Rye

I swallow down the Advil and finish off the bottle of water for good measure. The tension in my shoulders is unreal. Standing beneath the hot water of the shower, I twist my neck to the right, stretching the tired, aching muscles. I let my head roll forward and stretch to the left.

"What about Chinese?" Tinsley asks from outside the door.

I don't even have an appetite. "Whatever you want," I tell her.

Is it in my head how comfortable Launi is with the guard? She answered her door in a robe. She had to know it was him that would deliver what she needed.

"Orange chicken?" Tinsley asks.

I don't care. "That's fine," I shout back, my head pounding.

"I'm going to get egg rolls too," she says unnecessarily.

"Fine," I answer.

I rub at my shoulder with my hand, squeezing the knots and hoping the medicine sets in soon. My dad almost needed shoulder surgery. If he had been alive even a year longer, he probably would have had to go under the knife. I'm sure that added to his drinking and pill usage. I remember he had flown out to three different surgeons to get an opinion. All of them agreed, it would have to be done at some point, but he should put it off as long as possible. Shoulder replacements don't last as long as some other parts. And there would be no guarantee he would get back his usual range of motion which could have destroyed his career.

The door swings open and I hear her just outside the shower curtain. "You did a great job today," she says.

I relax, letting my head fall forward again so the water can pound on the back of my neck. "Thank you."

"You should make your own social media accounts," she says.

I lift my face up. That sounds miserable and not at all something I want to be doing. "I'm good," I tell her.

"Babe," she says, sliding the curtain back so she can look me in the eyes.

I cover myself instinctively and she giggles. "I've seen it," she says before continuing. "You need to promote yourself too. What if Free Pony doesn't work out and you need to switch bands."

If Free Pony doesn't work out, I won't be switching bands. I will be going back home to get whatever job I can and help keep my mom housed. I'll slowly pay off my dad's debts, so no one goes after her, and then I'll live a quiet life away from all of this. There will be some relief in that.

"This has to work," I tell her.

"Oh, I'm sure it will. But I'm just saying you should have a backup plan," she tells me.

"I do," I say. "And it doesn't require fame."

Tinsley frowns. "Come on Rye, I'm serious."

"So am I." I tell her. I shut off the water and reach for my towel.

Tinsley perches up on the bathroom counter. "Your PR girl is good," she says out of nowhere.

"Launi," I say.

"Pretty name. She's kind of young, isn't she? To be in charge of Free Pony's social media?" she asks. She's looking at her phone as she talks.

"She's young, but she knows the business," I tell her. I'm weirdly defensive and can hear it in my tone.

"No, I'm not talking shit," Tinsley says. She looks up to my face with curiosity. I don't blame her. Even I could tell I had some skin in that game. "She's getting you guys a lot of views. I was just curious how she got the job."

"Launi Kline," I say with an imaginary period at the end of her name.

Tinsley squints her eyes and then says, "Ok. Launi Kline. Should that mean something?"

"Justine Kline?" I ask as if to say does it ring a bell.

She shakes her head. Her fingers quickly tap his name into google as I towel off. I reach for the glass on the counter even though I've heard they are disgusting and fill it with more water. This headache is killing me.

"Ohhhhhh," she says, holding the phone up to my face as if I don't know who he is. "Free Pony lead singer! Makes sense."

"It does," I tell her.

"I wonder if she works with anyone else?" she slides off the sink and heads out to the room.

I drink the water and set the glass back down. "I don't know," I answer honestly. I don't know much about her now if I'm being honest with myself. "This might be her first job," I say.

"I can help her," Tinsley says. "When the tour is over, I can find her some actor to work with if she would want to go that route."

I shrug and pull my sweats from my bag and put them on. "I don't know what she wants," I admit.

"Maybe I'll chat with her sometime," she says and for the first time, the thought crosses my mind that maybe Tinsley is smarter and more tuned into my life than I thought. Could she know what is going on? Is this a test? Why does the thought of her talking to Launi bother me?

"I don't know," I say. "I guess that's up to you." I try to sound casual as if it doesn't matter either way. I want to seem innocent. It's not as if I'm worried Tinsley will be mad at me, I'm worried what she might do to Launi's career if she ever found out. Tinsley has the power and clout to blacklist whoever she wants. I don't want Launi between her crosshairs because of me.