Bad Reputation

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“You’re not a kid anymore, but you’ll always be his kid. That’s what my dad always says.” She was trying to see the bright side, she really was. But it was hard considering what Piper was telling her and the fact she didn’t know her dad at all. So instead, she reached out her hand, patting the other girl’s shoulder gently. “At least he’s worried? And honestly…So am I. I don’t want you to overwhelm yourself. You need to take it slow and what I just saw right there–” Brittany pointed at the door to make her point across. “–was not taking it slow.”

Piper just shook her head because she appreciated that Brittany was the sunny one of their friendship but she knew life without Cal plenty, and she’d learned to trust in it. But when she mentioned being worried, Piper looked up. Her cheeks reddened slightly. “Please, don’t you do that too. Everyone is looking at me like I’m going to break.” She hated every look, and every conversation that went cold as soon as she walked up. “I had a little problem. I fixed it. I’m fine. Managing tours is what I do. It’s what I’m good at. Sure it can be overwhelming but I’m not incapable of handling it just because I got out of rehab last month. This is me getting back to what’s normal for me. It’s a good thing.” After a pause, she added, “and I haven’t spoken to Puck at all. Nothing to worry about, okay?”

Once he let go of Sam’s hand, Puck plopped down on the bus couch, sprawling his legs out in front of him. “Who’s talking about dating? We’re on tour now. Nobody got time for that.” He wiggled his brows suggestively, letting out a laugh. “You don’t know? Look, Kitty’s a great singer. But she doesn’t like it when people try to outshine her. And you and Little Miss Wallflower are kinda like a full on eclipse. So she’s not happy. And when Kitty’s not happy…let’s just say nothing good ever comes from that.”

Sam watched Puck make himself comfortable, and he assumed that just maybe, if he ever ended up as famous at the other guy, he might be just as at ease as Puck seemed. But he didn’t say that out loud. Instead, he listened and he tried to learn a little something about the people he was on tour with. He knew Kitty’s reputation but he’d always assumed it was just tabloid lies to sell papers. He didn’t expect it was for real. Sam shrugged, looking down at his feet before shoving his hands in his pockets. “I don’t know. I kind of think there’s enough room for all of us. There are plenty of fans out there, and they could like us all, don’t you think?”

“You bet she would.” He laughed, tightening his grip on her before letting her go. “You won’t. You’re too good to freeze. Everyone’s waiting to hear you sing. The people who put this thing together wouldn’t be wasting their time on you if they didn’t believe you could do it.” He shifted so he could look directly at her. “You can do this. You’re that good.”

It felt nice talking about their mom but Marley didn’t want to push it too much. It would just make both of them sad and she knew they didn’t need it. Letting out a sigh, she crossed her legs and then looked over at him. When they were like this, sitting on the bed together without a care about what was going on around them, it started to feel like old times; like they were back home and not about to go on a three month long Summer tour. “What would I do without you?” Most people would probably hate the idea of having their brother on tour with them but not Marley. It was comforting for her. “Did you get to talk to your friend yet?”

“Oh, I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean–I know you’re not together anymore.” She didn’t mean to offend him. She simply assumed the ex would have kept his last name. After all, he was an important businessman. “I have younger brothers. Cousins too. I’m used to getting playing rough.” The only reason she had agreed on this job–other than the fact that her cousin was on it–was that she got to travel the country; something she hadn’t done before. “Of course not. I’m a professional. Plus, it would take a lot of effort for a man to be worthy of backstage access.” Letty paused for a moment, taking in her own words and how they might sound, but she mentally shrugged it off, figuring he’d blame it on her not so good English. “Only one. You have another daughter here, yes? Is she okay with me being here? I don’t want to upset anyone.”

“No, no. I think by the end she was ready to have her maiden name back.” But that was on the personal wrong and he didn’t need to share that. Cal had been a serial monogamist for years. He was good at getting in relationships but never good at staying in them. The only thing he’d ever stuck with was music and he was damn good at it. Her comment about no one being worthy made Cal chuckled before he could stop himself. “I’m glad you have a good head on your shoulders,” he smiled. At the mention of his daughter, Cal nodded, “Yes, I do. Piper. She’s the tour manager. If I can be honest, there aren’t isn’t much that I do that she does approve of but if she gives you any grief at all, you let me know. We may be on tour but you’re my employee, not hers.”

