World Tour

L.A. part 3

They were absolutely exhausted, the next day, and the first concert had yet to begin. 
Eddy felt like he was walking through wall paper paste. 

¨Come on Brett, I need some coffee¨, he almost whined, an hour before the start of the first concert. 
¨Yeah, let's go find some¨, Brett agreed, walking towards the exit. Eddy willed his legs to work and followed him.  
They hurried through the streets, but they didn't know this area very well, so they instantly got lost. 
Fuck, where was that coffee shop they'd found yesterday? The concert was starting in half an hour, they really could not be late. 
¨Wasn't it this right?¨ Eddy said. ¨I think I know this intersection?¨
It wasn't. 
Finally, a few streets over, Eddy saw a familiar sign. They ran into the shop, stress coursing through Eddy's body, and ordered some double shots. Caffeine sounded like the best idea in the world right about now. 

Coffee in hand, Brett opened Google maps on his phone so they wouldn't get lost again. At least this time they knew where they were going. They almost ran back to the venue and made it with a few minutes to spare. 
Eddy rushed through the stark halls of the theatre with Brett right behind him. He crashed into the dressing room to fetch the violin and a single minute later they were stood in the wings, violins in hand, and he'd started feeling the effects of the coffee. Thank God, he was back on his feet.
He looked at Brett standing next to him, still breathing quite heavily from all the running, and shaking his head slightly. That was a close one. Phew. 
The roar of applause came then, and they walked on and smiled widely at the audience, and they gave the best of themselves. Of course they did. 

But by the time the second concert rolled around the coffee had worn off, and Eddy was swaying a bit on his legs. Even the concert adrenaline wasn't really saving him, and it showed. Or maybe he'd just asked so much of himself lately that adrenaline was temporarily out of stock?
Halfway through the concert he'd been out of tune a couple of times already, and he knew it, but then he actually really fucked up his Bach Chaconne. And he knew it was audible.
There was a ringing in his ears and he felt his cheeks reddening. What the fuck was this, was he holding a violin for the first time in his life or something?
And as it always goes, once the first mistake is made the doubt is in your head, and others will surely follow. 

When the applause died down he walked off the stage, his head low. Fuck!! He couldn't believe he'd messed up not once, but several times. He was sure people would have heard. 

He stormed into the dressing room, leaving Brett behind, and slammed himself into the green comfortable chair, folding his legs under him, putting his chin on his fists. 
Fuck. 

Brett walked in quietly a few seconds later. 
¨Hey¨, he said, calmly.
¨Hey.¨ Eddy replied, a bit more curtly than he would have liked. ¨Don't tell me I was fine, I fucking well know I wasn't. I don't think I've ever played this badly in a concert.¨
Brett crouched down to sit on his knees in front of Eddy, and put his hands on his thighs. 
When he spoke, he spoke softly but earnestly. 
¨So, you didn't play your best. We've given a thousand concerts, Eddy. You can't be perfect every time.¨
Eddy looked up into Brett's warm face. ¨I want to be, though.¨he said, almost whispering.
¨Tough, that's not how it works¨ Brett said, with a slight smile. 
Eddy thought about it for a minute. 
¨What would you say to me, in this situation?¨ Brett asked. 
That wasn't a hard question, of course. 
¨I would tell you you're a great violinist in a tough situation, and everyone makes mistakes sometimes.¨ he said, and then he smiled wryly and shook his head. ¨Yeah, I see your point.¨
¨Good.¨ Brett said. ¨You can't have one standard for you and one for the rest of us.¨
Eddy was silent for a moment. He kind of felt like he could, to be honest.
But he knew his anger was gone. 

And then it hit him. 
¨You were right!¨, he suddenly said, eyes widening slightly.
¨Eh?¨ Brett responded. 
¨You were right, yesterday, when you said I've been changing. A couple of months ago I would have cried about this all night. I'm stronger now!¨
Brett smiled. ¨Yeah, you are.¨
They were quiet for a moment, before Eddy said:
¨It's because of you, and it's because of all of this¨, he said, waving his arm to indicate his surroundings and the tour as a whole. ¨If we could do this tour, if we could make all of this work?¨
¨We must be doing something right¨, Brett said with a smile. 
¨Yeah.¨
Eddy put his feet on the ground and leaned forward to hug Brett. ¨Thank you...¨ he breathed. 
¨Any time¨, Brett whispered back. 
¨We should get going. There'll be a meet and greet¨, Eddy said, resigned. He couldn't wait to fall into bed and stay there indefinitely.