Chapter 6 Adulation Versus True Heroes
Henry was waiting in the back alleyway of the hotel with the car to avoid the various band fans who had gathered out in front as soon as they knew Lily, Rick and I were staying there.
All in all, our getaway was fairly uneventful with just a handful of fans clocking the car as we pulled out into the traffic.
The blacked out windows were a godsend. Lily always felt skittish when they cupped their hands to the window trying to catch a glimpse of who was in there.
Fifteen minutes after we started our journey, Henry pulled up at the drop off zone of the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital.
During the journey, Lily learned about the amazing young guy who had requested to meet me.
My PR team received the call, and I was glad I was in London to be able to meet his request.
The young man I was visiting was Archie Simmons, a sixteen-year-old guitar player who had dropped out of school and was currently trying to organize gigs for his band from his hospital bed.
I’d been told I was his hero. Me. Alfie Black.
All I had ever done was play in a band and got insanely lucky.
With what Archie had been through with his chemotherapy treatment, he qualified for the hero tag much better than I did.
We prepared our disguises in the back of the car; mine a beanie, black puffer jacket and dark prescription glasses I used for reading by the pool.
Lily wore a dark green puffer jacket, big faux fur hat, and oversized sunglasses.
Lily’s disguise was very effective, especially with her hair tucked into the jacket.
I was always surprised when this stuff worked.
One of the wardrobe guys said it was because no one expected to see us in their local vicinity.
The number of visits I’d done to teenage cancer wards must be close to a hundred, and it choked me up every time, but it was near Christmas and Archie, a young survivor, was on his way home the next day.
He knew he was being released from the hospital, but not that I was coming his way.
A children’s charity had requested the visit two weeks ago, but my PR team only told me the day before.
There was no way I was leaving London until I’d made good on our pledge that I’d do my best to grant his wish.
Seeing kids in oncology wards always uplifted me. They were normal kids experiencing an abnormal life event. It didn’t stop them from following their favorite bands, studying for tests or having girlfriends, nor thinking about future aspirations.
We made it to the floor without challenge or recognition, and the ecstatic look the nurse had given me before she opened the coded door when I took my glasses off, told me I was expected.
When we entered Archie’s bed was straight ahead, I looked around and saw there were four beds.
At least he had company, and the fact there were other beds meant those kids weren’t a high risk for infection.
The bed nearest the door was empty, and it made my heart happy that one was free, which meant no one with cancer to fill it.
A brief flashback took me to the times when I visited my mom in her oncology suite before she died.
I continued to take in the room, and its inhabitants.
In the bed on the same side next to the window, a teenager was lying on his side with his back to us reading from a Kindle.
Glancing across, the kid in the bed opposite was on a laptop typing rapidly then laughing, so I figured he was in some kind of chat conversation.
I finally spotted the kid I had come to see.
Archie was lying with his eyes closed; his ear buds in and his tablet displaying our Crakt Soundzz album cover while I could only guess he was listening.
His hand was strumming as he fingered his imaginary fret on his air guitar from where he lay.
Maryse, as the nurse’s name badge read, wandered over to him.
Lily and I held back by the entrance to give her time to explain to him what was happening.
Archie pulled a bud out of his ear to listen to the nurse as he opened his eyes to look up at her.
When I saw her mouth move, Archie sat bolt upright, his eyes seeking us out.
His hand flew to cover his mouth, then he placed them on his knees with a stunned look that quickly turned to one of disbelief.
Sporting a wide beaming smile he shook his head as we approached and I stretched out my hand to greet him.
“Hey there, Archie. I heard you wanted to see me. Is that so?”
Lily broke his incredulous stare when he didn’t say anything by reaching her hand out to him as well.
“Guess you get a two for one with us, Archie. Do you mind me staying?”
Shaking his head, Archie reached into his small locker on the right side of the bed and pulled out his iPhone, held it up and snapped me first, then Lily. Only then did he break his silence.
“Sweet man. You’re actually here? I mean actually here. You came to see me? Who asked you to do that?”
I was about to speak when Lily interjected.
“Well, you didn’t come to us, so we figured we’d better come on over and see this awesome guitar player, Archie Simmons, for ourselves. I hear your band is looking for a gig? Alfie, we should see if we can arrange for Archie’s band to play something at Rick’s festival event.”
That was the one thing I loved about Lily. Nothing was beyond her thinking. It didn’t matter if Rick didn’t want that to happen. Lily had a way of making Rick agree to anything. The fact that she was gorgeous, and Rick had a thing for her, it was almost a given that he’d say yes.
Lily wouldn’t normally go offering something that big to just anyone but as part of our briefing we’d watched a few YouTube videos of his band, and we thought they were pretty fucking awesome for a bunch of sixteen-year-olds.
We spent two hours with Archie and his roommates, who joined in our conversations after they got over their initial shock.
They had a brilliant relationship with the nursing staff, and the care they received was second to none.
The only thing they complained about was the hospital food.
Nothing else. I took that to heart and asked my team to set up accounts at the Chinese, Indian and Pizza restaurants under the hospital wards name, but to send the bills to me.
That small thing made them so excited. They could have whatever they felt like eating, rather than what was available on the limited hospital menu.
Henry brought a box in from the car with all of our albums, and Lily had some XrAid stuff she passed around as well.
As the kids drifted off with various items, Archie quizzed me on just about every aspect of playing in a band for a living.
