Somewhere in the Middle

Sort Of

Evie made a show of thinking up a question—tapping her chin and staring thoughtfully up at the ceiling, a little smirk she couldn't help on her lips. But really, she did have to consider it. There were so many things she wanted to know.

But she knew she had to be careful. Knew that asking the wrong question could very easily ruin everything—completely dismantle the weak relationship they'd begun to build between them, like a castle of cards that could be blown over by too forceful a breath.

So, she ruled out everything having to do with why he acted the way he did. Why he took every chance he was presented with to get away—though since her firm scolding and half-serious threat, he hadn't taken advantage of any. She also figured asking about his family and childhood was out of the question. Luke had already told her that Jamie had a rather rough upbringing, and she didn't think they were at the point where he'd want to open up to her about it.

Which left questions about the music. When his passion for it started. Why he started playing guitar. If he remembered...

But no. She didn't want to ask that. Not yet.

"Your music..." she said, nervous for a reason she couldn't name. He looked amused as he sipped his coffee, then set it down. But he leaned forward, giving her his full attention. Even in the darkness, his blue eyes—the power of their full gaze—were overwhelming. "You write it, don't you?"

Stupid. That was a stupid question. It even came out sounding like she already knew the answer. And her embarrassment over it was only confirmed when he narrowed his eyes, but gave her a smile that kept growing. Despite the embarrassment, she couldn't help but notice how much she liked his smile, and felt privileged that he'd deemed her worthy of seeing it, now, more than once.

"That's your question?" he asked, fiddling with the handle of his mug.

Her cheeks were hot, but she couldn't back down now. "Well, yeah." And before he could say anything else, she added, "I've been listening to it more and more, and I don't know, I've just been thinking about it, I guess. Somehow, it seems like it all came straight from you, even though I don't really know you."

His smile didn't slip away exactly, but it did dim just the slightest bit.

So, Evie kept going. "I guess I just mean, it's deeper than you think when you first listen to it. It's not just like, party songs. Upbeat stuff. It's got meaning. A level of depth that I don't really see coming from Greg or Luke, to be honest."

He laughed then, and the knot of nerves in her stomach loosened, her whole body easing once more as the sound filled her ears. She smiled, too. It was nice—hearing him laugh. And watching him, Evie was pretty sure that this was the first moment she'd seen him without a guard up.

But he still didn't answer her question, and he was no longer meeting her eye.

"So?" she prodded.

Jamie looked up, and his lips quirked up in a smile again.

"Safe to assume I'm right, then."

He sighed, and his shoulders fell a little bit. "You're right."

"Hah!" she said, smiling with pride. "Knew it."

"But seriously, that's your question? I say you can ask me anything, and that's what you go with? Something you already knew the answer to?"

She couldn't say that there was so much more that she wanted to know.

"Well, I had to confirm it." She made sure to meet his eye for the next part. "Besides, you're not the easiest person to gauge, you know. Didn't want to ask something that might make you hate me again."