November 3rd, 1986 / Lisbon, Portugal

It had been almost a month on the road and already the band were burned.

The excitement for shows had dwindled. Jon had already sustained damage to his vocal cords due to overexertion and improper technique. Everybody was silently beginning to loathe living out of suitcases, and the constant vacating and travelling was enough to drive anybody crazy.

Touring had never been advertised to Amelia as a glamorous life, however it had alarmed her how quickly the negative aspects of it were beginning to show. The band had over a year left of this tour alone, their breaks were few and far between, she wondered if they could even survive it.

And as for Jon, she still thought about him more than she cared to admit. She tried her hardest to stay away and yet somehow he was never far behind. She continued to push him away, spending most of her time in her room alone or out walking with Spankie. Richie was worried about this new bout of solitude, he repeatedly checked up on her and brought her snacks from the town.

Amelia had scheduled an interview for Jon. Her and Spankie having nothing better to do decided to lay on the bed and watch it on the hotel television.

"Shall we play Bon Jovi interview bingo?" Spankie asked, taking a bite of her chocolate bar.

"What's that?" Amelia frowned.

"We make a bingo sheet of everything that he talks about or gets asked about. He tends to repeat himself a lot in those interviews, they always ask him the same stuff."

"Well what kind of stuff?"

"Oh, you know. One point if someone asks him about his hair and he gets pissed off. One point if he tells the story of how he wrote Livin' on a Prayer in your basement. Or if he mentions why the old album cover was scrapped or someone asks him about his ever secretive love life."

"I see," Amelia snickered. "I'm starting to understand why he hates interviews so much."

"Oh yeah, he despises them. I don't think the band mind so much because they're not doing them constantly, and when they do they usually ask questions about the music 'cause to the general public the lives of the band are not as interesting as the life of the frontman. Jon gets the short end of the stick in that sense, he gets asked about his hair in every interview, he goes mad over it."

In a sense Amelia could understand it. To put so much heart and soul into writing an album and then even more sweat and tears into a show every night only to be asked about your hair instead of your music was the most egregious form of insult. She didn't blame him one bit.

"He does have lovely locks," Amelia joked. "Do you usually get full bingo then?"

"All the time," Spankie said, mouth full of food. "Heck, write 'em down! Let's play for real."

The two comprised a list of six bingo points, mainly Spankie as she was more acquainted with his interviews.

Gets asked about his hair.

Asked about his love life.

Talks about the banned album cover.

Talks about how he wrote Prayer or Bad Name.

Interviewer fangirls over him (if female)

Is wearing sunglasses.

Mentions the origins of the album title.

"What's the origin of the album title?" Amelia frowned, looking at the list.

"Well, we might find out in a moment. Why should I explain when the man himself can?"

As soon as Jon appeared on screen the pair ticked off their first bingo point.

Sunglasses. The darned sunglasses. And his perpetual smirk.

The interviewer began introducing Jon, and for a moment Amelia wondered if the reasoning for the sunglasses was so he could inconspicuously admire the ladies he came into contact with. He certainly had a wandering eye.

"Oh, won't you take your sunglasses off?" The woman pleaded with him, her accent thick and lovely.

"Is that fangirling?" Spankie asked.

"Not yet," Amelia whispered.

Jon's smirk intensified. "Only for you darlin'." He pushed the glasses up to his head and squinted at the sudden light.

"Beautiful!" The woman exclaimed. "Beautiful eyes!"

Jon shrunk in on himself laughing, staring into his lap with his elbows on either side of the chair.

"Surely that's fangirling," Spankie said. "Right?"

"Why do you wear those things? You are always wearing sunglasses but you have such beautiful face! You should show it off!"

Amelia and Spankie simultaneously ticked off fangirling.

The woman seemed rather adorable, foreign and not completely fluent in English. Jon seemed to think the same, Amelia truly didn't think he'd have taken his sunglasses off had it been a male or an elderly woman. His smirk was certainly indicative of his fondness for her.

"My eyes are sensitive," Jon explained softly, "Those lights you got there are very bright."

"Oh shush, you are always wearing them!" The woman laughed, tapping his elbow. "But you know, eye contact is very important."

"Uh huh?" Jon leaned slightly forward, leaving his question open ended as he grinned at her.

