"If you lay a hand on me I'll call the police!" she yells.
He stares down at her, a menacing stare that matches his menacing look; tall, wide, bald head, his body covered in tats.
"I'm not going to ask you again," he says.
She storms off and I hear the back door open, then slam shut.
The bouncer smiles at me. "Need anything else?"
"No, I'm good. Thanks."
"Have a good show," he says as he leaves.
"You really dated that girl?" Amber asks.
"Unfortunately, yes. For longer than I should have."
"She seems crazy."
"She is. But hopefully she'll leave me alone now."
"I should go." Amber hurries to the door.
"Wait." I catch up to her, grasping her arm. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing. I just need to get to my seat."
"Are you mad about Allison?"
"No. But it is a little annoying that you have girls attacking you before you even get on stage."
"That only happened because Allison's crazy and wants me back. And she only wants me back because I'm in the band. There's nothing going on between her and me. It's over." I slide my hand down Amber's arm and press my lips to hers. "All I want is you. So whatever happens tonight, remember that. You're it. There's no one else."
She nods, then kisses my cheek. "Have a good show."
She walks off and I let her go. I don't have time to convince her I'm not interested in other girls. After a week of being together, and months of me trying to find her, I thought she'd know she's the only one I want, but I guess she needs more time before she believes that.
"Hey." Austin appears. "You ready?"
"Yeah. Let's go. Is Van already out there?"
"No, he's making out with some girl. He said he'll be out there in a minute."
"What girl?"
"Just some girl he met when he was setting up the equipment earlier." Austin looks behind me. "Where's Amber?"
"She went to go find her seat."
"Did something happen? I heard yelling."
"Allison showed up, claiming we were still together. When I told her I was with Amber, she went crazy and started screaming at me. I had to get the bouncer to throw her out."
"Like out of the bar?"
"Yeah. He told her she had to leave."
He laughs. "She must've been pissed."
"She was, but what the hell was I supposed to do? If she'd stayed, she would've made a scene."
"So about the set tonight. Are we still playing One Night?"
"Yeah. Why wouldn't we?"
"I'm just worried you might look at Amber when you're singing it. And if you do, everyone will know it's about her."
"Then I won't look at her."
"You may do it without realizing it."
I sigh. "We're singing it. The fans love it. They expect us to play it."
He shrugs. "I just wanted to give you the option."
When Van, Austin, and I step out onto the small stage, I spot Amber off to the right, sitting next to Kira. She smiles at me and I relax, any nervousness I felt now gone. I don't know why I was nervous. I've been doing this for years and I already know Amber likes our music. There was no reason to be nervous.
The night goes great. We play awesome. The place is packed. And Amber is here, singing along and even getting up and dancing to a couple songs.
We save One Night for last. That nervous feeling returns and I realize this was the reason I was nervous earlier. This song. The song I wrote about Amber. It's the only song I've ever written and actually performed and it always makes me emotional. I always imagine Amber when I sing it, and now she's here and I'm not sure how I'll react. Austin warned me about this and I probably should've listened to him and not performed the song.
But it's too late now. The fans are chanting "One Night", begging me to sing it, and Austin has already started playing the intro.
Forcing my gaze away from Amber, I sing the first line, then close my eyes as my fingers strum the guitar. I get lost in the lyrics, like I always do with this song.
Saw you across the room...That face, those eyes...couldn't find the words, but no words were needed...I knew you were it...I went to you, you smiled...and I was gone...yours...forever...still on my mind, in my dreams.
The people in the bar sing along with the chorus. One night. But it was more than that. One night. But I'll never forget. One night. And you were gone. One night. And I want you back.
It isn't until the very end of the song that I open my eyes and look over at Amber.
One night, I sing in a low breathy tone. I slow down and draw out the last line, And I want you back.
My eyes are still on Amber but nobody notices. They're too busy yelling and clapping and chanting our names. Girls rush the stage like they always do at the end of the night, and I lose sight of Amber. I want to rush over to her and ask her what she thought but I can't ditch my fans or I wouldn't have any left.
After fifteen minutes of taking pictures with fans and signing autographs, we make our way to the back room. Kira and Amber are already there.
Amber runs up to me. "That was awesome!"
"Thanks." I kiss her.
She leans up and whispers in my ear, "You made me cry."
I take her out into the hall. "Why were you crying?"
"That song. Even though I've heard it hundreds of times, that's the first time I've heard you sing it live and it just got to me. Dylan, I'm so sorry I left like that. I feel so bad."
"It's all in the past." I smooth her hair and smile. "And hey, it made for a good song, right?"
She laughs. "Yeah, it did. A fan favorite."
"I wanted to look at you when I sang it but I thought you'd be mad if I did."
"Why would I be mad?"
"Because people would know it's about you. And I wasn't sure you'd be okay with that, given what we did that night."
"Oh. Yeah. I wasn't even thinking about that. That song is so beautiful and about so much more than...sex."
"Because that night was so much more. I tried to capture that in the lyrics. How I felt about you. How I couldn't stop thinking about you when you were gone."
