[[[all of my flaws]]][[[part ii]]]

14.

The next few days sort of just passed without drama. She did her job, I did mine. She had started to warm to me now, even engaging me in conversation once or twice. The tour bus was probably the main factor, now we were all living in each other's pockets. We had no choice but to get on with it. As long as we kept it a secret, there was nothing to worry about. Any feelings about the past would need to be buried if this was going to work.

There had been a slight problem with bunk bed allocation. She had arrived last on the top deck of the ten bunk bus, once everyone had bagsied where they would be sleeping. She had ended up with the one closest to the toilet, the least favourite, and I was below her. I knew she didn't want to cause a fuss but equally I knew the last person she wanted to be sleeping near was me.

'Well, that's not on.' I said loudly. I saw the look of fear in her eyes, thinking I was about to complain that we were bunked together. 'You can't let the only girl in the crew sleep next to the toilet where nine men are going to be pissing. Woody, swap with your sister will you?'

'But...what...? No?' He laughed. I threw my pillow at his face.

'Swap.' I told him. He huffed and gathered his things up.

'Thanks.' She murmured. I wondered if she realised the real reason why? It wasn't that I didn't want to sleep near her. I just didn't want to put her in a situation where she felt uncomfortable.

Each day seemed to be the same. We'd wake up either in our hotel rooms or on the bus, depending how late we'd travelled the night before. Some of us would wander off around the new town we were in. Some would just hang out at the venue. Lily would be off somewhere making phonecalls and directing crew. I preferred staying on my own in my room or my bunk, writing and making up new songs. We had a second album to record and no time to do it, so we'd have to do it on the go.

My producer, Mark, came on board the bus carrying a load of recording equipment. It made the already cramped living area even smaller. He'd met us in Manchester and I gave him a hand taking everything off his van. We walked into the tiny living area where everyone was gathered, enjoying some free time before that nights show.

'Hey!' The boys all greeted him happily. Lily was engrossed in some paperwork, as normal, but I thought it would be rude not to introduce them.

'And this is our new tour managed Lillian.' I pointed to her. The second I said it, realisation hit. He knew Lily. He'd known we were a thing before. But he held out his hand to her and shook it.

'Nice to meet you.' He smiled. She shot me a wide eyed glance, thinking just what I had thought. It had just totally escaped my mind. Lucky for us he seemed to not remember. I made sure he was kept busy and Lily went and did some work elsewhere. That was a stupid move.