Rewrite the Stars

by Rose, Charleigh

  “You’re not serious…”

  “You want to make it up to me for betraying me with my mortal enemy?” I ask, meeting his honey-brown eyes.

  “Within reason…” Drew hedges.

  “Be here at seven tomorrow morning. I’m going to need a ride, but I have to talk to my mom first.”

  “Done.”

  “Does he even know you’re coming?” Savannah asks from the passenger seat of Drew’s truck. Because, of course, he asked her to come. I’m shoved in the narrow back seat with my luggage stacked against me.

  “No,” I say, nervously bouncing my knee as I look out the window. I don’t know how this is going to work. What if they’re already gone? Or worse, what if he says no? The rejection would be that much worse, having to drive back with Savannah to witness my failure. I didn’t think this through.

  When my mom got home yesterday afternoon, I told her what happened with Dad, and that I was staying with Savannah for the summer. It was easier than explaining that I was running off to spend my summer traveling with the people who my parents think are responsible for corrupting their daughter and breaking into their hotel room. I don’t need her permission, but, like I said…it’s easier this way.

  My mom was stiff when she hugged me goodbye, careful not to show any sign of emotion, and my dad hasn’t been home since the day I left. Probably holed up in some shit hotel, snorting my money. When Drew loaded my suitcase into his truck, my mom pulled me aside and handed me a wad of cash from her purse.

  “I know it’s not much,” she’d said, tucking it into the palm of my hand. “But I can’t leave you with nothing.”

  But it was a lot. Five hundred dollars. The old me would have blown that in a weekend, but now?

  “Mom,” I said, shaking my head. “I don’t need it.”

  “Take it,” she said, sniffing. “Your father will just have to go without power this month.” At that, we both laughed.

  “In that case,” I said bitterly, shoving it into my pocket. “Thank you.”

  “Relax,” Drew says, bringing me back to the present. “Isn’t that, like, the carnival’s M.O.? Taking in people who have nowhere else to go?”

  “You can say losers, Drew. We all know what you mean.”

  “If we make it in time,” I say, ignoring Savannah’s comment. “Which is unlikely since Little Miss Priss just had to spend twenty minutes inside Starbucks.” Truth be told, I’d kill for an iced coffee, but I’ve learned to live without it. First world problems.

  “We’re almost there.” Drew exits the freeway, speeding toward the fairgrounds. The closer we get, the harder my heart pounds in my chest, and the more I second-guess my decision. This is crazy.

  “I can’t do this. What the hell was I thinking?”

  “You were thinking that you’d do something for yourself for once,” Drew reminds me.

  “He doesn’t even like me.”

  “Oh, for fuck’s sake. Enough of the pity party. You’re hot. You have great tits. And you’re not completely unbearable to be around…when you don’t open your mouth. He’s a dirty, greasy carny, and he’d be so lucky to get ass from someone of your caliber all summer long.”

  Drew cuts his eyes to look at me, holding in a laugh, waiting for my reaction.

  “Sav, I think that’s the nicest thing you’ve said to me since junior high,” I say, snorting out a laugh. “Which says a lot about how much of a bitch you’ve been.”

  “Uh…Ev? I think you might need to hurry.”

  I look out the windshield to see an assembly of vehicles making their way off the lot.

  “Shit.”

  Drew pulls up to the entrance before throwing his truck in park. He opens the back door, grabbing my suitcase before helping me out.

  “Have a good summer,” he says, pulling me in for a hug.

  “Thanks. Wear a condom.”

  He laughs, climbing back into his truck as I scan the vehicles for Sebastian’s trailer, spotting it almost immediately. I stand near the entrance, waiting. I watch as it grows closer, unable to force my feet into motion. With a second to spare, I dart out in front of the trailer. The driver slams on the brakes half a second before Eros peeks his head out the door of the bunkhouse, seeming more than a little amused.

  Sebastian appears a second later, pinning me with his gaze. By the way his nostrils flare and his fists clench as he takes in my luggage, I don’t think he’s too happy to see me.

