I'll Be Your Reason (Bradga AU)

Part 8

"You're going." Lea repeated. "You're actually going. And you're leaving today?" Her tone was casual, although her fingers fiddled with the edge of her phone that she wasn't supposed to have on the breakfast table at all.

Bradley nodded, offering her a small smile as he took a seat across from her with his coffee. "I'm traveling there this morning and then rehearsing with them for the first time. I think they're already on the road right now. The next show isn't until tomorrow."

"You're serious."

"Well...yes?"

She took a deep breath. "Are you scared at all you'll embarrass yourself somehow and be home in, like, a week?" She asked with a slight tremor in her voice, trying her best to hide it behind a giggle.

"Really now?"

"I'm just saying you don't want to mess this up."

"Thanks for the confidence."

"Dad, it's Gaga. She's, like, as perfect as you can get." She chewed her cereal carefully and then her eyes widened. "Can I come visit another show? Backstage? You can hook us up with meet&greet tickets!"

"I don't know yet honey, let me first see how far my own backstage pass goes. Who knows, maybe I won't even get to see her myself."

Lea huffed and looked down at her hands, biting her lip.

"What is it?" Bradley asked with a grin. "I promise, I'll try anyway."

Without saying anything, she set her phone down, slipped off the kitchen chair and rushed over to him, wrapping arms around him in a rare hug. Bradley froze for a second, taken aback because hugging hadn't been a regular thing in a while now. He could feel the mix of emotions she was trying to keep buried and wrapped his arms around her, squeezing her back.

"I'm gonna miss you."

"Yeah, me too. But don't mess up." She laughed, her cheek against his shoulder before she pulled back. "And bring me back something cool. Like, something signed."

"You got it. I'll make it through until the end just for bragging rights."

*

Stepping into the arena and into the bustle of hundreds of people setting up the stage for the next day almost made Bradley want to back out immediately. But before he even had time to take it all in and to get his heart rate back to normal, a young woman appeared at his side, clipboard in hand. "Bradley Cooper?"

"Yeah, that's me. Is this the right place?"

"Perfect, I've been looking for you. Sorry for the mess, we're in the middle of a first sound check while the stage isn't even fully set up. Come on."

She led him back behind the stage, down a maze of hallways and Bradley got a brief look onto a rack of costumes that were set up next to the rows of dressing rooms. At least he wouldn't have to get into that. His job was to fade into the background, so all he'd have to wear would be black jeans and a black t-shirt. A part of his regular uniform anyway.

"Alex, I found you the last straggler for stage setup!" The woman yelled through the last door and pulled Bradley through it with her, into a room directly behind the stage.

"Good. Fucking finally, welcome." Alex's tone was polite but brisk as he walked towards him, wasting no time on small talk. "You got the setlist, I assume? You're prepared?"

"Yeah, no problem. I got it." Bradley nodded, shifting slightly under the critical gaze, but held out his hand. "Been studying it since I got it. I think I've got it down."