February Or Forever (12 page)

‘Thanks, not looking too bad yourself.' She ran her hand across his head, sending little tingles across his scalp. ‘Where did all your hair go?'

‘I decided to go for easy maintenance,' he said. ‘Plus, if I start going bald it'll be less noticeable.' He winked.

‘Gemma, look who's here!' Sarah called out, and a few moments later the bathroom door down the hall opened and his niece emerged, her hair all wavy and styled, eyes lined with black, lips a glossy fuchsia. How could she have grown that much since the last time he'd seen her? She looked about twenty-five.

‘Drew!' She ran into his arms. ‘I can't believe you're here! You look so cool, how's L.A.? Are you ready for your tour? I wish I could go back with you!'

‘Hey, hey, one question at a time.' He kissed her cheek. ‘Don't forget to breathe.' His mouth turned up into a smile, remembering those exact words he'd written as part of a new song he'd been working on. Who would have thought that emptying one's mind during meditation could actually fill one's mind with great ideas? Or maybe Chrissie was his muse. He should take time off more often.

‘Let your uncle settle in a bit, I'm sure he doesn't need you acting like a journalist after what he's been through.'

‘Sorry, I'm just so excited. I can't wait to show you my new songs. You're still coming back over tomorrow to help me out, right?'

‘Of course, wouldn't miss it. Might even show you a bit of some new stuff I've been working on myself.'

‘Really? Awesome!'

‘Uncle Drew, look what I got today.' Sam covered a whistle with his lips and blew, his cheeks becoming round, like a puffer fish.

‘Oh, Sam!' Sarah covered her ears. ‘That's a bit of a loud way to welcome our visitor.'

Drew laughed. He'd missed this family chaos. ‘It's nothing, my ears have been immune to loud noises for years now. Where'd you get that?'

‘The country fair. I also rode a pony, and went on the huge slide, and ate a toffee apple, and — '

‘Sam, there'll be plenty of time over dinner for filling Uncle Drew in about your day.' She turned to Drew. ‘Come on outside, can I get you a beer?'

‘No beer for me, thanks, taking a break from alcohol for a while. Anything else you've got is fine.' Drew walked through the living room, Sam hanging at his side, and stepped outside to the patio.

‘Hey mate, how's it goin'?' Sarah's husband, Liam, said, stretching out his hand and when Drew shook it, giving him a man-slap on the back.

‘Good, yourself? How's business?'

‘Busy as always, but great.'

‘I see you've put on a new deck.' Drew gestured to the raised area a few steps above the patio.

‘Yeah, took me long enough. Have to fit in our own home improvements around my schedule.'

‘Well it looks great, I think Sam likes it.' The boy was on the deck, playing air guitar and making guitar noises with his voice. Another musician in the family?

Sarah handed Drew a mineral water and he took a welcome sip, bubbles fizzing down his throat.

‘What do you think, too much?' Gemma came outside and held out her arm, multiple silver bangles jingling around it.

‘It might be', ‘No, I like it', Sarah and Drew said at the same time. Oops. He should know to always get the mother's permission before giving his opinion on something relating to fashion.

He bit his bottom lip and glanced at his sister who shook her head and mumbled, ‘Men.'

‘So should I wear them or what?' Gemma asked.

‘Whatever your mum thinks, Gem.' Drew held up his hands in defeat. ‘Probably best as a female decision.'

‘Okay, wear them. They do match your earrings, I guess.' Sarah said.

Gemma nodded a smile. ‘Cool. Just wanted to make sure.' She glanced at Drew. ‘Sorry I won't be hanging around, I wanted to take the opportunity while I had it.'

‘No worries, I'll see you tomorrow. You go and enjoy your gig with your dad.'

‘Thanks, it's gonna be awesome. The last one we did someone even stood and clapped, I couldn't believe it.' The girl was beaming. He knew that feeling of performance euphoria all too well. The moment he realised he'd won
Search for a Star
at age nineteen was the most incredible moment of his life, one he'd shared with a huge percentage of Australian television viewers. Not much had been private since then; he'd grown used to living life in the spotlight, but he'd also grown tired of it. Not tired of doing what he loved — writing songs, making albums, and performing — but the judgement and lack of privacy that came along with that.

