Beautiful One (3 page)

****

Melissa and the guys were still in the garage. My fingers mindlessly glided across the keys of the piano in our living room. I had my own practicing to do, but I was glad I'd stayed in the garage for as long as I had. That was the longest conversation I'd ever had with Aidan. Even though I only said a few words. At least it was more than
Hi
.

I was lost in the sweet sounds of the piano while I belted out the last chorus of “Desert Song.” When I finished, I opened my eyes to Aidan standing next to the piano. His gaze was so intense I felt butterflies in my stomach.

“Liz, your voice is incredible. Mason always said you could sing, but I had no idea you were so good. That was amazing. Seriously.”

I couldn't help but blush when Aidan slid in next to me and his arm briefly touched mine sending a chill down my spine.

“Thanks, Aidan,” I murmured.

“With your voice, you totally should sing with the band. It'd be awesome!”

“No, it's just not my thing.” I began plinking the keys.

Aidan grabbed my hand, his blue eyes focused on mine.

“I'm serious. You're great. Why won't you think about it?”

His attention was so focused on me. It was like he couldn't understand why I wouldn't jump at the chance.

I swallowed, trying to find my voice, and finally answered, “I'm busy at school with a bunch of AP classes, and I sing with the band at church. So, I don't have the time.” There. That sounded pretty convincing. There was no way I was going tell Aidan I was too scared to put myself out there. It was hard enough singing at church.

Aidan let go of my hand and shook his head in frustration.

“What a waste, that's too bad.” He rubbed his hands on his knees, cracked his knuckles, gave me a smirk, and began playing chopsticks. It made me giggle. Then he stopped tapping the keys and moved closer toward me, “I've been wanting to ask you something. I know you're smart and I suck at calculus. I'm having a hard time with the formulas, and my grades are starting to slip. Would you be willing to help me out? My dad would pay you… what do you think?”

My heads was spinning —
What do I think? I'm freakin' out. That's what I think!
I was able to hold it together enough to say, “Sure, I can do that.”

“Okay, great. Let me have your number.”

I rattled off my number, and Aidan programmed it in his phone.

He texted me the word
thanks
. A slow smile spread across his face, then he slid out from the piano bench and walked toward the front door. “I'll text you.”

When the door closed, I sat there for a minute, staring at my cell phone then added him to my contact list.

Did that actually happen?

When realization set in, I jumped up from the piano bench and ran to the front window to make sure his truck was gone. Certain that he had left, I made my way to the door that led into the garage and peeked my head inside.

“Melissa… you're not gonna believe this!”

Several days had passed since I gave Aidan my cell number. I kept picking up my phone, trying to will the text to come through. While shredding carrots on the third night of anxiously waiting, my cell phone vibrated from my back pocket. The air left my lungs when I saw his name flash across the small screen.

Aidan:
Hey Liz, Does twice a week work for you?

Me:
Sure
.

Twice a week!

Aidan:
How about Mon & Thurs? I'll work it out so I'm off on those days.

Me:
Sounds good. Where do you work?

Aidan's Facebook page wasn't set to private, so I had already stalked him. I knew where he worked, but he didn't know I knew that.

Aidan:
I'm a valet at a ritzy hotel.

Me:
Do you like it?

Aidan:
The tips are good. Does 8 work for you?

Me:
Sure
.

Aidan:
Ok, bye.

The thought of Aidan coming over in a few days was getting to me.

How am I going to tutor him? I can hardly look at him he's so cute. What was I thinking? Why did I say yes?

“Liz… Liz!”

I looked up from what I was doing and then back at the cutting board covered in carrots.

“That's more than enough,” Mom said.

“Oops, sorry.” I added half of the carrots to the salad and put the rest in a plastic bag.

My mom finished getting the meal on the table. Mason put out the plates while my dad grabbed the milk. I placed a small chicken breast on my plate, followed by a large portion of salad with low-cal dressing.

Mom glanced over my plate, “How much weight have you lost now, Liz?”

I rattled off, “Fifteen pounds.”

Dad eyed me with a loving smile. “I'm proud of you, sweetie. Maybe I should join you,” he said and patted his belly.

“Thanks, Dad.” I giggled.

Mom chimed in with a grin, “It's almost time to go shopping again!”

“Oh, Mom.”

When I sat down I noticed Mason wasn't being his usual, upbeat self. “Hey, Mase? Are you okay?” I whispered.

“Just tired.” Mason pushed his food around his plate.

“I have some news.” All eyes focused on me.
“Umm, I got a job. Well, sort of.” I took a sip of my water before I continued. “I'm going to tutor Aidan Mitchell.”

Mason's head snapped my way, but he didn't say anything.

“He seems like a sweet boy.” Mom seemed pleased with the idea.

“I don't know him that well,” I confessed.
But I'm sure hoping to.
I felt myself smile at the thought.

Mason was quiet for a few minutes and then excused himself from the table.

****

Maggie and I began our walk at a brisk pace, spurred on by the fact it was Saturday, and I had lost another three pounds.

Weight loss today. Eighteen pounds! Yes!

I stood next to my usual streetlamp, braced myself, and began to stretch. When I saw a moving van in front of Mrs. Chapman's house, it tugged at my heart a little bit, but I was so curious I stopped stretching and walked down the street to get a better look. I strategically placed myself behind a large tree so I was able to observe my new neighbors without being seen.