"I don't know about you, but he seems to be rather enjoying this interview," Amelia muttered to Spankie.

"Yeah, well you should see him when it's a guy interviewing him. He's absolutely miserable! You'd think the guys were less inclined to ask about the hair or love life but nope."

"Yes!" The interviewer exclaimed. "Eyes are the window to the soul!"

"Best keep 'em closed then," Jon smirked at the camera. The lady gasped, grasping his arm in surprise.

"Why Jon, you are a contrarian," she said, causing the man to chuckle. "What is it about your soul that you wish to hide?"

Jon placed his sunglasses on and smiled at the camera. "All of it."

"Oh no, take them off!" The woman chided. "It is hard to talk to someone when their eyes are blacked out."

Jon heaved a weary sigh and took them off again. "Only for you my dear, only for you."

"You are a very private man Mr Bon Jovi, as we've already established you like to keep most of yourself hidden and mysterious. Why is that? And do you understand why the fans are so interested in your personal life?"

"I understand it," Jon sighed, fiddling with the arms of his sunglasses. "I'm a fan myself first and foremost. As for why, well much of my life is public property so I like to keep a little for myself."

"Very diplomatic," Amelia commented.

"Oh, always," Spankie agreed.

"And love life? Is that something that you like to keep to yourself?"

Jon grinned. "If I had one then sure, I would keep it to myself."

"Well surely you must have somewhat of a love life," the woman gasped. "You are the Casanova of rock n' roll."

Jon laughed at the assesment, tilting his head back in amusement. "Well, I'm afraid I can't accept that title, I'm terrible with women."

"Oh, you are too modest."

"No, it's true. Richie's the Casanova, I'm just the loner."

"Oh, you lie Jon, you lie!"

He laughed again. "It's true! I'm a single man."

"Looking for love?" The woman enquired.

"Maybe!" Jon exclaimed. "Maybe not, who knows."

"But what about the groupies?" She asked. "You are surely a ladies man."

"No, I have all the charm of a sixth grader."

"But ladies love modest men. You are most charming."

"Well, thank you dear," he chuckled.

"Do you get many groupies?" She asked again.

"Sure! Plenty of 'em around," Jon said, waggling his brows at the camera.

"See, you are Casanova!" She laughed. "What do you think your future wife might say were she to see this interview?"

"Future wife?" Jon laughed, jumping back. "I'm twenty five! No woman would have me."

"Oh, now you are being silly."

"I'm serious, they'd run off if they really knew me. I'm like an overgrown kid, I'm messy, unorganized, don't take out the trash, never home, they'd be sick of me in a day."

"There are millions of women that'd die to have you for a husband."

"It'd be divorce within a week," Jon snickered.

"And what about girlfriends? You must have had girlfriends."

"One or two," he admitted.

"See, you cannot be so bad."

"Well, there's a reason they're ex-girlfriends now."

"Oh, will you indulge us?"

"I wouldn't dare."

"Are they recent girlfriends? Is the wound still fresh? There have been rumours that a love affair inspired your song You Give Love a Bad Name."

"Rumours is all that they are," Jon said. "You Give Love a Bad Name is only one third my song, I had two co-writers and naturally their experiences found their way into the song."

"So no recent love affair, then?"

"No, no recent love affair, I haven't had a girlfriend since my high school girlfriend."

"And where is she now? Did she break up with you?"

Jon's demeanor shifted. "It was a mutual decision."

"If she had stayed with you she would be rich and famous!"

"No, it was a long time ago," Jon laughed. "I doubt she thinks much of me these days."

"Well, now half of the world is jealous of her."

Jon shook his head again, still laughing. "No, I doubt it."

"But it must be hard for her and your future girlfriends to see you with so many women, right?"

Jon shrugged. "Maybe. I don't know."

"And what of the name for your album, Slippery When Wet? Dirty, isn't it?"

"Depends how you interpret it," Jon grinned, perking up a little.

"Well what does it mean? How did it come about? And tell us about the album cover."

"Well the original title was Wanted Dead or Alive. All five of the band grew these big beards and went up to an old coal mine in the mountains to take some photos and that was gonna be the album cover. Well, Polygram our record company sees the photos and tell us they weren't about to let us turn into mountain men after two records, they gave us a new album cover with a photo of a rather well endowed young lady cropped at the chest."

