Grey

Thirty-Two

[RORY]

"Hey - wait up."

I hiked my bag further onto my shoulder, slowing my stride in the SoundSystem parking lot. I didn't have to turn around to know it was Jamie, his voice immediately recognizable.

"What's up?" I couldn't hide my annoyance, checking the time on my phone. "Is it important? Kind of in a hurry."

I glanced up as he caught up to me, giving me a shit-eating grin that confirmed it was not, in fact, important. I rolled my eyes before he'd even had a chance to respond.

"I just wanted to ask what you're thankful for this year."

I gave him a forced smile. "Time off, so I get a break from you."

"Cute," he laughed, immune to my insults. "Any plans?"

I chewed on my cheek, easily swallowing my truthful response and concocting a safer one. "Just having a few friends over, nothing crazy."

"Where was my invite?"

"I'm gonna go," I groaned, fueling his amusement as I walked towards my car. "Happy Thanksgiving."

"You too. And Rory, let me know if you change your mind. I may not be Finn Hastings but I make a mean sweet potato casserole."

I ignored the comment, knowing he was trying to get under my skin as I got in the driver's seat and shut the door. He thought he was being funny but the offhand comment had only made the sick feeling in my stomach return.

If I was being honest with myself, I was thankful for shitty old cellphones - specifically the ones in the hands of the couple of fans that had gotten blurry pictures of Finn making out with a mystery girl at LAX. Only one or two publications had cared enough to publish them, the majority of the public breezing right past them. Unfortunately, there was one specific person that had both seen them and knew the kind of car I drove. While Jamie had thankfully kept the information to himself, he also wouldn't let up with the subtle jokes and nosy questions daily - both of which I continued to dodge.

I took a deep breath, considering my options. It was Tuesday and Finn would be arriving Wednesday night ahead of the holiday. While I'd been collecting him things here and there for his place, there was a lamp that had been on my mind ever since I'd seen it over the weekend. I was sure I'd never seen something more him - a collection of three old-school microphones hanging by their chords, the bulbs tucked inside each of the mics. It was incredible, but it was crazy expensive and I didn't want to come across too strong. While I hadn't budged on that sentiment, I also knew that it meant something the piece was still on my mind.

Making up my mind, I plugged in the address to the shop. As I drove there, willing it to still be available, my shoulders finally eased. For the first time since we'd made the plans, I allowed myself to be unapologetically excited to see Finn.

-

"Oh yay, I was hoping I'd see you before I left," Em smiled, lugging her suitcase into the living room just as I walked through the door. "You're usually home earlier."

"I had to run a quick errand," I flushed, unable to contain my smile. I'd successfully secured the lamp, which was sitting in my backseat. "Are you excited to see your family?"

I let my bag slip off my shoulder, letting it fall to the ground as I plopped down on the couch. Em sat perched on the arm of our side chair, watching the Uber on her phone.

"Yes and no. You know how my mom gets around the holidays."

I giggled because I did know. Mrs. Adams had always been like a second mother to me but her perfectionist tendencies did get the best of her from time to time.