Pearl and the band met at the airport and were happily surprised that their seats had been upgraded to first class by Jason. The flight was full of laughs and excitement, which was exactly what Pearl needed. When they arrived in New York, they saw a woman holding a sign, waving her arms and welcoming their band.
"Welcome, Poems for Wolves!" She was young, full of energy, Pearl was guessing possibly an intern. "Hey! I'm Iris! I'm from Epic and I'm your personal assistant this weekend! We have a car waiting." Pearl could already see Blake's wheels turning as he put his arm around her and said, "They pulled out ALL the stops. A gorgeous woman to be around all weekend? Alright!" Pearl looked at Dylan. He was obviously uncomfortable and she could see his introversion beginning to show. She was overwhelmed as well and the trip was just beginning. Iris escorted them through a side door and out into an alley where a stretch Escalade was parked. WhJohn texted Pearl and told her they were all meeting in the hotel bar at 6. Iris told them the company car would be there at 7:30 to collect them and take them to Jax at the studio. Pearl changed her outfit 3 times and decided on a shirt skirt with over the knee high boots with a fringe shawl and Rhys's Tom Waits t-shirt. She looked like a 70s groupie but old enough to know better. It was whimsy and edgy.She made it to the bar a few minutes early and saw Dylan sitting alone with a cocktail. "Manhattan when in Manhattan." He said to her as she sat down next to him. He looked like a man about to record in a studio. He had on jeans with a tight fitting vintage Led Zeppelin t-shirt paired with a leather blazer and knitted beanie. "I'll have one of those, also." Pearl said to the bartender.There was a silence between them for what seemed like forever."I never said thank you. For this. I'm sorry for chastising you about making this happen. Calling you a
After 7 hours of tweaking, starting over, arguing, agreeing, rewriting most of the rhythm guitar and mixing, along with 35 vocal takes and Pearl losing her voice completely, their song was done. Jax was pleased and told them he would meet with Jason that evening and let them know.It was almost 5 am when they were headed back to their hotel. Pearl was exhausted. "Hey Iris, can we stop somewhere and grab some smokes?" John asked. "Yeah man, I need some, too." Dylan said."Yes, of course." Iris said. The driver pulled over in front of a small corner convenience store. Pearl needed calories and decided to get out with John and Dylan to grab something to tie her over. Her mini bar peanuts back in her room didn't sound very satiating.They were still on cloud nine, grabbing munchies and getting in line. They felt like kids again, laughing and singing along to "Tainted Love" coming from a small radio behind the register. "This is the second best day of my
"You should go back to the hotel and get some rest. It's 3 in the afternoon and you've been at the hospital for 10 hours. He's resting. He's in critical care. The best thing you can do is rest." Iris said as she brought Pearl a coffee. The rest of the guys had went back to the hotel to get some sleep a couple of hours earlier. Their flight left the next day at 4, so they had discussed taking shifts before the three guys went home. "I'm insisting you sleep. We all are." Iris said sternly."Ok. Ok I will. But I won't be long. I'll be back in a few hours." Pearl said."I'm going to be here until John comes back at 7. I will let you know if his condition changes. I'll come and see you at the hotel after I meet with Jason at 8. Set an alarm for 9 pm, I'll be there around then. We are all shattered by this. Jax and Jason refused to put off the meeting on your demo because you all said it's what Dylan would have wanted. Everything is going to be ok, I can just feel it." Iris said
Iris showed up around 11 pm. She said that Jason was impressed with their demo and that Monday he was meeting with his boss and a few members of the team to discuss a contract. She asked if Pearl had a lawyer. Pearl was still paying her divorce attorney but didn't have one that knew anything about this kind of thing. She told he she would look into it all and get back to Jason after Monday. Pearl checked her phone and saw no one had texted or called so she asked if Iris knew how Dylan was. "He was still unconscious when I left at 7." Iris said. Pearl gathered a few things and told Iris she was heading back to the hospital."Ok sweetie. John is there now. I will be back tomorrow around 10 am to get you and your things and take you to the apartment that you're staying at on Central Park South. I'll keep in touch. Praying for Dylan."Pearl thanked her and made her way into the lobby and then headed to the hospital."How is he?" She asked John when she got to
Pearl made it back to her hotel with a few hours to sleep before Iris was supposed to arrive. She was so happy about Dylan's prognosis and him waking up, it was a rush of emotions. She fell into bed and was asleep instantly.Iris arrived right on time and helped Pearl carry her things down to the car. "I hear you and Jason have a mutual friend that is letting you stay at their place. It's a really nice area. They must do well for themselves." Iris was looking out of the window, half talking to herself."Yes. They do well. And I'm grateful for being able to stay in town a few extra days." Pearl said, still exhausted."Jason said he was able to contact the housekeeper and she is meeting us there to let you in." Iris said. "I'm glad Dylan is doing well."They stopped in front of a high rise, directly across the street from Central Park. Once inside, they took the elevator to the top floor. An older, friendly looking woman met them at a door d
"Pearl...hey honey. Wake up." Pearl felt someone shake her shoulder. She opened her eyes and saw it was still dark outside and she was still on the couch in Rhys' apartment. She looked to her right and saw Rhys standing there, looking at her with a pained in his eyes. "Hey there, sorry to wake you up. I wanted to tell you I got in a little sooner than planned and I'm home. Come here." He said and opened his arms. She fell into him and he wrapped his arms around her tightly, "I can't imagine what it was like going through that. I can't imagine what you're feeling inside. I'm here. Let's get you to bed." He said, taking her hand and leading her up to the loft. He held her and rubbed her hair, while she sobbed until she fell back asleep."Good morning." Rhys greeted Pearl with a smile and breakfast in bed. "I just made toast and coffee. I figured you should eat but I didn't know how your appetite was."She looked at him gratefully and hugged him. In all the stre
"You're home." Rhys stood to greet her. He had a simple dinner made and was wearing the sweater and the beanie she bought him. He smiled and kissed her. "Well? How do I look?" He asked, twirling on a circle."You look as beautiful as ever." Pearl giggled."I'm so happy I was able to come here and be here for you. How are you doing, you doing ok? How is Dylan?" He asked."He's good. He's doing well and making good progress."Rhys took her hand and walked her to the couch. He sat with her and just held her. It felt good. "There's food if you're hungry." He said. "I'll eat in a little bit. Right now, I need this more." Pearl said.They finally left the couch and ate a little. After a bottle of wine, Rhys looked for something to do in his apartment. He found a deck of playing cards and asked if she wanted to play blackjack. "Ha! Sure. What are we betting? I don't have enough money to lose any." Pearl laughed."I'm a little drunk but I have a bet for you." H
He kissed her and woke her but she pretended to still be asleep. It was sometime in the middle of the night, they had fallen asleep, still in their clothes. It had been a long few days. She felt him moving her shirt over her head and lifting her higher in the bed. He pulled her jeans down and off and covered her with the blankets, trying not to wake her. She watched his shadowy movement in the dark as he took his clothes off and climbed into bed next to her. She heard him rustle some paper on his side of the bed and felt him place a rose by her head on the pillow. Just as he moved over her, back to his side, she sat up halfway and kissed him. "Thank you for being so good to me." She said. He put his arms around her and moved her body underneath his. He wiped her hair from her face and kissed her back. He moved down her neck and further down her body. She moaned and pulled him back to her face. He moved her panties to the side and touched her. She could feel how wet she was. He moved