Lyric suddenly appears through her window, jumping around and singing at the top of her lungs. I still have yet to hear her sing, but I can imagine the warm sound of her voice and those incredibly soft lips of hers creating striking songs.
Amazing songs.
That I want to drink out of her.
Taste.
Fuck, I’m losing my Goddamn mind.
My phone rings from my back pocket, and I let out a breath in relief at the distraction. I fish it out, figuring it’s Sage calling to see if I’m on my way to band practice.
“I’m on my way now,” I answer without checking my screen as I reach for my wallet on the nightstand.
“That’s super awesome.” It’s Lyric’s voice that fills the line and my heart flutters. Actually fucking flutters, like I’m some lovesick puppy. “But I just called to ask why on earth you’ve been staring at my bedroom window. You’ve been doing it for like five minutes, and it’s starting to get a little bit creepy.”
I frown when I spot her waving at me through her window.
“What’s wrong?” she asks. “You’ve been acting a little strange lately. More and more like the shy boy I first met, the one who would barely utter a few stray sentences to me. I’m not losing you, am I? Because we made a deal to be friends, and my deals are unbreakable. If you want out of them, there’s this big huge test I have to give you, and I know how much you hate tests.”
Lyric has never mentioned a single word about the kiss, which I’m both relieved and upset about. She’s been her light, full of sunshine self, acting as if she’s completely unaffected.
“I’m fine. Our friendship is fine. Everything is fantastic. I promise.” I turn my back to the window, silently begging for my guitar to miraculously appear in my room, but it doesn’t. “I just can’t find my guitar anywhere.”
“That’s because it’s over here, you goofball. Remember, last night at family dinner when you were playing with my dad and me, which FYI totally made his day. Although he’s never actually said it, I think he secretly wishes he had a son sometimes. Or at least a daughter who doesn’t suffer from stage fright.”
“I’m sure he loves you, Lyric, whether you get over that or not.”
“Of course he does. That’s not what I meant. I think he’s just super stoked that you could become his protégé.” She lets out a wicked laugh at the end, the effortless sound splintering the weight on my chest.
“Hey, could you bring my guitar down to the driveway? I’m late for practice, and I know Sage is going to be sending me nasty texts soon.”
“Sure thing, shy boy. I’ll be right out.”
She hangs up before I can say anything else.
I feel like banging my head on the wall, because now I’ve got to go down and see her again for the fiftieth time since the kiss, and I know I’m going to get all awkward again.
Get it together.
Get it together.
I grab the car keys and jog down the stairs and out to the driveway. Lyric is already waiting for me on the fence with her long legs dangling over the side and my guitar case on her lap. Her blonde hair is braided to the side, and she doesn’t have a drop of makeup on, revealing her freckles and perfection.
God, she’s beautiful.
“So, I was thinking,” she says as I approach her, “that I could go to your practice with you.”
I pause at the fence line, stuffing my wallet into my back pocket. “Why?”
She frowns as she hops off the fence. “Well, I didn’t expect that sullen reaction.” She shoves my guitar at me then adjusts the bottom of her purple shirt lower so her stomach is covered up. She’s done that a lot over the last week. She’s also worn a lot of jeans, as if trying to cover herself up more, like she blames how she dressed on what happened.
“Sorry.” I grasp the handle of my guitar case. “I didn’t mean it like that. It’s just … you’ve never wanted to go with me before, so I’m just a little confused.”
She shrugs as she scuffs her boot across the ground. “I need to get out of the house. I feel like I’m losing my mind. Everywhere I go, one of my parents follows me, like they expect me to break apart at any moment. And I know they’re not going to let me go anywhere unless I’m with you.”
Despite the sheer awkwardness I’m feeling, I say, “You can always come with me. You know that.”
She straightens her shoulders and beams at me. “Thank you. Let me go tell them where I’m going. I’ll be right back.” She hoists herself over the fence and sprints into her house through the side door near the garage.
With my guitar in my hand, I climb into Lila’s Mercedes that she’s pretty much given to me at this point. The Gregorys own two other cars, so she always acts like it’s never a big deal to let me drive their extra vehicle somewhere. But it is. A. Big. Freaking. Huge. Deal. Because it means they trust me.
“Okay, I’m totally good to go,” Lyric says as she slides into the passenger seat. “I just have to be back before eleven, which is so weird. I’ve never had a curfew before.”
“I’m sure they’re just worried,” I tell her as I back down the driveway, pretending that I’m not hyperaware of her scent filling up the cab. God, she smells so good.
“I know that.” She draws the seatbelt over her shoulder. “But I’m feeling a bit smothered ever since my parents decided to press charges against William. I’m hoping things will cool off here in a few weeks when he gets sentenced, or whatever is going to happen to him.” The seatbelt clicks into place and she relaxes back in the seat. “Although, if he does get any sort of punishment, I’m sure it’ll just be community service, since he doesn’t have a prior.”
I flip on the blinker to pull out onto the main road of our subdivision. “You say that way too casually.”
“I have to be casual about it.” She props her feet on the dash and reaches for the iPod docked in the middle console. “Otherwise, it’ll pull me down. And I refuse to go down.” She pauses as she browses through the songs. “I think my parents might be worried I have a mental illness.”
“What?” I gape at her, half expecting her to insert a punch line to her joke. Because she has to be joking.