Page 21 of Just Friends Forever
“No, I mean the guy at my twelve o’clock keeps staring over here. This isn’t my first rodeo, Stevia.”
I smile because I haven’t been called that name in years. Also because thisisTroy’s first rodeo… as security detail. I’m just grateful I get to witness it. He was always good at making me laugh, and boy, does it feel good after the year I’ve had.
He’s not wrong about the guy at his twelve o’clock, though. He keeps glancing over here and squinting, making my heart rate jump. I know I can’t avoid the public forever, but I’d love a little bit more time before I have to face things.
The starer puts a can of beans back on the shelf and starts making his way toward us.
“Abort! Abort!” Troy whisper-shouts, guiding me past the vegetables with a hand on my back.
“Hey!”
We’re done for. The guy is actually calling out to us. We can either ignore him and risk him getting louder, drawing the attention of everyone in the store, or we can turn and try to do damage control. Offer him a signed poster from Curtis or something as long as he goes quietly.
I paste a smile on my face—Curtis was religious about smiling at fans—and turn around.
“Wh-wh-what are you doing?” Troy asks, following my lead.
I come face to face with the guy—a redhead with thick-rimmed glasses, a flannel shirt, and a beanie. I brace myself for questions about my eating habits and carbon footprint. Curtis isn’t the most environmentally conscious of humans, so this could get ugly real quick.
“You’re Austin Sheppard’s brother, aren’t you?” he says.
Troy and I are both silent for far longer than is socially acceptable.
“Um, yeah,” Troy says, his security guy bravado suddenly MIA.
“Bro!” He puts out his hand for a high-fiv—nope. It’s a complicated handshake that Troy stumbles his way through. “His new song is so dope.”
“It… truly is,” Troy says in a way that makes me cover my mouth to keep my composure.
I know how it feels to have the most bizarre interactions with fans, but it’s refreshing not to be the one having to handle it.
A shopper squeezes past our little Austin Sheppard fan club meeting. Our president and founding member taps the unsuspecting woman on the shoulder. “Austin Sheppard in our midst, ma’am.”
Her weirded-out expression is replaced by curiosity as her gaze shifts to Troy. As she takes him in, there’s a mixture of recognition and confusion in her eyes, like she sees the resemblance but senses that something’s not quite right. “THE Austin Sheppard?”
Troy grimaces. “Uh, no. I’m just his brother.”
“Oh.” The disappointment is palpable, like she planned this meeting with Austin for months and got short-changed instead of being stopped by a weird stranger while picking up the ingredients to what looks like a very bean-dense chili recipe. “Well, nice to meet you.”
“Good to meet—aaand she’s gone.” Troy turns back to our hipster friend. “I’ll be sure to pass your… enthusiasm on to my brother.”
The guy’s eyes go wide. “Broooo. For real?”
By the time we escape, he’s given us his name, phone number, and social media handles to pass along to Austin.
“Does that happen a lot?” I ask.
“Not as often as Austin would like. More than I would.”
We make our way through the bulk foods without any issues except Troy’s phone ringing.
“It’s Lyla,” he explains before picking up. “Hey, beautiful.”
I shovel some orzo into a bag, prickling with curiosity about his girlfriend. What’s she like? Beautiful, apparently.
Troy’s gaze shifts to me. “I would, but I’m kind of busy right now.”
“Sorry,” I mouth to him. Here I came, tumbling into Troy’s life and throwing everything out of whack. I want to try to keep things as normal as possible for him.
