9| The Break

The next few days passed by slowly, and I spent all of them just working on my song. I had a little less than three weeks left to finish it before I had to send in the final product of it for the competition. It had to be perfect by then, or I could kiss my dream of being a recognized songwriter goodbye. It's something I've wanted to be since I picked up a guitar and played my first chord. The next one came naturally, and then the next until I had my first little song. It was about my love for video games, but hey, at nine years old I felt like it was a pretty cool accomplishment. It was also the moment I found my passion, and I had no intentions of letting it go.

After dropping out of college, I spent my time busting my tail feathers just to be noticed for my talent. Youtube videos, Instagram posts, and even local shows at different cafes have done absolutely nothing to grow a fanbase, and while I know it takes time to build these things, I didn't have time. I made a deal with my parents that if I couldn't make a living off of my passion by the time I turned twenty-two, I would start working for them with their real-estate business. They came up with the age, saying it was the age I'd have been when I graduated if I hadn't dropped out. It wasn't ideal, but it also wasn't the worst deal in the world, and I still had two years to get it done, but I wasn't keen on letting the time tick down. I wanted to succeed sooner rather than later. I wanted to secure my future, the one I wanted, and I wanted to do that now.

Which is why you need to win this competition. Focus.

And I had been. For the past five days, I really bunkered down, not moving from my spot in the dorm, and pushed out a pretty solid second verse to match the first. I worked in some complex but complimentary finger picking to really hook the listeners in and elevate the song from something basic to something that showed effort while still seeming effortless, if you get what I mean. To say I barely left Drew's room would be an understatement. If he wasn't bringing me food, then delivery was, and while I didn't condone that kind of lifestyle longterm, the progress I'd made was enough to make me excuse my 'irresponsibility', as my mother would put it.

All that was left was a banging bridge and the song would be complete. The problem was, I couldn't come up with one. I knew I could use a break, but I wasn't entirely sold on the idea yet. Ever since the party last Friday, I hadn't gone out or done anything 'fun'. I tried inviting Natalie over for a bit, but she didn't want to risk running into Drew since it was his dorm after all. I was disappointed that that reason even existed, but I understood, and promised that she'd be the first to hear my song once it was finished to make up for being unreachable lately.

Drew was annoyed, but for multiple different reasons. His main one, however, was that I apparently stunk and needed to shower. Granted, I wasn't exaggerating when I said I hadn't left my spot. I'd been sitting at the edge of the bed, wearing the same basketball shorts I had on since Saturday, and wasn't exactly winning the award for best hygiene. Drew's roomate would probably have a permanent indent of where my butt was on his mattress.

Poor guy. Hope he doesn't mind.

I still had yet to meet him, actually. Come to think of it, there were a lot of things I'd been meaning to do that I hadn't since my songwriting binge.

Huh, maybe I should take a breather.

I hadn't even had time to meet up with Madelyn again. And whose fault is that? I already knew it was mine. We'd text here and there, send a few funny pics to each other, or video links, but that was about it. One time she sent me a picture of her and Severus, who was a black chantilly with his fluffiness up to the max, captioned by the message, 'Don't you want to meet him?' He definitely looked like he'd belong to Lou with the way he scowled at the camera, amd even though Madelyn looked really cute smiling next to him, the lyrics to the second verse were just coming to me and I didn't want to risk breaking the flow. I did, however, decide to use that picture as her contact pic in my phone, and smiled whenever I saw it pop up with a new notification showing she'd texted me, which it just so happened to do right now.

Well, now I was extremely curious as to what she had planned. I literally had just been reaching for my guitar when she texted, and felt conflicted between working on the bridge of the song or hanging out with a pretty girl whose company was honestly even better than she looked. Any normal guy out there would be busting my balls at the fact that I even had to think about it. Of course, when she dared me to come out, my mind went back to that kiss in the park, and I really wanted a repeat of it. I will shamelessly admit that that was what sold the idea to me.

