Page 42 of Sure, Pal

19

Sienna

Almost two weeks later, I still hadn’t told Ava about Evan and me. At first, it was because it seemed so small and petty, and Evan’s dad was all I could think about. Then, I told myself it was because I hadn’t seen Ava, and this conversation needed to be face-to-face.

Finally, the fear and worry of losing my best friend for good started to set in.

But I had to tell her. Evan needed me to be one hundred percent there for him, and I couldn’t do that until every ounce of nagging guilt about being with my best friend’s ex disappeared.

Evan hadn’t said a word about Ava, but he’d also just found out that his dad’s tumor was growing. And as his dad got sicker, he didn’t say much of anything.

Besides, he shouldn’t have to ask me to choose him.

I pulled out my phone as I left work and typed out a text to Ava. Hey girl, we need to have a serious talk, like soon. Let me know when you’re free. My heart raced, and I wiped my sweaty palms on my jeans before I finally let out a shaky breath and pressed send.

The next time I saw Ava, I was going to tell her. I was going to be honest and tell her that I’d had a crush on Evan before she even moved in down the street. I was going to tell her about what was happening between us now. I would look Ava in the eye and tell her that I loved Evan, and let the cards fall where they may.

???

Ava never answered my text, but she showed up at my coffee shop gig that night. She sat in the front row and cheered the loudest for me after every song. Ava grabbed me for a hug and a selfie after the show. This time, she got my express permission before tagging me in the photo.

In the weeks that followed her first tagged photo of me, my number of followers had grown from 353 to 5,789, and my weekend evenings were booked solid with shows for the next three months.

“See?” Ava smiled at me. “I’ve got your back, Si. Pretty soon, you’ll be able to quit your soul-sucking job at that software company. I know you didn’t go to school for four years to be somebody’s office bitch.”

I rolled my eyes.

Ava rolled her eyes back at me. “Look! She held up her phone. You just got like 200 more followers! And people at the show tonight were tagging you!” She read a tagged post to me. “@Siennasings is my new favorite artist! Her voice is like sweet, smoky gold! #Singmetosleep #inlove #starstruck.”

Ava cocked a single eyebrow. “Don’t try to tell me that doesn’t feel good! You’re getting the recognition you deserve! And seriously, girl, I know you like to hide in the shadows, and your parents raised you to have shit self-esteem, blah blah blah, but GIRL! You deserve the spotlight!”

“I—”

“K, Si, I gotta head out, but you were dy-na-mite tonight! Love you.” Ava cut me off and pulled me in for one more hug. The overpowering scent of her Black Opium perfume engulfed me. Then she tossed her pretty blonde hair over her shoulder, gave me a smile that didn’t reach her eyes, and walked out the door.

I sighed. She didn’t even give me the chance to ask if she’d gotten my text.

I glanced down at my phone and winced when I read Ava’s post about me. Look at my sexy as hell bestie! She sings like an ANGEL! Go follow her, and then listen to her music NOW! The post already had 10k likes.

She was a loving bulldozer…

Shit.

I could feel my resolve to tell her about Evan crumbling. But what if she really was okay with it? She’d flirted with him a little at the group dinner a couple of weeks ago, but she flirted with anything that had a six-pack and a chiseled jaw.

A handful of other “fans” stopped me for pictures, and then I started packing up my guitar. My phone buzzed in my back pocket, but I didn’t check it. It was probably notifications from the likes pouring in on Ava’s tagged photo of me. When it buzzed three more times, I sighed and pulled it out.

I loved your show tonight.

You look fucking beautiful.

Sienna, pick up your phone and look at my messages.

I’m outside.

I glanced up to see Evan watching me from the window with a little smile. My heart lurched. I knew his dad had more scans today, and I knew there wouldn’t be any good news.

I rushed out of the front door of the coffee shop and flung my arms around his neck. I nuzzled into his chest and said, “I didn’t even see you. Were you in the back?”

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