“Cela..!!” I turn to the shout of my name above all the noise of Pierce the Veil fans who are still queuing up to meet the band. From the other end of the warehouse, I saw Austin Carlile jogging towards me. I waved at him with a smile that felt so relieve to see someone familiar from my past, apart from Jaime, that I know I could rely on at my current situation now.
After the awkward moment with Jaime and the rest of the band, and Jaime wanting me to join them at the backstage which Vic agrees to his request, my niece and I had been standing a bit further away from their signing table. I had pulled Nora along with me so that we won’t get in the way for the other fans to meet the band. But Nora had left me standing alone, as she was hanging out, making friends amongst the other fans. Once in awhile, she will point out at my direction to some fans. I am damn sure she is telling them of my friendship with Jaime.
Jaime although he was happily chatting with the fans and taking pictures with them, apart then just signing poster for them, had been checking me occasionally, as if to check that I won’t bolted off. Well, frankly speaking, it does occur to me to just do that, it is the thing that I saw in his eyes had makes me trapped from running away. And of course, when I think of the other possibility again, I’m not sure of what reason should I explain to my inquisitive niece. Surely she will be so disappointed in me yet again.
I have enough disappointment in my life that will last for eternity. I better start thinking of a better way to face my demon.
As Austin getting nearer, I spread my arm wide open in greeting and Austin close the gap between us, in a tight hug. “I miss you,” I sighed deeply against his shoulder. I could feel Jaime eyes stabbing my back even without me seeing it. The fans who stood nearby, gives out a loud whistles to the affectionate display between us. I could hear from one of the band too giving a hoot whistle before shouting a dense remark, “Get a room!!”
“I miss you too, girl.” Austin whispered to me, before letting me go from his embrace. To the crowd, he just give a wave of hand and to the Pierce the Veil band member whose eyes still on us, especially Jaime who looks more like giving him a murderous look, Austin showed them a bird. He pulled me away a bit further for much privacy but I stopped him and gestured to Nora to come over to us, so that I could introduce them.
“Austin, this is my lovely niece Nora. She is one of your biggest fan and you are one of the list of people who inspired her to be a musician one day.” I proudly making the introduction with Nora who looks so pale as if she seen a ghost. I gave her a little shake, “Nora?”
Austin just smiled to her reaction. He offered his name, “Hey Nora. It’s ok. You are not dreaming. It is really me.” He chuckled.
“Hi...” she said shyly. And I thought Nora had told me that she had met him before.
“Have we met?” asked Austin. Quickly I watched Nora blushing face now. “You still remember me?”
“Of course. How could I forget to someone who painstakingly brought me a delicious lunch of my favourite Spanish Cuisine – Shrimp Paella?” He winked at me. Turning to Nora, I nudged her, “Who cook it?”
“Me. Do you remember that day I asked you to teach me of how to cook it? My mum’s paella was so disgusting and she sucks miserably!” she told me earnestly without a blink in the eye.
Yes, I remembered that day but I did not realise that she was cooking it for my former school friend, Austin, although I was a bit pissed off with her for waking me up in the wee hour of the early morning.
“Austin would you not go away for a bit? Because I want to call my music mates of meeting you and how cool it is that my aunt and you are friends.”
Austin just nodded as a reply. Both of us watched Nora walking away with her fingers quickly dialling her classmate number on her brand new mobile, a gift from my brother Sergio for her academic achievement. Nora most definitely has been spoilt although she deserved all the attention that she is getting right now. She had successfully pulled off her depression and her suicidal thoughts for all the bad treatment of bullying, racist and the object of pranks which she received from her school friends. And the sad thing was, all of these had been going on for almost 4 years and she had kept her silenced.
We only find out when she was found by the school janitor in her state of unconsciousness, on the floor of the girls toilet in the pool of her blood. She had attempted suicide by slicing both her wrists. She was quickly been sent to the emergency ward to revive her. When the most critical moment was over, she was admitted to the hospital ward and was put on immediately counselling for her attempting suicide. Nora had not been so cooperative initially. She had refused treatment and always having a fit which force the doctor to jab her so that she will calm down.
I could understand of how she feels and the thing that she was going through. Because I had gone through that too before and it had never been easy for me when I was young. I was too being bullied and harm by my school mate when I was living in Beverly Hills, before my family moved in the town where I will eventually meet Jaime, and when before my parent had called it quit. After the divorce had settled, my brother and I will be separated as what had been agreed between my parent better judgements. I will follow to live with my mother and Sergio will follow my father back in Madrid, where it was best for him to start his early career plan as a soccer player.
Not even a month my mother had remarried again with widowed men who have 2 daughters from his previous marriage. They are Frederica and Olalla. My mother will eventually have another daughter with papa Oscar. And I would say that all of them are born evil. In the new town, in my new school, I was glad that the bullying had ceased but I could not said much when I’m with the Morales family. The only consolation that I had back home was my late grandmother who will always protected me. She was my only ally. Of course, I had tackled the problem in a different way from Nora. In my mindset, at that time was to graduate from high school and quickly moved out from the house. And I take full advantage of how I was treated in school, which was good compared to the way the Morales had treated me. I guess my friendship with Jaime too had helped me to stay happy.