It was also how I managed to drag my butt out of the room for the first time that week, shower, wash my hair, and put on a fresh pair of clothes. She said to wear something I wouldn't mind ruining, so naturally, I borrowed some of Drew's clothes like the good friend I am. The shirt was a little baggy, since he'd taken up weightlifting a while ago and I was on the tall and lean side of the spectrum, but my height evened things out a bit to where I didn't look ridiculous or anything. In fact, I felt good, just anxious wondering what Madelyn had planned. The entire time we ate lunch, she wouldn't even tell me. I had to wait until after for her to spill what was going on.

"Paintballing?" I questioned, repeating the word she just said to me when we finally left the cafeteria. "Really?"

"Yup. My friends and I go once a month, but we're down a player since he had to go home early before winter break. A relative passed. But, he insisted we keep the tradition alive, so the guys agreed I could invite you to come," she explained, nudging my side with her shoulder. "So, what do ya say? You in for a little guys against girls game?"

Grinning, I nodded my head. "Hell yeah. But just know, I won't go easy on you."

"No problem," she smirked over her shoulder as she started walking away. "I like it hard."

Oh Lord have mercy. What is this girl doing to me?

I had to physically close my mouth and shake away the many ungentlemanly thoughts coursing through my brain before I said something stupid and made a complete fool of myself. Madelyn's laughs didn't help, though. It just meant she knew exactly what she was doing, and for some reason, I really liked that.

"Guys, this is Riley," she introduced when we met up with her friends at the paintball and lazer tag center that was only a handful of miles from campus. She and I walked, since we had nothing else to do until their scheduled appointment, but a few minutes ago, everyone else arrived, filing out of one car.

Unsurprisingly, Lou was there, her blue hair pulled back in a messy ponytail. The style was very similar to Madelyn's today, except she had pieces of her blonde strands left out to frame her face whereas Lou's was completely brushed back. Her arm was secured around a fairly good looking guy's waist, who was rocking a shaved head and a good amount of facial hair for his age. They were obviously a couple, judging by how low his hands looked to be on Lou's backside...just saying, I noticed.

Next to them was a pretty, taller girl, probably 5'7", with big curly hair and glasses. She was mixed, black and hispanic if I had to guess, and seemed welcoming with the broad smile she wore as she waved at me.

"Hi, Riley. I'm Winnie," she introduced herself, which started the other introductions.

"You already know who I am, don't ya, Blondie," Lou teased, her eyes looking at how close Madelyn and I stood to each other. "This is my boyfriend, Shane. You guys probably have a lot in common."

Uh...probably not.

Shane was likely only a year or two older than me, but that seemed to be plenty of time for him to get a full sleeve of tattoos on both his arms. I didn't miss the fact that it was December and he had no jacket on. Sure, Nevada wasn't the coldest state to live in, but today was pretty bitey, and he seemed unphased. Still, I could be wrong. After all, they say not to judge a book by its cover...even though it's pretty darn impossible not to, if we're all being honest with ourselves.

Extending my hand, Shane shook it as a greeting and then the last guy in the group introduced himself.

"Dennis," he shrugged, holding out his fist for me to pound. When that was all done, we made our way inside, not wasting anytime getting into our game once it was our groups turn.

Two hours later, we were back in the parking lot, watching her friends drive off with the guys feeling smug over our victory. The girls took their loss with grace—except for Lou, who tackled Shane in a fit or rage when he got the winning shot...on her.

It was still light out, being only a little past four, so Madelyn and I opted to walk back the same way we came, which earned us a teasing whistle from Lou, and me two very warning glares from Dennis and Shane that did not go past me. I could appreciate their actions, though.

"So, did you have fun?" Madelyn asked after a few moments of comfortable silence. She was laughing as she pulled at my shirt, which was covered in paint, much like hers and the rest of our clothes.

I waited until after we safely crossed the street to answer, "Yeah. Your friends are pretty cool."

"Nah, they're all dorks. But, I love them."

"I can tell," I admitted, thinking of how well they all seemed to mesh. Even Shane was less intimidating once I saw how much the guy laughed and joked around.

