Light-Year

Logan Mitchell was practically bouncing with enthusiasm as he sat in his bunk on the tour bus, his Macbook open and ready in his lap. His heart raced in his chest at breakneck speed as a pair of brown eyes stared expectantly at the computer screen, waiting for her screen name to pop up on his Skype.

It was hard for him to believe that it had been two months since his vocal group set off across the country on their very first tour, two long, heart-wrenching months since he’d last set eyes on his girlfriend’s smiling face. Though he was completely ecstatic to be on the road, a small town boy from Minnesota performing for fans every night and seeing all that America had to offer, he couldn’t shake the feeling that the timing couldn’t have been worst. It had taken forever for the both of them to admit that their feelings for one another delved deeper than friendship, and it seemed that as soon as they were in a stable relationship, it had all been ripped away suddenly.

They managed to keep in touch, but a few texts and a phone conversation every night was barely enough to fill the void. Logan needed to see her, to know that she was doing okay so that he wouldn’t feel so guilty for leaving her behind.

The Skype date had been Kandi’s idea, and he was a little surprised that he hadn’t been the one to think of it first. With their equally hectic schedules, it had taken a few days for them to get a chance to try out their idea, but a glance at the clock confirmed that it was finally that time, and Logan was completely on edge.

The soft ding! that accompanied the invite almost made him leap out of his seat, his palms growing clammy as his eyes skimmed the message before immediately clicking the “OK” button.

“Hey!” Her voice seemed to ring through the speakers, the greeting accompanied by an excited wave of her hand.

Words couldn’t express how amazing it felt to finally see her, even if she was still a thousand miles away, and Logan couldn’t mask the grin that was beginning to overtake his features, his dimples becoming more apparent and his warm eyes creasing at the corners.

“Hey, how have you been?”

Despite her complaints of a busy shooting schedule, he couldn’t help but think she still looked amazing with her chestnut waves wound into bouncy curls and her makeup flawless, that faint smile lingering on her lips.

She sighed, the exhalation accompanied by a dramatic roll of her deep brown eyes. “Stressed to the max,” she confessed. “I agreed to do this indie film because I thought it would be a nice break from the world of blockbuster movies, but I couldn’t have been more wrong.”

“Aw, don’t talk like that. It can’t be that miserable.”

“You’re right, it is nice to sort of get a chance to do my own thing,” she admitted, flashing him a quick grin. “But I feel like this role has taken over every aspect of my life. Low budget means I’m doing my own wardrobe, my own makeup, my own hair,” she explained as she gestured towards her overly-made-up face. “And this is probably gonna make me sound spoiled, but since the start of my career, I’ve grown so accustomed to other people doing all that stuff for me. But enough about me, how’s life on the road treating ya?”

Logan smiled to himself, glancing down at the keyboard for a moment before answering. “It’s really fun, I’ve seen a lot of neat things. But it does get frustrating being cramped in this tiny bus with the guys every moment of the day.”

“I bet,” Kandi laughed as she ran a hand through her hair. “But at least you’re used to it. I mean, you guys have lived together for over a year.”

“True.”

Silence lapsed between them, which was typical of their phone conversations, but now that they were staring at each other through the screen, it made things even more awkward.

“So how have things been going at the Palm Woods?” Logan asked, curious to know if there was any new drama in their building. With so many future movie stars and music sensations living under one roof, there was always something going on, and though the constant chaos got under Logan’s skin at times, he considered just about everyone in the building as his friend.

“Oh, you know, same ole, same ole,” she replied as she let her head rest in her open palm. “It’s just not the same without you guys around.” Kandi diverted her gaze for a moment before looking back to the screen and adding, “It’s not the same without you.”

And it was true, they’d been best friends since she’d moved to Los Angeles from South Carolina, and it was hard getting through the day without having that someone to vent to, that one person who understood what you were going through and didn’t judge you. Logan knew. Even though he had his four best friends since elementary school sharing the bus with him, it wasn’t the same as having Kandi there with him.

