Part 2: Family, Fame, and a Phone call

James was sitting in his room when his phone rang. He had washed his clothes, cleaned the flat and talked with his brother. Now he was listening to some music and let his thoughts drift. The caller that interrupted him was Carl. James picked up his phone.

"Hey Carl".
"Hey man. How are you doing? I hope you have slept well"
"To be honest, it could be better," James replied. He had always hated the small talk to start a conversation and had started to answer this question truthfully. "I just found out that my mum was admitted to the hospital."
"Oh man, that's tough. Is it serious?"
"Yeah thanks. To be honest, I don't know. My brother says she might have less than a week, but well, he's a drama-queen. He talked something about cardiac arrest, but it seems the doctors don't yet know what it is. She's staying in the Hospital overnight for a check-up."
"Do you know what you're going to do about it?" Carl asked.
"I'm not yet sure," James said. "My brother wants me to move back to Scotland, but I don't really want to do that. Anyhow, why are you calling?"
"Well, this might be a bit inappropriate, given the circumstances. But I've been talking to Lucas. He thinks we should make an album."
"You're not telling me anything new here, Carl". Lucas was their friend who had procured their gig at the Reeperbahn festival. He worked in marketing for some independent music label and had wanted them to prepare something to cash in since their first few performances. As of yet, they hadn't even printed band shirts.
"Yeah, I know. But he's right. Last night was great. And we can make so much more of it."
"Listen, I'm not in the mood to think about this right now. Can I call you back tomorrow?"
"Ok, but make it quick. The faster we act the better. Lucas is right. We should've done something about this weeks ago"

For the rest of the day, James spent strolling on the Elbe beach, alone, lost in thoughts, and tired. And annoyed. He was annoyed by his brother. Couldn't he be just a bit more factual. Why did he always exaggerate to get more attention? He was annoyed by the timing. Why was it obvious that when he was closer to where he wanted to be than ever before, something like this came up? He was annoyed by the choice he had to make.

He knew the drive of his band colleagues, their will to work. Heck, he knew his own drive. All he wanted to do was to record this album. But what if this was the last chance to spend some time with his mum? His band members wouldn't say it explicitly, but they expected him to double down. He knew what it would come down to. He had to decide between his musical dreams and his family. One part of him wished that his mum had been killed in a car crash. Anything to not make this decision.

Continue to part three