Page 56 of Once Upon a Boyband
I think about his words as we drive toward one of only two fast food places in Lawson Cove.
I’m trying not to get too far ahead of myself, but this thing with Laneydoesfeel real. And that feels big.
As we drive down Main Street, Freddie peppers me with question after question. He can’t be so sheltered that he’s never driven through a small town, but his fascination seems to have less to do with life in Lawson Covegenerally,and more to do with life in Lawson Cove…for me.
“So you can just drive around like normal? And no one knows who you are? That’s insane.”
“It’s how most people live, Freddie,” I say.
“No, I know. But you aren’t most people.” He points out the window. “Look. Right there. There’s a girl with a Midnight Rush t-shirt on. That’s your face, man. And you can just drive right past her like it’s no big deal. I envy that.”
I roll my eyes. “No, you don’t. You love the attention. You always have.”
He tilts his head, like he’s really considering. “Okay, I do love it. Still. I wouldn’t mind a little more obscurity every once in a while. Plus, this is fun. Just doing stuff.Normalstuff.”
“Youreallydon’t get out much, do you?”
“You have no idea,” he says.
I eye him suspiciously. “I’m surprised you don’t have any security with you. Isn’t that pretty routine these days?”
Freddie turns his face away from me, but I don’t miss the way his jaw twitches before he does.
“Freddie,” I say slowly. “Do your people know where you are? Are yousupposedto have security with you right now?”
“It’s fine,” Freddie says. “It’s not a big deal.”
“Dude, I don’t want to get in trouble. And I don’t wantyouto get in trouble either.”
Freddie holds out his hands. “No one is getting in trouble. Ivy knows where I am. She’s my assistant, and she’s amazing, and she’ll handle things. Idousually travel with security, but I didn’t want to freak you out showing up with a whole entourage. Besides, what could possibly happen in a town this small?”
I ease to a stop at the next light, and Freddie glances over to the car next to us. There’s a woman in a minivan studying us with her eyes narrowed. Freddie turns away, lifting his arm to block her view, and I scowl at him.
“What was that you were saying?”
At the drive thru, Freddie is as fascinated with the Southern accent of the teenager working the window as he was with Patty’s, and he asks her to repeat herself twice just so he can listen to her say “french fries” over and over again.
“I freaking love this place,” he says as we pull around to the window. “The way everyone talks—it sounds like music.”
If this were anyone but Freddie, I might think he was making fun of the South. But Freddie is one of the most genuine people I know. He experiences everything with a level of joy and intensity turned a few notches above what most people feel. He’s always been like that, and I envy him for it. For being so good at simplyseeing good.
When the girl at the window hands us our food, Freddie lifts his sunglasses and smiles at her. “Thanks so much,” he says. “Have a great day.”
She gasps, eyes going wide, and I gun it, tires practically squealing as I pull out of the parking lot.
I huff out a laugh. “You really can’t resist, can you? You hatenotbeing Freddie Ridgefield.”
He grins. “I mean, he’s a pretty charming guy.”
I shake my head as I pull into an empty bank parking lot buffeted by a line of sprawling oak trees and pull to a stop inthe shade that covers the back half. “I can’t imagine,” I say, as I reach for the bag of food sitting in Freddie’s lap. “I couldn’t get away from all that attention fast enough.”
Freddie shrugs, then takes a long drink of his soda. “Sometimes it gets annoying. But it means I get to do what I love. Do you not miss that part of it? The music?”
“I still make music,” I say.
“But no one ever hears you,” Freddie says. “What’s the point if other people can’t enjoy the music you’re making?”
I take an enormous bite of burger, chewing slowly as I consider how to answer. On the surface, it’s pretty simple. Freddie lives for the attention; he’s an extrovert in the extreme while I’m the opposite. But I know it’s more than that.
