Chapter 4
Home and Family
Eric kept his word to Justin, after each show he would be quizzed by the guys. At first Eric managed to get more than half the answers right. And after each show he was again quizzed and his score improved each time.
Eric was headed toward the guy's dressing room when he met up with Joey.
“Hey, Eric!” Joey said as he draped an arm over Eric’s shoulder. “How’s it going?”
“Good, Joe.”
“You ready for the test?”
“Sure, I’m always ready.”
“Now, how many questions are you planning to miss tonight?” Joey asked.
Eric stopped, turning to Joey, “What?”
“Oh, yeah. I meant to ask how many of Justin’s questions you going to miss tonight?”
“I, I don’t know what you are talking about.” Eric stammered. “Justin’s questions are really hard.”
“Yeah, sure. You say so. . . . But personally, I think you like the attention you’re getting from Justin.”
Joey laughed, as Eric turned red. “Is it that obvious?”
“To everyone but Justin,” Joey said. Getting serious, “Eric, I don’t know how to ask this.”
“Ask what?”
“Do you have feelings for Justin?”
“Of course,” Eric answered quickly.
Joey’s face showed a little shock.
Eric soon realized what Joey was thinking. “Joe, it’s not what you are thinking.” Eric paused to pick the right words. “I’m not gay. What I feel for Justin is different.”
“Exactly what are your feelings for Justin?”
“Justin is the first real close friend I’ve ever had,” Eric admitted. “When we first met something just clicked between us. It’s like we’ve know each other all our lives. Yeah, I do have feelings for him. He’s my best friend; he’s also the brother I’ve always wanted. I love him as a brother.”
Joey let out a long sigh of relief.
To Joey’s amusement that night Eric got all the questions right. Everyone was still a little hyper when they boarded the tour bus to head to the last city on their tour. Everyone was sitting in the lounge talking when Joey asked Eric a question, “Eric, you’ve been with us for almost six weeks now. But we know very little about you. What kind of childhood did you have?”
“Joe!” Justin snapped giving him the evil eye.
“It is all right,” Eric said to Justin. “My childhood. . . Well I should start off by saying I was raised by my grandparents.”
“What happened to your parents?” Lance asked.
“My grandfather told me my mother died soon after childbirth.”
“I’m sorry to hear that,” Justin softly said.
“Thanks. . . My father may as well have died also. I saw very little of him.”
“Is he still in your life?” JC asked.
“No. He passed away a few months ago. He was killed in an accident.”
“God, I’m so sorry,” Joey said. “To lose both parents is ruff.”
“It’s not so bad. Remember my grandparents raised me. I knew nothing of my mother and almost nothing of my father.”
“What kind of house did you grow up in?” Chris asked trying to lighten the subject.
“Oh, I grew up in a palace,” Eric said with a slight laugh.
“Yeah. Sure.” Chris said in disbelief.
“I did! My grandfather works for the royal family of Livonia. And because of that we had quarters in the royal palace.”
“Just think,” Chris said in wonder. “To live in a palace.”
“Actually two palaces. There was the big palace in the capital and the summer palace in the mountains. That palace was a lot smaller; only 128 rooms.”
“128 rooms!!” Chris choked. “What did they have in the big palace?”
“I’m not sure,” Eric pondered. “I think I saw a tourist brochure that said there was 260 rooms. But I’ve never been in all of them so I only have what the brochure said to go on.”
“Wasn’t it lonely, living in the palace?” Lance asked.
“No. I had a playmate, the young crown prince. We are the same age. I became his companion. We went to school together. At first we had tutors. They when we turned eight we were sent off to boarding school.”
“Oh man, sent to boarding school. You were so young,” Justin lamented.
“It wasn’t that bad. We traveled back to the palace each weekend and all the holiday breaks.”
“At one time I think you said you had attended university. Is that right?” Lance asked.
Eric nodded. “I attended the same schools the crown prince did. We attended Cambridge. I finished my studies last term.”
“What did you study?” Lance asked.
“Business Administration with minors in theater arts and music.”
“Will you be able to get a job with those qualifications?” Justin asked.
Eric rolled his eyes. “It helped get me this job.”
“Oh, yeah,” Justin mumbled a little embarrassed.
“Actually I had a job lined up before I finished university.”
“What kind of job?” Chris asked.
“I’m working for the royal family. My title is Minister of Cultural Affairs.”
“Oh, wow!” Justin said in amazement. “What exactly does that mean?”
Eric laughed, “I book acts for the royal family and my country.”
“You’re a booking agent?” Chris asked.
“Yes, among other things. When I wasn’t in school I had the responsibly of scheduling the entertainment for the three festivals held each summer. The proceeds from these festivals add millions to the Livonian economy.”
“I don’t know anything about Livonia,” JC said. “There is a royal family. Who is the king?”
“There is no king. Livonia is a principality like Monaco. It is ruled by Prince Richard Frederick and Princess Elizabeth Frederick.”
“Like Monaco!” Joey asked his interest perked. “Do you have casinos?” .
“And topless beaches?” Justin inquired.
“No. Unlike Monaco, which is on the Rivera. Livonia is located near Switzerland. It is a mountainous country.”
“What language do they speak?” Chris asked. “French, Swiss, Italian?”
“English,” Eric said off handed. Everyone seemed to have a puzzled look on their faces. “Swiss used to be the official language. During World War II, Price Richard worked with American Intelligence to help defeat the Nazi. Publicly Livonia was a neutral country like Switzerland but behind the scenes we were helping the Allies. When he assented the throne in 1955 the first thing he did is change the official language to English.”
“Sounds like a cool country,” Justin said. “How is the skiing?”
“Fabulous, and our ski season is quite long. The country is surrounded by mountains, keeping the warm Mediterranean winds at bay.”
“Will we get to see your country while on tour?” JC asked.
Eric smiled. “You just might. I’ll see what I can do.”
TBC