Running with Scissors by Unknown Read Free Book Online Page A

that Connor spent
    most of it tossing and turning. In the next bed, A.J. was
    wide-awake because even when Connor was still, his
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    frustration was so palpable, it might as well have been
    feedback through an amp—constant, shrill, impossible to
    muffle or ignore. Great. The rest of this tour was going to be
    like living in his parents’ house during the final weeks of their marriage.
    He sighed into the taut silence. No wonder Shiloh had
    lost her shit the night she’d realized Connor and Wyatt were
    sleeping together. A.J. had thought she was overreacting—
    so what if two adults in the same band were dating? Who
    cared?—but she must’ve known what the aftermath would
    be. The inevitable breakup. The three excruciating weeks
    of Wyatt and Connor gnashing their teeth at each other.
    A screaming match that almost killed Connor’s voice an hour
    before a show.
    She’d probably seen all of that coming, but A.J. doubted
    even she had imagined that Wyatt would pack up and walk
    out. None of them had expected that. Not from the band
    member who’d been most vocal about his resentment toward
    Jude. And now, like an evil prophecy coming to fruition,
    Wyatt was gone, Jude was in his place, and Connor was losing
    his mind.
    A.J. shifted beneath the covers, doing his level best not to
    wake Richie. He wasn’t sure why he bothered. The guitarist
    could’ve slept onstage during a show. Lucky bastard.
    A.J. swore into his pillow. Then he closed his eyes, took a
    deep breath, and tried like hell to go to sleep.
    Kristy sent them all wake-up texts at six fifteen, including
    one to A.J. to remind him to wake Richie. At six forty-five, she was at their door, making sure everyone was out of bed.
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    “You guys can shower tonight if you have to, but we need
    to get on the road. Let’s go .”
    Richie rubbed his eyes. “The bus is here already?”
    “Yep.” She gestured over her shoulder. “And it’s leaving as
    soon as you all get your butts on it.”
    A.J. glanced past her, beyond the breezeway’s railing.
    Below them the tour bus took up a sizeable chunk of the
    parking lot, its diesel engines idling while Vanessa and Shiloh shuffled toward it, dragging their suitcases behind them.
    “Let’s go,” Kristy said again, and left the room.
    A.J. bit back a string of curses. Connor didn’t. Awesome.
    It was going to be one of those days when everyone within
    earshot would know exactly how displeased the lead singer
    was. That would make the bus ride through corn-covered
    plains just fly by.
    Trying to stay out of everyone’s way, A.J. dressed, gathered
    his things, and left the room. Brushing his teeth in the parking lot with an ice-cold bottle of water was a bit more “roughing
    it” than he liked, but it kept him from being underfoot.
    He rinsed his mouth and toothbrush and then joined
    the others on the bus. Richie was sprawled across the sofa,
    seat-belted and snoring. Still no Connor, but he was always
    the straggler. This morning, he was probably in even less of a
    hurry than usual.
    Outside, with his back to the bus, Jude rocked from the
    balls of his feet to his heels, a cigarette between his taped
    fingers. Through the tinted window, A.J. couldn’t see much
    of Jude’s face—even when he turned, his baseball cap and
    sunglasses kept his eyes in shadow.
    A.J. couldn’t help wondering how much of his smoking
    was due to nicotine addiction and how much of it was nerves.
    He’d heard Jude step out of the room next door, and in the
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    stillness, he’d been able to make out the click of a lighter. At least once, Jude had either been playing with the lighter, or
    he’d smoked two cigarettes in rapid succession. Yet he didn’t
    have the voice or cough of a chain-smoker. And when he’d
    smoked in the parking lot yesterday before meeting up with
    the band, his hands had gotten progressively shakier, where
    most people’s would’ve steadied after getting their fix.
    Jude turned, and his spine suddenly