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Hurt.
Not that I’d admit any of that to these fuckers.
“I don’t like being played,” I said. “If she’d come clean when I first walked into the bar, I probably would have done it. But the way she went about it doesn’t sit right with me.” Who traded their virginity for an interview? As annoyed as I was, though, it seemed wrong to tell them it had been her first time.
Kingston nodded. “So did she ever ask you for the interview?”
“Nah. I didn’t let it get that far after I heard what she said on the phone. I told her she wouldn’t be getting an Onyx Knight interview anytime soon. Or any other band, for that matter.”
“Jesus, she really got under your skin,” Kingston said, eyeing me.
“The music biz is already brutal for women,” Carter said, once again sounding like the voice of reason. “It’s hard for them to muddle through, you know? With male journalists, they can just come on the road with us, hang out, party, get laid. But if a woman does it, she’s unprofessional. A groupie. A slut. You didn’t have to threaten her for doing the kind of thing we do almost every night. Now I kinda wish I’d talked to her.” He scratched his chin.
“Well, I can tell you where she works if you still want to.” I got up, annoyed that my friends didn’t understand my frustration.
I didn’t know what was wrong with me, but it was nothing my bottle of Jack and a couple of groupies wouldn’t fix. Talking wouldn’t get the sweet taste of sunshine out of my system, but I was confident alcohol and women would. If not, I’d just keep trying until I partied Sunny right out of my memory.
8
Presley
It was late afternoon when I got home. Aunt Meg had all the lights on in the living room, as well as the front porch light, and something smelled good in the kitchen. She looked up when I walked in, and a smile spread across her face.
“Hi! How was your—hey, what’s wrong?”
I took one look at her sweet face and the emotions I’d been holding back all day came pouring out as I burst into tears.
“Oh my.” Aunt Meg hurried over to me, wiping her hands on her apron. “Sweetie, what happened? Are you okay?”
I let her wrap me in a hug, even though I was nearly a foot taller than her. “I screwed up, Aunt Meg. I screwed up so bad.”
“It can’t be that bad,” she whispered, stroking my hair. “Come on. Let’s go sit down.”
I grabbed a tissue as I followed her into the living room and sank onto the well-worn couch.
“Tell me what happened, sweetheart.” Her blue eyes were filled with concern.
I told her everything that had happened last night. She already knew about the failed interview from two nights ago, and she clicked her tongue sympathetically as I told the story. Her eyes widened when I admitted I’d spent the night with him, and then she grimaced when I got to the part about him overhearing my conversation with my college advisor.
It wasn’t until I got to the part where I’d gotten fired that she’d gotten upset.
“That’s completely unprofessional!” she said. “You went in with a big storm coming because no one else wanted to. If you hadn’t spent the night with Zeke, you would’ve been on a couch in the lounge. They owe you, the bastards.”
“He said I behaved in an unbecoming manner,” I whispered, mortified just thinking about how Mr. Hopkins had spoken to me. “Or something like that.”
“I’d like to call your boss and give him a piece of my mind!”
“It won’t matter,” I said miserably. “I’m so sorry, Aunt Meg. I know we need the money. But I’ll find something else. Maybe at the mall…” My voice trailed. I was so tired and heartbroken and disappointed in myself. I’d screwed up everything. My chance to ever see Zeke again, the Onyx Knight interview, and my job. Aside from that, I only had a day to write a story that was the final part of my senior project. If I didn’t do it, and get a passing grade, I wouldn’t graduate.
“It’s going to be all right,” she said, reaching for my hand. “I’m so sorry things turned out the way they did last night. I know you’ve waited a long time to be intimate with someone. I wish it hadn’t ended the way it did for you.”
I sighed, swiping at my eyes in frustration. “He was so mad. And instead of making him listen to me, I just stood there like an idiot. I’m upset with him, but I’m madder at myself for not taking a stand and making him listen to me.”
“It’s hard to be strong in a situation like that. Especially when you’ve never experienced it before.”
“And what’s worse is that he wasn’t just mad; he was disappointed too. I could see it in his eyes.”
She shook her head. “Oh, sweetie, I’m so sorry. We all make mistakes, though. Don’t be too hard on yourself.”
