Manhattan Dreams ✅

41. Deal

"What the hell?" I mutter as I reach my dorm and peel off a piece of paper notifying the people that live in my hall of the meeting we'd be having with our resident advisor tonight. I roll my eyes, crumpling up the paper and carrying it into my room.

Since we had only been gone on winter break I hadn't bothered to take much besides clothing home with me so unpacking had only taken about an hour and now my room looked just as it had the day I left.

I plop down onto my bed and pull my laptop towards me, opening it and typing my password before logging onto the internet and opening my Twitter. The band had officially hired Bridget Marsden as their manager and in the days since, their following had increased tenfold. She had instructed them to create a collaborative account for the band itself as well as encouraged them to begin overusing every social media platform in order to grow their following. She thought it would help them get signed and help get them on the road faster. I on the other hand found it extremely annoying.

My phone buzzes and I look down to find that Josh has posted on Instagram. I open the app and roll my eyes when I see the post. It's a picture of him up on stage with a cheesy caption that stated that he'd rather be on stage than in class, well that was the point anyway. He said it much better than I paraphrased.

I toss my phone onto my bed beside my laptop and collapse back onto my bed. I knew this was going to be a frustrating experience but I may have underestimated just how annoying it was going to be.

As I'm lying on my bed, staring at the ceiling it occurs to me that there's only one thing that will make me feel better so I climb off my bed and grab my dance bag and head off to the studio. There are a few girls practicing at the barre when I walk in but it's not crowded enough to leave. I tie on my slippers and throw my hair into a messy bun before grabbing my phone and plugging in my earbuds. I cue up a playlist that includes some of my favorite songs from plays that I long to see one day and I start to move.

Within ten seconds I'm immersed in dance and my music, letting myself forget all my problems for a short moment. Unfortunately it's short lived. "Penelope" Josh taps on my shoulder. I spin around to face my boyfriend and pull an earbud from my ear.

"Hey" I greet breathlessly, taking in his attire as my eyes run down his fit figure. He's wearing a pair of black jeans and a white button up, way too dressy to be enjoying an evening on campus. "What's going on here?" I giggle, brushing past him to grab my water bottle.

"Um" he stutter, rubbing his neck as I bring my bottle to my lips. "I'm having dinner with Bridget." I quirk an eyebrow at him as I put the cap back on my bottle.

"Just you?" I question.

"No of course not" he shakes his head. "The whole group is going. We're uh discussing a label that's interested in signing us" he explains causing my heart to drop into my stomach while my eyes widen and my lips part in shock, unable to form a coherent thought.

He chuckles, grabbing my water bottle from my hands and placing it back next to my bag. "You alright?" he questions playfully.

"I uh. I don't know" I admit, worrying on my bottom lip. He sighs, grabbing my waist and pulling me towards him.

"You know you don't need to worry" he says softly, lifting my chin to make me look up at him. "I promised you that nothing is going to change and I meant it. You're stuck with me Penelope."

I offer him a demure smile, reaching up and pressing my lips to his in a gentle kiss. "I love you" I murmur as we pull apart.

"I love you too" he agrees, leaning down to tuck a strand of hair behind my ear. "Do you want me to come and find you when I get home?" he asks sweetly but I shake my head.