BEAU

I sit on an old folding chair, strumming my guitar in my lap as Rey goes through her sound check with the rest of her band. They sound good, but not great. Rey's heart isn't in it and it's obvious to anyone listening. Too bad, I scowl at her onstage, small frame drowning in an oversized flannel. She's not going to fuck up my show.

"You sick?" I shout, hoping she gets the hint. I lean my guitar against my leg and push my hair off my forehead.

"Huh?" Rey glares at me. She says I've been a dick lately - since I returned from seeing Emma, that I've been giving her the cold shoulder. Maybe I have, I remember the hurt in Emma's eyes as she shouted at me for holding hands with Rey. I was just reminded how much I had to lose this past weekend with Emma.

"Sounding a little flat," I shrug, crossing my arms as I make my way to the stage. Sound guys scurry away from me and I roll my eyes - I'm not that bad. They would've hated working with me before.

Scott, the one who keeps bitching to Rey about me anyways, gives me a dirty look, letting his bass rest around his neck. "She sounds fine,"

"You do," I agree, nodding to Rey and ignoring Scott entirely. "But I didn't ask for fine when we made our deal. So I'll ask again, are you feeling okay?"

Rey pouts, unsure whether to be insulted or flattered at my words. I don't mean them any way in particular. She must decide that she's offended; she places her mic back in the stand and rubs her hands over her eyes.

"Can we take five?" She mutters before walking off stage. Scott makes a move to follow but stops when I pass him, smirking and rolling my eyes at the same time. I don't even dislike Scott, but his own distaste for me is pretty enjoyable.

I find Rey only a few feet down the hall, leaning her weight on her black combat boot against the wall, taking a drag from a cigarette.

"You smoke now?" I ask, standing beside her, but looking straight ahead.

"Not really," She groans, snubbing the barely burned stick against the wall. "Jace did, I just had one left over in my jacket."

I bite my tongue for a second to make sure my words aren't too harsh. "Jace smoked, so you did, too? You're a singer, Rey."

She doesn't speak or give any indication that she's heard me. I know she's listening though. For some reason, Rey really seems to care what I think.

"This is what I meant, about being ready to go on tour. If you can't resist getting caught up, it can be dangerous." I know.

And embarrassing. And worse than that, it can hurt everyone else, too, not just you. I don't say those things to her, though. Admitting them to Dex, even to Emma, is one thing.

"Okay, Dad. Fuck, Beau, just back off. You said don't talk to Jace, I stopped. Then you go see Emma and you come back and don't even talk to me. I don't know what your problem is," She shakes her shaved head and looks at her feet. She's childlike - so unlike Emma in more ways than I can count.

"Rey," I take a breath to remain calm. "Listen, I'm really just trying to help. Jace is a bad guy, this life can be hard. I know these things firsthand - I don't want you to have to learn them the hard way."

Again, she says nothing. Normally she doesn't shut up and yet...

"I heard friends do that, sometimes." I repeat her phrase from before the tour, trying to ease the tension. "Look out for each other."

Her eyes flash to my face, wide and forgiving for just a second. Then she scowls again, "Friends don't ignore friends because their girlfriends told them to."

"What?" I feel my temper spin out of control. "What is wrong with you? What is your weird fixation with Emma?"

Rey grits her teeth so hard that I can hear them grinding against each other. If she was irritated before, now she's angry.

"I don't care about Emma," Her chin juts out defiantly.

I raise my eyebrows in disbelief. For someone who doesn't care, she seems to think about her almost as much as I do.

"Look, Rey. I'm with Emma - you might not care about her," Which I doubt, "But I do. I'm not jeopardizing that by being careless."

"Careless?"

"The night you pulled me into the club - the paparazzi made it into a big deal, like we're together or something. I'm trying so hard but how can I do right by her if I have everyone planting shit like that in her head?" Exasperated, I say more than I'd planned to. But her reaction makes me glad I did.

Rey blushes slightly, avoiding my eyes. I squint at her, making her squirm uncomfortably, until she finally gives in.

"Look - that night was an accident. I was just excited. But Rocco said-"

What?

"Rocco said what?" I snap, taking my anger out on her.

"The attention seemed to spike up some of your numbers, is all. He made a joke about keeping it up to keep the sales looking good," She twists a leather bracelet around her wrist again and again, fingers fumbling with the worn cords.

I'm too angry to speak. I close my eyes and try to breathe.

In. Out.

"Beau?"

In. Out.

"It was just a dumb publicity thing - he didn't really mean anything by it," Her voice lacks confidence and for once, Rey isn't sure what to do or say.

My eyes snap up to her face.

"Emma and I were a 'dumb publicity thing.'" I snarl, already imagining the choice words I'm saving for Rocco himself.

My numbers are fine - whatever this asinine scheme is, I will have no part of it. How dare he even bring it up?

Before I can storm away, Rey's small hand catches my wrist. "Beau, don't do anything stupid. Things are finally going right for you,"

I pull my arm from her grasp but don't take another step. Emma would probably give me similar advice, wouldn't she?

