Not long after I arrived at work, Derek strolled in, hands stuffed in his pockets. A gaudy pair of Louis Vuitton sunglasses covered his eyes. They didn't look practical with the company's logo printed all over the lenses.
"Where the hell have you been?" I asked.
I'd been trying to reach him for three days. The most I got was a "Talk to you later," text after my ninth message.
"I couldn't deal, so I took off for a few days. Drove up to Vegas with Brittany. Blew a ton of money."
"What happened after we left the other day?" I asked.
Derek removed his sunglasses and tossed them on the counter without concern of damaging them. He looked tired, his eyes bloodshot. He rubbed his hands over his face. "A lot of yelling about how irresponsible I am. She couldn't believe a son of hers could be so thoughtless and inconsiderate."
"Damn."
Derek chuckled humorlessly. "Yeah, well, that was only the beginning."
"What do you mean?"
"My dad got there like ten minutes after you guys bailed. She told him what happened, and he yelled at me too."
I couldn't even imagine that. "I've never even seen your dad raise his voice."
Mr. Hill was reserved, to say the least. Practically catatonic might be a more apt description of the encounters I'd had with him.
"It wasn't fun." Derek said. "I guess he's been saving it up all this time."
I shook my head. "Sorry, man."
"Just wait." Derek held up his hand. "I decided since they were already so pissed off I might as well take the hell all at once, tell them everything."
"Everything?" I asked, raising my brows.
He twisted his lips, like he'd just sucked in a lemon. Then he sighed and said, "Not everything. Just the dropping-out-of-school-to-join-a-band thing. I'm not ready to tell them about the other thing."
"That's still a lot. How did they take it?"
"My dad just stood there like a statue while my mom berated me about wasting my time on a fruitless career that's just going to end up with me living on the streets. You know, basically throwing my life in the garbage. Shit like that."
"That's about what I expected, to be honest."
He nodded. "I'm kinda surprised she didn't toss me out on my ass right then and there."
"At least it's out in the open. They know, and maybe they'll get used to the idea."
Derek barked out a harsh, bitter laugh. "Yeah. That's definitely gonna happen."
I didn't know what to say to make him feel better. I'd never suffered under the same pressure that his parents placed on him. Mom seemed disappointed when I didn't want to go to college, but she said it was my life, my choice.
"Are you still going on tour?"
"Hell yes!" Derek looked at me like I was crazy for even asking.
"I'm glad. I kinda thought you might back down and go back to school."
"You know me better than that, dumbass." He turned and grabbed a bag of marshmallows off the display set up to sell items for making s'mores. He tossed it at me and I batted it away. "What? Did your boyfriend thrust a little too hard and knock your head against a wall while I was gone?"
"Shut up, asshole."
Derek laughed. A true sound of joy. His stress seemed to dissipate. "So, since I'm going to be an awesome, sexy rock god, how about you hook me up and give me some killer nails?"
I actually got a thrill at the request, my heart leaping. "Seriously?" I smiled so wide I was sure he could see my wisdom teethâif I hadn't gotten them removed three years ago. I think my favorite part of painting my nails was the actual work of it. It was very therapeutic for me.
"But I can't pull off that." He pointed at my cherry red nails. "I need something cool, but subdued."
"How about black? It's tried and true."
"Eh." Derek grimaced. "Black is a little played out. What else ya got?"
I jumped off my stool and darted over to the cosmetics aisle before he could change his mind. I scanned the colors, searching for something he might like.
Derek stepped up to the shelf and picked up a bottle. He turned it over and read off the name: "Steel Temptress." He grinned at me. "That would make an awesome band name."
"Better than Roadkill Therapy."
Derek scoffed and punched me in the shoulder. "It's Roadkill State of Mind, douchebag."
"Because that's better." I grabbed the bottle from him. "Come on."
He followed me back to the register. I marked the price and name on my list to pay later.
Derek laid his hand flat on the counter, and I got to work. There was enough sheen in the color to make it pop without being ostentatious. He seemed overjoyed by the first nail I finished.
"Now that the band thing is out in the open, are you gonna stick around town until the tour starts?" I asked.
He'd already stayed in town longer than he originally planned. I suspected Brittany was the reason. His high school fantasy was coming to life, and he didn't want to let that go yet.
"Hell no."
"Too bad. I would have liked to spend more time with you. Between work and Elian on my end, and you with Brittany, we haven't hung out much, just the two of us."
Derek nodded. "I know what you mean."
"I just miss you sometimes." I paused my painting to look up at him. "All the time actually."
"Me, too, dude."
I sighed. "So, when are you leaving?"
"Probably in a few days. I want to try again with my parents one more time before I go. Maybe if I can get my dad alone, I can explain that school will always be there, but this opportunity is like once in a lifetime."
I nodded. "He's a reasonable guy. Just come up with a practical backup plan for what happens if this music thing goes sideways. Even if it's total bullshit. He'll probably appreciate your forethought."
"That's not a bad idea."
I finished up the last nail on his right hand and admired my work. "How is that?"
Derek examined his nails with a big smile. "I love it. It's so cool."
I started on his left hand. "Before you split town, make sure to carve out some time so we can really hang out. Even if it's just watching movies."
"Shelly told me about her offer." Derek said, out of the blue.
It startled me enough that I painted across his skin. I grabbed one of the sanitizing wipes we used to the clean the counter. "What about it?" I asked, wiping the polish off his finger.
"Are you gonna do it?"
"I don't know. I doubt it."
"Why?"
"Elian also asked me to come stay with him in Chicago."
Derek's eyes lit up. "I didn't know you guys were that serious."
I released a huge breath. "I don't know if we are. I mean, I love him, and I love being with him, and it seems like it's a no-brainer, butâ"
"But what?"
"I'm afraid." I said, twisting the lid on the polish.
Derek held his hands out in front of him to look over my work with delight. "I'm kinda shocked that you didn't jump at the chance. You've been wanting to fall in love for as long as I've known you."
"Moving to a whole new city just to be with someone is a huge commitment. How do you know when you're ready for something like that? It's only been a little over month."
"You could always just rent your own place." Derek suggested. "Just because you move there for him doesn't mean you have to live with him right away. I know you've got a ton of money socked away somewhere."
"It's not a ton. But it might be enough for a couple months' rent on an apartment. I'd probably need to find a roommate."
Derek nodded. "See, now you've got a plan." He reached across to slap my shoulder. "And I'll have a crash pad for when the band passes through Chi-town."
"I haven't made up my mind to go yet."
Derek sighed. "Don't let fear run your life."
"But what if it doesn't work out? We're kind of in a lovey-dovey bubble here. What if we break up after I uproot my whole life?"
"What life?" Derek asked, raising his arms out to the side. "Not to be a dick, but your life literally hasn't changed since high school. You have the same job, the same car. You hang out with people you barely liked in high school just because they're still here. Don't get stuck in this town, Steven."
He had a point. The people I hung out with nowadays were nothing like the friends I had growing up. They were placeholders that I never bothered getting to know. And they didn't really know me. Derek and Shelly were still like family, even after almost three years of them being away at school. We fell back into our old patterns with ease and comfort. I loved them and they loved me.
If I didn't make this leap now, I'm not sure I ever would. Even if it turned out to be a disastrous mistake, at least I could say I tried.