Page 127 of A Duet of Darkness and Dreams

The sound of the crowd screaming roars through the stage door and I head for it before I can stop myself. In the darkness Iwatch the guys through the curtains taking their places on stage, before the music explodes to life and my skin is overwhelmed by the rush of electric energy in the air.

While I may not have appreciated this type of music six months ago, I have to admit it’s grown on me. The complexity and beauty of the notes. The stamina it takes for them to play so fast and hard for so long. They really are amazing.He’samazing.

And James is right . . . he is an idiot. A beautiful idiot. But an idiot nonetheless.

But that’s not enough. And even if he hasn’t been with anyone else, I don’t know if that’s enough either. Someone brushes up against me and I tear my eyes away from Dave to look up at Al, the band’s manager.

“Miss Rodriguez,” he yells over the noise, leaning toward my ear.

“Hi,” I answer.

“How are you?” he asks.

I shrug. “Fine.” I mean, it’s not like I’m going to go into details about my situation with Dave.

“How’s it going withEarworm?”

I wrap my arms around my chest, remembering to be grateful for the opportunity this man gave me. “Great. I just sent them the draft of the article.”

“That’s great!”

“Mister Simpson,” I say, turning to him. “I want to thank you for getting me that internship. It really . . . It’s a life-changing opportunity, and I really appreciate your help.”

Even in the darkness of the stage I see his cheeks redden. “I just happened to have the phone number. Can’t take credit for the whole thing. Noblar is the one you should be thanking.”

I may have just gone deaf because the entire world goes quiet. “Wh—what did you just say?”

“Dave. He . . .” He studies my face. “He asked me if I couldget in touch with someone in journalism. I told him I had a buddy from college who was the new editor atEarworm. But Dave’s the one who called them to ask if they could take on any interns. He submitted your articles.”

“I . . .” But as if the floor disappears from under me, my legs wobble and I reach out to steady myself on his arm.

“Didn’t he tell you?” Al asks.

I shake my head, my hair flying everywhere. “No . . . he didn’t.”

Speaking evades me, and at some point, during my stunned silence, Al leaves my side. I step forward to get a better view of Dave. His arms are flying and he bounces on his stool as he stomps on the pedals. Sweat glistens on his skin and his thin shirt sticks to his chest. He got me the internship but never took credit. Why would he do such a thing? There’s an expression on his face now. His aggression is gone and what is left in its place is pain.

With a final flourish, the song comes to an end, and instead of smiling up at the crowd, Dave simply hangs his head. Like he’s tired.

“All right, we’ve got an unexpected cover for you tonight,” Key yells into the microphone. “A song that means a lot to the man on the drums.”

My heart skips in my chest.

“Take it away, man.”

I watch Dave take a deep breath, then his drumsticks are flying, the other guys coming in gradually to fill in the familiar rhythm. Wait . . . familiar?

Dave finally looks up from his focused attention on his kit and somehow, it’s as if he knows I’m right here. Our eyes lock and the smell of a pine tree hits me, the memory of the low twinkling lights, the feel of Dave’s hands on my body as he asks me to dance.He learned the song I showed him. It’s an important song to me, and so it’s important to him.

Maybe that means I’m important to him too.

As the music fills my soul, I realize I’ve been frozen in my anger. Maybe he only pushed me away so much because he was scared and didn’t know how to cope. After all, haven’t I been scared too? Aren’t I still? The tears spill out of the corners of my eyes as I let the pain and fear melt away until I’m like a puddle of ice cream that’s been left out in the sun too long.

By the end of the song, I’ve reached a decision. To give this idiot one last chance. And maybe it won’t work out in the end. But maybe seeing if it does will be the greatest thing I’ve ever known.

CHAPTER 39

Take a Chance on Me

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