Revelations

                                    

                                          
Dave opened the door, two My Little Ponies in his hand, and looked at Rob with a sheepish smile as he moved aside, inviting Rob inside wordlessly. When he didn't even get a greeting, he asked, "what's up, Bourdie?"
                          
"Sorry to interrupt," Rob said, gesturing to the toys, stepping into the foyer of the bassist's home and glancing around at the mounds of girly shoes scattered about. Dave shook his head at the mess and walked back toward the family room, where his girls were still engaged in an intense drama regarding an evil prince pony and a princess pony who was requiring rescue from a peasant pony and his friend, both of whom Dave was holding. 
                          
Setting the ponies down on the coffee table, Dave told the girls he'd be back in a minute and he and Rob made their way to the back patio, where they both settled into cushioned seats by the pool. Rob's expression was exactly the same as Dave had seen it for the past twenty years-- carefully blank, giving away nothing. "So, what's up, man?" he tried again.
                          
Rob glanced down at his hands and started pushing the cuticles on the fingernails of his left hand back with the thumb of his right hand. Dave watched him as he addressed each finger, then switched to the right hand, practically listening to the seconds tick by until Rob finally looked up, peered thoughtfully out at the pool, and said, "I think Mike and Chester are together."
                          
Silence stretched between the two men as Rob's implications wedged their way into a corner of Dave's mind. He sighed, and reached to scratch his goatee. "We've already talked about this, Rob. You were the one who said to let it go and trust them."
                          
Nodding, Rob kept his eyes out on the pool, the still blue water reflecting in his glasses. "Yeah," he offered quietly, his voice drifting off, and he was silent again. Dave waited, knowing that there was more, but he was accustomed to waiting for Rob to decide exactly how he wanted to phrase what he was going to say, valuing words and their power more than anyone he'd ever met. It was a good thing Rob didn't write lyrics, Dave mused, or the first record would still be unfinished. "I think you're right, though. I think there's more going on than they're telling us. I don't just mean about what happened in Birmingham. I think it's much greater than... emotional attachment... they've always been close, but I think they've... crossed the line."
                          
"Damn, Bourdie, what brought all this on? We left London and you were all about their story and their privacy, now you're sitting on my patio telling me you think that they're together. I guess you're trying to say you think they're having an affair? How did you end up at that conclusion?"
                          
"Anna."
                          
The surprise was evident in Dave's face when the name of Mike's wife rolled off Rob's tongue. 
                          
"I called 'round a few days ago to return the drive to Mike and Anna mentioned that he and Chester had gone to the studio for the afternoon." Dave raised both eyebrows, looking at Rob with interest. "Exactly my reaction," Rob said, a hand pointed at Dave's face. "I didn't tell her that we didn't have any plans to work the next two weeks. There's nothing to work on, just little seeds, and she didn't know that, but when I said I'd just meet up with him later, she suggested I go up to the studio. Before I could say anything else, she started to cry, and I... well, I didn't really know what to say." 
                          
Even though he wasn't sure he wanted to know, Dave asked anyway, "what did Anna have to say?"
                          
Rob exhaled slowly, running a hand through his hair. "It was awkward... she was just standing there, looking at me when I asked if everything was okay... and she just straight out asked me if Mike had been acting strange on tour. Of course I said no," he continued hastily at the concerned look on Dave's face, "but she said Mike seemed off, bothered, and distant since we got home. I didn't know what to say, Dave, I hated making excuses for him, but she was starting to get hysterical. You know I can't deal with that."