Songbird by Jamie Campbell Page B

whole new side of the guy and I liked him even more than I did before.
    Every room of the museum was even better than the previous one. Forest loved the airplanes more than the shuttles but they were cool too. I had seen enough airplanes for a lifetime, but it was still nice seeing the old ones. I couldn’t believe people actually trusted them enough to get inside them. Those two-seaters were definitely not for me.
    “I’ve always wanted to get my pilot’s license,” Forest declared at a stand for the Wright brothers.
    “Why don’t you?”
    He shrugged. “I guess I never thought I could.”
    “Why not?” I asked. Forest didn’t really strike me as the type who would let his ego stop him from doing anything. Not after I saw his audition for the tour. He was the most self assured guitarist that had played for us. And we had seen a lot of performers.
    “Something someone said one time,” he muttered before wandering over and engrossing himself in another display. It didn’t seem like the topic was open for discussion so I left it alone. If it was something he wanted to talk about, then I guessed he would.
    The longer we spent there, the more people started to notice my presence. I was trying my best to stay to myself, but it only took a few people looking twice to recognize me. Once one person asked for a photo or an autograph, it gave everyone the courage to do the same.
    Normally I didn’t mind stopping for fans. They were the reason why I had my career and I always promised to not forget that. Sometimes I would spend hours signing for them, often way longer than I was scheduled to.
    However, this was my one afternoon off. I wouldn’t get another one for weeks and I just wanted to see the museum. For just a few hours, I wanted to be normal and enjoy being a tourist in the city.
    The number of people approaching was starting to get overwhelming. I didn’t bring security with me because I didn’t think anyone would pay attention to me. Apparently I was wrong.
    The amount of teenagers and adults alike swarming around me was starting to make it difficult to move – let alone breathe. “Can everyone just take a step back? We can’t take any photos so squished together,” I asked politely. It was starting to get really hot in the crush. I couldn’t see a way out, no matter which way I turned.
    I knew they all meant well but they were suffocating me. I could have spent four hours there and they wouldn’t have got everything they wanted.
    A strong hand gripped my arm and pulled me away. Fearing it was a crazed fan, I resisted. I didn’t want to be dragged to some dark place by someone who wanted me all to themselves. I had heard some terrible stories from my friends back in L.A.
    “Come on, I’m getting you out of here,” Forest whispered when he got close enough. I relaxed when I realized it was his hand clamped around me. He could drag me away – gladly.
    I apologized to everyone as we moved. Forest’s pace was fast, too fast to be able to be stopped again. I didn’t care where he was taking me, as long as it was somewhere I could breathe again.
    The sunshine outside assaulted my eyes as we slipped out an emergency exit, I had to squint several times to be able to see.
    “Mind the steps,” Forest warned. Clearly I looked just as dazed as I felt. He led me down the stairs until we were level with the street. But he didn’t stop there. We turned left and hurried along the road. People were looking at us, some were still following me. I ignored them, hoping my fans would understand.
    “Close your eyes,” Forest ordered me. I obeyed, despite how difficult it was walking without seeing where I was going. He guided me well but it was still disorientating. It felt like I was going to trip over at any moment.
    The sounds of cars were to my right, whizzing by at speed. We stopped for a moment until the beeping of a crossing light started. We kept on walking again.
    I couldn’t say how far we walked, it