She wipes her eyes. "You're going to make me cry again."
"Don't cry." I kiss her. "Like I said, it's all in the past."
"You guys coming?" Austin says as he walks out of the room with Kira on his arm.
"Where are we going?" Amber asks.
"We always go out to eat after we perform," I tell her. "Well, not always, but usually. We'll drop your car off and you can ride with me."
"Want to go the place on Highland?" Austin asks.
"Yeah, that works. What about Van?"
"He's staying here to pack up."
"What about the girl?"
"She has a boyfriend. He showed up halfway through our show."
"That sucks." I peek my head in the room and see Van on the phone. He's probably finding someone else to hook up with later tonight.
"I think I'll just go home," Amber says. "I'm not really hungry and I can't be out all night."
"Tomorrow's Sunday. You can sleep in."
"Not really. I have to catch up on all the work I didn't get done because my boyfriend kept me busy all day."
I love hearing her call me her boyfriend. It never gets tiring.
"Your boyfriend insists you come with him for greasy burgers and fries at an all-night diner." I give her a kiss. "Come on. I don't want to be stuck alone with these two." I point at Austin and Kira who are making out right in front of us.
Amber laughs. "I'm used to it. They're like this at my apartment all the time."
"Still. Come with us. Please?"
"Okay. But I'll just follow you there. I don't need to drop off my car."
I lean down to her ear. "Unless you want to stay with me tonight." Remaining by her ear, I wait for her to respond. When she doesn't, I say, "We don't have to do anything. I just want to be next to
you."
"It wouldn't work," she whispers. "It's too tempting."
"Try it and see."
"Not tonight."
I stand up straight. "I had to at least ask."
"We're heading out," Austin says, taking off with Kira. "We'll see you there."
"Yeah, see ya."
"Van." I get his attention from the door. He's still on the phone but I give him a wave and say, "We're heading out. Thanks for packing up."
He nods and continues talking to whoever's on the phone.
At the diner, Amber and I have burgers and split a big basket of fries. Kira and Austin, the health nuts, order turkey burgers and don't eat the bun. Those two are made for each other. Nobody else I know eats like them, and anyone else they dated would be annoyed by their strict diets. It's a good thing they found each other.
After we eat, Kira and Austin go back to his place for the night. I follow Amber to her apartment, wanting to make sure she gets back there safely. I walk her to her door and kiss her, because technically the hallway is considered a public space, even though nobody else is around.
"I think I'm going to write a new song," I say.
"Oh, yeah? What is it?"
I turn her slightly, leaning her against the door. "It's called One Week."
She tilts her head, looking up at me. "What's it about?"
"You." I kiss her. "And me." I kiss her again. "And the week we spent together."
"Last week?" She smiles. "We didn't really do much."
"No. But we were finally together. That's all that matters." I position my mouth by her ear and softly sing, One week. I was with her. One week. Couldn't get enough of her. One week. And she was mine. One week. I have her back. I stop singing and quietly say, "And I hope she never leaves again."
Her neck moves as she swallows and I turn to see her face. Her eyes are wet, but she's smiling. "That was beautiful."
I chuckle. "And I didn't even practice it."
"You need to finish it. It'll be another hit."
"Maybe I'll just write it for us. Other people don't need to hear it."
"Dylan, no. You need to write it, and perform it. Girls will love it."
"I told you, I only care about one girl. And if you like it? That's good enough."
"You need to let others hear it. You sound so good singing it. I love your voice. Did you take lessons? Or how did you learn to sing like that?"
"I just sang along to my guitar. I never took singing lessons. Just guitar lessons, and when I'd practice, I'd sing along."
"You're really talented. You should go on one of those shows. Those singing competitions on TV."
"I don't think I'm good enough for that. I think I have a better shot at a job in marketing."
"Will you sing it again? One more time?" She rests her head back on the wall and closes her eyes.
One week. I was with her. One week. Couldn't get enough of her. I sing softly so I don't wake up her neighbors, and when I'm done, we kiss once more and then I leave.
When I get home, I write the song, the entire thing in less than ten minutes. The music and lyrics flow faster than I can get them down, but when I finally do, I go to the basement and play the song from start to finish.
Amber's right. It's gonna be another hit. Another favorite with the fans. But as I told her, none of that matters. The only thing I care about is as the song says...I have her back.
Chapter Seventeen
Amber
I have so much to do," I say to Kira as I sort through the stack of folders on the kitchen table.
"Is it homework or other stuff?"
"Both, but most of it's for the clubs I belong to. The holiday time is the worst. From now until Christmas break, there are parties and mixers and luncheons and dinners. And I not only have to attend them but also plan them." I sigh. "I should've stayed home last weekend."
She sits next to me. "You did what you should've done, and that's spend time with Dylan. And don't try to say you didn't have fun because I haven't seen you that happy in years."
"I DID have fun. And I love spending time with him, but now I have to pay for it."
It's Monday morning and I have class in an hour but I've been working at the kitchen table since five a.m. Yesterday, I was supposed to stay home and get stuff done, but in the morning, Dylan called and I wanted to see him. I had to. I couldn't even go a whole day without seeing him. So I went to his apartment and surprised him. He was more than surprised. More like shocked, given my insistence on not seeing each other.