  “Hi,” I say with a shrug. Now that I’m here, it seems even crazier than it did in my head. I bite my lip, waiting for him to say something. Anything. But he simply stands there, one hand holding the door open and the other braced on the frame. Staring. After what seems like an eternity, he jerks his head in a get in here motion, pushing the door open wider in invitation.

  I close the distance between us, and Sebastian reaches down to grab the suitcase out of my hand. I follow him into the bunkhouse to find three sets of eyes looking at me expectantly.

  “I had nowhere else to go,” I say, deciding that ripping the Band-Aid off would be the best way to go about it.

  “No,” Lathan says, shaking his head. “Not a good idea.” I deflate a little, not expecting to get shut down so quickly.

  “Hold up,” Eros says, lifting a palm. “She needs help. And she could be useful around here. You know how to cook?” he asks me. I give him a skeptical look, trying not to laugh. I’m not into the whole caveman mentality, and even though my lifestyle has changed drastically, I never learned how to make anything beyond cereal.

  “We don’t need anything from her. And you know damn well why she shouldn’t be here.”

  “It’s not a big deal,” Eros insists. My eyes fall to a long scar from his shoulder to peck. My eyebrows pull together, wondering what could’ve left that kind of mark.

  “Who’s going to pay for another mouth to feed?”

  The two of them argue back and forth over the table, while the one person who should have an opinion on the matter remains silent. I don’t know what I did to make Lathan dislike me, and I don’t know why Eros seems to be advocating for me, but I’m not going to complain. Sebastian’s eyes bore into me, arms crossed, and I try not to flinch under his stare.

  Finally, having enough of the back and forth, I reach into my pocket, pulling out the wad of cash from my mom. I slap it down onto the table between them, effectively silencing them. “Five hundred bucks. It’s all I have.” All except the money I had in my pockets from last night. “Consider it my rent. I can work, prefer it, actually, and I won’t get in your way.” My stomach rolls, and I feel physically sick throwing down that much money. I still have what was left from the money I took out of my stash before my dad found it—about seventy bucks—but that won’t last me long at all. I tell myself that I don’t need it. I’ve learned to live without it.

  Surprise flits across Sebastian’s face before he conceals it. The three of them exchange looks, seemingly communicating without words, just like I witnessed them doing firsthand in the globe. I don’t know what’s said, or unsaid, but I know they’ve reached a decision when Lathan curses under his breath.

  “I want it on record that I thought this was a bad idea from the start.”

  “Noted,” Sebastian responds tersely. Lathan turns, walking the short way to the bunks before lifting himself into the top right one, yanking on a row of short curtains attached to what appears to be a shower rod.

  Elliot appears in the doorway. “What’s up? Are we going?”

  “We’ve got ourselves a new roommate,” Eros explains. “Let’s roll out.”

  Elliot nods his understanding before smiling at me. “Hey, Evan. Good to see you.” I wave at him before he ducks back out. A few seconds pass before we’re moving.

  “Welcome to the madhouse.” Eros grabs the back of my head before smacking a kiss onto my forehead. He scratches his bare stomach with a yawn. “I’m going to bed,” he announces, hopping into the top bunk opposite of Lathan’s.

 
“Sit down,” Sebastian orders, stashing my suitcase against the wall beside the couch. I drop my bags onto the floor, sliding into the U-shaped booth behind the table. Sebastian sits on the other side.

  “Look, if you really don’t want me here—” I start, but he interrupts, shaking his head.

  “We need to get some things straight if you’re going to be here for the summer.”

  “Okay.” I nod. “Fair enough.”

  “First of all, I’m not your boyfriend.”

  “Excuse me?”

  “If you’re here, hoping for something to happen between us, you’re wasting your time. I don’t do girlfriends.” How very cliché.

  “And you’re telling me this, because…”

  “Because this…thing with us, whatever it is. It ends here.”

  I swallow around the lump in my throat, trying not to show how much his words sting. I snort out a laugh that sounds fake to my own ears. “I think I can handle that.”

  “As long as we’re on the same page.”

  “Anything else?” I ask, arching a brow. “Maybe a curfew? Chores? Wouldn’t want to break any rules.”

