Annie's Story

Chapter Eleven: Jake to the Rescue

Chapter Eleven: Jake to the Rescue

Friday night arrived, and it was time for the concert. Though, Markus was in no mood to attend a concert. His latest business deal fell through and it was becoming increasingly difficult for him to find new companies to make contracts with. It was as if someone was keeping these companies from inking deals with him.

Not to mention, his deadline to begin paying Luigi back was fast approaching.

But, he had promised Annie he would go with her.

He met Annie at the café. She had already changed her clothes and was now wearing jeans, a black tank top, and a black leather jacket. Her hair was down and flowing over her shoulders. She smiled at him as he approached. He gave her a half-hearted smile back. She knew then that tonight was going to be rough.

Annie sat staring out the window as they rode to the arena. She knew that if she kept the conversation to minimum they wouldn’t fight before they got there. She reached over and grabbed Markus’ hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. He smiled at her, bringing her hand to his lips, kissing her knuckles.

They arrived at the arena and were immediately ushered into the back.

Jake waved them over and Annie pulled Markus through the room. As they made their way through the stagehands and the other people invited to come backstage, Annie saw Jake's sister. Melanie grinned as Annie approached.

"Annie! It is so good to see you again," Melanie said, hugging her. "Oh, who is this?"

"Mel, this is Markus. Markus, meet Melanie, Jake's sister," Annie said.

"It is nice to meet you," Melanie said.

"The pleasure is mine," Markus said, smiling. Melanie grabbed Annie's hand, pulling her to the couch.

"I have missed you and our late nights. Tell me everything. What has been going on with you?" Melanie asked.

"Nothing, really. I am still working in the café, which is where I met Markus. He came in and was very flirty," Annie said. Melanie looked around Annie to Markus, who was staring off into space. His mind was not on the concert of the people around him. His mind was on the looming debt, Luigi, Raphael, and Cari.

"Markus, did you immediately fall for Annie?" Melanie asked, bringing Markus out of his trance.

"I was smitten from the moment I laid eyes on her," Markus said, grinning.

"Aw, that is so sweet," Melanie said. "Annie, I think you got yourself a good one."

"I think so, too," Annie said, smiling at Markus. He smiled back at her. Markus' phone buzzed. Looking at the screen, he sighed.

"I got to take this," Markus said, getting up. Melanie looked at Annie, who shrugged.

"Duty calls," Annie said. "He is a very busy man."

"He doesn't seem like he wants to be here," Melanie said.

"He is under a lot of pressure at work," Annie said. "He will liven up when the concert starts."

"We are ready for you on stage," announced a stagehand. "If the guests will follow me, we have you all set up in the VIP section."

Annie waited until everyone else left, hoping Markus would come back into the room. When he didn't, she went to look for him down the hall. She found him sitting on one of the black cases that held equipment.

"Markus, they are taking the stage, and we are going to the VIP section," Annie informed. "Is everything okay? Are you okay?"

"Yeah," he said. "Let's go."

"Okay," Annie said, grabbing his hand and leading him in the direction she saw everyone else go. The stagehand found them wandering around the back.

"There you are," he said. "Follow me."

They followed him through a set of doors where they could see a packed house. He led them to the right side of the stage where there was a section marked reserved and they quickly sat in the two empty seats reserved for them. Soulshine came out on stage and the crowd erupted in cheers; everyone was on their feet.

Markus stood so he could see their performance. The drums kicked in, then the bass, the lead guitar, and then Jake belted out the first note. Markus began to feel the beat, forgetting all about the problems he faced outside of this moment.

Annie's smile grew as she sang along with the band and everyone else in the crowd. Markus was enjoying watching her have fun, reminding him of the night he took her to the play. She felt the music more than most people who just heard the lyrics. The music spoke to Annie, and Markus just realized how much Jake's words spoke to her. He understood the magnitude of their connection at that moment.

