Page 44 of Her Rock Star's Dark Secret

He’d spent a lot of time hanging out with Owen when he wasn’t planning the memorial with Aaron and his team. They were planning to fly out Sunday morning, perform, and then fly back to California on Monday morning so they could get started on the next album.

Friday night, a bunch of classmates got together for dinner out. Lauren had been the one who organized it, but she ended up staying at home with Penny instead. Chase couldn’t deny that he was disappointed that she had decided to skip the outing. He had hoped he could spend more time with her before he had to go back to California.

He hadn’t really gotten a chance to talk to Alexis about what had happened with Lauren until they were at the dinner together with Owen, Josie, and Noah.

“So you kissed her, and she called off the night?” Alexis asked.

“Basically.”

“Oh, man,” Owen said. “That’s rough.”

“She told me you guys had kissed, but she wouldn’t say much more about it.” Alexis picked at her salad as she talked. Owen had sat next to her that night, and Chase had to wonder if the guy had a thing for his sister.

“I have it bad for her, but I don’t know how to tell her. It’s rough because our lives don’t match up, and I don’t see a way to fix it. It shouldn’t be anything new for me. I’ve known from the beginning that this life isn’t good for relationships.”

“I hear you there,” Owen said. “I’m basically in the same situation. So I just don’t date.”

“I don’t either. This isn’t like me. But I can’t help but feel drawn to Lauren and Penny.”

“They’re both pretty amazing,” Alexis said. “I feel drawn to them too. Lauren’s the kind of girl that puts her all into everything she does. When she was married to Brandon, she put her heart and soul into that relationship. But he didn’t reciprocate. She just got really burned out from it, even though it’s been four years.”

“I can’t imagine how hard it must have been for her to go through that.” Chase felt so bad for Lauren’s pain. He wished more than anything that he could erase all her suffering. But he couldn’t. It was something she would have to figure out on her own. Wasn’t that how it was for everyone? Chase had his own stuff to figure out. Like his relationship with his parents. Maybe it was time to do something about that rift between them. How could he have a serious relationship with Lauren and be a strong figure in Penny’s life if he couldn’t even maintain a healthy relationship with his own parents?

He was ready to patch things up with them. But he didn’t know if they would accept him back into their lives.

He couldn’t control how they reacted. All he could do was control himself.

* * *

Chase wokeup early Saturday morning and changed into his workout clothes. He took a long run around town, taking in all the sights and sounds. He passed homes with front porch swings and picket fences. Wooded mountains peeked over rooftops. Little dogs yapped at him. A lawnmower buzzed a few streets away. And as always, the bugs sang their chorus to him.

He’d begun to grow fond of his mornings in Maple Creek. He was sad to be leaving soon. LA was busy and stinky and dirty. There was something so clean and simple about being in Maple Creek. The very air smelled sweet like fresh cut grass and the woods after a heavy rain. He would miss it. He wished he had a good reason to come back.

Unfortunately, Lauren didn’t wish to be that reason. She’d avoided him since their kiss on Wednesday night. She’d turned her avoidance into an art form. She lived across the hall and worked downstairs. And he was staying in the home of her best friend. The times they’d crossed paths, she’d been awkward. Smiling tight smiles and quickly dismissing him. It hurt to see her acting so distant. He’d made space in his heart for her, and she’d vacated it, leaving a giant hole there. He’d never felt anything like it before, and he didn’t know how to cope with it.

He finished his run and jogged up the stairs to Alexis’s apartment and jumped in the shower. Then he toweled off and pulled on a clean shirt and jeans. He went into the kitchen and rummaged around in the fridge, pulling out some fresh vegetables and a carton of eggs before chopping the veggies and mixing up the eggs. Then he tossed them all in a skillet. Alexis was already working in her bakery downstairs. He’d noticed that it was packed, which was typical for a Saturday morning.

He waited for a moment and then flipped over his omelet, smiling at the golden color of the eggs. His breakfast was turning out perfectly. It was the first time he’d smiled in days. He was really struggling with the lack of Lauren in his life. The longer he existed without her, the worse it got. Only a few days had gone by, but he felt like he’d been suffocating.

He’d tried to keep himself busy with Aaron, ironing out the details of the memorial, but in the quiet moments when time slowed, his thoughts always drifted back to Lauren.

He was supposed to meet up with Lauren today to help set up for the reunion at the school gym. He knew he could have just hired some events people to set it up for him, but he wanted the excuse to get out and get his blood pumping, plus the chance to help Lauren out.

He ate his breakfast, savoring every bite, and then he washed his dishes and put them in the drain rack to dry. He dried off his hands and then got on his shoes and headed out the door to go to the school. He drove across town, surprised at how familiar the school looked to him. He parked the Camaro and walked through the parking lot. He noticed Lauren’s Explorer parked near the entrance. The trunk was open, and he could tell she’d been unloading party supplies. As he approached the front door, she came out of the building.

“Hey, Lauren, need some help unloading?”

“Sure.” She walked past him to her car. He could tell she was trying to keep her voice light, but he could still hear pain hiding beneath her words.

He followed her to the open trunk. She handed him a box of various trinkets and took some grocery bags herself before closing her trunk and leading the way back into the building. Penny played in the gym with Josie and some of the kids of the other class officers. Penny ran up to Chase and threw her arms around him.

“I missed you, Chase!”

“I missed you too, sweetheart.” His heart melted at the unconditional love this sweet child showed.

Chase worked beside Lauren in tight semi-silence for the next hour. Chase hated the tension between them. At least he had Penny to cheer up the situation. He’d been disappointed that he couldn’t spend time with Lauren for the past few days, but now he was grateful for the distance. It was torture to be around Lauren like this. And he didn’t know how to fix it.

They were at an impasse. Neither of them could budge. He tried to think of various ways to break the ice with Lauren, but they all sounded lame to him.

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