Chapter Thirteen
Chase
Chase drove away from Kath’s house with his hands tight on the steering wheel, the melody they’d been working on still looping in his head.
The session had felt like magic. Her words and his music had clicked together so naturally it was almost scary.
For those couple of hours, everything else—the upcoming Michigan show, the weight of his last name, the constant background noise in his mind—had gone quiet.
But something had shifted near the end.
He’d seen it in her face the moment he mentioned Bonnie. The way her eyes widened, the sudden tension in her shoulders, the too-quick laugh that didn’t sound like her. She’d shut down fast after that, finding an excuse to check on Maudie and gently steering him towards the door.
He wasn’t mad. He was worried.
Chase pulled into his spot in Bear’s driveway and sat in his truck for a long minute, engine off, staring at the garage door.
The blue-and-white bike she rode kept flashing in his mind.
The way she’d looked at him when they were writing—open, hopeful, a little scared.
Then the walls had come back up so fast it made his chest ache.
He finally climbed out and headed into the garage. Benny was there alone, messing with a pedalboard.
“Hey,” Chase said, dropping onto a stool. “Got a minute?”
Benny looked up and nodded. “Always. What’s up?”
Chase rubbed the back of his neck. “I was over at Kath’s earlier. We were working on that song I told you about—the one her lyrics inspired. It was...really good. Like, stupidly good. We were trading lines, and it just flowed.”
Benny grinned. “That’s awesome, man.”
“Yeah.” Chase stared at the floor. “But when I mentioned that Bonnie offered to listen to her stuff, she kind of...freaked out. Not obviously, but I could see it. She got really quiet after that. Shut down. I think realizing I’m connected to you guys—to Bonnie and Vic and the whole OY thing—hit her hard. ”
Benny set the pedalboard aside and gave Chase his full attention. “She got overwhelmed?”
“I think so.” Chase let out a slow breath. “She’s got a lot going on at home. Her sister, money stuff, her mom bailing on them...I don’t want to add pressure. But I really like her, Benny. Like, more than I’ve liked anyone. When we’re together, it feels easy. Until it doesn’t.”
Benny was quiet for a moment, then said gently, “Sounds like she’s got some tough barriers. Probably had them around long before she met you. Just know that you can’t tear them down for her, but you can show her you’re willing to wait while she figures out how to open the gate.”
Chase nodded. That made sense. It was exactly what he’d been trying to do.
“I just don’t want her to think I’m hiding anything,” he said. “Or that my world is too much. Because right now...she feels like part of it. The best part.”
Benny clapped him on the shoulder. “Then keep showing up as yourself. The music, the bike rides, the quiet talks. If she’s the right one, she’ll see that you’re not just ‘Mason’s kid’ or ‘the guy in OY.’ You’re Chase. And from what you’ve told me, that’s exactly who she seems to like.”
Chase felt some of the knot in his chest loosen. “Thanks, man.”
“Anytime.” Benny picked up his guitar again. “Now play me that melody you keep talking about. I want to hear what’s got you so twisted up. Show me those changeups you said you’ve put in. That tune was tight and strong then, can’t wait to hear more.”
Chase laughed softly and reached for his acoustic. As he started playing the warm, rolling progression they’d worked on with Kath’s lyrics still fresh in his mind, he let himself hope.
She might be scared.
He might be nervous.
But the music they made together felt like something worth fighting for.
Chase felt ready to fight for it—slowly, patiently, and honestly.
Just like he’d promised her.
***
Kath
Kath closed the front door behind Chase and leaned against it for a long moment, eyes shut, heart still racing from the way the evening had felt like it was building towards something...more.
She could still feel the warmth of his presence on the couch.
The way his voice had wrapped around her lyrics.
The soft, focused look in his eyes when he played that melody he said came from her words.
For a little while, it had felt like they were the only two people in the world—creating something real together.
Something that made her chest feel tight in the best possible way.
She’d wanted him to kiss her tonight.
She’d wanted to let him.
Instead, the second he mentioned Bonnie Dupont—the Bonnie Dupont from Blazeborn and Occupy Yourself—she heard a buzzing in her ears and was suddenly lightheaded.
All she could picture was how small her life must look compared to his.
Coffee shop shifts. A sister passed out from drinking.
A mountain of her mother’s debt hanging over them like a storm cloud.
And her—just a girl with a notebook and a bike she probably couldn’t afford.
She’d panicked. Shut down. Practically pushed him out the door with some ridiculous excuse about checking on Maudie.
“Ugh, why am I so lame?” she whispered to the empty hallway, pressing her forehead against the cool wood of the door.
She wanted to text him. Wanted to tell him she was sorry for going weird.
That she’d been enjoying every second with him until her brain reminded her why she didn’t let people get close.
That the intimacy she’d felt building between them—the kind that went beyond flirting and music—had felt terrifyingly good.
But she didn’t reach for her phone.
Instead, she walked down the hall and quietly opened Maudie’s door. Her sister was still out cold, breathing shallowly, looking younger and more fragile in sleep. Kath stood there for a long moment, watching her, the familiar mix of love and exhaustion twisting in her chest.
This was her life.
This house. This debt. This fear that she’d wake up one day and realize she’d become exactly like their mother—chasing sparks that always burned out and left everyone else to clean up the mess.
She closed Maudie’s door gently and went to her own room. She dropped onto the bed without changing, staring at the ceiling, notebook still clutched in her hand.
The melody Chase had played kept echoing in her head. Warm. Steady. Hopeful.
Just like him.
She wanted to let him in.
She wanted to believe she could be the kind of girl who deserved someone who looked at her the way Chase did—like she was worth slowing down for.
But right now, all she felt was the heavy weight of how badly she’d fumbled the night.
Kath rolled onto her side and pulled her phone out. She opened her messages with Chase, thumbs hovering over the keyboard.
She typed:
*Sorry I got weird at the end tonight. I had a really good time. Thank you for coming over.*
She stared at the message for a long time...then deleted it.
Not tonight.
She wasn’t ready to explain why she’d panicked. Not when she was still trying to figure it out herself.
Instead, she opened her notebook to a fresh page and started writing, the words coming fast and a little angry at herself.
Girl with walls built high and deep
Scared of the boy who makes her want to leap
One mention of his world and she starts to run
When all she really wants is to stay and see what they’ve begun
She closed the notebook and turned off the light.
Tomorrow.
Maybe tomorrow she’d be brave enough to tell him the truth.
That she was falling for him.
She was falling for him, and that was terrifying.