Age 13:
From: [email protected]
SHINY. The most embarrassing thing ever happened to me today.
I was sitting in math class, listening to the teacher drone on about equations, blah, blah, blah, and I felt a weird…something. I don’t want to go into too much detail, but I ignored it because I figured it couldn’t be, well, that, you know. So later on, I got up to sharpen my pencil, and I heard Jeremy (this guy I used to think was cute) laughing. And when I sat back down, my friend Lauren said I started my period. It was freaking mortifying! I asked the teacher if I could go to the restroom, and he said when he was done with the lesson, so I was forced to wait there, and then he taught till the bell rang. I wanted to crawl into a hole and die. My mom brought a change of clothes and everything else I needed, but I cried about it all the way through fourth period (no pun intended).
I realize you probably don’t care to know that, but you’re the only friend that I can tell this stuff to since you don’t know me IRL. Plus, I already told you about my middle school crush on that hot fish in Finding nemo, so you already know my deepest, most humiliating secrets.
Anyway, I hope your day was better than mine. How was that history test you were so worried about?
Much embarrassment,
Lily
***
Waking up in my childhood twin-size bed in an unfamiliar apartment next to three half-unpacked boxes and clothes spilling out of garbage bags felt oddly on track with how my life was going. I had been dreading this move-in with Nathan because I was certain the living situation would be as awkward as every one of our encounters. But as we hung out last night, I realized that Nathan Huxley was actually cool. Really cool. Even though he’d walked in with his tie half on and his hair all disheveled, it was almost impossible to peel my eyes away from him.
I stayed up way too late watching the Phillies game and, if I’m honest, kind of hoping that Nathan would come back out. Maybe I freaked him out a little with the mug thing, or maybe he really did just have an early morning, but either way, I liked his company.
Technically, I wasn’t scheduled to work until Romfuzzled opened at six, but I was desperate to leave the apartment. The air inside was full of hot roommates and poor decisions. So when Layla texted to say she was there writing, I headed into work.
I pulled into the freshly paved parking lot with my windows down and my perfectly tamed hair now a wild mess of frizzy curls.
As I shifted into park, my phone buzzed with an email notification, and I instantly smiled when I saw it was from Shiny.
To: [email protected].
From: [email protected]
I had a weird day yesterday. I just need to hear how you’re doing so I feel better about my life. So tell me something weird about yours, please.
Or maybe your life is going perfectly, in which case I will be glad to tell you congrats and lift a mental middle finger your way.
Also, how is your ankle?
-S
It was hard not to let out a laugh. I loved that he felt the need to send me every little update he had.
What Shiny and I had was simple and easy. Sometimes, when life got busy, we’d go weeks without chatting, but we always found our way back. We rarely argued, and when we did, it was over food. Even though we hadn’t met in person after all these years, he was one of my biggest supporters. It was like we were always meant to find our way to each other.
I happily answered.
From: [email protected].
Sorry, bud. Nothing too weird over here. Other than the fact that I am now completely broke and relying on someone for a place to live. But to be fair, the place I’m staying in has an incredible view of the city and so many opportunities for plants. So that’s a plus.
What’s weird in your life?
Missing you,
Lily
I bounced the entire way into the bar, my sandals clicking against the refinished hardwood floors.
Luke was leaning against the bar top, mindlessly wiping down the counter space and homed in on his brunette fiancée across the room. Layla sat in a booth, hunched over her laptop. Her fingers raced against the keys so fast and there was so much passion radiating from her that it looked like she was mad at the computer. Luke was caught in some kind of trance, completely unaware of the people moving kegs behind him or my arrival.
“Maybe you should tell her you like her.” I broke my brother’s captivation by plopping onto the barstool directly across from him.
Luke scoffed, tossing the cleaning rag at me. “Yeah, thanks. I’ll get right on that.”
I hefted my backpack onto the bar and yanked my laptop and Canon camera bag out. “All right, boss, let’s do this.”
