Chapter 6
The next week flew by. The tour stopped in major cities as they made their way north through Oregon and Washington, and then east through Idaho, Utah and Colorado. Carli and Christine had stayed on for a few extra days but had flown out of Denver to go back to L.A. (“the parents are gone” is how Hope had termed their departure with a wink to Kelley). By now, Kelley had gotten the hang of managing the tour, and to her surprise, Christine was pretty much right when she said that things would become routine and the tour would kind of run itself. Mornings were spent setting up the day and confirming all of the details for shows and events for the days immediately following. Afternoons were spent with Hope, doing promo events like interviews and live appearances. Nights were spent putting on the show. If there were no events on a particular day, or no show, or even if they had a few free hours, Hope and Kelley would often go out together and grab a cup of coffee or a meal, with Hope dressing up incognito, or they would bring whatever they got back to the hotel room. Sometimes they talked about business. Sometimes Hope would entertain Kelley with tales of rock star life. Other times they would talk about their families, friends, and everything and anything else.
********
“What’s up, superstar?” Erin said as she came onto the screen.
“Hey big sis”, Kelley said as she reclined on the couch in her hotel room. This was the first time she had Skyped with Erin since the start of the tour.
“Nice to hear from you. How’s everything going out there on tour?”
“Good. Super busy, but good.”
“Your first big tour. That’s so cool! I’m so proud of you.” At that, Kelley beamed, and Erin smiled back. “So…what’s it like being around Hope Solo all day? Is she a total diva? Or is she cool?”
“Um, she’s actually really cool”, Kelley said. “I mean, she has to have her coffee, and she needs an hour or two of alone time at least some time during the day, but other than that, she’s pretty level headed. I mean, she likes soccer, well, we both like soccer, and she dresses down sometimes, like when she goes out in public, when she doesn’t want to be recognized. Like, we went out one day to get clam chowder, just me and her, and she just wanted to be like a normal person, like, someone who would go out with someone else just to get clam chowder, and, she’s really cool, and when it comes down to it she really is just like a normal person, and it was really nice, like just us two girls going to get clam chowder, and-“
Erin stared back over the screen, a small smirk forming on her face.
“What?” Kelley said.
“You’re rambling, Kel.”
“What? No I’m not.”
“You have a crush on Hope, don’t you?”
“What? No, that’s ridiculous, E. I mean, I work with her, well, for her, and I, we’ve, been getting to know each other over the past few weeks, and, well, you asked about her, so I’m just telling you.”
“You just rambled again.”
“Whatever.”
“You did. You ramble when you’re like obsessed or nervous, or something”, Erin said. “You always have. Otherwise you’re usually composed, and you speak in proper English, like the smart nerd that you are.”
“Whatever”, Kelley said again. “I don’t have a crush on Hope. And even if I did, I mean, who doesn’t? She’s a rock star. Like, she’s got this like, magnetic personality and aura that just draws you in. You’ve never met a rock star, so you wouldn’t know, but um, they do, have that magnetic personality, and maybe that’s what I’m feeling…”
“I thought you just said she was like a normal person.”
“Well, she is just like a normal person, but she’s also a rock star with a magnetic personality.”
“So…which one do you have a crush on?”
“What?”
“Which one are you obsessed with? The rock star or the normal person?” Erin teased.
“I’m not obsessed with either. God, Erin…”
“Kelley…”
At that moment Kelley’s phone rang. “Whatever. I gotta go. Back to business.”
“Alrighty, lil’ sis. Have fun with your new…”normal” rock star girlfriend.
“Ugh. Leave me alone”, Kelley complained playfully.
“Bye Kel. Skype again soon. And get me an autograph”, Erin said with a grin.
“Bye E. Maybe”, Kelley said. Then she grinned back, signed off, and went back to work.
********
A few days after Carli and Christine had left, the tour pulled into Minneapolis. The show wasn’t until tomorrow, so Hope had a night off. Kelley was in her hotel room when she heard a knock on her door. She opened it and there was Hope, standing there, looking incognito.
“Hey Hope”, Kelley said as she answered the door.
“Hey manager”, Hope said. She smiled, and Kelley felt her pulse quicken. By now she was used to being around Hope, but she always felt something, like her pulse start to race or her heart flutter a bit, whenever Hope smiled or winked at her, or when she caught a whiff of Hope’s perfume. “You want to go get some ice cream?”
“Um, well, that sounds good, but I have some work to take ca-“
“Kelley - it can wait”, Hope said lightly. “Remember? You have to eat.”
