Losing a Winning Battle

21

We eventually get to the place were supposed to be going. Sylvia was still passed out in her bunk. We start unpacking for the first show of the tour. We had an interview backstage before the show so we were here a bit early.  Right towards the end of the interview Sylvia walks up to me, I guess she finally woke up. "Gee, Miles, Frank, Brandon, Ryan," She greets quietly as she enters the room. She knew we were busy so she waited by the door.

"So is this your girlfriend," The reporter asks as she glances back at Sylvia for the tenth time since She entered the room.

We all raised an eyebrow and I say, "she's a close friend." I watch Sylvia smirk and make a kissy face. "You jerk," I shout and throw a piece of popcorn at her.

The Journalist laughs at my outburst and says, "I'll let you guys go, now."

After she leaves Ryan says we have ten minutes to get out on stage. Sylvia chats with us while we all do our stage makeup. We head out to stage and I tell Sylvia to wait by the side of the stage. She did as I told but as soon as we started playing the second song she vanished backstage. On the third song she is back with another bottle of vodka. I glare at her as I sing my heart out on stage unable to do anything. At the transition of the next song I say, "alright I have a very special friend, who I'd like you to all meet." I walk backstage and grab Sylvia, "listen stop drinking, now come on."

I take the bottle drink some and go out on stage with her hand held in mine. As soon as we got back on stage the crowd roared and cheered. Miles and Brandon play a small tune starting up the beginning of our favourite song, Fright.  

As soon as Sylvia looks up she freezes. I feel her hand instantly tighten and I can feel the fear vibrating off of her. I also felt something else, amazement.

 "Alright, this is Sylvie, now ya'll clap your hands. Come on now!" I say into the mic and clap my hands along with the audience. I hand Sylvia a mic, that I took from the sound crew. I smile encouragingly.

I start singing. She then joins along with me quietly.

She stops for a second, She was getting scared again. So I continued the song.  I grab her hand and squeeze it. She hesitates then joins in on the song. I stopped singing and Sylvia finishes up the verse before she realizes I stopped.
I smile holding back a laugh and continue singing alone with her. She then stops unexpectedly and drops the mic.

"I'm sorry," Sylvia says as she runs backstage.

I look at my band members, then to the audience. "I'm sorry, but uhh, we'll be back in a minute," I say nervously into the microphone. We all rush off stage and I hear the crowd start chatting, wondering what happened. I search for Sylvia with my friends also searching. "Sylv," I shout scarred. I find her curled up in a ball in the corner of the dressing room. "Sylv? Are... Are you alright," I ask.

She shifted a bit but I don't think she noticed me. She must have stage fright or something. I tilt her chin up to mine. She looked so cute when she cries. "Hey, it'll be okay," I whisper.

She sniffs and lays her head against my shoulder. "Come on, I got a plan. I pick her up as if she were a child and walk out of the room. I whisper the plan to Ryan and he gets me a wheelchair. I sit in it with Sylvie against my shoulder. She must've been scared, but I know how to make that fear go away. Ryan rolls me on stage and I grab the mic.

"My little friend here, is quiet, mouse-like, is still getting used to the stage so bare with us here," I say as they begin the instrumental of the song.

I start singing. Sylvia glances up her face streaked with tears and then whispers into my ear, "why."

I don't answer her instead I continue singing. I thought she was talking about the stage fright. After the concert I soon realize what she meant. Her sleeping self clutched to the arm, my sleeve was up a bit and I bet she saw my scars.