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One that Looks Like Her
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2024-10-29 19:42:56Against all odds, obstacles grew fewer and easier on the way up the fancy building downtown, as Silvia and Claudia reached more important desks. However, first they had to actually reach them.
The front desk of Vector Productions was like a machine-gun nest from World War II, disguised as a nice counter with an even nicer girl in a pretty uniform suit. True to her training, she first tried to send Silvia away, telling her she should call or email the person she wanted to see. Then she turned to take about a dozen calls.
When Silvia was able to make her understand that first step had already been taken by No Return’s road manager, and she’d been directed to come get the passes in person, the girl was as kind as to make a call, and then another, and then another. Silvia and Claudia waited by the desk, mustering all their patience while the girl asked and held on the line and spoke in whispers.
“Why don’t you text Jim?” Claudia said.
Silvia shook her hea
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The picture showed Silvia and Claudia outside the Vector building, holding their green passes. The foot read, “Four frigging hours to get them!”Jim showed the picture to Tim, who frowned when he read the foot.“Four hours? Damn!”“You should have emailed them like I told you.”“I did!”“Then good thing she’s nothing like me and had the patience to wait, huh?”Deborah saw the way Jim glanced at her, his eyes full of reproach, and decided to pretend she hadn’t noticed it. But she took careful note of how much Jim seemed to care about this woman coming to see him in Buenos Aires.Silvia’s post to the Hey, Jay! included a link to a photo album on Facebook, but Jim kept it for later.The dead time on the trailer, waiting to play, felt shorter that night, following her on pictures all over Buenos Aires. He recognized Silvia’s little
No Return Drops in Glasses
Just like any highly-expected and carefully-planned moment, Thursday didn’t think so. Silvia couldn’t believe the thousand ways things got complicated, in a geometric progression that seemed determined to push absurd into plain surrealistic before her gaping eyes, taking any control out of her hands until she could only hope she’d made it through alive. Claudia’s parents lived forty minutes away from Jim’s hotel by car. The other way to get there was by train and bus, and it took almost two hours on a good day, like a Saturday afternoon. So the Commodore had promised he’d take them there. Keeping traffic and other odds in mind, they would be leaving about four to get there by five. Until the Commodore’s phone rang and he was asked to cover for a colleague that had just called in sick. He was assigned a flight scheduled to take off at four, so he hardly had a chance to grab a bite before leaving for the airport. On the family car, of course. C
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The musicians were just chilling out, having a beer before the presser, when they heard the first thunder. All of them looked up, surprised. “What the fuck?” Tom cried. “It was sunny not five minutes ago!” Jim went up to the nearest window, looking out to hide a smile. A sudden storm when they were about to meet again. What were the odds? He shook his head slightly. She was on the way. “She’s a fucking force of nature,” he muttered to himself. Deborah and her assistant Ron came to take them to the conference hall where the press waited for them. She nodded at Jim to let the others take the lead to the elevators and walk with her. “No green passes so far, Jim,” she said, keeping her voice down. He took his phone, searched for something and handed it to her. “Here’s a picture of her,” he said. “Go wait for her at the lobby, Deb. Keep my phone, in case she texts me while I’m busy in there. And bring her to me the minute she gets h
No Return The Usual Suspect
Sean saw Jo’s nod to the hall behind him and turned around. Deborah came into the bar, looking around as she approached him.“Where’s Jim?” she asked, still scanning the faces in the room.“Busy. What’s up?”“Busy?” Deborah repeated. “But he asked me to wait for—”“She here? Bring her in.”Sean and Jo watched Deborah go back to the hallway and invite the two women in.“Which one?” whispered Jo, excited.“You tell me,” Sean replied with a little smirk.Jo studied them both, and was about to pick the hot younger one when the other woman met Sean’s eyes and flashed a tight smile.“Oh, my God,” Jo muttered when the woman headed straight toward them, tugging at her friend’s sleeve to make her follow.“Hey, Sean,” the woman said with a quick nod.“Hey.”
