You Love Somebody

3 (Eddie)

  When Eddie stepped onto the stage in Madison Square Garden to the roar of 20.000 voices, he tapped his fingers three times, and took a deep breath. Then he put on his Eddie Wilde filter, and performed with the same intensity as he always did. He joked, and laughed with the audience, thanked them from the bottom of his heart, and charmed anyone and everyone. His show was the perfect mix between slow ballads and high tempo pop songs, and he knew the routine like the back of his hand. He knew what the audience expected him to say at certain times, and he knew they would beg him to play a couple of unreleased songs that had suddenly surfaced without anyone knowing how they magically appeared from the secret vault of songs that didn't make it onto his albums.

His mind was occupied for the two hours he spent performing for the crowd and it was a welcome distraction. Before the show he had spent half an hour on the phone with Hailey, his girlfriend. She was touring South America while he toured North America, and she was upset, because she found the distance to be an inconvenience. It was an inconvenience, but she knew that that was the game they played. They were both touring artists with busy schedules, and he couldn't promise her that they would be seeing each other any time soon. She wasn't happy about that, and they ended up in an argument that he had to put an end to, so he didn't lose focus before his show. She hung up on him, and he knew he would be spending time making it up to her on the phone later. He would apologise for being insensitive, and promise her to make an effort for her.

Hailey was an American chart-topping singer, 25 years old, and a real American sweetheart. She was pretty and funny, and he really liked her. Her talent was undeniable, and in many ways it was nice to be with someone, who understood the business and the pressure they were under. They met at an award show a while back, and they got along well, so he had asked her out. One date led to another and they had been an exclusive item for five months. It was really good when it was good, and really bad when it was bad. Hailey was very emotional, and she didn't hold back, and as much as he liked that, it could also be too much. Sometimes it felt like Hailey fed off drama, and it was exhausting. 

During one of his last songs of the show, he was dancing on the catwalk that led up to the main stage, where the band was playing. He skipped along the catwalk, and twisted his knee slightly. It hurt, and he had to take the weight off and skipped to the side, where the crew had already called the new medic in to help. 

"Sit down, Mr. Wilde." Anna made him sit down and pulled his pant leg up, so she could see his knee. There were no visible changes, but he felt sore, so she quickly iced the knee and rubbed it with ibuprofen gel. Her hands were cold from holding the ice pack, and it felt soothing and nice against his aching knee. 

"Eddie," he said and smirked at her. She smiled a small, shy smile, before she patted his leg and gestured for him to get back on stage.

She was fast and efficient, so he was out again in a matter of minutes. His band had kept things going, so the audience never suspected a thing. He appreciated her efficiency and the very capable way she handled the job. It was refreshing after a while with temporary doctors since Dr. Jim fell ill. Eddie would find a way to get to know Dr. Owen, whether she wanted him to or not. 

***

The next morning Eddie woke to a text from Anna. 

'Mr. Wilde, please come see me when you're at the stadium. I would like to perform a check-up on your knee.' 

He chuckled at the message, it was so formal and clearly she didn't want to come off unprofessional. He texted her back.

'Call me Eddie. I will be there shortly.'

He was determined, she would call him Eddie before the end of the day.

He stretched and yawned before he had a shower. It had ended up being a late night for him apologising and promising Hailey that he would do better. She had cried on the phone, and he felt guilty for making her cry. It was never his intention to make her feel bad, and he assured her that he was just under so much pressure and things would be fine between them. She would try and arrange a weekend in a city on his schedule, so they could see each other. The distance was poisonous, she repeated several times, and Eddie suspected that would be a lyric in a song of hers, if they broke up.