They guys were overseeing the construction of the stage the next day when the pieces were delivered. They knew it would take some time get things set up the way everyone wanted it, but it was time that they were more than happy to spend.
Over a lunch break, they all exchanged a look as they looked at bones of the stage. “This is going to be the largest broadcast even in television history, you know that?” Mike said.
“Yep, we know, brother. I’m pretty sure that we’ve all given that a thought or two since we decided to do this one final show”, Dan responded.
“This is also going to have the largest attendance of any live event in history”, David added as well. His voice sounded a little distracted.
“What’s up, David? You seem like you’re here but you’re not? Having trouble sleeping?”
David shook his head. “No. My mind keeps drifting to what Brie’s doing right now. She’s been nervous about this interview for weeks.”
“Why aren’t you there with her?” John asked. “If it were Kristen, I’d want to be there.”
“I’m not there because 60 Minutes requested that I not be there. They wanted to interview her alone and they’re going to spend all day with her.” He stretched with his arms over his head. After he relaxed he sighed. “I wish I could be there, but it was one of the few stipulations that they placed asked be met.”
“Why?” Mike asked as he took a sip of his water.
“They were afraid that she wouldn’t be candid with me there. Like being frank with them would be impossible with me sitting next to her.” He rolled his eyes in disgust.
“They obviously don’t know Brie very well”, Dan said with a laugh.
“No shit. I just hope that I could comfort her a little last night. We’ve all done our share of interviews, recorded or written. We know how unnerving it can be. She had such bad jitters last night. I was almost at a loss as to what to do. I hate seeing her scared like that.”
“She spent the entire eight years of the Occupation being everyone’s strength and rock. She knows how to be candid.”
“We know that, but CBS obviously doesn’t.” He sighed. “But, I’m sure she’ll do just fine. She might not enjoy the spotlight, but she’s always been well spoken and has never really cared what people thought of what she had to say.”
The guys all grinned and Dan spoke what they were all thinking. “Exactly, that’s the Brie we all know and love. Don’t worry, brother, we all know she’ll do just fine.”
---------------
The cameras were rolling and Brie had been made ready for the camera. She wore her silvering hair straight and around her shoulders and her makeup was modestly done. The woman interviewing her was surprised at how understated she did everything. She made it a point to say so when the cameras started rolling. “Mrs. Draiman, I hope I don’t offend you, but I’m shocked at how modestly you’ve dressed.”
“Dear, it takes quite a bit to offend me. If you ask my husband, this is how I always am. I don’t wear a lot of makeup; never really have. When I straighten my hair, I wear it down. I dress nicely, but I don’t make it a point to dress like a rock star’s wife. The fact that I bare his last name should be enough to make that point well enough.”
“Well, the point is rather obvious. Now, to make things clear, you are the wife of David Draiman, is that correct?”
“It is.”
“He’s a very public figure and very outspoken. How have you managed to stay in the shadows for so many years?”
“I don’t like the limelight. The fact that I’m even doing this should tell you just how special this your program is. I’ve done a few interviews here and there over the 31 years we’ve been together. Maybe two of them have been televised like this one. And this is the only one I’ve done that’s been televised nationwide here in the states.”
“Wow. In 31 years you’ve managed to be the rock world’s best kept secret. Talk about keeping the home life at home. Now, I have to know because the country wants to know. What is it like being married to the Voice of the Resistance?”
“My children have said it, and I’ll reiterate it. At home, David is just a man. He leaves the rock star at the door when he comes home and becomes my husband, lover, and friend as well as the father of my children. When David’s at home, there’s no hype.”
“How hard has it been being his wife though?”
“How do you mean?”
“There have had to have been times where you’ve looked at your life and said, ‘What have I gotten myself into?’.”
“Nope. I knew what I was getting into when I said ‘I do’. I knew what I was getting into with the birth of each of our nine children together. I knew what I was getting into when David adopted our oldest.”
“And that’s something else I wanted to get into. Your oldest son, Malachai. He’s had some issues over the last several years. How has it been being his mother as he worked through all of that?”
