Mona and I had spoken to each other every night until she’d left for Geneva. Since, we’d texted a lot, but talking over the phone had been spotty, now down to a weekly thing mostly because of the time difference and our schedules. But that was okay. We were making it work and we were set to see each other in less than two days. I planned to leave LAX via a chartered plane directly after the concert.
The promise of uninterrupted time with Mona, in New York, for twenty-four hours felt like a luxury life raft in this pitching sea of adrenaline highs and lows. The concerts were an intense high. Which made after the concerts—with no Mona—a huge source of frustration for no one but me.
“I’ll show you where to get it,” Ruthie said behind me, probably speaking to Charlie. “We’ll be back with new non-creepy tea. And save your voice. Don’t talk to anyone while we’re gone.”
Glancing over my shoulder to watch my bandmates leave, I navigated to Mona’s number as soon as I estimated they were out of earshot. I dialed.
Two rings later, she picked up. “Hey. You’re free? How are you? How long can you talk? Did I interrupt?”
I closed my eyes, smiling to myself. She did this. Every time we spoke, she answered with a hey, and then a barrage of questions. I loved it.
“I’m free. I’m better now. I can’t talk long. You didn’t interrupt me. But, Mona—”
“Abram. Your voice sounds bad, and you sound stuffy.” She said this around a yawn. “Are you sure you’re okay? Are you sick?”
“No.” I cleared my throat, trying to deepen and firm it. “I’m not sick, I just need to rest my voice. What’s going on with you? You sound tired.”
“Should we be talking if you need to rest your voice? We can text instead. Have you seen a doctor? What does Melena say? Are you drinking your tea?”
“Stop. Listen to me. I want to ask you something. Actually, two things.”
“Oh. Okay.”
I could almost see her face. Her eyes were probably wide, a wrinkle between her eyebrows. Maybe she was biting her lip.
Her lips.
“First, have you been sleeping?”
She replied, “Yes.”
That’s right. I needed to ask specific questions. “Let’s try this a different way. When was the last time you slept?”
“Uhhh, yesterday. I think. Wait. What day is it?”
She needed to take better care of herself. “Here it’s Friday midmorning.”
“So that makes it—”