Sunkissed, Kasie West [best authors to read TXT] 📗

able to sneak a letter to Maricela for Brooks. The letter spelled out everything that had happened since I last saw him and told him I’d try my hardest to still make the festival, but this time I needed to do it with my parents’ permission and I wasn’t sure I could get that. Cross your fingers for me was how I’d finished the letter, then signed my name. I thought about adding a little heart after my name, but I hesitated and ended up clicking the pen closed, leaving my letter heartless.

“You’re being so dramatic,” Lauren said from her bed, repeating the words I was sure I’d said to her dozens of times in our lives.

“I know! I’m so bad at being grounded. How do you do this all the time?”

“Wait, is this your first time? How had I not realized that before now?”

“I’m going to die of boredom,” I groaned.

She threw her pillow at me and I laughed.

She flipped onto her stomach. “Tell me about the auditions. Were you scared?”

“Terrified.”

“So is this it? Your passion? Your life’s purpose or whatever it is you’ve been after all summer?”

I thought about that question as I watched the ceiling fan go around and around above us. “I don’t know. Maybe? I barfed afterward, so not sure my body agrees with me.”

“Lots of people get nervous stomach.”

“Like who?”

“I don’t have a list or anything, but I’ve heard it happens. Maybe it will get better the more you do it.”

“Yeah, I definitely need to do it more to see if it’s something I’m good at.”

“But you obviously did well. I mean, you made it.”

“Yeah…we did well. And honestly, aside from the barfing, it felt good.”

“I’m happy for you.”

There was a tap at our bedroom window and fear gripped my heart. I looked at Lauren.

“Don’t look at me, lover girl. That’s for you.”

“Is he trying to get fired?” I moved the curtain aside. Brooks stood there, just like I’d both dreaded and hoped for.

“I’ll go turn on the shower in the bathroom and if the parents ask, I’ll say you’re in there. You have twenty minutes. Tops.”

Would that work? That would work! “Thank you so much,” I said to Lauren, then opened the window. There was a screen that I popped out and let fall to the ground outside. Then with very little grace, I tried to step over the nightstand to the windowsill.

“Don’t be dumb,” Lauren said. “You have to step on the nightstand first. Here, let me move the lamp.”

But I was already climbing and the nightstand was tipping and Lauren let out a squeal as she held me up from behind. Then we both stared at the closed door for a long moment. Nobody came.

“Hurry,” she said.

I finished my climb out the window.

She leaned her head out. “Stay close.”

I nodded and she moved the curtain back into place. I turned around and faced Brooks.

“Hey,” Brooks said.

“Hi,” I said back.

An awkward tension hung in the air. I hadn’t talked to him since we’d kissed. Did he regret that or was this tension from the letter? From the fact that I was single-handedly crushing his dreams?

My parents’ window was on the complete opposite side of the cabin, so I wasn’t too worried, but I pointed to a group of trees about ten feet away from the house and lit pathways. He nodded and we made our way there.

Once protected by the foliage, I nervously played with my hands.

From somewhere nearby, a frog croaked a low deep song over and over. Finally, Brooks said, “Avery, are we good?”

My breath hitched. “I think so. Are you not good?”

“No, I’m good. I was just worried about you after reading the letter.”

“I’m so sorry.”

He immediately started shaking his head. “No, it’s fine. I understand. I didn’t want you to get in trouble over something you were doing for me. That’s never what I intended.”

I reached out and took his hand. “I know. I hope that by the end of the week they’ll have softened a bit.”

“What do you think the odds are of them coming around? That you’ll get to sing in the festival?”

“I don’t know.” My eyes found a mushroom growing out of a crack in the tree bark. “It doesn’t seem likely right now. But I’m hopeful.”

His jaw tightened.

“I know, I know. Hope is a four-letter word.”

“I’ll try to find it somewhere deep in my black heart.”

I smiled. “Did you tell Kai and Levi about making the festival? What did they say?”

“They were surprised. Asked if we needed two more band members.”

“They did?”

“Yeah.” He bit his lip. “What do you think?”

The request surprised me. “Oh. Is that even a possibility? We’re allowed to add them?”

“Yes, the rules are pretty loose about band members, actually.”

“Yeah, I mean, I don’t care. That’s fine with me. You guys are the originals anyway.”

“Thanks, Avery. I didn’t want to have to tell them no,” he said. “So…do your parents hate me?”

“What?” He was worried about that? “No, they don’t even know you. It’s this festival thing, the lying, it’s all just an initial impression.”

“Aren’t those the ones that matter?”

“That’s what they say, isn’t it? But I honestly don’t think so. Initial impressions are stupid. Superficial. If people really cared, they’d want to know more than their first thoughts about a person.” I hoped my parents would give Brooks a chance.

“But isn’t that the point?” Brooks said. “People don’t care. Or they’re always trying to decide if they’re going to care. Hence initial impressions.”

I took a tiny step closer. “What was your very first opinion of me in the theater, in that staff shirt?”

His face, which had been nothing but worried since I crawled out the window, softened into a smile. “We are not going there.”

“So it was bad,” I said, putting my hand on his chest.

“No. Not at all. I was excited that you’d be around all summer, let’s just say that.” He covered my hand with his. “And what was