"I think we've all seen it."

"Yeah, I'm sure. Anyhow a new title came about, Slippery When Wet."

"And where did that idea come from?" She asked teasingly.

"Well, in Vancouver the band and I used to write many of our songs in an old strip bar. We were all so busy writin' that we hardly ever took note of the rather scantily clad you women doin' everything they could to get our attention on stage. They'd take these real lathered up soaps and rub 'em all over their body, hence.. Slippery When Wet."

"And the final album cover? What happened to the other one?"

"PMRC got to us, said they wouldn't have the records in store if the album cover wasn't changed. I took a black trashbag, sprayed it with water and wrote Slippery When Wet on it."

"And the rest is history! You've already sold one million albums, how does it feel to say that aloud?"

"Pretty wild," he chuckled. "It's all happened so fast."

"And how does it feel to know that your fame had already exceeded that of bands such as Mötley Crüe?"

"Oh, we don't think like that," Jon frowned, quickly shaking his head. "We don't like to think of the 'celebrity' aspect of it, we just do what we always do, only now on a larger scale."

"You are a very grounded man, what keeps you grounded?"

"My family," he shrugged. "My friends. Living in Jersey. Seein' other celebrities go down the same route and regret it."

"Your family you say? What do your mother and father do for a living? They must be very proud of you."

"Yeah, they've always been my biggest supporters. My mother's been in and out of jobs ever since I've known her. She mostly works as a florist nowadays and takes care of my youngest brother. My father cuts hair for a living."

"And is he responsible for your locks?"

Jon buried his head in his palm. "Yeah, my dad cuts my hair. If your dad was a plumber you'd let him do your plumbing."

"Oh goodness, I bet his business must be booming."

"Yeah, he's doin' pretty good."

"Do you ever think of cutting your hair short?"

"All the time! It's always in my eyes, it's a pain in the ass."

"Do you worry that it'd affect your bands sales?"

Jon scoffed. "Not at all. We're over that now, we know people like us for our music, I don't think anyone would truly care if I cut my hair off."

"But it is so lovely."

Jon snorted. "Sure. Thanks."

"I can see that you do not like to talk about your appearance."

"Not really."

"And why is that?"

"Because people don't take you seriously when you're good looking. I don't see what all the fuss is about, I look like an ordinary guy."

"Well now you're being silly."

"It's true. If I weren't in a 'famous' band then no one would look my way. What can I do, scar my face? I've tried to distance us from the band's looks for years. I want our music to sell itself, you won't ever see an album with a picture of us all dolled up on it."

"But as an attractive man you must admit that looks don't hurt in this industry."

"No, they don't hurt," he sighed. "Though they make people question your integrity."

"But you have proved yourself with your music time and time again."

"I hope so," Jon said, his mouth twitching into a smile.

The lady turned to the camera with the microphone.

"Well, we'll be back within moments to talk more about Jon's new single. Up next is Bon Jovi, You Give Love a Bad Name. Don't go anywhere."

The screen cut to commercial break, You Give Love a Bad Name blaring through the speakers.

"Best mute that," Spankie said, turning the volume down. "Well, is that six out of six?"

"Possibly. He mentioned Bad Name briefly but I'm sure he'll talk more about it after the break."

"Yeah, most likely."

"Is it really true that he hasn't had a girlfriend since high school?"

Amelia had often wondered. She hoped Spankie would remain oblivious to her intentions.

"Not that I've known of," Spankie shrugged. "I've seen him with plenty of groupies but never the same one more than once or twice."

"That's horrible," Amelia muttered. "Does he really just use them for sex?"

"They all do. It goes both ways, many of the groupies are only there for sex. It's just the rockstar world."

"I don't think I'm really cut out for it," Amelia sighed. "Growing up I was a strict Catholic."

"Weren't we all," Spankie snorted. "So was Jon I hear and look where he's ended up. You'll get used to it."

She sighed. "Perhaps."

†††

The band continued their tour in Europe, now finding themselves in Amsterdam.

