Without Paige

Chapter Forty

Chapter Forty

From the moment we stepped inside, my ears were ringing. The Basement had yet to start their set, but music was playing from the speakers that hung from every wall in the small restaurant and bar, loud enough that I had to keep myself from cringing at the sound. Naomi had said the owners were huge supporters of small town bands, having been in one themselves when they were younger. Even if she hadn't told me that, I probably would have been able to guess for myself. There were instruments and photos of concerts strung to the wall where other restaurants had slogans and photos off the menu.

I'd only ever been to one concert before, and I hadn't expected this to be anything like it. When I was twelve, my mom had bought Paige three tickets to see her favorite concert play in Orlando, Florida. Our whole family had gone down for a week, the four of us sitting on the beaches and soaking in the sun, and on our second to last day there, my mom, Paige and I to the concert. I was sure that if I dug deep enough in the drawers in my room, I could still find the iPod I'd brought with me to video tape the whole thing. I could still remember how upset she'd gotten when mom had told her she had to bring me instead of Sharron.

The seven of us slid into a booth near the back of the room, squishing onto a broken leather couch that was probably meant for a group half our size. Most of the other tables, the ones that would usually fill the center of the restaurant, had been pushed off to the side to leave room for people to stand in the middle. I found myself wondering what this place looked like during the day, when there weren't so many people and the front section hadn't been taped off to leave room for a band.

I was sitting between Naomi and Miles, my shoulders pressed against each of theirs and my hands flat on my lap. All of us were like that, stuck against each other like one big blob of heads and arms.

Katy tried to yell something at me from her spot across the table. She was sitting at the end, only half of her body actually fitting on the seat. Every few seconds, she tried to push Rikki in more, but there was nowhere for him to move.

She sighed and stood, walking over to our end and leaning over Miles to talk to me and Naomi. "I'm going to go get some water, do you guys want some?"

Naomi rolled her eyes, "You're not going to try and get drunk? It went so well for you the last time."

I laughed, remembering the story they'd told up at the cabin about her getting ID'd and having to pretend she'd left it at home. "I'll have one, thanks."

From beside me, Miles flicked her arm. I felt his body shift through the movement. "I'll take one, too. Thanks for asking."

Katy looked at him with narrowed eyes, "You flicked me, why would I get you anything now?"

She was gone before he could respond, and I shook my head and the look on his face. By the time Katy came back, the band was already setting up in the small bit of space that'd been sectioned off at the far end of the room. I could barely see them over the heads that stood between us, but I wasn't surprised by what they looked like when I did. None of the five of them could have been much older than their early twenties. Though Naomi had gone on and on about their music, she'd never once mentioned what they looked like.

Katy set three cups of water down on the table in front of us, sliding one towards me and Miles, and taking the third back towards her spot on the other side of the table. Miles gave her a smile, caught somewhere between a smug look and gratitude. Katy looked at me and nodded her head towards him, and I flicked Miles' arm. He barked out a laugh, much easier to hear now that the music had been turned down to let the band check their sound.

I took a sip of water and turned back to the room, one ear on the conversation Naomi and Trevor were having to my left.

Miles frowned, "What're you looking for?"

I shrugged, "I just didn't expect it to be so busy."

"There are very few fun things to do on this side of town," he said with a laugh. "Great for them," he pointed to the band. They'd just started playing, the speakers blasting out the first few chords of a guitar. "Less great for us."

I smiled into my cup, "You make it sound like Northport is so much busier. It's just a bunch of tourists and small town snobs."

"Tourists, small town snobs, and you. I guess it can't be all that bad then, can it?" He said. I was glad it was dark, because I could feel the blood rushing to my face, but he was sitting so close that I wondered if he could see it anyways.

"We should go closer," Naomi said, already pushing me and Miles out of the booth before she'd even finished talking. The rest of us followed her as she pushed through the crowd, stopping towards the edge of the floor and leaning against a wall. There were still a good number of people between us and The Basement, but we were just close enough that I could see the tops of their heads over the others, lit neon colours by the makeshift lights that hung above them.

I shuffled in next to Katy, both of us still holding our waters in hand. Miles had left his on the table, though it was surely going to be commandeered by another group soon enough.

It took me less than ten minutes to decide Naomi had been right about the band. Maybe it was just that live music was better than headphones or anything that played from the speaker I'd had since I was fourteen, but it didn't take me long to decide that I'd be searching the Basement up on apple music when I got home later. They played a song that everyone in our group seemed to know, and I laughed while I watched Trevor wrap his arm around Naomi, swinging side to side and belting lyrics I didn't know. For once, Naomi didn't shy away from him; she smiled instead.

The band finished one song and launched right into another, and I grinned as Katy looked over at me and started nodding her head, lip synching words that were nowhere close to the actual lyrics.

My phone buzzed in my packpocket, and I glanced at the screen just brief enough to know it wasn't my parents before sliding it back into my pocket. It was an unknown number, an area code I didn't recognise.

Katy grabbed my arm, forcing me to jump at the same time she was. Memories of being watched made me worried people would think I looked weird, arm looped around a girl two inches shorter than me and trying to keep up with the tempo. But it wasn't long before I was smiling all over again. I met Miles' eyes across the group, where he stood with one eyebrow raised and Trevor's free hand on his shoulder. He smiled right back.

It was fun, fun in a way that was different from the days we'd spent at the beach and the nonchalant nights at the cabin. Something that was nice to do once in a while, surrounded by people who didn't know us and music rattling my brain. I was sure I would have a headache in the morning, positive I wouldn't be able to hear right for days, but I didn't care. I didn't have a single care in the world.

Hello! I just wanted to say we're nearing the end of this book now -- I think there will be something like 10 chapters, maybe a little more left. With that said, if any of you have any comments or feedback on my writing in general or the plot or literally ANYTHING about this book, I would love to hear it! If for some reason you don't want to comment, feel free to send me a PM. 

Feedback really helps with my writing, and anything you guys have to say about the book will help me when I go back for revisions. I already know I'm probably going to end up putting this book through a shredder and gluing it back together before I'll be able to call it a completed work, so I'd love to hear your thoughts before then. 

And thank you for reading and supporting me! I'm forever grateful for you guys.