I'd Like to be Somebody Else

Chapter 29

    29th of August 1994. Their first album was released and we were traveling from the Netherlands to London where they were doing a signing in the Virgin Megastore the next day.

    Noel had liked London so much he’d moved there after the London gigs, I begrudgingly moved with him. I hated being down south away from everyone. The band stayed at ours overnight.

    Liam had answered our landline, treating everything as his own, as usual. “Yeah, yeah, alright, cool. I’ll let them know.” was pretty much all he said to them in a casual, uncaring tone.

 “Oi, lads.” he said putting the phone down and turning to us. “That was McGee, says us album went in at number one.” he said it like McGee had remembered to record a program they liked for them, I didn’t get why they weren’t jumping around like they do when someone scores in football.

 “What’s wrong with you lot? You are at number one, that’s like at least a Champions League win, isn’t it?”

 “Yeah but we knew it was going to happen or we wouldn’t have bothered.” Noel shrugged. “Don’t get me wrong, I’m not ungrateful but with the crowds we get, how can it not be top of the chart?”

    We celebrated with a couple of beers before another phone call came through and spoiled the atmosphere.

    I answered, it was their dad. “Get Noel for us, love.”

    I knew this wasn’t going to go down well at all. I sighed and reluctantly announced. “Noel, your dad’s on the phone.”

 “How did he get our fucking number?” he commented. “Li’, d’you want to take this one? Pretty sure we’re thinking the same and your delivery is better.”

    Liam got up, swaggered over the phone in his moment to shine and took the phone from me. “Piss off!” he spoke into the speaker and put the phone down.

    I sat back next to Noel.

    They high-fived as he went back to his seat. “If he’s been bothering Mam, I’ll fucking have him when I get home.”

 “Could have got it off loads of people.” Tony shrugged, not seeing the big deal.

 “Nah, only you lot in this room, McGee, Mam and Kenzie know this number so unless you want to own up, I’d shut up.” Noel warned. “How did he even friggin’ know I moved? All that time in the same city and he knew shit all unless it was what time I’m turning up for work.”

    I looked for a clock, there wasn’t one in this room “Shit! What time is it?” I’d forgotten I had work.

 “About half seven, why?” Guigsy answered, checking his watch.

 “I was supposed to be at the bar about half an hour ago.”

    I hated working at the bar. They weren’t happy to allow me to take time off whenever I wanted but were too scared of bad publicity from Oasis to sack me. They hated me because I was a working class Northerner and I shouldn’t be there. I hated them because they were posh Southerners and they tried too hard to be on trend.

 “Might as well stay here now. Don’t know why you bother working for them. It’s not like you have to.” Bonehead pointed out.

 “I like earning my own money, what if one day me and him break up and I don’t want to be Stacy, “friend of Oasis” anymore?”

 “Never going to happen, you’d not get into gigs without us. You’d just move back to him.” he said, pointing his thumb at Liam.

    I groaned. I hated everyone knowing I’d had them both and Liam thought he was good at hiding that he still wanted me but he just wanted. “I don’t want to go back to Liam.”