The majority of Amelia's time from then on was spent with Spankie. She rarely spoke with the others and avoided Jon at all costs. She couldn't bear to see him surrounded by groupies, whether she'd moved on or not didn't matter, it was difficult to see somebody you'd once cared for with somebody else so forwardly.

She still saw him after shows. Groupies seemed to be being integrated into their post-show rituals again and Jon didn't refrain from indulging in the odd bout of flirtation, or even a kiss. She had no right to be angry with him but she couldn't lie and say she enjoyed spectating it, especially not in times where she had to bring him drinks with a groupie in his lap. It was most humiliating.

And didn't he have any decency? Parading himself like that. If Amelia had attached herself at the hip to a half naked man and walked around in front of Jon she was sure he'd have been angry. She'd thought they had a mutual respect for what they'd been through together, she thought maybe he'd keep his sexual activities behind closed doors, not flaunt them in front of her.

Amelia wouldn't have cared if he was happy with a good and respectable woman that he cared for, but to openly replace love with lust seemed silly to her, she saw no reason he needed to participate in such acts knowing she was there.

"Thank you," Jon said as she handed him a hot chocolate after his show. The groupie in his lap was wearing only her bra and a small skirt which Amelia would bet had no panties underneath.

Amelia didn't bother to reply, merely sat herself in a chair besides Tico.

"You alright kid?" The older man asked. "Somethin' bothering you?"

"I'm alright Teek," she sighed. "Just tired is all, I didn't sleep last night."

"You sure?" He asked. She could only nod.

She watched the woman slather kisses all over Jon's cheek. Despite her ministrations Jon merely drank his drink, the poor girl was trying everything she could to get his attention and yet he ignored her. Amelia didn't find that any more respectable than doing it in front of her anyway.

She excused herself to the bathroom. When she got there she let out a great big sigh and looked at herself in the mirror. She'd known there would be remnants of feelings and jealously when touring with Jon, she hadn't expected him to almost go out of his way to make it worse.

Or perhaps he was just an ignorant and it was completely unintentional. She wondered briefly if she could find a man that she could parade around like a sex toy in front of Jon, only to promptly shake off the ridiculous notion.

He's not my boyfriend anymore. It's been three years, what he does with his body has nothing to do with me.

She scrubbed her face with some cold water hoping to rejuvenate herself a little. When leaving the restroom she overheard some commotion outside of the boy's dressing room.

"Use me however you like," she heard a female voice whisper, laced with husk and dripping with lust. Amelia hid behind a wall as soon as she saw Jon.

The man laughed awkwardly, trying to peel the woman off him while fighting the urge to outwardly grimace.

"Not tonight doll, I'm sorry," he said, surprising Amelia.

He felt guilt roil in his stomach as embarrassment and disappointment settled into the young girls expression. Jon loved women, perhaps even more than most, but he loved a strong and self-respecting woman. He wasn't interested in the ones that begged him to use them like doormats.

"But I thought -"

"I know, I'm sorry," he muttered. "I'm just.. it's not a good time, I'm sorry."

"Did I do something wrong?" She asked, and even Amelia felt her heart break for her. Poor thing was stood there in practically her underwear and being rejected.

"No," he quickly said. "No, no of course not. It's not you doll, it's me. I've been in a funk recently, I'm just not really.. y'know. I really am sorry."

She seemed as though she might well with tears.

"My friend Richie might take you up on the offer, he's real-"

"I don't want to be sloppy seconds," she snapped, though her voice was dainty and clearly upset. Jon swallowed his words.

"I'm real sorry. Can I get you anything? A drink? A taxi?"

"No thank you," she whispered. "I'll find my own way out."

Jon hesitated for a moment but didn't want to risk escalating the situation. He left her alone in the corridor.

Amelia silently cursed him. What was he thinking leaving the poor girl all alone in a place she didn't know? Clearly she was young, younger than Amelia, maybe twenty. Too young for the life of a groupie.

She approached her as soon as Jon disappeared. "Are you alright?" She asked.

The girl spun around, sure enough there were tears in her eyes. "What do you want?" She asked defensively, shivering a little in just her bra.

"I.. well I overheard you and that guy arguing, I thought maybe you wanted some comfort. Can I get you anything? Food? Water?"

"No thank you," the woman declined, turning away and trying to shield her decently exposed breasts. "I'd like to be left alone."

