ACE

A loud ringing filled my ears, waking me with a start. Grabbing the receiver from its cradle, I mumbled a greeting.

“Ace!” came Jax’s voice through the phone.

Something incoherent escaped my lips as I fell back onto the sheets.

“Ace… buddy?” Jax asked. “I got some shit to discuss with you, man. I need you to wake up.”

Jax’s voice was frantic and concern for my best friend made me shake off the drowsiness once and for all.

“What’s wrong, man?”

“I can’t lose her… I…”

“What? What the hell are you talking about?” This made little sense. “This about Aria? You just started dating. What are you talking about?” My questions were firing at rapid speed now.

“She gave me shit about my drug use. And it wasn’t the first time.” He mumbled.

I relaxed a bit. This wasn’t so bad, but I still had to be a good friend. “Oh fuck, really?”

This could actually be a good thing for Jax. “You know, the guys and I, and of course Devon, have been concerned about you… if you want the truth.” I ventured.

No one had ever dared mention it seriously before. We all joked and gave him shit, but it had never been a serious conversation. Maybe it was time for one.

“Fuck!” Jax barked into my ear. “You assholes have been talking about me behind my back?”

Jax had always reacted quickly, but his recent drug abuse intensified his quick reactions even more.

I sighed. “It’s only because we care about you, dude.”

Jax went quiet for a minute. “Wait… do you think I have an actual problem, too?”

I sat bolt upright in bed. We’d never been so honest with one another.

“Argh…” Frustration garbled in my throat as I ran a hand through my hair. “It’s just that it feels like you can’t get through a show without Kade’s interference both before and after the set… and sometimes during.” I added, immediately feeling like shit about the accusation. “Listen, I’m sorry, man. I’m not much better.”

“No, no….” Jax cut me off. “It’s fine and to be honest I… I know you’re right. I’ve known for a while. And that’s why… I gotta tell you something, but this stays between us, okay?”

“Yeah, of course Jax.” I responded immediately. “You’re practically my brother.”

“Aria got the audition and now she’s going away for two months on tour with JaylaT.” He announced, all in one breath. Clearly, this wasn’t easy for him.

“Holy fuck, that’s awesome for her!” I exclaimed. “But what does this have to do with…”

Jax cut me off. “Listen Ace, I’m just gonna say it.” He paused as I waited silently. “Her mentioning my drug use and how much she hates it really got me thinking. So I made a decision. I’m going to rehab while she’s away. A place called Safe Haven. Gonna get clean once and for all, and… I want you to come with me. Not sure, I can’t do it alone, Ace. I’ll quit, you know I will. I need you with me.”

Fuck. I paused, taking in all that he had said and trying to find something to say. I knew he needed this and was proud of him for realizing but…

“Ace?” He prodded. “This is the only time I can do it. If she’s around, I’ll just want to be with her. But the thing is, man… I don’t just want to be with her. I want to be better for her .”

Jax went quiet now. He’d poured his heart out to me, acknowledged that he had a problem, and was begging me to help him. How could I turn him down?

“Have you told anyone else this plan?” I asked. “Because we have the band to think of too… can both of us really just take off for two months? I don’t know what Devon will think.”

“No, I’m coming to you first, Ace.” He said very matter of fact. “I’m telling you because you are my best friend, my brother from another mother, and the only one who can help me get through this. And I want to keep it between us. Gage and Rocco and definitely Devon, can find out when it’s all said and done. I don’t need their bullshit distracting or annoying me. They don’t stop bugging me to write new material, but I need to do this first. And also… because…”

He paused.

“… because Aria has brought me back from the dead. She gave life to my muse when I thought it was gone for good. She is my everything, and I need to do this for her.”

“Did she ask you to?” I questioned.

“No, but she is worried about me and I want to remove that concern. Besides, I’m thinking long term here, Ace. I’m gonna ask her to marry me.”

I shook my head to myself. “Okay Jax. I’m in.”

My best friend might be more of a romantic than I was.

***

Two dates. Two misunderstandings. Tonight, it had to go well. No, it had to go perfectly.

We were officially dating but yet… also not? It was just a dare, a challenge. She said everything in jest, leaving me unsure about where I stood with her. That’s why tonight had to go well.

Of course, I’d called after our hiking date, no less than 24hrs after I’d dropped her off at home. We’d had a solid chat, finally one with no wrong assumptions, and I’d kept it up, calling her morning and night each day just to touch base. It must have worked in my favour because she’d finally invited me to her place tonight.

We’d planned for a casual evening. Pizza, beer and a movie on the couch. I was in heaven. This was the kind of night that I lived for. Just me and a beautiful girl chilling at home. Sure, I knew how to take a girl out on a fancy date and give her all the things, but what really thrilled me was a casual night like this. No one expects that famous people like to chill at home. They always think we want to be out in the clubs partying it up. Not that we didn’t do that a lot, too. But when it came to women, I enjoyed an environment that was more conducive to talking rather than yelling over the noise of a club.

I’d hung up with Jax, but only after promising multiple times that, yes, I would go to rehab with him. Then, the soothing comfort of a hot shower, a protein shake and a few sprays of cologne and I felt like a million bucks.

Today was a Harley day. And it called for a ride on my own Harley Davidson. Pulling on my leather jacket, I grabbed my keys and my aviators from the hall table and headed to the garage. When I first moved into this place, there had only been room for maybe three cars, tops. Three years later and I’d had the garage extended significantly to house my five cars, the limo and two motorcycles. It was probably my favourite room in the entire house, and I fucking loved every inch of this house. Even the rooms I hadn’t furnished yet. It had a lot of potential. Maybe enough for a certain someone one day…

Before heading over to see my girl, I stopped to pick up beer and a bouquet for her. Riding with both between my knees was a bit of a challenge, but certainly nothing I hadn’t done before.

I arrived at her apartment just ten minutes shy of our agreed time. With my helmet under one arm and both hands filled, I made my way to the buzzer.

“I only open for rock stars and pizza delivery! Which one are you?” Came Harley’s throaty laugh through the speaker.

“Both and I’m coming up, beautiful. See you in a minute.” I answered with a smile.