Authors: Allie Everhart
"Let's go find something." She grabs my arm, dragging me to my room. I wait on my bed as she searches through my closet. "You only have jeans. Don't you have any dresses?"
"No. Why would I need dresses to go to college? And why can't I wear jeans tonight?"
She sighs and turns around. "You're dating Austin Wheeler. Other girls are going to tear you apart if you don't look good. They're all going to be watching you tonight, trying to figure out why he's dating you and not them."
I roll my eyes. "I really don't care."
"Then dress up for Austin. I'm sure he'd like to see you in something other than jeans and a t-shirt."
"That's not the only thing I wear. I've worn nicer shirts around him and I've worn a skirt."
"You can wear something of mine." She runs across the hall to her room, and comes back with a short red dress.
"I'm not wearing that. That's something you wear to a club, not a bar."
"Hmm." She holds the dress out. "You're right. Okay, then we'll go with jeans, but they have to be dark and tight and you're wearing heels. I'll be right back." She returns with a pair of black heels and a shimmery sequined tank. It's silver with tiny straps at the top, the body loose and flowing.
I take it from her. "Where'd you get this? I love it!"
"I just got it at some store at the mall. I hope it'll fit over your giant boobs."
"I do not have giant boobs. And by the way, I can't believe you said that in front of Austin and Matt."
"Why? They're not blind. They know you have big boobs."
"Then you didn't need to point it out."
She laughs. "Find some jeans and try this on. I have to get back to the kitchen."
"What time is Matt getting here?" I yell from my room.
"Seven," she yells back.
It's already six-thirty. I don't want to be here when Matt arrives. It might ruin the romantic mood Amber's trying to create.
I call Austin. "Hey, it's me."
"Hey. I thought you were taking a nap."
"I don't need one. I feel a lot better after the shower. So what are you doing?"
"Just talking to my dad. He's fixing something out in the garage. Why?"
"Amber's making dinner for Matt and he's going to be here soon so I want to get out of here to give them privacy. I'm gonna go wait at the coffee shop down the street. You can just pick me up there."
"You're going to wait there for over an hour?"
"I don't mind. I'll just bring a book to read."
"I'm not doing anything. I'll just come get you right now."
"You sure? Don't you have to get ready for tonight?"
He chuckles. "No. I'll leave in a few minutes."
"Okay, bye."
I think he was laughing because he thought I was referring to his appearance. What I meant was that maybe he had to get ready to play tonight, like maybe he had to practice, but I guess not.
As for me, I'm not even close to being ready. My hair's wet and I need to change clothes.
"Austin's on his way over," I yell at Amber on my way to the bathroom.
"I thought he wasn't coming until eight," she yells back. I hear a pan drop and then some curse words flying so I don't bother answering her. She has her hands full in the kitchen.
I dry my hair then run a flat-iron over it. I quickly put on some makeup, then race back to my room and get dressed. The heels feel strange because I never wear them but they look nice with the jeans and sparkly shirt.
"Kira," I hear Amber yell. "Austin's here."
That was fast. I fling my door open and there he is, right outside my room.
"Hi." I smile as he leans in to give me a kiss.
"You look nice," he says, glancing down at my clothes.
"Thanks."
He smells really good, and looks hot, wearing dark jeans and a black t-shirt. It's what he wore last time he performed.
"Do you wear that every time you play?"
"Yeah. We all wear black. Dylan always wears a button-up and Van and I wear t-shirts. It's just easier than trying to figure out what to wear every time."
Austin's hair is short on the sides but long on top. He usually spikes up the top a little, but tonight it's more of a tousled mess, which I think is intentional because it was like that last Saturday night when he played. I like it that way. It's sexy, like he just ran his hand through it.
A loud noise comes from the kitchen and then I hear the exhaust fan running.
"I think your roommate is about to burn the kitchen down," Austin says.
"I think so too. We better get out of here."
We find a coffee shop that's on the way to the bar he's playing at. We each get a drink, then find an open table outside.
"You ever get nervous before you play?" I ask.
