“Even if the band goes down in flames, I’m your friend,” I said quietly. “You know that if you don’t stop, you’re risking permanent damage.”
We all saw where things were headed, I was sure. Somehow, no one else seemed to care.
I knew it wasn’t that, though. It wasn’t that no one cared. It was just that no one else was willing to put themselves in the crosshairs to call him out. Luke especially wasn’t, and Mark was nearly as far down as Carter, albeit in different ways.
“Carter, you need help,” I said, unable to bite back the words even though I knew they wouldn’t be appreciated. “Look, I’ll go to a meeting with you if that’s what it takes. You can’t keep…” I trailed off.
Carter scowled at me. “Don’t pretend like you don’t have any vices,” he snapped. He stood up. “If you want to practice at all today, we should get going,” he said in a clipped tone. “If you want to catch Mark before he goes out, anyway.”
I stared at him for a moment, not wanting to let the conversation die. I wondered if there was any way to get him to listen. Admit to my own faults and get him to admit to his. Instead, though, I got to my feet and silently followed him. I didn’t know how to get through to him, and I was afraid that the more I needled him, the further away I would push him.
12
Leah
I looked around in surprise, taking in the sights and sounds. “Where is this?” I asked Piper, in awe of the colored lights and foreign chatter around us. For a moment, it was as though I wasn’t even in California anymore. For someone like me, from a small town in the middle of nowhere, someone who had never traveled before, it was unreal.
Piper laughed at my expression. “I had a feeling you might think this was cool,” she said. “Best night market in LA.”
I shook my head, unable to help but marvel at everything. It definitely beat noisy clubs and terrible dive bars.
“Come on,” Piper said, grabbing my arm and tugging me along. “I’m hungry. And I’m looking for one of those colorful silk scarves to wear to work on Monday.”
I laughed and followed her into the press of people, trying my best not to feel too overwhelmed by all of it.
“So how do you like the new job?” Piper asked a little while later as we munched on snacks from one of the booths.
I raised an eyebrow at her. “I thought we couldn’t talk about work outside of work,” I said.
Piper shrugged and laughed. “Up to you,” she said. “That’s really just Linsey’s rule, though. Mainly because she doesn’t like her job and doesn’t want to think about it anymore than she has to, basically.”
I snorted. “I guess that’s fair,” I said. “I don’t know, it’s definitely all been an adjustment, but I think it’s a good thing. I like the work, and I’m starting to get used to living in LA.”
I wasn’t, not really, but she didn’t need to know that. She didn’t need to know that I had slept with my next-door neighbor just to scratch an itch. She didn’t need to know that that was the whole reason I had called her tonight, because I needed some sort of excuse to get out of the house after ditching him. For her, a one-night stand was probably no big deal. Just one of those things that you did.
“You’re good at the work too. Way better than the last person who had your position,” Piper said, rolling her eyes. “Man, I think everyone was relieved when Brandon quit. Not only was he miserable when it came to doing his own work, but he somehow managed to make more work for everyone else as well. Real piece of work.”
I giggled. “Well, I’m glad that I’m better than him, at least,” I said. “How long have you been with the company anyway?” I asked her.
“It’ll be five years this winter,” Piper said. She wrinkled her nose. “I never really pictured myself with a career or anything, but they hired me when I was fresh out of college based off an internship I had with them, and I don’t know. I like the people, and there’s nothing I would rather be doing, even if I don’t love every minute of the job itself.”
“Hmm, that’s fair,” I said, frowning as I tried to imagine what that must feel like. But I had always kind of known what I wanted to do with my life. I couldn’t imagine just having lukewarm feelings toward my job.
“Anyway, I think if I can really impress everyone at the retreat next month, I might get tapped for a promotion,” Piper added. She laughed self-consciously, running her fingers through her hair. “I probably shouldn’t tell you about that because I don’t know who else is trying to get the position.”