you, Luna. And we’re all here backing him up. We love you too, you know. You two fit in perfectly with our family.
Thanks. That means more than you know. And when you’re ready to rock again, just say the word. You’ll have tickets and backstage passes mailed out that day.
Squeeeee! Can’t wait. Take care and don’t be a stranger.
Same.
I drop my phone onto the bed at my side and imagine how the night of the upcoming concert might look. I can see myself on stage, playing the guitar, and singing directly in front of him. I can picture that heated gaze of his watching me. I see the moment I stop the show and profess my undying love for him—pulling him up on stage and kissing him like I’ve been dying to for so long now.
But on the other hand, I can see myself taking the stage, looking at his empty seat, and never getting to say the words that are eating me up inside—the ones that are dying to come out. For the first time in a long while, I pray. I pray that he comes back to me, that he lets go of our weird past, and that he knows I love him as much as he loves me. I pray that he comes and listens to every word I have to say. I pray that he loves me and wants to be with me. I pray that we get our happy ending once and for all.
Eighteen
Daniel
I get home from work and walk into my building, stopping at the mailboxes before hitting the elevator. I pull out the stack of envelopes and stuff them under my arm as I make my way to the elevator and ride it up. I start looking through the stack, but get distracted by the new Jeep catalog folded in half.
When I walk into my apartment, I toss down the stack and take the catalog to the couch with me. I look it over, thinking about trading in my car for a new Jeep, then decide it would be a stupid move as long as I’m living in the city. I throw the catalog into the recycling bin and move to my bedroom to change into some gym clothes.
After working out for the next two hours, I’m back home and ready to shower and eat. I finish up with both tasks around 9 p.m., and I’m so tired that I’m falling asleep on the couch. My phone rings and I jump awake.
“Hello?” I answer.
“Hey, you weren’t asleep, were you?” Calvin asks.
“No, I was just nodding off a bit while watching TV. What’s up?”
“I mailed you some client information for your meeting tomorrow. Just wanted to make sure you got it.”
“Oh.” That’s when I remember that I never finished going through the stack today. “Let me check.” I force myself to get up and grab the pile, bringing it back to the couch with me. I drop it all onto the table as I sort through it.
“How’s Matt working out?” Calvin asks as I sort through the pile.
“Electric bill. Water bill. Credit card bill. Bank statement. Oh, here it is.” I pick it up and notice the last envelope beneath it. There isn’t a return address, but I know from the handwriting that it’s from Luna.
“Uh, um,” I try to gather my thoughts after seeing her name on the envelope. “Matthew. He doesn’t like Matt. He’s good—crazy good, actually. Pretty sure he’s got it bad for his assistant who hates his guts, so that’s amusing.”
“Yeah? That has to be funny to watch, as long as they don’t have an all-out war and burn the office down,” he chuckles. “Well, thanks for confirming you got the files. Now I can go to sleep.”
“All right, talk to ya later.” I drop the phone and pick up the envelope with her handwriting. She’s written my name and address across the front in pink ink. I lift it to my nose and can smell her perfume on it. I breathe it in deeply as my eyes flutter closed. Memories of the last time she was in my arms flood my senses.
I pull the envelope back and study it some more. Opening this is like opening Pandora’s box. Who knows what’s inside? I could easily open it and see, but once I do, there’s no going back. What if it’s bad news? She’d call me with good news, wouldn’t she? It could be something to do with the band,