They reminded me of the friends I made over the years, and missed, remembering how close we all were. Jayden, Lauren, Greg, Levi. I'd even throw Kimi Jang and the twins in there. That senior year brought us all impossibly closer, and it was a sad day when, at the end of that summer, a lot of us went our separate ways. We kept in touch, of course, and probably had one of the best group chats known to mankind, but it wasn't the same as being with each other. I made a mental note to plan for us all to get together again. It was time for a reunion.

"Okay, tell me something about yourself that you think I should know," Madelyn prompted, walking close enough beside me that her shoulder bumped my arm.

"Hmm, you mean, other than the fact that I'm incredibly handsome and charming?" I joked.

"Mmhm," she hummed, playfully rolling her eyes. "I feel like we should get to know each other more."

Getting serious, I agreed. "Well, I guess it's best you know that I'm not from around here. I'm from Texas, but I came here to help a friend out."

"Oh, that's nice of you," she thought over. "So...you're not a student here?"

"Nope. I dropped out of college last year to pursue music."

Not gonna lie, I was watching her closely after that piece of info was shared. I'd met quite a few people that couldn't help but judge me once they found out I was a dropout. It was like, once they knew, they suddenly thought I was irresponsible, reckless, or dumb. I couldn't possibly just have the faith in myself and my dream to pursue it with everything I had. No, to them, I was making the worst mistake of my life, and they could try to hide it, but I knew they didn't respect me for it. Well, I'd rather try and fail at doing what I love, then be unfulfilled and in debt doing something I didn't. After all, this was my life, and I only had one shot at it.

God, I really hope Madelyn isn't like them.

"Wow, you dropped out?" Her eyes grew wider as she looked ahead, like she wasn't expecting that.

"Yeah..." I reconfirmed, hesitant since I couldn't tell where her head was at, but I started to relax when the corner of her mouth curved up a moment later and she lifted her gaze to meet mine.

"Does that mean you'd have time to play a song or two for a desperate fangirl?" As she said that, she started pointing at herself in a geeky sort of way. It was adorable, to say the least, and I was relieved she wasn't looking down on me for my life choice.

Laughing, I shook my head. "How can you be a fan when you haven't even heard my music?"

"Easy," she shrugged. "For you to dropout, you must be good, and I, for one, am always a fan of good music."

If I was a girl, I'd probably swoon...but I'm not. I'm a very manly man, which you should know with certainty by now, so I'll just say that I was really digging this chick. Yeah, that makes me sound masculine, right?

Regardless, Madelyn believed that I was good at what I loved before even hearing me play. I mean, sure, she heard me fumble in frustration when I tried writing in the park, the day she first approached me, but considering how bad I was then, that made what she said even more impactful.

Dude, she was probably just being kind. Polite. You know, something decent human beings tend to do.

I frowned a little at my negative thinking, but quickly got over it, realizing that either way, she said it, and it was a right answer in my opinion. I wouldn't question it.

About half an hour passed before we finally reached campus, and I'd be lying if I said I wasn't disappointed when the buildings first came into view. We'd been so caught up in debating who was better, Naruto or Sasuke, my vote going to the former, of course, that I hadn't even realized how far we'd walked. Not until she broke from our conversation to yell in frustration.

"Seriously?! What is their problem?!" she snapped suddenly, huffing out a heavy sigh.

I was caught off guard at her mood switch, considering we'd just been goofing off moments ago. Her playful, relaxed expression was replaced with a much more irritated and tense one.

I never want to be on the receiving end of THAT look.

Thankfully, I wasn't. Still, I didn't like seeing her like that, no matter how hot she looked when she was angry. I preffered her smile over her scowl any day.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

"That," she muttered, pointing at the side of a building not far from us.

Tilting my head, I stopped walking and took in the sight before me. There was some graffiti splattered across the older brick exterior, and while I was all for expression and that sort of thing, this was far art. It was basically a wall of slander, kinda reminiscent of a bathroom stall, only it was all directed at a 'Dean Carrel'.

"Man," I mumbled, letting out a low whistle. "What did Dean do to piss someone off like this? Steal their girlfriend?"

