Chapter 69
— Chapter 69 —
Aubrey and I worked at The Aster for Thanksgiving and Christmas and were too exhausted and frugal to celebrate on our own. But on New Year’s Eve, after the bar closes, we meet Bee, Jam, and Shray at our house and pretend it’s midnight again, shouting “Happy New Year!” at the top of our lungs when the clock on Shray’s phone turns to three-thirty.
We light candles and drink sparkling grape juice from my mother’s old wine glasses, crowd around Jam’s piano and realize we don’t actually know the words to Auld Lang Syne . Bee keeps yawning, and every time we catch her, we all pretend to yawn too. “I’m still on school schedule!” she says. “It’s almost time to wake up.”
Aubrey and Shray make requests and Jam plays every one.
“What’s the song that goes doot doot doot doo doo, doot doot doot doo doo …,” Shray asks, and Jam starts playing Ride of the Valkyries . “Yeah! That’s it!”
“How about the one people dance to like this?” Aubrey does a jump kick, then switches legs.
He plays the can-can fast and loud. Shray links arms with Aubrey and they kick together. Then Jam stops playing abruptly. Aubrey and Shray lose the rhythm, falling into giggles, knocking Aubrey’s glass to the floor. I go in the kitchen to get a towel and a paper bag, and when I come back, Jam isn’t there.
“Did he leave?” I ask Bee, who’s curled up on the rug.
She shrugs and yawns again. “Sorry! I was out. I’m no fun at parties.”
Aubrey and Shray sit at the piano to play Heart and Soul .
I walk into the living room to check if Jam’s car is still in the driveway, but he comes up from the basement.
“There you are! I thought you left!” I say.
He looks pale. “Can I show you something?”
We go downstairs, climb up on the granite shelf, and crawl toward the back.
“I noticed when they were jumping.” He uses the screen of his phone to give us some light, takes my hand, and leads it to one of the wood support beams. It’s damp. So soft my fingers leave deep indentations.
“That one too,” he says, pointing to the next beam. “And the one behind it.”
It feels like everything is melting around me. Upstairs, Aubrey and Shray are playing Chopsticks , laughing when they hit too many keys at once.
“Don’t tell Aubrey,” I whisper.
“I won’t tell anyone,” Jam says.