Shooting Star

“How do you feel about tomorrow, man?” Zacky asked his best friend as they sat on his couch while having a few beers together.

“I feel fine,” Matt shrugged as he took a swish of his beer. “It’ll be nice to have everyone together, you know?”

Zacky nodded. “Yeah, I know what you mean.”

Matt sighed and leaned back against the couch. He was tired. A little too tired for his liking. He and the rest of the guys had just gotten back from a very long tour around the world, and he still hadn’t really had time to just kick back and sleep for few a days yet. He had been busier than usual since him and his fiancé, Val were in the middle of remodeling a brand new home that they just bought a few months prior. He was having to go over to the new place everyday to make decisions on the house. One day it was the floors, the next it was what color the walls were going to be painted. Honestly, Matt didn’t care about that stuff, but Val did and it made her happy to see him participate in the decisions.

“You want to know something?” Zacky wondered as he looked over at his friend.

Matt looked up from his lap and at Zacky. “Hm?”

“I never expected this from you,” Zacky said as he ran a hand through his black hair. “I mean, you and Val, man? Like really? I just can’t believe it some days.”

“I know,” Matt nodded, “But I can’t explain it. We just got close and fell for each other.”

Zacky didn’t have time to reply as his girl friend, Gena walked through the front door calling out for him. Zacky yelled he was in the living room, and Gena walked in with a wide grin stretched across her lips. She was practically shaking from how excited she happened to be after running into Layton at the salon.

“Hey, how did your day go?” Zacky asked her.

“Amazing!” She exclaimed, “You two are never going to believe who’s back in town.”

Matt licked over his bottom lip and looked over at the petite blonde. “Well this must be good,” He laughed as he sat up to hear what she had to say.

“Guess!” She challenged the two of them.

Zacky groaned and shook his head. “I’m not guessing, G, so come on. Just tell us already.”

She sighed and frowned. “Fine,” She murmured as she set her purse down on a chair beside her. “It’s Layton. Layton is back in town.”

Matt nearly choked on his beer as he stared at Gena with wide eyes. Layton Summer’s was back in Huntington? His ex girlfriend Layton was back? When the hell had that happened and why? Why was she back after all these years of never speaking to any of them again? Why was she back after practically disappearing off the planet seven years ago?

“Oh shit,” Zacky said, knowing that wasn’t good.

Matt set his beer down on the coffee table in front of him, and ran a hand through his short hair. “Did you see her?” He finally asked as he looked over at Gena.

She nodded, “Maria hired her today down at the salon. She starts Monday.”

Matt shook his head, trying to process the news he had just received. He hadn’t seen Layton in so long that he had just about forgotten about her. The last time he had seen her was when he visited North Dakota for her twenty-first birthday, and when she told him she was pregnant with his kid. After she had gotten an abortion a week later, Matt received less and less phone calls from her, before finally they stopped for good.

Matt, of course, didn’t want to admit that their relationship had basically gone down the drain. He had called David, Layton’s dad, and asked him about her and where she was, but David didn’t exactly tell him much. He told Matt that she was safe and that she had moved away to live with her Aunt in Pennsylvania. After that, the band went on tour and Matt tried not to think about her, knowing that she wasn’t going to come back.

“Matt? Man, are you okay?” Zacky questioned from beside him.

Matt stood up from his friends couch and shook his head again. “I need to go,” Was all he said before walking out of their living room and out of their house.

He climbed into his SUV and pulled out of Zacky’s driveway before taking off down the street. He needed some place to think at so he could clear his head before it exploded with thoughts. He had missed Layton more than anybody when she stopped calling him. Funny thing was, he was almost positive that he knew what drove them apart and made her stop calling, which he felt more than guilty about.

After driving around Huntington for twenty minutes, he parked at the beach. He got out of his car and walked down to the shore. Since it was later in the day, not many people were around. He sat down in the sand and sighed heavily. He hadn’t exactly been to the beach in awhile since he had been on tour, so it was nice to be able to look at the water and feel the warm sand. Matt loved the beach, but every single time he went he was reminded of Layton since they had spent so much time together there when she would visit every summer.

He ran a hand through his hair and watched as the tide rolled in, inching closer and closer to his sneakers every time.

“I knew I would find you here,” A deep voice interrupted Matt as he sat down beside him.

Matt breathed out, “Zacky called you, didn’t he?”

“Yep,” Brian nodded, “He told me that you left his house in a rush because you needed to think, and he knew you would need someone to talk to.”

Although in the beginning Matt had wanted to be alone to think, he was glad that his friends cared about him enough to actually come find him so he could have somebody to talk to.

“Layton’s back,” He muttered.

“Whoa,” Brian said as his eyes went wide for a moment.

Brian knew how much it had hurt him when Layton moved away and stopped calling him, and now he knew that there was a chance Matt and Layton would run into each other someday, which wouldn’t be good because he also knew Matt still loved her. He may have loved Val, but Val could never compare to Layton.

“I don’t know why I’m so shocked. She always said she would move here someday, I just didn’t expect it after all these years,” Matt said.

“Matt, just because she’s back now doesn’t mean that it changes anything.” Brian tried to get through to his friend.

Matt laughed bitterly and shook his head. “Are you kidding me, Brian? This fucking changes everything.”

“What about Val, and the guys and I, and your life? Dude, Layton has obviously moved on, and now it’s your turn. You’re getting married within months to a great woman who loves you even though she knows that part of your heart will always belong to Layton, who she can’t even compare to. She’s been with you since the very beginning when you and Layton broke up. She has stood by you and our band for years and years. You can’t just forget about her because Layton is back. It doesn’t work that way, Matt.”

“Don’t you think I know that?” Matt said, turning to his best friend, “Brian, I know what Val has done for me over the years, and I love her for every bit of it. I’m not saying that I’m gonna break off my engagement with Val, find Layton and live happily ever after with her. No, that’s not going to happen, and I know that.”

Brian ran a hand over his face and shook his head at Matt. He stood up from the sand and looked down at his friend. “Go home to your fiancé and show her how much you love her, Matt, and forget about Layton. She doesn’t matter anymore,” He told him before turning away and stalking off to go home to his own wife.

Matt stayed silent as he heard his friend walk off. What Brian didn’t know was that Layton would always matter. Always. And Matt wasn’t sure if that would ever change or not.