Following behind Karen, Stevie moved through the halls of the venue, trying to make it to her dressing room without seeing the rest of the band. It wasn't that she was feeling antisocial, but she definitely had far too much on her mind to pause and chitchat.
By the time she made it to the end of the long hall, she could just sense his presence behind that door. It was a cloud of memory, regret, even some hidden anger that surrounded his every move, mainly when it came to his mother.
She was his worst enemy, yet his best friend.
"Are you coming in?" Stevie looked back at Karen, hoping she'd be of comfort, but she couldn't get that lucky.
"I'll be out here, dear." She responded, waving gently before passing Stevie and heading back in the opposite direction.
She wanted to grab herself a drink, of course.
Stevie sighed softly, wishing so badly that it was easier, but it wasn't and it never had been.
So, half heartedly and with a ball of nerves, she twisted the doorknob, pushing it open to be met by her son, sitting on the couch across the room.
He was wearing a leather jacket, a pair of dark blue jeans, hair combed back and he even had a smile that she missed more than anything in the entire world. He looked just like his mother, though his personality was almost the exact opposite. And even though he did look quite handsome, he also looked like hell.
"Hi, mom." He smiled softly as he popped up off the couch to wrap her up in his arms quickly.
He'd missed her, he really had, though it had never been easy to express those sort of feelings... except for when he was just a child, of course. He used to think his mother could walk on water, touch the stars and even talk to the moon. He thought she was everything, until he hit a certain age and then he realized what he considered the truth.
"Hi, baby." Stevie's head fell on his chest, taking in that familiar scent of cologne and cigarette smoke... "How are you?" She backed up slowly, still holding his jacket in one hand as his arm rested on her back.
His big brown eyes and soft smile made her heart melt a million times over. "I'm good, yeah." He have her a nod, rubbing her back a little before letting her go. "How are you?" Nash stepped back, hands sliding in his pockets as his eyes followed his mother through the room.
Finding the vanity chair, Stevie fell down slowly. "I've been great, honey." She nodded, hands falling into her lap.
"Good, I'm glad." He half smirked, shifting all of his weight to the other foot as he remained in that same spot.
"Where's your sister?" She wondered in a gentle tone of voice, wanting so badly to just make some kind of small talk... She hated how awkward it was.
"She's out on stage, talking with Mary." He shrugged a shoulder lightly, suddenly looking more like his father than ever before... He wanted to be so casual, even though they both knew what he was really there for.
She paused for a long moment, wishing, so badly that there wasn't an alternative motive when it came to her baby, but she knew better. "What do you need, Nash?" She leaned back carefully, letting the edge of the vanity catch her.
His eyes shifted towards the open window, because he couldn't look her in the eyes when asked for the same thing he had time and time again- money. "I need twenty thousand dollars." He announced, which immediately made her gasp.
Her heart started pounding and her face felt incredibly hot in just moments. "What'd you do?" Her first thought was that he'd gotten in some sort of trouble- after all, he was known to be quite the troublemaker.
But when he stepped back on his heels, a defeated look on his face, she knew that he wasn't necessarily caught in a bind... He needed it for something else.
"I'm not giving you twenty thousand dollars to blow on vodka and..." she stopped for a short second, "And whatever else you're doing with it." She knew there was something more, more serious and more taxing, but he would never admit it to his mother.
"Mom, please." Nash's voice had almost transitioned from a calm tone to a begging. "I need it, mama." He always did that.
He always called her "mama" when he needed something, because that was her soft spot, but not this time.
"Why don't you talk to your dad about it?" Stevie always felt like the targeted one, and in reality- she was. He knew her better than almost anyone, so he knew how to get around her roadblocks. "I can't keep doing this, honey." She shook her head, feeling as bad as any mother would.
She wanted to do everything she could to help him, but enough was just enough. She knew that her son wasn't spending that money on rent, or a car payment... he was spending it on something stronger than she could decipher. She could tell by the way his hands shook very gently when they were pressed against her back and the deep, dark edge that his eyes held also gave it away. He didn't look like her boy, but than again- she couldn't remember the last time he really did.
"He won't help me out, you know that." He started pacing the room, rubbing his forehead out of annoyance.
"He's down the hall, Nash...." she held out her arm, motioning towards the door. "Go talk to him about it." She let off a shrug, not giving in to his want for the first time in a long time.
"Plea-" he was going to beg her more, she knew he was, so she had to cut him off.
"I'm not giving you twenty thousand dollars, Nash." She held up her hand, telling him that she was done listening to his craziness. "You can talk to your dad about it, but I'm not caving this time." She couldn't, even if she wanted to.
She had promised herself that she would always take care of her kids, but giving him that money wouldn't be helping him... it would be hurting him. She knew that money would go to things that would break him down and she couldn't be the reason for that, not anymore at least.
Before he could respond, there was a knock on the door- almost like a saving grace on her behalf. "Come in," She was hoping it would be Lindsey, standing there to pull him out of whatever trance he was in, but it wasn't- it was Karen, which was good enough.
Nash's eyes went from the door, back to his mother- who was no longer focused on him. And without another word, he rushed through the room and into the hallway, probably on the hunt for his father.
Stevie knew that if she didn't cough up the money, neither would his dad- it was always like that. She was weak when it came to that boy, even if he made her want to rip her hair out almost every time she saw him.
"Close it." Stevie motioned for Karen to lock the door behind her, just to make sure she wouldn't receive anymore surprise guests.
And it wasn't that she was anticipating her son coming back, because she knew once she had said no- she wouldn't speak to him for weeks... No, instead she was waiting for her ex to come knocking on that door, ready to argue over their son like usual.
