The Hook-up

Chapter 71

Bruno threw his head back in the studio frustrated with his work. "fuck!" He moaned looking over at Phil.

"We have been out of the studio for so long. I don't even remember how to do it." Phil told Ari.

"I feel the same way. Why was it easier to write then it was to record?" Bruno asked his partners.

"Here. Maybe this will help you some." Ari said handing Bruno a blue solo cup full of some random alcoholic drink. Phil and Ari watched Bruno down the drink and throw the cup off to the side.

As he took in the drink he grabbed his pen humming to himself. "okay. Let's try this." he said starting to say words that would eventually become part of the album.

****

Lauren turned around at her desk holding onto a handbag trying to decide how to describe it to all the members of her website. "Laur! Are you going to go to fashion week next week?" Estée stood by the door examining Lauren's expression.

"Yeah. I confirmed it early in the morning." She answered.

"Okay." Estée replied. "does that mean we get to shop for the baby?"

"Umm. I don't know. Bruno is going with so I don't even know if I'm going to have free time." Lauren told Estée.

"Wait.... He is going on your trip with you after everything happened?" she looked at Lauren confused.

"we are just both in the city at the same time. He'll be in the studio. I'll be working. It shouldn't 't be weird. " she paused to think for a few seconds. "Will it?"

"oh. I get it. I just think you need to keep them away from each other as long as possible. It could be weird." Estée said.

"Yeah. Well. I mean, I'll try my best and it's most likely going to be a mess, but I'll talk to him about it before. And maybe we can get it out of our system before we actually go."

"Lauren, I love you. And you are amazing at what you do, but be careful because it gets to the point where people talk and your reputation can be impacted by it. Like, I get it. You guys aren't perfect. But there are times when you bring your drama to work and it's just not okay. I mean, this isn't a part time summer job. I have people talking to me all the time about ways they could make this even better than it already is. And I would have to hate to take them up on the offer." Estee explained.

"Yeah. I know." She said looking down a little bit shocked by her supervisor's honesty.

**

Lauren pulled her car up into the driveway gripping onto her flats feeling the pain in her feet from walking all day in the office. "Umph." She said to herself as she walked up to the mailbox to take the mail that Bruno had been to lazy to pick-up when he came home. She moved her purse and work bag up her arms struggling to open the door tripping over the dog who was waiting for her.

"Oh crap!" she said shocked rubbing Geronimo's head dropping her bag on the floor near a pile of Bruno's things. "Brunooo!" she yelled trying to find him in the small house.

"I'm in the kitchen." He answered in a semi-frustrated tone.

"Hey, baby. How was your day?" she asked cringing to herself as she heard his tone.

"It was okay." He shrugged taking a sip of something in a glass as he watched her sit down next to him laying her head on the table.

"I'm so tired." She whined.

"Oh my god. You didn't get home at 5 in the morning and then go back to work at 10, Lauren. Quit over reacting. " he snapped at her as her head shot up a bit caught off guard by his statement.

"Okay. I'm going to watch TV." She said standing up walking away from him not wanting to play into his frustration.

"Fine." He said taking his cup again drinking it. She knew exactly what he was drinking and knew he was going to be angry and mean soon, if he wasn't already, but she also knew she had to tell him about New York.

"Brunz..." she stopped near her chair sitting down again.

"I thought you were going to go watch TV?" he asked sarcastically.

"I was. But I want to talk to you about fashion week before I go." She replied seeing him look up at her intently. "I'm going to New York next week for work. Justin will be there."

"That's bullshit, Elle." He told her.

"What do you mean it's bs?" she snapped back.

"Where do you want to start?" he said rolling his eyes. "Because the second I even bring up working with Damaris your head spins like the girl in the exorcist."

"That is so not even true, Bruno. I know it's work. I get it. It's not ideal, but I get it. When did I even yell at you?" she asked him.

"When don't you, Lauren? I say her name and you want to explode." He answered taking a drink again. "I just....." he paused trying to figure out what to say. "It's bullshit. You can tell me not to talk to her and get really mean. But you can go to work and hang out with your ex and make out with him and I can't get upset at you?"

"It's different, Bruno! It's so different! I'm not hanging out with him in Brazil, drinking and dancing and rubbing my boobs all over him. Don't even think twice that Ryan didn't tell me what you all did. And the night you were sick? God. Oh my god. I wanted to call you and chew your ass out so bad. But I didn't. I didn't because I trust you. I trust that nothing happened. That you didn't sleep with her. That she didn't rub her nasty boobs all over you and that you pushed her away. And you have to trust me that nothing, I mean nothing, nothing, nothing is going to happen with Justin and me." She reached over to touch his hand trying to calm him down. "I need you to trust me." She felt his hand flip her hand off flinging the glass off the table.

"God damnit, Lauren! If I'm not good enough for you then I'm going to just leave. I can't ever do anything right for you." He stood up walking in a crooked line toward the door.

"Brunz...." She got up taking his hand from his side.

He pulled away stumbling again. "No, Lauren. You don't need me. You can deal with this shit on your own. I'm not good enough for you and apparently I can never do anything right for you." He yelled at her turning around stretching his arm up to take a clear bottle of Vodka off the shelf. He took a swig of the bottle, covering it and stepping toward the door.

"Bruno!" she stopped in between the door and him keeping him from going out the door. Instead of backing down he reached around her waist holding her tightly making her gasp a little lifting her up over to the side. "No!" she yelled again stopping his hand from the door.

"I'm fucking leaving, Lauren. " he said lifting her hand off the handle squeezing it so tightly she let out a slight moan in pain.

She looked down still feeling his hand on her fist. "Please, Bruno. Let me get you some water and some advil. And then we can talk about this in the morning." She suggested.

"Ugh." He let go of her hand dropping it from his grasp. "I'm going outside." He turned away from her reaching into his pocket for a cigarette knowing that she wouldn't follow him outside after him. She watched him walk out onto the patio sitting down in the same spot he had when they found out she was pregnant. Instead of following him she held onto her wrist feeling the pain from his forceful grasp reaching for her phone dialing her sister walking into the bedroom dropping herself in the same spot she was in the morning in tears.