‘It's only the beginning for you. I'm sure tonight will be just as great.' He tapped her on the arm.

‘I'll get my guitar,' she said, walking back inside.

‘Drew,' Sarah said, sidling up close. ‘I was hoping tomorrow you could have a bit of a talk with her, you know, tell her it's not all fun and parties? She's got it in her head that she's moving to the city as soon as she's eighteen, but I don't think she's ready. She's got stars in her eyes. She needs to know what it's really like, from an insider.' Sarah's face relayed concern.

‘Sure, I'll talk to her. But I don't think I should flat out tell her to hold off, otherwise she'll rebel. I remember what it was like at her age, having musical skills and feeling like you have the world at your feet. It's pretty empowering. I don't want to dampen her enthusiasm.'

‘I know, but just sort of give her an idea that it's hard work and that not everyone is as nice off stage as they are on stage.'

‘I'll be honest, sure, but I think it's good that she wants to go for her dreams. Look what it did for me, for our whole family. We've never had to worry about finances.'

‘I know, I know, and I'm so grateful for everything you've shared with us. I just…' She hung her head and clamped her lips together, and Drew suddenly realised what this was about. His baby sister was losing her baby. She'd only known motherhood, and from a very young age, and now everything was changing. If Gemma left, it would be like a part of her had gone too. She'd practically grown up alongside her daughter, became an adult while becoming a mother. Mostly on her own in the beginning too. She didn't know how to be anything else now. Sure, she had Sam, but Drew imagined it must be different, that mother-daughter bond, plus the fact that Gemma was her first born.

‘You want her to stay a child a little bit longer, right?' He rubbed her arm.

Sarah looked up, red rims framing her eyes. She nodded. ‘All of a sudden she's a young woman. I don't know how to deal with that. When I was her age I was pregnant.'

‘It's a bit of a culture shock, eh? You'll handle it fine, just like you have all these years. You're the strongest woman I know.' Well, apart from the woman who encouraged his body to form strange shapes and postures every weekday this month, but that was a different kind of strength.

Sarah flicked his compliment away. ‘Oh, I just did what had to be done. Took it one day at a time.'

‘Exactly, and you'll do the same now. Your daughter has a talent, a talent that should be used. Sure, encourage her to take her time while she's young, but as soon as you try to force her to hold back, she'll do the opposite, you know that.'

‘Yeah, I know. Mum was so strict with me not going to parties until I turned eighteen, and the one night I snuck out…well, we all know what happened after that!' She laughed. ‘And here I am now.' She held out her arms. ‘Life certainly goes in unexpected directions sometimes.'

‘Tell me about it.' Drew hugged an arm around his sister and dawdled over to the barbeque that Liam was prepping. ‘So, what can I do? Want me to grab the meat from the kitchen?'

‘Oh, yes, thanks. It's all in the fridge. I better get onto those salads.' Sarah said, wiping the corner of her eye with her middle finger. ‘Sam, don't climb the railing, honey!' she said as she walked back inside.

A knock on the door sounded and Drew turned to face the entrance. A lump formed in his throat.

‘Gemma, your father's here!' Sarah called out, walking to the door.

She opened it to reveal a slightly overweight Barry who, ironically, had been called The Stick by other kids in school owing to his long lanky frame, which had more than filled out with age. His desk job probably hadn't helped.

‘Hey, Baz, she's ready I think.' Sarah welcomed him in then returned to the kitchen, like he was just part of the furniture. They'd gotten over their issues years ago and were like old mates now, but for Drew, Barry still made his muscles tense and his stomach turn. It was hard to get over a grudge when the other person had one of their own against you.

Drew gave a curt nod. ‘Barry.'

‘Drew.' He nodded back.

‘It's been a while.'

‘Yeah, it has. How's L.A.?'

‘Oh, you know…same old, same old.'

‘Actually I don't. Never been there.'

Damn. Foot in mouth.

Drew scratched his head. ‘Well, nothing beats Tarrin's Bay, I can tell you that.'

‘You haven't been back for a while. How long you stayin'?' Barry's hands slipped into his pockets. He obviously didn't want to shake hands.

