Page 82 of With a Little Luck

My insides are a thundercloud as I release her and drop back down to the blanket, pulling my sketchbook closer like a shield.209

I barely hear the last two performers.

Finally the emcee returns, clutching a large envelope like she’s giving an award at the Grammys. The screen at the back of the stage changes to show a projected computer screen with three livestreamed videos—the three songwriters who couldn’t come in person. They’re all grinning. They all look anxious and scared and hopeful, just like Ari.

“It is truly my honor to announce this year’s winners for the Condor Music Festival songwriting competition,” says the host. “As a reminder, our grand prize winner today will receive five thousand dollars plus three days at a recording studio with a top producer to record their album!”

My hand twitches toward Ari, when from the corner of my eye I see Ezra moving closer to her. Putting his arm around her shoulders.

My hand twitches back to my own lap.

The woman opens the flap of the envelope and pulls out a card. “Our third place winner is … Trevor and Sierra Greenfield!”

The husband-and-wife duo. They take the stage, beaming. The woman hands them a tiny guitar statue, and they take a step back, hugging each other.

“In second place … Araceli Escalante!”

My heart lifts. Second place!

Then plummets. Second place?

Ari scrambles to her feet, beaming as she makes her way to the stage. Her hands are clasped over her mouth, and if she harbors even the tiniest bit of disappointment that it isn’t first place, it’s impossible to tell.

She accepts her guitar statue and steps back alongside the third-place winners. Then she finds us in the crowd and bounces excitedly on her toes, holding up the award statue. “Second place!” she mouths.

The three of us all give her thumbs-up, but then Maya says, “I liked hers the best. I really thought she was going to win.”

The part of me that dislikes any sort of conflict rises automatically to the defense of the judges. Music is subjective, after all. Different people, different tastes. There was a lot of talent up on that stage.

And yet … I really thought she would win, too.210

On the stage, the emcee asks for a drumroll, and all around us, people thump their hands against their thighs. “And our grand prize winner is … Ginger Sweet!”

A girl screams and jumps to her feet right in front of the stage.

My brow tightens.

The seltzer water girl?

“Hold on,” whispers Ezra, “wasn’t she the one that sang that god-awful love song to LaCroix? That song was the worst.”

Maya and I don’t respond, but a quick glance tells me that Maya is equally bewildered. Of the ten finalists, this girl was the last that I would have picked to win. And I might just be imagining it, but it seems like some of the cheers subside into confusion as the girl runs onto the stage to accept her award.

The emcee beams widely as she hands over the third little guitar. The girl takes it, still squealing, her free hand pressed to her cheek as she bounces on her toes.

“I can’t believe this!” she says into the mic. “This is amazing! Thank you!”

“Ginger, tell me,” says the host, “what inspired this song?”

“Oh my gosh, it’s so funny! I was at this restaurant having pizza with my friends, and we all ordered soda waters, and I was just, like, blown away by how bubbly it was—just like me, because everyone is always saying how bubbly I am, and then I just had to write about it, you know?” She breaks out into giggles and waves at the camera that’s been livestreaming the show.

It’s subjective, I think.Different people, different tastes.

But … Ari’s song wasso good.

In fact, all the other finalists were good. And a lot of the videos we watched when Ari stayed over were great, too.

But …thisis the grand prize winner? Really?

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