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Chapter 7: Russia

Hello everyone!! This week has been CRAZY emotionally speaking but here is another chapter for you all.

Is one of my favorites chapters and I hope you all love it how much as I do. Remember to leave feedback!

Remember that Anastasia has her own Instagram and you can follow it to know her more and have a few hints about the story.

Anastasia_Truman

Much love to you all! ❤️️

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Read chapter 6

Rock Werchter festival in Belgium followed and again both bands played in different days but they were lucky enough to meet at the hotel. This time everyone was staying at the same one. Flea planned a night of games in his room and was kind enough to invite Anastasia and the rest of the guys, but Mandy preferred to sleep a little so she skipped the plans.

Sunny, Flea’s daughter, was there waiting for everyone to play. She jumped to hug Anastasia when she walked into the room. Being so close to Chad, Anthony and Flea she knew all of their children.

- So we’ve arranged these pillows on the floor and we will play here – Sunny said showing her the place - You must leave your shoes on the entrance.

- I swear nobody has a serious pair of socks in this tour – Anastasia said looking at everyone’s feet. All the people present wore colorful and pattern socks.

- So we basically kill each other in silence and don’t know who will be alive? – Chad asked

- This is like High School all over again – Anastasia said to Nick.

- High School? – Chad asked.

- Yes! Like when I use play Dungeons and Dragons in High School – Anastasia said – I know. I was kind of nerdy.

- You weren’t a nerd in High School – Chad said laughing

- I say kind of… I was kind of a hot nerd – Anastasia laughed too – But I used to play Dungeons and Dragons and it was FUN!

The game’s name was Werewolf and to play two of the people present had to be werewolves, one a doctor, another a seer and the rest were villagers. Destiny did its magic and Anastasia and Josh ended up being the werewolves. They killed everyone in the village and won the game.

- That’s what I call a good game – Anastasia said leaving Flea’s room. She was walking to the elevator joined by Eric, Nick and Josh.

- Of course. Because you won – Nick said faking a smile.

- I think we – Anastasia pointed Josh and then pointed herself – do a pretty good killer team. See what I did there?

- That was dumb – Eric said while everybody laugh.

- We are good as werewolves – Josh said.

- Well I’m more on the vampire’s side. But yeah – Anastasia answered.

- You guys are playing in Russia? – Josh wanted to know.

- No. Our next gig is at T in the Park in Scotland – Eric answered.

- I miss Russia. I love Moscow – Anastasia said entering the elevator.

- Why don’t you guys come with us? – Josh proposed - There’s plenty of place in the jet!

- That sounds like a plan we shouldn’t miss – Anastasia said.

- Will the others be okay with it? – Nick wanted to know.

- Yeah! They bring everybody all the time and Anastasia is like family to them.

- Well… we are going to Russia then – Eric said.

- Man, we are tough to convince people! – Nick said laughing.

Mandy was delighted by the plan of visiting Russia, “it will be like a mini vacation” she said. The rest of the Chilies were also happy to have them there and their manager took care of hotel reservations and everything else.

- We went from first class to private jets in less than a month – Nick said entering the band’s plane.

- Look at those pants! – Flea said about Anastasia’s jogger pants. They had a stormtrooper pattern.

- I get that entire “kind of nerd” thing now – Chad said joking.

- Man… Russia is not going to have enough vodka for us these days – Mandy said sitting next to Anthony.

- What about our healthier lifestyle? – Anastasia asked.

- Vodka comes from a potato, that’s healthy. Like tequila that comes from a plant, healthy AF – which means “As Fuck”.

- In other news I freaking hate planes, especially small, easy-to-crash planes – Anastasia said.

- How come? Really? – Anthony laughed – Do you have phobia to planes?

- She has phobia of anything she can’t control - Mandy let them know.

- Don’t worry! I’ll make jokes the whole flight so you forget where you are – Chad said taking a seat next to her.

