Stardust Chords || Greta Van Fleet

Chapter 12: Magnetic

Jake's P.O.V

There was nothing like coming down after a show; being on stage was my favorite place in the world, so every night as I made my way off, I begrudgingly stepped back into reality with nothing but the lingering ringing in my ears after a job well done.

But I guess you can say I was a little more eager for tonight, knowing we were all going out. I went into my dressing room, grabbing one of my bags, and quickly shut myself in the bathroom, locking the door behind me.

I was still catching my breath as I examined myself in the mirror. I was a sweaty mess, and I probably smelled. Perfect. I knew there wasn't enough time for a shower before the buses left so I quickly changed my shirt, splashing my face with water and doing what I could with my hair, brushing it into place.

This was as good as it was going to get.

Rummaging through my bag, I finally found my good cologne, the one I saved for special occasions and gave myself a few generous sprays to make up for the lingering sweaty scent.

I just wanted to look nice tonight.

After quickly gathering up my things, I grabbed my bags and headed down the hallway towards the back exit, hoping for at least a few minutes of peace so I could calm myself down.

No matter how hard I tried, I just couldn't get her out of my head. Jewel. I didn't miss this feeling. Wondering what they thought about me when they looked at me a little too long, what they thought when they didn't look at me at all.

I hated it.

I hadn't been able to focus since the beginning of the tour, my every move focused around how she might react to it, how she might think of me, when she probably wasn't thinking about me at all.

This was stupid. She has a boyfriend. A loser of a boyfriend, but a boyfriend nonetheless, and I was just another guy in a band that she worked with. And now here I was, standing on the side of the street, just wishing she was here with me.

I pulled my cigarettes out from my jacket pocket, grabbing one and placing it between my lips before quickly lighting it, taking a deep drag and blowing away the smoke. I then quickly turned at the sound of quiet footsteps making their way down the sidewalk, my heart instantly jumping at the familiar silhouette making her way towards me.

"What are you doing out here?" I asked, now looking her up and down. She looked.. different. But.. a good different. Her hair was perfectly done, now flying in the breeze which conveniently carried the scent of her perfume over to me, making my heart beat even faster. Her eyes seemed to shine brighter, even under the dark glow of the yellow streetlights. I took another deep drag, trying to calm myself down again.

"I guess.. just needed some fresh air." She said, now holding her hand out to me. I bit down on my lip, trying my best to contain myself, then realizing she was reaching for my cigarette. I giggled to myself before passing it over to her.

"I thought you were quitting.' I joked, my smile growing, despite deep down hoping she never did, not wanting to lose this one special thing we seemed to have between us, the closest I would probably ever get to tasting her lips. She nodded, taking another drag.
"Tomorrow." She said simply, handing it back. I flashed her another toothy grin.
"Tomorrow." I mocked, praying that tomorrow never came.

"You played great tonight." She said. My heart jumped at the thought of her watching me play, now suddenly going over every move I made throughout the show. Had I? I could barely remember, always getting lost in my own head. I guess I could only take her word for it. I took another drag, praying she couldn't see my blushing face.
"Well, thank you." I managed. "You make it easy."
"That's my job."
"And you're very good at it."
"Thank you."

It was all so simple, so casual, no hints of anything more than two coworkers talking after clocking out of their shift. For all I knew I was intruding on her alone time. Maybe I should have just waited on the bus. I was always better at things like this when I had a few drinks in me.

We lingered in silence for what felt like an eternity, passing the cigarette back and forth, my drags getting shorter and shorter, just wanting to make the time together last that much longer.

"So, where are we going tonight?" She finally asked, now crossing her arms across her chest. My eyes instantly moved down to them, noticing the goosebumps that suddenly covered her.

No, giving her my jacket would be way too obvious. I didn't want to scare her away by being too eager, and I'm sure she had one of Noah's anyway. The only thing worse than not offering it would be her turning me down.

"I'm pretty sure there's a bar downtown that Josh wanted to check out." I said. "We all kinda just roll with whatever he decides." She nodded, her face staying neutral.

Was that okay?
She was impossible to read.

"Well, him and I had a nice time the other night." She said. My eyes instantly lit up with envy, remembering their time together in the back of the bar, talking for hours while I had to entertain her boyfriend. Josh had given me a brief rundown, but no specifics.

I wondered if they talked about me.

"Oh yeah, I saw you guys." I said simply, not wanting to lead on that I had been watching them the entire night. "W-what were you talking about?" She shrugged.
"A little of this, a little of that.." She said simply. My stomach dropped, but I nodded, forcing another smile.
"Ah, secret. Okay." I joked. She shrugged, rubbing her arms again. I looked back down to see that her body had gotten more tense; clearly she was freezing. But.. she didn't show any signs of leaving.

Maybe if I just did it..

"Jeez, you really know how to make a guy feel guilty." I nervously giggled, sliding off my jacket and quickly wrapping it around her. Her eyes instantly lit up, a small smile escaping her lips.

A smile.
A smile was good right?

"Oh, y-you didn't have to-"
"Of course I did, you're practically shivering." I sighed, now suddenly engulfed in the cold air. I tried my best to remain unbothered as my arms instantly filled with goosebumps.

Her smile grew as she held her stare on me. I suddenly wish I had my jacket to cover my t-shirt that was no doubt showing my pounding heart through the thin fabric.

"Well, t-thank you." She said softly. "But.. we're gonna head into the buses any minute. I can give you-"
"No, you keep it for now. I'm sure you'll need it later." I said nonchalantly, wanting nothing more for her to keep it long enough for her perfume to linger. She nodded.
"Okay."

We lingered in silence once again as I caught myself hypnotized within her tired gaze. There was just something about her that was so.. magnetic. I didn't know what it was. I barely knew her at all, but what I did know was that I wanted to know everything.

"Jewel.." I finally said, forcing myself through the fear.
"Mhm?" She asked, clutching my jacket tighter. It looked good on her, making me wonder what the rest of my clothes might look like on her. My face instinctively relaxed into a dazed grin.
"Y-you.. you look really prett-"

"Here he is!" I heard from behind us, and I felt like in that moment I could melt into the sidewalk. He couldn't have given us just five more minutes? The doors to the venue slammed open as Josh and the rest of the guys came trickling out of the venue making their way over to us.

"You guys ready to head out?" He asked, motioning towards the buses. I let out a deep sigh, nodding as I quickly turned away from her.
"Ready." I muttered, all I could manage now as the sudden embarrassment took over, hoping she hadn't heard anything at all. I quickly followed them up the steps of the bus, swiftly shutting the door behind me.

And we were off.