Your soul bewitches me; you’re my heart, my plot.
Soon we’ll look back at these lingering days,
We’ll say, what were we thinking, to be apart in that way?
But until then I’ll miss you, for you own all of my soul,
Just know that I’m always with you, because darlin’ you make me whole.
Good luck tonight.
I love you.
Your Band Boy
She pressed the card to her chest and let herself feel it all.
Chapter Eleven
DAISY PULLED HARD ON THEzipper of her carry-on.
It was official.
She had overpacked.
Three days. That was all she had in New York City, and yet she’d packed as if she were staying a week. She wished she were; her parents were barely comfortable letting her go for the weekend.
She’d been fighting this uphill battle for months—ever since Jameson handed her the tour schedule.
It was the final show of his first tour, a tour she’d missed because of school and art commitments. But now that she was in the second half of senior year, ditching a day or two—maybe even five—felt survivable. College applications were complete, and the grades that mattered were already posted. Freedom was coming into focus.
“Honey, are you ready to go?” her mother asked, peeking into the room.
Daisy grabbed her bag, giddy with contained excitement. “Yes! Coming!”
The flight from San Francisco to New York dragged on. For nearly five hours, Daisy replayed the last few months—months she’d pushed through for the promise of today. Her father had given her unrelenting grief about New York, quick with a “no” each time she asked for permission. She wasn’t asking for money or even a ride to the airport, just his blessing. Dena tried to reason with him, but his answer held.
Then came Aunt Devya.
Daisy had recruited her, and much to everyone’s surprise, it worked. Philip had never cared for Devya. She was too outspoken, too artsy, too much, but he couldn’t deny she loved Daisy and Sean like her own. After weeks of Devya advocating, he relented. Not only because Daisy would stay with Devya, not Jameson, but because of Devya’s perfect argument: she’d tour Daisy through several colleges. Two birds, one stone.
“Don’t like flying, honey?” asked the elderly woman beside her.
Daisy had been wringing her hands and taking deep breaths. “I’m usually fine. I’m just… anxious to get there.”
The woman waited for more.
“I haven’t seen my boyfriend in five months,” Daisy confessed. “It’s been… hard.”
It was the first time she verbalized how difficult their time apart had been. She preferred the armor of the proud girlfriend—the one who handled distance like a pro. The version that didn’t show the nights she cried after they would hang up, or the afternoons she sat by the oak tree with their initials carved in, willing time to move faster.
“Aww, young love.” The woman sighed. “Nothing better. Is he away at school?”
Daisy shook her head. “No, ma’am. He’s a musician. His band is currently on tour.”
“Oh, how exciting.” The woman’s eyes dipped. “My Charles was a musician. Never took him across the country like your fella, but he was talented.”
Daisy noticed the past tense. “What happened to him?”
