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What was he doing? This guy was his competition. He wasn’t supposed to be helping anyone.

He eyed Trevor’s necklace, a tiny white seashell on a brown cord peeking out above his PacSun hoodie. “Do you surf?”

At this, Trevor let out a genuine laugh. “No. But everyone assumes that about me.”

“Sorry.”

“No, it’s fine. Do you think there’s room for a surfer dude in a boy band?”

“I think tons of girls would drool over you.”And plenty of guys like me, too.

Trevor laughed again. “You too, you know. I think you’ve probably got a better look for this type of thing.” His eyes shot up to Skyler’s hair one more time before falling lower and landing on…his mouth?

“Uh. Thanks. I’m worried I’m too skinny though.”

“I don’t think so. But you could fix that by going to the gym if you wanted. And your face—er. Yeah.”

Skyler beamed. “Yeah?” he pressed.

“Um, yeah. It’s good.”

He wanted to squeal in delight or jump on top of the metal chair and announce to the entire room that his face was good. But he tried to remain nonchalant because Trevor was blushing.

Oh my god, hot not-surfer guy is blushing!

“I think your face is good too,” Skyler said with a tiny smirk, becausewow.

Miraculously, Trevor didn’t run away at his attempt at flirting. They navigated the conversation to more natural topics after that, and soon they’d begun to casually invade each other’s personal space like they’d been friends for a lot longer than ten minutes. Like when he let his knee fall against Trevor’s thigh and Trevor didn’t move away.

While they tried to settle a debate about which Hemsworth brother was in a certain movie, Trevor got impatient and took Skyler’s phone right out of his hand to look it up himself. Skyler ended up being right—he knows his Hemsworths—so he pumped his fist in the air obnoxiously.

Trevor grabbed him to lower his arm and Skyler gulped, enjoying too much the way Trevor’s fingers wrapped all the way around his wrist. Suddenly he was imagining things like Trevor holding his wrists down against a mattress. And well, that was definitely not something he should be imagining right here in a room full of twenty-three other guys. He could only hope it was subtle when he adjusted his sweatpants.

Even though they’d been waiting quite a while, the arrival of their choreographer disappointed him, because he and Trevor had to stop talking. But if Skyler made sure to do his absolute best in showing off his dance skills because he knew a certain pair of blue eyes might be on him, that could only help his chances, right?

Chapter Five

Before

TREVOR

HE ACTUALLY FUCKING MADEIT. He was going to be in the band. Apparently, that assistant was right about him.

Both Trevor and Skyler, along with three other guys, Oliver McKinley, Noah Winters, and Jermaine Jordan, were now officially the members of the band Boys Will Be Boys.

Trevor couldn’t believe he’d signed a contract for a record deal. His mom had asked if they needed to get a lawyer to read it over, but he’d waved her off, saying, “Mom, it’s a fucking record deal. I’m signing it!”

It had been a whirlwind since then.

Getting styled for a photoshoot, learning to harmonize with the other guys, listening to demos of the songs for their album. He’d been a little taken aback that all the songs were already written for them, but it made sense. This band was entirely manufactured by the record label. Of course they wouldn’t be asking the guys’ input on anything.

They didn’t even get to have input on their own appearances. The stylists had pretty much left Trevor alone, but they’d dyed Oli’s light brown hair platinum blond and made Jermaine cut his afro into a high and tight fade. Jermaine didn't fight them on it, though it was obvious he wasn't happy with the decision.

Some of the stuff like that was starting to make Trevor a tad uncomfortable, honestly. At some point while he was being shuffled from place to place andtold what to do, he’d stopped feeling like a person and began feeling like a piece of property owned by a man named Charlie Carmichael.

Between the label head, the other executives, and the band’s new A&R management team, there had been a lot of people talkingatthem, rather than to them.

But two things kept Trevor from thinking this whole thing was a mistake. Number one: the money. His eyes had practically fallen out of his head when he read that line in the contract. And number two: Skyler James.