Chapter Eleven
LUCAS
“My ears are still ringing,” I grumble as we toss the last of the bags into the back of Old Betty. “It’s like I can still hear the bass of the music.”
“Let me guess, ‘True to You.’ No, I know, it’s ‘Everywhere For You’.” Julia giggles, still on a high from last night.
If only I had walked out of the concert that happy. I would never admit it to her—or anyone—but True North did put on an entertaining show. I was also less than enthused when I realized how many of the songs I not only recognized but knew the lyrics to.
Not that I would have ever let her catch me singing along.
But now that we’re loaded up and have a long drive home ahead of us, I realize this will mean reliving the night for at least two days straight, and I don’t know if I’m prepared for that.
“I don’t know, it was one of their loud, fast songs,” I lie. It was actually “True to You,” but that would show that I know the songs, and that’s a big nope.
Settling into our seats, I ease the truck out of the parking lot, thankfully without incident, and make my way onto the city roads. It’s Sunday morning, and naturally less busy, which I appreciate.
“Do you know what I loved the most?” she asks, bouncing in her seat as she fiddles with the volume knob on the radio. “We were the only ones who got to see Rich and Ashley sing. How cool is that?” She twists the knob, and the windshield fluid flies across the glass, nearly making me swerve.
“Not that knob, the other one!” I exclaim, regaining control as I struggle to remember what activated the wipers. I breathe a sigh of relief when I find the right one. “And you don’t know that we’re the only ones. I’m sure they say the same thing in every town.”
“No, they don’t. It’s all over social media.
No one has seen the two of them on stage together in over ten years.
It’s incredible.” Forgetting about the radio mishap, she pulls out her phone and starts scrolling.
“Edmonton and Calgary didn’t say anything about their concert, neither did the other shows in Vancouver, and we’re the last stop, so I know that no one else will see it after us. ”
I don’t answer because I have nothing to add. I don’t see the big deal, but apparently it is. I listened to Ashley Sinclair’s music as much as I listened to True North, and that was only when it was forced upon me.
She scrolls in silence for a while, letting me get lost in my thoughts while I make my way to the highway.
I’ve tried not to let my mind dwell too much on other aspects of the night, especially while I was lying awake.
Mostly, how Julia put her head on my shoulder like it was the most natural thing in the world.
I don’t know what it was that made me respond by putting my arm around her waist and pulling her into me, or how I rested my cheek on her head like I’d done it a million times.
I haven’t.
Maybe it was the overly romantic song, or the way that the whole arena was swooning.
I even noticed how every guy in the place got up and started paying attention to the woman next to him during that song.
I don’t know if there’s magic or something in the melody, but it seemed to have an effect on everyone, and I’m not sure what to do about that.
“Nope, we’re the only ones,” she says definitively, putting her phone down on her lap. “That’s incredible. I can’t believe it. How lucky are we?”
“Very,” I grumble, watching as a car starts speeding up beside me, trying to stop me from changing lanes. It’s throwing me off because I’m still not used to driving on the right side of the truck.
A True North song comes through the truck’s speakers, and I try not to picture them dancing around the stage last night in their matching white outfits and jackets that go down to their ankles. How they danced in those without tripping, I’ll never know.
“Oh, I love this song!” Julia exclaims, turning up the song—carefully reaching for the right knob this time—and dancing in her seat. “Can you believe that they are still doing the same choreography twenty-five years later? That’s so great. I love that we were all dancing around with them.”
“How do you know that if you’ve never seen them in concert before?” I sneak a glance over at her, finding her with her eyes closed and mimicking the dance, or as much as she can, belted into the passenger seat of Old Betty.
“Music videos, obviously.” She laughs, opening her eyes and sending me a carefree smile.
“Obviously,” I mimic sarcastically. “How did I not know that?” I send her a wink, making her giggle before she closes her eyes again, singing and dancing.
As much as I would have loved to spend my time in Vancouver doing literally anything other than going to the concert, I’m glad I got to experience it with Julia.
This is a side of her that rarely comes out, and now that I’m seeing it, I don’t think she’s let it out in a very long time.
I can tell she’s not worrying about the library at school or how she can help out at any given town event; she’s living in the moment.
Or, more specifically, she’s living in the past, in the best way possible.
“So, what are we thinking for the way back? Are we stopping back in Flat Rock Falls on our way to Candy Cane Creek?” She cracks open one eye while fighting a smirk.
I shudder. “No, we are definitely not stopping there. I feel like Eleanor’s message on the receipt was more of a threat than an invitation.”
“Maybe for me, but not for you.” She laughs.
“What do you mean?”
“Oh, she liked you. You passed whatever test they were giving. They tolerated me. Let’s just say that I will never be stepping foot back in that town without you.”
“Pfft, whatever.”
She makes a W with her fingers and sends herself into a fit of laughter. I give her an eye roll in response, but inside, I’m fighting off laughter. I don’t think I’ve seen anyone do that in decades.
And now I feel old.
We ride for a while in silence, or more like muted singing, with fits of giggles from Julia when I pretend to be annoyed at the particular song that comes on.
I hate it, but now, after so long of fighting it, I think I’m starting to like some True North songs.
The CD loops back to the first song, restarting the playlist that has made up our entire trip. I don’t know if having the same songs repeat in the same order constantly is soothing or irritating, but either way, it’s filling the quiet in the lull of our conversation.
As the highway starts climbing up into the mountains, I think Julia might be asleep with how quiet she’s been.
While she’s my go-to person for talking about virtually anything, I also love how she’s the one person I know who I can enjoy silence with.
There’s never a need to fill the void of our conversations, which I’ve never found with anyone else.
“Do you know what I find interesting?” she says in a sleep-laden voice.
“What?” I muse, keeping my eyes on the road.
“How different the drive to something is from the drive home.” She shifts in her seat, still looking out her side window. “When we left, there was a different energy.”
“Well, yeah. There’s excitement and adrenaline. Now that it’s over, it’s almost like a…” I struggle to find the right words.
“Emotional hangover?” She looks over her shoulder at me with a quiet smile.
“Yeah, that.” I smile back at her. “Was it worth it?” I hold my breath, bracing for her answer. While I know that she had the time of her life last night at the concert, something shifted, and I wonder if she felt it too.
“Of course.” She turns in her seat. “I don’t know. It was everything I thought it would be and more. The music, the people, the vibes…”
“The extra suitcase of merch you brought home with you,” I joke.
“I wasn’t that bad.” She jokingly swats at my arm.
“Only because I stopped you.”
“Okay, you may have a point there, but I listened, and that counts, right?”
“It totally counts.” I smirk, sending her into a fit of giggles.
“I hope Cassie’s café is still open when we get into Candy Cane Creek. I could really use an iced Holly Jolly Latte right now,” she says, stifling a yawn.
“I think Cassie would reopen the café at the chance to make that drink for you. Not only did you two hit it off to be instant best friends, but I’m pretty sure her blood type is coffee.”
“Then yours is Danishes,” Julia jokes. “I wonder if they still have any macarons from that bakery.”
“Maybe,” I muse.
We fall back into a comfortable silence as each kilometre brings us closer to Candy Cane Creek.
I don’t know how ready I am to return to Pinehaven tomorrow, or for things to go back to normal.
Julia and I have been in our own bubble for a couple of days, and it’s been…
nice. Other than a few comments about us being more than friends, we have been able to just be us and exist. No outside pressure. No commitments.
Just us.
She even seems less guarded. More accepting of herself around other people like Cassie and Jacob. I’ll need to figure out a way to have this Julia back home, because it’s only fair that everyone should get to see the funny, outgoing—and a little unhinged—side of Julia Harper.