The first thing that caught my eye was a baby grand piano. I had always wanted one. Playing the baby grand at church was awesome. My upright at home paled in comparison. They also unloaded a couple of electric guitars and a beautiful acoustic one. From what I could see, the furniture was nice too. Off to the side of the moving van were a few dirt bikes and a sleek black motorcycle. In the garage was a bunch of camping equipment, and a red
jeep
.

These people liked to have fun.

A couple of boys came bounding out of the front door, pushing each other and laughing. An attractive older woman followed, her long dark hair was pulled up in a ponytail. I heard myself gasp when I watched what walked out of the door next. This guy was attractive… seriously attractive. His shoulder-length hair was a deep brown tousled mess, but it worked for him, in a good way. I was too far away to make out his eye-color, but his body.
Yikes!
The form-fitted grey shirt he was wearing left nothing for the imagination. His sleeves were pushed up, and tattoos were peeking out on his left forearm. This guy was a hottie.

In stealth mode, I continued to watch the activity of my much-too-good-looking neighbor. I assumed these were his brothers and his mom. The boys started to roughhouse with their older brother, and it was obvious he adored them.

Maggie was starting to get antsy, so I began my jog to the creek bed. So unlike me, but determined to get a better look, I crossed the street and slowly jogged passed the house. We made eye contact. He flashed me a dimpled smile, and I smiled back. My heart rate picked up, as did my pace.

Light grey
.

The most beautiful eye color I had ever seen.

****

Mason still seemed out of sorts while we drove to church for practice. I couldn't take his sullen demeanor another minute. “What's up, Mason? You haven't been yourself lately. Why won't you talk to me?” I could tell Mason was considering what he wanted to say.

Finally, he took a deep breath and told me what had been bothering him. “I think something's going on with Melissa and Aidan.”

I felt sick to my stomach, then I choked out the words,
“What? No way. Melissa would never cheat on you… never!”

Mason's neck tensed, and his profile became ridged while he began to share the emotional rollercoaster he had been on for the past few weeks. “I thought she'd never cheat on me, but I don't know anymore. I haven't said anything to her. I feel like every girl falls at Aidan's feet. I just didn't think my girl would be one of them.”

Speechless for a minute, my mind was racing. “What makes you think something's going on?”

We were stopped at a red light when Mason's sad, green eyes met mine. “It's little things I've noticed. Like the two of them at school walking around together. And at band practice, the way I see them looking at each other. Melissa and I have been together since freshman year. Maybe she's over it.”

“No, Mason, I'm sure nothing's going on. Melissa loves you. I think you're being paranoid.”

We drove in silence the rest of the way to church. I could tell Mason was feeling overwhelmed when we pulled into the parking lot.

“Mason, you know Melissa. She isn't like that.”

“Look, we're here, let's talk about this later.” Mason grabbed his guitar and headed inside.

****

I was seated at the baby grand looking over my sheet music while Jake and Matt were chatting on the opposite side of the stage.

Jake had finished up a bag of chips, wiped his hands on his jeans, and picked up his bass. We always joked about how he could eat anything and not gain weight. He was on the gangly side and didn't compare to Matt in the looks' department. Jake was average-looking with his brown hair and eyes to match, but his fun personality easily brought him from a six to an eight.

Matt, our drummer, was more on the stocky side, not overweight, but if he didn't work out he could be. Matt had brown hair he usually shaved just because he didn't want to deal with it. His face was attractive with expressive blue eyes that made him a favorite with the college girls. A solid nine, easy.

The guys were always joking around and laughing. Today was no different, except Mason was just going through the motions. I knew he was still upset, but covered it with a fake smile. The guys didn't pick up on it, but I did.

After about twenty minutes, I noticed Lance's plump silhouette in the back of the church. He caught my eye and smiled at me as he moved from the shadows. The way his dark brown hair surrounded his round face and kind smile was heartwarming. Everyone adored Lance, but no one as much as we did, his team.

Lance approached the stage and stood silent for a few minutes. His dark brown eyes focused from me to the guys goofing around. When the guys saw Lance, they stopped their joking and gave him their full attention. The shift in the room was immediate, from light-hearted to tense. Lance made eye contact with each of us. Finally, he said the words we knew were coming but dreaded to hear.

“They've found my replacement.”

Unable to control my emotions, my eyes pooled with tears. The rest of the guys were stunned as they stared back at Lance.

Lance leaving us was no surprise. Seattle was his wife's hometown, and he had promised her eventually he'd take her back home. We all hated to see him go, but the right job had come up, and he couldn't pass it up. Knowing didn't make it any easier, but Lance was determined to take care of us until the bitter end. He'd said he wouldn't leave us until a replacement was found and now the time had come. To soften the blow, Lance went on to tell us what he knew about our new bandleader.

“You all know I wanted to lead our church in a new direction, bringing in a younger crowd. Well, I can see this guy being able to pull it off.” Lance walked up the three steps to the stage and pulled up a chair. “Let me first say, he's a go-getter. He's twenty-one, attends UC Irvine, and has the enthusiasm and commitment to lead this church exactly where we want it to go. He was the lead singer at his former church, plays piano and guitar, and is familiar with everything from stage-lighting to working the soundboard. There's something about him. Just wait until I introduce you. You'll see.”

For the first time since Lance shared his news, a small smile crossed his face.

I wiped away a stray tear, then Mason blurted out, “So when do we get to meet him?”

“He has to take care of a few things. It'll be anywhere from six to eight weeks. I'm not starting in Seattle until after Christmas, so I'll be here until then. I just wanted you four to be the first to know.”

Finally, I found my voice. “What's his name?”

Lance answered with confidence.
“Spencer Hayes.”