Page 60 of Destiny

I take one hard gulp, and then, with a slight push from someone—maybe Marco, maybe not—I realize that I’m going up to meet her. She hands me the microphone.

“Good luck, sweetie,”

When I turn to face the crowd, the lights blind me a little.

“Woo! Go, Bea!” I hear Micky cheer. “You got this!”

I can see that my hand is shaking. And at one point, I turn to get off, but Marco is right there.

“You got this,” he repeats.

So, I once again resume my position, and I give the cue for the music to start.

The first few notes escape my lips, but they’re quiet and forced. However, when I look over, he has the biggest smile on his face. That gives me courage, and I ask to start over.

“Sorry,” I say to the man running the machine and the crowd.

“It’s all good!” Micky yells.

Similarly, Marco gives me two thumbs up.

I close my eyes for a second and wait for the music to start again.

This second time, I completely let go and sang with such soul that I felt the vibrations of my voice in my bones. It’s a. feeling I’ve missed dearly.

When I finish, Marco storms the stage and gives me a huge hug.

“That was amazing!” he yells over the crowd.

“Thank you!”

My best friend is the next to join, and she’s holding the hands of his daughters.

“Bea! You fuck—I mean, you freaking killed it!”

“Thanks.”

With that renewed confidence, I continued performing over and over again from there on out.

But we had no idea just how far things would go. Certainly, we never anticipated getting the national recognition that soon came and threatened to change my little life in Hazelhurst for good.

Part 5

Chapter 1 – Bea

“We miss you, Bea!” Aurora and Alessia say over the phone.

“Oh, I miss you too!”

“When are you coming home?” one of them asks.

“In just a few more days. Three more sleeps.” I’m currently in London. My agent set up a small pub tour for me in the U.K. to see how my music would be received here. I started and ended it in the country’s capital.

“Okay, girls. Go get ready for school, and let me talk to Bea,” I hear Marco say in the background. It’s the morning for them, but it’s already the afternoon where I am.

Then, he regained control of his cell. “Hey, baby.”

“Hi, sweetheart. How are you?”

---