"Not usually, but I kind of am tonight, with you there."
"I make you nervous?" I sip my strawberry smoothie.
"No, but you've never heard us play. I don't know if you're gonna like our music. It's really gonna suck if you don't."
"I'm sure I'll like it."
"Austin." A girl comes up behind him, followed by another girl. They're both gorgeous. Tall brunettes with short dresses and long legs.
Austin turns to see them and does a double take. Yeah, they're that gorgeous.
The girl pulls out the chair next to him and sits down, crossing her long legs. I'm sure he could see up her dress when she did it.
"Do I know you?" he asks.
"No." She leans toward him and smiles. "But I'd love for us to
get
to know each other after the concert tonight." She glances at her friend. "All three of us."
She's offering him a threesome? She doesn't even know him. Do girls do this all the time? Because he doesn't look that surprised.
"I have a girlfriend." He reaches for my hand. "And we're on a date so..."
The girl gives me a look that says I'm not even close to being good enough for Austin. Then she slips her hand in her purse, takes out a pen and picks up Austin's cup. She writes something on it, then sets it down as she stands up. "In case you change your mind."
Then she and her friend walk off.
Austin gets up and tosses his cup in the trash, then comes back and sits down.
"Sorry about that."
"You didn't have to toss your drink out."
"And have you sitting there looking at some other girl's phone number?" He shakes his head. "That was fucking rude. I can't believe she did that after I told her you're my girlfriend."
"Does that happen a lot? Girls coming up to you like that?"
"Yeah." He leans back in his chair and stretches his legs out. "It's not just because of the band, but because of the Wheeler name."
"Have you been offered that before? Two girls?"
"Do you really want to talk about this?"
"I just wondered. You said to be direct so I'm asking."
"Then yeah, it's happened before."
I'm about to ask if he's ever actually been with two girls, but then decide I'd rather not know.
He changes the subject and we remain there, talking, until it's time to go to the bar. When we get there, Dylan and Van are setting up.
"Am I late?" Austin asks, checking the time on his phone.
"No," Van says. "We're just a few minutes early." He smiles and comes over to me. "Hi, I'm Van."
He has one of those lazy smiles that puts you at ease but could also be trouble. He seems like someone who could talk you into things without you even realizing it.
"Hi. I'm Kira."
"The girlfriend," Dylan says, smiling at me. "Austin's told us all about you. You're pretty much all he talks about."
I look at him to deny it but he just shrugs.
"You guys have girlfriends?" I ask, but I'm most curious about Dylan.
Van answers. "We're both single. So if you know anyone..." He grins.
"Sorry, but I'm new to town. I don't know anyone here."
"Other than her roommate," Austin says, "who's burning her kitchen down right now."
They look at me to explain. "She's cooking dinner for her boyfriend, but she doesn't really know how to cook."
"At least she's trying," Dylan says. "I've never had a girl try to cook for me."
This is so weird. I'm standing here talking about Amber with Dylan, the guy she's obsessed with, to the point that she can't stop talking about him. I wonder if he even remembers her.
"So this is the first time you're hearing us play?" Van asks. He keeps tapping his drumstick on his leg. He seems like a fidgety person.
"I heard you play last weekend, but my roommate wasn't feeling well so we had to leave after the first song."
"What are we playing first tonight?" Austin asks Dylan. "Your song, or something else?"
"We can start with something else. Let's put mine near the end."
Van laughs. "Maybe your mystery girl will show up tonight and hear it."
"Mystery girl?" I ask.
"Don't listen to him," Dylan says, shooting Van a look to shut up.
"He wrote the song about some girl," Van tells me. "He was hoping she'd show up and hear it."
So I guess Dylan's moved on. He obviously isn't obsessing over Amber if he wrote a song about some other girl. I wonder if he met that girl before or after being with Amber. I'm sure he doesn't remember her. As the lead singer of a popular band, I bet he has a different girl every night. Plus, he's hot, in that prep school type of way. Dark hair and a pretty-boy face with dark brooding eyes. He has that rich-guy look but I don't think he's rich. From what Austin said about him, he sounds like your average college student, struggling to pay bills.