“I know,” Logan stated as he stared at his fingers. As with most guys, voicing his emotions had always been difficult for him. It was so much easier to keep it bottled up inside. “I miss you too, K.”

She offered him a weak smile before trying to change the subject. “So where are y’all headed next?”

“Um, I think we’re on our way to Virginia right now,” he answered before laughing to himself. “We’re in your region.”

“Ha ha,” she replied dryly before her lips curved into a smile.

Logan couldn’t help but think that she looked so beautiful when she smiled at him like that.

“Anyways, that sounds like fun. Do you know when you guys’ll be back?” she asked, and it was obvious in her tone that she was trying to seem as nonchalant as possible.

“We’ve got…” His voice trailed off as he paused, trying to recall the calendar with all the circled dates and scribbled in venues in red ink. “Three more shows, so I should be back around the middle of next week.”

Their producer Gustavo had gotten everything arranged so that the schedule for their first tour was more spaced out than usually, giving the boys a little time to relax and see the tourist attractions along the way. It was less of an act of kindness and more of a self-centered agenda: if the boys were completely exhausted, they wouldn’t look good on stage, therefore making both Gustavo and the record company bearing his name look bad.

Her fair skin seemed to glow when she heard the words, and Logan’s lips reflected her smile.

“One more week isn’t that long, ya know,” she commented as she wound a curl around her middle finger.

“Oh, I know,” he replied with a raise of his eyebrow and as much of a flirtatious tone as the awkward boy could muster. “I’ve got a few things planned for us to do when I get back, so you better get your dose of Kandi time while you still can.”

“Seriously? What are we going to do?” The excitement seeped through her features, her Southern drawl more rushed as the questions tumbled from her lips.

Logan smiled as he watched her stare back at him expectantly through the screen. “It’s a surprise. Let’s just say that I made a list.”

“Well , I hope it’s a good one,” she teased. “We do have two months of lost time to make up for and do couple-y things together.” She laughed at the last remark, the idea of them doing cliché romantic things together still a little odd in the back of her mind, but in all honesty, this was the first real relationship either one of them had been in, so they were still a little unsure of what they should be doing. Since they’d officially become an item, things between them hadn’t really changed, aside from slowly venturing into the realm of physical intimacy.

“Yeah, I know,” he said, laughing a little to himself as he spoke.

Exhaustion seemed to wash over the boy’s body in one huge wave, and he hadn’t realized he was that tired until he was settled in his bed.

Kandi caught him stifling a yawn; Logan had forgotten that she could see him, that the webcam worked both ways.

“Maybe I should let you get some sleep. I forgot you’re three hours ahead of me,” she offered apologetically.

“I’m sorry,” he immediately responded as he ran a hand through tufts of espresso locks. “If it were up to me, I’d probably stay up all night talking to you, I still have so much to tell you, but I do have a big day ahead of me tomorrow, so that’s probably not a good idea.”

She mouthed the words “I know” as she slowly nodded. “Maybe it’s better that you save some of your adventures for when you get back.”

“That’s right,” he chuckled. “We’re gonna need things to talk about while we’re working our way through this list of mine.”

“True, true. Anyways, I hope you have an amazing day tomorrow, and I can’t wait for you to be back here at the Palm Woods where you belong.”

“Goodnight, Kandi.”

“Goodnight, sleep tight, and don’t let the bedbugs bite,” she chanted as she reached over for her mouse to exit out. “I love you.”

It still felt a little odd, hearing her say those words, especially since he’d been waiting for so long to say them to her. It felt completely surreal, finally being with her, and Logan couldn’t shake the feeling that somehow this was all a dream that he was waiting to wake up from.

“Love you too.”

Even though her face disappeared from view, Logan still felt her overwhelming presence. The warm, comforting feeling of being home seemed to envelope him as he inched further beneath the sheets, mentally counting down the days until he’d see her again.