Page 45 of Every Shattered Note
Eddie snorts.“Not when you’re using a fake name and pretending you don’t know what a Billboard chart is.”
“The Wedding Singer is not fake,” I say, defensive even as I hear how stupid it sounds.“He’s ...me without all the famous broken parts.”
“You don’t get to cut yourself in half and pretend the other side doesn’t exist.”
I nod slowly, biting the inside of my cheek.
“Besides,” Barret adds, voice quieter now, “if she only likes half of you, what’s the point?”
The silence stretches, the song still lingering in the background, echoing the ache I’ve been trying to drown since the moment she looked at me like I wasn’t a fuck-up.Like, I could maybe still make something worth keeping.
“Fine,” I mutter.“I’ll figure it out.”
“You’d better,” Eddie warns, pointing at me like I’m a project overdue.“And by the way?You’re not playing the gala.”
“Oh, thank fuck,” I breathe out.
Eddie doesn’t even blink.“Unless you fail to find someone better.In that case, the four of you are the entertainment.”
Roderick groans.“You’ve got to be kidding me.”
Eddie levels his gaze at me.“You let this spiral.Fix it.Or Dead Moth Parade will be on stage, and we’ll call it a reunion tour.”
“I’ll talk to Kit,” Rod says, standing.“But I swear to God, if this turns into a group performance, I’m bringing the chickens.”
Barret grins.“Live music.With feathers.”
Alec finally breaks the tension.“I’ll bring the tambourine.We’ll perform our own version of ‘The Chicken Dance.’Really bring the house down.”
Barret snorts.Even Rod cracks a tired smile.
I stand, brushing my palms against my jeans as I head toward the door, ready to disappear before this becomes a bigger lecture.
But Eddie’s voice cuts through the room before I can escape.“Dex.”
I stop and turn, already bracing for another warning, another jab disguised as concern.
He doesn’t raise his voice.Doesn’t even look angry—just tired.Tired in that way only someone who’s seen you at your worst can be.
“I know you,” he says.“And I don’t think she’s just another stop on your road back.She’s not a footnote.Don’t treat her like one.Not for your sake.And especially not for hers.”
That settles deep, like a chord that keeps humming long after the sound has faded—quiet, but impossible to ignore.
I nod.Once.
And leave because he’s right.For her sake, I need to do something I have never done in my life.Act like a mature person and confront my shit.
ChapterNineteen
EchoZone – Private Message Thread
February 22,2001 9:23 PM
AlyEuphoriaEvents:Sorry I haven’t contacted you, but I’ve been waiting to hear from the Whittmore Gala organizers.
MustLoveMusic:I didn't make the cut for that gala.
AlyEuphoriaEvents:They’re going for a string quartet, but how did you know?
