I searched the crowd. “I don’t.”
“Good.”
Liam, Grace, Michael, and Emerson claimed the rips were back to normal, at least as normal as they’d ever been. Hallie could still see them, but only one at a time, and they only noticed her if she approached them directly.
I wasn’t done with the Skroll. There were still more passages to translate. After the continuum calmed down, we’d learned that an Infinityglass had the power to return individual rips to their places in time.
“Still want to try to send one back?” I asked.
“Eventually.” She gave me a shoulder bump. “But not today. You ready to steer a cruise ship with your mind?”
“I’m willing to walk on the beach with you, but only if you hold my hand.”
“Deal.” She turned to face me, raised up on her toes.
It didn’t mater that we were on the sidewalk, in full view and in the way of locals and tourists alike. When our lips touched, I was lost to everything but her.
“Dune! Dune!” I heard my name and pulled away from Hallie. We both scanned the crowd this time.
“Nate!” He was racing across Jackson Square, faster than he should be, as usual. I didn’t even attempt to be cool. A man hug and a few back slaps later, I heard Hallie clear her throat.
“I see you there.” Nate’s grin had cheeky written all over it as he turned toward her. “I thought my bestie was exaggerating when he told me how sexalicious you are in person. I thought you were a hottie through a computer screen.”
“Nate,” I warned. “I did
“I think I need details of this conversation,” Hallie said.
“Wouldn’t take very much to persuade me to give them to you.”
“Stop. Now.” I tried for stern, but my face gave me away. “I’ll tell my secrets when I’m ready.”
“I’m Nate.” He held out his hand. “And I know all his secrets, in case you’re ready before he is.”
“I’m Hallie. When do I get to see your dance moves?”
“B-boy. More tricks than moves.” He did a couple, and the crowd around us applauded. Show-off.
“Maybe we can trade knowledge on that, too,” Hallie said, after Nate finished taking his bows.
“Let’s cut Dune out of the picture completely. Run away with me, and we’ll live off the tips people put in our upturned fedoras.”
Hallie laughed, wide open, and I watched Nate fall in love. I couldn’t blame him.
“Okay, kids, let’s go. Everyone’s waiting. Betcha can’t keep up.” He took off.
“We can try.” Hallie grabbed my hand.
When we reached Cafe du Monde, we found Em, Michael, Kaleb, Lily, Nate, Ava, and Poe at an outside table. All seven of them were covered in varied amounts of powdered sugar.
“You’re here!” Em dropped her beignet but held on to her coffee as Hallie hugged her. Lily, less sugary than everyone else, was next.
Once they’d settled down, I pointed to the only girl still seated. “This is Ava.”
“Hi, Ava.” Hallie knew about Ava’s past with Jack. She’d been the one to insist that Nate and Ava be a part of the Hawaii trip, claiming everyone who’d been affected by him deserved a vacation. “I heard you dance, too. Pointe?”
“Mostly contemporary.” Ava’s hands twisted in her lap, and she looked like she didn’t know what to do once the words were out.
“You know, I love contemporary.” Hallie took the empty seat next to Ava. “You’ll have to come to my studio for a dance play date. If that doesn’t sound lame.”
“It doesn’t. It sounds like … fun.” An Ava smile was a rare thing, but Hallie scored one. A few short months ago, Hallie had been the quiet girl at the table. Now she was taking the initiative to draw Ava out.
Kaleb cleared his throat, redirecting the conversation, probably to spare Ava. “My dad says hello, and ‘sends his regrets’ for the Hawaii trip. Mom’s at ninety-nine percent, and he’s not willing to risk the remaining one. Neither am I, and not just so I can take Lily for long walks on the beach without supervision.”
Lily rolled her eyes, but followed up with a kiss to Kaleb’s cheek.
“Down two chaperones.” Nate gave a fist pump. “I like it.”
“No,” Em said. “Down four. Dru’s doctor doesn’t want her to travel, so she and Thomas are staying home so she can rest up before her due date next month.”
Michael and Emerson exchanged a look that wasn’t hard to decode. Endless, unelectrified nature in Hawaii meant a lot of opportunities for two people who couldn’t touch without setting off sparks.
“I think as long as we avoid wayward tiki idols and hungry sharks, we’ll be fine.” Michael swiped the last beignet from the paper plate on the table. “Now we just have to talk plane tickets.”
“I have a solution for that, but it comes with a complication.” Hallie said. “Dad wants to pay for all of them, but only if he gets to come, too.”
No one said anything for a few seconds. Then Nate let out a whoop.
“Please and thank you, yes!” He stood up and did some sort of hip move that looked painful and obscene at the same time. “I’m an orphan, you know. Please, please let Daddy Warbucks know that if he needs a son, I’m not of legal age for two and-a-half more years. I could grow into a strapping young man.”
“You’d have to eat a cow a day to come anywhere close to strapping.” I held up my hands when Nate used the empty paper plate as a frisbee and aimed it toward my head. He missed, and a shower of powdered sugar headed for Ava.
Poe jumped out of his seat and took most of it in the chest.
“Did I stop it?” he asked her. “I tried.”
“I’m fine, but you’re kind of a mess.” Ava grabbed a couple of napkins and tried to help him clean up, but ended up making it worse.
“Believe it or not, the mess is bigger on the inside. Kind of like the TARDIS.”
When Ava laughed, Poe stared at her as if he’d been struck dumb.
There was a
“We obviously need more beignets.” I pulled Hallie out of her seat. “This round’s on me.”
She managed to wait until we were out of earshot. Probably. “Did you see that? With Ava and Poe?”
“I can barely breathe from the elbow jab you gave me, so yes.”
“I can’t believe this is my life,” she said. “It’s like one of those teen shows with superpowers and pretty people. And kissing. Lots of kissing.”
“Happy?” I asked.
“You don’t even know.” Joy lit her eyes. “I have everything I’ve ever wanted. Almost.”
I knew she was thinking about her mother.
“I’m learning to let go. Looking forward to the future. To our future.”
I took stock as the bells of the Saint Louis Cathedral pealed through the spring air.
My friends sat at the table, still laughing over the powdered sugar explosion.
Less than a mile away, the Mississippi flowed, holding secrets and sorrows, buried for eternity. Gone, but not forgotten, like so many people I’d loved.
Hallie stood by my side. My reason for breathing, and the answer to every question I’d ever have.
“I couldn’t be happier,” I said.
And this was only the beginning.
Michael held out a bottle of cold water, careful not to touch my skin. A hospital wasn’t a good place to set
