asked to some big dance. There would always be lots of jumping up and down, squealing and sighs. I'd never personally understood it.
"Do you want tea?" I asked as Matt wandered around the living room taking in the bookshelves groaning with textbooks.
"Yeah, please, two sugars and only a little milk." He turned and watched the television report silently for a few moments before following me out into the kitchen.
"Have you seen that?" He gestured to the TV. and I nodded as I switched the kettle on and grabbed the milk.
"Exhaustion... The lies they make up. But then I suppose it sounds better than the truth." Matt traced the marks on the counter silently for a few minutes.
I watched him, carefully taking in the tired look around his eyes and the way his shoulders seemed hunched. Normally he was so confident. But now? Now he was different. For a second it reminded me of the vulnerability I had seen in him the night before.
"You looked good on the report. Lots of people wanted to know who you were..." He spoke almost absentmindedly as I pushed the full cup of steaming liquid across the counter to him.
I laughed a little as I poured milk into my own cup. "I bet they did. Any woman seen with you is instantly branded as one of your harem."
"I didn't sleep with her you know."
I almost dropped the carton of milk. His words catching me completely off guard.
He turned his brown eyes on me. There was no facade, simply him. "I didn't sleep with that girl last night. I was barely fit to function you saw that. There was no way I could have slept with her even if I'd wanted to."
"You don't need to tell me... I'm not your mother or your keeper, remember?"
He smiled at me. "I know that. I'm glad you're not, it'd be a little weird. But I do have to tell you... I think you need to know... I'm not quite who they make me out to be you know?"
"I know the media lies. But I know they get the seed of a story from somewhere. So maybe what they're saying is not entirely true but there is some part of that always is true."
Matt nodded and took a gulp of the tea. He spluttered as the hot water burned his tongue. "Shit that is hot."
"Boiling water usually is."
He shot me a nasty look and stuck his tongue out at me before replacing the cup back on the counter.
"So you're here for a reason?"
"Yeah. I don't want anyone else working with me. When I heard you were working with Brody's firm I almost didn't believe it. You had so many ambitions..."
I opened my mouth to give him a sharp retort but he lifted his hands in surrender. "But what you chose to do with your life is up to you. Not my business. But when I saw you there yesterday... I don't know... For the first time I actually felt a little hope. That maybe I wasn't too far gone. And then last night..." He sighed and closed his eyes for a moment. "You saved my life you know?" He opened his eyes again and stared up at me.
"No... I didn't know that."
"Yeah. Docs told me if you hadn't insisted on bringing me in. I'd have either lost too much blood or alcohol poisoning..."
I lifted my own cup, a slight tremor running through me as I thought about Matt lying on the couch, his body cold. Dead. It was a sobering thought. If I had done things differently, if I'd listened to the manager...
"But you're not, you're fine now."
"Yeah, just need to take a few days off apparently. Not that that is likely to happen. Full scale tour coming up."
"You need to look after yourself. You can't let them push you into something you're not fit to do. No matter what the contract says."
Matt nodded thoughtfully and sipped the tea.
"I don't want to work with anyone else... No one but you... Kitty Kat..." The nickname he had given me sent shivers down my spine. The way he said it. Almost made me believe that he felt something for me. I wasn't sure if it was real or if it was just the way he could speak. There was after all something in his voice. There had to be, otherwise people wouldn't listen to him sing. Not
"Do you want tea?" I asked as Matt wandered around the living room taking in the bookshelves groaning with textbooks.
"Yeah, please, two sugars and only a little milk." He turned and watched the television report silently for a few moments before following me out into the kitchen.
"Have you seen that?" He gestured to the TV. and I nodded as I switched the kettle on and grabbed the milk.
"Exhaustion... The lies they make up. But then I suppose it sounds better than the truth." Matt traced the marks on the counter silently for a few minutes.
I watched him, carefully taking in the tired look around his eyes and the way his shoulders seemed hunched. Normally he was so confident. But now? Now he was different. For a second it reminded me of the vulnerability I had seen in him the night before.
"You looked good on the report. Lots of people wanted to know who you were..." He spoke almost absentmindedly as I pushed the full cup of steaming liquid across the counter to him.
I laughed a little as I poured milk into my own cup. "I bet they did. Any woman seen with you is instantly branded as one of your harem."
"I didn't sleep with her you know."
I almost dropped the carton of milk. His words catching me completely off guard.
He turned his brown eyes on me. There was no facade, simply him. "I didn't sleep with that girl last night. I was barely fit to function you saw that. There was no way I could have slept with her even if I'd wanted to."
"You don't need to tell me... I'm not your mother or your keeper, remember?"
He smiled at me. "I know that. I'm glad you're not, it'd be a little weird. But I do have to tell you... I think you need to know... I'm not quite who they make me out to be you know?"
"I know the media lies. But I know they get the seed of a story from somewhere. So maybe what they're saying is not entirely true but there is some part of that always is true."
Matt nodded and took a gulp of the tea. He spluttered as the hot water burned his tongue. "Shit that is hot."
"Boiling water usually is."
He shot me a nasty look and stuck his tongue out at me before replacing the cup back on the counter.
"So you're here for a reason?"
"Yeah. I don't want anyone else working with me. When I heard you were working with Brody's firm I almost didn't believe it. You had so many ambitions..."
I opened my mouth to give him a sharp retort but he lifted his hands in surrender. "But what you chose to do with your life is up to you. Not my business. But when I saw you there yesterday... I don't know... For the first time I actually felt a little hope. That maybe I wasn't too far gone. And then last night..." He sighed and closed his eyes for a moment. "You saved my life you know?" He opened his eyes again and stared up at me.
"No... I didn't know that."
"Yeah. Docs told me if you hadn't insisted on bringing me in. I'd have either lost too much blood or alcohol poisoning..."
I lifted my own cup, a slight tremor running through me as I thought about Matt lying on the couch, his body cold. Dead. It was a sobering thought. If I had done things differently, if I'd listened to the manager...
"But you're not, you're fine now."
"Yeah, just need to take a few days off apparently. Not that that is likely to happen. Full scale tour coming up."
"You need to look after yourself. You can't let them push you into something you're not fit to do. No matter what the contract says."
Matt nodded thoughtfully and sipped the tea.
"I don't want to work with anyone else... No one but you... Kitty Kat..." The nickname he had given me sent shivers down my spine. The way he said it. Almost made me believe that he felt something for me. I wasn't sure if it was real or if it was just the way he could speak. There was after all something in his voice. There had to be, otherwise people wouldn't listen to him sing. Not
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