Page 23 of Feral Touch

“Did you really watch all those videos?”

“Most of them. We had staff filter out the bad ones first. You know, to make sure they weren’t from any crazy fans.”

“You get a lot of crazy fans?”

“You don’t even know.”

That brought me back to one of the questions I had.

“Why a rock band?”

Ren tilted his head in confusion. “What do you mean?”

“I mean, you’re so good at classical music. Why would you throw it all away to thrash around on stage?”

Ren gave me an indulgent smile. “Still a bit snobbish when it comes to music, huh?”

I couldn’t defend myself. It was true. “Why a bass guitar, of all things?”

“It’s the only instrument that wasn’t taken.”

“Taken?”

“Kell and Jayce already play guitar and Morris is on drums. When Kell was putting the band together, the only thing they didn’t have was a bass player.”

I waited for more of an explanation, but none came. “That’s it?”

“Should I have had a better reason?”

Even though we were finally together, I still felt like we weren’t talking about anything important. I wanted to know so many things. How long should I wait?

“How long have you known Kell and the rest?”

He was silent for a moment before answering quietly. “About five years.”

He must have met them soon after he disappeared. I had to ask.

“Why, Ren?”

He didn’t even pretend to not know what I meant.

“I had to.”

“Butwhy? Why did you leave without saying anything? Why didn’t you tell anyone?”Why didn’t you tell me?

“It’s complicated.”

“We had no idea what happened to you. Didn’t you think about how much it would hurt your parents? Hurt your friends?”

His dark eyes were oddly calm, considering the question. “No.”

My chest clenched with anger and hurt. “I didn’t think you were so cold.”

“There’s only one person I regret leaving.”

He stared at me so steadily, so intently. My stomach fluttered, a blush riding to my cheeks. Maybe I should have made a move on him all those years ago.

“So, tell me what you’ve been doing these last few years.”