Another weekend.
My stomach twists, but before I can answer, my phone buzzes in my pocket.
I pull it out.
Matt.
My manager.
London lifts a brow.“Everything okay?”
I hesitate.“Yeah, just my manager.”
I swipe to answer.“Hey, man.What’s up?”
“Hey, Joel.Ready for the last show?”
“Yeah, feeling good,” I lie, my gaze flitting to London.
“Good, good.”Matt pauses for a second.Longer than normal.Too long.
That’s my first clue.
“Joel,” he says finally, his tone measured.Testing.Like he’s not sure how I’m gonna react to whatever he’s about to say.
I frown, shifting my grip on the phone.“Yeah?”
Matt exhales.“Listen, before I say anything, just know I wouldn’t bring this to you unless it was serious.”
I straighten, feeling my heart plummet into my stomach.Is he about to let me go or something?“What the hell does that mean?”
Another beat of silence.
Then, carefully—“I’ve secured the tour, man.”
My stomach dips.We’ve been working on this tour potential for the past six and half months and I honestly didn’t think it would ever happen.They were just too flighty.
Matt keeps talking, voice even.“I got the call today.They want you.”
I exhale through my nose.“For what, exactly?How long?”
Matt draws it out.“Opening act.Europe.Two months.”
The words should light me up.
A European tour.
The kind of break I’ve been waiting for.This could really open things up.
But instead of excitement, all I feel is panic.
It starts in my gut—a slow, twisting knot of dread, coiling tighter and tighter.My fingers grip the phone, but they don’t feel like mine.My chest is too tight, my breath coming too fast.The room feels like it’s pressing in around me.
This is what I wanted.
Isn’t it?
Matt’s still talking, his voice tinny through the receiver, but I can’t make out the words.All I can hear is Anna.The way she whisperedI don’t know how to do this.The way she looked at me before I left, like she was afraid of what happens next.