I tried to make up some excuse about why I had to go over there, saying I wanted to know how his song was coming along, but he could see right through my lame reasoning. So I just admitted I went there to see him. Why hide it? He knows how much I like him.
We went out for brunch, which was all we were going to do, but then of course we couldn't say goodbye and ended up spending the entire day together. He dropped me off at ten last night and now I'm trying to catch up on my to-do list, which didn't get touched last weekend.
"Don't you ever get tired of this?" Kira asks, picking up one of my folders and dropping it back in the pile.
"Sometimes I do, but you know me. I go crazy when I'm not busy."
"You weren't busy last weekend. And as far as I know, you didn't go crazy."
"What are you talking about? I was busy."
"Not doing work. Watching TV with Dylan? Going running with him? Going out to eat? I hate to tell you this, but that's called relaxing." She leans toward me. "You, Amber Moore, relaxed for an entire weekend." She sits back again. "Might be the first time that's ever happened."
I pause to think. "Oh my God, you're right. I did nothing for two whole days. I was lazy. I've never been lazy."
"You weren't lazy. Lazy and relaxed are two different things. And you needed to relax. You've been running nonstop since I moved here last August. I don't know how you do it, but you need to stop, or at least slow down. It's not good for you to never relax."
"This coming from someone who works out for hours a day."
"Yeah, but I work out with Austin. It's something we both like to do. It's another way for us to spend time together. That's what you and Dylan need to do. You need to find activities you can do together."
"I can't spend every minute with him. We're already interning together. That should be enough."
"But you're not really together when you're working."
My laptop pings, bringing my focus back to the invites I was sending out. "Kira, I can't talk right now. I have to finish this before class."
"And I have to head to the gym." She stands up and goes over to the counter. "Found this under the door." She hands me an envelope.
"How'd he have time to write a letter? And drop it off?"
"Guess he makes time for things that are important." She smiles and walks away. She's hinting I should make time for Dylan, and it's not that I don't want to. My schedule just doesn't allow it. That doesn't mean he's not important to me.
The envelope is square, like there could be a card inside. Opening it up, I find a piece of heavy cardstock, and on it, he's written the following.
Dear Amber,
The Mickelson Family requests your presence at Thanksgiving dinner this Thursday, to be served at two in the afternoon. The dinner will feature such favorites as Roasted Turkey, Apple-Sage Stuffing (Grandma Mickelson's secret recipe, God rest her soul), Creamy Mashed Potatoes (made by yours truly), Cranberry Sauce (from a can because nobody ever eats it but you have to have it), Green Bean Casserole (my dad's specialty), and Pumpkin Pie (the kind you buy in the freezer section but my mom always pretends she made it).
The meal will last approximately one hour because my grandpa's dentures never stay in place and it takes him forever to eat. But in that hour, you'll be entertained by my dad's lame jokes, my mom repeatedly asking you if the turkey was too dry, and my little brother making fart noises but telling everyone it was his chair squeaking. And if that's not enough, you'll
have me there, and as you know, I'm always entertaining. I might even break out in song.
Your RSVP is requested by tonight. Dana Mickelson (my mom), needs to know if she'll be setting an extra place at the table. She takes her place settings very seriously. It's one of the few times of the year she actually decorates the table.
Have I enticed you yet? If not, I'll add that I really want you to come.
Love, Dylan
"I can't go," I say to myself.
"Can't go where?" Kira asks. I turn and see her behind me, adjusting her ponytail.
"To dinner at Dylan's house."
"He invited you to dinner?"
"Yeah, but I'm not going."
"Why not? As far as I know, he's not the greatest cook but it's nice of him to try."
"He's not the one making dinner, and it's not at the house he rents. It's at his actual house, the one he grew up in. His parents' house."
She comes around in front me. "He's taking you to meet his parents? Wow, this is serious."
"I know. And it's not just any dinner. It's Thanksgiving dinner. He even gave me an invitation." I hold it up. "He wants an answer by tonight."
"And you're going to tell him no?"
"Well, yeah, obviously. I've dated him for a week. I can't go home with him for Thanksgiving."
"Why not? It's just dinner. And his family lives in town. You can go for a few hours and leave."
"Kira." I set the invitation down. "This is Thanksgiving dinner. That's a huge deal. And his whole family will be there, including his grandfather. If I go, they'll assume Dylan and I are serious."
"You two ARE serious."
"After a week? I don't think so."
She sits beside me. "Amber, don't lie to yourself. You know you and Dylan aren't the typical couple. It's not like you just met. You've been thinking about him since you met him last May. And he spent all that time searching for you."
"Yeah, but we've still only been dating for a week. It's too soon for me to meet his family."
"Dylan doesn't seem to think so. And it's not like you have anything else to do. If you don't go on Thursday, you'll just be sitting here watching TV, eating cereal for dinner."
"I won't be eating cereal. I have at least three frozen dinners just waiting to be eaten."
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