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“Dehydrated,” he lied, not knowing what Carol was referring to.

“That thing with Tris? You and Tris? Can you handle it?”

Leaf nodded.

Do I have any other choice?

Once I’ve sorted things out with Diego, everything will be fine.

6

–––––

Confidence

José stepped onto the street and lit a cigarette. By now, it had gotten dark. His limbs still felt stiff; the drive back to L.A. had taken longer than hoped. But since it was unclear if Tristan would be out today, and when, he decided to take the car instead, even though the label would have been willing to pay for a flight.

He took a drag of the cigarette, walked a few steps, and exhaled the smoke. This moment was worth savoring. After what felt like a hundred failed attempts to quit smoking, he had finally found a promising strategy. He had reduced his consumption to one cigarette a day—a significant achievement, considering he used to smoke a pack daily. Discipline was key. So was exercise. Without his rigorous training, he wouldn’t have made it this far. Now, he used these moments to mentally prepare for the very last cigarette.

“What the hell is going on here?” Andrej shouted behind him.

The door to the Redwood closed, and the blond bassist threw his hands up in frustration.

“What do you mean?”

“What do I mean?” Andrej repeated, agitated. “Are you kidding me? Leaf is completely out of it! He’s not getting anything right. Shouldn’t he be jumping for joy? Tristan’s back, after all.”

“Hm …” José only murmured, taking another drag of his cigarette and blew out the smoke.

Andrej rolled his eyes and walked a few paces away. Unlike the rest of the band, he led an almost exemplary lifestyle when it came to health. Drugs were taboo for him. He went to the gym at least three times a week and spent every free minute on a surfboard. But as a Latino, José drew the line at abstaining from gluten out of conviction rather than for health reasons. Andrej took his commitment to a healthy lifestyle, which was often celebrated in Los Angeles, a bit too seriously.

“He’ll handle it,” José replied. “He’s always had issues with drugs …”

“You’re not defending him, are you?” Andrej raised his eyebrows incredulously and pointed to the door. “He was a wreck when I picked him up. Does he even realize what’s ahead of us?”

“I’m sure he’ll find his way back on track. Don’t worry.”

“How can you sugarcoat this?”

“I’m not sugarcoating anything,” José replied soothingly. He glared at the cigarette in his hand and growled. “My only cigarette today, and you’re about to ruin it for me.”

“Really?” Andrej sighed in exasperation.

“So far, he hasn’t done anything to cause concern …”

Andrej shook his head in disbelief. “He won’t last like this for long.”

“He’s never been the type to give interviews.” José suddenly paused and narrowed his eyes at Andrej. “Oh … Now I see where you’re coming from. You’re just mad because he forced you to take care of him.”

With a contemptuous snort, Andrej turned away from him. “And your optimism is getting on my nerves.”

José appreciated the brief silence, relishing a drag from his cigarette as he wiped the sweat from his forehead. He looked forward to a shower. Despite having an air-conditioned car, it was well overdue.

“And what about Tris?” Andrej finally asked. “Is he going to make it? Because honestly, the timing was incredibly bad.”

José extinguished the cigarette in the ashtray and blinked his eyes in surprise. “The timing? Andrej! He lost control because he didn’t know what else to do. What’s wrong with you?”

Andrej scowled. “What’s wrong with you? I’m sorry if all I can think about right now is that we’ve lost a lot of precious time. We should have been in the rehearsal room the last three weeks, preparing for the upcoming tour, and doing a lot of promotion. We shouldn’t waste any more time. And it’s annoying to watch them let themselves go.”