Grey

Twenty-Three

[RORY]

"You nervous, Thorn?"

"I'm great."

"You sure?"

"Yep."

"Positive?"

"I'm going to punch you in the throat."

I did my best to ignore Jamie's antics, reading through my notes incessantly. Our Uber was stuck in traffic but we were early, thankfully. I wasn't sure what changed Marisol's mind - I had a feeling that she'd spent the night at her ex boyfriend's - but I didn't care the reasoning. All I cared about was the fact she was giving me a chance and had given me my first interview. In fact, while I did my best to hide it, I was beyond excited. I cried when I found out.

"Did you listen to their stuff?"

"I'm not an idiot," I sighed under my breath, glancing over at him. He was smirking, confirming he was doing his best to psyche me out. "That's all I've been doing all week."

"Lighten up," he laughed, grabbing my shoulder and shaking it. "You look prettier when you smile."

If he'd been serious, I would have actually punched him in the throat. We'd worked together long enough for him to know the misogynistic comments wouldn't make it far with me, so I knew he was just pushing buttons for fun. Oddly enough, it was helping ease my nerves. I rolled my eyes at him, laughing under my breath before going back to what I was doing.

The band we were interviewing was small but had a fairly significant fanbase, which balanced out the amount of pressure. Still, I needed to write my best piece to date or I knew Marisol would never give me any bigger stories. The series was one we'd started earlier in the year, monthly spotlights on up-and-coming bands to watch, and I knew she'd be ripping apart my every word. It had to be perfect.

I felt my phone buzz, glancing down and seeing Finn's name appear. I didn't have a chance to check the text, feeling a pair of nosy eyes also looking down at the device. I flipped it over quickly, praying with all of me Jamie hadn't noticed. He was quiet, giving me at least some reassurance as we pulled out front of the location. 

"I'll jump in wherever you need me," he assured, closing the car door and following just a step behind me as we walked towards the building. "In all seriousness, you'll crush it."

I wasn't expecting his kind words, glancing over my shoulder and giving him a shy smile. We were ushered inside quickly and I didn't have any more time to overthink the inevitable.

-

I was buzzing after the interview, keeping my cool on the outside but losing my mind on the inside. It seemed as though my research paid off, the conversation having gone so smoothly - great, even. I was sure it had to do with a combination of things, the fact that the band was super easy going and chatty of course helping, but I was proud.

Jamie and I were talking with their manager when I felt a subtle tap on my arm, glancing over my shoulder to see the guitarist, Miles. Strictly from a physical perspective, he was objectively handsome - but he'd also been the chattiest, carrying a lot of the conversation. I gave him a smile, stepping to the side.

"That was sick, I'm excited to read the piece."

"Yeah I mean, you guys were great," I nodded politely. "I've heard horror stories from my colleagues so thank you for not scarring me for life."

"That was your first, right? You're a natural."

"Thanks," I flushed, glancing over briefly to catch Jamie's curious gaze. "It should be going up probably next week, keep an eye out."