Page 48 of Breaking News

Xander shook his head, his smirk fading as he stared down at the crumbling sidewalk. “Just a couple o’ buddies, hanging out. It was fine.”

I could tell from the frustration in his voice and his uncomfortable posture it was anything but fine. “You didn’t get to try out the recliner that goesway, way back?”

That pulled another grin out of him. “Goddammit. Don’t make me picture my friend fucking his wife in that chair. I slept in that thing.”

We both laughed, and Xander cleared his throat, stepping closer to me. “You know, if this Friday you want to—”

My heart dropped to my stomach, but to my relief, some pimply teenage boy with glasses came up behind Xander panting like he was on the verge of an asthma attack. “Hey Mr. Pierce,” he said, wiping sweat from his brow. “You accidentally left me in the newsroom. We were supposed to ride together, remember?”

Xander stared at him with a slow blink, like leaving him behind was no accident. “Oops.”

“Xander!” I stomped my foot at him. “Be nice to the interns.”

His eyes met mine. “Wanna trade?”

I could not believe he was asking me this in front of the poor boy standing before us, who let out a dorky laugh like Xander was just kidding around with him. Or maybe laughter was his defense mechanism.

The boy adjusted his glasses. “You wouldn’t want to trade today. I just saw that girl with the dark hair throwing up in a public trash can by the street.”

My hand flew to my heart. “You mean Olivia?” The boy nodded, and I whirled around to stare at the edge of the crowd around the corner. Olivia wasn’t there. “But she was fine.”

“I saw the vomit myself,” he said matter-of-factly. “She isnotfine.”

I didn’t have time to process that, because Marco waved me over from the front of City Hall. I’d have to check on Olivia afterward.

I gave Xander a parting glare. “Don’t be mean to the interns.”

He only rolled his eyes in response before I jogged back toward our camera setup as the mayor approached the podium.

Angela Michaels, wearing a royal-blue sheath dress that perfectly complimented her warm, brown skin, greeted the crowd with a smile and adjusted the microphone. “Good morning. As many of you know, we’re approaching two months since the EF2 tornado swept through our community. Today I’m here to update you on our continued relief efforts, and to share some exciting news about the future.”

She went on to announce that the town had received a regional beautification grant, allowing them to replant trees and restore the downtown gazebo, which had been torn apart in the storm.

Several small businesses affected by the tornado were also eligible to apply for rebuilding assistance, the mayor said, pausing to allow everyone to clap and cheer. “That’ll help with her campaign,” Marco whispered.

Somewhere in the middle of the speech, Olivia reappeared by my side as though nothing had happened at all. She mouthed a quick “sorry.” I didn’t ask any questions.

When the mayor finished, the crowd clapped, and Marco gave me the signal.

I stepped in front of the camera with a wide smile, delivering a quick summary of the mayor’s remarks with a hopeful tone.“Woodvale’s on its way back, folks,” I said. “And thanks to this grant, the town’s going to be stronger than ever.”

Just as we cut to Bernard with the weather, I gave Olivia a quiet look of concern. “You doing okay?”

“Yeah,” she said, tucking her hair behind her ear, but her face was pale. She forced a fake smile anyway, though. Confused, I pushed down my worry and moved on.

A few minutes later, I interviewed a small business owner Olivia had flagged from the crowd—a baker whose storefront had been damaged during the storm. She’d already applied for the beautification grant to install new windows and repaint her exterior.

The rest of the broadcast went off without a hitch. But by the time we were packing up our gear and walking back to the WWTV vehicle–a black van with our logo on the side–my thighs were on fire. The muscles in my hips were screaming from the hours of standing. I winced with every step, trying to hide it as I slung my bag over my shoulder.

Olivia glanced over as we made our way through the City Hall parking lot. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine,” I said quickly. What was I supposed to say, I’m falling apart?“It’s just these dang shoes.”

It wasn’t the shoes.

I studied Olivia’s face. She was still a little pale, folding her arms tight against her chest as we followed Marco and the crew to the car. “What about you?” I asked, recognizing I needed to admit what I knew. “Xander’s intern said he saw you… getting sick?”

I raised my eyebrows at her in concern, and she chewed on her bottom lip. “Oh. Um, I just get nervous sometimes when I’m around large crowds. And it’s so hot out here. Plus, I think the gas station breakfast burrito I had didn’t sit right.”

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