His Unwilling Muse

Chapter 8: Disapproving Friends

"You have been given the gift of helping someone as important as Nathaniel, but apparently you're too idiotic to understand the treasure you have been blessed with."

My teeth sink into my tongue, but I still keep my body immobile. I refuse to allow her words to affect me.

"Trash like you—"

"Screw it!"

I snap my eyes open, tear the headphones off my ears and jump up. Penny's eyes are wide open as I grab a fistful of her shirt and pull her up, until we are standing face to face. I don't know what kind of beef she has with me, but enough is enough.

"I'm here as a favor to your friend who politely asked me for help. So, I'm not going to sit here and listen to you talk shit about me."

"Whoa!"

With a cringe worthy scrape the sound of the violin dies, but I pay it no mind. Instead, I grab my backpack and swing it over my shoulder. I have no intention to stick around, while Penny continues to be here. Because if I have to spend one more minute in the same room as her, I'm sure I won't be able to resist pulling her hair out.

Without another word to either of them, I turn around and head for the door.

"Wait!" Nate appears in front of the door, effectively blocking my exit. "Where are you going?"

"Get out of my way."

"Look, whatever Penny said to you, I'm sorry." He sends a pointed look behind me to where I know Penny is standing. "And she's sorry as well."

I don't bother to turn around, but I'm still able to hear the huff that comes from Penny's direction. Sorry, my ass.

"I didn't say anything that's not true," she says.

"Leave." Nate levels her with a glare.

"You can't be serious."

"I'm sorry, Penny." He shakes his head. "You're still one of my closest friends, but right now you're not acting like her. I think it's better for you to leave."

With another huff Penny shoulders her way past Nate and me, and then storms out of the practice room. The rattle of the door remains the only sound surrounding us, while the two of us continue to look at each other for a moment.

"I don't know what she said to you, but please don't take it personally. She's not acting like herself right now," Nate says.

Without waiting for my reply, he grabs my elbow and guides me back to my chair. And despite the dark feelings still bubbling inside me, I allow him to do it. I sit back down onto the chair and cross my arms in front of my chest.

"You can go back to listening to your own music." Despite his words he continues to linger in front of me. "What did Penny even say?"

"Forget it." I shake my head. "Go back to your practice."

He hesitates for another heartbeat and then makes his way back to his violin. Before he even reaches it, he spins back around.

"Forget about the practice," he says.

In two quick strides he diminishes the distance to his violin, where he lays the instrument back inside its case. Then he shuts it close with a loud click.

"What are you doing?" I have no idea what's gotten into him.

Without a single explanation, he walks back over to me and grabs my wrist. With one swift tug he pulls me up from the chair. I have barely enough time to grab my backpack before he leads us out of the practice room.

"Where are we going?" I ask while he continues to half drag me down the hallway.

I ignore the eyes and the whispers following our every movement. I have, after all, learned on my first day here how popular Nate really is.

"Ice cream." He says the moment we exit the building, while he still continues to hold onto my wrist.

"Ice cream?"

"Yes, ice cream."

I stare at the back of his head, wondering what in the name of the world has gotten into him. Despite knowing him for a little over a week, I know that this isn't his usual behavior.

"I heard that ice cream comforts people when there're in a bad mood." He leads us down the street and into the close by park leading in the direction of Charles River. "And you look like you could use some right now."

"I'm not in a bad mood." I glare at the back of his head.

"Sure you're not."

"I'm not." But even to my own ears the words sound fake.

The longer we walk, the more I become aware of his hand still wrapped around my wrist. It feels like a warm sunshine caressing my skin.

The moment the thought crosses my mind, I tear my arm out of his hold and clasp it behind my back.

I felt absolutely nothing. Or at least that's what I try to tell myself.

Wordlessly we make our way almost all the way down to the river. Right before we would cross the last road and make it all the way to the river's side, we stop in front of a cozy café. While I have never been here before, Nate receives an instant wave from the waitress behind the counter the second we enter.

"Nathaniel," she waves us over, "long time no see."

We stop in front of the counter, and Nate molds his lips into his usual heart-stopping smile.

"Hey, Cara. It's been a while." His eyes travel to the array of ice cream flavors on our left. "I'll have a scoop of lemon. What about you, Violet?"

"Vanilla." I answer, despite not really in the mood for ice cream.

The young woman named Cara hands us our scones and Nate pays for both before I can even think about reaching for my wallet. Instead of enjoying the frozen desert inside the café, we make our way across the road and all the way over to the river side.

The sun sparkling from the sky and the absence of Nate's classical music slowly ease my resolve, and I soon find myself enjoying the stroll. Maybe ice cream really has a calming effect on a bad mood.

"I was right, wasn't I?" Nate smiles at me from where he's walking beside me.

"Maybe." I keep my eyes on my halfway finished scone and ignore the gaze I feel on the side of my face.

"Does this mean I can count on you to return tomorrow?"

"Maybe." I hide my soft smile with a bite into the scone.

"I'm glad. And don't worry. I'll make sure Penny is nowhere near the practice room tomorrow."

"I don't care."

Despite my words, I can't deny the breath of relief that squeezes through my nose. The last thing I want is for tomorrow to be a repeat of today. Although I wouldn't mind the ice cream.

I shake my head at my stupid thoughts, and focus on the path in front of us. There is no way Nate managed to melt my resolve. I still dislike everything about him.

At least that's what I keep trying to tell myself.

***

Anyone else craving ice cream right now?

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Much love

                - E