Rhythm by Marie Lipscomb
Chapter Twenty-One
Beth
Humiliation leaves her raw. Confusion clouds her mind. The pulse in her ears, and the cold, shivery sensation of adrenaline keep her awake through the night. Every time she closes her eyes, she sees him, his pained expression. When morning comes, she’s no closer to understanding what happened.
She can’t stand to look at the painting of the two of them at first. It’s nothing but a technicolored testament to their chaotic and brief relationship. But people are depending on her, and hopefully soon, it’ll be sold.
And if no-one buys it, or if the gallery just rejects it outright, it’ll make for a suitably dramatic bonfire. She wraps it carefully, and leaves it in the hallway, ready to be transported to the exhibition.
It’s early evening when Sadie unlocks the door to Beth’s apartment with her spare key, and creeps through the hallway to her bedroom. She peers around the door and smiles. “You okay?”
Beth grazes her lower lips with her teeth as she smooths the elegant, midnight blue dress over her hips. “Yeah.”
“I’m sorry.”
Taking her hand, Beth runs her thumb over her friend’s knuckles. “No, don’t be.”
“I shouldn’t have made you go last night. It was a sucky plan.”
“You were only trying to help. I just wish I knew what happened. I shouldn’t have left the cabin without asking him why he suddenly turned cold. I thought I could get over him, but I can’t stop thinking about him.”
Sadie opens her mouth to speak, but thinks better of it. It can’t be anything which Beth hasn’t already thought. Since she got home from the concert, an infinite loop of questions and what-ifs has plagued her. She’s dissected everything from the lyrics of the song, to the look in his eyes when he saw her. None of it makes sense. It stopped making sense the moment she fell for a man she hardly knew.
“You look stunning,” Sadie smiles. “At least tonight should be relatively drama free.”
Beth can’t help but chuckle. “Well, they don’t know what I painted yet. The look on their faces will be almost as horrified as Finn’s…” She draws a deep breath and forces a smile. “Let’s just get it over with. And you’re stunning too. You always are.”
Finn
“I feellike I’m getting married.” Finn shakes out his arms and bounces on his heels in an attempt to diffuse some of his nervous energy.
His bedroom is cluttered with discarded clothes; shirts which looked too casual, pants which somehow didn’t fully convey his feelings. He’s not exactly sure of the criteria he’s trying to reach, but when he gets there, he’ll know.
Mia chuckles as she stands back and scrutinizes him. It’s the only suit he owns, other than the one he uses solely for funerals. It has to be good enough.
“Getting married is far less terrifying than trying to find out if your feelings are reciprocated.” She holds out another tie, a plain blue silk one. “Try this.”
He fumbles his way through tying the knot, trying hard not to become exasperated. “How do I look?”
She tilts her head to the side. “Kind of like a big blue penguin.”
“That’s good,” he nods, curling his fingers to stop his hands from trembling. “Maybe? She likes penguins.”
Mia smiles and steps back, allowing him to see his reflection. His hair is sleek, slicked back and cropped at the sides, and his beard trimmed and smoothed down. The blue suit is snug around his arms and stomach, but it’s definitely a step up from the Muppets shirt Beth first saw him in. He feels handsome, if a little stuffy.
With a smirk, Mia hangs his cast-off ties back in the wardrobe and stands with her hands on her hips. “What’re you going to do when you get there?”
“Uh… good question.”
The tie is suddenly stifling, his plan poorly thought out. There’s every chance Beth will reject him. She might be angry, hurt. She might actually hate him.
He pulls on the knot, rips away the tie and throws it onto his bed. With a huff he unfastens the top two buttons of his shirt, desperate for air. “I don’t know. I don’t know what I’m doing.”
Frustration clenches his jaw. He’s been thinking about it since last night, running over every conceivable scenario, imagining his grand entrance, what he’ll say to her, how many times he’ll apologize. Even the façade of dignity he’ll wear if it turns out he was right all along and she doesn’t want him.
But he won’t know unless he tries.
He sprays cologne into the air and walks forward, spinning around like his bandmates taught him. “I’m sorry about B.B.”
Mia smiles. “It’s okay. It was a good song, but I don’t doubt you’ll write more. Hopefully after tonight you’ll have happier things to write about.”
“Or even sadder.”
“Stop,” she laughs. “Don’t wear the tie. It looks good without. Smart but not stuffy.”
He gives a sharp nod. “Okay.”
Finn steps back as she gives him one last glance over.
“Looks good. You ready?”
He isn’t, and he may never be, but if not now, then he’ll never know where to find her. It may already be too late. “Let’s do this.”