A Defining Mistake

Chapter 11 - Break

"Please, please don't make me do this Javi?" Ada sobbed. "There must be a way out of this? I don't want to do any interviews as it is let alone with Luke."

"Ada, there's nothing I can do," Javi sighed. "I'm sorry, I wish I could make this go away but it won't look good if you pull out of every interview you're booked in for. I've already cancelled half of them! It won't be as bad as you think and we can give all the interviewers a list of no go questions. As for the Celebrity Therapy appearance, there's really nothing I can do. You're just going to grin and bear it."

"I can't."

"You have to. This will make or break your career. You come out looking great in that appearance and you're set. If you skip out and don't give your side then you let him control the narrative. I have to go, I'll check in again tomorrow."

Ada let her head drop onto her pillow. She was laying in bed, where she had been since she got back from tour four days ago. Her unpacked suitcases still sat at the front door and she had only gotten out of bed to answer the door to her fast food deliveries or use the bathroom. Red rimmed and puffy eyes just poked out from underneath her duvet and there she stayed. In two days time, Ada was booked on a day time chat show to 'catch up on her life since Am I Enough?, a statement she had to laugh at. In the four months since the show, her life had been nothing short of a mess. She was booked into various other interviews and auditions in the next two weeks for minor roles in television shows as well as a follow up session on Celebrity Therapy. She did not feel up to any of it.

"Ada!" her sister's voice coming up the stairs snapped her out of her depressing daydream and Ada began to panic. She jumped out of bed and into her ensuite bathroom, swiftly locking the door.

"I'm just getting in the shower!" Ada shouted. "I'll be down soon!"

In the shower, Ada scrubbed her eyes, hoping the redness would dissipate. Her hair was slicked back with grease on account of the minimal showering available on tour and her wallowing in bed. It took three cycles of shampoo and conditioner and four slogs of shower gel to feel normal. As she washed, she sang quietly, 'I gotta wash that man right outta my hair'. She was unsure which man she was referring to, but it made her feel better. Ada left the shower feeling refreshed and, dressed in a pair of baggy shorts and a hoody, she headed downstairs to join her sister.

"What are you doing here?" Ada sat down at her breakfast bar, swiveling slightly left to right. "Can't I come and see my sister when she's been away for weeks? Especially when she's ignoring my texts and calls. What's with you?" Ashley poured two strong coffees.

"Ugh sorry," Ada ran a hand over her face. "I've been trying to get out of doing that Celebrity Therapy show that I did with Luke before and I can't."

"Why?"

"Javi said it'll look bad if I go back on contracts I've signed and that if I don't do the episode then I let Luke control the narrative. But I really don't even care." Ada heard her phone ringing upstairs and she leapt off the stool to retrieve it.

When Ada walked back into the kitchen, she found Ashley eating some toast.

"Javi's right you know," Ashley said her mouth full, buttering a second slice.

"Where the hell did you get that bread?" Ada looked around her in confusion. She hadn't been food shopping yet.

"I brought it. I knew you wouldn't have any food in," Ashley handed the second slice over to Ada. "Now as I was saying, Javi is right."

"How did you come to that conclusion?" Ada rolled her eyes, taking a bite of toast.

"Luke will get on that show and trash the life out of you to save himself. You can't let him do that to you. You have to show up and say your piece, tell him exactly what he's done to you." Ashley was firm. "You can't allow him to take anymore from you. You've blocked him on social media, right?"