Part III: The Start of a Cautionary Tale

Entry #011: Texting On The Job

Wednesday, August 6th

12:45 P.M.

It has been almost three days since Andre had left for London.

As much as I would love to say that things have been going well over there... it hasn't.

For starters, Andre's acoustic guitar was destroyed during the plane's unloading.

This really devastated him, seeing as it was his "lucky" guitar; which just so happened to also be the guitar that he started learning with.

To say that it was a bad way to start off his trip was an understatement.

But it only got worst.

When Andre finally got to the hotel that he was staying at, he was disappointed to find that the room next to his was being constructed on.

So, yeah... he really didn't get much sleep that first night.

The very next day, after waiting for over an hour and a half, Andre's first meeting with Shawn Quincy was cancelled. Apparently, Shawn was too busy with some of his other clients to deal with the one guy he was so eager to have fly over to London.

It seemed pretty ridiculous to me.

Almost like a waste of time.

But thankfully, Shawn had postponed their meeting to today... wait... I mean, tonight over in London.

Ugh, I'll never get used to the time differences.

Anyway, all last night, Andre had been busy planning what he was gonna do today.

Coming up with some new song ideas.

Writing new lyrics for some of his older songs.

Continuously practicing the set of songs he was gonna play for Shawn.

It was completely hectic!

But he wasn't at it alone.

Throughout it all, we were video chatting with each other.

Occasionally, Andre would ask for my opinion; ranging from whether his guitar playing sounded good, should he change up some of the lyrics, and whether he should or shouldn't use a certain song during the meeting.

Aside from him complaining that the guitar that he bought at one of the local music stores was a bit "stiff", his skills alone were enough to make him sound pretty good.

The only thing that worried me was that even though he kept acting as if none of the unfortunate events affected him, I could just tell that they did.

Every now and then, he might accidentally play the wrong chord or mix the lyrics from one song with another.

A second later, he would stress out for a bit and then quickly try to hide how he was feeling.

Sighs

I just wish that I could fly over to London, and give him a big hug.

He could sure use one right now.

But as much as I worried about my boyfriend, I couldn't ignore what occurred just an hour ago.

Saying it was ridiculous is putting it very lightly.

11:24 A.M.

It was once again a pretty long day at work.

The store had a fair amount of customers coming in and out, so I was almost always on my feet.

Although, I couldn't say the same for my manager.

Somehow, Ryder had resided himself in the storage room...

...with our coworker, Vanessa.

He claimed like she was helping him organize the merchandise and taking up inventory, but I knew that that was a lie.

They were doing other things back there.

How was Ryder getting away with this?

Beats me.

All I knew was that they had a thing for each other.

Anyway, Vanessa really wasn't that bad.

She was about my height, fairly slender, pale skinned; and unlike Cat, Vanessa had natural red hair.

She'd only been working here for about a week and so far, we've actually gotten along with each other.

Like, there were a few times where she would actually stand up for me whenever Ryder was being his typical self.

Even more surprising was how Ryder would really listen to her.

But even though I was appreciative of what she'd done for me, I couldn't help but wonder why she was hanging out with a guy like Ryder.

She could do so much better.

As I stood behind the counter, I gazed around the store and notice that it was once again empty.

Hmm, maybe I could send a quick text to Andre. Just gotta make sure that Ryder doesn't catch me.

Taking out my phone, I quickly sent a text to Andre's number.

{Heyyy! :)}

After about a minute, Andre finally replied.

{lol is it weird that I was just about to text you?}

{Nope, not at all. I just wanted to send a quick txt before you met up with Shawn.}

{Thanks. I could really use a pick-me-up.}

{Why u say that?}

{I'm just so nervous right now, that I'm practically shaking. Not even kidding.}

Reading that text made me feel even more worried for him.

If he kept on like this, he would be a complete mess when it came time to perform.

Thinking for a moment, I came up with the perfect way to get him to calm down.

