The Songs in Our Hearts: A Young Adult Romance(63)

Micah hesitated, looking as though he was struggling with his thoughts, and then slowly began to shake his head, his expression serious.

“As if that were possible, Charlie.”

His words hung in the air between us. Maybe I had taken it too far. Quickly, I tried to think of something else to talk about. Anything to diminish the awkwardness I had created.

“So…are you ready for the presentation?” I asked, leaning my elbows on the table. Micah bit into his burger.

“I guess,” he responded thickly.

“Does it look good?” I continued, curious.

“It looks great, actually. I had Marshall help me out with some special effects on the computer and you can actually see a storm raging outside the windows. You look really great in the movie, too. I think the entire class will be mesmerized by you.”

I laughed nervously. “Yeah right.”

“No, really,” Micah replied, shoving a few more fries into his mouth. “You looked like a princess. You really carried the part of Elizabeth.”

“I kinda forgot all about the paper we had to write about the author. I guess I got carried away with the rest of the project, but I ended up working on it,” I said, changing the subject as swiftly as I could again. “It appears we’re really done with the whole thing.”

“Wow…yeah.” Micah brushed a hand through his hair. “I guess we’re finally done with the whole project, huh?” Micah asked, crumpling up the paper from his hamburger and shoving it into his now empty fry container. I took another sip of soda.

Micah studied me as though expecting a reaction. I knew what he was looking for. He wanted to know if we’d continue to hang out, now that we no longer had a school assignment tying us together.

“Ready to go home?” Micah broke the silence, glancing down at his phone for the time.

I shrugged and started to clean up our trash. We didn’t say anything else as we got into Micah’s car and started to drive back to my house. Micah opened the windows, allowing the autumn air to creep in.

“What are you thinking about?” I asked softly, snuggling down sideways into the passenger seat so that I could watch him. Micah tapped his fingers on the steering wheel.

“Nothing really. Just stuff. How about you?”

I’m thinking, how in the world am I going to tell you how I really feel?

“Nothing,” I responded. All too soon, we were pulling into my driveway and I was reaching for the door handle.

“We are friends, right?” Micah asked abruptly. I turned my attention away from the door and looked at him, raising my brow.

“Of course we are,” I replied.

“So, it won’t be weird to hang out now that the project’s over, right?”

“I hope not,” I said honestly. “Don’t worry, Micah…I’m not going anywhere.”

Micah nodded slowly, a sad grin twisting his lips.

“Okay,” he replied softly. There was a hint of insecurity in his tone. He shifted uncomfortably in his seat and let out a deep sigh.

“I know that Homecoming is a big deal for you girls.” His dark gaze locked on mine. “Would it be all right for us to go together? A little celebration for all our hard work.”

“You’re asking me to Homecoming?”

“Only if you want to go. I know it’s last minute.” Homecoming with Micah.

I tried to hold back some of my enthusiasm. “I’d love to go.”

Micah smiled and let out a puff of air. “Great.”

“See you on the bus,” I promised as I climbed out of his car. Micah waited until I opened the front door before he finally pulled away. I stood there and watched him go. It was safe to say the something between us was love.

In our own, quiet ways, we knew it. The connection between us was more than just a silly school project, or a rumored crush. It was more than what any song from Micah’s stereo could encapsulate. What had begun as a friendship had silently changed in the hues of twilight nights and slushies. No matter how scared we were to admit it to ourselves, what we felt was more.





“Something Just Like This”

The Chainsmokers and Coldplay





“LOOKS LIKE WE HAVE MICAH Jacobs and Caroline Blake next,” Mrs. Tenner said cheerfully. I looked at Micah from across the room and he winked at me. I could almost hear him saying, “We got this, C.” He walked to the front of the class and inserted our homemade DVD into the machine. There was a large white projector screen against the wall, pulled down for the other film projects.

“So, Charlie and I made a movie for our project,” Micah began as I stood up and went to stand beside him.

“We created a film based on the novel Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley. There isn’t really much to say about it, other than...watch and enjoy.”

Micah turned to look at me and I gave him a nod of encouragement. I had nothing to add, other than how much I hated the mask Marshall wore. Micah flicked off the lights, and I pressed the Play button on the DVD player. Instantly, the room was filled with thunderous music and Micah’s face filled the screen. We both went back to our seats and watched the film unfold to the class.

Micah had been right. I looked different—beautiful, even. The Halloween costume had been the perfect touch to Elizabeth’s character. But Micah’s interpretation of Victor was piercing. He was even more handsome in the film, dressed up in his rich costume; he reminded me of a good-looking Hollywood actor. The monster was pretty horrible, but it was the only thing that reminded us just how amateur our film was. My death scene was intensely startling; the monster looked as though he were truly strangling me. I darted a glance at Micah, his proud expression reassuring me. By the end of the movie, everyone in the classroom was cheering and clapping. As the credits began to roll, Micah jumped up from his seat to flick the lights back on. When he caught my eye, I could tell we were thinking the same thing. We had succeeded, and it was over now.