AllFreeNovel Stories worth discovering

Seven Lost Summers

Page 78

by Eve Campbell

They moved on.

And me… I’m still here. Still clinging to the ghosts. Still remembering for all of us.

I lift my head and stare at my reflection.

Get your shit together, Quinn. It’s only a job. A normal, totally casual, not-at-all nerve-wracking job that happens to involve four of the most recognizable faces in the music industry.

I square my shoulders, study my reflection again, and pretend I don’t resemble someone two seconds away from hurling into the sink.

Clothes… fine.

Hair… mostly co-operating.

Sanity… questionable.

I glance down and sigh. Of course. These cheap-ass laces have come undone again.

I crouch and yank them tight, double-knotting as if my life depends on it. The last thing I need is to face-plant in front of them. Tripping over my own feet all the time is humiliating enough.

One more fall and someone will start a GoFundMe for my coordination.

I take a breath, shake out my hands, and head for baggage claim. Simply grab the suitcase, walk out, act like a functioning adult.

Easy.

And that’s when I spot it.

Or more accurately, I spot the disaster riding the conveyor belt as if it’s proud of itself.

My suitcase.

Wide open.

Zipper blown.

My entire life spilling out in slow, mortifying motion.

A bra dangles from the side, practically waving to the crowd. A pair of socks cling to a rolled-up t-shirt. My underwear takes a full runway lap under the fluorescent lights.

People are watching— and I can hear it.

The soft laughter, whispered jokes, a low chuckle from somewhere behind me.

A guy elbows his friend, both of them grinning as if my personal nightmare is their after-flight entertainment.

My black lace bra hangs off the edge of the conveyor, swinging with every bump as if it’s taking a final bow.

Kill me.

Right here, right now on this sticky airport floor.

End it already.

I shove through the crowd, heat crawling up my neck, and lunge for the suitcase.

The second I grab it, the weight shifts. And of course, half my underwear spills out. A handful of panties hit the floor, right on top of some guy’s boots.

He looks down.