Chapter 33
Sydney shrieked as he turned our way and sang, leaning forward, and reached his hand out.
Fingers that slithered across my body so frequently, I immediately began to heat up.
His eyes locked onto mine, tipping his head as a hungry grin filled his face.
His tongue flicked out across his lips, and right before Sydney was able to touch his hand, he tore it away.
She squealed even louder as I bit back a grin, knowing that was on purpose, that he was merely toying with her.
I watched as he danced away to the other end of the stage, wondering if I might be able to spot Nova or Ava.
Both girls said that they enjoyed being in the crowd like regular fans, but it was so jam-packed and dark besides the stage lights, I couldn’t make a single thing out.
The shouts and shrieks heightened, growing louder and louder, and I knew that meant Asher was getting closer.
Elysia’s grin widened as I felt heat swamp my back.
Glancing over my shoulder, I stopped singing.
He was squatting down directly in front of me, belting out the haunting lyrics as he slowly reached forward.
Someone else shoved me from behind just as Sydney tried to jump into the space in front of me.
The stranger’s movement unintentionally pushed her away, and my face landed directly against Asher’s outstretched palm. His fingers danced across my cheek as a shiver trickled down my spine. He subtly winked before snapping back upright and jumping away, returning to the center of the stage.
I remained frozen in place, staring at the vacant spot as someone random slammed against my side once more.
Blinking out of the stupor, I looked at who it was and raised my brows. This time it wasn’t a stranger. Sydney glared at me, her eyes furious and dark.
“Is it true?” she snarled, hissing at me.
“Is what true?” I asked, and she shook her head.
“That was not just him touching a fan.” She crossed her arms, the rage in her eyes shifting to pain.
“I mean, he came to the party. You invited him. Obviously, I’m not some random fan of his anymore.”
She shook her head. “So, Tera lied. You weren’t the girl on the motorcycle with him.”
I sucked in a sharp breath. She’d actually told her. Something I thought would not happen, had. “What are you talking about?” I asked again, pretending to not hear her over the roar of the crowd.
“You know exactly what I’m talking about. How fucking dare you,” she hissed.
And something in me snapped. “How fucking dare you,” I snarled.
Her brows shot up, and she cocked her hip. “Excuse me?”
“I’m done. I thought we were best friends, but I’ve been nothing except a live-in maid for you.
You didn’t even fucking care I was gone for days other than for the reason that I wasn’t making your appointment for you.
And the house was a massive pigsty when I finally came home.
Then you didn’t even bother to make sure I could join you for the shopping trip.
I have done everything for you. Missed out on shit to make sure I could be at your beck and call twenty-four seven.
” I shook my head, a maniacal smile lifting on my lips as the weight of years of suppressed and unacknowledged burdens drifted off my shoulders. “I’m fucking done.”
Sydney’s mouth fell open. “You can’t just be done. What the hell am I supposed to do?”
“Fuck if I care.” I shrugged my shoulders.
“And… and Asher?”
“What about him?”
Rage turned her cheeks bright red. “Tera says—”
“Oh, that.” I brushed my fingers lightly against my face, tracing where he’d briefly touched me. “We fucked.”
“HE’S MINE!” she screamed. “HOW DARE YOU!”
A small amount of unabashed pride raced through my veins. “A lot. More times than I can count.”
“No,” she hissed.
“You remember that bite on the inside of my thigh?”
Her lip curled as her face reddened.
“Yeah, that was him,” I added.
“You little bitch!” she shrieked. Her palm slapped against my cheek, stinging my skin. “You piece of shit. I don’t know why I ever took pity on you.” And she immediately danced away, leaving me without a chance to say something.
Pity? All this time, I’d been nothing but a pity friend.
I remained stuck as the music progressed, and Void shifted into their brand-new single.
A song dedicated to me, but I couldn’t focus.
Listening for Drake to hit the high notes wasn’t something I was capable of, as everything swirled within me.
Maybe admitting to it all, calling Sydney out on her bullshit, had not been the right play.
Plus, I suspected that Danny knew if Tera had shared that with Sydney, and I was terrified of what would come from that.
