Page 90 of Playing With My Heart Strings

“But—”

“He doesn’t want to see you.” Alex has never been so short with me. When he sees the hurt on my face, his voice softens. “I know this is hard. It’s not easy for me either, but I can’t lose my job by disobeying his wishes. Colette’s already on everyone’s ass for what happened in Atlanta.”

I open my mouth to protest, but he holds up a hand.

“I know it’s not your fault. But everyone is on edge right now, and it’s best if you just lay low until the live concert. I’m sorry.”

The day before the next concert arrives, and when we head to the tour buses, Dusty doesn’t so much as look in my direction.

Valerie gives me a sympathetic smile as she boards, and my heart drops. It feels like someone’s stabbing thousands of tiny needles into my chest as I trudge onto the bus and plop down in a seat.

“How were your dates this week?” I ask, not because I’m threatened by Katherine and Valerie, but because I want them to succeed just as much asIwant to.

“Mine was good. It felt”—Katherine furrows her brows and looks down for a moment before bobbing her head back up—“right.”

“I had a fun time. I’m sorry you didn’t get a solo date this week, Baylor,” Valerie replies.

I shrug. “I get it. Last week was rough.”

“If it’s any consolation, there were some moments when Dusty looked a bit out of sorts,” she offers. It doesn’t really do much to ease the sting, though. Especially if it impacted her time with him. She must see the guilt on my face, because she immediately adds, “It didn’t affect our date, though. I just happened to notice it a few times when we weren’t talking.”

“If I go home, it is what it is. Of course, I want to continue, but I’ll be so happy for you both if it’s not me,” I confess. “And I’m so glad I got to meet both of you.”

Valerie gets up to switch seats, landing in the one next to me to give me a hug. “It’s not over, Baylor. All we can do is our best tomorrow.” The way she’s supporting me, even after Aspen’s shocking revelation, almost brings tears to my eyes.

Katherine also chimes in. “Any one of us could be going home. Nothing’s ever guaranteed. Keep your head up.”

I give them a soft smile. “Thank you. I know what happened in Atlanta was pretty incriminating, and both of you could have rightfully turned your back on me, so it means a lot that you’re still my friends.”

“Let’s be real. Aspen was drama from the beginning.” Katherine laughs. “Sure, it was a bit unfair that you got to skip the auditions and everything, but you’re here now, in the final three, and that’s a testament to your relationship with Dusty and what the viewers think of you.”

I nod, relief cascading down my spine.Heart Stringsis designed for competition, to pit us against each other, yet I’ve never felt so supported and lifted up by the girls who are supposed to be my rivals.

What I assumed would be a long, uncomfortable bus ride to Knoxville turns into a road trip filled with laughs and hearty conversations.

Later that night, Charlie informs us that the setlist and order of the concert has changed. We’ll still get to open the concert with a trio performance, but instead of both a solo and a duet with Dusty, we’ll only have the opportunity to perform a solo. And those will take place after Dusty’s main set, right before the elimination. We only get one chance to impress Dusty this week, and the viewers won’t have any say in who goes home.

There’s no live voting.

It’s all up to Dusty.

“Baylor, let’s run through your solo,” Charlie suggests when the rehearsal hits a lull.

Dusty literally walks in the opposite direction when I walk on stage and try to approach him.

Charlie places a hand on my shoulder. “Give him time. He’ll come around. Kid wears his heart on his sleeve.”

I sigh, steeling my expression to not let anyone see that I’m just as hurt. “Let’s just go through the song.”

While the song I’ve been performing has—ironically—been a breakup song, this week I’m shifting gears in the hopes that a happier, more upbeat song will demonstrate my range and save me in the elimination. However, when we run through the song the first time, my heart just isn’t in it. How can I sing about love when everything has already come crashing down around me?

“You good?” Valerie asks after we run through it another time. This time at least was better than the first go, but it’s clear everyone can tell my head’s not in the right place.

“I don’t know. I’m just not feeling it.”

“Take a break. Katherine or I can run through our song and maybe that will help?” she suggests, already signaling for Charlie and the rest of the band members to switch it up.

I flash her a look of gratitude before disappearing in the wing of the stage to decompress for a moment.

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