Charttoppers - 22. The Kiss

There was no dull moment in Samson’s life since his Night Calls world tour had taken off. The first leg encompassed the continent of North America, with the first string of concerts across the US West Coast, starting from New York City and going south. To the singer’s great satisfaction, the press had been generally positive about his shows, praising the production, his stage presence and singing, noting the improvements from his previous tour. It only motivated Samson even more, spurring him on to give his all and try even harder to make the shows as entertaining as possible for his audiences.

To top it all off, his new songs were slowly gaining traction on the radio again, after a brief period of absence. As soon as he had posted a message exposing Argent Media for blacklisting him and trying to cancel his radio and TV appearances, he began receiving messages of support from his fans and colleagues alike. Many young singers came out with accounts of their own bad experiences in the industry, which only served to support Samson’s story.

However, other than a few minor music publications, media outlets were strangely not covering the story at all. Samson suspected, and Hank soon confirmed through his sources, that it was all due to Argent Media. The corporation was using its power to pay or otherwise influence the media not to report anything about the case.

Of course, there was nothing but radio silence from Melanie Roy either. That is, until several days later, just before Samson’s Miami show.

With the grueling tour schedule and having to travel from city to city every few days, the singer spared no expenses on getting the best fitness trainers and masseurs for himself and his dancers. They had to be in tip top shape, after all.

That afternoon, Samson was spread out on a massage table in his grand tour bus, while a masseur gently kneaded his back muscles, trying to get them relaxed. Just as the singer started slipping into a dream state induced by the relaxing massage, Anna’s surprised outburst brought him back to reality.

“She blocked her comments!” the girl exclaimed, sitting curled up in a big armchair by the window, clutching her phone in her hands.

“What?” Samson muttered, turning his head toward her. “Who did?”

“Melanie, she disabled the comments on her Instagram. I wanted to see if people were posting anything about you, but she’s turned them off. And she hasn’t posted anything in a week.”

“Well, no wonder,” the young singer giggled, amused by the revelation. “Stansons kept harassing her. I’m surprised no one’s hacked her account by now.”

“Me too. Ooh, Argent Media’s account still has their comments enabled, but someone wrote that they keep deleting the negative ones.”

“Good luck with that,” Samson scoffed. “I feel bad for whoever’s in charge of their social media. They must be having their hands full these days, all because of that bitch.”

“What if whoever it is, is a fan of yours,” Anna said. The singer smiled, amused at the idea. “They must hate their job right now.”

Just as the masseur wrapped up and Samson got up from the table, putting his bathrobe back on, there was a knock on the door.

“Come on in,” Samson said, tying the rope around his waist. “Thanks, Mateo, I feel so much better,” he smiled at the masseur. Bringing him on the tour was an investment that definitely paid off, he thought.

The door opened and Hank entered, tapping away on his phone. Both Samson and Anna were quick to tease him about becoming a workaholic and never putting his phone away. As much as the singer knew the increased workload was because of him, he wished Hank would relax from time to time.

“Hank, how about a nice massage? Mateo is amazing. Unless you wanted to go have lunch or something?” the singer asked, turning to the masseur.

“No, I’m down for one more session,” the Brazilian replied.

“I guess I could use it. My neck is killing me,” Hank finally put his phone down and moved across the room to lay on the massage table. “Ugh, still no news, by the way. No TV stations are reporting on your story. I was just checking the websites, nothing there either. Not even Pop Megaphone. GayMuse have been posting articles about you almost every day, though.”

Samson chuckled in delight. Even though small, the music website was run by gay staff and had a small cult following. “Yeah, I can always count on them. I don’t know how long the others can keep ignoring it, though.”

“Not for long, I’d say. It’s all over social media,” Hank said between moans. He seemed to be enjoying the massage as much as Samson had before him. “You’ve been in the top ten trending topics all week. Some big YouTubers are also starting to post videos about it.”

The manager’s phone began ringing, and Samson picked it up, noticing an unknown number. He handed it to Hank, who immediately answered.

“Hello, Hank Silverton speaking… Oh. Give me just a moment, please.” Getting up from the table, Hank covered the phone with one hand, mouthing to Samson and Anna: “Melanie Roy’s assistant.”

