Sunlight filtered in through the blinds, shining across Keira’s face. She stretched her arms overhead and yawned. Eric snuggled in tighter against her, wrapping his arms around her waist and laying his head on her shoulder. She smiled and brushed some of his hair off his forehead. Everything that happened yesterday faded away with his arms wrapped around her.

She’d come so close to losing this, losing him. Gently unwrapping his arms from around her waist, she slid out of bed and padded to the bathroom. After she finished, she came out to find Smithy, Eric’s manager storming down the hall to the bedroom. His face red with exertion, sweat pouring down his forehead. Keira stepped out in front of him. Determination and anger written over his face, his eyes were fixed on the door behind her.

“What’s wrong? What’s happened?”

His head snapped up to hers, he blinked and pulled a folded magazine out of his back pocket.

“This happened,” he said, pointing at the cover of the tabloid. Ugly headlines ran across both of them.

Up and coming music star turns his back on his doting father.

My son has disowned me and won’t tell me why.

Keira dropped the magazine to the ground and took a step back, banging into the wall behind her. She covered her mouth with a shaking hand and stared wide-eyed at Smithy.

“What the hell? Why would he say this?”

“I don’t fucking know! Eric’s been looking for his dad every chance that he can. Didn’t even know his dad was looking for him. And then for him to pull this shit! I can’t believe it.” Smithy angrily snatched the magazine off the floor and folded it back up in his hand.

“She was right.”

“Who was right?”

Keira glanced over her shoulder at the bedroom door. She dragged Smithy back a few steps and lowered her voice.

“Eric’s mom,” she whispered.

“What does she have to do with this?”

“She’d paid Eric’s dad to stay away.” Smithy’s head snapped up and his eyes bulged as he glanced back to the bedroom door.

“What do you mean she’s paid him to stay away?” he shouted. Keira shh’ed him.

“Would you keep your voice down!”

“Apparently, Eric’s dad was, well is a junkie. He started using again shortly before Eric turned nine. His mom gave him a choice, get clean or get out and he didn’t choose to get clean. Once Eric started to make a name for himself, his dad started sniffing around again and his mom intercepted him. She’d been paying him money to stay away from Eric. She doesn’t want him to negatively influence Eric and she doesn’t want his dad to try to drag him down.”

“But Eric has to know.”

“I have to know what?” Keira jumped, her heart pounding, as Eric came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. He nuzzled her neck and gave her a kiss on the cheek. He let her go and strode over to Smithy.

“What are you doing here, man? I didn’t know you were coming,” he said, giving Smithy a hearty hug and pat on the back. “And what do I have to know?”

“Eric—,” she started.

“What’s that?” Eric gestured to the magazine and Smithy snatched it back.

“It’s nothing,” Smithy said, trying to put it in his back pocket. Eric glanced between the two of them, his brow furrowed.

“Come on, what is it?” he said, catching Smithy’s hand and grabbing the magazine out of it. “Something else about Talia? That’s long over.” He glanced back at Keira and smiled. She moved in closer to his side. That smile wouldn’t stay on his face for long. She placed a hand on his.

“Eric, don’t look at it, please,” she pleaded. He glanced up at her, a look of determination on his face. He opened the magazine and immediately sunk against the wall of the bus. He ripped through the pages of the magazine searching for the story that accompanied the headlines. He paged through it, his page flipping become more and more furious, so furious that he ripped the last page clean out of the magazine.

“What is this?” he said, glancing between the two of them. Keira opened and closed her mouth, unable to form words. “What is this?” he shouted, shaking the magazine at them.

“Eric, we don’t know yet. We don’t know how they found him and we don’t know why he would go to the tabloids about this.” Smithy moved his hands in front of him like he was trying to calm a wild animal. Eric shot up from his slumped position and raced into the bedroom. His voice filtered in from there.

“Mom, what is this shit I’m reading about Dad?”

A long pause followed, then crashing as some things were broken back there. Keira jumped with each crash, glancing to Smithy whose eyes were wide as he gingerly stepped toward the back of the bus. Before he made it more than two steps, Eric came barreling out of the back and stood pointing the phone at her.

“You knew,” he shouted. “You knew that my dad was out there looking for me?”

“Eric, please. Your mom told me and begged me not to tell you,” she pleaded.

“You knew how much I needed to talk to him. To get the whole story and you lied to me!” His eyes were watery as his chest heaved, his breath coming out in shudders.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t know how to tell you.”

“And you accused me of keeping secrets. You left me because you said you couldn’t deal with lies about a chick I used to bang and you kept something like this from me?” he said, his jaw clenched.

“I know. I know that. But it wasn’t my place to tell you.”

“It was your place to tell me! It was my right to know and you just let this go on without the decency to tell me and now it’s splashed all over the fucking headlines of some tabloid,” he raged, shaking the magazine in her face.

“I’m sorry, Eric. I’m so sorry.”

“Get out!”

“Please, just listen to me.”

“GET OUT!” He shouted so loud it rang in her ears. Keira jumped up and ran out of the bus, tears streaming down her face. Her heart raced as she pressed her back against the cold metal of the outside of the bus. Suddenly aware that she wore nothing more than a tank top and pajama shorts, Keira hustled between the two buses where she crouched down and sobbed. The tears seemed never ending and they clogged her throat to the point that she thought she might drown.

She could hear the crashing and banging coming from inside the bus and she closed her eyes and wrapped her arms around herself. How had this happened? His mom had assured her that all he wanted was money. He didn’t really care, so why the big sob story for the tabloids? Why hadn’t she told him? Because she was a coward. She was afraid that he would walk out on her like she’d walked out on him when his lies came out. She’d been wrong about that, he hadn’t walked out on her, he’d kicked her out.

Leaning against the bus, she shook and bit her fist to keep the noise of her cries from traveling. A gentle hand touched her shoulder and she startled, causing her to fall over. The hands helped her stand and she wiped her face. Smithy stood in front of her, his eyes downcast and he handed her a t-shirt. She wiped at her eyes against the soft cotton and attempted a smile to thank him. She didn’t trust her voice just then. Throwing the shirt on over her head, Keira saw her suitcase next to Smithy and the tears welled in her eyes again.

“Smithy, just let me talk to him.”

“I don’t think that’s a good idea, Keira. He’s a bit raw right now. He’s not in a good place. It’s probably best if you go right now and try to talk to him another time.”

If not now, then when? What would she do now? He didn’t want to talk to her. Would he ever trust her again?