Amelia beheld her for a moment and shook her head. She couldn't leave her alone in a place she didn't know, especially not in those clothes.

"Here," she said, taking off the jacket the Jon had bought her and wrapping it around the woman. "Let me take you to the café and get you a warm drink."

The woman stuttered in confusion. "Why? Why would you do that for me?"

"You seem upset," Amelia frowned. "And it's always tough when things don't work out with a man."

The lady blushed.

"Coffee? Hot chocolate?" She offered again. "I have my own stories about him if you wanna bond over being angry at him."

Her eyes widened. "Alright, I guess."

Amelia didn't know what she was doing. She'd never really had the urge to help somebody like that before, but the way that Jon had taken her out of the room, turned her down and then left her alone had irked her.

Of course politely denying her advances wasn't the problem, but leaving her stranded and half naked was.

"I'm Patty by the way," she said, zipping up Amelia's jacket around her.

"I'm Amelia. C'mon, let's get out of here."

She took her to the café just outside of the stadium, and the pair suffered a rather awkward few minutes trying to order something in Dutch. Neither spoke a word of it; Patty having only recently moved with her family to accomodate her father's work.

"What were you doing there today?" Amelia asked. "I've never seen you round before, usually it's the same few groupies."

Patty spun her mug of hot chocolate around on the table. "I was the girl that he pulled up on stage last night. We spoke a little backstage, he kissed me and told me I was beautiful."

Amelia listened carefully and kept her face stoic. "And then?"

"Well he invited me backstage the next night. He promised me all of these things.. he said he'd make it the best night of my life. It was cheesy stuff, really, it felt like a fairytale, I've loved him since their first album."

Pattie stared down at her drink, blushing furiously. She wondered how she could've been so silly to believe his promises and wondered why she'd gotten her hopes up so tremendously. Saying it all aloud she realized how ridiculous it was.

"I came all dressed up. I bought these clothes last night.. I'm not that type of girl, I don't have these skimpy things lying around. I saw all these pictures of rockstar groupies and thought that would make him want me more."

In Amelia's mind, that might have been her first mistake. "And he turned you down," Amelia finished dejectedly. The girl let out a small whimper.

"God, it was so embarrassing. He wouldn't return my affections all night, I must've looked like an idiot. And then he took me out of the room and shut me down all together." Patty closed her eyes tightly, as if the wound was too painful to bear. "My parents would kill me if they knew I was here and dressed like this. It's not like me at all, I'm not a prostitute or a groupie, I don't know the first thing about sex."

Amelia's eyes widened.

"I was a virgin," Patty said quietly. "Well, I still am. He told me he'd make it special for me, that it'd be a night I remembered forever. I got myself all prepared, I shaved.. which I'd never done before. Sorry if that's too much information -"

Amelia shook her head quickly. "No, carry on."

"Well, that's just it. I got myself all dolled up and put on this ridiculous outfit and he hardly even noticed me. Even if I'd walked in there naked I think he'd hardly have looked my way. I don't understand what I did wrong."

"Nothing," Amelia assured softly. She reached for Patty's cold, pale hand across the table. "You didn't do anything wrong. Jon.. he's a funny man. He's not much of a 'rockstar' in that sense, he's very quiet."

"Really?" Patty asked.

"Yes, really. And don't be upset, you don't want to lose your virginity to him," Amelia smiled gently, letting out a miniscule laugh. "You want your first time to be with someone you love and trust. You want it to be special."

"It would've been pretty special to have lost my virginity to Jon Bon Jovi," Patty muttered. "How many women can say that?"

Amelia kept quiet. She certainly knew of one that could say that. And she knew for a fact she was the only woman that could say she took Jon Bon Jovi's virginity.

"I don't know," she sighed. "Did you tell him you were a virgin?"

"Yes," Patty said softly. "I told him this morning."

"Well that's probably part of it," Amelia told her. "I'm sure he wouldn't want you to lose your virginity to him, he'd want that moment to be real special for you with a special someone."

"You think?" She sniffled.

"I do. I've known him a long time, he's a strange man and he's hard to read, but I know he'd never mean to upset someone, especially not a beautiful girl like yourself."

She blushed again and took a sip of her hot drink.