“Well, I already had dinner, and, I mean, I do love ice cream, but it’s not necessarily a cornerstone food group-“
“Yes it is”, Hope said and stared at Kelley with her captivating eyes. Kelley felt her knees go weak, and then Hope smiled and said, “C’mon. I want to get ice cream. I know the most awesome place here in town.” When Kelley didn’t say anything Hope said, “C’mon – let’s go out. It’ll be fun” Hope looked to the left and then to the right in exaggerated fashion. “Besides, the parents are gone. Don’t be such a lame-o.”
Kelley stared at Hope for a second and then smiled and said, “Parents…wait, aren’t you of that generation, too?”
“Whatever, junior”, Hope said playfully. “It’s not past your bedtime yet, is it?”
“Noooo”, Kelley, drawing out the word and scrunching up her face in mock offense.
“Then let’s go”, Hope said with a smile.
Kelley sighed in mock defeat, laughed lightly and then said, “Okay, I’m in.”
********
Kelley called for a car and they rode to a small ice cream shop near downtown west. This time, Hope stayed in the car as Kelley got their ice cream, and then the car drove for a few blocks and dropped them off near the river.
“Mmmmm…this is amazing”, Kelley said, as they walked along the riverfront.
“I know, right?” Hope said. “It’s all handmade. They make their ice cream fresh every day. I’ve had lots of ice cream, and this is the best.”
“How did you find this place?”
“I played here years ago with a band who was from here. They showed it to me after our show. I love ice cream, and I fell in love with this place.”
“Do you come here a lot? I mean, I guess like, whenever you come into town to play?”
“I do, but unfortunately I don’t usually go into the shop anymore. It’s too bad, because the owner is really nice”, Hope said. There was a bit of melancholy in her voice. “In fact, I haven’t been in the shop since the second time I played here. The first time, I was still coming up, and no one recognized me. But the second time, it was crowded, and someone recognized me, and in an instant I was getting hounded for autographs and pictures. I was with Carli, and we grabbed our ice cream and ran for the car.”
‘Wow, that must have been…something”, Kelley said.
“Yeah. I mean, it’s weird. On the one hand, I like being stopped for autographs and pictures, in the sense that it means people like my music and support me, but, you know, there are times when it would be nice to be able to go somewhere and not be recognized.”
“I can see that”, Kelley said. “It must be hard to always have to dress incognito whenever you want to go out, like, not for an event or something.”
“It is”, Hope said. “I mean, like I said, it’s great that people support me, and I’ve gotten to do what I love for a living, which is play music, but it would be nice to be able to go out sometimes and be left alone. But, you know, it’s not really even the fans. I love the fact that they support me, even if I don’t necessarily enjoy being stopped for autographs and pictures all the time. It’s the media scrutiny. It’s like they’re always watching you. You always have to be ‘on’.”
Kelley was quiet for a moment and they asked, “Is there anywhere for you where you can go out and not be recognized?”
“Hawaii”, Hope said. “I go there on vacation sometimes. I have a little bungalow right on the beach on the east side of Kauai. I can go there and just relax and not be recognized, and I can walk around the town there, and even if people recognize me they treat me like I’m just a normal person.” Hope smiled and said, “It’s nice.”
“Yeah, I can imagine.”
“Kind of like right now”, Hope said.
“Huh?”
“Well, here we are, hanging out, and you’re treating me like a normal person.” Hope smiled at Kelley, and Kelley felt her pulse quicken. “I mean, you know who I am, and yet here we are – just two girls walking down the riverfront, eating ice cream. It’s nice.”
Kelley smiled back at Hope. She tried to think of something to say, but all she could come up with was, “Yeah, this is really nice.” They walked in silence for a bit, and Kelley stole a sideways glance at Hope. Was something happening, she wondered? Something maybe between us? Or was Hope just being friendly? Or maybe Hope is just kind of flirty. Rock stars often are, Kelley thought. They walked for a bit longer in silence as they finished their ice cream. Kelley took Hope’s empty cup and veered off the path for a moment to drop it into a trash can.
“So, how long have you known Carli?” Kelley asked, as she rejoined up with Hope.
“Like ten years”, Hope answered. “I met her when I was performing at an open mic in L.A. I had been a struggling musician for a couple years, and I guess she saw something in me. She was working at Capitol Records at the time, and she introduced me to the head of the label the week after we met, and that’s pretty much how I made it.