{Andre, snap out of it! You're gonna rock this meeting! You just need to take a deep breath, clear your mind off of what's bugging you, and think of the time we went to the library... to study.}

{You mean, the reference section?}

{Mmhmm. ;D}

{That was a pretty good study date. Especially because you wore your glasses. Sexy librarian.}

I have to admit, I've always laughed whenever he mentioned that about my glasses.

{Yup! lmao Remember how I would gently rub behind your ear? Don't deny it, you really loved that.}

{Okay, that would really make my day right now.}

{Feeling better?}

{Yeah, much better. Not jittery anymore. I'm calm... and maybe a little turned on. :)}

{Good. Just focus more on the calming part and you're good to go!}

For some reason, Andre didn't immediately responded after that.

It wasn't until three minutes later that I got a reply.

{Oh, sorry. The meeting's just about to start. Wish me luck!}

{You don't need any. You got this! :D}

Bang!

The sudden slam of the storage room door caused me to accidentally drop my phone.

"Dang it." I muttered, quickly dropping to the ground, "Where is it? C'mon, where is it?"

As I scurried around the floor, I couldn't find my phone to be anywhere in sight.

That is until I came across the feet of someone wearing red Nikes.

"Hmm, were you looking for this?" asked a voice that I dreaded hearing.

Looking up, I gazed into the face of a smirking Ryder.

Leaning against the counter, he held my phone and seemed quite pleased with himself.

With a deep sigh, Ryder asked, "Texting on the job? You know the rules, Vega. This is what, the second time I've caught you?"

"I know, I know. It just fell out of my pocket." I lied, quickly standing up and bushing the dust off my hands, "I wasn't texting or anything."

"Oh, really?" smiled Ryder, turning on the screen of my phone.

"Wait!" I shouted, trying to snatch it out of his hands, "That's personal."

As Ryder read through my recent texts, he started laughing, "Aw! Looks like someone misses their boyfriend."

"Give it back!" I demanded, as Ryder continued to block me.

"Okay, I'll give you back your phone, but only because you gave me a good laugh for the day." Ryder smiled, returning my phone, "You can fool around on your own time, not when you're working."

As Ryder started to walk away, I muttered, "I could tell you the same thing."

Probably shouldn't have said that out loud.

"What was that?" asked Ryder, turning around.

"Nothing. I was just thinking out loud."

"Oh, really? Sounded more like a snarky comment." he insisted, leaning over the counter, "Well, spit it out. I'm dying to hear what's on your mind."

I could have easily avoided this.

All I had to do was deny that I ever said anything about him, and then went straight back to work.

Staring down at me, Ryder uttered, "Well, I'm waiting."

But as much as I wished that I didn't wound up in this situation, a part of me was glad that I did.

Why?

For several weeks, I've had to put up with Ryder's crap.

But now I couldn't take it anymore.

"It's true, I was texting Andre earlier; but at least I'm not some arrogant jerk who loves harassing people." I stated, looking dead in his face, "I mean, God, you're such a hypocrite. You call me out for fooling around on the job, but you were entertaining Vanessa in the storage room for the past ten minutes."

The shock on Ryder's face was utterly hilarious.

He looked as if he didn't expect me to just come out with that.

"You sometimes take naps out in the open; on more than one occasion, you stayed out longer than your lunch break allowed; and boy!, who could forget the time you forgot to lock up the store, and several of the merchandise was stolen. Poor Audrey quit her job just because she though she was responsible. You didn't even try to admit to your mistake. You just sat there and let an innocent employee take the blame. God, you're so much worse than Andre said."

Mentioning Andre must've struck a nerve, cause Ryder started to look pissed.

"There you go again! Andre this, Andre that! Always about Andre. No one gives a fuck about your relationship with a guy who's on the other side of the world."

From this point on, Ryder was slowly making me more and more furious.

"You hop and skip all around this store, thinking that you're so much better than everyone else. And for what? Just because you have the most wonderful boyfriend in the world? If he's so damn awesome, then why is his career more important than you?"

With just those last words, he was slowly crossing the line.

