Page 117 of One Last Verse

“When your hair is longer than mine, we’ll discuss it,” I said, heading for the bathroom.

“Screw you, sis!”

Yep, little asshole was definitely my brother.

On the way to West Hollywood, we blasted Killswitch Engage and sipped home-brewed coffee from Metallica travel mugs, courtesy of my partner in crime, Levi Bernstein.

“How about we check out some cars next weekend?” I offered as my Honda merged with the morning traffic on Franklin.

“Sure.” My brother’s answer seemed very unenthusiastic, considering the fact he’d been constantly giving me grief about having to take the bus to school. Not as much lately, but it had seemed like almost every five minutes right after I returned the BMW. WithDreamcatchersmonopolizing pretty much all my time, I couldn’t find any to shop for a new car for Ashton, but it was next on my agenda.

I lowered the volume. “Are you still mad at me? I thought we were over this.”

“My heart is in pain.”

“It’s just a car, Ashton. I said we’ll get you another one and we will.”

“It’s not just a fucking car. It’s a goddamn Z4.” He tossed his hands in the air. “Do you know how many people drive a Z4 in my school?”

“How many?”

“None, dude! None! Cuz I was the only one until you robbed me of it. My pride and joy.” He followed up with a pout.

I shook my head and turned up the music. “What would I do without you, Ashton?”

“You wouldn’t have anyone to yell at, and your couch would smell nicer.” He turned to me and grinned, all teeth on display.

“Uhh, about the couch. You’ll have to buy me a new one when you move out, buddy.”

“You took my car, and now you want me to buy you a couch. What am I? A winning lottery ticket?”

“No, you’re a responsible adult. Well, you will be because I’m going to make one out of you.”

A middle finger flashed in front of my face.

“I take it back.” I laughed at him. “I think you’re going to stay a man-child forever.”

“I like being a man-child. I’m gonna find myself a sugar mama.”

“Jesus, where do you get these ideas?”

“From my sister.”

“Asshole.” I shot him a sideways glance.

“Runs in the family.”

I bit back my smile and concentrated on the road. Having someone around, even if that someone was a total dud like my brother, was nice. His antics made me think of Frank a little less.

A small group of people were hanging out on the sidewalk when we reached the theater forty minutes later. Hall Affinity tees and limited editionDreamcatchersmerch lingered in the crowd while security guards lined the barricaded front entrance. The sun was perched high in the sky and the promotional poster above the marquee was bathed in its bright morning light.

Ashton snapped cell photos as I drove around the building and parked in the back near the trucks. Levi was already inside, talking to the sound engineer. He wore his favorite Doc Martens, and a poorly ironed dress shirt peeked from under his black hoodie. The dark shadows beneath his eyes told me he’d slept just as much as I had in the past twenty-four hours. Theater employees and event staff hurried to get their tasks done. People were everywhere—upstairs on the private deck, downstairs on the main floor, inside the auditorium. Their agitated voices mixed with the rattle of the rolling equipment cases and the buzz of the background music.

In the lobby, Carlos was taking photos of sponsor stands and humming along to the new Green Day tune.

“What are you doing here so early?” I questioned.

He dropped his camera from his face and flashed me a smile. “Documenting.”

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