Kitty glanced at Santana again with a raised eyebrow. “Please. That’s the least they could do and they know it.” As she spoke, Kitty lifted the t-shirt over her head, tossing it to the ‘keep’ pile before reaching for another top. She had a unique sense of style. She was all about tank tops and army boots just as much as she was all about ballet skirts and hot pink highlights. She had a somewhat bipolar fashion sense, which was a perfect portrait of her personality. “They could do a little better if they want to mooch off of me. I’m not some cow they can milk.” She slipped on the new top, scrunching her nose at it. Hard pass. “See, that’s the thing. If you were doing your job right, I wouldn’t have to worry about some newbies coming for my thunder.” Removing and tossing yet another top to the ‘no-go’ pile, she turned to Santana again, arms crossing over her bra. “We should have gone with a different label when they came up with this idea.”

“Careful, Kit Kat. You’re pulling out the diva voice and the last thing you want is Cal hearing.” Santana was used to Kitty so it didn’t bother her. Hell, they were practically kindred spirits. They were alike in a lot of ways. If Santana had wanted to be an artist, she would have been a lot like Kitty so she wasn’t thrown off balance. Grabbing her phone, Santana tapped out a text message to wardrobe to bring some more clothes. As she wrote, she continued her conversation. “Babes, that’s not how contracts work. We have another year locked in with Mercury. Then if you want to re-negotiate or look elsewhere we can but we’re still obligated to this tour and another album.” She looked up then and lofted a brow at Kitty. “Besides, you keep doing your job right, and no one can take anything from you.”

Brittany tapped away on her phone, looking up a youtube video she had seen the previous day and somehow lost. She was hoping to draw some inspiration from it for a new dance routine for Marley. She was obsessed with the girl’s new songs and couldn’t wait to get her hands on her and make up shake it up a little. She could hear Piper scolding one of the roadies working to prepare everything to start the tour, but she pretended not to notice, not wanting to seem like she was eavesdropping. Her eyes only lifted to meet Piper when the man was gone and Piper was speaking to her again, drawing a small smile from her. “He’s worried about you. I think that’s sweet.” She sat up straight, tapping on her phone to save the video for later. “Maybe…Maybe he’s trying to do better than he did before. I’m sure a man as powerful as him with the history he has, has a lot of regrets in his life.”

Sweet? Piper made a face. “I think it’s too late. I’m twenty four years old, Britt, and he only now decided that I’m worthy of his precious time.” She rolled her eyes, not really interested in the idea of Cal being a father to her. “I wished for him to come around and be part of my life every single birthday. I would have loved this caring act about a decade ago but I’m not a kid anymore.” Of course Britt had a good idea. Maybe Cal did have some regrets. She simply shook her head, “I would think if he had regrets, he would be trying with the other five kids he created and then was too busy to visit. I’m sorry, maybe I’m a pessimist but I’m pretty sure he’s only staying around because he’s worried I’ll fuck up his tour and I don’t have the time of patience for that kind of negativity.”

Honestly, Puck was so high, he could barely see straight. So it was no surprise that he’d mistake this guy for one of the roadies. He ran his hand through his mohawk, urging his brain to make the connection. “Sam Evans… Oh!” His eyes widen comically, letting out a small laugh. “You’re that dude. Man, I bet you get all the chicks with those smooth words of yours, am I right?” Puck took his hand, shaking it in a tight grip. “Nice to meet ya while I can. Kitty’s gonna make you roadkill.” At that he laughed for real, already imagining the fit the small blonde would throw upon meeting her competition.

When Puck seemed to recognize his name, Sam lightened. He didn’t feel like he was as popular as the charts told him he was, but he certainly wasn’t at the stardom level where you could be offended that someone didn’t recognize you. He smiled, mumbled a small ‘woah’ with the tight hand shake he’d gotten. “Oh, um..” Sam shook out his hand at his side and then shrugged, “I don’t- I mean, I’m not dating anyone right now.” Of course it didn’t cross Sam’s mind to even take advantage of the girls throwing themselves at him. He wasn’t that guy no matter how much people seemed to want him to be. His brow lofted a minute later, shocked at the guitarists’ words. “Roadkill? I uh, didn’t... I mean.. why do you say that?”