My fists clench tightly in anxious frustration. I almost pull my hand back to slam a hole through the wall but somehow, I stop myself. I feel like I'm about to explode with no way to ease the pressure.

"You okay?" I look down and gone is the fury that previously warped Rey's expression. In it's place is compassion and maybe even embarrassment. I nod quickly. "I'm sorry about what I said, I don't have anything against Emma."

Oh, right. That. "You do, though. You always ask about her,"

"I'm curious." Rey shrugs. "I don't see you as much now that you're with her,"

I say nothing, not sure of her point. Her tone isn't accusatory, nor whiny, just very matter of fact. It's confusing - I'm supposed to spend time with my girlfriend. What would Dr. Dex say? A moment has passed and I'm still not sure, so I decide to keep my mouth shut.

"I'll back off." Rey promises. "I know I can be nosy - I'll work on it. But please don't hate me."

"I don't hate you," I say reflexively. It's true - I don't. I actually like her, I'd just like her more if she learned some boundaries.

"I just really value our friendship." Her eyes are wide and intent on my face, which makes me uncomfortable. She says friendship, but the way she's inched closer to me during our conversation tells me something else.

I run a hand over my hair, fastening a rubber band around it, and simply nod.

Scott arrives then, taking Rey's attention from my face. His expression is disgusted - with me, most likely. But there's something else - jealousy, maybe?

Is it who I am, or how Rey sees me that fills him with envy? I smirk at him, feeling a spark of joy as his frown deepens.

"Oh, Scott! I'm sorry," Rey rushes to him, goofy personality back in full swing now that there's an audience. "I was just having a moment, let's get back to it," She grabs his hand in hers and drags him away, before he can say anything to me. He has nothing to worry about between Rey and me - of that, I'm sure.

I lean my head back against the wall. I can't focus on my show tonight - I'm too riled up.

What the hell was with Rey when she said she valued our friendship? I can't hurt her, not if I want her to listen to me. And she needs to listen to me, or she could get hurt.

And Rocco - was the publicity thing really just a joke? He should've known that I wouldn't find it very funny.

I want to see Emma. As I drift off into a daydream about the softness of her skin, the warmth of her lips... My phone vibrates violently in my pocket.

"Oh, what the fuck?" I roll my eyes as I recognize the number on my screen. The same one who called when I was driving with Emma, and another time since then. With a sigh, I press ignore and try to get my head right.

***

"What're you getting, Beau?" Rey smiles over her diner menu. Tonight's show went surprisingly well. Rey pulled through and the guys played hard - the crowd loved it.

Instead of going to a bar or a club, we found a hole in the wall diner open twenty-four hours. Scott, Cap, and Rickie weren't thrilled, but Rey insisted.

"Mm," I rest my hand over my abdomen, feeling it rumble beneath my fingers, aching more as I inhale the heavy scent of bacon grease in the air. "Whatever gives me the most food," I mumble, scanning the "Big Breakfast Plates."

"Cap?" Rey turns her eyes to him and I stop paying attention to the conversation.

I take out my phone and send Emma a text, asking what she's wearing. It's a joke, one I know she'll get, but still, my mind wanders...

I smirk reading her reply.

Em: Wouldn't you like to know?

Then, a picture of her in the mirror. She wears one of my old Aerosmith t-shirts, too long on even her tall frame, and nothing else, leaving her long legs bare.

The waitress brings me a glass of water and a black coffee, and I let her know I'd like the Big Meat Plate. When she's gone, I remind Emma that the shirt is one of my favorites.

Em: I'll keep it safe. Call me?

"I'll be back," I tell Rey, making my way to the bathroom before she can reply. I dial Emma's number immediately, not caring who else is in the stalls.

"Lucky owner of Beau Lewis's favorite shirt," Emma's voice puts a grin on my face. "How may I help you?"

"I think the only thing I love more than me in that shirt," I laugh, picking at my nail polish. "Is you in it instead."

She giggles, poking fun at my ego, as another call comes in. Frustrated at anything that would interrupt my time with Emma, I check the screen hastily.

My irritation nearly boils over but I keep it hidden and tell Emma that I will call her back.

I accept the other call but say nothing, listening to the breathing on the other end.

"Beau Lewis? Is this Beau?" The voice gets more frantic the longer I don't answer. "Beau, are you there?"

"What do you want?" I almost growl, glaring at my reflection in the mirror.

"Beau! Oh, that's great. Beau, it's me - Beck." Hearing the name turns my expression into an even deeper scowl.

"I know who this is." I snap. "Don't call this number again."

I hang up before I can hear anything else. Splashing cold water over my face, I take a few deep breaths before finally re-dialing Emma's number.

"Hey, Em. Sorry about that, just Rocco, confirming some flight stuff for tomorrow." The words are out of my mouth before I can stop them. Quickly, I push the fib from my mind, focusing instead on how happy Emma sounds over the phone.

Hi loves! Thanks for reading❤️
As always - let me know what you think. Rey, a good friend, or a sneak looking for more?
And who is beck?
Lemme know in the comments!!