Still, the longer I waited, the worse my worry got, my brain conjuring up a whole array of horrors that could’ve befallen him since we’d parted in the parking garage last night. I’d seen him as we were driving away, camouflaged behind the concrete pillar. How was it fair that I was going back to everything while he had absolutely nothing? Where would he go? Would he be cold? Hungry? Would rats be nibbling at his toes?
I’d wanted to scream at Hudson to stop the car so I could get out and rescue my drummer boy. But then what? What would I do with him after that? I couldn’t just pick Beats up and bring him home. He needed long-term help. He needed off the streets. Would he even go? Beats put up a good front, the picture of confidence riding atop his drummer’s throne, but there was a fragility to him too, like a teacup dangerously close to the counter’s edge. One small bump and over he’d go. Someone needed to help him, and as much as I wished that someone could be me, I was a teenager with limited resources. What Beats needed was a village.
My phone buzzed, and for a split second, I thought it was him letting me know why he was tardy. But then reality snapped me back. Beats had no way to call me or even to tell time. If he didn’t show up today, there was a good chance I’d never see him again. A sick feeling twisted in my gut as I glanced down at my phone.
Unknown
Hey. It’s Mia. Hudson gave me your number
I made a face. Not now. I already knew I’d been uninvited to her party. Hudson had informed me on the car ride home last night. And honestly, I didn’t care. I had bigger things to worry about now.
Grace
Hey
Mia got straight to the point.
Super disappointed I didn’t get to meet Jake
I stared at her words, wanting to blast her but choosing restraint.
I couldn’t get backstage. Hudson had my ID and phone
There was a long, dotted wait for her response and then a series of lightning-fast texts.
Yeah, he told me what happened
I suppose it wasn’t really your fault
You can still come to my party
With conditions…
Conditions? The nerve. I wanted to block her right then and there, but curiosity got the best of me.
Grace
?
Ask Jake to record me a birthday message
Something I can play at the party
Think of it like a goodwill gesture
A way to gain back my trust
I laughed. She couldn’t be serious. Like Jake would even do that. My fingers hung over the keys, undecided how they wanted to address her conditions. Yesterday I probably would have catered to them, scrambling to make amends. I might even have begged Jake to make all my tormentor’s birthday wishes come true. After all, Mia had the means—and the mean spirit—to socially destroy me. But somehow, none of that mattered to me anymore. It was as if I’d grown up in a day. Beats’ plight had put my own life into perspective. I was done being a follower. From now on, I made my own rules, and if that meant I’d spend the rest of high school on the couch eating popcorn with Quinn, so be it.
You still there?
She typed.
Yes. Still here
It occurred to me then that I had something she desperately wanted; what all the kids at school craved from me. Access to Jake. And that was mine alone to give or take.
Grace
