Page 112 of Composed
I tap my finger against the side of the phone.
I know I need to go down there and deal with the fallout, accept that she’s a different person than who I used to know.
Hell, I should spend however long she’s here getting to know the woman she became. Because she might not be my Hendrix, but she is stillHendrix.
I type out a reply.
Hmm, nothing I don’t already have right here in my flat
Do you also have a four-cheese pizza from Tony’s?
Given Tony’s is over three hours away I think you know my answer to that
Sucks to be you then
She sends a picture of a pizza box from my favourite takeaway back home.
Turns out if you have friends and a bit of cash you can get just about anything delivered to your door these days
There’s no way that isn’tcold
Just came out of the oven ten minutes ago
I’m shoving my feet into my Vans when my phone buzzes again.
Check mate Rock Star
See you in 5 ;)
Hendrix is sitting on the lounge floor, cross-legged, two pencils tucked into the bun holding her hair out of her face, the promised pizza steaming next to her.
“How the fuck did you get a Tony’s pizza to London?” I ask.
She taps her nose. “Can’t let you in on all my secrets. How else am I supposed to bribe you into coming down here and doing some work with me?”
I drop down the carpet and tug the box closer. “You actually want to work with me?”
“I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t.” She zeros in on the melted cheese when I pull a slice free. “Look, I didn’t speak right the other day.”
“It’s fi—”
“Just let me get this out, please.”
I nod and bite down on the pizza to chase away the lead sinking in my gut.
“I made it sound like I was doing you this huge favour by being here.” She exhales slowly, fingers splaying against the carpet. “That’s not true.If anything,you’redoingmea favour. I’d forgotten what it felt like to be passionate about writing. About producing. Aboutanything.After university, I lost myself. I stopped chasing. I just… settled.”
The air thickens around me.
Grease pools on my fingertips as my grip tightens on the slice I’m holding.
“I tucked everything that made memeaway in those boxes.” She jerks her thumb over her shoulder, and my eyes widen at the tower of cardboard leaning against the wall.
“I let myself forget what it felt like to dream.” Her voice drops, thick and husky as her lips tug down. “But then you came along again, with all these big ideas about a new album, and suddenly… I remembered.”
I drop the pizza as my fingers tremble.
“I wrote a new song Friday,” she tells me, her nose crinkling adorably as if embarrassed of all she’s just said. “It’s yours if you want it.Heart Torntoo, whenever you’re ready to hear it. It was always yours, I just wasn’t ready to let it go before.”