“It’s been hard. He’s still having to work through a lot of anger issues toward his birth father. I do what I can as his mother, but I can’t make it better for him. It hurts because I hate to see any of my kids in pain.”
“So, you have ten children.”
“Yes.”
“Three of them we know. We know Malachai and Jordan of Reckless Disregard. And we also know Dr. J. Micah Draiman who is a Nobel Prize recipient. Can you name the other seven for us and tell us what they do?”
“Dr. Draiman’s first name is Jacob, just to let the world know. Right after him and Jordan is Madison. She followed me into massage therapy. After her, David and I have a set of quadruplets. Meagan, Makayla, James and Jeremiah. Meagan is about to take up a position with NASA in the molecular science department. Makayla wants to teach dance to children who didn’t have the same luxuries she grew up with. James is going to Harvard Law School and is about to graduate so that he can take over as legal representation to Intoxication Records. Jeremiah is a teacher at the exact same school he and all of his siblings graduated from. After them is another set of fraternal twins names Jessykah and Marc. Jessykah is attending Loyola at the moment and just finished a semester abroad in Israel where she studied Middle Eastern Language. Marc has a Bachelors’ degree in Audio/ Visual technology and Computer Graphics and is going to be working on the new JJ Juarez film that’s coming out sometime this year.”
“Wow. Your kids have taken a wide range of interests. Now, how did you end up with quads?”
“We had to find a surrogate. The entire pregnancy, the OB told us that the young woman was only carrying the two girls. The boys were a complete and total surprise.”
“Why did you have to find a surrogate?”
Brie paused and took a deep breath to steady herself. She should have figured that this was going to come up. “I… I had a really bad miscarriage in between Maddie and the quads. My body betrayed me before I was ready for it to.” She swallowed the lump in her throat. “It was hard on David and I both.”
Stefanie Fiore, the interviewer, blanched when she saw the tears glistening in Brie’s eyes. “I’m so sorry, Mrs. Draiman. I’m sure it’s painful.”
“It is, even twenty- six years after the fact. The Occupation was a difficult time for me and everyone else.”
“Everyone assumes that period of time was actually pretty easy on all concerned. No one knows what the band and their families really went through during that time. Why don’t you share a little of what actually happened with us?”
Brie wiped her eyes with a tissue, took a deep breath, and began to outline the horror she lived during the Utopian Occupation so many years before. Every birth of every child, watching her brother’s trial… everything she experienced. There wasn’t a single detail that she wanted to spare the American public about what they went through. No more misconceptions. People needed to know that the band didn’t have a picnic during the time they were all in hiding. It was just as hard on them as it was on everyone else in the nation. It was time that people knew.
---------------
He sighed when he walked into the hotel room. He was tired. He had to correct the foreman more times than he could count on the way the stage was supposed to be set up. And he wasn’t the only one. He was sure that the other guys were walking into their homes or hotel rooms and heaving a heavy sigh. “It has been a hell of a day”, he said as he sat down on the couch.
She came out of the bathroom in her pajamas and sat down next to him, curling against his side. “You can say that again.”
“Did I see you out at the park with the crew for the interview?”
“Yep. They wanted to see what was going on out there and so did I. I’m glad the stage is finally together. Now for all the lighting and rigging and stuff like that, huh?”
“Yeah, and the guys and I have to do a radio interview tomorrow.”
“Who set that up?”
“Our wonderful manager, Jeff Battaglia. He got wind of what we were planning from Lauren. He called Danny to confirm then set up the interview. There are several radio interviews that we have to do. Thankfully, the stations that are out of state that will be covering this event will be coming out here to interview us.”
“Doing any TV interviews?”
“A few. Most of them will be scattered through the time we’re out there. The other bands will all be out here next week to start rehearsing. We’re going to have the lighting and rigging crews working day in and day out to get the stage set up.”
“Did you ever talk to Marc about running being the A/V producer for all of this?”
“Yeah. He’ll be the first of our kids out here and he’s bringing Mercedes.”
“So, he agreed to do it?”
“More than agreed. He practically begged. He came to ME about it. He said it would look amazing on his resume.”
“Well, yeah. A production of this caliber will be huge on his resume.”
“At least he’s willing to work for everything. All of our children are.”
