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I sputter on my sip of water. “Seriously? Symbiotic? Taylor and Christian would lose their shit. They've been in love with that band since high school.”

“Yup. Lead singer’s a total nightmare from what I hear, but the rest of the band seem solid. And they’re looking for someone who’s not afraid to get up close and dirty.”

I blink at her, my heart soaring as I think about what it would be like to tour the world doing what I love. My “art,” as Cedar put it.

Would I even want that? Tours take months, sometimes even years. That would mean being away from the gang, away from my family. I’ve never gone more than a week without seeing Taylor—and only when he visits Huck during football season.

Arya jumps into my arms, forcing me to grab her thighs when she wraps them around my waist. “Salem. Salem. This is, like, fate. Symbiotic is huge. And moody. And sexy. You're going to have so much fun!”

A snort leaves my lungs. “I haven’t even said yes yet. Or talked to anyone.”

Cedar hums, tapping a few things on her phone. “Don’t worry. I just sent Pepper, the drummer, your info.”

“What? Cedar!”

She offers me nothing more than a shrug and a cheeky smile. “You can thank me when you’re getting paid to travel the world with hot, sweaty band members for a living.”

The bartender orders us a round of celebration shots, and even though I drink them down, uncertainty settles in my gut along with the tequila. But there's also… excitement buried there too—the opportunity to do something new and experience life in a way I haven’t been able to before.

The music shifts behind us, transforming into something slower, more haunting and mellow. I glance toward the curtain and catch a sliver of stage light bleeding through the crack.

For a second, I imagine myself out there, not as a performer, but as the one capturing the rawness of it all. My pulse quickens at the fantasy.

Question is, could I do it? Could I give up my family and everything I've known in order to chase a dream?

Chapter

Thirty-Two

Logan

We hit the road for St. Louis as soon as the festival wraps, but I partly wish I could go home.

The longer we fight for bathroom time or space to breathe, the worse everyone's tempers flare. It gets so bad that Christian and Arya disappear after every show, avoiding Dev at all costs.

Huck and Taylor do the same. They slip off in the Audi to lose themselves in the city, no doubt chasing whatever scraps of peace they can find. Salem goes on her own secret adventures, too, and Devon mostly sleeps while he heals. I try to keep busy by tracking expenses, but eventually my laptop screen starts to blur.

By nightfall, everyone makes it back to their respective beds, hardly sparing any conversation. Salem still sleeps between me and Dev, at least, but the tension that formed when she beat him up only seems to grow.

The camaraderie that existed at the start of the trip has long since faded. We all move around each other like smoke, pretending this entire tour isn't unraveling thread by thread.

But it is.

And I don't know how much longer we can go on like this until something crashes and burns.

Hell if I know how to fix it, though.

By the time we pull into Kansas City for our next stop, the RV walls are beginning to close in. I'm so sick of Arya's singing that I snatch Huckslee's keys and mumble under my breath that I'll be back. I don't really know where I'm going, but I need some air before I start pounding my head against the steering wheel.

“Hang on,” Salem calls, uncurling from one of the bunks with a stretch. “I'm coming too.”

I pause, surprised, already halfway out the door with my jacket slung over one arm and my fishbowl in the other. She stuffs her feet into a pair of Vans before standing in front of me expectantly. Waiting.

In all honesty, I wanted some alone time, but I motion for her to follow because I'm a desperate fool. Devon’s heavy gaze tracks us all the way to the car, and once we're buckled in, I can't get away fast enough. I nearly speed out of the lot, heading toward… nowhere, really. Just away.

City lights eventually flicker into view, golden against the dusky horizon. We cruise in silence while DYWTYLM by Sleep Token softly fills the space between us.

“Where are we going?” Salem finally asks, elbow braced against the window and my fish on her lap.