Chapter 32
They stood in silence for a moment, Mark still holding the glass of water and looking at his band mate in complete confusion.
“You OK?” he asked eventually.
Christian nodded, his eyes fixed firmly on Mark’s, “Fine, you?”
Mark took a sip of water from the glass, for some reason Christians steely gaze was making him feel nervous.
He nodded in reply before asking, “Ella OK?”
“Yeah, she’s still at the club,” Christian replied.
Mark gave him a little smile, relieved that he’d got a tiny bit of conversation out of him.
“So what’s the problem?”
“You and Mel”
“Me and Mel what?” Mark asked in confusion.
“You got off with her in the club,”
“And?” Mark asked, since when was Christian interested in his love life?
“Well … she’s a fan,” Christian reasoned, “we shouldn’t go around randomly snogging fans.”
“Come of it Chris, she isn’t exactly a fan is she?”
“Course she is, what else would you call her?”
“So you’ve always viewed her as a fan have you?” Mark asked.
“Of course I have!”
“Bollocks.”
Mark took another sip of water, trying hard to keep his rage down, it wasn’t often he got angry, but when he did he tended to fly off the handle.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Christian asked.
“You are always flirting with the girl.”
“I’m not!” Christian hissed, looking behind him to check no one was listening.
“Oh, in Norway do you call it being friendly?”
“Yeah we do actually.”
“Right so you don’t think she’s a complete knock out then?” Mark asked.
“Yeah she’s gorgeous, but she’s a fan.”
“Come off it Chris, since when did that stop you? You always used to screw fans.”
Christian looked at his friend in shock, it wasn’t often you heard Mark used words like that, he was such a complete romantic it was completely against his nature to use words like “screw”.
“Yeah but not since Ella.” He finally answered.
“Fine, that’s a personal choice, but if I want to sleep with her I can.”
“You can’t!” Christian replied
“Why? One rule for me different rule for you?”
“Course not”
“Yeah,” Mark retorted, his tangent of thought spiralling out of control, “that’s the reason, I’m good sensible Mark, I couldn’t possibly sleep with a fan, it would be far too wild and interesting for boring old me.”
“Don’t be ridiculous.” Christian spat back.
“If I want to sleep with Mel than I shall.” Mark retorted, his voice full of determination.
“You cant!” Christian repeated.
“I can!” Mark replied defensively, “I can sleep with who I want when I want.”
“Fine, but not her.”
“Yes her,” Mark argued back childishly.
“Anyone but her.”
“Why am I not good enough for her? Is she too pretty for me? Out of my league?”
“Mark stop being so stupid.”
“You want her for yourself then?”
“You’re being an idiot,” Christian snapped, “why the hell would I want her for myself?”
“Well I’ve obviously hit a nerve, I mean you are getting rather worked up about all of this.”
“Am not!”
“Fine! Doesn’t matter if I sleep with her then does it?”
“It does matter?”
Mark slammed the glass down hard on the table, “why does it matter?”
Christian looked at him in shock, he had never seen Mark this angry before … maybe that was why he suddenly found his mouth open and words pouring out of it that he had never meant to utter to anyone.
“She is only with you to make me jealous”
“What?”
“I think she wants me.”
“And why on earth do you think that Mr Ego?” Mark snapped.
Christian paused for a moment and then looked down at his feet, his face glowing red with embarrassment.
“I slept with her.”
“You what?” Mark asked, completely stunned.
“I slept with her,” Christian repeated.
“When?”
“In London.”
“Why?”
“It just happened,” Christian replied miserably, “didn’t mean it to – it just did.”
“And what happened then?”
“Nothing.”
“So you slept with her and then left her?”
“More or less,” Christian nodded, his face full of shame. When it was said out loud it sounded so nasty and heartless.
“You bastard!”
Christian opened his mouth, he thought for a moment of something to say to defend himself, but then realised that there was nothing that could justify what he had done and so he stayed silent and let Mark continue.
“Poor little Mel.”
“She wanted it to happen.” Christian muttered, convinced that may be this wasn’t entirely his fault.
“You didn’t have to make it happen.”
“But she wanted it to.”
“Don’t talk shit!” Mark retorted.
“She did, and now she wants me, I can tell.”
“Of course she wants you, you slept with her and left her, poor girl.”
Why did things sound so bad when Mark phrased them like that, he wasn’t a bad person was he?
“And what about Ella?” Mark asked, “how could you do that to Ella?”
“I love Ella,” Christian jumped in quickly.
“Yeah, great way of showing it mate,” Mark said sarcastically.
“I do, she means more to me than anything,”
“All meaningless words Christian.”
“I do love her.”
“Save it for someone that cares” Mark retorted turning to leave.
Christian quickly caught his arm and swung him back round to face him.
“Please don’t tell her, it would kill me.”
“And you don’t deserve that?”
“OK, don’t do it because it would kill her,” Christian replied, desperately.
“You cant ruin what we have, I need her,” he was almost in tears now.
“Too late Christian – you should have thought of that before you jumped into bed with Mel.”
“Please don’t tell her,” Christian begged, “I’ll do anything.”
Mark looked at him for a moment.
“Fine, I wont tell her, but I’m doing it for her not for you.”
“You hate me don’t you?” Christian asked
“I think you are a lying scumbag, but you’re still my mate,” Mark said reluctantly.
Christian gave him a weak smile.
Mark turned back towards him before he left.
“Just for the record, I never had any intention of sleeping with Mel tonight, she is just staying in my bed and I was bringing her a glass of water.”
At that moment Christian felt like his world was about to shatter down around his ears – he had just confessed the deepest secret he had ever held ... and it and all been over nothing.