Chapter 61

With each concert they performed, he gained more confidence in himself again. Why had he even been nervous for the first show? He knew what he was doing.

Being without the band for six months had left him a little uneasy about performing with them but the songs all came back to him and he easily got the hang of it again. His performance on stage was just fine but to himself it finally felt right again. The last four shows had gone smoothly. They easily transitioned into Every Road Leads Home To You in the middle of the setlist and Jon was okay with supporting him on guitar during the song instead of leaving the stage all together. This way, the song and the concert became more whole and part of the entire band.

They were heading back to Mexico where they would perform their rescheduled concert instead of going straight to Vancouver for a few days. Although he was looking forward to seeing Caleb, he didn't mind that it would be a few days later. Caleb was most likely busy with school after all and most university students weren't too big on hanging out with their father.

At least they could make it up to their Mexican fans, even if Tico had gone back home after his surgery instead of staying in Mexico, he preferred being closer to his wife and son. Soon enough he would join them again.

It was only the first week of the tour and already hotel rooms started to fade together. They all seemed the same once you'd been in them so very often. They were all comfortable, spacious rooms with a bed and lounge area, which was all he needed. Technically.

He'd been sitting in the hotel room for the last two hours, the pillows on the bed propped up behind his back. The room was quiet but his mind was not as he contemplated what he was doing here.

Two hours ago he finished dinner with Jon and they returned to the hotel.

It had been their day off after a travel day the day before. Tomorrow would be their last concert for their short South American tour.

Right now, he didn't know what he was doing or why he was doing it.

Dinner with Jon had been fine, the whole day had been fine. It had been a calm day, he slept in and had a late breakfast, most would call it lunch but he wasn't that technical about his meals or their times. Afterwards he video chatted Sarah and Daniel for a while and was happy to talk to them and catch up on everything they had been doing. He was proud to know Sarah had some time to continue studying, even while taking care of Daniel by herself. Seeing her always made him happy, even if the video quality wasn't as good as real life, he was always amazed at how beautiful she looked.

Afterwards he decided to continue the habit of video chatting and called Ava next. It was Saturday so he knew she would at least not be in school, he could call her anytime. He should have known better though as Ava was out for brunch with a friend. Ava always had a busy schedule of social activities, he was aware of that. Even when he was home, she was often out with friends or they were over at their house. It was nice to see Ava but after only a few minutes she decided to call him back later.

The rest of his afternoon he spent alone.

The thought of going down to the gym or pool had crossed his mind but the thought had not stayed much longer than that.

Most TV programs were in Spanish which wasn't helpful to him either. A word here or there that he knew wasn't sufficient to follow TV shows. There was always Netflix that he could watch on his laptop but he didn't feel like making a choice on what to watch and in the last week he had watched a lot of it already.

He kept to himself until his thoughts were disturbed by a knock at the door. For the first time in hours, he got up from the bed. As he moved, he noticed how stiff his body had become due to no movement.

At the door he found Jon, who invited him to come along for dinner with him. He tried to get out of it but Jon wasn't having it and waited for Richie to get ready before heading down to the hotel lobby where a car was already waiting for them.

He was amazed how Jon would always find them wonderful but small restaurants. The ones many people wouldn't think twice of but were a very nice quality. They could just as easily go to the upscale restaurants but the small places were always so much more appreciative of their clientele. Another benefit was the actual authentic food instead of food catered to foreigners tastes. If he was going to be in Mexico, he would much rather eat authentic Mexican food than a greasy burger he could find anywhere in the world.

It had been two hours since they left for dinner and here he was again, the same bed he had been sitting on all day.

His own thoughts were capturing him.

After his video calls, his phone had been silent for the rest of the day. Sarah was most likely kept busy by their little boy but he wondered what they were doing. Was Daniel finally walking? Were his teeth hurting him less? Had he said his first word yet? Noah was at home, he was sure of that much at least, most likely he was also in his room but his mind would be in an entirely different fantasy world of whichever book he would be reading by now. Had he finished the first Harry Potter book and continued on with the rest of the series? Then of course, Ava, always on his mind. She seemed alright when he spoke to her, was she doing better than when he had left a few weeks ago? Was she nervous for her driver's test next week? Did he have to go over how to parallel park with her again? He could tell her step by step just to remind her. What about her birthday? Was she excited for the exuberant event they had planned for her? Turning 16 was such a big step and he knew she was very excited for it but he was going to miss it while being in Washington Was she going to call him back today? At least he would see Caleb next week, since he had left for university, in a different country nonetheless, their conversations had turned to simple texts every couple of days. No more long conversations about guitars, melodies or lyrics.

Why was he here?

His iPhone on the night stand vibrated shortly, then started playing his ringtone.

What was he doing?