That’s okay, whatever you don’t wear, I will happily take it off your hands,” Sienna replied.
“Has anyone ever told you that you have a serious shopping problem?”
“Yep! Jesse tells me all the time, and then I just remind him that he loves me.”
“You always did have a way with words. So what are your plans for tomorrow?” Ivy asked.
“Not a lot actually, Dark Falkon are coming out next month, and I am trying to find some accommodation for us in Vegas.”
“I thought you would have been all over that by now,” Ivy said.
“I haven’t had a chance. I’ve been busy with work and Jesse and to be honest, I’ve just left it to the last minute, it’s completely slipped my mind.”
“Look, it doesn’t have to be anything too fancy, I’d be happy in a cheap hostel or something. If not, we could always just drive up there in a pink Cadillac, Thelma and Louise style and find a hot guy to share a room with.”
“You, me and Brad Pitt, huh?”
“Well, I certainly wouldn’t say no if he showed up on my doorstep, would you?”
“Not at all. Anyway, I’ll look into it and see what I can find and I’ll let you know.”
“Okay,” Ivy replied.
They hugged and grabbed their bags and kissed each other on the cheek.
“See ya, babe,” Sienna said.
“Bye, and thanks for the clothes.”
“You're welcome.”
With one final wave, they turned and headed home.
Sienna was frantically packing her suitcase, like everything else, she'd left it to the last minute. She and Ivy were leaving for Vegas in three days and she couldn't find a hotel close enough to the arena where Dark Falkon were performing. She had been waiting for this trip for months and she took some leave from work. The tickets were expensive, but there was no way Sienna was missing out on seeing her favorite band perform live.
Ivy was still reluctant to tag along, after the conversation she'd had with Jake, she felt guilty about leaving him all alone for the weekend. This was the perfect opportunity for Jake and Sienna to be alone outside of home. She wanted to fake an illness, but she knew how disappointed Sienna would be given how much she had spent on the tickets. In the end she decided that although she was stuck in the middle of it all, she wanted to protect Jake's secret.
Lightning Ridge weren't assigned to a record label and the group decided to self-produce and market their own album. After months of preparation, rehearsals, photo shoots, sleepless nights and stress, it was finally ready.
“Oh My God!” Sienna squealed from her bedroom. “Congratulations, Jake. I'm so proud of you,” she said as she ran out of the bedroom and kissed Jake on the cheek. She flung her arms around him and held out the CD he had left on her bed.
“Thank you!”
“Please tell me I got the first official copy?”
“Well, if you don't include the band, then yes.”
“I can live with that,” she smiled. She disappeared for a brief moment back to her bedroom and then returned.
“Can you please sign it for me?” She asked, holding out a marker.
“What? Are you serious?”
“Of course I'm serious. Jake, this is a really big deal. You've been working on this album for years, and now I want the first signed copy. I'm so proud of you.”
Jake grabbed the marker, “To Sienna,” she said, as Jake looked at her and smiled. He scribbled his signature on the album cover and slid it back into the case.
“Thank you,” she said, kissing him on the forehead.
“You're welcome,” Jake replied as she ran off to her room.
Jake could hear the front door open, turning around, he saw Ivy as she walked through the door.
“Ok, where-”
But before she could finish her sentence, Jake held up his hand, holding a CD.
“Oh my god! It's an actual CD, like a real CD. So, do I have the first official copy?”
“Actually, I already own that title,” Sienna suddenly popped out of her room and walked up to Ivy, giving her a hug and kiss.
“Hey!”
“Hi!”
“It's pretty exciting, isn't it?” Ivy asked.”
“Yeah, but let's not give Jake a bigger head than he already has,” Sienna winked at Jake and poured them all a drink.
“God, you're such a bitch.”
“You noticed?”
Sienna placed the CD into the player and pressed play, she joined the others on the sofa.
They sat there listening as the tunes from Lightn
ing Ridge blared through the living room.
“Jake, this is amazing, you guys are awesome,” Ivy said.
“Brilliant,” Sienna replied.
“Thanks guys.”
“Jake, you really need to submit this to a record producer or at least an agent. This is amazing stuff,” Ivy said.
“I totally agree with Ivy on this one Jake, you need to send this in to someone.”
Jake sat there and looked at the two of them. He never thought his work was good enough to even consider sending it to a record label or an agent.
“Thanks, guys but honestly, I don't think I'm good enough yet for an agent.”
“Are you fucking kidding me? Jake, this is amazing, your vocals really show the talent that you have. Even Tori is amazing,” Sienna said.
“The whole band is great. Jake you really need to consider sending this album to an agent. I mean, what's the worst they can say, no?”
“They can turn around and say, go away, you're not good enough, come back when you have something better. Or, get out of here, you have no future as a rock star. I just don't think I could handle that kind of rejection.”
The girls looked at one another. Ivy knew only too well how Jake handled rejection. If his current situation with Sienna was anything to go by, being rejected by a record label would ruin him.
“Stop being negative. Yeah sure, they can say all of those things. But as the song goes, I get knocked down, but I get up again...just remember that, Jake,” Sienna said.
“I appreciate your support and confidence in me Sienna, but seriously, I just don't know if we're good enough. Besides, it's not a decision I can make without consulting with the rest of the band first.”
“Well, that all goes without saying, but surely the band would consider something like this? I mean, Jake this is big, HUGE. You’d all be crazy to let an opportunity like this slip,” Ivy added.
The girls could tell that Jake really didn’t want to discuss the matter any further, so they both agreed to drop the subject, while they listened to the rest of the CD.
“So, what are you girls up to today?”
“Well, Sienna and I need to finish packing for one thing.”