No Return The Plan for the Night
“So what now, soldiers?” asked Tom, trying to bring the situation to more regular grounds.“Dunno, dude,” said Liam. “Deb said something about reservations for dinner, but it’s almost eight already”.“Here we have dinner about nine,” said Claudia.“What?” cried Walt. “I’m fucking starving!”Jim and Sean looked around and spotted Deborah with Ron and Tim, talking to some locals. Jim took a hand to his lips.“I’ll get her,” said Sean, before Jim whistled at her and Deborah punched his lights out.“How are you for an allnighter, woman?” Jim asked Silvia.“Like a scout, always ready,” she replied. “What’s the plan?”“Dunno, but guess it’s dinner, some drinks and some dancing. You up?” Jim heard Claudia’s muffled giggle and turned to her, raising his eyebrows. “
No Return The Only Place
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Considering Claudia had taken them to a good place, and the online reviews didn’t say much about the nightclub they were about to go to, Deborah asked her about it.“I’ve never been there,” Claudia said. “Too exclusive for my budget. But I’ve heard they throw VIP private parties on the third floor.”Deborah flashed a cunning smile. “Wanna hop in as a scout?”Claudia mirrored her smile. “Lead the way!”Tim remained at the bar, to wait for Deborah’s call giving the green light for the nightclub. The call didn’t take long and he headed for the counter to pay for everybody’s drinks, leaving Ron and the bodyguards to take the group to their cars.Jim gulped up his bourbon and got to his feet. His lips curled up when he saw Silvia dodge the others to come toward him. She flashed a merry grin, and before he could take her hand, she wrapped her arm around his.&ldquo
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Jim observed Silvia as they danced to Erasure’s Little Respect, wondering what the hell she was up to. Just like back when they’d first met, she was dying to touch him, yet she pretended she didn’t. But back then they were complete strangers.It couldn’t be those silly overexcited chicks, or the other girl back at the hotel. She was way above that. She knew they were just the joke of the minute and meant nothing at all. After all, they’d always been with somebody else over the last year, and that had never come between them. Then why on earth didn’t she just step up and take what she wanted?“Jim!”He raised his hand to let Deborah know he’d be there in a minute. His other hand pulled Silvia closer and circled her waist.“Get ready, woman. I’ll be right back to stay,” he said an inch away from her lips.She didn’t look away from his eyes, she didn’t shiver,
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Silvia woke up to Depeche Mode’s Personal Jesus.The sun was setting and she was alone in bed, tucked in soft sheets that smelled of lemon and the fat white comforter. Jim had left a few hours ago to let her rest, because after those weeks apart, it was plain to see she wouldn’t get any rest with him around.She’d fallen sound asleep, exhausted, and now she had the persistent feeling of being still lost in a dream. But she wasn’t. This was not the Black Rock. It was the Ashtray, her new home, and that music had to be a phone ringing.But not hers. She’d never used that song as a ringtone.She followed the music to the other nightstand, where she found a new phone still inside its open box with a red ribbon. And she laughed out loud when she grabbed it and saw the caller was My Personal J.“Hey, you awake?” Jim asked when she picked up, still chuckling.“Hey, you just woke me u
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Silvia almost missed her flight, too absorbed staring at the tiny thing on the table before her.What on God’s green earth was that thing doing there, and in her keep?That white-gold band with a little, discreet diamond.An engagement ring.That frigging coward! Throwing it at her from ten feet away!But no matter the delivery method, Jim had given it to her.His mother’s, he’d said.Bring it back, he’d said.She felt lucky her brain was able to register the last boarding call. She looked up, startled, and jumped to her feet. She was about to hurry away when she remembered the ring. Actually, it was more like feeling a leash tugging at her neck, stopping her from walking away from the table.She spun around on her heels and scowled down at the damned thing.“You…” she growled.The moment she had it in her hand again, she realized how small and light it wa
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It was sort of weird. Being with Jim usually involved having people around, but now they were all alone, making their way through the usual crowd in LAX. Come to think about it, both of them loved having an active social life. Maybe that was why she hadn’t needed any major adjusting over the last ten days in LA.…?Silvia would’ve punched herself best Fight Club style. She had only minutes left with him and she was pondering about their social habits? Really?She checked in for her flight and they headed to the boarding area in no hurry.“So you think you can be back by January ten.”“Yup. I gotta report to work with Jo on the fifteenth, but I want a couple of free days before that.”They walked a whole minute in silence.Silvia wondered why all of a sudden they didn’t seem to have anything left to say. Why were they avoiding eye contact? Why did she feel like getting into the boarding
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“Hurry up or I’m calling a cab!”“Bet you’re dying to do it, you chicken.”“Please, Jay!”Silvia finished raiding the master bedroom one last time, to make sure she wasn’t forgetting anything.“Jay!”“Coming.”She snorted and went to canvass the ground floor. She was just done when Jim came down the stairs in no hurry.“Can we go before I have a heart attack, milord?”“Cool down, woman, we have plenty of time,” he said, grabbing her duffel bag on his way to the front door, where she waited with her rucksack. He paused at the doorway to poke her nose. “Really, such a rush to leave me.”Silvia wasn’t about to explain she was always that upset whenever she had a bus or a plane to catch, so she just scowled at him and followed him out.“Got everything? Tickets, passport?”Silvia ch
