Chapter 10
Sitting in Joel's car, I told him everything that had happened. I began with Derek's threat to have Joel thrown in jail for violating the terms of his suspended sentence, and I ended with me coming out here tonight, not only to warn Joel, but to tell him all of the other things that I couldn’t two weeks earlier.
All of it, I explained, was just one big, crazy mess. Even as I talked, I considered all of the damage that had been done, mostly on the day of Joel's heart-wrenching departure.
He'd gotten that terrible letter, claiming that he had no talent. He'd had movers show up to transport all of his stuff to who-knows-where. He'd gone from having the world at his fingertips to losing almost everything in an instant – including me.
As I spoke, he said nearly nothing. Mostly, he watched me from the driver's seat, listening with an expression that I couldn’t quite decipher. Long before I finished, I started to wonder if his unnatural silence was a good sign or a sign of something more ominous. Either way, it was making me uneasy.
"So anyway," I concluded, "when I learned that Derek wasn't going to leave you alone regardless, I thought, 'Forget waiting six months. I've got to find himnow.'" I gave a shaky laugh. "So here I am."
In the driver's seat, Joel wasn't laughing, not even a little. Abruptly, he said, "How'd you find me?"
I gave him a perplexed look. Of all the things to say, why'd he pick that? Still, I replied, "You remember Chester, right?"
"Yeah." Joel frowned. "The shirtless guy."
"Well, he's notalwaysshirtless," I said. "But anyway, you remember his friend, Mike? I got ahold of him, and he pointed me in the right direction. He's a huge fan, by the way." I couldn't help but smile. "To help me find you, guess what he wanted."
"What?"
"Your autograph."
"Yeah? Well, tell him to shove it."
I felt my eyebrows furrow. "Why?"
Ignoring my question, he said, "Or, if you don't wanna tell him,Iwill."
From the look on Joel's face, the conversation wouldn’t be a friendly one. Obviously, I was missing something. "But he's the reason I found you."
Joel's expression darkened. "If I wanted to be found, I would've answered my phone."
I drew back. I almost didn't know what to say. "So you knew I was calling?"
"What doyouthink?"
At this point, I didn't know what to think. Even at the time, I realized that he was probably giving me the silent treatment, but to have him toss it in my face like this, well, it wasn't what I'd expected. "I left a bunch of messages," I said. "Did you get them?"
"Yeah. I got them."
"And did you listen?"
When Joel gave a tight nod, I asked, "So why didn't you call me back?"
"Because I figured you'd get the hint."
I was staring at him now. "What are you saying?"
With every passing moment, that queasy feeling was growing again. Ever since we'd gotten into Joel's car, he'd been acting like a different person. Where was the guy who'd been kissing me – and more – not too long ago?
When Joel said nothing, I persisted, "Are you still angry? Is that it?"
He turned to stare silently out the front windshield. More confused than ever, I turned my head to follow his gaze. Outside, there was nothing to see, just my car and the van parked beside it, with all those flyers tucked under the windshield wipers. As I watched, a sudden gust of wind carried one of the flyers away, sending it fluttering across the dark pavement.
In my seat, I gave a little shiver. Even with the car running, I felt a slow chill, creeping up my spine. In the driver's seat, Joel still hadn't answered my question.
I turned to study his face, well, the half I could see, anyway. Bracing myself, I said, "Just tell me."
