Chapter 23: Chapter 23

They drove for about ten seconds until they pulled up to the side of Kevin’s first story apartment. She’d known Kevin throughout high school, but she’d never given him the time of day. He was handsome enough but he’d always seemed a little weird to her, as if something was off about him. But then he graduated, and somehow he seemed cooler, more sophisticated now that he was a freshman at Bayside Community College. So when she ran into him at a party a couple of nights ago she’d let him have her number this time. She hadn’t been surprised when he’d called her last night to invite her over to watch a movie. He’d expressed his interest in her many times before. But what had surprised her was

running into Brad right outside Kevin’s apartment.

She twisted her head around to glare at Brad. “Alright, what is it that you have to show me?”

“Just look through the window.”

She turned her head in the direction he pointed and focused her gaze on the window that allowed her to see into Kevin’s apartment. The curtains were pulled back so she was able to get a clear glimpse inside.

“What do you see?” Brad whispered close to her ear.

She gasped, and her bottom lip began to tremble when her eyes settled on the chilling scene before her. She swallowed hard as she tried to keep the tears from slipping down her cheeks. About half of the football team, plus several guys she didn’t know all crowded inside the tiny apartment. The guys stood around with bottles and cans of beer cupped in their hands, while music blared loudly all the way outside. It looked like a party, except there were no girls.

She whipped her head around to stare at Brad.

“How did you know about this?”

A wary look crossed his face. “I was invited. I waited outside in my car until I saw you walk up. I—I knew what he had planned and I just couldn’t….” He let out a weary sigh and turned away from her to start the car. “I’ll take you home.”

She reached out a hand to grip his forearm. “I don’t want to go home right now. Can you take me back to school? Music helps me sort things out.” She added when he shot her a puzzled look.

He simply nodded and they drove to school in silence. Her mind was a jumble of conflicting thoughts as she sat beside him. She knew Kevin hadn’t invited her over for just a movie, but the thought that he’d

planned something so despicable was beyond her comprehension. She

gulped deeply trying to fight back the panic as she imagined what could have happened had Brad not intervened. Anger and helplessness raged inside her. Kevin thought with her reputation that she could be treated in such a manner and while it enraged her, she almost couldn’t blame him.

Nobody would have believed her and even if they did they would have all argued that she deserved it. Every last guy in that room would

have gotten away with it and more labels would have been attached to her reputation. She knew who she was and what she was, but that didn’t mean she deserved what he had planned—nobody did.

Her mind was so far away from the present that it took her several seconds to realize that Brad had parked the car and was already hopping out. She cast a furtive glance up at him when he opened the passenger door and helped her out. She thought he would just drop her off but instead he followed her inside and sat in one of the chairs, waiting in patient silence as she teased her fingers over the keys until she finally settled on Rachmaninoff’s Isle of the Dead. As her fingers skimmed over

the ivory keys she lost herself in the moment and completely forgot he

was there as she let her voice join in the melody of the haunting music. She played for what seemed like hours, although it couldn’t have been more than fifteen minutes.

When she finally stopped she felt as if she was coming out of a trance. It was always like that when she played. She would lose herself to the music, leaving everything else behind.

“I’ve never seen someone so passionate about something the way you are about your music.”

A small smile lifted the corners of her lips as she stood from the bench and crossed the room to where Brad now stood staring out the window.

“That can’t be true. Everyone is passionate about something and I’m sure you’ve seen it in others besides me.”

He shrugged. “I guess, but I’ve never seen someone pursue their passion the way you do.”

She snorted. “Don’t give me too much credit. The only reason why I even applied to Barnard and the Peabody Conservatory is because you told Mrs. Owens and she pulled some strings to get me an audition—”

“But you did it. You didn’t hesitate. You sent in your application and went to the auditions. I admire that.”

A tiny thrill of pleasure settled in her belly at the admiration she heard in his voice. But she quickly pushed it aside, not wanting to read

more into it than there was. Instead, she focused her attention solely on him. There was something about what he said and how he said it that gave her pause. He sounded almost wistful, envious even. She stepped toward him, studying him closer.

“What’s your passion, Brad?”

He stared at her in shock, as if she’d read his mind. She would have laughed if she’d thought he wouldn’t take offense. Anyone with two eyes and half a brain could guess what was on his mind.

He stood up straight, his eyes boring into her. “Promise me you won’t laugh?”

“Why would I laugh?”

“And swear to me you won’t tell anyone.”

She wanted to remind him that she had no friends to tell, but instead she said, “I swear.”

“Alright, follow me.”

She stared after him, her expression curious, before she took off behind him.

They navigated the deserted corridors of the school until they got to his locker. He fumbled with the code until it unlocked and he pulled the door open. She peaked inside and saw a couple of AC/DC bumper stickers and some books, but not much else. He stooped down on his haunches and rummaged through the books until he pulled out a large pad.

She glanced down at the pad in his hands, and then up at his face, which was now tinged with red. She narrowed her eyes. He was nervous? But why?

“Can I take a look?” She finally asked when he just stood there in silence clutching the tablet.

He nodded and slowly handed it over.

She flipped open the cover. She stood there in stunned silence as she carefully drummed through each page. Most of the images were of

landscapes and buildings, but there were a few sketches and drawings of people. Her eyes grew wide when her gaze landed on a picture of her own face.

“I—I can explain that—”

“Ohmigod. Brad, this is brilliant.” She flipped through the rest of the pages until she came to the end. “You’re an artist. An amazing one. Why doesn’t anyone know about this?”

He shrugged, his expression sheepish. “You know.”

She scowled up at him. “You know what I mean. In the yearbook it says you’re going to school for pre-med but it’s obvious you need to be somewhere studying art and architecture.” She stared at him in awe. “Brad, this is your passion. Why are you not pursuing it?”

He twisted his lips into a frown and looked away from her. “My father’s a surgeon. My brother just got accepted to med school.” He let out a long sigh and turned his head back around to face her. The look in his eyes made her heart sink. Before he even spoke she knew what he was

going to say, and it saddened her. “I will disappoint everyone if I don’t become a surgeon too.”

“You convinced me to go to school for music and here you are bending to the will of your family. Don’t you think that’s awfully hypocritical of you?”

She instantly regretted her words when his expression hardened and he reached out to snatch the pad from her hands and tossed it back inside his locker, slamming the door shut with a loud bang.

He glared at her. “You don’t know what it’s like to have the weight of your family’s expectations on your shoulders.”

“You’re right. I don’t. But I know talent when I see it and I can tell you it would be a waste not to do anything with it.”

She could tell he was furious when the muscle in his jaw twitched as he clenched his teeth together.

“It’s getting late. I better take you home,” he gritted out as he brushed past her.

“Yeah, whatever,” she snapped back as she trailed after him, her eyes burning angry holes into his back.