Curiosity || Michael Clifford

Chapter 9

                  

"I don't know what you are talking about."
"You're this girl! You are sleeping with Michael!"
"If I was sleeping with Michael do you really think I would be in my car or on their bus? I'm a fan like you." I tried to act and lie my way through the situation. "People like to start rumors."
"Prove that you don't know him then."
"How the fuck do I prove that? Like go through my phone? I don't know what you want from me. But don't you think if I was hooking up with one of them they would follow me on social media? Well if you have my Twitter and Instagram you'd know none of them do."
The girl's phone dinged.
@Michael5sos: I don't know where this rumor came from. I don't know anyone named Indie. Don't trust the Internet.
It dinged again.
@Michael5sos: Good show tonight though. One of the best crowds yet. Onto the next one! Love you all.
I looked at her not knowing what her phone was dinging about. I hadn't followed them on social media so my phone didn't ding.
"Michael just said its rumors. But that doesn't mean anything."
The car in front of me moved.
"Believe what you want. I know the truth which is I'm a fan and that's it. Have a nice night." I pulled out of the parking lot. I looked at my phone which was shattered.
I knew that my social media was blowing up. I knew it was all because of Kate. I wanted to cry the whole way home but I needed to be safe. I pulled into my driveway and sat in silence. My car was shut off there was no music. Darkness filled the car as well. I was scared to even try and enter my house. I knew I had to. After at least 10 minutes of not moving I finally made my way inside.
"Welcome home."
"Hope you feel proud." I started to head to the stairs.
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"You started a rumor about your daughter on the Internet. The band I went to see. Yeah now I'm apparently sleeping with one of the members because of YOU." I looked at my mother who was still awake. "News flash I'm not. I wish I was so I didn't have to come home to sit in hell." I walked up the stairs to my room and locked myself inside.
I got my computer and laid on my stomach. I pulled up my Instagram and Twitter. My accounts had gained followers that I didn't want. I had hundreds of death threats on everything.
@FarFromIndie: I don't know how my name got brought into things with Michael but I can promise that we have nothing.
@FarFromIndie: We spoke at the meet and greet today for like 2 seconds and I left to enjoy the concert. I'm not a fangirl like that.
@FanFromIndie: Hell I'm not even a fangirl. I found myself wandering up on them a few days ago and wanted to see them again.
@FarFromIndie: I didn't even know who they were 4 days ago. I'm not some skanky whore. I don't even know them.
I didn't know why I felt the need to tweet but I did it anyways. I shouldn't have fed into the drama but I had never been in that situation before. I didn't know how to act. I felt myself being dragged down by the overwhelming amount of hate. I made my way to Facebook and pulled up Kate's page. I clicked the message button.
Indie: why did you stoop to the level of rumors? Because I wouldn't let you meet them? They are, he is, my thing Kate. We do fucking everything together why can't I have my own thing for once?
Kate: they are famous do you not get that.
Indie: did I ask for this? No. You don't even know the situation Kate. The fact that you would choose to ruin a friendship over it is insane.
Kate: don't know the situation? You are just trying to sleep with one of them.
Indie: you of all fucking people know that I don't do that shit. I could care less about fame or famous people. I don't like any of it. You never even asked me why I wanted a second night with them. You just jumped to conclusions. Well you want know why I want them as friends? Because they take the pain of Blakely away.
Kate: what's that mean?
Indie: I forgot for a few hours that my sister is fucking gone forever. They took away the guilt I had. You wouldn't understand. They are normal people just like Blakely. They are just like Blakely.
Kate: you should be able to share.
Indie: I WASNT EVEN SUPPOSE TO GO BACK WITH THEM.
Kate: but you did.
Indie: yeah I did. I wish I hadn't because you just ruined my fucking life.
I didn't care what Kate had to say next. I closed my laptop and curled up under my sheets. I wanted the whole night to disappear. I wanted to regret every moment of the night but I couldn't. Within the hell that Kate put upon me there was greatness. I wished things were going to be easy but they weren't.
I had a few days of no work which meant avoiding Kate. I honestly didn't even know if my boss was going to allow me to work. I'm not saying he looked into our social media accounts but my situation wasn't quiet. Of course things, the situation, was brought to his attention. I was surprised when I walked into work for my shift that I wasn't fired.
"Indie can you come up to my office when you are free?" I heard in my ear over the radio.
"I'll be up in a minute." I said back to my boss and entered the deadly elevator. We all thought it was going to kill one of us. We all wished it would taking it to talk with our boss. We all hated talks with him that much. I knocked on his door and he called me in.
"Take a seat." He pointed to a chair sitting across from him. I sat down slowly not wanting to know what he had to say.
"It's been brought to my attention that something outside work is occurring."
"Because of Kate."
"Let me speak Indie. You understand that if it starts to affect my business I will have to let you go."