  “I’ll make a list and get back to you,” he deadpans. “For now, just keep yourself occupied and try to stay out of trouble.” He stands and starts for his bunk, I assume, when I speak.

  “Yes, Daddy.” I meant for it to sound mocking, but the way Sebastian pauses to look back at me and smirks tells me he took it another way entirely.

  “Glad that’s settled.”

  Sebastian toes off his beat-up black boots, kicking them under his bunk before he slides in, leaving me alone with my thoughts. Thoughts like what the hell did I get myself into? and this is crazy. But it beats spending the summer in New York.

  Snores fill the trailer, because they’re apparently vampires who sleep during the day, and I try to calm my racing thoughts by curling up on the leather couch. It’s ripped and spliced, scratching against my bare legs, but my only other alternatives are the table and the floor.

  I turn my phone over in my palm, scrolling through my contacts. This moment feels monumental. Thrilling, but somehow depressing. I just made the biggest decision of my life, and I don’t have a single person to talk to about it. The only person whom I’d consider just dropped me off. Plus, he’s with Savannah now. And if he’s happy, then I guess I can be happy for him. Eventually.

  This will either be the adventure of a lifetime or the biggest mistake. Let’s hope for the former.

  “GOT ANY SKILLS?” ROY JESSUP asks, giving me an appraising look from behind the desk inside his trailer. Dark hair, dark eyes, and intimidating as hell. His build suggests he’s relatively young—maybe mid-thirties, but his skin looks weathered. Tan. Like he’s spent the majority of his life under the sun. He’s wearing a suit, but instead of looking dapper, it makes him look more like a used car salesman.

  “I can dance,” I answer, not knowing what else I have to offer. After a boring five hours, Sebastian woke up and I immediately asked him to put me to work. I couldn’t sit around the bunkhouse all summer. Plus, I might as well make some money while I’m here.

  “I can see if the Vixens need another body for their act.” The burlesque show. I remember seeing the tent when I was with Chloe and Savannah last year.

  “I don’t think that’s quite what she had in mind,” Sebastian chimes in from behind me, arms folded across his chest.

  Roy runs a hand down his well-groomed mustache and beard, assessing. “What are you, her keeper? Why don’t you let her decide for herself, huh?”

  “Is there nudity?” I ask dumbly, causing Roy to chuckle.

  “Yeah, sweetheart. There’s nudity.”

  “Then I’ll have to pass.”

  “Suit yourself. How old are you?”

  “Eighteen.”

  “Good. Give me a day or so and I’ll find somewhere to put you.” He turns to Sebastian. “Surprised you haven’t tried to incorporate her into your guys’ act.”

  “It was a one-time thing. Too many variables lead to mistakes. Too unpredictable.”

  “Ah. Come see me tomorrow then, Evan.” He extends an arm, and I lean over his desk to shake his hand, ignoring the way his eyes roam my neckline that gapes at this angle.

  By the time we exit the trailer, the sun has already set, and the California fairgrounds are lit up under the night sky.

  “I’ve gotta go get ready for the show,” Sebastian says. His mood has once again shifted, leaving me to only guess at what’s bothering him. I follow him into the trailer. He shrugs on his leather jacket and walks over to his bunk, retrieving the rosary that hangs from a hook over his bed. It must be some kind of pre-show tradition, though he doesn’t strike me as the religious type.

  “Aren’t you hot in that?”

  “I’m used to it.”

  “Why the rosary?”

  “Why so talkative?” he throws back.

  I shrug. “Just curious.”

  “Where are you going to be tonight?” He changes the subject, digging out a pack of cigarettes. “Today is what we call a soft open. Most of the rides won’t even be up until tomorrow. Won’t be gone long.”

  “You don’t need to take care of me, you know,” I inform him. “I’m not your responsibility.”

  He runs a hand through his mussed-up hair, giving me a long, hard look before responding. “Stay close,” he warns. “No one knows you’re with me yet.”

  “With you?”

  “The carnival isn’t all sunshine and rainbows, Evan. We’re not exactly known for our virtue. Some of us lie, cheat, steal…and worse.”