It kind of worked but what really calmed her was Josh, she caught him staring at her on some occasions. She just laughed thinking that it was childish. By the end of the flight he sat next to her.

- You’ve been to Russia before, right? – He asked her.

- Yes, of course – she answered – I kind of lived there for six months because of my mom’s job but I was really young and don’t remember much. I went back a couple of times since then. What about you?

- Yeah I’ve been there a couple of times too. I was thinking since we don’t have to play tomorrow we could wander through the city.

- Sounds good – Anastasia said with enthusiasm.

- But… just the two of us.

- Oh. I see. Well that sounds even better – She saw him smile.

Here she was following Mandy’s advice. Don’t over think the situation. “It’s just a date”, she kept telling to herself.

- It’s just a date, An – Mandy said to her in the hotel room while Anastasia was freaking out.

- Should I wear a dress? – Anastasia asked.

- You use to be so good at this… Of course you should wear a dress. A killer dress!

- I’m going to wear that green wrapped Valentino dress that I brought just in case – The cleavage was a little bit low but both girls agreed that it was fine for a first date.

- With heels!

- No. No heels. These Charlotte Olympia cat flats will work.

- Ok, remember don’t have sex on first date… or do, you are old enough and you need it!

- Mandy stop! – Anastasia laughed.

A jacket, a little bit of makeup and loose hair completed the look. She took the elevator to the hall where Josh was waiting for her. He was in his usual baggy clothes, all black this time, with a red beanie.

- Your shoes are cats? – Josh asked smiling.

- They are cute! – She reproached.

- You look cute - he said blushing Anastasia.

- You too!

- I’m glad you brought flat shoes because I want to walk.

- I can walk miles in heels too, darling.

The both began to walk the streets closer to the hotel. Then they moved a little far. They visited an instrument shop they met on the way, as well as an art gallery. Anastasia realized that, in matters of artistic tastes, she shared many with Josh. Night fell and the two were searching for a place to eat, they stopped in front of a bar that had a sign outside where you could read "vodka tasting".

- Josh! We need to enter. I fucking love vodka – Josh laughed and agreed to enter.

There weren’t a lot of people inside so the two could get a hidden table in a corner. The vodka testing was just that: a variety of vodka flavors and brands for taste.

- I think we should order something to eat- Josh said.

- Wise. All this vodka will cause a disaster if I don’t eat something.

- Do you want a burger?

- Please! With bacon and lots of cheese – Josh smiled - Look at the beautiful piano – There was a red piano at the bar – It would look great on my living room.

- Should we steal it?

- It’s a little big and with this cleavage there is not enough fabric to hide it. You on the other hand… - both shared a laugh looking at Josh baggy clothes.

- You do play piano, right? – Josh asked.

- Piano was the first thing that I learned to play. There was a big one in my London house and every time things got a little bit hard with mom I sat there, play and forgot about everything.

- Did you learn by yourself?

- Yes. My father helped me a little bit though.

- What else do you play?

- After that my father hired a music teacher for me and with him I learned to play violin and cello. Then I moved to LA and I wanted to be a bit more of a rocker so I learned guitar. All strings instruments so it wasn’t that hard.

- What about drums?

- I suck at drums. But as far as I know you are pretty good at them.

- Yes, they were my first instrument. I learned the rest on my own.

- Wow. You surprise me, Klinghoffer.

- Don’t call me that way- he said laughing.

- Why? You don’t like to be called Josh either.

- How do you know that?

- You told me the first time we met. I think it was at Eric’s birthday, around 2011. You told me that you hated your name so I asked you for your initials and you told me “JAK” and that’s how you are saved on my phone – Josh laughed.

- I can’t believe you remember that!

- Do you remember that day?

- I don’t remember much of that day but I do remember meeting you. Everyone was saying that you were Nick Truman’s daughter.

- Oh yeah the most notable aspect about me.

