Underage

[41] It's a Surprise Not A Secret

[41] It's A Surprise Not A Secret

"Business isn't doing as well as I thought it would." I hear Miss Annie saying to Kyle as I walk through the front door as quiet as I can with the bells attached to the handle.

Like usual, there isn't anyone inside except for the two. Most of the chairs are still upside down on top of the tables. Miss Annie and Kyle are standing behind the counter. Kyle's fiddling with one of the machines while his aunt is leaning against the counter with her back towards the door.

They turn towards me when they hear the bells jingle. Miss Annie sends me a strained smile, but Kyle sends me a genuine one.

"I can come back if you two want to be alone."

Miss Annie waves her hand at me. "Nonsense darling, come on in."

"We have some regulars," Kyle says. Besides Ethan, Coop, and Grace—who seem to make it a point to stop by every day—our regulars consist of nothing but elderly couples. "I can do some promoting around town. We can start social media accounts for it. Maybe have a day with half-off cups of coffee just to get people inside."

I look towards Miss Annie who is smiling down at her nephew. Then she looks towards me. "What do you think Thea?"

"I think it could help," I tell them. "We could set up a stand at the fireworks show for the fourth of July."

Every year on fourth of July, our town holds a fireworks show just after the sunsets for the entire town. People lay down blankets and chairs and watch as the thirty minute show shoots off firework after firework from the middle of the lake.

Every year, Katelyn Nichols throws a party for the teenagers. It starts after the first firework show and it's always in a different location that no-one knows until the day of.

"Isn't the big party on the fourth?" Miss Annie asks me with a smirk on her lips. I raise my eyebrows at her.

All the parents, and even the police officers, know of our parties. The ones at the Grove, the fourth of July, and the one for the end of the summer. It's been a town tradition since they were in high school, passed down through the generations. Last year; however, the party was thrown at the lake. They picked a random one with a lot of cover where they thought it was a good idea to take a boat out into the middle of the water and shoot off their own expensive fireworks. Teenage boys and exploding fire isn't a good combination. No one knows how it happened, only that one of the fireworks didn't shoot up like it was supposed to. Instead, it stayed in the boat and exploded right in their faces.

Thankfully it wasn't a very large one. They ended up with a few burns and scars they'll forever wear.

Miss Annie was the one I had called when the cops showed up. Her house was the closest and we were far too drunk to go home. We had crashed at her house that night, although none of us quite remember what happened once we arrived at her house. Not that she'll ever tell us.

"After the family show, you know that." I say and then look towards Kyle. "You can come with us, if you want."

Before he can answer me, his phone beeps twice. He immediately pulls his phone out of his pocket and stares down at the screen. A frown takes over his lips and his eyebrows tug downward. Miss Annie takes one look at her nephew's face and places a loving hand on his forearm.

"It'll be okay sweetie."

Kyle doesn't respond to the message. Instead, he slips his phone back into his pocket and leans back on the counter. He doesn't look up from the ground when his phone beeps again. This time he doesn't even reach for it.