He laughs aloud and I join in with him. His laughter trails off. “Thanks for coming.” He hesitates a second before reaching over to pull me into a hug.
“No problem.” I wrap my arms around him and hold on for as long as he lets me.
Chapter Fourteen
Saturday, June 16th
On Saturday, I am at Lyndsay’s lying face-up on her bed while she searches through CDs. It’s the first time we’ve been able to hang out since she started the job on Tuesday. She is enjoying it, but between that and the volunteer work, she is exhausted. I can’t help but wish I could work with her at the store. If only I wasn’t faking the other job, then maybe I could.
“How about this one?” Lyndsay asks, pushing play on her stereo.
“Cyndi Lauper? Pass.”
“It’s the perfect girl duo song! Come on!”
“Sorry, I’m not feeling it.”
“Spoilsport!” she yells, throwing a pillow at me.
“Ow!” I throw it back at her. “What can I say? It’s what I do.”
“You know, it’s been a long time since you sang by yourself. Nobody remembers it.”
I bite my lip. I don’t want to think about it. “I know.”
I can hear her let out a sigh. She knows not to push it. “Maybe I should just do a duet with Ben instead.”
“Like what?”
“We could always go with the classic Grease song.”
I groan. “Stop picking such typical songs.”
She throws her hands up in the air. “It’s karaoke! You’re supposed to pick typical songs. It’s an unspoken rule.” She skims through another pile of CDs and pulls one out.
I close my eyes. “I know, I know. I'd rather do something unexpected rather than the usual.”
She puts in a new CD. “Like what?”
“I don’t know. Something like Toto or Steely Dan.”
“Then you should do one of those. As for me, I’m going cliché all the way.” She pushes play and a Madonna song comes on.
I sigh deeply. “What time is it?” I ask.
“Quarter after eight.”
“Okay, good.”
“What’s so good about it? We’re late.”
“I know. I’m just nervous about singing.”
“I don’t think you have to be nervous. Chevy likes you just fine.”
I prop myself up on my elbows. “Where’s that pillow I threw at you a minute ago?”
She holds it up with a grin. “You need to stop fretting over it and consider it as a possibility. You know I’m right.”
“Why? He didn’t want to admit anything.”
“Neither have you!”
I scrunch up my nose and turn away to face a movie poster for The Lion King on her wall. That poster has been on her wall ever since she was a baby. The movie came out around the time we were born. It was the first movie her mom bought her and she wore that videocassette out until the VCR ate it a few months back. The next day, Ben bought her the DVD. “Maybe you could sing ‘Can You Feel the Love Tonight?’ with Ben.”
She brightens up for a second, and then narrows her eyes, tossing the pillow at my face. “Don’t change the subject.”
“You know I’m right,” I imitate, holding tightly to the pillow.
“You are right about the song, but I am so right about Chevy. He’s going to ask you out, and soon. I’d bet my life on it.”
“Don’t you dare bet your life on that,” Ben says from the doorway.
I stand up. “Watch it or she’ll make you sing ‘Can You Feel the Love Tonight?’ with her.” When his eyes bug out, both Lyndsay and I crack up.
He just shakes his head and says, “Come on, let’s go.”
We get to the coffee shop, The Caffeine Café, ten minutes later. It is more packed than I anticipated for a karaoke night. With nearly every beige chair taken, it is standing room only. There are clusters of people everywhere it seems. Perhaps more people like singing than I thought.
One of the baristas stands on the stage and says, “Next up, Nathan Wakefield with ‘Jailhouse Rock’ by Elvis Presley!” I clap along with everyone else. Nathan bounds up the steps to the microphone and starts to sing. His voice is amazing. He manages to sound like the original but with a personal edge to it.
We squeeze around the edge of the room to where Roger and Chevy are sitting. Chevy waves, scooting over on the couch for me to sit next to him. Since the couch is full, our legs are touching, causing butterflies to fill my stomach. Lyndsay and Ben sit down in the chair next to me. I lean over to Chevy and say, “He is beyond great at this,” nodding in Nathan’s direction.
Chevy nods in agreement. “I don’t know how he does it.” When the song is over, we all yell out some cheers as we clap. Nathan bows and doles out high fives on his way back to the couch.
He sits down on Chevy’s lap and says to me, “Which song will you be singing with me?”
Chevy shoves at Nathan. “Get off me, dude.” His words are a mix of anger and amusement.
“I will, as soon as she tells me which song.”
Chevy pleads, “Tell him. He’s crushing me.”
I laugh. “Um…” I close my eyes and tap my chin. “How about ‘It’s Still Rock And Roll to Me’ by Billy Joel?”
“Done!” He gets up and walks over to the sign-up sheet.
“Nice choice,” Chevy says, rubbing his hands up his legs to smooth out his pants. “Thanks for the quick response. I wish he wouldn’t do that.”
I grin. “You’ll miss him when he’s gone.”
“I will,” he says with a sigh.
Lyndsay taps my leg. “We’re going to sign up for one. Are you going to do any more than the one?”
I shake my head. “Doubt it.”
After they leave, Chevy turns to me. “You’re not going to sing more than once?”
“I told you, I don’t sing.”
He frowns. “Not even for me?”
“Maybe next time,” I say with a charming smile. It would take a lot to get me to sing a solo again, but he doesn’t know that.
He smiles back at that and lets it go. For the next hour, our group, along with the rest of the crowd, takes turns singing. I manage to keep myself together while on the stage with Nathan. Chevy tells me after that I did well, but I don’t believe he could hear me over Nathan’s voice.
A couple classmates stop in to say a quick goodbye to Nathan and wish him luck through the course of the night. Then a few minutes into the last half hour before closing time, Brian and Heidi come in. They stroll over and Nathan starts to talk to them. I tune them out to focus on the trio of next year’s seniors onstage singing to a Lady Gaga song. It isn’t until Nathan brings up a road trip with Chevy that I turn to them and ask, “Road trip?”
“Yeah,” he replies. “I have an internship to do in July at my uncle’s firm. Chevy offered to drive me to New York since I have no reason to take my car there. I’ll need it here when I’m home during winter and summer breaks anyway.”
“Oh,” I say softly as I nod. I shouldn’t be so concerned. It’s not as if I expect to spend every waking second with Chevy.
Chevy chimes in, “It’s only for a few days. It takes a day to get there, another couple to unload and sightsee, then another to get home.”
I mentally cross my fingers that he didn’t say that because he noticed worry on my face. “When are you leaving?” I ask.
“Monday morning, bright and early.”
I will be too busy making the final touches on the throw pillows and painting Kaitlin’s room to hang out with Chevy anyway. This should console me, but I still find myself a little anxious. I shake it off and say to Chevy, “I’m going to get something to take home. Did you want anything else?”
“No, I think I’m good,” he says as he lifts up his cup.