January 30, 2007
So, strangeness.
Last night I took a gig that I wouldn't normally take. It was a last minute thing, at a place I'd never heard of let alone played, for people I don't know.
That's not to say I don't do shows for folks I don't know it's just that usually they're booked well in advance, and they want the whole band. Last night though they just wanted me, said they had a piano guy and that's all they wanted, just a torch singer sort of feel. It seemed pretty straight forward, it was a group of old Navy buddies, retired mostly who were getting together. They had hired someone else but she'd backed out at the last minute saying she was sick.
There's a small group of us who do various types of shows and we have an unofficial rule about shows like this, take someone with you and always let another person know where you'll be. No one was around to take with me but I left a note for Poo and a message on his phone so I figured I was fine.
When I first got there it felt a little weird because though they were ex Navy men (you can tell, trust me) they weren't really very old. Now plenty of people do a "quick" Navy tour when they get out of school and can say the retired from the service but when they're having a reunion and request a singer like me…you just assume it's going to be older guys.
I met the piano guy, he seemed like he might've been Navy too. I sang a few songs; no one seemed to pay much attention except one guy at the bar who watched me a little too close if you know what I mean.
There's always one, if you're playing a straight party (and sometimes even if you aren't), there's always one who wants to talk to you during the breaks, buy you a drink. When it's the older guys I don't mind. I humor them and we all end up having a fun night that ends at the door, usually with a hug and a kiss on the cheek, rarely but occasionally with a pinch on the bottom, but harmless.
I've never met a guy I would date at one of my shows. Ever. When its guys in my age range that want to chat me up they always come off seeming desperate.
Wait, let me say this, for those of you who haven't seen me IRL, I'm not that cute. I mean, I'm okay, but I'm average. No guy is going to drop his jaw when I walk down the street y'know? When I get on stage though I become quarry for two types of guys (again, we're only talking about the ones in my age group, the older guys, the 70's,80's and up, well, they're just trying to recapture their youth y'know?).
Type One: The Stud. He's gonna score with the stripper at the bachelor party and the singer at the wedding, or the hot waitress or bridesmaid. If doesn't matter if the stripper has stringy hair and a swayback, she's the stripper so he's gonna nail her.
He thinks he's doing me a favor by buying me drinks and entertaining me.
Type Two: The geek/loner. This guy doesn't really fit in with the rest of the party. He had to come for whatever reason but now that he's here it's clear that everyone here knows him and has no desire to socialize with him. He sees me as someone who doesn't already think he's a loser so (and possibly as a social outcast myself because my show is kinda odd) he'll pal up to me and neither of us will be lonely.
This guy didn't really fit either category. This guy looked more like an ex-bouncer. He still had the body to toss guys around but he was older, maybe mid-fifties and he looked mean. He drank tonic water, no alcohol. (I watch these things from the stage if I can, helps me to avoid the drunks)
Between sets I usually make my way to the bar for a water (or if the show isn't going well, something stronger) but I wanted to steer clear of this guy. I headed to the ladies room and spent my entire break telling myself that this wasn't so strange. I checked my phone, just a message from SAM saying that he'd be working late again and I should just give up hope for seeing him tonight.
He's been working a case lately that's really messing with his head. He's almost never around and on the occasions that we end up in the same bed (usually mine, usually he wanders in before I'm home, I crawl in next to him and in the morning he's gone) he tosses and turns and wakes up with a start covered in sweat. He talks now and then, or shouts, but if I wake him and try to get him to talk about it he says he can't. I'm making a conscious effort not to worry about it because I figure this is how his job is and we'll just have to deal with it.
I never call him at work if I can help it. I know that if he has a minute he'll call me. I hate to think of his phone ringing at a crucial moment. I always picture him crouched somewhere, about to spring on a bad guy and then I call and the phone rings and the bad guy turns and shoots and I've killed SAM because I wanted to tell him I felt like having pasta tonight.
I'm a drama queen. We're all aware.
Where was I? Oh, right, the bathroom.
When I came out the guy from the bar stool was leaning against the wall at the payphone just outside the little hall that lead to the restrooms. He had the phone in his hand but wasn't saying anything. When I got back to the stage he was already back at the bar.
