Riley just had another electric show with her new pals. It was a fantastic Saturday night, the club was packed, 400 people all showed up to watch them, Riley was still buzzing, she couldn't believe how her life was turning out. The van was being packed up, all her new friends came out to see her, showering her with praise and she couldn't help but have a huge smirk. While everyone was busy talking about going to some after party all she could think about is the next set, the next song she wanted to write. She wanted to keep up this pace as long as possible; it'll be worth it in the end when they really get their big break, only then will all her sacrifice be worth something. "Man we killed it out there!" Michael, the bassist, the most fairly recent member said snapping Riley out of her trance. He placed a hand on her shoulder and not-so-subtly ran it across her skin. She smiled- politely of course, and moved away just a touch feigning like she was reaching for a few wires to roll up. Michael was always a bit...out there...When it came to his affection if you could call it that, and she kept her distance; or tried to. Reilly isn't trying to get attached like that, not now. Chloe, perked up, "Totally! C'mon Riley, let's pack our shit and hit the after party!" she hoisted her drum kit into the van as energetic as always. Some of their other classmates present all cheered at the prospect of heading out to shoot the shit. "We're really gonna make it, huh...?" Riley was still lost in thought, practically day dreaming of her perfect life; of sharing the stage with some of her icons, she hardly felt the weight of her own amp when she loaded it up. She feels her phone go off and she fishes it from her pocket. "...Damn..." she muttered under her breath 7 missed calls from User. She didn't even tell him she was doing a show tonight, she was just so excited that she had poured all her energy into practice and totally ignored him, she hadn't spoken to him in...What...? 4 weeks now?...There were other texts, from people wanting to see her, other guys who were all wanting a second date, another 'shot' to see if they could 'change her mind'...All went unread. At least I'm not just ghosting User... so I'm totally not that bad... At least that's what she was trying to tell herself. Riley really felt that she was well on her way, that this progress and latest gig were a huge deal, she had momentum. She knew User supported her but c'mon, did that childhood nonsense matter? Besides would they even still be friends when she's playing halfway across the world? Maybe it's time to move on... "What's up, Riley...?" Michael said stepping a bit closer to Riley, leaning just a bit too close. She rolled her eyes. "Nothing dude, Just...Give me some space, kay?" Riley said, moving away again. Okay, maybe she still can't just...forget completely; it's fucking User. She caught a glimpse of that damn stupid photo of them, well it was a photo of a photo. She use to have it as her wall paper but she recently changed it for a band group pic, because she couldn't stand to look at it. But the gallery thumbnail caught her eye anyway, as it always did. that stupid ancient photo was a picture of a faded polaroid of her and User inside their crappy useless decrepit lame treehouse, smiling wide together while she hugged them, her old friend, her ugly rat-nest hair and that stupid Kamen rider t-shirt, a bygone childhood she wants to forget. Still, It brought a fresh wave of nostalgia, so she started to read some of the missed texts too. Look I hear you, okay? I read your messages, I see you. she tells herself, so she doesn't feel like she'd completely blown him off. We live a few miles apart. It's not like I'm never too far anyway...I'll see you some other time... but that some other time turned into some other time and so on. "User!? You talk to that loser? Isn't he like, always by himself or something?" Chloe said with a bit more bite than Riley appreciated, she didn't realize Chloe had been looking over her shoulder the entire time. "Ugh, he seems so desperate. What, are you two like friends or something?" A few of her other classmates started muttering amongst themselves about that 'quiet kid' and all that rude shit that bothered Riley. But then again, what if they're right? What if she's being held back? Everyone should change for the better, shouldn't they? She felt all eyes on her and she knew they wanted an answer, she didn't want to look like a dork so she spoke up: "User..? Nah, we're not friends, pssh...he's just like...Some twerp that got my number somehow, heh...But I uh...I know how totally lame he is so I usually leave them on read," she said lying through her teeth. Her friends started to laugh, and she smiled at the spark of validation, all the laughter at something she said. It's a great feeling. Besides it's not like User is around to- "Oh, speak of the loser!" one them pointed. Riley's head snapped around and she saw User. Her smirk fell instantly. "...Fuck..."