Things Happen | ✓

Chapter Twenty-Six: Absentee's and Duets

After John paid for our ice cream, we left the shop. Although I knew better than to ask, I couldn't help but be curious about John getting jealous about the flirtatious cashier. He wasn't supposed to have feelings for me. Then again, neither should I.

We walked silently down the sidewalk, the warm sun gracing us with it's rays. The curiosity was killing me, and I could feel it bubbling past my filter.

"What was that back at the ice cream shop?", I blurted out.

"What do you mean?", John replied nonchalantly, eating another bite of his ice cream.

I sighed. He wasn't going to make this easy for me. "The cashier. You were acting weird.", I replied.

"I was?", John asked, his question sounding more like a statement.

I nodded. "Yeah. You were."

John shrugged. "I don't know, I guess he just rubbed me the wrong way.", He answered.

"Oh.", I replied. I was probably making it up in my mind. If he was acting protective, it was probably only because I was his foster sister. Of course he wouldn't have feelings for me. He must only see me as a friend at most, and nothing more.

"So what's new, Ken?", John asked, changing the subject after a few seconds of silence.

I thought for a moment before answering. "I made the Curmouth Elite Choir Team.", I replied.

"You sing?!", John questioned in surprise.

"Um, yeah?"

"I didn't know that! But that's awesome, Ken. They always make it to the State Championships. Sometimes they even make it to Nationals. The Choir is insanely good.", He said as we walked.

"Really? Nationals would be so cool.", I remarked, discarding my empty ice cream cup in a nearby trash can.

"Yeah. And they have this really cool Showcase in the Fall. I heard that some colleges come and scope out the students for scholarships. One girl a couple years ago made it into Julliard.", John said.

I grinned at the thought. Julliard would be a dream come true. I'm not sure if I'd be good enough, but performing would be so amazing.

"She is so lucky. Julliard is amazing!", I said happily.

"Do you want to go to Julliard?", John asked me.

"Oh yeah. I've always loved the idea of going there. I don't know if I'm good enough for Julliard, but I would go there in a heartbeat if they offered me a scholarship.", I told him.

"You have got to sing something for me!", John exclaimed, causing me to blush.

"Sing what?"

"I don't know, anything!"

I smiled at John. "Maybe later."

He looked at me with an amused look. "Sure, Ken. You're not getting out of it that easy. You're probably the next Taylor Swift."

I laughed and shook my head. John is full of it. But it is nice to know that he believes in me.

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The second I stepped foot onto the campus of Curmouth High School on Monday morning, I was pleasantly surprised with the normalcy of the courtyard. No one was whispering about me, and it seemed like everyone had forgotten about the incident where I had accidentally knocked Hannah over in attempt to get to my English class on time.