Good as Gold // Josh Burrage

Chapter Twenty-Six

The alarm on my phone wakes me up. When I open my eyes, I see that Josh is still asleep. I really don't want to go to work, but I can't afford to lose my job. Sitting up, I stretch and get out of bed. I hop in the shower and throw on some clothes. After I finish getting ready in the bathroom, I find Josh waking up.

"Rise and shine, Sleeping Beauty," I say, slipping on some shoes. "I'm going to breakfast."

"Wait, let me come with you." He sits up, running a hand through his already-wild hair. "I'll take a quick shower and I'll come get you."

Shaking my head, I say, "I'm fine. I'm just going to grab an apple or something and come back here. You don't have to come with me."

"I want to," he argues. "I'll be back in less than ten minutes, as long as Ben isn't in the shower." Josh leaves me to go get ready and I sigh, sitting back down on the bed to wait.
I would rather go by myself, but I might run into KP. I would much rather not do that alone. So, I wait for Josh to come back. As he promised, he knocks lightly on the door about eight minutes later. We ride the elevator down, and thankfully, KP isn't downstairs. I pick an apple from the fruit bowl and Josh gets a plate of food, mostly bacon.

"You think you could fit any more bacon on that plate?" I question.

He narrows his eyes at me. "Don't make fun of me for loving the greatest food on the planet. The real question is, why don't you have any?"

I sit down so he doesn't have to eat by himself. I think it makes him feel better if I'm with him, rather than going back to the room by myself. And, if I'm being honest, it makes me feel better, too. Breakfast is uneventful, and before long, it's time to leave for the theater.

The rest of the morning goes as usual, leaving me to run various errands for anyone who needs help. Marlee kept her promise, so wherever I go, someone is with me. Surprisingly, I haven't run into KP all day. When it gets closer to showtime, Marlee calls me into her dressing room to help with the pin curls. During the show, I stay backstage to avoid contact with people other than my friends. When they're not on stage, they take turns sitting with me. I've never seen the show all the way through, so I don't mind it at all.

After the show, as I'm sitting with Marlee inside her dressing room, someone knocks urgently on the door.

"Come in," Marlee calls after she pulls her shirt on.

Sky opens the door. "We need help," he says quickly. "Follow me."

"What is it?" I ask, hurrying after him.

"It's Josh." Sky leads Marlee and I away from the dressing room area. We end up backstage. Whatever Sky needed help with must have just ended. Ben has his hands on Josh's shoulders, talking firmly to him.

"That was stupid," Ben is saying when we arrive. "Why-" he stops when he sees us.

"What happened?" As I approach Josh, I notice a large red spot underneath his eye, and his lip is bleeding. But this time, it's not makeup. It's real.

"He got in a fight," Ben explains as Josh wipes the fresh blood off his lip.

"With who?" Marlee questions.

Sky glances at me. "KP."

"Which was stupid," Ben adds, glaring at Josh.

"It was not stupid!" Josh defends angrily. His newfound anger scares me. "He deserves to pay for what he did to Indy!"

"Yeah, but violence is never the right answer," Marlee rushes to say. "There are better ways to deal with that. In a civil way."

I don't say anything, shocked that Josh, of all people, got in a fight. It's unlike him. We're interrupted by an even angrier Mr. Calhoun.

"Mr. Burrage! With me, right now!" He booms. When I notice KP standing behind Mr. Calhoun, my heart rate spikes. My anxiety is calmed only slightly when I notice dried blood on his jaw. Josh must have hit him hard. With one last look at us, Josh follows Mr. Calhoun.

"He seemed angry," I mumble, wondering what spin KP put on the story. Maybe Mr. Calhoun would recognize that Josh is in the right. Kind of.

"Come on," Marlee says, starting back upstairs to the dressing rooms. Ben, Sky, and I follow. No one says a word.