Five Flavors of Dumb - Antony John [87]
Ed looked positively serene. “You have no idea how long I’ve waited for this to happen.”
“I’m sorry,” I said, feeling anything but sorrow at that moment.
“Don’t be. Apart from this afternoon, I’ve never regretted a second I’ve spent with you. You inspire me.”
I felt the impact of his words, the forgiveness and longing and, incredibly, the love.
“It’s going to feel like a long thirty-seven miles,” I whispered.
Ed shook his head. “Shortest thirty-seven miles in the world.”
He leaned into me and we kissed with mouths open. Ed Chen—virtuoso, genius, hero—became my universe for a few precious seconds until the door opened and cold air rushed in.
I spun around and saw Dad in the doorway. He was bright red, and I was pretty sure it had nothing to do with the chill breeze.
He looked everywhere except at us, then reached for the glass on the counter and drained it in one big gulp.
“Where’s Mom’s?” he asked.
My turn to blush.
“Yes, well, never mind,” he continued. “Just be sure to make it before I get back.”
“Where are you going?”
“Oh, another errand,” he said, waving off the question with a flap of his hand. “I just called your mother, said you’d been delayed. She told me to give you another ten minutes. . . . I’m not sure either of us is terribly good at the whole grounding routine. You’ve never given us much practice.”
Dad shuffled away without another word, and I turned to face Ed, his features glowing with delight.
“I love your dad,” he gushed.
“Yeah, me too,” I said, realizing that in spite of our difficult history, it was true. “How could I not love someone who learns to sign, just so they can talk to me?”
Ed reddened. “He told you, huh?”
“Hmm. Is that why you’ve been missing marimba lessons?”
Ed shrugged in that maddeningly boyish way that simultaneously made me want to chew him out for jeopardizing his future and to kiss him harder than ever for putting me above everything.
“I guess he told you who’s top of the class,” said Ed, breaking the silence.
“You, I suppose.”
“Ha! Not even close.” And then he smiled again, his eyes teasing me mercilessly. “Now where were we?”
It didn’t take us long to remember.
CHAPTER 48
The clouds threatened rain, and our breaths condensed in the air. Tash pulled on a pair of fingerless gloves and smiled like it wasn’t the most ridiculous situation imaginable. Ed twirled his drumsticks and pretended to tune the sheet metal beneath him. Everyone was acting dumb, but what else could they do?
“So before you begin,” I announced, “you’ll probably want to know that our songs have been downloaded over nine hundred times, which means a hundred and fifty dollars each. Unless anyone has a problem with it, I’ll add it to the three hundred you’re each getting for opening at the Showbox tomorrow.”
No one had a problem with that, of course, but the present situation wasn’t so straightforward.
“There’s no room for my guitar,” said Tash.
“Yes there is,” I said. “Just swing your legs over the side. You too, Kallie. Will, hang your legs over the windshield. Josh, just stand on the hood.”
“What about me?” complained Ed. “You can’t seriously expect me to drum against the roof of your car. It’ll ruin the paintwork.”
“Then you can come over this weekend and we’ll wax it together,” I said, which shut him up spectacularly well.
No one seemed especially thrilled about the idea of rehearsing on top of my car, but in my opinion it was the finest use of a Chevy Caprice Classic in the history of oversized planet-destroying automobiles. Sure, they’d be uncomfortable if it rained, but until then Dumb would keep warm by thrashing through Saturday’s set. Which they did, flying through the first four songs like they just wanted to go back inside ASAP.
I knew we wouldn’t get away with such a blatant assault on school rules for long, but of all the teachers who should stagger out to arrest us on that delightfully gray afternoon, it seemed appropriate that it