It was probably nothing, I know, but it creeped me out. I did a few more songs and then excused myself to the bathroom again. On my way I detoured a bit around the room and found scary guy mirroring my moves. In the bathroom I called Poo and got his voice mail. I called Michael, voice mail. I checked my watch, most everyone else would be working by now. Reluctantly I hit speed dial 3. SAM.
I apologized immediately, he said it was fine. I told him I was sure I was being silly but explained what was going on. He told me to sit tight, he was on his way. I told him that was overkill. He insisted and I have to say, that scared me the most. When it was just me overreacting to some guy who probably wanted my number that was one thing, but when SAM was concerned enough to leave work and come get me, that was something else all together.
I went back out, afraid that if scary guy was really a bad guy he'd just follow me into the ladies room. I grabbed water from the bartender and went back to the stage. Two songs later I turned when the door opened and watched SAM enter, when I looked back the bar stool was empty. SAM waited by the door while I finished the song.
I hugged him hello but he pulled me away, asking where the guy was. I did a quick visual of the room but came up empty. I told SAM to wait while I grabbed my coat in the back but he followed me. The back door to the club was open, I figured some of the workers were back there smoking but Secret Agent Man stuck his head out anyway. Nothing.
Poo had taken the car, I'd splurged on a cab to get there so SAM insisted on driving me home. He asked me a bunch of questions and I answered as best I could but I think he was overreacting. I guess it comes from working around hardcore bad guys so much, you think every little weird thing is going to turn out to be sinister. We were most of the way home when I noticed we weren't heading toward my place but his. It turned out to be for the best because I didn't have my keys. I thought I'd left them in my coat pocket but I must've forgotten them at home because when I got back here today they were on the kitchen table.
He walked me inside and locked the door behind us. Then he kissed me.
He's picked me up after shows before, and he always kisses me in the car outside. I had thought he was upset with me for calling him at work when he pulled out of the lot without a kiss.
I was just snuggling into him and getting warm when he broke the hold. "I'm sorry honey, I've gotta go back to work. I'll be back as soon as I can."
I left Poo another message on his cell to let him know I wouldn't be home then grabbed one of SAM's t-shirts to sleep in. I love sleeping in his bed, even if he can't be there next to me. It's more comfortable than mine, his sheets have a higher thread count by about 200 and he has a kick ass plasma screen tv on the opposite wall.
None of those are the real reason. All you girls who've been in love know the real reason. The bed smells like him, it feels like him, and the moment you sink into it you feel closer to him. (Have I mentioned that I love this man? I've got it bad, kids.)
The clock said 4:30AM when I heard keys in the door. Imagine how shocked I was to not hear SAM make his way into the bedroom but instead a woman's voice whispering into the apartment calling out his name.
I got up and went to the door of the bedroom. "Can I help you?"
I mean, really, what else do you say? I guess there are a lot of things, but half asleep at 4:30 AM you don't really get all the options zinging to your brain right off.
"Where's Tim?" I flipped on the light and found Sarah, his sister, looking scared.
I told her he was working and introduced myself. I recognized her from the pictures he'd shown me on his phone the day we met (he had been shopping for her, remember?). I made us some chamomile tea that I've started keeping at his place and we settled in on the two office chairs in the living room. (My boyfriend's home is woefully negligent when it comes to comfortable seating.)
Turns out he gave her a key after she'd had some trouble involving some cheerleaders at school. This was her version. The real version is much juicier I knew because SAM had told me all about it, but that's her story, not mine and I'm not sharing it here. She was there last night because she'd been at the library studying late and noticed that there was a guy there who looked a little out of place. She'd moved a few times but he always seemed be close by. When she started toward the exit he wasn't far behind so she thought better of walking to her dorm and instead took a cab here. I looked at the door.
"Yeah, I locked it."
I told her about my night and it's safe to say we did a great job of freaking ourselves out. When SAM got home just after 6 this morning he found us both wide awake and jumpy.
In the cold light of day it's clear that we were being careful but that the two incidents couldn't have been related. On the upside I finally got to meet Sarah and I really love her. She's a little snider than her brother, so maybe a little more like me I guess.
He wanted me to stay at his place today until he had to go back to work but I couldn't sleep and wanted to come home so we came back here. He's been sleeping fitfully for just under two hours and his cell phone is ringing.
Tony, and just like that, with a kiss and a warning from me to be careful, he's gone.
