No Way Back (a Taylor Hawkins fan fiction)

Chapter 15 - London Landing

As the plane touched down in Heathrow, Gen squeezed Taylor's hand. He smiled and kissed her on the top of the head.

"I'm so happy you came," he said.
Gen smiled and glanced to her left, seeing Kate stirring awake at the jolt of the landing (she had been sleeping on Dave's shoulder for a good portion of the 10 hour flight). They had left Los Angeles at 3:35pm and it was now about 10am London time. Gen had not been able to sleep on the flight. She didn't do well on planes to begin with but she had a lot on her mind on this one in particular.

The band had an ungodly amount of press commitments that day as they always did when they arrived in Europe so Kate and Gen had planned a relaxing day at the hotel spa. They were staying at The Sanderson, an edgy art deco hotel in Soho - it's claim to fame was stunning suites with no interior walls - rooms were separated by glass and sheer curtains. The hotel was also conveniently one of the hubs for the NME awards, crawling with celebrities and media of all kinds. This was lucky for the band as most of their press was to be done on-site. No commute in London traffic necessary.
Gen had dealt with paparazzi here and there going to smaller events with Taylor in Los Angeles, but she had not been prepared for this. As their shuttle van pulled up to the hotel she was startled by the circus of people outside. Hotel and security staff were doing their best to keep things sane, but there was still quite a gathering of photographers and fans craning their necks to catch sight of anyone of interest.

"Don't worry about your bags," Taylor said, grabbing her hand protectively. "They'll bring everything in for us. Just stay close to me and walk fast."
The van doors slid open and people began shouting and cheering as they recognized the guys. Gen did what she was told and moved briskly, tucked under Taylor's arm. Once safe inside she removed her sunglasses and looked around at the familiar decor, the famous lip-shaped couch and the mismatched chairs. She felt like she had been transported back to a past life, one she'd been trying to forget. Her stomach turned.

"You said you've been here before, right babe?" Taylor asked, leading her through the busy lobby, his hand on her lower back.

"Yeah, a couple times," she said, forcing a smile.

"Old news," he sighed. "I just can't impress you.

"Hey," she said, stopping and wrapping both arms around his waist. "You impress me fine. You're very impressive."
He grinned and kissed her. Just then, Dave and Kate caught up to them, Pat, Chris, and Nate trailing behind. Kate and Gen were the only female counterparts that had joined the band on this trip. A frazzled looking woman wearing a headset scurried over to the group from the other side of the lobby.

"Perfect timing!" she cried. "I'm Rita, I believe we chatted on the conference call the other day, Dave?" She reached out her hand. Dave grabbed it and gave it a hearty shake.

"Absolutely, nice to meet you in person," he said, smiling. "Rita will be looking after us while we're in London," he explained to the group. Everyone made friendly introductions.

"I know you're all probably all knackered from your flight," she began, "and you've got a few moments to go up and get your rooms sorted, but I'm sorry to say your first commitment starts in 40 minutes down here. We've got a great spot for you set up out in the courtyard and we're going to rotate the media through. We'll do 1 hour of that, break for a quick lunch, then continue on for another 2 hours. After that you have a dinner scheduled with the UK label reps, you're welcome to bring your guests to that," she gestured hurriedly to Kate and Gen before continuing. "After dinner you have several industry parties you may choose to attend if you are up to it. I have a list of invites and who will be there."
Dave laughed and put his hand on Rita's shoulder.

"Darling, take a breath. You're doing a great job, and we're going to go easy on you, I promise."
She smiled sheepishly, letting out the air from her lungs and allowing her shoulders to drop in relief. She handed them each their respective room keys, instructing them where to meet her for their first interview, and they headed towards the bank of elevators.