Tristan splashed more cold water on his face and briefly considered filling the sink so he could submerge his entire head before he realized that, exclusive or not, it was still technically a public bathroom and therefore there were no guarantees on its cleanliness. He took a long, hard look at his reflection, scrutinizing the smeared black around his eyes before leaning back against the far wall of the small room.

He’d spent most of his waking hours between Thursday night’s art show and tonight’s performance in a daze. It was difficult enough as it was getting back to work after a vacation, and on top of that, he now found himself unable to get Emily Laine out of his head. He knew he was being intensely silly about the whole thing- after all, they’d spent, at best, a grand total of twenty minutes talking -but knowing something and being able to do something about it were all too often mutually exclusive when matters of the heart were concerned. The fact that she’d been here, tonight, had chipped away just a little more of his rationality.

He took a deep breath and pushed himself away from the wall, hoping he was ready to deal with whatever Andrew Stone had planned for the band this time. He’d been a bit wary when Stone told them he wanted the group to stay late after the show to discuss upcoming events, but when James and Markus had readily agreed, he saw no point in trying to avoid it. Now he could only hope the meeting would be as short as promised.

He froze as soon as he saw Mary standing next to James, so completely caught off guard that it didn’t even register right away that Emily was standing next to her. Markus came over, a look of concern on his face, his voice dropped to a low whisper.

Markus: “Hey, are you OK? You look even paler than usual.”
Tristan: “I’m feeling a bit surreal these days.”
Markus: “Anything you want to talk about?”
Tristan: “No, not really. It’s nothing that I can really get into right at this second.”
Markus: “I gotcha.”

Markus gave him a knowing smile and led him over to where James and Andy were talking with the girls.

Andy: “Now that we’re all here, we can get down to work so we can get it over with and go home. I’m fairly sure you all met one another the other night, but just in case, I’d like to give formal introductions. Emily, Mary, this is James Selwyn, Markus Green, and Tristan Payne. They’re the geniuses behind This Velvet Oblivion. Boys, this is Emily Laine and Mary McMally. You all saw Mary’s artwork at the show, and I’m hoping we’ll eventually get to work out a joint project between her and the band. As for Emily, she’s actually why I wanted you all to meet up here tonight.”

Tristan felt a jolt of surprise, which was mirrored on everyone’s face.

Andy: “I spoke with the editor of The Sanity Assassin this week. He wants to feature you boys on the cover of next month's issue. Emily, I want you to do the photographs.”
Emily: “You got me a magazine cover as my first project?”
Andy: “I think your style is perfectly suited for both the magazine and the band.”
Emily: “I don’t know what to say!”
Mary: “Duh, you say ‘yes.’ Are you crazy?”
Emily: “Just a bit shocked, actually.”

Markus: “The Sanity Assassin’s huge! I can’t believe you were able to get us the cover!”
Andy: “I didn’t have to do much of anything, actually. It was Ron Adessi who contacted me after your show two weeks ago.”
James: “That’s bloody fantastic! When will the shoot be?”
Andy: “That’s up to Emily to arrange.”

There was a pause as everyone turned their attention on Emily, who looked to be in a near-panic.

Emily: “I haven’t really had a chance to even look at the studio yet. When do you need the photographs by?”
Andy: “Mr. Adessi would like to have them by next Monday at the latest. Your studio is set up and more or less ready to go.”
Emily: “I’d need at least a few days to do any editing, so I’d like to get the pictures taken as soon as possible. Would Monday morning be OK?”
Markus: “I’ve got to work a late shift on Sunday, so the later the better for me.”
James: “Later is better for me as well.”
Andy: “Does seven o’clock work for everyone?”

Tristan nodded, less worried about scheduling conflicts and more focused whether or not he’d have a chance to talk to Emily at all.

Andy: “Wonderful. You can all meet up at the studio at seven o’clock Monday evening. Emily, I’ll have some back issues of the magazine waiting for you there by tomorrow afternoon at the latest, just so you have some idea of what the magazine is all about. I’ll also make sure to include the boys’ two CDs.”
Emily: “That’ll be a huge help, thank you.”
Andy: “I think that just about covers it, then. I can’t wait to see what you come up with; I’m sure it’s going to be phenomenal.”

Markus: "I'd love to stay and hang out longer, but I've got to get home; I promised Serge I wouldn't be out all night. Mary, it was great to actually get to meet you. I thought your art was, er, very interesting.”
Mary: “Thanks. The real art is in the titles.”
Markus: “In that case, ‘Hooked Grace of the Luscious Mind’ was my favorite piece.”
Mary: “You have fantastic taste.”
Markus: “Thank you. See you guys later!”

Mary: “We should probably head off, too. It’s been a blast, but I’m falling asleep on my feet.”
James: “I’m glad you two could make it out for the show tonight.”
Emily: “You guys were really great; it wasn’t what I was expecting at all. I mean, not that I thought you’d be terrible or anything like that.”
James: “I’m relieved to hear we didn’t completely suck, kitten.”

James winked, grinning from ear to ear. Tristan was beginning to feel as though the night was slipping away all too quickly, and wished for the first time in as long as he could remember that he had just a small fraction of his friend’s ease of charm.

Before he knew it, Emily and Mary had said their goodbyes and had followed Andrew back downstairs, leaving him feeling slightly dazed.