“Wow”, Kelley said. Hope was a real rags-to-riches story. “Well, she seems like a great person.”
“She is. I mean, she worries about me a lot, maybe sometimes too much, but it’s just ‘cause she cares. Plus, I pretty much owe her my career”, Hope said. She paused for a moment and then said, “And she’s a great friend.”
“That’s really cool”, Kelley said. “And how about your band mates? Are you good friends with all of them too?”
“Actually, not as much as you would think”, Hope said. “I mean, we’re all friends, but we’re musicians first. It’s a common misconception among the general public that band mates are all best friends”, Hope explained. “I guess if you start a band with your best friends and then you make it together, then you may be more likely to have best friends in the band you play in, provided that you all stay friends. But I met everyone in my band after I had already gotten signed, so it’s different. It’s more like being co-workers. Well, technically I’m their boss, but you know what I mean. It’s like having co-workers or employees that I like personally, but they’re co-workers nonetheless. You’ve probably noticed that we all don’t really hang out together that much.
It was true, Kelley thought. Outside of huddling up right before they hit the stage and then hanging out for an hour or so after a performance, the band members pretty much did their own thing. Out of everyone in the band Ashlyn and Ali seemed the closest, but Megan and Sydney were usually off on their own, or with their own friends.
“I mean, if you haven’t noticed, I spend most of my time with you”, Hope said, then smiled and bumped her shoulder lightly against Kelley’s. Kelley blushed a bit, then looked up at Hope and gave her a slight smile back.
“But, I do like all the girls”, Hope said. “Especially Megan. She cracks me up, with her rock n’ roll antics and all.”
Kelley laughed. “I know, right? Like how, after every show, she always grabs a bottle of whiskey in one hand and a groupie in the other and then heads for her dressing room?" Hope laughed lightly at the thought, and Kelley said, "Yeah she is a riot. And Sydney, too. She seems to like to party.”
“Yeah, Syd likes to party. And drink. Especially champagne. She has a thing for champagne. Not just for special occasions, either, but like, for all occasions”, Hope said, and Kelley laughed, thinking about all of the times and photos in which she’d seen Sydney straight up chugging bottles of champagne.
“She needs champagne like you need coffee, huh?”
Hope laughed. “Maybe more.”
“And what about Ashley and Ali?”
Hope smirked. “I think they’re seeing each other or something. They try to hide it, but when you’re around two people as often as I’m around them, you kind of pick up when something’s going on.”
“Yeah, I guess so”, Kelley said.
They walked in silence for a minute and then Hope asked, “So, Kelley – are you with anyone?”
The question caught Kelley by surprise and she stopped walking. She looked at Hope for a moment, unsure of what to say. Hope looked back at her and then laughed lightly. “With anyone? You know – dating anyone? Seeing anyone?”
“Um…”
“Sorry – didn’t mean to get too personal”, Hope said.
“No, no, no – it’s fine”, Kelley said, as they continued walking. “I guess, I just didn’t expect, uh, someone-“
Hope seemed to read her thoughts. “Someone like me, a Top 10 rock star to ask you something like that?”
“Yeah, something like that”, Kelley said and laughed a bit nervously.
“Kelley, we’ve been hanging out every day for like the past two weeks almost. Haven’t you figured it out by now? I’m just a normal girl, and that’s a totally normal question”, Hope said and smiled.
Kelley smiled back, and as she did, Hope put her arm around Kelley. Kelley couldn’t believe it. Hope Solo - the Hope Solo – had just put her arm around her. Kelley kept walking, still trying to process that, and then came back to the present when Hope asked, “So…? Are you seeing anyone? Or are you single?”
“No, I’m single”, Kelley said. “I mean, I’ve been on some dates here and there, but, well, nothing has ever developed into anything.”
“And why do you think that is?”
“I don’t know. I guess it’s maybe just because I’m so busy. I mean, Abby always told me that you have to put everything else aside and be one hundred percent focused on your career if you want to make it in the music business.”
“Well, it is a tough business”, Hope agreed, “but still – we shouldn’t always be living just to work.”
Kelley contemplated that in silence for a moment and then said, “Yeah, I guess so”. She was silent for another moment and then said, “So…“
“So…what?”
Kelley laughed lightly. “Well, I was going to ask what about you? But, well, I know from your Wikipedia page”, Kelley said and slightly tucked into Hope’s side, “that you’re currently single.”