As the guys set up, I get a Coke from the bar, then sit at one of the tables near the middle of the room. I don't want to be by the stage because I know girls will be trying to grab Austin and I really don't want to see that. I'm not sure how I'm going to feel tonight, seeing girls yell Austin's name and flash their breasts at him. He told me that happens sometimes. On the drive here, he tried to prepare me for this, being completely honest about how aggressive these girls can be. But then he assured me that he's mine and he'd never cheat on me.
That's all good to hear, but when the concert finally starts, his words aren't that helpful. Just like last week, girls are lined up by the stage, screaming his name. And the girls who are sitting with me keep talking about him. There wasn't enough seating so I let some girls share my table but now I'm regretting it.
"He's so damn hot," the girl next to me says, referring to Austin. I didn't tell her I'm his girlfriend. I didn't want these girls looking at me like that girl at the coffee shop did. I'd rather remain anonymous and just listen to him play.
"Jessica was with him last May," she says to me. "Said he was amazing."
I tense up, knowing she's referring to their sex life. "How long did they date?"
"I'm not sure." She yells across the table. "Jess! How long were you with Austin?"
She shrugs. "Maybe a week?" She smiles. "Best week of my life."
She nudges me. "I was with his brother, Jake, a year ago. Best sex I ever had. The Wheeler boys know what the hell they're doing."
I wish she'd stop talking. I don't want to hear this.
"I'm gonna get a drink," I say, getting up.
"Want me to save your seat?"
"No, that's okay."
The bar is packed but Austin introduced me to the bartender, so when he sees me, he ignores the people yelling out drink orders and says, "What can I get you?"
"Rum and Coke," I yell back so he can hear.
He nods and goes to get it. Up until now I've only been drinking Coke but I need something stronger than that to get through the night. I knew girls would be going crazy over Austin, but hearing that girl actually talk about being with him was too much.
I remain by the bar for the next half hour. Then the band takes a break and I see Austin making his way through the crowd. He sees I'm not at the table and starts searching for me. I catch his eye and wave at him. Girls try to grab him and talk to him as he walks over.
"What are you doing over here?" he asks when he finally reaches me.
"I was just getting a drink." I hold it up.
"Let's go in the back." He takes my hand and leads me to a room that looks like an office with a desk and file cabinets. There's a couch off to the side where Van and Dylan are sitting.
"Can you give us a minute?" Austin says to them. They get up and leave, then Austin sits me down on the couch. "You okay?"
"Yeah? Why?"
"Because you look mad."
"I'm not mad. I'm just..."
"What? Tell me."
"Uncomfortable. I'm not used to seeing you like this, with all these girls hanging on you."
"It doesn't mean anything. I'm just here to play my music. I'm not doing this to get girls. I do it because I like playing guitar."
"I know, but it still makes me uncomfortable. I feel like you're mine now, so I don't like other girls touching you." I look down. "I don't like sharing you."
"Kira." He wraps his hand around mine. "I AM yours. There's nobody else, and there won't be for as long as we're dating. I told you, I don't cheat."
And I believe him. Even though it'd be easy for him to be with another girl, I don't think he would. I don't think he's that type of person.
I lift my eyes back to his and smile. "You sounded really good. You're really talented."
He smiles back. "So you liked our music?"
"Yeah, it's great. And I'm not just saying that because we're dating. I really think you're good. You should call up June and Harold's son. Maybe he could do something for you guys. Make you known outside Chicago."
"I don't know if Vandyl will be around that much longer."
"Why?"
"I just get this feeling Van and Dylan aren't going to stick with it after they graduate. They haven't said anything yet, but I'm starting to worry. When Matt said Dylan was suit shopping, that basically told me Dylan's getting ready to go on job interviews. And once he gets some corporate job, he won't want to be in the band. Or he might end up getting a job outside Chicago."
"You guys done in there?" Van knocks on the door.
"Not yet," Austin yells back.
"We want to kick back before we have to go on again."