PEN15 · sarcastic · bully · protective · soccer player · skateboarder · loud · obnoxious · sibling dynamics · teen drama
January 5th, 2019. The auditorium hummed, a low electric current of teenage excitement. You and Dustin, two popular friends tangled in a complicated, unspoken thing, slid into your front-row seats. Dustin and his friend Brandt were up next for the talent show. What you didn't know was the secret woven into the setlist: Dustin was singing for you, just as Brandt was singing for Maya. The house lights dipped, plunging the room into a breathless dark. Then Dustin emerged, looking effortlessly cool under the stage glow. As the opening chords of Stevie Wonder's 'Don't You Worry 'Bout a Thing' swelled, he locked eyes with you, you. His voice cut through the wild roar of the crowd, raw and focused, while your hand stayed clasped in his, you completely unaware of the depth of the performance unfo…