“We instilled a good work ethic in them. We worked for everything we had.”
“That we did. Even before we married, you busted your ass for everything you had. I busted my ass for what I had.”
“Nothing was handed to us and nothing was handed to our children.”
“And you and I both know that Jordan and Malachai will be the first ones to say that.”
“True. And Jake will be the first to agree with them.”
She sighed. “I can’t believe it’s almost over.”
“I thought you were excited about this?”
“I am, but I’m still shocked that it’s so close. I mean, it’s ACTULLY almost over. You’re about to retire for good, and I’m going to have you all to myself until the day one or both of us dies.”
“Well, if we go at the same time, wouldn’t that imply that you have me to yourself even after death?”
She laughed. “I guess it would.”
The lapsed into silence for several minutes as they watched the news. The local news channel had a ticker in the bottom left corner of the screen counting down the time until the show. They were going to be covering it live. He just sighed and rolled his eyes as he pulled up the guide to change the channel. After he found something he was sure they would both enjoy, he broke the silence. “You know, I was thinking about something earlier.”
She looked up at him from where her head was resting in his shoulder. “Uh- oh. What might that be?”
“You make it sound as though what I was thinking was bad.”
“When you start thinking, I start worrying because I know you. You were probably thinking about asking me to do something asinine.”
“Would you consider asking you to come out onstage with me and singing one song be asinine?”
She sat up and looked at him like he’d lost his mind. “Are you insane?”
“Probably”, he said with a laugh. “You sang with me during Family Jam Nights during and after the War.”
She nodded. “I did on a couple of occasions. I won’t deny that.”
“Then why won’t you come onstage and sing with me during my final show ever?”
She eyed him carefully. “Convince me.”
“What are the parameters?”
“Verbal argument first. If you can’t soften me up, then you can resort to other means.”
He smiled. “You know you want to, Brie. Just give in and come onstage with me. It’s a total rush.”
“But what about the fact that I don’t like the limelight?”
“It’s my last show, baby. Can’t you give me this just this one time?”
He gave her a face that looked so pitiful. She was going to have trouble staying strong. “If I give in, what do I get out of it?”
“The thrill of getting to perform in front of millions of people worldwide.”
“No, what are you going to give me to entice me into doing this?”
“I have to give you something?” he laughed.
“Or promise to do something for me.”
“Name it. You know I’d give you the world if I could.”
She studied him for a moment. “Nah, that’s too easy. You need to earn it.”
He slipped an arm around her waist and pulled her closer to him. “What do I have to do to earn it?” he growled in her ear.
A shiver shot down her spine. “Dear Lord”, she breathed softly.
“What’s the matter, baby? Am I breaking through that wall?”
She shivered again. “You don’t fight fair.”
“No. I don’t. I’m not supposed to. I’m trying to get my way.” He pressed lips to her throat and kissed softly. “Say yes.”
She moaned softly then said, “No”, as adamantly as she could muster.
He pulled her into his lap as he continued kissing up the length of her throat. “Say… yes”, he said in between kisses.
“No.”
“That’s it.” He lifted her and carried her to the bed after turning off the TV. He was sure that they were going to make plenty of noise, but he really didn’t care. As long as he got what he wanted, he really didn’t care.”
---------------
They lay in bed, exhausted. “Say yes”, he said as his chest rose and fell in heaves.
“Why?” she panted in return.
“Because it would mean the world to me to have you come onstage with me to sing during this final show. At least say you’ll think about it.”
“I’ll think about it, but I doubt that I’ll do it.”
“Why?”
“Because I was scared shitless today while I did that interview with 60 minutes. And, you know how I don’t like the be in the limelight. The only way I would possibly consider it would be if the other wives were onstage too, and I don’t see that happening either.”
He nodded. “I understand. It sucks, but I understand. I still bet you did well in that interview.”
“And at least I gave you a chance to convince me to do it.”
“Yeah. Too bad it didn’t work.”
She sighed and snuggled in close. “Yeah. If there were going to be a next time I’d say, ‘Better luck next time’.”
He kissed her forehead. “It’s ok, baby. At least you’ll be here for this one. That’s really what matters.”
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