Page 32 of Under the Same Sky

“No, because you’ve been busy,” she tells me emphatically. “But, since I’ve been running things, I saw a chance, and your followers are already eating this up.”

I glower at her. “You still should have discussed this with me first.”

“You would have said no.”

“For good reason.” I try not to raise my voice, but my emotions are running all over the place. “I appreciate your help in my absence, but this is taking it a step too far.”

“I disagree.”

Thorin waves his hands between us, and fixes his confused stare on Mya. “You still haven’t explained anything to me.”

“Have you googled Reese at all since you got back?”

“Should I have?”

“Yes. She has over six million followers on Instagram, and over three million subscribers on Youtube. Her business is rather successful, and we’re expanding.”

For a minute, Thorin looks stumped, and when he glances in my direction, I feel compelled to explain. “While I was in college, I started posting work-out videos, and nutrition tips on Instagram. By the time I graduated, Mya helped me turn it into a business. That’s my job.”

And my life’s work, but I don’t say that. I also resist the urge to ask him why he hasn’t bothered to look me up, because that’s just stupid. I shouldn’t care whether he knows what I do or not. I Should.Not.Care.At.All. Caring about it is the equivalent of sending the boy you like in middle school a note that reads, Do you like me? Tick yes or no.

“And I fit into this how?” He asks.

“Well,” Mya continues, “like I said, we have a chance to engage with men, and with your social media following and presence, you seemed like an obvious choice. I didn’t think getting a stranger would be a good idea, we need someone with a good image and reputation, and you, Thorin Decker, surprisingly fit the bill. Alex loves the idea.”

“And you didn’t think to talk to me first? Like you should have Reese, since it’s her business?”

“You would have said no, just like Reese would have. So, I went over your head, and now it’s as good as done. Contracts are being drawn up as we speak, and you’d both me dumb to decline.”

“I’m not signing shit,” Thorin says before walking out, and slamming the door. Eli startles, and when he starts to wail, I’m quick to soothe him. “It’s okay,” I whisper, although I’m not sure if I’m saying it for his benefit or for mine. I run my finger down his forehead, and over his nose, and find that it settles him. He goes back to drinking his formula, while I stew.

Mya doesn’t push me, she knows better, and it’s only after I’ve changed Eli’s diaper, put him in some fresh clothes, and put him down for his nap that I’m ready to talk. Knowing this, she sits on the sofa, and waits me out while watching the latest season of Riverdale on Netflix. I drop onto the sofa beside her and she pauses the episode. She watches me, her expression lined with patience. For a brief moment, I run through everything she said. Until now, my followers have been primarily female. I never set out to only help women, but I guess my content was more relatable to them than it was to men. I also never considered growing my audience to include men, but then again, all the business-type stuff I discuss with Mya. When it comes to analytics, and finding trends before they become trends, Mya’s a genius, and without her input, my videos, and posts, and website content would be nothing special. She’s also taught me a lot too, since I’ve had to manage things here three weeks of the month, so to say I trust her judgement, her decisions about what’s best for the ‘Simply Reese’ brand, is putting it lightly. We both have the business skills, but while I focus on creating the content, Mya focuses on getting it to the right people, and making sure they engage, and when they don’t, she re-strategizes and I follow. But, for my own sake, I have to know, “Why him?”

“Why not him?” She counters, raising a perfectly shaped brow.

“Because it’s Thorin, Mya. You really think us working together is a good idea, given the current circumstances? Navigating co-parenting with him is hard enough.”

“And there’s your problem,” she exhales. “It’s not just Thorin. It’s Thorin Decker, frontman of Eighteendust, one of the world’s most successful bands of our generation. He’s not your Thorin, he’s the world’s Thorin, and that’s who you’ll be working with. There’s nothing personal about this arrangement, it’s business, and after doing the numbers between your social media following and his, you’d both be idiots to walk away from this kind of business venture. I’ve been playing with the idea for a while, but we needed someone we can trust. I believe we can trust Thorin.”

“You sound so sure he’s going to do it when he made it quite clear he had no interest. I’m not signing shit.” I mimic his deep voice, and fail miserably.

“That’s why I went over his head,” she reminds me. “Alex will get him on board, I can guarantee it.”

“And we couldn’t have chosen another member of the band, because…”

“Because as much as the world loves Fletch, Carson, and Benji, they’re hungry for Thorin, and between the four of them, Thorin is the most serious about taking care of his body. It just makes sense.”

“Fletch takes care of his body too,” I tell her. “The guy’s built like a damn linebacker, and is as big as Thorin. Why not him?”

“Because Fletch can’t do ‘serious’, even if his life depended on it. He’s the life of the party, and unlike Thorin, he hasn’t bothered withdrawing from the media. He loves the limelight, but for all the wrong reasons.”

“But Thorin has had bad press before, too. He’s no saint.”

“Reese, I can tell you the last time Thorin was in the news, or in the tabloids, for the wrong reasons. Two years ago, when he got shitfaced at another band’s party where they found coke on the table next to him, and accused him of doing drugs. Since then, he’s been squeaky clean. I don’t even think he’s dated since then either because that model he was reportedly dating, Ella something, was caught doing drugs, and Thorin’s not about that life. He lives for the music, and the fans, not the trash that comes with his level of fame.”

I raise my brows, only somewhat surprised that she knows so much.

“What?” She shrugs. “I’m just doing what you pay me to do. I also had to be sure it was the right decision, which is why I spoke to Alex and Penelope—who, by the way, doesn’t sound as bad as I thought she would.”