“Should I be scared?” Luke pulled back, looking down at my extravagant case of lenses and filters.
“Maybe. Be prepared for some TikTok trends.” I shook my phone and gave a cheeky smirk.
My first day of “work” didn’t feel like work. I followed Luke around with my DSLR and worked on his social media branding. New logos, font templates, color palettes, picking hex codes to match the vibe of the bar, the works. I set up accounts on all my favorite social media platforms and made two posts explaining who they were and how Romfuzzled came to be. By the time I got back to the apartment, I was exhausted and sweaty, and my eyes were blurry after far too much screen time. I was tempted to drag my butt straight to bed, but on my way there, the ajar door of Nathan’s office and the soft light from within piqued my curiosity.
I tiptoed my way closer and knocked on the white door. “Nathan?” I whispered, even though I was 98 percent sure he was still at work.
The door creaked open farther, and I casually tossed my keys onto the floor on the other side. “Whoops, my keys fell into your office. Let me just get them real quick…” Whether he had cameras around here or not, I figured it was as good an excuse as any.
I slipped into the room and froze at the sight. There was a baby grand piano in the far corner, three guitars hanging on the wall, and a small black drum set off to the side. A record player sat on a shelf, and several vintage records lay behind it.
I couldn’t help but whistle. I knew Nathan played guitar, and I knew he taught kids’ lessons here and there, but an entire room dedicated to music? I hadn’t seen that coming. I bit back a smile and looked over my shoulder, as if he’d pop up any second and yell at me like the beast telling Belle to get out of the west wing.
I snagged my keys off the floor and trailed over to the piano. It was sleek and black, with a small bench below that matched. Under the lid, it was perfectly clean and just begging for me to run my fingers over the keys and play a ridiculous made-up song. I had no clue how to play, but I’d always wanted to learn. When I was a little girl, my mom took me to a concert on a girls’ date, and it stuck with me—the way the girl on stage let her fingers fly effortlessly across the keys like it was second nature. Her curled hair flowing behind her and her long dress made her look like an angel.
I tried lessons once, but my instructor was a cranky old woman who told me I didn’t have the skills to be a musician. I may or may not have kicked over the flowerpot on her front porch when I left. Those words hurt. Especially because all of my siblings had picked up on their talents so easily. Meanwhile, everything I did was mediocre.
Like the instrument was calling to me, I lifted my fingers to the black and white keys, trailing them lightly. Pausing near the middle, I pressed gently to let out a note and—
“Do you play?”
With a jolt, I jumped up from the seat and dropped a hand to the instrument, attempting a casual pose. A deep, jarring tone echoed through the room, which made me jump again.
“I’m taking that as a no…” Nathan crossed his arms and leaned against the doorframe.
I shuffled around the other side of the piano bench and twisted my body from side to side. “You know, you shouldn’t keep scaring me. One day I really may have a knife on me, and I can’t be held liable for what happens when I’m in survival mode.”
He chuckled and took a step into the office, making it feel so much smaller.
“So…what are you doing in here? Snooping?” The smirk on his face told me he already knew.
“No. Just…researching. I live with you, but I don’t know much about you. How do I know you’re not a serial killer?” I lifted my chin like I could pose some kind of threat, even though he had a solid foot on me.
Nathan tilted his head. “I’ve known your brother for almost five years. Doesn’t that give me some form of street cred?”
Shrugging and more than ready to deflect, I looked around the abundant room. “Do you play all of these?”
He perked up. “Yeah, I took lessons for years. I think my mom just wanted me to find a hobby that kept my hands busy so I wasn’t always destroying her house.”
Huh. That sounded about right. I could picture a tiny Nathan running around and causing all sorts of chaos. He gave off vibes that reminded me of my nephew, Dallas. There were always Legos on the floor of my brother’s house and stickers of Spiderman on kitchen cabinets.
I looked at the piano and back at him. “Would you play for me?”
