NEW YORK CITY BLUES
Nicky stared out of the window at the rain. Sean stood besides him. They�d be in New York soon, they�d finished rehearsing. �Another chapter in the Manic Street Preachers� said Nicky. �It feels weird, doesn�t it? Like stepping into the unknown�.
�We could call our album that� said Sean. �Venturing into the wilderness�. �It�s only New York!� snorted Nicky. �It�s not the middle of nowhere�. Sean didn�t want to leave his home comforts. �If I�m going, you�re fucking going!� demanded Nicky, as if it was a given thing. �I�m worse than you! You might get upset about getting on a plane, for me, the world�s ended�. �You don�t know how upset I get� muttered Sean. �I keep myself to myself, I feel as bad as you!�
So, Sean was in an argumentative mood today, was he. �The shops, Sean, think of the shops�. �I could get anything I wanted here�. �Well then think of the history. Central Park, frequented by James Dean and John Lennon, no less�. �And Sean Moore� added Sean. �Shall we go and see The Dakota?� wondered Nicky. �That�s morbid� said Sean. �Seeing where he was shot!� � �Maybe a bit insensitive, what with the song and all� agreed Nicky. �Wish we�d never written it, if I went to The Dakota, I�d feel so guilty�. �Why, you didn�t kill him, as long as it�s a private visit, it�ll be ok� said Sean. �As long as we don�t turn it into some photo opportunity�.
James came into the room. �James, should we go to The Dakota?� � �If you like� replied James, picking up Nicky�s list of things to take to America. �We�ll probably be too busy though, or I will be. We want to do this album properly don�t we�.
�But we want to experience New York?� wondered Nicky. �If we get time� said James. He was reading the list. �You don�t need all these books, if you need any, you can buy them�. �I might need a quote�. James shook his head. �You�ve read them all before�. �If I get a quote wrong, my fans will kill me!�
James looked at Nicky like he wasn�t sure whether to believe him or not. �He�s getting a bit intense?� said James to Sean under his breath. �I heard that, I�m just excited about everything!� � �You�ll make yourself ill� said James. �Says he who punched walls when he worked with Kylie!� replied Nicky. James looked shocked.
�Calm down both of you!� warned Sean. �We haven�t even got there yet. We don�t know what it�s gonna be like til we get there. We could love it, we could hate it. We could enjoy it or absolutely hate every minute of it, but let�s just get there first�.
Sean had spoken and the other two knew this was a sign to shut up, or suffer the consequences.
James went back to the studio and started packing stuff away. �I�ll be glad to get out of here� he said, to no-one, collecting all Nicky�s pieces of paper from around the studio, incase they contained an important lyric they might need later.
Sean went up to his drums. �Next time I play you, we�ll be in America� he said. It all seemed to be happening now.
Nicky added more things to his list. �Ear plugs, for when James annoys me�. He knew James was right, he was getting too excited, too hyper, but he just couldn�t calm down. Maybe, he thought to himself, Richey was living incognito in New York, and their eyes would meet across Central Park. James rudely interrupted his daydream. �Do we get British papers over there?� Nicky had no idea. �The point of going to America, is that it is America, James�. James smirked. �And we�re going there to experience the culture, just like we did in Cuba� continued Nicky.
�What would Fidel think?� wondered James. �We won�t get back in Cuba� replied Nicky. �Or if we do, we might not get back out, he�ll have us thrown in jail for being traitors�.
�Well, it�s going to be an experience� said James. �Especially going with you two�. �What do you mean?� asked Sean. �We�re not that bad�. �Huh!� said Nicky �you�ll probably throw one of your famous Sean Moore strops. If only your fans knew the real you�. �Likewise!� retorted Sean.
�I can�t wait until we start recording, so you two stop bitching� said James with a sigh. �He started it� said Sean. �I don�t lose my temper often, only when I�m pushed�. �You�re not the super cool Sean they all think you are� teased Nicky.
�Well, we go to America tomorrow, so let�s finish up here, and get some sleep before we get on the plane� advised James. �I won�t sleep!� said Nicky, looking through his list one more time. �I�ll have nightmares. I�m dreading it. I don�t want to go. I�ve changed my mind. I want to go home�. He looked around. The other two had gone. There was no-one to listen to his rant.
OK, so he always had this rant the day before they set off on overseas trips. And he always said the same thing, that he wasn�t going. They�d heard it all before. And the next morning, he�d turn up in dark glasses looking sheepish. And he�d get on the plane, hardly speaking to anyone, and only spring back to life once his feet touched the ground.
By the time he�d analysed things, James and Sean were in bed, drifting off to sleep. Nicky knew he wouldn�t sleep. He picked up his notepad and pen. And wrote a title across the top of the page. �Into The Wilderness�. I�ll finish it on the plane, he thought, it�ll be my darkest song yet.
He took the notepad to his room and put it inside his bag. �We must be mad, going to America, what were we thinking?� he wondered to himself. He closed his neatly packed suitcase and got into bed.
Soon, he was dreaming, but he didn�t know it was a dream. He sat on a bench in Central Park, looking up at the trees. The sunlight in his eyes. Suddenly, a shadow blocked the sun. A familiar face looked down at him. �Is it really you?� he said.
�I knew you�d come� said John. �I�ve been waiting for you�. �I thought I�d find my friend here� said Nicky, remembering his earlier daydream about Richey. �I didn�t expect to find you�. �Do you want to come to The Dakota?� Nicky didn�t hesitate. �You bet�. They walked toward�s John�s apartment building together.
Nicky could see the building getting closer and closer. He began to panic. �I can�t!� he said. John kept walking, further and further away from Nicky. �Welcome to New York!� were John�s last words as Nicky woke up with a start.
Now, he couldn�t wait for tomorrow to come, the anticipation was becoming too much. He put on CNN and pretended he was in America.
Next morning, passing Nicky�s room, Sean heard the tv. He guessed Nicky had gone to sleep watching it. �Don�t wake him up til the last minute� he said to James. �I don�t think I could stand it. You heard him ranting last night�.
Nicky opened his eyes. It was time. He put on his dark glasses. When he appeared from his room, he announced he didn�t want to visit The Dakota anymore. They didn�t question him. No-one said anything. On the way to the airport it was deathly silence.
Once the flight was underway, Nicky took out his notepad. Sean looked over at what Nicky was doing and saw the words �Into The Wilderness� written at the top of the page. �I think there�s gonna be another song� he warned James.
�It�s like deja vue� said James. �We�ve been here so many times before�. Sean knew what he meant. On another plane, going to another destination, creating something new. It was an unbeatable feeling. �Better than F1!� said Sean. �Better than getting to Number 1!� added James.
Listening to them, Nicky smiled to himself. And crossed out the song title. He didn�t need to write it anymore. Everything was going to be ok.
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