Edge of Great // Julie and the Phantoms (Reggie Peters)

06

Julie yelled at Luke, who'd returned to the box like a curious puppy, "Oh, my gosh! I thought I told you to leave that alone!"

Reyna chuckled softly. "Just like a little kid."

Reggie pointed to her and exclaimed, "Exactly!"

"I know," Luke replied. "You just should've said nothing, 'cause now I can't stop thinking about it, so... What's in the box, Julie?"

"It's just my dream box, okay?" Julie said. "Whenever I get a thought, I write it down and get it out of my mind."

"Like lyrics?"

"They would be if I still wrote music like I used to with my mom. Now it's just full of stuff that doesn't make me sad."

Alex stood and said, "But I mean, you do play. We heard you two this morning." Luke and Reggie glared at him and Luke swatted Alex's chest.

"In the garage? So you were there too?"

"Uh... I don't..." Alex began.

Reggie turned to Alex. "Uh... he was, like..."

"We were..."

"Somewhere."

Luke, who'd moved to lay on Julie's bed, held his head up with his hand and asked, "So where is your kitchen, by the way?"

"Okay, we need to set some boundaries," Julie told them. "For starters, stay out of my room! The only one allowed in is Reyna!" She pointed to the door.

The boys shot up. "Mm-hmm. Crystal clear. Let's go."

"We're leaving," Reggie said. "Yes, ma'am! We are out of here."

"Okay."

The three ran towards the door.

Alex popped his head back in and said, "Hey. Um, sorry. I didn't mean to bother you. Did you two get back into your music program?"

"No. No, I didn't," Julie and Reyna replied as they looked down.

"I'm sorry. That really sucks."

"Thanks."

Alex glanced up and Julie asked, "Is that it?"

"Yeah. Yeah. This is getting weird."

Julie and Reyna waved at him.

"Okay," Alex stated as he disappeared.

Reyna glanced at Julie. "Three ghosts from a band. This is interesting."

Julie nodded. "That is putting mildly. I'm gonna go see what my dad is doing."

"I'll come with."

---

Julie and Reyna made their way downstairs. Carlos was laying on the couch playing a video game and Julie's father was sitting on his laptop as he looked at pictures.

"Hey, Dad," Julie greeted as she and Reyna entered the living room. "What'cha working on?" She pocketed her hands and Reyna tilted her head.

"Well, now that the house is on the market, we need to add some photos to the website," Ray replied, ushering Reyna and Julie over. "Help me pick some good ones."

Julie and Reyna walked over as the latter said, "Mr. Molina? Now that you guys are actually moving, what's going to happen to me? I-I mean, with everything going on with my parents, it's not the best idea for me to be with them."

Ray smiled at the blonde. "Don't worry, Reyna. We'll figure something out for you. Technically you're in my care."

As Julie passed her brother, she moved his foot and he shot her an annoyed look.