The amount of hate painted on that wall, coupled with the broken fence and benches around it, all stained in the same red paint, made me think the guy must have done something terrible to this person for them to react this way.

"I would hope not," Madelyn answered, her eyes glued to the sloppily spray-painted words. "Considering 'Dean' is their title, not their name." Oh. "Whoever keeps doing this has already made it abundantly clear they've got an issue with our dean. I wish they would just get over it already."

"So, this isn't the first time they've done something like this?" I questioned, following after her since she already started walking away.

Scoffing she shook her head. "Nope. The jerk's been doing this since the start of the semester."

The way she seemed so upset by it made me wonder if the person may have bothered her personally. I mean, I didn't condone the act of vandalism in any circumstance, but I found it easy to simply shrug my shoulders and move on. Just the sight of the graffiti easily got Madelyn all riled up, and since she usually came across as a chill and collected person, I figured something must have happend to her.

"Did they tag something of yours?" I asked, fishing for info. "Or, y'know, break something of yours?"

"You would think so, right?" she laughed dryly before sighing, and just like that, her hostility seemed to deflate. "No, they haven't. It's just...I don't take well to vandalism, not that anyone would. But...it kind of hits a little too close to home for me, brings up a lot of old frustrations."

"Like?" But when she stopped and looked at me with a sad smile, I knew she didn't plan on sharing any more than that.

"Maybe next time, big guy."

Nodding, I realized she also stopped because we were finally back at her sorority house.

"Huh, looks like you're home."

"Yeah...I had fun. Thanks for coming out and, y'know, spending some time with me."

"Well, I'm not one to back down from a dare," I smirked. "Especially when you're involved."

"Hmm, interesting. Sounds like I found your kryptonite, then," she grinned mischeviously.

By now, we were right in front of the door, standing on the porch. I could see some of her sorority sisters peeking out the window at us, but I paid them no mind when I decidedly leaned down and pressed my lips against Madelyn's cheek, lingering for only a second.

"Wow, just the cheek? How chivalrous of you," she commented when I stood back up.

"Next time I won't be," I promised with a wink.

"I'm counting on it," she threw back with a flirtatious closed-mouth smile as she opened the door, casually walking in backwards. "Bye, Riley." And then she  disappeared behind it, leaving me to hear her sisters giggle on the other side.

Making that comment, I had expected her to blush, but man, I loved how she kept me on my toes. There were a few layers to this girl, and I was interested to find out what was underneath. Even moreso after today. In fact, the whole walk back to the dorm, I had a smile on my face. Why? Because, I made up my mind right then and there that when I could, I'd make time for this girl, and I knew that once I did, I wouldn't be disappointed.

When I was safe and sound, back at the dorm, I planned to tell Drew all about my afternoon, since I hadn't even mentioned Madelyn to him yet, considering everything he was going through at the moment. It just didn't seem right, flaunting a possible new romance in his face when he just lost his for the time being. However, I knew he'd feel worse if he found out I was holding things back from him for his sake, so I decided to just share what had been going on with him...but he spoke up before I could.

"What the hell? What did you do to my clothes?!"

Wowza. Sounds like Riley's catchin' feelings already. Don't worry, they're nothing too serious right now. He's just crushing, and self-aware of his developing feelings, but it looks like he's not alone this time. 😉 Who else is feeling happy for him?

Fingers crossed our baby doesn't fall too hard too fast. We barely know this Madelyn, after all 😑 and she seems to be hiding something. It could be nothing, but let's keep a close eye on her, for Riley's sake. Wouldn't want him getting hurt.

MWUAHAHAHAHA! 😈

*Sidenote: I write the majority of my chapters using the mobile app, so sometimes I have typos. (Who am I kidding? I ALWAYS have typos) My sister will try to point them out to me when she gets around to reading them, but if you guys notice something off or wrong, PLEASE let me know. I swear, I won't get annoyed or butthurt. One of the reasons IGY had so little typos was because of lovely readers helping me catch the ones that slipped through the cracks, so by all means, help if you don't mind. 😗

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