After spending
barely over two hours in the air, roughly five minutes to
noon, June's flight finally landed at Bangkok International
Airport Thailand
"My hotel is
not this way", she spoke carelessly and frowning, turned her face to look
back at her brother.
"I
know", he nodded deeply and spoke reassuringly, "I did some
arrangements and you'll be staying with us so...we're going to the same
hotel". He finished with a wide grin.
June shook her
head and stifled a smirk, in a way she already knew that was going to happen,
so she admitted her defeat. "End of the discussion, right?", she
lifted an eyebrow and continued, "Well, after a week of crappy hostels I
could use a little TLC...", she circled her brother's waist and he in
turn, surrounded her shoulders with his arm. "I miss you spoiling
me".
John kissed her
crown and tightened his embrace. "I miss spoiling you, sis".
"Then let's
have lunch, I've been fed mantou and rice for days", she looked
up at him sheepishly and battered her eyelashes, "I'm starving and craving
Italian".
John rolled his
eyes and shook his head. "Gawd, bad move from my part, now I'm not
gonna be able to get you off my back, am I?" June grinned and shook her
head silently, then John continued "In fact it's your lucky day: there's a
magnificent Italian restaurant at the hotel. We can order room service and
catch up, whadda ya say?"
"Sounds
wonderful"
...
After a mushroom
pizza, spaghetti carbonara and parma
"OK, that's
it, gotta run"
"What?",
John replied automatically but it actually didn't surprise him that his sister
allowed herself only a couple hours of relaxation before turning
hyperactive mode on again.
"Nah, just
gotta take some film to develop, have a shower, have some rest before the show.
We meet at the lobby at 4 right?"
"Uh-huh"
John lazily replied and wiped his face with his hands. He glanced at his watch,
his eyes felts sandy so he closed them. Maybe he could snatch a 45 minute nap
before the press conference. He felt June's kiss on his forehead and when he opened
his eyes back up and before he could utter a word she was already opening the
door and on her way out.
...
Jon's mind usually
played tricks on him when it came to recalling memories from the tours. Dates,
places, names, shows inside his brain blended into a scientifically impossible
time and space configuration. Oddly enough, however, every once in a while he
could extract specific images that appeared in his mind with perfect detail.
Seeing June walking towards him in that colorful long cotton skirt, flat
golden sandals and white spaghetti strap tank top was one of them. Her hair was
wrapped up with a beaded strap in a messy but loose fashion whose only apparent
purpose was to keep any annoying strand of hair from falling down. Her glowing,
rosy cheeks. And her ever present glowing, heart-warming smile.
"Well Jesus,
Mary and Joseph" Jon stopped his swagger down the corridor of the hotel to
stand with one hand on his crooked hip. "I can't believe my eyes...isn’t
that my favorite month of the year?" Jon turned to David and pocked his
sides with his elbow, as he spoke with the thickest jersey accent he could pull
off, hopeful that his playful tone would disguise the actual impression June
had caused in him. He tipped his chin towards the woman that was exciting a
room at the other end of the deserted corridor and spoke in a high voice to
make sure he was clearly heard.
As soon as she
heard the familiar voice, June's head snapped to her right. She didn't know
exactly how long her gape had lasted, but she secretly prayed it hadn't been
too long for any of the two men to notice. She was sure she'd laid eyes on many
an Adonis statue in her life, but they had nothing on what was standing in
front of her right now, wearing a pair of deep blue swimming shorts
and black flip flops, a white towel hanging over his bare shoulder, an
overwhelming aura of masculinity and power that seemed to have increased
exponentially since the last time she'd seen him. And she didn't blame him: by
all accounts he was at the top of his game.
"Since we're
being religious...", she started cheekily and moved towards them.
"Has Heaven run out of space that they're kicking angels out?".
"Hey that was
MY line", David finally spoke and took a step forward to come meet her.
"Get outta my
way, Lemma", Jon stood with a frown in his brow and a hand on his waist, a
tone of faux-sternness in his voice as he waited for David and June to greet
each other.
"I saw her
first, dude" David teased with a grin once he was done hugging the
visitor.
"Wow,
it's so good to see you guys", June spoke against Jon's shoulder
as they met for a tight, lingering hug.
Before pulling
apart, Jon planted a sound smooch on her cheek and gave her a charming
smile. "Nice to see you again, too sweetheart"
"When did you
arrive?" David asked as the three started moving down the corridor in the
direction of the elevator.
