★★★
𝔗he lights were low, and a mother was trying to pull her son away from the window. I licked my lips, trying to ignore the sweat beading up on my forehead. Guitar Center was for cool people. And I could barely even get this riff right. That wasn't cool. That wasn't metal.
I tapped my foot. I wasn't confident in this at all. Sure, I could play some pretty hard stuff, but Hunter insisted I learned this in time for the battle of the bands. I didn't think I could do it at first. And, to no surprise, I still don't.
"Hey."
I stopped playing rather quickly, the hum of the chord ringing through the room. I looked up, nervous. Speak of the devil.
"What..?"
There he was, standing before me. He had nothing with him, not even a wallet I could see. It was almost as if he came looking for me. Or he knew I was here. I thought of Kevin; he and I spoke earlier. Maybe we had something to do with it.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to, uh, scare you," he said. His face was turning pink. I looked out the window. The kid was back, and he tapped on the glass. Someone came to get him, a different person this time. It must have been his older brother. He was holding a back of picks and a book.
"What's up?" I asked coolly. Hunter put his hands in his pockets. I ran over an escape plan in my head, just in case. Just in case I couldn't take the awkward conversations anymore. Maybe my mom would need help shopping, or my dad was close by and could pick me up. You know, that sort of thing.
"Nothing much. I just came here to look at stuff. I was... bored. And you're here, so," he trailed off. I flicked the strings. Quiet notes reverberated around the room. Neither of us said anything. I swallowed.
"About the other night..."
I shook my head. This was so unlike Hunter. He was like, the least sentimental person I knew. This didn't sound like him. But, I guess everyone has their kryptonite. He took the seat next to me. I was worried that if we were just hanging out in here, we'd be told to leave. But there wasn't really anyone here anyway.
"Hunter, I'm not mad. Not at all, actually."
He shifted. Our knees were touching. I laid the guitar flat in my lap and looked around the studio. Hunter sighed.
This was really very complicated. I mean, yeah, we liked each other. But how the hell do we make anything happen? I think I still needed time.
"What now?" He asked me. I noticed him move his head a little; now he was looking at me. A brief eye contact. I blushed.
"I have no idea."
My eyes scanned the walls. Chord posters, band posters, and guitars for sale on their respective hooks. I never really took the time to look around the studios. Just sit in it and practice. I guess it was kind of the right place for two musicians to confess... whatever this was.
"You know, Hunter," I said, preparing myself for his next reaction, "I do like you. It might not mean much to you, but I think that we could make something work."
Non-metal.
So non-metal.
He smiled. He fucking smiled. Normally, I would be scared shitless. But for now, I think that I am completely comfortable around him.
"Yeah. Me too."
★
I rolled over onto my stomach. My earbuds pulled out of my ears as I did so. I sighed, staring at my ceiling. The corner of one of my posters was peeling.
The time was 7:08. I'd been thinking of the interaction we'd had since we left the building. Around four. I didn't know what this meant.
I would pull a typical Y/n, I'd think about the situation, every little detail, and let it absorb me for days until I knew what decision to make.
★★★
A/n -
Filler chapter :) Sorry it's so short, I'm having a hard time coming up with other ideas, especially since this movie happens sort of all at once. And, I apologize for the timing being so weird. I have absolutely no idea how the timing works in this movie, whether events are happening every other day or every other week, so it's a bit of a struggle coming up with stuff to add in.