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“Not that.” I take the phone back and point to a very specific line on the tickets. “This.”
This time she buckles at the knees, almost falling over. “Youdidn’t.”
I don’t think my smile could grow any more. “Yes. They’re VIP tickets. You get to meet the band.”
She plops back down on the chair. “This is it. This is where I meet my future husband.”
I laugh. “What about Daniel?”
“Who’s that?” she asks, laughing.
At this moment, I’ve never wished more that I could set my sister up with a famous singer if it really meant she’d move on from Daniel, but even I have to acknowledge my limitations at some point. Setting her up with a member of her favorite boy band isn’t going to happen, unfortunately.
I wish it was that easy.
She runs around the counter and pulls me into a hug. “I can’t believe you did this. I’ll owe you forever.”
“What’s all the excitement?” Mr. Bonetti says as he comes out of the back room. He’s an older man in his sixties who always wears a bowtie.
“Margo bought me a concert ticket totheBroken Sage.”
“Who’s that?” he asks.
I swear Annie almost faints. “Only the greatest band to walk the face of the earth.”
He laughs. “So what day do you need off?”
Annie rattles off the date so fast she has to repeat herself multiple times before saying it clearly.
“Okay, Annie. I’ll make sure you get that night off,” he says.
“Thank you.” I can tell she’s using all her strength to hold back another squeal. It’s shocking because this is one hundred percent out of character, a pretty good sign I hit the jackpot with this surprise.
“You can clock out now. I can handle the rest of the evening,” he says.
She nods and collects her things.
The entire way home she blasts the new Broken Sage album and sings along. “You only have one month to learn all the words.”
Even though they aren’t my favorite band, I’ll make sure I learn every single word if she wants me to. I want to be able to scream it into the crowd right by her side.
I smile the entire way back. Colorful lights dance into the sky from the fairgrounds as we pass it. I watch the lights change on the Ferris wheel, the colors pulsing into the night sky. “Maybe we should go to the fair this year?”
Annie shrugs. “Don’t you think we’re a little too old for cotton candy and petting zoos?”
I don’t really need to go. These three months are about doing what everybody else wants and needs. It’s hard to convince Annie to go places that are loud and crowded—unless it’s a Broken Sage concert, of course. So if Annie doesn’t want to go, then I don’t want to. It wouldn’t be fun to go alone. “Maybe.”
“Besides, it’ll be back next year,” she says.
“Yeah,” I agree softly. I watch the lights move farther and farther away in the mirror.
Annie quickly goes back to the topic of Broken Sage, and I don’t blame her. That’s what I want. I want to hear how excited she is about it. If she’s happy, I’m happy.
She talks about it all through dinner and even as we get ready for bed. She finally stops around eleven but only because she passes out.
My head pounds, but I swing my feet out of the covers and walk across the room to wake up Annie. I rub my eyes, but when I open them, her bed is empty.
She never gets up before me.