Annie's clothes were stuck to her skin, and her hair dripped with sweat by the concert's end. She was out of breath as they walked backstage again. Melanie grabbed Annie, pulling her down the hall, leaving Markus to walk to the room by himself. He found a case and sat down again. Pulling out his phone, he saw he had two messages, one from Luigi and the other from Cari.

Markus clicked on the message from Cari first, smiling as he read what she wrote.

'I am just sitting here thinking about you. I hope you are having fun at the concert.'

'I did have fun, but I missed you,' Markus replied. Seeing the chat bubble, he knew she was waiting for him to text her back.

'I am glad you had fun. Will I see you tomorrow?' she asked.

'Yes,' he wrote. He clicked over to the message from Luigi.

'Markus, I hope you have not forgotten about our arrangement. Your payment is coming up, and I need proof you will have it.'

'You will have your money,' Markus replied and waited for a response. He got none. Annie came from down the hall. Seeing the look on Markus' face, Annie knew there was something wrong.

"Hey," Annie said.

"Hey," Markus replied. "Can we leave?"

"Um, I guess," Annie said. "Just let me say goodbye to everyone."

"I don't have time for that," Markus said. "Let's go, now, Annie."

"Markus, what is wrong?" Annie said.

"I want to leave. I am tired of being here around your friends," Markus said, grabbing Annie's upper arm.

"Markus, you’re hurting me," Annie said, trying to pull her arm from his grasp.

"I don't care if I am hurting you," Markus said, pulling her toward an exit. "We are leaving."

"Let go of her," Jake said, coming around the corner. Markus and Annie spotted Jake at the same time.

"This is none of your business," Markus said.

"Oh, but it is," Jake said, coming closer. "Let go of her."

"Fine, but I am not staying," Markus said, shoving Annie toward Jake. Jake caught her before she fell. Annie looked up at Jake apologetically.

"Markus, wait," she called after him. She ran after Markus, catching up to him. "Markus, talk to me. What is going on? You promised me the other night that you would always talk to me."

"I have things to do," he said. "I only came here because you wanted to come. I would have preferred to stay home. You pressured me into coming here when you know I have a lot on my mind."

"I didn't force you to come here tonight," Annie said. "You could have stayed home. I would have come on my own. I have been to many of their concerts by myself."

"Do you love him?" Markus asked.

"Who?" Annie asked.

"Jake. Do you love Jake?" Markus asked through clenched teeth.

"No, Markus," Annie said. "I love you."

"Did you love him?" he asked, searching her face for the answer.

"No, we have only ever been friends," Annie said, looking away from Markus.

"That is what I thought. Go back to your friends, Annie," Markus said. "I am going home."

"Markus, please," Annie whispered, voice shaking.

"I will see you tomorrow," he said, turning away from her. He left her standing in the hallway with tears streaming down her face. Annie turned to walk back to her friends to find Kincaid standing there.

"Annie, are you okay?" he asked.

"Yeah, I am fine," she said as her bottom lip quivered. He pulled her into him. She silently cried against his chest. He stroked her hair until she calmed down.

"Go wash your face," Kincaid said. He waited outside the bathroom door until she emerged. "Better?"

"Yeah, thanks for letting me get that out," she said, wiping her face with the rough, brown paper towel.

"Okay, let's get back to the party before they wonder what happened to the both of us," Kincaid said. "Fair warning, Jake was not happy you went after Markus."

"What else was I supposed to do? He's my boyfriend," Annie said.

"I know, but he was hurting you," Kincaid said. "Jake was fuming coming back into that room. He wants to hurt him."

"Markus has never done that before," Annie said. "He is just stressed out. It will pass."

"Just be careful, Annie," Kincaid said. "If he is getting even a little violent now, it can worsen."

"I know," Annie said. "I will be careful."

Annie knew all about abusive relationships. She had seen her mother go through her fair share of them. It was why she took up dance so that she could be out of the house more than she was in it. She needed to get away from all the hurt going on. When she became good enough to earn a scholarship, she knew it was what she wanted to do for the rest of her life.

She could travel the world and never have to settle down in one area.