Chapter 14
We ran, hand in hand together; escaping screaming girls and pushing through crowds. I felt Justin squeeze my hand tighter, like he was bent on getting me out. Once we hit an empty patch, we bolted down the stairs, out to doors to Justin's motorcycle, which was somehow already revving and ready to go. Ten minutes later, we were pulling into Starbucks, my favourite cafe in all of LA. "How did you know this was my favourite spot?" I smiled, joking around. "I'm a mind reader," Justin smiled back, fixing his hair. We sat down with our Starbucks, my caramel frapp of course, and ate the pile of food that was on our table for only 4 minutes. "So, what was Stratford like?" I was interested in Justin's background. He hadn't given off a lot, and the little that was said wasn't enough. "Very small. Nothing like LA. You'd freeze there in the fall, let alone the winter." It sounded like he loved talking about his hometown. And I loved hearing him talk. His voice was soothing and nice. "What about you? What's your background?" "Me. I was born and raised in San Jose. And believe it or not, I was the first ten year old to drive a major aircraft." Justin looked at me, full of surprise for a second, then laughing the next. I laughed with him at my failed attempt at a joke. "One thing to know about me, I suck at jokes." I said smiling. "Made me laugh. But spill." I smiled, looking down to remember my childhood. "I was really born in San Jose. Um, I was a model when I was younger, for things like American Girl," I watched Justin as he smiled, seeming genuinely interested in my life. "From there, i did some acting. I was in a few videos, Kanye west, and a Lizzie McGuire commercial. Then one day I was walking down the street singing with my little brother, when a girl came up to me and said I had a really good voice. She said I should go out to LA and be a singer." Justin looked down at his drink, then back at me. "What happened?" I took a deep breathe, wondering if I was ready to share one of my deepest secrets with Justin. But, it wasn't a huge deal. Right? "I uhh.. I was singing at schools I'm the LA area, and one day, I lost my voice. Just gone like thin air. People laughed at me, threw their lunches... I never sang for a crowd again." I looked down, recalling how embarrassed and frightened I'd felt, until I felt a jolt of electricity shoot up from my hand. I looked at Justin, who was holding my hand, softly caressing it with his thumb. "You have a beautiful voice. I know. I heard you sing your heart out last night. Trust me, no one will laugh. And if they ever did, I'd teach them how to respect my Shawty." I could feel myself blushing, but didn't notice the small tear rolling down my cheek until Justin's thumb caught it in its tracks. "Someday, you'll hit the stage again. And when you do, I'll be right there ate front of the crowd screaming my head off." This gave me a boost of confidence, but I wasn't ready... Not yet.
