The Songs in Our Hearts: A Young Adult Romance(45)

I shook my head quickly. “No…uh…there’s some sort of redesign he needs to show me and ask me about before Paul finishes building the sets.”

“He can’t just text you photos?” Josh asked suspiciously. “You know, from his phone?”

“No, Josh. He can’t just take photos on his phone,” I said sharply. “It’s just for a few minutes, please?” I turned to look at my mom and dad, who were now looking at each other. Dad was the first to respond.

“Fine, but curfew still stands. He needs to leave by nine-thirty. Capisce?”

“Yep!” I quickly texted Micah back.





CHARLIE: Come over



CHARLIE: We can hang out here



MICAH: I’m around the block



MICAH: Be there in a sec





Micah was on my front porch a few minutes later. I hadn’t noticed how hard it was raining outside until I opened the door. He was completely drenched from head to foot.

“Oh, my gosh, get in here!” I exclaimed, pulling him into the house. He stood on the mat, dripping all over the place. “Did you drive or walk?” I asked with a snort as I took in the sight of him.

“What would be more romantic?” Micah grinned as he slipped his shoes off.

“Micah,” I warned softly, eyeing him with a teasing smile.

“Fine, fine. I drove. It’s just raining hard.”

I sighed and shook my head.

“Stay right there. Let me go get you a towel.” I bolted to the bathroom, grabbing a few towels from the closet, and raced back. While Micah patted down his hair with a towel, Josh cleared his throat behind me.

“Here, I have some extra clothes you can change into.” He offered a plain white T-shirt and a pair of sweats he was holding.

“That’s okay. I don’t plan to be here long,” Micah declined politely. “I appreciate it, though.”

“No way, man. Come on. You’re all wet. Here, Charlie.” Josh tossed the clothing at me. “I don’t really care about them. Just dry off.” Josh didn’t hang around to say anything more. Instead, he went back to his room. My parents were still sitting at the dining table as I led Micah into the house. He gave them a small wave and a word of thanks as he headed to the bathroom to change. I stood awkwardly in the hallway, unsure what to say.

“Must be pretty important,” Dad remarked as he stood to take his glass to the sink. “To come all this way in the pouring rain to show you some redesigns.”

Dad never believed my lies. He always knew better. In this case, I already figured he understood there was something more going on. But he was too considerate to voice it out loud.

“Must be,” I replied, looking down at my feet.

Micah was quick to come out of the bathroom and meet me in the hallway. “So, those redesigns you said you wanted to show me…” I began, hoping he would catch on.

“Oh, right…” Micah gave me an understanding nod.

My dad walked past us. I could read his eyes plainly: you don’t have to keep lying, Charlie.

I pulled Micah to my room, being sure to keep the door ajar to appease my parents’ unspoken rule. Micah sat down on the side of my bed and slid his hands through his damp hair. I could tell there was a lot on his mind. I took a seat beside him.

“What’s going on with your dad?” I asked softly, tilting my head.

“You don’t know how lucky you are.”

I looked down at my hands in my lap. I never really thought about how lucky I was. While I loved my family, and wouldn’t trade them for the world, I sometimes wondered what life would be like to travel, go on camping trips and spontaneous adventures like other families. Every summer, Rachel and Jennifer would visit different states with their family, while I’d sit at home and tackle the summer reading list provided by the local library. I understood that my parents had to work a lot to make ends meet, but I wanted to have the same experiences as my friends.

“Your mom, for instance. You’re lucky you have a mom. Mine left us years ago. She just packed her shit up and left. My dad started to drink pretty heavily afterward.”

“I’m sorry,” I said, sucking in a breath.

For the first time since I had met Micah, I felt sorry for him. And not the condescending pity kind of “feeling sorry.” The thought of not having one of my parents in my life was unbearable. The idea that any family could one day be incomplete felt wrong and painful. I couldn’t imagine what sort of lonely life Micah and his dad had together. No one was there to console him with a hug when he had a bad day. Who was there to encourage him with his passions? Or to hold him accountable when he did something wrong? I couldn’t imagine not having a mom to confide in, to spend time with. Sure, dads could fill that role, but a mom’s love was different. Having both parents made me feel uniquely whole.

“What happened tonight? Was he drinking?” I asked tentatively.

“He was just going off, throwing some shit around. Paul made the mistake of waking up my dad when he dropped off stuff for the sets after school. My dad got up and started slamming dishes down on the counter, mumbling about us being loud. Then he punched a hole in the wall when I talked back.” He paused, letting out a heavy sigh. “Sometimes…it just gets to be too much.” We sat silently together, while I desperately tried to find something to say.