“We’re celebrating tonight. I’m so proud of you and I’m not taking no for an answer,” she said, dropping down on the couch beside me.
I laughed. I actually wanted to go out and celebrate, and I hadn’t felt like that in a long time. “I’m totally down.”
“Holy hell. Who are you and what have you done with my best friend?”
I rolled my eyes. “I’m trying to be a normal college kid, remember?”
“You’ve never been normal, but that’s what I love about you.” She wrapped her arms around me and laughed. “Yay. Everyone is going out tonight. Beer shots on me.”
I had learned my freshman year in college that me and tequila did not get along. So, I stuck to beer. I’d occasionally take shots of beer, so it looked like I was joining in on the fun. My best friend had taken a liking to my little invention as well.
“Who’s going?”
“Jace, Brayden, Sage, Cam, Lucas, Mila, you, and me,” she said, tugging me by the hand toward her room. “Let’s find you something cute to wear.”
An hour later, Ari and I were cleaned up and heading out the door. We were all meeting for dinner at our favorite Mexican restaurant not far from campus. Viva Mercado’s was a local hotspot, especially for college kids as we could load up on rice and beans which came free with your meal. The place was small with dim lighting, oversized booths, and the best chips and salsa I’d ever had.
“Oooh girl, look at you,” Mila said, as she slid beside me in the booth. “Congrats. Two interviews down, right? When will you hear back?”
Mila and Lucas had been dating since my freshman year, and I’d met them through Ari. I loved this group and it felt good to be out and having fun.
“Thank you. I don’t think I’ll hear anything until after the holidays. But it’s good to have them behind me.”
“Okay, we’ve got eight shot glasses and eight beers. Here’s to Jade,” Ari said, handing everyone a Corona and a shot glass.
“Oh my gosh. You guys don’t need to drink beer shots on my account.” I laughed.
“We’re proud of you. Just go with it, girl. Remember, this is all part of being a normal college kid,” she whispered in my ear as everyone raised their glass.
I laughed and held up my little shot glass filled with beer to meet theirs.
“To Jade, who’s as much a rock star as the boy she claims she’s not dating, but he somehow always seems to be in Chicago these days,” Mila said, and everyone chuckled. “Our very own rock star friend who is one step closer to going to medical school.”
I smiled. It felt good.
“To the most humble and hard-working girl I know,” Ari said, and we all clinked glasses.
I felt my cheeks heat. “Thank you so much.”
We ordered dinner and finished off our one beer by pouring it into our shot glasses until we finished it. I didn’t want to get too crazy because I had a ton of homework that I wanted to get started on tonight. But I was glad that I came to celebrate, and I was starting to feel like myself again.
“So, was it brutal?” Brayden asked, as he sat across from me and everyone broke out in their own little conversations.
“It wasn’t too bad. Everyone was super nice, and I think attending undergrad at Northwestern made it easier because I was familiar with the campus, and I knew a few people in the group,” I said.
Brayden had decided to take a gap year after graduation, and he’d accepted a scribe position with a well-known surgeon during that time.
“Okay, good to know. And your NYU interview went well?” he asked before taking an oversized bite of his enchilada.
“I think so. I mean, it’s hard to know. It’s so competitive, and you just hope you stand out in some way,” I said, reaching for another chip.
“Yeah, I’m not looking forward to that stress,” Brayden said with a laugh. “But I’m sure you killed it.”
“Thank you. We’ll see what happens.”
“Enough shop talk, bud,” Ari said, rolling her eyes at Brayden. “Hey, you guys know that song currently going viral on iTunes, ‘Spread Those Wings,’ by Exiled?”
“Yes. I love that song,” Sage shouted. “I played it on repeat this morning.”
“Well, Cruz wrote that song for our girl, here.” She beamed at me.
I shook my head and smiled. She was really on one tonight.
“Ugh. Why can’t you be a singer?” Mila said to Lucas and we all laughed.
“Sorry. I don’t have a musical bone in my body.” Lucas leaned forward and kissed her.
“That’s pretty cool, Jade. Does he send you the lyrics when he writes songs for you?” Sage asked as she leaned against Brayden’s arm.
“Yeah, usually. He’s a really talented songwriter.” I bit down on my bottom lip. Thinking of Cruz made my stomach flutter.
“So, he writes you songs, he comes to town to see you, but you’re not dating?” Cam, one of Jace’s best friends asked.
“Great question,” Ari and Jace said in unison and smiled.
“You know, he’s on tour, and right now we’re just really good friends and we’ll see what the future holds,” I said. It was the truth.
But what I left out was the fact that I wanted a future with Cruz.
I couldn’t see a future without him.
It didn’t exist.
Chapter Fourteen
Cruz
It was Thanksgiving back in the states, and we were performing in Australia tonight. We were all chilling in our suite before we went to the venue. We’d been here for a week, and this was our last show here.
“It’s weird to have a show on Thanksgiving, right?” Bailey asked, smiling at my brother like the sun set on his ass.
“Well, I’d rather be on stage than stuffing my face with turkey. And technically, it’s the next day here, so,” Tia said to her sister.
“Well, it’s Thanksgiving for Mom and Dad right now, so…” Bailey rolled her eyes at her sister.
“How about you? Is it weird for you being here?” Shayna asked, turning her full attention to me. Tia’s best friend had joined us this past week on tour, and she was a cool chick, but I wasn’t looking for new friends.
“It’s fine. It’s not forever,” I said because we were still keeping my departure under wraps for now, but everyone in this room knew it was coming. I assumed that Tia told her best friend everything as the chick couldn’t keep her mouth shut for more than a minute.