When he’d exhausted the question and answer session, we listened to him play an acoustic version of, “Won’t Get Fooled Again” by The Who.
His talent and the unique raspy tone to his voice blew Lily and me away.
When he was finished, I had Henry bring in a personal gift for him.
Rather than offer him a new guitar, I figured he’d appreciate something of mine.
My Fender Custom Stop 59’ Closet Classic Strat.
It was the Vintage White six-string guitar that I used for rehearsals since before Crakt Soundzz was famous.
Archie knew of the guitar as soon as he saw it.
I’d mentioned it in a few interviews in the past because it was the first guitar I earned a living from.
Lily left him her business card with her PR team contact information when it was time to leave and just as we headed for the door, Archie called out to me.
“Mr. Black, I knew you were different from all the rest. Coming here today proved that to me. Three months ago I didn’t want to live anymore. Today, I’m so glad God ignored me. Thanks for being the inspiration for my music, man. You saw me through some pretty dark days.”
Devoid of speech due to the swollen lump that had grown in my throat, I just stood there holding his gaze.
Nothing clever or appropriate came in response.
A few seconds passed, and I just bowed my head in respect to the young man with the balls of steel who was able to articulate what he felt when I couldn’t find the words to respond.
Duty done, although I hadn’t viewed it as such, Lily and I held hands just a little bit tighter and left the hospital in a reflective mood.
Once we were in the car I slung my arm over her shoulder and pulled her tightly against me.
Lily shed a few silent tears, and I pretended not to notice for her sake.
Being famous had its upsides, and it’s downsides, and sometimes it had a side that was bittersweet, today was one of the latter.
Henry headed for the airport once we were back in the car and about half an hour later Heathrow airport came into view.
I kissed Lily’s head and inhaled her sweet scent, then she shifted and looked up at me.
I tried to ignore her tear stained face, but she was one of those people that still looked beautiful even after she’d been crying.
“Ready to have some fun?” I asked, hoping to lift her mood and change the tone of the day now that we were officially on vacation.
“Lead the way, superstar,” she replied, her voice was a little croaky, but she tried to sound more upbeat than I knew she was feeling.
A VIP airport ambassador was waiting to check us in and lead us to our plane.
I hadn’t intended on ever buying one, but with Lily’s band and mine constantly hopping from one country to another it made sense.
I could see Lily wondering where everyone was.
I knew they were already on board, the security guy had commented that we were the last. Lily was getting frisked at the security check at the time and couldn’t have heard them.
Climbing the steps to the cabin, we heard Jack’s voice with about three steps to go. Lily’s pace quickened, and she almost ran onto the plane shoving impolitely past the blonde female cabin attendant on her way.
“Jack,” she exclaimed in her excited tone, and I could see her mood was instantly much lighter.
I knew it was stupid, but another small pang of jealousy shot through me and struck at the edge of my heart. I glanced at Mya, who was smiling casually, totally relaxed with her man wrapping his arms tightly around what was mine.
My jaw ticked from how tightly I was grinding my teeth.
Whenever I saw them do that together, I had a small internal struggle with how I was going to live with that behavior for three whole days.
I’d agreed to share a cabin with Jack and Mya.
I thought maybe I wanted to do it to prove to myself that there was nothing there.
We had all moved on…mostly. Everyone told me I had nothing to fear with them.
Hell, I’d told myself that until I almost believed it, then Jack would do something that made me think twice.
Jack squeezed Lily and kissed her on the lips.
They always kissed, and it bugged the shit out of me.
It was only a peck, but still. I’d never dream of kissing Mya like that.
Then again, I told myself they had probably been doing that from such a young age that it became a force of habit, rather than something they thought about.
I knew we were supposed to be the last people on the plane although I couldn’t see Rick anywhere. Mya was very intuitive and immediately put me at ease.
“Uncle Rick is taking his own transport, Alfie. He isn’t sure he’ll be able to stay for the three days. He says he’ll wait on his plane until we arrive.”
I was surprised when Mya suggested inviting him. Even more surprised that he’d agreed to come. I figured maybe once we were all together it may be too much for him, and he’d use it as an excuse to leave. As long as he stayed for a day or two, I’d settle for that.
Lennon, one of Lily’s band mates and a really great guy, was talking to Emma, the only female that was not attached.
Cody, another member of XrAid, was deep in conversation with Dave and Emily, two more of Lily’s friends.
If I was honest, I envied how close everyone was before I was a part of their group, and now that I was on the inside, I felt blessed we all get along so well.
I had initially wanted to go large and have luxury cabins for everyone.
It was Mya that convinced me small was beautiful.
She had the foresight to think that if we were in huge places it would be all too easy for everyone to disappear to their own devices, and the purpose of the vacation and spending time together would be lost.
We agreed the cabins should be rustic and not elaborately furnished, but should offer accommodation for six comfortably. The cabins we chose slept twelve, and we divided the group into who we felt would want to spend the most time together, but that we’d spend an evening in each cabin altogether.
So, Lily, Jack, Mya, and I were together in the biggest cabin, along with Henry my close security detail.
Rick, and Jed, his bodyguard, in another.
Cody, Lennon and Lance, one of XrAid’s security, in another.
Dave, Emily and Emma had yet another. We had two extra cabins booked just in case any of the guys started to exhibit their rock star behavior around everyone.
Rick and Cody were usually the main culprits that hooked up with random women.