hard | daniel seavey

chapter three

Zach held up a finger to his lips as we walked through the studio. The sound of singing made me turn my head. There was a tall boy with a black beanie on, but whitish blonde hair poked out from underneath it standing in the booth. His eyes were closed as he sang, giving it his all. My eyes lingered for a moment and my heart swelled at the sight. I wasn't sure why, but I haven't even talked this boy and yet my heart was racing for him.

"That's Daniel," Zach said, making me jump a bit. He laughed at my reaction and nodded over to a couch were 3 other guys sat. I took one last look at Daniel. He wasn't singing anymore but still had his headphones on. He turned towards me and gave me a look I couldn't describe. I quickly looked away and gave my attention to the boys. "This is Madison. She was feeling a little down so I figured the power of music would help."

"It's like the great Bob Marley once said, 'One good thing about music, when it hits you, you feel no pain'," The boy on the end of the couch stood up and held his hand out. "I'm Jack."

"You can never go wrong with a little Marley." I laughed as the other blonde boy stood.

"Corbyn," He smiled at me. The last boy stood up, he had at least a whole foot over me.

"I'm Jonah. It's a good day to come in, the song we're working on is amazing." Jonah clapped his hands together excitedly. We all sat down as the door to the booth opened. Daniel walked out and stopped in his tracks.

"H-hi, I'm Daniel," His voice was shaky as stood there awkwardly.

"Madison." I gave him a reassuring smile. His cheeks had a hint of pink to them as he sat next to Zach.

"So, how did you meet Mr. Herron?" Corbyn asked as Jonah went into the recording booth. Zach and I looked at each other and both started laughing. We told them about Mrs. Laucks class and our small journey to Mr. Neff's office. The boys laughed along at my comment at 13 year old girls dying for Zach's face. They played me some of their songs, which I had to admit were really good. It was something you wouldn't expect from a boyband. Corbyn and Jack were next to go into the studio, leaving Jonah, Zach, Daniel, and I to ourselves.

"I'm hungry," Zach groaned and stood up. He walked over to the small table with snacks and picked up a pretzel.

"I'm done for the day, I can run out and get something?" Daniel offered. Daniel was tall and lanky, but he was also really good looking. He was intriguing in a way. A way I couldn't explain. Something drew me to want to get to know him, more than I wanted to anyone.

"Taco Bell?" I jumped in. Zach's grin grew and he fist pumped the air.

"I knew she was one of us!" He laughed and pulled out his phone. "I'll ask everyone what they want and text you."

Daniel turned towards me and tilted his head a bit. "Do you wanna come with? It can get pretty boring here."

"Yea, sure." I smiled and stood. The boys all looked at us as we left, but I tried to ignore it. Daniel and I rode the elevator down in silence. It wasn't an awkward silence, it was more comfortable than I expected.

Luxury and sports cars filled the parking lot, making my black Jeep Wrangler stand out like a sore thumb. It sat in between a Lyman Hypersport and a Rolls Royce. Los Angeles and their cars. I laughed to myself a bit, causing Daniel to turn and tilt his head at me.

"Thats my car." I pointed to my Jeep. "Sitting in between two cars that could literally pay off my entire college tuition and my parents mortgage."

"Then would it be silly to tell you that," Daniel pressed a button on his keys. A beep went off and the lights of a sleek white Tesla began flashing. "That's mine?"

"You drive a Tesla?" I awed and walked towards it. It looked brand new, no scratch or scuff in sight. "Do you know how much easier my drivers test would've been if I had one of these?"

Daniel laughed and opened the passenger side door for me. I smiled and stepped in, admiring the interior of the car. When he got in, all he had to do was press a button before it roared to life.

"You look like a kid in a candy store," Daniel said while pulling out of the parking lot.

"I've really only leave my apartment for school. This is basically a chocolate bar to a little kid."

"Why don't you ever get out? It's Los Angeles, there's always something to do here." His eyebrows furrowed, showing he was genuinely confused on my lack of Los Angeles.

"My boyfriend's kind of a homebody. He feels that you should only leave the house when it's necessary."

"And you go along with that?" Daniel scoffed a bit, but I understood why. Aaron's rules were stupid. But it's not like I had much to do either way. I didn't have any friends nor a job. "How long have you guys been together anyways?"

"It'll be 4 years in November. High school sweethearts, I guess." I sighed and looked out the window. The city rolled past in a new view. I wish I was able to get out more and actually see the city. It was always a dream of mine to move here and become an author, and now that I'm here, I've barley seen past my window.

"You don't seem to enthused over the idea of it." Daniel's voice was sympathetic as he looked over at me, worry covering his face.

"I don't know.. Things were great until they weren't really. Once we moved here it's like everything changed and mow we're holding on by a thin thread. That's the reason Zach invited me over. Another day, another fight." It felt good to be able to talk to someone about this. As much as I wanted to tell Zach earlier, it was too soon. I don't know why I even told Daniel when I barley met him an hour ago. "Sorry if that was a lot. I don't wanna lay that all on you."

"It's fine, Madison," Daniel pulled into the drive thru of Taco Bell and told the lady all of our orders. Once we were back on the road, he finished what he was saying. "I'm in no way position to be judging your relationship or to be telling you what to do, but if things aren't working, is it really worth holding on to? 4 years is a long time to spend with someone, but no amount of time can compare to your happiness. And you can't risk all you have for something that isn't capable of being fixed."

Daniel's words made me think. But, he was right. Why is everyone always right? I knew I still loved Aaron. Through all the dark times we've gone through in the past couple of months, I still for whatever reason loved him. I didn't know if it was him and the way he makes me feel, or time, but there was something that kept me to him. Leaving would crush both of us.

But is it really worth holding on to?