Page 67 of Shy Girls Can't Date Rockstars
I watch a duck paddle across the pond. “I don’t get it.”
“Don’t get what?”
“Why do you have to jump through all these hoops?” I turn to face him. “If Chase’s dad owns the record label, why doesn’t he just... give you a deal?”
Ryder’s jaw tightens. For a moment, I think he’s going to shut down, change the subject, and build the wall back up.
Instead, he says, “Because he doesn’t have faith in him.”
The admission surprises me. “What do you mean?”
“Before Miranda discovered me, Chase and Brooks’s band was going nowhere. Their frontman was a joke, and their songs lacked originality.” He kicks at a pebble near his shoe. “Miranda saw me performing and thought I’d fit. She convinced Mr. Kensington to give the band a real shot, saying she could turn things around.”
“Oh. So you were looking to join a band?”
His laugh is bitter. “Ah, no. But it’s a stepping stone into the industry.”
“Did you write the songs before you joined Sky Chaos?”
He turns to me with a tentative smile. “Some.”
Chills run down my arms before I realize what the warmth in his dark eyes is doing to me.
It’s just the music. I’m into the music.
“If we nail the showcase,” Ryder says, his gaze drifting off to the mountains in the distance, “Kensington will really invest in us. I know he only cares about school because he wants Chase to become a business major and work in the office beside him. But if I can prove my worth, we can forget about grades and just focus on the music.”
“Do you really want to jeopardize everything by blowing off school? What if Mr. Kensington isn’t bluffing and graduating really will make or break your record deal?”
“You worry too much.” He playfully nudges me. “I have a nerdy tutor who’s gonna make sure I don’t fail.”
I wince, holding it firm so I don’t crack a smile. “Ha, yeah, right.”
Ryder leans back, patting his backpack and shifts on the bench. “I have a draft of my essay done. Maybe you could take a look at it?”
“Yeah, sure. We didn’t get to do a lot of tutoring. Speaking of which, it makes no sense. Why would you even have a photo shoot this week? Miranda knows you have an essay due tomorrow.”
“It’s a balancing act.”
As Ryder stares out into the distance, I notice the hunch in his shoulders. Whether the band succeeds is weighing on him. Chase and Brooks have proven they can’t do it on their own, and they’re all banking on Ryder’s talent.
No wonder he hasn’t put the effort into his studies.
The silence is different this time. Like I’ve gotten a peek behind the curtain at what makes this boy tick. The circumstances that can make him whiplash between cruelty and concern.
It makes me think about my own predicament. How nice it would be to voice it to another human being.
But I shouldn’t. I should keep my mouth shut around him.
Yet the urge is too strong. “I had dinner with Miranda last night.”
Ryder glances over. “Yeah? How was that?”
“Confusing.” I pick at a thread on my backpack. “I tried asking her about my mom.”
His posture shifts slightly. “Did she tell you?”
“No. She said I wouldn’t want to know.”
