Epilogue
Seven Months Later
“Whatever it takes . . . make it count!” Benji belted out the final lyric, the sound slowly mixing with the end of the music. He strummed his strings once more. Andy laid out the last drumbeat, and all four members of Fading Daze went silent.
The crowd, on the other hand, went wild.
Fading Daze’s first performance opening for a multi-platinum group in a summer tour along the east coast was a hit.
Benji loved the cosmic irony of tonight’s show being part of the Maryland State Fair—at the same fairgrounds where he’d performed with both XYZ and Fading Daze during two Unbound competitions.
And like those first two performances, several thousand people were once again cheering them on.
Benji barely saw Danielle in his peripheral vision before she smothered him in a sideways hug.
Andy and Bobby stepped forward, and their four-man crew bowed.
A few distant screams for an encore only added to the pulse-pounding excitement of the performance.
Benji stared out at the crowd, basking in the attention for as long as possible. Soaking in the glory of the moment.
This tour was a huge deal for the band, especially after firing Eddie.
Back in early January, Benji had informed Eddie of his unconventional triad relationship, and Eddie’s reaction had been more negative than anyone expected.
He’d even gone behind Benji’s back to suggest to the others that he be replaced for the good of the band’s image.
In an amazing show of solidarity, they’d replaced Eddie instead, with a wonderful lady named Susannah.
Best business decision ever.
He followed his friends offstage so it could be set for the main show, and then handed his guitar off to a roadie—an actual roadie to do the grunt work, which was a huge step up from hauling their own stuff around. Opening for a famous band came with great perks.
Getting rid of the guitar fast was also the best way to get his arms around the two grinning men with backstage passes waiting for him to bounce over. And he did bounce, full of adrenaline from performing and utter joy at the applause only starting to die out.
“You brought the house down, handsome,” Van said. He engulfed Benji in a full-body hug that nearly lifted him off the ground. Van’s wonderfully unique scent filled his nose, reminding him of everything he missed while he was on the road—and of everything he’d eventually come home to.
“It’s the best feeling ever,” Benji replied once he was firmly back on his feet. He gave Van a quick peck on the mouth, then turned and slipped into Joshua’s arms.
“You love it, and it shows when you sing,” Joshua said. He stole a deeper kiss, something as familiar to Benji as breathing.
“I love it, but I love you both more.”
The backstage area was too noisy for anyone to overhear the sentiment, but he really didn’t care if anyone did.
While Benji had never made a public statement or posted his changed status on the group’s website, he was no longer hiding the fact that he was in a poly relationship with two men.
Susannah made sure their touring manager didn’t have an issue with it before signing Fading Daze on.
The only minor indication of a change in his relationship status was his new website profile photo—one that included both Joshua and Van.
People could take it however they wanted; Benji simply ignored the indie gossip sites.
The decision to keep things on the general down-low was Benji’s.
He loved his men, he wasn’t ashamed of their relationship at all, and his band was getting more famous every single day, but he was still a private person at heart.
Joshua and Van respected that choice, as did every single member of Fading Daze.
“Hey, man, congrats!” Dominic’s voice burst in Benji’s ear, and he turned in time to be swept into another firm hug. “You guys killed it.”
Benji laughed, and slapped Dominic on the back. “Yeah, we did. Hey, Coop.”
Trey Cooper stood behind Dominic, grinning widely.
The pair was in the area for their own show tomorrow night, and they’d scored backstage passes to support their friends and former band mates.
It was incredible to think that two years ago, all of their lives had been so totally different.
So many new relationships had been created since; Benji loved seeing his friends happy.
“I texted a bunch of photos to Melody and Lincoln,” Van said. “I may have Instagrammed a few clips, too.”
“Bootleg videos?” Benji said, feigning shock. “You criminal.”
Van chuckled. “Guilty.” Something flickered in his eyes that Benji understood without words.
Joking aside, even so many months later, Van sometimes struggled with things that reminded him about Brady.
It made Benji grateful every single day that Van had Joshua home with him when the past got overwhelming.
“So how badly does Linc regret not coming?” Dominic asked.
“I can’t be certain,” Van said, “but I think the sobbing Mean Girls gif he sent back means something.”
Dominic busted out laughing.
“Hey, I think Lincoln’s a hero,” Benji said. “He stayed home to nurse his sick boyfriend, and trust me, the stomach flu is not fun to be around.”
Joshua looked at his shoes.
Dominic snickered. “Emmett’s nursed Linc through some epic migraines, complete with barfing, so I think he’s earned some personal nursing care time.”
“Emmett’s really sick, though, right?” Benji asked. “This isn’t some kind of gotcha surprise, like me pretending to have a cold last summer so Emmett could sing at Unbound?” He glanced around, half-expecting to see his friends pop out from behind a curtain.
“He’s really sick. But that would have been a great gotcha.”
“Too bad no one thought of it,” Trey said. “Maybe next time one of us starts as the opening act of one of the hottest bands in America, we’ll do that.”
“So that’ll be when you and Dom are opening for Fading Daze next year?”
Trey grinned and flipped him off.
“Do you guys have to stay backstage until the show is over?” Joshua asked. “There’s a whole state fair happening a few hundred feet from here. I’m all over a deep-fried Oreo.”
Van looked horrified. Living with him since December had definitely improved Joshua’s eating habits, but he’d never totally give up junk food. Neither would Benji. “What horrifies you more, babe,” Benji asked. “The Oreo or the deep frying?”
“All of it.”
“Poor baby. Maybe the candy apple truck has an apple they haven’t dipped yet.”
Van goosed him hard enough to make Benji yelp. Joshua started laughing.
“Oh my God,” Dominic said. “You guys are all already an old married throuple.”
“Joshua hates that word,” Benji and Van said in tandem.
This time Trey and Dominic cracked up.
Joshua huffed. “Come on, we have an impossible task ahead of us. Finding something Van will eat at a state fair junk food buffet.”
Van groaned. “It’s a good thing I ate before the show.”
Benji grabbed both of his boyfriends’ hands and tugged them toward the exit. Toward their next adventure together, and toward the many, many more to come.
Thank you for coming along on Benji, Joshua and Van’s journey!