Page 29 of A Duet of Darkness and Dreams

“Promiseme this isn’t because of Miguel.”

I twirl my finger into the payphone cord until it’s so tight the skin begins to turn purple. “No, it’s not.”

“Because he wouldn’t be here, you know.”

“I know,amá.”

A sigh. “Do you still have that cassette player?” she asks.

I glance behind me at the top of my dresser. “Yes.”

“Good, I have that new Dana Raina album to send you.”

A chuckle bursts out of me. She knows music is always the way to my heart. “Gracias.”

“Te quiero, Isa.”

Hanging up, I slump against the wall. It drains me to tell my mother bad news. But I’ve sacrificed so much to get to my senior year. I can’t lose focus now.

A knock on my door makes me practically jump out of my skin. Who the hell is here?

“Isabella?”

I blink. “Becks?” Crossing the room to the door, I open it to find Becks grinning from ear to ear. “Hey, what—?”

“Theyfinishedthealbumanditscomingoutnextmonth!” she squeals in the doorway. Grasping at my hands, she shimmies and shakes with excitement, and I can’t help but grin even though I have no idea what she just said.

“Hold on, what?” I ask.

She steps into my apartment and I shut the door behind her. “The band, they finished their debut album in the studio. They’re releasing the EP in November!”

Something viciously happy explodes in my chest. “Oh my god! No way, that’s incredible!”

“I know, right? It’s happening,” she says, beginning to pace.

“James and the guys must be so thrilled.”

“They are over the moon,” she says. “They needed this. They neededyou.”

Huh?“What do you mean?”

“Oh come on, don’t be so modest. Everyone knows your articles helped put them on the map in San Francisco.”

“They do?”

“They must.”

“Oh, well I—”

“Isabella,” Becks scolds. “You’re a talented writer and, yeah, you needed something good to write about and they needed the boost. Everyone benefited.”

“Right.”

She finally perches herself on the arm of my couch like a dainty little bird. “What’s wrong?” she asks.

“Nothing’s wrong. It’s great. The best news I’ve heard in weeks,” I say, and really, it’s true.

She tilts her head. “Have you heard anything about an internship yet?”

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