"I've made such a fool of myself," Patty cursed. "What if somebody has a photo of me dressed like this? What if it gets out.." The girl started to panic.

"It won't," Amelia stressed, clutching her hand a little tighter. "Don't worry, it won't. No one has any photos of you."

"I hope not," she whispered. "Oh, I'm an idiot."

"You're not an idiot, men are just difficult," Amelia chuckled. "I'm sure I would've done the same at your age."

Unlikely, but Amelia hoped to make her feel better.

"At my age? You can't be much older than me."

"I'm twenty five."

"I'm nineteen," Patty said.

"Nineteen?" Amelia nearly fainted. "My god what are you doing here backstage dressed like that?"

Patty went bright red again. "That's just it, I don't know. I'm almost twenty if that helps."

No, not really. Amelia wasn't naïve enough to think there weren't plenty of girls much younger in Patty's position, but nineteen was still far too young.

"Does Jon know you're nineteen?"

"No.." she said meekly. "I told him I was twenty one. I know it was wrong of me but I figured I'm an adult.. it was legal, I didn't want to risk losing him."

Amelia beheld her for a moment. She was silly, and yet she couldn't help but pity her. "It's a good thing you two didn't sleep together. You're so young, you would've regretted throwing it away like that to a man that wasn't fully committed."

"At this point I think I'd lose it to anybody. I'm too old to be a virgin."

"Nineteen? Don't be ridiculous," Amelia laughed. "Sure, lots of girls lose their virginity in high school but an equal amount don't. You're not too old, not by a long shot."

"And what about you?" Patty asked. "If you don't mind me asking. When did you lose yours?"

"Seventeen," Amelia answered. "I lost it to a special someone whom I loved very much. It was wonderful."

"Are you still with him now?" She asked.

"No, no I'm not," Amelia replied quietly. "But it doesn't change how wonderful it was."

"That scares me. Being so open and vulnerable with someone only for it to eventually fall apart. I don't know what I'd do, I thought it'd be better to have no strings attached, that way I couldn't get hurt."

"Well, look at that, you still got hurt. The right person will come along, you're a beautiful girl, you can do far better than being a groupie, you're not suited to it."

"No," she sighed. "I'm not. I feel stupid now."

"Don't," Amelia said again. "And don't feel embarrassed about being a virgin, you'll lose it when you're ready."

Patty nodded. "What about Jon?" She asked, confusing her. "You said you knew him. How?"

"He's my boss," she muttered. "But we go back much further. Him and I have had our own trials and tribulations."

"Really?" She asked. "You knew him before he was famous."

"A little, but you mustn't tell anybody."

Patty eagerly shook her head. Amelia found herself being more open with this stranger than anybody that she already knew, even her own brother. "I won't. What happened?"

"We went to school together," Amelia explained. She knew she had to be vague, she couldn't spill the entire details of their relationship to a stranger, no matter how much she trusted the girl. "He's been a friend over the years though we've had our quarrels. He's a difficult man but he means well, he'd never have meant to upset you."

"I guess so," she sighed. Patty might have been hoping for some juicer gossip.

"Anyway, it's getting late," Amelia noted, looking at the clock. "Let's get you home."

"Oh, it's alright. I can make my own way, you've done enough for me."

"I wouldn't feel right if I didn't see you home safe. We'll get a taxi."

Amelia wouldn't hear any arguing, Patty eventually submitted. The two girls got in a taxi taking them out to the suburbs where Patty's home resided. Amelia saw her to her doorstep.

"Oh god, the lights are on," Patty panicked. Her breathing escalated. "What will they say when they see me in a bra? Oh god, my father-"

"Take my jacket," Amelia chuckled. "Don't worry yourself. Now go on."

Patty stilled. "No, I can't do that. It's too nice of a jacket. I'll just have to be quick and quiet."

Amelia shook her head. "No, take it. If it makes you feel better it was a gift from Jon to me. You can have it, a nicer memento of him."

Patty smiled at her. "I'll keep it for now, but only if you give me the address to your hotel so I can return it in the morning."

Amelia wrote it down on a slip of paper and tucked it into the girl's pocket. "Alright, but don't worry about it if you don't get a chance."

