After an accidental first encounter, Kit ends up giving private guitar lessons to River Young, the most popular guy in school. River is secretive about why he wants to play only one song until the reason becomes... irrelevant?
Book 1: Next Door
Have you ever ended up in a situation where you later think, âHow the fuck did that happen?â Well, it recently happened to me, and Iâm still trying to figure it out.
I was at a party. I know, I know, it always happens at a party. Hadley had convinced me to go with her to River Youngâs âBack to Schoolâ White Night.
Sounds pretentious, doesnât it?
Well, let me tell you about River. Heâs built like a Greek statue, his family is loaded, and did I mention that heâs gorgeous? He was also completely outside of my social orbit, so weâd never really interacted.
At least, thatâs how it had been throughout most of high school. Then, a succession of events put me and him in the same room! Yeah, I know! HowâŚthe actualâŚfuck?!
Well, it all began when Hadley ditched me. Ten minutes after we arrived, she was on the dance floor with her tongue down some guyâs throat.
When I decided to grab a drink, I passed by a drunk dude on a sofa who spilled his entire beer in my crotch.
Looking like a lost loser whoâd pissed himself, I fled to a room upstairs. As I sat on the bed feeling sorry for myself, the door suddenly whooshed open and quickly slammed shut. River stood there staring at me for a moment before asking, âHey, Kit. What are you doing in my room?â
He knew my name? He was a senior, and I was one year behind him. What reason could he possibly have to know MY name?
âIâm so sorry; I just needed a place to hide,â I said, standing up to show him why.
He didnât laugh; he just scanned me up and down. Then, he pushed the wall in front of me, and I watched it rotate open, revealing an enormous walk-in closet.
âThis might be a loose fit for you, but itâs clean,â he said, throwing me a pair of jeans.
âThanks,â I whispered.
âYouâre welcome,â he replied with a smile that could power a lighthouse.
Thatâs when I asked him why heâd escaped his own party. I was genuinely surprised by the answer.
âIâm trying to get away from Carrie. Sheâs been hunting me all night.â
âCarrie: the girl every girl wants to be and every boy wants toâŚ? Well, some girls also want to,â I babbled stupidly.
River laughed before saying the oddest thing, âYeah, sheâs not really my type.â Thatâs when Ned burst into the room. He looked at River and then at me. âWhat are you doing in here, bro? Beer pong is about to start, and you know we canât win without you.â
I thought that River would immediately distance himself from me in front of his friend, but instead, he asked, âWanna join?â
I obviously declined.
***
Iâd washed, ironed, and put Riverâs jeans in a fancy white bag together with a small box of Belgian chocolates that I bought at the mall. I knew that Iâd gone overboard, but heâd literally saved me the night of his party.
Besides, everyone liked chocolate, right? Right?!
Oh, fuck! Was it too much? I really didnât know what to do in these kinds of situations. When I approached him in the hallway, I wondered how heâd react.
âHey, River,â I said tentatively.
âKit!â he replied brightly.
I handed him the bag and said, âItâs your pants and aâŚâ
I didnât have a chance to finish my sentence because Darius grabbed me by the neck and said, âIs this little queer bothering you, bro?â
âWhat did you just say?â River demanded of his friend.
âChill, dude. I just thought that Kitten here was bugging you.â
âHere is whatâs going to happen, Darius,â River said menacingly. âYouâre going to apologize to Kit for being a dick, and then youâre going to walk away.â
âDude, did you wake up on the wrong side of the bed?â Darius said with a chuckle.
âNow!â River boomed.
âFine. Iâm sorryâŚKit,â Darius said and walked off, shaking his head.
Riverâs face instantly changed back to a smile, and he said, âSorry, nobody has the right to talk to you like that.â
âThanks,â I whispered. I would never admit it, but it was nice to have someone stand up for me for a change.
River put the bag in his locker together with the rest of his stuff and pulled out his phone, which was vibrating. I assumed that meant our interaction was now over so I waved him goodbye and ran to class.
***
I was at home doing Math homework when my messenger buzzed.
Did River just call his jock friends dumb? Holy fuck!
This conversation was going on for much longer than I wouldâve imagined. What was he getting out of this? Brownie points for sticking up for the gay kid? Or was he just being polite because of the chocolate?
Now, what the hell was that supposed to mean? What an unnecessarily obscure statement. Was he suggesting that I wasnât the only one with problems? What did he suffer from? The occasional bad hair day?
***
River made a point of saying âhiâ to me every single day. Especially, when he was talking to his friends next to his locker. Theyâd immediately start whispering, and I could more or less guess the content.
Then, one day, he came running after me. It was the weirdest thing. Almost everyone in a four-pace radius just stopped what they were doing to see what was going to happen. Even Mr. Sanchez, the smoking hot Spanish teacher, looked over his shoulder.
âKit, I need a favor,â he said with that winning smile of his.
How was I going to refuse? I stood no chance against his charm and all these people staring at me.
Then he asked, âCan I join you for lunch?â
âSure,â I breathed, trying to stay casual.
The crowd waited for more, but River seemed satisfied and walked off to class.
What the fuck just happened?!
***
At first, I thought that Iâd imagined my morning encounter, but ten minutes after I sat down for lunch, River slid onto the bench across from me. Was it bad that I was happy that Hadley was working on an assignment?
âBuen provecho!â he said jovially.
âOkay, Iâm literally bursting with curiosity. What could you possibly need from me,â I said, straight to the point.
Creepy Kate was looking at us from underneath her black hoody.
âWell, word on the street is that youâre quite the guitar player. Iâm looking for private AND, most importantlyâŚsecret lessons,â River whispered.
âWhy?â I asked. I actually meant, âWhy me?â
âI wonât go into details, but there is a specific song Iâd like to be able to play for someone.â
âOh,â I said. My face fell, and he noticed.
âIâll pay you, of course,â he said, thinking that was the issue. What actually was my issue?
âTwo sessions a week, you bring snacks and a copy of Next Door,â I said as if negotiating a hostage situation.
âThe gossip magazine?â he asked with a chuckle.
âI always stay up to date on celeb news and it needs to be hard copy so I can cut out the pictures of PJP.â
âWhatâs PJP?â he asked in fascination. I couldnât believe he was still sitting here, talking to me.
âNot a what but a who! Prince Jean Pierre, to be exact,â I said, a sudden flash of Europeâs hottest Royal crossing my mind.
Now that I thought about it, River had many of PJPâs most flattering features, minus the ink. Unless⌠Nah, River didnât seem the type for tattoos.
âI agree to your terms. Do we have a deal?â River asked, holding out his hand for me to shake.
âWhat?!â I asked, my mind had wandered far away from the original topic.
âThe guitar lessons,â he whispered again.
âOh, yeah. Deal!â I said, shaking his hand.
I thought that he was now going to get up and leave since his business had concluded. Instead, he stayed and asked about how school was going and if I had any other hobbies apart from the guitar.
Wait a minute⌠How the fuck did he know that I played the guitar in the first place?