"You don't know a damn thing about my relationship!" I shouted, walking around the counter to confront Ryder, "And I don't have to explain myself to someone who sleeps around with anything that has a pulse."

"Don't hate just because you and Andre don't fuck much. Maybe then you'll stop acting so bitchy." laughed Ryder, crossing his arms, "Then again, who knows? Andre would probably be too busy writing songs to even do anything with you."

He was just trying to get to me.

But it wasn't gonna work.

"You're so pathetic. I'll never understand how Andre could have ever been friends with someone like you."

Chuckling, Ryder replied, "You know, Andre really was a good friend; and I'll always regret messing that up. But let me tell you something. Andre is one hell of a musician, and he's definitely going places... but one day, he's gonna reveal his true self to you."

"What are you saying?" I scoffed, tired of his games.

"I only have one question for you. When Andre finally makes it big, where exactly are you gonna be?"

Hesitating for a moment, I answered, "Hopefully, I'll be working on starting my career. What's your point?"

Giving me a pity stare, Ryder explained, "Hmm, do you honestly think that after Andre is successful, he'll be willing to stay in a relationship with you?"

"Y-yeah, he would. What does it matter?"

"You were gonna learn it one way or the other, but I might as well tell you." sighed Ryder, as Vanessa came out from the back room, "You're an anchor, and all you'll end up doing is holding Andre down. So what's he gonna do? He's gonna drop you, cause he's got bigger, more better things to do."

I couldn't believe what I was hearing. He was scrapping the bottom of the barrel for anything that would upset me.

Andre wouldn't do such a thing... he loved me.

I mean, he loves me.

"If you really think that of Andre, then you honestly don't know him at all."

"I don't care if you don't believe me. All I know is that I tried to warn you. It's gonna happen one day, and it's going to hit you hard. Hell, for all we know, Andre could be signing a record deal as we speak. Sooner or later, he'll be living it up in New York, with a ton of Grammys, and probably banging one or two of his backup sing-"

Smack!

With all my strength, I furiously slapped Ryder.

"How dare you say something like that?" I asked seethingly, as my hand stung from hitting him, "He wouldn't just leave me to further his career."

Rubbing the left side of his face, Ryder strangely didn't look at all upset, "I hope that felt good to you. Just to get all the anger and pain out. But trust me, the longer you stay with him, the more it's gonna hurt in the end."

Slowly calming down, I replied, "You're so... so sad. I almost feel sorry for you. How can you possibly live with yourself?"

"Easy. By not being ignorant of what's happening in front of me." Ryder remarked, as he walked past me, "And just so you know, you're fired."

Wait... what?!

Was I just fired?

As I stood there in utter disbelief, I could hear Ryder call out to me, "You might as well gather your things and leave."

Sniffling, I quickly turned around, "Why am I being fired?"

"Why? I could give you three good reasons why." Ryder answered, as Vanessa looked confused of what was going on, "Your attitude is disgusting, you assaulted your manager, and I caught you texting twice. Need I go on?"

I couldn't believe it.

This was so... so... fucked up!

"Wait, Ryder, don't you think this is a little harsh?" asked Vanessa, walking over to him, "Couldn't you just give her a warning?"

"Nope, she pushed too far and she's getting what was coming to her." replied Ryder, with a smirk, "For today, you'll have to take over for her."

As Ryder left, Vanessa started following him, "But Ryder-"

"Vanessa, you don't have to do that." I insisted, as I stopped her, "I wouldn't want you to lose your job as well."

"But it's not right, Tori. I mean, I know we haven't known each long, but it's not right for someone to get fired like this."

I have to admit, I did appreciate her wanting to help me. But I knew that this was a completely irreversible situation.

No point in dragging others down with me.

"Thanks, but it's just a job. I can find another one." I uttered, as some people entered the store, "Um, you should go and see if they need some help."

"I really am sorry." Vanessa apologized, before leaving to help the customers.

Sighing heavily, I grabbed my phone off the counter and made my way to the back room to gather my things.

It was just a job, and I could always find another one...

1:21 P.M.

