Jane finally let out a breath. In reality, it felt like she could breathe for the first time since she arrived at the AirBNB. 

A smile cracked across her face, and she was sure she was blushing, but in that moment she didn’t care. It was the first time since they’d been reunited that she didn’t have to hide how she felt, and even if that only lasted for tonight, it was a huge weight off her shoulders.

But what did it mean for them?

So much time had passed between them, and they’d both grown in to completely different people. Rob even had an ex-wife and a [i]daughter[/i] now. Jane couldn’t even remember the last time she’d been around a kid. 

And the band. Jane just earned forgiveness from Sam for causing the band to implode. What if it didn’t work out between her and Rob again? What would happen to In Bloom?

Her head began to spin thinking of the what ifs, but she centered herself with another deep breath. She was getting ahead of herself.

Jane looked at Rob and nodded. “Same here,” she chuckled nervously. She was never good at talking; in the old days she would use her body to do the talking for her.

But things were much different now.

Instead, Jane took Rob’s hand and squeezed it. “It’s way past my bedtime. Let’s, uh, let’s hang out after recording tomorrow. Something low key.”

Jane thought it was best to leave the night like it was, to not ruin anything.

“Good night, Rob.”

And with that, Jane stood up gingerly from the side of the pool and entered the house, waiting to get to her room to let out a squeal of excitement. 

[center]***[/center]

The band agreed to get up early the following morning to record their next track, Years. Jane had written the lyrics during her final stint in rehab, and it was about the pain she felt getting clean from heroin. Austin wrote a dark and powerful guitar riff for it that packed a punch, and the song kind of took off easily from there. 

The lyrics could easily read as a love song.

[i]And I won’t miss you so much
as the days pass
I can’t wait to be 
years away from you[/i]

In their years apart, Sam had learned how to record tracks, which he gladly took on when asked by Evan. Jane was really beginning to enjoy their time together as a band, and not having a stranger in their to record them was an extra level of privacy she appreciated. They’d send the song off to get mixed and mastered after recording. 

Jane’s phone vibrated in her pocket, and she excused herself from the group to sit on the basement’s carpeted staircase.

“Hello?”

“Hey, rockstar.” It was Steve, Jane’s friend and neighbor. “How’s it been going?”

“It’s been good! It took a bit for us to get our footing, but we’ve hit our groove it seems. How’s Sin? I miss him so much.”

“He’s fine. Definitely misses you.” Steve took a breath, his tone shifting more serious. “These bills keep coming in.” He was in charge of her mail while she was away. Their first royalty check took care of some of her past due bills, but she’d be catching up for the next month at this rate.

“Fuck, I know. As soon as this check hits Friday, I’ll have the credit card bills and electric paid…the lights are still on right?”

“Yep, I’m here right now.”

“Okay, thanks for checking in. I’ll get caught up on the bills soon.”

“Do you need me to loan you more money?” Steve asked, hesitation in his voice.

“No, no. We have everything we need here, but thank you.” 

[center]***[/center]

Jane reentered the basement with her blanket wrapped around her, plopping down in one of the office chairs that surrounded a conference-style table. Sam was in the adjoining room recording Rob’s drums, which left her and Austin.

“Wanna grab food after we’re done here?” he asked without looking up from his phone.

Trepidation grew in Jane’s stomach. She wasn’t going to hide her plans with Rob, but she wasn’t exactly thrilled to tell Austin.

“Um,” she replied, clearing her throat, “I’m actually doing something with Rob.”

Austin put his phone down and rubbed his temples. “What’s going on between you guys?”

“Nothing, just hanging out.”

“Yeah, right,” Austin shook his head. “It’s never nothing with you two.”

Jane shushed him and leaned forward. “Look,” she whispered sharply, “I don’t know what’s going on, okay? But you could at least be happy for me.”

“I’ll be happy for you when we get on the other side of this album without the band imploding. You fucked everything up for all of us last time and I’ll be damned if you do it again.”

Tears formed in Jane’s eyes, but she immediately blotted them away with the sleeve of her sweater. “Things are different now and you know it.”

“Whatever, J. Just don’t come crying to me when it doesn’t work out, okay?” 

Austin got up and exited the basement, and Jane waited until she heard his footsteps fade up the steps to put her head down on the desk and groan in frustration. 

Was Austin right? Was getting involved with Rob again a bad idea? Or was he just scarred from the past?

Sam came out of the booth, headphones hanging off one ear. “You okay?”

“Yeah,” Jane said, popping up from the table and offering a fake smile. “Just, uh, warming up my voice.” 

“Good. We’re gonna take a break, then Austin’s up.”

“He’s upstairs.” Jane scratched her head. “He’s pissed at me.”

“I was for ten years,” Sam laughed, putting his headphones around his neck. “I guess it’s his turn.”

“I guess all of us getting along would be too boring. If you get a chance, will you talk to him?”

“Sure,” Sam nodded, patting Jane’s head. 

Rob appeared, sweating slightly from recording. God, he was handsome. 

“Good job,” Jane smiled, patting the seat next to her and sliding over one of the water bottles that were on the table. “Still wanna hang today?”