Sea Breeze 01 - Breathe

to be the best year of your life. You have to be excited about it!”
    I wasn’t, and I knew they wouldn’t understand, so I didn’t try to explain that my reason for breathing was gone. I nodded as if to agree with him and just kept my mouth shut.
    “I leave in a week to go back to Tuscaloosa.” It was the first time Marcus had spoken. “I have to get me an apartment and get moved down before the semester begins.”
    Marcus’s words surprised me. I hadn’t realized realize he was leaving so soon.
    “Really?” I asked, hearing the sadness in my voice. He nodded and looked away from me.
    “Well, make sure to come tell me bye,’” I reminded him, thinking that at least this good-bye wasn’t going to zap me of life.
    He gazed at me with a strange expression on his face, as if he wanted to say something but was fighting himself about it. “Yeah. I will,” he finally said halfheartedly.
    “Well, the good news is,
I
will not be going anywhere,” Preston said, “and you can call me anytime, and I will be more than willing to, uh, I don’t know, take you to dinner, a movie, or a—Ouch!”
    I jumped, and Preston shot daggers at Marcus. “What did you do that for?” he challenged.
    Marcus rolled his eyes. “I stopped you before you made an even bigger idiot of yourself.”
    Preston snorted. “Is he always this moody around you?”
    I grinned and shook my head. “Nope.”
    Preston broke into a grin. “So, you don’t like the competition, do you, big boy?” he teased, and Marcus glared at his friend and sighed before he turned to me.
    “What he doesn’t realize is that the competition isn’t even at this table.”
    Preston frowned, and then, like a light went on, he sat back and grew serious, which was a first.
    “Can I get you something to drink . . . Wait,
Ohmygod
, it’s
you
! Ah, I can’t believe it! Jax Stone’s girlfriend.”
    The girl rummaged through her apron pocket and pulled out a piece of paper and handed me a pen. “Can I have your autograph, please?”
    I was too shocked to respond, or to move, for that matter. I looked at Marcus, and I guess he noticed the panic in my eyes, because he took the paper and pen and handed them back to the girl.
    “Uh, why don’t you take our drink order instead?”
    The girl’s grin fell, and I dropped my eyes to my hands. I wasn’t sure what to say or how to respond. This was not something I had seen coming.
    Marcus ordered me a Coke, then took my hand. “I guess you haven’t been around town lately?” he asked cautiously.
    I shook my head but didn’t meet his gaze.
    He sighed deeply and leaned down toward me. “Things are going to be a little different for you, for a while, at least. You’re still on the news some, and, well, around this small town, you’re a star. No one has ever gotten as close to fame as you have.”
    I closed my eyes. This wasn’t supposed to be happening. Jax had left me to keep this from happening. Was my life going to always be this way? When would everyone realize the rock star had left me? I was no longer his, and I was no longer interesting. I was just Sadie White.
    “Sadie, look at me, please,” Marcus whispered.
    I met his eyes slowly and noticed the waitress pointing our way.
    “Great, she’s announcing my presence,” I muttered.
    Marcus turned around to see girls looking our way. He turned to Preston. “Could you go put those pretty-boy looks to good use and distract the ‘OMG’ squad over there?”
    Preston nodded. “Sure.” He went over to the girls, and almost immediately he had them giggling and smiling at him.
    Relief washed over me. “Do you think he’ll go to school with me and do that?” I asked quietly.
    Marcus chuckled. “No, you’ll be on your own there. But remember, they will get over it. It’s just Jax recorded a new song, and it’s rumored all over the news that it is about you. It hit number one its first week on the radio. The buzz is being fed a little more.”
    I swallowed the lump in my throat. “What does the song say?” I heard myself asking. Why I wanted to know was beyond me. This was going to be painful, but I still wanted to know.
    Marcus dropped his hands from mine and shifted in his seat. “Enough for me to know it’s about you,” he said with no emotion in his voice.
    I nodded and turned my attention to watching the world outside the window. Preston returned with our Cokes and set them on the table.
    “Thanks for that,” I said, nodding toward the