Arriving back home, I was quick to grab my favorite pint of ice cream out of the fridge, and watch a marathon of Impractical Jokers.

Try as I might, neither the ice cream or the show was able to cheer me up.

All I could think of was how I was gonna explain this to Mom and Dad.

How was I ever gonna tell this to Andre?

*A musical chime plays on my phone*

Speak of the devil! It was him.

Immediately, my thoughts changed to hoping that he had some good news.

Now it looked like I was the one in need of a pick-me-up.

"Hey, I was just thinking about you. How did things go?" I asked, eager to hear his news.

{Well, I didn't get signed...}

Sighs

This couldn't be right. How could they not sign him?

Ugh, this day just keeps getting better and better.

"Andre, I'm so sorry. Maybe-"

{Whoa, Tori. Just listen. That's not what I mean.}

Confused, I asked, "Then what are you talking about?"

{*chuckles* I was in fact offered me a contract.}

Over joyously screaming at the top of my lung, I couldn't explain how insanely happy I was.

I knew that after all that hard work and determination, that in the end, it would all work out just fine.

{Ha ha! Sounds like you're more than happy about it.}

"Yeah, I really am. But, um... how can you not be signed, yet be offered a contract?"

{Well, for most of the meeting, all Shawn wanted to know was everything about me. Something about "knowing the man before the musician". Anyway, after that I played for him a couple of my songs, he and the other executives said that I had potential to become something big. We then talked some more about legal terms, promoting, and a bunch of other stuff. After all that, Shawn told me that he's eager to get me signed with his label.}

"So why didn't it happen yet?"

{That's where it gets tricky. He wants me to wait until I have an entertainment lawyer with me to finally set things in order. So it's gonna take me awhile to find a reasonably priced one.}

"How long are we talking?"

{A couple more days.}

"How much is a couple more days?"

It was pretty quiet on his side.

"Andre?"

{A-about a week.}

"A week?! Seriously?" I asked, once again feeling the depression coming over me, "I thought you were only staying for three or four days."

{I know, but Shawn seems pretty confident in me. I wouldn't have agreed to this if I wasn't absolutely sure that the outcome would be good.}

Ugh, a week? I mean, it'll be more than a week if you add the past couple of days, but still...

Even though I've already dealt with being away from him for a whole month, I still missed him a lot.

Sighs

Guess I'll just have to suck it up.

{What's even crazier is that after I get signed, he wants me to start recording an EP.}

"An EP?"

{Extended play. Shorter than an album, longer than single. So if things turn out right by the end of this trip, I'll have an EP with four of my best songs... hold on a second.}

From what I could tell, Andre was talking to a woman. I could barely make out what they were saying, but what I could hear was something about "going out", "dinner", and "see the nightlife of the city".

As much as I tried to hold back my curiosity, I couldn't help but wonder who it was he was talking to.

{Okay, I'm back. Um, that was Hope Quincy, Shawn's daughter. He sent her to take me out to this restaurant he owns.}

"Oh, is Shawn gonna be there too?" I asked, trying to ignore my envious thoughts.

{Yeah, he said he wanted to talk some more about the future of my career... wait! I'm sorry. I've been talking way too much. *chuckles* Um, how was your day at work? That manager of yours still being a hardass?}

This was exactly what I was fearing.

Andre has pretty much had the greatest day of his life, and now... now he wanted to know how things had been going with me.

Only problem was I had nothing but bad news.

Sighs

Just like I couldn't bring down Vanessa with my problems, Andre shouldn't have his day ruined because of my issues.

After all he'd been through since he'd got to London, and for things to finally come up for him?

I'll just have to wait to tell him later... or not at all.

"No, we resolved our issues. You can pretty much say that I won't have to deal with them anymore." I muttered, eager to move on from this, "Um, my mom is calling me. Talk to you later tonight?"

{Yeah... sure. Love you.}

"Love you too."

{Bye.}

As I laid back on the sofa, I gazed blankly at the muted TV.

This was gonna be one long week, and I was sure that there were more problems yet to come.