Page 70 of Fame & Chaos

“Okay,” I murmur. “But don’t make a big thing out of it.” He nods once. “The night I took Annie to the hospital…”

“Yeah?”

“I saw someone.”

Dad frowns. “It’s a hospital, mate. There are heaps of people there. You’ll need to narrow that down a little.”

I glance around to make sure nobody’s listening before lowering my voice further. “It was Indi.”

Dad’s eyes widen. “What? Jesus. Is she okay? Was she hurt?”

“No, nothing like that. She works there. She helped Annie sober up.”

“Oh.” He exhales slowly. “Right. So… how’d that go?”

I laugh bitterly under my breath. “She wants nothing to do with me. It’s been six years, and she still hasn’t forgiven me.”

Dad’s expression shifts. “I know how much you loved her. Hell, we all loved her. But if she’s decided she doesn’t want you in her life anymore, you’ve gotta respect that. She’s been through horrible shit, Caleb. Maybe seeing you brings all those memories back for her.”

The words hit me like a punch straight to the gut.

Fuck.

I never even considered that seeing me might trigger all those horrible memories for her.

Dead parents.

Losing everything.

Leaving.

I am a selfish asshole.

“Yeah,” I mutter. “You’re probably right. It was just… hard letting her go again.”

Dad squeezes my shoulder. “Well, hopefully today cheers you up a little.”

“Still being cryptic, huh?”

He smirks. “Just wait.” Then he nods toward the other side of the room. “Go check on your cousin. She looks almost as miserable as you do.”

I glance toward Annie and notice her staring at the floor while Aston looks equally wrecked nearby.

Fantastic.

I head over and pat Annie lightly on the shoulder. “How you feeling?”

She looks up and smiles weakly. “Better. And thank you again… for everything. You’re the best cousin ever.”

I snort. “Considering I’m your only cousin, that’s not exactly a high bar. But I’ll take it.”

She laughs softly before glancing toward Aston again, then back at me.

“Things are weird between you two now, huh?” I ask quietly.

She nods miserably. “I don’t know how to act around him.”

I wrap an arm around her shoulders and pull her into my side. “Well, as long as you can fake your way through rehearsals and performances, I’ll be happy. Think you can manage that?” Genuine concern colors my voice because the band falling apart before it even starts would be a fucking disaster.