Stay - Book two in The Stormforce series

Chapter 4

Chapter 4

The sound of the phone ringing rudely interrupted Gabe's dream about Abby. He leaned over and acknowledged the wakeup call, then pulled the duvet over his head. He tensed when he realised he wasn't alone in the bed and someone was spooned up against his back. At first he thought his dream had become reality and Abby had snuck in beside him. Then he heard the gentle snoring, and the previous nights drinking binge with Pod came back to him in a flash. 

"What the fuck?" He yelled as he leapt out of bed. 

Pod's eyes shot open and he looked at Gabe in confusion. Then the dream he was having about Helen flashed through his head, and he remembered the part where he was snuggled up to her back as they drifted off to sleep. When he realised that a certain part of his anatomy had woken up way before him, the colour rose in his cheeks. 

"Ah shit Gabe." 

"I don't want to hear another word, I'm going to take a shower." Gabe growled as he turned and headed for the bathroom. 

Pod ran his hands over his face and chuckled. "Well at least there were no cameras this time, but it would have made an interesting headline."

Gabe met Pod, Gaz and Phil for breakfast later, he could tell by the smirks and winks that Pod had told them what had happened. 

He sat down and glared at them. "Not one word." 

Gaz and Phil tried hard to hold it together, but their sniggers soon turned to a loud burst of uncontrollable laughter. 

Pod smirked at Gabe, who gave an exasperated sigh then grinned back. 

"Yeah ok, I suppose it was funny. But it stays between the four of us ok?" 

"It's not something I'm going to be boasting about, so your secrets safe Gabe." Pod winked at him. 

"Yeah, well on to more important matters. I had an epiphany in the shower." 

"Eeeeuw mate, you should use the toilet for that." Pod joked. 

Gaz and Phil cracked up again. 

"Oh for fuck's sake, I had an idea to help me get Abby back." He groaned. 

"Well why didn't you say that in the first place mate?" Pod chuckled. 

"I don't know why I bother." Gabe muttered as he put his head in his hands. 

Pod gave Gaz and Phil a look that signaled they should calm down, so after a few more sniggers and coughs they settled down to listen. 

"So, what's this idea then?" Pod nudged Gabe. 

"We need to change the cover we're doing for the MTV gig tonight." 

"What? Come on man, we haven't practiced anything else, why change it now?" 

"I need to send a message to Abby and I have just the song to do it with. Don't worry it's one that you already know, so it shouldn't be a problem." 

"Well what is it then?" Gaz asked. 

"Let's get over to the rehearsal studios and I'll tell you." Gabe stood up as he spoke and the rest of the guys followed him out of the Hotel.

Abby and Helen spent the rest of the day relaxing and exploring Gabe's mansion. Helen ooh'd and aaah'd her way through the many rooms that Abby showed her. They ended up spending a couple of hours in the pool before it was time to freshen up and watch the band on the TV. 

As they settled down on the huge sofa in the lounge with a glass of wine each, Helen sighed. 

"Talk about the lives of the rich and famous, I still can't believe I'm living it. Well at least for a while anyway." 

"If you manage to tame Pod it could be yours for good." Abby joked. 

"Ha! I'll give it my best shot." She laughed as she took another sip of her drink. 

Abby reached for the remote and switch on the TV. 

"Let's see how our guys are doing shall we?" 

The huge screen came to life just as the presenter was introducing the band, the camera panned across to them. Gabe, Pod and Phil were sat on stools holding acoustic guitars, Gaz was sat behind them at his drum kit. 

"We have a special treat for all you Stormforce fans tonight, as the guys have agreed to perform several of their tracks acoustically for our unplugged section of the programme." The American presenter drawled. 

"So Gabe, we always ask bands to perform one cover at the end of the set, and I gather you decided to change the track that you initially chose. Care to tell us what track you're going to play?" 

"I'd prefer to keep it as a surprise." Gabe replied as he strummed his guitar. 

"Oh ok, well I'll let you get on with it then. So folks let's sit back and enjoy Stormforce unplugged." 

The studio audience applauded as the band started to play. 

Abby and Helen sat in silence as they watched the band perform. Abby studied Gabe's face, looking for signs of how he was really feeling. His voice was a rich and strong as ever, but his eyes told a different story. They weren't the vibrant emerald green that she had become so familiar with. It wasn't something anyone else would notice, but to her he seemed lost as if he was just going through the motions. 

She hadn't realised how lost she had been in her own thoughts, until the music stopped and Gabe started to introduce the final song. She sat forward as he began to speak. 

"I decided to change the cover we are about to perform, because I needed to send a message to someone special in my life. She knows who she is." 

He looked straight at the camera, as he and Pod started to play the first few notes of the song. 

Abby didn't immediately recognise it, although it sounded familiar. But her hand flew to her chest and she gasped as Gabe started to sing.

If the sun refused to shine 

I would still be loving you 

When mountains crumble to the sea 

There would still be you and me

A single tear rolled down Abby's cheek as she recognised Led Zeppelin's song, Thank You. 

If she had any doubts about how Gabe felt, they had been swept away by those lyrics. 

His gaze never faltered as he sung the rest of the song. It was if he was sitting right in front of her, staring into her eyes, as he poured out his heart and soul, only for her.

When the last chords faded away, he bowed his head and the audience went wild. 

Pod looked over at Gabe and could see he was emotionally drained. He waved to the crowd and put his arm round Gabe's shoulder as they walked off stage. 

"I think she got the message mate." He said in his ear as they made their way out of the studio. 

Gabe rubbed his hands over his face and sighed. "I hope so." 

Helen sat quietly while Abby struggled to pull herself together. She wiped the tears away with the back of her hand and took a shaky breath. 

She stood up, and took a few more deep breaths before she could speak. 

"I need to call him." 

Helen just nodded her head as Abby turned and ran out of the room.

Gabe's phone started to ring as he was walking into his hotel room. He felt so emotionally drained that he almost ignored it. But something made him snatch it out of his pocket, and his heart soared as he read Abby's name on the caller ID. 

"Hey." He said quietly. 

"Hey you." Abby replied in a breathy voice.