Note: Hi guys! I've been free from work today and yesterday, and honestly, words for this story have just been coming out of, well, basically everywhere. So, I figured I'd upload another chapter. Thanks so much again for those who left a review, I appreciate it a lot, and also thanks for those who just put up an story alert! I appreciate it a lot. Please enjoy, x.
Chapter 3: Two Blondes
2nd of September, 1987
"Hey beautiful!"
Rufus was late, but Lily forgot about that the moment she heard his voice. He politely kissed her cheek before sitting down next to her on the cosy couch. "This place is cute…"
Lily chuckled. "It is, right? So, what do you want?" She was already getting up, but Rufus beat her to it. "No, no. My treat. What do you want?"
"A latte, please."
Rufus smiled. "One latte, coming right up!" He then moved himself over to the counter, to order and pay for their coffee. Lily smiled. He looked good. He was wearing a pair of washed jeans, sneakers, and dark grey sweater. Nothing special, but still very, very good. It just suited him.
In the mean time, Rufus figured he'd wait for their order. He took a gamble, and decided to order a piece of chocolate cake as well. He was hungry, and besides, if Lily wasn't a chocolate cake kind of girl, he would be slightly disappointed. He loved cake.
Lily was looking pretty today. He hadn't expected anything less from her, but, still. She was wearing a long denim blouse that reached mid-thigh. A small belt prevented it from looking to big and to wide, although Rufus couled tell the blouse was probably from the men's section anyway. Underneath she'd been wearing a pair of knee high boots. Not every girl could pull off a look like that. Lily definitely could though. Her hair was up in a messy ponytail, and she seemed to be wearing no make up. A natural beauty, she was.
He jumped back on the couch a few minutes later, two coffees and a chocolate cake with him. "I do hope you like chocolate cake."
Lily chuckled. "I don't think there's anyone who doesn't like chocolate cake, yum!" She immediately grabbed the fork so she could take a bite. Chocolate cake at Pierre's was perfect.
"So, Lil…" Rufus scooted over a little closer, making sure his leg touched hers. "Your family is Upper East Side, huh?"
"It's Lily." She tried to sound annoyed, but, quite frankly, Rufus calling her Lil actually made it sound nice. "But, well, my mother is. High society, all that crap…"
"You fit in perfectly fine yesterday, though. Judging on looks solely, that is."
Lily smiled. "I guess that's a compliment so thank you."
"It is…. "
It was so strange. Their connection seemed so strong and so natural, yet they actually knew so little about each other.
"So, Rufus… How is your band?"
Lily couldn't help but notice Rufus' cheeks turning a bit rosy. She wondered what that was about. "We've been doing good, actually. We've had some small gigs around the country the last couple of months… And tomorrow will be our first in Brooklyn since we're back."
"Oh really?"
Rufus felt a warm sensation inside. Lily's eyes seemed so bright and so excited for him and his band. It was so sweet.
"Yes… I hate to admit it but I'm so excited. Our first performance in our hometow."
Lily smiled. "Ah, nothing to be ashamed about. That is great! Where are you performing?"
"It's this place called The River Cafe."
Lily nodded. She'd heard about that place before. She was waiting for him to invite her, but since he didn't seem to make that move, she decided to invite herself. "Since you're not asking, I guess I'll go ahead and invite myself to your gig then."
Rufus smiled. "I'd like that. We've been doing some new songs lately, so you'll be in for a surprise."
Lily chuckled. "I can't wait."
"And what about you? What are you doing, besides attending these extremely boring events with your mother?"
Lily nodged him. "Hey, watch your mouth! No, you're right actually. Well… I got back from Cali a couple of weeks ago. I'm still deciding what I want to do… Go back there, stay here… Go to college, don't go to college.. I love this place, I just… I really don't like spending all my time here with my mother."
"Your friends?"
Lily shrugged. "Most of them are off to college… And, well, the people that did stay behind.. I don't know, I just don't feel like I fit in anymore. It's all fake smiles, fake talks.."
Rufus grabbed her hand, stroking it gently with his thumb as he said: "Well, how great it is that you ran into me again then."