"Just a
couple hours ago, actually. Got caught up catching up with John"
"That's a
nice color on your cheeks" Jon couldn't help but comment on the spectacular
shape June was in. "Asia 's agreeing with
you". But besides that, even when she'd always been a lively, good
spirited and energetic person now her light seemed to shine so bright Jon could
feel it penetrate through every pore in his skin. He couldn't take his eyes
from her as he adjusted to the way his body was responding to the visual
stimulation. He pushed the call button, "UP".
June chortled and
pointed at her cheeks with her index finger "This is called not taking
enough sunscreen with you when you go hiking in the mountains. 'The City of the
eternal spring'", she quoted in the air, "I'd rather call it 'the
City of the toughest sun ever'". She pushed the "DOWN" button.
"And where is
that?" inquired David as he leaned against the wall, crossed his arms over
his chest and crossed his legs at the ankles.
"Kunming , Yunnan Singapore
A soft ding from
one of the 6 elevators announced that it had stopped in that floor.
"UP".
“Thai massage
time”, Jon grinned and took a step forward before entering the elevator with
what seemed a nimble dance move, then turned around. "See ya in a few
hours, right?". He was proud of the fact that he always managed to make
his suggestions an order.
"Course!
Can't wait to see the rest of-", the elevator door closed before June
could finish her sentence.
...
At the agreed
time, June joined the band and the crew back at the lobby some hours later. No
matter how many years her brother had been working with the band, this the
first time she actually shared the whole process of a show with him, so in
order to avoid any faux-pas she thought it was better to stick to the professional.
As she watched John go about his business she also took the time to greet the
members of the crew she was more acquainted with from seeing them
mostly at John's house. She realized that whoever she was speaking to, she
couldn't help to unconsciously keep an eye on Jon, though she also admitted to
herself that he was quite difficult to miss.
She remembered the
dinner they had had at his house, other moments here and there. Behind his rock
n' roll star, sexiest man alive, king of the world (for that matter) title, Jon
was a warm, gentle and charming person, and she felt the need to have the time
to share more of those moments with him, she regretted that they hadn't seen
each other for so long. She also saw how everyone seemed to orbit around him,
his charisma was unavoidable. And so was his physical appearance, but June was
wise enough to know how far she could let his physical appeal get to her: he
was her brothers' boss, friend and most of all, married to the love of his
life, the woman that had already given him two children. June congratulated
herself for being able to draw a clear line as to what her intentions where
when approaching Jon, if she was careful enough, if she kept the limits clear,
then everything would be alright.
She hadn't put
much thought into what she was wearing, it was so hot that she damned modesty
for having to wear any clothes at all, so she put on a lose white top with
broad neckline that let one of her recently tan shoulders bare, simple jean
shorts and flat leather sandals. As sole accessory she had tied a colorful fine
silk scarf loosely around her neck. She tied her hair up in a messy bun on her
crown. Her forehead was rather narrow, but the proportions of her face were
kept harmonious by her perfectly curved dark brown eyebrows. In order to subtly
highlight her deep green eyes, she put on just a little deep lilac eyeliner.
After a brief
moment of chaos when the entire entourage moved towards the row of vans
awaiting outside, June first lost her brother and then found herself squeezed
in the middle seat of the van between Jon and Tico. In spite of the fact that
it was past 4 in
the afternoon and that it was scorching hot and unbearably damp, Jon wore a
jean jacket over his black tank top and covered his neck with a blue bandana.
Richie and his wife had apparently got on another van.
"What?"
Tico stopped his tapping on his thighs when he saw June leaning over Jon to
look through the window, turning her head to left and right.
"I lost
John...oh, there he is", she saw her brother running towards the van with
an envelope in his hands.
Panting softly,
John sat on the front next to the driver. "The receptionist just gave this
to me, she saw the name and thought it was me, but I guess it's yours...ain't
it?"
"Oh,
yeah", June recognized the brand on the envelope. "It's my pictures I
had developed, I asked them to leave them at the reception. That was quick,
actually. Thanks". She leaned over and snatched the envelope from John's
hands. The van suddenly started moving and she lost her balance, but was
quickly assisted by a couple of strong hands that held her waist. She then
dropped herself back on the seat, thanked Jon for the help and was about to put
the envelope inside her handbag when another pair of more mischievous of hands
that sprung from the backseat snatched it from her grip. Almost simultaneously
David's strong laughter could be heard. June lolled her head and shook it with
a smile of defeat on her lips.
"Let's see
what we got here", David frowned and bit his tongue.
