Keeping Secrets

Finals

PEYTON

I had spent most of my free time studying for my finals and I knew the material pretty well, but I was still nervous. Max had his own finals to study for, so I'd seen less of him and more of Becca and Lin since we studied together.

The three of us spent the last two afternoons in the back of the library with our noses buried in our books, until it was time for Lin and Becca to go to practice.

I only had a couple of more chapters to review, so I went back to my dorm after picking up a sandwich for dinner on the way. The entire dorm building was quiet, which was unusual, but I suspected the other students were studying as well.

My phone buzzed a couple of times as I settled down on my bed. And that sound was like an instant alert to my system. My heart rate picked up, hoping it was from Beau. It beat even harder when I saw it was.

First, it was just a picture of an empty arena. I was getting used to those. He had sent quite a few, and they all looked about the same to me. But it was crazy to imagine that this band I first heard playing in a garage now filled those places with fans.

The next picture was of him and Justin dressed and ready for the show. Beau had some kind of reddish bandanna around his head. It was a new look for him, and I wondered if that was all it was, just a new look. Or if it had a purpose. It did look like his hair was getting a bit too long, so maybe that was why?

"Rocked Copenhagen tonight," said the text that followed.

I looked at the time on my phone. It was close to six pm so after doing a quick math; I figured it was around midnight in Denmark. They had probably finished for the night and were either back at the hotel, or out celebrating.

I knew from keeping track of their schedule - which I would never admit out loud to anyone - that they were off for Oslo in the morning.

"What's with the bandanna?" I asked.

"Need a haircut."

I laughed because it seemed like something he'd say. He was more focused on playing and sightseeing than sitting still long enough for someone to trim his bangs.

"Lol. Don't you have a stylist or makeup person who can do that for you?"

"Probably."

"Or are you letting it grow long like Justins?"

It was so fun and easy to have these bantering texts with him. I fluffed my pillow and leaned back, waiting for his response. Hoping it would come...

Beau had started to text me again shortly after the thanksgiving break. The first thing he sent me was a selfie with the Eiffel tower in the background. It was near sunset and the colorful sky only enhanced the view of the lit up tower, but it was Beau's grinning face that got me every time I looked at the picture. And I looked at it a lot.

He was so effortlessly beautiful. The way his dirty blond hair fell down over his forehead, his dark blue eyes twinkling beneath it, and the broad, teasing smile... Yeah, it all got to me.

And to most other women as well, unfortunately.

Trudge Lite was finishing up their popular European tour. The advertisement for the upcoming North American tour had picked up significantly recently. They were to start off in California in mid-March. And between the tours, they were scheduled to be in the studio.

It was a good thing they enjoyed it, because the scheduled seemed very intense to me.

But with the increased ads and the speculations about future albums, there were pictures of them everywhere. Seeing them, and especially Beau, did not help my crush.