Lily chuckled. "Most definitely. And, I'm actually a photographer for one of the local newspapers. It's not really a job, mostly volunteering, but it's nice."
"That sounds like fun! What kind of photographs do you take then?"
"I usually take photographs during concerts… Occassionally I do some portraits, or some outdoor stuff… But, well, the concerts are usually my thing. I get to go tot hem for free, and in exchange I'll shoot some great pictures and sometimes write a couple of lines."
Rufus smiled. "That sounds good. I'd love to see some of your pictures!"
"Yeah… Yeah, I'll show you some next time."
"Is there gonna be a next time?" Rufus wiggled his eyebrows, trying to lighten up his question a little bit. The question was more then a little serious though. He really wanted to see Lily more often.
"Well, I'll be at your show tomorrow, right?"
"I know, but I meant… I just…"
Lily chuckled. "I'm kidding. Yes, I think… I think I'd like to hang out with you more often. You're honestly to only normal person I know around here."
Rufus chuckled. "I beg to differ… "
3d of September, 1987
Lily entered The River Cafe around eight that evening. The gig started aroud half past eight, but she wanted to see Rufus before he would begin. The cafe was dark and, well, quite cosy, but not too many people were there. She noticed Rufus on the small stage, checking his guitar while talking and laughing with his band members. She made her way over to the stage, hoping she wouldn't be interrupting him.
"Rufus, hey!"
"Lil!" He smiled, flashing his perfect white teeth, as he took her hand to get her on the stage. Lily hugged him. "Hey."
"I'm so glad you could make it. It's a bit early though.."
Lily nodded. "I know.. I just, I have a surprise for you, and the rest of your band."
The drummer and one of the other guitar players eyed Lily with curiousity and she waved at them. "Hi, I'm Lily."
Rufus didn't give his friends time to reply though, as he said: "A surprise?"
Lily smiled as she opened her bag and took out her camera. "I thought it would be fun to take some pictures tonight… From you guys preparing for the show, playing… I thought, I don't know, maybe it'll be nice? If you don't want to it's perfectly fine as well of course, I just…"
"Hey, don't be silly!" He grabbed her hand. "I think it's a great idea! " He looked at her, wanting despereately to kiss her pretty rosy lips.
Lily was having the best time. Quite frankly, Rufus and his band were very good photographing material. The cafe wasn't fully packed, but there were plenty of people enjoying the show, and from what Lily had been hearing, everyone seemed to agree on the fact that Lincoln Hawk were quite good.
Lily let her camera be for a little while, looking at Rufus as he was about to start a new song. She noticed him scanning the room until his eyes rested at her.
"Hello everybody, thanks again for coming out tonight. We're playing some new songs tonight… This one, I wrote not too long ago. I met a girl, a very special girl, down at the west coast. I eh… You know how sometimes you feel like there's something special with someone, despite only knowing each other for a short time? Well, that's what this is about."
Was he for real? Did he really write a song about her?
Lily felt like she was in some sort of trance, gazing at Rufus while he was singing this beautiful song for her. It felt… Magical. She grabbed her camera and waited for Rufus to look right at her again. The moment he looked right into her camera, she pressed the button. She needed a physical reminder of this moment.
The song was beautiful, and for the rest of the show, Lily was wondering what exactly Rufus meant with it and, even more important, if he was genuinly having feelings for her? She couldn't wait for him to finish, hoping to speak with him the moment he got off stage.
It was during the last song Lincoln Hawk was playing that night that she spotted a familiar face. Blonde, beachy waves, freckled skin… Debra. It hit her like a hammer… Had Rufus been singing that song for Debra? She sighed, and was about to turn away when Debra noticed her. She waved with excitement, and Lily really couldn't do anything but go and see the blonde.
"Lily, hey what a coincidence!" Debra gave her a hug, and Lily tried to smile as if she was excited as well.
"Debra, hey! What are you doing here?"
Debra smiled. "Well, I couldn't let Rufus perform here without me being there, could I? What about you?"
"Ehm.." Lily wasn't sure what to say. Was Debra Rufus' friend, lover…. Yeah, she really wasn't sure and she had to admit she felt fairly uncomfortable. But she wasn't gonna let anyone notice, definitely not Debra.