‘Going home on the 1st of March.'

‘Right.' He nodded.

A clicking of heels on the floor became louder as Gemma emerged from her room, guitar in hand. ‘Hey, Dad. Ready to go?'

‘Absolutely.' He leaned forward and pecked her on the cheek. ‘We're going to rock Café Lagoon tonight, aren't we, huh?'

‘For sure.' She smiled.

‘It's not quite Wembley Stadium, but there's something great about a small, intimate crowd, don't ya think?'

‘I'd be happy with any type of crowd Dad, and Wembley Stadium? Oh man, I so hope I get there one day!'

‘There's no rush, honey.' Sarah came over and hugged her daughter. ‘But have a good night.'

Barry ushered his daughter to the door. ‘You can achieve whatever you want, sweetheart. You've got what it takes, that's for sure.'

‘Thanks Dad,' she said, walking outside, then turning around briefly to wave. ‘Bye Drew. See you tomorrow. Shame you can't come tonight.' She pouted and turned away again.

‘Yeah, shame. But that's the price of fame, eh, Drew?' Barry said when Gemma was out of earshot.

His stomach turned again. There was definitely a double meaning in Barry's words. He knew how to make him feel guilty for what he did all those years ago, and even though Drew knew he'd done what any of his other band mates would have done, given the same choice, it still gnawed away at him.

‘Don't listen to him,' Sarah said, when Barry and Gemma drove off.

Drew chewed on his lip. ‘After all these years, he's still mad at me.'

‘Well, aren't you still a little mad at him too?' She raised her eyebrows.

‘Well, yes, but that's different. That's about a big brother wanting to protect his little sister.' He pinched her cheek.

‘I don't need protecting now, Drew. I'm not seventeen any more. I'm a thirty-five-year-old mother of two, and I'm finally happily married. What's done is done, don't keep blaming Barry for something I played a fifty percent role in.'

‘Sorry, can't hold back those brotherly instincts, I guess. But you wanted to travel and see the world, and then he — my mate — goes and gets my little sister pregnant. I was so angry at him at the time; I didn't even know he had the hots for you. Explains why he always wanted to do band practice at our house instead of his.'

‘Yeah, well, he was a teenager. Hormones and all. And it was almost twenty years ago, let's just forget about it.'

‘I would if he would — he's never forgiven me.'

‘Well maybe February will be the month for forgiveness. You two should talk while you're here, sort things out once and for all.'

‘We'll see. I have a few other things on my mind to deal with too, you know.'

‘Yes, I know. Sorry, how is it all going?'

He rubbed the back of his neck. ‘Actually, let's not talk about it now. Let's just enjoy a nice dinner, hey?'

‘Sounds good.' Sarah plonked a bag of spinach leaves into a salad bowl, then glanced up. ‘Oh, I almost forgot. Your yoga teacher is very nice, isn't she?' Sarah grinned.

‘What?' Drew gulped. ‘You met her? How did you know? Did she say something?'

‘No, no, of course not. I opened my big mouth, that's all.'

Drew leaned on the kitchen bench, curious.

‘Her son, Kai, is friends with Sam. She took them both to the country fair today. I invited her in for a cuppa afterwards and she heard Gemma singing.' Sarah tipped a container of cherry tomatoes into the bowl. ‘I blurted out that she takes after Uncle Drew and the poor woman's jaw practically dropped to the floor.'

A grin slid into Drew's cheeks.

‘Even then she didn't say anything, but was acting strange, so I eventually got it out of her that she was teaching you for the month. I think she was scared of breaking her contract, but obviously I already knew you were here.'

Drew straightened up. ‘She mentioned she was going to the country fair with her son, I didn't know he was bringing a friend. That's great, might help him be happier about going to school.'

‘It was a last minute thing…hang on, it sounds like you know a whole lot about Chrissie and her son. Have you been spending time together outside of the yoga studio?'

‘Of course not. We do yoga, we talk, nothing else to it.'

‘She's nice, I like her. Sounds like she's been through a bit though — divorce, her aunt's death…'

‘Yeah, I think there's something else going on beneath the surface. I can tell she's trying to be strong, but…I don't know, just a feeling.'