- You were wearing a Dodgers white t-shirt. – Anastasia was bewildered. She couldn’t believe he remembered what she was wearing, especially something as forgettable as a Dodgers t-shirt.

- Yeah I was coming from a game – she said after a short silence.

- What? – He wanted to know.

- Nothing. I just can’t believe that you remembered what I was wearing.

- You know what? I’m going to buy one bottle of the second vodka we drank and go back to the hotel - She agreed.

Josh opened the door of his room. It was one of the VIP suites with a balcony and lots of space.

- Sorry for the mess – he said leaving the bottle at a little table in the living room.

- Don’t worry – she said sitting in a couch.

The two passed the next two hours drinking and talking about everything that came up to their minds. At one moment they decided go to the balcony where they had an incredible view of the city.

- My last time in Moscow was terrible. But I still like this city – Anastasia said.

- Why?

- I came here with Valentine to meet his parents. They hated me.

- How could possibly anyone hate you?

- You’ll be surprised.

- Do you think that if Valentine didn’t cheat on you, you two would still be together? – Josh suddenly dropped. Anastasia assumed that Eric or Anthony told him her history with Valentine.

- So you know the story – He nodded – Even if he hadn’t cheated on me, he was still an asshole so I would’ve eventually realized that Valentine wasn’t the man for me. The Universe took him out of my way for a reason.

Anastasia looked up to Josh and saw him getting closer.

- I probably shouldn’t do this but… - he said before kissing her.

She was pretty sure that the huge amount of vodka on their systems helped to get to that situation. She didn’t reject him, quite the opposite. It was the sweetest kiss she ever received. They separated their lips and looked straight. She looked into his eyes and could see through them, she saw his soul and how pure it was and realized she wanted to live in them as long as she could.

- I think I shouldn’t do this neither but… - she managed to say before jumping into his lips again.

He put his arms around her waist and hers were around his neck. The kisses started to get a little bit intense and they started to walk into the bedroom without separating from each other. They sat on the bed and Josh took his jacket off and then took off the one Anastasia was wearing. She freaked out in that moment and a strong force froze her and she violently separated from him.

- Josh, wait – she said getting up and grabbing her jacket again – I had a great night with you, for real. But I can’t go this far.

- I’m sorry – he said visibly disappointed.

- No! Don’t say sorry. It’s me. I’m stupid.

- You’re not – he got up and hugged her – I’ll wait for you. Until you are ready – He whispered in her ear.

They said goodbye with their eyes and she returned to her room.

The next morning was hard for Anastasia; she didn’t realize how much vodka she had drunk until she had to open her eyes. The headache was killing her. She took a shower, got dressed and went downstairs where her band was having breakfast. She sat on the table and all eyes were on her.

- So… - Mandy wanted to know.

- What? – Anastasia answered knowing what her friend meant – I had a great night – she smiled.

- And? – This time the question came from Eric.

- Josh and I shared a kiss – the biggest smiles appeared on her friends’ faces.

- And? – Nick asked.

- And I ran away.

- WHAT?! – The three said at the same time.

- I freaked out! I froze! I don’t know! I want to cry – but everyone at the table started to laugh – He probably thinks I’m so immature!

- You are!- Mandy said

- You aren’t helping – Anastasia told her friend.

- Don’t worry, I’m sure he understands. Josh is like the most gentleman-type you can find – Eric said.

- So in the end you do want something with him – Nick said laughing.

Anastasia took a deep breath.

- Yes – she said.

Her three friends started to applaud and cheer.

- What are we celebrating? – Anthony said approaching to the table.

- The good things in life – Mandy said lifting her glass with orange juice.

- You are coming to the show tonight right? – Anthony asked.

- Of course Antonio. We came here just to see you – Mandy talked again.

- Antonio sounds so sexy - Anastasia said.

- I know. Nothing like what you really are – Mandy said to Anthony – Just joking! You are the sexiest man in rock and roll. After Trent Reznor, of course. But you are close.