"Jesus
Christ, Lemma, will ya leave the lady alone?" Jon looked over his shoulder
and spoke with a faux-stern voice. "Give' em to me" he twisted his
torso to extend an open hand to David, who was already avidly browsing one
photo after the other. He reluctantly handed the deck of pictures to Jon , but
kept one and, pinning it between his index and thumb, waved it in the air
triumphantly. With a clownish smile, he spoke in a loud voice. "Haha, look
what I got here!".
June chortled and
shook her head, smiling at her defeat, "What are you, twelve?".
In the meantime, Jon had silently started to look at the rest of the pictures.
"Who's the
lucky guy Junie?", David insisted, but John answered instead.
"Ha, lucky is not the word I would use,
Lemma… poor bastard is more
appropriate if you ask me...OW!", he complained when June smacked his head
from behind.
"Don't listen
to him", June replied, if she didn't love him that much she would have
strangled him for bringing her personal issues up, but apparently the pre-show
euphoria was getting the best of him.
"May there be
peace between brothers" Tico spoke solemnly but couldn't control his
laughter.
"This is a
nice picture”, Jon tilted his head to one side and frowned. “Where is this?"
"That's Chengdu , Sichuan
"Wow”, he
spoke mindfully, “there was a time when I had the freedom to have that kind of adventures,
but I didn't have the money, now that I have the money, I don't have the freedom".
"Well, you
know...you can't al-ways get what you
want, can you?", June’s emulation of Mick Jagger elicited simultaneous
giggles from John and David.
Jon smirked
mischievously. We'll see to that.
Then he laughed as he did his waggled his eyebrows "But if you try sometimes, well you just might find, you get what you
need, ow".
Jon gave June a
wink and a smile and handed her the bunch of pictures in his hand, David
followed by returning the one he has holding hostage. June put them back in the
envelope and stuck them in her handbag.
"Oh Johnny I
love youuuu", David broke the silence by delivering another one of his
recurring acts, emulating a high-pitch-voiced fan, throwing his hands in the
air. A group laughter followed, but was suddenly silenced when the van turned
around the corner to enter the road that led to the stadium: a sea of people
covered every inch of the surroundings of the stadium, a sound similar to that
of a swarm of bees filled the air. In a flash, hands, pictures, faces and
magazines were stamped to the van’s windows. June looked at Jon’s calm face, he
was staring sideways through the window. He belonged to them now, and his mind
was already set on the stage that was awaiting him.
"We should
have done the second show" he whispered almost to himself and splayed his
hand on the tainted glass, even when he knew that the people on the other side
weren't able to see him, but he did it nonetheless. The matter had been
exhaustively discussed: there was simply no time in the schedule, therefore nobody made any further comment, and
limited themselves to concentrating in the show to come.
June noticed how
Tico resumed his tapping on his thighs to some beat that was playing in his
mind. David was already doing some breathing exercises, and Jon was just giving
himself body and soul, soaking himself in the energy of the crowd that
permeated the casing of the van.
June gasped when
the van moved sideways under the effect of the group pressure and leaning
slightly forward, she grasped her brother’s shoulders. John silently and calmly
squeezed her hand. The van navigated slowly through the crowd until it passed
through the gate. June looked back over her shoulder and saw the other three
vans on the back and how the gate was closed after the last one had passed. Only
then did she slouch back on the seat.
"Here we go,
then", Jon looked sideways at June and slapped her thigh, then gave it a
reassuring squeeze when she saw her speechless wide-eyed look as a guard opened
the van door.
...
Nothing could have
prepared June for what she witnessed that night at the Bangkok Stadium. The
screaming, the heat, the night, the music, the people inside and outside the
stadium enjoying the event in equal proportions. It wasn’t the first time she’d
seen them, but she admitted that they were in better shape than ever. They
weren’t “just a” rock n’ roll band anymore, they had become legends. A rush of
admiration and respect charged the air inside her lungs.
After the show was
over, a still dripping sweat and wrapped in a giant towel lead singer was shoved
into a van hotel bound while the rest of the band members followed in another
van.
"Comin'?"
shouted John at Obie who was standing at the other end of the corridor, around twenty
minutes after the band had left the venue.
"You guys go
first" a sweaty T-shirted Obie waved a hand at the brother and sister
pair. "I still got to check up on the crew back here".
"Alright, see
ya in a while, then", John waved goodbye and after replying, Obie
swiftly lost himself in the dark labyrinth backstage.
