bed chem | drew starkey

CHAPTER 26

MID JANUARY 2024

Aurora sat in her trailer, the weight of her emotions pressing down on her like a heavy blanket. Her phone sat beside her, silent now after the whirlwind of calls she'd made. First her manager, who'd been thrilled but firmly instructed her to keep quiet about the tour until the official announcement. Then her parents, who had reacted in ways that only made her heart swell. Her mom had burst into tears at the mention of Taylor Swift, her pride and joy evident in every shaky word. Aurora smiled at the memory—her mom had raised her listening to Taylor's music, and now she was going to open for her. It was a full-circle moment if there ever was one.

The room had grown quiet again, and Aurora found herself looking around, trying to process everything. She was feeling everything and nothing all at once—a strange, surreal mix of overwhelming joy, disbelief, and, oddly, an undercurrent of emptiness. It was as if the weight of her dreams coming true had left a void where all the striving and longing used to be. She needed to fill it with something.

Deciding to use the free time she had left in her day, Aurora grabbed her notebook and pen, settling herself at the small desk in her trailer. Songwriting had always been her escape, her therapy, her way of making sense of the world. But today, staring at the blank page, she felt... stuck. The words wouldn't come. Nothing felt right.

Her life, as exciting as it was, didn't seem to offer much inspiration at the moment. Sure, she was about to perform for Taylor Swift—a career-defining opportunity—but that wasn't exactly the kind of emotion she could easily pour into a song. She tapped the pen against the edge of the desk, her thoughts drifting despite herself.

To Drew.

She groaned, dropping her head onto her folded arms. Of course, it always came back to him, didn't it? She wasn't keen on the idea of getting into another relationship. The scars Joe had left were still raw, and then Devin... Devin had been another punch to the gut. Two men she'd cared for, two men who had embarrassed her in ways she never thought possible. The idea of opening herself up to someone else, of risking that kind of hurt again, felt almost impossible.

And yet... Drew. He was different. At least, she wanted to believe he was. There was a small part of her—one she hated to admit existed—that wanted to trust him, to give him the benefit of the doubt. But if she ever did let herself fall for him, she begs that he won't embarrass her. The thought of going through that again was too much to bear.

Her pen hovered over the page, her mind sparking with an idea. If she couldn't say it to him outright—if she couldn't look him in the eyes and tell him how terrified she was of getting hurt—maybe she could write it. Maybe a song could be her way of asking, of pleading with him not to break her. She let out a soft laugh at the thought. Begging wasn't her style, but for this? For Drew? Maybe she'd make an exception.

She started scribbling down lines, her thoughts pouring out faster than she could catch them:

"please, please, please don't prove i'm right..."

Aurora paused, chewing on the end of her pen as she read the lines back. It was raw and honest in a way she hadn't expected. She thought about Drew again, about the way he'd been so kind to her lately, as if trying to make up for the past. She hated how much she noticed, how much she cared.

She kept writing, pouring all her feelings into the song. She wasn't sure if Drew would ever hear it, but for now, it was enough to get it out of her head and onto the page.

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Jonas had given the cast two weeks off from filming since the scenes they were filming were getting a bit too heavy. Mostly everyone decided to stay behind in Morocco and relax... except for aurora.