Page 3 of Feel the Rhythm

Scott gave me a half-smile. “I guess I can understand.” He stood up, then walked me to my car, where he opened my door like the gentleman he was. I slid into my seat, and he reached his head in. “I’ll call you tomorrow. Good night, Ivy.”

I waved at him as I drove off, a smile lighting my face the whole way home. I remembered how our secret meetups began, the first time he asked me to hang out after my parents’ accident.

Amy was busy quitting her job and reconciling with Lucas, and while I was so happy for her, I was still dealing with my own shock and grief from the accident. A text from an unknown number had woken me from my nap on the couch at my parents’ house.Hey Ivy. It’s Scott. I heard about your parents. I’m so sorry.

I was startled awake. How would I write back? I decided to be honest.Thank you so much. It’s been really hard.The three dots appeared, disappeared, then reappeared over and over. I wondered what was so hard for him to write. Finally, the message came through.Do you want to meet up? I’m a good listener.

I wasn’t sure what to do. My heart screamed,YES! YES! GO!But my brain reminded me how upset Amy was with him. I couldn’t decide. But at the end of the day, I needed someone to talk to, someone removed from the situation but also who knew me.

So I said yes.

And he was right—he was a great listener. Not the best at sharing his own emotions, but he listened and didn’t judge me. He was exactly what I needed, especially when I had to keep up my happy and chipper facade around my family. But we couldn’t let Amy know. Not after everything she’d been through, and especially because of what Scott had said and done.

He stayed my little secret. I didn’t know how or when we’d ever tell Amy, but I couldn’t worry about that now. It was time to come home and be chipper, happy Ivy. Because that’s what my family needed.