- Please call me Antonio for the rest of your life – Anthony said laughing with sarcasm.

In that moment Anastasia saw Josh walking through the hall of the hotel, Mandy saw him too.

- You should go and tell him something – Mandy said low so only Anastasia could hear her.

- What am I gonna say to him? – Anastasia asked.

- An, don’t act like a child!

Anastasia excused herself and walked to Josh who was already out of the hotel.

- Hi. Good morning. How did you sleep? – She asked him. He turned to her and smiled.

- Great and you? – Josh answered.

- Good. The wakening was hard though!

- I know. I didn’t realize we drank that much.

- Listen, I really wanted to apologize. You must be thinking I’m such a child.

- Don’t say a word. I know how hard it can be to open yourself up to somebody - “Is this man real?” Anastasia thought.

- Really? Well. I did have a great night, for real.

- Me too! Let’s do it again soon.

- Sure! But with less amount of vodka please – they shared a small laugh.

- I got to make a call. See you at the venue?

- Sure!

She went back to the hotel thinking that maybe 1% of men would have reacted as Josh did. She couldn’t stop thinking about those kisses and how they made her feel. Not even one of Valentine’s kisses had caused that reaction on her and that must have been the greatest Universe sign in the world. She sat again with her friends and realized Anthony was gone.

- Listen, don’t say a word to anybody – Anastasia said – I don’t want anyone to know until it becomes something more serious.

- My God! Are you even thinking about taking this into a serious situation? – Mandy said with sarcasm – The world is gonna end today! – Everyone laughed but Eric.

- What’s wrong? – Anastasia wanted to know.

- Just be careful, okay? – he answered

- First you tell me all these things about Josh asking about me and shit and now you’re concerned? – Anastasia said with a hint of anger in her voice.

- No! Just take it easy – he said again.

The concert that night was amazing; it was great for the guys to enjoy a show from the crowd’s perspective, for once. Next stop was Scotland for T in the Park. They flew again with the Chilies in their private jet. Anastasia and Josh sat in different places but they shared a glance once in a while, action that made her blush.

- T in the Park is gonna be great – Anastasia said to Anthony with whom she shared a seat – That’s my territory, it’s Dead Curse territory - Being British, Anastasia always felt comfortable playing in the United Kingdom.

- Yeah you may be headlining but you are going to see how many people are gonna sing along with us – Mandy said seated in front of them.

The girls weren’t far from the truth. Dead Curse had one of the most amazing and energetic sets that they had in a while. Thousands sang along to all of the band’s songs. This time Anthony was standing next to the stage and when Mandy was leaving she said “Try to top that” to him laughing, he smiled and hugged her.

Anastasia had a great surprise waiting for her at the dressing room, a beautiful bouquet made with a lot of different wild flowers, she loved it. She never liked roses so the fact that Josh knew that she preferred wild flowers it was an indicator that he has been investigating about her tastes. The arrangement didn’t have a card so Eric was the one who confirms her that the flowers were from Josh.

As usual the four musicians enjoyed the Red Hot Chili Peppers show. But they were tired so they left to their hotel early. Once there Mandy fell asleep right away, for Anastasia it wasn’t that easy. She heard a couple of knocks on the door and went to answer. Nick and Eric were in the aisle.

- Is Mandy asleep already? – Nick answered and Anastasia nodded – Anyway, we are going for some beers with Josh, wanna join us?

- Sure! Just let me change clothes real fast – she answered.

- Okay, we will wait for you on the hall – Eric said.

She put on some jeans, a pair of black vans and a t-shirt with a D and a H printed in front, it was from Dot Hacker, Eric’s and Josh’s other band, grabbed a jacket, took a final look to her friend to see if she was really asleep and went to the hall. There was Eric and Nick waiting just as they promised but no Josh to be seen.

