Chapter 26
Alara
H e asked me to spend the day with him, and I'm not going to lie, it's pretty tempting. There's just been so much happening over the last twenty-four hours that I think I need some time to breathe.
No. I need some time to sit with my best friend and gossip about how I'm about to go on tour with a bunch of ridiculously famous men.
I need a night of normalcy. Which is why I excused myself to the bathroom so I could call said best friend.
I need to make sure she can come to my house before I formally decline my boyfriend.
Boyfriend. I'll never stop getting excited to call him that. I bring up her name in my contacts, press the FaceTime button, and wait for her to pick up.
"Hellooooo, boo boo."
I smile. "Have you been drinking?"
Before confirming or denying, she pulls the phone screen closer to her face to study the room behind me.
"Where the hell are you? That looks like a fancy sink. Is that a fancy sink?"
"You're never going to believe me." I smirk .
"Holy shitballs!!" She screams and jumps in circles. "You're with them, aren't you?"
I laugh, whispering, "Can you chill? I don't want them to hear you."
"OH MY GOD!! Alara... I swear if you don't tell me everything this instant, I'm going to lose my shit."
"You're already losing your shit."
"One sec." She takes a few deep breaths, shaking her shoulders around all dramatically before crossing the room to sit on her orange recliner. "Okay, I'm ready."
"It started off super weird. When I got here and introduced myself, everyone except Nix freaked out. They were kind of rude, actually."
"Rude how?" she asks as I begin to pace back and forth.
"I told them I was thankful for the opportunity, and if they didn't like my voice, that was okay. The lead singer–"
"Ender," she interrupts.
"Yeah. He was like, 'Oh, that's all you have to say to us?' Like, sorry, bro, I don't know what else you want me to say. Should I have gotten on my knees and kissed his feet to thank him for the opportunity? The fuck?"
"That does sound weird.”
"Yeah, and then they all ran off, leaving me to stand there awkwardly by myself. I was this close to leaving." I hold my fingers up to reveal a one-inch measurement.
"EW. I liked them too. Nope, not anymore. Down with them all," she mocks, making me grin .
"You can still like them. They came back out and apologized."
"Okay, good, because Ender is hot as fuck. It would make me really sad to find out he's a shit human." She leans back in her chair, waiting for me to tell her more.
"He's definitely an asshole, but there's something to him that I can't quite place. It's like he's struggling and puts this act on to keep people at a distance."
"It sounds like you know him more than you're leading on." She raises a brow.
"I barely talked to him. There was just something about him." It's a deep feeling in my gut that, for some reason, I have to trust.
"Sounds like you might like the guy, even if he's being a bit difficult. Do you have a thing for bad boys, Alara?" she teases.
"Not funny. I'm with Nix." I set her straight. I'm perfectly content with the one rockstar I am currently dating.
"You're thinking about it, aren't you?" She smiles.
"Stop being annoying." I roll my eyes even though she's not exactly wrong.
"Did you end up singing for them, or are you calling me because you got into some kind of trouble? The fact that you're alone right now is a bit concerning."
"If you would stop interrupting me, I would get to all that."
"Get to it faster." She waves her hand.
"I sang the same song I've been singing at the bar, and they loved it. They offered me the job. "
"NO WAY!!" She squeals. "The way I would KILL to be you right now. How the hell did you get so lucky?" She leans in closer to the phone again. "Alara, this is crazy. You know that, right?"
"Trust me. I know. I'm just kind of going through the motions." I bring my hand up to rub the back of my head.
A sound from the hallway catches my attention, only this time it sounds like someone is headed in this direction.
"I have to go. I need you to come over tonight. We can talk about everything."
"Done. Just let me know when you get home. I'll even bring the wine you like again."
"You do love me," I joke.
"Sometimes." She pauses. "Either that or I'm trying to get my bestie to introduce me to her boyfriend and his bandmates."
"You're shameless," I tease. "I'll see you in a bit."
I hang up before she can say anything else, because I've already spent too much time in here.
They're probably thinking I got lost or am wandering around somewhere.
I glance in the mirror, realizing I have no idea what the hell I'm doing.
Regardless, it's time to get back out there so I can go home.
When I open the door, I'm not paying attention to where I'm going and walk directly into someone. My eyes flick up to meet rich brown ones, except they're not the ones I was expecting. Lane stands before me, staring before slowly bringing his hand up to swirl a piece of my hair between his fingers.
"I like this color on you. It makes the greens of your eyes look more emerald. "
"Thank you." I blush, unsure of what else to say. He's standing so close, and it feels inappropriate.
"Most people couldn't rock a color like that. It takes personality to pull it off."
"I don't know about that. I bet you could pull it off, too, if you wanted," I joke, thinking there's no way he would ever agree with me, as I take a step back.
"Maybe I could. Should I dye it to match yours?" He raises a brow.
Part of me wants to say something witty and push him away, but you know what, why not go with this? It could be an opportunity to bond with him since we're about to spend several months around each other all the time.
"I'm actually getting ready to refresh mine. I could do yours, too, if you want."
His eyes light up, and he nods enthusiastically. "We can do it tomorrow. You can do my hair and then have dinner with us after."
"Wait, what?" I'm taken aback.
"Do you already have plans for tomorrow?"
"Well, no."
"Then come over to do my hair and stay for dinner." He shrugs.
"Hey, is everything okay?" I hear someone call from down the hallway. Nix appears a moment later, slapping a hand on Lane's shoulder .
Lane turns to him, grinning. "Alara’s coming over tomorrow. She's going to dye my hair."
"Oh, she is?" Nix raises a brow, glancing at me.
"I am. I guess I’m staying for dinner too."
"Nice. We can see if Ender will make his famous chicken parm," Nix adds.
"Sounds good." I glance around, letting my nerves get the best of me. "I should head out. I'm supposed to be meeting up with Rayne in a bit."
"I'll walk you out." Nix holds out a hand, and I take it.
Looks like I have more to discuss with Rayne tonight. Apparently, I’m dying Lane’s hair to match mine and having dinner with the whole band.