Harvey
It was just after eight when the text came through. I almost jumped off the sofa in shock. It could only be one person, so I wasn’t surprised to see Killian’s name flick across the screen.
All day, I’d agonised over the note. As a chronic overthinker, every rational and irrational theory had gone through my head.
He was letting me down gently. He’d scarpered early, not wanting to meet up with me after last night’s fiasco. I’d likely never hear from him again, and that would be the end of my one and only friendship since I was eleven.
Or it was exactly how it read, and he’d be in touch later.
I was more than relieved to see it was the latter.
I read the message again. It didn’t sound like he was letting me down but telling me how he’d got on that day. Was he expecting an answer back?
This was where I fell down on social niceties, inexperienced as I was with friendship. Grandma would tell me to call him, but that wasn’t the done thing these days, was it?
I had eyes; I saw memes and shit on Instagram joking about it. It was the only social media platform I had, and that was only because I followed a couple of the guys I played online with. I enjoyed the reels, although there was always some weird shit invading my algorithm.
What should I say? I typed out a quick message.
Harvey: Glad it went well. Good news about the agent. What does that mean for you? Talk soon. Harv.
Harv. Get me being all friendly and shit.
But I did like it when he called me that. It made me feel wanted, stupidly. Not quite a nickname, but it wasn’t Harvey; the name everyone else called me. It made me feel special, but perhaps that was wishful thinking.
Killian: I don’t know yet. Gonna call tomorrow and see what he wants. Were you okay today? Fuck it, I’ll call.
The phone rang a second later, and Killian’s unmistakable voice sounded loud and clear.
“Fuck, Harv. I’m sorry about earlier. I had to get out of there quickly and grab the first train. Will was picking me up early.”
“It’s okay. I knew you had to leave early.” I did, but it hadn’t stopped my mind from going into overdrive. He didn’t need to know that. As far as he was concerned, I was expecting him to be gone. “So, how did it go? You said something about an agent.”
“Yeah, fucking wild. I wasn’t there for long. Only sang a couple of songs; that was all they wanted. Then this guy walks up to me and gives me his card.”
“Was he legitimate?” You never knew these days. Anyone could pose as an agent and take you for all you were worth.
Somehow, I didn’t think Killian had a lot, but I was casting aspersions, putting him in a box he shouldn’t be in.
“Will said he’d heard of him, so I’m guessing he was.”
Who was Will? He’d talked about Seth yesterday but never mentioned Will.
“So, what are you going to do?”
“Call him? It’s a bit out of the blue, if I’m honest. It’s been my dream for so fucking long, and now I don’t know if it’s still what I want. I’m not getting any younger. I’m closer to forty than thirty. Is that too old?”
I didn’t think so, and he certainly had the looks. I’d seen the effect he had on both men and women and didn’t doubt that he could make it.
“You should go for it. You might never get a chance again.”
“True. But what if he doesn’t really like me?”
“You sound like me. I’m the insecure one, not you.”
“You’d be surprised, Harv. I’m not as confident as I come across, you know? I’ve had a lot of shit to deal with.”
“I know you have, but you gotta go for your dreams. Aim high. I know you can do it, Killian.”
