“Cass, I’m not leaving.” I shrugged her off and waved at the boys, who were still struggling against each other. Noah clearly wanted to get up and continue fighting with the guy, who had disappeared. But Leroy’s hold was unwavering as he kept ordering him to get a grip.
Two security guards cleared the crowd before ripping apart Noah and Leroy and shoving them, ordering them to move. They were clearly being led to the exit, so Cass and I joined hands and followed as best we could. It was humiliating: people were watching, whispers of scandal. Noah was a magnet to all things drama, and I was so over it.
By the time we got outside, the security was gone. Noah and Leroy stood about ten feet apart, both looking enraged. Cass dropped my hand, heading straight for her boyfriend. There was seriously something wrong him. The fact that Cass couldn’t even talk to another man without him throwing down spoke volumes to his unfaithful nature. He had no trust because he had no loyalty.
“You’re such an asshole,” Cass shouted, gaining the attention of a few stragglers hanging around on the footpath, smoking cigarettes or climbing into cabs. “You just ruined the concert. We got kicked out because you’re a shady little shit who can’t miss the chance to start a scene.”
Noah got in close to her, intimidatingly so. She didn’t seem worried, she stood tall. “You’re the one who wanted this exclusive bullshit. Why bother if you’re just going to whore it out to the first dude you see?”
She slapped him across the face and I froze. Noah’s hand rubbed the bottom of his jaw and he stared at her, furious.
“I was having a conversation with him. About the music, the night,” she seethed. “He apologized for bumping into me, and then I ask—” she stopped and shook her head. “You know what, no, I don’t have to explain jack to you.”
“Could you both grow the fuck up,” Leroy snapped, leaning on a bike stand at the edge of the footpath. The three of us watched him. “You’re a shit-show. This relationship is a toxic shit-show.”
“Lay off,” Noah spat. “We all know you’re the shining star of Castle Rock. Perfect game, perfect grades, even though you can’t submit a damn paper without me looking over it. Everyone knows your relationship is perfect, we’ve all heard. You’re all that, we get it. Just shut the hell up. We can’t all be Leroy Lahey.”
“Again with this shit? You’re the one who makes yourself a victim. No one puts me above you. You do that to yourself. You act like an asshole and wonder why people are fed up with you all the time.”
Noah threw his arms wide and shouted, “I’m not imagining this, asshat—just watch Mom and Dad boast about their precious Leroy to everyone and I’m lucky if they even remember that I exist.”
Noah was mad, and he was hostile, but there was a hitch in his tone and pain in his expression that I couldn’t help but see as heartbreak. He believed what he was saying.
“Do something that makes them proud then,” Leroy was calmer, factual. I wondered if he recognized his brother’s hurt too.
“I wrote a fucking paper on the subtle privilege of the working-class economy and presented legitimate numbers that could assist in the funding of free education for financially burdened families that was recognized by the state senator! How is that not something to be proud of?”
Cass and I looked at each other, sharing a silent ‘wow.’ That is something to be proud of.
“Mom literally threw you a party and you didn’t even show up,” Leroy countered, and I winced, looking around at the loiterers who were now watching with interest. This was too personal to be said in front of a crowd of strangers.
Noah laughed derisively. “She was just being a shooter—she wanted to brag in front of all of her elite friends.”
“Are you fucking serious?” Leroy stepped forward, toe-to-toe with his brother. “You just said she didn’t mention you enough, but if she does, she’s showing off? You are such a wack job. And no, the reason you didn’t show up was because you were sticking it in Natalie and that was more important.”
Noah averted his stare, red crawling up his neck.
The air was still, the tension pulling at all four of us. Someone had to move; it had to snap sooner or later. And then, it did. Leroy stormed toward me, wrapped his arm around my shoulder, and we started down the sidewalk.
“Where are you going?” Cass called. “You have the car keys.”
I was trapped under Leroy’s arm. I couldn’t see past him when I tried to peer back at her. But he answered for us. “Back to the hotel. Walk.”
“That’ll take hours!” Noah shouted.
“Good. Cool off. We need some space.”
He offered no more explanation as he pulled me tighter against his side and we started toward the car, which was parked in the lot beside the stadium. We climbed in, Leroy started the engine, and we drove away from the pair of them. Streetlights overhead illuminated the interior.
“I’m so sorry that he ruined the concert for you,” Leroy said, knuckles white as he gripped the steering wheel.
“Oh, no, it’s fine. It’s not like I paid for the tickets.”
“Doesn’t matter,” he mumbled. “You love music, you were excited, it—it’s just not okay.”
He didn’t say it out loud, but I had a feeling that he was thinking about the fact that I couldn’t afford concert tickets in most cases. That I might not get another chance anytime soon. He was right and it was disappointing. But it was out of his control.
“I heard all of my favorite songs before we got kicked out,” I offered, hoping to defuse his frustration. “At least it wasn’t at the beginning, right?”