CHAPTER THIRTEEN
“Do I look okay?” Hayley smooths down her hair and then runs her hands over her dress.
It’s tight enough that I’m amazed she can breathe. No wonder she seems so giddy and breathless. She’s literally suffocating.
“You could wear a bedspread and still look gorgeous, and you know it.” All I can do is smile benevolently at her since I’m so cool and experienced now. I already went through all the giggling and blushing and tripping over my tongue on Friday. I’m a veteran of this sort of situation.
For once, I’m the one with the luxury of laughing at her. Lovingly, of course. Always with love. At least, I like to think that’s how she feels when she’s laughing at me.
She winces, turning away from the wall. “What is taking so long? I think an entire family of rats just ran along the wall over there.”
We both pick up our feet and put them on empty chairs, just in case any rodents decide to come over and say hi.
We’re still sitting by the stage, and by now, the rest of the audience has left after fighting for selfies and autographs. Who still collects autographs these days? It took ages for everybody to have their turn with Dustin being kind and generous through what must’ve been an ordeal.
I’m pretty sure I saw a pregnant woman wearing a wedding ring grab his butt, but there were a lot of people around at the time, so I might be wrong.
What is it about him that makes women lose their minds?
Hayley’s practically ready to burst out of her skin.
I’ve never seen her like this in all the years we’ve been friends.
Dustin is now chatting with one of the music writers who made it to the show. I don’t know if he’s the only one who showed up or not. I imagine he’ll tell me all about it since he made it sound like such a big deal over the phone.
I’m a professional writer. I know the power of a few complimentary reviews. My fingers are crossed so hard for him, they hurt.
“This is a huge deal. If he can get music writers to review his performances, people might start looking at him as more than just some guy who used to be famous.”
“Well, he sounded fantastic.” I swear, the girl is ready to swoon. It’s a shame I didn’t bring smelling salts. “I didn’t know he had such a beautiful voice.”
“Even after listening to him so many times?”
“As a grown-up, I mean. It’s not easy for a teenage singer to maintain their voice into adulthood.”
“I didn’t know you were such an expert.” I nudge her with one elbow, grinning. “Did you do a little research last week and not tell me about it? When we were getting ready to see him on Friday, maybe you looked up other former teen superstars to see how they turned out later on?”
She groans softly, giving me a death look. “Can you not make me sound like such a loser?”
“I’m not. If you think you sound like a loser, maybe it’s because you actually are one.” I have to duck when she throws a balled-up napkin at me.
“I wanted to prepare myself for possible disappointment. Is that so wrong?”
“No. In fact, I’d have been surprised if you hadn’t done that.”
Hayley is very much the sort of person who memorizes a restaurant menu long before visiting and then cross-references each dish against recent reviews, so she’ll know exactly what’s worth trying. I can always count on her for recommendations based on the research she’s already done.
Besides, it’s not like I didn’t do exactly what I just described, looking up old singers and seeing whether they managed to sound as good years after the fact. Spoiler: many did not.
Dustin turns away from the writer after shaking his hand.
“Here he comes,” I whisper, and I have to hide a laugh behind my hand when she suddenly sits up a lot straighter, wiping her hands on her thighs the way I did to get rid of the nervous sweat.
When he gets closer to us, I can see the concern etched on his face.
It’s in the lines on his forehead, the crinkles at the corners of his eyes.
His slightly downturned mouth. But it might all be in my head because, in an instant, all that melts away, and he’s smiling wide as Hayley somehow manages to find her feet.
“It’s such an honor to meet you.” Her smile is huge enough that I can almost see her back teeth. When he touches her hand, she giggles in a way I’ve never heard before from her.
Oh, I really wish I were recording this. I would love to play it back for her every time she acts all cool after I’ve made a fool of myself.
“Any friend of Kitty’s.” He smiles. “How did you like the show?”
“Oh, we loved it!” she gushes. “It was so nice of you to have me here tonight. I was devastated at not being able to see you on Friday.”
“You can thank your friend for that.” He winks at her before turning to me. “She was in a hurry to get here, but she still thought of you.”
“What can I say? I’m a saint.”
I also might just as well not be here because Hayley has eyes for nobody but him.
“I just, you know, I think it’s really brave of you to get up there and perform. It’s brave of anybody to do it but especially somebody from your background.”
Brave? Okay, now, she’s straight-up stealing from me. The nerve!
“Brave? How so?” he asks, looking from Hayley to me with his brows lifted.
I don’t think she understands how insulting her observation might seem.
Which is why I clear my throat and step in for her—though honestly, I should let her stew for a little while since she totally parroted what I said earlier and she deserves it, the dork.
“You’re going into this, knowing people expect you to be a certain way and knowing you can’t be that way, but you’re still gracious and smiling and willing to perform something special for them.
No performer knows how their work is going to be received, but you’re brave enough to go out there and share part of yourself with people who might or might not even deserve to have you share with them in such a profound way. ”
“Yes,” Hayley agrees, her head bobbing up and down. “What she said.”
