Page 5 of Not Your Little Girl Anymore

“Come on, you can do better than that!” he shouts into the microphone, and everyone screams louder.

His infectious laughter reverberates through the speakers. His fingers glide across the strings as he strums his guitar with graceful precision. The sound is captivating. As Alec opens his mouth, his rich, velvety voice resonates, wrapping around me like a warm embrace. I’m blown away by how beautiful his voice is.

“They’re outstanding,” I scream to Chloe over the loud music.

She nods, swaying along with the song. “I knew you’d like it!”

I watch as they continue with the song. My eyes drift toward Alec’s neck and how his veins pop out as he sings higher. Something fuzzy swirls in my stomach. His head drifts this way, eyes falling on me and my heart whooshes from my chest. There is no way he’s focusing on me. Out of everyone here? Me? I glance away. My eyes meet Chloe’s briefly. Her look matches mine. When I tilt my head back up, he smiles.

“Is he?” I swallow, unable to finish my question.

“Looking directly at you? I’m pretty sure.”

I look around to see if anyone else notices, but nobody seems to. Everyone else is dancing and singing along with the beat of the song. My heartbeat picks up, pounding against my chest. The hairs on the back of my neck rise as his voice comes through the speakers and he watches me carefully. It’s like he’s singing to me.

Alec takes his eyes off me for a split second, and I blow out air. However, it doesn’t take long for his eyes to fall back on me. My hands become clammy, and my throat becomes increasingly dry. I guzzle down more of my orange soda, hoping it eases the scratchy feeling in the center of my throat. It doesn’t. I’m left feeling overwhelmed and uncomfortable.I need to get out of here. I feel like I’m suffocating.

Between Mom, and college and now coming out of my comfort zone… this is all too much for me right now.

I clear my throat. “Chlo, I need to go.”

She looks at me, stopping in the middle of her dance. Her eyebrows pull tight. “What? Why? Come on, it’s nothing.”

My chest heaves, anxiety builds up in the center of my chest. A feeling I can’t explain, but it drags me down. anyhow. “Chloe, please. I need to get out of here.”

She studies me for a moment. “It’s not about the band. Is it?”

My eyes fill up with tears, but I blink them back to avoid them slipping down my face. “No.”

Chapter Two

Alec

“I saw you looking at her.”

I grin at Samantha, watching her as she adjusts her jeans.

“Free country.”

Her lips purse, and she hums. “You’re taking my initiation of ‘you need to get laid’ a little too literal.”

I walk toward the small mini fridge on the side of the worn-out sofa and pull out a bottle of water.

“Who says I was planning on fucking her?”

Samantha slips her baseball cap on her head, tucking a few strands of hair behind her ear.

“I know how you are, Alec.”

Chuckling, I sidestep her to grab my guitar that’s leaning against the wall. Deep purple velvet curtains drape down the walls. I’m positive the owners hung them up to hide the torn wallpaper because they were too lazy to change it.

Although, I like that the wallpaper hasn’t been replaced after all these years. It reminds me of all the times my mother took me here as a kid. That is one of the only reasons this is my favorite place to play. I often feel her presence lingering and wonder what she’d think of me if she saw how my life turned out.

“What does that even mean?”

Samantha laughs. “You’d fuck the first pussy you saw if you wanted to.”

I scoff. “You’re the one who told me I needed pussy.”

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