Chapter Fifteen #2
“It’s Phillip,” the Brit said, sniffing disdainfully. “Not the crotchety satyr from Hercules. Not a grandma. Not a city in Pennsylvania. And definitely not . . . Actually, I’m not sure where you got Pip from.”
“Pip’s the protagonist of Great Expectations,” Jake offered, because of course he’d know that.
“Nerd,” Leon chimed in with fondness in his tone.
“Actually,” Aspen interrupted, “I was thinking of the singing chipmunk from Enchanted.”
“You gave me a nickname based off a cartoon rodent?” Phillip gasped, pointing an accusatory finger at Aspen. “All right, that’s—”
“Come on, guys,” Jake sighed. “It’s been less than five minutes.”
“US means friendship,” Leon reminded them. “US means family.”
The first part of what he said came from a slogan the band used at one of their concerts once, but I was pretty sure the second part came from . . .
“You watch Lilo and Stitch on the plane again?” Aspen asked.
“No, no, come on, Leon has a point,” Jake acknowledged. “We’re family. We should be able to get along without fighting.”
“Sorry.” Phillip rolled his eyes. “Kind of unexpected coming from you, though, since last I checked— Wait.” Phillip paused, leaning back in his seat to inspect Aspen. “Is that my Armani jacket? You told me you were sending it back to me and instead you partied in it? If you spilled—”
“I didn’t! I promise!”
“Hey!” Jake shouted, interfering again before Phillip could reply.
“I know we fought the last time we were all together, but we get along most of the time, okay? Can we just remember that and move past whatever this is? I don’t even know what you two started bickering about when I walked out, anyway. ”
Phillip frowned and blinked a bit, appearing not to remember either. Not letting that little fact bother him, he glared at Jake and asked, “Who put you in charge?”
“I should be in charge,” Aspen asserted. “I’m the oldest.”
Phillip rolled his eyes. “I think you mean we’re the oldest. You were only born six months before me.”
“Six months can be a lifetime.”
“For what?” Phillip argued. “A mosquito?”
“Actually, male mosquitos only live for about a week,” Leon piped up from his corner, where he’d been sitting in silence.
“Female mosquitos live about six weeks. Fleas and bedbugs are the insects that have a six-month lifespan.” He shrugged at my questioning expression.
“Mom has me doing trivia flashcards every week because she’s afraid I’ll be too distracted to study much on our tour. ”
“Thank you, Leon,” Phillip said politely before turning back to Aspen. “Flea boy.”
“I should’ve just kept not talking to you, everything would’ve been better that way,” Aspen ground out. “You’re the worst brother ever. Maybe I should just forget about this and go home.”
“Yeah, maybe you should.”
Excuse me?
“Guys,” Jake growled. It sounded like he was gritting his teeth.
“Don’t start,” Phillip admonished him. Aspen echoed a little yeah in agreement. Oh, now those two were on the same page? “You can’t act like being together is important when you’ve been the one constantly late to our group activities—if you even show up at all.”
“I was busy writing.”
“We know,” Aspen said. “Whenever you start working on one of your songs, there’s less time for us. Between that and the solo rumors, we can’t help but wonder if the band doesn’t matter as much to you anymore.”
“Of course it matters,” Jake burst out. “It matters the most!”
“Then why don’t you act like it?”
“Why don’t you understand?”
In the rearview mirror, I caught Leon throwing up his hands.
“Jake always makes it when it matters,” he defended.
“He’s never missed a single show. Remember two years ago in Tallahassee?
He was sick as a dog with a one-hundred-and-one-degree fever and still performed at our concert.
The local critic said he sounded like an angel.
” Leon made a face. “Looked like crap, though.”
Jake stared at him flatly. “Thanks, buddy.”
“You were really sweaty. It was gross.”
Phillip frowned. “Aspen used my bespoke cashmere jumper to swipe your sweat off before we went back on for the encore.”
“Bespoke,” Aspen mimicked. “So pretentious. Why do you have to drop brand names all the time?”