Their full attention on Hank, the two friends practically jumped from their seats and moved closer, as Hank turned on the speakerphone.

“Yes, Ms. Morris, it’s good to hear from you again. How can I help you?”

“Mr. Silverton, I hope you’re doing well. I’m calling to inform you that Argent Media has reconsidered its decisions, and Mr. Flynn’s music is being put back on radio rotation as of today.”

“Oh, really? And why is that?” Hank asked, looking up at Samson, who could barely keep himself from saying something.

“Well, our corporation has always prided itself for being dedicated to representing all artists and, of course, catering to our listeners’ requests, so it was only natural that Mr. Flynn’s music is a part of that. Of course, we truly regret any inconveniences that might have been caused.”

After even more PR talk and empty phrases such as ‘a learning experience’ and ‘good future cooperation’, the call was over, and Samson found himself smiling triumphantly, his eyes sparkling with joy.

“Ha! I can’t believe it! They actually caved,” he exclaimed, clapping his hands in excitement. For once, karma was working in his favor. After facing injustice and discrimination so many times in his early career, he was used to getting the short end of the stick. But now it seemed that luck was finally on his side, and it felt amazing.

“What I can’t believe is that Melanie herself didn’t call!” Anna added.

“Oh, that bitch would eat her own foot before admitting defeat in person! She had her assistant do it for her instead,” Samson scoffed. “This is as good as we’re going to get.”

“I guess,” the girl frowned. “And I bet she’s not going to suffer any consequences for this.”

“Yeah, probably. She’s too big for that,” the singer agreed. “Whatever, as long as I get my songs back on the radio.”

“Yeah, let’s not celebrate too soon, though,” Hank said. “Let’s wait a few days and see if they actually go through with it.”

“Ugh, Hank, don’t rain on my parade,” Samson moaned.

“Hey, I’m just saying - I don’t trust them after what they pulled.”

“I know, you’re right. But I’m still going to enjoy this moment,” the singer smiled, feeling positive and rejuvenated. In several hours, his Miami concert would start, and he would be doing it with renewed enthusiasm and energy, knowing that he had won. If he ever had any doubts about whether he made the right choice when he rejected Melanie Roy’s offer, they were now gone.

~~

Ash wasted no time that day. As soon as the plane touched down at the JFK Airport in New York, he was ready to go straight to Marcus’ place. He would tell him that he couldn’t give up on them just like that and ask him to give them another chance. The dancer simply meant too much to him. Ash had been loving him for so long, and he knew Marcus loved him back despite everything.

He remembered how they first met shortly after he arrived in America to start his solo career. Back when he was still in 2Good, he was not allowed to date anyone, let alone to make it public. As kpop idols, all members of the group had to be perceived as single and have a pristine public image. No scandals, no affairs. And with the hectic work schedule the group had, he did not have time for dating even if it had been allowed.

Everything changed when he went solo. Even though the contract with Platinum Street prevented him from coming out, Ash still felt much more free than before. He had more time for going out and partying, and could even date guys, although only in secret.

It was at the audition for dancers for his first solo music video that he met Marcus. At the time, Ash wasn’t particularly interested in who would be picked. Most of the guys and girls were very good dancers, and any of them seemed like they would be a perfect fit for his video. It wasn’t until the young black man came in that the singer started paying attention. He walked in like he owned the place, wearing a revealing tank top and gray sweatpants. Music started playing and Marcus launched into complex choreography, the look in his eyes sexy and alluring. In a matter of seconds, everyone in the room had their eyes on him. When he finished, he was like a completely different person. His bright smile was genuine, and his eyes shone with excitement and just a hint of nervousness.

“I’m Marcus Knight,” he approached the table where Ash sat along with his manager and main choreographer. He looked up at the singer with confidence and extended his hand. Ash didn’t hesitate.

“I’m Ash, nice to meet you. You did an amazing job! And that was a great song choice.”

“I agree with Ash, that was great. The moves, the passion, just what we’re looking for. What do you think, Paul?”

“You guys are the experts,” the manager shrugged. “But yeah, it looked good to me.”