"I mean I wouldn't be surprised if I'm fired by the end of the night then. The amount of teenage girls we have around." I sighed. "I didn't ask for any of this. Not like I'll ever see them again anyways." I stood up. "Is that all because I don't really want to have this conversation right now? I have too much going on."
"I understand." He got up and walked over to his office door to let me out. I left his office and went down to continue my day out.
The worst part of the whole day wasn't even the situation with my boss. It was working with the girl who caused the whole situation. I mean I was concession and she was box office meaning we didn't have to communicate at some point we would have to though and I was not looking forward to that moment.
A week passed before Kate and I even spoke to each other. We both needed time to reflect and process the entire situation. I was waiting for her to make the first move into fixing the friendship though. It was definitely all on her. We both were clocking out at the same time and she finally spoke to me.
"Indie." She said as I pushed my final button to punch out. "Can we talk please?" I walked over to my locker and grabbed my things from it.
"Yeah." I sat down at the table in the break room and waited for her to speak.
"Not here Indie."
"Nah I think here is good." I stood my ground and waited for her to realize I wasn't moving.
"You have to see where I'm coming from."
"How am I supposed to see where you are coming from? You have ruined my life. You realize that my name with his is everywhere. Thousands of people have my name and my photos. I have gotten hundreds of thousands of death threats over a rumor."
"I mean I still think you slept with him."
I wanted so badly to pull out my phone to call Calum to prove I didn't sleep with Michael but I couldn't do that. "Kate. I didn't sleep with him. I didn't kiss him. I fucking hung out with them. That was it."
She pulled out a phone that played a clip. "There was a lot of dick sucking talking. The night concluded with a few naked men." My voice played through her phone. She had recorded our conversation. It made me question our friendship even more. Why did she need to record our conversation? This was before she knew anything about the band.
"Totally didn't sleep with them or do anything with them."
"They showered after their show. They were shirtless. I couldn't quite leave with fans around I had to be there. As for the dick sucking talk. It slipped my mouth I said something about sucking and it's turned into a huge joke. It was something about hearing sucking and it's just a joke. I don't even have to explain myself."
"Of course you don't have to."
"You didn't have to spread a rumor about me and ruin my life. If you forgot I don't want the spotlight like my sister." I looked at Kate. "A real friend would obey the wishes their friend has."
"I was angry."
"Why? You had no reason to be!"
"Because you wouldn't share."
"They aren't something to share! What don't you understand I wasn't even supposed to hang out with them. They literally broke rules for Michael. He wanted me there to prove to me they weren't shit musicians that was it. Then we kind of become friends without using the word friend. It's out of my control and it's not something shareable."
"A good friend would invite their friend along."
"Wrap your head around it Kate. I can't invite you along. Even if I could it's my thing. I want it for myself."
"The only time you want something for yourself is when you truly care deeply about it. When it makes you someone different. When it makes you a better you. You don't want toxicity invading it." I looked at her because it was true. Letting outside forces into the relationship I had with the band would ruin it. I don't mean fans and things of that sorts. I completely mean my friends and family. They have this heavy weight to them. I couldn't let their weight rest upon the relationship. I wanted those lives separate. She sighed.
"Feel like a big dickhead now?" I said.
"So much shit had been building up Indie."
"And you took it out on me. Probably ruining everything that created a bit of happiness." I got up. "I've got to go. I'm glad you realized you've messed up. It's a step in the right direction." I left her standing in the break room.
A few months went by and Kate and I fixed our differences. I wish I could say things were easier but they weren't. I still got countless amount of messages. People just didn't like me. Despite everything just being rumors. I tried not to let it affect me. I tried to forget everything really. I mean I still had my memories out in the open. Both lanyards I had hung up on my wall in plain sight. I needed reminders of what brought such happiness even if it were only two nights.
I hadn't spoken to the guys since the tragic night. We kept our distance. We all got caught up in our own lives. I had work and they finished up their tour. We had our separate lives and we didn't need each other. We didn't know each other well enough to care for each other in the way friends do.
Just about a year had passed since I had last spoken with the band, but mostly him. In the year I began to find myself. I came to terms with the death of my sister. I was no longer blaming myself. People had begun to stop blaming me for it as well. My parents and I were still a ship wreck. We did everything we could to avoid each other. Anything to avoid confrontation really. We all just accepted that we were never going to get along.
Kate and I had gotten back to our perfect friendship. I'm not saying it was like it used to be because it was far from it. We had turned pain into jokes. Jokes were the healing to a lot of issues I had. Humor made everything easier to handle. The hate had come to an almost stand still. I maybe got a few messages a day but for the most part things had gone quiet. Life was about to get hectic again though.