Fix My Feet When They're Stumblin'

Chapter 2

    The vibration of Brandon's phone in the cup holder of his truck startled him out of his reverie as he drove down the dusty Utah highway. He fumbled to turn off the stereo, which had been blaring The Cure, and grabbed his phone. "Yeah? Oh, hi Ronnie - on my way, sorry. I had to drop off the kids this morning for Tana. Be there in ten. Cool, see you."

    Blindly dropping the phone back into the cupholder, he turned off of the highway and navigated the suburban streets, pulling into the tiny studio parking lot just as their booking agent closed his own car door. He spotted Brandon's truck and paused by his car, waiting. Brandon parked hastily and slipped out of his truck, giving their agent a halfhearted wave as he stepped past him to open the studio door. "Hey, Steve. How've you been?"

    "Oh, busy!" Their agent replied with a chuckle, following him into the studio. Ronnie sat at the table they had used for their midnight snack earlier that week, accompanied by their tour manager, Jeremy. The booking agent set his laptop on the table and pulled up a file for them to review. "So, this is what we've come up with. You guys said you wanted to visit some new places this time, and do more than one show in more countries so more fans have a chance to see you...we've added seven new countries to your tour itinerary, they're all pretty big for you for streaming and social media traffic, I think they'll be great crowds. Overall there are 28 more shows than the last tour, but we've added bigger gaps in between the legs, so you have at least three weeks off when you finish America, Europe, and so on. Of course that means the actual length of the tour is longer, but you do have a higher proportion of time home vs time on the road this time - we didn't think anyone would mind that," Steve added with a grin, glancing at Ronnie and Brandon, who both smiled and shook their heads.

    They spent several minutes perusing the list of dates, becoming more enthusiastic as the meeting stretched on. "This looks great, Steve, thanks! I think we're good to check with everyone else, make sure the dates will work with everyone," Ronnie finally said, leaning back in his chair. Jeremy pulled his phone out of his pocket and started typing. "I'll run the tour dates by everyone and let you all know if there are any conflicts," he said absently, already scrolling through his contacts list to find the touring crew, musicians and backup singers. Decisions made, the booking agent and tour manager made their exits to take care of business, and Brandon and Ronnie were left to deal with their next task for the day, one they had both been anticipating for months. Ariel and Jacknife, their producers, had sent the final mix of the new album early that morning, and they were both itching to hear their new work in all its glory. Finished at long last.

    Brandon locked the studio door and turned off his cell phone to prevent interruptions while Ronnie handled the computer duties, retrieving the email and opening the first file, connecting two pairs of headphones to the computer with an adapter and turning the volume up. Returning to his chair with such gusto that he nearly tipped the chair over, Brandon grinned at Ronnie as he slipped his own headphones over his ears. Ronnie was outwardly much more composed than Brandon, but he noted with a sudden little burst of affection that Ronnie's fingers were shaking as he pressed the play button.

    -    -    -    -    -

    Five hours later, after three consecutive runs through the entire album, the pair were finally ready to deliver a verdict. Ronnie's face was glowing like a child on Christmas morning as he pulled the headphones down around his neck. "That..." He paused for a long moment, shaking his head, and Brandon grinned at him. "Was incredible," he whispered, filling in the blank with the word they had both been thinking. "I mean...fuck. I kinda can't believe we made that, and I haven't felt like that since Sam's Town, not that good, you know? They're all amazing but this album, Ron...wow."

    Ronnie nodded, scrolling through the track listing shown on the screen. "It's so fucking good, every second of it. I mean, it's early and we've gotta listen to it another couple dozen times to be absolutely sure, but...I wouldn't change a thing, would you?"