"I take photographs, for local newspapers… I figured I'd make some shots of Lincoln Hawk. They deserve a spotlight on them, perhaps I could get them in the paper with a couple of pictures…"
Debra applauded. "Oh my god, that is the greatest idea! That would be great!"
Lily nodded. "Yeah…"
The girls kept chatting about, well, pretty much nothing, for a few more minutes until Lincoln Hawk ended their show.
Rufus noticed the two pretty blondes talking each other the moment they had seen each other. He wasn't sure if it was good. He hoped neither of the women would say a word about their relationship towards him. Yes, Debra was his friend. But, in all honesty, she wasn't just a friend. Debra had been a big Lincoln Hawk fan ever since she had spotted them for the first time. In all honesty, Rufus new she pretty much was a huge fan of him more then she was of Lincoln Hawk. Debra had been fun to hang out with while he had been touring. She was wild, fun, exciting… And very hot to sleep with every now and then. Ever since he had seen Lily again though, he had noticed his interest in her had been fluttering away. Not that he had ever been in love with her. She just… She had been good company. Good company that had made him forget about Lily for a while after they had gone their seperate ways. Now that she was back in his life though, Rufus knew something between him and Debra had to change. He wasn't too sure about how to handle the entire thing though.
With a tiny little knot in his stomach, Rufus made his way over to the two blondes with a smile.
"Girls!"
He made sure to hug both of them at the same time, though he regretted that move instantly. How lame was that?
"Hey!" Rufus could tell Debra was about to lean in to kiss him, but he moved his face away quickly to talk to Lily. "Lil, did you like it?"
Lily smiled and handed him a beer. "I did.. And I think I took some great photos. I was thinking, maybe I can convince one of the papers to publish a couple of them…. You guys deserve it, I think more people should know about Lincoln Hawk."
Rufus was excited; how sweet it was of Lily to think of it. He was about to reply when Debra mingled in their conversation as well. "I think that is so wonderful of you, Lily! After all, during your tour the last couple of months I haven't heard a single negative comment about you guys! Everybody loves you!" She put her hand on his shoulder and gave it a small nod of encouragement.
Unfortunately for Rufus, Lily noticed. And Lily had also noticed the words Debra had been saying. "Ah! So you've been to more of Rufus' shows, then?"
Debra nodded with excitement. "Yeah, I've actually been accompanying him during the entire tour. You know, I was so bored in California for a while, and when the guys told me they were heading to New York eventually, I figured I'd joint hem! I lived with my father in LA, but my mother resides here… I considered it a good combo. Hanging out with this guy over here and paying a visit to my mother."
Lily for once was glad she'd been in an environment with fake people and fake smiles all her life. She could now put one up herself perfectly fine as well. "That sounds great!" She casually checked her watch before saying: "Oh guys, look at the time, I really have to go!" She gave Debra a polite kiss on the cheek and shot Rufus a deadly glare before quickly walking out of the cafe.
She knew she probably should take a cab home, but really felt like walking. Fuck Rufus. How could she have been stupid enough to believe his story about Debra being a friend? How had she even been able tot think he wrote a song about her? This stuff was messed up. She sighed before grabbing a cigarette. It was only 10 on a Saturday night, and she really didn't feel like going home. She checked her pockets, hoping she was able to find the key of the darkroom where she usually worked on her photographs. When she felt the cold metal of the key against her hand, she smiled. Score. She absent mindedly smoked her cigarette, trying not to think about Debra of Rufus too much, knowing she would probably fail within minutes anyway.
It took her almost thirty minutes to reach the building she had wanted to get to, but she was glad when she had arrived. She turned on the lights and poured herself some coffee. Without thinking, she entered the darkroom, careful to not spill coffee or do anything stupid. Perhaps processing the photographs she had made less than an hour ago wasn't the best thing to do. She really wanted to though. Lily started to process her pictures, working slowly and carefully, not wanting to mess up any of the shots she had made. She knew she was a good photographer, but for some reason she felt as if the photos she had made that day were even better than usual; perhaps because she had felt something special that she had never really felt before as she'd been making them.