Everyone was running around, preparing to kickstart the biggest tour of their lives so far. Yet his sister was nowhere to be seen. He didn’t have to look much though. Knowing her, she’d look for the quietest place she could find. So he made his way through the sea of people working, moving toward the bus that would be their home for the next few months. He should have knocked, but instead, he walked right in, heading toward his sister’s bedroom. “She wouldn’t be here even if she were.” He moved to sit on the bed next to his sister, pulling her to him with an arm around her shoulders. “She’d hate the tour life. She’d spend all her time running around cleaning up after everyone.” He let out a soft chuckle, resting his chin on top of his sister’s head. “But you’re right. She’d love to see you up there.”

It was so strange to talk about their mother in the past tense. Even having gone to the funeral, it felt like some terrible dream that she should wake up from. Though Marley had been thankful to find a place private and away from all the hustle and bustle, she was happy that Derek had found her. She leaned into him and closed her eyes, wishing she could do what she normally did - write all of her feelings on the page, turn it into a song. But every time she tried to write words for her mother, the flow stopped. Grinning at Derek’s comment, Marley sat up. “She really would be cleaning up, wouldn’t she? Giving everyone hand sanitizer and napkins.” She reached over and squeezed her brother’s wrist. “What if I can’t do it, D? What if I get in front of all those people and just freeze?”

Letty nodded along to the words her new boss was saying, writing down little notes to remember later. She was good with kids ever since she was one. But she supposed he knew his children better than she did. “Don’t you worry, Mr. D’Amico. I know all the tricks very well.” Letty moved to America only three years ago, without knowing a single word of English. And while she improved immensely, she still couldn’t shake off the accent. “Your boys will be fine. You have an important job, you need to focus on that. Mrs. D’Amico sent me their schedules and the things they need to prepare before school starts again. I worry about the boys, you worry about the tour. And everyone will have fun!” Her lips widened into a grin, her hands holding the notebook to her chest.

Cal didn’t say it out loud - it would have been highly unprofessional if he had and this girl was very much younger than him - but he found that he really liked her accent. It was like visiting another country being around her and he very much liked that. When she mentioned his now ex-wife, Cal shook his head, “Oh. Uh, not- Renee isn’t my wife anymore so it’s Mrs. Sullivan now.” His third divorce, how typical for a man his age. “I know they’re going to be a handful though. Boys are rowdy at that age so if you need any time off, please let me know. I’ll take them for dinner Friday nights and all day Saturday so you can have the day for whatever you’d like.” Then he handed her a VIP pass. “This gives you special access to everything backstage. I don’t mind if you date while we’re on the road but I’d ask that you don’t bring any of them backstage without asking permission. I believe Ms. Sullivan already reviewed compensation for you. Any hours you work over 40 will be at time and a half, and you’ll be paid weekly. Do you have any questions before I take you for a tour and then to meet the boys?”

“They do know I’m not a babysitter, right?” Kitty stood in front of the mirror, trying yet another outfit for the tour. Tenure meant she got a say in everything regarding her performances and thank goodness for that because the last tour was a mess when it came to her stylist. She smoothed her hands down the front of the t-shirt she had on before turning her upper body around so she could look directly at Santana rather than from the mirror. “Why should I care about them when they’re trying to steal my spotlight? They’re not even that good.” Kitty added the last sentence with a roll of her eyes as she turned back toward the mirror. “We should be focusing on making my show even better.”

“They know. Hey, don’t I get any points here for making sure you get a solo deluxe bus and guaranteed suites at every stop? The other two have to share with the band and go with regular rooms.” It wasn’t much considering the fact that Cal was using Kitty’s coat tails to boost up other acts. “Trust me, chica, no one could steal your spotlight no matter how hard they tried. And I have been assured that your show is top priority. That looks good on you.” Lowering into a chair, Santana crossed one leg over the other, shrugging out of the tailored jacket she’d worn on top of a tight dress to make it look professional. “Look, you know i’m not going to let them spend even an ounce more attention on those newbies than on you. You’ve trusted me this far and I’ve helped you get to the top. Trust me a little further, okay?”

Santana Lopez (Kitty’s Manager/PR) is a master at getting what she wants and when she focused on skyrocketing Kitty Wilde’s career to the top of the chats, that’s exactly what happened

Sam Evans (Solo Artist) never expected he would get any traction whatsoever but when he joined Mercury Records, his simple life started to change in ways he never expected. 

Marley Rose (Solo Artist) struggled with stage fright for many years and never followed her dreams of becoming a recording artist until Cal D’Amico heard her singing at an open mic night.

Calvin D’Amico (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) has been known in the music industry as Midas because everything he touches turns to gold. Former musician turned Mercury Records founder. Father of: Piper (+5 kids), and twins, Caden + Matthew.