— Tyler —
"Are you sure? We don't have to." I absentmindedly twisted a strand of my hair, a nervous habit that had resurfaced in the aftermath of everything.
"Dude, this song is actually sick." Josh grinned at me, and despite my lingering anxieties, his enthusiasm was infectious.
Josh and I had decided to mend our friendship and resume the tour. He had confessed everything to Wren, and he'd spent hours apologizing to me. Forgiving him wasn't hard; I missed my best friend.
The catch was that we made a pact not to discuss Wren when we were together, determined not to let a girl come between us again.
Childish, maybe, but it seemed to work.
"So you're okay with playing it live?" I asked, my nerves bubbling up as I contemplated showing Josh Heathens.
"Hell yeah!" Josh high-fived me without hesitation. "This tour is gonna be lit!"
"Actually," Mark chimed in, not bothering to look up from his phone, "it's gonna be sick. We'll pick back up where you left off, which would be in Washington. Excited?"
"Yeah," I replied, but deep down, excitement was the furthest thing from my mind. I just wanted to avoid anything that reminded me of her.
As we exchanged good nights, Mark disappeared to the bunks. Josh and I stayed on the couch, flipping through TV channels, Perry the cat in my lap.
"I know we said we wouldn't talk about it, but I have to ask," Josh turned to face me. "How's Wren?"
I stared at him blankly for a moment. "How would I know?"
"Aren't you back together?" Josh appeared just as confused as I felt.
"I haven't talked to her since she gave me Perry," I said, my brow furrowing. "I thought she was still with you."
Josh shook his head, looking equally puzzled. "I even stopped by her place before we went to the airport, and she wasn't home. I assumed she was at your house."
Panic surged within me as my mind raced through countless worst-case scenarios. If she wasn't home and not with us...
"Hey, don't worry. I'm sure she's fine," Josh offered a smile that did little to ease my mounting concern.