“Bespoke is not a brand, it’s— You know what? Never mind.” Phillip shot the entire back seat a glare. “Forget Jake’s possible plans—I’m going solo. Right now. I’m asking Marie to book me a ticket out of here.”
“Not if I ask her to book me one first,” Aspen said stubbornly.
“Do not get on the same flight as me!”
On the radio, someone requested “Under Pressure.”
“Stop!” I shouted, making a sharp turn and pulling the car over. Four heads swiveled to me in surprise.
The idea of one of them leaving and ruining the entire performance for the café was something I couldn’t handle. I needed this. I needed them. But it wasn’t just that either. Aspen’s comment ignited a flash of anger inside me.
“You’re all close friends. And instead of resolving whatever this is, you’ve just let bad feelings fester,” I said, my voice rising. “What were you thinking, ignoring each other and not talking it over? It’s clear that none of you are saying what matters.”
They shifted sheepishly at my question.
“People who are close shouldn’t let things go like that,” I said.
Jake shouldn’t have gone so long without texting me.
I shouldn’t have ignored him when he finally sent an apology.
He should’ve explained what happened. I shouldn’t have changed my number and not told him.
We both should’ve talked. “You shouldn’t do that.
Because you’ll spend years telling yourself you don’t care.
Then, one day, you’ll see each other again, and you’ll realize you’re not over him.
You could never be. Because, in the end, he’s always going to have been your best friend.
” I avoided looking at Jake. “And you won’t know how you both let that much time get away, or who he even is now, only that it’s stupid to be mad at someone who’ll always matter to you. ”
I felt all the anger rush out of me at once.
Because that was the truth. Somehow, I wasn’t mad at Jake anymore.
We fought. We let too much time go by. He should’ve made time to keep up with an old friend.
I should’ve cared to see what new version of himself he was becoming.
Now this new him and me were strangers and we shouldn’t be.
I wanted to know Jake—just as well as I once did.
Phillip, Aspen, and Leon all exchanged sideways glances, before they snuck a look at Jake, who stared openly at me.
“All right,” Aspen said, looking at the rest of them. “I’ll say it first. I’m sorry.”
“Even for the thing with the mic tape?” Leon questioned.
“Yeah, even for the thing with the mic tape,” Aspen replied with a shrug.
“I really didn’t mean for everything to get that crazy.
I don’t like fighting for so long, anyway.
It makes me feel bad. I’d be down to stay and help.
” Then, like a cat trying to keep their cool and act like they didn’t miss you as much as they did, Aspen tacked on, “Just for the cats, I mean.”
He undid his seat belt, shrugged off Phillip’s jacket, and offered it back to him.
“I’d like to apologize as well,” Phillip said as he took his jacket back.
“We all contributed to that fight. I shouldn’t have gotten so mad.
Everything just escalated so quickly.” Reaching back to give Aspen’s shoulder a friendly shake, he said, “You’re always going to be the Gimli to my Legolas.
” He cleared his throat, Public Display of Emotion over with as he added, “I suppose I can deal with you prats on my holiday. For the cats.”
The phrase “you prats” didn’t seem entirely fitting in an apology, but the other boys seemed to take it as an affectionate nickname of sorts.
“Me three,” Leon added. “I’m sorry for, you know, that last bus ride at five in the morning, so I’m staying for the cats.”
All the boys nodded.
“I didn’t mean to make you guys feel like I was moving on,” Jake said quietly. “I didn’t even take the side project offer yet, by the way.” I frowned. He hadn’t? His expression looked impassive as ever. But somehow, I got the feeling his emotions were anything but. “Sorry.”
Phillip and Aspen both seemed to accept this. As they nodded, the tension noticeably dissipated.
“Well, obviously Jake’s staying,” Leon said, his gaze sliding toward him. “You know, for the cats.”
Aspen and Phillip snickered, finding this comment hilarious for some reason. What was so funny?
Jake glared at them all.
“For the sake of team morale,” he said, “I’m going to refrain from threatening to kill you guys.”