He chuckles a little, glancing at me before turning his gaze to Hayley. “That’s a really beautiful observation. Thank you.”
Even in the room’s dim lighting, it’s clear she’s blushing to the roots of her hair.
“I’m just really impressed with you,” she babbles. “And I’m sure you’ll be back on top in no time.”
Is this what I sound like when my mouth runs away from me and I’m not making sense anymore? I elbow her as gently as I can and hope she takes the hint. It’s like she completely forgot how to behave in public.
“Did you want to go back to your dressing room and freshen up or something?” I offer since somebody has to stop the bleeding and it might as well be me.
Dustin nods, eyes widening. Like he’s relieved I changed the subject. “Yeah, let me do that. Hayley, it was a real pleasure meeting you. Thank you for coming out last minute like this and then waiting around to talk with me.”
“It’s been such a thrill. You don’t have to thank me. I should be the one thanking you!”
“Okay,” I murmur through clenched teeth.
She finally takes the hint and stands down, clamping her mouth shut until I can hardly see her lips anymore. Dustin pats her on the shoulder before moving past us and through a narrow door leading backstage.
Hayley promptly slumps against the table the second he’s away from us. “Oh my God. Did I just make the biggest fool of myself or what?”
“Do I have to answer that question?”
“I think I blacked out for a second there. Did I actually say he was brave? Why did I say that?”
“Because I said it earlier, remember? You totally stole that from me.”
“Ugh. He thinks I’m a loser.” She stares at the door Dustin just walked through. “I can tell.”
“Probably.”
Her head snaps around. “Why didn’t you stop me?”
“I tried! And it worked, right? You would still be talking right now if I hadn’t stopped you.”
“Could you not remind me? Damn it, I’m such an idiot.”
“Who cares what he thinks?”
She shoots me a look.
“Besides, I’m sure he doesn’t think that,” I add. “He’s been down-to-earth with me. And he’s been dealing with people falling all over him for years. Don’t worry about it.”
“Easy for you to say. You’re the one he wants to go out with later.”
I hook a finger under her chin, tilting her face in my direction. “Are you pouting?”
“No.”
“You are!” I don’t even know what to think about this. It seems so completely outside the norm.
She shrugs, chewing her lip. “It’s not easy, meeting somebody you had a crush on for so long and feeling like you’re just another tongue-tied fan.”
I feel so sorry for her; I have to give her a hug. “It’s okay. Really. I’m sure he remembers you the way everybody you ever meet remembers you. As being beautiful and put together and dazzling.”
“You’re just saying that.”
I have to laugh. “I’ve been standing on the outside for years, sweetie. I’ve had the enjoyment of watching how people react to you—men especially. You have an effect on them; you always have. So, for once, you got a little tongue-tied. It was bound to happen someday, right?”
“Just do me a favor,” she begs. She even folds her hands like she’s praying. “If he says anything about me, be nice.”
“Why wouldn’t I? Gosh, are you okay?” I have to reach out and touch her forehead, just in case she actually is sick. I wondered for a minute, but now, I’m truly concerned.
The girl could take out her phone right now and call up at least ten men who would gladly part with a vital organ for the opportunity to spend time alone with her, but she’s losing her mind over this silly situation.
“I’m fine. Sorry. It’s like I’m fourteen all over again and I haven’t gotten my braces off yet and my skin is all spotty.” She even pats her cheeks like she’s afraid pimples popped out in the last few minutes.
“He tends to do that to people,” I murmur. “Believe me, I can relate.”
“I’d better get out of here before I do anything else I’ll never stop kicking myself over.” She pulls on her jacket, shaking her head and muttering to herself. “One opportunity to meet somebody, and I go and act like today’s my first day out in public. Ever.”
Boy, for all these years, I’ve wondered if there was anybody or any situation that could possibly knock her off her game. She’s always so on top of things, always in control. The girl barely breaks a sweat in the middle of a heat wave; she’s so cool.
All it took was meeting someone who’d meant a lot to her back when she had acne and braces.
I guess when push comes to shove, most of us are still those kids, hiding behind makeup and degrees and job titles.
Certain situations put us all on the same level.
Meeting a childhood hero is one of those situations.
I really need to write about this in my book.
I’m taking notes on my phone when Dustin emerges, and I look up with a smile when I hear him walking my way.
It seemed like he was in a pretty good mood when we were chatting, so I guess things went well with the writer.
What does he have in mind now? Being in a good mood, after a successful show, I can just imagine what he might want to do to keep the good times rolling.
Only he’s frowning again, just the way I thought he was when I first saw him a few minutes ago. And this time, there’s no Hayley around for him to perform for. There’s just me, and he clearly feels comfortable enough with me now to let the truth slip out.
“That was one of the worst performances I’ve ever given, and all I want now is a stiff drink.” He’s already on his way past me, out the door to the street, by the time my feet catch up with my brain and I hurry behind him.
So much for letting the good times roll.