[This story is free again]
A social klutz and certified bookworm, Autumn Lyne is content with having just books as companions--that is, until her extrovert of a sister drags her out to meet her band. But nobody has expected that this would mark the...
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The second time I woke up that day, I was alone on the couch, a knitted blanket draped over me. I smiled at the thought of Michael tucking me in. It was almost noon, and the boys were off to town to buy some groceries for tonight's celebration.
Rose, Clover, and I spent the day taking pictures with nature and playing Cards Against Humanity where my sister won multiple times. It was probably the first time I realized how disturbing her humor could be. Meanwhile, Evonne was engaged in an interminable phone conversation with someone. She kept mentioning Michael throughout her talk, which upset me—not with her, but with myself for being unreasonably jealous.
In the afternoon, when the boys were back, we fished, swam, and generally had another wonderful time until the night came. Since it was our last night in the lake house, all of us had given full effort to make our last meal grand and unforgettable. The roasted turkey was placed in the middle of the round table and was surrounded by other food like mashed potatoes, hams, stuffing, corn, and many more. We turned off the lights and kindled the fireplace and little candles on the table to create a lovely scene.
The dinner was fun and loud, something that was new to me. Back home, every meal was a solemn occasion in which conversations ended abruptly with a yes or no, or a small head gesture.
"The competition's gonna be on the last day of this month, isn't it?" Clover asked, slicing the ham in half on her plate.
The person on my left was Rose, and she smiled as she answered, "Oh, yes! It will be my first time attending a band contest, and I can't wait for it. Let's all go together, okay?"
"Your first time?" I asked her. I had assumed she was a concertgoer.
"Strict parents," Nate chipped in, to which Rose nodded.
"See, I'm a church girl, and secular music isn't allowed at home. My parents find them violent and stupid. But I told them that I was studying at my friend's house on the night of the contest, so..." She shrugged proudly. "I'm good to go."
"Oh, that's evil," Clint said while the rest of us cracked up. "I didn't know you had that in you, Rose."
"I still can't forget that we didn't pass the audition." Clover let out a tiny sigh.
I glanced at Michael across the table, expecting him to make a reaction. He only chewed in silence, eyes focused on his plate.
Rose offered her a sympathetic smile. "Some things are just not meant for us, Clove. Let's move on."
"I'm just trying to figure out what went wrong during our recording. We invested so much effort into it. I think it was the most serious performance we ever did. But why?"
Nate raised his pointing finger at Clover. "There's only one explanation for that," he said and hiccupped. "We're losers. We're all losers in all aspects of life, so let's celebrate!" He raised his glass that contained iced tea.
