Page 125 of Over the Edge

“Are you all right?” I ask.

“Nothing tea can’t fix.” I give her a concerned look and she tuts. “I’m not a child. I will call Emily if it makes you feel better. Don’t you dare hover and crowd me like I’m some feeble thing. This body held up for five hour shows while wearing a corset, I am fine.”

“Call Emily and I’ll drop it.”

“I call, and you make sure to leave in time to get your girl.” Alina raises a hand to point at the car driving away with the woman I love.

“Deal.”

46

Evelyn

Instead of driving myself to the airport I ride with Quinn while Oliver drives my car. Besides the fact that out of the three of us I’m the worst behind the wheel, I’m also drained. I’ve turned off my phone so I don’t have the urge to check social media or my texts.

I’ve been better these last few weeks about not checking for Lyla in the headlines, but this is more personal. It’s me, or at least about me, because the few that I saw did address me as “bandmate’s sister.” The way it was phrased poked at a long-term fear that only recently went dormant. It’s not just my life that would be under the lens if I went public as Lyla West.

I would be putting Drew under that old scrutiny all over again. The people who I care about didn’t sign up for their lives to be torn through and their privacy invaded.

“Didn’t you want to see the festival?" Quinn asks. "That’s part of why you came here in the first place."

“I can come back next year.” I feel detached from my words as I look out the window.

“Will you, though?” Quinn presses.

“If I can get the time off, I don’t see why not,” I say as I sink further into my seat. “It’s just a festival.”

“You really want the job?”

“It’s the best option.” It’s the one that works. It’s a solution instead of the Band-Aids that I’ve been constantly reapplying to the situation. This can be permanent. I need it to be.

“Fuck. Fine. I guess we’re doing this right now,” Quinn mutters under her breath. It’s the only warning I get before she jerks the wheel to pull over to a small rest area. I grapple for the handle above the door as my body slams to one side.

“Is everything okay?” I ask, eyes shifting around us.

“No,” she bites out. “It’s not, Ev.”

What the hell? Does she not want me back there after all after this weekend? At the same time, it feels like she’s wrestling with herself, not me.

A call comes in with Oliver’s name flashing on the display. “Did you guys just pull off? I think I just passed you.”

“Yes. We did. I’m going to talk to Ev and tell her what we came here to discuss in the first place,” she says with no room for argument. “See you at the airport.”

“Wh—” Oliver starts but Quinn firmly presses the hang up button before he can continue.

“Quinn, what’s going on?” I ask. What they came here to discuss... I thought we already talked about everything.

Quinn turns in her seat. Her seatbelt digs into her shoulder as she leans toward me with blazing eyes. “You’re acting like an idiot.”

“Excuse me?” I’m still too startled to be anything other than confused.

“You’re out here repeating history. You’ve already done this,” she starts, her voice raising with indignation. “You’re runningaway from what you really want. Why? Because you have an easy out? Because it’s easier to leave before it gets too real?”

“Are you mad at me for something? If you are, can you at least explain to me what the hell you’re upset about so I can understand what’s going on?” My mind starts to race in time with my heart. I’m tired, not just from today, but the weight I’ve been carrying for years is pressing down harder than ever before.

“Yes, you know what? I am.” Quinn unbuckles her seat, turns off the car, then stomps around it. By the time I follow suit she’s already working to open the trunk. “Where the hell is it?” she mutters to herself as she starts to dig through Oliver’s blue duffle. She pulls out clothes that have been recklessly shoved into the bag and then dips her hand into an unzipped side pocket.

My pulse quickens, thundering in my ears, drowning out the sound of cars breezing past us. The only thing I can think of…but there’s no way. Yesterday when Garrett and I performed, he was the only one who sang. She can’t know. I’ve been careful. If she knows then all of it is over. The damage, the lies, all of it has been for nothing.

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