Chapter 36
CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX
kate
“Hello,” Jake says groggily when he finally answers the phone late on Friday afternoon.
“Hey, babe. Are you okay?” I ask, worried about what’s going on with him since he hasn’t responded to my calls or texts all day. Although he had a concert last night, he doesn’t usually sleep in this late.
“Huh? I’m fine. What time is it?”
“Almost 3 p.m. Don’t you have soundcheck in a bit?”
“Not sure. Fuck. My head is pounding,” he mumbles.
“Are you getting sick?”
“Drank too much last night. Super hungover,” he answers with a hint of agony in his voice.
“Oh,” I reply, unsure what else to say because I’ve never seen this side of him. He’s always careful about how much he drinks.
“Must have celebrated finishing the album too hard. Never should’ve…drank those shots,” he groans.
“Do you want me to text Max and have him bring you something?” I ask, trying to figure out how best to help him when I’m thousands of miles away.
“No. I’ll be fine. Need to sleep it off. Can we talk later?”
“Sure. I love you.”
“Me too,” he mutters, hanging up the call.
My heart sinks, saddened by the fact I wasn’t able to talk to him and slightly concerned about how much he’s been drinking.
I’ve seen how much alcohol Jimmy and Shane can down in a night; Jake doesn’t have anywhere near that tolerance.
I’m tempted to text Max to check in on him, but I convince myself to let it go and trust that Jake can take care of himself.
Pushing my concerns aside, I focus back on finishing up a few more emails before calling it a day. Ignoring the knot in my stomach that has been steadily growing over the last two weeks.
Jolted awake by my ringing phone, I fumble around until my hand locates it on my nightstand. “Hello,” I say, half-asleep with no idea of who would be calling me at this hour. I glance at my clock to see it’s nearly 4 a.m.
“Kate,” Jake shouts over the blaring music. “What are you…doing?”
“Sleeping. It’s the middle of the night,” I respond, rubbing my eyes and sitting up in bed. “Are you okay?
“I’m great. We’re celebrating. You should be with us,” he replies, slurring his words. “Why aren’t…you here?”
Is he drunk? Again?
I sigh, resting my head on my hand. “We’ve already talked about this. I had to stay in Chicago for work.”
“Boooooooo!”
What in the actual fuck is happening?
“Who are you hanging out with?” I ask, hoping there’s a responsible adult somewhere in the mix, and he’s not being heavily influenced by Jimmy.
“Everybody…but you.”
A chorus of people chanting “shots, shots, shots” comes in the background.
“Give me two,” Jake mumbles, clearly not talking to me.
“We can—”
The call ends abruptly.
He hung up on me. Did he mean to do that?
It has to be an accident.
I call him back, but the phone rings and rings. After waiting a few more minutes, I try again, but he never answers.
The unease I’ve been feeling grows, making me question whether this is how he usually behaves on tour when I’m not around. If this is how he’ll act once I start touring with him again. Wondering if we’ve been merely going through a honeymoon period, and now I’m seeing the reality of tour life.
Not going to go there.
I cocoon myself under my blankets, hoping to drift back to sleep, but it never happens.