Hope laughed lightly as well. “Ah, yes…Wikipedia tells all. Actually, I do try to keep my personal life as private as I can. But yes, Wikipedia is correct on that. I am currently single.”
“And why haven’t you found anyone?” Kelley asked, looking at Hope. I mean, there can’t be a lack of suitors, right?”
Hope laughed again. “True, but it’s not about how many people you have after you. I mean, the truth is that it’s hard to maintain a relationship when you’re on the road as much as I am. Two people have to spend time together to make a relationship work. That’s hard to do with anyone when you’re always out on tour.”
“I can see that”, Kelley said. “But I mean…what if that person was on the road with you?” Hope looked at Kelley and raised her eyebrow, and Kelley felt her face flush. “I mean, I’m just saying in general, like, not anyone in particular, you know…”
“You’re so cute when you’re flustered”, Hope said, then smiled at Kelley to put her at ease. Kelley smiled slightly, and then Hope followed up with, “Yeah, I guess that could work. I mean, I guess it really all comes down to finding the right person.”
Kelley was silent for a moment and then said, “Avril Lavigne wasn’t the right person, huh?” Hope looked at Kelley and Kelley said, “I mean, you were with Avril for a while, right?”
“You definitely read my Wikipedia page”, Hope said and laughed. “Yes, Avril and I were together for almost a year.” Hope was silent for a moment and then said, “It was a long time ago. We were both pretty young, in our early twenties.”
“Back in the Stone Age?”
“Shush, junior”, Hope said and shot Kelley a playful sideways glare. “Wait, do we need to get back?”
“Huh?” Kelley said, and checked her phone. There were a bunch of missed calls and texts, and emails to return, but Hope had said that everything could wait, so for the last two hours Kelley had held to that. “No. I mean, I have to return some phone calls and texts and emails, but I thought you said everything could wait.”
“No, I mean, isn’t it past your bedtime? Junior?” Hope said and smirked.
Kelley stared at her playfully and then said, “Whatever, ass”, and elbowed Hope playfully in the side. Hope laughed and pulled her body away but kept her arm around Kelley, and as Hope and Kelley came back together, Kelley found her arm going around Hope’s waist. The two of them laughed together for a moment and then kept walking.
“So, why didn’t it work out with you and Avril?”
Hope thought for a moment and then said, “I think it was a number of things, but part of it was maybe because we just didn’t see each other enough. I mean, she’s a great girl, and we’re friends now, and of course the media was all over our relationship, like it was the greatest thing since sliced bread-”
“Yeah, I remember reading all about it”, Kelley said. “You guys were like the hot ‘it’ couple for a while there.”
“Yeah, I guess so”, Hope said. “And I think Avril also thought it was cool, to have two rock chicks together. But, really, when it came down to it, she just wasn’t the right person for me.”
“Yeah”, Kelley said, absently. “And…anyone since?”
“No. I mean, like you, I’ve been on a bunch of dates, but nothing’s ever really happened.” Hope looked at Kelley and then said, “And just to let you know, I’m not really someone who looks for hookups.” Kelley looked back at Hope, and Hope said, “I know – how un-rock n’ roll, huh?” Hope said and laughed lightly.
“No, that’s…a good thing. I don’t either”, Kelley said. She looked at Hope and smiled slightly, and Hope smiled slightly back. They continued to walk along the riverfront, Hope’s arm around Kelley’s shoulder, Kelley’s arm around Hope’s waist. They walked for a few minutes in silence and then stopped at an alcove where the riverfront walk jutted out over the river. The lights of Minneapolis at night danced on the water. The stars were out, and the moon shone bright in the sky.
“This is so nice down here”, Hope said. “I love how the lights play off the water.”
“Yeah, they look great.” Kelley said out loud, but in her mind she was trying to process what was happening. Here she was, Hope Solo had her arm around her, and she had her arm around Hope. Was this really happening? Two weeks ago I was a junior manager. Now I’m managing one of the biggest rock stars in the world, and if that wasn’t enough, tonight, it was almost like…kind of felt like…sort of like…a date. Kelley’s mind ran a million miles a minute as she tried to sort out what was happening and what she was feeling, but it came back to two thoughts. The first: she was pretty sure she had a crush on Hope Solo. But then again, who didn’t? I’m sure I’m not the only one, Kelley thought. Me and millions of other people around the world. But, I am the only one whose arm is currently wrapped around Hope, and whose arm is currently wrapped around me.
The second thought? Abby, talking to her from her hospital bed:
Don’t get involved with Hope.