V

his song is as

ing to vanish. Talia was jamming to something loud and overly motivational, the kin

rate any slander against Imag

in the morning, when I'm still de

east changed the song. I was fairly certain the

t of the speaker. "Happy

olut

a wide, c

. She squinted. "Did you...do something to

e wh

ed. "Did you get the

eth to check out what she was saying. Laug

g things. Spent too much time thi

on, and I knew Talia only let it

rist on the armrest. "T

the window. I felt the weight of her st

d together in cliques and rolled their suitcases across the asphalt, everyon

ut of the car. Well, mostly her stuff-she mi

stering a face I vaguely recognized

d me a purple suitcase whose weig

what's in

ips. "It's for m

ther inquiring w

et us two seats. "Just wait over here with the

ore I even had a

would have been able to push

n was beginning to rise, so I fired a few texts to my parents letting them know that I was about to leave f

r wasting their time-the last person to board always got a small ceremony: a glance, a sigh, maybe a few teasing whispers.. But as I walked down the aisle no one even noticed. They we

g other humans who didn

e buzz of conversation gusting past me like a breeze,

ront of her. Townsend, reeking of overconfidence and early m

patted the chair. "

s in college, and we've been inseparable ever since. But I've neve

er had Townsend

he smirked, his hands raised in feig

as Talia suppressed a shudder.

purse and sprayed it around her , a

ke her feel better. "Maybe,

second, then seemed to remem

r mouth. "No, no. He woul

t a loud

blushed, turning to the w

sunrise and others were fast asleep on their boyfriends' laps. I knew my parents would arrive home soon; they always stayed up the entire night during ceremonies and needed to sleep as soon as the sun rose so tha

'd ever find

ere approaching LA. There was a restlessness in the air, in the shadow of the buildings, in the way the city stretched along the coast. Los Ang

so they always brought me along on their trips. Even then, the city felt alive, not in the way of busy people, or with the buzz of entertainm

heir own personali

the aux," one guy shout

me in earnest. "Do you thin

ink anyone's in the mood to listen

n challenge. "Townsend,

to face he

please get

t to move, just as Collins was about to pass the aux to the

er a kiss and I could see that she

id as Imagine dragons beg

phones, I tried to

rom my bag when everyone noticed

on?" Talia rai

dphones and looke

e those? Coyotes?

a green field, and surrounding us, cutting