‹ Prequel: Smirt
Status: finished.

Eclat

Ten.

“Gavin is going to be here tomorrow afternoon,” I whispered, careful not to move around too much. I was almost one hundred percent sure that everyone else was still sleeping except Carter and me. There are many moments that I wished I could capture and keep forever. This was one of those rare moments that I wanted to remember for as long as possible.

I was cuddling with Carter and the bus was completely silent. It was around eight in the morning and he had been talking to me about the jam session he had with Chris the other day. Apparently, Chris had finally found some inspiration and was writing new material. Carter was enthralled. I was close to changing the subject abruptly---Chris had barely spoken to me the past few days---but Carter looked too much like a proud father after his son’s baseball team won little league. I ended up half-listening to him. The other half of my attention was spent admiring the thin rays of sunlight that streamed through the window, one side of his face glowing. It was picturesque.

“You didn’t hear a word I said.” Carter’s accusation was emphasized by his finger flicking my nose. His tone of voice was playful though, so I wasn’t worried that he was mad at me.

Nonetheless, I shook my head vehemently. “I was listening! You were talking about a new song that Chris wrote and other. . .tour. . .stuff.”

“You think so?” He moved closer, his forehead touching mine. “Don’t take this personally, but my bullshit-o-meter is going off right now.”

I closed the space between us, kissing him softly. “Don’t take this personally, but I’m not offended at all. Oh, and we should be getting ready. I think everyone is awake now. . .maybe not everyone but whatever.”

The sound of a door slamming and someone yelling broke the silence I’d cherished minutes earlier. Back to reality. I stood up and ran a hand through my bedhead hair, cracking open the door that led to the front lounge. Ellie and Taylor were eating cereal and chugging energy drinks, Chris looked dazed and confused as usual, and the rest of the guys were either playing video games or still sleeping. That was the explanation for the yelling; video games caused even the most patient person to morph into a crazed maniac. It was one of the reasons why I refused to play against any of them, fearing that I’d be traumatized and never want to be in close proximity with a gaming console. Plus, it was somewhat entertaining to watch the guys insulting each other.

“You shithead! We’re on the same team!” Nathan shrieked, nostrils flaring.

“Sorry, dude! I forgot alright? Relax.” Dustin flinched as Nathan began to mutter under his breath.

“Easy, boys. There’s no room on this bus to hide any dead bodies, so, don’t kill Dustin, Nate,” Ellie chastised with a wink. Her eyes met mine from across the room. “Good mornin’, Dahlia! Chris, there she is. You wanted to talk to her and now you have the chance.”

Once Chris’s gaze focused on me, I wanted to rewind time and be safe in Carter’s arms. His expression was unreadable and that scared me. This was serious. “You did?” My voice went up an octave as I plastered a smile on my face.

He stood up, opened the door, and gestured towards it. “Ladies first. This shouldn’t take long,” he added ruefully as he noticed my eyebrows raise slightly. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Carter walk out of the bunk room, unperturbed that I was going to have a chat with Chris.

I followed Chris outside and turned to him. “What’s up, Chris? What do you want to talk about?”

Chris bit his lip. “I want to talk about us.”
♠ ♠ ♠
Prepare yourself for the confrontation. Finally!
Anyway, I'm aiming for fifteen to twenty chapters to end Eclat.
Not entirely sure though. That's just how good I am at planning plot lines.
c:

Happy Halloween to those who celebrate it.