Page 4 of Next to Everything We Wanted

It wasn’t that I hadn’t enjoyed hanging out with my cousins while my aunt and uncle were out—whether it was late shifts or date nights. Adam and Emma were so close to me that I almost considered them my younger siblings.

But, boy, they could be a handful.

Thankfully, my best friend and bandmate, Hayden Tidwell, had saved my life by telling everyone and their mother about What Do You Bean. He’d been dead set on the fact that it was the best café in April Springs, if not the entire Las Vegas area. At first, I’d thought he was just being over the top, which is nothing new for him.

When he’d brought our friend group here for the first time in September, I wasn’t expecting anything too special. The menu looked great and had endless options of coffee, but that wasn’t what changed everything. It was the band performing.

The moment Ivan Hicks, the lead singer of Somewhere in the Sky, had opened his mouth, my entire world transformed.

And, no, I’m not being over the top.

His lulling voice had given me chills. I’d been to countless concerts and performances, but nothing had ever made me shiver like Ivan’s voice.

What Do You Bean opened me to a whole new world of music. I didn’t always listen to the people who topped the charts, especially in today’s world where half of the songs came from awful social media trends (I sounded like my aunt whenever I said that, but it was true). I looked for talent and inspiration in every corner.

I valued anything that spoke to my soul.

Somewhere in the Sky did that. They were the hidden talents that, even though it’d be awesome for the whole world to hear, I kind of wanted to keep as my little secret with the visitors of What Do You Bean.

I clapped along with my friends and cousins as Somewhere in the Sky finished their final song for the night, sadness washing over me. How had two hours passed by so quickly?

Hayden dabbed his watering eyes with a napkin. “I don’t know what it is about them,” he said, his voice wobbling, “but something really got me tonight.”

Dallas Friar, the newest member of our friend group, rubbed his back. “It’s okay. You’ll get to experience this all over again next week.”

“It hurts so much.” Hayden sniffled. “Why did they perform all the emotional songs?”

“I feel you,” I said before sighing, looking at the stage with longing. There Ivan was, talking to his bandmates with a grin.

Somewhere in the Sky had five members: Ivan, Everett, Celia, Nick, and Eli. They were each crazy talented and never failed to blow my mind. Especially Ivan.

Even looking at him now gave me chills. He was stunning, with cinnamon brown, nearly auburn, hair and faint freckles. His male bandmates towered over him, but height didn’t matterwhen his build was perfect. His smile could be spotted from miles away, perfectly white and straight. My coffee intake would never allow that.

And his eyes. Gosh, those eyes. They were so freaking blue, like the Pacific Ocean in the summer. My breath caught whenever his gaze went toward mine, making me forget whatever I was thinking about.

Hayden blew his nose into his napkin. “This is ridiculous. I never get this emotional.”

Raina Vermont, my best friend since middle school, giggled from beside me. “You’re too cute.”

“I’m not cute,” Hayden tossed his thick braids, which he’d spent countless hours a week perfecting, over his shoulders. “I’m anything but cute.”

“Please,” Raina said. “You had stars in your eyes when Ivan signed your drumstick.”

“At least I’m not secretly in love with him.” Hayden’s dark gaze went to me, teasing and mischievous.

“I’mnotin love with him,” I said, ignoring the warmth in my cheeks. “I’ve barely spoken to him.”

When our band, Like Airplanes, won Battle of the Bands, we were awarded three high-paying gigs here at What Do You Bean. At the end of each gig, Ivan had talked about how much he loved our performances. Of course, Hayden and I had been starstruck. While he’d played it cool, I’d made a fool of myself.

How could I not? Even a girl as confident as me couldn’t resist Ivan Hicks.

But that didn’t mean I was in love with him or anything. Love was deep, lasting. Then again, it wasn’t like I’d know what it was really like. My seventh-grade boyfriend hadn’t taught me much about relationships, and it wasn’t like I had role models to show what love was, given that my mom walked out the door seven and a half years ago and never came back.

Yet she still had the nerve to send me a letter a few weeks ago. She could shove what she had to say up her?—

“Ivan’s walking over to us!” Emma’s loud voice broke me out of my thoughts.

“What?” I jerked my head.