KARAOKE
Quinn's Point of View
📍New York City, New York
🕰️ 4/13/23
"Hey," Braden is waiting for me outside of the restaurant. I can't help it, but I only turn my lips up as a response. "Not much of a talker, I get it, me neither."
He starts to walk, so I follow him. "But," He turns around and starts to walk backwards with his hands in his pockets, if he falls, he's hitting his head. "You know what I do love?" I raise my eyebrows. "Karaoke."
He leads me to a boombox towards the back of the restaurant. I look around, I don't see anyone else from the team. "No one else could make it." He says.
I want to leave now that I know it's just him and I, but that would be rude of me, right?
"Pick a song." I go over to the boombox, and scroll through the options. We Don't Talk Anymore by Charlie Puth featuring Selena Gomez pops out at me.
"We don't talk anymore, We don't talk anymore, We don't talk anymore like we used to do. We don't love anymore. What was all of it for? Oh, we don't talk anymore like we used to do." He waves me over to join in on.. whatever he's doing, but I just laugh and shake my head.
"I just heard you found the one you've been looking, You've been looking for." He points at me. He smiles while he sings and dances, and I'm sure he knows he looks like an idiot.
"I wish I would have known that wasn't me. 'Cause even after all this time, I still wonder why I can't move on just the way you did so easily." He acts out the lyrics very dramatically.
"Don't wanna know kind of dress you're wearing tonight. If he's holding onto you so tight the way I did before." He points and me again, and honestly I'm tempted to join in.
"I overdosed. Should've known your love was a game. Now I can't get you out of my brain. Oh, it's such a shame." The few people in the restaurant are acting as if this is normal behavior.
"Please, come on, I don't want to be an idiot all by myself." He says during the chorus.
"I don't want to be an idiot at all." I say.
"If you do it with me, we won't be idiots at all.. and even if we did, at least we would be idiots together." He says.
By the end of the chorus, I'm convinced. I can't tell if it's because I love Selena's part of he actually convinced me.
"I just hope you're lying next to somebody who knows how to love you like me. There must be a good reason that you're gone." He grabs my hand and spins me around, I'm actually having a good time.
"Every now and then I think you might want me to come show up at your door. But I'm just too afraid that I'll be wrong." I sway to the beat of the music.
-
"I had a lot of fun, tonight, thanks." Braden walks me to my car, my phone died about an hour ago, but I can't charge it until I get into my car.
For most of the walk, I was a little bit ahead of him, because I'm incredibly tired and want to go home which makes me a fast walker.
"Have a good night." He says. He brings me in for a hug, and I kind of give him a side hug situation.
Once I get into my car and start it, I plug my phone in. It's going to take a minute before it turns back on.
By the time I get to my apartment, my phone still hasn't come back on yet, so I plug it in on my nightstand. I crash before it turns back on.
📍NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK
🕰️ 3 DAYS LATER
When I'm not preparing for the playoffs, I've been hanging out with Braden and occasionally the rest of the team, it's been a lot of fun, actually.
They'll never replace the Devils, but they aren't as bad as I assumed it was going to be. Time has been flying by, I haven't even thought about playing the Devils in the playoffs and what it's going to feel like.
Speaking of the Devils, I haven't been able to face time Jack since that brief call with Luke. We've texted, but our schedules are keeping us from making a real conversation right now.
I sit in my bed, reading Better Than the Movies for the second time. It's such a good book, and everyone should have a boyfriend like Wes in their life.
I love all the Taylor Swift references in it, since I'm a massive swiftie. I couldn't get tickets to the Era's Tour, though.
I hear my phone, that's sitting on my pillow next to me, go off, but I ignore it. I don't like to go on my phone while I read, because that's the exact reason I read... to get away from everything.
It goes off again, but it's probably just a text. They always go off twice. But then, I get another one and another one.
I sigh, place my bookmark in the book. I was just getting to the prom part. I set it down on my nightstand and pick up my phone.
Oh. My. God.
AUTHOR'S NOTE:
