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Scottie stood there and looked between the two of us. Something in his resolve had changed, and he looked even more hopeful than he had at first.
"If the two of you work together on this, I have no doubt that you'll have no problem," he said, a smile spreading across his face, again.
I looked back at Haden. His eyes were still fixed on me.
"So, what do you say?" he asked.
“I… I just don't know," I said. Everything was happening so fast, and there was no way I could keep up with it. I needed a job - and the kind of money that Scottie was offering to pay me would mean that I wouldn't even need to get a job during the school year. It was money that I needed. I would be a fool to turn down the offer - right?
Scottie studied me for a long moment, then he nodded his head again.
"Well, we don’t have to make a decision right now,” he said. "Take the weekend and think it over. Talk with your family about it and see what they think. Come back on Monday, and let me know what you've decided."
I nodded and felt some of the pressure lift from my shoulders. Time was exactly what I needed. It was a big decision; one that shouldn’t be made without serious thought. If I was able to pull it off, things might never be the same for me. But, even with Haden’s help, I wasn’t sure I could.
Scottie clapped his hands on the bar, twice. “Well, I’ve got to get ready for tonight,” he said, pushing himself away from the bar. He gave me another long look. “See you on Monday, then?”
I nodded. "I'll think it over," I said.
He nodded once, and disappared to the back of the bar, again.
My eyes locked on the empty doorway Scottie had disappeared through. I could feel Haden looking at me, studying me. I bit my lip, and turned back to him.
"What are you doing today?" he asked, suddenly. I frowned. The question caught me off guard.
"What?" I said, stupidly.
"Today," he repeated. "Do you have any plans?"
I shrugged. "I don't know," I said. "I'm hanging out with my cousin. We haven't seen each other in a long time." His eyes narrowed when I said it. I hoped he couldn't tell just how nervous he made me.
"Let's do something," he said.
I cocked my head to the side, cautious. “Like what?” I said.
He shrugged. "I don't know, we'll figure something out."
"But, I don't even know you," I said.
He grinned, and the dimples appeared, sending quivers through my legs. He really needs to stop doing that.
"That's kind of the point, isn’t it?” He grinned at me. “I mean, if we're going to be working together, we need to get to know each other."
"I haven't agreed to anything yet," I said.
"But, you're going to, right?" he said. "You'd be stupid to pass up an opportunity like this one."
That's it, he really does think you're stupid.
I broke my eyes away from him and looked at the door.
"I really do need to get going," I said, not wanting to confront him and make an even bigger fool of myself.
I slid down off the stool, and began heading toward the door before he could protest. I didn't want to chance looking at him again, for fear that I wouldn't be able to keep a level head anymore. I heard him hop off his stool, in quick pursuit. He stayed right behind me, following me out of the bar.
“I’m sorry,” he said. “I don’t think you’re stupid. I just want you to give this decision the attention it deserves.”
“I told Scottie I would talk it over with my family,” I said. “And I’m going to do just that.”
“You should talk it over with me, too,” he said. “Maybe we can come up with some kind of plan for how we can pull this thing off.”
“Oh yeah?” I said, still not breaking stride. “Do you know a bunch of bands around here that might want to play at the show?”
I pushed through the front door without slowing, and was instantly blinded by the high midday sun. I raised a hand to try and shade it away. I squinted, trying to find Sarah through the blinding haze.
“I just don’t want you to give up before you’ve really given it a shot,” Haden said.
I glanced over at him, and saw that he was shielding his own eyes in a similar way. Even standing there, out of the protection of the dimly lit bar, he somehow managed to look absolutely stunning. His hair fell in front of his eyes, and he pinched it back with a finger, keeping his eyes locked on me.
I felt myself swaying in place as he looked at me. An image of the two of us flashed in my mind. We were off somewhere, spending the summer together, chasing down bands across the huge state of Texas. There were worst ways to spend my summer vacation. Even if we didn’t find a band, at least I would be spending my days with Haden. That made it worth it - right?
“There you are,” Sarah called out.
Sarah’s voice came from somewhere off to my left. I glanced over and saw her walking toward us, her phone still in hand. She said a few things into it, and then clicked it off. “I was beginning to wonder if you had decided to stay and have a few drinks while you were here.” Her voice trailed off, and her eyes went wide when she realized that Haden was standing next to me. “Oh, I didn’t mean to…” she looked back and forth between us.
Haden’s eyes locked on her, and he thrust his hand out in front of her.
“Hi, I’m Haden,” he said.
Sarah beamed and took his hand. “Sarah,” she said.
I struggled to not groan out loud. This was no going in the direction that I wanted it to go.
“Ready to go?” I asked Sarah.
Haden did his best to speak over me. He still had her hand in his, and still managed to command her attention.
“Sarah, can you tell Maggie that she’s making a mistake,” he said.
Sarah cocked her head to the side, a smile still spread across her cheeks. “What do you mean?” she asked.
Haden tilted his head toward the bar.
“Scottie is offering her a once in a lifetime chance, and she’s trying her best to turn it down.”
Sarah’s eyebrows furrowed together and she leaned back a bit. She glanced over at me for confirmation.
“I don’t want to talk about it right now,” I said. I turned to Haden. “Thanks for your help in there, but we really need to get going.”
“It’s no rush…” Sarah started. I shot her the angriest stare I’d ever given to anyone. She fell silent while her lips kept moving.
Haden gave me a serious look, then snorted his disbelief.
“Are you going to spend your summer working at some classy place like McDonald’s, then?” he said. “This kind of thing doesn’t come up every day. I hope you realize how lucky you are.”
I sighed, again. “I don’t know!” I wanted to scream it so he would hear me, but he seemed determined to keep me on edge. “I’ll make my decision this weekend, and talk to Scottie about it on Monday.”
Haden let out a long sigh. Hopefully he had finally realized that he wasn’t going to get a solid answer out of me right there. I needed to get away from him - it was becoming clear that I couldn’t keep my senses with him around.
“We’re going to the bike track later, if you want to come join us,” Sarah said out of nowhere. I gave her a shocked look, and couldn’t help but notice the smile widening across Haden’s face.
“What are you talking about?” I said in a hushed voice, as though Haden somehow night not hear.
She nodded. “I was just talking to Huck. His motocross team is doing a little demonstration before the season gets under way. They’re trying to get a lot of people out there.”
“I’d love to go,” Haden said. “What time?”
“I don’t know…” I said, but the two were having a conversation to themselves. It was clear that I didn’t even need to be there.
“Six,” Sarah said.
Haden’s smile widened. “Great,” he said. Then he turned to me. “I’ll see you tonight.”
I stood there, stunned, as he disappeared back into the bar.
What the hell is going on? I asked myself, still reeling from everything happening so quickly.
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