Apart from Grandma Gina, I had my best friend with me, always.
Nora had scared the hell of Frederica. She had called me for help, knowing that I had moved back to live in the same town that I had long ago running away from. She had cried to me and she even apologised to all her bad treatment to me in the past. And of course, Nora had been much closed to me and I am her favourite aunts. When I did visit her, all I did was to hand her out CDs of rock bands which I know will help her through the darkest hour of her recovery stage.
Of Mice and Men had been one of the rock band CDs that I had given to Nora. And I was happy that Nora had been saved by all those rock bands that I had recommended her to listen to. As for Pierce the Veil, she had found out herself. It was her that I found out about Jaime.
“She looks like her Aunt Marcela Torres.” I felt Austin nudged my shoulder. Before I could reply him, he continues to say, “You need help to run away again from that man who is currently giving me a murderous look?”
I quickly turn to look to the say man and almost immediately, realising he was caught in the act, he give me a quick smile with his signature displayed dimples. I just smiled and run my eyes away from him to Austin. “Nay...not today. Today I just want to see him play on the stage. After all, I own him an apology for all those years. By the way, did you tell him of our running in at Madrid a year ago?”
“Guilty.” Confessed Austin with his eyes train on me, before continues to say, “You got to understand Marcela, he was torn when you left without leaving him a single note of explanation. And it was hard for me to see him in that kind of state.”
“I know...” if only Jaime knows of how I regret of doing that to him. “Listen, I’ll promise I will make it up to him but I do not know of how to be doing it. What if he wants to revenge of all the pain that I had put him through-“
“He’s not that type of a person, Marcela. You know that-“
“-Well, I did deserve it of course. And I will be okay with it-“
“Hey, listen to me for a sec, dear Marcela!” Austin gives a light shake on me. Without my better judgement, I let out a whimper. “Just don’t leave him again. He just wants his B.F.F. to be with him now.”
“Seriously B.F.F where did that comes from?” I asked, chuckled.
“I know it’s corny but I’m right on this, you know.” He lightly hit me on my arm. I looked up at him as I remember one last important thing that I need to know before I agree to not running away from here, but I was just a merest second too late.
“Austin, would you PLEASE don’t steal my girl? You always doing that, man” Jaime said from behind me and he was standing so close that I froze with my eyes on Austin.
“I most definitely NOT, Preciado. Or should I say Parrot nose?” he rebuked in a joking way. And both men started to act as if they are getting on a fight with Jaime making a sound of a ninja warrior. I could only laugh at their antics. We are joined by the rest of the band members and my forgotten niece.
I turn to scan the premise to find that the place is now almost empty with just a few fans lingering over and the concert usher who giving out directions to the fans to move along to the concert arena.
“Who shall win the fight, Aunt? Jaime or Austin?” asked Nora excitedly. I just smiled and shrug my shoulders. Now the rest of the band members too had joined both Jaime and Austin play acting fight, with lots of laughing and joking amongst us. “Here come, Raphael to the rescue!!” chirped in Tony.
And now they had turn into Ninja turtles with each one of them shouting the names of each ninja turtles,
“Raphael!” (Tony)
“Leonardo!” (Jaime)
“Michelangelo!” (Vic)
“Donatello!” (Mike)
“And I guess you will be...Shredder?” I asked suggestively. Austin winked.
“I want to be April!!” shouted Nora delightfully.
“What about Marcela? She’s Splinter?” asked Mike curiously. “I have nothing to do with all of these!” I chuckled.
The fun however had been short lived. The band tour manager had dispersed the so-called fighting scene and instructed the band to the dressing room to get ready for the show will be starting pretty soon. Austin takes his leave and I promised him that Nora and I will be watching them during their turn to perform. I followed the band, heading to their dressing room. Jaime was walking on my side with the rest of his band mates seems to give us some space for privacy and gladly pulls Nora to walk together with them too.
“That was fun. I miss joking like that with him.” Jaime happily confided in me.
I nodded, “Since the death of Bonnie, I guess he fought so hard to move on with his life.” Remembering my late schoolmate who had died in a car crashed a few years back. I felt terrible when Austin had told me last year. Where was I when that happens? Oh yes, I was just being selfish, hiding in my own tiny world.
“Yup. That was sad. Anyway, “Jaime quickly changed the topic of conversation, “You will be watching us play on my side of stage. Will that be ok? Like you always did during school years...” He trailed off. His eyes watched me intently as both of us had stopped walking, and facing each other now. The rest of his band mates had left us behind so far behind.
I did not look away. I nodded my head, with a smile on my face; I wait for him to continue to what he wants to say further. But none comes out from his lip. “Listen, I have lots of things to say. But you need to get on with the show first. I promise you that I will be standing watching you rocking out at the same spot that I had always been. And I’m not running away this time.”
“Or ever?” asked Jaime timidly.
I nodded, again not looking away from his black eyes.

Notes

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