Something that was supposed to have been a carefree weekend fawning over my secret rockstar boyfriend had quickly crumbled around me.
And I hated to admit that I was extremely terrified, especially knowing part of it was my fault.
It was making me sick to my stomach, and the swaying of the crowd in the pit only made the nausea worse.
Everything in me churned, my cheeks burning with whatever sickness I was feeling. And on top of the wave of turmoil roaring through me, I really needed to pee.
If I skipped out of this concert right now, that would only send red flags up to Sydney, and getting out of this would never be possible. I was trying to figure out if there was any plausible deniability left at this point.
Something tapped my arm, and I blinked, glancing at Elysia as my bottom lip trembled. She gently handed me my phone and gave me a sympathetic smile. “I’m sorry,” she muttered.
I shook my head as the arena suddenly flashed brightly, lights crashing through the darkness. It was over.
Void was gone entirely, the crowd already filtering out of the stadium, and I hadn’t even noticed. I’d been too wrapped up in the all-consuming fear to realize that they’d finished and Asher wasn’t there.
Asher.
My head swung on a swivel as Elysia grabbed my arm and pulled me after Sydney and the rest of the girls.
My feet stumbled as I desperately fought for a way out.
A way to get with him alone. Sydney knew.
I’d known that at some point she would find out, and I was gearing up to face whatever consequences that would bring.
But as we wandered out of the stadium and took a left that led back behind the black curtains lining the stage, it truly hit me.
If Danny knew and was willing to expose me, that was something with a fallout that I wasn’t even sure I could get through.
That was the explosion that had me ready to vomit.
Everything was blurry as I clenched my fists, blindly following Elysia as the stream of people slid down a makeshift hallway and then were shuffled through a door.
Into the back of the actual building that contained the arena.
A large room spanned around us, posters littering what space was available, full of the bands and musicians that had performed here.
There were several doors, leading in all directions, as we were directed to stand in the middle.
I blinked, fighting back the acid in my throat, desperately pleading that Danny wasn’t here. That something stupid wasn’t going to happen. Not yet. My eyes widened, locking onto that familiar face. He was glaring at me from across the room, and I sucked in a sharp breath of air.
No. Why was he here? At the meet-and-greet portion.
It wasn’t like he even liked this band or these guys.
And what was worse was that I could see several of my students packed in this room.
From all hours of the day, students were here with friends and a couple parents. If he said anything, I was doomed.
There was no coming back.
I dry heaved, closing my eyes as another horrible thought entered my already rank mind. If Asher saw him and couldn’t control himself, that would be the end. It seemed that no matter what happened in this room, there was no happy ending.
Within the next few minutes, my life was about to derail into chaos that I wasn’t prepared for, nor could I predict.
“You okay?” Elysia whispered in my ear.
I shook my head, my eyes darting back to Danny, who remained emotionless as he stared at me. She followed my gaze and gasped quietly.
“Everything will be fine.” She tried to reassure me, but I knew she didn’t even believe herself.
“I think I’m going to be sick.” I spun around. Sydney’s eyes tracked me as I pushed through the crowd, desperate to find an exit and then a bathroom.
“Where are you going?” she called out to me, her glare accusatory.
“Bathroom,” I shouted with fervency and crashed out the back of the small group.
My gaze lifted from the floor, latching onto a security guard I recognized. He’d once been my savior when Asher and I had been bombarded with a crowd of girls before, and he was about to be mine again.
“I need the restroom,” I gasped, clutching my stomach. He tipped his head and then nodded.
“This way.” He quietly opened the door we’d come through and let me slip through.
I followed his back, staring at the black shirt as we passed through another door and into a new hallway. The lights flickered, people who worked here running back and forth. They barely even noticed me as he gestured to a bathroom door.
“Thank you,” I gasped breathlessly and rushed into it. Leaning my back against the door, I let out a shaky breath and then began to cry. No more nausea was churning within me; no, I was overwhelmed and so frightened, I once again felt small and helpless.
And there was no escape because this little bathroom break couldn’t last forever.
But I sorely wished it would. Leaving me alone, to be here without anyone or another sound was the solace I’d been seeking.