I'm changing Maya's birthday date.
•••
"Hey," someone said, and I batted my eyes open. I saw Lucas' face hovering on top of mine, but quite oddly, it didn't take me by surprise. "You've been sleeping until 11 am, wake up already."
"Like I said, you make a terrible babysitter," I said, sitting up. "You have to wake me up earlier than this." Lucas stood up as I threw off my covers. "I couldn't stop having nightmares."
"About the movie?" he asked.
"No, about Dexter and Aspen," I said. He looked surprised for a second and slightly grinned.
"You're pretty caring," he said. "Even though they don't like you." I shrugged. "I told Pearl she didn't have to come home today since she was there yesterday. That's okay, right?"
"No, that's fine," I said. "She was really helpful." I went into the washroom to do my hair, brush my teeth, and replace my PJs with a t‐shirt and baggy capris.
I walked downstairs and ate what was left on the counter. Stupid Lucas was making me eat salad for breakfast. It tasted pretty good, though. The cookies yesterday turned out good, too. I made the assumption that Lucas was a good cook. See what I mean? That popular guy was good at everything.
After I was done eating, I walked into the living room where he was playing the piano. He was attempting to play the entire song, Love Me Like You Do, and he was doing pretty good. He would mess up at times, but he kept trying. Finally, he turned around and saw me watching him play from behind.
"Did you finish eating the salad?" he asked me, simpering.
"It was good, okay?" I said, rolling my eyes and grabbing a chair to sit next to him. "Are you done with the song, completely?" He shrugged and nodded at the same time, starting with a few lines.
"I want to play it for you," he said.
I nodded as he struck a few random notes and put his hands in position. He started to play the intro of the song and I smiled. I pondered whether to sing along or not. But when the beat rose and it was time for the lyrics, I slowly began to sing, too. Lucas tapped the last note and looked at me. God, I didn't even know if I sounded good. I just knew the lyrics word for word and I didn't even know if he wanted me to sing.
"Sorry‐"
"Wow‐" we both said at the same time.
"That was amazing," Lucas said, brushing through his hair and grinning at me. "You should join choir or something. You sound like a popstar."
I shook my head, pressing my clasped hands on my lap. "No, you're the popular one," I said. "Singing isn't something I particularly enjoy doing, or something I do in general. It's definitely not going to be my career if I had a choice."
Lucas turned his piano chair so he was facing me. "Remember I told you even though you can't learn to play the guitar, in the end you know you're really good at singing?" he said. "You're doing better in guitar, and we've already started practising my song."
"You know one difference about me and you?" I said. "You're really motivating and I'm not. I'm not exactly engaged in much stuff and I suck at social skills."
"You're doing fine with me," he said, holding my gaze. I felt a little jittery and pried my eyes away. "Look, you can tell me anything. That's what I'm saying. Okay?" I bit my lip and looked at the piano keys. Lucas knew exactly how to read me, didn't he? Why did he have to be a friendly, smart, and talented jerk at the same time?