The singer quickly realized he was a fool for thinking he would be able to keep business and pleasure separate. By the end of the two-day video shoot, Marcus and he had gotten to know each other, spending most of the breaks together, chatting about their lives. When the shoot was over and everyone went out that night to celebrate, Ash no longer hid his desire. Encouraged by the few drinks he had, he approached Marcus and led him to the dancefloor, where they spent most of the night dancing, using it as an excuse to touch each other.

What Ash thought would be just another fling turned into two dates, then three. Before he knew it, they were head over heels for each other. There was no way he was going to give up on that.

Having got off the plane and rushed through the airport, the singer noticed his driver was already waiting for him by the exit. Ash quickly beelined toward him, hoping he would manage to go unnoticed. The last thing he needed was fans or paparazzi pestering and slowing him down. Luckily, as his arrival was completely last-minute, there was no one to bother him. Even if someone did recognize him, they had no time to react. In a matter of minutes, Ash was on the back seat of his tinted-window car, heading toward Marcus’ apartment.

As they drove through busy New York streets, the singer gazed outside, absentmindedly observing the trees that lined the sidewalks. Orange and red leaves were dying out in the cold of the fall. The bleak, gray skies were turning dark as the evening came, slowly turning a chilly, depressing day into an even colder night.

Lost in his thoughts, Ash did not even notice the driver talking. It wasn’t until the man repeated his words that he paid attention to him.

“Hey, is everything alright, man? You look pretty rough today.”

“Yeah, everything’s fine, thanks,” Ash tried reassuring him. “Guess I’m just tired from the flight and the concert yesterday.” He closed his eyes, hoping the other man would take the hint. He was in no mood for small-talk.

The drive to his destination was too long. It seemed as though he’d been travelling for hours. Every now and then, he would grab his phone and almost call Marcus, before eventually giving up. He wanted to surprise him. Hopefully he’ll be home.

“Here we are. Want me to wait for you?” the driver finally announced as they arrived at the tall red brick building where Marcus lived. Ash perked up right away, feeling his heart start to race. He couldn’t remember the last time he was that nervous.

“No, that’s alright. I’ll call you if I need you to pick me up. Thanks for driving me here, though.”

“Hey, just doing my job,” the older man smiled. “Alright then, see ya.”

His heart pounding wildly, Ash pressed the buzzer for apartment 22, holding his breath as he waited to hear the familiar voice. Seconds passed, but no one answered. He buzzed again, and again. Nothing.

Nervous about getting recognized, he looked around, but there was hardly anyone nearby. Deciding to wait until Marcus showed up, Ash zipped his jacket up to his neck, put on his hat and moved to sit on a nearby bench underneath an oak tree. His eyes trained on the building entrance, he sat motionless, losing track of time. At one point, he wondered if he should call, just to be sure. What if Marcus was out of town?

Finally, his patience was rewarded as a tall figure of the dancer appeared from around the corner, approaching his building. Just as Ash got up from the bench, Marcus’ eyes fell upon him and he stopped in his tracks.

“Ash?”

The singer rushed over until they were just a few feet apart, looking more insecure than ever. So different from the charismatic, confident popstar everyone was used to seeing.

“What… What are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be on tour right now?” the dancer asked, reserved.

“I had to see you,” Ash spoke softly. He had been preparing for this moment, rehearsing what he was going to say, but now that it came, it was as if someone had erased all the words from his brain. “I missed you, Marcus. I… I know things got messed up between us, but I still love you. I want to make things right if you’re willing to give us another chance.”

With a pleading look in his eyes, Ash reached out and took Marcus’ hand, his touch light as a feather.

It only took a moment for the dancer’s eyes to fill with tears. He could not reject Ash, not in a million years. How could he, when he never stopped loving him.

Their lips found each other as the two men embraced, arms wrapped tightly around each other’s bodies. It was familiar and comforting, but at the same time new and exciting. It was everything Ash desired.

“Come on, let’s go inside,” Marcus said once they finally broke the kiss. Of course, Ash did not need to be told twice, following the dancer into the apartment complex.

Behind a large chestnut tree a few buildings away, a tall man stood in the shadows. His thin lips spread into a devious smile as he held his trusty camera, still eyeing the red brick building. He was about to become filthy rich.