RARE (THEROCKAFELLABOYSSERIES#1)

Tipping Point

Zoey Kagel

It's impossible to move from Luke's hold on me. We have been sitting in silence for twenty minutes. The hustle and bustle coming from his bandmates doing nothing to tempt him to talk. I think it's safe to say he's fully traumatised by all of this.

Can the poor guy catch a break?

"You have come back from worse than this, Luke," Maeva surprises me by saying. "Don't let the bitch blackmail you into falling back into your self-destructive shell. There's people we can call who can stop it from travelling any further."

Leo, who's sitting across from us on the long couch nods fast. "Exactly. we're not going to let her do this to you."

"Thanks," Luke mumbles into the crease of my neck.

My fingers drift through his inky hair, knowing his frayed anxiety is currently eating him up from the inside by the way his leg bounces. My lips meet the top of his head and he pulls me closer, murmuring something I can't make out over my skin.

"Erica is out of order," Maeva says and we all look over at her.

She's without makeup, a red tinge creeping up her neck. Oliver perches on her hip, playing with her hair by twirling the strands around his chubby hand. As if sensing her turmoil, Leo reaches his arm out to her, encouraging her to sit on his knee.

Luke builds up the courage to pull his face out of my neck, throwing her a grateful smile. Shock registering on his face. "Yeah, she is, but she hates me, so I'm not surprised."

"I don't like you either, but you have to stand for what's right." And she's back in the room.

Luke recoils back into himself, while Leo whisper-hisses harshly in her ear. All hell breaks loose when she stands up to storm across the bus towards the door, Oliver bobbing all over as he reaches for Leo who's striding after her.

Elijah scrubs his face. "Fucking hell. They give me a headache."

"You're not the only one. I love Maeva, but she can't leave things alone," Tony replies, lifting his backside off the seat to pull out his phone.

"Pass me my E-Cig," Luke says to him, pointing to the table beside him.

Tony obliges, throwing me a small smile when he catches my eye. "You good, Zoey? This has got to be crazy for you."

I nod, but the steady level of stress rushing around my body is starting to make me uneasy. "I'm fine."

"You sure about that?" Luke asks, sucking away on his electric cigarette.

Our gazes match immediately at his brash tone, a harsh frown marking between his brows which has me pulling off his lap. It takes only a few seconds for him to stand his feet and slam out of here.

"Don't be a fucking child," Tony shouts after him.

Elijah walks over here. "It's not your fault. Holland can't handle emotions."

"Oh, I know it's not my fault," I reply, following out of this cramped bus.

Luke is pacing the asphalt like he's determined to run tracks into it. When his face drops, I know he's spotted me. I fold my arms and wait for him to gather himself. It doesn't take long for him to crash over here, breath wavering when he struggles to contain whatever is going on inside of his head.

"I can't promise you a perfect life, Zoey" he shouts.

"I don't want a perfect life," I say, noticing how much effort he's putting into acting unaffected by this.