Patty hesitated before hugging Amelia. "Thank you," she said quietly. "I don't know what I did you deserve your kindness, but thank you."

Amelia shook her head. "You don't need to thank me." She gave the girl one last, tight hug. "I hope to see you around sometime."

Amelia took a step back as Patty unlocked her door. Once she knew she was safely home she climbed back into the cab.

The fare was going to be a killer.

It was almost an hour before she was back at the hotel. When she reached her room she was surprised to see three people in there, one of which was pacing around like a maniac.

"Richie?"

"Amelia!" The man shouted in a relief she had never quite heard before. "What are you doin'? Where the fuck were you, I've been worried sick."

He crushed her in a hug so tight she could hardly breathe. Looking over his shoulder she saw Jon and Spankie, both with equal shares of worry and relief in their expressions.

Richie took a step back and shook Amelia by the shoulders. "Where were you?" He demanded, his voice rising. "I looked all over for you, you weren't in the venue so I came back here."

Amelia hadn't thought of the possibility that they might be worried for her. She hadn't considered that they'd even notice her absence.

Jon seemed in bits, equally if not even more relieved than her own brother.

Maybe he thought he was to blame for her disappearance, after all she hadn't looked pleased to see her with the groupie.

"I was with a friend," she stammered to explain. "We went and got coffee, she was upset."

"You went and got coffee?" Richie dared, his voice escalating to an irregular pitch. "Without telling us? My god I thought you were hurt."

"Coffee where?" Jon asked. "We were worried sick about you, who were you with?"

Amelia scowled at him. He was in no position to lecture her or chide her, she was just about livid with him. "I was with Patty."

"Patty?" He rushed forward quickly, the absolute pinnacle of concern. "Is she alright? Where is she?"

"She's home and she's fine," Amelia fumed. "After what you did to her."

All eyes turned from Amelia to Jon. Forgotten was everybody's worry for her, now their eyes lay on Jon in confusion and uncertainty.

"What were you thinking?" Amelia scolded, ruthless in both tone and words. "Leaving her there like that, making promises that you knew you didn't intend to keep. She's just a girl! Nineteen."

"What?" Jon breathed, his face contorting in slight disgust. "I didn't know that."

"No, I know." Amelia took a deep breath and schooled herself into a calmer state. "She was a wreck after you left her, you didn't even give her any better clothes to wear! You were about to let a girl out in the cold in her bra and a short skirt, not knowing her way around."

Jon was hit with a pang of guilt and regret. She was right, he had been damn stupid, and knowing she was only nineteen intensified his immense guilt. "I didn't think," he sputtered. "Is she alright? I didn't mean-"

"No, I'm sure you didn't mean anything," Amelia snapped harshly. "But you left that poor girl stranded. A nineteen year old virgin that you'd promised the world to the night before, she'd thought she was going to lose her virginity to her idol. And you ignored her, humiliated her. If you'd known you weren't going to go through with it, and don't lie and tell me you didn't, then why didn't you turn her down to begin with? Why lead her on in front of everybody, why humiliate her? She was devastated, and who knows what could've happened had I not been there when you ditched her."

The room was in a state of very loud silence. Everybody was staring at Jon, who was crumbling beneath everyone's scrutiny.

"I thought she was twenty one," he tried. "I thought she knew her way around, I thought she was a groupie, I don't know what I thought. Is she alright? Is she still here?"

"No. But she's coming by tomorrow morning to drop off my jacket. Perhaps you can apologize to her then."

"Oh god, look Amelia I'm sorry."

"Save it," she stopped him. "I don't want to hear it. I took her for coffee and made sure she got home safely. I'm sorry that I scared you all, I didn't mean to."

The room was too stunned to speak.

Jon wanted to make a quick escape, he couldn't stand to be the center of scrutiny any longer. "Alright." As he was exiting the room he patted Amelia's shoulder gently. "Thank you for doing that, thanks for making sure she was okay."

And then he left. Amelia released a deep breath as soon as he was gone. Richie looked at his sister for a moment longer and shook his head. "Don't scare me like that again," he said, and followed after Jon.

Only Spankie was left, and Amelia was glad to find she had a smile on her face.

"You didn't half scare me," she said, hugging her newly found friend. "It was a good thing you did for that girl. The boss can be an idiot sometimes."

