Page 7 of Cusp: A Renzo + Lucia Companion

“Do what?” his brother asked.

“That. You know what.”

Renzo sighed on the other end of the call. “I know about Rose and what’s been going on. Skipping school. The restlessness. Late nights. You’re not in some shit I have to take care of again, are you?”

Diego rolled his eyes. “No.”

“Diego—”

“I said no, bro.”

And he meant it.

He wasn’t in trouble.

He was just …

“Hey,” Renzo said, his tone soft but firm at the same time on the call. “You can talk to me about anything. You know that, right?”

Maybe that’s what he’d been waiting for here—the thing that he needed to finally make a decision about what he wanted to do with his life. Or rather, whether he should take the leap and uproot his entire world just to chase what felt like a pipe dream across the country. Something like college and a traditional job were sure things. Hopes and dreams were not.

Diego felt like he was on the verge of something. Or a lot of things. Adulthood. Understanding himself. Greatness. Whatever form that took.

“You okay?” his brother asked.

He was.

Sort of.

Instead, Diego replied, “Just—hey, can we talk when I get out there with you? I need somebody to listen and let me talk through some stuff.”

Renzo didn’t even hesitate. “Absolutely.”