The Distance Between Us (Book Two ✓)

twenty

BEAU

I sit on an old folding chair, strumming my guitar in my lap as Rey goes through her sound check with the rest of her band. They sound good, but not great. Rey's heart isn't in it and it's obvious to anyone listening. Too bad, I scowl at her onstage, small frame drowning in an oversized flannel. She's not going to fuck up my show.

"You sick?" I shout, hoping she gets the hint. I lean my guitar against my leg and push my hair off my forehead.

"Huh?" Rey glares at me. She says I've been a dick lately - since I returned from seeing Emma, that I've been giving her the cold shoulder. Maybe I have, I remember the hurt in Emma's eyes as she shouted at me for holding hands with Rey. I was just reminded how much I had to lose this past weekend with Emma.

"Sounding a little flat," I shrug, crossing my arms as I make my way to the stage. Sound guys scurry away from me and I roll my eyes - I'm not that bad. They would've hated working with me before.

Scott, the one who keeps bitching to Rey about me anyways, gives me a dirty look, letting his bass rest around his neck. "She sounds fine,"

"You do," I agree, nodding to Rey and ignoring Scott entirely. "But I didn't ask for fine when we made our deal. So I'll ask again, are you feeling okay?"

Rey pouts, unsure whether to be insulted or flattered at my words. I don't mean them any way in particular. She must decide that she's offended; she places her mic back in the stand and rubs her hands over her eyes.

"Can we take five?" She mutters before walking off stage. Scott makes a move to follow but stops when I pass him, smirking and rolling my eyes at the same time. I don't even dislike Scott, but his own distaste for me is pretty enjoyable.

I find Rey only a few feet down the hall, leaning her weight on her black combat boot against the wall, taking a drag from a cigarette.

"You smoke now?" I ask, standing beside her, but looking straight ahead.

"Not really," She groans, snubbing the barely burned stick against the wall. "Jace did, I just had one left over in my jacket."

I bite my tongue for a second to make sure my words aren't too harsh. "Jace smoked, so you did, too? You're a singer, Rey."

She doesn't speak or give any indication that she's heard me. I know she's listening though. For some reason, Rey really seems to care what I think.

"This is what I meant, about being ready to go on tour. If you can't resist getting caught up, it can be dangerous." I know.

And embarrassing. And worse than that, it can hurt everyone else, too, not just you. I don't say those things to her, though. Admitting them to Dex, even to Emma, is one thing.

"Okay, Dad. Fuck, Beau, just back off. You said don't talk to Jace, I stopped. Then you go see Emma and you come back and don't even talk to me. I don't know what your problem is," She shakes her shaved head and looks at her feet. She's childlike - so unlike Emma in more ways than I can count.

"Rey," I take a breath to remain calm. "Listen, I'm really just trying to help. Jace is a bad guy, this life can be hard. I know these things firsthand - I don't want you to have to learn them the hard way."