Silence.
And then the basketball coach gets out of the desk, still fighting a grin. “I’ll be back later.”
Miss Fern tosses a coquette wave in his direction before turning to me. “Rue. Please, have a seat.”
“Okay.” I choose the desk next to where the basketball coach was just sitting. “Do you know what I’m going to be doing yet?”
“Yes.” She nods so fast, I bet she’ll have a headache later. “Because of how much experience you have in the drama club, as you mentioned when you signed up, I think you’d be great in the sound booth. You’d be in control of the whole theater, actually. It’s a pretty big deal.”
Anxiety expands in my stomach. “Okay. But just so you’re aware, Miss Fern, I don’t know the first thing about that.” It’s hard to keep the panic from my voice, but I still try.The sound booth? I thought I’d be painting sets or something. Maybe working on props. This is exactly what I get for joining the crew. I should have just opted completely out this time.
Miss Fern waves away my worries with a smile. “You’ll learn quickly. I promise. I’ll let you know exactly how to mark your script during the table read at our first rehearsal.” Her tone is dismissive, so I get up from the desk.
“Okay. Thank you.”
Great. If Meredith signed me up for Little Birdie and now I’m getting shoved into a booth where I can spy on everyone, she’d probably think this is hilarious.
I exit the classroom without another word, despite all my inner worries currently screaming at me what a bad idea this was.
Chapter 10
Ezra
In the comfort of my bedroom, I work on testing a new game. This one is about a mushroom that takes on the color of whatever it touches during a race through a forest. The point of the game is to win the race against the rival mushroom while changing colors more times than it can.
Time seems to fly by, but I enjoy every second. Especially after coming home from practice to practice some more on my own. As much as I love basketball, stuff like this tickles a part of my brain that I think offers me a different kind of stimulation.
Olivia knocks on my door and opens it without waiting for me to tell her it’s okay to come in. She sticks her nose into my room and audibly sniffs. “You need to shower. It smells sweaty in here.”
I sigh. “That’s because I had basketball practice today. Shouldn’t you be hanging out with Corinne? Or your other cheer friends?”
“Corinne is out of town with her parents.”
The way her face falls slightly when she says it doesn’t escape my notice. Olivia and Corinne have been best friends longer than I’ve been playing basketball. I often wonder why their friendship has worked out so well to this day when mine with Rue couldn’t.
“I need you to drive me to work,” Olivia says.
With another deep sigh, I hit pause and swivel in my gaming chair to face her. “Right now?”
“Unless you want to cover my shift.” She offers me an angelic smile that’s somehow also sassy.
“Fine.” I use my phone to take a few notes on glitches I’ve found on this level of the game before I follow Olivia to my car. It’s only a matter of time until she’s old enough to drive and gets one of her own. Our parents are generous that way. But it’s not like they don’t encourage us to work hard. Both Olivia and I work part-time at the dealership, and even though it’s a family business, it’s not always easy working in customer service.
After I drop off my sister, I head straight back home. I try to ignore the nervous anticipation bubbling in my gut at the thought of seeing Rue tomorrow, but it’s impossible.
There’s no ignoring Rue Sullivan. Trying to would be like searching for eyewear that could block out the existence of the sun.
I’m on my way to calculus class the next morning when Rue practically slams me into a locker. “I need to talk to you,” she hisses. “Like, right now.”
I glance around, making sure no one can overhear us. “Can it wait?”
“No. It really can’t.”
“Okay. Come on.” I take her hand, leading her down a nook meant for studying between classes. It’s empty save for two chairs resting against a narrow window on the brick wall. I come here sometimes to play video games between classes, mostly so my friends won’t see me. And in case they do, I always hide myhandheld console behind a heavy textbook to deter anyone from interrupting me.
I gently squeeze Rue’s hand as we near the end of the cranny. Partly because we’re supposed to look like a couple, but also because I want to.
Now that she’s my “girlfriend,” no one would think anything of the way our hands are locked together. It will only help sell the story. But I can’t deny I’m enjoying it.
