Page 34 of Rewind It Back

“Yeah, if you want it.”

“Absolutely, I want it. I just... I don’t have a way to listen to it. I don’t have anything that plays cassettes.”

“You could use my new boombox if you want.”

“Do you want to listen to it now?”

“Now?” My eyes go wide. “It’s midnight and... and...”

He cocks a brow, and I instantly feel silly. He’s older. Probably doesn’t have a curfew as early as mine. He and the other eighth graders probably stay up past midnight all the time.

“I’m not tired yet,” he says. “We could listen to it in your room. We’ll keep the volume down.”

What?He’s never been in my room before. He’s always in Luke’s room when he comes over, but no part of me is tired now either.

This is cool. Listening to music in my room after midnight.

“Okay,” I agree. “Just be quiet so we don’t wake up Luke or my parents. Or do you want me to wake up Luke? He can come to my room too if you want.”

“You don’t have to if you don’t want to. We can listen just us two.”

This can’t be happening.This is the best birthday ever.

Quietly, Rio follows me back through my window. While I set up the boombox on my nightstand, he takes a tour.

“I like your room,” he whispers. “Even cooler up close than it is when I wave to you from my window.”

He checks out some of my drawings I’ve pinned to the wall, looks carefully over my trophies from swimming and soccer. He plops into my bean bag chair and doesn’t tease me for my baby blanket that I still have, the way my brother does.

I sit on my bed, still wearing his hoodie, and Rio stretches out to lie down on the floor next to the mattress, lacing his hands behind his back.

“What happened during the first song?” he asks.

Oh, wow. Okay this is happening, and this is going to be so much more embarrassing than I thought.

“I um... well, don’t tease me, but this boy told me he liked me right before spring break last year.”

He sits up quickly and with only the moonlight, I can still see his brows pinched together. “Who?”

“Kevin Gross.”

Rio’s face contorts in disgust. “Kevin Gross? Hallie, eww. His last name is Gross for a reason. That guy collects bugs between class periods and keeps them in his pocket.”

“It happened almost a year ago!” I whisper-yell. “And I don’t know. It was the first time anyone had ever liked me, so yeah. I wanted to remember it. I was listening to this song right before he told me.”

Rio lies back down with a huff. “Play it.”

I do, pressing the play button as “Waterfalls”begins to filter quietly through the speakers.

He shakes his head. “You wasted a TLC song on Kevin Gross? Wow.”

I laugh, lying back on my bed to mirror his position.

We listen to the whole song in silence and during the long pause before the second song begins to play, Rio quietly says, “Hallie?” from the floor.

I whisper right back. “Yeah?”

“Did you like Kevin back?”

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