- Nice t-shirt – Nick said laughing.

- Do you think he is going to think I am trying too hard? – She said worried.

- Is just a t-shirt – Eric said laughing too – anxiety is going to kill you – He said laughing and hugging her in a brotherly way.

- Are we ready? – Josh voice was heard from the back. Anastasia turned fast to look at him.

- I swear I saw a bar near here when we were at the van this morning – Nick said.

- Cool, let’s walk then - Josh said and the four started walking.

The pub was closer than they though and it was crowded but thankfully they found a table in a quiet spot where they could talk with no problems.

- I’m sorry that I missed the set today, but I was backstage with Flea and we could hear the crowd singing along to all the songs – Josh said – Flea felt like a proud parent.

- It was an amazing feeling – Anastasia said.

After a couple of hours they realized they were more tired than they thought so the group left the pub and walked back to the hotel. However, none of them were sleepy so they agreed on going to Nick’s and Eric’s room to watch some Netflix show.

- Man! I love Netflix so much – Anastasia said lying in Nick’s bed – I hate that Netflix and chill thing because for me it really is Netflix and chill, don’t you dare to touch me while I’m watching Netflix – the boys shared a laugh.

After a couple of episodes Anastasia and Josh decided to go to their respective rooms.

- I didn’t know you were this funny – Josh said walking to the elevator.

- I’m not. You’re just saying that – she said smiling

- Funny and beautiful – Josh said entering the elevator – I thought girls like you didn’t exist anymore.

- Don’t forget talented – she said smiling some more – There are plenty of girls like me. Don’t say that.

- I really can’t forget your kisses – he said – I replay them on my mind every day since Russia – Anastasia stood petrified.

- Me neither – she said and started getting closer to him.

They shared a quick kiss before the elevator doors opened on Anastasia’s floor.

- Can I escort you to the door of your room to kiss you some more? – He asked with a half smile on his lips.

- Please do – she said.

They didn’t wait to get to the door, the kissing session started from halfway through the aisle. She felt warm. He kissed her like if he didn’t want to let her go. She felt his hands all over her back and she grabbed his neck with both arms tight. There was passion but also respect in their kisses. He wanted her and she knew it and she wanted him and he knew it.

- By the way – he said after gasping for air – that t-shirt looks amazing on you – both looked to the Dot Hacker t-shirt she was wearing and started to laugh.

- I didn’t thank you for the flowers. I love wild flowers – Anastasia said smiling shyly.

- You don’t have to thank me. You deserve them – Josh before running one of his right thumbs over Anastasia’s lips.

- Have a good night Josh – she said trying to control herself.

- You too – Josh said smiling and leaving to grab the elevator again.

The next morning it was time to say goodbye for a while. The Red Hot Chili Peppers were going to continue their tour in Canada and Japan while Dead Curse was free until Lollapalooza at the end of the month.

It was going to be good for Anastasia, this way she would have a break from Josh and could think everything better even if Mandy kept telling her to stop thinking. She wanted to say goodbye properly so she sneaked to his hotel room but before knocking his door she heard some voices inside, one belonged to Eric and the other one was from Josh, they weren’t screaming but talking loud.

- She is like a sister to me, Josh – Eric said – She was hurt very bad in the past.

- I don’t want anything bad for her, Eric, believe me. She is amazing.

- And what are you going to do about Carrie?

Anastasia felt like her heart stopped beating. “So Carrie was really something”, she thought.

- You know that Carrie is someone to just have fun with – Josh said – I don’t want her for a girlfriend or anything.

- Do you want An to be your girlfriend, then? – Eric asked

- I don’t know yet – Josh answered.

- Yes. Just what I thought. Well you are going to spend all these days without seeing her. Think about it. I’m going to leave; our flight will take off soon. See you in Chicago.

Ana left the place before Eric went out of the room feeling destroyed, she couldn’t believe everything was happening all over again.

Read chapter 8