Page 9 of Heart Strings

Chapter Five

Abigail

I really hadn’t been sure if I would be able to drag myself out of this car and leave Al. That would mean leaving these amazing, impossible hours we had spent together behind, letting them fade into nothing more than memories I would have to relive through Vaporized’s songs.

If his question meant what I desperately hoped it did, I might not have had to do that. “Nothing much,” I said. I did have plans, of course, but I could always cancel those or move them to another time - a time when I didn’t have this man asking me if I was free.

“I haven’t been entirely…honest with you, I guess. I have a girlfriend…sort of. I’ve been trying to break up with her for a while, and I’m almost certain she’s been cheating on me...but it’s not as simple as just telling her I want to break up. I want her to see that I’ve moved on completely and that there’s no place in my life for her anymore.” My face must have said plainly that I wasn’t catching his drift, because he added, “A new girl. I need her to see there’s a new girl in my life.”

“Okay?” Since I was apparently an open book, I wondered if he could see the kiss he and I had shared and its various possible meanings for the both of us playing in my mind like a movie on a screen.

“I’ve really enjoyed this time we spent together, and it kind of gave me a thought. Since the week after next is your spring break, and I’m going to be home in Miami for two weeks, that gives us about a week of time off that coincides, so to speak. What if you came to Miami for your week of break? I would pay for your flight, and I have a grand piano and a keyboard you can practice on while you’re there. And I would pay for all your expenses, of course.”

“T-to Miami?” This was hands-down the strangest proposition I had ever heard come out of a man’s mouth - and I had heard some weird suggestions, especially from the fraternity boys at Tulane.

“Think about it,” Al argued. “You could take off from your job over the break, you wouldn’t be losing any money on expenses, I would show you around Miami and you could go to the beach, and you could come watch the band practice.”

The fangirl inside me flailed her arms at the mention of watching the band practice, but my sensible side gave her a smack on the head, and she quieted down. “A-are you sure that’s a good idea? I mean-” The whole idea just felt so foreign to me that I had to wrack my brain for the right words. “I mean, with your girlfriend? You guys haven’t exactly broken up yet. Or something.”

“It’s complicated. She lives with me, and we’ve been together for a long time….she doesn’t really believe I want to break up with her. I just need a reason. You know… something to convince her.” He hesitated. “That’s kind of another reason I want you to come. I want her to see I’m moving on. Spending time with new people. Being a different person. I need her to...think I have a new girlfriend. But I also don’t want our time together to end. During your spring break would be the perfect opportunity for us to be together again.”

“Well, that’s…kind of odd, but okay…I guess. No, I’m not saying I’ll go. It’s that you’re wanting to fly a girl you just met out for a vacation with you is…different to me.” I struck that triumphant look right off his face. “Can I think about it? You don’t need to know right away.”

No, but he wants to know now.His heavy brows furrowed and I half expected him to argue, demand an answer, or even just start pouting, but instead, he shrugged. “Sure. But say yes when you decide. Por favor?”

The Spanish combined with the melting chocolate eyes almost pulled thatyesout of me right then and there, but I resisted by opening the car door and stepping out. Standing there in the light of the streetlamp while he sat in the interior of the car, gazing at me, I suddenly felt so incredibly awkward. Should I say goodbye now? But…what sort of goodbye? There were goodbye-forever goodbyes and see-you-later goodbyes, with a whole other spectrum of goodbyes in between…

Before I could make up my mind, Al smiled that charming, even smile of his and said, “Espero que nos veamos pronto.”

Then, he was gone and I hadn’t said goodbye at all.Way to go, Abigail.

Wednesday was one of my two off days. Strangely, as I got out my laptop to study Music History some more, I almost wished I could call in and ask if the pianist who would play in my stead tonight would prefer not to show.

Anything to keep me from this constant, aching regret that I hadn’t said anything to Al before he left. What if I never saw him again? I had his number - I could text him or call him to say goodbye - but that felt just…inadequate.

Huh.Al’s parting words had been the only full sentence he had ever spoken to me in Spanish, and he hadn’t translated for me like he did with some little things he said.Spero que…espero que…ugh, what was it….I started muttering things aloud that kind of sounded like Spanish, but could also easily be gibberish.

“Espero que nos veamos pronto?” Paula, one of the sorority girls, asked on her way to the front door.

“Uh, maybe,” I said, startled out of my monotone. “That sounds right-ish. What does it mean?”

“It means ‘I hope to see you soon’. It’s a little more formal than hasta pronto, which means ‘See you soon!’.”

“Huh. Thanks a lot. That’s almost definitely what that Spanish was,” I said, a little dryly but with that fluttery uptick of my heartbeat that most things Al did seemed to leave me with.

“No problem. See you!” Paula closed the door behind her.

Al didn’t even say goodbye, he just said he’d see me soon. It was just like him to assume I would say yes to his offer.

Now that I knew Al hadn’t exactly said goodbye, I felt astronomically better about my own wordless farewell - better enough, in fact, that I could actually focus on Music History, which was rare even under normal circumstances.

I would do as I’d said and give Al’s offer some thought - lots of thought - just not right now. Now, I had some work to catch up on that I’d put off for the Jackson Square and an afternoon with a rockstar.

* * *

I was one of those people who never felt invigorated by breaks. Breaks took my normal schedule, and my carefully maintained routine and made a mockery out of both. I enjoyed any time off I could get from classes - like any normal college student - I just didn’t come back to the first day of class after the break filled with a new will to accomplish things.

As a result of this - and, most likely, my entire night of skipped sleep - I went to Music History class on Thursday tired, irritable and generally the antithesis of my usual cheerful self. I had friends in this class and I would see more throughout the day, but I knew I was in a funk - and that was one more reason I kept to myself. Most of the students were happily discussing their Mardi Gras adventures, and I had no desire to share in that conversation because I couldn’t tell how I honestly felt about my spring fling with a rockstar.

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