When they arrived at the club, Adam entered the backstage room first with Maddie close behind him. The room was filled with the usual people buzzing around, getting ready for the performance—the band members, some friends, stagehands and the rest of the crew. Everyone was busy setting up, testing their equipment, and going about the normal routine.
In an attempt to hide his nervousness, Adam casually delivered his usual greeting. “Hey, guys.”
At first none of them paid much attention to their entrance as they said ‘hey’ back. But after a few moments, Adam saw some head-snaps and double-takes in their direction. No one said a word. He saw Claire and others staring at Maddie. The looks of surprise and shock on their faces said it all. He felt Maddie grip his hand even more tightly. Claire’s gaze went from Maddie to Zach, who still hadn’t seen her. Then she looked at Adam questioningly.
Zach was busy plugging his guitar into the amplifier and hadn’t looked up yet. He started to say, “I didn’t think you were going to make…”
But before he could finish his sentence, he looked up and froze when he saw Maddie. His mouth dropped open. At first he had a look of incomprehension, as if he couldn’t believe what he was seeing. Then his eyes narrowed and the look turned to that of realization and anger. He glared at Maddie with a look that could kill and growled through gritted teeth, “What the hell is she doing here?”
At that point, everyone in the room stopped what they were doing and stared at Maddie and Adam. Adam and Claire exchanged glances. Inside, he cringed like a child being punished. Outside, he met Zach’s gaze and tried to appear calm.
Adam pulled Maddie a little closer and said, “Maddie’s back.”
Well, that was brilliant.
He didn’t know what else to say. Zach’s eyes widened as he looked at Adam. The look said it all. Adam could tell that Zach thought he had gone completely crazy, and that he was an absolute dumbass. Incredulous, Zach said, “You’ve got to be fuckin’ kidding me. Right? Is this a joke? Are you punking us?”
Adam locked eyes with him and slowly shook his head.
Zach looked at Maddie with disgust and hatred. She moved slightly behind Adam, as if he were a shield.
She said quietly, “Maybe I should go.”
Adam shook his head and said, “No. Don’t go. It’ll be okay.”
And with that, Zach threw his guitar down and stormed off, which was a very bad sign because he normally treated his guitar like his precious baby.
Adam looked back at Claire again. She gave him a disapproving look. Maddie stood there, her face blank, silently absorbing all of the scrutiny. She just took it. She knew it was her doing, and she was willing to accept it. But Adam still felt bad for her. He wished this moment did not have to happen, but there was no way around it. All he could hope for was that Zach and the rest of them would eventually get over it.
Maddie leaned close and whispered in his ear, “I can leave. You go talk to Zach.”
Adam shook his head and said, “Please don’t leave. I’ll be right back.”
She nodded and stepped back into a corner of the room and leaned against the wall. As Adam was leaving the room in the direction that Zach had gone, he noticed that Cristy—who had befriended Maddie when she first started attending the rehearsals—motioned for her to come and sit down in the empty chair beside her. Maddie slowly made her way over to Cristy and the other ladies and took a seat.
Adam was relieved to see that at least some people were welcoming Maddie back without question. The rest of band members had stayed surprisingly silent during the exchange between Zach and Adam. But still the tension in the room remained. Adam knew that Zach was pissed. But who could blame him? It was hard for Adam to put him through this. But he knew that even if he tried to explain, Zach could not accept it. Adam hoped maybe someday he would be able to tell Zach the truth. But for now, he could only hope Zach could forgive Maddie enough to accept that she was going to be a part of Adam’s life, hopefully for a long time to come.
As he walked out the backstage door that led to the alley, he saw Zach pacing and puffing heavily on a cigarette. Zach only smoked when he was extremely drunk, stressed, or angry. When he saw Adam approaching, he stopped pacing and turned his back. Zach stared straight ahead and said, “What the hell is going on?”
“I know what you’re thinking, and I don’t blame you for being pissed,” Adam said. “But it’s a long story, and I can’t even explain it to you. You’ve just got to accept that Maddie and I are back together.”
Zach spun around to face Adam. Anger and disbelief flashed in his eyes. “You want me to just accept it? Just like that, huh? I was the one who watched you suffering and pining away over this girl who heartlessly left you while you were in the hospital after a near-death experience. Did you forget that? Did you forget that she left you in your greatest moment of need? She disappeared just like that and crushed your heart. Did you forget that, Adam? And suddenly she waltzes back into your life and you just take her back with open arms. Have you lost your fucking mind?”
Adam tried to remain calm and said, “I know it looks like that, Zach, but it’s not that simple. We’ve had a really long talk and Maddie apologized for leaving. She feels awful for what she did, and I don’t think she will do it again.”
Zach shook his head and said, “I bet you didn’t think she’d leave you the first time either, did you? She said she loved you and then walked right
