Sophomore Year || Parenthood Series, Book One || WATTYS 2018

Chapter Fifty-One

SOUNDTRACK: "Too Fast" - Sonder

DAY ONE

"You want to put on a pair of shorts that are longer than your crotch, please? Thank you," Jared said as Kate walked out of her bedroom at the house Jared had rented outside of Palm Springs. He was taking her and Olivia to Coachella with a couple of his friends, but he was not having her wardrobe choices.

"But Chloe's wearing less than I am!" Kate protested.

"Chloe is also an adult and not my kid," Jared replied. "Go change."

She grumbled and went back into her room, flipping her suitcase open. Olivia appeared from their en suite bathroom fully dressed with perfect makeup.

"What the hell am I supposed to wear, Liv?" Kate asked.

"This," Olivia remarked, pulling a short, white crocheted dress from the bottom of her own bag. "I'm not gonna wear it."

Kate took it and yanked her shorts down before pulling her top off. She hurried to slip the dress over her head and moved to look at herself in the mirror. Cutouts at the shoulders gave the illusion of it being an off-the-shoulder dress. The sleeves ended in bells three-quarters of the way down her arm. It fell halfway down her thighs and, when paired with the black cowboy boots she had brought, revealed just enough leg to get attention. She pulled the boots on and looked at herself in the mirror before grabbing her cross-body bag and sunglasses and walking out of their room.

"Much better," Jared remarked. "We're just waiting on Emma and we're good to go."

For their excursion to Coachella, Jared had invited along Emma, Chloe and Stevie and he had told her she could bring along Olivia too, if her parents agreed. Olivia had screamed in excitement and ended the call before Kate could even finish the question. So there they were, in the large house Jared had rented as a little get away before it was time to crack down and study for AP exams for real. Halfway through April and they would be sitting their exams before they knew it. Kate could only hope that Olivia would maintain some type of composure if they ran into anyone famous.

"So Olivia, I just want to go over a few ground rules," Jared started. "Stick with the group. Don't wander off. If we get swarmed by photographers, grab a buddy and hold on. And don't be alarmed if you get some hate or something on your social media."

Olivia's eyes widened. "But there's so many people there. It's not like photographers will surround us all the time, right?"

Jared shrugged. "Not the whole time, but probably at least once. Just keep your head down and keep walking."

"It'll be fine," Chloe assured the teen. "Most people here are too focused on the festival to notice."

"Or they'll try to take pictures without being seen," Emma added with a chuckle as she came into the room. "Sorry. Tom called. He's meeting us there."

"Stevie, you're driving," Jared said, tossing the keys to the large SUV to the younger man. "Let's get going."

They piled into the SUV, with Stevie and Jared in the front, Chloe and Emma in the first row, and Olivia and Kate in the very back. On the ride, Jared handed out VIP passes and credentials. They were able to park in a VIP section that was somewhat secluded from the rest of the parking area. The instant she stepped out of the car, Kate ws glad she had chosen a white dress. The heat rose from the dirt under her feet in waves, radiating through her body.