RoseBlood(27)

Sunny looks mortified at the suggestion.

“Not a good idea,” Jax adds, and flashes a pleading glance to his sister who’s now facing our direction.

Her pretty features are so much like his, they must be twins. The only noticeable differences are her brown eyes to his blue, her carefully applied makeup, and her delicate build beneath our more feminine version of the boys’ uniforms, along with the sequined headband in her hair. She grimaces back at him, unforgiving.

“See?” Jax mumbles. “There’s no reasoning with them. Kat would claw you to shreds, and my sis turns feral at the scent of blood.”

Sunny almost coughs up her bite of muffin. “Ha. Right? Rune, no more feeling guilty. You did us all a favor. In our rendition of The Fiery Angel, the roles of Madiel and Otterheim are played by one performer. Jax is going out for the parts, so he can be Renata’s guardian angel and bad-boy love interest, all in hopes of being Audrey’s guardian angel in real life. Considering who he’s up against, the roles are as good as his. But . . . Audrey still has to snag Renata for the plan to work.”

A flush rushes through Jackson’s ears. “Did Quan tell you that? Could you strap a feedbag to his mouth or something?”

“How about a muzzle?” Sunny offers. “He’s already in the doghouse. Made me miss the Clint Eastwood marathon last weekend on our day trip, all ’cause he got caught up at the arcade.”

Jax rolls his eyes and turns back to me. “I only went out for the parts in the opera because there’s no football or soccer to occupy my time here.” He tosses his apron across the counter behind him as we move out of the way for other students to pick up their orders.

Sunny snorts. “Sure ya did, Jax. Who needs contact sports when you have kissy scenes with a pretty gal, right?”

“Can it, Sunny.” Jax frowns, his entire face red now.

I can’t keep from smiling. First, because it’s such a relief to know he isn’t a rich-boy player at all; he’s a grand performer, trying to hide the fact that he’s crushing on a girl who doesn’t seem to know how smitten he is. Second, because I’ve never seen a high school guy blush. It’s endearing.

I misjudged him and am so glad I did.

“By the way,” he continues, frowning at Sunny, “you really suck at this peer advisor thing.” Pretending to be preoccupied by my lack of an extra hand, Jax offers to carry my bowl of fruit to the table for me. “Trays are beside the register. Sunny should’ve grabbed you one but she’s too busy being obnoxious to be responsible.”

“It’s all right,” I say.

“No, it’s not. But no worries. I’ll be her backup if you ever need anything.” His flirty sideways grin doesn’t intimidate me this time. “I’ll help you learn the routine.”

I shrug. “So long as it doesn’t get in the way of you earning your guardian angel wings.” I bite my lip, shocked I teased him like that. His and Sunny’s easy rapport has lulled me. For a second, I almost felt like I was hanging out with Trig and Janine.

“Nice one, Rune!” Sunny high-fives me, smirking. Jax responds with laughter. I let myself smile, relieved I didn’t offend him. Maybe being here won’t be so bad after all . . . as long as I can avoid the music, the bloodthirsty diva duo, and the phantom’s shadow lurking around every corner.





7



FACING THE MUSIC


“Only when you drink from the river of silence shall you indeed sing.”

Khalil Gibran

Sunny, Jax, and I step into the main dining area’s dimly lit expanse. Thankfully, the pictures on the TVs have faded to a blank screen, and the music’s no longer piping through the speakers. This leaves the candles popping in the background, students chatting quietly, and silverware scraping plates as the only sounds.

The three of us make our way to a seven-seater table wedged into the farthest corner. Two students wait there, faces flashing in the soft candlelight. I take a place on the empty side, positioning myself so I can wave Mom over if she decides to come out of the buffet area and join us.

“Rune, this is Audrey Mirlo,” Sunny says, motioning to the girl with the ponytail who Jax was flirting with earlier.

“Also known as our little blackbird.” Grinning, Jax flips around a chair at the head of the table to sit on it backward, arms wrapped around the frame. Now it’s crystal clear why he wanted to help me carry my food over. How can she not see it, with the way he looks at her?

Audrey gives him a scolding side glare. Then she nods hello. I nod back, sensing tension. I concentrate on the hearty flavor of the pumpernickel and wash it down with a hot sip of nutty cappuccino, trying not to wonder whether she considers me a lucky charm or a rival.

“Howdy there, Sunspot,” teases the boy on the other side of Audrey, his sloped, almond eyes locked on Sunny. “Saved a seat for ya, ma’am.” The fake Texas accent coaxes my pensive lips to smile.

“Thanks but no thanks, Moonpie.” Sunny takes the place beside me instead, across from him, making a show of avoiding the chair next to him that he’s pushed out with his foot.

He snorts. “Still mad at me, huh?”

“She’s not the only one, big-mouthed guppy.” Jax reaches behind Audrey to smack who I now realize must be the aforementioned Quan in the back of the head.