  Worse? Like breaking into a hotel room for revenge? I shake the thought from my head. He said he didn’t do it, and clearly, I believe that, or I wouldn’t be here. Sebastian sees the wheels turning, somehow knowing exactly where my mind went.

  “I may not be an honorable man, but I won’t lie to you.”

  I refrain from pointing out that his statement means nothing if he is, in fact, a liar. Instead, I nod. “I know. Go…break a leg. Or something.”

  His lips twitch, like he might smile but doesn’t want to give me the satisfaction of putting it there. My eyes fall to the moon-shaped scar below his bottom lip, and once again, I wonder how it got there.

  My stomach growls audibly, reminding me that I haven’t eaten since yesterday. Truthfully, I haven’t had an appetite until this very second. Sebastian hears it and mutters a curse. So sorry for bothering you with my need for sustenance. “For fuck’s sake, you live here now.” He walks over to a high cupboard above the table and flings one open, then he marches over to a fridge, not quite mini, but definitely not a full-size refrigerator, and gestures to the contents inside. “Feed yourself. I’m not your babysitter.”

  I don’t even have time to formulate a rebuttal before he’s gone.

  “Welcome home, Evan,” I mutter to myself.

  After shooting a quick text to my mom—I haven’t heard a word from her since she left—and rummaging through the cupboard, I conclude that these guys eat like kindergarteners, seeming to live off fruit snacks, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, and chips. I’m lucky enough to find a protein bar shoved in the back. That and a bottle of water will have to hold me over until I venture out to get some real food. What am I saying? I’m at a carnival. Greasy, fried goodness is right outside this door.

  So is Sebastian.

  Unable to resist the temptation, I quickly change into a pair of maroon jean shorts and a flowy, black spaghetti strap top. I toss my hair up into a ponytail, then push the door open, only to run into Elliot.

  “Ow,” he says, stumbling backward down the three steps.

  “Shit, I’m sorry. I didn’t know you were there.”

  “It’s all good,” he says, his eyes scanning me up and down. When he notices me noticing him, I could swear his cheeks pink just a little. “I came to see if you wanted to go to the show.”

  Elliot is handsome with his dark hair and square jaw. His eyes
are more hazel than Sebastian’s green, and he’s a little shorter. Despite sharing some generic physical similarities, their personalities couldn’t be more different. Sebastian’s presence is larger than life. Even without opening his mouth, you can feel his commanding energy. He walks around with this give-no-fucks-attitude that should act as a repellant, but it has the opposite effect, much to his dismay, I’m sure.

  Elliot is…softer. Quiet like Sebastian, but without the brooding. Where Sebastian treats the world like it owes him something, Elliot just seems to be trying to find his place in it. I feel bad that it’s been two years, and he still hasn’t managed to make much headway with Sebastian. I wonder if he’s had any luck with Eros, Lathan, or Tres.

  “Sure. That’s where I was heading.”

  We make our way through the crowded fairgrounds, once again earning curious looks from every employee who takes notice of me. It’s as if I have a big, flashing neon sign above my head that reads outsider.

  “Don’t worry about them,” Elliot says. “In a couple of days, some jointee will get caught screwing another guy’s wife, and you’ll be old news.”

  “Is that right?” I ask, quirking a brow.

  “I’d bet on it.”

  Once we near the tent, I hear the brap brap of the dirt bikes. The sound sends a frisson of excitement through me. Once inside, it’s too noisy to hear what Elliot’s saying, so he grabs ahold of my hand, leading me around the perimeter of the tent to the front row with two open seats. Sebastian, Eros, Tres, and Lathan are inside the globe, whirling around so quickly that I can hardly tell who’s who. “Worlds Collide” blares from the speakers, and I watch nervously, my fingers gripping the edges of my chair.

  “I bet they could do this in their sleep,” I remark absentmindedly, but somehow Elliot manages to hear me over the noise and nods. “Do you ride?”

  “I do,” he yells back. “I’ve been trying to talk them into letting me perform with them. They’re not convinced.” Something flashes in his eyes, but it’s gone before I can decipher it.

  “Why stay then?”

  A shrug. “I don’t have anywhere else. Or anyone else, more specifically.”