Page 15 of Still Her
So why can’t you just let it lay?
The words stop, but he keeps strumming, tossing his black hair out of his face as he seems to stare off into nowhere. Whatever song this is, I’ve never heard it before. I don’t want to keep eavesdropping, but the coffee thing needs to happen, so I gently announce my presence.
“Hey, Matt.”
His body goes rigid, but he recovers quickly as he returns my greeting.
“Hey,” he shoots me a tired smile over his shoulder. Like me, he clearly rolled out of bed and pulled on the nearest sweats he could find.
“I didn’t know you guys were working on a new song,” I muse as I close the rest of the distance to the Keurig and fumble in the cupboard for a mug.
He looks uncomfortable, shifting in his seat and rolling his shoulders. “Oh… we’re not. That’s just something…” he stares at the hot brown liquid trickling into my mug like it will bail him out, “something I’ve been playing around with. I don’t think I’ll do anything with it.”
“Shame,” I say, as I reach into the fridge for the creamer. “It’s really beautiful.”
“Thanks,” he says tightly, pressing his lips together and looking down. I’m telling the truth. The melody he was using flowed smoothly, but with an edge, and those lyrics sounded very… personal. I shouldn’t pry, but I can’t help but wonder. I’ve seen Matt with a girl here and there over the last three years; usually a model or an up-and-coming actress will be his plus-one at special events. Nothing ever lasts long however, and I’ve never seen him form a special connection with anyone. I’ve never pressed him for info. He’s always been a private kind of guy, strong and silent. So, as he asks of the person in the song, I decide to “just let it lay.”
When my coffee cup is full, I sit down and take a tentative sip that could go one of two ways. Thankfully, it breathes a small hint of life into me instead of making my stomach roil. I set it down and put my elbow up on the table, resting my chin in my hands.
“Nice look you’re rocking there,” he smirks, his eyes aimed at the top of my head. I reach up and feel my hair, which is fluffed into an impressive ‘fro.
“Ugh,” I grimace as I try to smooth it down. “Like you’re one to talk,” I throw his cocky smirk right back at him while I point out how his hair is matted on one side, and sticking up on the other. He chuckles as he futilely tries to pat it down with one hand.
We are joined by a third hairstyle that shows its owner has been through the ringer when Jack saunters out of the bedroom. His sweats are slung low on his hips and he’s bare chested under his open hoodie. Add that to his shaggy bed hair, and consider my panties incinerated. It’s just not fair that the rumpled, morning-after look is so hot on those with the Y chromosome.
Jack gets his coffee and settles on the arm of my chair, resting his head on his hand, his eyelids still appearing heavy.
“So, I saw you two hung back with Eli for a few last night,” Matt prods, looking down and picking at his guitar again. “What was that about?”
I roll my head in Jack’s direction and sigh. He nods. Going through this conversation once was embarrassing enough, so I get to my feet with my coffee. Jack gives me a quick smooch on the cheek and takes my seat as I head into the bedroom, my mind set on a shower.
* * *
JACK
“Well this seems important,” Matt observes my demeanor as I get situated across from him.
“It’s not too big a deal, at least we’re pretty sure it’s not. Mayzie doesn’t want to make a big deal about it, but I don’t know…” I glance out the window for a minute. I need to consult Matt about this. He’s been my best friend and band mate for thirteen years. He practically leads this band. I nervously scratch at the scruff growing on my jaw.
“Jack,” Matt stops playing with his guitar and levels me with a look. “Let’s have it.” He even sets it aside and leans forward with his elbows on his knees to emphasize I have his attention.
“That photo shoot at Eli’s house… they did Mayzie up real pretty and Eli made an inappropriate comment to her,” I say, practically forcing all the words out on one breath. I’m not sure if Matt’s going to see this the way I do, but I have to find out.
He looks down, processing for a moment. “Not cool… what did he say?” he asks, looking back up.
I tell him about Eli’s “kitten” comment, and how he then proceeded to give Mayzie that creepy-ass look that he thought no one else saw.
Matt doesn’t like what he hears. “I don’t know…” he says, looking out the window, trying to make sense of all this. “That crosses a pretty big boundary.”
“I know,” I concede. “I’m pretty fired up about it. Last night he asked why we were coming off a little cool, and we told him. He apologized to us both. Mayzie thinks he’s sincere, and for the most part, it seemed genuine, but…” I shake my head, because I don’t know what the fuck to do. I’m hoping Matt will tell me.
“It’s still fucked up,” he nods.
“Exactly.”
Just then, Penny and Trooper come bounding in, straining against their leashes as Kelly appears behind them. She gives us a quick smile as she unclips them from the leashes and ducks back out of the bus. They come clambering over to me, and as I scratch both their heads, another thought occurs to me.
“Trooper growled at him too, when he was flying Mayzie out to L.A.,” I say, as I pause my affections on the dogs.