"Tell me about it," Amelia muttered. "I mean, god Spankie she was nineteen."

"The girl sat in his lap all afternoon?"

"Yeah.. when I think back to myself at nineteen I was just a kid."

"Well she's safe now, thanks to you." Spankie hugged her again. "We were scared to death you know, you missing in the middle of Amsterdam. Do us a favor and call us next time, please?"

Amelia smiled. "Alright, I'll try."

†††

Patty arrived early that next morning along with her sister. Both Amelia and Jon soon came down to reception to greet them, Amelia and Patty sharing a friendly hug.

"Are you okay? It's good to see you, you look much better," Amelia complimented. A rosy color had returned to the woman's face, she no longer looked quite so pale, the absence of running mascara also helped.

"Yes, I feel much better. Here's your jacket, it's lovely and warm."

Amelia slipped it back onto herself and smiled. Jon stepped forward and immediately Patty's demeanor changed.

"You alright Pat? I'm real sorry 'bout yesterday, I wasn't thinkin' straight. I got real worried about you after you disappeared."

"Well your friend here helped me," she told him shyly. "She took me for a drink and made sure I got home safe."

"I know," Jon smiled solemnly. "And then she came back n' gave me a real talkin' to for leavin' you like that. I was a complete moron."

Patty smiled a little. It was clear to both Amelia and Jon that she was still awestruck, even if she'd spent the previous day sitting half naked in his lap. In Amelia's mind it would've been absolutely terrible if the pair had slept together, she was clearly head over heels in love with him and he was just a rockstar.

"It's okay, in the end I'm kind of glad we didn't go through with it," Patty admitted timidly. Jon chuckled, squeezing her shoulder gently and leaning in for a friendly kiss on the cheek.

"Me too," he said. "You're far too young and beautiful for a nasty guy like me."

Both Patty and her sister blushed again. Clearly they were each infatuated.

"Anyhow, thanks for comin' over with the jacket. Here, I'll uh.." he fished around in his pocket and pulled out a generous wad of cash. "Money for your taxi fare."

"Oh, no. My sister drove us," Patty began to object.

"For fuel then," the man grinned, the epitome of undiluted charm.

"Well, thank you.."

Before leaving, Patty's sister started to take off her backpack. "I'm sorry.. I know it's improper but would you mind signing our tape? We love your albums.. you're our favorite band."

"Course not!" Jon chuckled. "You got a pen?"

The woman dug out a pen from her side pocket and handed it over.

"What's your name, doll?" He asked, uncapping the pen with his mouth.

"Imogen."

To Patty & Imogen,

The two loveliest ladies I ever did meet
All my love and sincerest apologies,

Jonny xx

The girls excitedly put it back into their backpack and thanked him. He gave each of them another friendly kiss to the cheek and saw them back off to their car, feeling much better having remedied the situation.

Well, half of the situation. He still had Amelia to deal with.

She was still glaring at him when he turned around. So much for her sleeping it off.

"I'm sorry Amelia," he began in the elevator. "There's nothin' more I can say. I was an idiot but thankfully nothing happened."

"Didn't you see how young she was?" Amelia snapped. "Look at them, her and her sister. They're practically kids! Don't your security around here check ID's?"

"Well she was an adult," Jon argued. "But no, I didn't know how old she was, she told me she was twenty one though I had my suspicions. Just another reason I didn't go through with it."

"So you left her stranded while having a suspicion that she was younger than she made herself out to be?"

"God, Amelia. How many times can I say I'm sorry? We're goin' round in circles. Look, she seemed fine, no? We all do stupid things, she told me she'd make her own way home and thinkin' she was twenty one I didn't bother to argue."

Amelia shook her head angrily, though didn't bother to argue verbally.

"Here," he tried to hand her a handful of cash. "For the taxi fare last night."

"I don't want your money," she muttered, shoving it back into his chest and storming off to her room. "I don't want anything from you."

He was left standing helplessly in the hotel hallway, no fight left in him.

---

This chapter kind of wrote itself, all in one day lol. I had absolutely 0 plan and it all came out of nowhere. But if you've read Edge of a Broken Heart you know I love a bit of drama 😏 can't resist.

Let me know if you enjoyed it :)